My Three Sons

Cheesey Souffle

2012-01-26T13:50:00.001-06:00

My first souffle! Of course, I was make a large batch and really didn't know how full to fill the little ramekins (she uses larger ones on her recipe, which I didn't notice until after I began mixing everything)... they did rise to the top, but soon after settled in! They were so cute... so puffy... so TASTY! I highly recommend this recipe for Parmesan Cheese Souffle!

The nose knows

2012-01-18T10:10:00.003-06:00

Well, the nose is supposed to know... unfortunately mine never got the memo. What memo? You know, the memo about being normal and not always having a sinus infection and all that jazz... yeah we missed that one! I've been fighting a nasty and frustrating sinus infection since September, which brought on bronchitis at times and fluid in the ears. I've had a handful of okay days in there, but mostly really crappy days. I've been to several appointments, tried several meds... one gave a little relief, while two caused me to have unpleasant reactions to say the least, oh then there was the shot with two steroids (not pleasant), a handful of nose sprays, the netti pot (sometimes 4-5 times a day, even with the threat of the dreaded brain bugs), tons of over the counter meds, allergy testing, CT scan, and finally a consult with an ENT (who stuck a camera down my nose, not one of my funnest moments).

The one phrase the allergist used to sum it up: "You have anatomical abnormalities that cause you to have recurrent and long term sinus infections!" Yeah, I didn't need a medical degree to figure that one out either! So off to the ENT we went because that was really the only other person that could do anything about my situation. As it turns out surgery is the way to fix my anatomical abnormalities... oh JOY!

In a few weeks I will go under the knife and wake up to a straightened septum and smaller something or others that need to be smaller (thanks to a laser), and 10 days after that I will be breathing a lot better! Yeah!

Thangs and Stuff

2012-01-18T09:48:00.000-06:00

Thangs and stuff, that is how Snooker will answer the question, "What have you been up to, today?"... and that, my friends, is what I've been up to all these weeks of not posting. Life has been busy this school year. Starting in September I began teaching twice a month at our homeschool co-op. I enjoy it for the most part, but it is somewhat time consuming on my brain. I'm working with 12 students (including Snooker and Bubba)... 6 boys and 6 girls, who for the most part have never picked up a needle. So coming up with the projects, and working out the directions, at times has been a real brain puzzler.

Our own school year has been a little rocky. In some ways I wish I could say the problems are all new, but in all honesty, it's the same old problems just at a slightly higher level. I'm sure the even more seasoned homeschoolers out there will chuckle at that statement. I mean, for real, what was I expecting... that somehow their personalities would change and suddenly what they hated before they would love and that they would find new things to complain about... ha ha ha... not a chance. Same old, same old! Thankfully Daddio has once again stepped in and taken over the forever old reluctance in the math department! I can't even begin to imagine our homeschool running without his help and support... I would be in the loony bin FOR SURE without him (or in a quiet house all day because they are away at school, hmmmm don't tempt me :-)!

So schooling has been stressful... what could be the only other thang that could be more stressful that that? Obedience of course! The last few months have been fraught with bizarre and frustrating behavior. In all honesty, I have no idea where most of it has come from. Although, Daddio reminds me regularly not to ask WHY, because there is no good answer... they are boys and that's what they do... we must just try to find ways to persuade them not to do really stupid things. Yeah, that's work, NOT! How bizarre you might ask?! Well, 3am pantry raids, picking up pre-chewed gum off the street and putting in their own mouth, getting into his allergy pills and taking far too many, deciding not to get up to use the restroom (not a fun one to find out about), eating Nutella with their hands hidden in the corner of their room, stashing large sums of half eaten granola bars in their book case and then the pillow case (Daisy the dog found those for me, some need bomb smelling dogs... we have a food stash finding dog!)... the list goes on and on really!

Let's see what else has been keeping me busy... oh yeah, the holidays and my business. Turns out if you have a shop on Etsy and products people want to give as gifts you will do quite nicely for yourself! It is a lot of fun having a shop and creating products, but it has also been very time consuming. Along with the sewing for my shop, we decided that all of the extended family gifts would be hand made (my hands would be doing all the making). So between all the custom orders for the shop, and tons of gifts for the family, I WAS BUSY! I can honestly say that I'm glad that is done! Now that I know how it works, I will be far better prepared for it! On a side note, while it is so exciting to see my goods here in the continental US, I've also had sales in London and Australia! Boy, I was super pumped going to PO to ship those!

So that's it in a nut shell.

2011-10-21T13:53:00.002-05:00

Hi, All!

I'm hosting a quick and easy online party and I would love to share some great gift ideas with you. My friend, Anne Dering, is an Independent Demonstrator with Uppercase Living (a home decor company) and they have just launched two fun catalogs. Uppercase Living is a company whose mission is to uplift and inspire others through beautiful vinyl decor and meaningful jewelry. Anne's website is www.uplift-and-inspire.com

The Blume Jewelry line of Uppercase Living blends inspiring messages with artisan jewelry. Shop for any mood, any personality - elegant, graceful, or bold. Shop for any lady in your life - including something sweet and pretty from our children's collection. Each gorgeous collection can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/blumejewelry

The Holiday Edition Catalog features exclusive hip and heartfelt products that will bring good cheer to every gathering. From decorations to gifts, from Halloween to Christmas, you can shop from this great catalog here: http://tinyurl.com/holidaycatalog2011

When you shop, associate your order to my online party. To do this, when you're ready to check out, click on the button "Associate With Open House". This button is found in the top below my friend Anne's picture. A drop down list will appear. Find the button for my online party and select it (Stephanie H.). Then, check out! :) Your order will be sent directly to you.

A virtual copy of all the Uppercase Living catalogs can be found here: http://annedering.uppercaseliving.net/CatalogPreview.m
Simply click on the button "2011-2012 Catalog" to see the options for the Blume jewelry and the Holiday catalogs.
Other fun information: You will receive one exclusive free gift if you spend $60, two gifts if you spend $80 and three gifts if you spend $100. This quick and easy party will be a fun way to find something beautiful and meaningful for yourself AND the special people on your Christmas List!! My party begins now and will end at midnight on October 28th. You will definitely have all your orders back with enough time for wrapping your Christmas gifts.

What to do...

2011-10-03T16:16:00.001-05:00

Have you answered the same question a million times (regarding some homeschooling thing)???? Yeah, me too. So what do I do? I make the 6th grader help the 4th grader. Genius, I know. I figure, it will reinforce what he should already know, he has far more patients with his younger brother at this stage of the day, and I can take 5 minutes to get a drink of water (cough me head off) and re-collect me thoughts!

So there you have it, solving the world's problems one day at a time :-)!

Tasty and stuffed

2011-09-14T09:16:00.000-05:00

This weekend we were looking to try something different and tasty... off to the 5 Ingredient Fix list to see what looked like it would hit the spot. Stuffed Pork Chops and Rice Pilaf, of course! And boy was is GOOD!

Stuffed Pork Chops

Ingredients

1/4 cup chopped prunes
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds, chopped, plus more for garnish
3 tablespoons lemon olive oil
4 pork loin rib chops, 1 1/2 inches thick
Course salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces goat cheese

Directions

In a bowl, mix the prunes and almonds with 1 tablespoon of lemon olive oil.

Cut a pocket on the side of each pork chop from the fat side to the bone. Season the outside of each chop with salt and pepper, to taste. Stuff each chop with 1/2-ounce of goat cheese, pushing it to the bottom of the opening, then stuff with the prune mixture. Secure with toothpicks.

Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons lemon olive oil in a large shallow Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sear the chops on both sides until golden brown. Add water to come 1/4 of the way up the side of chops. Cover and simmer until the chops are cooked, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove chops to a serving platter and simmer the liquid and any stuffing drippings until reduced to a thick sauce. Pour the sauce over the chops and serve garnished with toasted almonds.

Rice Pilaf

Ingredients

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts
1 cup long-grain white rice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Directions

Bring the broth and water to a boil in saucepan over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and keep hot.

In another saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add the scallions and cook for about 3 minutes. Stir in the rice, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and cook for another 2 minutes. Pour in the hot broth mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover the saucepan. Cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in walnuts and taste for seasoning, adjusting as necessary. Transfer the pilaf to a serving bowl and serve.

*Go... go now, get what you need to make this... and ENJOY!!!*

Ring, Ring, Ring

2011-08-15T15:11:00.005-05:00

"Hello, yes, Paddy Wagon people, I'm ready for pick-up!"

Parenting is like living in an insane asylum! Every day you have no idea what to expect from your ward. They could be perfectly normal, or they could be living in fantasy land that day, or the naughty/angry personality has shown up (un-invited). Okay, some of you wonderful, loving, ultra patient parents are probably reading this thinking that I'm off my rocker for sure this time, and what business do I have parenting with such thoughts.

Well, to your first thought... YEP! To the second notion... I question that myself!

So what spurred on these thoughts today, of all days... Anybody notice it is Monday?! I dislike Mondays; the only Mondays that are good Mondays are Mondays at the beach otherwise I bite my thumb in their direction!

This Monday started off like any other Monday, up and breakfast in a quicker pace than usual because the boys have gymnastics (just the summer at this time) at 8:00am! Snooker is NOT A MORNING PERSON! After he finally finished his breakfast, got dressed and all the other stuff they do in the morning, he knew he needed to do stretches. I asked about one of them, he lied about it, I told him he needed to do it... then hit the restroom before we left. As he walked away from he muttered under his breath (I should mention here he has a terrible back-talk habit)... "You just Shut-UP!"

Daddio relayed the morning's events to a co-worker, and she said, “How old was he? Notice how I used the past tense because I already assume he’s dead…”

Oh, Mondays... why must you be so cruel!?!

A few more new favorites!

2011-08-09T18:27:00.003-05:00

So I've posted about our new obsession with 5 Ingredient Fix... oh how we love that show. Here are a handful of recipes we've tried, and LOVED!

First up Grown-Up Farmhouse Grilled Cheese

Ingredients

8 thin slices pancetta
8 slices brioche, about 1/2-inch thick
4 ounces sharp white Cheddar, thinly sliced (recommended: Farmhouse)
1 large heirloom tomato, cut into 4 slices
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
3 tablespoons butter, room temperature

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Set a rack on a rimmed baking sheet.

Lay the pancetta slices on the rack on the baking sheet and bake until crisp, 15 to 18 minutes.

Meanwhile, set your toaster to a low setting and toast the brioche slices, (they should be slightly dry but not brown).

Lay 4 slices lightly toasted brioche on a work surface and cover the slices with half the cheese, followed by a slice of tomato. Season each sandwich with a pinch of salt and a healthy grind of black pepper. Top each with 2 pancetta rounds and the remaining cheese. Lay the remaining brioche slices on top and press down lightly. Butter the top of each sandwich with 1/2 tablespoon butter.

Heat a large griddle pan over medium heat.

Melt the remaining tablespoon butter on the griddle pan and add the sandwiches, buttered side up. Cook until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is beginning to melt. Flip the sandwiches, press lightly, and continue cooking until golden and toasty. Transfer to a cutting board and slice the sandwiches with a serrated knife, on the diagonal. Arrange on a serving platter and serve immediately.

Then we had a little dinner party over here a few weekends ago and served Rosemary Pork Tenderloin.

Ingredients

1/3 cup Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon freshly chopped rosemary leaves, plus 4 sprigs rosemary, with hard woody stems
5 large garlic cloves, 2 cloves minced, 3 cloves smashed
2 pork tenderloins, about 1-pound each
4 slices maple bacon

Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, fresh ground black pepper, chopped rosemary, and minced garlic and mix well. Rub the mustard mixture over the surface of the tenderloins and wrap in plastic wrap. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Place rosemary sprigs and smashed garlic in the center of a roasting pan. Remove the plastic wrap from the tenderloins and top each with 2 slices of maple bacon. Tie with kitchen twine to secure bacon strips.

Place the roasting pan in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer, inserted in the tenderloins, registers 160 degrees F. Remove from oven when desired doneness is reached and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes on a cutting board. Remove kitchen twine, slice and serve with your favorite sides. Garnish with the rosemary sprigs and garlic. Enjoy!

Then it was Daddio's birthday last week and he requested fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and this delicious side dish: Homemade Creamed Corn

Ingredients

6 slices bacon
8 large cobs fresh corn, preferably white, shucked and cleaned
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Directions

In a large skillet, (seasoned cast iron does well here) cook the bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Turn off the heat and transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Reserve the drippings in the pan.

On a cutting board, cut the stalk ends of the corn cobs to make a flat surface; stand them up and shave the corn from the cobs with a sharp chef's knife. Return the skillet to medium-low heat, and add the corn kernels. With the back of the knife, firmly scrape the cobs over a shallow plate to extract as much liquid (milk) as possible and add it to the skillet.

Season corn lightly with salt and pepper and cook until broken down and creamy, about 30 to 45 minutes, stirring often; add water if the pan gets too dry.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: Crisp bacon can be crumbled over the creamed corn when serving or reserved for another use. If you have bacon drippings on hand, use 1/4 cup for this recipe.

*This particular menu had me on my feet cooking for several hours... it was a huge job... but well worth it! The creamed corn was a huge hit!

Chicken and Greens

2011-08-09T18:24:00.003-05:00

Sorry that I left you hanging, there... waiting to find out about this recipe that I posted on last!

It was SO GOOOOOOOOOOD! The chicken was so tender and flavorful! The greens where full of flavor and a wonderful texture and firmness!

I highly recommend it... go out, by the ingredients and make it this week!

5 Ingredient Fix

2011-07-28T15:49:00.004-05:00

I have a new favorite TV show... can you guess what it is? I'm sure you are either thinking it is food or crafting (based on the majority of my posts... it seems like)... it's FOOD! The show... 5 Ingredient Fix! It's genius I tell you... everything she prepares on the show has 5 ingredients or less (salt and pepper are not included in the count). So far EVERY SINGLE EPISODE we've seen has left us starving and desperate to try!

Well today I woke and decided that I could wait no longer! I spent some time on the recipes list trying to find things that I already had all or part of the makings for. Not a lot of luck. I had chicken... hmmmm, well, okay, what would I need to buy to make some sort of chicken? Oh, and we need a side dish...

What did I pick?

Citrus Garlic Chicken

Ingredients

4 large bone-in, skin on chicken breasts, about 3 pounds
4 large whole chicken thighs, about 2 pounds
1/2 navel orange, zested, plus the juice of 1 whole orange
2 limes, 1 zested, both juiced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
Freshly cracked black pepper

Directions

Put the chicken in a large nonmetalic bowl. Put the orange and lime zests in a small bowl and add the fruit juices. Whisk in the olive oil, garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, and a generous grind of black pepper. Pour the marinade over the chicken and toss until well coated. Marinate for 20 to 30 minutes but no longer than 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Put a rack on a rimmed baking sheet. With tongs, remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and arrange them on the rack leaving space between each piece. Drizzle a small spoonful of the marinade over the top of each chicken piece; season well with salt and pepper, to taste. Roast until the chicken is cooked through and the juices run clear when meat is pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter. Cool slightly before serving or let stand until room temperature before refrigerating for later use.

-AND-

Nutty Greens with Bacon

Ingredients

Kosher salt
1 pound haricots verts, trimmed
3 slices bacon
4 ounces blue cheese, cut into small chunks (recommended: Shropshire)
1 1/2 cups toasted whole pecans, coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the haricots verts and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove the beans from the water and immediately place in a bowl of ice water. Remove the haricots verts from the ice water and set aside in a medium bowl.

In a large saute pan, over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon and place on paper towels. Add the beans to the bacon drippings and cook over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the blue cheese and toss just until it starts to melt. Break the cooked bacon into bite-size pieces and add to pan. Finish by stirring in the toasted chopped pecans. Season with the freshly ground black pepper and just a tiny pinch of kosher salt. Serve immediately.

--------------------------------------------

I'm super excited for tonight... oh and I made chocolate pudding for dessert...YUM! I'll let you know how it all turns out!

This means war!

2011-07-17T07:36:00.002-05:00

Generally I'm not a confrontational person. I won't say anything, I will simply let things fester! Oh how I let them fester, until one day I can't take it any more and ... boom! Granted this is a character fault I've been working on, and it has gotten better over the years... but it is still a thorn.

Now, when I'm having to deal with businesses, this can be tricky. Years past, I simply burned bridges and damned things to hell, never to return to said businesses... but I've learned patience, and that generally the people I'm dealing with are morons whe have no clue and the IQ of my 8 year old and really can't be held responsible. So you have to find the right channel in order to get things done... CORPORATE!

Enter in my current issue... medical bills. Ever since the boys came home, this is a monthly battle for one reason or another... but it all boils down to dr/lab not billing the boys' secondary insurance! I end up spending HOURS per phone call trying to get it resolved... even though they take all the information the day of the appointment (or even before that)... even when we've been there before and all they do is make another copy of the same info... I still end up getting bills that were never filed correctly. It is infuriating. Usually I just make the calls... set my cell on speaker and keep on doing the boys school work, or cleaning house, or folding laundry... whatever, you get the picture. This year I decided to try a few new things.

