The Redneck Panini

A while back I was hanging out at my friend's house and she had a fancy Panini maker. I don't recall the brand/style, but here's a picture of what a Panini maker looks like.

Kind of reminiscent of the George Foreman Grill is it not? I got rid of my George Foreman grill ages ago. I never used it.
Anyway, back to the panini. There's something about a squished up hot sandwich that is so tasty. So, I began looking around Goodwill for a used George Foreman grill. Believe me, there's plenty to choose from, but I could never commit to actually purchasing one. Apparently, I'm not the only one who didn't buy into the fat-free "grill" that George peddled.

Fast forward to my redneck "aha" moment.

I wondered how I could replicate the panini at home with my current small household appliances and I came across my waffle maker. Yep. My heart-shaped waffle maker.

Okay, I'll admit, realistically, it's not the best design for a panini sandwich, but when you're desperate for a hot squished sandwich, it works like a charm.

So, here ya go.
The Redneck Panini

• Submarine sandwich bread (or ciabatta, etc.)
  
• 6-8 leaves fresh spinach
• 2 slices red bell pepper
• 1 slice of cheese
• 2-3 slices of deli meat
• 1 tbsp basil pesto
• (Optional Add-ons: black olives and red onion slices)
• Pam Olive Oil spray

Assemble sandwich, spray outside with Pam and squish in your waffle iron (or George Foreman Grill or Fancy Pants Panini Maker... whatever!)

Now, if anyone wants to unload their George Foreman grill, I'll gladly take it off your hands!

RED!

Ever wonder why don't see red jalapeños at the store? I can't figure out why, but I don't recall seeing red jalapeños at HEB. What's up with that?

I've been letting my jalapeños ripen on the vine until they turn red. It's been a nice change of pace!

New beginnings!

No, this isn't a sappy post about how my kids are starting a new chapter in their lives with school beginning tomorrow. Nope, it's about me. Getting my butt back into the gym. Full time. Starting tomorrow. No excuses anymore.

I have been slacking BIG TIME this summer and it's time to kick into high gear. So, if you see me at the gym and I'm a big sweaty mess, you'll know why...

So, I'm stepping away from the Carmel Kettle Crunch (at least in large quantities... ) and getting back on the step machine... and the heavy weights.

No pain, no gain!

And then I heard Angels singing "Hallelujah"

Elisan has a shoe problem.

Her foot is small and wide. Not a great combination when you want to wear "big girl" shoes such as cute flats, wedges, slip-on's, etc. because "they" (meaning shoe makers) don't usually carry wide shoe sizes in cute trendy shoes. And, especially not in her teeny-tiny foot size.

Don't believe me? Go try shoe shopping with my kid and you too will want to crawl into fetal position and weep nonstop.

So. Over the weekend, I made the mistake of taking Elisan shoe shopping on Saturday. I don't know how many styles she tried on, but I can assure you, that none of them fit properly. I told her that we'd hold off on shoe shopping for another month or two and that her sandals would work until it got cooler. She seemed okay with that...

Fast forward to today. We were sitting on the couch having our morning "mommy and me" time when the conversation took a turn for the worse. What started out as a conversation about feet, turned into a complete meltdown about her "fat, wide feet". Real tears people. Real tears. After she came to her senses, I told her we'd make one last attempt at shoe shopping before school began.

We went to six stores and she tried on countless pairs of shoes and nothing worked. Nothing.

Until we tried the Hush Puppies store at the outlet mall. (Lucky number seventh store!) The FIRST pair she tried on fit AND she loved them. They were by far the cutest pair of shoes she tried on all day and at a little less than $30.00 for the pair, not a bad price either. The look of relief on her face was priceless. Absolutely Priceless. I know I heard angels singing, I just know it!
And, the store carried this shoe in red/black and pink/silver, so I may go back and grab another pair just because.

I've got the evite blues

Technology has gotten the best of me and it makes me sad.

If you've been around long enough, you know I love to create my own photo cards and invitations. I've been doing the girls' birthday invitations, photo Christmas & Valentine's cards for years. It's a great creative outlet for me and the girl's love having something created especially for them by their mom.

A few months ago I offered to make birthday invitations for the daughter of a friend of mine who was having a party. She politely declined telling me that although she loved my work, she was going to use evite for the birthday party invitations because it was easier, cheaper and people were more likely to RSVP. She also said she liked the fact that you could track when people "opened" the evite so you know everyone received it. Of course it made sense to me, but since I'm a traditionalist, I prefer the actual invitation instead.

However, I'm not so sure anymore... For Elisan's party, I created a really cute Luau themed birthday invitation, mailed them out 2 weeks prior to the event and only received 6 RSVP's in a timely manner - meaning within 3-5 days of the party. The other RSVP's occurred within 1-2 days of the party and a few people didn't bother to RSVP at all. This pains me to admit, but had I sent out an evite, I probably wouldn't have had this problem. (sigh...)

I know you can customize your evite to tailor it to your event, but it's just not the same... Sigh... Maybe I just need to embrace the evite and get over myself.

Anyone feel the same way as I do? Do you LOVE evite or LOATHE evite?

Kicking off the school year right!

A friend of mine recently mentioned that she puts together a small gift package for her kids' teachers each year of consumable items like post it notes, Sharpies, paper clips, etc. Not anything extravagant, but a little something to put a smile on their face and to let them know they are appreciated.

This year, I decided to do the same thing! Along with the consumable items, I created some postcards for the teachers to use if they need to communicate with a parent. I created one postcard and formatted four 4.5 x 5 postcards per 8.5 x 11 page. I printed the cards on cardstock and cut them out.

To finish off this simple project, I created matching circle sticker labels to tag the gift. (I made the circle stickers generic so I could use them for other gifts, etc.)


I created the circle label in Photoshop Elements using a downloaded freebie doodle brush for the birdie and conversation bubble. I added the text and selected a cute font. I saved the file as a .png file (which saves the file with a transparent background.)

