Typical Corynn....

My back has been sore this week. Not sure why- just stiff and ache-y. This morning as the girls and I were getting ready to go to school - I moaned a little bending over to reach something.

McKynna: "What's wrong?"
Me: "My back is still sore."
McKynna: "Why does your back hurt?"
Me: "because of Corynn- giving birth to a ten pound baby tends to mess you up."

Corynn: "Ya, it messed me up too!"

I couldn't quit laughing- she said it so matter-of-fact. Like mom- quit complaining... I had to have neurosurgery. Too funny! and completely typical!

My favorite WOK recipe

John bought the wok accessory to his grill last spring and this my favorite dish to make on it- yummmmm! The key to Chinese cooking is having all your ingredients cut and ready to go. Because once you start the cooking- it moves really fast!

Chicken Lo Mein

The best part about this colorful dish is its versatility -- you can pick and choose the vegetables you include to accommodate your family's tastes. A wok isn't necessary- a large skillet will do.

1/2 pound spaghetti
3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
1 medium onion, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
4 to 5 shiitake mushroom caps, thinly sliced (optional)
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup sugar snap pea pods, halved
1 (15-ounce) can Chinese baby corn, drained and cut in thirds
1 to 1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-size strips
Step 1
Cook the noodles according to the package directions until just tender. Drain out the water. Rinse the noodles with cold water, drain them well, and then set them aside.

Step 2
In a small bowl, mix the hoisin sauce, chicken broth, soy sauce, sesame oil, and cornstarch. Then set the sauce aside.

Step 3
Heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil in a large wok or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Stir-fry the ginger for 30 seconds. Then add the onion and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and carrots and stir-fry 2 minutes more. Finally, add the broccoli, pea pods, and corn. Stir-fry the vegetables for 2 more minutes, then transfer them to a plate.

Step 4
Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in the pan. Add half of the chicken and stir-fry it until it's no longer pink, about 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer it to another plate. Stir-fry the remaining chicken, then return the first batch to the pan. Add the cooked noodles, vegetables, and sauce. Turn the heat down to medium.

Step 5
Using two spatulas or wooden spoons, lightly toss the mixture until heated through, about 3 minutes. Serves 6 to 8.

Cool little tool

My mother-in-law told me about a website a few years ago and I have been searching for it ever since. Its a site that gives you meal recipes based on the ingredients you have on hand. One Saturday- I surfed the internet for about two hours and found one! Probably not the same one- but a pretty darn good one.

I have used it several times- when I need to make something and don't want to run to the store. Especially the desserts and salads. Most meals are ready in 30 minutes or less. BONUS!

Just wanted to share with all you busy mamas out there- hope you like it!

Kraft Foods. com
http://www.kraftfoods.com/main.aspx?s=recipe&m=recipe/knet_recipe_byingredient

Big RED Fun!

On Saturday, John and I took the girls and a friend of theirs to the Husker game. It was Corynn's first official full length game- and she had a blast! She hunted down Herbie and LIttle Red every chance she got and she LOVED screaming at the top of her lungs! She also really liked the cheer leaders!
The twins brought thier friend Elizabeth to the game. It was her first Husker experience- and she had a lot of fun too! She is small and petite for her age and the sweetest little thing. So it shocked us a bit when she started yelling (and I mean YELLING)
"Go big red! Kick 'em in the head! Don't give them roses- give them bloody noses!"

John and I were sitting on the ends with the girls in between us and we just looked at eachother. Then she yelled it again-even louder. Still shocked that this was coming from this sweet little creature- I asked where she learned that.

Her reply-"The twins taught me it!"

Talk about floored- my sweet angels?!- Naaaaaaaaahhhhh! :o)


The other funny thing was when Hill dropped a huge pass in the 3rd quarter. The whole stadium did a collective "ughhhhhhh"
The poor kid through his hands up and hit his helmet. Corynn looked at me with her eyebrows all scrunched up and her hands on her hips and said, "That's not very nice of everyone! He tried hard! He'll do better next time."

Funny that a four year old can put support and sportsmanship into perspective. Such a smart little cookie!

Halloween Idea!

I have a box full of costumes! Fairies, princesses, witches, a bee, zombies, the blue hairy guy from Monsters Inc, Superman and some others.

If anyone wants to get together for a Halloween costume swap- I'd be game. I am tiring of buying costumes every year- especially when its only for one night. So if anyone else wants to participate- just let me know and we can get this going!

Whewwwwwww! That was close!

In order to free up some room on our laptop - I downloaded all of our 2005 and 2006 pictures to a disk. And put them with our 2003 and 2004 disks. I then deleted all 1036 photos and hit the "are you sure you want to this because this will permanently delete all photos...FOREVER" button. That was a few weeks ago.

