Secrets of the Mommy Sisterhood

My son is getting his molars and has a temperature. He’s been screaming all day. I almost amputated the tip of my finger in his stroller, smacked myself in the face with my keychain, tripped over the door, and was in the car with said screamer going to pick up my daughter and my car is dead. Got Manishewitz?

Special delivery for one deserving Mommy!

No, that didn’t happen to me (you must know by now sweet Jewish wine is not a strong enough Mommyjuice selection for my tastebuds), but it was a direct plea from one of my friends. So, I did what anyone in the Mommy Sisterhood would do: I orchestrated a covert operation to give her a much deserved after dinner buzz (new Rachael Ray Rachipe below). Dressed in head-to-toe black, I left the comfort of my Mommymobile and ran in flip-flops through the torrential downpour (hey, I can’t get everything right) to hand deliver a bottle of the sweet stuff. I scurried away unnoticed–hysterically laughing at myself as I splashed through the puddles–covered by the darkness of night. (I hope her neighbors didn’t see me; they might think this overtired Mommy does a little too much talking and laughing to herself, but I digress.)

I sent my friend a text message alerting her to look on her doorstep a short time later. Of course she was thrilled with her surprise! She texted me back and said she’ll meet me at Gymboree tomorrow if she’s not too hungover. Mission accomplished.

Let’s face it: We’re all one molar away from mayhem. Please, Mommies, remember this tale, and pay it forward. You don’t know when the day will come that you desperately need Mommyjuice but you’re stranded in suburbia with a screaming son. There’s absolutely no store on Earth that would deliver Manishewitz on demand. That’s what the Mommy Sisterhood is for…and that’s no secret.

I served the meatloaf muffins with stovetop macaroni and cheese--recipe under the Dishes section--and fresh stringbeans (both are Ashley's favorites and she's leaving this week for sleepover camp).

Meatloaf Muffins with Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Put ground beef into a big bowl. Put onion and celery into a food processor. Cut the bell pepper in half, rip out the seeds, and throw them into your garbage bowl. Cut the pepper into a few pieces and add to the food processor. Pulse the processor blades to finely chop the vegetables into very small pieces then add them to the meat bowl. Add egg, beaten with milk, bread crumbs, and grill seasoning to the bowl. Next, mix together the smoky barbecue sauce, the salsa, and the Worcestershire sauce. Pour half the sauce mixture into the bowl with the meatloaf mix. Mix the meatloaf together. Brush a 12-muffin tin (1/2-cup each) with vegetable oil or extra-virgin olive oil. Use an ice cream scoop to help you fill meat into a each tin. Top each meat loaf with a spoonful of extra sauce. Bake about 20 minutes. Cut open 1 muffin to test that the middle is cooked through.