something you can do

My friend Sage shared this blog post,and I immediately wanted to share it with you all.  When such horrible things happen in the world, I  feel so incredibly helpless.  What a wonderful idea to vow to pray for the family of one of those sweet angels.  Maybe you will just think of them every night and send positive, healing thoughts to them or maybe you will get on your knees and pray to God to help them through this unimaginable tragedy, but I just ask that you do something.  We are all connected and I know that even something that seems so small can truly help.

I vow to pray for the family of Benjamin Wheeler.

Benjamin Wheeler, 6

Ben loved The Beatles, lighthouses and the No. 7 train to Sunnyside, Queens, his family said in a statement. He and his older brother Nate "filled the house with the noise of four children."

"Ben Wheeler was an irrepressibly bright and spirited boy whose love of fun and excitement at the wonders of life and the world could rarely be contained. His rush to experience life was headlong, creative and immediate," his family said. Ben loved soccer and swimming. Recently, he performed at a piano recital -- a major feat for a little boy who rarely sat still. Friday morning before school, he told him mom: "I still want to be an architect, but I also want to be a paleontologist, because that's what Nate is going to be and I want to do everything Nate does."

The family moved to Newtown in 2007. Francine Wheeler, Ben's mother, is a music teacher and performer. Francine Wheeler's band posted the following message on its Facebook page: "Francine Wheeler, a founding member of The Dream Jam Band, has lost her precious 6-year old son, Ben, to the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut. Our prayers and love go out to Francine, David and Ben's big brother, Nate."

How do you like that?

That's right!  Two days in a row!  Enjoy it while it lasts!

Daniel and I got to get a little of taste of what life with two kids would feel like yesterday.  My sister AND her husband got the stomach virus, so we volunteered to keep their one year old last night.  She did not like our bathtub and woke up at 4am, but was great otherwise.  Sullivan slept with 'us' since it was storming...I say 'us' because Daniel abandoned me to go sleep in Sullivan's room at some point.  My niece joined us at 4,  but there was really no sleep to be had after that point.  A kid asleep on each arm does not make for comfortable sleeping.  I'm am saying prayers that we don't get the stomach virus.  I'm so paranoid now, any twinge sends me into a panic. ;) The stomach virus is evil. I am prepared with Zofran thanks to a wonderful friend should the worst occur.

Labor day weekend was extremely exciting around the Martin household.  We made a trip to Tupelo, went to Kroger, cooked a bunch of stuff, cleaned a little.  We were going to go to Home Depot, but there wasn't enough time. :)  We did attempt a local 'country fair'.  About 5 minutes after arriving, while waiting for the tractor to come pull us up the hill to the fair, Sullivan managed to sit in an army ant pile.  He got about 20+ bites on his legs.  I got one and it itches like the dickens.  Don't know how he's taking it so well.  Those buggers bite and you have to just about pull them off.  After finally making it up the hill, we proceeded to sweat, eat not great food, and spend a fortune on 'junk for a good cause'.  I bought a pound cake that was either under cooked or totally screwed up, so that went in the trash.  All in all, not the best event.  Not sure we'll be back.  We blew up the swimming pool to cool off once we got home.  Popsicles make all things better.

I also attempted my first silk flower arrangement.  It didn't turn out how I had really pictured, but I'm ok with it as a first attempt.  I do want to change out the moss to a less green moss. My dining room table always looks so empty with just a tray or whatever on it.  By the way, Hobby Lobby flower selection overwhelms me.  It's a miracle I was able to pick out stuff that somewhat coordinated.

Tonight I'm making turkey meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and creamed spinach.  Unusual for me to cook during the week, but I have things that need to be cooked before they go bad.  Isn't my life super exciting? :)

Summer

So it's September.  And, yes, I may be the worst blogger ever.  Whenever I take such a long break from the blog, I find it really hard to play catch up.  Here goes..

In May, we went to the carnival.

In June, we went to the beach.  We rented a house with a pool in Inlet Beach, FL.  It was very nice to have so much space and access to a pool 24/7 without fighting crowds.  The week flew by.  I've determined all vacations should be 2 weeks at least in order to unwind and relax before having to leave.  We also learned that renting a golf cart is an excellent idea!

In July, we celebrated the 4th of July at the Lake, at the Farm , and again in our neighborhood.  It was a big day.

We then traveled down to the Coast to attend the circus and visit with Nanna.

I had a birthday.  Got an awesome new camera, and this was my first photo. :)

Had a Lake gathering.

I believe those are most of the highlights.  Here's to attempt #2562093 to try and blog regularly.  We shall see!

What month is it?

Time seems to be moving so quickly, I really do have trouble believing it's almost mid-May.  I come here often with the intent of blogging, but have felt totally uninspired lately.  Work has been insanely busy/crazy/stressful, and it has really just sapped me.

Since my last post, Daniel and I have hosted Easter at our house, celebrated 6 years of marriage, survived another of Sullivan's stomach viruses, failed at swimming lessons, sweated through Double Decker, and had a more than successful first camping experience with Sullivan.

