Meatball Mania

Yesterday was kind of a strange day.  I've been crazy busy at work and it came to an abrupt stop yesterday afternoon as we wait for a vendor to finish their stuff so we can move forward.  So I had an hour or two in the afternoon where things were kind of quiet, and I managed to knock out a few chores that I've been putting off (cleaning the kitchen - ahem).  I really like to cook when I have the time, but I almost have a mental block against starting to cook in a dirty kitchen.  It just doesn't work.  Now, the floor may stick to your shoes like a movie theater (and often does), but the counters and sink need to be clean for me to cook.  I do have some standards. 

So I cleaned up the kitchen and started working on dinner.  When I have time to plan and think, and the energy necessary, I like to cook from scratch, but those things come together most often on the weekend.  So last night it was quick and easy spaghetti - sauce from a jar (very rare around here; I almost always make my sauce), meatballs, and some green beans.  The kiddos were busy playing a game and J was running late, so I had a glass of wine and read a book until we were ready to eat. 

We eat dinner as a family most nights that I am in town, so the kiddos are used to sitting down with us at the kitchen table.  Getting them to STAY in their seats is a different matter.  Sometimes it reminds me of a whack-a-mole game, their heads are popping up and down so much (need more to drink, have to go to the bathroom, need a spoon because I dropped my first one, need another napkin, and so on and so on).  So last night, the boy was out of his chair for some reason.  He had just taken a big bite of meatball and wandered across the kitchen to where J was getting seconds; I think he needed another spoon.  J looked down, realized that B was out of his seat and told him to go sit back down.  B looked up and in that split second, he sneezed - twice.  With a mouthful of meatball. 

I think I popped a few blood vessels trying not to laugh.  Meatball went everywhere.  Between B's cracking up and J's "oh gross!" it was all I could do not to completely lose it.  It also made me very glad I didn't bother to clean the floor before dinner.  J was trying to play it straight, because he was disciplining, which meant I was supposed to keep a straight face, too.  Yeah.  Let's just say that didn't happen...