Can Crumpets Cure Loneliness?

Crumpets

3 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
2 Tablespoons Sugar or Honey (I've never used honey, but might try it tonight)
2 Tablespoons Butter or Margarine, softened
1 Egg, beaten
1 1/2 to 1 3/4 Cups of Milk
In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar or honey, and butter. In another bowl combine 1 1/2 Cups of milk and the egg. You can add more milk if the batter is too thick. It's a matter of taste. These cook up just like pancakes. Melt a little butter on a hot skillet. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter for each crumpet. Flip when the edges are dry (they won't bubble as much as pancakes).

If you've never has crumpets they resemble a very dense pancake. They're less sweet and go very well with a little butter and jam. I'm not sure if it's proper tea party etiquette, but I eat them with my fingers (like a biscuit or toast). They're very good and easy to make (you could handle them, Ragged).

Needlefingers has invited me to a little knitting "hoohah" next weekend. I think I may go if I can sneak away for a few hours. By that time I may have to sneak away for a long time!

The idea of house breaking 2 gangly Dane pups while still wrangling my own brood is pretty daunting. I'm beginning to wonder if we've lost our minds. The worst of it is that I'm on my own most of the day. Husband gets his chores done just in time to come in for lunch and a shower most days. Then he heads off to work leaving me to manage our ever growing household. I'm beginning to feel a little overwhelmed. Mostly because the last few weeks have been a little tougher than normal.

Baby Girl was having trouble going anywhere (she's getting a little better, but it's still a struggle to get her out the door). Then she had strep throat. I weaned B.B. and had to deal with the pain and sleeplessness involved with that. And now, Baby Girl is ill again and we're getting up many times a night with Aurora. #1 Son has had a major case of the Grumpies the past week or so. He seems to be getting back to his old self, but it's been tough. He's my "happy child." And to top it all off, we've had 2 litters of piglets and may loose the first sow (Bacon). She's not been doing well since she had her piglets and Husband is beginning to think she might not make it (incidentally she sat on another piglet this week. She's down to 8, but the other 11 are doing fine). If we loose her we stand the chance of loosing her piglets. I do not relish the thought of having to bottle feed 8 piglets on top of everything else. They may have to cart me off to the Looney bin.

My one hope is that Aurora will sleep better when she has Luke to cuddle down with at night. He'll be here Saturday as long as the vet gives TGDL the go ahead.

All of this is making me feel a little lonely. How can I be lonely when I don't have time to go to the bathroom alone you might ask. I'm not sure. Maybe it's the time of year (winter is never good for me). Maybe it's the added stress. Maybe it's the fact that most of the people I communicate with, I never lay eyes on. I'm feeling very isolated at the moment. It's never been easy for me to make friends. Most people would never know it, but I'm painfully insecure and therefore very shy.

Once upon a time I was a social butterfly. I had a million friends and never had a night to myself. Most of that stemmed from the fact that high schoolers and college students travel in packs. I never had to maintain friendships (except for a very special few) on my own. And now those special few live very far away.

I read parenting magazines that talk about the isolation felt by stay-at-home-moms (or SAHM's as I've recently seen them called). They suggest joining a Mommy and Me group or hanging out in the park to make friends with other new moms. That's great if you live in a town that offers these things. I live in the middle of nowhere. My only contact with the outside world is church (made up almost entirely of Husband's family), neighbors (made up entirely of Husband's family), and my grandparents and Aunt and Uncle. I'm very thankful that I have that support, but sometimes it would be nice to have hang out with someone I'm not related to.

I really should quit complaining and go to this hoohah with Needlefingers. I could even invite the one mother at church who isn't related to me to come over some time. Our kids could play. We could have a cup of tea and some crumpets.