Workout blues...

So I bought the EA Sports active 2 game for the ps3. It looked pretty cool, comes with a heart rate monitor, and bands to let the game know how you are moving as well as a usb stick to track your progress online. So yesterday I figured I would try it for the first time. I have not worked out in years other that walking or playing with my kids so I was not sure what to expect. I changed into workout gear and strapped everything on and got warmed up. I set it up as a beginner so as not to be too hard as I recently had a baby also. Went through the 20 minute workout and burned some calories. I have to say I had fun! Got a sweat going and didn't feel too bad afterwards. The program I started is a 9 week program so I hope to see some results for summer. The part of the blues comes after the workout...you see the game came with a usb stick to track your progress online. So after my workout I sit down at my pc and head over to the EA website...oops site does not exist.. Hmm??? where did it go?? After some investigating I find that the game did not do as well as they had hoped and so the site where you can track your progress is no longer available. So I have decided to continue with the workouts and see what happens, I am sure I will notice some changes even if I cannot track it online it does keep a record of your progress on the game. So wish me luck as I embark on a new adventure! Here's to a new me!

My week in review..

This has been a crazy week for me. From taking my boys to the doctor finding out Jaxan's eye has not changed and Jevan has a murmur that is not serious, which is good, to going to court for full custody of Jaxan . I won which was what we wanted and it was amazing being able to walk out of there knowing my son will never have to suffer any abuse from his father. Then we pick up a new entertainment center and now my entire living room has been rearranged! I have lived here for almost 5 years and have never changed my living room around so I figured it was time. That started an avalanche of cleaning which is never a good thing in my house..you never know what you might find hiding in the nooks and crannies...lol. I am pretty amazed at myself this last year I have purged the basement, moved around my kids rooms, sold a bike that was given to me by my abusive ex, moved my living room around and got rid of a bunch of clutter, and cleaned and changed the kitchen also. Now the last couple of items left is my room and my desk..I like to say I am 2 boxes short of being a hoarder..lol so this last year of cleaning has been very cathartic for me. I have needed to purge a lot of my old life for some time now. In a couple of weeks I will have 4 years of crack cocaine and meth and some of what I was holding onto was from the old life and I needed to get rid of it finally, so I have been feeling good about getting rid of the old crap. My desk and my room are going to be tough as they are pretty cluttered and I need to find places to put the stuff. I hope I can get rid of enough to clear some of the clutter and enjoy my new cleaner lifestyle!

Proud momma

I am a very proud momma. My son just celebrated his 6th birthday and he got a lot at Christmas this year and was acting very selfish so we had a talk and we decided that instead of gifts he would ask for donations for a charity of his choice. I gave him a choice between a womens shelter, the Stollery Childrens Hospital and the Humane Society. He chose the Stollery. We sent out the invites and called the Stollery and got it all arranged and made sure he was still ok with how we were doing it and he was. The big day came and we raised $180 at the party. At this time I am unsure of what we raised in online donations but when we get a total they will put together a giant check for my son to present with a photo op. He is pretty excited about this. I am too. I hope to be able to carry on the tradition and teach him more about giving back to others. He is an amazing kid and I am a very proud momma!

Kijiji Finds!

I love kijiji.  I mean Love kijiji!! It is a great site to find stuff cheap, I have found some great finds on that site for free as well as at a great price! Yesterday for example we picked up a chocolate fountain for my sons birthday party this weekend, a deep fryer that I have been wanting for awhile now, a microwave oven as ours was getting really bad, a toy for my 3 month old baby that will last him until he is 5 or better and a PS3 with games all for $307! How can you go wrong with that? You can't! I recommend the site to everyone and you can even find a laugh or two on there on occasion. If you have never heard of it you should check it out at www.kijiji.com you can set your preferences to your location or search anywhere in the world! They have a free section and you can set your parameters for what you are looking for narrowing your search even more! You want to beware of fake ads and fake posters but for the most part I have had a great experience with the site. Check it out!

Happy Birthday to me...

Today I turned 39. For my whole life my birthday sucked..A couple weeks after Christmas and right before most paydays no one wants to do anything...just sucks..Today I was determined not to let it suck. We had plans for dinner, which didn't happen but that is ok because the DH made an effort to make me a nice dinner and make my birthday better and it was the nicest gesture anyone has ever done for my birthday. For years I have wanted to go to Von's Steakhouse and Oyster bar here in Edmonton and we finally had reservations but due to circumstances beyond our control we had to cancel, so DH went and got us a roast and some crab and we made some crab and white wine sauce over bow tie pasta and a roast with potatoes and carrots. I also got to have a nice bubble bath with a glass of wine and some candles and just relax for a bit. So even though it was not what we planned it was just what I wanted and it was an amazing day after all.

