Back to the Menu Plan

Well, I did in fact make Eggplant Parm yesterday for Father's day, so this is a day late, but really who cares? I have to make soooo many easy crockpot meals over the next few weeks because my 3rd is going to be having swim lessons daily at 5pm. Hopefully this will not lead to a lot of take out or crappy meals. But hopefully, the crockpot will help with that.

So anyway...

Sunday--Eggplant Parm

Monday--slow roasted pork

Tuesday--Corned Beef in crockpot

Wednesday--Chili

Thursday--leftovers

Friday--Chicken Terryaki with Shredded lettuce

Saturday--

Hello again friends!

It has been awhile. These last few weeks have brought much change to our family. We have since seen the big ole' moving van come and go, said good-bye to our first home, and moved into our "new" but temporary one. My son 'graduated" from preschool, we made a week long trip to Kentucky to see family, and my son turned 5! (oh yeah, and--I turned 30). 

Okay so turning 30 wasn't that bad. I mean, 30 is the new 20 as they say. Lol. But seriously, it was a wonderful day(or week!). My WONDERFUL husband, being the fabulous love that he is, took me to this GREAT fine-dining Mexican restaurant in the city(as my brother says, an oxy moron. hehe). EVERYTHING we put in our mouths was to "die for". I could seriously eat Mexican food (fine dining or not) 7 days a week. I love it. I mean REALLY love it, like maybe my roots are not as Irish - Italian as they would have me believe... The next day after my birthday, my husband had set up a SURPRISE tea party at a tea house for me. Most of my sister in laws and local friends were there. It was sooooo wonderful. I will have to post some of the lovely "hat" pictures we took. If only I would have had a nice outfit and make up on. Oh well, it helps with humility I guess. 

Two days after the big shindig, my son graduated from preschool. It sure is hard to believe he is in K now. I guess homeschooling has the benefit of not needing a break in there. Although, for sanity reasons, we certainly will be having one. 

The next weekend, 2 days later that is, we, as the gluttons for punishment we apparently are, set out on a week long trip to KY. It ended up being a 13.5 hour trip including stops. Not so bad actually, what, with the purchase of our dual screen dvd players. It went quite smoothly, and I felt very thrifty indeed, when we pulled up to the travel plaza, pulled out my Trader Joe's Cooler bag, and made my family PB and Js, apples, and string cheese. It was quite nice not to drive all day on a stomach full of Roy Rogers(GAG ME). Anyway, this particular trip to KY was very fun. My mom, being cute like she is, set up a cupcake party for Aidan and his two KY cousins(and his siblings of course). 

We attended this affair after a wonderful morning at this awesome YMCA water park. 

Who knew?? I mean, our Ys offer nothing of the sort!! So after this we had the cupcake party. The next day, Aidan's actual Bday...we headed to breakfast with my dad, which was oh so yummy. Where of course I met my secret love. And really, lets be honest, it is not secret at all. I am undoubtedly a coffee addict. I love it, and it loves me. So there. By the way, that is really my coffee too. That's right, people, I took a picture of it. So. Anywho....we headed to the zoo later with my mom. We rode the tram, and the merry go round and the train(which actually derailed a week later....sooo scary. That kid was definitely flying around the track. He hurt several people, I am thankful it wasn't us!) It was my kids first trip to the REAL zoo. They had been to a small zoo near us, but never to the real one. They saw the tigers, lions, zebras, elephants, etc. Of course my nearly 3 year old had a facination with the animals "butts." I know, what kind of mother am I?? But I will say, those animals must be trained to stick their rear in your face...seriously.This one was just funny.

So after a long day at the zoo, my sister and mom surprised me with  a great time at, you guessed it, a mexican place. 

My whole family was there, including grandma's and cousins. It was such a treat.

                      

                                                                         Me with my 2 Grandmas.

My mom and I also got to spend the day together Friday. What a special day. Not only did I get to spend the whold day with my mom, I got the whole day off of mom duty too! We had coffee...first thing...obviously!(sleep was quite elusive all week!)

Then we went to lunch at this cool cafe...darn it, my mom had her camera, and we didn't take any pictures. All for the better I guess since my makeup bag disappeared mid week. Then we went to Louisville Stoneware, because I like that stuff. and I decided I want a whole set of it(mismatched actually). The only thing is, I am going to have a rob a bank to get it! It is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive! Oh well. Then we went shopping and got a pedicure. We ended the day at the Melting Pot with my sister. There is something about cheese and chocolate---could be a girl's best friend!! Well, it is good anyway. Silly us, we didnt take ANY pictures of our girls day or night. Oh well.  I guess we have the memories.

Sunday we headed home at the crack of dawn. We were all exhausted by the fun week we had. And as sad as it was to leave, it sure was good to get home. 

Mother's Day!

I have been blessed with FOUR wonderful children, and a sweet and loving husband. My life could not be more full! Here are some pictures of the blessings bestowed on me today.

 

If you must know...

My 30th Birthday is coming up in 10 days. I prefer not to talk about it. BUT I love changing up the look and feel of my blog so there.

Decisions...

