I May Have Lacked Self-Control

My 5 year old son gave me some helpful advice the other day. Apparently he has been throwing around a problem in his head the past few weeks and has finally settled on the perfect solution.

His suggestion came because my 7 year old daughter bought me a tin of English butter cookies this past Christmas. She had remembered that I mentioned one time how much I love these cookies. She insisted that her Dad drive her to the store so she could purchase some for me.

I am embarrassed to reveal that one night shortly after Christmas I consumed the whole tin of cookies after I tucked all the kids into bed. I really only meant to eat two but they tasted so good and they were just so tiny that I couldn’t get the whole butter cookie experience with just two. In my defense it was a 4oz tin so I think there was only 10 cookies in it….and they were small!

I told my daughter a few days later that I really enjoyed the gift she gave me. I told her I enjoyed it so much that I ate them all in one sitting. We laughed at my lack of self-control.

Apparently, my daughter then went and shared with my son that Mommy was a big pig and ate all her cookies…all by herself….in one crazy eating frenzy moment.

This information obviously put my son into a tailspin trying to come up with a solution. And apparently his weeks of thinking did provide him with the answer because he presented me with this the other day:

“Uh, Mom, I think it would be best that if you ever receive another tin of cookies that you put it in my backpack every morning when I’m on my way to school. The cookies will be safe in there.”

My mouth dropped open and my eyes got huge. My son then put his hand on my arm and said in a sympathetic voice, “I know you get lonely during the day when I’m at school and it makes you want to eat a lot of cookies. This way if the cookies are with me you can’t eat them all.”

I just nodded my head and thanked him but what I really wanted to say was:

• I am really not that lonely when you are at school. I am too busy to be lonely or eat half the time.
• How does a 5 year old know that loneliness and overeating go hand in hand?
• I didn’t even eat the cookies when you were at school. I ate them when you went to bed. Yes, that’s right…Mommy really lives it up when you go to bed! I eat all kinds of good stuff as soon as you guys are all tucked in for the night!

My tin of cookies from Iris proudly on display in my laundry room!

Guest Blogger: 2 Year Old Cesar

Hi my name is Cesar! I’m two years old today! My mom normally does the writing on here but today I thought I would give the world a little insight into what it’s like to be the youngest kid in this family.

This is me writing this blog

First of all, I have an older sister, Iris, age 7 and an older brother, Bency age 5. They can be real pains in the butt sometimes. They rarely let me play with them. Something about I’m not old enough to play board games and that I always knock down or mess up the creations they build. Yet, for my birthday I got some really cool toys that they are dying to get their hands on. If they even look at my toys with any hint of enthusiasm I make a loud screech and mom comes and tells the big kids to get away from MY toys!

Me with my sister and brother

Being the youngest kid I get to experience things at a much younger age than my brother and sister did. For example when my siblings were 2 years old they could only use crayons to color with. Let me tell you….CRAYONS ARE FOR BABIES!!  I found these markers in my brother’s room and these are much better to color with. I now have located them in various other places in the house too and let me tell you….MARKERS ARE THE BOMB! You can color all over your body with them….try doing that with a crayon!

me having to color with crayons….blah

Thanks to an older sister I have been introduced to all kinds of great musical talent. Justin Bieber is my favorite. My mother is slightly irritated with me that I have no interest in learning Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. I guess this is what she tortured my older brother and sister with when they were 2 years old.

My older brother and sister are now both in school. It’s nice to have lots of time to myself with mom but the terrible thing is all the chores have fallen on me now. What my sister and brother did all summer is all up to me. Mom has me dusting, swiffering, cooking and vacuuming all the time now. It’s total crap. I actually wouldn’t mind the vacuuming so much if she gave me a REAL vacuum… but no….she has me using a toy vacuum. Who does she think she’s kidding?? I know I’m not actually picking up dirt. I’m just her pet monkey pushing around a little toy.

Me doing all of the housework

Listen up fellow 2 year olds; I have some great advice for you! Apparently there’s a rumor going around that once kids hit 2 years old, we start having tantrums and other irritating behaviors. I am not going to succumb to this stereotype. Tantrums and whining get you nowhere. I’ve seen my siblings whine. My mom is super tough. She just ignores them. If they continue, she sends them to their room. My brother and sister are such idiots.