So, what's up with the Pooh Bear lately?  We have almost fully mastered potty training.  We occasionally have a #2 incident, but if we are watchful, those can be avoided!  He still can't get undressed or dressed without assistance, but he's mastered washing his hands and brushing his teeth on his own.  He's getting so big!  He is such a talker!  He's constantly commenting on the trees, the trucks, the moon, the birds...you name it.  He likes to make up his own lyrics to songs and has quite an imagination.  One of his favorite things is to lay on the floor with one of his tractors and just sing or talk and play all by himself.  He loves to read his books at night and always ask for "just one more".  He's started sneaking into our bed in the pre-dawn hours, so I've got to figure out how to put a stop to that.  It is sweet to wake up next to him though. :)

We went camping in Tishomingo State Park this past weekend and had a blast.  Sullivan got a big kick out of fishing, sleeping in a tent, eating outdoors, feeding the geese and ducks, and hiking.  He got a kick out of the 'swimming' bridge (Swinging Bridge), and counting the rock steps as we went up and down.  We stopped at 'the beach' to check out the creek.  During nap time, we loaded up in the air conditioned car and hit all the sights on the Natchez Trace in that area while Sullivan napped.  Worked out nicely!  All in all, it was the perfect distance with just enough activities to keep us all entertained.  Look forward to taking him to the Nanty this fall!

The garden is coming along nicely this year, so far.  I really tried to follow directions and plant as instructed and use proper nutrients.  I still have a few other things I hope to get planted, but what we have is growing nicely.  I have my first 2 Roma tomatoes on one plant!  We've got 2 kinds of basil, Italian parsley, cilantro, lavender, mint, rosemary, Roma tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, a variety of heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, squash, cucumbers, bell peppers, cantaloupe, and strawberries.  Our pear tree is FULL of pears, so I've been doing some research on that.  Apparently, after they are ready to be picked, you should let them ripen in a cold area (fridge) before eating or they won't get ripe and will be gritty.  Nice to know why last years weren't so great for eating.  I've also had recommendations for doing pear preserves with the leftovers, so I  might try that out.  There is definitely a part of me that would love to have a bigger piece of land and grow more, have a goat, some chickens, etc.  The reality I'm sure wouldn't be as fun as I imagine, but it's a nice thought.

Daniel's youngest brother is graduating this weekend, so we'll be hosting his family.  Sherri, the girls, and Mom and Freddie are going to the cabin for this weekend since it's Mothers Day.  I'm hoping to get over for a visit with them during the actual graduation ceremony.  Going to be a busy weekend, but I'll be glad to get a visit in with everyone.

whew..

I have no idea how to catch you all up on what's been going on with the Martins lately!  Man, big changes around our house!  Here goes!

1. Sullivan has moved to a big boy bed.  I have to say, this was pretty dang easy.  He had a couple of nights where he would get out of bed a few times and we'd put him back, but now we put him down and he stays all night!  Granted, he gets up much earlier these days and comes to wake up Momma, but I don't mind most days!  It's nice to be up a little earlier to enjoy my coffee and some time with my Pooh bear.  Hoping to start walking in the mornings soon!

2. Sullivan is potty trained!  What, what!?!  Ok, we still have issues at night and on the weekends when we are running around, but he stays dry every day at school in big boy underwear.  Everyone told me the 2 year old class's teacher is the potty training master, and they were right!  We didn't have to do anything!  He still doesn't tell us when he has to go, so we just put him on the potty about every hour and voila!  Next we have to conquer going while standing up and the whole aiming thing.  I think I'll let Daniel figure that all out.  :)

3. We have the sweetest boy ever!  Yes, now come the gratuitous bragging on my son.  Move to 4 if you can't take it!  Some of his common statements these days are, "I'm so proud of you" , "Daddy, you have a good day", "Are you ok Mommy?" (if I've said ouch or something), "I stayed dry all day!", "Sophie is a baby jaguar" (we're big into Dora and Diego these days).  Sullivan is big on kisses and hugs and holding hands.  He's learning to do basic addition!  lol.  we've mastered 1 + 1 and 1+2.  He's so smart, and just amazes me daily.  "I'm so proud of him!" (wonder where he learned that, huh?)

4. Daniel and I went skiing in Telluride in February for a whole week!  Did that week ever fly by!  We were in surprisingly better shape than I had anticipated, and had a wonderful time.  There was great snow and we got 17 fresh inches while there in addition to some beautiful blue bird days.  It was hard to be away from Sullivan for that long, but he did great.  It was wonderful to get home to him though.  I think he'll have to go next time.  Every time I saw a little group of kids in ski school, I missed him!

5. My Mom, sisters, and two older nieces all went to Birmingham a couple of weekends ago to see Wicked.  Although the weather was dreary, we had a great time shopping, dining, and watching the show together.  We had taken a cab to the show and there were no cabs after the show, so we ended up riding a city busy to our hotel.  Can't beat 25 cents a person!  I really enjoyed Wicked.  I guess I didn't really know any back story on the show, but I was surprised and I would totally go see it again. 