Since I still haven't figured out how to format a page of stickers in Photoshop, I opted to use Scrapbook Factory Deluxe for layout and formatting. It's a bit time consuming using two different software, but it works well enough for me.

I printed the labels on a full size sheet of sticker paper. I found this sticker paper at Walmart and it was about $5.00 for 10 full size 8.5 x 11 sticker sheets.

Using my circle punch, I punch out the stickers as needed. Very cute and personalized! Who doesn't love personalized stuff? I know I do!

Finding the full size sticker paper has opened a whole new world of ideas for me! I'm thinking... cutesy address labels, birthday present labels, Christmas gift labels, etc.

Cheap and Clueless

It's another installment of my complaining/whining about clothes.

Y'all, I used to love to shop for clothes. My favorite past-time used to be shopping for clothes. But, now? I hate it. I loathe it.

Why? Because I'm too darn thrifty (or cheap?!) and I have a hard time letting go of cash for new clothes. Oh sure, I see shirts/tops that I really like, but seriously, I will not pay $50.00 for a shirt. It's not going to happen.

How much does the average person pay for a shirt? Pants? Shoes?

Where does a woman who is closing in on 38 shop for clothes? Is it time I began shopping at better stores and spending more money on my wardrobe, rather than at the trendy-ish clothing stores? I can't afford Anthropology, Boden, SAKS... heck, I can't even afford the GAP. So, really... what's a gal to do? I want to look nice, stylish, hip, but not cheap and clueless.

And finally, what's up with all of the bling-y shirts/tops? Because there is a lot of bling-y stuff out there right now. Does everything have to have bling on it? And how much bling is too much bling? Just asking...

Second Chances

Yesterday afternoon, Elisan decided she wanted a bowl of cereal for her afternoon snack. I poured up the cereal and milk and like every other day, she brought the bowl from the countertop to the table. However, yesterday, the bowl did not make it to the table. In fact, the bowl, along with the contents of cereal and milk crashed to the floor in shattered bits.

I'll be honest here... I didn't handle this situation very well. It was late afternoon and was I now faced with the task of cleaning up a ceramic shard, sticky, milky mess that would include sweeping, mopping, etc. I was tired and setting out on this hour long task was not how I wanted to spend my afternoon.

So, I yelled. I yelled and she cried. She ran upstairs crying and shortly after, I snapped out of my frenzy and met her upstairs with profuse apology. We hugged, loved and finally laughed and we both walked away feeling better.

My floor needed to be cleaned anyway.

So, this morning, Kyla Mae is eating cereal and she is fiddling with the television remote (yes... I let them watch TV while they eat breakfast...sue me!) and what do you know? She dumped her cereal on the table and in her lap/chair.

Oh c'mon... Seriously?

Even given a second chance to react in a more calm way, I didn't. Although, I didn't yell, I still reacted poorly. I was given a second chance and I failed. Once I figured out that I had a second chance, I swiftly corrected my awful behavior and set to make things right with Kyla.

This reminded me that I serve a God of second chances. When I fail or sin, He's not looking down on me with disdain and unforgiveness. Oh sure, when we sin, it does grieve Him, but He never withholds forgiveness and is readily waiting for us with open arms.

And just like my Heavenly Father, my children were quick to forgive me for my poor reaction. They love me and show grace to me when I fail. When they make a mistake, I am grieved, but I forgive them, hug them, love them and (hopefully) learn how to better handle the next time they fail or make a mistake.

Parenting is such a shining example of God's love for us. It's all about forgiveness, grace and love. And, second chances.

Thank God for second chances.

Virtue en Vogue 2010

Last night, the girls and I attended Virtue en Vogue hosted at Grace Covenant Church in Austin. The event was geared toward moms and girls (ages 6-16). There was live music from the band "The Reliques", a back-to-school fashion show, a message by Christian author Vicky Courtney and yummy desserts! It was fun and we had a nice time!

My friend Rachel and her daughter rode with us to the event and we all sat with my friend Tanja and her two daughters at the event. It's nice to visit with other moms who share the same values in how we raise our girls!

During the intermission, I bid on a silent auction item and won! It was two books by Beth Moore. "So Long Security" and "John: 90 Days with the Beloved Disciple"

Check this out! Sweet!

After the event, Elisan stood in line and had Vicky Courtney autograph her book.

Blog Brain Dump

Eight more days until school begins. I'm sad and happy, all rolled into one. This summer has been extremely busy, but I've enjoyed having my little chicks roosting in the nest so I could tend to their every want and need. It comforts me to no end having them at home with me. Granted, 90% of the time, they are upstairs playing with each other and not interacting with me, but I can hear their little voices and footsteps nonetheless and know they are safe and sound. Yet, in 8 days, I'll be sending them off to school again and my heart breaks a bit.

Oh well, I know I'll get over it soon enough. That first trip to the grocery store without kids will be joyful, I can assure you. And, I'll be able to go to Goodwill without complaints (from them) or promises (from me) to buy them a toy or a book.

We signed Elisan up for some "real" soccer this year. The league that we play in is offering a specialized league for kids who want "all soccer, all the time". Practices are 2x a week and weekend games will be all over the Austin area. So far, she's enjoyed the practices and I think it will be good for her.

So, last night we were at practice. Practices were delayed because a storm was passing over producing a lot of lighting so all of the parents and kids gathered up and waited for the storm to pass (without rain, I might add!) Anyway, while we were waiting there, I noticed a group of 10 year old girls huddled together making a lot of noise - squealing, hollering, laughing, etc. So, my attention was drawn to them and I noticed this one girl in particular. She was a very pretty girl and apparently the ring leader of the group. I began to watch her and honestly, her behavior was abhorrent. She was rude and mean and a few times I noticed she hit the other girls. After about 10 minutes of watching her humiliate the other girls, I noticed that she began filling her mouth with large amounts of water and was spitting it out at the other girls! Seriously people. I AM NOT KIDDING!

