Struggling Saturday

I haven't posted much lately do to lack of time and struggling with many events that are currently happening... I hope to update soon with as much as I can share...

Prayers for Fellow Homeschooler

Please say a prayer for this family... They were traveling as her husband was being transferred to Japan (Military)... They stopped for the night and their large van was stolen from the hotel parking lot in WA... They lost many personal items... The van has been recovered but none of their personal items were still there including birth certificates, passports to travel to Japan, and a college age daughter's credit cards... Thank you...

~Choosing Joy~

Tasty Tuesday

I made a fun recipe today... Mary came by and made it with me plus one to take home... ENJOY!

Blueberry Focaccia

May We Please Be Done Now Monday

Today was another busy running day to squeeze in all my to do before Peanut's Ears and Vacation... I also took my oldest to ESY for the first time... Peanut had her pre-op for her Ears and Linebacker had a recheck to make sure his ear infection had cleared up... We also did a quick weight check and he now weighs ....

Flurry of Activity Friday

Today has been a crazy busy day... The morning started early with a call from our Disabilities Case Manager... The word for my oldest is the opening will be coming available soon and that his application is on file... Just a waiting game now... After that it was a pretty quiet morning with things picking up just before the noon hour... I chatted online with a friend for a bit then cooked breakfast... After that we were off and running... My husband run out for a few errands... Next it was remodeling... It ran later then my husband had said it would... Finally I said I have stuff I need to do and ran out to do it... I went to the local Catholic bookstore... I picked up the children some items using their gift certificates they won for reading lots during CCD... They have several new books and a 'quiet time' tote for during Mass... Next I headed to Walmart and returned 5 things that were either too small or just impractical for our family... I ran in Sam's to see if they had Linebacker's 'milk'... They don't carry the children's version only the adult... So, I went back to Walmart and shopped till I drop... I bought 4 - 6 pks of his 'milk' bleach, fabric (hey a girl has to treat her self every now and then), a retractable clothes line and 100 clothes pins (now where to hang it), a ball for Linebacker to play with in the back yard, 2 classic board cames in HARD plastic boxes vs those the old school cardboard ones that always rip and bent up right away, cooking magazine and several items for Peanuts birthday coming up in just a few short weeks... Next I went to the mall and bought a $50 dress for $2.12... Aren't I a savvy shopper... It's for our camping trip... I ran into my fav 2nd hand store but they didn't have anything that would work for our camping trip... I remember where I saw what I was looking for and it was at Kmart so next I headed there... I picked up two of the dresses I was looking for, an apron, another cookbook, and some covers... I plan to ask a friend of mine some advice on covering... She uses the basic scarf type cover with bobbie pins... I think I will start with that route and see how it goes... It was good to have some time alone and pick up some much needed things... We grilled out burgers, sausages and hot dogs for dinner...

Thankful Thursday and Crossing More Off The To Do List

Top 10 Things I'm Thankful For This Week

1. My Children
2. My Husband
3. My FMCHE Friends
4. Plenty Of Money To Pay All The Bills
5. Good Clothing For The Children
6. Plenty Of Food
7. Air Conditioning (was quite toasty today before the rain)
8. Rain to Renew the Earth
9. My Strong Faith
10. Internet To Purchase Many Items I Can't Locally

Today was busy... I took Peanut out with me and run errands today... I picked up some food, went to the bank, stopped at Kmart for their 50% off swim wear sale... All the children are outfitted for our camping vacation that's coming... I tracked and recorded the date our camping supplies will arrive... I couldn't have timed it better... I paid my last two bills that are due this month... I planned out my day tomorrow... I put in a request for my Catholic Home and Garden Show N' Tell Mom's Night Out item.. I hope it arrives in time... I will know more tomorrow... I hung plastic up so the ceiling can be sanded in the kitchen... Peanut and Monkey had Speech...

What Else Needs To Be Done - Wednesday

I paid one of my last three bills due this month... I ordered Peanut her Aqua Head Band and earplugs for her ear tubes surgery... So, we all set for that... I picked out fabric for the anniversary mystery quilt...
I'm not sure when I will cut or sew the pieces but I have my fabric set aside... I also picked out fabric for a surprise birthday gift... I took Monkey to the store and picked up a few groceries including more Milk... It seems to be flying out the door these days... Going to have to do some milk intake/wasting adjustments... I visited a friend and took her a meal (a portion of my famous 17 lb lasagna)... She had surgery last week... She looked good but tired... We only stayed for a little bit then left so she could rest... I watched another episode of Highway To Heaven... I'm half way done with the disc... I planned out all I have to accomplish tomorrow...

