Cruise Day One

We all met in Miami. We had a ton of luggage but turned out I only had the outfit I was wearing, two outfits for dinner, three shirts and three bottoms. Oops.I just rewore stuff and I bought two souvenir shirts.

Finally onboard.

We had a late lunch.

Then we went down to see Karen Kingsbury and her crew. This is her mom, Anne.

This is Kelsey who is engaged to Kyle from Anthem Lights.

And Karen's son Tyler who is a freshman at Liberty University.

He's going into music. Jasmine sang My Chains are Gone for him. A couple of weeks ago Jasmine sang a song Tyler wrote to Rick's Sunday school class.

They shut down Karen's line because it was time for the lifeboat drill when we were just a few people from getting pictures with Karen. But then Karen was at the same lifeboat station as us. The boys were on the other side of the ship.

The sea was still calm here. But we had high winds later and none of us felt too well. Tyler was the least affected. The rest of us were really sea sick. Blah. Not the best way to start the cruise.

We missed the opening sessions in the evening but later--like around midnight--we started feeling better (except Jessica who slept through until morning). I went next door to the guys' cabin and they went up and got pizza for me. The girls group (including me) all skipped dinner.

The guys got a little goofy about 1 a.m. We thought about going up for the activities (Matthew West and Mandissa) but decided to try and get some sleep.

Amazing Women

Every year a group of amazing women meet in Orlando. These women all have one thing in common--difficult children to parent. Some of them have real horror stories. I was able to stop by and meet two of them who I'm bloggy/FB friends with.

I did almost all of the talking, and then later I thought of about a million questions for them. They are real survivors, and I'd love to know more of their stories. The things they can't blog about because "normal" people with "normal" children just wouldn't get it. But these women have connected with other parents who do get it. And that makes a big difference. Rick and I felt so isolated when we were dealing with some of these issues because not that much was known about attachment disorder. Even counselors fell for the phony charm and the manipulation. How awesome to meet these women who do get it. We need about two weeks just to talk. So even though we were only together a short while, it was amazing.

Being with other authors who get what I do and then other moms who understand what I went through was amazing (I know I already used that word--I'm not in editor mode).

You guys ROCK!

More Conference

Even though I was only at conference for a day and a half, it was nice to connect with everyone. Seriously, this is the group where I fit in. It's a nice feeling. Eva Marie Everson. She's had a tough year but has kept writing. Check out her books on amazon.

Jasmine brought her practice pad and spent some time in Maple Fellowship practicing as well as doing some math and a lot of DS time.

Jasmine sang in the morning session on Sunday.

Christine Tangvald, children's author Cecil Murphy

Edwina Perkins

Clella Camp and Christine Tangvald

Earlier there had been crocodiles by the little lake on the conference grounds, so we went to see. There were three.

You can see two on the edge of the lake. One went in when we got near.

Then Jessica scared the other two by running to catch up with us.

At Conference

The girls and I are at Florida Christian Writer's Conference.

Hanging out with people we only see once or twice a year. This is Anitra. She is here doing interviews for a Christian radio station. I was doing really great until I got half way through a two part answer and forgot what the question was! Did she bail me out? Uh, no. Hehe. Oh well.

Torry Martin. He created the character of Wootan on Adventures in Odyssey.

My angels.

Or maybe not so angelic!!

You can tell we take life very seriously here : )

Hanging with Janis.

Um, yes she walking through the parking lot while on her computer.
Amusing ourselves in the chow line.

What's Cooking?

Kayla made mixed vegetable casserole. When I worked in the college cafeteria as a freshman, we'd make something similar to this by throwing together all the leftover meat and all the leftover vegetables and mixing it with soup. It was actually a little disgusting to think about, but okay to eat if you didn't know what was in it. However, I made up my own recipe based on that experience. I'm sure there is probably an official recipe for this in a soup cookbook or somewhere, but mine is easy.

Mixed Vegetable Casserole
1 lg. pkg. mixed vegetables cooked
1 lb hamburger browned
Lg. can cream of chicken soup
hash browns, warmed
salt
pepper

Mix and bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes.

Jasmine made an easy bbq chicken recipe and choose rice and broccoli to go with it.

Love those bead colors but I put them in to go with the outfit she wore for her party, and they didn't match everything.

Adam made one of his favorite standbys--Mexican Shepherd's Pie. It usually has tortilla chips around the edge by the tomatoes.

Mexican Shepherd's Pie
1 lb lean ground beef
½ cups slice green onions (our chef left these out)

1 c thick salsa
1 ½ tsp chili powder
¾ tsp cumin
11 oz can mexicorn drained
1 pouch Betty Crocker loaded mashed potatoes (these sell by the pouch, not in a box)
1 1/3c water
2 tbs butter
1 c milk
½ c shredded cheddar cheese
1 med tomatoes cut into wedges
tortillas chips

Cook ground beef and 1/4c of the onions in 10" skillet until beef is cooked through. Stir in salsa, chili powder and cumin. Spoon corn evenly over beef mixture in skillet. Cover and cook over slow heat until thoroughly heated.

Meanwhile, in 2-qt saucepan, heat water and butter to boiling. Remove from heat and stir in milk and pouch of potatoes with seasoning until just blended. Let stand 1 minute. Beat with fork.

Spoon potatoes over the mixture in the skillet. Spread evenly. Sprinkle with cheese and remaining onion. Cover and cook over low 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Arrange tomato wedges around potatoes. Garnish with tortillas chips.

Jessica made a beef stir fry. She is going to try several recipes and then make her own based on what she likes most about each.

