EWE're Such a KID

It's my 100 post. I was going to hold off until I had something FANtasTiC to write about but then I remembered.... ummm EVERYTHING in my life is fantastic. Jokes. But seriously I have two words for you...... prepare yourself.....oops that's not the two words....

FORT STEELE

I gotta say PHENOMENAL. I don't use that word lightly. I can count on one hand the amount of times I've said it and if I'm going to attempt to spell it then you must be absolutely assured that it is going to be well worth the trip out there.

Our family headed out there on Saturday and it was splendid. I packed a picnic (mostly because of the cheapness factor) but seriously the place is cheap. It's a family gem. Ellie and Lucy got in free and for both Dusty and I it was 10 BUCKS. It probably should of been more because it would of deterred me from shopping but hey 10 bucks plus shopping items I think I walked away only spending a total of 45 dollars (and the kids had icecream in that). I would keep ranting about it but I think the pictures will say what needs to be said.

the animals were a HUGE hit, especially for Lucy, but Ellie had a fondness for our FOUL (if you know me you know why it's spelt like this) Friends.

kickin it at the park behind the school. Dusty had more fun on these bad boys than the girls did. I threated to give him a butt buster. He had a spaz. It was funny. Maybe you had to be there.

Too cool for school er Church

All the KIDS. We saw EWE. (sorry for the lameness) . All the lambs were out and the piggies and the goats and the cows and the horses and the the foals.

A tractor. need I say more?

The end of the day. Happy children.... they actually were. Both of the Them LOVED it and we don't find many things that the WHOLE family likes. Lucy was just mad cause we promised her ice cream.... don't mess with this kid and her ice cream!

LoVely BeaUtiful MaDnesS

Don't you LOVE new stuff. I do. I especially have a fondness for new things for my house...

This is the new couch we got to replace the other ones that we took back. New and soft and real leather. Seriously delightful.

The "old" but new to me chair. Dusty's parent gave us this beauty. She fits in just Perfectly. I was going to recover her but I think I'll keep her the same for now.

This rug I found on sale at Pier 1. I needed something a little.... kristin"ish" for the house. I was getting a bit too Dusty for me. It is LOVELY.

And check this bad boy out. It's not quite finished yet but I thought what the hey I'll debut it anyhow. Dusty build a 6 1/2 foot cedar bench for under our big window. It has an opening top for additional storage PLUS I found this cushions on SALE I paid 19 bucks for them. MADNESS!

Name Plaque

This is my 50th post. I know not that many but still 50...

I have been doing A LOT of crafts lately. There is a lady who I got to visit with the other day and she's really into wood signs and such. It reminded me of the good ol' days when my mom, aunt, sisters, and I used to paint wood crafts for craft fairs. I was the one who lacked talent in this group. I figured there's not better time than now to practise up. Who knows when it'll come in handy! I snagged my mom's scroll saw and plan on going through a few patterns to test my luck but I decided that I had better finish up a few of the crafts that have been lurking in my closet.

Hanging Initials on the door is pretty dang popular right now but I kinda like the old school name plaques... This was so easy and the best part was that Ellie actually got to do most of it herself. She painted it and stuck the stickers on and she even got to Modge Podge (every child's dream). It was fun. I may have created a monster. She's decided that I need one for my door......

Home, Motherhood, and Brownies

I weirded myself out with my last post. CLEARLY on something (but nothing illegal... it's against my religion). Today is another day. I woke up to snow. The price I pay to live in the BEST PLACE ON EARTH. Seriously. (minus the snow of course). Okay so I woke up this morning with a list. You know the kind. The kind of list that says get your act together you have LOTS to do. I made a decision that I don't care what the list says. I'll do it later. (yeah right). I wanted to bake today and I mean BAKE. I'm in the mood BUT yesterday I cleaned. REALLY cleaned and I made 4 pizza's. One for dinner, one for Dusty's lunches, and two for the freezer. I thought (or hoped) Dusty and the girls would of cleaned the kitchen (I went for a walk last night) but alas I spent the morning cleaning up last nights supper. Oh well. The day will be better. I know that. I know this because today I GET to shower. It's funny how perspectives can change. I used to shower at least once, sometimes twice a day. Now I feel lucky to get to shower. (I still do shower frequently... not that you need to know my shower schedule and all but ). I feel like I have to plan it. Plan it during nap time. Plan it so it doesn't interfere with Dusty's time slot. Plan it around laundry and dishwashers. It is a far too rare of occasion that I actually get to just stand there and use all the hot water. Motherhood.
Do you want to know my favorite song ever... well ever is extreme but it's one of my favorites to listen to... especially on the days that my kitchen isn't clean, or I feel like I'm putting out more effort than I'm getting back, or on the days that I have to cancel my shower....
It's this one.
Well maybe I'll go bake... sour cherry cake OR chocolate brownies. Tough call. Maybe I'll decide after buns....