I could not believe my eyes. Where were the coaches? Where was this girl's parent? Where were the parents of the other girls? And whats more... the other girls just sat there and let her spit on them. Oh, sure, they were squealing and telling her to stop, etc., but none of them got up and walked away. They sat there laughing until it was their turn to be spit on. It was truly disgusting and I had a good mind to walk over to that girl and tell her how terribly inappropriate she was acting. BUT... I didn't. Why not? Well, because this girl is in Elisan's soccer group. She's not on Elisan's team, but she's apart of the 8-10 year olds that practice together. I didn't want this girl to retaliate against Elisan for something I did.

It grieves me to no end to see this kind of behavior. It grieves me to see other girls taking the abuse that this "mean" girl was dishing out. It grieves me to see the other girls still wanting to be her friend because she was pretty and popular. It grieves me that no one bothered to step in and stop her... including me.

What would you have done? I mean, seriously? I think now, looking back, I would approach this girl's coach and have him handle it. She's more likely to respond to a person in authority rather than some random mom (who's sole intent would really be about) embarrassing her in front of her peers.

It's apparent to me that vigilant prayer is in my future. Oh, who am I kidding... vigilant prayer is needed now!

Birthday Fun!

Birthday week has finally come to a close! Whew... I survived another round of birthday festivities for Elisan. She's my high maintenance birthday child. Probably because her "love language" is Gifts, as in receiving gifts. Of course, I can't fault her for that, because my love language is also Gifts. (Here's the link if you are interested in discovering the love language of your child. If you are curious about your love language, here's the adult love language test version.)

Anyway, as you may recall last year, we had a slumber party for Elisan's 8th birthday. Um, that party about did me in for ever wanting to prepare and plan for another birthday party in my entire life. So, this year, I decided we'd have a more laid back party and just kind of go with the flow.

The party started off at the neighborhood pool and the girls swam for about 1.5 hours. I love August birthdays because it will almost certainly include chlorinated water. Especially nice with temps in the 100's. And since it doesn't rain in Central Texas in August, there's never a reason to worry about rainouts. It's a beautifully executed plan, don't ya think?

After swimming, we loaded them up and brought them back to the house for lunch. Nothing fancy here... just sandwiches, chips, pickles and fruit kabobs. I did however, make a super yummy punch to serve in their Hurricane tumblers, with their fru-fru straws and fancy paper umbrellas.
Once lunch was complete, we served up my birthday party specialty, which is ice cream cake. I'm so glad Elisan loves my ice cream cake because it's super easy and very yummy! Plus, everyone eats it. There's no wasted cupcakes licked clean of the icing and nothing more.

And finally, we opened presents, which is always a lot of fun. We're the kind of family that allows our children to open their presents at the party, and not after everyone goes home. We feel kids like to see the birthday friend open their present and "oooooo" and "ahhhhhh" over the present. Kinda makes everyone feel good! I've never understood the concept of opening presents after the party... And, I've heard all of the reasoning behind it too.

So, that's about it. We're good for another whole year. I'm thinking at 10, we'll just have a small gathering of a few close friends and take them to a restaurant and movie. Yep. Sounds like a winner to me.



Vanilla Fruit Punch
2 2-liters Hawaiian Fruit Punch
1 2-liter Ginger Ale
2 46-oz cans of Pineapple juice
1/2 gallon of vanilla ice cream

Mix & Serve.

Ice Cream Cake
I have a step-by-step photo tutorial for this recipe here.

Painfully Shy

Lately, Elisan and I have been talking about the merits of making friends. She's the type of person who makes 1 or 2 really good friend(s) and is perfectly content.

However, this year, her closest friend from school will be home-schooled, so they will no longer be together. Needless to say, she is very sad and has mentioned on occasion that she won't have any real "close" friends at school anymore.

Of course, I dive right into the "you have to be a good friend to make good friends" mantra and although she gets what I'm saying, she has been falling back on the "But, I'm shy" safety net, which really, is no safety net at all.

Here's the deal... as a kid I was painfully shy. I mean... I was the kid that wanted to say "don't look at me", "don't talk to me", "don't sit by me because I just can't handle it." Oh, sure, I had friends and when I felt comfortable enough with them, I'd cut loose and be myself. A funny, silly, giddy girl! But, getting to that place was not easy.

So, hearing Elisan say that she is shy stirs up a well of emotions for me and I just don't want to see my girl face the same challenges I did growing up shy.

Yesterday, during one of our "shy" conversations I described a childhood (and adulthood) friend named Amy who was never shy...who had more friends what I could ever count...and who was loved (and still is loved) by many, many people. Simply put, people are drawn to her. I was telling Elisan about Amy and how much nicer it is to be nice to people, than to be shy and avoid them. I told her that most little girls her age want to be friends with other little girls and that she should try a little harder to reach out to those kids (on her volleyball team, soccer team, new kids in her class, etc.)

The problem with this advice is that I don't practice what I preach. I'm still shy (to some extent) and I know what it feels like to be insecure. I see the same behavior in my child and it makes me sad because I want better for her.

The truth of the matter is, shyness is not of God. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that God did not make us timid (shy) but instead gave us power, love and a sound mind. We are to enjoy other people. We are to develop relationships with them. We are to love them.

So, today, I stand in the gap for my daughter who is feeling shy and insecure.

Dear Lord, help my child to know that she is a daughter of the most high God and loved by you. That you, Lord are her strength and you have equipped her in advance with your power, love and sound mind. I pray Lord that she not be hindered by a spirit of shyness, but that she be empowered by your boldness. Amen.

Happy Birthday Elisan!

MY HEART

I look at you and my heart is filled with so many
emotions that I cannot even explain.

I love you dearly and completely
And my heart literally aches because of you.

You are so much like me, and yet you are not like me at all.
My heart worries over you because you are so complex.

You make me laugh, you make me smile,
You challenge me and you make me lose my temper, a lot!
My heart is crazy about you.

But, most of all you make me a better person,
Because you made me a mom.

Elisan, you are my heart.

