Traveling Home and Back

Hello everybody Well I started the 4 weeks organization project and basically felt off the tracks completely. Not because I gave up but because a few things that happened. The first was we had to go to Texas for my uncle's funeral. When we got back we just really had to take some time to get back into the swing of things. Traveling with our family of seven which included a toddler, baby and teens wasn't easy. We did enjoy our road trip though. The drive down is 12 hours but with stops and such it was longer. The kids appreciated the stretch your legs stops. It's amusing traveling with our family. Oh boy do we get the looks. I guess people may wonder just how many people are getting out of that car?? What sort of mixed up family is that? Are they ALL yours? Yada yada we sure have a good laugh at how the stares happen. The photo of Angela above is of her making fun of the stares we got in McDonald's. They also appreciated their sleep. When they went to sleep I got excited and started talking to Rich while I should have went to sleep. I saw it as quality time with him. We enjoyed seeing our family, but not on such a sad occasion. A lot of people were saddened by my uncle's passing. This visit was the first time my family got to see baby Fia and Helaina. We were asked if we would consider moving back to TX. Well after seeing my kids be around family, if the Lord gives us an opportunistic job opening then we'll sure take it. We shall see!  The kids didn't want to leave which always makes it hard.  After a few more photos of the hotel to post for the TripAdvisor.com review we checked out and loaded in the car. It was my time to drive first, so I dressed comfortable with my yoga pants that have never seen a yoga class, comfy t-shirt and finished off with my infamous socks and flip flops.Before I put the pedal to the metal we had to make a stop at  Whole Foods. While we sat in the car waiting for Rich to come out, I got at text message from a friend who works at the Cowboys Stadium telling me she was at the stadium. Seeing as how we were right down the road we didn't pass up the chance to see our friend. We walked and took photos. We enjoyed our short visit, as usual with her we always have a lot of laughs and a good time. Wished it could have been longer but we needed to get on the road.   We arrived at home around 2 AM. I remember walking into the house thinking, "Oh wow space! I missed this!" We stayed at a Residence Inn in TX. It was good but I really appreciated being home.  Any how we all came in and finished off sleeping. I missed bible study that morning and it was my turn to bring snacks. Thankfully our friends understood the situation. Fia and Helaina had runny noses and coughs too so that alone would have me stay home. My husband, my hero, the man went to work that same day. #likeaboss! It took us a bit of time to get back to our regular things after the events above. So as you can see I haven't been following the 4 weeks organization schedule exactly but it does not mean that I have forgotten and have not been organizing. The latest thing I organized was our clear bin of electronic wires and "stuff". We throw all of the misc electronic wires and do-dads in this one bin and it all gets mixed up. We don't know what belongs to what so I decided to make it neat. I ran out of twisty ties so I used clear tape. I labeled our plugged in appliances at the surge protector. It makes the search for which wire goes where much easier. The mess of wires                                                                            How I'm organizing them  In the bin  It's a lot easier to look through and pick up one wire instead of a tangled mess. One of these days I'll get those twisty ties. My DIY Page Tab: So with all the links I've gotten "homemade DIY wanna be organizing" brain overload! I think I need to slow down. So to help with this, I've made a place to store links of sites that have great recipes, DIY, organizing, sewing projects etc that I will try eventually or that I have tried. It can be found on my DIY page. This way it helps me keep track of all the cool things people have posted online. I'll also give my thoughts on it. Taking this down a notch will lead me into my next blog post...

Seaweed Smoothie Fail. Tofu Pie Success!

