Summer Fun Week 10

To catch up on all of our summer fun, just click HERE.

So to start out week 10, I had made all of my plans and even did the prep work I needed for this week.  It still didn't go as planned though - it was more directed by my boys which is actually a good thing.

Monday - Our Summer Fun activity today was a trip to the doctor ;-) We had to drive into town to the big hospital to see an Orthopedic Doctor for Nate and then run a few errands.  It's actually a fun thing for the boys to be out, ride elevators, and play in a different spaces then they normally see.  Having never been to the Children's hospital I didn't know what to expect so I packed toys. Guess what?  It's a Children's Hospital so everything there is for . . .children.  It was perfect.  Basically, Nate has something that is called in-toeing because the ball that fits into the hip socket doesn't quite fit right.  It is something we first noticed back when he started walking and, at that point his walk was impacted pretty badly but it has improved a lot over the past year and a half.  The doctor did x-rays to make sure that it was doing what is supposed to do . . and it is .. so he doesn't need braces or even therapy.  This normally corrects itself by the time the child reaches ten . . .and then . .she told me that often kids that have this are faster runners HA!  We go back in a year for an appointment unless it has improved to the point we feel he doesn't need it. 

Tuesday - Today's fun . .. Nate went to the dentist!!  Again, it is just fun for the boys to get out of the house.  Nate did fantastic at the dentist but we did learn a couple of interesting things.  One, you may recall me sharing photos and talking about Nate taking a hit to the front teeth and then his tooth turning gray.  The x-rays show that there are dead spots in both front teeth - one worse than the other.  Basically, it might never do anything more then it has now and he'll lose his teeth eventually OR they could continue to die and become abscessed - then they will have to be pulled.  We are praying that doesn't happen :-)  In the process of looking at the x-rays, the dentist showed me his adult teeth that are sitting up there in his gums . .. and most of them are turned sideways.  Nice.  The dentist laughed and said I had better start saving my pennies now for braces.  She also mentioned that in some cases as severe as his, they start the process when they are as young as six.  The plan is to continue to watch them through the x-rays and she'll make a decision once he reaches that age on what to do.  Who knows, maybe they will straighten out ;-/ 

I did get some fun photos of the boys outside in the afternoon though.

Wednesday - I had my supplies all ready to go but, the boys wanted to do puzzles all morning so that is what we did - lots and lots of puzzles :-)  Plus, I got these brought to me:

My boys love to pick me flowers  - aren't they beautiful??

Thursday - So today was kind of rainy - the nice rain that the boys love to play in, so I let them do just that.  I had originally planned to get out a game that we hadn't played yet but when I got it out and started looking at it, I realized it was kind of . .. dumb so the rain was better anyway.  They played for a good hour outside in the rain with their matchbox cars :-)  Once they came in, we had a special treat!!

Friday - I don't even know why I ever plan anything on Friday HA!  It was a cold, dreary, rainy day so we did a lot of reading today. 

I have plans for this week but I also am working on trying to get our preschool lessons ready to go in a few weeks and get the room switch done so . . I'm not sure how much I'll get done this week as "special" things :-)

The Things My Kids Say

It's been nice to have the kids back home; to hear their little voices and laugh at the things they think of!! 

Joshua - On Sunday, Josh had a rough time in between Sunday School and Junior Church because he wanted his brother's candy that he picked out of the prize box.  Josh then sits with us for the song portion of the service and was grumpy.  Well, someone got up to talk about VBS and Josh leaned his head against his dad and, quietly, started to fake snore.  It was all Darryl and I could do not to burst out laughing HA! 

Nathan - On Monday, when we got home from the Doctor, the boys were, well, C.r.a.n.k.y.  The munchkin kept trying to play with toys but Nate kept putting everything away.  Then he said ""Munchkin" just needs to go home right now".  Now, yes I did laugh on the inside but he was reminded about being kind to others ;-) 

The boys - As I've mentioned before, Josh has taken over the job of cleaning up the yard after the dog and he takes it Very seriously.  On Monday afternoon, I saw Nate and him out in the yard deep in conversation - Josh standing there proudly with the pooper scooper.  Nate comes running inside and grabs the big stepping stool from the bathroom and heads back outside where he sets the stool up next to the dumpster.  I stood and watched as Josh got on the stool and realized that it wasn't high enough to throw out what he needed to throw out . . his solution was to send Nate in for another stool (umm not safe HA) So instead I lifted him up so he could finish his job - we'll be getting him a small trash can soon, trust me!

