My 3 Boys

Erica — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:18:32 +0000

Need a Mom’s Opinion

Erica — Thu, 28 May 2009 15:37:14 +0000

I’m going to start selling my kids clothes on eBay. I’m going to put them in lots because it’s easier than selling it off by the piece. My problem is, figuring out how many pieces to put in each lot. Should I set it into outfits and do 3 to 5 outfits per lot or just pick pieces at random. The things I like together, others might not. I got clothes ranging in size from newborn to 18 month. I also have bibs, blankets, socks, shoes and I’m sure lots of other things.

So, please, leave your comments with your thoughts and I will take them all into consideration.

Sugar

Erica — Fri, 08 May 2009 11:57:22 +0000

So, I’m doing my morning browsing and come across this website. Everyone should have a look. It’s an eyeopener.

http://www.sugarstacks.com/

RSVP

Erica — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 23:47:25 +0000

This may seem like a simple thing, but apparently it’s not because no one seems to do it. My son is having a birthday party this weekend and I sent out at least 15 invitations. 1 person RSVP’d. 1 out of 15. I had to buy too much of everything just to make sure I have enough. Please remember to RSVP for parties, especially kids birthday party. It only takes a simple phone call.

Lost no more

Erica — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 04:57:29 +0000

I never knew my biological father. Yeah, I knew his name and where he was from, but never knew him as a person. Don’t feel bad for me, I had a great step-dad. He’s so great that I simply think of him as my dad. Anyway… About June 2008, my sister and I found out that our bio-dad had died a couple of months earlier. This made us sad because we didn’t have any of the answers we had been searching for for most of our adult lives. We began searching for any of his family. Our mom had told us he had a younger brother, so that’s where we started. When you don’t have money for a PI, it can take a while, and it did. Thanks to my sister never giving up, we found him less than a week ago. He seems great, really nice and ready to help us with any questions we have about that side of the family. The sad part is, he didn’t really know our father any better than we did. They had a big age difference, plus our bio-dad was estranged from his family. This was apparently due to drugs and alcohol. No surprise there. At least now I know where my tendency towards addiction comes from. Even worse, my uncle didn’t even know his brother was dead until I called him. Thankfully he’s been able to fill us in on a couple of things and has been a great help is getting us the information on his death. At the age of 54, my father died of natural causes. Heart failure, due to his stressful, drug and alcohol addled life. He did talk about me and my sister during one of his few phone calls to my uncle in the years before he passed. He regretted not knowing us, which I’m glad to hear. We regret not getting to talk to him before he passed. It’s not that we didn’t try, we just didn’t have enough information to go on. You would think having a person’s SSN would be enough, but it’s not.

I can’t really say that I lost a father, he was never there to say I had him in the first place. I did however, gain an uncle. A really great one from what I can tell so far. So what if I’m 28 years old, that’s ok. We’re able to talk more openly that if I was 16. I hope this is the beginning of a really nice relationship.

Getting Older

Erica — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:05:34 +0000

On Saturday, February 21, I turned 28 years old. It was an uneventful day, to say the least. No party, no birthday cards from my husband or kids, no one sung “Happy Birthday” (until Sunday), and the cake I made was terrible. My friend Amy (who did get me a card, Thank You very much for that, it was great) watched the kids so Daniel and I could go out for dinner. We went to a place we’d never been before. I would not recommend doing this on your birthday. Go with what you know. The food was not that great and actually made me feel sick to my stomach. We came straight home and I read a book until 4AM. It was sad.

On the other hand, Daniel got me a Nintendo DS and a couple of fun games. I’ve been wanting one for a while now. My mom bought me the 4 books I wanted. Plus, I got great cards from my parents, sister, grandma and Amy (as I mentioned earlier). I’m grateful that we had the money to go out to dinner and for me to get a nice gift. I’m grateful that I have my health. It was not the worst birthday I’ve ever had. That goes to my 19th birthday. I spent it being 38 weeks pregnant with a stomach virus, spewing out of both ends and having contractions b/c I was getting dehydrated.

Getting older is great, it means you’re alive. My hair is turning gray, but that’s ok. It’s nice, thick hair. I haven’t started to wrinkle and probably won’t for a while. I stay out of the sun and have good genes. I’m still young enough to enjoy my kids. They are a great joy even if they bug me sometimes.

So, here’s to being 28. Let’s hope it’s a great years.

Pot

Erica — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 05:36:18 +0000

Recently, photos were released of Michael Phelps smoking from a bong. Apparently, this is a big deal to some people. The Sheriff of Richmond County (Columbia, SC) says an investigation is underway and they could press charges.

I don’t understand why people are freaking out about this. It’s not like he was smoking crack or heroin. Plus, I highly doubt he was hitting the bong before swimming at the Olympics. Why is it such a big deal?

