room for improvement

moves me

how i [almost] spent my friday morning

**edited to reflect lack of waking up on time**

 

Make your own word jumble at wordle.net. :)

Had a fabulous Thanksgiving Day with the family.  Ate too much and was super tired.  I set my alarm for 4:00am.  I fully intended to drive to my nearest Target and battle for a Thomas the Tank Engine set that was on sale for $15.  One that I have had my eye on for months.  But alas, I hit "snooze,"  and I snoozed right through to 6:30, well past the opening bells for all of my local Black Friday participant stores.  And I knew in my heart that the Thomas set was already gone.  So I rolled over and went back to sleep, consoling myself with the thought that Target might get them in again before Christmas. 

I was going about my day, lamenting the missed opportunity, when my grandma called around 11:00 to tell me that she had gone to the Target on her side of town, and checked to see if they'd had the toy I was looking for.  All she knew was that it was normally $25 and marked down to $15, and it was something Thomas-ish.  There was nothing like that on the shelves, so she asked an employee to check the back.  They brought her a Thomas set, but she wasn't sure if it was the right one- but it WAS!  She totally got it!!!  Yay!  Christmas is saved!  haha

So Aidan's Christmas is complete.  Russ and I decided on a handful of gifts- one that Aidan has been politely requesting for weeks:
 
One that he has pointed to in stores for months:

One that will serve dual purposes in his bedroom, and that I got for a steal at work:
(Not an exact photo, but similar...the colors are more muted and the pictures are prettier on the one I found)

and then the gifts from grandparents and great-grandparents.  Also, his stocking, which I will work on over the next couple of weeks.

Today I am still putting items away and organizing the house.  I was hanging up clothes when "August Rush" came on the Starz channel, and it sucked me in.  I haven't sobbed at a movie's ending so hard in months.  It was worse than "Juno," almost as bad as "Beaches."  And that's pretty bad.  A lot of people I know didn't really like that movie, but I think I might want to own it.

OK- gotta get back to cleaning so I can decorate for Christmas!

Love,
M

busy, busy days

Aidan wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving!  He's ready for winter!

Isn't he cute?  He is all decked out for the PicMe show on the PBS Kids Sprout channel.  These days, the only shows he is interested in watching are on Sprout.  I really love Sprout because the programming is consistently preschool-appropriate, it is very interactive and educational, and the shows are clipped down to ten or fifteen-minute segments, so it's easy for me to transition Aidan into a new activity when we are done with TV.  They also have a website that is congruent with what they offer on television and also requires a lot of parent participation.  "Picme" is a show that uses viewer photos as part of the story, and there is always a chance that Aidan's photo will get chosen.  It's very exciting to wait for it to come on and see which friend got "pic"ed! 

I had the pleasure of capturing the cutest mommy-to-be this morning, we had a lot of fun:
 



I'll be posting "face" pics on an actual photography blog or site soon, but I'm trying to avoid it here since it's my personal blog.

Other than that, just getting ready for Thanksgiving.  This year I will make the Tofurky, vegan green bean casserole and frozen cranberry mousse, an apple crisp and mashed potatoes with gravy.  Mom will supply the famous homemade rolls, Grandma's taking care of the turkey and the rest of the fixings. 

Whoa, that made me hungry.  Time to find the stretchy pants.

I can't believe it will be time to pull out the Christmas decorations in just a few short days!  I don't even have the normal decorations up yet. :\   It's bedtime now and tomorrow is the big Stone Soup Feast at Aidan's school.
Happy Tofurky Day! haha

Love,
M

week in review

I don't know why, but it has suddenly become so hard to stay on top of my blog!

(I typed that sentence, and then laughed when I thought about the past week.)

Week in Review:
-DirecTV got installed, took several hours.
-kitchen sink backed up into toilet, toilet backed up into tub.
-displaced to Mom and Dad's house for three nights.
-missed MOPS because of all of the excitement.
-sorted, washed and organized Aidan's baby clothes and gear.  (awwwww!)
-attended our first parent/teacher conference.  (went well!)
-Aidan was diagnosed with asthma and is now on Albuterol.  (Russ and I both have asthma.)
-septic tank got pumped.
-went to my first Ladies' Night (cookie exchange) at church and got a 'new person' prize and a door prize!
-saw the "Twilight" movie at midnight on Thurs. (Fri. morning) ...ASK ME AND I WILL EMAIL YOU MY REVIEW.
-filled in at work after seeing movie at midnight.  (note to self: don't do that again.  the midnight movie OR the working afterwards part.)
-came home to no satellite service, now waiting 5 days for new remotes to be mailed.
-worked a full day today.
-Aidan has informed me that he wants only two things under the Christmas tree:
THIS

and the "Real Trucks Real Trains" movie. ???  I am on the hunt.