Joshua - On Saturday evening when the boys got home, we told Josh he was sleeping in Nate's room (because that is where the extra AC unit is) because his room was TOOOO hot.  So now, every night, Josh says, "Josh's room is too hot, I will sleep in Nate's room" :-)  Since the plan is to move them into a room together here in the next few weeks, we are not fighting the decision.  They love being in the same room.  As a matter of fact, they tend to stay in that room for an hour after they wake up just chatting away and laughing until Josh stacks all of the "aminals" in front of Nate's crib and helps Nate climb out.  Yes, they are both very proud of this feat too !!

Joshua - We picked up a new learning puzzle for the boys and they were very excited to work on it.  They had all of the pieces out and were mixing them up on the table waiting for Darryl to finish dinner so he would play with them.  I said, "Do not put the pieces on the floor or I will put it away right now "(There are a LOT of pieces and I didn't want them getting lost) Well, Darryl finished eating, and then proceeded to dump all of the pieces off of the little table onto the floor.  Josh's head whipped around and looked at me with is mouth open before he said, "Mom, I didn't do it, Dad did.  He did not Obey" HA!  So I guess even though the boys don't always open, they at least are understanding what it means!!

Both Boys - The other day, as the boys were outside and I heard them start to yell, "Papa's here, Papa's here!" So I looked outside and saw two very dejected boys as "Papa" drove by . . and I heard, "Papa didn't come to see us.".  Now, before you think poorly of Papa, it was not him, just a black Envoy that drove by  . .. and that is what Papa drives.  They love their Papa!!

Nate - I'm not sure what my parents did to him (hehe) but last Saturday evening we had Taco's for dinner and, based on past experiences, the boys love tacos.  We sat down to eat, Nate picked his up and said, "I do not like meat, I will not eat this." Seriously . Every night this week he takes any meat off of his plate and says "I don't like meat, mom".  Even when we had Spaghetti for lunch one day, he found one tiny piece of ground chuck in his sauce, spit it out and said, "No thank you, I don't like meat".  What is up with that? HA!

Weekly Menu plus a little recap

Welcome back :-)  Did you see the recipe post on Friday for the Chili Dogs?  Talk about a total success - I love those meals!  With that said, have you ever noticed that kitchen appliances seem to die quietly while they sit in teh cupboard so when you go to use them, they don't work?  I had planned Daddy Fries (homemade fries cut just like dad made them).  I heated up my deep fryer to 350 degrees, cut the potatoes, dropped the first batch in and they were dark brown in 30 seconds.  Ummmm . . apparently 350 degrees just got a million degrees hotter.  In an effort to save the rest, I turned it down to 250 degrees but the potatoes just soaked up the grease and were dark brown on the outside . . with lots of grease on the inside.  Needless to say, the Fry Daddy is now in the garbage and I'm going to be adding that to my wish list.  I would say Christmas List but I know I want one before that point so I need to do a little research and shop around.  One last thing - on Thursday of last week we ended up with a cool rainy day - you have no idea how thrilled I was to make pork chops and scallopped potatoes . . .something that cooks in the oven for 1 1/2 hours and it did not make my house hot!!  I think this summer I've probably cooked dinner in my oven a total of 8 times so I am so anxious for fall to start making some of those true family favorites from meatloaf to lasagna to soups!

This is the plan for this week.  Honestly, I've had some new recipes burning a hole in my . . . .recipe book . . .but who has wanted to cook in the scorcher summer we've had?  I've decide to try a lot of them this coming week so we'll see how that goes ;-)

Saturday: BBQ Chicken Pizza with Chips

Sunday:  Crock Pot Chicken Legs, Southwestern Dip/w chips and a simple fruit salad.  (Again, trying to keep Sunday prep work, clean-up to a minimum).  That will be our main meal and for a lighter "Lunch" in the evening we'll have Monte Cristo Sandwiches and left overs salads from lunch.