Well, we made a decision. And as soon as the decision was made, I felt a peace. Thank you Lord! We decided to go with the single. It was nice thinking of all those "ammenities" (clearly I cannot spell that word), but, alas, we went with what makes the most financial sense, the single, with plenty of storage space. Side note, I feel like I am on House Hunters on HGTV. Haha. My husband and I love that show, it is a go-to for us at 10pm if we are still up for a little TV. They always say things like: "Will it be the 3br with a lot of ammenities, or the 4BR with the extra storage?" Then there is the "Well, although they were all nice, we HAAAD to make a decision...EXAGGERATED PUASE...and we decided on...EXAGGERATED PAUSE 2...The 4br with the extra storage!!" Cut to happy family living in the new house.  Haha.  Anyway, It will be nice. Now that we have decided I am looking fwd to "settling in."  And by that, I mean living out of boxes for up to 6 months! 

As for the actual house hunting to begin...bring it on. Say a prayer though...we are going to need to use Wisdom and Prudence this week. The "builder" of aforementioned "dream home" is going to be contacting us this week to talk to us about the possibility of finishing the home. We need to make sure all things are in place for our own security and such. I am secretly (or not so secretly) hoping that it will work out. But I really truly only want what is best for our family. So, say a prayer if you will! Thanks.  

Oh, and check out this article my friend wrote. It is a good one!

What to do...

So, as an update to the seemingly never ending saga that is my life in the last few weeks...here goes.

I can't remember if I said that we were in the "market" for a short term rental or not, and quite frankly, I am WAAAYY too exhausted to click over to my last post, so I will repeat(or not) that we are currently looking for a short term rental that a)will fit my family of 6, b)will fit a houseful of stuff(furniture, clothing, toys, etc.)so that we do NOT have to pay the astronomical fees of storing with the movers, c)has an office or study area, that my hubby can work from home, d)will ACCEPT a short term lease for a price that doesn't require the selling of aforementioned children, e)in a family friendly neighborhood, f)all to be vacated, cleaned and available in 12, yes 12, days. You may be saying, "wow, that seems like a lot to ask." Well, it probably is, but it is what it is. As I like to say. We really need to find a place that meets these needs. We did not plan on having to rent a place like this. We were hoping that our new home would be ready for us in a timely fashion. But for now, it is uncertain if we will ever occupy that "dream" home that we designed. The builder will apparently be "contacting" us, the buyers, in the coming week(or so). So, here is the thing, what do we do? Do we rejoice because maybe possible said "dream house" will be built? Or do we run as fast as we can the other way, and in the meantime get to dreaming up a new dream? So, we are praying and trusting that either way, God will guide us in this decision. 

As for the rentals...we have 2 options. Both more expensive than we originally wanted to spend. One is a single home with a garage and basement, so not only would we have plenty of space to store everything, meaning we would no longer be paying for our self-storage place, but we would have enough space to store any furniture that doesn't have a spot in this temporary house. It has 4 bedrooms and a community playground right next to it. It is $75 less per month than the next place but remember, no more self storage--savings, BUT we do have to pay for trash pick up and lawn care(we do not have a mower--another story--so we either have to pay to have it cut or get a mower). The other option is a townhome in a really nice rental community. It has a pool and fitness center (with, get this, a TODDLER room with movies and such--that is awesome!!) 6 playgrounds around the area. It has only 3 bedrooms, but has a super nice family room and study in the basement. Additional storage down there too, but not enough for our other storage to come over. No dedicated parking, which can be a pain. Oh yeah, the kitchen is fantastic in this one. That is a biggie for me. But it is further away. WHAT TO DO!?!? 

I think we are realistically leaning toward the single, which is not as "nice" and doesnt have the nice ammenities. Hmmm... what would you do if it were you?

Crazy times!

First and foremost, I need to request prayers from all you readers. My Aunt and Uncle and Cousin just lost their house to a fire last night(along with their possessions) and did not have insurance(as they are renting between homes). They really need prayers right now. 

In other crazy news, we are moving in UNDER 3 weeks. AHHH. Unfortunately, we are not packed yet, and my husband will be unavailable this weekend. (Okay, Lord, I know you have a plan here...please let me pack well!!) I also have other super crazy news. Well, our housing plan WAS to move into our new home when it was finished being built, BUT....our builder "went under" and all construction has been suspended. This was, of course, a shocker, considering we had 3.5 weeks till our house has to vacated. So, monday we were told by our realtor, that our house was not going to be built and that we QUICKLY needed to find some other thing to do. I, in true "me" style, freaked out a tad bit. It was all very overwhelming. Although, I do indeed, know that God has a good plan for us. We decided to find a rental so that we have some time to consider what we want to do long term. We are hoping to save some money over the next few months(although with 2 moves in the plan, we may not). But we really need a place that will "fit" our things so we dont have to store items. There are several options right now. We saw one place yesterday that was size-wise perfect. The paint job left ALOT to be desired. WOW! But I can deal. The other one I am going to see this morning, is also nice, (online at least) but is about 10 minutes further out than the other. The first was like 2 second from our Parish. But either way, we will still be pretty much "local" to what we are used to. And close to my one sister-in-law who we are close to now. AND, this second one is vacant right now. That is a plus too!! ANyway, I am currently asking for St. Jude to intercede. I really want to be open to God's plan. It was disappointing to find out about our "dream" house, but easy come easy go. right? I mean, in light of the sufferings of so many, it is a very small thing.