Old Mother Hubbard...

...went to the cupboard to try to find something to eat.
But when she got there, the cupboards were bare, and to top it off they still didn't have any heat.



So, yeah--that's how today is going for me.


Good news:  It's a steamy 40 degrees in January here in the midwest, so it could be a LOT worse.

And the heater-fixer guy will be coming today at some point to figure out what's going on with the heater. 

(Cross fingers and repeat, "PLEASE DON'T TELL US THE FURNACE IS DEAD.  PLEASE DON'T TELL US THE FURNACE IS DEAD.")


And while I'm dealing with THAT issue, I'm also lacking a lot of major ingredients in this house. 

Like eggs.

Like cheese.

And those are essential in my cooking, yo!

And I've got a freezer full of deer meat that's making me gag in this pregnancy-induced state.

And hamburger.  But nothing to really GO with the hamburger.

So, today I called my friend, Sarah, and whined about how we had tons of meat in the deep freeze (isn't life AWFUL for us?) but yet nothing to really use with it.

After a few recipes that I vetoed (due to not having ingredients) she said, "SLOPPY JOES!"

So, tonight will be Sloppy Joe night in this house.  'Cause I have the stuff.  I'm new to sloppy joes--the first time I tried them was last year--and they're pretty decent.

Payday?  TOMORROW.  Oh, HAPPY FREAKIN' DAY!

Guess what else is happening tomorrow?  My friend Sarah--you know, the one listed above--is going to be here.  Her husband has a job thing in our neck of the woods, so they're driving in from St. Louis to hang out while her husband does the job thing.

I.  can't.  wait. 

Not a lot of chatting gets done since we both have young kids, but it's great just to see her and hang out for awhile since we rarely get to see each other.  (Sniff.)



[This post sat here for 4 hours while other things happened.]




The heater guy came.  There's nothing like paying the man $175.00 on a day when the temperatures are in the mid-50's.  Somthing feels really un-natural about that one.

But at least it's fixed in case the temps take a nose dive and hit 49 degrees tomorrow.


My friend came over as well to pick up a bunch of homeschool books that have been given to me by several different families.  We didn't go with those curriculums, so they're just sitting in a laundry basket in the basement.  [Note:  Anyone in the area who might seen this and need some homeschooling books, just let me know if you want to take them.]   She came over to pick through them, and we ended up chatting about quilting and sewing a LOT during that time.

She brought her kids, of course.

She has seven children.

Therefore, we had a 15 year-old, and then we had nine kids ages 6 and under.  If you're trying to do the math, just stop.

Let me just tell you our house was loud and active, and I am now worn out.

The best, though, was when the heater guy saw my three (5, 3, and 15 months) and saw that I was visibly pregnant.  He said, "You're going to be busy for the next 25 years or so..."

While he was downstairs, my friend came with her seven kids, and when the heater guy came back upstairs he saw all of the kids together and said, "Ummmm...your family grew."

It was pretty funny.



So, now that I'm completely drained of energy from the first half of the day's events, I'm letting the boys watch a movie while I get the house put back together.

I don't know about you, but it's days like this where my 5 year-old will follow me around the house saying, "Do we live close to Disneyland?  What does T-O-H spell?  Are we going to have cookies for dessert tonight?  Do you remember that one book with that one guy who had the balloon?  D has a cut on his foot.  Mom, did you see D's cut on his foot?  Do you think he'll bleed to death?  What are you doing now?  Why does it smell like fruit in here? Are you tired?  You look tired.  Can we name the baby 'Mike?'  I like 'Mike.'  I'm thirsty.  Why do we only have milk and water in the house?  Do we have any juice?  What are we having for dinner?  Why do they call them Sloppy Joe's?  Do I like Sloppy Joe's...."


Happy....Thursday....to.....you.