{not included: hilarious preschooler, precocious toddler and fussy baby}: pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

Step 1: Place younger toddler sister in bed for nap time. Also place baby sister in swing for nap time.


Step 2: rummage through shelves, hope you have all the ingredients to fulfill cookie baking promise to preschooler son. Throw load of overflowed-toilet-soaked-laundry into washer....{from last night}.



Step # 4 1/2: baby sister is fussing. hold pacifier in baby sisters mouth. hooray! she took it!, toss laundry into dryer {bummer! remember we are out of dryer sheets- just in time for a huge load of towels}.

Step 8 1/2: hear toddler sister up from nap. hope she plays in her bed for a few more minutes. pick up dozens of spilled mini chocolate chips one by one off floor. move dirty lunch dishes to make room for more dirty cookie dishes on counter, sink & table.

Step #10: place pacifier in baby sisters mouth for the 4th time- hope she still takes it. Madly finish scooping cookies onto pan and into oven. Run upstairs to help now very crabby toddler sister up from nap time. Run downstairs. Get cookies out of oven. forget oven mit has hole, singe fingers. Grab crabby toddler and fussy baby- and change diapers for two.

Step #12: sit down to feed not-so-happy-now baby sister who's been waiting her turn for a while, while feeding baby sister try to wrangle toddler sister into booster seat, insist that we have always eaten our food at the table- "no, the rules are not changing today,"- plus, come on! I'm offering her cookies.

Step #12 1/2: wonder, why am I offering an already incredibly crabby toddler a cookie?

Step #14: enjoy a few hot-from-the oven cookies myself, smell the amazing combination of chocolate and pumpkin, watch the kiddos giggle, wait for the sugar low to arrive, hear the kiddos now tearful pleas for more cookies {they've each already had three}, stare at the cookie obliterated kitchen, humm Cinderella cartoon songs to self & hope my own set of whistling birds, mice and fairy's will come clean up my cookie kitchen and entertain my cookie crabby kiddos, sigh....smile at my now-fighting toddler and preschooler, {hooray! my no-longer-fussy baby is smiling back at me}..........and help myself to a few more yummy cookies!!!

and........that was way more than a 14 Step cookie recipe..............

ps. Here's the recipe if you're interested! **Hilarious preschoolers, precocious toddlers and fussy infants not included.