Elisan's card

I wanted to share the birthday card Elisan received from our good friend, Charlotte in Denmark! Elisan's having a LUAU birthday party on Saturday and Charlotte matched Elisan's party theme perfectly, don'tcha think?

Thank you Charlotte for making such a sweet and special card for Elisan.

Graffiti Update

Sunday a.m., I sent an email to the city tip-line regarding the graffiti and Monday a.m., I got a return email stating the case was assigned to a local detective.

Tuesday, the detective contacted me and thanked me for reporting the crime and if I had any leads to let him know. Tuesday afternoon, the police were out in our neighborhood taking photos of the graffiti. Apparently several areas in our neighborhood were also vandalized. {Joy}

Today, when I arrived home after morning activities, the graffiti was gone. Thank goodness!

I'm just hoping it is nothing to be overly concerned about. I'm sure it's just a few kids getting their kicks with a can of spray paint. Let's hope anyway, because Randy ain't all that interested in relocating.

If the vandalism and potential for more serious crimes continues, I told him I was going to launch a full-scale campaign to move. He was nervous. He knows how relentless I can be.

The countdown is on...

Oh my. We're t-minus 9 days from Elisan's 9th birthday. Let me say to all of you moms of young(er) children something you have heard time and time again.

It. Goes. By. So. Fast.

Fiercely take hold of your children and cherish THIS day. My heart aches because nine years have passed by so quickly.

More to say... but, time is a wastin'. I'm taking the girls to Fiesta Texas today and I need to get a move on.

The 'Hood

This is the view from my front door.

I mean, I knew we lived in a neighborhood, but I wasn't aware we lived in The 'Hood.

Nice.

Maybe the HOA will use are dues to remove this offense? Ha, likely story.

Anyone know a realtor? (Ha again. Another likely story.)

Something Special

Since Elisan is at camp, we asked Kyla if there was anything special she wanted to do this week. I was 1/2-way expecting her to just go for it and ask for something ridiculous like a dog. Don't get me wrong, she asks for a dog every week, but seeing through my momentarily moment of weakness by offering her something special, I assumed she'd hit me up for a dog again. Who knows... I might've given in, seeing as how I'm weak and all.

Anyway, she did not ask for a dog, but rather Yogo Bowl. You know, the new frozen yogurt experience that is cropping up everywhere these days, with names such as YoYo Yogurt, Swirl, The Yogurt Spot, FroYoYo (Um, yes...), Sprinkles, Yummy Yo and Tart... Self serve frozen yogurt with a buffet line of toppings where you weigh it at the end. Yep. That place.

Honestly, I'm not a fan of this place or any such place peddling this brand of frozen desserts. I'm a lover of the ice cream... Stone Cold Creamery and Marble Slab. Now, that's what I call dessert!

But alas, Yogo Bowl has taken up residence at the former Stone Cold Creamery location (sniff!), so Yogo Bowl it is. (Sigh...)

So, that's our special event tonight with Kyla. She's super excited. I love that she gets excited over the little stuff. Just think if I had promised her a puppy?

I've bought my tickets!

I'm excited to report that I've bought my tickets for the August 17th Virtue en Vogue event in Austin!

Here are the details, but be sure to check out the official website!

• "The #1 Back to School Must-Have" message by Vicki Courtney
  
• Worship with The Reliques
  
• Girls' Back to School Fashion Show (featuring ways to dress fashionably while staying modest)
  
• Dessert, Raffle Items, Giveaways, Bookstore, and More!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010
7:00pm - 9:00pm

Grace Covenant Church
9431 Jollyville Rd.
Austin, TX 78759

Tickets are $10.50 each or $15 at the door.

A few other items...

Wow, it's remarkably quiet without the elder child at home. Strange.

Anyway, I found this on the bed in Elisan's room. Looks like Kyla Mae is already missing her sister. (We leave notes on each others' beds. It's our "thing".)


Be sure to check out my latest finds on my Goodwill Gal blog. It's back to school shopping time and you can't go wrong with thrift store jeans! In fact, you may be pleasantly surprised at what you do find.

And finally... I was looking up some bible passages the other day and I pulled out my bible commentaries to assist me in my interpretation of the scripture meaning. In two minutes, I had a clearer understanding of the scripture, with a little bit of historical background thrown in there for good measure. If you don't have a bible commentary resource, I strongly encourage you to go out and get you one. And, forget the internet... it's so much better to have a book in your hands for this kind of reference, because you end up reading so much more than you would if you were on the computer. Just my opinion...

I purchased both of these books at thrift stores. I paid $3.00 for the book on the top and $1.00 for the bottom book. Love my thrift stores!

Camp 2010

My big girl is heading to church camp today.

She's getting so big, but she's still so little to me. I guess this is all part of that "letting go" stuff we as parents have to deal with. Yet, today, when I see her board that bus with enthusiasm and expectation, I know it will make my heart swell with love and devotion for my little girl.

My prayer for her this year, is that she encounters God in a way that will impact her life forever.

Fun!

Artscow.com is offering 2 customized dog tags for $2.49 with free shipping! (The code for the discount price and free shipping is JULTAGS249.) So, I've been busily creating a fun piece of jewelry for the girls and I wanted to share!

I downloaded a ton of doodle brushes online and went to work creating a fun and crazy scribble graphic with their names. I even made a couple that say "friends" to give as gifts.

Here's the actual artwork close up.

If anyone is interested in this design with your daughter's name or something like "friends" or "sisters" to give as gifts, send me an email and I'll customize if for you.

Week at a Glance

As I often do in the morning, I'm sitting at my computer, drinking a cuppa coffee. The weird thing is, that I've sat in front of my blog entry page for the better part of 5 minutes and realized that I don't have much of anything to say in the way of major commentary. Weird.