I'm currently in a stalemate over an appointment back on the second week of January. Every time we use this office, and this lab we have this problem. I know, I haven't learned... but this is Bobcat's endo, and I just didn't want to switch because I knew that we would be tapering off the visits because he was seeing his gastro to take care of the CD. Now I finally resolved the bill with the office after 3 very long waiting phone calls, and then one very to the point email which made it to the director of billing who called to apologize. Sweet, taken care of. I used the same approach with the lab... but to no avail. This morning marked the 5th bill, and the 5th time I contacted them. The first three times were by phone. Each wait time to get an operator was well over an hour! So on the four time I went to their website and left a message on their inquiry form (June 15th) with my phone number and the list of dates I had already spoken to them. NO RESPONSE! This morning, I did the same thing.

After I hit send, my blood was boiling and the wheels in my brain where just a' spinnin! I think a new plan of attack needs to be waged... THIS IS WAR! Since they won't listen, or respond to my once a month calls/emails... I will now log on to their site EVERY MORNING, and send the same inquiry simply adding on the new date to the list. Surely this will get some response, right?

If I had a nickel for every minute I've had to spend on the phone for insurance billing issues in the last 7 years with the boys... I would be able to buy the beach house of my dreams!

Tryin' somethin' new!

2011-07-12T11:34:00.002-05:00

I'm stepping out on a limb this summer, and trying something new... there is little risk (I guess), and the opportunity to have a little fun. Well, fun for me that is :-).

First, I've started up a second blog. Why??? Well, this blog really is meant to chronicle our life... not my ever growing need to sit behind a sewing machine! So, I've decided to carve out a little world of crafting next door at: Sewn Escape! This way for those who come here to find out about adoption, homeschooling, our Catholic faith within our family... all the normal stuff we write about here... that's what you will find. If you aren't interested in all the crafty stuff, you won't be bogged down by weeding through the posts that aren't for you.

If you like that sort of thing... come on over!

My second project, which sort of goes hand in hand with the first, is I've decided to open my own Etsy shop, Honey Bee's Shoppe.

So there you have it... Momma Llama's summer o' fun!

One Eye Open

2011-07-06T07:14:00.002-05:00

After the shocking (but somewhat completely expected, after the initial accusations in March) news broke on (ex) Fr. Corapi, I didn't think the day could sink any lower... WRONG! Food, glorious food, strikes an unhappy note in the house.

If you've read this blog for any length of time you will know that Bobcat has Celiac Disease. The long of the short of it is that he can't have gluten (a protein found in wheat primarily). Back before he was diagnosed, we had no idea. He didn't have the most common signs, at least to our untrained eye, and his long time suffering was something that he thought was just normal. Even after the initial diagnosis before the biopsy I was quite skeptical that he had it... to me it just didn't make since.

Here's the thing about CD, it just doesn't seem real on paper. Every symptom could easily be associated with something else, and no two CD suffers are the same (regarding symptom presentation). Even though we now live in this world of gluten-free eating, I can totally understand outsiders not understanding the struggles or even the need for it. And in some ways the fad to be GF just because (while it helps with labeling food) takes away the seriousness of it for those who actually suffer.

So what's the biggest problem for CDer's needing to be GF? Contamination (or cross-contamination)! Here at the house, obviously, we are able to control the environment and be very selective about what we buy and how I cook. I would say that 99% of the time when I serve a meal it is ALL GF. There are occasions when this isn't the case, and last night was that sort of situation. We were having sloppy joes. I bought regular buns for everyone else, and had GF bread for Bobcat. When I went to fix Bobcat's portion, Daddio thought I went a little heavy on the sauce, and so I scooped some out and put into another boy dish. Well, when I did that some of the GF bread ended up in the other dish... along with the wheat bun... so at a glance you saw GF bread, not the bun (we do ours "open face" style and eat with forks...).

You see where this is going, right?! While I was busy working on getting cups filled and other plates made, I wasn't the one passing out the food dishes, and never saw that Bobcat's dish didn't end up in front of him... I also don't sit across from him, so I didn't notice his dish while he ate.

So what happens to a boy with Celiac Disease who eats a regular bun????? When it hits his digestive track his body freaks out! Poor kid was SICK! And we're not talking the "my tummy doesn't feel well because I ate too many sweets", oh no, it is more like the "MUST GET RID OF ALL TOXIC MATERIAL UNTIL THERE IS NOTHING LEFT THAT COULD POSSIBLY HARM ME, AND THEN SOME MORE JUST IN CASE!"

The lesson here for us is that he still has CD, and he does have a violent reaction (it's been two years since the last time he contaminated himself... vanilla wafers can be a really strong temptation when no one is looking)... To anyone stumbling on to this post, when someone says they have CD and need to be GF, BELIEVE THEM!

As for me... today is going to be low key. When a mom has a sick kiddo, we sleep with one eye open listen for the horrid sound... which means I've had little sleep! Bobcat is a little on the dehydrated side, and his stomach hurts (all those muscles are currently on strike, and I know how he feels having had that sort of a reaction a few times in the last few years due to medications it turns out I'm allergic to). So he will most likely be spending time on the couch snoozing, reading, and hydrating. The other two knuckleheads are going to try their best to stay calm for the day... TRY being the operative word!

Fun times...

Sew much to do...

2011-06-29T15:23:00.009-05:00

When I start titling posts in a corny manner, you've lost the battle for sanity :-)

Over the weekend we had a very rare treat... NO KIDS! My MIL took the boys over night Saturday so that we could play an out of town concert with our band. That afforded us a date night Saturday night after the long drive home (we saw a movie that started at 10:15pm... CRAZY), and a leisurely Sunday. We went out to breakfast, and then went shopping just for fun (well, and for groceries... but that wasn't the fun part, okay it sort of was fun to be able to actually shop for groceries instead of attempt to follow your list, while throwing things in the buggy in a sort of careless manner while answering a million questions and telling boys to get out of other shopper's way!).

Anyway... after all the practical stuff, we ended up at Tuesday Mornings. Mostly we were in search of a little 'Thank You' gift for my MIL for keeping the boys... but of course, one must always keep an eagle eye out for the perfect thing you never thought you needed ;-).

Who knew they would have a stash of fabric... NOT THIS GIRL! But lo and behold they had a little crafty section that had jelly rolls a few fat quarter bundles. I found a great fat quarter bundle for $5 (8 fat quarters where in the package)... and, well, I just couldn't pass it up. Here is a shot of the fabrics included:
If you've stumbled across my blog as of late you will know the love I have for pouches, purses and the like... and my new love for sewing them (thanks to great patterns I've found online). Today was a day to sit at the machine... I NEEDED it. The boys and I have gone round and round lately, my hands needed an activity and the boys needed to go outside and play (which they asked to do right after they got their dishes put away from breakfast)... prayer granted!

What to sew, which pattern to follow, which fabrics would I pull together... did I have any more zippers??? I spent some time looking through my Pinterest account, and finally decided that while I really liked the Gathered Clutch from Noodlehead, it wasn't exactly what I wanted. I wanted something larger so that my wallet would actually fit in there (I'm not one for always taking things apart from one purse to the next... I just want to take my wallet and notebook out, and transplant it to the next bag, I'm less likely to wander off without something I actually need). After a lot of looking and figuring I decided to alter the gathered clutch pattern, and work from the tutorial on gathering here (my last two were not gathered, but pleated because I became irate with how I was gathering).

I enlarged the dimensions so that the pre-sewn numbers were 11x8, and also made a little wrist strap. Here is a shot of the inside panel with the card holder. I really love that yellow material (even though I am not a huge fan of yellow... I really like the butterflies that have the pink flowers from the outer fabric in them).

The other big change I made in this bag is that I notched the corners so that it would have a flat squared off bottom. It's cool, with the wallet inside it actually stands up!
I am totally digging this little clutch...

What I've been up to...

2011-06-24T13:50:00.002-05:00

Yesterday and today I had a chance to spend some time at my sewing machine...

Here's what I put together: Gathered Zipper Clutch

I know they look similar (they are different), they are a little different... you'll just have to take my word for it :-).
I really like them! I also really like the pattern for the most part... yep, I did make some changes, and plan to make even more changes when I have time to make more... but the concept is great (and easy to follow).

Alright, I must run, we actually have a sitter tonight so we can attend a friend's birthday... shocking to have a sitter, and the time to socialize... CRAZY!

Mattress pad woes

2011-06-21T12:38:00.013-05:00

So a few months ago I replaced our old mattress cover. The first one lasted 10 years... I was hoping to get a good run out of the new one. Now I haven't a clue how much we spent on the first one, but I didn't think it was all that much. So when I saw this one for $25 I figured that was a good price and I would pick it up. Well, within the first month it began to tear around the sides. I was ticked off, and every time I washed it and put it back on, the tears would get a little bigger... ANNOYING!
So last night, while I laid in bed wide awake (thanks to the thunder, lighting, and hail) I thought about ways to fix it without spending any more money. Then it came to me, I have old sheet sets that fit our bed, but are far to pill-y to use any more (usually I pull them out for camping). Hmmm, if I cut out the middle of the fitted sheet, cut off the crappy stuff on the mattress cover, sew them together... in theory I would have solved my current problem!

So off to work I set this morning...

Once I had to two pieces I wanted, I pinned right sides together (on the bed, it was much easier to work with it that way)...
Once I had it all pinned, I carefully removed it from the bed (I can't stress enough the careful part, good grief...) then brought it over to my machine and seamed it up (you're looking at the wrong side here).
I decided after I looked at it for a while that I wanted to reinforce that seam... I knew I would be tugging and pulling on it often with all the washing I do. So I went back over on the right side with a zig zag stitch.
Perfection... well, maybe not perfection... but WAY better than a ratty torn up mattress cover. And boy does it stay. The fitted sheet I used was a nice snug fit on our large mattress... so no more sliding about under our sheets!

So there you have it... now when your sides start to pull away, here is a no cost solution!

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-21T11:53:00.006-05:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Father's Day. From what I gather from Daddio, he was pleased with his day!

Every year the kids and I do something different. Sometimes it is a store bought gift, sometimes it is a handmade gift. This year, Daddio actually made a request... so obviously we went that direction with it. He had space on his desk to display something that the boys could/would make... hmmmmm, what to have the kids make???? That's always a brain teaser! After a lot of thought I decided to go with a painting. It's been a while since they've done any real painting, and now that they are older and doing a lot of drawing I thought it was time to step up their painting.

First they needed to draw out on paper what they wanted to paint... including coloring so they had a good feel for the design. I tried to remind them that little details would be difficult to translate on to the canvas for them (ie, maybe consider a more modern art approach... yeah, they weren't having it). The only thing I did have to put my foot down about was Kung Fu Panda. We took them to see it a few weeks ago and now everything they draw is KFP (even on their Father's Day cards, I realized that most of them contained KFP).

So here are the boys after they had designed their pictures and were starting to get them down on to the canvas.

Bobcat

His completed painting:

Bubba

His finished product:

Snooker

And his finished product:
I have no idea why his aircraft carrier, that is in the water, is green/brown camo... I guess he just likes camo, even though it makes no sense for a water vessel!

Yarn Along #3

2011-06-15T11:59:00.004-05:00

I'm once again posting with Yarn Along (last week, where was I... who knows?!)

This is the third reading time blanket I'm working on. It would seem that Bubba has already called it for himself, saying it reminds him of the waves at the beach... which is fitting since I'm doing a wave pattern. I'm enjoying it, and even though it is my first time for this particular style, it is quite fun. Although I really didn't take into account the shorting of length once the wave got going... hmmm, so I think a hefty border will be in order to correct for the lack of length!

And the book I'm reading... well, if you caught the last post about books waiting for me at the library then you will know what is currently hold my attention!

If you missed it:
Fabric: 17 Innovative Sewing Projects that Make Fabric the Star (by Susan Wasinger)
Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts ('nough said :-)
Sew Serendipity (by Kay Whitt)

Waiting for me!

2011-06-15T09:30:00.004-05:00

The library is my friend! I really love requesting books, and not having to go around to different libraries to find what I want! The books just make their way to my favorite library, and then I get a call when something is there to pick up... LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

Right now I have three books sitting on a shelf with my name taped to them!

Fabric: 17 Innovative Sewing Projects that Make Fabric the Star (by Susan Wasinger)
Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts ('nough said :-)
Sew Serendipity (by Kay Whitt)

What is great is that I can check out these books and decide whether or not they are worth owning. When you live on a budget, $20 for a book that you will never use could have gone a long way in another direction!

The last First...

2011-06-12T08:45:00.003-05:00

As we headed off to Mass yesterday afternoon I looked back at the banner and thought of all the Masses our sweet Snooker waited for us to return to the pew, and how now our family was going to be complete in the Eucharistic celebration!
Fr. D was the celebrant for the Mass, what a treat! We just love him, he is truly an amazing priest and man! (Doesn't Snooker look snazzy in his little suit?!)
We couldn't be more proud of our little Snooker... man, he is growing up so fast (and tall too)!

Roses are red

2011-06-10T20:06:00.003-05:00

A week ago, I guess, I came across this really pretty cake with large roses done in frosting. The blogger showed that you could also translate them to cupcakes and cookies... and immediately I pinned it (I'm addicted to Pinterest). After looking over the blog, I thought there had to be a catch. She said it was easy, and indeed her directions seemed simple enough... but let's face it, it's never that easy! Or is it?

Well, it is! I did just as she said... and now I have cute roses for Our Lady to go along with the cake tomorrow (the cake is was not GF, I ordered it... so I needed to come up with something for Bobcat, and I happened to have had a GF box mix and one thing of frosting stored away for just such an occasion!).

It's gonna be a good day Tater

2011-06-10T09:47:00.003-05:00

TODAY IS A GOOD DAY!!!

-So let me run you through why today is a good day... first, I'm still basking in the glow of the game 5 win by the Mav's!!!! YAY!!!

-I have two books waiting for me a the library (be quiet... I love that they are there waiting for me, sitting on a shelf with my name on them, I don't have to scour the many aisles looking for just the right thing... I LOVE THAT I CAN REQUEST THEM ONLINE!).

-I woke up this morning to an email in my inbox telling me I'm a winner (WOOHOO)!

What did I win? Well, a $25 gift credit to the Pleated Poppy! This is a great little shop, and just my style. I love her selection, and the fabrics she picks...well, are just adorably perfect! So I spent a good while trying to make my selection. Boy, it was hard to narrow it down to just one thing for the time being... but drum roll please... I picked the turquoise damask zipper pouch (it was between that and the notebook cover... but I just love pouches!!). If you want to see it, you have to go to her site (this way you too will fall in love with her shop!).

Now you may be asking where I found this great give away?! One of my new favorite spots, the Creative Itch!

-And last but not least for today... I'm finishing up the preparations for our last First Communion for our little family... little Snooker... my little Snooker Monster... our tiny Scooter... after many months of preparing with Daddio is finally receiving the Holy Eucharist for the first time...

Keeping the dust at bay...

2011-06-01T15:29:00.008-05:00

Sewing has taken up a great deal of my free time lately. I have so many projects floating around in my head, in my stacks of fabric, websites, and books... what's a girl to do?

That all being said, I needed to have an area where I could work. Our house is cozy, so a craft room really isn't an option, and I dislike (greatly) things in the living room that don't belong there... so while I did set up shop in a corner for a week, that too had to change.

Finally it was decided, after doing a little rearranging, that the master bedroom would be the place. I'm okay with that, it wasn't my first choice, but I'm pretty sure there are building codes about just opening up the roof and putting in one more room on the top of your house :-).

Anyway, now I have a place to sew... and am able to leave my machine out instead of taking it in and out of a crate every time I want to use it. Naturally reading all the craft blogs I saw many lovely dust covers for sewing machines... and I thought to myself, I can do that! Who needs a stinkin' pattern when you have a ruler, paper, and fabric? Off to work I set this morning, once the boys finished up their school work.

It took me some time trying to decide how I wanted to tackle this project. Did I want to make it reversible, did I want it to encase the machine or drape over it and tie on the outsides, what sort of fabric/pattern did I want to go with?

I decided against reversible, that just seemed like too much work for one day! Then I decided I didn't want it to just drape... hmmm, this was going to take a little more time to work out the side angles... no problem, I had time. And fabric... I went with my favorite series that I purchased a year or so ago for a set of totes I made (all coordinating of course:-).

So here's the finished product... side one:
Side two (what, I love both sets of fabric, and I like to change things, so instead of making two, I just made two sides to suit my mood :-).

Yarn Along #2

2011-06-01T10:07:00.003-05:00

This is my second installment of Yarn Along with Ginny. This week's project is a second reading blanket (I need at least three, right?!) I'm using many skeins I already have, and will need to pick up a few more to finish it off... but the color combination was inspired by the coast. In the evenings as we would walk along the beach and the waves would come in and go out... all of the beautiful shells (little clam fellows) would be exposed. So in this granny square motif, I've tried to capture all of the pretty muted colored shells that you see just before they dive down below the sand!

The book, Doodle Stitching, is another reference material I'm using for my co-op class. Well, and for myself. I've not done a whole lot of stitching like this, I love the look of it, and really think it would add that little pop I'm always looking for in the things I make!

Happy hooking... hmmm, maybe that shouldn't be the tag line :-)!

Ribbit, ribbit

2011-05-28T10:35:00.002-05:00

I'm at it again :-)

A birthday is just around the corner for a special boy, and I wanted to make something for him... but what to make? Pinterest and my favorite sites to the rescue! Check this adorable frog!
Naturally, because I just can't leave well enough alone, I made a few changes as I went along :-) (hey, that's just how I roll). My changes including making the feet and hands a little larger when I cut the pattern out. This was to accommodate the addition stitches I wanted to add for a webbed foot look. Once I turned the frog right side out and stuffed the feet and hands with fiberfill then stitched in the fingers/toes. For the stuffing there is a combination of plastic beans and fiberfill. I wanted him to be softer for the little guy! And for the eyes I made ribbon loops that I attached VERY securely. If I were making it for an older child I would have kept with their recommendation of cute beads, but I just want the possible choking hazard for our little godson!