Monday: Meatball Stroganoff in the crockpot with noodles and salad.  (Now I'll be honest, I have a stroganoff recipe that we love but I thought this might be fun with meatballs - it will have to be a home run for me to keep it!)

Tuesday:  Mama's Supper Club Tilapia Parmesan, Squashed Potatoes, Broccoli and rolls.

Wednesday:  Darryl has a concert so I'm just planning to use up some Frozen pizza dough and make that for dinner

Thursday: Stuffed green peppers in the crock pot, green beans, savory rice and corn bread

Friday:  Man Pleasing Chicken, Bob Evans Mashed potoates, corn and biscuits.  (I've actually made this before and my husband loved it)

That's all - If any of the new recipes are hits, you will see them posted in the upcoming weeks on Friday! 

Food Friday - Chili Dogs

Chili Dogs
adapted from 5 Dinners 1 Hour

A friend of mine starting talking about the website "5 Dinners 1 Hour" and how fabulous it was so I decided to check it out.  What I found was this great recipe for Chili or Coney Dogs.  You cook them in the oven.  Seriously.  I already had Chili Dogs on the menu so I figured why not try this and guess what?  It was a home run.  My husband said this is the only way he wants chili dogs from now on - that they are unlike anything he has ever had and he loves them.  Well, I totally agree!!  I know it is surprising but these do not get 1 bit soggy - the buns have that "crusty" outside and yet hot and soft inside.  It makes it possible to actually pick them up and eat them.  When it came to serving, I found it easier to lift the dogs out with the tinfoil and lay that on a plate, then I could just pick them up and place them on plates.


Ingredients:

8-12 hot dogs
8-12 buns
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup relish (sweet or dill)
1-2 cans chili (I used Hormel Chili without beans)
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Line a 9 x 13 baking dish with foil. (The 9x13 pan will fit 8 dogs; I only used 4 dogs and they fit perfectly into an 8x8 pan). 

Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise on one side of each bun.  Top with dob and place in the baking dish.

Top each with relish, chili, onion and cheese.  Cover with foil

Bake covered in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Pinterest - Again

I'm gearing back up to tackling some of my hundreds of Pinterest ideas I've pinned onto various boards.  Recently I started going through all of my boards and cleaning them out.  One of four things happened:
1) The item was deleted if I've tried it and was not impressed with it or did not like it.
2) The item was moved to the board I have for "Things I've Successfully made" if it was a success. 
3) The item was deleted if I decided it was dumb.
4) The item remained on the board OR was moved to the right board.  I even managed to delete a few boards because they didn't really mean anything anymore.

As I was working on that project, I found ideas I want to try again so here goes! 

The first idea is from my For the Home board and is a new way to soften clothes.  I am not one to hang clothes outside on the line to dry OR to leave out the fabric softening sheet because I hate "crunchy" clothes.  Have you noticed how expensive good dryer sheets are now?  It's just crazy.  When I saw this idea from Mattern Family Adventures, I decided to take a chance.

This is wonderful.  I picked up a $0.98 hand towel at Wal-mart and soaked it in the liquid softener - really that just means pouring enough softener on the towel in a bowl to get it good and saturated.  Then squeeze out as much of the extra as you can and hang it where ever - I hung it over my banister in the kitchen and the whole house smelled fantastic.  My husband even asked me where I got the new air freshener because it was awesome.  Mine was completely 100% dry within about a day and half (but my kitchen is really hot so I'm sure that helped!) I washed two loads with it already and the clothes are soft and smell sooooo good!  I'm really impressed with this idea and plan to pick up a second towel - and then the plan is to "make" a new towel softener at the end of the month to replace it by the first of the month.  Considering the fact that I go through a box of softener sheets a month at close to $5.00 and I spent $5.00 on the bottle of liquid which will probably make, I don't know, maybe 10 or so towels . . well, that's a lot of savings!!

This second idea is also from my For the Home board and just seemed way too easy.  I have no were to really store the boxes of aluminum foil, cling-warp etc so it just gets thrown under my kitchen sink.  Then I saw this idea from Chica and Jo and it was just too simple not to try.

