Red Robin Review

DH and Bud went to Utah for a soccer game this weekend, so I took Ant (almost 8), Cutie (2 years), and my sister Heidi to Red Robin Friday night. Red Robin is on the list of places that consistently mess up DH's special orders, so I haven't been there for at least five years, but when the cat's away...you know.

The hostess told us the wait to be seated would be about 15 minutes, but we waited at least 30 minutes. I would rather be told a wait time that is over-estimated. The hostesses need estimation training. The weather outside was sunny and warm, so we sat out there and had a pleasant wait.

When we were seated, our waitress was right there, asking if we wanted anything to start. Ant, Cutie, and I had strawberry lemonades that were made with sliced strawberries. I liked it, but Cutie freaked out when something squishy and slimy was coming out of the straw into her mouth.

We ordered the kids' pizza for Ant, crispy chicken strips for Cutie, a crispy chicken sandwich (without lettuce) for Heidi, and their famous cheeseburger (no pink) for me. Heidi asked for the fries with ranch dressing for dipping to come before the meal, they are "bottomless fries", after all. The fries came fast, but we waited a while for the rest of it. I think they were short one cook because during our wait, the big red robin came out to visit all the kids.

Well, Cutie panicked when she saw the bird and hid her face in my lap. She looked up every once in a while to see where he was and screamed, "Put him in a cage!" When the red robin came closer to our table, his escort saw the fear in Cutie and saw me with wide eyes shaking my head no, so she led him past the table. Phew! We were safe.

Heidi enjoyed her crispy chicken burger and I ate all my cheeseburger after removing the pound of sliced onions it had on it (does anyone eat all those onions?). Ant ate all the pepperoni from the pizza, but he didn't like the sauce or crust which is unusual for him. I guess I shouldn't expect food on the kid's menu to taste good, especially if it isn't the restaurant's specialty. Cutie hardly touched the chicken strips and I would have asked for a box to take them home if I had seen the waitress after she gave me my credit card slip to sign. Those kids' meals were too pricey to be wasted like that. I should have just shared my cheeseburger and fries with Cutie, and encouraged Ant to choose a burger.

Overall the experience was...fine. We didn't have to send any food back, so it is an improvement from five years ago. Maybe it will take only three years to want to go back again.

Thank You Art Mom

My son brought home a beautiful early Mother's Day present that he made at school today.

Question of the day: What do you do with the lovely art projects your children bring home?

Thursday Thirteen #2 - Weird Me-Me

Taffi at One more thing to do has tagged me for the "six weird things" me-me. Since it's so hard to narrow my issues down to six items, I thought I would just combine it with the Thursday Thirteen.


1. I almost cried when I saw that Taffi included me in her tag list.
2. I like to set my clocks ahead 3-5 minutes. When I start freaking out because I'm late for something, I can relax because, oh yeah, the clock is fast.
3. I can't remember people's names under pressure, especially when I'm trying to introduce them.
4. People ignore me. I can't remember their names (see #3)and don't properly catch their attention before I speak (it's rude to say "Hey, You!"). They just look or walk right past me while I try to strike up a conversation with them.
5. It's taking me forever to write this.
6. I have had this scratched pair of glasses for a few years, but I won't spend money to replace them or to get contacts because I'm waiting for the day I can get laser surgery.
7. I've been able to spend less than $20 at Costco. It doesn't happen very often, but sometimes.
8. The pig sty of this house is my room.
9. I refuse to check pockets (except my own) when I do laundry. My son tried to blame me for ruining his pack of Star Wars trading cards when he's the one who left the cards in his pants when he put them in the laundry basket.
10. If there was a Name That Tune game featuring only 80's music, I would be the champion.
11. I don't like to hold other people's babies if they are older than 1-2 months old. I won't refuse to do it if asked, I just won't like it.
12. My posture is really bad right now as I'm hunching over to look at the computer screen and my right leg is resting on the desk. (My toes are pointed nicely, though.)
13. Although I feel honored to be tagged, I don't like to tag. Unless, you want to be tagged, then consider yourself it and post six weird things about yourself--I'll put your link on this post if you let me know.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

nancy
heather
mommy@home
courtney
karen
denise
titanium
jane
undercover angel
chana
emily
moogie
louise

Imaginary Appointments

My tip today is to trick yourself into thinking that you have a group of people coming over in the mid-morning so you are up and dressed and in clean-up mode before you realize the guests aren't coming. That is what worked for me this morning.