Isn't he super cute! Here's another picture of the finished project... Oh he's just scrumptious!

Adios!

Don't run with scissors

2011-05-26T19:54:00.008-05:00

Today as I was going through my new Pinterest account I wound up finding a few new things that I really wanted to try!

I saw this really cute bias tape purse from the Purl Bee (love, love, love that site!) and thought that it would be the perfect little bag to hold my large sewing scissors. They are usually just tossed into the bin that holds my machine. I used to keep them in a plastic back along with all the other bits and pieces I always need when I'm sew, but they were always punching holes in the corners and stuff would fall the the bottom of the bin... annoying... Anyway, I saw the post and thought that I could alter it just slightly and it would be the perfect bag for my need.

So here's my new little bag:

If you clicked over to the pattern you will see that I went with a more quilt style look with two of my favorite fabrics. Naturally I reversed the pattern on the back :-)!

I was shocked that I actually got it to line up, I was fully expecting it not to... and I had already decided I was going to be okay with that!

The other major changed I made was that I lined it with a fusible interfacing and then brown fabric. I want it to be sturdy so that nothing would poke through the fabrics or the seams!

It did take me a little while, oh about an hour or so... had I stuck to the original pattern it would have been a simple 20 minute project! For those who don't have a lot of experience, this was a really simply pattern to read and follow (and alter!). Give it a shot, it is worth it!

No, No, NO, earmuffs, earmuffs!!!!

2011-05-26T09:04:00.004-05:00

As a parent, have you ever had that moment where your child goes to ask you a question and inside your head your screaming something like, "NO NO NO, I'm not prepared to talk about this RIGHT NOW (with your brothers sitting here staring at us), I can't handle the pressure!", or "we (your dad and me) said that HE was going to deal with this!", or "it's too early in the morning and I have a headache, if I try to answer this sanely... well it just isn't going to happen!"?!

Then just like that... as if your guardian angel went over and thumped his guardian angel and the head and said "wake up dude, not right now!", and the question concludes in a way you can deal with?! That's what happened to me this morning.

Here's what happened... this morning Daddio sent me a picture from one of his customers who runs a miniature horse farm. They woke up to a new baby even though they were assured the mare was not pregnant when they bought her. The baby is unbelievably cute. I shared the picture with the boys and told them that she had him some time in the night. Bobcat looks right at me and asks, "how did the Mommy give birth [my first thought is wow, good terminology, second though, HOLY CRAP HERE IT COMES! then he finishes] in the middle of the night by herself? Don't animals need help to have their babies, like human mommies?"

Yes, I did explain that really human mommies don't need as much help as they receive in hospitals, and that animals (all animals) can do it on their own (although some circumstances arise where help is more necessary to save all involved)...

Crisis averted, stomach put back in it's rightful spot, and life continues... phewwwwwww!

I'm casin the joint!

2011-05-25T13:05:00.005-05:00

Last week I posted pictures of the sunglasses case, and phone case I put together... well, since I gave the phone case away (to my mom, because I'm so nice :-) and the fabric was still calling to me I needed to sit down and put together a new phone sleeve!

I've spent a few days thinking about it, trying to decide if I should make one exactly like the previous one or do I go for something different... DIFFERENT, I know, that's what I thought too!

After spending a great deal of time oogling at the great mug rugs over at Gwenny Penny's blog, I decided that was the direction I wanted to take my iPhone sleeve... cue inspiration music...

Front view

and the back!

Yippee... it came out so nicely. I ended up adding a seam down one side because I decided I wanted just a little more architecture to it... but when you make one, it isn't necessary for use!

Yarn Along

2011-05-25T12:32:00.003-05:00

This is my first time linking to Ginny's Yarn Along, although I've followed it for some time now...
This week I'm working on reading blankets around here. I thought it would be nice if each of the boys had their own little blankets to cuddle up with when they read everyday (especially considering how even in the summer they are asking to turn off fans in the living room... something I will never understand!!). The current blanket I'm working on is based on a granny square motif. I'm quite surprised at how quickly it is coming along, and already have designs bouncing around my head for the blankets to come!

This week's book selection is Kids' Embroidery, by Kristin Nicholas. It is research material for the coop class I will be teaching in the fall. This is a great book, the pictures are spot on, and the detailed diagrams are great for kids and adults!

That's it for now folks, I have a few more things in hopper... stay tuned :-)

Speaking of VACATION!!!!

2011-05-23T08:23:00.005-05:00

Vacation, what's there to say other than I LOVE VACATION! Our family loves the beach, we go every year, and every year we love it even more than the year before which is pretty darn extraordinary! This year we switched it up a little and headed to a new island... South Padre. The drive was just a little longer, but it was definitely worth it. The water was amazingly blue, the sea weed was scarce, and the temperature both in the water and out was perfection!

We rented a house for a week, as is our custom... it was a real beauty, in a neighborhood straight from the movies, just breath taking. There is something to be said for a gated community with a security guard and noise rules! Plus we had a private boardwalk down to the sand, on an area of the beach that DID NOT allow car access! This was by far the closest walk we've ever had as well. Need to run back to the house for something... less than five minutes door to sand... AWESOME!

So what do we do for 8 days and 7 nights????

A little of this-
A lot of that-
Practice our ninja jumps...
Mom and Dad hang out in the shade...
Oh look, two lovely ladies (Olive you look great with only a handful of weeks before the bundle arrives!)...
Oh, and the sand castles... lots of building this year!
My guys down at the jetty...
How could you resist a dolphin cruise... and a one week old baby!
Land ho!
Right across the road from our neighborhood was the Sea Turtle rescue and hospital!
It was an amazing trip, the food was awesome, it was an unbelievably large house (sleeps 14), and all of our friends and family who came to spend time with us and experience our kind of vacation seemed to have a great time!

Till next year...

A few new finished projects

2011-05-22T14:40:00.006-05:00

As usual, I've had this fabric that has been calling my name... it was intended for a different project but the more I looked at it the more I realized that I wanted to go a different direction with it. So while we were on vacation 2 weeks ago I set to thinking about other things I wanted that this awesome fabric would work with (and that I would get to see regularly because I liked it so much). What I decided was a sleeve for my sunglasses and a second on for my iPhone.

Check it out:

Now, you will notice my phone looks like it is getting swallowed up by the case... well, this particular case I actually made and gave to my mom (it fits her slightly larger phone perfectly... and I'm always willing to give away my proto-type, my second attempts usually have the kinks worked out!).

And last, but certainly not least is a bag concept I've been thinking about and designing in my brain for a month or so. I wanted a mixed medium bag (crochet and fabric)... so I set to work. The only thing I don't like about this picture is that it looks like the yarn doesn't match... but what you can't see here is that the fabric has several shades of purple and I picked the yarn that brings out the redder shades!

This was also my first attempt at a fabric flower. I think it came out pretty well! If you wondering, at the moment I don't have an intended recipient for this bag. It was just one of those ideas rolling around in my brain that I just had to make. Alright... back to my fabric, my own phone sleeve is waiting to be cut, sewn and put into use!

My precious...

2011-04-29T16:55:00.002-05:00

Oh my dear sweet Sanity,

Hold fast dear friend. I know, the little one is doing all he can today to break us down. He has up-ed his game, he's brought out stuff from yester-year when he could really throw-down. I know, I know, he thinks we will crack before the beach... that we will get hauled off in the paddy wagon and left to graze on some far away hill where all the other mommies and sanity's have been sent when their little Snookers did just the same thing.

But dear Sanity, I beg you to maintain... I promise to reward you handsomely once we've reached our destination in just a handful of days. Just think, the one thing that you've waited months and months for... knowing how much better it is there, it shall be yours! OH the beer you will get to enjoy... hang tight, we will survive!

(I may be losing my mind...)

Hurry up already!

2011-04-28T12:43:00.004-05:00

That is my current line of thinking... what needs to hurry up... VACATION! We head out next week for our annual beach vacation. I'm so pumped, I'm so ready, I'm so... thirsty... I'm usually quite thirsty when we are down on the coast :-)!

As I sit here and type (and ponder), I remember the first time we took the boys. Boy, that was nerve racking... getting everything packed, making sure everything was where it needed to be, and that all three were where they needed to be. I was nervous! We had been on one road trip prior to the first beach trip... and to say it didn't go well is a HUGE understatement. Snooker had meltdown after meltdown (mostly in the car of course, where you can get way from the very loud crying). Honestly I don't really remember the ride down (or back for that matter)... so either it was uneventful, or it was exactly the same as previously and I simply blocked it (not uncommon :-). The beach itself was, um, well, Snooker didn't like the beach... it was quite overwhelming for him. Bobcat was sort of not sure about it at all, but was perfectly happy to play in the sand, Bubba... oh sweet little chubby Bubba... the apple of his Daddy's eye... was out in the waves hanging on to Daddio and waving for the camera!

With every passing year Snooker makes head way (he will go in the ocean but much prefers to build in the sand), and Bobcat got over his fear of the water and goes exploring with and with out his brothers, usually looking for cool shells or hunting down coconuts... Bubba, sweet Bubba... he's out in the surf. He likes to boogie board and heck even body surf (I guess that's what you call what he does), but he's always having fun way out in the waves.

The car rides? Heck, those are nothin' now! We are a car trip family. Everyone gets comfy, shoes off, pillows adjusted, and audio book begins as we pull onto the hi-way.

You would think that Daddio and I would be stressed going into any trip due to our personalities (or number of kids who need meds, Celiac disease, dogs, blah blah blah)... we both like to plan things out, we want to organized, have everything just so-so... but when it comes to heading to the coast (or camping) we are a well oiled machine. The only uncertainty is how early will Daddio wake up that morning... he cracks me up... sometimes it is 3 or 4am and he is up and READY TO GO! (No, we don't need to leave that early... he's just that excited!). When it comes to the unexpected... well, it happens, we know that better than most I think... we've had dead batteries, the beast had a smashed window (broken into)... shall I go on??? We roll with it! And we've gotten really good at that (thank you Holy Spirit and Mother Mary)!

Nearly all the prep work is done: newspaper put on hold, mail stopped for the week, dogs have been booked at the boarding house, sunscreen bought in bulk, new suits for the little boys and mommy (yeah for losing weight), beach umbrella borrowed (it is so cool that Daddio's friend let's us borrow it... it is AWESOME)...

Oh... I'M READY!!!!!! Unfortunately... I have to wait... because it's not quite time :-(

In the hopper

2011-04-27T14:38:00.005-05:00

Fabric... I LOVE IT... but I've never had it organized the way I want it. In a perfect world I would have a room dedicated to sewing... I would have open shelves all over the place with perfectly stacked fabric towers... my sewing machine would be ready to use at a second's notice... and I would have everything I need right at my finger tips!

I DO NOT LIVE IN A PERFECT WORLD :-)... Instead I live in a great world... I live in a cute little house that is filled with many wonderful people and all the rooms are spoken for... so ALL of my crafting wonderfulness is stored in bins... here, there, and anywhere one might be able to stack a bin!

I've wanted to do something about my fabric situation for quite some time, but because I wasn't able to see past the awesomeness in my head of a perfect room... 'throw it in the bin' was my how I dealt with it. Well, yesterday I set to work on making behind the seat hanging organizers (that would go in front of each of the boys for our vacation)... I needed to pull out my fabric bin and sewing machine. I knew I had plenty of fabric to make what I wanted, but getting my fingers on all of it was a frustration. So I decided NO MORE (well... actually I told myself that once I finish the organizers I would deal with it once and for all... or until in a miraculous event this house suddenly has more stories and more rooms :-).

I was able to cut all of what I needed yesterday for the organizers, and finished one completely before it was time to retire for the evening... this morning I woke up with a dozy of a headache (thanks allergies... stupid wind keeps blowing EVERYTHING FROM EVERYWHERE TO RIGHT HERE!)... and sitting at my machine was really not an option... so I thought... I planned... and decided that I could fold and iron with a headache.

It started out a little like this (this wasn't all of it, I already had started the sorting process when I decided to photograph it):

I worked on getting everything to my room where I could fold and sort in relative darkness (just using the light from outside, thank goodness it wasn't sunny or this would not have happened). After folding and ironing, each fabric was put into a bag. If I knew the info for the fabric I made a little card to put in with it (just in case I ever decide I really need more, I might be able locate it online with those details).Once it was all done, it was put back into the bin it never all fit into before... it's amazing what a little ironing can do!

I'm really happy with how well it all worked out. In the very near future I will be getting a real sewing cabinet, and having everything organized will make my dream of sewing whenever the mood strikes me (which is ALL THE TIME REALLY) a reality!

What's to come?

2011-04-21T18:22:00.001-05:00

A sneak peek at my latest project... I'm really excited!

A new addiction

2011-04-21T11:17:00.003-05:00

Ok, I haven't been all about blogs in the last year. I pretty much whittled down my reads to just a few, and even that was very irregular.

Well, that was until last weekend when I went looking few a few craft patterns and I stumbled across a few new sites that I've never seen before... and out came an addiction...

So here they are, in no particular order:

Someday Crafts

Craftaholics Anonymous

If you enjoy any sort of crafting... you are in for a real treat (or addiction)... if there are things you want to try, one (or all) of these will tell you how to do it!

*If you have girls or babies... prepare yourself to want to drop everything and get to work on a multitude of projects!

You are welcome :-)!

Just something different...

2011-04-20T16:04:00.003-05:00

Last night Daddio hosted his men's group, Miles Christi, here. The group meets once a month, and rotate among their homes for the meetings... and this was the first time they all came to our home. I was thrilled to have these men over, I'm a sucker for hosting... it means I get to bake :-)!

And bake I did... banana nut bread and an apple caramel crumble cake thingy (super tasty).

But that isn't why I'm writing this post... I'm sharing this because of the men who came over. This group is made of husbands/fathers who are growing in their Catholic faith... doing the homework to be the husbands/fathers that God called them to be, and to me that is a beautiful thing. And it just so happens (not even on purpose) their wives all happen to homeschool in this group.

As each man arrived they made their way to the kitchen (where I was surviving up ice water... it was 97 degrees outside)... and every single one of them greeted me with generous complements on our home and the decor (which I thought was kind of funny, they all commented on the paint treatments). They all thanked me for preparing food, asked how I was, and even asked how the school year was going...

After joking around with them, I finished setting out all they would need, then I slipped off to my room to watch a little TV and work on a new project... I thought to myself just how lucky I was... how lucky their wives were. Here were these men... MEN... manly men... doing what they needed to do spiritually to be the head of their homes and arm themselves for their lives outside of the home... they weren't out at a bar watchin' the game, throwin back brewskies... no, they were here!

I'm a blessed woman for having a husband who loves me so much, and our boys are so lucky to have a dad they can look up to... a dad who is the kind of man that they can aspire to be one day!

Finished project

2011-04-16T09:08:00.003-05:00

Ok, I'll admit it... when it comes to crocheting I love to start projects... but don't finish them (quickly). Sure I've knocked out a baby blanket in a weekend, but generally speaking more important things come up and the project gets set in my unfinished yarn basket.

Anyway, I needed to get motivated... this weekend is my niece's birthday and I wanted to come up with something great for her. I knew she wanted earrings, and that's fine. I found a great set of six pairs for a rather modest sum... but I wanted to do more. She is a girl after all, and I have very few of those to make things for... so to my yarn/idea basket I went (yesterday, Friday... nothing like last minute :-).

Here's what I came up with:
It is the cutest little bag! Perfect or a notebook, colored pencils, books, and an electronic game! It cost me NOTHING! I had all the yarn, and the adorable fabric that I lined the bag with... plus I added some stiff fusible interfacing to give it a little body. The outer yarn is a really soft dark blue (if you can't tell)... and no, I have no idea of the details on it. I've had it for years and the wrapping is long since gone (as it is with the other colors!)

I am super pleased with how it came out... and already have tons of ideas for more of these sorts of bags! (Don't worry I will finish them :-).

Climbing out on a limb

2011-02-22T15:52:00.008-06:00

We set out on a journey 6 1/2 years ago. It wasn't something we took lightly, on the contrary... we prayed, talked, agonized, poured through pamphlets, websites... we so desperately wanted to be parents, we felt the Lord calling us to this life! As an infertile couple, the road to parenthood wasn't a typical story. Our loving embrace along with the Creator did not bring forth our children. Yes, the Creator was there... but we weren't there in that moment (three times over).

This is something that my brain has been trying to comprehend for a while now... history, my family, my ethnicity... their history, family, and ethnicity... and that those are not completely shared like 'normal families'. How do we make it all work?

One thing that our adoption agency really wanted to make sure we did when choosing to adopt trans-racially was to make sure we exposed our children to their full ethnicity... Many ideas where thrown about as to how to do this: living in a diverse community, attending a more heavily African American church/school/barber shop... and so on. All great ideas, on paper, as the saying goes! We already had a home, so moving really wasn't a viable option (although I would have to say that our street is pretty diverse just by happen stance), we attend the church that is in our parish, and I cut the boys hair at home (the cost of getting three sets of hair cuts every 4 weeks... you do the math!). Plus the boys were so young, and bi-racial, that up until recently we really didn't feel the need to do more than what we have. We have friends of varying races, it's just that the adults aren't black (one of the adoption groups is a trans-racial group, so they are around other kids who look like them and are adopted... double points, right?).