It just so happened I was cleaning out stuff in the basement and had one of these holders.  I already love it.  It's easy to grab from the cupboard and sometimes, honestly, it sits in the corner on the counter and takes up hardly any room but keeps all of that stuff so handy!  I love this idea :-)

The last idea I'm working on right now is an idea from my Craft Board and is for the boys.  The idea comes from I heart Organizing and has been on the back burner for awhile but now that we are getting ready to start preschool, I want this file organization system in place so I have a place to store all of those special projects.

I'm still searching for the perfect file box - I plan on picking up the file folders/hanging folders this weekend and well prepare that much.  I may just get the inexpensive $4.00 file bin from Walmart for now and get something more sturdy later when I find exactly what I want.  Once I start using it, I'll try to remember to post a photo :-)

I feel good about these new ideas I've tried and had success with . . not to go through some more boards and find more ideas!

Keeping the Sabbath

Have no fear, this is not some super conservative post but rather, just something that has been on my mind and that my husband and I have conducted some great conversations concerning.

Depending on how old you are, you may remember a day when everything was closed on Sundays.  It was considered a day of rest - for everyone.  There are still areas - generally small towns - where they are basically shut down on Sunday but if you have a big box store or any major restaurants, you know that they are open pretty much 365 days a year. 

I can't remember what recent holiday occurred where I began thinking about people who work on those holidays.  I realized that if no one shopped on those days, the stores would not have a reason to be open.  Since that time, I have tried to avoid shopping on holidays that the rest of us enjoy as an "off" day.  That was step one of my plan. 

A few months later, my husband and I were talking about never seeming to have a day to do nothing which brought our conversation to what I did as a kid growing up in a pastor's home.  As I explained that we didn't do "anything" - it wasn't a work day - I was also able to explain how church was not a burden when you didn't feel that you also had another 3-4 hours of work to do when you got home.  Light bulbs started going off above both of our heads.  We made a verbal and mental decision to finish all of our work by Saturday - everything from grocery shopping to mowing the grass - so that on Sunday, we could enjoy church, come home, relax, and do what we "felt" like doing (I.e. watching TV, reading, working on a hobby, going for a walk as a family etc).  It feels so good to have a day of "rest"; a day of no pressure.  We realized that this goes a step further because, once again, if people took a Sunday as a day of rest, all of those places that are open, wouldn't have any business and those workers would also not have to work on Sunday. 

Now, please understand, I know that I am one person - but this is something I am working on personally.  Even this past weekend, my original plan was to go to the store on Sunday after getting home from being out of town.  As Darryl and I talked about it, he made a good point . . he said "I guess it all comes down to how important it is to you to not do those things on a Sunday as to whether we go to the store tonight (Sat) or tomorrow".  Instantly, I knew, I did NOT want to go on Sunday - so we made a quick run to the store after we got home.  I plan to continue to stick by this guideline I'm creating for myself and to teach my children the importance of taking a day to relax.

Trust me, I'm sure there will be days that we run to the store, get gas, or grab something to eat on a Sunday - but it will be something that we truly think through and say "do I really need to do this today". 

Do you have something that challenges you to make a change? Feel free to share!

Too Cute Not To Toot!

With summer (maybe) starting to lead towards fall and cooler weather, I'm hoping to get the boys to the zoo at least once (we have three good zoo's within driving distance of us . .. ) so when I saw this scavenger hunt from Blue Skies Ahead, I wanted to share it with all of you.

Again, once the weather cools off, I prefer to make our pizza for lunch on Fridays instead of buying frozen every week.  I had a pizza crust recipe I used last year but I wasn't totally happy with it so when I saw this recipe from Chocolate, Chocolate and More I wanted to make sure and save it here.  She also includes a link for a homemade pizza sauce which I'm also looking to find as well (well, to find a GOOD one - I've tried a few and they were not our style)

I know this is an odd thing to put here but I came across a blog called Sand and Sisal and among her posts are many ideas for incorporating the "sea" into your home.  I've mentioned before that down the road, when I can redo my living room, I want it to reflect our love of the beach so I'm saving this blog to check out all of her ideas!

   I ran out of time this week to seach for more ideas :-)