48 hours

Its amazing all that can happen and be done in 48 hours.  We have traveled over 1300 miles, seen over 100 family members, found lost presents, wrapped 11 boxes and not slept much.  But I think we have had some fun catching up with everyone.  I am however, at my wall.  Hoping to take some down time while the men-folk go to the Chiefs game tomorrow, otherwise it might be a long week.

& It Goes On and On and On

The Earring saga that is.  B and Willa found the missing earring and then I couldn't remember where I put the other one.  Finally last night the pair were reunited but I think we need to go buy some new backs so that one won't keep falling out.

Our Christmas shopping is all done and the first round of boxes has been shipped.  Now to just decide if I should pack up the rest in our suitcases or mail some more.  I think I am going with a combo since we need to buy a new suitcase anyway.

I went on a purging cleaning spree last night and de-cluttered over 50 items.  Most of them were in my closest but I typically get a good jump start there.  I have a ton of stuff in our office that I had already culled and I am committed to getting it all donated this week.  I had planned on trying to sell some of it, but have decided it is not worth the hassle.  I also cleaned out Willa's drawers to get out all the too small stuff and plan on sending it over to my friend for her new daughter.  It is so nice that we have someone to pass things off to right away.  Now to just decide what to do with the 3 totes of stuff in the shed.

I am so excited this is the last week B is on nights.  I try to go to sleep before he gets home but typically am still is some stage of awake-ness. It has made getting up in the morning so hard lately.

We have started a new de-stressing program at work and since I am leading it I have been trying to lead by example and try out the techniques.  Not real sure where my stress levels are but I am learning how to relax my body and breath better.

Hard to believe 2012 is almost over.  The days just keep flying by.

Earring Debacle

A few weeks ago after Willa got her ears' pierced she lost an earring while she was sleeping.  I found the earring but not the back so I was able to torture her and put it back in before it closed.  Since the back didn't quite fit I was always pinching it back closed so it wouldn't fall off.

Friday night I realized she had lost it again and B wasn't sure if she had it before daycare or if she may have lost it there.  I started searching her bed and found the original back but not the earring.  Oh the irony.  It looked like it had probably been out all day so I took the post from the good ear and put it in the closed one and then put in one of her new earrings from Hawaii on the left.  A few minutes later I looked down and there was the earring!!!

On Saturday we headed to a play date and while there I discovered the original offending earring was missing.  So I momprovised and took an earring out of my own ear and put it in hers.  Probably not the most hygienic thing to do, I know.  We are one week from being able to take them out, so I am not sure if I should leave her mismatched or go ahead and change them out  completely because they aren't quite completely healed.

Thankful Day 30

On this last day of November, when many men are probably contemplating getting rid of their Movember Staches I am thankful that I completed this exercise.  It has made me more grateful all the things I have and the people in my life.

Thankful Day 29

Today I am thankful that I realized before it was too late to open all my mail.  Since the election campaign, I have pretty much junked most of the mail that comes into our house.  Today I went to trash something from Goodyear and just before I tossed it I realized it said something about important information and then realized it was my rebate card for my new tires.  Whew!

Thankful Day 28

Don't know why this didn't post yesterday, but whatevs.

I am thankful for my parents.  They fly out here all the time to watch my kid (a big inconvenience right?) and taught me to appreciate the things I have and to take care of them.  Those things have served me well.

Thankful Day 27

I am most thankful for my boss today who noticed the clock was wrong at the client's office and got me out the door in time to pick Willa up from daycare.  We were at a board meeting presenting financial statements and I thought I had a few more minutes.  But I made it in time to get her, get her to the mall for a pretzel and to her hair appointment.....all on time.  Whew!

Thankful Day 26

After putting over 1,000 miles on car over the last three weeks and B finally getting home, I am thankful  to be at home and at the office for the next few weeks.  I feel like we have been going non-stop and our routines are still wonky.  Hopefully we get it all straightened out before we head to KS.

Thankful Day 25

Today I am thankful for this holiday season that reminds me to be thankful for all that we have.  I am grateful for each day, but I think it is important to remember all the time that we are more fortunate than others.  The picture in this blog post about Black Friday caused me to pause.  Most people I know don't seem to go crazy about Black Friday shopping but you hear stories about the madness.  I am not opposed to the fun and deal getting of BF, but I know that I can live without it.

I have only recently started reading A Place Called Simplicity and it's funny that it is about adoption for a variety of reasons; a) I was searching for simplicity blogs as opposed to minimalism, b) adoption has been on my heart and mind, and c) a pastor here in GF has mentioned this family in his radio ads! While I don't know if adoption is in our future, I do know that many children and families are waiting for each other.  A friend recently returned from their second international adoption and she herself is adopted, so it has been so neat to hear about their journey.

Thankful Day 24

Today I am thankful for my sister who turned 25 today.  She drove me crazy growing up, but what good sister doesn't?  She has grown up and matured so much that I can't help but be proud of her.

Thankful Day 23

I am thankful for a nice morning in Joanns Fabric store with people that were happy to be there not complaining about standing in line.  I had hopes of being there when it opened at 6 but I snoozed until 6:15.  Typically you can stand in line for 4 hours and I was only there 4 hours, so I call it a success.  I only purchased fabric that I knew I would be using shortly and got some supplies to finish another Christmas gift and some things for Willa for the flight.  I was able to resist other fun and fancy things that caught my eye, which my pocketbook and B are thankful for.

Thankful Day 22

I am thankful for quiet family time and that we have have everything that we need and then some.  I am thankful for all our family in Kansas and elsewhere and can't wait to see them in December.

Thankful Day 21

Today I am thankful for my nasal spray.  I forgot to take it Monday night and I paid for it on Tuesday as I waited for the morning dose to kick in.  I am 100% improved today and have realized once again how important it is to be consistent when taking medicine.  Ironically, there was an article this week I read about how being consistent is more important than trying to decide if you should take medicine in the morning or at night.

Thankful Day 20

I am thankful for my Bro and future Sister.  Their engagement pictures are so nice and makes me a little excited for their wedding in June.  Not much is better than a good wedding.

Thankful Day 19

I am thankful for fun co-workers who have no qualms about sitting in our sweats with a bottle of wine, popcorn from the movie theatre, watching a cheesy movie while we work out of town.  Oh, we laughed so hard and I needed that.

I am not thankful for hard plastic high heels that lay on my living room floor. Can you say bruised arch?

Thankful Day 18

I am thankful for the fun day we had.  Despite the horrible losses of our favorite teams, we had Christmas pictures done today, did some more shopping, and had an early dinner.  We had no plans of doing anything after the mini-session at the studio, so it is very nice to be spontaneous and not have to worry about not having enough "gear" for Willa.  She rocked today, going with the flow.

Thankful Day 17

Today I am thankful for good friends and co-workers.  Our Bountiful Baskets location was running late today and it was chilly outside.  Between all of us, the Kiddo stayed warm, basketball games were seen and all baskets were accounted for.  Sometimes it just takes teamwork.

Thankful Day 16

I am late on this because I was so thankful to be home yesterday.  The drive back was better than the drive there.  Last night I made some dinner, mindlessly surfed the web, cut some fabric, web-cammed with the Parentals, and read the bedtime story.  It was so nice to be back in my own bed and having my pillow.

Thankful Day 15

Today I am thankful for fruit.  Sadly, this week I have only had some blackberries and an orange.  Eating away from home is hard, especially when everything is practically fried around here.  My body is revolting.  Can't wait to get home and back in routine.

An update to my Cashy post last night.  He passed away just about the time I was posting.  An Angel that won't have to suffer anymore.

Thankful Day 14

I am thankful for health.  There is so many friends and family fighting such awful diseases and illness and I am just so grateful that B, Willa, and I have immune systems that are working effectively.

A friend of mine is friends with a family whose little boy is fighting cancer for the 3rd time.  The little guy is 4 and a fighter.  His parents are doing their very best to help their little guy and it just breaks my heart and humbles me each day.  They have such strength and honesty and just seem to be rockin' people.

So if you can, take a little time to add Cashy to your prayers.

