Hunger

I'm constantly amazed how Kindergarten has thrown my children into a feeding frenzy. Rion's appetite increased dramatically once he started Kindergarten, and I'm finding that Hailey is now getting bit by the hunger bug. Today, for example, she got home from school just before 11:30. For lunch she had a turkey sandwich and a string cheese. Not even 5 minutes later, she was still hungry, so she had a bowl of cereal...and then she had a fruit leather. Wow! I asked her why she was eating so much lately and she replied, "Moooommm, (you have to add the little girl whine to that word...) Kindergarten makes me hungry!" I think my food bill is going to increase a lot this year with two in school!

Neglect?

Never fear! I have not been neglecting anyone. These last few days have been terribly busy! I've been elbow deep in making wedding invitations for a friend of mine from work. She is getting married in November and what better wedding gift than homemade wedding invitations at no cost? I am so excited about these. Eric helped me with the fine tuning. The initial design was just not working once I started the final product, but I think we make a great team!

First Day of School!

Today is the first day of school! Woo hoo! Hailey and Rion were the first to get up, of course. Hailey was pretty nervous during the night and ended up throwing up in the toilet (yay, she made it to the toilet), but she was just fine when we left. Eric went in late to work so he could share in this fun day. When we got to school, we went to Hailey's classroom and got her name tag, then they went out to play. Rion found his little group and they congregated in the field like they were 5th graders instead of 4th graders. Too funny. Haily ran off to the color playgroud and made a new friend. Emmitt and Emma from her preschool joined her shortly after. When the bell rang, Rion ran off to his class line while Hailey lined up in hers for the first time. She was all smiles, unlike some other kids in her line. One little girl looked like someone took away her favorite doll. Poor thing. We are so proud of how Hailey was holding up. I can't wait to talk to her after school! Here are the pictures from this morning.

Meet the Teacher!

Today was "Meet the Teacher Day" at Central Canyon Elementary. Hailey is starting Kindgergarten this year and was very excited to meet her new teacher, Mrs. Lords. We found her name and her cubby in her new classroom. She even put away all of her school supplies!

Then we went to Rion's new classroom. He is in 4th grade this year, and his teacher is Mrs. Mullanix. She is new to Central Canyon this year. After finding Rion's new desk (right in the middle of the class) and putting away his supplies, the kids were ready for school!

Tomorrow better come fast! My kids are ready!

Another Find

I have been very lacking in posting lately. The reason? Yet another CRAIGSLIST find! I'm horrible, I know. So this time I found a California King bed frame. Woo hoo! We sold our bedroom set back in 2006 when we moved to Idaho. We have not had anything since. When I saw this little beauty on craigslist for only $99, I couldn't resist, even though the color style was not our style!

This is actually a waterbed frame, but I love the four posts. In person they are so much bigger than they appear in the picture. (This is not our bedroom, by the way.) After a week of painting, adding a clear coat, and extending the bed rails on the sides by 4 inches so our bed would actually fit in the frame, it is nearly complete! I still have to sand and paint the portion of the extensions, but it is certainly usable until I get that done. Here is the "after" picture.

Our bedroom is so large (23.5 feet by 15.5 feet) that this fills in the space very nicely! We are so excited about it, and now that the smell of the polyurethane has died down, we are no longer hallucinating. (just kidding!) Once I get the rest of the room decorated, I'll add more pictures. After this find, we were joking that I should give a class on how to furnish your house for less than $500. Considering we were going to buy a bedroom set in about 6 years that is around $2K, I think I'm doing VERY well! I am extremely happy!

Food Storage!

It's Sunday! Don't forget to check out the sidebar for this week's list. :) I have added the dates to the weeks to make it easier.

Update on the Garden

I just had to give an update. Look how much it's grown! The green beans are all done now, but the tomatoes are turning red, the cucumbers are getting big, the carrots are growing long, and the corn has begun! So much fun! And check out that gorgeous lawn!

I have a few of these lillies growing in my yard. I'm not sure the type of lilly, though. Very pretty!

Storytime!

Addiction

I know, not a very happy topic, and mine is especially tragic! I am addicted to CRAIGSLIST! Someone send some intervention! Ok, not really. I love craigslist, though. I'm not on it every day, but I am on it quite frequently throughout the week. Over the passed year I have found the following items:

3 pictures frames - $12

nasty looking bench that was kept outside - $10 (now looks like this after some loving care)

end tables to use as nightstands - $10 each (we were using a large plastic container and a tool box with a flat top from Dec 2006 until a week ago)

two of these doors from an old china hutch that will go on the wall once I've restored them - $30

Find of the century! - a functioning hot tub for $150 that looked like this

and now looks like this! (that's a towel on the steps, it was COLD!)

And today, once again, another great buy. This elliptical for $100!

There have been other things, such as a twin/full wooden bunkbed with mattresses and matching dresser for $300, and a kitchenaid mixer for $95, but I have a hard time rembering the rest of them! Sad, huh? Somebody help me!

Say "No" to Crack!

Yes, his shorts were like this when I found them playing outside! There was no "foul play" involved!

Salsa Redeemed!

Yay! Thanks to Sarah, and her ability to coherse the recipe out of a friend in the ward, my failed salsa attempt while in Utah has been redeemed. I have now tried this recipe 3 times and it is fabulous! It tastes very much like Chevy's, or at least close enough that I am not craving Chevy's anymore. Here is the recipe according to how I make it...

7-8 green onion – use almost the whole thing, cut of top inch or two and bottom roots
1-2 heads of cilantro – I only used one since the bunch was so big. If you find your salsa is green when done, add more tomatoes or a can of diced tomatoes (drained).
10 roma tomatoes – cut them in half, then squeeze out all of the juice and discard
1 can Ro-Tel diced tomatoes w/ green chilis – I heard that this particular brand is best, and I actually use 2 cans
1 tsp-1 Tbsp salt – add 1 tsp at a time to taste. I actually used the whole Tbsp, as it sucks up the salt the longer it sits
Squeeze in lime to taste

Blend onions and cilantro separate from each other in food processor, then add together with tomatoes. Add remaining ingredients one at a time. Puree to desired consistency. If too tomatoey, add 1 more can Ro-Tel, if too spicey or too cilantro-ey, add more roma tomatoes. Let sit in refrigerator for a couple of hours to make the tastes mesh together. You may have to adjust things here and there, but overall it’s good!

Scentsy Warmer

Woo hoo! I finally have one of these. Thanks, Karyn!

Food Storage - August Weeks 1-4

I have decided to change the way I do my food storage list. I have created a sidebar post with an entire month all written out. I think this will help with advanced planning. I will likely post the next month's list a week prior to that month. Good luck!

Just for giggles, here is the list. As it moves down the posting row, you can always look at the sidebar.

August Food Storage List

We will see the day when we will live on what we produce."

Week 1 - August 3rd-9th

Back to school sales! Paper, pencils, crayons, envelopes, stamps, journals.

Week 2 - August 10th-16th

Baking powder, soda, corn starch, vanilla, bouillon cubes, cooking spray, yeast.

Week 3 - August 17th-23rd

Tomato Week! Salsa, juice, sauce, whole, chopped, paste, pizza and spaghetti sauce.

Week 4 - August 24th-30th

Do some fruit canning or drying. If not, then buy it! Watch for sales!