The girls' christmas present came early this year - a new computer (imac). I was backing up disks on to this computer when I realized that I didn't have the 2005-2006 disk. I looked everywhere...in drawers...with the computer stuff...I looked where the other cds were - NOTHING! Then I remembered that the little boy I watch loves cds... and he had gotten into some the other day. UGHHHH- where would a one year old hide cds. What a scary thought!
Have you ever gotten down to the eye level of a one year old? There are sooooo many places to stick a cd!

I was frantic! I started tearing the house apart. Then I remembered I had made copies of all my disks for my father-in-law. So I called him... his answer was he wasn't sure if he had the disks but he would look and get back to me. UGHHHHHH! He is a very busy man and has alot going on....but I potentially LOST all photos of our family for the last two years. I couldn't just sit and wait!

So I continued to rummage through piles of papers and drawers and cabinets.... and low and behold... I FOUND IT! YEAH!

That was close! I quickly moved all the disks to the new computer and made a duplicate of each one. Craziness!

Finally.....Mr. Ryan Patrick!

I have finally met our newest nephew (on John's side). He was born 8-21-07. Here are a few pix.



Corynn loves babies.... especially her new cousin. Just look at the smile!










Ahhhh...babies are just so soft!




Welcome to the family, little one!

Quite Scary!

Around noon I was outside on my patio with the little boy and baby I watch. It was beautiful outside! I just loved it...but apparently I wasn't the only one who loved the weather because there was a jumbo flying stingy thing hovering around the raspberry bush. I immediately took the baby inside and went back to grab the boy when I was stung on the arm.

NOW this alone doesn't sound that scary...except I am allergic to bee stings and wasn't 100% sure it WASN'T a bee...so I was freaking out. After everyone was inside, I just sort of sat on the arm of the chair waiting for something to happen. IF it was a bee... I would know almost instantly. One minute passed... then five minutes passed...nothing except the throbbing pain in my arm. Within a half hour I was itching everywhere. I went in to the bathroom to grab some ointment when I noticed in the mirror that I was covered in hives.

Just freakin LOVELY! So I load up the kids and run to Walgreens to see what they can do for me and my situation. They recommended some really awesome otc hive medication and told me to take some ibprofin or tylenol. If the hives don't subside by tomorrow I need to call my dr.

CRAZINESS...if its not one thing its another. I usually never go to the dr...just too darn busy with everyone else. I am last one I take care of. After today I decided that I am going to call my dr tomorrow and get a prescription for my epi-pen. I really should be caring it with me at all times... but have fell out of the habit because I have been so lucky, no stings in 10 years!

And 'what if' I had been stung? At home alone with a one year old and a four month old...my cell phone somewhere in the house...my neighbors all at work...

Anyway- a much needed wake up call.

All 'growed' up!

Corynn is just getting too big! My baby girl is no more!



Today she had a field trip at school to the apple orchard. She wanted me to put her hair up in pig tails. She looked so big and grown up...











I think she knows she's cute!!









This the face I see at least 10 times a day since the fillings were put in. The question that goes along with the face is: "Are they still in there?"

She didn't like the way they tasted and swears she can feel them. She is hoping they will fall out in her sleep...

NU v USC

The Nebraska Cornhuskers will be playing top ranked USC this weekend. We were generously offered tickets from John's parents but decided to pass. More than a few people have expressed their shock and disbelief in such a thing. So I feel the need to explain...

I love the Huskers- I think they are a great team! They are the one thing all Nebraskans have in common and in some weird way bind us together forever. You can go on vacation and meet someone, they used to live in Nebraska and instantly the conversation turns to Husker football. This recently happened when I went to Vegas in April. We met a nice elderly couple on the trolley. He used to be one of the defensive coaches for Missouri. He coached during the beginning of Osborne's career. We talked the whole 40 minutes about football and how much he admired Nebraska, the football team and its fans."We were one of kind!"- That coming from a Missouri coach.

So all this being said. I do love Nebraska football. I love all football- but especially NU football. Our state is unique in that we don't have any pro teams or other college teams in that division. So it allows us to come together on game day. And nothing is better than going down to the stadium on game day. Its the energy, the smell of the concessions, the band playing and the never-ending sea of RED that seems to be flooding the city. The excitement and anticipation is almost overwhelming... and that's before you even get to your seat!

I am afraid this game will ruin that image for me. Its a night game- which means tailgaters have been partying since noon. Many of which could be from California- which could cause some tension... as if there isn't already enough of that! People are passionate about football and seem to get crazy and defensive. Some are just down right rude. Also, I have never been to a NU game where Nebraska has lost. Which is probably why I love going to games. I don't want to see Nebraska lose- especially up close and in person.