Thankful Day 13

I am thankful for friendly people when I am in a different town.  My bartenders were nice and chatted with me for quite a while at dinner.  One even has a daughter named Willa.  The first time I have ever met another Willa mom.  That makes 4 Willa's that I am aware of in Montana.  3 were born in Great Falls and the other here.

I got quite a bit done at my clients today so hopefully my boss is pleased when he gets here tomorrow.

Go Cats!  Baskeball season has started.

Thankful Day 12- coming when I have better wifi

Today I was thankful all wildlife and cars decided to stay in their lanes on the road.  After driving 7 hours in less than ideal conditions I was very glad to get to where I was going.  So I am working solo for the next couple of days.  I work by myself quite a bit but I have never been out of town by myself.  Wish me luck in eating lunch and dinner in a small town with very little takeout.

Thankful Day 11

Today I am thankful for fun shopping. That might be a little shallow, but I had fun today getting some Christmas shopping done. I teeter between practical and fun gifts, but I always want to get something they will like.

Plus, I was totally excited to discover that our Hallmark store is carrying Vera Bradley's.  Sadly, I drew a boy in the gift exchange & I don't think he will truly appreciate one. :-)

Thankful Day 10

Today I am thankful that B is back home.  He left the balmy beaches of Hawaii and returned to 10 degree weather & lots of snow. One could almost feel sorry for him.  Willa and I are very glad to have him back.

Thankful Day 9

Today I am thankful for snow plows and new tires. With 16 inches of snow in 24 hours you have to be amazed that hardly anything in town shuts down.

The snow was so pretty last night when the wind stopped blowing. But it is pretty cold out & supposed to be colder tomorrow. Stay warm folks, Brutus is brutal.

Thankful Day 8

On this cold, snowy day I am thankful for our home and the money that keeps it warm.  I know many people in this world are not as fortunate to have a warm place to sleep tonight. I am grateful that I have never had to worry about that.

Thankful Day 7

Today I am thankful for a clean house & the lady that helps keep it that way. It is well worth the dollars to have someone else clean my floors and motivate us to keep everything maintained for two weeks. Some people are better at things than others & I am certainly able to admit my shortcomings.

Thankful Day 6

Today I am for those people that remind about things when I am scatter-brained & forgetful. We are in the trenches at work & plugging away on several engagements. Its easyto lose track of time & things.

I am also thankful the elections will be coming to a close. Maybe there will be less hate & bitterness & propaganda around. I am guessing the USPS will not be as thankful.

Thankful Day 5

I am thankful for video Kinect & Skype. Without them we would not be able to group chat with my great friends all around the country or webcam with B & our FAM.  Thank goodness for technology that keeps us connected t the ones we love.

Thankful day 4

I am thankful for lazy Sundays, even when there are things I should be doing.  Willa and I have been watching movies, playing with our new play dough extruder and listening to her sing songs.  I have a lit if things I have to get done & a few more that I should get done and we are slowing making it down the list.  But it is so fun just hanging out with her and that she can occupy herself long enough for us to get our chores done.

Thankful Day 3

Today I am thankful for the Kansas State Wildcats. I have so many great memories watching all the teams with my family and great friends.  Today we continue our quest to 9-0 when the football team plays OK State.  Go Cats!

Thankful Day 2

I am thankful for B; my smart, strong, witty husband, who also keeps me on my toes with loop holes and quickness.  There are a lot of differences in us but a lot of similarities too.  I remember an aunt asked what it was I liked about him while we were dating.  I responded that he was the exact opposite of me and she didn't understand.  We share the same views on the big things, but the little day to day things are what keep laughing, bickering and shaking our heads at each other.  Life would be boring otherwise.

Thankful Day 1

I am thankful for the sweet, sassy, smart, funny little girl that calls me Mom. She keeps me on my toes and astounds me everyday without fail.

Things are Hopping....

At least that is how it feels.  We haven't been on the go too much it just seems like the days are so busy and then we come home and just chill.

My parents were out for the week and I headed off to CPE, which is always a good time.  My office dressed up as the Smurfs and I have to say we looked pretty good. Actually everyone in the Firm looked good and the effort that went into the costumes was fabulous.

I feel like I am in the middle of my "tax season" and the outlook of things slowing down won't be until the middle of February unless it all just falls into place.  That never happens so I am working on priortizing to get things done.

I also feel like I have a Gremlin living with me.  Things keep disappearing and I have no idea where.  The only one that I am sure of is the Bumblebee.  The Bumblebee has a new home at some cute little teenagers house.  She was so excited and I am confident she will love him as much as I did.  But I have lost some paperwork and it is driving me crazy, since I am basically at home, in the car, or at the office.

The Series of Unfortunate Events is finally winding to a close I hope.  Mirrors replaced, couch fixed, new tires, new fridge and Bosco is on the mend.  So glad things can finally get back to normal and we can quit raiding our savings. Oh how I hate to spend the savings even though that is exactly the type of things it is for.

Willa has been trucking along and keeping me on my toes.  We have had a few "battles" lately but she is getting much better at using her words instead of the meltdowns and I am getting better at heading them off.  The latest was over what she was wearing for school pictures.  I had picked it out and showed it to her the night before and got her all psyched up for the morning.  In the AM (which neither of us are morning people, so that is 80% of our problems) she was not having it and did not want to wear the red dress.  After a few tense minutes and me worrying that I was going to start acting like a child that didn't get her way, we resolved the issue and she wore the red dress.  She also got to wear her snow boots because of all the icky white on the ground.

Fall didn't last very long, but I suppose that is to be expected around here.  There is talk of some warm air coming through, but we haven't seen it.

Some Thought

One of Willa's phrases lately has been, "Mom, can I tell you something?" It is usually nothing big but I always just answered "Sure."  I realized though, I could be setting a precedence for the teen years now.  So now I answer, "You can tell me anything." I don't knowif it will make a big difference as I hope we always have an open dialogue going, but even if it doesn't it can't hurt.

Her other new phrase is, "I have a good idea." We will see where that takes us....
In other news Babe is missing.  Can't find her anywhere but it doesn't look like she has been eaten by Belle so hopefully she is just stuffed somewhere. Luckily Willa has been playing with her Little Sister doll and isn't too upset about Babe being lost.

A Series of Unfortunate Events

We have had a pretty busy couple of weeks. First was Willa's birthday party, her cake for school, a cake for a benefit, new carpet, a TDY & another cake.  Her party was fun, we rented a bounce house for the backyard and just sat back to watch them tire themselves out.

The Series of Unfortunate events started the day after her actual birthday. I had planned on recounting them here but despite how unfortunate they were I have gained perspective. During the almost comical expensive train wreck a coworker's grandpa passed away from a battle with cancer, an old coworker was diagnosed with breast cancer, and the cake was for a 2 year olds benefit dinner. He is battling leukemia. Perspective, I have it. Things have worked out, and we have savings to cover it.  I hate spending our savings but that is what it is there for I guess.

Willa truly embraced her birthday and keeps talking about it and asking if it is still her birthday. Which for several days it was as presents kept arriving in the mail.

She has had some funny phrases lately. She had snacks in the car and asked for them on the way home. I handed them to her and she says, "That's what I'm talking about.". She will also tell you her job is to go to school with her friends & Dad's job is to work on planes.  I am apparently just a Mommy Cow. Sigh...

In other news, I only ate out for lunch once in September and that was the day I had jury duty. I also don't think we ate out for dinner but a few times.  My pants thank me and our better eating.

Willa & I made freezer strawberry jam and strawberry coulis with our bountiful basket add ons. We are pretty pleased with ourselves.  I have also been freezing whatever we don't. Finish of the veggies each week.  I am fully prepared for soup season now.

Its beginning to look a lot like Fall around here.  The leaves are turning, its chilly in the morning, football is in full swing and we love it. Hope it lasts.

Please forgive any typos, typing on a tablet is kind of hard.

De Nile

I just can 't believe Willa is going to be 3 next week.  It doesn't seem possible.  She just gets smarter and funnier each day it seems.  B says I underestimate her but I think I have always had the notion that 2 year olds are still babies and she just blows it out of the water. 

I have been working out of the office this week at the client's that I was working at while I finished my last days incubating.  I literally worked on Thursday, was throwing up Friday morning and headed to the hospital later that night.  They always want updates on what she is doing because they feel like they were apart of my pregnancy in a way.

