And we're going again.

School started for the kiddos 2 weeks ago. So far so good. It's amazing how having a little experiance with something makes you much more relaxed with it. Last year with homeschooling we tried a lot of things and bagged a lot of things. I really got to figure out what makes miss Cailtin tick and how to get things to work. This year just knowing what I learned has helped so much. We really amped it up with expectations and such and she has met those new "rules" head on. It has been great so far. Now of course things haven't gone totally smooth but I think the year ahead shows some great promise. I started Ian on reading this morning for the second time. I tried a few months ago but the attention span just wasnt there. Today he practically begged me so we did it. He gets a little embarassed because it is so new but he enjoyed it. I hope that we can keep it up and he will be reading soon. Reading has been Caitlins biggest struggle (mostly because we used such a crappy book last year and had to start from scratch so late in the yaer!) but we are already seeing so much improvment in the last couple of months. She still is fluent and smooth but its coming.

School has also started for Dean and I this week. Wow I am already overwhelmed. I am going to have to try really hard to stay caught up. I am taking one class that I dont think is going to be a fly through class. I may actually have to read the text this year. lol I hate when that happens.

We start the basement remodel in two weeks. Can I jsut say that I am seriously looking forward to not having a nasty creepy scary movie type space down there? I will be so glad when it is done. Luckily it wont take too much time as there isnt a lot we have planned for it. I will take some before and after pics for your viewing pleasure.

The pregnancy is going well. I am beat most days, have the blasted heartburn issue again and feel like a bloated whale but its all good. Had the dr. appointment a couple of weeks ago. The placenta at this point is laying over my scar. Not good. If it doesnt move before baby is born then we will have a pretty gruesome delivery. I am not pleased about this development to say the least. Because I am prone to anemia and low blood pressure I have pumped up the iron supplement and bought an exersice machine. My hope is to get far away from the anemia threshold and to work out enough to keep my blood pressure at a bit more "comfortable" level just in case I do have to deal with major blood loss. I will most likly have a harder recouvery this time because of a few issues I am dealing with. If the placenta does in fact attach over the scar then I definatly will have a much harder recovery. I know c-sections serve a purpose but in my case all they have done is create medical issues for me. If I could sue I would, just to make myself feel better. Stupid............bleep.......bleep.......... Okay sorry, I am a bit bitter about the hand dealt in this case.

Okay well there you have it for now. :)

And we're going again.

School started for the kiddos 2 weeks ago. So far so good. It's amazing how having a little experiance with something makes you much more relaxed with it. Last year with homeschooling we tried a lot of things and bagged a lot of things. I really got to figure out what makes miss Cailtin tick and how to get things to work. This year just knowing what I learned has helped so much. We really amped it up with expectations and such and she has met those new "rules" head on. It has been great so far. Now of course things haven't gone totally smooth but I think the year ahead shows some great promise. I started Ian on reading this morning for the second time. I tried a few months ago but the attention span just wasnt there. Today he practically begged me so we did it. He gets a little embarassed because it is so new but he enjoyed it. I hope that we can keep it up and he will be reading soon. Reading has been Caitlins biggest struggle (mostly because we used such a crappy book last year and had to start from scratch so late in the yaer!) but we are already seeing so much improvment in the last couple of months. She still is fluent and smooth but its coming.

School has also started for Dean and I this week. Wow I am already overwhelmed. I am going to have to try really hard to stay caught up. I am taking one class that I dont think is going to be a fly through class. I may actually have to read the text this year. lol I hate when that happens.

We start the basement remodel in two weeks. Can I jsut say that I am seriously looking forward to not having a nasty creepy scary movie type space down there? I will be so glad when it is done. Luckily it wont take too much time as there isnt a lot we have planned for it. I will take some before and after pics for your viewing pleasure.