So, I'll spare you the commentary and get right to the point. Here's my week at a glance:

• I miss Randy (He's been out of town this week too!)
• I miss my girls.
• My house is clean and has been for days.
• My laundry is caught up.
• I've stayed up late every night.
• I've slept late.
• I've watched a total of 2 hours of television.
• I've talked on the phone an inordinate amount.
• I've skipped the gym every day except Monday.
• I grilled steak w/portobello mushrooms - Monday & Wednesday.
• My dessert intake has skyrocketed. Apparently, I have no self control.
• I've enjoyed seeing and visiting my friends this week.
  
• I'm not so keen about being home alone.
• I wanted to shop 'til I dropped this week, but couldn't muster up the energy.
• I can't believe it's already Thursday. Yet, this week has gone by slooooow.

So yeah. That's my week so far. Aren't you soooo jealous?

The Legend of the Purple Pants

If you'll notice on my handy dandy ticker at the bottom of the right column, you'll see we're about to head into the last month of summer. And of course, every parent knows that it means schlepping out to the clothing stores to buy school clothes for our children.

Thankfully, my kids are not demanding to shop at Hollister, Aeropostle and Abercrombie at this young age. I will say, though that Elisan is getting a little more picky in her clothing selections and definitely has a strong opinion about certain items. And why wouldn't she... she's nearly nine and about to enter fourth grade.

I can totally relate.

Have I ever told you the story "The Legend of the Purple Pants"? I'll set the scene.

I was in fifth grade. It was Christmastime and one of my gifts from my parents was a pair of light purple pants and a matching polo-styled collared striped shirt. I loathed those pants. They were straight legged slacks and it was just about the time when skinny jeans were hitting the fashion circuits. If you didn't have the skinny jeans, you opted to "tight roll" your pants at the ankle to emulate the tight jean effect. But seriously? You could NEVER tight roll slacks. It was the epitome of a fashion faux pas. Much worse than simply wearing the straight legged pants that practically covered my entire shoe!

So, what did I do? I didn't wear them. I decided that I would not wear the awful pants to school and pretend they didn't exist. I think I went so far as to hide them in the back of my closet. But, my plan was foiled as my mom found the purple pants and after a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth she decided that because I put up such a fuss about those purple pants (that she paid a lot of money for apparently) I was now going to have to wear them at least once a week. And let me just say, not a week went by that I did not wear those doggone pants.

Say what you will about this unfortunate event... it left me scarred. I remember making a solemn vow that I would never inflict that kind of torture... yes, torture... on my own children. Let's see if I can hold up my end of the bargain.

So, here I am... 27 years later, dealing with my own child and the purchasing of school clothes. Here's hoping the wailing and gnashing of teeth will be minimal (from me) and that it will be an overall pleasant experience.

Sidenote: I have purchased a few denim items for them so far. I skipped on over to Goodwill and Salvation Army and found some really cute denim skirts, shorts and jeans in excellent condition. Jeans are always a good find at thrift stores because there is always a great selection to dig through.

As if I needed another reason

As if I needed another reason to be a full time stay at home mom! Check this article out by Christian author and girl/teen advocate Vicky Courtney.

The article? Talks about how fashion marketers are targeting pregnant teenagers. Yes... pregnant teenagers.

Forever 21...and Pregnant?

Just makes me sad. And mad.

For you Texas folks...

Two words to describe this... "More, please!"

Soaking it up

Another weekend has flown by, courtesy of a 10 hour round trip to drop my kids off for a week long visit at their grandparents' house. Of course, I will miss the little toots, but I welcome the change of pace that being kid-free offers.

Randy reminded me that it's not every week that I'm kid free, so I might as well enjoy it a bit. I agree. But, as always, I have a lot of things to do, so I'm not going to put a lot of undue pressure on myself to get it all done. I could end up working myself straight into the ground with my to-do list. So, I'm going to opt for a more relaxing week instead.

Here are the girls soaking it up in the jacuzzi tub at my folks house. That looks like a great idea. I might try that too.

Know when to say no

I've had a topic rolling around in my head for a few days now. And I have to go about it gently, because honestly, I could step on some toes with this post.

A while back, I posted about the secrets of "The Organized Mom" an article by Beverly Frank. As I mentioned before, this article described me perfectly and it was nice to know that all my work is not in vain.

There was a nugget of truth in that article that I wanted to touch on today. The author says,

"An organized mom does not let herself get overly stressed, or overwhelmed because she knows when to say no, when to de-stress, and when to take a break."

Let me just say right up front... I was not always this person. I was the person who wore as many hats as humanly possible. If there was a project to sign up for... I was there. If there was a volunteer opportunity at church, I was the "go-to" gal. If there was a meeting to attend... I was there... and I was there on time! Of course, I was also wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend...

And, I know why I signed up/served/volunteered for so many things and it was because:

1. I was lonely.
2. I needed to feel important.
3. I wanted to volunteer/serve/help.

Notice my priorities here people?

Don't get me wrong, there is something wonderful about meeting and making friends when you volunteer. And, when you are volunteering for a worthy cause, you can't help but feel important and worthwhile. But, honestly, the actual helping/volunteering part... eh? I was more in it for the social aspect of it.

And, because my heart wasn't in the right place... I was miserable. I eventually felt confined. The volunteer position(s) eventually came with more and more responsibilities, which I slowly could not get a grip on anymore and honestly, serving or volunteering was no longer a joy to me.

I recall having a conversation with a friend about how I was miserable in my volunteering role(s) and she told me that my heart wasn't right and that my attitude would change once I got my heart right. So, I stepped away from all things related to volunteering for over a year. I wanted to volunteer with a joyful heart, but in effect, I was serving out of begrudged obligation.

I know I let down the "team" and I certainly felt the emotional effects of it. But, during that year, I was able to refocus on the things that had taken the back-burner... like my family, for one, and I began to realign my priorities once again.

Now, when I'm asked to volunteer and/or serve in any capacity, whether at church or at school, I'm able to draw upon my past experience and make the best volunteering decisions for everyone in my family... including me. And, I serve with a joyful heart! Imagine that?!

I say this to say... Know when to say no. Know when to take a break.