Being summoned for jury 4 times in the last year has been real fun.  Fun because I have never had to show up....until Monday.  I reported at 8:45 with the rest of the herd.  Even more funny, was the case was semi-related to the client I was auditing this week.  That threw me out of consideration real quick except there was nothing I could do until I was summoned into the pool.  Finally at 10:30 my name was called and I had barely sat my purse down before being dismissed after I told them my relationship with the case.  But it would have been interesting and they were planning on it lasting about 5 days.  The process was pretty interesting and confirmed my thoughts that most people are normal but the nut jobs ruin it for everyone.  One potential juror fit into the latter category and I give props to the lawyers and the judge for keeping their composure through the whole thing.  He was finally excused but it was hard to tell if he was glad or sad, he was so all over the place.

Monday also marked the day I joined my first non-profit Board. A co-worker decided she had too many commitments and that her kids were out growing this particular organization and since Willa is just getting started it seemed like a good fit.  I only hope I bring something to the table for them.

Birthday planning has been going on around here and B has pretty much taken the lead.  He picked out the favors, the cake, and the date.  (He has a tendency to picking dates, our wedding revolved around his preference).  I have been working pulling it all together but I still can't believe it is here.

Funny (well more sweet) Willa story of the week:
We had a babysitter on Saturday so we could attend a wedding.  The girl we had was the summer helper at the daycare this summer and is still helping out in the afternoons now that school has started.  It was the latest we have ever stayed out while having a sitter and she was the first to get Willa to go to bed.  A successful night I think.  So Sunday morning Willa comes into our room and her little lip is sticking out and two big tears are rolling down her face.  I asked her what was wrong and she replied "Miss S. is lost, I can't find her."  Poor girl didn't understand she had left after she went to bed, she had never experienced that before.  We got that all squared away and she spent the rest of the day telling me about how much fun she had.

Interesting story:
My mom and I procured an Ariel vanity at a garage sale last year that has been in Willa's room ever since.  It also talks and Ariel appears in the mirror.  Tonight she is playing dress up in her room and I hear Ariel talking.  Next thing I know Willa comes running and there is something in her and she is scared.  Something in the bubble.  She finally tells me the bubble is the mirror and she wants it out.  So I drag the darn thing out so she can go back to playing.  Now I am not sure what to do about it.  Do I put it back in or do I get rid of it?  It is a neat thing but she really doesn't play with it and I don't want her to be scared of being in her room.

A Reverse in Course

After the Lazy Sunday, the following weekend we were extremely productive.  Instead of working a little bit each weekend we decided to cram a ton of work into two days.  We took out the pool a few years ago and the removed the massive tree after that.  The previous owners had put in a ton  of brick work around the pool and some serious gravel around the tree because the grass wouldn't grow.  We sodded the large are last year and after selling the boat early in the summer we were left with some serious sand, dirt, brick badlands.  We also had some bare spots up by the porch that B kept saying he wanted to get some sod for.  Saturday morning he was off to Ace to get some sod for that area.  After laying those patches we still needed about 10 more to finish it up.  Off he went again and returned with a pallet full of sod.  The quick project quickly turned into an afternoon.  Since we had to prep the area by removing rock, pavers, and weeds it took us a few hours.  By the time we got to the sod we were pretty exhausted.  Willa was a real trooper just doing her thing and playing and then rocked at laying sod.  B would unload it from the truck, she unrolled it and then I put it in place.

It looked pretty good when we were done and we looked pretty dirty.  After showers and lunch we were tired.  On Sunday, we relocated the pavers to the create a "patio" for the grill and smoker.  There was tree/bush that we took out when my parents were here and there is still a small stump we need to remove to get it all complete, but after 5 years the yard is starting to look like a real yard.  Just in time to have birthday party.  Imagine that....getting things done when a deadline is close.

Preschool started up again this week and it also saw some of Willa's friends head off to Kindergarten.  Sadly, this means I lost my sources of information, my co-workers whose son's graduated to K.  I realized this when I forgot to ask if there was a theme for show and tell on Thursday.  I went to text them and remembered they wouldn't know.  She moved up to the new room with a new teacher and so far has been pretty excited about it.

Friday was my firms' last half-day Friday for the summer and B and I spent the afternoon shopping for new carpet for the house.  Talk about stressful.  Besides replacing the windows, this is the most expensive project to date.  Who knew?  After some heart palpitations, a quick run for Sonic's Happy Hour, we went to the carpet place next to my office and had a much better experience.  It will be so nice to have nice carpet in our bedroom, and non-blue in Willa's room.  But ask me again after the install because I am trying to figure out the logistics of that.  We have some heavy furniture and plenty of things in the closets.

Happy Labor Day!

Lazy Day Sunday

We had a fantastically ridiculous Sunday.  We basically did absolutely nothing but watch movies, TV, read books and play in the living room.  I think we needed.  It was the first weekend in quite a while that we spent together.  Saturday we went to Helena for the Zombie Run and the was pretty fun.  I think B had a good time and Willa called all the runners zombies instead of the actual zombies.  The house might be a disaster but hopefully we can get that remedied this week without too much trouble.

There was some funny toddler speak this weekend but for the life of me I can't remember.  All I know is she keeps us on our toes and typically in a laugh out loud fashion.  I can't believe she is going to be three pretty soon.

We have tried out some new recipes lately and some have been pretty good, some could use some tweaking to our likey and some we will probably pass on.  If you haven't tried the Pioneer Woman's fresh green bean recipe you are missing out.  We love it and it is so easy.  & speaking of eating, somebody we think is going through a growth spurt.  Typically, she may eat one meal at home every couple of days but eats really well at school so it doesn't bother us too much.  The last few weeks she has eaten breakfast or at least a snack on the way out the door and then either eats dinner or asks for a PB&J before bed.  Last night she ate chicken, goldfish, and a package of PB crackers.  So either a growth spurt of she has decided to be more consistent, but we will take it.  It probably helps that Bountiful Baskets 9-grain bread is addicting and that she loves zucchini bread.

Fall is coming!

We had our first glimpse of fall this morning.....at least that is what I am calling it and I am sticking to it.  I love the crisp mornings when we still have the windows open and I can nestle under a quilt and get some good sleep.  Being the night owl that I am, I swear my best sleep comes between 6 and 7:30.  That said, it is a scramble to get out of the house each morning and not be too late.  Thank goodness for flexibility.

It seems like we have been scrambling a lot lately.  B has had some out of town trips in the last several weekends and I took my trip to NYC to see JP.  Through in the fair, a Jack Hanna show, the last of softball, and Olympics watching it will be nice to relax for a weekend.  Except........B will be doing his first Zombie run this weekend.  Thankfully it is in Helena and we get to see my Great Aunt and Uncle that live near.

Recap:  My trip to NYC was a blast.  I practically hit the door running as soon as I got there.  Jenny left no room for rest and it was fantastic.  Time Square, Central Park, Staten Island Ferry (Statue of Liberty is under construction), 9/11 Memorial, Wall Street, a Coldplay concert in New Jersey, Coney Island, Sister Act on Broadway, a Yankees game, AND keeping up with the Olympics.  I have lost my acclimation to humidity so I really only complained about the heat.  The train system was fascinating and I would love to know the engineering behind it from way back when.  I truly wish I would have taken a pedometer to log our steps.  I don't know if I could ever change mindsets enough to be able to prepare for the whole day though.  I am so used to being 10 minutes from anywhere and being able to run home if we need something.  It was so nice to hang out with Jenny and get away for a while.  I think we decided Roomies Reunite 2013 might be a destination event.

Willa continues to crack us up everyday with the things she says and does.  It seems like we have finally conquered the world of potty training and it is just fantastic.  I am so thankful she is an articulate child though I am sure I may regret those words when she is a teenager.  One of her favorite things these days is helping out in the kitchen.  Whether we are baking (with me) or making dinner (with Dad) she is always game to be up on the counters helping out.  She knows her stuff too.  Preschool starts back up soon and we have been working days of the week.  Pretty much everything comes after Sunday in her world but she is starting to get it I think.

