Welcome to Texas

Guys... I just killed a scorpion. In my house. Granted it was only about 1/4" long, but still. A scorpion. I've heard of much bigger from some of the people in our ward, so maybe this was just a young buck. (Which I hope doesn't mean there is a mommy and more young bucks sneaking around inside somewhere.)

We also saw this doozy in the bush outside our front door last week:

Somewhat concerned and wondering if we should kill it--(my initial thought was, "Of course we should kill it!! No spider that big deserves to be on this earth!")--we did some research to find out what it was. Apparently, the argiope aurantia does deserve to be on this earth. Although it's pretty intimidating, it's completely harmless to humans and eats all manner of other awful things, like wasps, bees, and small vertebrates. (What?! A spider capturing and eating a gecko?? True story. Don't mess with the argiopes.) As we were reading it says males and females look about the same, but males are smaller (about 1/4" for the males; 3/4-over an inch for the females). We were sure we were looking at a female last week.

WRONG. Turns out those measurements are for the spiders' bodies only. Not their legs. Ew.

So we left last week's spider to go about eating wasps and gross things. But in the web today, there is a truly. massive. spider.--next to a smaller, shriveled, dead one. Looks like Mr. Man made his genetic contribution and kicked the bucket, as per usual. We'll see if Ladyfriend eats him...

Friends, this spider is ginormous. Like multiple inches including legs. And although it's kind of pathetic that I'm going on and on about this (especially because apparently they're all over the United States? A common garden spider.), I just have to say that when in Rome, you get used to what the Romans are used to. I hope. I wasn't a pansy about the scorpion, (although the thought creeps me to the core) and I'm allowing a giant spider to live and let live two steps outside my front door. But if it comes in my house, it's going to die. (Somehow. With loads of courage and fierce battle cries.) So you just keep your orb web with the crazy zigzag down the middle outside, okay dearie? And when your babies come, they better blow AWAY from my front door.

P.S. I am apparently addicted to parenthetical statements. This post has seven.

Crazy Crust Pizza

Remember that bookstore date I told you Blake and I went on? Well on that date, we both found a recipe that we wanted to give a shot. And the first one was a definite keeper.

The trial run for this recipe wasn't perfect--there is some tweaking I want to do--but it was so tasty that we wanted to share it with you. The crust is a batter that you pour into a cookie sheet. Very fun! It also means no waiting for dough to rise (or rise twice, for some recipes). What you save in rise time, you spend a little in baking time, so I guess it's about sixes, but give this pizza a shot sometime.

Crazy Crust Pizza

Batter:

1 c. flour (I used wheat with great results)
1 t. salt
1 t. Italian seasoning
1/8 t. pepper
2 eggs
2/3 c. milk

Topping:

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef OR 1 cup pepperoni
1/4 c. chopped onion
1 (4 oz.) can mushrooms
1 c. pizza sauce
1 c. mozzarella cheese

Make batter--mix until smooth. Pour into lightly greased 15x10 cookie sheet, covering the bottom of the pan. Arrange meat, onions, and mushrooms on crust. Bake on the low rack at 425 for 25-30 minutes until the crust is a deep golden brown. Drizzle sauce and sprinkle cheese on the pizza and return to the oven for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is nicely melted. Serves 3-4.

My notes:

• I measured my cookie sheets (you know, the normal beloved jelly roll pans we all have) and they are actually 11x16. This meant that the already-thin pizza crust became very, very thin in my cookie sheet. I think next time I will try doing 1 1/2 times the batter recipe. I think if you doubled the batter it might be too thick to cook well underneath a mountain of toppings (see subsequent note), but I'll play with it and alter this post as needed.
• Also, with the crust, it says to lightly grease the cookie sheet... This could have been a problem due strictly to the thinness of my crust, but if I did the recipe again as is, I would grease the heck out of the cookie sheet!! I was able to get the pieces off, but it certainly wasn't an easy, convenient scoop onto the plate. I'm hoping that a thicker crust next time will solve that problem.
• Toppings. The recipe seemed a little light on the toppings to us. We were also feeling adventurous that night so we piled toppings on with reckless abandon. Half of the pizza was pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, and roma tomatoes; the other half was ham, pineapple, and slivered almonds. Both were seriously divine. (And I don't even like mushrooms!) I was worried that the crust wouldn't cook underneath all those toppings, but the thinness may have compensated for that. I'll try a loaded-toppings pizza with a thicker crust and let you know how it goes.
• Although it made a full cookie sheet, I thought the serving estimate was pretty fair. Mom Hull, if you wanted to do this for dinner I'd do at least two pans, maybe three depending on how ravenous Jace was that night. ;) Next time I'll also serve it with a green salad to round out the meal a little bit.
• I'm a sauce-lover and there were several bites on my pizza that I wished had more of the pizza sauce flavor. Next time I'll be a little more liberal with the sauce. Or you could just have sauce on the table as a dipping option for those who wanted extra.

Like I said, I'll update the recipe on this post as I get things figured out. Blake requested it on the meal plan this week so I'll give it another shot. (I'll try to remember to take pictures!)

Because you were dying to know...

I've been a little more emotional than normal lately. (Yes, Aaron... please put Blake's name on the prayer roll.) Today before Eliza's nap we snuggled for a while, just because I needed it. She doesn't generally love to snuggle, but she's a pretty good sport about it.

As I put her down in her bed and I was picking a song to sing for her, every one the was coming to mind was also putting a lump in my throat. One of the regular "Momma Love Songs" just wasn't going to cut it today. So in an effort to keep my composure, I pulled out all the stops and sang very slowly and very softly:

I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts *deedly dee*

There they are a'standing in a row.

Big ones, small ones, some are as big as your head.

I picked one up and this is what it said -- Oh,

...(repeat)...