I thought I had a meeting here at 10:00 today. I got out of bed pretty early, showered and dressed before leaving my room, got the kids ready and took a quick trip to the store, came back and had breakfast, unloaded and loaded the dishwasher, and I was about to start de-cluttering the office before I thought, "isn't the meeting next week?" I called one of the ladies and she confirmed my thought. Man, all that for nothing. Well, it was too late to go back to bed, and it felt pretty good to be productive, so the kids and I kept cleaning. Their rooms are spotless, the kitchen is sanitized, the office is mostly picked up, laundry is in the washer, I just fed them lunch, and it's time for a break.

Maybe you are this productive every day, but this is a big deal for me. I've tried the Fly Lady stuff, but rebelled against it. She can't tell me what to do! So I think if I set an imaginary appointment or playdate or meeting at least twice a week, something might get done around here.

Go to the origin of Works-for-Me Wednesday and view other participants.

Our Deepest Fear

Here's an inspirational quote that my friend April gave at a meeting. She was told that Nelson Mandela said it at his presidential inauguration, which would have gone along nicely with the rest of his speech, but he didn't say it. This is from Marianne Williamson who wrote it in Return to Love. I haven't read the book, but I really enjoyed the quote.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

I have been touched, entertained, and inspired by other bloggers. Thanks for letting your light shine, and by doing so, giving me permission to let my light shine as well.

Joe's Crab Shack

This is my VERY FIRST Restaurant Review Saturday!
DH and I were able to get away from home and kids and go to J0e's Crab Sh@ck (a casual, good for the whole family restaurant) for dinner Friday night. The Sh@ck in my city is in a great location next to the river, about 2 feet away now that the river is at flood stage. We were able to take a little stroll along the greenbelt to wind down and get into date mode before the hostess called for Chipper Jones, the name we were assigned.

The menu has changed a bit since we were there a year ago. J0e's now has a house salad with their "famous italian dressing". It's a little Olive Garden-ish. We ordered our salad with the dressing on the side because DH is a little, no, a lot sauce-a-phobic. We have had to boycot certain restaurants for their consistent inability to follow directions like "no dressing" or "no mayo". Well, Joe's passed the the first test and gave us the big bowl of salad with a few cups of their sweet and yummy italian dressing on the side for me. A basket of rolls and cornbread cakes came with the salad. The cornbread must have had some honey butter lightly spread on it, I couldn't get enough.

I ordered the crabcakes dinner while my husband ordered the BBQ dungenous crab platter. I have had the BBQ crab twice before, and while it is tasty, it's extremely messy and I just wasn't in the messy mood. The crabcakes were good, but not good enough to want them again, or to ask for a box to go.

The service was great. We had re-fills before our drinks were 3/4 empty. Once an hour or so, the servers do a little dance for the diners. We got to see the Love Shack line dance to the B52's song. The male servers got into it more than the female servers who were just slightly going through the motions.

Another job I would like to have when I grow up is to be the decorator for J0e's Crab Sh@ck. It looks like you just have to go to garage sales and purchase everything they have besides clothing and books, then attach those items randomly all over the walls. Actually, the job probably requires a lot more creativity than that, I mean, how do you securely suspend a play kitchenette from the ceiling?

So, to sum up, go to a J0e's Crab Sh@ck near you for the BBQ crab legs, but try to refrain from filling up with the salad and cornbread before the the crab is served.

Did you get to eat out this weekend? Where did you go? Give a little review.

Fun for Every Day of the Week

I'm loving all the contests and fun me-me things that go on throughout the week and I want to put daily links on my sidebar to the blogs who have something special happening that day. These are the ones I've come across so far:

Guess It at Her Majesty's Throne
Tip Tuesday at Daring Young Mom
The Big Trade-Off has her Weekend Round-up
Of course there's the Thursday Thirteen.
Rocks in My Dryer just started her Works-for-Me Wednesday.

What other weekly specials are there in our mommy/wife area of the blogosphere? I'll have to think of something to jump on the bandwagon--Maybe Inspirational Sunday, or Family Home Evening Idea Monday, or Restaurant Review Saturday after having Date Night Idea Friday. Ooh, I would love to do the Restaurant Review Saturday--maybe I can get some freebies out of it?

So this is a plea for posts on this one, spread the word. K?

