Just want to inform you that my birthday will be postponed until further notice. Not because I'm putting off turning (cough) 31 but because how I'm going to spend my day today is not how anyone should have to spend their birthday.
Tomorrow we are having the appraisal done on our house and after a weekend with a houseful of extra kids I'm going to be spending today cleaning it and in the words of Annie, making it "shine like the top of the Chrysler Building".
Bubs woke up around 4:15 AM came into my room and said "happy Birthday Mom" I said thank you and thought...how sweet. Well around 4:30 AM I heard him sobbing in his room. When The Doctor asked him what was wrong he said "I have the worst sore throat ever". Well, the only time people use that phrase is when they are suffering from strep. The Doctor to a look and he most definitely has strep. So, I will get to take my son to the doctors office today. The boy probably came into my room today to tell me he wasn't feeling well and then decided to suck it up and tell me happy birthday and let me sleep instead. After a dose of IB profen he is sleeping the morning away.
I cancelled my Birthday lunch with some girlfriends and my Birthday dinner date with The Doctor. So, if you want to wish me a happy Birthday today that is fine but just know, today is not my birthday, at least not this year. I will be celebrating later at a date that is TBA. Now I'm off to go scrub some toilets while I still have 2 kids sleeping.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Use of Time
We have been in and out of town a lot in the last few weeks. Life has been hectic, as usual, and I haven't had the time to post here in a while. Well, that really isn't true. We all have the same amount of time in a day, 24 hours, and we all get to choose how we spend those 24 hrs. I have chosen not to post blogs but instead have chosen to spend time with friends before I move, keep my house clean for showings, and do some crafts.
The baby blanket on the left I made for my childhood friend who is having her first baby. The one on the right is for my niece who is having her 3rd baby.
Every year I think "I'm going to make teacher appreciation gifts early" and every year teacher appreciation week comes up and I have nothing. This years gifts I made pretty quick. I took composition books and re-covered them with paper.
The other gift I made but forgot to take a picture of was a sweet thoughts bowl of chocolate. I went into the kids classroom and spoke with each child and asked them what their favorite thing was about their teacher. Then I went home and printed off what they said on mailing labels. I then put the labels around a piece of Hershey's nuggets chocolate. All the chocolates went into a glass bowl I picked up at the dollar store. I then made a flower and had it stick out of the bowl. "Sweet thoughts for a sweet teacher" was written in the center of the flower. It was a big hit.
I have finally finished crocheting an afghan for my father for his birthday. I will have to post a picture of it later because I don't want to spoil it for him. However, here are a few teaser pics. 
The baby blanket on the left I made for my childhood friend who is having her first baby. The one on the right is for my niece who is having her 3rd baby.
Every year I think "I'm going to make teacher appreciation gifts early" and every year teacher appreciation week comes up and I have nothing. This years gifts I made pretty quick. I took composition books and re-covered them with paper.
The other gift I made but forgot to take a picture of was a sweet thoughts bowl of chocolate. I went into the kids classroom and spoke with each child and asked them what their favorite thing was about their teacher. Then I went home and printed off what they said on mailing labels. I then put the labels around a piece of Hershey's nuggets chocolate. All the chocolates went into a glass bowl I picked up at the dollar store. I then made a flower and had it stick out of the bowl. "Sweet thoughts for a sweet teacher" was written in the center of the flower. It was a big hit.
I have finally finished crocheting an afghan for my father for his birthday. I will have to post a picture of it later because I don't want to spoil it for him. However, here are a few teaser pics.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Time Flies with Big Changes
Life has been happening so fast lately. I can't believe April is almost over and my kids only have 30 more days of school. In the last month some major decisions and changes have been made and planned for. Before I say what has been going on I need to preface a little.
The Doctor and I have been married for almost 11 years. All but one of those years one or both of us have been in school. That is the path we chose since The Doctor is well....a doctor. June 30th marks the last day of his medical residency and then we will finally be out in the real world. This is the first time it is up to us to decide where to live when we are done. Picking which medical school to attend was determined by which one out of two we got into would be cheapest. Then, where we did residency was decided by a "match". Well, now it is up to us.