Ok so I'm a sucker for products and recipes. If the package looks good I want to buy it. If the claims look half honest I'm tempted. I know it makes me sound like I have a house full of junky half used products, but I don't. I don't give into temptation much after all I am a Graphic Designer trained to know and design the tricks that make us want to buy things. It still doesn't stop my curiosity though. I do have self control... sometimes. I'm still in the dog house for the Seaweed Smoothie I created. That creation literally tasted like crab! I tried hiding the seaweed taste with fruit and it just made it have a sweet yet salty crabby taste. Maybe we should have had crackers with it? No. My husband was a trooper as he always has been for me and tried it with me. He drank all his, I couldn't get half of mine down. Good thing the after taste didn't last long! Yeah, Yuck.Oops FAIL! Anyhow,  the latest is a Low Calorie Chocolate Pie I saw Chef Alton Brown made on the Dr. Oz show. Here's the thing, the main ingredient is Silken Tofu! I had never tasted Tofu before until a few days ago. I was skeptical at first but was curious enough to try it. The chocolate Pie is delicious!! My whole family liked it! Yes even my dear husband who doesn't like tofu agreed it was good! Maybe because you don't actually taste the tofu! Hmmm.... So check it out, here's the recipe and the link to where it is on the Dr. Oz site http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/alton-browns-dairy-free-chocolate-pie IngredientsMakes 8 servings 13 oz semisweet chocolate chips 1/3 cup coffee liqueur  (I used a sugar free Caramel flavored Coffee syrup as a substitution) 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 lb silken tofu 1 tbsp honey  1 (9-in) prepared chocolate wafer crust (store-bought is fine) DirectionsPlace enough water in the bottom of a 4-quart saucepan to come 1 inch up the sides. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Place the chocolate chips and liqueur in a medium metal mixing bowl, set over the simmering water, and stir with a rubber or silicone spatula until melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Combine the tofu, chocolate mixture, and honey in a blender or food processor and spin until smooth (about 1 minute). Pour the filling into the crust and refrigerate for 2 hours, or until the filling sets firm. Courtesy Alton Brown, 2011From “ Good Eats: The Early Years” Try it! It's yummy... now where did I put my slice?

We're baaaaaaack...

Well, we are all back from Texas. School starts for me on the 22nd for the kids the 18th. We rented a Buick Rendezvous! It was very nice. From Irving, TX to Belleville IL it was about 12 hours. We broke it up in two days. I drove from Irving to Joplin, MO one day and the next Joplin, MO to Belleville IL. Starting from Irving, TX wasn’t so bad. We stopped in Oklahoma City to see the kids Grandmother and Aunt. They all were so excited. The got pictures and I gave them some pictures of the kids. They got to see the Cruise pictures too. It was a nice short visit. We stayed for about 2 hours or so. Then we got back on the road to Joplin. You know this time I don’t remember seeing the big McDonalds arch. Hmm... Weird. Any how we got a hotel at the Motel 6 for a night. It was really late, like 1 almost 2 am. The kids wanted to watch Disney all night long. I let them. I thought hey we are going to be on the road for a while tomorrow maybe they will sleep! So I got some rest and they watched Disney. I think I woke up around 4 am and told them to go to sleep. So much for them staying up all night, or morning! So any how I got up and rearranged the car so they will have all their snacks in the back seat already and cleaned out the car. It was a mess already. The kids had crayons and food crumbs every where. I did really like that car! It had a lot of room. So we washed up, and got on the road about 11am. The drive wasn’t so bad. I had to make my morning calls to let everyone know I was ok. When we got into MO further there were storms off and on the highway. It was a little sprinkle here and there. Then when we got into St. Louis the rain got harder. I avoided traffic by taking 270 to 255 home. Rush hour wasn’t a thing I wanted to go through after driving so long. So we made it home all in one piece. The kids wanted to go to church. It was Wednesday service so we went. I wanted to go anyway. I wasn’t tired out like I usually am. It was a peace about this drive. It was great, one that I can do again. I didn’t dread it. So I was on the road again to go to church. We got welcomed back with open arms. It was a great feeling being back home, and seeing the people we missed. I like Wednesday service a lot more than Sunday. Its less of a rush it’s more relaxed. Any how the kids were told they grew. They did I just haven’t seen it since I’m mom I guess. But the funny thing is, when we got home I measured them against the wall and they are now four feet! I am four feet eleven! So wow the girls are gaining on me! Adrian is right behind them too. I didn’t realize it but they did grow. So back to church… I saw a lot of folks I missed dearly. Rene gave me a great hug. Bad Brad was good to see again too. I wished I could sit out and just chat at the tables but I need Jesus so I thought I shouldn’t skip out on the word! Any how Chris gave me a welcome like no other by putting ice down my back and a big hug. All the others passing by saying welcome back and heeeeey!! Was so great. Anyway life at the house is peaceful. School starts soon. I wonder if I will like this semester… Hummmm…. I hope the kids like theirs. This might be the last semester they are home schooled. I’ll have to see what way God wants us to go. I just know for know he wants me to Graduate :)