To Do List Tuesday

I normally post some tasty recipe... I'm taking off this week because I had too much to do to whip something up and we ate the left overs... I ran to the library and dropped a DVD in the slot... I went to grocery store for a misc list of items... I ordered our camping items from BePrepared.com.... Awesome site... Peanut had Speech... I had an wonderful evening with a new FMCHE friend, Mary, and her two sons plus puppy... We chatted and looked at my recent quilting projects... I scheduled a Pedicure (Mother's Day Present)... I'm not big on them but this person likes to buy them for me so I'm like ok it's only once a year... Why not... My husband wants me to pick fuchsia nail polish this time... I may just have to post a picture of my toes... LOL... I bought Father's Day cards, mailed the ones that need it then hand delivered the rest... I ordered the middles a Mass Bag... It will be here in a couple days... I watched one episode of Highway To Heaven...

Many Minutes Spent Planning Monday

I have a lot to do this week and spent most of the day today planning what I would do on each day... It was pay day today so that is always fun... Middle of the month so most of it goes to bills... That part isn't so fun... One more week till my oldest starts ESY... I'm sooo looking forward to that ::said with extreme sarcasm::... I will go into that more later if you haven't heard what lovely fun game they are playing with us now... ::eye roll::

Subcontractor Saturday

Today we remodeled till we dropped... We spent a large part of the day cutting/hanging dry wall and taping/mudding drywall... My husband saw the eye doctor for his annual exam... I think his vision is becoming worse and now one eye is worse then the other so he has to keep track of which contact he puts in which eye... Doesn't that sound like fun! Once all the remodeling was done we grilled on the grill some burgers, hot dogs and sausages... We made a couple whole chickens to eat later...

Fact or Fiction Friday

What does it really mean to be Quiverfull?

Some only wear dresses, while others wear pants...

Some cover and some don't...

Some birth their children at home (assisted and unassisted) and some at hospitals (all natural and c-sec) or birth centers...

Some home school, while others send their children to private or public schools... A few do a little bit of both...

While most are Protestant Christians... There are a few Roman Catholics like myself.... Some are Jewish, or another faith and some are no particular faith tradition at all...

Some only eat whole-earth/organic foods, some eat chocolate and Big Macs.

Most are from the USA, but many live around the globe....

For some couples, both spouses are Quiverfull minded... For others, only one is...

Some have adopted, some have only children they've borne... A few have both...

Some have more than a dozen children, some have only a few, yet others have none...

Some are country mice who live off the grid, some are city mice and quite a few are in between...

To summarize those who are Quiverfull are as diverse as any other 'group'... The goal of being quivefull is to TRUST in GOD... Not to have as many children as possible as quickly as possible... As stated above some have many, some have few and others have none at all... We all share together that God will open or close our wombs when HE chooses... We are to surrender completely to HIS Will and follow HIS path that he has designed for each one of us individually...

I hope that clears up some confusion surrounding being Quiverfull... Excellent resource to access is http://www.quiverfull.com/

Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 127:3-5

Thankful Thursday

Top 10 Things I'm Most Thankful This Week

1. Friends (IRL and Internet)
2. Faith To Lean On In Hard Times
3. Extra Money To Always Go On Our Annual Family Vacation
4. Religious Freedom
5. Quality Movies Available To Watch As A Family
6. Library
7. Hardworking Husband Who Stays Up Late Into The Night Working On Finishing Up The House Repairs After Working All Day
8. Plenty Of Food
9. Warm/Cool Dry Places To Sleep
10. Two Working Automobiles

When Did I Sit Down - Wednesday

Today was one of those typical whirlwind of activity days... The morning was mostly quiet and I didn't do much except breakfast for 4 and laundry... Just before lunch the flurry of activity started and is finally starting to wind down a bit... I had to run out for new back porch bulbs... I dropped off my mileage sheet for the end of the year... I also had to pick up milk, eggs, cheese and juice before we ran out today... We had lasagna again today... I also had some of the boneless pork ribs with bbcue sauce for a twist... I replaced the lamps I bought in the back porch light... We picked up the house and I vacuumed... Of course mixed in with all that was a flower picking event, rest time (ie nap for the littles), dinner and baths for 2 and a 3rd in few minutes... We also trained in a new respite staff to pick up the rest of the open shifts for June and will work in July... We have had our staffing increased and will be making a decision soon about our oldest out of home placement... We are waiting to see if the opening is open and we are one of two families applying for it... I'm not sure what we will do if the other family is chosen to fill the opening... I don't really want to think about that... Right now we are only guaranteed the increased staffing for June because of the pending placement... We will see what happens in July... So, I'm off again to bathe the last little munchkin (Linebacker) then catch up on my Netflix... Currently going through the first season of Highway To Heaven...

