basement

I need to RESTORE order back into this house. What a mess it has been. ORDER is long over-due...especially the basement. I need to be willing to just get rid of stuff. Brian would love to check it off the "TO DO" list. I have moved the BASEMENT to the top of my "TO DO" list.... as of RIGHT NOW it is my priority...

I still feel as though I can't fall back into the rhythm of our regular routine.
Like our vacation was just a dream...
Probably because it was spontanious -- no plans -- just hoppin' in the car
it just doesn't seem like it was "for real"

What a beautiful, peaceful, relaxing trip. This was taken on the evening we arrived. The sky was awesome!

Florida Trip

Brian and I went out to a later lunch on Saturday, March 20th. As we were sitting there talking about Sara and all of the fun she was going to have going to FL with Gramma, Pop, Nicole, Canden and Indigo, we felt bad that Blake wasn't going. Blake had announced at our fire-pit talk that all of his friends were going somewhere and was wondering if we could just go to Door County and Buff. Wild Wings. Well, Brian and I got all excited talking about, maybe, taking a little road trip to TN with Blake...then said...HECK...Lets just go all the way to FL. Sooooo....
We decided Saturday (and kept it a secret from Blake and Sara) quickly went home and washed the car all up --- inside and out--- Sunday I had lots to do. Brian had to work so got tires put on the car, dropped Sara off by Suzie, got Blake motivated to finish up doing his Science Fair Project and I finished up homework. When Brian got home...we told Blake to hurry and get his project done (I had his bags packed earlier in the morning and already put into the car)...that we were going to take him to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. He totally believed it. On our way we stopped at Mrs. K's house and dropped off the Science Fair Board (Blake was too busy listening to his ipod to notice)....and we were on our way. When we didn't stop he was questioning it....Brian told him to look at the GPS -- which said, "Grandpas and Grandmas in FL."
Blake just kept repeating, "you guys are lying...you guys are lying...no way...no way." He finally realized that we weren't kidding the longer we kept driving.
We were planning on stopping 1/2 way but I wasn't tired at all so I kept on driving and by morning we made it to the Smokey Mountains....it was so pretty, the sky was stormy looking and just looked so awesome. We drove and drove and drove....and ended up in Anna Maria Island at about 6pm by Grandma and Grandpa. They welcomed us with open arms and were happy to see us. We all jumped into the car and went to the beach to see the sun setting...with the stormy looking sky in FL too....just breathtaking. I forgot how much I love the sound of the ocean and the cool waves and stuff. It was so relaxing sounding and peaceful....I am so glad we decided to go "spur of the moment" because it was just what we needed. Even though I didn't really want another FL vacation....wanted to go somewhere different...I couldn't have asked for a more relaxing vacation (maybe because we just had Blake with us...so no fights to break up between him and Sara?) LOL
I'll write more about the trip tomorrow...

Firepit Talk

Last night after supper we had a fire in the fire pit. I was busy cleaning (suppose to have been just helping) Sara clean her room. After figuring out that she wasn't coming back to help...I decided to join in on the fire. We made smores and talked about Sara leaving on Monday to Florida (she is going with Grandma and Pop, Indigo, Nicole, and Canden). She is so excited and talks about it every second of the day.

Blake reminded us of the time we were at Bay Beach and he had a fly buzz into his mouth. He reinacted the whole scene--describing every detail of how he got it out of his mouth. It got funnier and funnier as he explained the gross details. He is such a good story teller.

Sara has been homeschooled for about a month now and is enjoying it. She is finally getting the hang of keeping herself organized and on task. She loves to change things up. It has been in the high 60's this past week (not today though) and pretty bright and sunny. She decided to take advantage and wrote all of her spelling words in chalk on the driveway. It makes me wonder what she is going to grow up to "BE". It will sure be interesting, she has to always use each of her senses when learning something new. She loves to touch, feel, taste, see, and hear EVERYTHING. She loves new experiences and thrives on change.

With all of this nice weather we have had, Sara and I have taken a walk just about every day. We have gone different places (she likes change) and each walk being about 4-6 miles. We are hoping to go on a cruise or a beachy vacation next year and I have to shed a few pounds first...

Speaking of food...

I meant to post for St. Patrick's Day but I forgot -- this being a new blog and all. We had a tasteful supper of reuben sandwiches, green beans, green milk and to top it all off Green Pistachio Tort. YUMMM. The kids even ate half of a reuben sandwich and liked it. They are really not that fussy of eaters, sometimes I get frustrated.

Tonight we are having left over chilli for dinner. The freezer has been getting emptied little by little. The things we have completely run out of are: strawberry jam (I had to take some from my mom last week); frozen strawberries and blueberries; frozen corn. I didn't do any canning or freezing last summer so I will have to be sure to do it this summer.

OOOPS... This Photo Was Suppose To Be My Profile Pic

Fudge...Fudge...Fudge...This photo was suppose to be my profile picture. Just have to learn while I go. Funny how much time can be consumed by exploring all of this stuff. Maybe I should just take a class first. It might help with the frustration.

Fudging While I Go...

This will be my first real post. I am so excited...even though I am not sure what I am doing. But the best way to figure out or learn something is to just dive right in and hope to learn along the way. If anything, I will learn from my mistakes.

Walking into the house after work tonight, I found Brian teaching Blake how to lift weights properly. After he was all done, and getting ready for bed...he came strutting into the livingroom to show us his "six-pack" -- it was so funny.

My little boy is growing up so fast. He is going to be a freshman this fall...where did the time go? Seriously, it feels like it was just yesterday I was sending him off to kindergarden. Makes me so sad, but so glad to see what a GREAT kid he is turning out to be.

This Is My First Blog

This is my first blog entry. This will be a way to tell my story...record my journey.