Finally Grown Up

My sister recently sent me an email to call the Nestle Crunch hotline. I kept the email in my inbox for days. I finally did call the number and followed the instructions. It was hilarious.

This is what you need to do. Call 1-800-295-0051. When you are asked if you want to continue in English or Spanish, just wait quietly for about 10 seconds. Listen to the options...press 4. Listen to the options...then press 7.

Be prepared to laugh

This is a regular conversation at our house.

Kids: Is mommy home?

Me: No, she is working or she is doing something at church.

Kids: So, do we have to have Mac and Cheese or a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch (or dinner)?

Me: Yes, we do. What do you want?

I am expert in cooking. My two expert dishes are Mac and Cheese from a box and peanut butter and jelly. Sometimes I get tried of eating these two fancy foods. I am sure my kids are too. My wife decided that I needed to expand my cooking skills. Yesterday, I had my first Cooking 101 class.

My first lesson in Cooking 101 is to make Rachel's grandma's Macaroni Cheese Deluxe. There are only a few ingredients and it does not take very long to make. Here is how you make it. I am sure many of you already know, how but here it is anyway.

1-7 Oz pkg. (1-3/4 cups) elbow macaroni (we used whole wheat)
2 cups small curd cream-style cottage cheese (YUCK)
1 cup dairy sour cream (Once again YUCK)
1 slightly beaten egg
3/4 tsp. Salt
Dash of pepper
8 ozs. sharp cheese, shreaded (2 cups)(we actually split this between cheddar and Asiago cheese)

Cook macaroni according to directions; drain well. Combine cottage cheese, sour cream, egg, salt and pepper. Add shredded cheese, mixing well; stir in the cooked macaroni. Turn into a greased 9x9x2 inch baking pan. Sprinkle with paprika (but we actually added bread crumbs to melted butter and spread it across the top); bake in 350 oven for 45 minutes.

Conclusion.
This was very easy to make and it tasted much better than box mac and cheese. I don't like sour cream or cottage cheese, but it makes this recipe taste good. My family did not die from the food. They said the homemade mac and cheese tasted good. Am I going to stay in the class Cooking 101 or drop out? At this point I do not know. I might stay for at least one more class. My kids will like this. Maybe daddy will cook something besides boxed mac and cheese or peanut butter and jelly for lunch.

Since the passing of an icon, many people are writing about memories of Michael Jackson. I was a fan of Michael Jackson in the early years of his Thriller album. I was tuned into MTV to watch the premiere of his lengthy Thriller video. To this day, I think this the best music video ever made. Now in my 30's, I have to say I have not watched MTV in years.

At that time, Michael Jackson had a line of jackets. I so wanted one of these. I begged my parents to buy me one. I eventually owned one of these red jackets, complete with all of the zippers. I could not wait until I wore the jacket to school. A lot of my classmates told me that no one liked Michael Jackson at our school. I only wore the jacket a couple more times and never again because other students made fun of me.

Our family recently went to the Zoo. My middle daughter was excited to see Dorothy the Dinosaur. She was disappointed because she thought Dorothy was a real dinosaur. Dorothy is a character on the Wiggles and not real. What happenned to my daughter? She is growing up and too old for Dorothy. My oldest daughter was embarassed just being in the presence of Dorothy. At least the baby enjoyed it!

My middle child seems to get into the youngest's face too much, then the youngest gets upset by her older sister. I caught both of them playing nicely together. I hope this happens more often.

My job as a stay at home has become a little easier - or has it? My oldest daughter went on vacation with her grandparents to Shaver Lake and Oregon. She is also planning on staying with her Aunt, Uncle, and cousins for a while. This will make two daughters at home with me. My oldest daughter and middle child fight a lot, so I thought with her gone it would make things easier for me. WRONG!

I did not realize how much my oldest daughter does to help me at home. First, my daughter unloads the dishwasher, and she seems to enjoy unloading the dishes just as much as I do! I cannot seem to keep up with the dishes. It seems like I am loading and unloading every day. Second, my daughter sits on the floor with our one year year and plays with her while I try to get some housework done. I cannot let my middle child to do this because she seems to always make her mad. A funny thing about that is that she can make the baby laugh like no one else can.

I want my daughter to come home and help me. She is a big help. It is not easier with only two children home.

When my oldest daughter was a baby, I was a stay at home dad when she was 6-weeks old. I remember the fond memories of my daughter crying day and night. It is pretty sad that is pretty much all I remember during that the time...the crying. One time I called my mother-in-law at work to ask if she could help me with her crying granddaughter. I could not handle her crying any longer.

Nine years later and two more daughters, I am a stay at home dad again. My wife has been hired as full-time office worker at a local business. This time I have three daughters 9, 5, and almost 1. This time, my experience as a stay at home dad will be different. It has been a week so far and I am enjoying being home with my children. Let's see if the "I AM BORED", CAN I, or I AM HUNGRY drives me crazy like my oldest daughter's crying did nine years ago.