We are getting ready for another TDY and I am trying to come up with a way to help her countdown to the day he will be back.  We figure this one is going to be a little tougher since the last one she really picked up that Dad was gone somewhere else.  But her birthday is coming up soon and I think all three of us are pretty excited to plan it.

The DQ

In our house DQ doesn't just mean Dairy Queen but Drama Queen.  The little Chick has been turning on the charm lately and while we can't help but left we are worried of what is to come.  The most funny has been the "But I never get....." or the "It's not fair!"  Tonight at bedtime when I wanted to read something other than The Jungle Book I got the, "But...it's....my....fave...rite." all exasperated like.

Another funny was when I picked her up yesterday and she was waving goodbye to all the other kiddos.  "Bye friends, I am leaving."  Then we got in the car she told me, "Those are my friends, they are my girls!"

We have been working on days of the week and months lately.  She also knows her birthday is coming up and that she will be three.  She has been asking her when our birthdays are and is insistent that B's birthday can't also be in June because "That's Mom's."

B also got her to wear pants a few days in the last week.  Hopefully that means when the weather starts cooling off she won't be opposed to them.  Because nothing is cuter than little kid jeans and sweaters in the fall, right?

A Funny!

So I was at a firm meeting this week that was held in a hotel.  We were coming back from lunch when I heard the door from the hallway open and close.  NBD, right?  Well, then I watched and heard a little furry thing launch itself at the door. THUMP was an understatement!  There I am staring down a squirrel trying like crazy to escape the building.  What is one to do?  Find an audience apparently, because as soon as I said "OMG, there is a squirrel in here" heads started popping out of the room.  I slowly walked down the hall and watched as the little guy kept jumping up at the door and then worried he would turn on me.  He did not seem like the friendly, fat squirrel that Willa keeps in snacks at our house.  I was able to kind of launch myself at the door to get it open and send him scurrying on his way.

 In my own defense, I was mostly worried because I was wearing sandals and wanted to keep my toes. 

Surprises

This will probably be short since I am at work and should you know be working....

Whatevs.

So I was doing a little organizing/cleaning last night and discovered I have a second crockpot.  I vaguely remember going to Walmart one night and buying one and also scoring a sheet set for Willa's room but have no idea why.  The question now is, do I keep said smaller crockpot?

Humanity surprises me and not always in a good way. I saw a answer tree for if you should stay facebook friends with someone.  It resulted in a facebook friend list purge last night.  Frankly, I probably need a break from facebook, I lurk/stalk way more than I should.  I have been trying to cut back and to really think about what I am posting and who all is seeing it.   Which begs the question of who to keep on the friends list.  I mostly struggle with the people that lived on our floor at KSU.  While it is nice to be able to see what is going on in their life from time to time some of them are not people I was really close with then, let alone now.  All nice girls mind you, but there are very rarely any communication on fb, so do I keep or get rid of?  Sadly, stalker me is keeping some of them for a while because they are pregnant and I want to see when the cuteness arrives.  I am ok admitting that.  I know I could change my settings and allow for them to see less but I kind of think if I am going to be "friends" with someone then I should be ok sharing with them.

Anyway, my randoms for the morning.

Babe

Willa has typically been a kid that rotated through favorite toys and blankets.  We have mostly enjoyed that because I have heard horror stories of losing prized possessions and never wanted to go down that path.  The problem with this is you never know which favorite is the flavor of the week so you sometimes have to be prepared with multiple choices.  That was a slight issue when we went to Orlando.  Over time though some things have risen to the top.  There are two blankets she prefers, the "Heavy Hitter"; her Angel Dear Elephant toddler pillow, and "Babe" a 50 cent garage sale find that is rarely wearing clothes.

This is Babe:

Babe's rise to prominence was because her eyes open and close.  Because she rarely is dressed and gets dragged outside to play she has started to get dingy and one of hers eyes gets stuck occasionally.  We started to worry and I took to the Internet after consulting the tag on Babe's booty.  Vintage Uneeda dolls are quite collectible but this 2003 edition really wasn't anywhere.....until I found a lady that had one on iOffer.  She wanted $10 plus $7 for shipping.  I debated paying $17 for a Bonus Babe and just haven't been able to pull the trigger.  Thank goodness for my procrastination gene because I was perusing the FB yardsale page yesterday and some young teenage twins had 2.  2 for $4.  Eureka!  One hour later I was off to pick up the Bonus Babes and figure out how to get them in the truck without her seeing them. No need for her to know there were extras, right?  She knew they were dolls and asked to see them.  I handed her one of them and she says, "It's like my Babe."  Crap!  Then I handed her the diaper the girls threw in because theirs didn't have clothes either and she got excited.

When we got home I hid the Original Babe and one of the extras.  Then she realized there was pink highlighter on the one I handed her and wanted it cleaned, switcheroo again!  I haven't quite decided if we should give her the one that is not like the others, but for now we have an heir and a spare.

The Three Babes:

Whew...June flew by

It seems like we have had a lot going on in the month of June.  Not so much work related, just life stuff.  I went in for Allergy testing and part of me thinks it's not even blog worthy and part of me thinks it deserves its own post.  Mostly because I might be running out of my 9 lives if doctors don't start taking me seriously when I say "if there is a possible reaction, my body will have it."

We had our birthdays and the Parentals came to visit.  We also redid Willa's bathroom (which also probably deserves its own post).  My Mom and I volunteered for Bountiful Basket and B and I are both hooked, especially on the 9 grain bread.

We have already gone to a couple of Voyagers games and Willa continues to be in love with Orbit.

The Parentals "finally" went home. :)  I can say that and not be in trouble because the delay at the airport was ludicrous.

Relay for Life was this past Friday and all the teams really kicked it up.  Last year we raised $75,000 and this year's goal of $82,000 was smashed with $118,000 raised by Saturday morning.  This year the team was better prepared for the night and had a better system for walking.  For the most part, someone was walking at all times.  After finishing up at 7am, I got a few minutes to catch my breath and then headed back out to pick up another Bountiful Basket.  Then I finally got to get some sleep while B and Willa went fishing.

AND.........we bought a new CAR.  The Bumblebee is still around but I have finally upgraded to a 4-door vehicle.  Willa and I went into this purchase kicking and screaming but we are finally adjusting and we do like it.  I am still getting used to all the features but it is a nice car.

Those were the highlights of our activities.  I have always said that I would love the toddler stage of childhood because you can actually do things and I think I am on to something.  Despite the typical tantrums Willa does pretty good going places.  We sit at ballgames every week, can go shopping, sit at more ballgames, go fishing, and rock it at Relay for Life.  We have been pretty fortunate that she saves most of her outbursts for home.  Plus, if you bribe her with food she is pretty content to just hang out and people watch.  She comes by this trait honestly.

I think we are going to continue on this pace the rest of the summer and if so, its going to fly by.

Spaghetti Squash with Jalapeno Cream

Last week I purchased my Bountiful Basket and spaghetti squash was in it.  The rest of the basket was pretty good too, but this one was the only one we weren't sure what to do with.  My work spouse and her sister both tried this and loved it, so we decided to give it a whirl.  Verdict: 4.5 likes in this house.  Mom, Dad, and I really liked it.  B liked the taste but not the texture.  My friend's husband thought they were cheesy mashed potatoes and that would be a pretty apt description, but they were more like scalloped potatoes.

1 spaghetti squash
2 cups milk
2 to 3 jalapenos, stemmed, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons butter, plus more for pans
3 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded jack cheese

*We used jalapenos from a jar (about 3 tablespoons worth and that was plenty) and colby jack cheese.  Kassie said the next time she would use only 1 whole jalapeno, 2 was too many for her husband.  She also ate this for breakfast for two days, it was that good.

Preheat oven to 375F.  Cut squash in half lengthwise and use a spoon or melon baller to remove seeds and surrounding fiber.  Put squash, cut side down on a lightly buttered baking sheet and bake until tender when flesh is pierced with a fork, 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm milk and jalapenos until bubbles form along the edge of the pan.  Remove mixture from heat and let sit 15 minutes.  Strain and discard jalapenos.  (My dad added them back to the dish at the end).

When squash is cool enough to handle, use a large spoon to scrape the strands out of the skin and into a large bowl.

