My Day With Tilex

My husband and I got the day off yesterday to work on a few non kid friendly house projects. My mom (who is about to start school again) watched the girls all day so we could spend our day with tilex and paint.

It wasn't until last night that I finally started to smell clean air again. Or not feel totally stoned. But my floors look awesome. The kind of awesome where you can't stop looking at them. Kind of like when you get your eyebrows done and they are ALL YOU SEE.

When I dropped the girls off I happened to go to a garage sale. And I just happened to buy one of these......





Except mine only cost $20!!!!!!!!!! (And just so you know....I actually got the jeep BEFORE spending my day with tilex--shocking I know)


And a super cute Janie and Jack dress (for five bucks!) for my nearly SIX YEAR OLD.


Man, I used to think moms with school age kids were SO DIFFERENT. Well, I guess it's time to count me in. I'm a little sad, but I know she's ready. I just hope I am.


School starts next week.

And p.s. don't tell my daughters about the jeep. They don't know yet.....and I'm not sure when they will.

Quick and Easy (and cheap!!!) Necklace!

Last week while on a trip to Michael's with my oldest, I found the Making Memories line of jewelry supplies. They're pretty cute with a funky vintage vibe. I have a ton of beads and findings in my desk right now but neither the time (well...) or inclination (YES) to work on any of it. But this little chain and pendant was calling my name.




(obviously I took the picture after I put them together)

Both were $2.49 each which seemed like a STEAL. Especially for Michaels.....





So for five bucks I was able to VERY QUICKLY come up with a necklace that's all my own! Or at least not sold at Forever 21 and worn by teeny boppers everywhere. And it gave me a boost in my self esteem for actually finishing something!!!

Greek Night! Opa!

Last night (because it's just too darn hot to cook anything longer than 10 minutes) I made Greek Chicken, Foccacia (frozen) and a green salad. I've been working on resetting my pantry these past few months and it was so wonderful to have EVERYTHING I needed for the greek chicken topping.




When I say "resetting" my pantry, I should use the word emptying. I've had the most random cans of "food" in there for years. Hoarding tomatoes, beans and the like and never really using them. Instead I've been eating only what we have in there and adding a couple of items at a time. I realized I was searching for security in a full house and full pantry. We're working on that!

Back to dinner!

It has always been a dream of mine to have a little garden. Well, our yard is like a Disney movie, so a garden on the ground without significant security would be ridiculous. We have at least 3 bunnies in our yard at all times. They eat my flowers (which I've learned to just get over) but I don't think I could take them eating OUR food.




Instead I have my little garden atop a defunct patio table. And I'll tell you, my tomatoes look terrible but they are some of the few actually sprouting fruit in this area. The heat has been ridiculous.



My favorite part of gardening this time around has been my little selection of herbs. I use the basil and mint almost daily. To be able to run out back and snip a little flavor from my own backyard has been short of heavenly.

The greek chicken was EXACTLY what we needed in this heat wave. With the greek salsa it was cool and fresh. And lovely to run outside and collect a little mint!




And to add to the ambiance........

Edit: this was also the same day the Greek bail out was announced. We are SO with it.

Patchwork Turtles!

Once I saw THIS TUTORIAL on Make it and Love it, I just knew my nephew had to have one!!!

I loved the fabric she used as well and was inspired to go digging through my own scrap basket!

The only change I would make (and will make before I mail it) is add a bell inside. I think the turtle needs a little jingle in his life. And make him more appealing to my bouncy little buddy!




And this is totally worth it just to learn the hidden stitch trick!

It will change the way I finish projects FOREVER!!!

Show Us Your Life--Breakfast Recipes

It is SUYL Breakfast recipes over at Kelly's Korner this week!

Ok-I realize this might be selfish that I'm posting a one serving breakfast recipe. But breakfast time is my ONE selfish alone time of the day. It's quiet. The girls are still upstairs and usually my husband has just left for work.

My mom gave me this idea. And it's awesome.

Start with either a multi grain sandwich round (2 ww points) or an english muffin (typically 3 ww pts). Toast it lightly.

Then cook 2 egg whites in a tiny bit of butter (about 1 ww pt).

Put the egg whites on the lightly toasted bread and sprinkle a little bit of shredded cheddar (or whatever you have---this morning I used mozzarella because we were out of cheddar).




And last but not least, I use Jimmy Dean turkey sausage (1 per item--not serving). It heats quickly in the microwave and then I slice it up so I get some in each bite!

It's easy and SEEMS like a splurge, but it's not!!!