We began by trying to determine what sort of lifestyle we wanted to live post schooling. We know we want to get back to a part of the country that has 4 distinct seasons with each one lasting longer than at least 2 weeks before it changed. We want to live in a place that is on average cooler than where we are. We love the cooler weather or at least having it cool down in the evenings. A place closer to family, not too close, but close enough we could still be involved in the big things. I would love to live on a small piece of land (bigger than a lot in a neighborhood) and have chickens or some other type of farm animal. We want to be close to mountains for camping, hiking, and fishing.
With these things in mind we knew we wanted to be back west. Last fall we started applying for jobs in Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Alaska, Idaho, and even Arizona (had to appease the parents). We received 2 job interviews (most of the others already filled positions or didn't have any openings) in Anchorage, Alaska. We were super excited about the prospect of living in AK. The interview with one of the groups went well, we got the job offer and signed the contract. For the last 5 months we have been making arrangements to move to AK. We bought plane tickets to go house hunting, reserved the moving truck, and sold quite a bit of furniture we didn't want to move. Things were moving along.
A couple of days after we got back from Spring break another physician that The Doctor had worked with during medical school called to say they had a position open up with their group and asked if we wanted to come out for an interview. The job is in Idaho and at first we completely wrote it off because we had already signed a contract with Alaska. And come on, who lives in Idaho? It is way more fun to tell people you are moving to ALASKA then it is to tell them you are moving to Idaho. The reactions to AK range from "are you crazy?" to "awesome, I'm coming to visit".
Well, after letting it simmer for a couple of days we decided to go ahead and head out to Idaho. We only had 2 full days there so we had to make it count. The Doctor spent the first day interviewing and touring the hospitals and surgery centers while I went out with a realtor to check out the area. I think I had a more fun day doing walk throughs on 10 houses. The next day we both went out with the Realtor to show The Doctor the 2 houses I had narrowed it down to (assuming we were to move there) as well as one more house that we found the night before driving around.
The third house (the one we found driving around) was the perfect house. I was in love. The Doctor also fell in love with the job. Sure it pays less than the one in AK but the cost of living is less. If we move to AK we would not be able to afford buying a house that would meet the needs of our large family. In Idaho though we could buy my dream house. The house I would want to live in the rest of my life. I was sold right then and there. The job has the types of cases The Doctor wants, good hours, and a great working environment. The house is on 1.45 acres, has chickens, a garden, and fruit trees. Plus it is located at the end of a culdesac with neighbors that are members of the LDS faith like us. The small city is 6 hours away from our family which is much closer than if we were living in AK. Things seemed too good to be true.
Well, a couple of days after we got back we were given the job offer and decided to accept. We are still sad that we will not get to live in Alaska but, vacationing to Alaska could be better. We wouldn't have to deal with the dark winters. We are mourning the loss of the adventures we had planned in our minds of camping, fishing, and hunting moose and bear in Alaska. However, we feel Idaho would be a better situation for our family and they have pretty great fishing and camping there too.
So, the reason the blog has been lacking in posts is because we have been busy making some pretty big decisions. We are content with our decision and are so excited to be moving onto our next adventure.
wow this post was really long. If you stuck with it thanks.
The Doctor and I have been married for almost 11 years. All but one of those years one or both of us have been in school. That is the path we chose since The Doctor is well....a doctor. June 30th marks the last day of his medical residency and then we will finally be out in the real world. This is the first time it is up to us to decide where to live when we are done. Picking which medical school to attend was determined by which one out of two we got into would be cheapest. Then, where we did residency was decided by a "match". Well, now it is up to us.
We began by trying to determine what sort of lifestyle we wanted to live post schooling. We know we want to get back to a part of the country that has 4 distinct seasons with each one lasting longer than at least 2 weeks before it changed. We want to live in a place that is on average cooler than where we are. We love the cooler weather or at least having it cool down in the evenings. A place closer to family, not too close, but close enough we could still be involved in the big things. I would love to live on a small piece of land (bigger than a lot in a neighborhood) and have chickens or some other type of farm animal. We want to be close to mountains for camping, hiking, and fishing.