Now what?

As I sit here with my youngest filling his pants in my lap, I can't help but wonder what's next? For some time now I have been debating on what to do with myself that will support me and my babies. I enjoy writing, hence why I started this blog. And the other day while nursing my 3 month old at 4 am some thoughts came to mind. I normally keep a journal near my bedside because I will wake at odd hours thinking about stuff and need to write it down or I will forget it. I had taken the book downstairs earlier to write down some dreams and ideas we had and I had left it there so here I was at 4 am trying to find my book on the table by the light of my cellphone. I grabbed the book and headed back upstairs to finish feeding the baby and write down my thoughts. Before I knew it I had 2 childrens books written! I have had an idea to write childrens books for some time now for my kids and now I have 2 done already! Now the daunting task of publishing and marketing my book which I have turned into a series about my 3 year old and the adventures we have learning to deal with him being blind in one eye! And the baby just looked up at me from my breast and cooed at me with a big smile! I think he likes the idea too!!

Mmmm chicken fingers and home fries.

So my usual trick is to find whatever we have in the cupboard and coat the chicken with it and bake or fry it..and I can usually get something pretty good together. I found a stale bag of Doritos in the cupboard that were a bit spicy and so did not get eaten. So here is what we had for dinner tonight.

4 potatoes
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
bag of doritos
bit of oil
salt and pepper
2 eggs

I quartered the potatoes and tossed them with a bit of salt and pepper and some rosemary and parsley, then laid them out on a sheet pan and in the oven at 425. The fries should take about 45 minutes  to an hour depending on how thick you cut them.

For the chicken I cut it into strips and tossed it in the beaten eggs and Doritos and then fried them in a shallow pan with a bit of oil in it just to crisp up the crust then transferred to a sheet pan and put them in the oven also. These should be done as the potatoes are done if you timed it right.

Make whatever dip you like.

Today's Lesson Lock the door!!

So the other day I learned a valuable lesson as a parent, lock the door when napping. I normally do have the door locked when I am home alone as I have an abusive ex-partner(a story for another day). But the other day I apparently forgot as I took the baby upstairs for a feeding and a lie down. I usually set the 3 yr old up in his room with the tv and a drink and I take the baby to my room and feed him and as I was lying down with the baby I was listening to the 3 yr old play. I heard him go downstairs and was singing and moving about and then I heard the door open and I assumed it was his brother coming home from school. Then I listened for a minute and heard him talking to someone but it did not sound like my son. I immediately got up and went down to check it out. Here a friend of mine had popped by for a visit and Jaxan had opened the door for him! We explained to Jaxan why he should not open the door and went on to visit for the afternoon.   But from now on I make sure the door is locked before heading upstairs!..

I just need some symthathy..

So my 3 year old has developed quite a flair for the dramatic these days, and I am hoping it ends soon. It seems since he turned 3 the tears have not stopped flowing. To the point where the other day I asked him if he was really hurt or was just looking for some sympathy and he tells me I just need some symthathy..well I nearly died laughing but since that point I have tried to be more sympathetic to my sons plight and sit down with him for a minute and ask what is going on or give him a snuggle for a few minutes. And when he is making a scene in the store or at a friends or family function I calmly sit down with him and ask him to take a breath and we both take a deep breath and snuggle for a minute so he can gather himself and then we try and decipher his 3 yr old perceptions of what the issue of the moment is and how to resolve it in a quieter way.

We forgot Ironhide!!!

Why is it that the 3 yr old always needs to bring a toy to where ever we are going only to leave it behind and remember 5 minutes down the road?...We face this reality almost every time we venture out somewhere. You think I would have learned by now to either A: not bring the toy or B: make sure we don't forget the toy.  But alas I have not and we inevitably leave the toy behind every time. I'm thinking maybe this will spawn a line of toys with a way to strap to the kids so they are not forgotten. Or maybe this will spawn a generation of mothers who have a better memory. I'm guessing no on the latter. So now the decision do we turn around and go back to retrieve the toy or call and let Auntie know that we forgot him and can she please bring him next time she comes this way. We sent a text, don't worry I wasn't driving.

YAY HOCKEY!! NOT!!