True story. I actually sang that for her nap song. I ad-libbed an ending to the loop and Eliza smiled and sighed her usual nigh' nigh'. Apparently she liked it. 

You know, being a stay-at-home mom of children who aren't old enough to judge bizarreness from normalcy certainly has its perks; it can be quite fun. I have to remind myself to turn on my social norm radar whenever I'm in public or around adults, though. I can't let the whole world know I'm certifiably nuts, now can I? No. I'll just post it to my blog instead. :)

Happy Monday!

T minus 13 Days

It's official:

Ticket purchased.

July 29th - August 12th.

Take me home, Delta!

A few parenthetical bits of information:

• It'll just be me and Eliza. It's my first time flying by myself, but I guess I won't be flying alone because I'll have Lizie with me. :) Let's hope she does well!
• Hoping that the person next to us is some nice, petite grandma.

Long Live the Binky

Sorry, Babywise--I'm afraid I will be pro-binky until the day I die. Let me tell you about a funny little situation that happened last night...

Uncle Quinton (FYI Briggs Family, Quinton is out here in Texas on a summer internship at BNSF. With any luck he'll get a job offer and join us out here after graduation!) needed to study for finals for an online class he's taking and so he offered us a chance at a date night with some free babysitting. We took Eliza over to his place, chatted for a while, then headed off. On the date, it occurred to me that I hadn't really given him a full run-down of the routine. He's done it before though, so I figured if he ran into any questions he'd give us a call.

We get back from our bookstore date at Barnes and Noble (jolly fun) and I walk in the front door to see Eliza's pillow--which also has her blanket, doggie dog, and binky inside the pillow case--sitting on the floor. Assuming all heck had broken loose, I listened for some wailing or something. Nothin'.

Annie:  "Uhh, did she go down okay?"
Quint:  "Yeah! She didn't cry or anything! I went up to check on her and she was just doing the happy little babble thing and went to sleep a little while later."

Total amazement. Utter astonishment. Dumbfounded in the extreme.

I went upstairs to get her out, wondering if she was just laying in there still and quiet wondering where the heck all of her stuff was. But I open the door, and sure enough, she's snoozing away in a completely empty portacrib.

...  WHAT???? ...

We picked her up, she was in the usual dazed-coma state when she gets woken up, and we took her home. On the way home, Blake and I were talking about how shocked we were at the whole situation and decided to try putting her down in her bed without the binky when we got home. "Maybe she's not as attached [cough... addicted] as we thought she was."  WRONG.

She didn't drift right off to sleep like normal, but she did ultimately go to sleep. Score! Just when we thought we were out of the binky-woods with no scars or lacerations, 4:00 rolls around. Eliza stirs and decides: "Okay. I've put up with these shenanigans for long enough, you sneaky parents, you. Where in tarnation is my binky!!" We let her work things out on her own--over. and over. and over. until morning. But my goodness, I think we all "woke up" a little tired!

We went to church, everything was fine there, and as per usual, Eliza zonked out in the car. (Roasting car, one or two hours past nap-time, 20 minute drive, pretty church music. It's inevitable. I try to shout at her to keep her awake and make her say 'moo' at the cows we pass and look at all of the cars, but she's just too pooped.) I generally come home and put her straight in bed--I tried the same stunt today, still sans binky. Yeah. That didn't go over well. It's not like she throws a violent tantrum or anything, but sleep just was not happening.

She was tired, I was tired, and I was getting to the point that I was almost ready to suck the binky to help myself go to sleep. Honestly. I have no idea how we aren't in a world full of adults walking around sucking on pacifiers. (Maybe we are, and those pacifiers are just the straws of a Big Gulp. But that's for another blog post.)

I'm not sure when I'm going to have the fortitude to make her quit, but I'm just not ready for this reform yet. Long live the binky.

Nursery on the Radar

You know, it's when I take Eliza out in public or have her in settings with other children that I realize how great of a girl she is. I'm not saying that she's perfect, nor am I saying that my parent-friends have a bunch of hellians. I just love to see how pleasant she is socially. She does a good job in restaurants, generally does well at church (she for sure does well if we pass her off to someone else--she behaves extremely well for the ladies in the ward), and she's happy and content in social situations with other children. It gives me high hopes for nursery. Which, by the way, 5 more Sundays! Yikes! I thought I'd be excited, but it makes me panic a little as a mom--I just feel like she's so little! Even though she's not. I suppose if I were having to wrestle with her during second and third hour, I'd be really excited, but I go straight to the craziness of primary and one of the ladies in the ward pounces on her for second hour before another lady in relief society complains that it's 'her turn' to hold Eliza. :) We have a wonderful ward.

Our Stake President said something insightful in our Stake Conference about what you might consider "prestigious" callings... "Consider two young parents with their first child. They couldn't care less who the young women's president is, or the first counselor in the bishopric, or the highcouncilman. What's the calling they care most about?:  the nursery leader. They're hoping and praying that he or she is fulfilling and magnifying their calling."  True words! I'm grateful that I know the nursery leader a little--it makes me less apprehensive.

Bottom line, as per usual, I love my little girl. Nothing new, no headlines or breaking news, just the same old wonderful story:  I love my little girl.

Feeling Juvenile

This is the most outrageous thought I've had today:

I, Annie Hull, am teething.

You know how you all thought I was an adult? Joke's on you... turns out I'm still cutting teeth like a child. My back molars have been hurting so I stuck my finger back there today to check things out and found the sharp edge of a wisdom tooth poking through my gums. The fact that I haven't had my wisdom teeth removed is only additional incriminating evidence that I'm still practically a minor. I'll be calling around this week to find a dentist/oral surgeon to see if we can pop these betsies out so I can actually graduate to adulthood. It's about time, wouldn't you say?