Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Things I learned during deer hunting season

I realize that this post would have been a tad more applicable a few weeks ago...but hey...better late than never, right?

So, here's the top ten things I learned during deer hunting season:

1.  Fondue nights are awesome with fun friends.  And laughter.  And wine.  And Ticket to Ride.  And victory.  And lots of yummy yummy food.

2.  I've seen just about every chick flick I wanted to see before hunting season.  Next year:  save a few for that weekend- it will make the time alone something to look forward to.

3.  I enjoy teasing my husband and pushing his buttons.  When he's not around, I tease my kids.  My very literal child was not appreciative.  I think I just need to save my button pushing for when my husband gets home.  I think it will make a nice "welcome home" present.  :)

4.  Not doing the dishes for three days only makes more dishes to do on the third day.  Next year:  paper products.

5.  Scratch that.  Next year:  eat out.

6.  It IS possible to have my husband gone for three days and NOT have a major incident in the PMD house. 

7.  Next year:  arrange for some sleep over's for the boys and REALLY have the house to myself!

8.  Outings and family gatherings are much more fun with my husband by my side.

9.  I need to be more grateful that he's willing to take a weekend to relax once a year.

10.  I'm grateful that my husband gets along well enough with my father to go hunting with him for an entire weekend and still enjoy his company every.time.he.sees.my.dad.  Love those men!

Top Ten {Tuesday}

Monday, November 28, 2011

Just some sentences

I'm tired from the holiday weekend.

Turkey, mmmmmm.

My kitchen is still organized.

That, in itself, is a modern day miracle.

I need a good dye job.

Perhaps before the holidays?

I took the boys out on Black Friday.

Twice.

Bribery worked both times.

And I ran into a dear friend at Hobby Lobby.

I don't have a plan for my Christmas cards.

I'm ok with that.

Our Christmas decorations are up.

It feels good to decorate the new side of the house.

I love 3M command strips.

I'm decking the halls with them.

And my husband is not complaining.

I love my good friends.

I'm still tired....

...and I still have audits to do this evening.

This concludes my post.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Five Question- Black Friday edition

I went to the stores this morning.  Just two stores.  With two little boys in tow.  No, I didn't get anything for them...but the rest of my purchasing is 3/4 done, and I'm still on budget!  No, I didn't take them out at 6am...we left the house at 9.  Menards and Target weren't too bad!  Thanks to the crazies that were in Target at midnight...we breezed through!

1. Is there a special dish you prepare that you are famous for?


I make a gluten free pumpkin pie that is pretty awesome.  I've combined a few recipes to make it the way I want it to taste/texture.  Want to see the recipe?

Raw nut crust:


2 cups pecans
1 tbsp cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
10-11 dates
1 tbsp coconut oil

place pecans and spices in a food processor and process until pecans are finely ground. Add dates and coconut oil and process again until the mixture resembles a fine meal. Pour into a 9 inch deep dish glass pie plate and evenly press to the bottom and sides. Set aside.

Pie filling:
1 envelope Knox gelatin
1tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 (14oz) can of sweetened condensed milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 (16oz.) can of pumpkin


In a medium saucepan, combine gelatin, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Stir in milk and eggs. Mix well. Let stand about 2 minutes. Over low heat, cook and stir constantly until gelatin dissolves and mixture thickens slightly (about 10 min). Remove from heat. Stir in pumpkin, mix well, pour into prepared pie shell. Chill for 3 hours. Enjoy!


2. Are you (did you) go Black Friday shopping ?

I went to the stores this morning. Just two stores. With two little boys in tow. No, I didn't get anything for them...but the rest of my purchasing is 3/4 done, and I'm still on budget! No, I didn't take them out at 6am...we left the house at 9. Menards and Target weren't too bad! Thanks to the crazies that were in Target at midnight...we breezed through!



3. What are your strangest holiday traditions?

Someone told me that having crab legs for dinner on Christmas was strange.  I find it delicious.

4. Pecan or pumpkin pie? (She actually asked "Apple or pumpkin?" I just T-giving'ed it!)

Well, since I've never tasted pecan pie....I'll have to go with pumpkin.  It's fantastic.  (see recipe above)

5. When will you put up your Christmas tree?
 
Well, right now, all our Christmas stuff is in the rafters in our garage/pole barn.  The ceiling is about 13' high...and I don't do ladders.  :)  So, it's going to have to wait until D. gets around to bringing the bins down.  Once they're down, I'll throw everything up...so perhaps by next weekend?