Yay the hockey lockout may be over, big f*n deal...what does that mean to me? Not much, I am not a fan, never have been. It was shoved down my throat as a kid with my brother playing and my cousins playing. I find it deplorable that these people would be fighting over more money when there is so many people in this world with nothing. How can they justify the salaries they already get? They skate around and play with a stick and a puck, I as a mother of 4 boys have way more skills than these people. I may not have a special skill or talent but why shouldn't I get millions of dollars for the effort I put in every day? Personally I will not be watching the games nor buying the merchandise, and when my partner watches I will leave the room as I cannot sit there and watch these assholes who feel they deserve more then any one else play a silly game that was meant to be played in fun.

Chicken and rotini dinner..

I decided to call my blog mommy kisses and hot chocolate thinking I would also share some of our favorite recipes with my readers. Tonight after sledding we came home and I whipped up a quick easy dinner here's what I did.

3 Chicken Breasts
2 cups rotini pasta
1 can peas
garlic
water
1 cup milk
chicken stock
flour or corn starch rue.
season to taste

Cube the chicken and toss in a large pot with enough water to cover the chicken and the pasta, I used one of those concentrated stock packets and added it now, boil for a few minutes and add the peas, I also added some sage and salt and pepper and chopped up garlic at this point. When chicken and pasta are near done about 10-15 minutes add milk and the rue. Stir until it tightens up.

I got this idea from the new dish at Tim Horton's and although I have not tried it yet I think mine was better. Try it let me know what you think.

Goggles my dear Watson..

So today we decided to take the boys tobogganing. Sounds like fun right?..hahaha Well now we have to find clothes for everyone, get the baby fed and dressed and settled enough so that he won't fuss too much while we are trying to have fun, find Jaxan's mitts as he usually loses them right before we go anywhere, and try and fit us all and the sleds in the van before mom has a melt down and turns around to go have a nap. Now mom has not gone down the hill in a couple of seasons as I have back issues and being a single mom until recently it was hard to keep tabs on all of them and have fun also. The first time this year that we took Jaxan he decided he did not care for it as he got a face full of snow while going down the hill, so on subsequent trips he was not having any of it. Today however we were talking about finding him some goggles  and Jevan pipes up hey mom I know where there is some! I send him down to find them and he brings up some swimming goggles! Hey this might work! We adjust them to his head and get them on and get everyone ready. Off we go...Well the first trip down the hill is a success!! He loved it. Got all the way back up the hill and he said mom I didn't even get snow in my eyes! We were able to make it a few more trips down the hill before he started to tell me he was cold and wanting to go home. So from now on we know what little item we wont be leaving home without...at least when we go tobogganing.

Welcome

This is my first post on my blog. I wanted to start a blog to write down what I experience as a mom of 4 boys 3 of which are 5 and under right now. My oldest is Jorian, he turned 13 in September, still hard to believe I have a teenager. My next oldest is Jevan, he is 5 but will be six next week, he is the one I have to remind myself that he is still 5 as he is very strong minded and strong willed. After that I have Jaxan, he just turned 3 in October. He was born with a cataract in his right eye and is blind in that eye and we are working on potty training right now. I am happy to say he pretty much has it down pat already after only 3 months of working steady at it. Finally I had Jensan 3 months ago on October 4th. We are all adjusting to life with a new baby in the house. He is nursing and the other boys tend to want my time while he is feeding so I have to work out how to help them and snuggle them while I have a baby on the breast. That is where Chase comes in, he is my partner, and although he is not the father of Jensan from the day he was born he said that he would be the only father that baby would know. He has been amazing at taking care of me and the babies for the last few months but now he is ready to go back to work and I will be left to take care of the babies. Oh my how am I going to do this? Should be easy right? I have done this before..I am hoping to use this blog as a place to right down what works and what doesn't work. As a mother I know all about mommy brain and how we tend to forget things, I am finding out how differently each child needs to be parented for each of their strengths and weaknesses and how i need to grow and learn what I need in order to be a better parent. I have already grown so much as a person, giving up crack cocaine 4 years ago and meth 7 years ago and now deciding to take my life to places I have never been before, places I never would have let myself dream of. Growing up being abused in every way shape or form I never would have imagined what real love felt like for myself or my kids. But finding it in my kids and in my partner is the most amazing feeling in the world, I want to share that feeling with others that is why this is called mommy kisses and hot chocolate because as a mom I have come to find out that nothing is better at making us feel better than mommy kisses and hot chocolate and I wanted to share that with you.