Yes, some see him as a role model. Parents are angry because they think their kids are gonna start smoking pot because they saw Michael Phelps doing it. Let me say this, if that happens, you have more problems as a parent than you think. Parents need to make sure their kids are bright enough and have enough self-esteem to not be so easily influenced. I see lots of people doing lots of stupid things, but I was brought up to know you shouldn’t do something just because someone else is doing it. Not that smoking pot is stupid…but being a celebrity and doing it while someone takes a picture is stupid.

I think everyone needs to just lay off him. He’s human like everyone else. So what if he smokes pot, he could be doing lots worse.

Spam

Erica — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 05:06:15 +0000

So I get on here yesterday, just to find almost 100 (yes, one hundred) spam comments. This makes me very angry. Do people not have anything better to do? I guess I could see their point if this was some big-time blog, but it isn’t. I’m probably the only one that saw them. Hopefully, someone had to waste at least as much time posting them as I had to spend deleting them.

Medication

Erica — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 21:58:34 +0000

I have been on antidepressents for almost 8 years. My first drug was Lexapro, 10mg a day. After a few months, Wellbutrin XL 150mg a day was added. For those that don’t know, Lexapro is an SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors). It helps fix your serotonin levels. Wellbutrin is a DARI (Dopamine Reuptake Inhibitors). It helps fix your dopamine levels. My doctor said that when you start an SSRI and your serotonin levels go up, that your dopamine levels start to drop. This is why I take both. Over the years, my dosages went up, 40mg of Lexapro and 300mg of Wellbutrin XL. They worked wonderfully. After I had my second child in 2007, I had to start taking Zoloft (and ONLY Zoloft) because my insurance company had changed it’s policy about certain drugs. After a few months on Zoloft, I knew it wasn’t working the way I needed it to work. I had my doctor put me on Celexa (40mg), which he said was very close to Lexapro. He also put me back on Wellbutrin XL (300mg). I had to pay $66 for a 3 month supply of the Wellbutrin, but it was worth it. The Celexa was only $9 for 3 months worth. Slowly but surely, things got back to the way it was before. Thank goodness that, now, I can get my meds for free at the Naval Hospital.

So, the reason I’ve said all this is because I ran out of my Celexa about 12 days ago and haven’t been able to get my refill. Not until tomorrow. I hadn’t realized how much this medication helps me out. I thought I would be ok with just the Wellbutrin, but nooooo. I have been on edge, very irritable, angy for no reason, crying for no reason, feeling like I need to beat the crap out of something (or someone) and just not wanting to be aroud any other people. Now I know that it really does work and that I really do need it. My poor husband has been getting most of my “additude”, thank goodness he undestands.

Tomorrow can’t come soon enough. Lets hope it doesn’t take too long for my chemicals to get back in order.

Jamie’s Coconut Cake

Erica — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 18:37:02 +0000

I baked this cake for my family Christmas get-together. It was the best, most moist cake I have ever eaten. I thought I hated coconut, but I don’t after this. The only changes I would make would be to add 1tsp. of coconut extract to the cake mix, in addition to the coconut milk. I will be making this cake again and again!

Basic 1-2-3-4 Cake with coconut milk:
2 sticks butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
3 cups sifted self-rising flour
1 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Filling:
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
4 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup flaked, sweetened coconut

7-Minute Frosting:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar or 1 tablespoon white corn syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup water
2 egg whites
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 to 3 cups coconut, flaked and sweetened

Cake:Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans.
Using an electric mixer, cream butter until fluffy. Add sugar and continue to cream well for 6 to 8 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour and coconut milk alternately to creamed mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Add vanilla and continue to beat until just mixed. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Level batter in each pan by holding pan 3 or 4-inches above counter, then dropping it flat onto counter. Do this several times to release air bubbles and assure you of a more level cake. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until done. Cool in pans 5 to 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto cooling racks.

Filling: Stir together sugar, sour cream, milk, and coconut in a bowl until well blended. Add first cake layer onto pedestal. Using the wrong end of a wooden spoon, poke holes approximately 1-inch apart until entire cake has been poked. Spread a third of filling mixture on cake layer. Top with second layer, repeat process. Top with last layer and repeat process again.

Cook’s Note: As each layer is stacked, stick them with toothpicks to prevent cake from shifting.

Frosting: Place sugar, cream of tartar or corn syrup, salt, water, and egg whites in the top of a double boiler. Beat with a handheld electric mixer for 1 minute. Place pan over boiling water, being sure that boiling water does not touch the bottom of the top pan. Beat constantly on high speed with electric mixer for 7 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Frost the top and sides of the cake. Sprinkle top and sides of cake with coconut.

Copied from FoodNetwork.com on 12/24/2008