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

The counting continues

Blessings abound...and the thankful count continues:

16.  A great hair cut.  When I get these, I feel like a new woman.  I get compliments on my hair, and I feel awesome.  I love love love that my old beautician is back in town after 9 years away.

17.  Friends.  God has put new people in my path over the last few years, and I'm so so thankful.  These are ladies I really feel I can be myself around, and that's such a gift.

18.  Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  Gluten free goodness.  If I'm gonna splurge, it might as well be on the good stuff that won't hurt my gut.

19.  Health.  Increased health.  53 pounds lost.  Phasing out meds because my body is healing itself. 

20.  Work.  I work from home.  Although it provides a challenge with attention -seeking kids under foot, and sometimes stresses me out, I'm able to have lunch with them, go on field trips and set my own hours.  And pay their school tuition.

21.  Crafts.  I really love being artsy.  I love thinking of new crafts to do, and I love starting something and not knowing where it will end up...but figuring it out along the way.

22.  Organizers.  My friend, Stephenie, came last Thursday to help me organize after she read this post.  While I had tackled much of that room on my own, I still needed help fitting everything into the one kitchen.  Not only did she fit the things I found "unfittable," it's totally organized.  I haven't had to look more than 20 seconds for anything!

23.  Costco.  This is a love/hate relationship.  I hate the cashier when they tell me my total.  Ugh...it's rarely under $100.  BUT, I get so much food, and such a value on vitamins, that I really shouldn't complain.  AND if I go directly after school with the boys, I don't have to worry about feeding them a snack- the sample stands take care of that for me.  :)

24.  My alternative Dr. and his (nurse) wife.  These medical professionals diagnosed my gluten issue within 5 minutes of my first appointment.  After I spent thousands of dollars on testing with my conventional Dr...and they never found an issue.  This Dr. and his wife care about each and every patient, pray for them all, and educate them about what's happening in their bodies.  The education has been priceless.

25.  My handy husband.  Really, he's not meant to be #25....but I wanted to give him a shout out on his birthday!  Happy Birthday, baby!  Love you tons.

Top Ten {Tuesday}

Monday, November 21, 2011

Blessings to count

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, which means I need to start thinking of all the things I'm grateful for. 

Heck....I know I think about them all year long, but right now is a great time to give extra thanks.

So, here's a few blessings I'm thankful for:

1- a safe relaxing deer hunting weekend for my husband.

2- a school that nurtures my children's minds...and hearts.

3-  a sister-in-law who doesn't disregard my gluten free needs, but sees it as a challenge to create a yummy, sandy-safe meal.

4-  Decaf White Heather coffee (almond toffee...mmmmm)

5-  Orange juice.  Mmmmmmm.

6-  Texting with friends on my cell phone.

7-  My small group

8-  Fondue night

9-  Great friends on fondue night

10-  Great friends, great fondue, great fun board game, and I won.  :)

11-  The ability to feed my boys through a growth spurt.

12-  Fantastic parents

13-  Great in-laws

14-  One whole kitchen

15-  An uneventful deer hunting weekend for the boys and I.  Without critter drama.

Friday, November 18, 2011

5QF

1. Do you have a go to song that always puts you in a good mood?

There's always a few songs that I fall back on...but it depends on what I'm trying to motivate myself to do. 

If I'm trying to get in a "good workout" mood, I listen to "Eye of the Tiger."

If I'm trying to get into a "good cleaning" mood, I listen to Hootie and the Blowfish or Deanna Carter.

If I'm just trying to get a "pick me up", I'd have to say "Take on me"

Why yes, I do like 80's music...why do you ask?!?!?

2. Are you a real Christmas tree kinda person or do you go with a real fake one?

I always thought I'd be a "real tree" kinda girl.  I'm old-fashioned at heart.

However, once kids came into the picture...and a teeny tiny little Love Shack, well, I found a slim artificial pre-lit tree...oh, and I love love love it.  Put together and plug in.  So fast, so easy.  Perfect.

3. What are you thankful for?

What am I NOT thankful for?!?!  Seriously, I am so blessed....if this blog had unlimited space on it, I'd still end up maxing it out.  But, I'll sum it all up into one sentence:

I'm grateful that I serve a God who is always in control.

4. Which fashion fad from the past do you wish you could wear today?

I'm not a "fad" person.  I never have been, and probably won't ever be.  I'm just me.