Beef Stir Fry
2 tbs cornstarch 2 med carrots thinly sliced
2 tsp sugar 6 oz package frozen pea pods thawed
6 Tbs soy sauce 2 Tbs chopped onion
¼ c apple juice 2 Tbs vegetable oil divided
1 lb boneless beef round steak 8 oz can sliced water chestnuts undrained
cut into strips hot cooked rice
3 c broccoli florets

In a bowl, combine corn starch, sugar, soy sauce and apple juice until smooth. Add beef and toss to coat; set aside. In a large skillet, stir-fry broccoli, carrots, pea pods and onion in 1 Tbs oil for one minute. Stir in water chestnuts. Cover and simmer four minutes. Remove and keep warm. In the same skillet, stir-fry beef in remaining oil until meat reaches desired doneness. Return vegetable to pan. Toss. Serve over rice.

And that's what we had in February!

Organized Chaos

That best describes my life right now.

First, Wednesdays are chaotic. Jessica has a car only on Wednesdays. It takes two of us to get everyone everywhere. It goes like this:

6:10 Rick takes Jasmine to the high school to catch the transfer bus to her charter school. He comes back.

6:40 Jessica takes Rick to work so she can have the car.

8:30 Jessica leaves for college.

1:35 I get the twins from school. They are only car riders this one day because the bus gets home too late for us to make tumbling.

1:45 I get the twins in reality because the line is backed up that far.

2:00 Mad scramble to change to tumbling clothes, pick out homework and reading to do in the car, quickly organize jobs for later.

2:10 Need to be out the door for tumbling.

2:20 Time we are usually walking out the door for tumbling (at the dance academy).

2:25 Jessica picks Jasmine up and brings her to the dance academy. She changes there.

2:45 tumbling starts, Jasmine works on homework, Jessica assists with tumbling.

3:30 Tumbling ends and Jessica take the twins home, Jasmine's jazz class starts

4:30 Jasmine's tap class starts

5:00 done with dance, Jessica is at home frantically trying to get out the door to her evening precalculus class back down at the college

We had tried to go to church choir and missions at this time with Jasmine but it was too stressful and she'd end up doing homework for half the night so she and I go somewhere to eat (Chick Fil A, Hardees, Sarkus or Sbarros) and talk for a little bit. Sometimes we take her work with and I'll quiz her on social studies while we eat.

5:30 Adam gets home from Track practice

6-7 We get back home. Rick has the twins fed and working on their homework.

9:00 Jessica gets home

As you can tell, everyone has to work together in order for all of us to survive Wednesdays.

But yesterday one decided he as going to sabotage it all. He couldn't get his shoes on, he couldn't find his tumbling bag, he couldn't find his snack to take etc. We left without the bag, shoes (it was 70F), homework or snack. So then he had to pout over that. Then call attention to himself at the dance academy etc.

I don't use time out. He loves time out. I would give him time out, and he'd want to stay in it when time was up because sitting and doing nothing is his favorite activity. So I give jumping jacks. If he's angry, it wears it off. If he's goofing off, it redirects him. If he acts like he can't do something I know he can do, it gets the blood flowing to his brain (or at least that's what I tell him). It also helps his fitness level. A minor offense will earn one set of 100. Something more major like a fit will earn 5 sets. We don't give more than five at a time. Five sets takes about 6-7 minutes so about the same as time out.

But last night before all was said and done, he earned ten sets. But he was to do them in two sets of five with a break between. I forgot to tell Jessica he owed them. She knew he owed some from poor choices at the bus stop, but she thought he'd done them. I didn't tell her about the others. But I'd told him he was not to play until his homework was done and his sets were done.

I got home last night and he says, "Look what I'm doing and smirks at me." He's sitting on the floor building with Lincoln Logs. And he thinks he's won because he did exactly what I told him he couldn't do--play unti the jumping jacks were done. Grrrr. He'd told Rick he didn't have anything to do and could play. So Rick was unhappy at having been lied to. Amazingly Kayla didn't tell on him. They love to tattle on each other. He thought he was getting away with something. He didn't. And he got sent to bed instead of playing too.

So that was a pretty typical Wednesday.

Life is more chaotic than normal right now because of the things I posted about in that last post. I have stuff for the day and a half of conference, stuff for the cruise and stuff for Disney. Some clothing is going to be used for two or all three of those events (assuming I don't drop something on myself at lunch). They guys are packing separately for the cruise. So we have two hanging bags and several pieces of luggage.


Nope. He's not going. He just has to lay on something!

I'm not sure how much Internet access I'll have along the way so if you don't hear from me between Sunday and the following Saturday, I'm just without Internet. It's a fortune to use it on the ship, and I can leave without Facebook for a week. I plan to spend every minute with my family and connecting with each of them.

Then once I'm home, I'll do things with the twins for the remainder of spring break. They are really fun to be with when they are not playing "games." Sometimes they just have to have control, and then things don't go well. Other times they are happy to go along with the plan, and we all have fun.

They've made a ton of progress in the last two years both academically and socially. They understand family life and what's expected (even when they choose not to do it). Kayla still has to have control in her classroom and I hope that will gradually diminish as she sees it doesn't get her what she wants. And maybe some day she will be a great leader!

We should have a court date for readoption soon.

The driveway is done and is functional, but it's really ugly! Not what I though it would look like. More like a parking lot. Blah. We need to edge it, and then put something around it. Stones or bushes?

When I had to take the SUV in to fix where the lady hit me (no, she hasn't reimbursed my $500 deductible!), I had them take the scratches off the side. They straightened the license plate where the jet ski trailer hit it. I don't recognize the car until I get close enough to see the bungee cord that holds the driver's side mirror on!

They were cleaning each other--until I got the camera out.

Jessica loves this for breakfast.

I will try to post what all the kid's cooked soon. I might set it to post Saturday while I'm at conference.

Well, that's the controlled chaos here for now. How about you?