6. I'm on a health kick that may actually stick!  I'm actually doing Shakeology which may be an expensive load of crap, but if nothing else, I'm hoping it gets my cholesterol and triglycerides lower.  I do feel like I have much more energy since starting it, and I've been exercising much more frequently.  Tonight I'll be going to Zumba for the first time, so we'll see how that goes!  It would be nice to add something else to my rotation of walking, yoga, elliptical.  I'm really hoping to lose at least 10 lbs by June...ie, beach trip.  15 would be super awesome, but I'm really trying to be reasonable and not set goals that are so unreasonable I'll never meet them.

7. It's sunny and 75 here today, so  I'm ready for gardening and working outside!  My garden was a huge flop last year, so I'm determined to do better this year.  I hope to get out there this weekend and pull weeds, turn the dirt and start getting it ready for spring planting.  My biggest challenge is watering, since the bed is located at the back of the yard, we have to drag a hose- yuck.  Sometimes we leave it out there and use with soaker hoses, but every time we mow, it has to be moved.  Have I mentioned how much I hate hoses.  what a pain.  We may participate in a share from one of the local producers as well, so I can just grow what works for me. 

8. We got our storm shelter installed yesterday!  It took 4 1/2 hours start to finish.  They cut a hole in the slab in carport, dug out the dirt, lowered the shelter in, back filled with concrete, and done!  It's small, but would definitely hold 6-8 people- maybe more if some were kids and could sit in the open space between benches.  Since we are on top of a hill and have no interior rooms, it makes me very happy to know we have a safe place to go in bad weather.  I'm very glad we found a solution that wouldn't require us to get out in the elements to get in our safe place.  Here is the link to the company we used.  We qualified for a grant through Mema, so they paid a large portion. 

About to head out for a hair cut, so  must close now.  I'll try and stay on top of things!  I have several recipes I want to share!

Please pray for Tripp

http://randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, Tuesday

This will be a random post, but I did want to share with you a new recipe for Chicken Tamale Casserole I tried last week.  I believe it comes from Cooking Light, and we really enjoyed it.  I actually bought and baked chicken breasts the night before, and just baked 2 extra to be used in this casserole.  doing so made the total time for this recipe probably 30 minutes.  Perfect for a 'school night' when I don't have much time to cook after getting home from work.  I would definitely make this again!  I served seasoned black beans with some frozen corn mixed in on the side. 

In other news, I'm shooting for workout #2 of the new year this afternoon.  I'm sure I shouldn't be proud of 2 workouts in 2 weeks, but it is actually an improvement.  We go skiing (pray for snow) in early February, so I have more motivation to try and prepare my poor, out of shape body.  I'm sad to think about leaving Sullivan for a whole week, but it will be very nice to relax and have some adult time.  I shouldn't be already excited about returning from our trip to see Sullivan, but I admit, it's on my mind. I'm hoping once I get there and get settled in, I'll be able to just enjoy each day without constantly looking ahead.

I missed my typical Sullivan's 26 month post, but I did want to share a few of the adorable things he says these days.  This morning in the car it was, "Have a good day! I Lub you!".  Melts my heart every time!  He got a little scared of the fireworks New Years Eve, and since then often tells us or the animals or his toys, "It's ok. Fireworks not scary" or he'll ask "You doing ok Mommy?".  I love listening to him jabber on!  Language and communication are wonderful! 

I'm staring down a huge project at work that is about to take up my days, nights, and weekends, so I may drop off the Earth for a bit. 

2012

A new year is upon us!  I had grand intentions of ringing in the New Year, at least with the East Coasters, but just couldn't make it.  I was in bed by 10:30, but did get to hear, what seemed to be, a never-ending stream of fireworks in our neighborhood.  We had some family and friends over to celebrate, and I got to try some new recipes on them!  I don't know why, but Pinterest has gotten me to try so many new recipes this year!  I get so tired of making the same ole stuff, so I'm grateful for the motivation.  I made bacon wrapped chicken bites and french bread topped with goat cheese, filet, caramelized onions, and yocona sauce.  I got the idea for the yocona bruschetta? from this recipe: http://pinterest.com/pin/148618856422915727/

I also made Korean beef tacos for dinner last week.  Daniel always orders these at a local taco shop, so I thought I would give it a try.  They were wonderful!  A definite keeper in our dinner rotation.  I believe the only modifications I made to the recipe were using the ground ginger in a jar rather than freshly grated and using regular rice vinegar rather than seasoned.  This recipe definitely had some heat to it, but was amazingly good.  The cabbage 'salad' topping was a must! 

I hate making resolutions, but there is something about the end of the holidays and the start of a fresh year that just make me want to start fresh as well.  I have many hopes for the coming year!  I definitely want to be healthier and exercise more.  I also have a huge goal for our family to save a rather large amount of money.  I'm tired of seeing our money go to junk or food or junk food!  I want to get outside more.  I want to do a much better job with my garden this year.  I want to take more weekend trips with my family.  There are so many sites that are driving distance and inexpensive.  I want to volunteer more.  I want to be nicer to my husband and show my appreciation for all he does.  This list could probably go on and on, I'm just glad to start this new year with a positive outlook. Here's to a wonderful 2012!