Well... that brings us to now... 6 1/2 years into this journey of raising our sons with a rooted identity, and an understanding as to where they came from! We knew the time would come when it would be important to investigate a community that was more African American... to surround them with children and adults who shared that part of their duel race. Daddio and I, over the years, had put together some thoughts... ideas... but it wasn't until the last few weeks that my mother's heart said it was time. I had already started noticing signs that one of our boys had become increasingly sensitive about himself... it was time to climb out on to the newest branch of the tree we planted so many years ago!

Many years ago we saw a show, I think it was called Divine Renovation (or something), where they went into a church in our diocese and re-did the baptismal font. It just so happened that it was a predominantly African American parish (trust me the Holy Spirit knows what he's doing!). Over the years when Daddio and I've discussed where we might go, this church would come up. Then a few weeks (months maybe even) our diocese newspaper had an article about the Bishop saying mass at that particular parish in honor of their anniversary... again Daddio and I made a mental note!

Two weeks ago at dinner, I brought up my concerns to Daddio about our son... and we decided that it was time to take the next step in the journey. We were out of town the following weekend, but agreed that within the next few weeks we should make good on the conversation and attend this church.

Sunday morning, when I'm in an allergy fog, Daddio tells me that we needed to get moving in order to attend the 10am Mass at Our Mother of Mercy... WHAT? I hadn't had time to prepare, psych myself up, freak out, panic, calm down... all the things I need to go through before I do ANYTHING NEW! In all honesty, the element of surprise generally is better for me than anything else because of the aforementioned litany!

It was a fairly quiet car ride (20 miles from our home). I was nervous! I realize that might sound silly to some, but I was worried how we might be perceived. Would we be welcomed? Would the stares be too much... I mean we are used to staring, but there is staring, and then there is STARING! How much would Daddio and I stand out? How would the boys react to what we might see and hear? Would the Mass be familiar or uncomfortable? Would the priest be approachable?

As we drove into the parking lot, one of the boys immediately noticed the Mary and Jesus statue that were black. "They look like us, and not you, " I believe was the statement (or there about). There was definitely a twinkle in their eyes as we approached the front doors. A few people were chatting out in front, and eagerly offered a handshake and a welcome. Once inside several people introduced themselves and an overwhelming since of love and familial connection enveloped us. Alright... things were going well so far! We had about 5 minutes till Mass was to start, so the five of us sat down and took in the cute little church. Our parish is huge... no HUGE!!!! This was tiny in comparison, but it was really nice. Recently renovated, it had old charm... but new pews and the most comfortable kneelers (and having a really painful knee, it was much appreciated).

What we didn't know about this particular Mass was that it was, for lack of a better term, the Gospel Mass... and that it would last 2 1/2 hours... I would have worn much more sensible shoes had I known that!!!! It was a LOT to take in for the first time. I should note here that both Daddio and I spent most of our childhood attending a rather charismatic Catholic Church, but OMM was much more... and the boys had never been to a Mass that resembled anything like this... many times I looked down at them and there was a since of overload/overwhelmed staring back at me from their eyes. Well, all but Snooker... he was in his element apparently! At one point during the homily the priest walked over and point blank asked him "who are our enemies", his reply "friends who become our enemy"... which turns out to be the TRUTH... check Sirach 6: 5-10... that was exactly what the priest was looking for (by the way, I've always known that Snooker was special... I just didn't know he could quote scripture so well!). And while our sweet Snooker can't clap on beat to save his life, that certainly didn't stop him from trying with every song that was played (and there were many).

After Mass, we headed out for lunch... and had time to digest the morning. So here are some conclusions we made and are continuing to glean from this experience:

It was a positive experience. Everyone was more than welcoming. Bobcat even said that is was almost like they already knew us... referring to the boys in particular as "little brother". With it begin such a small parish, there is a real opportunity to actually get to know people. Although the charismatic nature is not my all time favorite, I never felt out of place not having my hands held high or not knowing the words to all of the songs. While Daddio and I are white, that seemed to be the only real difference...

And the overwhelming conclusion... we want to be a part of this parish. We think it will be a great opportunity for our boys especially... but there is so much there for Daddio and me, too! Application wise, we will probably split our time between our home parish and OMM, but will look for opportunities be involved that go beyond Sunday Mass.

As parents, we will do whatever we need to for our children. We felt the Lord calling us out, calling for us to stretch ourselves for their sake... I knew He would catch us, should we fall... thankfully all we needed was a steady hand as we stepped out.

A link or two:

Why I Love My Ugly Little Liturgy

In A Word

Chipotle Chicken

2011-01-26T11:51:00.006-06:00

We love Chipotle! Who doesn't right... we can feed our family rather cheaply there (we share a few bowls), and we can be totally GF and safe for Bobcat with no problems!

We also like to make 'burrito' bowls here at the house, but I've never been able to get close to the flavor the restaurant serves... so that became my mission... find a recipe marinade that sounded (and smelled) like the real thing so to speak. Here's what I tried this time:

1/4 cup canned chipotle chiles in adobo*
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 3 1/ 2-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces

Puree a ll ingredients, then let marinade. Finish off by grilling.

So far it smells great! So we are off to a good start. I will let you know how it taste after this evenings chicken chipotle burrito bowls!

Old folks and racism...

2011-01-18T09:39:00.002-06:00

Last week we were at a dinner for an organization we are a part of, and our table was made up of a 60+ aged group... and Daddio and me (there were 7 people in total at our table). It's been my experience with grandparents that they will say what ever is on their mind without a whole lot of regard for the audience before them. Daddio and I've teased that due to their age they've earned the right to speak their mind!

I think I should preface this next section by saying I was/am perfectly aware that those at our table are from a different generation, a different time... a time of ignorance for lack of a better word, and certain phrases die hard... and certain parts of history aren't seen from an objective standpoint because it is part of their own past... jaded by their own personal or familial thoughts.

Alright fine print out of the way...

So there we sat trying to enjoy with somewhat rubbery food that was being served... sadly I don't think the restaurant was quite prepared to handle a large group, and I don't think the food was a good indication of their usual quality... anyway, and somehow one of the gentlemen at our table decided to tell us about the beer he was drinking. He related it back to a trip he had taken... and that's when things went downhill very quickly! What poured forth was a string of racial slurs against those of Hispanic descent... did I mention we were in a Mexican restaurant with several Hispanic servers... I wanted to crawl under the table... there was no way some of those on the wait staff didn't over hear what he was saying!

Several occasions Daddio and my eyes locked in complete shock as to what he was saying... I wish I could say it ended there... oh how I wish it would have ended there...

This same gentleman (using the term quite loosely now) went on to talk about slavery, the master/slave relationship (including that slaves where not mistreated, but instead were respected and treated like a member of the family), and the notion that the slaves were better off sold rather than being left alone in their native lands. I will not go further with his words because they are beyond what I am comfortable sharing!

The only real tangible way to describe his description of history is to say that his notion of that time was like those who don't believe in the holocaust (or that it was as extreme as it was).

SHOCK... that was the best way to describe our faces as we listened to him... and SILENCE. I think Daddio at one point said that "for the vast majority, what you're describing wasn't the case", but no one was listening to us... they were riveted with his account.

I've heard racial slurs before, I've been offended before, but this seemed deeper... this was my mother's heart that was offended and insulted for the birth relatives of my children... for MY children. In all honesty my fight/flight instinct took hold and I had to escape to the restroom for a breather while I recovered control over my tongue (thank you Mother Mary!!).

I related this story to a friend, and she asked if the man knew my children and maybe he wouldn't have said anything had he known that we were a family of color. I can't say he KNOWS them, but he's seen them many many times, at the very least could identify that they are not white... but in all honesty I really don't think the man realized how terribly racist and dehumanizing he was being. There is also one other explanation for people making racial comments with me there... they know our boys... those who know them don't SEE their race... they just see the boys (as it should be with all people), but will make a racial slur thinking that my boys wouldn't be included... it's strange but even my own family members have done this without even realizing how hurtful it is to me and one day to the boys (when they realize what is being said)!

What's the answer? On the way home from that event we talked about our own need to become more versed in historical accuracy so that when we respond we can make it far more real by using actual accounts... having names and dates, I personally think, makes things more real... and not an over arching generalization...

Good grief.......................

Toys for Tots 5K (December 11)

2011-01-18T09:31:00.002-06:00

(sorry, a saved post I never published!)

We did another race this morning... and had a great time. This time it was the Toys for Tots 5K... and it was a little more populated than our last event (and a lot more HILLY!!!!).

Drumroll please, bblblblblblblblblblblblblbllblbllblblblblblbl

Boys ages: 1-8
1st Place: Snooker - 29.59 (74th place overall)

Boys ages 9-10
1st Place: Bubba - 31.00.8 (90 overall) (that included a really nasty fall with lots of blood, and torn glove... but he soldiered on :-)
2nd Place: Bobcat - 31.02.3 (91 overall)

We are so happy for the boys! They made us proud, and swept the podium!!

As for Daddio and me...
Mens 30-34 (12 in age group)
8th Place: Daddio - 30.59.6 (89 overall) (Personal best, and managed to beat two of the three boys... that was one of his goals :-)

Womens 30-34 (15 in age group)
10th Place: Me - 39.39.9 (157th overall) (my personal best time and best overall pace, and I managed to attain my two goals once again... under 40 minutes, and not dead last... not only was I not dead last, I wasn't even the slowest in my age group... YEAH!)

The funny thing is Snooker could have gone a lot faster. He was up ahead of the boys, but kept turning around to keep tabs on them and make sure he was doing the right thing... he never broke out in his faster pace that we've seen from him when we run our normal weekly workout. That kid is a gazelle!

We're still alive ;-)

2011-01-18T09:13:00.004-06:00

I know, I know... I've been away for a long time... a month really... I had my reasons! One, I've been really trying to decide whether or not to keep this up and running, or to let it die! I think I've decided, for now, to keep it up... but I don't really know how regular the posts will be. The fact is our life is busy and finding time to put a few sentences together... well, if that is a few minutes I can kick my feet up and watch a little news before my sweetie gets home in the evening (or finish dinner if that is still needing attention)... well that's going to win out. The problem with trying to write during school is the constant interruptions... I know, rude of the children, can't they see I'm busy :-)... and let's face it, the older we get the less we keep our thoughts on track when we've been interrupted for the up-tnth time about dropping the signal -e before adding -ly! Let me hear a 'what what' from all my homeschoolin' mommas!! Halla... Yes, I just wrote that... see what I mean ;)

Tin for TEN

2010-12-16T12:10:00.005-06:00

(that's what all the websites claim is the traditional anniversary gift this year...)

This is what it looked like when it started 14 years ago:

Then 10 years ago today, it started in a whole new way...
This is what it looks like now...
Now that we've hit 10 years I think we finally have some street cred. don't ya think? I mean, who does anything for 10 years these days... let alone marriage.

10 years of marriage... just saying it sounds kind of weird. So in 10 years what's happened? As Daddio so aptly put it on my FB page...

five home addresses
three little boys
four new jobs
thousands of kisses
millions of laughs

(you get the picture)
I would add... trial by fire, flyin by the seat of our pants, you and me against the world... yeah, I think that covers it :)

Now some may be interested in what we did to celebrate... my sweet, awesome, amazing husband took me to the one place I've wanted to go for YEARS!!!! SIMPLY FONDUE!!!! I'm sure there were a million other places he thought he would like better, and wouldn't have to practically take out a second mortgage on the house to cover the bill... but he made reservations for an out of the way booth just for the two of us! It was amazing... four courses (of maybe the best food EVER), a new and different glass of wine with each, and 3 hours of quiet conversation... well, it was AMAZING!

How time flies...

2010-12-01T09:27:00.005-06:00

It's funny how we see our kids compared to how others see them... isn't it. This first picture was taken in August of 2004, just a few weeks after they came home. Here's what I saw (see) three cute little boys with floofy hair! At the time everyone else saw babies...
Right after this picture was taken, they got their first hair cuts under our parentage! Pretty much from that point on they've had short hair... very short hair. If it got long enough to brush then it was time to get another hair cut. Short boy hair is easy, and we thought/think it fit them nicely!

Well times are changing, and so we decided a while back to let it grow out a little bit... they've asked from time to time to have it a little longer so we figured, what the hay, lets try it out for a while then whack it off before Christmas pictures. Now all three have VERY different hair. Bobcat has course tight curls, Bubba has fluffy soft curls, and Snooker has straight fine hair that doesn't curl until it gets really long (mostly it just sticks out all directions). When everyone showed up for Bobcat's birthday they were so excited to see the boys hair (honestly it didn't dawn on my that anybody would make such a fuss over it)... and of course the boys picked up on the attention and I'm sure there would be an uprising at this point if we tried to take it down a level! I did try to find a better shot of them with longer hair, but this is the best I could do...

One of the comments we are getting about them is how it makes them look older... to me, when I see the floofy little heads running around here... I see are those cute little boys running round from 6 years ago... funny how things look...

Turkey Trot!

2010-11-26T09:40:00.004-06:00

Here's our Thanksgiving morning.

We've been training for a while to run a 5K (the boys and I since June)... and we've been very close to actually doing a race for a couple months but for one reason or another we had to opt out. Thankfully yesterday that wasn't the case. We registered at the beginning of the week knowing full well there was a terrible cold front scheduled to move in that morning... but we were determined to say the least!

We were up at 5am (well, Daddio and I were) watching the news and drinking a cup of coffee, and were so relieved when the weather lady said that the front was stalled and wouldn't be here till around 9:00am... PERFECT our race started at 8:00am, we would be done before it came in, and it was currently 70 degrees, so even if it dropped a few before 9:00 it would still be really nice. The boys were up at 6:00 for their breakfast and coffee milk (yeah, we are nice on special days :-), and 6:45 we were ready to get in the car to head downtown. I went out to take care of a few thing before we left... and guess what... the front was already blowing in. OH YEAH!

Upon parking the car at the Trinity River, our car thermometer read 47 degrees... oh and did I mention the slight drizzle... NICE!! We were a little early so Andy ran down to the registration table to get us checked in while we waited in the car. Oh I should also mention that while the boys were in long running pants, Daddio and I opted for shorts (well I was wearing my running skirt... which I wish I could live in because it is so comfy with it's built in shorties)... and a light running jacket! Andy makes it back with our numbers, we pin them all on and we are starting to get hyped up about the race... car thermometer is now at 43 degrees. Oh and I mention the wind, yes the wind had picked up to a pretty fierce strength coupled with the drizzle was making for NICE conditions!!

Alright, we are dangerously close to race time... and I need to find the ladies room... which turns out to be a port-a-potty with no toilet paper... NOT NICE. Jog back up hill to the start line and get ready! The boys were excited, Daddio was excited, I was a little nervous. I hadn't had the best few weeks of training, and was really not sure I could run the whole thing which was my overall goal... that and running it in under 40 minutes! Thankfully Daddio had picked a smaller race for the metroplex... they have several Turkey Trots around town, and this one probably had about 200 runners on the start line that had the choice of a 5K or the 8mi, and based on the chatter it was about half/half for the group.

START! And we're off. The boys decided they were going to stay with Daddio's pace (about a 10-11 minute mile), but if they got tired they could fall back and finish out with me. With the smaller crowd and well marked course we felt like they could manage a few minutes until I caught up with them... thankfully that was not needed they are MACHINES! By the time I hit the 1 mile marker I could no longer see them, which was fine... I don't mind running alone, but I was having to get used to not having my music while I run. Andy told me I couldn't run with my earphones in because it was bad form in a race... thankfully the the river was pretty with the ducks and what not.

Since I was not running with the rest of my family, because they are awesomely fast, I can't really give you any insight into how they did... but as for me, I fell into a nice pace, and willed myself to NOT WALK. It was cold, and getting colder, the wind was cold and fairly biting, and then there was the drizzle. Thankfully it came in spurts so that you weren't completely saturated, but I definitely had a cold sheen on my exposed legs. What I can tell you about men happened at the turn around... apparently Bubba asked if he could run faster at some point, and Daddio gave him the go ahead thinking he would wear out and fall back in step with them... but Daddio hasn't run too much with Bubba and didn't realize the kid is an energizer bunny... so Bubba ran ahead, missed the turn around for the 5K portion and continued on the 8 mile trail. Poor Daddio and several other runners tried yelling to get his attention but he was in the ZONE! By the time Daddio spirited up and caught him and got turned around and back on track we think they ran an extra 1/4 mile! Bobcat and Snooker made the turn and made a bee line for the finish line (the turn around was naturally at the 1.5 mile portion). Daddio figured that they would stop or walk and he would catch up to them. NOT THE CASE!

Bobcat and Snooker finished the race in under 33 minutes. We aren't sure of the official time yet, it hasn't been posted but they received 2nd and 3rd place in their age bracket (and received the cutest turkey trophies you've ever seen)! When I made it to the turn around, that was when Daddio and Bubba made it back to where they got off course... and blew past me! Did I mention Bubba is MACHINE! They crossed the finish line in just under 35 minutes... impressive with the detour... but poor Bubba did not win a trophy. Trust me, for this ultra competitive kid it was heart breaking. He cried the whole way home, through the shower, and for another hour while he just laid in bed while the rest of us got ready for Thanksgiving!

