Tomorrow is a Big Day

Is it really April tomorrow? Already?

Tomorrow is a big day, not only because it begins a busy month for us, but a few other reasons:

• Our new windows are being installed tomorrow. I am so excited!!!! We've had the crappiest windows known to man, and I am ripping that plastic off of the current windows to-day. I am hopeful we'll be pleased with Window World, and even more hopeful the job can be completed in one day. We have some massive windows in our living room/dining area, so it may not happen all tomorrow. I'm going to snatch before & after pictures. 
• Aidan's 2nd report card comes home tomorrow. I can't believe the 3rd quarter is over, 4th quarter beginning. It makes me sad. He's my oldest, it's new to us, and I'm in denial that he is so close to becoming a 1st grader. I'm sure I annoy his teacher beyond belief (pardon me for wanting to know about my kid's life;), but she's been good to us and we will miss her.
• Tomorrow being April means Aidan turns 6 in 11 days! And Brennan turns 3 in 18 days! Oh my goodness. They're growing up so fast.

Of course, it's also Holy Week, and tomorrow is Holy Thursday. Already. We still have to make our Easter candy, and I still need to finish getting fillers for Easter baskets. So much to do, so little time.

I'm ready for April, for warmer weather. I look forward to Aidan's spring break and getting some good quality time in with him.

Some of it spent from inside my better-insulated house of new windows. :)

Brennan's Keeping Busy

Brennan's been keeping busy lately with some fun new activities (new to him, at least;).

He longingly admires Aidan & all the school work he gets to do, so I started doing some with Brennan at home.

 First up: lacing beads. Huge hit! He loves sorting & lacing. 

We've been working on the letter B, too, and he loves telling me the sound B makes. I admit, it's really cute. He has no problem recognizing the letter B, tries to write it, and loved going over "B" words.

See the pride? I love it. ;)

Blue for the letter B!

I also got him his first workbook, which he loved doing. Each page is dedicated to a color. The challenge of staying in the lines was one he enjoyed.

Gotta make time for dress up, too! He's normally Buzz Lightyear, but when Aidan is at school, he gets to be Woody. Reach for the Sky!

Doing "schoolwork" with Aidan brings back memories of when I started this with Aidan. I love this site and this site, and we're planning a craft/art project a day over Spring break.
Brennan won't be going to 3yo preschool, but we will certainly be doing these things at home. He loves it, it gives us something to do, and he is so proud of himself when he completes something.
It's just hard to believe he's already this old. It goes fast!

Menu Plan Monday--March 29, 2010

Monday: Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken, served in taco shells
Tuesday: Tater Tot Casserole (kids cook!)
Wednesday: Pork Chops with Dijon Herb Sauce, wild rice, peas
Thursday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches, fruit
Friday: Spinach Lasagna Rolls, bread rolls

Wordless Wednesday

(if you look closely, you can see it's Wolverine)

Imagination Station + Garage Sale Find!

What kind of fun can $20 buy 2 little boys? Check it out:

Not Blocks Maze/Tunnel, which retails on Amazon for over $100. Saw it at a garage sale on Saturday, figuring it'd make for good times for the boys, especially in the winter. So far it's a hit.

Aidan & Brennan exploring the new toy (thanks to Pat for putting it together!)

Next up: Imagination Station!

Pat received a gift certificate to Toledo's revamped children's museum for Christmas, and we finally used it on Sunday! 

It....was...AWESOME. Just like Marbles in NC, where we went while visiting John & Erin. We plan to buy a membership (especially considering you visit twice and paid for the membership price!). The boys had a blast. So did Pat  & I, although we managed to come home more tired than Aidan & Brennan. 

Excited to start exploring!

Aidan

Aidan & Pat played w/ the tv demo-they were announcers

Brennan & Yogi Bear's Ranger

How does Aidan measure up to Tom & Jerry? He's more "Tom".

Brennan the firefighter!

If only we had this in our house ;)

Think the movie "Big"...they loved this

The water area was super cool, according to Aidan. (I agree!)

It was a busy, exhausting weekend, but we sure had some good time together as a family.

Things that Made me HAPPY this Week

Soccer...

Buying Aidan's 1st pair of cleats. We signed him up 2 weeks ago, first game April 17th. :)

Lunch at a Greek restaurant with Crystal...delicious food. Seriously good.

Beautiful tulips given to me by Aidan

Sign of spring around here: people coming from all over to enjoy walleye season, Maumee River

Last, but not least, my red wine. Italian, semi-dry.

What made you happy this week?

Menu Plan Monday--March 22, 2010

Monday: Parmesan Chicken, green beans, parmesan-buttered noodles

Tuesday: Pasta Night (meatless)

Wednesday: Pork with Peaches (minus eggplant), bread rolls, veggies & rice pilaf? *new recipe*

Thursday: Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Chili, tortilla chips *new recipe*

Friday: Boys' Night-Pancakes

$12 Not Worth It

Above is the cute shower curtain I bought 2 weeks ago at Meijer. On the cheaper end of things, I went for the single curtain-vinyl so no separate liner needed. $11.99

Wouldn't ya know it, it was a WASTE! I still love the color combo in the stripes, love the ducks, but the darn thing already tore at one of the ring hooks. After only 2 weeks! And the boys weren't hanging on it or anything. I'm disappointed in Meijer's product, and I think this will be the last time I do the single curtain. Bathroom frustrations...not related to going to the bathroom. Huh. 