Woeful tale of Kristin and her Religious Fellow

Guilt.
We all feel it and sometimes over the SILLIEST reasons. I am feeling guilty. I have been feeling guilty the past couple of weeks but I've kept suppressing it. I know this is sounding more and more dramatic and it's really not but feeling guilty has been making me think a lot about guilt and the effect it can have on our lives.

Situation

A man and woman of a particular faith have been coming over to my house regularly. They are super nice and we chit chat about the house being renovated and the kids and whatnot (you know just regular old small talk). It's actually been nice. They are the ONLY people besides our families that have seen the house from square one and have really acted genuinely thrilled about all the new stuff we've done. SOOOO (so much for the reader digest version) The last couple of visits the talk has turned to religion. They asked if they could come over and discuss a question I had. I was fine with that and I made it clear that I was asking BECAUSE it was a question I had but I was very happy with where I was at spiritually. We made an appointment BUT he had to cancel. Again I was fine and he rescheduled for the following Saturday (I think.... but a day of the week anyways). So Saturday morning came around and I'm sitting on my couch in front of the window eating my breakfast. All of a sudden I hear the door bell. I am in my underwear. Problem yes. (clearly if your reading this and paying attention you'll probably be like why were you sitting in the window in your UNDERWEAR??? well I was I had a blanket on. I have this thing about getting dressed. maybe I'm lazy but clearly it should be remedied for exactly these instances!) So I run to my bedroom and throw on some clothes. Dusty answers the door and that's when I hear the familiar voice of (INSERT Name HERE) and I can hear Dusty telling him that I'm not up yet and that this isn't a good time. SOMETIMES dusty comes across less than enthusiastic when talking to people. In fact, sometimes he sounds annoyed that he has to talk to you. It's his thing. SOOOO he had that voice. The man has not been back since. I'm fairly certain he saw me sitting in the window so I think he thinks I'm blowing him off cause I didn't have the stones to do it to his face. I really liked him and his wife. Yesterday I got a different couple of that particular religion. I feel abandoned. I feel so GUILTY that I would call him up and invite him over BUT I can't remember his name. (that teaches me for labeling people instead of learning their names). That's my woeful story. Dusty says I'm being ridiculous and that he didn't like the idea of them popping over all the time and he ESPECIALLY didn't like the idea that he would come over by HIMSELF while just I was home. Still doesn't make me feel better. I feel awful because he thinks I was deceiving him. Clearly now I'm sounding dramatic. Anyways, GUILT.


We may have just opened a can of worms with this guilt subject....

Daily Endeavors

I feel so behind on my blog. I don't know what's going on. I feel busy. Blogging was easy when I didn't have friends.... so maybe it's a good thing I'm feeling behind. Ellie has soccer today but it's raining. Do I really need to be the hardcore soccer mom who drags her contently playing child out into the bitter cold to kick a ball around for a half an hour?? I don't know... well see what happens. Ellie started swimming lessons today. I thought they started at 1030 but they actually began at 10. OOps. Well it's a good thing I HATE to be late so we actually got to go to the last 15 minutes of swimming lessons. After the lesson I asked her how it was and she looked at me and said, "You need to pay more moneys so they are bigger". Okay Ellie (maybe we'll just show up on time).
I went walking last night. It was fun. Sometimes I love it when there is just one other person. You feel like you really get to know them. I still can't talk to whole way up the hill so it was a good thing that this person chatted the whole way up! Last night after we got back from our walk, Dusty dragged (drug) in a bench that he made for under the window. I'll take a picture of it and post it later. It seriously looks so good though. Sometimes that guy impresses me.
Today I'm watching a little boy and it's been so nice to have him over. Lucy LOVES him and follows him around like a little puppy. He's a little bit older than my girls ( I think he turns 5 this year) and he's been so great with both of them.
It's been a quiet rainy day. (minus the potential soccer and the swimming lesson). I feel like soup and a great book.....