Tasty Tuesday

Today was a typical day... I ran one errand... Peanut had Speech at her new time... We met a good friend and mother of 8 (this includes twins!) at the park... The always constant picking up, vacuuming and laundry... My fun task for the night is cleaning off the desk so we can do drywall work in here... I will post before and after PICs later below the recipes... Thank you for all the replies to yesterdays publishing... Of course back by popular demand... It's Tasty Tuesday... ::smirk:: I guess this weekend I will share my latest version of the very common Mexican Casserole... ENJOY!!!

I modified the recipe to feed many... The recipe says you can make this in one of those tiny round 2 Qt casserole dishes... I expanded it to a 9 x 13 so we have more then a snack from it...

Flour Tortillas (2 pks of 10)
1 Qt. of Refried Beans (I make my own from scratch but you can use a can of the store bought kind)
1 Jar of Salsa
2 lbs of Taco Meat (hamburger w/ taco seasoning {I was out and mixed chili mix in mine})
2 lbs Cheese Shredded (I used mozzarella and colby/jack and medium cheddar {had several open so used it up})

Heat and mix the refried beans and salsa to make it a spreadable mixture... They recommending greasing your pan but I didn't... Who has time for such things... ::wink:: First is a layer of tortillas... Next is half the bean/salsa mixture... Next is a layer of 1/2 the taco meat... Follow that with a layer of 1/3 of the cheese... Repeat... Tortilla, Bean/Salsa, Taco Meat, Cheese... Finish with a layer of Tortillas and Cheese... Bake 25 minutes covered in a 350 degree oven... Remove foil and bake 15 minutes to finish heating it through and brown the cheese a bit on top... Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, olives, sour cream and guacamole as desired...

Computer Desk Before:
::photos appearing soon::
Computer Desk After:

Much Time Away - Monday

I really needed to take some time away... Things have been up and down here... I'm struggling with many things right now... I'm still trying to sort through them... My oldest, monkey and peanut are all done with school... Linebacker had his first birthday and is doing well... He is currently learning to walk while wearing shoes... He has always been barefoot and only walked indoors... Now that the weather is warming up a bit he is spending more time out back and needs the proper foot protection... He really enjoys exploring the backyard... He toddles around and checks every thing out... He recieved a swing for his birthday and he loves swinging with the breeze blowing... My garden hasn't gone so well this year... Linebacker was born mid-gardening season last year... The year ended well but I didn't do any end of the season prep before the snow came... We placed a lock on the gate... We didn't find the key till a week before Memorial day... The key (along with a whole group of others) was lost last Tues and we haven't been able to find it... Right now we have to do decide whether to keep looking for the missing key(s) or just cut the lock off and start over... We also added some 'compost' that wasn't right or something and the soil consistentcy is a mess now... I will probably have to empty each of my boxes completely and start over again... It makes me angry and I haven't even gone at to look at the garden in days... Remember when our kitchen leaked in February and the insurance company refused to do anything about it... We had the roof repaired in May... About 10 days ago or more we put up green board to replace the 'tile' ceiling... We are also in the process of staining our stair railing... The installer left it unfinished... We sanded it down and prepared it for stain... We are now staining it piece by piece... Each spindle has to be removed and stained the put back... We can only do a few at a time... We have 6 done and 6 more to go... We are still working here in the computer room as well with dry walling... We need to sand it down and put another coat of mud on... Hopefully it will be ready for primer then... I'm making a lasagna for a friend today who had surgery today... Today has been a pretty typical day... I picked up my oldest meds from the pharmacy... Stopped at the cathedral and registered for CCD for the fall... I went to the hardware store and picked up some more door keys (the little tuna can lookin' key) and a light bulb for the vent hood over the stove... I picked up the Italian link sausage I forgot yesterday that I need for the lasagna... This was all precedded and followed by the usual laundry, pick up, meals for the children, etc... I'm hoping to be posting regularly again now... I also spoke with a friend about my thoughts on discontinuing homeschooling completely...

Thankful Thursday

Top 10 Things I'm Most Thankful This Week

1. Availability of Perpetual Adoration/Daily Masses
2. Vision to see all things God had created (children, flowers)
3. Hearing to hear children's laughter/voices and nature (rain, wind, animals)
4. Voice to sing/speak of Blessings/Prayers
5. Modern/Close Health Facilities
6. Wonderful Locally Owned Small Town Like Catholic Bookstore
7. Spring Rains to green up the world after a long winter
8. A fully repaired Roof (Thank You to Jacinta's BIL)
9. Two Local Catholic Radio Stations
10. God's warnings to keep me aware of the evils in the world

Tasty Tuesday

The recipe as promised yesterday... I've made several different 'chicken n' biscuit' recipes over the years and this one is very good and easy!