With these things in mind we knew we wanted to be back west. Last fall we started applying for jobs in Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Alaska, Idaho, and even Arizona (had to appease the parents). We received 2 job interviews (most of the others already filled positions or didn't have any openings) in Anchorage, Alaska. We were super excited about the prospect of living in AK. The interview with one of the groups went well, we got the job offer and signed the contract. For the last 5 months we have been making arrangements to move to AK. We bought plane tickets to go house hunting, reserved the moving truck, and sold quite a bit of furniture we didn't want to move. Things were moving along.
A couple of days after we got back from Spring break another physician that The Doctor had worked with during medical school called to say they had a position open up with their group and asked if we wanted to come out for an interview. The job is in Idaho and at first we completely wrote it off because we had already signed a contract with Alaska. And come on, who lives in Idaho? It is way more fun to tell people you are moving to ALASKA then it is to tell them you are moving to Idaho. The reactions to AK range from "are you crazy?" to "awesome, I'm coming to visit".
Well, after letting it simmer for a couple of days we decided to go ahead and head out to Idaho. We only had 2 full days there so we had to make it count. The Doctor spent the first day interviewing and touring the hospitals and surgery centers while I went out with a realtor to check out the area. I think I had a more fun day doing walk throughs on 10 houses. The next day we both went out with the Realtor to show The Doctor the 2 houses I had narrowed it down to (assuming we were to move there) as well as one more house that we found the night before driving around.
The third house (the one we found driving around) was the perfect house. I was in love. The Doctor also fell in love with the job. Sure it pays less than the one in AK but the cost of living is less. If we move to AK we would not be able to afford buying a house that would meet the needs of our large family. In Idaho though we could buy my dream house. The house I would want to live in the rest of my life. I was sold right then and there. The job has the types of cases The Doctor wants, good hours, and a great working environment. The house is on 1.45 acres, has chickens, a garden, and fruit trees. Plus it is located at the end of a culdesac with neighbors that are members of the LDS faith like us. The small city is 6 hours away from our family which is much closer than if we were living in AK. Things seemed too good to be true.
Well, a couple of days after we got back we were given the job offer and decided to accept. We are still sad that we will not get to live in Alaska but, vacationing to Alaska could be better. We wouldn't have to deal with the dark winters. We are mourning the loss of the adventures we had planned in our minds of camping, fishing, and hunting moose and bear in Alaska. However, we feel Idaho would be a better situation for our family and they have pretty great fishing and camping there too.
So, the reason the blog has been lacking in posts is because we have been busy making some pretty big decisions. We are content with our decision and are so excited to be moving onto our next adventure.
wow this post was really long. If you stuck with it thanks.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Spaghetti Splatter
WARNING: Do not leave spaghetti sauce unattended on the stove heating while you go check FB "really quick"
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Yoplait Review and Recipe
Yogurt and I had a love hate relationship. I loved the flavors but could not stand the texture of fruit chunks in the cup. For this reason I used to pass up on yogurt. That is until I discovered Yoplaits dessert flavored yogurt. No need for me to worry about the fruit chunks here and I get to enjoy the flavors of my favorite desserts at a fraction of the calories. There are so many flavors to choose from like: Apple Turnover, Red Velvet Cake, Boston Cream Pie, Bannana Cream Pie, Black Forest Cake, Lemon Cream Pie,Pineapple Upside Down Cake, Raspberry Cheesecake, Strawberry Shortcake, White Chocolate Strawberry, and my favorite Key Lime Pie.
Since March is National Nutrition Month I encourage you to snack on your favorite Yoplait yogurt instead of cakes and cookies. Maybe you aren't as interested in the dessert flavors as I am. Well, with varieties like Yoplait Light, Yoplait Original, Yoplait Fiber One, Yoplait Kids and Yoplait Delight Parfaits. Each product offers different benefits, and loads of variety, to make eating well a no-brainer. Here are five great ways to ‘get your snack on’ with Yoplait this March!
Start spring off right with Yoplait Light’s Two Week Tune Up Plan – Replace breakfast and lunch with a cup of your favorite flavor of Yoplait Light, a whole grain and a piece of fruit and you could lose 5 pounds in two weeks. Go to Yoplait.com for full diet details.