Here is the recipe for the cookies Mom and I made for the cookie exchange (credit to Becky Higgins for the yummy recipe and delightful photo).

ANDES MINT COOKIES

3/4 c. butter (or margarine)
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
2 T. water

Melt in a saucepan over medium heat until melted and then add:

2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips, stirring until completely melted.

Cool for 10 minutes. Pour into a mixing bowl and beat in 2 eggs.

Add:
2 1/2 c. flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix together and chill for about 45 minutes. Roll into balls (1 - 1 1/2 inches), flatten slightly, and place on cookie sheet (Becky uses Pampered Chef baking stones). Bake at 350 for 10 minutes (for her oven, this is the perfect time, keeping the cookies soft; your oven may be slightly different).

When cookies come out of the oven, place an Andes mint on top of each cookie and allow to melt for a few minutes. Swirl the melted chocolate like icing. Allow to cool.

Delicious!  A better version of a Girl Scout Thin Mint, in my humble opinion. :]

Love,
M

Just had to add this for laughs...

photo spam

 No time for newish photos today - I've been swimming in a sea of laundry and orange-scented Pledge trying to get this house together.  Still not done, in between running errands and keeping Aidan entertained.  Again, where are my extra four hours in a day??  I'm still waiting for those...

Things I can check off of the list:
-washer/dryer delivery scheduled
-DirecTV people REscheduled
-new pantry stocked
-all of Aidan's old baby cloth, toys and gear sorted
-everyday laundry done @ Mom & Dad's
-address changed with all of the people who send us bills
-my annual dr. appointment
-actually cooking real food again
-swept, vacuumed, dusted

For your time, a mish-mash of pics from jobs over the summer:












 





Too tired to even watermark these.  Eyes closing...
:) M

hi from the new house!

Well, we are officially moved in to our new place.  I can't say that the house is in 100% working order just yet, but it's getting there.  Especially since TV and laundry capabilities are on deck for the beginning of next week.  But I will say that life without TV this week hasn't been completely awful.  I've had a couple of stir-crazy moments, like on election night, but besides that it's been okay.  Thanks, in large part, to the internet.  What did we do before the ever-loving internet?  I watched the race and concession/acceptance speeches online!  Somehow I've also been getting a Sirius satellite signal in the middle of the house.  I need to move the receiver and hopefully I will be able to listen to Martha and friends with a little more clarity.  (Yeah, I can't really complain about the cable when I've had these other connections to the outside world...)  There's just something about a moving picture, I guess.

I am SO, so excited about living two minutes from our church.  Now I can attend Bible studies regularly, and also the MOPS group that meets nearby.  Double-yay!  I am also within the requisite ten-minute zone from Mom and Dad's house, Aidan's school, the grocery store, Target, the mall, the movie theater and Barnes & Noble, and about thirty seconds and one minute, respectively, from the cheapest gas station around and my nearest STARBUCKS.

My life is complete.

With a new house comes new inspiration, new ideas and the urge to re-feather our nest.  This time around I am penny-pinching to the enth degree, so all sorts of schemes are brewing.  I have been sitting on a desire to use some shabby chic design for about two years now.  It seems like a good time to move in that direction because I am trying to re-purpose and recycle so many pieces that we already own.  I am definitely breaking out the paint before too long. 

I didn't take any of these photos, just found them during my pursuit of home decor on the web. 
Some planned projects include:

Painting our armoire white and adding shelves inside to house linens and extra pillows...

Creating a fabric headboard for the master bedroom.  I am in LOVE with the ties on the sides of this one, and the matching bedskirt.

Painting Aidan's new (recycled) bed and dresser, creating frames and initial art and finding coordinating stripey linens for his room.  This wall collage is so cute and simply boyish.

Painting the dining room table white and making slipcovers for the chairs.

I guess I need a little light and warmth now that I'm back in my dark, gloomy home state.  (You're still beautiful, Washington!  I just need a little California sunshine inside the house to keep me going.) 

So, that's that.  Lots to do, as always.  I have to work tomorrow but I am putting off the inevitable sleep because I feel like I've had no reflection time this week.  Now that I've reflected, I can turn in. :)

Love,
M