All in all it's about a 4 point weight watchers breakfast!




Enjoy!!!

Outside treasures

Each morning I take a walk or bike ride. I rise quite early, enjoy a cup of coffee (although I wouldn't say a GOOD cup of coffee until I run out of the yuck I have now) and start off. I love using the runkeeper app so I can try to maintain a decent pace. And it's fun to figure out where the tough points of my walk/ride were. I love being able to tell where the hills are. We live in a big valley, so there's not an easy walk in the entire 'hood.

I've been looking for treasures for my girls while out.



And even one for my husband.

I like to hide them for the girls in the mailbox. As long as we remember before our mail lady arrives!

I've even done a little urban foraging for flowers. Someone dumped a hanging basket over the edge of the ditch. It definitely wasn't accidental. I watched it for a few days and finally decided I could use it in my backyard!

Although discovering this big guy....

(dead, of course) near the ditch where I procured my find, I will think twice about jumping down there again.

I highly value this alone time. I enjoy listening to the Sara Groves pandora station and talking to my God.

With this set alone time every morning, I no longer have to ask "how is it between us, when did I talk to you last and what has happened since...." How is it between us by Sara Groves.

Philippians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

So....I'm going to actually try to keep up with this blog....

Making: a Happy Summer pennant for my mantle
Cooking : whole wheat blueberry muffins this morning if I can find a recipe.....
Drinking : ugh, weirdo k-cups. I'm trying to get through the random ones before I buy more...
Reading: The Omnivores Dilemma, and La Bella Figura
Wanting: to lose a few pounds and for my thyroid to figure itself out
Looking: forward to more fun summer days
Playing: in the pool with our girls
Wasting: half drunk cans of soda
Sewing: pillow cover for the living room
Wishing: that we lived somewhere not so humid and not so hot
Enjoying: that we had a staycation this year!
Waiting: for everyone to get up!
Liking: the quietness of the house
Wondering: if we will actually make it to early service :)
Hoping: that I can vacuum upstairs today
Loving: watching my daughters grow
Marveling: at God's hand in our lives. He's always there and shows us every minute of everyday.
Needing: to buy more k-cups. These are kinda gross.
Smelling: the awful vanilla cream iced coffee k-cups that I'm using for regular hot coffee
Wearing: sweat shorts and a ruffled tshirt
Following: Ummm...Antiques Roadshow?
Noticing: that my eldest starts kindergarten in less than 2 months
Knowing: that today is the last day of my husband's staycation off from work
Thinking: that I wish the paper would get here
Bookmarking: summer recipes
Opening: bills. It's that time of the month!
Giggling: over anything my littlest one says. What a little hoot!
Feeling: tight. And apparently grumpy and ready for new k-cups!!!

I really want to do a better job of blogging. I have a private blog for far away friends where I post funny stories and pictures of my kiddos. This isn't the place for that. We want to keep those things to ourselves and those that ACTUALLY know us. So this blog is for me! And I think it will be a nice outlet for what I'm thinking. Because, I can't exactly tell my daughters what a crapfest the latest book I read, can I? They just know it went in the recycle bin. But more on that later :)

Warm French Bread

We are a bread family. My father in law is italian, so there is no doubt where my daughters' love stems from. It's undeniable. Add some cheese and they are in bliss!

My favorite cheesy bread recipe.

Nearly stale french bread from Sam's. Seriously, they have the best non homemade bread.




Next, good olive oil. My brush was still rinsing in the sink, so I HAD to drizzle it on the bread.

Third, I added a generous sprinkling of garlic salt.

And finally, REAL mozzarella. Well, at least whole milk mozzarella. None of this low fat stuff. Once you go full fat, you can never go back. That's the saying, right?




It also helps to have a rock star cheese slicer like this from my husband. It is THE best! And we've gone through several.




Then throw it in the broiler. On HI. And watch it like a hawk. I am the world's worst broiler-er. Is that a word? It should be. I will NOT tell you how long it should stay in.

JUST WATCH IT!



And enjoy! My kids kept asking me for more. If only they knew I stole a little off their plates before doling it out!

***I'm realizing I should have entitled this blog, One Meal Away as opposed to One Craft Away. Seriously, all we do is cook and eat right?***

I will finally make myself post my craft projects. I promise :)

Slip of the tongue

I cussed in church.

I came home and told my husband THE word that I said.

I didn't just say it under my breath, I said it to a dear Christian friend.

I said the mother of all bad words.

And it was purely accidental.

I was trying to say "sucking fingers."

You can take it from there.....