In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt 2 tbsp butter.  Whisk in flour and salt adn cook, whisking until flour smells cooked (like pie crust).  Slowly pour in jalapeno-infused milk while whisking.  Reduce heat to medium adn continue whisking until mixture thickens slightly.  Pour mixture over squash and stir to combine.  Transfer mixture to a buttered 2 quart baking dish.  Sprinkle with cheese and bake until bubbling and brown on top, 20-30 minutes.


The recipe came from www.myrecipes.com and was featured on the bountiful basket blog.

Coming Home

I was auditing out of town this week and arrived home this afternoon.  I was hoping the cleaning fairy would have made a stop while I was gone, but was pleasantly surprised to find that B had replaced the toilet in Willa's bathroom.  Glamorous, right?

We had made a stop at Home Depot before we went to see the Avengers last week and picked on out.  I had figured we would get to it when my parents were here in a few weeks, but he is checking stuff off the list.  No prob there.  He also did a tiling project in the kitchen which I wasn't expecting and now I want to do the whole wall, the tile is gorgeous.

I went to pick up Willa and I it seems in just 4 short days she has gotten more articulate and just cracks me up.  She told me all about their week on the way home.  We got home, and in an effort to slow down a little we didn't turn on the TV at all.  Just did puzzles, laundry and cleaned up the living room.  We had so much fun and as I was organizing she found some flashcards and her homemade ABC magnet game, so she was in heaven.

I also sold some things on the FB yard sale page today.  Nothing real exciting and not big dollars, but cents add up and things are going out.  But speaking of selling things....The Duck Hunter found a new home last week.  We bought the boat when I was pregnant with Willa and used it several times that summer, a few times the next, and not at all last year.  B decided it was time to part with it, and before he could change his mind, I listed it on FB.  We took the first offer thinking we wouldn't get any better and then of course had two more shortly after.  It went to a good home and we used the money to buy our Christmas flights home.  Plus, now the backyard looks even bigger without the boat in the corner.

The Farmer's Market starts tomorrow and I found a gal that is selling fresh eggs for $1.50 a dozen.  We have been trying to eat better and you can't beat fresh I say.  Crossing our fingers the weather stays nice over the weekend so we can get some yard work done.  Last weekends rain/snow storms really put a damper on the three day weekend.

A Purge of Sorts

It’s been a fairly productive few weeks in Operation Get Rid of Stuff. I went through all of Willa’s clothes and sorted the keep for Peeps and the give to Peeps piles, bought totes to store the keep stuff and am attempting to rearrange the storage shed. It was rather funny that I bought 4 totes thinking that would be enough, went back the next day for two more and am fairly certain that now that I have started on the toys we will need 4 more.


The best part was I actually took the 3 bags of clothes to the lady that needed them, returned the play pen to the gal that lent it to us, hauled stuff in for the Relay for Life Silent auction and made a call to see if an organization wanted our desktop computer that we no longer us. Check, check and check.

Since I was on a roll I asked another MK consultant in the office if she would like to have my roller bags for her product. I don’t keep much on hand anymore and it was over half empty and taking up space in the office closet. I typically am not this spontaneous so I figured I had better act while I was agreeable. We have some other stuff I wanted to post on the yard sale page on Facebook, but besides the boat, I am thinking I should just keep donating to get rid of it.

I already feel so much better and there are plenty more things cluttering up our life that could go to new homes. I was organizing Willa’s toys and after thinking on it for while realized she really only plays with her dress up clothes, her babies, puzzles, and her art supplies. There are few other things she plays with randomly but it is very rare for her to get into her “ginormous” toy box to get anything out. I also realized she only has 2 toys that make noise and require batteries. Her laptop and her “cell phone” thing. She has a really good imagination and I don’t think is drawn to that stuff besides her DVD player which we have been trying to cut back on.

There were even some things that I had bought her that she has never played with and despite my attachment to them I put them in a tote. I think what is helping with some things is that I know that if we need them, I can get them back out. The stuff that has gone out the door makes me happy because I know they are going where they will be used. Since I worked at the thrift store, I know some stuff that gets donated doesn’t always make it out to the floor or can take awhile to get there. Going to a specific person, it’s like instant gratification. It would be nice to sell some of it, but time is money and sometimes a bigger headache. I think balance is finally starting to come.

The Parentals are coming soon and I am trying to figure out which projects are going to take priority this time, I am even going to take some days off to enjoy and hopefully be productive. I also think a goal will be to find a project for all the fabric I have and potentially get it all cut. I started piecing some things and cut up a bunch of Willa’s clothes for a blanket, but then going through her clothes last week I added several more pieces so I need to cut again.

Staying motivated….

It's Shaping Up.....

To be a busy summer already.  Willa has not lost her enthusiasm for "baseball" and we have gone every week to watch B play.  She has really gotten into it, including yelling at the catcher, "You gotta catch that!" after he dropped an easy pop up.  I truly didn't know whether to high five her or crawl in a whole in case the poor guy heard.  Especially since he is on our team.  Luckily, the rest of the team thought it was hilarious.

Being the troopers we are, we even endured the rain tonight and at the mere mention of those horrid Jayhawks by a teammate, she promptly yelled "Go Wildcats!"  I had my first heart palpitation moment when a foul ball came over the back stop.  We had been sitting in the dugout but Willa was playing in puddles by the bleachers.  Foul ball goes up and in my fastest moments as of late swooped her out of harms way when the ball bounced about 10 feet away.  I then had to shag the ball.  Fun times.

It's crazy how light it stays late into the evening this time of year.  It has really caused a backtrack in our bedtime routine because she doesn't believe it is time for bed even though it's 9 o'clock.  We have a new sprinkler and she just thinks it is grand to run up and hit at it.  I think she is crazy because I hate cold water but B is convinced she is going to be a fish like him.

The hunt for the Bumblebee's replacement is semi-underway....but I am having a hard time letting go and deciding what I want next.  B was being very patient on the search but he has now thrown in the towel and left me on my own.  It is so much to ask that I would like to continue only having to fill up with gas once a month?  I think not.  I am convinced that I will know when I see it (and see the MPG's).

I scored my very own Perry the Platypus shirt this week because I was tired of hearing that "You don't have a Perry shirt, I do.  Dad has one."  Quite honestly, it is cooler and softer than theirs. :p  She still has yet to wear hers, but as I have a new method to getting her dressed in the morning she is only down to the 2 Perry shirts and her Sebastian shirt to choose from and since she can't go to school topless, I will win.

May's Mayhem begins

Several funny stories I think this week.  A few from the daycare.

One of the babies was crying at school and Willa went over and told the baby, "It's OK baby,mom just went to work, she will be back.  Don't worry."  Apparently some kids have to be reassured and Willa has heard the line several times.

Willa has one freckle on her entire body and it is on her hip bone.  She asks us at home all the time if we have freckles.  I guess a discussion at school started and everyone wanted to see her freckle.  Miss Mandy didn't know what to think when Willa was wanting to show off her freckle which has been dubbed the secret freckle.

I put over 600 miles on my car this week commuting back and forth for a bank exam, proving to myself that we will never live very far from where we work.  I was exhausted by day three and so happy to be back in the office on Friday.  I learned a lot from the guys in Missoula so it wasn't a complete failure, but poor them, they had to hand hold me all week doing some of the procedures.

I met up with a friend from UGF on Sunday.  She has a new longarm quilting machine and offered to quilt the tumbler quilt I pieced.  I ended up piecing the back panel twice because I didn't do the first one big enough.  Luckily, I love the piece so much I don't think I will have a hard time using it up.

On Thursday I told Willa that we were going to the office, then school, then Dad would pick her up and then we would go watch baseball.  She was so excited and chatted on with one of the shareholders at the office.  She was way to chatty for being at the office at 7 am in my opinion (we hate mornings).  When I pulled into the daycare parking lot she started crying.  At first I thought it was because she saw a white truck leaving and thought it was Ms. Mandy's, then I realized she just wanted to go watch baseball.  After some iffyness at the field later that night, B finally played a game and we got to see one full rainbow and a little half rainbow.  Throw in B going to the midnight showing of the Avengers and it was a busy day.

I am working in town next week so hopefully I will get to do some crafty things.