Biscuits (8-10) you can make from scratch like I do or buy the can kind

32 oz chicken broth and 17.5 oz chicken broth

1.5 - 2 lbs boneless, skinless, chicken breast cubed, browned in skillet w/ olive oil

.5 - 1 lb carrots, coarsely chopped (used can of carrots, drained {had on hand})

3-5 ribs of celery, chopped

1 med. onion, chopped

1/2 C. frozen corn (I omitted and put in 1/2 C. frozen peas and 1 lb. frozen green bean cuts)

Spices - I used my own 'secret mix' it calls for 3 t. basil and 1/4 t. pepper

1 C. flour

Bake biscuits according to can/your recipe... In large pot combine 32 oz broth, chicken, carrots, celery, onion, corn {peas, green beans}, and spices... Bring chicken mixture to a boil... Reduce heat and cover... Simmer 7-10 minutes or until veggies are tender...

Whisk together flour and 17.5 oz broth in bowl (I like to use my 4 C. Pyrex measuring cup)... Whisk into chicken mixture until smooth... Bring to a boil and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened...

Split biscuits and spoon chicken mixture over top...

ENJOY!

Making It On The Homestead - Monday

As many of you may have read on Facebook... I'm offering all my crosses this month (May) and leaning on the strength of the Blessed Mother... Praying for the intersession Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Anne, St. Monica, St. Gianna, my Guardian Angel, St. Micheal the Archangel, and Blessed Kateri to assist me in accomplishing many things as a wife, mother and keeper of my home... Things have improved... I've been focusing on the homestead and not on the world... There are bumps in the road as is expected... Still much room for improvement... Thank you to all of you who prayed for me while I was away... I appreciate that... We are in full swing as far as remodeling 'season' goes... I sanded our banister and it is ready for us to start staining it... The children and I made a fun game of spread the grass seed today to try and recover our snow mashed and flood drowned lawn back to it's former glory... All the dishes were washed and put away... I spent a good part of the day vacuuming and wiping down all surfaces of the 'dust' provided by our sanding job... Several loads of laundry were done and I made a delicious new 'chicken n' biscuits' recipe which I will share on Tasty Tuesday... It's simple and quick! I browsed through the June issue of Martha Steward living... She has a wonderful section on grillin'... The children and I had a wonderful drive singing the Divine Mercy Chaplet and checking out the latest construction projects at the Hour of Mercy (3 PM) this afternoon... I'm instructing yet another FMCHE member in the wonderful art of SFG... I look forward to sharing her 'creation' and mine once I find the key to my garden... ::smirk:: I'm off to continue in my homestead...

Tired - Thursday

I wasn't posting because I was busy but now I'm just in a bad mood... I doubt anyone wants to hear about how irritated and just plain spiteful toward anyone who dare even breathe near me...

Thankful Thursday

Here are my top 10 this week...

1. A husband who loves me despite all my faults
2. Spring Sunshine
3. Movies that Transform your Heart and your Soul
4. Generosity of Others
5. Knowing others personally who are open to Life
6. Spring Flooding is almost over
7. My children
8. My home
9. A table where no one leaves hungry
10. My parish

Where? Wednesday

Where does the day seem to go? I'm not really sure... I don't want to board my readers but right now I need my blog to list my accomplishments during the day... Right now at the end of the day I'm thinking what did I do today? I feel that I didn't do much... I know that isn't true... Starting today I'm going to work on listing all the many tasks I preformed on most messages till I'm out of this so what did you do today? Only to think did nothing...

Breakfast
Taxi Mom
Peanut ST
Laundry - 3 loads
Oldest Psych Appt
Lunch
Nap
Monkey ST
Dinner
Return Library Materials
Cook Dinner For Tomorrow - BBCue Chicken in Oven
Apple Pie
Pick Up House
Nurse/Change Linebacker - Several Times

More to come later...

3rd Tooth - Tuesday

Linebacker's 3rd tooth arrived over the weekend... It is on the upper right side...

Easter - Monday

We had a wonderful Easter... I will work on posting daily again this week... We survived the history making flood... We never had to evacuate but we were prepared if that was to happen... The ones in bold below are all the ones we have lived through since our residence here... We did make it down to 30 something or lower feet but it is going back up to 38 something feet in the next couple of days and then expected to go back down and cease flooding at all till next spring... Many things have happened since I last published it seems like months ago even though it was just a little over two weeks... I will have lots of 'back' messages to put up as well as new messages with many photos...

