Cheeseburger Meatloaf!

I was experimenting in the kitchen tonight. Meatloaf was on the menu. Mazy was groaning before I even started it. So I thought, "How can I make meatloaf more fun?" I looked in the fridge for inspiration and saw a nearly empty jar of pickle slices. Then I saw the shredded sharp cheddar and the ketchup and mustard. Ah ha! Cheeseburger meatloaf was born!

It was good. Mazy ate it before anything else on his plate! Even Bo ate a couple bites of it, mostly for the pickles but still he ate it. I put half the meatloaf in the pan, then did a layer of pickle slices, followed by a thin layer of shredded cheddar (most of us can tolerate hard aged cheeses in moderation) and then topped it with the rest of the meatloaf. I also made baked potato wedges and roasted asparagus. It was a good supper! And for dessert I made banana pudding -- but I used rice milk and it never set up... It was more like pudding soup. But everyone except Mazy enjoyed it. The boys really liked the fresh strawberries that Grandma Belinda sent home for them! Thanks, Belinda!

OK, today I want to show you the baby quilt that is being shipped to Shawn's aunt for the final step: quilting.

 This is the back of the quilt -- I fell in love with the pictures of the animals and knew I had to find a way to make it work for the back. Thanks to Shawn's sister Denise for helping me figure it out!

And here's the front! It's a very simple design, but hey, time is not something I have a lot of and tomorrow marks two months until baby's due date! So, simple and done is better than complicated and not finished!

Can I Be There When the Baby Is Born?

The short answer to that question is no, unless you're Shawn, and then the answer is, "Yes, you will be there and you will be awake and you will not say insensitive things like, 'Man, your breath smells.' or 'How can that look so disgusting?'"

Last night Mazy asked me if he could be there when the baby was born. Hmmm. I don't think so. First, I think that would be a traumatic experience for a 7-year-old boy. I'm his mother for pete's sake. I know it's the most natural thing in the world and one day he can experience that for himself with someone who is not his mother. And two, it would be a traumatic experience for me. I'd be worrying about him the entire time, trying to look like I was having fun and trying not to curse and cuss like a sailor. He hears enough of that from me.  ;)

So I compromised with Mazy and said if it was possible (depending on the day, time and circumstances), we'd see if one of his grandparents might hang out at the hospital with him during the delivery, and then he could be the first person in to see the baby, learn the sex and hear the name. He was happy with that. He also wanted to know the following:

Q: Where does all the blood go?

A: The nurses wipe some of it up with towels, some goes on the floor, some is on the baby. But they clean it all up.

Q: If I was standing there, would blood spray all over my face?

A: Good lord, no! It's not a blood bath!

Q: I know having a baby hurts, but does it hurt more than when I pull my teeth?  Because that is really, really painful Mama.

A: Yes, it hurts more than pulling a tooth, even your teeth. I'm not trying to turn this into a competition, but if it was a contest I would win, every time, by a lot. Especially when it is you and your giant head that is being birthed.

Q: Why was my head so giant? Because I'm so smart?

A: Yes, because you have a nice big brain and a nice big round skull to protect it. It's a beautiful head.

Well, I could keep on writing tonight but I should stop myself and pick up the house more. Tomorrow is math night... Shawn is up mopping the bathroom floors (in honor of Grandma Katy's visit tomorrow) and I said I'd do the cleaning downstairs. So have a great Thursday, everyone!