As for me, I finished in 39:09 minutes... and I ran the entire way! While I certainly wasn't fast, with an average pace of a 13 minute mile, I accomplished my two goals... I ran the whole way and was under 40 minutes. No trophy for Daddio or me... but the woman I came in right behind received one, and I'm pretty sure I was in her age bracket... so I feel pretty good about my results!

So we get back to the car... and the temp is 35!

We are all ready to do another one, especially Bubba... poor kid wants to win a trophy :-).

And that was our exciting Thanksgiving morning :).

Have a lovely weekend,

Near and dear!

2010-11-10T14:58:00.004-06:00

What's near and dear? FOOD! I like food, and as I've aged... I appreciate food more and more. I enjoy natural flavors, and am learning how to cook in a whole new way compared to the way I grew up. Now, I love the food I ate growing up, but it was sort of a simple set of meals (tasty to me, weird apparently to others, but that is another post).

While I won't claim to being a great cook, there are a few things I feel like I do well... and my confidence is growing in the kitchen... which is weird to say because I've always loved being in the kitchen and cooking, just I've always had a fear of the unknown recipe or food/spice...

Thankfully my dear husband, and his bravery with food (and nearly stainless steel stomach) pushed me to step out on the ledge once we got married. Then came kids, bravery 0 again and easy won out for a good while... falling back on my old tried and trues from growing up. Last but not least, the newest member of our little family, Celiac disease, entered the picture a few years ago and back out on the ledge I was tossed.

Truth is, it was time for a shake up... and weirdly enough (because I refuse to admit it) I was ready for a change! Out went wheat, most cans, lots of frozen things, all boxes, and little packets... in came lovely colors, fresher things, and higher grocery bills... and a need to change my thinking on how food will be cooked in my kitchen!

No, every week I'm not adventurous... I have come up with new tried and trues to make it through the days I'm uninspired (hopefully I'm not the only one who has a hard time cooking when what I'm cooking doesn't seem to be what I want... I know, add it to my list of things to offer up). Sometimes, though, I will have a rough plan for a meal and have lots of fresh things but it doesn't come together until that day... enter TODAY!

A meal we all like around here that can have a plethora of combinations is taco bowl night. The choices range from the different veggies to throw in, rice, tortilla chips... to meat, ground beef, steak of some random cut, or chicken. Tonight it will be chicken... but how to season, that is always a predicament for me. Growing up we used one thing... Tony's... and while it is GF, my family likes other flavors... oh and Tony's is really not, um, well spanish in flavor! Oh and marinading it an art form that I really am only just dipping my toes into! Do you remember that ledge? Well I'm there... we've had a crappy week... no a crappy month... well more like a crappy 6+ weeks... and I decided to take it out on my veggies...

I made up my very own marinade. No, not rocket science or a cure for cancer... but hey it smells really good :-).
I know, it doesn't look tasty now... but I assure you, I dipped a pinky in to see how it came out... I didn't work it out on paper or anything, just kind of winged it as I went!

So what's in it.... hmmmm, let's see:
1 tbs chili powder
pinch of cumin
dash of salt (big chunky salt is the way to go people)
a few twists of the pepper grinder (did I mention that this was real scientific)
1/2 orange bell pepper (it's what I had)
1/2 med white onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 small lime juiced
1/2 small lemon juiced
1/2 cup chicken broth (that was after I noticed it was more of a paste instead of a marinade)

Chop in processor (also something that doesn't regularly see the light of day in my kitchen), dump in freezer bag along with b/s chicken... and there you have it... what seems to be a tasty way to get the chicken seasoned for taco bowls!

How to cook it? Ahhh, that's where Daddio comes in, if I smile real nice when he gets home... he will light the grill and throw them on! Otherwise I would just use my little grill pan on the stove. Alright friends, I will let you how it turns out! Have a lovely day!

I forget

2010-10-24T09:31:00.003-05:00

Yesterday we had the privilege of attending an Adoption/Foster Care conference (our third year to attend this great ministry). I truly love going to this once a year... it is the shot in the arm you need each year to remind yourself of the family that God has called you into... not only do you get the reminder, but you learn about new techniques to help in the parenting process, new books exploring the life of an adoptive family/adoptee/race-trans racial adoption... many wonderful things to help you in this journey!

You might be asking yourself why do I need a reminder... "I mean look at your family photos all over your home, can't you see that you are clearly an adoptive family?!" No I don't forget how our family came together, what I do forget is where my children came from... I stop seeing them as children who've come from a hard place, I see them as my children... I see them as normal, our normal (which is not really normal for most people). This conference reminds me that my children didn't come from a loving womb, or where their first years were stable, safe, or secure... Instead I spend my days correcting behaviors, and lose sight of the child(ren).

I forget that I know why my children will act out in certain ways and need a certain response from us... and get angry with our extended family when we are criticized for how we do things... they don't understand... I forget that I should spend time educating them so that they can better support Daddio and me in our efforts and the boys for that matter.

I forget that 6 years really doesn't mean anything to healing the wounds of their past.

I forget to honor their birth parents for choosing life... even though I know about what they did that caused harm to my boys, at least they didn't abort my children! Praise GOD!

Because they rarely bring it up, I forget to ask them how they feel about their adoption, or their race, their birth parents/family... I forget that they may not have the words to ask, I forget that their silence may not be because they aren't interested but maybe because they don't know how or where to go with their thoughts.

I forget to thank God for our infertility... because I don't know if my boys would be my boys had we been able to conceive. And that is pretty painful to admit because for so long I carried MY infertility as such a burden, a punishment, even a curse... clearly our Heavenly Father knows better than I ever could.

So thank you Monroe Family for your adoption story, thank you God for calling them to start up the Tapestry Ministry, and for all the hard work in getting the conference up and running each year!

If you want to know more about the conference please check out these wonderful websites for resources, videoed sessions, and ministry/conference details:

www.empoweredtoconnect.org

www.tapestryconference.com/resources

Ummm, sorry

2010-10-23T06:47:00.004-05:00

So it's been a while since I've blogged... sorry! We've been busy! Pretty much since we returned home from Florida, I had to get us back in the groove because I knew we only had two full weeks and then a half week before we would be back on the road again for another mini trip! It's camping weather... YEAH! Last week we packed up the beast and headed north... well north east I guess really... to Beavers Bend in Oklahoma! This is probably our favorite park to camp in, especially in the fall. Hiking through the mountains with the leaves all changing, it really is quite something. So here are a few pics from our trip... once I get them put into our online album I'll put a link... we got all artsy with the nature, and some are super cool!

First up, it is really nice to have a junior camera man in our family. Bobcat has gotten really good using our big SLR! We now actually have pictures of just the two of us at places... and as a friend said... proof that we were there too!
See what I mean about the trees... aren't they just lovely. And if you like finding things... you might catch a sighting of the boys way up ahead. We love our walkie talkies... the boys are familiar with the trails and can go quite a ways from us on the trail exploring, and we can hang back taking artsy pictures that annoy them when they have to wait for us :-).And this blog post wouldn't be complete without a pic of my three little bumps on a log!

Now I must go get ready for an adoption conference... oh I'm so excited! Great speakers and being surrounded by families like us is just a great way to spend a day!

RunKeeper

2010-10-05T18:51:00.004-05:00

I'll admit one reason I could hardly wait to get my iPhone was to use one of those cool running apps that tracked everything you did! Well, I bought my phone two weeks ago... a few days before we left for Florida so I wasn't really able to look for and install and app or even use it for that matter.

Until today!!!! Yippeee, I read reviews (for several days, on several websites) and finally decided on one that was free (you can pay for the upgrade, but why for now, right?)... RunKeeper.com I used it today and am quite pleased with it. The running time is large and easy to read, and it was really cool to actually find out the distance of the park loop that we run most sessions (we guessed it was about a .5 mile... turns out it is .6).

I just wish my running muscle memory was as cool as the app... turns out that taking off two weeks for vacation, well um, made me forget how to run... well actually my lungs forgot how to work... my legs are fine.

Anyway... I will keep you posted on how I like this program. If you are using any with your smart phone, and like them... please share!

To Florida and back again.

2010-10-04T09:03:00.005-05:00

Here we go... the boys first plane trip!

St. Augustine... the old city... this first shot is inside the visitors center.
Oldest Wooden School House!
St. Photios National Greek Orthodox Shrine... it was breathtaking!
Basilica Cathedral
Check out that sundial... at it was right!
Castillo de San Marcos... they had a canon firing demonstration!

Mission of Nombre De Dios... the actual spot of the first Mass... 55 years before the pilgrims arrived.
St. Augustin Lighthouse... 219 steps up! At the top you are at an astonishing 165 feet with a great view of the city and the ocean!

It really is a beautiful lighthouse... and still operational. If we weren't so hungry it would have been nice to stay and see it lit up!
Cocoa Beach! We made it to the Atlantic Ocean!!! This was the first time the boys and I have dipped our toes in this ocean! Naturally we had to get a shot of the awesome lifeguard stand... we don't have those at Port A!

Hey, here we go!!! A ride on the Monorail before the park opens... MK here we come!
When we first got into the park we headed straight up to the steam train to take a tour of the park. We were the first ones on, and had to head to the very back... the caboose conductor invited Bubba to be the Guest Conductor... he got to wear the hat (the whole ride) and say on the intercom "ALL ABOARD"!

My favorite float from the night parade at MK.

Just couldn't resist

2010-09-16T13:23:00.003-05:00

Seriously, there are some days when I'm sure my kids have been given funny pills or something. They crack me up.

I was asking Bubba if there was something in particular he's had his eye on that he would like us to consider as a birthday gift (that was non-Lego's related). "A box of tops." It took me a few minutes to figure out where he was going with that... then he reminded me that at the museum he likes the station with all the tops you spin. He thinks it's loads of fun when we stand there and get all of them spinning at once. I do agree that it is a lot of fun, and could definitely keep us entertained for long periods of time (but not really something I think I can find all in one box)! Oh, and when we were at the party store a few weeks ago for Snooker's birthday he saw all the Halloween stuff... one in particular was "SUPER COOL", a kid's police uniform w/ accessories.

Bobcat decided to get in on the conversation and offered up (because he's Mr. Idea Man) that if Bubba got the uniform then Bubba could be the police man (duh!), and Snooker could be the bad guy and he (Bobcat) could help Bubba catch and arrest Snooker. This did not sit well with Snooker, to say the least! It definitely reminded me of when they were little... running around yelling there's a monster chasing us... Bubba and Bobcat in the lead... and several steps behind them was Snooker yelling in his super high pitched voice "there's a monster gonna get me"... what poor little Snooker just couldn't understand - HE WAS THE MONSTER, and didn't even know it! I know ADORABLE!!!

Somehow that morphed into Bobcat asking me if he really was growing a mustache. No seriously, this is all ONE conversation... and pretty typical in my day... I laughed and said no, I was just teasing the other day when I said that (keep in mind he is rubbing his upper lip to see if he can feel the beginning stages of a mustache). He then informed the room he just can't wait to grow a mustache, and even a beard. Bubba is havin' none of it. His take, "I'm not going to grow a mustache or a beard, I look way better with out them!"

If anyone ever recorded my day and showed it on air... the audience would think that someone had done a horrible job editing, splicing all sorts of weird things together... but in all honesty they ran the tape unedited! That's my life!

At least he's honest?

2010-09-16T09:09:00.003-05:00

Snooker brings his work up for me to check... and after being blown away by his breath I naturally have to ask if he did in fact brush his teeth this morning after breakfast.

His response (I wish I were kidding): Yes, but I didn't do a very good job!

True... please go try again!

Priceless...

2010-09-15T14:01:00.004-05:00

I (generally) love the way Bubba answers questions... especially when it comes to school things.

Take for instance today... he had a reading comp assignment about Pope Pius XII. It went something like this:

Bubba, why did Eugene go to law school? Because he wanted to be a priest!

Um, let's read that question again!

Moving on in the assignment...

Bubba, where does the Holy Father live? Heaven!

Right... um, I'm pretty sure they asked HOLY FATHER and not God the Father!

It's all about the car...

2010-09-12T21:03:00.002-05:00

On the way home this evening I had an interesting conversation with Bobcat... this kid cracks me up!

Mommy, did you know that you don't have to be a grown man to buy a car?!

Oh, okay, when can you buy a car?

When you're like 16, I'm going to buy a car when I'm 16!

Alright... I like a man with a plan, how are going to buy a car? You need money, how are going to make money in order to buy a car?

Hmmm, well, I was thinking that maybe I could clean a few houses for people who really needed help with that sort of thing. Maybe I could fix things, like house things... you know like fix people's roofs and stuff, maybe fences.

Alright. Those sound like things a 16 year old might be able to do.

Or maybe I could fix cars, like tires and stuff... when somebodies tires pop, I can change it. Or like how Daddy changes his oil, I could do that for someone who can do it by themselves. Or a DOCTOR. Or maybe I could cut down a few trees and mow a yard or two.

Whoa ... back up, what did you say before the lawn and trees? I didn't catch that one (in all honesty I was thinking he might have said dog groomer).

Oh, I said DOCTOR.

Um, okay, I'm not sure you can be a doctor with in the next few years in time to make enough money for a car... but keep going...

Let's see, oh I could protect people from meat eaters (guess what we are studying in science :-), or even reptiles. Oh and I could help people who can buy stuff, they could make me a list and I could get it for them and put it away at their house.

Okay, all fine choices. So what kind of car do you think you will get with all this money you will be making?

A Ferrari.

Ha... (yes, I let it escape from my lips before I had a chance to squash the temptation).

Maybe I will get a Lambo second.

Alrighty kiddo...

And off to the next subject he jumped!

Deals! Deals!! Deals!!!

2010-09-06T20:23:00.003-05:00

I like saving money... I like sales... I like discounts... I like it, a lot! Today was probably one of our best deal days in a while!!! Woohoo!

Daddio has been jonesing for a new dining room light. When we built the house we didn't upgrade the lighting package. We owned a few ceiling fans we really like (and had moved from apartment to apartment), and we really weren't impressed with the selections of our builder... so we decided that we would just spend our money on other things and shop around for lights we liked later on. That meant that in our dining room (eat in kitchen) we had a brass light fixture (YUCK, especially when you consider we did upgrade all the knobs and what not to brushed nickle and/or silver). Not long after we moved in we went all Trading Spaces on it by spray painting it black and putting nice little shades on the little lights. It wasn't perfect but it was way better than brass!

Since then, every time we go into a store that has lighting... he looks, we look, and then we walk out... they are either way too much $$$ or we just can't find one that is just perfect. Well, my parents got him a gift card for a home improvement store (nice birthday gift, just the kind we like)... so today (his ankle finally felt good enough to walk on) we headed out for a little field trip. And lo and behold there were actually a few lights we liked that were within our budget... one in particular was on super sale (from $130 down to $37). It seemed just right. Not too much (style wise)... rustic but not overtly... just right... until we looked around for a box with one in it. Too good to be true, at that price everyone apparently snatched them up... oh poor Daddio... ahhh look here comes people in aprons who want to help us... WHAT? ... we can purchase the display... WHAT? make you an offer... ALRIGHTY... $25!! Woohoo, SOLD!!! Since we still had plenty of money left over on the card we decided to look at the outdoor lights. This was also something that we replaced not long after we moved in (a little over 7 1/2 years ago)... but started showing their age and need to be replaced. Now we weren't so lucky on the price... but they are lovely, and Daddio found an adapter thingy that fits in the socket, then you screw the light bulb in and then flip the indoor switch... and they know to just come on at night (no more remembering to turn them off or on, especially nice when we are traveling!).

The other deal of the day... I needed a few new shirts, had a cash back card from Kohl's that was going to expire = we have a winner! I picked up 4 shirts that were on sale and at the register handed of a whopping $2.60... that's right people, you have to love clearance and sale items (and smaller sizes, yeah).

It was a good day, Tater!

The wheels on the bus go round and round!

2010-09-06T15:40:00.003-05:00

I'm a survivor, at least that's the song that keeps playing in my head when things get tense... ;-)

Two weeks down... and the start of week three begins tomorrow! In all honesty things are going well, better than I expected actually. All three have taken to the new subjects/book quite well. A break out favorite has been Latin which I'm pleased about... the last thing you want to do is fight with your kids about a foreign language. Naturally we are having a few issues here and there (as usual), but there are so many more things to look forward to in our normal day that is seems be making our previous struggles much more manageable.

The only subject I've yet to get put into the schedule the right way (I have to have order or we will not survive) is the IEW. Hopefully in the next two weeks I will get that all ironed and be in the routine that works more smoothly!

What's the point?

2010-09-06T15:35:00.002-05:00

Aborted babies in jars...

SICK! What's even worse is that people still defend the so called doctors who do this!

All for Snooker

2010-08-27T19:53:00.006-05:00

I can't believe it, my little Snooker is 8 years old (yesterday). I'm sure all moms say this, or feel this way... but when I look at him I still see my little two year old... my baby of the trio. Sigh... he's no baby, though... nope, he's a big (well, big for our guys), tall, lanky boy. I'm not sure he will ever grow out of the baby giraffe movement... that just seems to be the way he handles his body... but my oh my how he's grown!

Since it was his birthday, it was birthday adventure day. Daddio took the day off, and we had the day jam packed with fun. We started off with a family run... which turned into a Daddy and boy run, while Mommy tried not to die at least a lap behind them (thanks to a migraine the day before, and all the meds... ughhh, but I digress). Next up was a yummy bacon and egg breakfast... a Daddio special! Then we were off. Snooker decided he wanted to hit the Lego store where he could browse and pick out his gift (yeah we're cool like that). Then out to lunch... and off to the surprise adventure...

