Old Man Winter-- Go away!

The weather here today has been of all sorts.  One minute it's sunny and calm, the next it's snowing, and the next the visibility is so poor we can't see to the end of the block!

I thought the kids could break their cabin fever a bit and get outside before the temps started hitting the skids.  It was good for them to get out and get some fresh air.  I have a feeling they won't be outside much in the next couple of days.  We are expecting below zero temps and that wind to keep a howlin' which means some dangerous wind chills.  The kids haven't had a full week of school this month and if my calculations are right, any more missed days means school goes into June.  Grrr..... did I mention I was ready for spring??

Nonetheless, we spent the day watching movies, making some meals ahead for the week, including meatloaf, and some chicken noodle soup to warm us up on this cold day.  I'm hoping the kids make it to school tomorrow, but it's not looking too promising.  In the mean time, I am living vicariously through my sister's facebook posts as she is in a warm, sunny place, by the beautiful ocean and palm trees.

Happy Birthday MOM!!

I'm a little early with this, but as you fellow Iowan's know, our weather has been nothing short of crazy around her lately, so we are having to plan ahead a bit.  My dear mom turns 60 on Wednesday and with fear that I wouldn't see her until after that special day with all the snow, wind and cold, we took her birthday cake over to her yesterday for an early celebration. 

Mom typically likes angel food or carrot cake, unlike Dad who is a full blown choco-holic.  So, it was nice to whip up a homemade carrot cake just for her!  I made this cake for her a couple of years ago and it was fantastic, so I knew it would be just as good the second time around.

Happy Birthday Mom!  Hope your day is as special as you are!!

MFL Duals- Tourney #2

Nolan participated in his second wrestling tournament today at MFL.  He got to wrestle 4 times against some tough opponents.  It was a good day, and I can definitely see him progressing with his skills. He is also learning the importance of teamwork and sportsmanship. We are very proud of you Nolan!!

 

2014 Bucket List--- one check down!

So, I did it... I signed up for my first half marathon!!  I wanted to check this off my list in 2012 and 2013, and decided I am the only person who will push myself to the next level, so I 'm going for it! I'm excited and nervous just signing up!! I've got until April to train, and have been running so far up to 10 miles at a time, so I feel like I will be more than prepared come race day.  Here goes nothin'!

Grand Harbor Waterpark

Yesterday after school we packed up the kids and headed east to Dubuque.  Destination: Grand Harbor Resort and Waterpark.  This was part of the kids' Christmas gift this year.  I really believe in giving the kids experiences rather than things.  As I get older, we realize that we want the kids to be able to remember the things we did not the things they got.  So, the past couple of years we have been doing a trip as part of their gift. 

 

You could tell by the anticipation on their faces Friday morning when they popped out of bed that they could NOT wait until the school day was over!!  Nolan was so excited he barely ate breakfast! 

 

We arrived last night with just enough time to get a quick swim in before supper and bedtime.  The kids all slept in the fold out couch.  They must have been beat, as we didn't hear a word from them until bright and early at 6:00 am when Derek couldn't find his toy trains:)  Eryn wasn't too thrilled that he woke her up, but that's not any different from when we are at home.

 

After a quick breakfast and it was time to get back to the waterpark.  It's smaller than Wisconsin Dells, which was our destination last year, so we felt more comfortable when Eryn and Nolan were running around without our direct supervision.  We had a great time playing basketball in the water (and Derek loved slam dunking it), the HUGE water dump bucket, and the 3 waterslides, one of which Derek wasn't quite tall enough to go on, but it didn't seem to bother him one bit!

 

Overnight it also started to snow, and it was coming down pretty good when we left the hotel.  Thank goodness, as we drove out of Dubuque it seemed to get a bit better, and the roads were pretty good on the trip home.  I guess you'll have that in Iowa in January!  So, we're back home, catching up on laundry and housework before Nolan's team wrestling tournament tomorrow.  Go Warriors!  Stay tuned for an update!

 

Low-Key weekend + recipes!

We had another nice, slow paced weekend.  Time to get a few projects done, do some planning for future weekends, and lots of time spent in the kitchen! 

 

You know when it's quiet in the house, and you are afraid of what you're going to find?  This is where I found the boys yesterday, getting along, quiet and watching a movie. LOVE:)  They also had a fun playdate outside with some friends.  It was good to get some fresh air!

 



We did lots of coloring this weekend too!



And played "school" to make spelling practice a little more fun!


 

 Lots of time in the kitchen.  As I have mentioned before I like to do my planning ahead for the week on Sundays, and if I can get a little meal prep for the weeknight suppers it's a bonus.  Yesterday the kids and I baked two different kinds of cookies.  Eryn chose Molasses and Nolan and Derek chose Chocolate Chip pudding cookies.  Two staples in our freezer!

Today we started the day with a breakfast of  waffles and bacon.  Extra waffles to put in the freezer for a quick breakfast before school.  Then it was some cheesy potato soup for lunch. Here's a link to the recipe:

http://chicincolumbus.wordpress.com/2014/01/02/baked-potato-soup/

I also whipped up a pan of lasagne for the freezer (made up my own recipe for that one!).  Later in the day, I made this pan of apple pie bars.  Really easy to do since I just made the crust and used the canned apple pie filling from this fall! 

Randy requested some homemade pretzels, ya know, like the ones you get in the mall.  Our joke with that is the dipping sauce (liquid cheese) which I just think is plain gross.  But, Randy likes it.  So, our compromise: made half of them with salt, the other half with cinnamon/sugar for those of us with a sweet tooth.  There's quite a few steps involved with this, but using the bread machine cuts down on a lot of the work.  I think they taste pretty darn close to those you can get in the mall!



Click here for the recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/soft-pretzels-for-bread-machines-45567

By the way, the temperatures this weekend were what we Iowans would term "balmy." Close to 40 degrees. Such a swing in the temperatures we had earlier in the week!  Hopefully the kids get back to 5 full days of school this week.  I'd hate for them to have to go too much into summer!

New Year/Time Capsule

Happy 2014! I'm a little late with the blog post, with really no good reason.  We've settled into hibernation mode around here, and with record cold hitting us as we speak, it will be at least Tuesday before these kids head back to school.  We've left the house once all weekend, and I'm not looking forward to going out in it tomorrow, but it's one day closer to warmer temps and vacation, so I'm looking on the bright side!!

So, backtracking to New Years.  The kids tried to stay up until midnight, but as we walked back in the house just shy of the new year, they were sound asleep in the living room.  Randy and I enjoyed a delicious supper out with some good friends, followed by some dice/card games.  Nice and low key, just the way I like it.

 Speaking of low key, this time of year there's a lot of talk about resolutions.  This year I am taking a different approach to it and not labeling them resolutions.  They are more of my focus, things I am trying to stay on top of in my life.  I can sum it up in one word:

 SIMPLIFY. 

New Years Day was spent with my family celebrating my dad turning 62. I was in charge of the birthday cake and with Dad being a chocolate lover, what better cake than chocolate twinkie cake!!

http://whitehouseontheprairie.blogspot.com/2012/04/chocolate-twinkie-cake.html




This afternoon there was much hooting and hollerin' when I got word that school is cancelled tomorrow.  While I am not suprised, I am beginning to think this Holiday Break is getting a tad long!  We scoured the internet looking for projects to  do while we are stuck inside and alas, I found a good one for the new year.  A time capsule!  A fun way to reflect on the year, and think about things in a "kid's view."