Thursday Thirteen #1

13 Things about Bud...
1. Bud is the 2nd of our three children.
2. He's 4, almost 5 years old
3. He is a peaceful, happy, and loving child.
4. Speaking of peaceful and loving, he loves to have weapons. The channel changer is his gun, and a tree branch is his sword.
5. His imagination is great--today he was killing the robots that were trying to attack our dog.
6. The robots must have been quite a challenge, he's worn out.
7. In January, he started showing his interest and ability to write his name.
8. He's learning how to read using the Bob Books.
9. Bud loves to cook with me.
10. Chocolate is his favorite thing to eat.
11. He has been craving "chicken-rice" for a few months now. I've made sweet-n-sour chicken & rice, spanish chicken & rice, chicken w/rice chimichangas, & more to satisfy his craving, but none are the dish he's wanting.
12. His preschool teacher says that Bud listens well during circle time and he tells good stories.
13. I love Bud

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Works-for-Me Wednesday

Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer has made up "Works-for-Me Wednesday", where we share "shortcuts or ideas around our homes to make managing our lives easier". I thought it's a great idea, so here's mine.

When you go to the grocery store with your children, do you get irritated when they whine "can we have this?" To put a stop to the whining and to avoid any temper tantrums in the store, make a list of groceries before you go inside the store. Ask each child what item (within reason) they would like to add to the list. Now would be the time for them to tell you that they would like pudding, or a certain cereal, or white bread. When you go into the store, pick up only what is on the list (no exceptions, even for mom--the kids will make sure of that). Being consistent with this method has made grocery shopping with my kids easy, fast, and even enjoyable.

Changing Traditions

We had a great Easter. Saturday, Cutie gave a squeal of excitement when I came home from the mall with a box for her. Inside it were some shiny white dress shoes with a bit of a heel. She proceeded to put them on and do a little tap dance on the tile floor. Bud and Ant were up before 5:00 a.m. Sunday to check out their baskets. Bud got some binoculars and Ant got the latest Magic Treehouse book. Cutie woke up at 7:00 to find her Dora the Explorer ball set.

Heidi skipped the singles' branch and came to Sacrament Meeting with our family. I'm a secretary in the Primary and had stuff to do in the hallway the second hour, but I got to sit down and listen to the sharing time in the third hour. Of course, the subject was the true meaning of Easter. The Spirit really touches me when I think of Jesus' talk with Mary by the sepulchre. I can imagine that in a split second her emotions went from fierce mourning to rejoicing when He said her name.

After church we colored eggs, prepared some food, then we went to another one of my sisters' house for lunch. Five of the six siblings were there with two spouses and ten children. My parents couldn't make it this year.

We came home in time to get things ready for dinner with Terry's family. He was so helpful as he made Jerusalem charoset and a salad. Grandma and Grandpa and Terry's sister and her husband came with gifts and candy for the kids (Ant, Bud, and Cutie are the only grandkids on Terry's side of the family). For the first time in about eight years I didn't feel stressed about anything while having a function at my home--maybe because I'm learning to ask for help.

When I was a child, we did all the Easter Bunny, baskets, eggs, etc. on Saturday. Sunday was reserved to focus on the Lord. Terry's father was born Jewish and his mom was born Catholic, but neither practiced or talked about their religions. Easter and Christmas were celebrated, but Jesus really wasn't a part of it. After we were married nine years ago we both made adjustments. To him, having the Easter Bunny come on Saturday was like going trick-or-treating on October 30th (which we do if Halloween is on Sunday), or opening all the presents on Christmas Eve (which, I understand, some families do). Anyway, the idea just didn't make sense to him. We decided to try some activities in the book A Christ-Centered Easter that have been really nice to do throughout the week before. We have even tried doing a Passover seder to learn more about the kids' 1/4 Jewish heritage. We now do all the fluffy bunny stuff on Sunday morning which I like because it makes the Easter Bunny just a little part of a big special day instead of being the main focus of a day by itself.

Terry and I establish our family traditions as we go--some we combine, some we leave out, some we modify, and some we create. What are some adjustments you have made as you establish your family traditions.

Letters to and from the Easter Bunny

Ant's letter to the Easter Bunny(punctuation and spelling have not been edited):

Dear, Easter bunny how many bunnylings do you have? Do you know Santa Claus? What's your favorite kind of food(s)? What are some of your favorite bunnyling's names? How long is the bunny trail? What are your favorite colors? Do you have a trampilene to bounce higher on? Do you have any favorite toys? How do you like the picture of this carot? There is a carrot down here. Awnsers on the back of this sheet.