Adventure Landing in Dallas is super cool... and empty during the week when school is in session... SWEET! Thursdays are $10 per person for all you can play mini golf, and laser tag, and then a handful of tokens for the arcades. We started with golf. Now, anything that the kids think would be way fun to do usually turns into a frustration for them. They are convinced that they know what they are doing, so when things aren't working the way they thought... well, little fits occur (bowling was one of these... they hated it during the event, but couldn't stop talking about how great it was later). The golfing experience finally came to a close... I would love to tell you won, but no score was kept... I managed 3 holes in one, Daddio had a few, and so did Bubba... Daddio's memory is probably better than mine so he might remember if the other two managed to get one as well.

Next up, video games. Yeah we went through those 50 tokens QUICK!

Then... LASER TAG! Oh yeah. Okay, yesterday morning I put in about 2.5 miles, the boys did a little more... somewhere in the neighborhood of 3.5 miles. Then we walked the Lego Store at the mall a number of times to find JUST THE RIGHT THING, then walking around the mini golf 18 holes... by the time we got to the laser tag my legs were feelin' a little rubbery (and the little slip on flats I was wearing certainly weren't helping the issue)... but hey it is laser tag (or Star Wars shooting if you ask the boys)... and there was plenty of running, and crouching (which I wouldn't recommend to those who would wear a knee length skirt and attempt to be modest with a black light not doing you any favors... just wear shorts, you will thank me... I learned the hard way).

And if the laser tag wasn't cool enough... oh yes, we as parents got even cooler... GO KARTS (the Jr. karts they could each drive). I know... just send the 'Parents of the Year' award now... no need to wait til January to tabulate the results!

Snooker cracked us up! Well, it was an educational experience all around. From watching them drive go karts, here's what I've learned: Bobcat will be allowed to take Drivers Ed and get a license. He was cautious, and stayed in his lane (although he will not be allowed to have a cell phone, he was constantly yelling over the noise trying to talk to his brothers... no conversatin' while you're tryin' to drive). Bubba will not be allowed behind the wheel of any motorized vehicle. The kid hit EVERYTHING the whole time! And Snooker, sweet sweet Snooker, is a speed demon. He figured out that if hung back a little and got some space in a particular portion of the track, then he could hit the gas and sling shot around the bend. Oh yes... no driving for that one until he can afford his own insurance and pay his own speeding tickets!

We hit another round of laser tag then headed off to pick up the dessert that Snooker has wanted since, who knows when (his brothers got to go with Daddio... so he's only heard of this place)... the Chocolate Factory. Yes, it is as wonderful as it sounds. They have huge apples dipped in all sorts of caramel, chocolate, toffee, cookies... then the truffles (I had a champagne truffle myself that was... AMAZING)... yeah, that took a while for little Mr. Indecisive... but he finally decided on an apple that had caramel, white chocolate, then dipped in crumbled oreo's, and a few gummy worms on top (dirt and worms).

Finally we arrived home... a long day nearly behind us... just one more thing... one more birthday gift from us.

Keva Planks! We first saw these at our local museum. He loved them (I loved them)... and every time we stop into that museum, he always asks if he can build with them... so on our last trip there Daddio slipped away to the gift shop and bought the biggest box of them they had! Needless to say, he was overjoyed when he opened it.

After some building time... we were all off to bed...

And this morning... RUBBER LEGS, lots of building, and one happy boy!

First day photo!

2010-08-23T14:15:00.003-05:00

Looking backwards...

2007 The first year all three where schooling... Snooker was finally in kindergarten!

2006 Bobcat and Bubba (with a Snooker who desperately wanted in on it)

2005 Just the Bobcat!

Bringin our total up to 4!

2010-08-23T12:53:00.002-05:00

Godchildren that is!!!

Day One

2010-08-23T12:50:00.002-05:00

Well, the big day is finally here... our first school day!

Bobcat: 5th grade

Bubba: 4th grade

Snooker: 3rd grade

I honestly can't believe I have a 5th grader... I have a hard time believing that this is our 6th first day of school (for Bobcat and me that is)...

No I don't have a picture yet... I will a little later... and maybe I'll even throw a few old first day shot up here for a walk down memory lane!

Dun dun ta dun... Darth Vader's theme song!

2010-08-17T18:52:00.004-05:00

The long awaited (for Elizabeth) list of what is on the table for this year's homeschooling extravaganza!

We'll start with the easy stuff that we've used for years now:

Seton Handwriting
Math U See
CHC (Grammar) Language for Little Folks
MCP Phonics (3rd Grade)
Seton Phonics (4th, 5th)
Seton Reading Comprehension (3, 4, 5)
Seton History: The Catholic Faith Comes to the New World
Wordly Wise (A, B, C workbooks for 3rd, Level 1 for 4th)
Seton Vocabulary 5 (when ever they actually send it to me... silly back orders messin' everything up)

New stuff:

Apologia Science: Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals of the Sixth Day
IEW: Institute for Excellence in Writing (Student edition A)
Prima Latina
Seton Art 5 (A lovely book on art appreciation covering the mysteries of the Rosary)

For additional materials (mostly used for the memorization exercises):

Lingua Mater: Intermediate
The Harp & Laurel Wreath

This will be the first year that all three boys will be covering all subjects... which is new this year. Last year Snooker didn't have vocabulary or reading comprehension... and then we've added Latin, Art Appreciation, and Writing (form and structure) to the list of subjects. Plus the history and science are much more involved than in years past... with work every day instead of just a once a week subject!

Every day that I sit down to work on polishing up my plans for the semester I'm slightly overwhelmed with the volume. This year really stepped up a notch... not only in their work, but in my involvement with more guided work and more reading for me to do out loud for all three of them (specifically history and science). It is definitely a turning point in our homeschooling journey, one that I'm anxiously looking forward to!

Also this summer started to be a turning point in my own thinking of our homeschooling and its future. Until this summer I really only took the mindset of just the up coming year, not over burdening myself with the future... a mantra of homeschoolers everywhere is take it one year at a time... and there is definitely wisdom in that... but it occurred to me that Bobcat is going into the fifth grade. Oh how close he is to those middle school years... even high school... and so a lot of my thoughts and planning took on a longer view and how the things we would be using this year would serve his intellect in years to come.

Any great epiphanies in regards to those years coming? No, just that they came so suddenly...

We still have many challenges ahead of us (MATH), but all in all I'm very pleased with how my research and the purchases panned out! I enjoyed the conference in July immensely, and it was just the kind of pep talk a homeschooling family needs before they once again begin the new school year.

Now for that all important question that is floating off of every mother's lips these days.... when are you starting (sometimes with anguish behind the eyes :-)? Next week... slowly... by the 30th we will be humming along full speed ahead! For a month that is, then we will get to spend a week in Florida... something to look forward to :-).

Annoyed

2010-08-14T07:24:00.004-05:00

This morning's run was cut short due to all the whining and complaining I was having to listen to. Normally I can block out this sort of behavior on a run, but I reached my limit and knew that it would be better to just go on home instead of getting angrier and angrier... If they were just a little older, I would've just sent them home (especially since our first mile ended at our street) and then gone on my merry way to finish the run...

What should have a 25 minute run (and some where in the neighborhood of 2.5 miles) was a rather just a mile. For that mile, though, I made really good time:

First half mile: 5:30 minutes (slight down hill on the first leg, and then up hill the second leg)

Total mile: 11:19 minutes!

I was pretty worn out after that first mile, so I know my second mile would have been a lot slower... but I'm okay with that.

10 40 over and out...

2010-08-09T09:34:00.003-05:00

That's a funny title... sorry it is the 1040th post on this blog and I couldn't resist!

This morning was a nice change of pace for running.... Daddio had the day off and so we got to run as a family for the first time in well over a month. We headed out about an hour or some later than when the boys and I usually run (which made a little hotter), but that was okay because we got in the car and headed to a nice and shady (super wide) trail a few minutes down the road!

The training schedule called for 10 min run, 3 minute walk, 10 minute run (I will say that I didn't look at my list this morning and was under the impression it was a 10/5/10 routine)... unfortunately I have been suffering a womanly issue for the last week and half... normal women who run probably have no problems with this issue... but for ladies like me who have PCOS or other issues where we only go through this once or twice a year... WELL IT IS A REAL PAIN in a number of different ways. I am pretty disappointed in the overall run today, I only managed 10 min run, 5 min walk, and 5 min run before I felt like I was going to hurl! Daddio was quite patient and reminded me that most people probably wouldn't have even gotten out of bed when dealing with what I've been dealing with. That did make me feel somewhat better, but still frustrated in not finishing the recommended routine for the day.

I did get an 'atta girl' for good form, good pace, and regulated breathing... I've been wondering where I'm at in relation to his speed (since our first race we wanted to try to stay together as a family... I didn't want to drag him down, and I didn't know if I was getting any where near a 10 minute mile, not there yet but getting closer).

Also based on what he saw of the boys, he feels they are ready for a 5K... so we are really just waiting on me to finish the program. I'm okay with that. I feel good knowing that I'm not pushing them, and that they will be able so survive this distance in this heat. As for me... I CAN'T WAIT TILL OCTOBER. I really could use it being about 10 degrees cooler when we run. It would make my current situation so much easier to deal with... although knowing my body I won't have this problem for another 6-12 months.

I don't know about your children... but my boys love picking things up... even on a run. They will stop mid-stride if they see something, then sprint back to catch up. This morning it was tree nuts of some sort. Once we were back in the car and headed home the comparisons started of who had what and how many... and that's when Snooker got upset because he didn't bring any into the car... someone shared so all was right with the world again. Then this... from Bubba and I quote "I wish I had a pickle jar, without any pickles (pause), and no pickle juice to put these nuts into." That kid cracks me up... he knows exactly how he wants it to look in his head... the exact kind of jar... he is so much like me it just makes me laugh every time he describes a thing he wants/needs!

That's it for me... Happy Monday... catch ya on the flip side :-)

What what...

2010-08-05T12:01:00.004-05:00

Today I hit my biggest (and most impressive) goal with the whole running thing! Today I ran an entire 20 minutes without stopping. You might be saying to yourself (you cynic) that hey, you've been interval training so why is that such a big thing... well I'll tell you... my previous longest run (which happened to be Monday) was 8 minutes. That's right I jumped from 8 minutes to 20!!! CRAZY, right!?!

In theory (the C25K theory) was that 20 min = 2 miles. Um, yeah, pretty sure I didn't run two miles. Probably a mile and half (or a little more). I was running pretty slow... could be considered a 'jolk' (yes I made it up, it's my word and I'll use it if I want)! BUT I WAS NOT WALKING! So yeah for me.

Now about the boys... good grief, I was certain that this would be the thing... the distance... the time... that would have them winded, tired, even complaining... NOPE, still galloping and prancing like ponies... even asthma boy (Bubba) wasn't even slightly winded.

As for me around minute 11 I was starting to get tired, but I reasoned with myself that I would keep on pushing, get around that next corner, get to that big tree... DON'T look at the watch... and then I broke (sort of) I just had to look at my watch, I felt like I was fading... so I made a deal with myself, if it was under 15 minutes I would push through to the 15 minute mark and then walk the rest of the way home. If it was past the 15 minute mark I was going ALL THE WAY. The time dear friends... 16 1/2 minutes... onward Christian soldiers it was!

I re-focused my breathing (code for stopped panting like a dog), massaged my back a little, and started paying attention to the music I was listening to (Michael Buble... nice jazzy beat). The last few minutes went by pretty quickly and then we walked home. After about 3 minutes of walking my heart rate settled right down, and I could have run another 5+ minutes... but that wasn't on the schedule for today so we just walked it on home (plus Bobcat was limping and crying the whole time... had to sit on a bench at the park... so running was really out of the picture with him in-tow at that point anyway).

So what's left... well today was the completion of week 5 for me. The next round is another set of intervals for the first two workouts... and Wednesday next week will be a 25 minute solid run. And that will conclude week 6. Week 7 has all three days' runs set at 25 minutes no stopping, and then week 8 will be 3 workouts of 28 minutes solid! Week 9, the last week is 30 minutes and the intention that you will have gotten a little faster and are running somewhere in the neighborhood of a 10 minute mile! Here's hopin!

In his hay day...

2010-08-04T15:39:00.004-05:00

As I was going through my email this morning I saw a message from my grandmother's account... when I opened it up I was so excited to see that it was actually from my grandfather... who never sends emails!

He was writing to make sure I wasn't pushing it too hard with the running, and that I wasn't pushing the boys too hard. He had seen a weather announcement for our area with 106/107 degree days... he was concerned. In it he also gave some pointers... in his hay day he was quite an athlete. Up until the last decade or so he was an avid runner/biker/tennis dude/gym buff. Like all things though, age has taken it's toll and with knee replacements and back surgeries to relieve pain he spends his time mostly at the gym to do what he can and use their sauna/spas.

Some of my earliest memories of my grandparents are of them and their outdoor and active lifestyle. They were always down at the Racket Club playing tennis with the seniors club, or swimming what seemed to be (to a tiny tot) a million laps in the pool. I knew my grandfather was a runner, but I didn't really remember the details of what he did.

Anyway, at the bottom of my grandfather's email he added some of his timed mileage that he had handy... mind you these where when he was in his 50's...

They may not be my best, but they are some I have record of.

1 mile 5:31
2 Mile 11:34

3 miles 18:20

4 miles 26:33

5 miles 35:05

6 Miles 39:45

10 miles 1:11:49

Houston Marathon 3hr 45 minutes in 1980

People... in his 50's he was CRAZY FAST!!!! My goal right now... a 10 minute mile! I have one of the coolest grandfathers ever!

Happy Birthday

2010-08-04T10:28:00.003-05:00

I want to wish my dear husband a very happy 31st birthday!

You never ask for much, you give your all... and there's nothing in the world we wouldn't do for you to show you how much we love you back!

The big desk

2010-07-29T21:05:00.002-05:00

Well, since MommaLlama didn't brag on me yet, I will go ahead and toot my own horn. I got a promotion at work a couple weeks ago. You are now reading the words of a "Senior Underwriter".

Oh yes, it is every bit as impressive as it sounds. Well, not really. It's exactly the same job that I had before. Same assignments, same workload, same goals. But there are some major benefits to this whole Senior thing. The first has to do with what they call my "letter of authority." That means that I can do more without needing a manager to sign off. I can quote larger accounts, and I can give them more aggressive prices, all by myself. They trust me with literally millions of dollars of exposure to loss. Ain't that a scary thought? Of course I'll always be audited and supervised and checked-up on, and I can still get smacked down if I make a mistake. But for most of the ordinary day-to-day transactions, I can do what needs doing without having to make an appointment and explain myself to someone. I haven't had trouble getting those sign-offs for a long time because my managers trusted my judgment and signed nearly everything I proposed. But it takes time to go through that, and frankly it's a little bit annoying and even humbling. And I am not the most humble person you've ever met. So I am now free to oversee my own little corner of the market and do what I want with it. Very cool.

And, referring to the title of the post, one of the very best benefits of all is my new desk. Seniors get bigger desks. Previously, I had what could be described as a quarter of a cubicle. Not much desk space, two miniature file cabinets, a bookshelf in the hall that I had to share, and three other people in my "pod". So now that I am a Senior, I have a "half cube" which includes a big extra counter top behind my chair, like 2.5' x 6', with two extra little chairs for visitors to sit on, and a bookshelf of my own. Not only is it spacious and comfortable, but I only have one neighbor in my "pod", another newly minted Senior, and she is the quietest person you've ever met. And there's nothing across the hall from us but a file room. It is the most wonderfully quiet space in the building.

The best part of all, I admit, is the ego boost. I can't tell you how badly I wanted to achieve this arbitrary milestone by this age. I feel like an actual adult with an actual career.

So, sorry if I'm bragging, I don't want it to go to my head. I just wanted to celebrate and share the joy of the big quiet half-cube with private bookshelf.

Old

2010-07-29T21:04:00.002-05:00

I literally just told a bunch of kids to get off my lawn... I thought it would be another 30 years before that happened.

Can't you just feel the excitement

2010-07-27T14:59:00.004-05:00

I love this time of year... I get all giddy, anxious, thrilled, and definitely impatient... just like a child waiting for their birthday or Christmas gifts... but it isn't my birthday or Christmas... nope it is Curriculum Ordering Extravaganza!

COE starts for me back in January. I start combing my favorite websites and catalogs for new things that they are printing and will have ready for the coming school year. I watch my mailbox like a hawk, waiting for the latest catalog to arrive filled with glossy hopes and dreams just a few short months away. I have spreadsheets from all the years of the boys schooling so that I can see what I've ordered, notes on what I like and don't like, and things from previous wish lists just waiting to make their mark on the coming year.

Then July hits... oh the fun that is the homeschooling conference arrives in town. It is sort of like a shot of adrenaline for a homeschooling parent. The day is stacked with amazing speakers, and vendors fill a room with all their goodies... You walk out of that day, renewed, recharged, and ready to tackle the new school year... if you're one of the lucky few with your curriculum money in hand... you walk out with the prize finds of the day, the new year packed away in your trunk ready for you to start planning the minute you walk through the front door. This year I had to wait a few days, but that was okay... I still had a few tough choices to make, and needed the time to iron out the details, consult a few friends and a few more websites!

