Happy May Day!
When last I left you, I was busy cleaning up the terrible mess DJ made with a tube of butt cream, and that’s an experience I would rather not repeat. I wasn’t successful at completely removing it from the carpet, even after scrubbing with Dawn, and steam cleaning it. So… DJ is on my list right now.
It's hard to get TOO mad at him when he's this cute.
And what else is new around here?
-eBay. We’ve been running a lot of auctions in the last couple of weeks, and have made nearly $800. Which is nice, except we also had to pack and ship 30 items, including a set of wheel covers to Western Australia. We will not be doing this again, because I spent an hour and 15 minutes at the post office, filling out various necessary forms, while the clerk asked me all manner of weird questions, such as, “Can you verify that these parts are free of live mosquito eggs?”
-The bathtub. It’s finally done!
The epoxy needs to cure for 3 days before the plumbing can be installed.
My husband used a fine nap foam roller this time, instead of a brush, and the result was so much better. He put the first coat of epoxy on right before we left for church on Sunday morning. When we came home he gave it another coat, and we went out to lunch. After lunch, he applied the final coat, and to pass the time while it dried, we took the kids to an art show at the local college.
There were free cookies, bars, fruit, lemonade, and other refreshments offered (DJ’s favorite part), and Bee was able to ask one of the artists some questions about his work. One of the advantages of living in a college town is the readily available selection of music performances, plays, art shows, dance demonstrations, and other free entertainment.
Cakes was alarmed by these clay masks.
Cakes, our budding artist, was especially enthralled by the college’s huge art studio.
She loves drawing the most, but lately she’s been experimenting with new mediums.
-Cleaning and organizing. This is an ongoing, neverending project. Last week I cleaned out some kitchen cabinets, and yesterday I steam-cleaned the area rug in our living room. I’ve also been working, little by little, on the semi-annual clothing purge, because Cakes is outgrowing her size 5′s, so I need to weed those out, and move in the size 6 clothing I’ve saved for her. DJ is also outgrowing all of his 24-month clothing, but since he’s my only boy, I don’t have a ready supply of hand-me-downs for him to grow into. Aside from a few 3T shirts, handed down from a friend, his wardrobe is pretty sparse, so I really need to hit some garage sales! I haven’t made it to a single one yet, because our weekends have been consumed by this bathroom remodeling project. Fortunately, once the tub plumbing is installed, we only need to finish up odds and ends – caulking, the mirror frame, hanging the shower curtain, etc. Hopefully then, I can get some clothes for The Boy, so he doesn’t have to go naked (not that he would mind).
-In the kitchen: I’ve been making a lot of recipes to use up seasonal produce that I’ve gotten great deals on, such as delicious stuffed peppers for supper last night.
We’ve also been making an old favorite – crepes.
I’d never had crepes until I met my husband. He used to make them for me for Sunday breakfast, but this tradition fell away after we had kids. We started making them again after Bee went to a slumber party, and her friend’s Mom made them for breakfast. Bee came home and said, “We had these really good things called crepes. Can you make those some time, Mom?” And I was like, “Hmmm….actually, I CAN.” They’re very easy – no more difficult than pancakes, really – and they’re so versatile. My husband likes them with fruit, or cream cheese and sausage, Bee likes chocolate chips and whipped cream, Cakes likes apricot preserves and powdered sugar, and I like Nutella and bananas – a combination I nicked from IHOP.
I’ve also been making raspberries stuffed with white chocolate chips for treats – such a quick and simple idea, but so GOOD – and I modified a “power bar” recipe that I tore out of our health insurance company’s monthly magazine.
I forgot to take a picture of these before my family snarfed down the entire pan, so credit for this photo goes to Wellmark.com (used with permission).
These were a BIG hit in our house. If you’d like to try them, here’s Wellmark’s original recipe, with my money-saving modifications in parentheses:
INGREDIENTS
2 cups quick oats (I subbed 1 cup Rice Krispies for 1 cup oats, because I had some that needed to be used up, and they were a wonderful addition)
1 cup natural peanut butter (creamy or chunky – I use Skippy Natural)
1 cup honey
1 cup dark chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet)
1 cup dried cranberries (I’ve made these with both cranberries and raisins – both are excellent)
1 cup ground flax
1 cup vanilla whey protein powder
DIRECTIONS
Mix all ingredients together and stir until blended. Spread mixture into a 13×10-inch pan (??? I used 13×9, and I suspect this is what most people have) and refrigerate until ready to serve. Store in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 weeks or freeze for later use.
-Miscellaneous fun. On Saturday, we attended a surprise 70th birthday party for my aunt, and the children had a rare opportunity to spend time with their cousins.
DJ was completely enamored with his sweet cousin, Claire, who played with him the entire afternoon.
I love this completely adoring look he's giving her.
Also, a couple weeks ago I took the girls to see Mirror Mirror (which I can’t recommend. It was just OK), and we snapped this self-portrait.
Cakie's enormous, cheesy grin just cracks me up!
I love having kids. I have so much fun with them.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Standing in long lines at the post office and filling out custom forms for packages that are being sent to distant countries – hmmmm,I am sure that EVERY military family can relate to that scenario. Personally, I have stood in long and agonizingly slow postal lines 3-4 times a month,so that I could send my husband packages while he was in Turkey,Korea,France,Greece,Afghanistan and Iraq – I am certain that I left out quite a few countries but after mailing packages and filling out customs forms for 20+ years,I might have left out a few.
There actually was no line…I was the only one there. It’s just that the staff at our small town post office has little experience sending such a large package, which must ship Global Express Guaranteed, internationally. They weren’t sure of which forms I needed to fill out, or even how to answer some of the customs questions.
Folex gets almost everything out of carpet. I have never tried it to get butt cream out but I know it works for blood and blueberries. Here on the west coast you can get it at almost any grocery/home store. You should give it a try.
Sounds like a fun few days! I tried your stuffed pepper recipe about a month ago and it was delish!
Can you share your stuffed pepper recipe?I love them but lost my recipe.
What a fun day at the college! Your tub looks awesome- we had ours reglazed a few months ago and I wish we would’ve been brave enough to do it ourselves. We paid almost 300.00 for the job, and there were puddles, divets and even a strip at the bottom that wasn’t covered. We had to have the guy come back to fix it. Next time
Heather, I’ve just recently have been following your blog. I can across it on Pinterest. You have a beautiful family and I think you’re hilarious. It’s also nice to know that I’m not the only mother our there going through some of the same issues. I have three children of my own (2 girls and 1 boy), 2 step-children, and a grand-baby. There’s NEVER a dull moment. Anyway, I just wanted you to know that look forward to your blogs and have enjoyed reading your previous ones in an effort to catch up.
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