Get more calcium with Yoplait Original style yogurt - Now with two times the calcium of the leading yogurt (50 percent of the Recommended Daily Value) in one convenient 6-ounce cup*, Yoplait Original style yogurt is committed to women’s health, offering a product that has even more of the calcium women need for strong, healthy bodies. Grab a free cup while supplies last during the Million Cup Giveaway on Yoplait on Facebook!
Try the newest flavor from Yoplait Fiber One – Yoplait Fiber One’s new Blueberry flavor yogurt is packed with filling fiber, calcium, vitamins A and D, real fruit and the great taste of blueberries. With only 50 calories, 5 grams of fiber and 0 grams of fat, this deliciously creamy yogurt won’t break your calorie bank.
Stress less over snack time with Yoplait Kids yogurt – With a wholesome and fun snack like Yoplait Kids yogurt in the fridge, you can feel good about what your children are eating at snack time. Yoplait Kids provides an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D, and has 25% less sugar than the leading kids’ yogurt**. With yummy flavors, and favorite friends like Dora and Lightning McQueen on the packages, Yoplait Kids is a hit with moms and children alike.
End the day with a Delight Parfait from Yoplait – Even with two luscious layers providing a double shot of rich and creamy yogurt, these 100 calorie indulgences from Yoplait contain only 1.5 grams of fat per serving. Now available in two new flavors, Chocolate Éclair and Cherry Cheesecake, you can enjoy a dessert that’s 100 percent guilt-free.
*Leading yogurt has less than 25% Daily Value calcium per 6 oz.
**Yoplait kids has 9 grams of sugar per 3oz. the leading kids' yogurt has 13 grams of sugar per 3oz.
You don't just have to eat Yoplait yogurt from a cup. You can incorporate it into your recipes to make some delicious food for your family and friends. I was browsing through the recipes at Yoplait.com and came across this recipe for Layered Caribbean Chicken Salad. My mouth started watering when I saw it.
Directions
1. In small bowl, mix all dressing ingredients until well blended.
2. In 3- or 4-quart clear glass serving bowl, layer all salad ingredients in order listed, except cashews and flowers. Spoon dressing evenly over salad; sprinkle cashews over top. Garnish with flowers.
Since March is National Nutrition Month I encourage you to snack on your favorite Yoplait yogurt instead of cakes and cookies. Maybe you aren't as interested in the dessert flavors as I am. Well, with varieties like Yoplait Light, Yoplait Original, Yoplait Fiber One, Yoplait Kids and Yoplait Delight Parfaits. Each product offers different benefits, and loads of variety, to make eating well a no-brainer. Here are five great ways to ‘get your snack on’ with Yoplait this March!
Start spring off right with Yoplait Light’s Two Week Tune Up Plan – Replace breakfast and lunch with a cup of your favorite flavor of Yoplait Light, a whole grain and a piece of fruit and you could lose 5 pounds in two weeks. Go to Yoplait.com for full diet details.
Get more calcium with Yoplait Original style yogurt - Now with two times the calcium of the leading yogurt (50 percent of the Recommended Daily Value) in one convenient 6-ounce cup*, Yoplait Original style yogurt is committed to women’s health, offering a product that has even more of the calcium women need for strong, healthy bodies. Grab a free cup while supplies last during the Million Cup Giveaway on Yoplait on Facebook!
Try the newest flavor from Yoplait Fiber One – Yoplait Fiber One’s new Blueberry flavor yogurt is packed with filling fiber, calcium, vitamins A and D, real fruit and the great taste of blueberries. With only 50 calories, 5 grams of fiber and 0 grams of fat, this deliciously creamy yogurt won’t break your calorie bank.
Stress less over snack time with Yoplait Kids yogurt – With a wholesome and fun snack like Yoplait Kids yogurt in the fridge, you can feel good about what your children are eating at snack time. Yoplait Kids provides an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D, and has 25% less sugar than the leading kids’ yogurt**. With yummy flavors, and favorite friends like Dora and Lightning McQueen on the packages, Yoplait Kids is a hit with moms and children alike.