Here is now the new Top 10 Historical Crests:
(1) 40.82 ft on 03/28/2009
(2) 40.10 ft on 04/07/1897
(3) 39.57 ft on 04/17/1997
(4) 37.80 ft on 04/11/1882
(5) 37.34 ft on 04/15/1969
(6) 37.13 ft on 04/05/2006
(7) 36.69 ft on 04/14/2001
(8) 35.39 ft on 04/09/1989
(9) 34.93 ft on 04/19/1979
(10) 34.65 ft on 04/16/1952

Kitchen Remodel FINISHED!

What do you all think?

::photos to come::

I still have some more work to do but wow what a difference...

Kichen Remodel - First Project

Here is the first project I did... Just something small till I can do the 'big' project... This is a small cutting board/cookie sheet cabinet next to my cabinets that are under my sink...

Here is a 'before' I started:Everything that was in the cabinet:
Here it is 'after' I finished:
What a difference!

Weather Wednesday

As if historic flooding occuring we didn't have enough to deal with but yet ANOTHER 'mini' blizzard blew through our area... It was a blessing because it helped slow the river so we could strength, build or build higher all the various levees around town... It is beautiful... I'm glad I could just stay home...
This what it looked like when we first woke up mid storm...

This was later on after things had calmed down... I always find it interesting how sometimes the snow clings to our roof and other times it doesn't 'stick' at all...

This is out of 'library' window... The snow is almost up to the 'sash'...

This is a view from outside when the snow is melted... Helps give you some idea how high the snow is!
::photo to come::

Remember our Mid March Blizzard... Look at the PIC of Peanut playing... She would now be completely hidden from view of our backdoor now...

This is me showing how high the snow is next (left) to our driveway...

Kitchen Remodel - Let's Start

I've decided to give my kitchen a makeover with the help from some friend VIA the internet... Here are some 'before' PICS of my "mess"... LOL!!!


::photos here::

Flooding - Friday

I'm writing to let you know that I won't be posting here until the flooding stops... We haven't decided if, when, and where we are evacuated... I will have updates on Facebook... If you aren't already my 'friend' on Facebook, I consider doing that soon because I may not have computer access for long... I will have a running comment section for a friend VIA phone to update once we do leave...

Thankful - Thursday

Ten Things I'm Most Thankful This Week

1. Working Utilities
2. Dry Land Around My Home
3. Plenty Of Food/Water/Emergency Supplies
4. Flood Protection Materials/Machines
5. Volunteers
6. Internet Access
7. Radio Stations Devoting 24/7 Programming To Flood Coverage News
8. Safety of My Family
9. Faith and Grace
10. Global Network of Support

Here is a list of our top highest flooding levels... The bold ones are the ones we have been here for...

Historical Crests

* ft on 03/ /2009 (what ever the new record will be)

(1) 40.10 ft on 04/07/1897

(current level when last measured 39.61 ft)

(2) 39.57 ft on 04/17/1997
(3) 37.80 ft on 04/11/1882
(4) 37.34 ft on 04/15/1969
(5) 37.13 ft on 04/05/2006
(6) 36.69 ft on 04/14/2001
(7) 35.39 ft on 04/09/1989
(8) 34.93 ft on 04/19/1979
(9) 34.65 ft on 04/16/1952
(10) 34.41 ft on 04/02/1978

I last read our projected crest went up a foot to 42' feet now... I will know more after the 10 PM news... I know I've told some of you there are 7 evacuation zones that the city officials mentioned... I looked at the maps provided by the city and we aren't in an evacuation zone... I'm not sure what that means for us... The other zones are told to leave the area by coming into our unnumbered zone... So, I guess they move everyone to the middle and when water goes down we would branch out... Seems strange but we have only been here 10 years and never experienced anything like this prior to living here either... So, we have to trust that the officials know best... I will update when I can...

We Need Flood Prayers - Wednesday

I'm asking for all my family and friends if you could please pray for ND and MN residents fighting flood waters... We are expecting the river to crest at 41' on Saturday which is 23 feet above flood stage... They canceled school today and for the rest of the week... Thank you for your support...

We are 1.6 miles from the river and still pretty safe if the river hits 42' (according to the 'prediction' maps)... It's our neighbors, stores, schools and friends that are being directly affected... People in the rural areas not even 4 miles south of me are calling the local radio station in tears please come and help us...