What I am reading this year...

I want to see how many *adult* books I read this year.. So I figured if I list them here then I will know! Also then if I want to share good reads then I will actually remember what I read!

So to start the year:

1/7/11 Losing It- Valerie Bertanelli

Interesting read.. not life shattering but interesting and not too heavy

1/13/11 Without Pity- Ann Rule

This only took me 3.75 years to read.. Granted 3.5 of that the book was lodged in the bottom of the basement couch and we only just found it a few weeks back. Since I already paid the library for this lost book I figured I might as well read it.. Ann Rule writes real life crime stories... I devoured her books when I was still a kid in school.. Now I need to see if she has any current writing...

My Madeline.. the Hypochondriac

We started back to school on Monday..

So far this week my daughter has complained -

"My hip hurts!... Both of them do..."

"My tongue hurts.. there is a bump on it"

"My throat hurts!"

"My head hurts here.. and here..."

"My tummy hurts"

If this is how K goes.. I will be so doomed once she hits the teen years...

Exciting!

Getting dressed for church this morning has proven to be an uplifting experience. This particular pair of pants fits looser then the last time I wore them!!! Up until now I have not noticed any change in my lower body.. Being able to button and zip these and have a little extra room is very exciting! The shirt I picked to go with it fits a little looser too.. but only b/c my boobs have shrunk!

Not excited about loosing the girls but I will take the small victories where ever they come!! WOOHOO!

Resolving to Reduce...in 2011

I never make resolutions, why would I, I would just ignore them like everyone else does theirs!

So this year I have one simple goal.. A very attainable goal..

Simply to Reduce....

A simple plan that can be achieved in many different areas..

Reduce my weight...

Reduce my stress...( LOL.. still not sure how to do THAT!)

Reduce clutter in this house

Reduce debt

Reduce(hopefully) costs... more careful spending to help with that debt reduction...

Mentally I am already cleaning the basement! I have piles sorted down there and I know which will go to the donation center at church(clothing with life still left )..

which items I will take to the Crisis Pregnancy Center(crib mattress, mattress covers, crib sheets),

which items I can drop at the local Head Start Center( some educational toys, lots of books etc)

Now if only I could reduce that Mini Van..... Need to keep posting that on Craigslist!

Losing it....

I am starting the New Year weighing 12lbs less then I did when I started December!!!!

Here is to being a **LOSER** next year!1

The first *official* day of Summer break!

Actually it was last Friday but I planned so many things that day there was real vacation involved!

So we start today! I want to have some sort of schedule to the day. I absolutely hate to look at the clock and see 1145am and realize nothing has been accomplished. Relaxation is fine and well.. laziness bothers me! So I did allow some video games this morning while I did a few things. Then I shut them down! Then I got the kids moving along! So far- on this fine cold windy June day I/we have:
played some video games
taken dirty laundry downstairs and pulled the dry out and flipped loads.
Emptied the clean dishwasher and put them away.
Made the kids breakfast and loaded those dishes into the empty washer
Make my hubby a mug of coffee and took it to his work. ( okay fine i carried it over to the recliner.. but still I did that!)
ordered everyone dressed, all teeth brushed and beds made.
library books gathered and off to the library for new books, sign up for summer activities and some educational computer games.
Ran to the grocery store for dog food( I keep forgetting that one!)
Home again!
I fixed the kids a quick morning snack of juice and strawberries.
Took the kids outside and instructed them to pick up all toys/chairs/junk in the yard and put it away so I could mow.
Pulled out the tractor and mowed the back yard. Had kids help me pull all the trimmed bushes behind the barn so I could mow around the fire pit.
Came in and prepared lunch for the kids, b/c no one mentioned to daddy they still had not eaten lunch!
Time to load lunch dishes into the machine and check on defrosting turkey breast that will be tonight's supper.
(kids are currently fighting over who gets to sweep the basement where Michael is working between calls/meetings)



So far this is my day.. a work in progress. There will be days I do more.. and days I do much less!

Time to use those brand new permanent markers..

I defrosted a freezer bag of cooked chicken yesterday. Half the bag went onto a yummy BBQ chicken pizza.. The rest was just staring at me in the fridge. The obvious answer is soup. Too bad my people don't like soup. Then I thought about a MoM's friend who just had a baby.. Soup is a simple lunch.. you scoop out the veggies and noodles and give that to the kids. So I decided to whip it up and then let it do its thing while I ran a few errands.
Into the fridge/freezer I went. Last of a bag of carrots, few stalks of celery, bay leaves, frozen quart bag of homemade chicken stock, baggies of leftover canned broth I froze instead of wasting.
Into the pot went the frozen broth to defrost. I scraped and chopped the carrots, finely chopped the celery leaves and chunked the celery down.. perfect sizes for toddler fingers. I grabbed a can of broth to give more liquid. A few shakes of black pepper, a few garlic cloves cracked for a fresher homemade flavor. I tossed the veggies into the liquid and turned the crock pot on to warm. I figure I will toss the hot liquid into the crock and the veggies will have lots of time to soften.
Before I go to dump the soup I grab a spoon to taste for seasoning... The first taste was not right... I stirred it a bit more and tried again...

CRAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP! That last little baggie was not the dregs of a can of broth.. it was lemon juice..... Now only if I were Greek could I save this pot....

Sorry Amanda... No soup for you!