My Sick Little Girl

My little girl is sick. She has strep throat, she is miserable and she is sad. I feel so bad for her today. Of course, she gets sick on a day that is 80 degrees, so that pesky fever feels even worse for her. I let her lay on the couch all day, watch Hannah Montana reruns and eat ice cream. Does this qualify me for Mother of the Year, or worse Mother on Earth? Judging by her fever, disposition and desire to be still, I think in her eyes I am Mother of the Year for just leaving her alone.

This leads me to something that always bugs me when my kids are sick. Maybe I can get some advice, or just validation for my actions and feelings when my kids are home sick. I leave them alone, let them "veg" in front of the TV and throw out all rules with meal time. That is what they want. But, I always hear this nagging voice in my mind telling me "make them read", "play a board game with them" or "do a craft". I ignore this voice because I can tell that they just want to be left alone. So, I let them indulge in hours of TV and hope that I am not some how damaging their little minds forever. Is this the right approach? My head says no, but my heart says leave them alone and let them be sick in peace and quiet.

Home Today!

Today I will be staying home, all day. I can't remember the last time I was able to do that. Probably the last time I had a sick child, which is the reason I am home today. So, today I am going to try to complete a list of things I need to get done, but never complete because of my never ending list of errands and places I need to be.

For today I plan on:

Finishing The Heretic's Daughter- an excellent book that my husband wants to read next-Done

Finish my reading for my Monday night class-Done

45 minutes of exercise- Done

Finish the laundry - Done

Deep Clean the kids bathroom-Done

Make a nice dinner for the family-Done

Go through the mountain of paper I have on my desk

Clean the "doggy dirt" in the back yard-Done

Grocery shop on peapod.com-Done

I pretty ambitious list for one day, but it gives me a plan.

Story of Courage

Today I had the honor of hearing a Holocaust survivor tell her story. A local University hosted this woman in honor of the 65 year anniversary of the liberation in Europe. This woman's story is that of courage, strength and honor. Since it is not my story to tell, I will not tell the details. But, I am going to take a moment on my blog to tell people that if you have a chance to listen to a survivor tell their story of survival, grab the opportunity. In one hours time I learned the importance of love, family, simplicity and being happy with what you have. It can be taken away in an instant, I think I really get it now.

Amazing, Healthy Chicken Nuggets

Here is my recipe for chicken nuggets. My kids love them, so do I. They are frugal, healthy and simple to make. In fact we are having them for dinner tonight.

Cut up boneless, skinless chicken breast into chunks. Soak in buttermilk for about 2 hours. Crush Back to Nature cracker rounds (like Ritz, only better for you), coat the chicken in the cracker mixture. Bake in 350 degree oven until cooked through.

The nuggets are moist on the inside, crunchy on the outside. They are spectacular!