On the Road Again. . . . 75 plus miles

Monday was a day about everyone else.  You know those days where everyone has needs, and your the one required by your title as Mom to see to the needs?  

I did not even get out of the shower before one of the kids called.  She forgot her "gym clothes."  


As I was trying to locate pen and paper, to attach to her gym bag, I noticed Mattie (older cat with cancer) had vomited.  I quickly threw paper towels on it. I'd deal with that later.

I was already fuming that I had to drive 9.6 miles round trip, because the bridge is out (due to construction).  But when I went to grab my purse and keys, I heard it.  

It wasn't just raining.  It was pouring.  Buckets and buckets.  And the wind was in full force.  Try using an umbrella in such conditions.

The universe hates me.  The roads we have to take now, to get to the school, fill with lakes of water.  At one point, trying to share the thin roads with school bus after school bus, my tire sucked into the gravel and I almost landed in a field.  

When I arrived home, I could hear Alias trash surfing.  I forgot to put the trash can lid on it, and low and behold, it was all over my kitchen floor.  If it crinkles in any way, he tears it apart in search for food.  We are slowly breaking him of this, but we don't know how many years he scavenged for food either.

After getting that cleaned up, and Mattie's mess, I tossed Son's items into the only box I could use for UPS.  It would have to wait until the rain slowed down, and it wasn't going to slow down for a few hours.

I quickly tossed a roast into the crock pot, and grabbed a container of frozen homemade condensed mushroom soup.  I simply thawed the soup and poured it over the roast and added a sliced onion.  Simple. I would deal with sides later.

Next, about Son.  Son had been bugging me, email after email.  "Please MOM!"  He wanted a box of items shipped ASAP, and before the Thanksgiving holiday.  And it could not be shipped the easy way.  It had to be shipped 2 day UPS, or he'd be sitting around waiting for it for weeks and weeks.  That's just how his USPS is picked up and delivered, and given to him.  So, the mother I am, cringed at what it might cost, and boxed up one box.

That required driving a lot further than I liked, but did it anyway.   Back home, it was barn chores that should have been tended to before I left.  Thankfully, it's not freezing weather.

I squeezed in my 2 mile walk. 

When the rain subsided, I drove the 14 miles round trip to ship the box to Son.  While I was there, I decided I might as well pick up toilet paper and cat food and a bottle of organic red wine. 

Back home again, I tossed fruit together for a frozen dessert, and prepared garlic mashed potatoes, and put them in another crock pot. 

Once school was out, I was back in the car for the 9.6 mile round trip, and picking up kids and pies.  Choir held a fundraiser, and two of the girls sold some.  They have to be frozen, so this required driving back home, putting some in my freezer, then heading to town to deliver, than back home (this is a 20 minute drive), to pick up another pie, and drive 10 minutes south to deliver another.   

I had to delegate picking up goat feed to my oldest daughter.  There was no way I would have had time.  That's another drive.

Then there were my library books.  How would I get them returned?  I decided to see if I could renew them and just return them another day.  They all renewed.  Whew. 

Before I could leave town, I had to stop at the grocery store once again, because it's the only place we can buy Alia's "old man" food, and he was out (and no one told me....again).

And yet, there were two more stops, because when you go to town, you get everything done in one trip.  



Finally on my way back home, I called Hubby and told him to pull a bag of carrots from the freezer and start boiling them for dinner.

We called the last pie buyer and asked if Hubby could deliver it Tuesday.  They agreed.


By the way, in regards to putting the mashed potatoes in the crock pot....creamy as ever.  I thought they would dry out, so I added extra milk. When we got home, they were the creamiest mashed potatoes I have even had.  So the crock pot works great if you are needing to prepare ahead.

We went from -9° to 50° and rain and flooding and in a few days we are back to snow.  Gotta love this state.

Today, I plan to stay home. And there better not be any cat vomit involved.

I am hoping for a "leftover" night.  I have plans for the leftover mashed potatoes too.

Saturday is the big Ohio State/Michigan game, and Hubby has the entire day dedicated to it.  I'm sure I'll be summoned to put together a hot dip for tortilla chips.  I guess I better start looking through my recipes.