..Coffee...

I don't think this getting up 100x a night thing is getting easier, I just think I am getting used to it.

Over the past few weeks, when the sun goes down, I get sad. I get sad because it means night time is upon us. And for me, that means listening to my husband and dogs snore away sweet dreams [seriously, SO annoying] while I lay in bed, eyes burning, listening to a baby scream for god only knows what. What is it this time? Hungry? Uncomfortable? Wide Awake and Bored? Landmine explode in your diaper...again?

So up I go...hobbling all over the place because I am dead tired, did I mention my eyes burn, and I cannot catch my footing. Meanwhile, I am trying to carry a 12# screaming baby :) And yes, last night I slammed straight into the wall, falling over, versus walking out the doorway to get to the nursery. YAHOOOOOOO - these are the things your mother doesn't warn you about ;)

So how, do you ask, do I manage to get myself psyched up for these lovely evenings?

COFFEE!

I dream, while my taste buds twinkle, thinking about that wonderful aroma I will smell in the morning. I dream about it piping hot with my latest flavored creamer waiting patiently in the fridge. Yes, I am dead serious. I help myself make the most of the twilight hours by thinking about how I get to have coffee when they are over!!

And don't fool yourself - I used to just be a morning coffee drinker. Now I drink it during the day and I love to make a pipping fresh pot at night too. And the craziest part? Caffeine has no affect on my as far as drinking it to stay awake!?

All by 7:15am

Well, it's more like 7:31 right now, but when I finally poured my morning cup 'o steaming hot joe, it was 7:15am....and then I thought back to all the things I had already accomplished since I had woke up!

Fed & water 4 horses (ok, so 2 horses, a pony and a mini mule!)

Fed Maggie (indoor cat)

Fed & Supervised the feeding of mama and her 3 kitties. One of the kitties has some territorial issues when eating so I have been setting him off to the side with his own plate. I know, a 3 month old kitten with aggression when eating....who would have thought!

Then, I swept their room up, changed out all newspapered areas and moved on to the BLEACHING of the litter boxes. I bleached their two and Maggie's main one. Maggie gets this done once a month and these little, dirty gremlins have theirs done about every week!

Let me just say there is nothing glamorous about cleaning litter boxes, let alone full out stripping them and bleaching them. *BLEEECH* I will pick up the manure turd that fell over the side of my wheelbarrow ANY DAY over messing with kitty litter and the boxes. Yes, with bare hands.

So, now I finally have my coffee and I am going to sit here and enjoy it for what I hope is at least a whole five minutes.....then the horses need to get out to stretch their legs before it gets too sweltering outside. They are calling for mid-90's today and we have no shade in our pastures right now :/

And, in T-5.5ish hours, all our picnic guest will probably start arriving.....and I still have a bathroom and a kitchen to clean....and a cake to ice.....

I snapped this pic of the neighbors pond yesterday morning.

Night Cap

It's been a long day! And my, where does the time fly?

Tonight, I decided I was going to try a new recipe from the files of 'The Pioneer Woman'; this one, Dulce de Leche Coffee! To bad hubby went to bed. He is missing out, that is for sure!

Sit back, enjoy, savor, and maybe start your coffee pot after you read through.

Get a pot of coffee going :)

Patiently wait for it to brew

Then, grab your mug* and your Kaluha and pour it on in! You MUST enjoy this with Kaluha!!
*Disclaimer, I don't have fancy mugs like PW does in her post, so I chose my favorite mug to use instead ;)

Then, Pour your freshly brewed Coffee in with your Kaluha

[this is difficult to do with my left hand since I needed by right to snap the photo! How does PW do it!?]

WHOOPS!

Don't add Whinny....and don't mind her. I caught her pouting under the kitchen table while I was making my Night Cap. I think she was pouting, more so because Maggie the 7pound kitty was being mean to her, and not so much because I wasn't sharing my drink!

And please, don't mind the dust on my chair! Gesh, who thinks to dust THERE!

Moving on! Next, the 'Dulce de Leche'....or as most say, Caramel :)

PW used a 'brick' cut into pieces but my local store only had this. I am sure it taste just as good, all the same!

Pour that Sweet Goodness on in......

[My teeth hate me right now]

Give 'er a Whirl

Top that baby with some whipped cream & ENJOY!

[PW made 'homemade' whipped topping, but it's way past my bedtime AND I am now feeding myself coffee with Kaluha in it....so I wasn't interested in pulling out the mixer!]