The Kids Are Gone, The Kids are Gone!

Ok, maybe I'm little too excited but the boys have gone on a sleepover (a multiple day sleepover) to Papa and Nana's house.  They haven't been gone for a few days since just before Thanksgiving so I'm ready for a break.  Don't get me wrong, the older they get the more I miss them when they are gone but, lets get real, a 4 and 5 year old are pretty demanding AND extremely active. 

As is normally the case, I like to plan some things while the kids are gone and this is no exception!

1) Friday -(by the time you read this - these things should be done!)  the kids leave on Friday afternoon.  I have one goal for the afternoon and that is to get the Christmas decor down outside.  I probably would have done it earlier but I didn't want helpers.  I know, I know, that is terrible ;-)  But, I can take it all down in about 15 minutes by myself but with helpers it takes about 2 hours PLUS they would want to play in the snow when we were done.    Once the extra kids leave, my husband and I are heading out for the evening on a date (my gift to him -a date a month!) We are going out to dinner and to see a movie (I think!).  We may go to the bookstore too depending on time.

2) Saturday (Today!) - Ready, I'm going to sleep in ;-)  Ahhhhhhh!!!!  Then I'm going to scrapbook.  That's right.  Scrapbook.  We have a wedding to go to late afternoon/evening but until it is time to get ready I can actually get some things accomplished.

3) Sunday - Ready?  I'm going to watch football and scrapbook :-)  I'm so excited to get to do some of my hobbies!

4) Monday - Unbeknownst to me when I planned this time without the kids, the extra kids won't be here today!  So, Darryl's gift to me is giving me one day out by myself each month.  Today is my day.  I'm going to take Darryl to work, come home and go back to bed for awhile before heading into town for the day to window shop, do some returns and then meet my husband for dinner before we head home. 

5) Tuesday - Ok, today I need to get something done.  That is really putting away the Christmas Decor.  When we undecorated, I threw everything into bins but not neatly and it is all piled downstairs.  I'm going to get everything in the right bin and pick up the basement.  It shouldn't take more than about an hour or so.

6) Wednesday and Thursday - Depends on when the boys come home.  Not anything major planned.  :-)

Lets see how much scrapbooking I can get done this weekend!

Food Friday - Tenderloin Sandwiches

Tenderloin Sandwiches
adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Okey, this is the beef that was used for our Sandwiches - I guess I never got a photo of an actual Sandwich!  This was another one of our appetizers for Christmas Eve and they were so good.  I learned something . . .I went to the store and asked if they had any Beef Tenderloin (thinking it would look like a pork tenderloin) well, thankfully the meat guy was very nice and showed me where one was and then said, most people refer to it as a Filet or Filet Mignon.  OHHHHH So that is why it was $5000 for that roast (ok not quite but you get the idea HA).  I ended up picking a different cut of beef that was much less expensive; next time I would buy a sirloin, though, so it would be more tender.  I served the Hawaiian Rolls with these to use as buns and we had Honey DIjon Mustard, little corn cobs (like you see in Chinese food) and block olives as topping.  Next time I would make a good coleslaw to use as the topping instead.

Ingredients

2 whole beef tenderloins, trimmed (trimmed weight 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 pounds)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup crushed tri-colored peppercorns
Dinner rolls, for serving
Grainy brown mustard, for serving
Horseradish sauce, for serving

Directions

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

Brush the tenderloins with the olive oil and then roll in the crushed peppercorns. Place the meat on a roasting pan and roast for 20 to 25 minutes. Let rest for at least 5 minutes before thinly slicing.

Serve with dinner rolls, grainy mustard and horseradish sauce.

 

Weekly Menu

We ate good food last week.  Even though Darryl ate Sliced Turkey Breast on top of Spaghetti Noodles w/ Olive Oil and mixed vegetables about 4 times this week the rest of us ate good LOL  Oh well, they can't all be winners.  He didn't want to eat the Chili because  Chili powdered messes with his gut so that meant he didn't eat Taco's either.  Then he was supposed to go to his sisters on Saturday but due to a not great forecast, he came home . . .and he can't eat pizza which is what I was cooking.  That Turkey breast was a life saver for him!

So this week is a little different because the kids are going on a sleep over to papa and nana's house.  I tend to take it "easy" when the kids are gone - it's my break too so not cooking is HIGH on my list!  Don't get me wrong, I actually enjoy cooking but I probably spend the equivalent of 3-4 hours in the kitchen every day between cooking meals, getting snacks and washing dishes.  When I can get a break from that I do!

Friday - The kids leave today.  This is our date night so we are heading into town to go out to dinner.  At the writing of this, we are going to PF Changs.  We have never been there but love Chinese food.  I'm so excited to just go out to dinner!!

Saturday - Today we have a wedding so we'll be eating at the reception.  I hope the food is good :-)

Sunday - I will probably go out and get something - we know what things Darryl can eat now (Like Subway) and will take advantage of that.  I think that some eggs, toast, and bacon sounds good for brunch.