5. Do you wait until the "low fuel" light comes on before you fill up the gas tank?

Yep.  And I know that once that light goes on, I have approximately 24 miles to go before I really HAVE to refuel.  Procrastination runs in my blood.  :)





Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Shopping

Christmas is ....what....less than 6 weeks away? 

I started shopping today.

In a strange turn of events, my dad is the first one done.

He's usually the last.

I'm impressed with myself.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Driving pet peeves that make me want to ram people with my van

No, I'm not a hostile person, why do you ask!??!?!

Over the course of three days, I spent more than 16 hours in a car.  This is much more than the 90 minutes (tops!) I'm used to per day....which means I had a long time to analyze other's behavior and try to talk myself down from a road rage ledge.

So...here we go on a list of things that set me off.

1.  Wide turners.  If you in the turn lane, don't swing your car so that you enter MY lane so you can make a wide turn.  You're driving a compact car, NOT a semi truck.  You do NOT need that wide of a turn radius.  If you do, chances are you shouldn't be on the road.

2.  Slow left lane drivers.  There's a right lane for a reason.  If you're slower, get over there.  That's your happy lane....and I'll happily pass you on the left.  No really, move over.

3.  Flipper-off'ers.  Chances are, I'm just responding to your awful driving.  If you wouldn't be so stupid behind the wheel, I wouldn't have to over compensate for your lack of quality thinking.  You flipping me off just results in a van sized-dent in your side of the car.  Really...watch it.

4.  Road hoggers.  There's two lanes.  Pick one.  Any one.  And if you're driving slower, try the right one.  See #2.

5.  Wrong way parking lot drivers.  I've inherited this one from my mom.  The directional parking spaces are angled that way so that poor drivers (like you) can get into and out of them without hitting other cars.  The lanes are thinner because of this reason.  You're taking up space in my driving lane.  Pay attention, please.

6.  TV's.  I'm driving across town, and I'm seeing all these tv screens down and kids zoned out watching the tube.  Really, parents?  You can't talk to your kid for the 20 minutes it takes to cross town?  Really!?!??!    Shut off the darn tv and have a relationship with your kid!  Save the tube for road trips- give them something to look forward to.

7.  Litterers.  Asphalt does NOT equal trash receptacle.  If I see you dumping on the road, I will write down you license number, and I will report you.  No, really...been there, done that!

8.  Booger pickers.  You have windows all around you.  You're knuckle deep.  People can see that.  Gross.

9.  Parking lot hogger.  Again, you don't need four spaces (up close!) to keep your precious car ding-free.  You're just being a selfish snit.  If you want to stay ding-free, park out a tad farther and take a walk in.  Chances are less people will be looking nasty in your direction.

10.  Newspaper readers.  Really?!?!?  How can you read a newspaper while driving?!?!?  How can you hold the paper, read (without loosing your place) and not kill everyone in your path?!?!  Is the news from yesterday THAT important?  Couldn't you just turn on news radio?!?!?

Top Ten {Tuesday}

Monday, November 14, 2011

Weddings, wind chills, and card readers

I was in Kentucky.

For 1/2 of the weekend.

My cousin got married.

I went with my mom.

We left on Thursday at noon.

We drove through a few sets of flurries.

Ugh.

We stayed at my favorite Aunt and Uncle's house.

Along with most of the family.

Some I haven't seen for 5 (or so) years.

It was nice to catch up.

I wore a new (smaller sized!!!) dress that I purchased on a crazy sale for $27.46.

I loved it.

It was comfortable.

My shoes were not.

The wedding was in a mansion on the Keenland property in Lexington.

It was outside on the patio.

The temperature was approximately 31 degrees.

It was frigid.

But beautiful.

I have blisters on the tops of my toes.

What?

We drove home on Saturday.

Indiana is the longest, flattest, more rediculous state to drive through.

The boys were so excited to see me home.

Sunday was another busy busy busy day.

I was very tired by the end of the day yesterday.

I went to bed by 9pm.

D has my card reader, so I can't upload any pictures.

Perhaps later.  :)

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Nick

When I envisioned our home that we would raise our kids in, I always imagined a neighborhood (NOT a subdivision, but a neighborhood) with tons of kids running around. 

Like I had.

Like D. had.

We would run out the door and play and play and play until we heard my mom's tall-tell yell for us outside the back door, "SSSSSS  AAAAAAA  NNNNNNN  DDDDDDD   YYYYYYY"

We heard it, cleaned up, and ran home for dinner.