Weekned Wrap

B arrived home only to find the anxiously awaiting Chickie fast asleep in her bean bag.  She had been waiting at the door and then laid down and was out.  I woke her back up and she was in such a daze she wanted nothing to do with anybody.  She finally realized what was going on and perked right up chit chatting about him going on a plane.

We spent Sunday morning cleaning up the yard and raking the leaves around the lily bed.  I have no idea what to do with them but I am pretty sure they need some TLC.  They are blooming but might need some dirt.  I then got to spend the afternoon with an old friend from UGF, catching up and checking out her awesome sewing room.  She is going to quilt the tumbler quilt for me.  It made want to come home and craft.  So I made Willa a Perry the Platypus pillowcase and like the shirts she doesn't want anything to do with them.  Even more sad is the fact that it is probably the best pillowcase I have made so far.  It fit the pillow just right.

I am a little worn out this weekend and will probably stay tired since I will be driving back and forth from Stanford for a few days.  I get to work with some peeps from the Missoula crew so it should be a pretty good week.

More Randoms

So Willa scared the Bejeezus out of the director at daycare the other day.  She went down the slide and then was crying at the bottom.  They ran over and asked her what was and she was crying, "I broke my leg, I broke my leg."  The start checking her out only to realize she ripped a whole in her leggings.  She is pretty ticked about it too, because she likes to match and the dress and leggings were a set. *

Like her Aunt Rue, she has a tendency to get bloody noses if she bonks it.  A block tower fell on her today and her teacher said she wasn't even phased by it and the blood stopped quickly.  She actually even told the teacher to "shake it off."

Her and I had to go get more feeder fish for the turtle the other day and she bee-lined it for the snake tanks.  Again she protested that we NEED a snake, that he was hungry.  Needless to say, she still only has a turtle.

On the way to drop her off this morning she told me that she would go to work and I should go to school.  I was tempted to take her up on the offer.

Operation Wear the Platypus Shirt is still underway.  She will hold it up and GRRR like Perry but does not want to wear it.

Solo parenting is almost over!!!!




*No Mimi and Aunt Rue, she does not need you to buy a replacement

Randoms

On the snow day, I let the dogs back in and she told them they were cold and wet.  She went and got towels to wrap them in.

Now instead of just "Thanks" I get "Thank you, thank you so much."  I also got a "Don't worry, I got it." after I dropped something in the kitchen.

After finding $20 in a jacket pocket, I dropped a large glass pitcher in Shopko shattering it and cutting my fingers.

I learned you can't sit your strawberries next to your bananas.  Mold results.

I sang karaoke several times and was NOT the worst one.  & had a good time.

I went to a movie by myself for the 3rd time and this time it was not an action hero movie.  BTW, while the Hunger Games movie lacked depth of relationships it made up for in eye candy.  Blimey.  Add in Lenny Kravitz (who rocked), Woody Harrelson (made for the part) and Donald Sutherland (was not expecting him at all) and I enjoyed my afternoon.

Willa has quite the opinion on her wardrobe and honestly it exasperates me in the morning because it takes forever for her to decide what to wear and I only give her 2 choices.

We bought her some Perry the Platypus shirts and they arrived the other day.  I can't get her to wear them.  B suggested I put on his shirt to see if she would like to match.  I did that this morning and she laughed for a while and then in her stern voice told me, "That's Dad's, take it off!"

Under the Big Top

As the first day of solo parenting was underway, I decided Willa and I would go to the Shrine Circus.  We tried going last year and she lasted a whole 20 minutes into the show.  My office sponsored the circus so we had free tickets and I figured well if she doesn't last at least we aren't buying tickets.  I talked it up all morning and she was excited to go until it was time to get dressed.  Then a meltdown ensued.  But we made it out the door and to the show in time to grab a popcorn.  She also chatted with the clowns on our way in.

I wasn't thinking properly as I was searching for seats, as I just wanted to have some space.  Going to the 11 o'clock show was a good idea since there wasn't too many people, but I picked a seat farthest from the restrooms.  Add into the fact they have a big "sink" like the one the found in the PV Ag shop and the child had to take multiple trips.  The intermission was a pain because they bring out the ponies and elephants for rides.  I bribed Willa with cotton candy and we stayed in our seats.  She started to get antsy during the second half I was sure we would be leaving.  Luckily the elephants finally came back out and the show was over.  We headed to the car and were half way there when I realized we had dropped her coat.  Thankfully, it was right where we were sitting.

We made a quick stop at the dollar tree to pick up the kid some more puzzles and a bin for all her chalk and bubbles.   The girl is flying the puzzles and we can't keep up.  I am going to ration out the 5 we bought yesterday in hopes it will slow down the boredom.

Her recent new phrases....."I don't understand what you saying."  Usually when we say something she doesn't want to hear.  "I love Orbit, he's so cute!"  "I love baseball."  & "Perry the PLATYPUS!"  She has been on a Phineas and Ferb kick.

I don't think many people at the office had to work this weekend.  I spent most of Wednesday, Thursday and Friday begging for things to do.  I did most of the extensions we are filing and updating our access file.  It's been such a mellow tax season that we can hardly believe it.

Our tax party is on Thursday and I got my babysitter all lined out.  Friday is our day off and other than going to watch The Hunger Games, I am not sure what I am going to do.

Pretty Dresses

Whoever bet that our dinosaur, dragon, snake, and alligator-loving little girl would make a compete 180 flip to wearing "pretty dresses" everyday is a winner.  I have been transitioning some of her clothes for the summer and for size and looked at her jeans/pants drawer and thought wow, we have this covered.  Famous last words, right?  Thankfully, she got three new dresses in the mail the other day so now she has 5.

Fortunately, my co-workers daughters (she has four thus far, she is an expert) coached me that I needed to invest in some leggings as they are far superior than tights.   As I rarely wear a dress or skirt this has turned into some of the best advise ever received.  B even joked that Willa has worn more dresses in the last week than I have in a year.  I counted and he was correct.

We have been in the "terrible two's" for a little while now, but a change up in the nighttime routine and curbed some of those battles.  Except last night when she went for round 2 and round 3, each time making me think it was safe to go to bed.

A few weeks ago I watched a webinar from Positive Parenting about No-yelling parenting.  It has changed me, for the better!  Some things I already knew, but some of the tips and tricks she gave are so helpful and have worked.  I am not perfect by any means, but she said the goal is to have to think hard about the last time you had to raise your voice.  I have slipped, because man she can flip a switch faster than we can blink sometimes.  We have gotten so much better at recognizing her testing points and trying to avoid them and like most Moylan's I know if she is tired or hungry, she is going to be a grouch.  Fair enough, at least I am prepared.

I promised not to talk about this subject but I am hoping if I mention it, there will be an improvement.  Potty training is about 80-20 right now, her call depending on the day.  She doesn't want to miss anything (um, wonder where she gets that), so we never know how the day is going to go.  But if we are out and about, she does pretty good.  So we know its a "choice" on her part some days and that part is hard to swallow, because she is very smart and we know she can do it.  I know this is pretty typical, but man it's kind of a pain.

& why must pull ups have characters on them and why can't a bag have only one design in a bag?  Because apparently there is a hierarchy over which to wear.  Luckily she only wears them at nap and night, but if she can't find the one she wants she gets a little ticked.  If they could just be plain.....

12 more days until the end of the tax filing season.  I counted, I have done 43 returns and 3 personal.  Seems strange.

Butterscotch Krunchies-Easter Style

One of the Christmas candies my family makes is the Butterscotch Krunchies.  I was perusing Pinterest one day and saw these cute little chocolate bird's nests candies with whopper eggs in them and thought I could do that with our Krunchies.  I have no idea where the actual receipe came from, we have been making them for so many years we just make them from memory.

1 pkg. Buttercotch chips
1 large (or 2 small) container La Choy chow mein noodles (the crunchy ones, not the ones to be cooked, trust me)
6 squares almond bark
1 carton Whopper mini eggs

For the Christmas candy variety you would use one can of spanish peanuts and mix that in to the melted mixture.

Melt the butterscotch and almond bark in the microwave stirring after each minute until melted.  Mix in the chow mein.  Spoon tablespoons sized nests onto tin foil and press 3 eggs into the middle. I made this a little bit too big, but it should make around 2 dozen. Let set and enjoy!