Monday - I didn't realize that I wouldn't be babysitting today due to the kids parents not having to work.  Soooo . . .I'm heading to town for my day out!!!  Whoo Whoo!  I'll have to take Darryl to work but then I can come home, go back to bed, sleep in, get up and head into town to wonder Hobby Lobby, Wonder through the Mall, get lunch, do some returns, and pick up Darryl from work and go to dinner.

Tuesday-Thursday:  I'm not even planning these days right now.  My kids are coming home Wednesday or Thursday so we'll play it by ear.  I think I will pick up some good bread at Panara while I'm out on Monday and just have stuff for Panini's for dinner on Tuesday . .. and maybe Wednesday.  I'm thinking I might throw one of the Turkey's I have in the freezer in the oven on Thursday that way we'll have lots of meat to use for dishes next week!

That's it for this week :-) 

What I'm Reading

The main reason I'm doing this post on Wednesdays is to coincide with the Book Study over at The Living Women Well Blog.  I plan on sharing what I learned through that book study over the past week but also give an update on any other books I'm reading off of the Book List.

Women Living Well - Chapter 1
This first chapter deals with the basic concept of getting back into the word.  I've always been a strong starter when it comes to daily devotions and prayer but then life gets in the way.  One of the questions asked in the study was what is your biggest obstacle to getting into the word and, mine, quite honestly, is laziness.  I hate getting out of bed in the morning so I don't get up 15 minutes earlier; then I say I will do my "quiet time" (is there really quite time in a house with kids?) while I eat breakfast . . .but I tend to want to play on the computer instead.  I'm working on that!  Two things I've committed to do this week is to 1)Display my weekly memory verse in the kitchen since I spend 3/4's of my life in there anyway and 2)Put my prayer list in the shower - I have 15 minutes every morning where I can pray. . .without interruption!  I'm looking forward to reading chapters 2 and 3 throughout the rest of this week.


"7"
This book is a little different then I expected just because it is actually a blog that was printed into a book.  The first chapter was on food.  The author took a challenge to eat only 7 foods for one month.  While I respect the fact that she only ate those 7 foods throughout the entire month (which meant no seasonings except Salt and Pepper and only water to drink) it is not something I feel  any need to do.  Maybe if I was single or if it was just Darryl and I . .. no, not even then ;-)  Instead, I did feel challenge to give up something for a certain time frame.  I'm going to give it more thought and decide if that is something I really feel like doing.

Chapter 2 focused on clothes.  The author picked out 7 items and wore them for an entire month.  Ok, I'm not doing that HA!  In reality, my little family doesn't have tons of clothes.  I personally have very few but what I'm still hanging on to is lots of shoes so I plan on cleaning those out and just keeping what I wear.

Chapter 3 is one I really like because it focuses on our THINGS!  This is where "simplify" comes into play.  She, at first, challenged herself to get rid of 7 things a day but after her clothing experiment in Chapter 2, she cleaned out her closet on the first day and cleaned out over 200 things.  So, instead she focused on what she could clean out each week.  This is really a Flylady technique - she does the 27 Fling Boogie at least once a week - where you have pick up 27 things and either trash them, donate them, or put them in their rightful home.


"The Power of a Positive Mom"
I've reread the first chapter (since I've read it before) but didn't get any further than that this week. 

January Goals

Ok, I posted my over all goals on Saturday.  Now, it is time to do January goals!  In past years, I also separated goals into a few categories and, actually, had planned to do so this year but, instead, (to go along with simplifying things) I'm just going to list the things I want to accomplish in January.  It is so much less work!!!  I'm just going down through the list of goals I listed "HERE"

January Goals:
1. Piano - I have my songs picked out this month.  One is "Of Strange Lands and People " which is a classical piece I learned back in High School.  It is a short, quick piece and I would like to challenge myself to memorize it so I have something to play when someone says, "you, play?".  Then two offertory type songs that I've played before but need to get the "rust off" (as Nate would say) - "Wonderful Words of Life" and "Rock of Ages".  I've managed to dust these off and they are usable.  I did not memorize the classical piece but I might make that more of a year long goal. 

2. Reading - I'm currently reading three books off of my list.  1) "7" - I'm on chapter three.  2) "Women Living Well" which I started on Monday as part of a Book Study and 3) The Power of a Positive Mom.

3. Bible Study - One of my Bible Studies begins this week and one begins next week.  One is through Good Morning Girls and is on Living Intentionally and the other is on the book I mentioned above.  My Goal for this month is complete the lessons each week. Stayed current through the end of the month!

4. Scripture Memory - I have a book called "100 Bible Verses Everyone Should Know by Heart" that I'm going to start with this month.  My goal is 4 verses this month

5. Order the Word a Day Calendar so Darryl and I can start working on it :-)

6.  My goal for the living room this room is to come up with a vision board with ideas I want to use in the new living room.

7. Scrapbook - 1) Go through one (years) album(s) and make sure there are no holes.  This includes making sure there are no missing photos, missing page protectors etc.  2)Figure out the most economical way to get all of my outstanding digital pages ordered 3)Get page protectors for the first pages of 2013 4) Scrapbook June 2013 I didn't really do these items - my goal became more of organizing my stuff which I did.  Next month I'll start working on actual albums.