The pregnancy is going well. I am beat most days, have the blasted heartburn issue again and feel like a bloated whale but its all good. Had the dr. appointment a couple of weeks ago. The placenta at this point is laying over my scar. Not good. If it doesnt move before baby is born then we will have a pretty gruesome delivery. I am not pleased about this development to say the least. Because I am prone to anemia and low blood pressure I have pumped up the iron supplement and bought an exersice machine. My hope is to get far away from the anemia threshold and to work out enough to keep my blood pressure at a bit more "comfortable" level just in case I do have to deal with major blood loss. I will most likly have a harder recouvery this time because of a few issues I am dealing with. If the placenta does in fact attach over the scar then I definatly will have a much harder recovery. I know c-sections serve a purpose but in my case all they have done is create medical issues for me. If I could sue I would, just to make myself feel better. Stupid............bleep.......bleep.......... Okay sorry, I am a bit bitter about the hand dealt in this case.

Okay well there you have it for now. :)

Veggies and Bread....Crumbs

Last night I pulled up all of the carrots to free up space in that bed to start the fall garden. Here is the basket of goodies I got. The carrots that were shaped well really looked great. However a large percentage of carrots had a very nice top section but then branched into many smaller carrots. They looked a little weird but tasted great. Anyone know why this happens to carrots?

Last night some neighbors dropped off a bunch of cucumbers for us also. As soon as I finish with this post these babies are going to be made into pickles. This is the first year I have done pickles so I hope they turn out with a nice flavor.

The first batch of bread yesterday was a dismal failure. Its been so long since I made any that I forgot my mental must-do's that arent listed in the recipe. Below is a pic. Nice isn't it. So whats a girl to do with 3 loaves of bread that are sunk? Ummm google of course. I found a few tasty recipes for homemade croutons and seasoned bread crumbs.

I cut up 2 loaves and stuck them in the oven (35o degrees) and let them dry out for a few hours. Since this was fresh bread with a lot of moisture in it, it took longer than it would if I was using older bread or bread from the store. Any way here is a pic of a few slices after it has dried in the oven for a while.

Then I followed this recipe . She isn't kidding when she says that it smells fantastic. Oh boy did it. I ended up with an entire gallon bag for the freezer.

Dean and I got the fall tree plan all laid out last night. With any luck this place will look 100% different come Octoberish. And really different here in the next couple of years. Dean is finishing up his second job tonight so he will have a lot more time to dedicate to home projects come this weekend. I hope that we will be able to start crossing these huge projects (and some not so huge) off the list. Here's hoping!

Veggies and Bread....Crumbs

Last night I pulled up all of the carrots to free up space in that bed to start the fall garden. Here is the basket of goodies I got. The carrots that were shaped well really looked great. However a large percentage of carrots had a very nice top section but then branched into many smaller carrots. They looked a little weird but tasted great. Anyone know why this happens to carrots?

Last night some neighbors dropped off a bunch of cucumbers for us also. As soon as I finish with this post these babies are going to be made into pickles. This is the first year I have done pickles so I hope they turn out with a nice flavor.

The first batch of bread yesterday was a dismal failure. Its been so long since I made any that I forgot my mental must-do's that arent listed in the recipe. Below is a pic. Nice isn't it. So whats a girl to do with 3 loaves of bread that are sunk? Ummm google of course. I found a few tasty recipes for homemade croutons and seasoned bread crumbs.

I cut up 2 loaves and stuck them in the oven (35o degrees) and let them dry out for a few hours. Since this was fresh bread with a lot of moisture in it, it took longer than it would if I was using older bread or bread from the store. Any way here is a pic of a few slices after it has dried in the oven for a while.

Then I followed this recipe . She isn't kidding when she says that it smells fantastic. Oh boy did it. I ended up with an entire gallon bag for the freezer.

Dean and I got the fall tree plan all laid out last night. With any luck this place will look 100% different come Octoberish. And really different here in the next couple of years. Dean is finishing up his second job tonight so he will have a lot more time to dedicate to home projects come this weekend. I hope that we will be able to start crossing these huge projects (and some not so huge) off the list. Here's hoping!