Then the day came... TODAY came... I had my lists, my money, my keyboard, and off I went... like a kid in a candy store filling my treat bag with all of the things that will fill our coming days.

Now the waiting... the watching... and the listening for that wonderful brown truck to slow down and stop in front of MY HOUSE!!! Oh the joy, and anticipation... ripping open boxes, the smell of new books, bindings being cracked for the first time... oh it is truly a wonderful time of year!

On a roll

2010-07-26T09:46:00.002-05:00

We are half way through week 4 in the C25K program... the program this week calls for:

5 min walk, [3 min run/90 sec walk, 5 min run/2.5 min walk] x2

Saturday we managed a door to door time of 31 minutes, and today we kicked it up a little and shaved off a minute for a total of 30 minutes door to door.

Wednesday will be the last day of this routine, and we will move on to week 5 on Saturday. I'm really looking forward to that series (weirdly) because each of the three workouts are different... up to this point each of the three workouts have been identical... but we are nearing the end so they have kicked it up a notch. Next Wednesday we have to run an entire 20 minutes... while this is a little intimidating, I'm looking forward to not having to stop after each little running section. Every time I come to the end of a walking section I don't want to start running again, it takes too long to get back into the groove of an even stride and what not... I would much rather just push through with no little breaks in between.

Oh, and Bubba's asthma dr. gave us the big thumbs up last week (and a pat on my back) saying that this is the great sort of exercise to help build up his lungs (as long as I keep a close eye on him). He joked that he would be tickled beyond words if I could get him all the way up to a half marathon. I did asked Daddio about this, but it is 13.1 miles which translates to around a 2 hour run (as a respectable time). I can't wrap my head around that yet, so this is NOT on my current running radar!

You've got to be kidding me...

2010-07-20T15:46:00.004-05:00

So yesterday was a REALLY sort of day, today has been a NICE (but not the good nice, in the good grief NICE sort of way) day.

It started off by needing to take the beast in to have a tire repair, nice! Thankfully they were able to get me in relatively quickly and we were only there for about 40 minutes. I did have a great book on St. Kolbe to read, and the boys had books as well so time moved fairly quickly.

Next we headed home for a little while, got some math and laundry done then off to the allergy dr., nice... we always have to spend a forever amount of time waiting around... thankfully they were running pretty quickly and we were only there for an hour, nice.

Considering the FUN morning the boys had to sit through, a quick stop at a fast food joint seemed like the nice thing to do... a little treat from the value menu seemed well deserved. As we wait in line (lunch rush, nice) I see a little bird on the ground near the car. He is jumping along and clearly is having some wing issues. When I first start watching him, he isn't that close to my car, we move up a car length and I'm a little closer to him, another car length and he is next to the car about midway on the drivers side. I had this sinking feeling that my next time to move, if he's hopped under the car... well you know... I point my side mirror down to see if I can see him, but I can't. I don't open my window and look out because I see that the car ahead of me has moved and I need to go... so I do. When I round the corner I look in the mirror... NICE... but not in the good way. I killed a poor, broken bird... REALLY FREAKIN' NICE!

For Real

2010-07-20T15:33:00.005-05:00

Do you ever have a day when one word can really sum up the entirety of the day? Rarely, right... but it can happen. Mine was yesterday, and my word: REALLY!

Oh, on so many occasions I found myself saying that word that it took on a life of it's own. It started out normal, really.

Snooker was in a mood to start off the morning, and instead of just leaving him to get up on his own, his brothers (loving little critters they are) decided to push the bed in (trundle style) with him still in it. Yeah, I know, like stirring up a hornets nest! So I looked at them as Snooker was having the first melt down of the day... "Really guys?"

Then there was the escalation in tempers when Bobcat was next to me during the run, and Bubba thought he should be next to me... and there was a constant back and forth which included my heels getting stepped on several times. "REALLY GUYS?" (slight crooking of the neck)

I simply can't replay every event, but the word went something like this:

rEAlly?, REALLY?, reaLLY?, ReaLlY?, reallY?, REAlly?, really?, ReAlLy?, rEaLlY?... over and over again, and my neck, well apparently at some point I must have decided to make an origami bird with my neck muscles (caw caw). Good grief! I was quite pleased to put that day to BED!

Record keeping

2010-07-19T07:50:00.002-05:00

Week three started on Saturday... the training schedule says you should do two reps of 90sec jog/90sec walk, 3 min jog/3 min walk

Saturday: 5 min walk warm up, 90/90, 3/3, 90/90, 2/2 (just couldn't do another minute), 3/3 (because I just had to do a three minute set... I didn't want to quit)

Monday: 5 min walk warm up, 90/90, 3/3, 90/90, 3/3, walk home (door to door 32 min).

I'm pleased that I got the series done in the right order this morning!

What's that smell?

2010-07-16T16:17:00.004-05:00

Hello dear readers and friends! I feel like we know each other fairly well, and I think I can be frank with you. First put your arms down, you don't smell (well, if you do, I'll do my best to ignore it)... and thankfully at the moment I don't smell (I'm sure of this!).

Anyway, back to my point about smelliness... I've come to the gripping realization that there is no worse personal smell than that of having just run for 30 minutes (or longer if you are that cool, I'm not). Look, everyone gets hot and stinky working in the yard, working around the house... all that sort of thing, but nothing compares to the horrific odor of oneself and one's clothing after a run... good grief. I mean, I freak myself out in the shower realizing that it is in fact ME that smells that bad at that moment!

Why is it so much worse? Well, (if your still reading) I've come to a conclusion... that jarring motion of running/jogging literally shakes the stink right out or your pores. That can be the only logical answer, right?!

So there my friends, mystery solved :-)!

Speaking of shoes...

2010-07-08T14:22:00.002-05:00

Further evidence that Tony Romo is a swell guy. Check out this post about his new line of shoes and clothing, distributed exclusively through Wal-Mart:

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/07/tony-romo-draws-a-crowd.html

As a former kid who couldn't afford cool shoes, and got teased for it a LOT, I really admire Tony Romo's decision. These shoes may still be looked down upon by the snotty kids, but it's a step in the right direction, and I think more athletes should be aware of this and try to support affordable gear for their young, working class fans. I hated 80% of my elementary school days because of the grief I took for being a poorly dressed dork.

Those of you reading who know our friend Mike will appreciate this story. In 6th grade, he noticed that I got some new shoes. They were just some sort of PayLess special. I asked if he liked them, and he said, "Do they stay tied?" My old shoes were falling apart and I constantly had to stop and re-tie them when we were running around during recess after lunch. He teased me for that, but didn't give a dang about the shoes themselves. He was the first true friend I had who just liked me, and didn't care about name brands and labels. I had many good friends just like him through middle school and high school.

I admit that I'm kind of a shoe snob myself now. I don't have many pairs (work shoes, running shoes, camping/yard work shoes, flip flops), but when I do need a new pair, I refuse to buy cheap ones. It's honestly more for practical considerations - I want things that last, and I want to project a professional image at work. But it may be partly vanity and hurt feelings. So while I will not be buying Tony Romos for myself, I do appreciate what he is doing for kids stuck shopping at Wal-Mart and facing bullies. And my own boys, who are blissfully free of materialist school snobbery, would probably love to have the Dallas Cowboys shoes, and I'd be happy to get them a pair.

Goooooood Evening Friends

2010-07-07T21:21:00.003-05:00

Since Daddio had Monday off we ran a few errands, and we stopped by the running store to see what they had and to pick a belt/bottle thingy for Daddio. While we were there Daddio decided it was time to get me a real pair of running shoes. I couldn't have been more happy (especially considering I hadn't even asked for any!)...

Now, I've never been fitted for running shoes, and have no real idea what the fuss is all about... that's when the lovely lady there got down to her job. First they measured my feet, turns out they are the same size (apparently this isn't always the case), inspected my arches (low rise) and then grabbed a pair of shoes for me to put on for the next part. Now, I suppose I should set the stage just a little better. We were out and about and I was wearing a cute little skirt and shirt and sandals... not really running shoe shopping apparel. So I needed a dummy pair of shoes for the next phase. I had to get on a treadmill that had a camera mounted behind it and then I had to jog for a minute or so, and they analyzed my style! With that information she knew exactly what type of shoe (support wise) I needed and brought out a few for me to try!

When I try on shoes, I pretty much follow this criteria... first I have to like how they look, and they have to feel right on! Notice the first part... how they look... well, just throw that out the window with shopping for running shoes... it's only about fit! I realized this right away by what she brought out and so immediately tossed away my desire for my favorite colors on sneeks!
Low and behold, the shoes that fit the best and felt like pooffy clouds of heaven were...

PINK AND PURPLE!!!! Woohoo!

Oh, and Daddio even got me some fancy running socks (apparently the little cotton socks I was wearing before will more than likely cause blisters)... and they are AWESOME (oh and a new sports bra because he thought it was ridiculous that with my old one I had to wear an old regular bra and the sports bra together to get the right support... the new one rocks!).

And because Daddio can read my mind, one of the first things he said to me when we got back into the car was that I wasn't to go on another run that day... since I had already been that morning :-(! He knows me so well, because that is exactly what I wanted to do.

In the interest of sticking to my schedule, I followed it and didn't do my next run till today. I waited until this evening to get out because I felt so crummy this morning. The boys and I are just wracked with allergies right now, and I thought a day of being quiet and still (and lots of allergy meds) would mean a successful run tonight! For the most part I was right, although at 8:00pm it is was still 90 degrees... but I really couldn't wait any longer because of their need for a shower and bed time once we got back home. So off we went... listening to my new podcast that keeps track of the time for you and chimes when you need to switch! Boy, not having to look at my watch or really worry about my stride and just listen to the music was a really nice escape. If you are doing this program (C25K), I would highly recommend either the podcast or the apps for iPhones!

Performance of the shoes and socks... rockin! It took a little while to feel normal in them because they are just so different than what I was wearing before. The saleslady also said that I should notice some relief from knee pain as well. I'm not too worried about that right now, the strap I'm using seems to be really doing the trick, but every little bit helps!

As for the program, tonight was the last time at this interval. Saturday I will be stepping up to the next level. I'm looking forward to it, and I'm really enjoying the challenge!

I hate the Charlie Brown song

2010-07-05T19:31:00.005-05:00

I might have written this post last year... but I hate hate hate the stupid sappy Charlie Brown song about peace on earth, especially at Mass, and especially on Independence Day!!! Not only is it cheesy and hokey, but it's difficult to sing. (Everything we sing at our church needs to be taken down about three steps, because the only person in the room who can actually sing in that register is the show-off choir director.) They also did that lousy St. Francis song at communion. I like the poem well enough, but it makes for a very awkward song, "...and in dying that we're born-to-eternal-liiiiiiiife". It's a strange rhythm that even the choir can't sing together, let alone the congregation.

I've also never really been into patriotic stuff at Mass, it seems inappropriate. But the hippy dippy stuff just pisses me off.

===

Update - This is the song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCzEq1DKPYA

I was wrong, it's not from Charlie Brown. Sorry about that. Not sure why I thought that, I guess it just seems perfect for a preachy cartoon children's chorus.

Check out the history of the song here…
http://www.jan-leemusic.com/Site/History.html

"One summer evening in 1955, a group of 180 teenagers of all races and religions, meeting at a workshop high in the California mountains locked arms, formed a circle and sang a song of peace. They felt that singing the song, with its simple basic sentiment – 'Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me,' helped to create a climate for world peace and understanding."

Good grief… ;)

At least they didn't use the "inclusive" lyrics at mass. I don't think so anyway, we didn't stay long.

Worn smack out...

2010-07-02T14:29:00.002-05:00

Tonight will be our third concert in 9 days... that's a lot! Usually we have one a month and 3-4 rehearsals for the month... so to have so many grouped together can take a lot out of you!

I do love playing, and I certainly don't want to complain... it's good to have the gigs (it helps fill up our band account so we can buy new music and what not)... but it's A LOT!

Thankfully tonight is close to home (this one always has a great audience), which means it won't be a late night... and SIL has generously offered to keep the boys while we go... which means the boys will have fun, and we don't have to worry about them while we get our job done!

Next week... we're off! It will be nice to be able to relax in the evenings and not worry about who needs to be where, when, and for how long!

Apples and oranges...

2010-07-02T13:58:00.003-05:00

The boys and I hadn't played cards games in quite some time, so Wednesday evening as Daddio and one of the boys started up a game of chess (that was frustrating at best) I decided to rummage through the box of card games I re-found the other day (the day I spent cleaning out the office closet for like 9 hours ... trust me I have photos and a post rolling around my brain, but not yet). Anyway, I decided we should play Go Fish. Now, honestly I thought that we've played this before... but clearly I was wrong, not only could I not remember the rules, they had no idea what I was talking about... But no matter, we ended up having several rousing hands with everyone laughing and cutting up.

Cut to Thursday morning, I get the boys up and as they are heading towards the kitchen for breakfast I am giving them the morning pep talk which included something along the lines of...

"Are we going to have a good attitude for math this morning... come on guys, right?! "

Without missing a beat Bubba looks right at me with his huge shifty brown eyes and says "Nope, Go FISH!" Then starts grabbing his sides and laughing hysterically! I lost it, I was laughing so hard tears were pouring out of my eyes!

And that my friends is an apple that doesn't fall far the tree... or an orange that grew on an apple tree in our case ;-).

It's good to be back!

2010-06-28T10:07:00.002-05:00

It's been a while... both posting and running. I ended up having to take a little over a week off from training because of a knee issue. Thankfully by the end of last week I was feeling a lot better, but not able to run just yet because of other engagements, I had a few more days to rest... and then this morning I woke up... saw the temp on the computer and decided this was the morning to get back on the ole horse!

The boys and I suited up, and hit the pavement.

Stats for the day (for my benefit... I'm going to use this as my training journal)

Warm up walk: 8 minutes

Run/walk workout: 20 minutes

Lap time: 2 laps (around park) 16 1/2 minutes (2 minutes better woohoo than the last good workout), last run/walk series was done on the way back home

Walk down time: 6 minutes

The boys are doing well with this program. We still really haven't hit their stride just yet. I think maybe in the next round (more running, less walking series), we might see a little more effort on their part. As for me, my knee did great this morning... the new brace I picked up last week seems to be just the right thing. It's not to bulky/hot, it doesn't cut off circulation, and it seems to hold the knee cap in the right spot (which was I think was the main issue I was having).

I Doth Protest...

2010-06-23T12:37:00.004-05:00

As I walked down the hall and peered into the living room... there sat the three boys, all perched on the couch. The two on either side of Bobcat hanging on his every word, and in his hands... The Twelfth Night (in story book format, but still holding true to the language of Shakespeare). He's already read it to himself, so he now knows the story and the characters so he is able to do voices and inflections... and it really is quite funny to listen to.

There are days when I am frustrated about progress we are (or are not) making in certain areas, but when I see that... when I hear him (or the other two) reading something like that with such enthusiasm... well I feel like I must be doing something right! I can't help but feel pleased that I've put the classics well within their reach... and they have taken up the challenge!

Other books being devoured by the boys so far this summer... Hank the Cowdog series, and The Hardy Boys.

I tend to agree with this article

2010-06-22T09:33:00.001-05:00

"Emotional Immodesty"

http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2010/06/21/emotional-immodesty-on-facebook/

Workin' blind

2010-06-09T09:07:00.003-05:00

It's my nature to plan, sometimes to excruciating detail... but I like to, and it keeps me feeling balanced and in control of myself.

That's one part of my personality... the second part can be my not so friendly perfectionism side! This is what can play out when the proverbial stars do not align...

Scene 1: Plan, plan, plan... something changes, plans don't fit together, things don't go the way I planned, it doesn't turn out the way I pictured it in my head... FAILURE!

Scene 2: I have a great idea in my head, decide that I could never pull it off so I never try...

I truly hate failure... yes yes yes, I know that with failure can come lessons that one needs to learn... I prefer to just read it in a book instead of experience failure first hand. Whatever, I recognize it is a character flaw... and yes, I'm working on it!

Now you can understand my natural inclination when it came to the prospect of running, or even starting a running program! Ta' not to! Thankfully Daddio can be mighty persuasive with me, plus I was able to see his progress working the plan.

Last night was my third run of the program, and even though we had hosted dinner guests (I'm so glad you guys spent the afternoon with us!!!)... the weather was just too nice to skip it and wait until today... so off we went. The first running portion felt like I was carrying a sack of rocks, and I was starting question my previous enthusiasm... but by the second running section I realized that I really need to pick up the pace in order to have a comfortable stride (I'm fast as lightening, hah!). From that point on it was a great workout with no more second guessing of going out for the run.

Each morning after the workout, I expect to wake-up feeling terribly sore or in down right pain, but thankfully this somewhat gentle approach is working for my worn out joints and I haven't needed any anti-inflam's to keep me moving (just a few allergy pills to keep all that non-sense in check).

Normally my overly-plannish nature would be all over the calendar with the schedule and routine... but going into this new frontier I've decided that I would merely show up to each workout... in the sense that Daddio would be my trainer if you will, and he would set the rules for how things would progress. Boy, what a freeing feeling!! Normally I would be on the computer 'researching' the best way to do this or that... but nope... my only search had to do with, um, a piece of wardrobe... running underpants for ladies... mostly just to see if there was a such a thing and what made them different from normal ones (I still have no information on that).

As for the program... I finished level 1, and Daddio says that we will be moving on and increasing the time of the running time sections on our next work out. I'm really stoked about that (for some weird reason).

