Griffy's Making Muffins

Griffy and I are in the kitchen today. We're making muffins, and  bread and soup for dinner. I'm going to post the muffin recipe on my cooking blog. I've had this recipe since I was pregnant with Stephen...that's SIXTEEN years ago. I got it out of a Fit Pregnancy magazine and they're Yum.

I'm still tearing my jackets off. Seriously, why didn't I do this years ago. 

 Don't all my Barefoot books look colorful? I still need her two latest books..

Look what Steve started this weekend. That was all the "smashing stuff" in my last post. He's tearing down one of the closets so we can move the STUPID GIANT UGLY television that's been in my family room for far too long..down to the basement. Along with video games. Man will be a happy girl when that happens. 

Look! I'm not a bonehead anymore. Stephen had to do it for me..so sad.

Weekending

Snow

Sledding

Sleeping

Suppers

Shoveling

Sleepovers

Shopping

Star Wars

Studying

Sewing

Smashing Stuff

Saturday Night Live

Silly Griffy

Sorry Sweetie

Sunshine

Soul Searching 

Stuffy Noses

Sweet

Saturday

Sunday

Stephen Says Stupid Blogpost

See Ya

A Winner, What I've Learned and Matthew Mead Summer

Catie is the winner of Amber's giveaway! Yeah Catie! Email me and I'll give you the details. I picked a name out of a bowl. I'm an old fashioned kind of girl..no random generator for me. It would take me too long to figure out how to do it. Thanks again Amber for your generous gift!

So I'm just about finished with the cleanse. Here's what I've learned...1. I don't need coffee. My hot lemon water first thing in the morning and my cup of tea in the afternoon is all I need. I still like coffee..I'm just not conditioned to drink it every morning. 2.  I don't need my glass of wine at night. Don't worry...I did not give up wine..just gave it up during the week. It's all habitual I tell ya. 3. I've learned that I'm full a lot sooner that I thought. I just need to slow down. Easier said than done most days with a baby. 4. I need to be organized and have a plan. I'm very organized with our family meals at night..I now need to put a bit more effort into planning my meals/snacks during the day. If I don't have a plan I fail and eat what ever is available. 

Matthew Kelly the author of the book I'm reading Rediscovering Catholicism says over and over again in his book.."Our lives change when our habits change." Love that.

And my new little button on the sidebar over there...Matthew Mead Summer magazine is coming out. I loved his Holiday magazine and even had the pleasure of meeting him down on the Cape last month. I'm sure the Summer issue will not disappoint. 

Look at the big shot. Has to sit in the big seat with the big kids now. :(

Have a great weekend!

Snow and Granola

Wow did we get some snow last night. Indulge me please as I share a million snow photos. I can't remember a more beautiful day. I'm not even bummed that the kids have no school.

I love how the weight of the snow makes the branches droop.

View down the street

Sledding down the deck stairs is always fun...and safe I'm sure.

Will getting some air.

Hannah's turn. I'm next...kidding. 

No air for me. 

Ok so I have to share the best granola in the world ! Allisa over at 33 Shades of Green said I could share it with you. Love her blog, love her recipes...LOVE this granola!

It makes so much..I even brought some to my neighbor. Don't you wish you were my neighbor? It's my new favorite snack with my yogurt. Thanks Allisa! 

Back to sledding.

Comfort Food and a Giveaway!!

This is perhaps my family's favorite meal. Barefoot Contessa's chicken stew with biscuits. It is pure comfort food. Obviously not on my cleanse but being the happy homemaker I am, I made it for my family and I suffered through yet another salad. I also brought some over to my neighbor who brought me firewood and more importantly, wine during our power outage recently. Yes, I know, wine is also not on the cleanse but remember..it was a power outage ok?? Anyway, try this recipe. Your family will love you...I promise.

And the sweet Amber at Timeless Treasures is offering you guys a $30 gift to anything in her etsy shop! She is so talented! Thank you Amber! Visit her shop and leave me a comment. I'll announce the winner on Friday! 

We are expecting more snow tonight! Steve is flying home early today which of course we're happy about.

Falling Snow

See the pretty snowflakes

Falling from the sky;

On the wall and housetops,

Soft and thick they lie.

On the window ledges

On the branches bare

Now how fast they gather

Filling all the air.

Look into the garden

Where the grass was green.

Covered by the snowflakes

Not a blade is seen.

Now the bare black bushes

All look soft and white

Every twig is laden

What a pretty sight!

Author Unknown

Before and After

It's snowing again. I do love it...really. Just not the bitter cold we've been having. 

Ok. Here's the before. Pretty huh? This room was the dining room when we moved in..it's right off the kitchen. It's small and boxy. And the wallpaper and border..not my thing. We had a few guys come to give us quotes on what it would cost to strip it. Not one wanted the job. Whoever put it up did a crappy job. So we decided to paint over it. Before we did that I let the kids draw and write all over the walls. I read on a blog somewhere that the mom let all the kids draw all over the bathroom wall. It looked so cute and I thought I'd let my kids do the same. Yeah..not so cute. I lived with "Stephen is a butthead" for far too long. So a few weeks ago Steve took on the challenge of fixing the walls as best he could and then painted right over them. 

And I need to clarify. When I say things like "WE finished the study, or the dining room or the powder room" Really I mean..STEVE. I tell him what I want and he makes it happen. I"m so thankful for a handy and handsome husband. The map, desk, chairs, lamps, shelves..all Ikea. Wall color is a Ben Moore color that for the life of me I can't remember. I told Steve I wanted a blue/grey. It looks more blue here but really has a lot of grey in it. It reminds me of the ocean on certain days... And the rocks we find on the beach.

I should have shut the lights off before I took the picture. 

