Pantry Moths

Back in November we had an infestation of pantry moths. At first we had no idea where these little moths, that turned to dust when you mashed them, came from. But they were always in our house and it became a game to my girls..."look there is a bug...I want to swatter it!" Yes, my children made a game out of hunting the moths and they each took ownership of a a particular fly swatter, one had the blue one and the other had the yellow one. Every evening my husband looked like some wild man hunting these tiny annoyances, especially when he decided to chase one around because it kept landing on his computer screen. It was common to hear "LOOK A BUG!" from the mouths of our babes. Our dogs even got in on the moth killing by snapping at the ones that would fly too close to them. You would think we could have figured out where the moths were coming from, but it took us about a month. I guess we just thought they swarmed in from the outside every time we opened and closed the door. We had no idea we were bringing them in with the groceries.

After we got back from vacation, we realized that these moths were everywhere in the kitchen. Then I noticed these disgusting larva in the pasta and cream of wheat (after I poured them into pots of boiling water). Mind you, I was about 10 weeks pregnant at the time and my stomach did not take too well to seeing larva pop to the top of the pots. I feel sick reflecting upon it.

My husband and I were so relieved to hear that several people that we know had experienced pantry moths and the moths are in fact very common in Texas. Whew! We thought that we had some exotic bug problem. OK, they are common but how do we get rid of them. Well, we started by throwing everything out of our pantry including olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and peanut butter. We did not want to take any chances of the pantry moth larva being in anything. We even threw away the girls' Easy Bake Oven. Old Mother Hubbard's cubbards could not have been barer.

How did we get rid of them, you ask? After we threw ever item in our pantry away (literally), we vacuumed the pantry from top to bottom and corner to corner, then scrubbed with a mild detergent, and then wiped down all the surfaces with white vinegar. We then closed the door and did not open it for three days. At that time we looked for larva and moths...we found a few so we closed the pantry back up and waited a few more days....there were a few more moths. Finally, about 3 weeks later we had no more moths at all...we were not taking any chances but they were probably gone in 2 weeks.

Now we do not store our dry goods in the original containers. We bought a variety of canning jars that we store our pasta, flour, sugar, and cereal in and they look really cool. We got them a The Container Store:
Hermetic Storage Jars
French Hermetic Storage Jars

The varying sizes are great and they have a good look to them. Of course the are glass, because we could not find a "good" plastic container that we liked.

So far no more moths. I have also been told, by an experienced pantry moth investee, that you should store you dry goods in the freezer for a few days before putting them in our pantry in order to kill any larva that may be in there. UGH! Can you even imagine the amount of bug larva we have eaten in our lives...I do not even want to think about it.

Now don't every one go clean out your pantries at once...

Words that hurt

We all use them one time or another. Usually after we use them we feel this terrible ache in the pits of our stomachs...or at least those of us that care do. I have a hard time apologizing after using mean words even though I know my mean words could have pierced the heart of the person I directed them too...usually my husband. I have gotten better as I have matured and realized that words that hurt do nothing, well but hurt...they solve nothing.

When someone uses words that hurt towards me, I stew in those words and that is where I have been lately. I am a SAHM and very proud of it. I LOVE my job and I take pride in rearing my children. So when someone tells me I am "Just a Stay at Home Mom", I get angry. I applaud the working mother because her life is busy, but she also does not rear her children all on her own...the other caregivers help. My sister often tells me that she can't offer any potty training tips because she did not potty train her son, daycare did. I am headed on a tangent so I need to get back to my point...typical me :)

I work hard every day and I where many hats. I am a maid, chauffeur, chef, entertainer, personal assistant, educator, a kisser of boo-boos, and getter of juice...about 20 times per day, a wiper of butts, the toilet cleaner, the floor mopper, the settler of arguments, the doer of dishes and laundry...the never ending chores that multiply all on their own, and the disciplinarian that does not get heard until the mean mommy voice comes out and then about that time someone else is around to witness the inevitable meltdown of one's mental state because of these adorable little people that do not understand the meaning of the words "No" and "Stop".

Of course there are times I am the holder...the holder of that little person that asks for love by curling up in my lap. How can I say no to that?!?! That is not a waste of my time. Those are moments to be cherished, moments of security, moments of relationship building, and moments of peace. I am the giver of confidence and the one who explains why you cannot always win or get your way. I nurture, love, and teach life skills to prepare them to be functioning members of society. Ha, just a stay at home mom...I laugh in the face of any adversary that says that I "do nothing all day"...

I guess my point is that it hurts to think that people out there think that stay at home moms sit around all day eating bon bons and watching television. If "eating" playdough food while watching PBS Kids counts, then that is fraction of my day.

Actually, as I type my girls are fighting over where my glasses should go because I do not need them right now. I am also holding juice in my lap which my youngest brought to me while crying for some. I guess it is time for me to close before I get to a point I use my mean mommy words when I do not really need to. I just need to think about what I say before I say it and realize I can take control of situations before I need to use my mean mommy words with my girls.

Now I need to figure out a way to not let other people's mean words hurt me...