Cookies are my life!

Here’s a secret for you. I have an ADDICTION. It’s to cookies. I don’t just want them….I NEED COOKIES! I have learned that whining and tantrums do not work. What you have to do is look really cute, smile and say, “Cookie Pweese!” More often than not this works. If you ask for more than one in an hour though; this tactic may not work. My mom becomes a total liar and says, “the cookies are all gone honey.” Seriously, who does she think she’s dealing with? I know she’s lying! Unfortunately calling her out on lying is not a good choice either, so I go with Plan B. This plan requires you to feign a headache. To feign a headache you simply put your hands up to your forehead and say “cooooookieeee” in a low moaning voice. Do NOT confuse this with whining. Whining has a high pitch to it. Keep your voice low and pathetic…almost like you’re dying. My mom falls for this every time! I think she can sympathize with headaches…she gets them all of the time when my brother and sister whine.

This is how to fake a headache

Well, I guess that’s all for today. Mom says I have to go take a “birthday” nap. Naps are so dumb. I have better things to do. I’ve been trying for the last year to figure out how to open up all of the doors. I’ve almost got it. I just need a little more time and I’ll be able to break FREE!!!

Someone stay on the look out for Mom….I’ve almost got it!!

I’m sure you’ll be hearing more about me in the future when my mom writes more on here. If she mentions anything about me having tantrums or bad behavior….Don’t believe it!!! Remember she’s a complete liar. I know we have a fully stocked cupboard of cookies! On that note, also give me the heads up if my mom mentions anything about taking me to “cookie rehab.” I think I’m skating on thin ice with this addiction. Every time she says we’re going to the grocery store, I get a sick feeling in my stomach that “grocery store” might actually be code for rehab facility. I think I better get this addiction thing under control before she does something drastic.

Happy 2nd Birthday to ME!!!!

Bye!!! See Ya!!! I Lub You!!!

Cesar

Good Bye!!

Worm in the Dirt Cookies

My mother-in-law came this week for her yearly visit. Every time she comes I screw something up in the kitchen (my favorite was when I served raw rice. I forgot to turn on the stove but did remember to turn on the timer). This time was no exception. The other night I made dinner rolls for supper. They were not from scratch….merely Rhodes frozen dough balls that you put on a pan, cover in Saran Wrap, let rise for a few hours and then bake. I forgot to take the Saran Wrap off when I baked them so when I pulled them out of the oven they were all covered in a shiny, thick glaze of melted plastic. My mother-in-law was nice enough to help me pick off all the plastic and we served them alongside my homemade fried chicken… laughing! They actually weren’t too bad…just a few crunchy spots!

Needless to say, I require really easy to prepare foods. Nothing fancy for this girl!

The recipe I’m going to share with you today is so simple that my 7 year old daughter can now make them by herself. It’s an old recipe with one easy, cute twist. My mom always used to make these when I was little and they were one of my favorites. At Christmas time she would don them with a maraschino cherry.

Iris recently graduated to stove cooking and can make these cookies all by herself! Here she is making her own cookies for her 1st grade class birthday treat!

When I was trying to come up with a treat for my daughter to take for her Kindergarten class on her birthday I instantly thought of these cookies because they are easy to make, travel well and are yummy. The only problem is that they kind of look like a mound of dirt.

No problem!!! I simply put a gummy worm on top of the cookies and called them “Worm in the Dirt Cookies!” My daughter loved them and has requested them for everything since then!!

Iris selling Lemon Zucchini cupcakes and Worm in the Dirt Cookies at her yard bake sale last year! The neighbor kids kept coming back for more and more cookies! The cupcakes were bought out by our elderly neighbor ladies!

Worm in the Dirt Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 C. quick-cooking rolled oats
• 2/3 C. peanut butter
• 2 C. sugar
• ½ C. (1 stick) butter
• ½ C. milk
• 1/3 C. cocoa
• 2 tsp. vanilla

Directions

• Combine sugar, butter, milk and cocoa in medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a rolling boil.
• Remove from heat. Add oats, peanut butter and vanilla; stir quickly, mixing well.
• Immediately drop mixture by heaping teaspoons onto wax paper or tin foil.
• Add gummy worm to the top
• Let cool

Worm in the Dirt Cookies