I still have all the kids artwork to hang...but man it feels good to cross this off the list. And you're not a butthead Stephen.

Family Rules Sign

We've lived in this house about 2 and a half years. I've been searching for just the right piece for over my mantel.When I came across Tara's blog, I had to have one of her Family Rules signs. Tara was so great to work with..I swear I had ordered and received it all within about a week! I used some of the words that she had and also came up with a few of our own. How can we not abide by these rules when they are literally hanging over our heads every day!

Steve promised to hang it next weekend. He was a little busy this weekend finishing the study. Will share that tomorrow! 

Stop by Tara's blog. You'll be glad you did.

Snowy Weekending

Snow day

Digging out

Just Dance 2

Sneak Peak at my New Sign

Reading

New Words

Date Night with Friends at Haddads

Lobster Rolls

French Martini's

Ballet

So Cold

Best in Show

Busy Bee

Finished the Study

LOTS of Quality Family Time

:)

Out with Friends

Deleting 3500 pictures

Last week of Cleanse

Hiding Green&Blacks

Kids Poker

Visiting Mom

Running

New Favorite Band

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeifMjqpsg0

Jackets Off

 A friend told me I should take the  jackets off all my books after looking at my bookshelf. I'm so glad I did. It looks so much better.  Now I'm flying around my house taking all the jackets off my books. You should see my recycle bin.

Hannah's Portrait and Bucket Lists

A dear friend of mine sent me this painting of Hannah today. I can't draw a stick figure so I'm in complete awe of artists. And having it come from a friend makes it even more special. I'm amazed at how beautifully she captured Hannah. Freckles and all. Thank you Dianne. You know how much I will treasure this.

While Hannah and I were driving home late this afternoon...picking up yet more ballet supplies..she started talking about her Bucket List. 12 year olds have Bucket Lists? I don't even have one! So, Hannah wants to skydive, bungee jump off the Eiffel Tower, meet Nick Jonas, and snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef. I started thinking about what I want to do. And I don't know!!! Seriously, how sad is that? The only thing I came up with is that I'd like to learn how to play the piano. Hannah thought that was really lame. I guess it is. Does that mean I'm just really happy with my life right now? If I died tomorrow I'd die a happy girl.

What's on  your Bucket List?

Today Around the House

What we're playing...

lots of trains and blocks

What I'm decorating..

this armoire was first in our dining room for years..then the study for arts/crafts/school stuff and this past weekend we moved it up to our bedroom.

What I'm eating..

still loving the 2 bean vegetarian chile from the cleanse. I'll post the recipe on my other blog. Griffy loves it!

What I'm listening to...

I love Pandora. My tv is never on during the day except for the Barney DVD for Griffy in the morning and then I'm ready to throw the tv and Barney out the window.

What I'm reading...

by Matthew Kelly. Never read him before but you can bet I'll be reading a few more of his writings. And you know how I love to look in people's fridges? Well, I love looking at what's in their bookshelves...

What's on my To Do list for this year...

a lot.

What are you doing/reading/decorating/eating/listening to? :)

Hannah en pointe

I had to take this with my crappy cellphone camera because I forgot my camera.... but...today Hannah went en pointe! I have to say how proud we are of her. When we moved here a little over 2 years ago Hannah asked me if she could take  ballet. And while she was 10 she had to start at the bottom..with girls 2-3 years younger than she. She has worked hard and it's paid off.  We are so proud of you Hannah our Ballerina! 

Weekending

Cleaning

Organizing

Moving furniture around

Sudden passing of Steve's college roomate

He leaves a beautiful wife and 4 children

Thoughts and prayers

Prioritizing

Family dinners

Reading

Hair cuts

Filling the fridge

Again

Pat's lose

Running

Slowing down

Cleansing

Hannah on a girls weekend away

Holding my family close

The Gift of an Ordinary Day

I've been wanting to read this book since this youtube video came out. Every time someone forwards it to me I cry. So when I was in the bookstore the other day Katrina Kennison's book jumped right out at me. The title alone would make me want to read it even without seeing the video. I'm halfway through and love it. I've laughted and cried and read some aloud to the kids yesterday. Do you highlight or mark favorite passages in your books? One of my favorite quotes..so far..is this.."If motherhood has taught me anything, it is that I cannot change my children, I can only change myself". And then there is this quote that she includes by poet Kahlil Gibran..." Your children are not your children, they are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They came through you but not from you and though they are with you yet they belong not to you."  That's one I should frame and keep within sight.

I cherish my ordinary days.

And some more cleanse questions answered! My kids are not doing this. I'm on the full cleanse (if you don't count last Saturday night's pizza/wine or last nights wine :)

Steve is on a partial cleanse...kids are eating normal kid stuff.

Yes, it's the Martha 28 day detox that I'm following. I've always been a fan of her recipes so I figured these would measure up and they have. Here is a link to her site. We love the soups from Week 1...I think they're called 2 bean vegetarian chili which could not have been easier to make and then Almond chicken soup was delish! I'll continue to make them even after the cleanse.

The Day the Lights Went Out

We lost our power today for 12 hours. It was a long 12 hours. I woke up at 6 A.M to a bang and a flash outside and then everything went dark. And cold. And of course Steve was traveling.


The first few hours were actually fun and cozy and all "Little House on the Prairie-ish". The kids and I all snuggled up in my bed cuz that's where it was the warmest. I read aloud to them from the book I'm reading...we played games..and then it got COLD and the kids started fighting. I started thinking hard about jumping ship and going to a hotel. And then my neighbor knocked on my door with an armful of firewood and a bottle of wine. So we lit the fire, opened the wine and all was good. The house warmed up quickly, I warmed up quickly and the lights came back on.

Will telling a scary story.

I am so thankful for a warm house tonight and thoughtful neighbors.