Death by Walking

Seriously.
I started walking with a friend from down the street. We've only been out three times and the walk is awesome. It's about 5km and it's very pleasant. It's a beautiful walk down a gravel road and then we follow a trail and go over a small bridge. Seriously very nice and serene and just lovely. You can chit chat the whole way along UNTIL your eyes fall upon a hill and not just any hill but DEATH HILL. It starts out on a "nice" incline and you walk and walk and walk. Then it dawns on you that your legs are starting to burn and burn and burn. You look back and realize that you're only half way up! You sigh, look upward and continue to climb and climb and climb. By this time your thinking PLEASE someone drive down this hill so I can catch a ride home PLEASE PLEEEEASE. My legs are burning and there is that familiar pain in my hip. It's pleading for me to abort the mission and then RELIEF. I am actually on flat again. OH thank you controller of the universe for saving me from more hill. I pause, take in the moment and congratulate myself for making it up the hill. I think maybe I might be able to do it with out complaining next time (probably not but one can always dream).

Two Worlds Colliding

Okay. My parents are seriously considering moving closer to Dusty and me and the girls (mostly the girls ;) ). and I am super excited about it. My mom is alone a lot and I would love to have her close by to go walking with or supper or just to pop over and stuff BUT with them moving here it means that "our" family acreage would be sold and thus meaning that my horses would be homeless. I have been so fortunate that my parents have kept them out there for as long as they have, especially because they hardly get ridden anymore and my mom and dad have had to the upkeep of them. But because of the prospect of the farm being sold I've had to think about what to do with them. I was down to two solutions.

1. sell the horses or at least find them good homes
2. find land to either rent or buy near our house

Well, I don't really WANT to sell them. I feel like I'd be giving up on the dream of that country life that both Dusty and I really wanted to give our kids. Dusty doesn't really want to sell them either. So that left us with the later. Land is extremely expensive where we're located so it was more of a rental situation that we would have to look at. But both of us felt pretty skeptical that we would be able to find pasture that someone would be willing to rent out UNTIL last night we had some company over and it just so happens that one of the gentlemen MIGHT know of someone who would be willing to rent out some pasture. AWESOME. I am so excited.

Biscuits, Tucker, and Booger

I'm trying hard not to get my hopes up too high BUT this could mean that I could actually start working and riding my ponies again. I would have the best of both worlds. I have a house in town with town water and sewer and all those lovely amenities PLUS I would have space and freedom and a hobby that I LOVE and really thought I'd have to give up.

Well, I guess time will tell if this will all work out...

Shrimp and Dill Soup

I threw this soup together for a mothers day lunch I had yesterday.

Recipe

(these are approximations because I made this up)

1 onion

1/2 pack of bacon

fry bacon and onion in bottom of pot

once cooked cover in flour

1/2 cup of flour

slowly add

4 cups of chicken broth

2 cups of water

2 cups of whipping cream

2 cups of milk

(if your just making this for your fam. you can EASILY cut down on the fat but if your serving it for guests for special occasion I would use the cream BECAUSE it makes the difference between good soup and great soup)

2 Tablespoons of Louisiana hot sauce

2 Tablespoons of dill (dried)

2 teaspoons of minced garlic (two cloves)

coarse ground pepper

salt

parsley

cook over medium heat until boiling

4 potatoes cubed

2 cans of corn

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 shrimp ring (take tails off shrimp)

add the above and cook over medium low for an hour.

Serve

Review

Our furniture situation has been rectified!!!!!!!! Hip horah. We got that all taken care of over the weekend (which was exhausting and I wish I could have another just to recover). I am sitting right now on our new couch which is lovely and soft and squishy and perfect because it's in and I don't have to move another one for quite some time (cross my fingers). Dusty and I had a great anniversary. I was so WORN out from running around the couple days before that on the 30th I asked Dusty to scrap the plans and just do NOTHING. It was great. I don't even know what he had planned but he didn't make a big deal out if and we watched a movie with the kids and went for a small walk and ate food. It was relaxing to just do what we normally do. Monday, Ellie started soccer. She'll tell you it was great. I thought it was hilarious. She stood on the sidelines and WATCHED everyone else. When she got her own ball she was awesome but as soon as she had to compete she was done. We'll see how Wednesday goes. I had some ladies over for lunch today and it was yummy and I enjoyed seeing everyone. I have so many pictures to download but I'm too lazy to walk out to the car and get the camera so maybe tomorrow.