Boring week

Not much happening in the Moylan household as of late.  We have passed the halfway mark of B's night shift stint and March 15th was the 2nd tax deadline at the office.  All my corporations were extended despite have 2 of the 4 done.  I have one individual and one corp left in my office, so I mostly get to spend the week finishing up some audits.  I was supposed to be out of the office this week, but a tragedy struck in a co-workers family and she had to go out of town. It was a rough week for friends in family, and there is nothing else that can quite put things back into perspective for you.

I took Willa and a buddy to a birthday party on Saturday and they were quite hilarious on the ride there.  We really don't do too many playdates so it was nice to see some little kid interaction.  I was exhausted by the end of the party though as I am not used to having to keep track of two children.  They had so much and afterwards we hit up the St. Patty's Day parade.  Willa got to hang out with some more friends and eat some candy.  We were both ready for a nap by the time we got home.

She has had some great phrases lately.  One should not break any traffic laws with her in the car.  She is the stoplight police, running through them quickly as soon as we get in the car.  Red stop, 'ellow slow down, green means go!  There are several Phineas & Ferb quotes as well, especially "Where's Perry?"  "You're my best friend" and "You're not invited to my tea party." are the most frequent things we hear everyday.

One of my best Black Friday purchases thus far is finally being used.  I bought a Dr. Seuss matching memory game.  She has fun every night finding matches.  They are picture side up, but her favorites are the grinch, max & green eggs & ham.

Top O the week to you all.

Washing & Drying

I believe I have discussed my penchant for doing laundry.  Since it's the only thing I am good at, I try to do it well.  After we got married and were moving into base housing, B had a friend that was PCSing (or maybe divorcing, I am not sure), but we purchased his washer and dryer.  For the last 7 1/2 years they have worked like champs.  Probably 6 months ago it seemed like the drying was starting to die.  I have been babying it a little, but in the last few weeks more often than not I have had to "touch up" every load.  Annoying, no?

Brandon checked out some sale deals on Saturday while I was at the office.  Based on the texted photos, I thought he and Willa were going to come home with a John Deere.  I knew I didn't want front loads, but the non-agitator top loads seemed pretty cool.  Now, not only do we have smart phones we have smart appliances.  Both have sensors for how big the load is and how wet the clothes are.  They are pretty nifty and there is even a light in the dryer.  That means I don't have to turn the overhead light on in the laundry room.  Saving even more energy right?  The best part though was moving out the old.  Over $10 in change came out of the bottom of the dryer.  Willa was in heaven.  She was jumping for joy to feed her piggy.

It was beautiful out today so we took the opportunity to clean out the garage.  We trashed a ton of trash and have a little pile to donate (to go with the pile of stuff in the house).  We even took a little time to play some catch and play a little t-ball.  It is hard to believe the s-storms have been so mild this year and the weather is so nice in March.  B took Willa to feed the ducks and play at the park while I was working on Saturday and before we bought the washer/dryer we went to two more parks.  Now that she is such a little person and can climb and do things herself, I think we will be checking out several parks in town. 

The decluttering journey continues and I keep finding motivation in some neat blogs.  Is anybody else spring cleaning?

Baby Quilt #1

There was a new baby born in the Moylan family and we had to wait until he was here to find out who he would be.  Willa and I moseyed on up to Joann's and found these cute fabrics that despite being apart of the same line were not grouped together.  So I felt pretty pleased with my self that I put them together despite the challenge.

I skipped the Accu-quilt this time because I knew I wanted bigger squares than what I had, so I used the rotary cutter to cut 8 1/2 inch squares.  My parents were here and taking advantage of free child care I set the machine up at the kitchen table and pieced it together.  After Willa went to bed, my mom helped iron and pin it the batting.  She then helped me quilt it.  I had stitched the ditch on a previous quilt, but saw some where they stitch outside the ditch so I did just that about 1/4 inch on either side of the seams.  I used the plaid fabric to cut the binding and it was done.  Pretty neat to finish the entire thing in one night. 

I took advantage of some coupons and got a yard of each of the fabrics, which was about 1/2 too much on the one with the animals.

Chicken Tortellini

My mom thinks I need more food posts.

One of my friends from Bunco made this dish and I wrangled the recipe from her.  However, I didn't have everything she had so now I just make it on the fly with whatever I have.

Make tortellini according to package (I like the 3-cheese or the spinach ones)
A little olive oil
Chicken Breasts
Canned mushrooms (she used fresh)
Roasted red pepper (she had her home grown, frozen sun-dried tomatoes)
zucchini
onion
garlic
Jar of Alfredo sauce

Dice up the chicken and cook in a little olive oil in a skillet.  Remove chicken, add a little more oil and cook zucchini, onion and garlic.  Add back chicken and include peppers and mushrooms.  Add in about half-three-quarters a jar of the Alfredo and let simmer.

Top tortellini with sauce and Enjoy!

This could be made with any veggies on hand, but these are the ones I enjoy.  I feel like such a good veggie eater when I make this and there is always enough for lunch the next day because B is not a fan of any pasta dish that is not spaghetti.

The Ick

I have never seen a sickness hit so fast I don't think.  I dropped Willa off at daycare at 8:00 last Thursday and headed out to a clients.  I was getting all situated, greeting my boss that made an appearance that and at 8:30 got the call that she was ill.  Ill she was, all day.  Brandon came home so that I could go back to work, but he was also ill.

I went back to work on Friday and worked a little on Saturday to get ready for my trip on Monday.  Sunday night after dinner I learned you can feel fine before dinner and like you are going to die after dinner.  Luckily it seems the dieing part only lasts about 12 hours so I left town Monday morning.  We stayed in a really cool restored house of the clients, which any other time would be pretty awesome.  Except when you are sick and would like a little more privacy than shared living space with your co-workers.

Willa and Brandon seemed to bounce back pretty quickly, whereas I have had a lingering headache and have been pretty exhausted.  The JCCS kids at daycare did a fine job of keeping it amongst themselves, so I guess there is that.

B had guard drill today so that meant if I wanted to get anything done Willa had to go to work with me.  I figured if she could hang out until 11 I could get a few things done.  She lasted until 11:20 so I treated her to some McDonald's.  I think we are going to have to go back tomorrow, there is plenty I need to get done in the early half of this week.  Darn sickness slowed me down.

I hope everyone else is staying well, because it sucks!

More Decluttering

So I am hoping if I keep talking about it I will stay motivated to getting our house to be a place we love and just the right amount of stuff.

A problem I am running into is what to do with the stuff I am ready to get rid of.  Some we could probably sale and wouldn't be helpful to a thrift store, but is it worth the time.  Some stuff I just keep moving around in boxes until I decide, but I think I would feel so much better if it was just gone.

I have even taken to decluttering my desktop, favorites, e-mail folders and blogs I follow.  I am hoping it will help me to stop procrastinating and getting things done.  If they are not easy access I probably won't go searching for them again.

Anybody else going through this?

Minimalist-ish

So I know we could never be people that could only live with 50 or 100 or probably even 500 things, but one thing I can say for certain is we have way to many things in our house.  We have sorta decent storage and in some areas we just need better organization, but I do feel overwhelmed by our things fairly often.

Maybe one of the wisest things I have ever done was get a house cleaner to come in every other week.  Ironically, I had to clean the house before she came to give me a bid because the state of things depended on a lower price.  If I am anything, it would be frugal.  She did a deep clean the first time and we have been doing our best to keep things tidy.  Starting January 1, I have been making a conscious effort to make our beds, even if Willa and I are running late.  Not having to do the "yucky" things like floors and bathrooms has allowed me to concentrate more on purging and organizing.

Brandon and I have both gone through our clothes and purged (me twice!) and I have condensed my book collection.  We have been going through the kitchen as well and downsized the amount of plates and cups we have in easy reach and put a few sets away.  We do dishes and laundry (these are our high points) that we don't need as many things.  Some of Willa's stuff has just gone to storage, but it's at least not under foot.  I have purged some of my crafting supplies and fabric.  One load off to St. Vincents and another to the Children's Receiving Home.  The more I have gone through, the more I realize we don't need or use as much stuff has we have.  Some areas, like our bathroom drawers, just needed all the trash cleaned out.  I truly started there doing a drawer or cabinet a night.