Serve with gladness and a joyful heart. You are not doing anybody any favors when you do not have the right heart or attitude.

The BIG reveal

I'm not 100% finished with my craft area makeover, but I'm excited to show off my hard work. This will be the last time I speak of this, since I've blathered on about it for days.

So, here's the BEFORE. Let me just say that this was at the epitome of craft craziness. This room didn't always look like this, but throw in a few harried crafts, a sewing project and two girls who don't pick up after themselves and this is what you get.



This is the AFTER. I still need a big more organization on those shelves, but for now, it works.


Here's a close up of the pegboard organization.

The pegboard is from Home Depot. Randy had to measure and cut it to fit the area. He then added wood trim behind the board to allow for the hooks to not pierce the sheet-rock. The wood and trim was $25.00.

I purchased the pegboard metal hanger accessories at Walmart. The accessories were less than $10 and had 48 assorted pieces.

I purchased the hanging wire basket from IKEA for $2.00.

The clear paper sorters are from Goodwill. I purchased these several years ago, so I was excited to use them on the peg board. I'm pretty sure I didn't pay more than a buck for each.

The jars in the basket are also from IKEA. I originally bought them a year or two ago for my bulk spices but decided I didn't like them for that purpose. So, I pulled them from my spice cabinet and re-purposed them for the craft room. I paid $3 for them.

The mini aluminum buckets were purchased many years ago from Walmart in a Valentine's Day clearance sale. I paid $.50 for each bucket. I have been using these buckets as "gift bags" for small gifts, etc., but decided that if I haven't used all of them by now, then they were just taking up space on the shelf. Since I had enough, I thought it was a purpose well served. I also love the uniformity of it.

On this side of the pegboard, I set up a mini gift wrapping station. I love to buy the small rolls of gift wrap paper at Target in the "Dollar Spot" and they are the perfect size for this area.

Using the metal pegboard accessories, I placed wooden dowel rods with the rolls of ribbon and wrapping paper on top. It's a great set up and will keep everything neat and organized.

I ended up buying long wooden dowels rods at Hobby Lobby and cutting them to the size I needed. I bought 5 rods for $5.00.

The Container Store stackable bins were purchased at Goodwill several years ago. I placed all of my paper punches in the top bin so the girls can reach them easily. I paid $1.00 for each bin.

In my "before" picture you'll notice I had the Elfa Storage baskets on top of the table. In these baskets are store bought crafts that they receive for their birthdays, etc. I placed it on the table because it was easier for them to see what they had in there. This time around, I put it on the floor underneath the table. Since they are not accustomed to the contents of the baskets, they'll know to look there first for fun crafts. (By the way, I bought the Elfa Storage baskets and frame at Goodwill last year. $3.99 for the entire thing! Total Score!)

My goal for this area was to make everything easily accessible for the girls. Before everything was stored away in plastic bins with lids so they hardly ever used any of it. Now, that I've made everything within their reach, there's no stopping their creativity.

My out of pocket expense for this project (not including the items I already had in my possession) was $42.00. Not bad, not bad!

I {heart} Chipotle Peppers

I am a lover of the chipotle pepper.

I love the smokiness of chipotle peppers, but lately I’ve noticed the flavor tends to be overused, especially in restaurants. The flavor is great, but do we really need chipotle flavored chocolate cake?

I tend to reserve this intense flavor for fresh dips and sauces/dressings. And since I don’t overuse this flavor too much, it always packs a nice little punch when I do use it.

You can buy whole or crushed chipotle peppers in the can with adobo sauce in the Mexican food aisle. This style is great for sauces or salad dressings. But, I use ground chipotle powder for fresh dips like guacamole, salsa, pico de gallo and corn relish.

Check out this recipe for corn relish! I made it as a topping for our “fajita bowls” which is simply rice, black beans, fajita meat, salad toppings, cheese and salsa layered and piled high in a bowl.

Southwestern Corn Relish

• 1-2 ears of roasted corn (or 1 medium sized can of corn – drain and rinse)
• 1-2 slice(s) of red onion (diced)
• 1 tomato (diced)
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper (seeded and diced)
• Handful of fresh cilantro (stems removed; chopped)
• 1 tsp of ground chipotle powder (add more, depending on “heat” factor)
• Coarse ground pepper and kosher salt to taste
• Optional Ingredients: Diced avocado

Directions: Toss ingredients in bowl and serve.

Blog Brain Dump

Let me tell you, I'm such a rule follower, but this whole "Blog Brain Dump" is so freeing. It breaks the rules, without apology. So, without further ado, let the random begin!

I found out last night that Randy's VP boss wants him to travel 1 week out of the month to do consulting work in their San Jose corporate location. Mmmm.... not too thrilled with that, that's for sure... but, welcome the challenge and potential it will offer him. At least now, the girls are much older and his work travel is not as hard on us as it was when they were smaller. I have to hand it to those women whose husbands' travel for work. It's hard! I'm just thankful he is only traveling one week out of the month. Here's hoping that week falls on my PMS week. That would be a dream come true for him!

I'm up to my eyeballs in books. Tell me I'm not the only one who keeps books in queue. I am currently reading "Into The Wilderness" by Sara Donati and it is very good! It's another one of those long semi-historical fiction books. This one is set in the 1700's. It is part one of a four part series of books. I'm not sure I can commit to all four books, but I will try to at least read the second book. While I love series books, I am such a slooooow reader and this book has already taken me 3 weeks to read (and I'm not even finished!) And, as you can see... I'm up to my eyeballs in books.

The second book I'm reading right now is "Battlefield of the Mind" by Joyce Meyer. This book is awesome! If you are struggling with anything related to your thoughts, your mind, criticism, confusion, doubt or anxiety, then this book will help you overcome it all! Joyce Meyer uses scripture, after scripture, after scripture detailing what God's purpose for us is, and that is to live a life without confusion or doubt. It's been "therapy" to me.