You may be wondering what the boys are doing while all this is happening, well, technically they are supposed to be training with me. Generally speaking they end up racing each other, jumping to grab leaves of the trees we run under, or skipping around like ponies in a meadow. I'm sure as the running sections increase they will be challenged and more focused on what is actually happening... or not!

It's just the beginning...

2010-06-05T07:19:00.002-05:00

Mornin'!

I've never considered myself an athletic person. I'm not really sure where or when I made that conclusion, but never the less at some point I said I'm not athletic and sort of stuck by that phrase. Looking back over the last 31 years, though, I'm starting to think I might be somewhat athletic... I could swim before I could walk, I was water skiing once I was old enough to stand on my own, I played non-competitive tennis starting in late elementary school, cheerleading in junior high and first part of high school, marching band all through high school (which I do consider a sport when you live in Texas and march in 100+ heat), and mountain biking after we got married (oh and all the hiking during our numerous camping trips)... and generally speaking I've excelled at each of those things... but I'm not athletic remember!

If I were to really analyze what I considered athletic it would be something like... looking athletic... long lean body... that's not me, I'm compact; the athleticism would be associated with lots of running, I'm not a runner; killer competitiveness, and I don't like that sort of thing (my parents were competitive in what I was doing and I hated it). What I do have is brut strength, serious, ask Daddio... I think it might have something to do with my compact size. Also, generally speaking I just keep going... I've been surprised at myself and my ability to keep up with the boys and Daddio when it comes to outdoor things... especially since I consider those four to be more athletic than me (even after two knee surgeries and two nasty ankle injuries).

Well if you are still reading, you are really starting to ask yourself where in the world is this super boring post headed???... to RUNNING is my answer!

Last night was our first training session for the couch to 5K in eight weeks program. Of course Daddio has already finished and run a race, and now is training for a 10K... but after a lot of talking we've agreed that it would be good for the boys and I to train up for a 5K. Now, I'll be honest, I was certain that this was in some way going to lead to an ER trip. It has been just over 2 years since I've landed in the ER for X-rays and MRI's and tons of PT, so I figured that this would definitely send me back. Not because I can't do it mind you, but because some joint or ligament would just say "NOPE, not gonna do it!" Then I would fall and something would break or tear. I was hedging bets, though, that I would break an arm or something, you know mix it up a little... I'm tired of all the leg injuries!

Drum roll please.....................

We survived! Better than that, I survived! Actually I really enjoyed it. I never felt winded or in pain or anything for that matter (well maybe a little annoyed with all the silliness going on behind us from the ever following peanut gallery). So the first day out was a smashing success! Oh, and when I woke up this morning I didn't feel like I was on death's doorstep. The knees, ankles and all muscles feel just fine! I was really expecting to be feelin' some serious burn, so it was definitely a pleasing surprise to feel completely normal.

Alright, day one down, today is a rest day, and tomorrow we hit the program again! The plan as of right now is that we will run our first 5K as a family in September! That gives us plenty of time to train and not die in 100+ temps for our first race.

still going

2010-06-04T10:42:00.002-05:00

For those who are interested in boring diet/exercise posts, here's the update. I went to run this morning and my shins and calves were really really sore. Not sure what I did to cause that. Maybe I didn't stretch enough (okay, at all) after my last run, but that was two days ago. I'm avoiding pain meds, I figure if it hurts then I'm over-doing it, and I don't want to mask a mild muscle pain and then hurt myself worse with overexertion. So, I just walked instead. Kinda stinks to waste what will apparently be the last cool morning until October… Oh well.

I took a break from diet and exercise during vacation. I did run one morning on the beach, just cuz, but it wasn't any fun, so I quit after a mile. Okay, I may have been a little hung over. I never got "drunk", but you know, not exactly in top running condition. Since then, I've gotten back up to my 3 mile runs. Had to take some walking breaks the first couple of days, but I'm nonstop again, and have cut a minute off of my time.

Still not that quick, but I have decided to shoot for a 10K. I think the 5K will get quicker if I can train for an even longer distance. And I really think the time will just improve naturally as I keep going. Losing weight, and just building up endurance in the legs and the lungs and the ol' ticker. I'm not going to sprint and give myself a heat stroke, especially now that it's getting so warm out. I haven't picked an event, will just see how the training goes, and how well I cope with the hotter weather.

I had gained about 3.5 lbs on vacation, but I've lost that, so pretty much ready to pick back up where I left off. As of last Saturday, I'm down about 28 lbs from my "peak" in September 2009, and I would like to lose about 22 more. I hesitate to share targets out loud, but jinxes are for pagans, so here it is. I want to be at 209 by my birthday in early August, and 199 by the end of the year. I'm at 221 right now. (Man, that sounds heavy… did I mention I'm eight feet tall?) It's do-able, I think. But the Double Baconator last night probably wasn't a great idea. Oh well, I've had fruit and yogurt for breakfast and lunch almost all week, and I had to bring work home with me, so I really wanted something bad. Anyway, my "ideal weight", depending on which internet calculator you believe, is around 180, which sounds ridiculous to me. I mean, I look at myself and think, is there really 40 extra pounds in there? Come on. I think the problem is that you look at your "problem area" (belly) and estimate it's carrying X amount more than it should. But as you lose weight, it comes off from every area, not just where you are looking in the mirror. And from what I've read, there's not a whole lot you can do to flatten your torso. Exercises that target those muscles will tone those muscles, but you still have to get rid of the fat covering them up, and the only way to do that is to burn calories.

But 199 really is such an arbitrary number, I should know better than to focus on it. Or, I should convert to metric and settle on 95 kilograms. Or maybe go British and shoot for 15 stone? I'll tell you how I arrived at 199. Several years ago, I was planning a hypothetical trip to the Grand Canyon, and the tour company offering donkey rides down to the bottom said that you have to weigh less than 200 lbs. Or else I guess your donkey dies, and you go over the edge when he collapses. Maybe there's another trail guide out there with a tough little donkey than can handle a big guy. But I'd look stupid, and everyone else in the group would feel bad for my poor donkey. So I'm not getting on a donkey until I'm thin.

By the way, I'm up to 47 push-ups. I remember how tough the first 10 were, so this is kinda cool to me. I don't know that I ever did more than 25, even as a teenager. The goal was 50, so there's a milestone coming up soon.

Okay, back to work.

It's official

2010-05-28T15:26:00.001-05:00

I am a CPCU. Be impressed.

I had a vision...

2010-05-27T17:46:00.006-05:00

One year ago we entered new and uncharted territory. Bean came into our lives, and by this time last year he was staying with us nearly full time. He would have an odd weekend here and there with grandparents, but generally speaking his time was spent with us. We loved having him, the boys loved having him here.... the fact is, WE JUST LOVED HIM! And soon an image or a vision of how our lives would look in a year or two seemed to include him... hearing his first words, being their for his first steps... all those things a parent looks forward to... all those things we had never experienced we thought would be wrapped up in his entrance into our family.

May 26, 2009

Then, as do so many times in our lives, things changed. The court sent him back to his bio-parents and we were left wondering when we would ever get to spend time with him. We were heart broken, the boys were heart broken, and we worried... still do.

Fast forward a year...

May 27, 2010

Yesterday we received a most wonderful treat... Bean came over and in the early afternoon and spent the night with us. This is the first time since September of last year that we've gotten to spend any real time with him... alone time, and boy was it a blessing. And while I thought this would be how our family looked at this time, things change... and for a fleeting day we got to look like this:

I fly unto thee...

2010-05-19T12:25:00.003-05:00

Chance Blaine

March 16, 2010 ~ May 18, 2010

We learned this morning that the youngest addition to our extended family, our nephew, has been called back to Our Heavenly Father. My family and I ask for prayers for the repose of his sweet soul, that he might be in the loving embrace of our heavenly Mother, and look upon the shining face of God our Father.

Memorare

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided.

Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.

Amen.

I can't make this stuff up!

2010-05-18T15:25:00.003-05:00

On the way home from lunch with Daddio, Snookie exclaims that "that's where you can go for anniversaries!" Looking around, I have no idea what he is talking about, then I see he is pointing to a cemetery. Hmmmmmm... I still have no idea why he thinks that is where one would celebrate an anniversary.

Later, same car ride...

"Mommy have you decided if we can see the new Shrek movie?"

Boy, that kid knows that drill... We haven't decided if that is a movie you will see, is a standard answer around here... so instead of asking to see the movie he jumped over to include our normal response! Not his first rodeo :-).

Ha ha ha... I just looked over at Bobcat's notebook where he has drawn a picture and printed the character's name under... Guardfeld... Not quite the right spelling!

Barnyard on the move...

2010-05-17T13:35:00.006-05:00

As mentioned before, we are home from our vacation. We loaded up the barnyard one early Thursday morning and headed for the coast. Our seventh annual migration was a splendid success! The weather was great all 8 days, the water was warm, and fun was had by all!

This year we had the added bonus of our dear friends to come and spend the weekend with us! This shot was snapped of us after Mass... if you were to look on this church's website you would find our boys' pictures in there this year, last year, and I think even the year before... the lady takes pictures at EVERY MASS and posts them (funny and kind of weird)!

And of course we were able to spend time with our sweet little godson who was just too cute for words! Good grief... do they come any cuter?
Oh, and we got to try something new this year... building sand castles. On Monday Daddio was able to hop online and see if anything interesting was happening on the island... and there was a link for lessons on how to build sand castles. COOL! $45 dollars and two hours of instruction we had a huge layout with a tower each of us made! The boys did really well, they did their best to pay attention and mind the patience once we got down the the carving portion. Did you know that this was all done with 'hand stacking'. It was super cool.
The rest of the week I practiced different techniques, dug several holes to get down to the water table (I think if you passed by the beach on Tuesday you would see what looked to be gopher holes where I dug down for myself and for Snookie), and by Wednesday I really had it down. Here is a shot of the last one I built for the trip!
If you're in Port A you need to check this guy out! Sandcastle Guy

Now we're home and life resumes... :-).

Home again, home again...

2010-05-13T21:08:00.001-05:00

8 days, 7 nights of BEACH... we just got in, unloaded, got the kids off to bed... and I'm ready to... GO BACK TO THE BEACH! I miss it already!

#1010

2010-05-05T08:26:00.003-05:00

Sorry the title doesn't really have anything to do with the post, but I like the number of this current post...

Anyway... DAY 137... does that mean anything to anyone? Nope? Well, at the Llama house it means the last day of regular schoo!! And that day is TODAY! YAHoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

So after today, my kiddos will be heading into 3rd, 4th and 5th (come the fall that is)... YIKES, they are getting so old!

75.2 degrees

2010-05-02T14:17:00.003-05:00

I'm supposed to be studying. I am studying. I'm on a very short break. And wondering if 75.2 degrees is comfortable for swimming. Because that's the water temperature at Port A right now. A little cooler than ideal, but it's going to be very warm for another week before we get there. Not yucky hot and humid, just nice and warm. A couple more degrees in the water would be great. Not warm like swimming in a kiddie pool (i.e., walk-in urinal), just refreshingly cool, but not freezing.

How about that oil spill, eh? We almost went to Alabama or Florida, which some reports put in the path of potential damage. Maybe it's fine and we're just getting doomsday scenarios from the media. At any rate, we will be many hundreds of miles away from oil, so that's a relief.

It's so hard to focus on market efficiency theories and historical price trends and liquidity risk management when you're going to the beach in five days. And your baby will be there! I'll be sure to bring my camera, as I'm wondering if his parents ever take his picture any more... ;)

Okay, back to work.

PS - Do you think I would look ridiculous with a buzz cut? I ran yesterday and it was HOT and I seriously considered a buzz cut for five minutes. I think that idea has passed. I should keep my hair before it falls out on its own. Plus there's probably a lot of gray under there. Never mind. Back to work.

Big Time

2010-05-01T21:45:00.002-05:00

The humble ensemble we play with has been featured in the local paper.

Read it here.

They didn't take our pictures (I actually missed that rehearsal), but still kinda cool. Send $10 for an autograph ;)

Yes, she made it

2010-04-29T22:22:00.002-05:00

Yup, she made it to the top of the rock! She's not so big on dizzying heights with steep slopes and gusty winds... but she was a good and brave little mommy to her boys (who pranced around up there like mountain goats).

Brought to you by the letter S

2010-04-29T09:08:00.006-05:00

for Snookie!

"Mommy, I have a sore throat right here on my chin!" (that was this morning while pointing to the front of his chin!) I'm not really sure what you do for a sore throat on your chin... if you have any guesses feel free to leave a comment :-).

"Mommy, (pointing to something in the dishwasher) you can use that in punge."

Now that last one took me a few minutes to figure out... turns out he was pointing to a ladle, and the word he so badly butchered should have been PUNCH! That kid...

Funny...

2010-04-29T08:28:00.002-05:00

Isn't it funny how on one day every one knows who you are, and the next not a soul recognizes you.

Personally speaking I prefer to go unnoticed, but when your family looks the way ours does... generally that doesn't happen. I would say that 95% of places we go people know us. No, they rarely know our names (well, they usually know the boys' names)... but the moment we walk in we are met with 'hello's, my how the boys have grown... blah blah blah'. Unfortunately when I am out with them, I AM ON A MISSION, and I really don't want to chat... I want to get in and get out. I've learned over the years, though, that as an adoptive parent (especially of brood of minorities) that you need to be a visual advocate. This has caused me to rethink everything I do, from my speech to how I dress the boys and myself. Rarely do we go out looking like a homeless family. The boys are usually always dressed neatly, no holes in the clothes and as few stains as possible... that sort of thing. While there are times I wish this wasn't an issue, let's face it, we are a visual community... and appearances can be just important as the message you are speaking.

Anyway back to my point of never being anonymous while out... Rarely do I get out on my own with out the fam in tow... either just the boys or all including Daddio... which is totally fine. I like having my family about as we conquer the world... but on occasion there are a few things where I enjoy my solitude... and this Saturday I got just that.

On our trip home from Enchanted Rock on Friday Bubba got sick in the car, and once we were home Snooker was sick... and while the vomiting did stop later that evening, just to be safe on Saturday Daddio stayed home with all three while I ran the errands for the day. I needed to get check at the eye dr. for the new contacts I ordered, get the beast washed to help get the camping smell out of it, groceries, and the rare treat of getting a hair cut! So off I went.

The first thing I noticed during my morning... everything went by so quickly, quickly and quietly (if you don't count the loud music I played... although that is regular even with the boys, they love it)... when I made it to the grocery store, I was walking up when a boy scout asked if I wanted to buy batteries. What was funny to me was I knew this little boy... he goes to our church, is in our homeschool group, and has played with my boys at every function... and his dad was right there as well. I've spoken with him many times as well... including probably an hour long conversation when he first decided to try homeschooling... and nothing. They had no clue who I was. The only time they've seen me is with the boys so it was like I was missing appendages and was completely unrecognizable. I chuckled to myself and went in to do my shopping. Not a single person stopped me, stared, or asked me a question... It was blissful. I went about my whole morning being completely anonymous!

There are probably some out there who just can't understand how lovely this was for me... but I suppose you would have to know just how much I hate being put in the spotlight, or put on the spot, or even quizzed for that matter. I certainly wouldn't change my life/family... but I do have moments where I would prefer to blend than stand out!

With deepest sympathy...

2010-04-27T08:52:00.005-05:00

This statue/memorial is on the property of the Oblates in San Antonio... Bubba found it, and wanted a picture with it. It is dedicated to all the mothers out there who are grieving the loss of a child. To see it in person is quite overwhelming, and instantly brought me to tears...

So for a dear mother (and family) who has been shaken by the loss of one yet to be held in her arms... may the loving embrace of Christ ever surround your sweet one!

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thy intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly to thee, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother; to thee do I come; before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.

My Three Sons

Cheesey Souffle

The nose knows

Thangs and Stuff

What to do...

Tasty and stuffed

Ingredients

Directions

Ingredients

Directions

Ring, Ring, Ring

A few more new favorites!

Ingredients

Directions

Ingredients

Directions

Ingredients

Directions

Chicken and Greens

5 Ingredient Fix

This means war!

Tryin' somethin' new!

One Eye Open

Sew much to do...

What I've been up to...

Mattress pad woes

Happy Father's Day

Yarn Along #3

Waiting for me!

The last First...

Roses are red

It's gonna be a good day Tater

Keeping the dust at bay...

Yarn Along #2

Ribbit, ribbit

Don't run with scissors

No, No, NO, earmuffs, earmuffs!!!!

I'm casin the joint!

Yarn Along

Speaking of VACATION!!!!

A few new finished projects

My precious...

Hurry up already!

In the hopper

What's to come?

A new addiction

Just something different...

Finished project

Climbing out on a limb

Chipotle Chicken

Old folks and racism...

Toys for Tots 5K (December 11)

We're still alive ;-)

Tin for TEN

five home addressesthree little boysfour new jobsthousands of kissesmillions of laughs

How time flies...

Turkey Trot!

Near and dear!

I forget

Ummm, sorry

RunKeeper

To Florida and back again.

Just couldn't resist

At least he's honest?

Priceless...

It's all about the car...

Deals! Deals!! Deals!!!

The wheels on the bus go round and round!

What's the point?

All for Snooker

First day photo!

Bringin our total up to 4!

Day One

Dun dun ta dun... Darth Vader's theme song!

Annoyed

10 40 over and out...

What what...

In his hay day...

Happy Birthday

The big desk

five home addresses
three little boys
four new jobs
thousands of kisses
millions of laughs