22 January 2012

Heads Up!

or not...

Super Aubri Coloring
Aubri (our super hero) coloring...

Looking for Splinters
David looking for splinters

Chef Emi
Emi making Carnivore Patties
It was a fairly nice weekend for us. After the busy day of running around Friday, we stuck close to home Saturday. Scott washed the cars and the kids played outside. I made this banana nut bread and it was so delicious - the honey butter took it over the top. I subbed almonds in for the pecans because that's what I had on hand. Yum!

Today after church we went out to Scott's parents' to celebrate his sister's birthday (Happy Birthday, Stevie!!). Later, while the Little Ones were "napping", Emi and I ventured out into the wind and smoke to go grocery shopping. The skies looked like the beginning of the Wizard of Oz today because the wind had stirred up so much dust. Unfortunately, it contributed to grass fires just West of us. Luckily the firefighters got the fire under control and there were no injuries.

Right now, my household is winding down and gearing up for another busy week... I hope that all of you have a great week, friends!



20 January 2012

Babes' Mouths and Heavenly Provisions

David talks a LOT. Sometimes I don't think he takes a breath when recounting a story or event. Lately, he's been saying some things that really catch us off guard.

The other night Salty (our Disco) leaked coolant in the driveway (bad automobile!).  We were concerned that maybe our cats might've helped themselves to some of the sweet nectar. David overheard us talking about the cats and what we'd do if they died (bury in the back yard) and he began to recount when Brown Sugar died, going into great detail about the hawk attack (which he did not see) and then he said "It's not fair!" We totally agreed ....I mean they were both birds of roughly the same size but one was much stronger, quicker and equipped with better eyesight; in the end, the less-gifted bird lost. I had never really thought about things that way - only thought about the Circle of Life lesson learned (and also that everything in nature prefers chicken!).

Speaking of British cars, Scott just told me a quote from Cars 2 regarding them:  'Mater said "if there ain't any oil under 'em, there ain't no oil in 'em" (The same can be said about the coolant?)

So last night we dropped Salty off at our mechanic's garage and immediately followed our neighbor to an estate sale site (she organizes estate sales!) so that we could check out the car that was up for bid.  We were amazed at the immaculate condition this woman left her home and possessions, including her car. She had recorded each time she'd filled up with gas to keep track of mileage and kept all her service records. So this car was driven by one owner, a little old lady (who only drove it on Sundays?). While we checked out the items for sale and talked about the previous owner's meticulousness of her car and home, little ears were listening in...

David quietly asked "Did someone kill the human?" (Note: I have suspected for some time that David was an alien. It started soon after he joined our family and would magically heal up overnight from some very serious cuts. That plus the Jedi thing.) What an interesting way to ask how she passed... Our neighbor told us that the old woman died suddenly months ago....we were still in awe about the condition she left things (so suddenly)...and how things would be found in our homes if we were to suddenly pass.

So we are now the proud owners of a Buick (Thank you, God!). We also got our Salty back with minimal damage to the pocketbook (cracked coolant reservoir). Now we need to come up with a name for our new (to us) car. Any suggestions?


The Real Find
Here she is...

Scott and I spent my first RDO together taking care of business, running errands and we got to hit a garage sale AND an estate sale. Here are some of the other items we brought home:

My $5 haul
My $5 Haul - drink tray, soup ladle, citrus juicer and earrings...

The deceased was the owner of a restaurant near my middle school way back when and I figured these cool items had some good juju! Plus the $2 earrings were just my style.




Scott came away with a cool vintage flag (jumper cables and 2 albums not pictured)


Scott's Flag Find
Rock the Vote, Baby!

And I found the perfect sweater for the contest next Christmas!


Found my Ugly Christmas Sweater ($3)
I actually thought the sweater was pretty and for $3, how could I resist?


All in all it was a good first RDO.  I got to spend the day with my honey, we finally got that new (to us) car that we've been needing, we visited my old workplace, we took Emi to the podiatrist (orthodics are on order) and we got our girl Salty back.

Looking forward to the rest of the weekend with my family...

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend too, friends!

18 January 2012

In My Life

...I could use a little NZT these days. Ya know what I'm talking about? We watched Limitless a few weeks ago and I can sort of relate to Eddie... on his NZT hangover days. Barely functioning...and that was before my new job!

In other news...


16 January 2012

Weekend Wrapup

After my second week at my new job (my first full week), I was really looking forward to the first L-O-N-G weekend of the new year. Friday was all about easing into the weekend.

Strong Boy
My Big Strong Boy (letting me sit on his lap)

And Saturday we got outside to play. It was another gorgeous weekend and I'm sooo glad. My kids and I are so much happier when they can get out and release some energy.

Emi wanted Ahi Tuna on the menu so we made it happen for dinner Saturday night. (yum!) So proud of my daughter for being open and creative in the kitchen... We seared the tuna on each side for 2-3 minutes and then topped the steaks with a sesame-soy sauce.

Searing Ahi Tuna
Searing Ahi Tuna
Ketiesha gave Emi a new do - twists! I am amazed at how quickly she can take out her current style and create a new style for Emi. Emi is happy to see her hair getting longer...

Marshmallow Candy
Twists, baby!
Sunday after church we hung out at my parents' house and I caught a quick cat nap while the kids played. Later I got another brief cat nap at home while the Little Ones were napping.


I could get used to this...

And today was really nice. Balmy weather. Clean bedsheets. Lunch at El Chico. Baked Potato Soup for dinner. Safetyville game with the kids.

Looking forward to another short week...

11 January 2012

Year in Review

I tried, but I couldn't shorten the video to under 10 minutes. It was so sweet to review last year in photos...hope you enjoy it too.