End the day with a Delight Parfait from Yoplait – Even with two luscious layers providing a double shot of rich and creamy yogurt, these 100 calorie indulgences from Yoplait contain only 1.5 grams of fat per serving. Now available in two new flavors, Chocolate Éclair and Cherry Cheesecake, you can enjoy a dessert that’s 100 percent guilt-free.
*Leading yogurt has less than 25% Daily Value calcium per 6 oz.
**Yoplait kids has 9 grams of sugar per 3oz. the leading kids' yogurt has 13 grams of sugar per 3oz.
As is the case with most things these days, Yoplait is on Facebook. If you "Like" Yoplait on Facebook you can keep up with the latest news and great opportunities to save on your favorite Yoplait products.***Coupon offers for Yoplait yogurt are not valid in all states.
I am a fan of Yoplait both in life and on Facebook however, by posting the above information I have a chance to win a prize provided by Yoplait through MyBlogSpark.
You don't just have to eat Yoplait yogurt from a cup. You can incorporate it into your recipes to make some delicious food for your family and friends. I was browsing through the recipes at Yoplait.com and came across this recipe for Layered Caribbean Chicken Salad. My mouth started watering when I saw it.
Layered Caribbean Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Dressing
1 (6-oz.) container Yoplait® Original 99% Fat Free Piña Colada Yogurt
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon Caribbean jerk seasoning
Salad
3 cups shredded romaine lettuce
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
4 oz. (1 cup) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 (15-oz.) can Progresso® Black Beans, drained, rinsed
1 1/2 cups diced peeled ripe fresh mango
1/2 cup chopped seeded Italian plum tomatoes (1 to 2 medium)
4 oz. (1 cup) shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions (8 medium)
1/2 cup cashews
Fresh edible flowers, if desired
Directions
1. In small bowl, mix all dressing ingredients until well blended.
2. In 3- or 4-quart clear glass serving bowl, layer all salad ingredients in order listed, except cashews and flowers. Spoon dressing evenly over salad; sprinkle cashews over top. Garnish with flowers.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
4 Years of Living
We have lived in our current house for 4 years. Looking back and the changes we have made has been fun. Here is a picture tour of our house 4 years ago and now. The left side is 4 years ago and the right side is current.
The kitchen. For showing purposes we took the leaf out of the table to make it smaller. The chairs that are on the right in the current picture get taken out of the house. We have replaced the vinyl floor with tile and added a few decorations.
We sold the coffee table, old tv, and entertainment center and upgraded to a newer/modern version.
The game room has had quite a few changes. We re-arranged furniture. Sold the futon and the rocking chairs. got a different entertainment center and a new tv.
The table is now in our bedroom serving as The Doctor's study desk. We no longer have the computer upstairs and all the craft stuff is in my bedroom closet. The room is really big and spacious for the kiddos to play.
The girls room was painted. new bedding was purchased and the crib is in storage. KMae sleeps on a crib mattress that gets pushed under Na's bed during the day. We look forward to getting her, her very own bed with the new house. Most of the baby toys were sold at a garage sale.
Bubs room went from bright colorful toddler room to a room with a cal king bed. He is the one that gets kicked out of his room when company comes. We were going to buy him a new bed then decided to get ourselves a new bed and move the old one into his room. He likes a big bed and I frequently find him sleeping with 10 cars circled around him.
I never took a before picture of our bedroom because it was never fully unpacked until last month. That's right, I still had boxes from when we moved in sitting on the floor. Plus, our bedroom was always the dumping ground for the last of the stuff that needed to be cleaned before people came over. Ahhhh it is so nice to have a clean and organized bedroom. Yes, I should have done this 4 years ago. The cowhide and the longhorns were our treasures picked up from our time spent living in Fort Worth. Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Vacation at Last
I have been so busy lately getting my house from this....
to this...
that I have negelcted blogging.
The beaches of Destin, Florida were welcoming. It was our first family vacation in 8 years where it was an actual vacation. No work, weddings, or funerals involved. Just my family, the beach, pool, and a condo. It was amazing. I'll post pics later. Until then, just look at this white sand beach and crystal waters and imagine you are there soaking up the sun.
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