My frugal self has also taken to wrapping diaper boxes in brown postal paper to hold things in closets.  I think they are pretty fantastic and sturdy.  They are perfect for yarn, hats, craft supplies, etc. We still have stockpile of stuff from couponing but at least now I have things arranged so I can see what we have and what we will need soon.  Anybody else think guys must secretly eat deodorant?

I feel like we still have a little ways to go and I am trying to be more "decorative" too to make things more use around here.

Sleeplessness

I had this wonderful post all planned out about how I have been decluttering and organizing the house, but for the last several nights we have been battling a small person.  What happened to our little girl that went happily to bed each night? Can she fight?  At least two rounds, it seems like she gives it enough time for us to think she is going sleep and then she gets a second wind.  It leaves me exhausted.  We know she is tired and that she loses control, but no matter what we try to head it off each night, she just fights it. AGGHHHH!

I can deal with most of her stalling, kicking, but its the screaming that sets my teeth on edge.  I am just lost.

Crayon Melts

I have been having issues with Blogger, I am sure this post will be lovely.  But I am giving up and posting as is. 

Last summer Willa and I scored a cookie tin full of crayons at a garage sale for 50 cents. She uses them all the time so we are forever picking them up at the end of the day. Mimi this week was tired of picking up broken crayons so immediately I began Operation Melt Crayons. The hardest part was taking them all out of their wrappers. I have the coolest silicon shapes so we used those instead of the muffin tins. Set the oven at 250 and wait patiently for 15 minutes. It took about 15 more minutes for them to cool. We were pretty impressed but Willa wasn't willing to share with Mimi so that she could take some home with her.

Quilt Number 2-Bricks

I started this quilt when B was TDY.  I really like black and white effects and so that is how I chose my Fat Quarters.  I could have done a little better in that department.  I scored the backing on a red tag sale and the binding was inherited from my aunt.  The binding strips were cut with my new Accu Quilt 2 1/2 inch strip cutter!  I am in love.  I followed the Snuggly Bricks tutorial, it was very easy to follow and I loved the diagrams. I had enough fabric left to make half sized bricks to add three rows to the back.  As you can see this is child-sized and Willa approved.  I am calling it my couch quilt unless I decide to donate it to the Children's Museum's silent auction coming up.  Not sure if I am brave enough to let my work go out into the world.  Next up is either a tumbler quilt or a Sudoku one.  I already cut my squares for that one.  (Again Accu Quilt Cutter).

Funnies

Willa has been getting up in the morning and coming into our room.  The other morning though my alarm was going off and she refused to open the door and come in.  I got up to get her and she says, "Mom, there's a scary noise!" Just the alarm I tell her and go to feed the dogs.  She climbs into bed waiting for me to turn on Sprout.  A few minutes later I hear her yelling help, help, mom help me as she tries to figure out how to turn off my cell phone alarm that I set for back up.  Apparently that one is not scary.

We had a learning moment (for me) later in the week.  I brought in all her clothes and she tell me "No, I do it myself." Fine then, but hurry up we have to go.  She get her socks and pants on and sits to watch whatever was on Sprout.  Hurry up Willa! "No, I do it myself."  It dawned on me at that moment that she is my child.  If my mom told me to hurry up, I went slower.  So I chilled, folded some clothes, offered some help.  Got my coat on, hat, and finally she asked me to zip up her coat.  She was ready to go.  Now I am going to bring her clothes in as soon as she comes in so maybe she will be ready when it's time to head out the door.

Willa and Brandon also continue to be far superior in the song recognition department.  This time the song only played two notes when she piped up from the back seat and said, "It's the dog song Mom."  A few more bars in (maybe a lyric too) I congratulated her on a job well done.  Not sure how she knows.  It must be her mad YouTube skills she has developed.

Her fondness for cash is starting to get comical.  She loves feeding her piggy and change doesn't sit around long at our house.  A while ago B discovered about 10 dollars in ones in his bag.  I straightened them all out and left them sitting on the couch.  B went to take a shower and a few minutes later I heard squeals of delight and a rush to grab her piggy bank.  By the times he got out of the shower, Willa had refolded and deposited all 10 dollars into her bank.  I handed her some change when I was doing laundry and she informed me, "I need dollar Mom."  I didn't think I had any but we looked in my purse.  Lo and behold, there were three ones.  Before I could even hand her one, she squealed THREE!  We may have created a monster.  On the plus side, she is building a nice little nest egg.

She was playing dress up and brought out some dresses to the living room  B asked her if one was for Mom and she replied, "No, Mom too big.  Not fit."  Yeah, not much you can say to that, though B about peed himself.

Photo Card

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Oreo Truffles

This recipe comes from my co-worker Kim.  She tempts me every couple of weeks when she brings in goodies for the office.  I usually partake because they look better than my breakfast.  These put my cake balls/pops to shame.  Even B couldn't resist.

1 package of Oreos
1 package of softened cream cheese
Chocolate Chips & Almond bark
Sprinkles, optional

Crush the oreos in a food processor and then mix in cream cheese. Chill for a few hours or overnight.  Use a teaspoon to roll into balls.  Melt chocolate and almond bark (only need about half a package chips and 3 squares of almond bark.  I dipped the balls and dropped them into mini cupcake liners and sprinkled the sprinkles.  They looked pretty.  Should make about 4 dozen.

Weary travelers.

We have had a great couple of weeks.  Christmas was really nice.  Each of us got things we needed, wanted, and some fun extras as well.  It was nice to have some quiet days before we headed off to Florida to get "Uncle KJ" married.

Willa and I embarked on our longest flights yet and B got see how we travel for once.  It's always stressful to fly because you never know what toy, object, or thing she might want.  Ironically, she slept and played so well she barely needed anything.

We arrived in Orlando in the middle of the afternoon and after some slight debacles getting the car and checking into a hotel that was habitable we trekked off to Sea World.  Much to our delight they allow military members and family to enter the park for free!  We checked out the shark exhibit and the "One World" Shamu show before it got too dark to navigate.  It was extremely crowded.  It was a relief that we didn't pay full price for the short time we were there, but we were sad we didn't get to see more.

It was off to Universal Studios the next morning for the sole intent of seeing the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  Unfortunately for us we were unaware of the fact you needed a return time ticket to get into that part of the park and we dwaddled in Dr. Seuss land for a while.  Willa was very happy to procure a Grinch doll there, but not a fan of riding the carousel.  At 10:00 we had tickets to get back in at 1:40!  Luckily we hit the stand by line at the right time and 45 minutes later entered to find the Hogwarts Express.  Sadly, we were there on the busiest day that week.  B put on his happy face and we stood in line for Butterbeer.  Delish!  It was so hard to move around and besides the roller coasters you can go into the shops.  Lines to get into each of those.  We got into Honeydukes and Zonkos, but were not willing to stand in line for anything else.  We found a little wagon to buy some souvenirs and Willa promptly fell asleep.  As we were walking out of the park we discovered another gift shop that had much of what the gift shop we skipped had in it. Score!  We grabbed some lunch before leaving the Studios and then it was off to Palm Coast.

The next few days were very interesting but needless to say they got hitched after only a few dramatic events.  One New Years Eve we went to St. Augustine so we could go to the Alligator Farm the following day.  It was the greatest success.  Not very many people, Willa could walk around and look and of course all the alligators!  Sharks, dinosaurs, alligators, and snakes might be her favorite things, but if an ant starts crawling on her the world is ending.  Which is exactly what happened during the alligator feeding show.  DRAMA!  We did get to hold a little gator and feed some as well.  She kept saying, "Whoa, that's a big one!"  It was off to the beach before lunch and despite being a really nice day the ocean was still cold.  We got our feet wet, collected some shells and then it was off to eat some gator.  It does not taste like chicken but it was pretty tasty. 

We headed back to Montana the next day and were so glad to be home.  In what turned out to be a blessing, our daycare was also closed on Tuesday so Willa and I got an extra day to unwind, readjust to the time zone and unpack.

It was so nice to take a vacation and do some touristy things, but now I just want to back to the Wizarding World and see all things we missed.