Live More, Stress Less! Eat More Chocolatey Peanut Butter Cookies!

It's been a rough few months and by few months I mean semester. I am just about to finish up my Anatomy and Physiology course and Medical Terminology and I have to say I am mentally and physically wiped. I am ready for a break. We just bought an RV so I am looking forward to some much needed rest and relaxation. This summer my goal is to have more fun. I want to have the energy to clean my house (hopefully with some much needed help from my wonderful loving husband and children ;) ) and to host more barbecues and summer playdates. It's all about motivation and sticking with it. So this summer, I am going to make an exceptional effort to do fun things with my family. We are taking a vacation and going to visit my family and go on more RV trips. I have been looking at pinterest quite a bit lately and have been gathering a few ideas on things to do and easy recipes to make on the go like some cookies and brownies since our oven in the RV is rather small.... I did come across this awesome recipe that I have made a few times for chocolatey peanut butter cookies. Oh my gosh they are SOOOO good. I have adapted the recipe a bit to cater to our liking but I am sure that it will not disappoint! We try our best to eat GMO free and organic and trust me these cookies taste so much better when there are organic ingredients inolved...

Chocolatey Peanut Butter Cookies

1/4 cup (or a half stick of organic butter or make your own like I do it tastes so much better!), softened 

1/4 cup of creamy peanut butter (organic is preferred but to save money I buy conventional)

1/4 cup of organic cane sugar 

1/4 cup organic light brown sugar 

1 farm fresh egg (Once you buy farm fresh you will never go back to store bought!) 

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup unbleached flour (I buy mine at Trader Joes)

1/4 tsp baking soda 

1/8 tsp sea salt 

1 & 3/4 cups of dark chocolate chips ( I actually don't measure I just throw in how many I like and I have added some crushed pieces of Andes candies for a little mint chocolate taste.) 

Method: Preheat oven to 350. 

If you have a stand mixer such as a Kitchen Aid like I do this is so much faster and easier because you can let the mixer run while you throw in the ingredients. Beat the butter, and peanut butter together on medium speed and gradually add the two types of sugars beating until well mixed. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and sea salt and beat until well blended. Stir in the chocolates and mix well. 

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. I only let them cool for about 2 mins and then I start to devour them but I recommend that you let them cool a little longer ;) I can't help myself especially on those super stressed days. These cookies are amazing and I hope you enjoy them as much as my family and I do. They are usually gone before I can get another batch in the oven. Just sayin'. 

Love, Mombird

Sister

So for those of you who know me, you know that my father is a truck driver. It was hard growing up with him being gone all the time wondering what state he would be in, what kind of weather conditions, what kind of potential hazardous situations he could be in. It was also very hard to not have him at my school events. Like the time he promised me that he would be there to watch me perform in my school musical in 4th grade. He ended up getting there just in time to watch me walk out the doors with tears in my eyes. He missed a lot of basketball, volleyball, and softball games in high school. He missed A LOT. 

But even though he was not present for things that I needed him there for as a child, I can't even imagine how it would have been like growing up without even knowing him. My father has always been there for me even though he wasn't physically there for me. And for that I am very grateful. As a kid I didn't see it this way. I was mad at him a lot for missing things that were important to me. I was jealous of my friends for having a father that could eat dinner with them every night. And every time my mother and I got into it, I prayed to god that he would make my father come home and STAY home. As a child and teenager, I prayed to god a lot. I especially prayed just before bed when I was sobbing after a bad fight with my mom. 

Though my childhood was not easy, I still had my father in my life. My sister, did not. As I said before, I can't even imagine my life without my dad. I can't even imagine how she grew up not knowing who he was. I am so glad that she has found us and found who her father is and I am at peace with it. This young woman has found her brother, sister, and father. That my friends, is a miracle on its own. Sometimes we need to look at what we have and be thankful for it. Maybe that volleyball game that my dad missed wasn't so important after all. Just looking back at all the things that he missed just seems so small compared to a lifetime of not having him in my life. So if you take anything away from this at all, just know that even though we can't always have it all, what we do have and the moments we were able to share might just mean the world to someone else.  

