The Bratty Girl, Hate and Burning the Letter

After a full day at work where I had to be all smart and focused and do a good job, I came home to toys all over the floor (which I'm learning to live with as long as I don't break an ankle...then not only would I not live with it, I'd probably take someone down with me), a sleepy 2-year old who needed her antibiotic eye drop for the corneal abrasion she gave herself two days ago and a fourth grader who was trying not to say the bad word "hate" when she really wanted to tell me that she hates this one girl at school who always makes fun of her, her clothes, her friends, her shoes, her shoe size and her art. Deep breath...

My husband cleaned up the kitchen of snack bowls and sippy cups so I could start on dinner, give the baby her eye drop and then settle in for a long discussion about how to deal with the bratty fourth grader who thinks she's better than everyone else. We talked, she cried, and I thought she was okay until I heard her crying more in the tub.

So we had Round 2 of the Bratty Girl and What You Can and Can't Do About It discussion. We've already talked to death about not letting the girl bug her, but today it was obviously bugging her. I suggested writing a letter saying anything and everything to this girl that she wanted to say. She was mortified because she wants to say lots of things that at almost 10 years of age, she knows are not appropriate. I quickly explained that no one (not even me) would read the letter. I suggested she write until she was sick of writing about it, until that bratty girl was out of her heart. Then...she would seal the letter up and we would burn it. Outside, of course. And I wouldn't have suggested this if I thought she'd burn it herself. She won't.

This bratty girl situation comes and goes so she may be writing lots of letters...

Back to Work...

Today was my first day back to work after a long holiday break. At least I didn't completely forget how to do my job :) It was nice to talk to adults but I much prefer talking with my young people at home.

My big challenge every day is dinner and today I managed to pull something together: cheesy broccoli with wild rice. You'd think I would have used some of the vacation time to plan or shop or freeze meals, but nooooo... I was on vacation. We watched movies. We played games. We played with all the kids' new toys, drank hot chocolate...the important stuff.

I desperately needed chocolate when I got home, but if that's as bad is it got, I'm calling it a successful day.

One Last Day Off Before Going Back to Work

I love my job but I love being home with my family too. I keep thinking I'm going to work out a healthy balance between work and home. Little by little I feel like I have small successes. If I expect less from myself and focus more, I tend to do better.

One big challenge is dinner every night. Things go more smoothly if I have dinner at least planned the night before. When I'm really on a roll, I'll plan two or three dinners ahead and can do any required shopping ahead of time.

Here's a quick and easy red beans and rice meal that I love:

Easy Red Beans and Rice

About a month ago, we purchased a Vitamix machine and we love it and have found that the convenience outweighs the cost. We use it to make lots of fruit and green smoothies, soups, zucchini bread and salsa. Some soups require a little planning, such as having a baked potato on hand, but other than that they are so easy to make. And the Vitamix crushes and blends ice like I have never seen a blender do before.

Vitamix Recipes

I like the cookbook that comes with the Vitamix which gives us lots of starter recipes, but we've had the most fun coming up with our own smoothie combinations.