One of Those Days and Recipe

The past two days have been "those days". The ones where you feel like you have absolutely nothing together. There have been no crisis erupting but just no flow at all. First Cora is cutting FIVE teeth and getting over a double ear infection. I was convinced her ears were bad again and woke Max up from a dead sleep to have her checked out. Turned out to be her teeth not ears. This is good...but a Dr. visit was not needed and both kids were exhausted. She did not nap yesterday so by bed she was DONE. I crashed after getting Max to sleep. Both kids have been especially glued to me...wanting to be held a lot. I am all for snuggles...but it is tiring holding a preschooler and toddler at the same time:)...turns would be great but no go. Kyle has worked late all week...this has only served to remind me how much he does around the house....baths, bedtime stories,etc. Today started with me waking up late and scrambling to get Max out the door for school. I totally forgot to get his class gifts ready and buy lemonade for his Easter party. Gas station stop on the way to school. I was however loving the pink shirt and tie that he wore to school...so much so that I yelled STUD in front of his whole class...this was followed by stares and silence from the other kids and teachers. Score, now I look crazy. And this was after I rolled in looking like I had just gotten out of bed...which I had. Score two. When I get home my mom promptly tells me that we have a rat problem in the garage. SICK! I won't go into the details but it is bad. To make things worse, our new washer and dryer (YAY!) were being delivered and I would not let them go through the garage for fear of the rats. Needless to say...the guys were not happy. I also ended up breaking our vacuum trying to suck all the lint in our laundry room...triple score. Again, no crisis here but an honest picture of things around here at times. But I thought I would post a recipe that was a hit this week. This was one thing that did go well:). Also...a picture of the STUD. Spicy Chicken Chili Ingredients: • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil • 1 large onion, coarsely chopped • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped • 1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder • 2 teaspoons oregano • 1 teaspoon ground cumin • 1 teaspoon ground coriander • Cayenne powder, to taste • 1 pound ground chicken breast or shredded chicken (two breasts at 400 for 40-50minutes) • 1 (15 ounces) can tomato sauce • 1/2 cup mild or medium salsa • 1 (16 ounces) bag frozen corn kernels, or 3 cups fresh corn kernels • I can of black beans rinsed • Salt, to taste • 1/3 cup chopped cilantro Method: In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently until onions are translucent. Stir in chili powder, oregano, cumin, coriander and cayenne and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add chicken. Stir to break up and brown for 3 minutes. Add tomato sauce, 1 cup water, salsa and corn. Season with salt, then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 20 minutes, stirring often, until flavors have melded and chili is thick. Stir in cilantro and serve.