You ever have one of those months that makes you wonder if you are doing the right thing? Pursuing the right course of action? Just make progress in general? Yeah…that’s been mine…three steps forward and 10 back! I know I can’t give up and I have to move forward and every day I remind myself that there are so many people who have less than I do and are making it by and are happy! Sad but true…that I would have to remind myself of this…but I think we all have to remind ourselves of this at one point or another! And so here I sit…wondering and working and working and wondering and just basically pondering life…when I’m not working. But in the end…as my dear cousin says…It’s All Good!

So…did I ever mention that my hubby makes children’s books? Well…he does (check out www.thedreamlandchronicles.com) and last night he was doing a Livestream and practically forced me into the headset to keep him company while talking to some of his readers…he’s not a very talkative kind of guy! Can I just tell you…I meet (and talk to) some of the nicest people online! Anyway…I guess we were getting hungry because we started talking about food…desserts mostly and then all of sudden we talked about swapping recipes! Some of the people thought we should do #twicipes…which sounds cute…but I’m not sure is practical since you only get 140 characters to tweet a whole recipe! So here we are…on my barely updated, mostly complaining about life Blog! I hope no one reads my previous posts…but here we are! Happy Fall everyone! I’ll start with this awesome pound cake recipe…but don’t eat it until the second day…wrap it up and put it aside so the flavors can gel together…trust me…it will be worth the wait! Get your tea ready!

Citrus Pound Cake

4 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-5 inch loaf pan. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and zests. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer on medium-high, beat the butter for 2 minutes. Add 1 1/4 cups of sugar and the salt and beat for 2 minutes. Slowly add the egg mixture. Beat for 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and slowly add the flour. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Using a knife, loosen the cake from the pan. Invert it onto the rack to finish cooling. Serve how you’d like!

So there it is! It’s delicious!

Who’s next?

Happy Baking!

Donna

It’s been a while since I’ve had time to post something here! Summer is in full swing and I am enjoying being home with my boys! I really missed them when they were at school all day! 7 hours is a really long day…for mommy too! But we are doing so many fun things…some time in Florida on the beach…Library Reading Program…Swimming Lessons…playtime with friends! It has all be super fun! Soon we’re off to Comic Con and then home to start school again! Time seems to fly by faster and faster each and every day! Explain this please! The boys are about 2 inches taller than they were in February for their 6th birthday! Ugh! How can they be growing so very fast! I feel like every day I am blinking and they are growing! In the mean time…I will enjoy little moments stolen looking at them playing in the living room…watching them play on their swingset (the “brother club”) and playing water fights with the hose while making mud…and the quiet moments of reading stories to each other and coloring…playing lego Star Wars and dressing up in costumes! Childhood goes so very fast! Take a moment to sit and enjoy it everyone…it will be over before we know it!

So yesterday I had Brendan in the doctor…fever for 3 days…no sore throat or anything…he has strep! This morning…Logan wakes up with a sore throat and no other symptoms…back to the doctor and he has strep! Sigh! When they both get sick I seem to get a little depressed! I work so hard to keep them healthy and they have been so sick this year of Kindergarten…it is definitely been frustrating and I’m just not sure what to do! I can’t wait for summer vacation next week…we are done on May 21st…Thank God! I am SO over this! Just my two cents!

Being the mom! We have to expect nothing…yet everyone expects of us! Some days it is just too much and you want to go into a corner and just hide for a while…

Ok…so I’m up at 5am and wondering about my life and all that has gone on in my short, but definitely packed, 39 years! It’s a little stormy outside and I’m feeling pensive! (Not to mention I still have a headache and had a stomach ache for the last 2 days! Oh well! I just had a banana so this weird feeling should wear off soon!) 

Anyway…I’m scheduled to leave for CA next Friday and I’m feeling all of these emotions…wondering about my kiddos, Scott’s health, you name it! (Can’t sleep needless to say!) How do you pick up where you left off? Can you ever go back again? Do you want to? What am I going to find upon my return…do I really want to know? How will I see everyone and myself as well? My brain is so running crazy right now!

I’m not sure anyone will ever really understand me! The life I lead with Scott is so hard to explain to people who don’t share in it’s similarities! There are definite positives and of course some negatives too…but I feel like we have done so much more in our short 16 years together (20 if you count before we were married) than most people do in their entire lifetimes! I mean really! But there is only one of my friends who can really understand all of the struggles and sacrifice because her husband in the same position.

And I must say it’s been difficult. Not having anyone to share all of this with…especially since the move it has been really hard. I am such a social person and now I find myself in the position of (again) being the shoulders that other people seem to lean on and confide in but not befriend? Go freaking figure!? Let me explain…often times I have felt like people needed me…to confide in or be their shoulder…and that’s the type of friend I am…loyal (I think to a fault) and always there for people. It’s funny how that has happened here without me even trying…people I don’t even know seem to talk to me. On two totally separate occasions I have gone out to breakfast with people and had them spend the entire time (several hours I might add) talking about themselves and not once really asking about me or my life at all! Hmm! Odd you think! Yeah…me too! Maybe I should have been a shrink! Ha! 

I lend my time to the school…to other people…to my family…now my in-laws since they moved here…and I’m wondering what I’m getting out of this! Not that you always need to get something in return…but I’m having to try and fill my own cup that is just empty! And it’s been difficult…and often a little lonely! I am told to find something I want to do and the friends will follow…but I feel frazzled and stretched and like I have no time to keep up with things much to say the least find something that I want to do and actually find the time to do it! Good luck! I guess that’s another way of making excuses…it gets me off the hook from actually trying something new. I have gotten so bad at scheduling my time that I feel like I will never get myself back again! And that just makes me sad! I feel like I need to slap or pinch myself to “wake up” but I’m not sure that will help! 

I know all of this sounds depressing and I’m sorry…but sometimes you just need to put it out there to get it out of your own head! So there…hopefully my brain is empty enough that I can get 30 minutes of sleep before my alarm goes off and the day actually starts! 

Good Morning All!

The “It” being finally getting your act together and getting those stupid things on your To Do List done…I mean the ones that have been there for so long you can’t imagine what your life would be like if they weren’t swirling around in your head!? Just a question for the great cosmic void!

There has got to be a better way to get things done! I am doing things and getting things done but I always have so much more to do and nothing ever seems to get finished! And don’t get me started on what I want to be when I grow up!

A question I am now asking myself as I find myself with 7 hours a day…35 hours a week to fill now that they boys are in school! I need to get “me” back! Now back to what is the question!

So even though it’s been so very long since I’ve posted…I’m kinda feeling the need to get up here and chat again! But with Twitter and Facebook my online time seems to be eaten up by other things! How crazy is that!?!? 

Still in Tennessee…the boys started Kindergarten…I’m working with Scott in his business…trying to keep my house up and trying to work on my personal ToDo List as well…Good Luck with all of that!

Oh well…just wanted to say I’m back! Sigh!