I think NU will fight a good fight on Saturday and I hope they win! But the odds are against them and I just can't risk it!

You can call me selfish or a pansy or a fair weather fan or whatever. But I am going to be at home, wearing my Husker red and cheering them on from my family room. It will definitely be a great game! GO HUSKERS!

My dad's teeth

I have never had a cavity. John has never had a cavity. McKynna has never had a cavity. Kwynn has never had a cavity. Corynn had three cavities- and now three shiny fillings. My father had horrible teeth- crooked, small, brittle teeth that were cavity prone. I only inherited the small crookedness- but Puka is prone to cavities. She also has very long roots on her baby teeth- which means she may not start losing teeth until she is 7 or 8. She will have her baby teeth for awhile...


The twins didn't start losing teeth until the end of 1st grade- they were so heart broken when their friends lost teeth and received special boxes and treats for losing a tooth. Kwynn swore one of her front teeth was loose- and seven months later it was still there- still loose according to Kwynn.

I also had to wear braces for three years- so if Corynn is the only one with bad teeth- I should consider myself lucky. One out of three isn't bad!

Lovely Weather!

I absolutely loved yesterday's weather! It was cool- pretty much like today without the drizzle. I almost felt like I should be packing up to go to the pumpkin patch- that kind of weather. I love it! Fall is almost here!!!

It also reminded me of Colorado- John went to school up there for a bit. We are heading back next month over fall break! We are all soooooo excited! I need a break! Anyway- I really like autumn weather!!!

What if...

My bestfriend growing up and on the swim team was Tracy. She had a little sister named Kasey who was always wanting to play with us and do things with us. Especially barbies! She always wanted us to play barbies with her- but of course we were too old to do that! We spent five years practically attached to eachother. Going to family outings with each others families, telling people we were sisters and traveling every weekend to swim meets. We lost touch when her family moved to Wolbach in jr high. We would talk on the phone but soon that stopped too. And by highschool- we were strangers.

Two weeks ago I received a phone call from my mom. Kasey had died. Not my friend but her little sister. The one we ignored and never wanted to play with. She had epilepsy. One night she felt a seizure coming on and headed into the kitchen for her meds. She lost consciousness, her head hitting the trash can and falling to the floor. She fell such that her head landed in the trash can with the liner and it suffocated her. She was only 23.

What if I would have played with her, included her, befriended her? What if I wouldn't have treated her like the annoying little sister? What if I could back-knowing how it was going to end?

Not many people that I know have died. I have had grandparents pass on- but we knew it was coming. Something like this was so unexpected and shocking. We weren't even close and I feel affected by it. At Kynna's soccer game there a was girl there that looked like Kasey when we she was girl. She had her mannerisms, energy and blond curly hair.

I think it just reminds me how fragile life is. We can't take it for granted. We should live everyday to the fullest and tell those we love- how much we love and appreciate them.

Hey babe!

3,285 days of laughter, tears, fights, apologies, friendship and love. Happy Anniversary!


Our plans:

Dinner at home with the kids
Watching a movie together as a family
and ice cream cake from DQ


peeerrrrrrfeeecccct!

Family Time

My brothers and our families went to Mahoney State Park for the weekend and had a ton of fun! We all met up Friday night at the cabins.

Saturday was HUSKER time! My brothers and John went to the game, but Tricia (my sister-in-law) and I took all seven of the cousins to Husker Nation. It was a lot of fun and the kids loved it!



The boy cousins wanted their pic taken with cheerleaders but chickened out at the last moment- so the girls stepped in.








All of the cousins except the Elizabeth (she's only 1) had their faces painted and an "N" painted on their heads.








This is all of the cousins except for Christopher (he's 3) and was too tired for any more pictures. This is outside the stadium on our way home from Husker Nation.






The next two pictures are of this mondo tent I made for the little kids to play in. The four oldest cousins were off playing Wii and wouldn't have anything to do with the two little ones. So I played with them. We built this tent over the two sets of bunk beds in one of the rooms.






The tent had five sleeping areas and a living room. The kids loved it!!!!!







So much fun that some of the older kids came down to play too!








On Sunday we took the kids to the water park at Mahoney. It is the neatest waterpark around here!










This is Corynn and her cousin Christopher. They are practically attached at the hip when we get together.







It was a fun time- the kids had a great time and so did the adults. I couldn't figure out why my sides hurt so bad lastnight- but then it occurred to me it was from laughing so much! We really had a good time!
This is pic on the way out of the park... its of all the cousins (except for Corynn who was throwing a major fit... the whole four year old drama queen fits we've become accustomed to)