A lapse in posting

Sorry about that. Sometimes I feel like blogging and other times I just don't. :)

Things with the earwigs got out of control. And I do mean out of control. In the end we had to bomb the house (which I hate with all that chemical crap floating about!). We had huge nests under the house in the crawl spaces. It was bad, really really bad. We haven't had the pleasure of seeing anymore earwigs which I have to say has been a small blessing, especially when they were joining us for showers and taking swims in our shampoo. I tell ya it was bad! :)

The garden is still infested with them but it doesn't seem to be a big deal anymore. I think the weeks of heat took their toll and the numbers are dwindling. Thank heavens. I have largely given up on the garden for now. I am beat and have no energy to stand in the baking 100 degree heat to weed. We had decent crops off of nearly everything that we planted so that was nice. I will be planting a fall garden this week if I can get Dean to clear a space or make a few raised beds. Otherwise I will wait till next spring after this baby is born and energy has returned.

This last week we celebrated our 10th anniversary. Friday night we drove 3 hours to a small mountain town to have dinner and watch a local theatre group perform "Footloose". Most of the actors in the show were college interns. There were few props and it took place in an outdoor amplitheater. It rained, or more misted, for quite a while and when the clouds broke the stars were shining in all their glory! It was a fantastic night and we enjoyed ourselves immensley. We will definatly be making the drive again, possibly bringing the kids with us next time. This time we stayed in a hotel but next time I think we will camp. The area is spectacular with green everywhere, mountains close enough to spit on, and trees everywhere you look. It was just what we love. We didnt get any pictures because, well I suck, but I dont think pictures could have even come close to capturing the scene. Seriously wonderful.

Today is bread making day for me. Its not normally but since I just got some very awesome pans it is. :) One of my best pans was broken months ago leaving me with only one decent pan. I finally gave in and ordered some 1.5 pound loaf pans (Chicago Metal Brand) from http://www.cooking.com/ . These babies are beautiful! No nasty teflon coating here just commercial grade steel. Oh yeah! I have three loaves in the oven now and I can hardly wait for the yummy smells to hit. The kiddos helped since we are all home from church today sick.

Well off to make more bread and do some other things I ignore on a regular basis (ie laundry).

A lapse in posting

Sorry about that. Sometimes I feel like blogging and other times I just don't. :)

Things with the earwigs got out of control. And I do mean out of control. In the end we had to bomb the house (which I hate with all that chemical crap floating about!). We had huge nests under the house in the crawl spaces. It was bad, really really bad. We haven't had the pleasure of seeing anymore earwigs which I have to say has been a small blessing, especially when they were joining us for showers and taking swims in our shampoo. I tell ya it was bad! :)

The garden is still infested with them but it doesn't seem to be a big deal anymore. I think the weeks of heat took their toll and the numbers are dwindling. Thank heavens. I have largely given up on the garden for now. I am beat and have no energy to stand in the baking 100 degree heat to weed. We had decent crops off of nearly everything that we planted so that was nice. I will be planting a fall garden this week if I can get Dean to clear a space or make a few raised beds. Otherwise I will wait till next spring after this baby is born and energy has returned.

This last week we celebrated our 10th anniversary. Friday night we drove 3 hours to a small mountain town to have dinner and watch a local theatre group perform "Footloose". Most of the actors in the show were college interns. There were few props and it took place in an outdoor amplitheater. It rained, or more misted, for quite a while and when the clouds broke the stars were shining in all their glory! It was a fantastic night and we enjoyed ourselves immensley. We will definatly be making the drive again, possibly bringing the kids with us next time. This time we stayed in a hotel but next time I think we will camp. The area is spectacular with green everywhere, mountains close enough to spit on, and trees everywhere you look. It was just what we love. We didnt get any pictures because, well I suck, but I dont think pictures could have even come close to capturing the scene. Seriously wonderful.

Today is bread making day for me. Its not normally but since I just got some very awesome pans it is. :) One of my best pans was broken months ago leaving me with only one decent pan. I finally gave in and ordered some 1.5 pound loaf pans (Chicago Metal Brand) from http://www.cooking.com/ . These babies are beautiful! No nasty teflon coating here just commercial grade steel. Oh yeah! I have three loaves in the oven now and I can hardly wait for the yummy smells to hit. The kiddos helped since we are all home from church today sick.

Well off to make more bread and do some other things I ignore on a regular basis (ie laundry).