In my queue are these additional books:

"Mom, sex is NO big deal" by Sharon Hersh I started reading the first two chapters of the book and I was so moved to tears of the struggles teen girls face that I had to put it down for a while. I need to have a clear mind, free of clutter when I sit down to read this book.

"Pathway to Purpose for Women" by Katie Brazelton I started reading this book and got a little put off by the author in the second chapter because she talks about how when she was trying to find herself after an unexpected divorce and career change, she decided to hop on a plane to Calcutta and meet Mother Teresa. While that may be fine and good for her, not everyone has the luxury to be able to do something like that. So, I felt right away that I could not relate to the author. BUT, I'm still determined to give it another go around soon.

"The Glass Castle: A Memoir" by Jeannette Walls I really need to get on this book soon. It's a library book and it's due next week. Maybe I can crank it out before I have to turn it back in.

"The Pressure's Off" by Lawrence Crabb This book was recommended by my family doctor. He's a an awesome Christian and felt it would be a great book for me to read. He also recommended this book... "Inside Out" by Lawrence Crabb

So, there ya have it. That's what I'm reading... and/or trying to read right now. A little bit of fun and a little bit of study. I think it's a pretty good mix for now.

Oh and one last plug for books... If I have to buy a book, I head straight to Amazon.com and search the used books that individuals are selling. I've had nothing but good results buying used books through Amazon and for as little as $.10/each (plus $3.99 shipping). It's great for hard to find books or books that can't be found at the library.

So... WHAT ARE YOU READING?

Meet George Jetson

While Elisan and Randy were sick last week, we watched entirely too much television. It's what you do when you are sick, right? That, and hold bedside vigil next to your ailing loved ones while they bark orders at you. I'll be honest here, my bedside manners were threadbare by Saturday.

But, back to the television part.

We were running out of shows to DVR, so Randy noticed "Tom & Jerry", "The Jetsons" and "The Flintstones" on the Boomerang network so we began recording these shows. And you know what? They love watching them. The content is a bit older for them, yet, it's still innocent to a degree. Sure, there are a few off-color jokes at times, but for the most part, it's a far cry better than "Spongebob" and his incessant laugh. I'm not sure about "Scooby Doo" and the fear factor potential, but I may record a few episodes just to see how they like it.

Now, if I could find some "Bugs Bunny" episodes, we'd be set for a long time.

In other news... Elisan's fever finally broke Sunday a.m. The whole illness thing was interesting. She had fever for 5 days and no other symptoms. She didn't eat hardly at all and the lack of food was what concerned me the most. But, she woke up on Sunday morning without a fever and asked for breakfast. Weird. I'm just thankful she's better.

Yesterday I made the trek to WalMart and Office Depot to buy school supplies. $60.00 later, we still have three items to buy, but for the most part, we are done. I remember as a kid loving the trek to buy school supplies. My friend Heather, a teacher, wrote a great blog post about school supplies. You can check it out here: Heather Said So.

And for those wishing to save a buck or ten, here is an Office Depot printable coupon for $10 off a $25.00 or more purchase. This was great for us, since there were a few specialty items on Elisan's list that I couldn't find at WalMart.

Switching gears entirely...

While I was at WalMart, Elisan and I perused the sports bra section for girls. Since I'm well-endowed and have been since I was prepubescent, I have been preparing her for the same. I know... it seems unfair to have to talk to my girl about this at (almost) nine, but here's the deal... Because I was well-endowed, I was VERY self conscious. All. The. Time. I don't want her to feel the same way I did. And way back when I was a little girl, I don't recall stores carrying sports bras for little girls. So, in effort to make this transition easy on her, we bought a three pack of sport bras for girls. I told her she doesn't have to wear them unless she wants too and that they were there for her, just in case. She seemed perfectly content with that and honestly, so do I. If I can help her to avoid any of the pain and humiliation that I felt growing up as a girl, then I'm going to help her anyway I can. There will be plenty enough times when I can't help her, so I'm going to jump at the chance to help her when I can.

Okay, so this post is entirely too long already. I'm signing off for now. Have a great Monday.

There's hope afterall

Today, Elisan woke up feeling good enough to eat. Of course, that was short lived when she actually put food into her mouth, but at least she didn't yell at me for actually suggesting food to her. I think there's hope.

She has not been a very good patient. But, granted, this child NEVER gets sick. Never. I honestly cannot remember a time when the child was even on antibiotics for anything other than pink eye. So, as you can imagine this illness has taken us all by surprise. But, as far as illnesses go, this one has only been fever. High, relentless fever.. but nothing else.

Kyla has been a real trooper throughout the entire week. But, she's been very lonely. Add to that the fact that we've been cooped up in the house all week... I feel more sorry for Kyla, I think. At least through the sickness, Elisan has received my undivided attention. Kyla on the other hand, has not.

So, yesterday, while Randy & Elisan napped, I took Kyla on a mommy/daughter date for ice cream. That made her day. We had such a great time and she was glad to get some of that coveted undivided attention.

Elisan is still sick with fever, but it's not as high as it has been, so that's good. Here's praying we're at the tail end of this nasty virus!

More of the same

Day three of sickness for Elisan and day two for Randy. I ended up taking E to the doctor today because of the fever that will not go away. When I told the doctor about Randy being sick as well, and that he ate the remainder of her ice cream on Tuesday night... she chuckled a bit and said she was not surprised that he was sick too. Your mama was always right when she said don't eat after anyone!

So, the other day I saw an auction at Goodwill for a lot of 6 used American Girl dolls. Since they were in a glass case, I was unable to get in a good inspection/sniff test, but they appeared to be in a good condition. The girls went crazy for them and begged me to bid on the dolls. I put in a decent bid, but prepared them for the fact that we'll probably not win. But, now I'm wondering... since the dolls are $100/each retail (new), what would a used doll go for? And a lot of 6?

The auction takes place on Saturday and I was going to go in and check out the bidding activity, but I'm curious and pose the question to Goodwill shoppers and non-Goodwill shoppers alike... what's it worth to you? I ask because I don't want to over bid for them, but don't want to shortchange it either.