Peter Cottontail's reply:

Hello Ant, Bud, and Cutie. Happy Easter! I have 5 bunnylings. Their names are Hoppy, Whitey, Fluffy, Tiny, and Slim. I only met Santa one time. It was at Rudolph's last birthday party. I like to eat all vegetables, but I love carrots. The bunny trail is a really long trail that goes around the whole earth. My favorite color is orange. Do you know why? I don't play with toys, but I like to read books about history. I don't need a trampoline to jump high. You are a good artist. That is an awesome looking carrot. Thank you for the snack. I hope you like the gifts and candy.
Love, The Easter Bunny (Peter)

When I Grow Up

When I volunteer at school each week I get to meet individually with the second graders to help them correct any errors they made on their math concept tests. I love how their eyes light up when they "get it" as I explain that you can remember that a hexagon has six sides because they both have an x in them, or that an octagon has eight sides like an octopus has eight legs. I love how they can teach me the definition of a scalene triangle since I haven't had to know that since 10th-grade geometry. I think when all my kids are in school, I would like to get a part-time job there as an educational assistant.

Yesterday I was impressed by the care my children received at the immediate care medical office. The male nurse swabbed Ant and Cutie's throats so gently that they hardly gagged. The kind student nurse-practitioner was so thorough as she checked out their vital signs and all the holes in their heads. The nurser-practitioner trainer was so sympathetic as she prescribed antibiotics for strep throat. That experience almost convinces me to go into the healthcare field when I grow up; but then I think of all the bodily excretions I'd have to deal with and I reject the notion.

Heidi and I went to see "Memoirs of a Geisha" (now on DVD) at the dollar theater in the middle of the week. We would have had a private viewing except there was an older woman sitting by herself on the other side of the theater. We invited her to come sit by us and got to know her a little bit. We found out that she's one of our state legislators from a small town. The session just adjourned for the season and she was waiting for her family to come pick her up this weekend. She named the things she was glad the legislature was able to accomplish this year, and the issues she was disappointed that they couldn't resolve. I asked her personal opinion of a few of the people in the state running for office and she obliged. I'm so glad she came to sit by us; she seems like a real down-to-earth lady. Maybe I'll run for political office when I grow up.

So many options, such a little life.

It was bound to happen

I thought we had escaped it. But we didn't. Cutie threw up in her bed this morning at 6:00. Some kid must have been carrying the bug in the nursery at church on Sunday. I'm going to go cuddle with her.

Spring

As Wheezie would say: LOOOOOVE IT!

I'm on Drugs

I may as well tell you now that my positive, good nature isn't natural. No, I get a lot of chemical help to be this way. From a lot of other blogs I've read and women I've talk to around here, this is a very common thing. I'm glad we have access to help. I understand the brain chemistry that makes us this way, but I still have a lot of questions. Did you all have depressed mothers too? I can’t blame it all on post-partum, because I had some symptoms before having children, although it has been more intense since. What's in the water? Is it something I'm eating? Is it because I hate to exercise? I think I can get a good workout just grocery shopping with three kids. What did women in the past do if they were depressed? Did they get depressed like us? I’m sure some of them were just sad or crazy. Some were institutionalized. Others were self-medicating like a lot of people today. I don’t believe in self-medicating and I don't have the energy or time to research all my questions, but I'm glad my doctor knows how to fix me.

My doctor and I have decided I would take Prozac and Provigil. Prozac takes away the craziness. Provigil offsets some of the side effects of the Prozac like tiredness. When I take these helpers I love and have joy in my family and have a desire to be with them for eternity. I have better control of my emotions. I can think rationally and make progress spiritually. I get great ideas like starting a blog. I feel capable of helping others. I am ME!

If I'm not taking my helpers (or if they become less effective after a while) I get very angry and find fault in everybody and then I complain about them to God, the bishop, or a therapist. I lack discretion. I'm weepier. I’m needy and self-centered. I would never kill myself, but I wouldn't mind if someone killed me via a car accident or something else. I want to leave my family--run, run away--basically destroying my life.

The purpose of me telling the world about this is to encourage those who suffer like I did to get help. It is nothing to be ashamed of. Go to a specialist—a psychiatrist and/or psychologist (I can never remember which one can prescribe medicine, and which one talks with you). I go to an office that has both doctors and they have worked together to help me. I would never get this level of service from a primary care doctor.