8. This months Date with my husband is coming up this weekend - we have plans for Friday night such as dinner and maybe a movie or window shopping and then on Saturday we have a wedding to attend. This was a fun weekend!!! 

9.  Our Teeth :-)  So, I need to get my kids brushing their teeth more.  I want to give them each a drawer in our vanity (since we don't use them anyway) for their stuff - tooth brush, tooth paste, and even their own brush for their hair.  Then, make brushing their teeth an important part of their day.  I'm going to do the "Crest Health" challenge for two weeks. Not a total success but my kids are brushing their teeth more.

10.  My big "organization/simplify" project this month is the kitchen cupboards.  My dad is redoing the cupboards for me so I want to make sure the insides are useful and everything has a home.  I have some very quirky cupboard space that I need to use more creativity.

11. Take one day out for just me (already have this on the calender).Done and it was FUN!

12. Financial - Finish up our taxes; keep track of our spending/savings for the month

13.  Plan February's date night which will coincide with my husband's birthday.

14.  Plan some fun things to do with the kids for valentines - they are finally getting to the age where they like to do stuff for holidays.

15.  Finish organizing our DVD's  - Plan to finish this up this week

16. Finish up a Christmas Decor project that I was unable to finish prior to Christmas - Going to finish this up this week.

17. Go through my Christmas Pinterest board and move ideas to the right boards (that has been my "garbage board the last few weeks - I've just dumped everything into that board) - Want to do this during this last week as well

I'm sure there are a few other things I've forgotten BUT that is a great list to start with :-) 

Homeschool Corner

Ok, I fully intended to start "class" last week but, really, we did class in other ways.

 1) Geography - We played airplane.  Josh and Nate set up all of the chairs and tables as seats in the airplanes and make sure everyone had a seat.  Then, we flew from home to Mackinaw City. 

 2) Engineering - The boys designed this marble works tower; it was mostly Nate's design - something he had been thinking about for awhile.  They created more towers on a different day as well.

 3) Fine Motor Skills - the game of Perfection.  Lots and Lots of laughs with this one!  We also played other games throughout the week as well which is a huge skill my boys are working on right now.

 4.  Spelling and Writing - Making "stay out" signs for the door.

 5. Recess :-)  The boys finally got to go outside on Friday and play in the very, very wet snow! (And then the rain started!)

6. Science - The boys also built a machine out of cushions and chairs :-)

I really enjoyed watching the kids learn through play this week.  I heard my kids use 3-4 syllable words, listened as they told me how to "sneeze in your shoulder and cover your mouth", and watched as they wrote letters and words (No!) on paper by themselves.  I saw them figure out the days of the week on the calender and make the connection that the date goes with the day (Friday is the 10th) and understand that "tomorrow" means one sleep ;-)  I also watched them work together to solve problems and lend a hand to each other.  Sooo many puzzles were put together including the start of a 100 piece puzzle. I say all of that to say - I'm not concerned about preschool.  Yes, we have papers to work on and I plan on doing that to review and improve their skills but really, kids learn from doing.  You should hear Josh pray at night . . ."Jesus, I love you.  Please keep mom and dad and Papa and Nana all safe.  And Jesus I really love you, Amen".  Isn't that what it is all about??

Next week I plan on getting out worksheets more but I think we are going to work on class in the afternoon and see how that goes.

Anyway, that was our week!

Things My Kids Say

* Laying down for bed one night, Josh situated himself so the top of his head was equal with Darryl's.  Then he said, "Look Dad, I'm as tall as you, my legs just need to grow to be as long as yours." HA!

*Saying prayers one night before bed, I was praying for God to continue to help Josh and Nate to grow into kind, caring boys . . .when Josh's voice piped up, "Just like Kings!".  I almost busted a gut  . . .he always has a comment, yes he does.

*After the boys were in bed one evening, Josh came out carrying his clock (a digital one, mind you) and handed to me then said, "Mom, I need to leave this out here.  It is going "tick, tock, tick, tock, tick tock in my brain and I can't sleep."  I tried not to laugh.  Then he came out 5 minutes later with Nate's clock and said, "This one is (insert snoring noise) and keeping me awake".  I think he was really just checking to see if we were eating a good snack.

*Being locked in the house for days on end due to the cold makes my boys a little rambunctious.  They piled all of the couch cushions (including two from the loveseat downstairs) in a tower on the couch upstairs and proceeded to jump off of it.  Nate would jump from the top, land hard on the floor, and then say, "Nope, no broken ankles.  My bones are strong so I can jump and not break anything."  Can you guess how many times I've said, "You are going to break your ankle if you keep doing that" hahaha

* I keep chapstick in a drawer in the kitchen for the kids to use, specifically Nate, because he loves chips and crackers and the salt makes his lips dry.  So, while eating chips and salsa one night he discovered the chap stick was gone so he asked to me to make sure and buy some "Chap Lips" for him at the store to put on his lips.  :-) hahaha Chapped lips. . . .