I never realized what a rarity that is.

That we had TONS of neighborhood friends all running around, clothes pinning cards to the back of our bikes to make motor sounds....riding to the local store to spend $1 on candy, watching backyard fireworks on the 4th.

When we first moved here, there was one family in our backyard.  The boys were fast friends, and so were the moms.  :)

That's it. 

No other kids.

And then they moved.

While I don't begrudge them their family's ministry move...we miss them. 

And then, Eureka...we have a new friend.

The nephew of one of our neighbors moved in with his elderly aunt to help her with home up-keep, etc.  And he has a son.  A son just a year older than A.  A son who loves all sports, just like A. 


He's only here on the weekends, when he visits his dad, but that's ok....that way I don't need to make rules about weekday playing.

He's incredibly respectful of our house and our family too- his family has very close priorities to ours.

Last weekend, Nick's dad had 4 tickets to a local hockey game.  D didn't really want to go, he wanted to say home and chill out on the couch...but agreed to go because he knew A. would go CRAZY!

And he did.  He was beaming when he came home- with a game puck and free t-shirt in hand.  Apparently, there weren't many people there that night, so the boys had the run of the arena.  Nick had been there many, many times before, so he showed A. the ropes.

Monday morning, I find this picture in my email in box:

Check out who made it on the arena screen (more than once, I'm finding out....)


I love neighborhood friends!

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Seven weeks

There are LESS than seven weeks until Christmas.

This does not put me into a bevy of shopping stress....it gives me something to look forward to.  It's almost as if the rest of the year exists to provide anticipation for the season.  Here's my list of anticipatory activities for the next seven weeks:

1.  Food.  From the sweet potato dish (w/ marshmallows) on Thanksgiving to the crab legs on Christmas Day...oh my, the food is just so good.  And now that I've found a fantastic pumpkin pie recipe with a raw nut crust....well, that's just perfection.

2.  The people I dine with.  Family.  Friends.  I love that feeling of togetherness.

3.  Christmas carols.  Note:  This does NOT include the following songs- Feliz Navidad, Grandma got run over by a Reindeer, and All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth.  However, anything sung by Michael Buble is tops in my ears.

4.  Breakfast Birthday party.  Every Christmas morning, the boys open their stockings, and before we do family gifts, we have a breakfast birthday party complete with gf coffee cake, 3 candles and a birthday ballad for little baby Jesus.  This is my way of counter-acting the crazy commercial-ness of the holiday.

5.  Giving gifts.  I must admit....even though the whole commercial part of the holiday irritates me, I am a gift giver.  Always have been.  It's a love language.  I've been told I'm a great gift giver.  I love thinking about my recipient and finding the perfect gift to give.  I can honestly say that I love gift giving more than the receiving.

6.  Decorating.  Yes, I'm looking forward to it.  I love making my house feel all cozy and festive.  Now, we're all under one roof.  C is 4 this year, and wants to help, and knows to stay away from the breakables. There's a new found independence that goes with having older kids, and I'm loving it!   And everything's under one roof....have I mentioned it's all under one roof?!?!?!

7.  Shopping with Melody.  We did this last year, and I totally enjoyed the evening.  I'm hoping to make this a tradition?!?!?  What say you, Mel?

8.  Christmas cards.  It's like catching up on Facebook, but for the technologically challenged, and with pretty pictures.  Love it.

9.  Christmas Break.  Ask me two days in, and I may be singing a different tune.  However, I'm looking forward to lazy mornings, and spending some extra time with my boys.

10.  Family time.  Worthy of saying it again.  It seems like we just can't find enough time during the year to make each other priorities all the time.  (hey...gotta work sometime). But it's great to see them and really make a concentrated effort to enjoy each other's company.

Top Ten {Tuesday}

What things are you looking forward to this holiday season?

Monday, November 7, 2011

Not Me....Nope!

I really enjoy a good Not Me! Monday.  I really feel as though it's therapy and helps me realize that other mom's out there are just as scatter-brained or not-together just like me.  So, what say you...on with a Not Me! Monday!

-  I did not double....(or actually triple) book a day this week.  When one thing obviously trumps all others...resulting in a few disappointing emails to friends to reschedule.  Nope!  Certainly, I have it all together, and use the calendar on my fridge or the planner on my phone religiously.  I have it all together and am totally organized with my time.