So, there you go. My life is an open book for all to read.

Comments Enabled

Thanks to DYM. She notified me that the comments link wasn't working. I must have broken it while playing with the template code. I just thought I was a loser and nobody was reading or didn't care to comment. Now that the problem is fixed, I guess we'll find out how much of a loser I really am. :)

A Gratitude Lesson

What kid wouldn't love to go play on this fantasy pirate ship & castle indoor play gym? It has wavy and spiral slides, 2nd story suspension bridges, multiple climbing levels, a roped obstacle course, those large inflatable bouncy balls, a mother goose nursery rhyme scavenger hunt, lots of room to move and run, and a special area for the littlest ones. Oh, and it's designed so parents can play in it too. It's for a pretty penny though, unless you go during the "nappy hour" from 11:00-1:00, then it's only $5 per kid (parents free w/ a paid kid's admission).

Since it has been quite a rainy spring break, I thought I would splurge and take the kids as a special treat. So we got everyone ready and drove to the other side of town during nappy time. Bud and Cutie were thrilled the whole hour and 1/2 we were there. Ant, however, after 10 minutes of trying everything out, whined that he'd rather go to the other play gym at ___.

I thought: You mean the one half the price of this one during "nappy time"? The one that has no spiral slides, no mother goose scavenger hunt, and no fantastic theme? You mean the one with a "suspension bridge" two inches from the floor? The one that parents get to sit and watch their children play, or read a good book while pretending to watch their kids play? The one that's just 5 minutes away from our house?

Then I thought: You ungrateful little &$%^ boy.

What I said: "Ant, you're supposed to say 'Oh, Momma, thank you for bringing us here' and then the next time we plan to go play somewhere you can say 'Can we please go to the play gym at ___,' because right now, I feel like I don't want to take you anywhere for a long, long time."

He went back to play.

Today I took the kids to go ice skating with my in-laws and my sister and nephews. Oh how the boys had fun skating and crashing while Cutie and I watched from the side. There's a Blimpie's at the rink and I thought we could eat lunch there as another special treat. We got turkey sandwiches, huge sugar cookies (one for each kid) and water to drink. As we were eating, Ant whined, "Why do you always have to get me WATER to drink?" There must have been something in the way I said "We'll talk about it later", because a few minutes later he hugs me and says "Oh, Momma, thank you for bringing us here!"

He's learning.

Please Don't Flag as Objectionable

It's so embarrassing. Every few months while PMSing my skin breaks out. I don't get the little rash-like pimples. No, I get one Mount St. Helens-sized volcano in a place that's hard to hide. This one happens to be on the right side of my large forehead--the side on which I part my hair. And it hurts! Throbs! It's a good thing that the big Bloggirls fest is May 20th 'cause it'll give me time to clear this up, and it should be at least a week before another one pops out it's big blackhead.

THE Child

This weekend the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is holding a general conference that is broadcast all over the world. Instead of going to our meeting house, we can watch it on TV at home.

Elder Henry B. Eyring, one of the 12 apostles of the Church, spoke this morning and he has got to be one of my favorite teachers. It wasn't always this way. Fifteen years ago I had the opportunity to meet with him along with my group of Ricks College students checking out the clerical jobs at the Church office building. It must have been a bad day for me or for him (probably me) because I came away from there not liking him too much. My feelings of him changed from dislike to admiration, though, in 1995 when he was sustained to be an apostle. It was obvious to me that he had been profoundly affected by the calling. He wept as he gave the most humble talk that day, expressing his love for and dependence on the Savior, Jesus Christ.

In the talk he gave today, he taught from a scripture passage in the Book of Mormon telling us to put off the "natural man" and become like a child, "submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit".

When I read that verse several times before, I had a hard time seeing those attributes in my children. But if I'd observe closely, I'd notice that Ant has a great big heart that loves me and needs to be filled with love from me. Bud is so patient with me when I tell him I'll give him a snack right when I'm done checking my e-mail. Cutie hardly complains when she has time out for standing on the kitchen table, pouring salt out of the shaker--again.

Elder Eyring explained that those child-like attributes are also the attributes of THE Child who is submissive to His Father's will, has a great capacity to love and forgive, is pure and patient. I never thought of it that way before. Put off the natural man and become like THE Child, Jesus Christ.