Happy President's Day!

Ice and French Toast

Last night my husband was called in to work. There was a catastrophic power failure at work and ALL of their systems were down.

In truth, I wasn't very happy about his having to get out in the weather. We are apart of the 2100 miles of destruction from the latest winter weather. But instead of mountains of snow, we were left with ICE.



The roads looked worse last night. Probably because everything looks a little scarier in the dark :)

But I couldn't get too mad because I knew if he stayed out really late last night, we'd get a bonus this morning.



Breakfast all together. Yummy french toast!

Le Creuset and Pioneer Woman

For Christmas this year, my husband totally surprised me. I was completely unaware that he had purchased me one of my big WANTS. Le Creuset. This was our utilitarian Christmas. I also got a new toaster, iron, ironing board and mop. All things I desired. And I wasn't the slightest bit offended. I had been mopping with a broken one for a while. Just something I was unwilling to spend money on. The other one "sort of" worked.



Back to the food.




This was my first time to cook with my little red beauty. I turned to the Pioneer Woman for help. When I saw her Beer and Beef Stew, I knew, it was the one. I don't know if I bought better meat, or if it was the recipe or the Creuset, (or frankly the awesome beer I used) but this was some of the best stew I've EVER made. When I've made beer stew in the past, the beer flavoring was OVERWHELMING. This time we used Samuel Adams Noble Pils. I'm not a beer drinker but this one had a very nice flavoring. It was subtle. And I felt super fancy pouring it out of a bottle instead of a can. Honestly, I'm not sure a "can" of beer has ever entered our house. Bottles only for us!

The stew was fabulous and so was the Creuset!

I'm sure it tasted good.....

I was so excited about making dinner last night. I saw a link to a recipe, Orecchiette with Mushrooms, Radicchio and Gorgonzola, on NieNie Dialogues that intrigued me. We are forever trying new meatless dishes (Meatless Mondays) and this one did not disappoint!

Unfortunately I went to the dentist yesterday to have a suspicious tooth examined. A few moments in and they realized it was a cracked filling. Ordinarily I tough it out without any pain killers, but this time without asking, they gave me a shot. Several, in fact. This is my first experience with anything like this (I still hurt this morning). I thought I was going to cry last night as a gingerly chewed on one side this delicious meal. My little ones even enjoyed it, too! My husband pridefully mentioned to me how he bets no other family with preschoolers was enjoying Gorgonzola with their dinner in our education-less and toothless state. Pridefilled about our family and sad about the rest of our geographical area.

Back to the meal. I like to sample my cooking whilst working and I was a little worried. It did not taste good in progress. But when I added the sainted Gorgonzola, it all came together. The only suggestion my spouse made was that I add some fish or some kind of meat. Yes dear, but that would sort of defeat the point of meatless.

One Line A Day

When we took our anniversary trip this last year, I ran onto a neat idea. I love to journal for our girls. I have written letters to them since they were 2 months old. I haven't done as much since I started a private family blog. Mostly, I wanted them to know my voice at different times in our relationship. I wanted to know how much I loved their snuggly cheeks. With my first I even wrote down every new word she said and when it was said. Ahh....the time you have with just one little sweetie.

Back to the idea. I found a bookshop selling One Line A Day journals. I wasn't prepared to spend $16 on a journal with preprinted dates, so I kept the idea in my pocket (well, in my phone, I took a picture of them). I now have a book for each of my girls. And instead of it being a perception or story about them, it's a quote. Every day I listen for some sweet little nugget from each of them. It not only is an excercise in recording their sweet little thoughts, but it helps me to listen to their tiny voices more closely.

The Quiet Little Woman (I'm still reading!!!)

Right after the new year, I completed my second book!!! I picked up a copy of Louisa May Alcott's The Quiet Little Woman at the library. (Which suddenly reminds me I need to do a resolution post. I've got tons of them!)

It was short and I needed a pick me up after my last read. At only 120 pages, this would be an excellent book to share with your daughter. Easy to read and filled with wonderful morality, I look forward to sharing these stories with my daughter next year. To read the history behind these lost stories, you can go here. I don't think it's necessary for me to basically say the same thing. In any case, these stories were darling and a sweet glimpse into life long ago. And really, how can you go wrong with a talking horse?

If you have daughters, this is a must read.




Sidenote: Two years ago my husband sent me on a surprise trip to visit my sister and we went to the Alcott house. I wish we could have gone on the tour (it was too late) but we at least were able to take a few pictures outside and browse through the gift shop!