- I did not threaten my children "no wii for a week" in order to get them to turn off the lights as they leave the room.  First of all, I would NEVER use screen time for bribery, (we don't have screen time in this house at all- screens rot brains....sha!)......and FURTHERMORE, I would never bribe my children.  Obviously, I have raised my children to be obedient "just for the joy of being an obedient child" and they are fantastic stewards of energy.

-  I did not steal 3 ok, ok...5 Reese's Peanut Butter cups from the Halloween stash.  Nope...certainly, I am on a strict eating plan, and I would never delve into the hard-earned candy stash of my children's labor.  I did not justify this by stating that I'm saving their teacher's from sugar-highed children for the next few days.

-  I did not tell C. that there wasn't enough protein shake mix for him, and then go ahead and make one for myself.  I am not a selfish horrible person and mom.  I do not put my uber narrow eating choices and nutritional needs before his.  Never.  I always choose to starve myself to give my child his whim choice of breakfast foods- even though I know he won't finish it and will spill it all over the car.  I certainly won't do that...bring on the spill!

What things have you not done over the past few weeks?

Friday, November 4, 2011

5QF

1. What movie do you love to quote?

We have a few that we pull from that are pretty much classics in our house.  Here's a few that are used most frequently:

Pretty in Pink:
"You my new style American girlfriend" 
"I've never been so happy in my whole life!"  sometimes followed by "now I have a place to put my hand!"
" Where is my automobile?"  "AUTOMOBILE?!?!?"
"Quit feeling sorry for yourself, it's bad for your complexion!"
"How you spell?  Well, you don't spell it, son, you EAT it!"
"Dat you?"  "Yeah, dat me."
"BONSAI!"

Footloose:
" He's testing us!  Our Lord is testing us!" 
"Jump back"
"Willard...which is your right from your left?"
"Uh oh...he's taking the car...."
"What did David do?  what did David do?  He was leaping before the Lord in a dance."
"and there was a time for this law, but not anymore.  It's our time to dance."


Napoleon Dymanite:
"GOSH!"
"What ever I feel like, gosh!"
"Tina, come get your dinner."
"Your mom goes to college."
"You're just jealous of me because I've been chatting with hot girls online all day."
"Vote for pedro"


2. Have you ever ridden a motorcycle?

Yes.  My brother owned a crotch rocket in the early years.  He gave me a ride home on it and I burned the inside of my ankle so bad.  The blister was the grossest and biggest thing I've ever seen.  So, after that I'm a little sceerd of motorcycles and their hot hot hot mufflers.

3. What's your favorite thing to do on a rainy day?

Watch chick flicks, read a book, clean the house....

4. Do you prefer a bunch of small gifts, or one really big, (expensive) gift?

Depends on my needs that year.  The bigger gifts are usually the ones I treasure the most and use the most often, though. 



5. Do you ever lose track of days and show up somewhere wrong?

Not really....When I mix up days, I usually miss appointments or coffee dates.  My subconscious must be hoping for a free day instead of the crazy busy ones....



Thursday, November 3, 2011

Random Post Halloween List

- So, Halloween is over as of Monday.  As of Sunday, Christmas decorations were out in full force.  Ugh.

-  I'm already started my Christmas shopping (actually, started it in June), but that doesn't mean I'm ready for "Deck the Halls."

-  I need to get the Halloween candy out of my house.

-  I need to get back on the running bandwagon (see previous statement)

-  I had a crazy-not-at-all-went-like-I-planned morning, but I recovered quickly and everything turned out ok.

-  My kitchen is a mess.

-  I will soon have help organizing my mess.  I'm so grateful, but afraid that she'll hate me when she sees how disorganized I really am. 

-  I need to get the Halloween candy out of my house.

-  C. is watching Strawberry Shortcake, and I'm perfectly ok with that.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

All grown up

Lately there's been a lot of reflection over when the kids were small.

Perhaps because we're in a new phase of our lives:  no diapers, soccer, basketball, staring down the gauntlet of having both my children in school full time within the next year or two.  More independence.

We're starting to purge the baby stuff, and look forward to just enjoying the boys as they grow. 

It's also weird to see friend's kids.  To see them grow, and see what little personalities that had as a small baby come out as a kid.  It's just fun to see and enjoy life.

So, because I'm a sap, and because I'm finding all sorts of pictures and thought it would be fun to post:

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

to the victor go the spoils



Between trunk-or-treat




The firestation Halloween party




and regular old trick-or-treating....


I'd say we have enough candy to last us until next year.