(And please know that if I see any familiar names on the bid sheet after reading this blog entry... I'm coming after you!)

I found my craft room inspiration... FINALLY! I really love the concept of the top picture and plan to re-org along these lines. I love the peg board, which is simple and easy. I have a pegboard in my laundry (catch all) room and we use it to hang our purses, backpacks, keys, hats, brooms, etc. It's just a great option. I like how she painted the pegboard to add a nice pop of color.

The IKEA accessories are perfect and cost friendly! I always appreciate a break in cost!

In the bottom left picture, I love how this crafter installed a metal curtain rod to store her assorted punches. I don't have nearly that amount of punches, but I like what she did here.

I'm excited to have visual inspiration for a space similar to mine. Maybe this will be painless afterall.

UPDATE: Sickie x2

Something is running rampant through our house. Randy came home sick. Here's hoping KM and I can steer clear of this stuff... it's not pretty.

I'm armed with Lysol, hand sanitizer, a thermometer and ibuprofen for anyone who comes near me.

Sickie

There's a sickie in the house. And her name (thankfully) is not Mom. Don't get me wrong, I don't wish illness on my children and in the name of pain, I'd gladly take on her illness in her place, if it were possible. But, since it isn't possible to assume someone's pain/illness on their behalf, let's just say... it's a lot easier to put on a movie featuring dogs and horses for my girl, rather than try to keep everyone fed and in clean clothes as a mom... who is sick.

Ahem... moving right along.

Due to this unforseen sickness, we've already had to cancel plans with friends yesterday, and will likely have to cancel plans with friends for tomorrow. I'm a bit sad for Elisan because I know she was looking forward to seeing her friends, but she is thankfully old enough to realize that her friends don't want her germs and it's not me being mean for withholding fun... oh because, I've been accused of that one before.

Speaking of old enough... Elisan and I had the full on "HEX TALK" last week. It was good and the timing could not have been better. What better time to talk about hex than in the summer... that way, she'll have the opportunity to ponder all things hex related at home and ask appropriate questions to me and not her friends. I do have to say, the look on her face when she realized what mommies and daddies "do"... well, that was priceless. Worth every ounce.

The girls are heading out of town this weekend for another week to be spent with grandparents. I think I'm going to tackle my craft room that week while they are gone. Randy and I cannot come to terms about what to do. He is pretty much set on the fact that we need the spare bed/bedroom downstairs, so whatever...

But, while I've been contemplating what I want to accomplish in this room, I realized... I don't do crafts anymore.

• I don't scrapbook - although I have Kyla's baby book to finish.
• I don't stamp - although I have a lot of stamps and several ink pads.
• I don't sew (well) - although I have a sewing machine... (maybe a class is in order?)
• I don't do paper crafting/card making - that kind of falls somewhere between scrapbooking and stamping.
• I don't make hair bows anymore - because the girls refuse to wear them.
• I very rarely make jewelry - but this doesn't take up much room.
  
• You get the gist...

So, I keep going back and forth in my head... why am I trying to organize an area that I don't really use for the purpose in which I am trying to organize it?

The girls enjoy doing crafts and projects and I'll keep an area set up for them, but really... I think I'm done trying to keep up with multiple "crafts" that, honestly, I'm no good at. So, back to the drawing board for me. I'll let you know what I come up with.

Well folks, that's about it. Happy Wednesday!

Is exercise selfish?

Recently a friend said that working out was the only self indulgent activity she participated in and described it as her "hobby".

I immediately agreed, thinking... yep, it's pretty self indulgent, spending 1-2 hours at the gym 4-5 days a week. Making plans and schedules around the gym/working out. For me especially... driving 10 miles to the gym (one way) just so I can workout in an atmosphere that is comfortable for both me and my kids.

Then as I began to ponder this whole self indulgent idea, I stopped and thought, "Is it really selfish?" And I have to say, that on the surface, it can appear selfish, but realistically, wouldn't I rather be healthy and set a good example for my girls? Especially now, as they are growing up and body image will become something that will inevitably be in the forefront of their minds. To show them that you can be healthy and eat properly, as opposed to battling eating disorders and poor weight management?

In addition to a healthy body, working out is healthy for my mind! For me, it's good "therapy". Working off stress, etc. Randy knows the days I don't make it into the gym b/c I'm a teency bit more stressed and quick tempered.

Yeah, I guess both reasons are good enough for me - regardless of what others may think or feel.

So, what are your thoughts? Does exercise and/or time spent at the gym seem self-indulgent or selfish to you? Why or why not?

Road Trip 2010

On Saturday, our plans to visit my brother and his family in San Antonio ended up being canceled, so Randy suggested we take our road trip to College Station instead.

Randy has been wanting to show us around the A&M campus for a long time, but with our busy schedules, we just haven't found any spare time to make a day trip.

Saturday proved to be an excellent day for road trippin'. We arrived at College Station and as soon as we stepped out of the van, it stopped raining and we had a nice stroll around campus in...get this... 78 degree weather. People, that is virtually unheard of in Texas. In July. In the afternoon. It was bliss!

It's true! 78 degrees!


College Station, here we come!


Here is Randy and the girls at Kyle Field.

Randy and the girls with the 12th Man.


The girls and I in front of Kyle Field.


Look at this magnificent oak tree!
The limbs were on the ground in some places.


On one of the statues on campus was that of Lawrence Sullivan Ross. He was a Texas Governor and also a President of Texas A&M. He often tutored students and only charged them a "penny for their thoughts". Students will place a penny on his statue as it is meant to bring good luck, especially during finals.


Randy's old dormitory.


The girls at Randy's dormitory entrance, "I" ramp.


The girls underneath the clock tower.


Kyla at the College of Veterinarian Medicine.
She wants to be a vet, so she wanted to take her picture in front of the school.


Just being silly!


No trip is complete without a visit to Wings 'N More.
The wings here were the best!


We had a great time on our road trip!
Thanks Randy for sharing a part of your world with us!