Living in Munchkinland

You guys! I have a new recipe to share. I know it's been forever since I shared a recipe, but this one is WORTH SHARING. My friend Holly brought it to soup swap in January and I have made it four times since. I can't get enough of it. It's super healthy, really hearty, the kids and Michael love it. I end up slurping the broth. It has a few more ingredients and chopping than I would normally commit to, but again, WORTH IT. Try it and let me know what you think! Posole Soup Ingredients • 3 tbsp canola oil • Vegetable mix: 1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 3 cups); 1 poblano chile, deseeded and chopped; 1 large sweet red pepper, deseeded and chopped; 2 cups chopped kale; 1 large jalapeño, chopped with seeds; 8 garlic cloves, rough chopped; 10 small cremini mushrooms, quartered • Spice mix: 1 tbsp ground cumin, ¼ tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper, 1 tbsp coarse salt, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp orange ze...

This year, the boys had two different spring breaks. Sigh. It won't happen again next year. We decided to split the difference and go on vacation on a Wednesday. Michael didn't have any days off and Taos was booked and we cancelled our trip to Mexico because of safety concerns and I wanted to go somewhere warm and so we picked- New Orleans!!! Mom agreed to come with us and enjoy five days of perfect Spring New Orleans weather with the kids. Davis and Sam have not been to New Orleans often. They only came once when they were babies (still in strollers!), once for one day before a cruise and once for Mardi Gras, so this was a great chance to show them why we love it so much. The boys and I flew in on a Wednesday and met mama at the condo. We unpacked and checked out her new condo next door and then headed for Lafayette Park on the street car. It was really crowded, but we got there fine and even got seats for the boys. There was a free concert in the park with food booths. We ...

Kara and Suzy threw me such a fun birthday party last night. We went out to Land of Sushi with Suzy, Jason, Ben and Kara and had really good food. Then we drove over to Headliner Karaoke for a party. They had brought balloons and party hats and decorations. I put out food and wine and various beverages. It wasn't a large group, but the people who came were so fun! The karaoke catalog was amazing and the venue was really cool. I has SO much fun.

On Tuesday, we had a gorgeous spring day with temps in the 60's. Weather forecaster warned, however, that a bomb cyclone and blizzard was on its way. I moved the deck furniture below and covered my emerging bulbs. That evening, they cancelled schools and closed everything. The closing notices on our local news stations were in the 600s. The next morning we woke up to- rain. Just a steady rain. People started complaining on social media. But around 10AM, the rain turned to snow. A half hour after that, we got wind. The world turned white and snowy and visibility disappeared. It went on and on. Eventually our windows were covered in ice and snow and I couldn't see outside anymore. I am happy to report that our house stayed warm! and snug and cozy! I made butter beans and cornbread that morning and I was glad I did, because the power kept flickering afternoon which ruined our plans to watch a movie and would have interrupted my cooking. Instead the kids and I played monopoly for ...

Last weekend, we had a really busy weekend! Samuel was sick, Davis was recovering, Michael flew home after being sick and gone all week and I had my show. I had been rehearsing every night that week for our annual church musical. It was really fun and I absolutely loved my cast. I feel like I'm slowly finding my tribe here, bit by bit, piece by piece. -side tangent- I recently read Sarah Bird's "Love Letter to Texas Women" and it talked about neighboring people. I think that's missing in Colorado and I miss it. It makes getting to know people more difficult here. -tangent over-. Saturday was the show. Katie was in Colorado Springs with Soren for a judo tournament. She drove up with him on Saturday afternoon and we visited for a while before I had to leave for the show. It was so fun to be with them both! The show was fun and I did okay, except for the part where I missed a line in my song, and then had a panic attack backstage which will embarrassingly make my c...

The Walters have the plague. I had the flu a few weeks ago. I got a cold shortly after. Then it turned into a sinus infection. It always does that. Sigh. Then on Sunday evening when we got back home from downtown and the boys got home from their sleepover, Davis said he wasn't feeling well. Michael also wasn't feeling well at all with cough, headache and body aches, but had to catch an early flight on Monday morning so he went away to spend the night at the airport and fly to Miami in the early AM. By Monday morning, Davis was feeling really sick. He got worse and worse. Michael called me from Miami with the same miserable symptoms. Finally on Wednesday I took Davis to the doctor. He got tested for flu and it came back positive for Influenza type A. I called Michael to inform him that it was almost certain he also had the flu. Davis felt horrible and was completely wiped out. My sinus infection was killing me. And then Sam came in Wednesday night to say he wasn't feeling w...