~Mombird

A True Miracle

I haven't written in months and I felt the need to write tonight. It's late and I can't sleep because something happened to me tonight that will change my life forever. I have a sister. Well, a half sister but a sister nontheless. I never knew about her until tonight. I received a letter addressed to my father and my home a few weeks ago and I didn't open it because I was busy at the moment and I set it down somewhere with the intent of opening it later. For those who don't know, my father is a cross-country truck driver and has his mail forwarded to me so that I can take care of it. So I stumbled upon it today and opened it. At the top I was surprised to see her name with my maiden name in parentheses. Obviously I was a bit confused. I read on and found that this young woman had been searching for her father and wanted to know if my dad was him. She had given an accurate description of my dad and mentioned her mothers name and asked if he knew her around the year of 1994. She had stated that my father had a daughter (my name) and a son (my brother's name). By now I am thinking that this is just a joke, this can't be real. How would this girl know my father's, brother's and my name. So I did some research. I went to the only place on the internet that I thought I would find her. Facebook. I searched her name and found a young woman that looked to be about 17 or 18 that looked almost identical to my brother. She lived in a city that was 11 minutes away from the return address on the letter. I was convinced, but unsure all at the same time. My mind was racing. I couldn't believe what I had found. My husband called my father because I had no idea what to say. He confirmed that he knew her mother and that he had an affair with her. He had heard that he had a daughter a couple years ago and began searching for her but gave up because he had no leads. She no longer lived in the same home and no longer worked at the same place. He was out of options. My husband suggested that I call her. Her phone number was in the letter. So I did. We both didn't know what to say. I can easily say that that phone call was the most awkward and exciting phone call I have ever made in my life. I ended the conversation by agreeing to give her my father's phone number so that she could call him when she was ready. My husband called her and told her that he had a daughter and to be expected, he was in shock and didn't know what to do. My husband told him to call her. So he did. I let it go for the night. I figured that he needed his time and that I would call him tomorrow to talk to him about it. So that's where I am at right now. Confused, nervous, excited all at the same time. It gets better though... She told me that she had been searching for her father since she was 11 and her mother never told her much about him except the fact that he was a truck driver and that they were together for about 5 months before she broke it off with him. She never talked to him again. This girl grew up without a dad and had been searching for him for 7 years. It was a miracle that she even found us. It is a true miracle. I guess God really does work in mysterious ways. I may not believe in religion but I do believe in a higher power and tonight has proven that. I am thankful for what I have and thankful that she has found us. Tonight my life has changed forever... More on this soon.
Goodnight all!
~Mombird

The Story Behind "Mombird"

They call me "mombird". Who you ask? Well my stepdaughters do, that's who. I have two awesome stepdaughters whom I love as if they were my own blood. When I first met them, they were 4 and 6. They had no other name to call me but by my first name because of course they felt that "mom" just wasn't appropriate. Understandable. As the year went by, I had been thinking of what they could call me without making them feel uncomfortable. I remember hearing a friend call her mother "Mombird" and I thought, that's it! I pitched the idea to them and it stuck. They have been calling me mombird ever since. I think it has made things easier for all of us because they don't have to feel bad about calling me "mom" and they actually really like the name. 

If you have stepchildren, what do they call YOU? At what age did you meet them for the first time? I'm curious to see the different and creative names for step-parents.

~Mombird

Honey, I Need a Drink.

Does that phrase sound familiar to anyone? It's been a long summer...can you tell? Between play practice, gymnastics, swim dates at the YMCA, family outings and get-togethers, and trying to adjust to a newborn in the house, that drink can't come soon enough. Of course that drink is rather hard to come by when at the end of the day you're too tired to even make it. Story of my Life! For those of you who don't know me, I have four kids ages ranging from 9 years to 5 months and I am only 23 years old. Yeah I know what you are thinking...Wow did this girl have kids at like age 12? Well no, but I would have been 13 if I had my oldest step-daughter biologically. 2 step-daughters, a daughter and son of my own, and a husband. Yes, I've got my hands full, I'm told that every time the occasional tender loving old lady realizes that those kids following me around the grocery store are not actually lost. It's crazy for me to even fathom it myself...

So I'm sure you are wondering "How does this young mother of four have any time to even think about starting a blog?" Great Question! I'm still asking it myself. I felt that I needed a release, something to get my thoughts out. I also feel the need to get the word out about things that are happening in our country that is covered up so much that most people don't even have a clue about. I've recently started to buy more organic and natural products and I feel that more and more people should know about what really is in our everyday conventional foods. 

So as of right now, this is my attempt to keep my sanity and my way of helping others learn the truth about things that our society and government has deemed "safe". We will see how this goes...

~Mombird