BTW, I love being a stay at home mom! I can write about that another time...

deleted post

I deleted some of my postings because my husband pointed out that I was giving to much information. For those that now me know that I talk too much and I tend to say whatever comes to mind...not always a good thing.

Commercial Audition

I have a friend whose children are extras in television productions and commercials and she sent out this email for a casting call for suburban mother and her toddler. The caveat for the mother was that she needed to be fit, aka, skinny, and since I am pregnant I do not fit the part. But I thought that Rae could possible fit the part. She is cute, if I may say so myself :) Well when we walked in the six people working on the casting call, smiled and awwwed at her and then they laughed....she turned into goofball kid. I guess that is better than screaming and crying. She jumped up and down, fell to the floor, stuck her tongue at them but in a playful way, and then started at them with a mean scowl, devoured her cracker and then asked for more. Then she said quietly in the stroller as the lady trying out for the roll of the mother did an outstanding job at her audition. We got, a thank you and a boot out the door...or at least that is how I felt. They were basically crawling all over themselves to get the name and number of this other little girl....she went in right before Rae did.

I did not have high expectations. It was an experience. If the opportunity arises to audition for something else, we may try again. I need to find out more about this world of child acting. It seems scary, but intriguing...

Several other people I know also auditioned so I am eager to hear of their experiences.

Komfort Keepers

There is a wonderful Christian Ministry in Austin that was started by a woman that turned her loss into a gift for others. Johnese Evans started Komfort Keepers 5 years ago and with a grant from March of Dimes she is able to provide cleaning services, childcare services, and meals for women experiencing high risk pregnancies. What a Blessing! Please pray that Komfort Keepers will continue to grow and have funding. If you are interested in volunteering, give her a call. If you have experienced a loss or high risk pregnancy see if you can be added to the support group to call other mothers that may be on bed rest. Or you can just offer your prayers in anyway you want.

Since I am not on bed rest right now, Praise the Lord, and just limited in my activity, I am receiving meals every two weeks and house cleaning, by Molly Maids, every three weeks....for free! Today meals were delivered and we got five large meals including: spaghetti bake, chicken pot pie, green chili enchiladas, chicken tetrazenni, and one other just can't remember what it is right now and bags of frozen vegetables. I was amazed! I am only on limited activity! I cannot imagine what they would be doing if I were on full bed rest again. This service is such a blessing that I want to give back already and I am receiving right now. Oh, and did I mention that the dishes are homemade. We had the pot pie tonight and it was yummy! Jason and I both had seconds and he is taking the rest for lunch tomorrow so it was a large family serving.

If you know of anyone that can use this service please look up www.komfortkeepers.com. I know the church I attend is awesome about serving people and I have been blessed by the wonderful people at HighPoint Fellowship www.hpf.org too. I just need a little extra long term help right now and that is why Johnese started Komfort Keepers. My husband was very happy that we are receiving services because he thinks I do too much as it is and I really try to take it easy, trust me I want a healthy screaming baby this time.

If you know of anyone in the Austin metro area that can use this service, please pass on this information. I have been very blessed to have received their services.

Many Blessings to all.

Cheers,
Chinell

Favorite Comic Strips

I have two favorite comic strips. I read them daily. The first one is For Better or For Worse http://www.fborfw.com/strip_fix/ I like this because it is about family and not just the happy stuff either. I have sucked into their lives and I want to know what is going on. I often look forward to the next days events. Did Anthony ask Elizabeth to marry him? Has grandpa lived another day after having two strokes? What did the dog do today? It seems harmless, but once you start reading, you just get hooked.

The second one is Baby Blues http://www.babyblues.com/index.php. I always get a good laugh from this comic strip. As a parent I can totally relate. I love it that the writers are men, yet the mother has nursed her children over a year (each of her three children) and yet she can turn around and laugh when her daughter...about five years old or so gets a Victoria's Secret coupon in the mail. Her two oldest do not always listen and their fighting tactics are hilarious.

I have been reading these comics for years. I can tell you all the names of the characters and go into some family history. Yes this is a guilty pleasure, but I do not watch much television so this is about the closest thing I get to a comedy, drama, soap opera....

I hope you enjoy!

Cheers,
Chinell

Random Shoes

So last night we were driving home from a friends house and I saw a pair of random shoes in the street. It baffles me how someone can loose their shoes in the middle of the street. It amazes me how those random shoes end up on highways and country roads. How do people loose their shoes...do they just fall out the window. Is mom yelling at her kids telling them that she will throw their shoes out the window if they don't stop fighting? Do kids get mad at their parents and throw their shoes out the window to be spiteful? Is it some kind of gang initiation? I just find it odd. How in the world do your shoes fall out the window? Is is a habit to hang your feet out the wind just blows your shoes off? Has anyone lost a pair of shoes out of the car to end up the one of those random pair of shoes on the side of the road.

So this is not very thought provoking but I just can't help to ask people if they know how these random shoes get there. I have seen pairs of tennis shoes, random flip flops, and the ever so popular combat boots. So the combat boots may be some kind of ritual of getting out of the military, but the other shoes I just do not understand. This is random topic, but I just do not get it. Where do those shoes come from?

Cheers,
Chinell