My Go-To Muffins

A while back, I began making Pumpkin Apple Bread. It then transitioned to muffins once our little muffins were old enough to feed themselves. To them it was like eating a cupcake and I was more than happy to continue in this fantasy. I found the recipe on Goody Blog from Parents.com.




Here's the original recipe and link.

Pumpkin Apple Bread

3 cups flour (make it healthier by substituting whole wheat flour for half)
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking soda
3 cups sugar
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable or olive oil
½ cup water
2 apples peeled and diced (I put them in food processor)
1 cup yellow raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda
and salt in one bowl. Combine pumpkin, eggs, oil, sugar, and water in
another bowl and mix until smooth. Combine contents of two bowls. Stir
in apples and raisins. Pour into two greased/floured bread loaf pans
(9-10”). Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Ok, because I'm a mom and I can't just leave a recipe alone....this is what I do differently:

1. I use one cup of applesauce instead of the chopped and pureed apples. It's smoother and easier to just pull a lid off of some natural (no sugar added) sauce. (Oh and I add a pinch of salt, it doesn't say how much but I use just a pinch....it needs it.)

2. I use normal raisins. Not the yellow ones. I never need yellow raisins and always have a good supply on hand for the others.

3. I rarely make the full two loaves. It's just too much honestly for one family. I do occasionally make the full batch and share with my neighbors.

4. I almost always make muffins. Easier to eat, pop in the freezer and easier to share with friends!

5. Oh and if you do muffins, it takes about 20 minutes or a tad more. Another bonus, you don't have to wait 75 minutes!

Enjoy!!!

The kids are asleep...

And I've been outside tearing up our yard. It's awful. If there weren't so many leaves out there (and if my husband didn't refuse to rake them) I'd be in trouble. It has been abnormally warm for where we live and the ground was extremely soft. Way more so than I expected. Ahem.




But it's Saturday, and my husband has to work this weekend. And I'm bored. So I had my mom bring over my dad's metal detector. I spent an hour hunched over in the backyard only to find this:

Sheet metal and the biggest nail ever. Or as the detector calls them, diamond rings.




I am now inside after hearing MOMMIEEEEEEEE from an upstairs window. Sigh. I haven't decided if I'm up for going in the front yard. I don't know why I'm slightly embarrassed at the thought since I go out there every morning in my jimjams and slippers.

I can read!

I cannot even begin to tell you how long it has been since I sat down and read a book. A book that wasn't about ME, or emotions or de-stressing. Sure, I've read lots of devotional books, but really, they were about me. Not learning more about God, but more about myself. And honestly, that feels a bit selfish. I, of course, don't feel like every book should be strictly about apologetics or about bettering myself. It's just that this last year was a bit heavy for me and now it's time for fun. Our family theme last year was Peace and Patience and this year it's Joy and Love. Time for some joy filled reading.




I ended and began last year and this with the same book, Notes From a Small Island by Bill Bryson. Initially, I thought I'd never get through it. The first few chapters were anecdotal and interesting and then it just became droll. Which is funny, because you can tell that's how he felt about his project at this point, too. The premise is Bill (an American ex-pat) is moving back to the States for a period of time. Before the move, he wanted to travel around the whole of the United Kingdom by public transport.

Without a map, this book sunk lower and lower into the minutia of details and I was about ready to give up. I was clueless to where he was (knowing nothing about British geography) and I didn't even care. The turning point was when he took a break from his own travels and went home for a bit. Honestly, it was the break we ALL needed. I decided to press on, because at this point, it was more about me finishing the book than being super interested in Bill and his funny musings. It was more about MY journey and less about his. I was rewarded at the end, because the book finally picked up and ended well. It would be a difficult read without a laptop or iphone. He mentions a place, makes it sound very similar to the place before (even HE says all British towns are the same) and you totally lose where you are. Maybe this was the point, but it just gave me a headache.

All in all, I really did enjoy this read. Like I said before, it became more of an effort for me to actually FINISH a book rather than give up. And really, I felt that's how he felt at times about his rainy and often exhausting trip around England. So, that's how I'll rate the book, Rainy and Often Exhausting.

I see you....

Do you see it? That blurry pair of eyes looking at you? Staring you down. Calling your name with the ahhhhhhhhhhhhh sound it makes?

I'm convinced my Keurig is watching me. And occasionally it sighs. All by itself (well, of course, plugged in....).



And honestly I realize the above picture is super blurry, but it actually is fairly accurate considering sometimes I can't find my glasses before I come downstairs. I knew that blurry kitchen looked familiar....