So at Target today I found the cheaper fabric curtains-$9.99. The bathroom is painted a bright blue, so we opted for yellow:

a closer look:

Eh. Now that's it up, I don't like the look of it as much, but it'll serve its purpose. Probably for longer than the $12 one pictured above.

How do you have the showers in your home? Single curtain or curtain with liner?

Traditions, New & Old

How was your St. Patrick's Day?
It was busy & hectic here, but fun. The dinner turned out well (must be even more corned beef next year; no leftovers), the leprechaun hid the gold coins, we wore green, and it was sunny. NICE.

Holidays always bring out the traditions within families.
I am a big one for traditions, and I am quite a traditional person. Some say old-fashioned, but I feel respect is worth giving to things that have worked for years & years gone by.

The hiding of chocolate gold coins is a tradition we've started on our own.
Neither Pat nor I grew up in homes doing that. New tradition, but a good one.

There is another tradition we'll be trying out this year-making our own Easter candy.

Growing up, my parents' great friend made her own candy around Easter. Once her kids outgrew the desire to participate, she let me make the candy with her. It was delicious and so much fun.
I recall walking around the block by myself (probably 8 years old), and spending the day with her melting & molding candy.
Since they sell these handy candy-making kits, I decided to give it a whirl this Easter.

I had made candy once before for my sister's baby shower, and it wasn't horrible.

Best of all, I think Aidan will really enjoy this. 

If it turns out to be as enjoyable as I'm expecting, it may just become another tradition for us.

Speaking of traditions, Friday is our parish's annual Fish Fry: Bear-Battered Alaskan Pollock, mac & cheese, coleslaw, potatoes, salad...mmmm. I'm no fan of fish, but it does smell scrumptious. 

This is a growing tradition for us as well. It will mark the 3rd year in a row Pat's parents come down & join us for the Fish Fry. Good Times! It's nice of them to drive down & spend some time in our world. The boys get a kick out of it, too. (Aidan especially, being a student there). 

Any Easter traditions in your home? 

Blessing of the Easter baskets? Something other than ham to eat?

I'd love to hear about it!

Get Your Inner Leprechaun Ready!

Because tomorrow is 
St. Patrick's Day!

A tradition we've started around here goes like this:
The night before St. Patrick's Day (that's tonight, folks!), enjoy an Irish bedtime story with the kids.
Fill their imaginations with the world of the Irish, including leprechauns that come into our friendly home and hide CHOCOLATE GOLD COINS in the living room!

Now, this leprechaun comes only once the kids are asleep. He can't be seen! He aims to bring good luck, and that starts the day off by finding golden chocolate coins in the living room.

It's fun. Aidan gets really into it, and we the leprechaun enjoys hiding the coins.

Find enough coins, maybe you'll find a pot of gold! If not, there is hope of the rainbow. ;)

Menu Plan Monday--March 15, 2010

Clean out the cupboard edition! :-)

Monday: Three Bean Pasta

Tuesday: Sour Cream Pork Chops (slow cooker), rice, green beans

Wednesday: Corned Beef & Cabbage *Happy St. Patrick's Day*

Thursday: Cereal Night

Friday: Parish Fish Fry!  

Apple Frittata is a back-up meal; can't decide if it sounds good or gross. What do you think?

Wise Words

Part of the reason we love our parish is the pastor. He is an amazing priest, and this Lent he's been sending daily mediations via e-mail. Short & simple, which makes it just perfect.

Today's really struck me, so I thought I'd share:
Fast from judging others, and feast on the Christ within them.


The first day was especially relevant for me: 
Fast from worry, and feast on divine order by trusting in God.


Deep words here. Very deep words. Putting them into practice is easier said than done, but the feasting is such a better way to live. The fast is worth it.


I've not had a very productive Lent. I let my circumstances pull me away from Him instead of more into Him. I'm sure that wasn't His plan, but we all need to be broken down at times. 
The chance to build ourselves back up is a great opportunity. Starting with the fasting/feasting is a good way to build back up.

Not-Wordless-Wednesday: Girls' Day & Night!

Remember how I headed to visit with a friend last Saturday to celebrate her b-day?
Well we had F-U-N!

The weather was gorgeous. Seriously. Bethany even had me take a picture.

It was sunny and in the 50's (a real treat to Ohioans in early March). We didn't have to bring our heavy jackets w/ us, and it made me feel that much more free.

We packed in more in one day than I am certainly used to. I came home exhausted, but I had such a good time. (I hope Bethany did, too!) Aside from celebrating a friend's birthday with her, I felt like getting away got me away from all the stress around home lately.

What did Bethany & I do?
Here goes: first hit Cici's for lunch, then Bath & Body Works (lipgloss;), then we got our eyebrows waxed. Bethany's 1st time! WOOT! Enjoy getting hair ripped off your face w/ hot wax, Bethany? (you know you did)

Immediately following, red faces & all, we went into CVS because Bethany never had an Extra Care card. *gasp* But she'll say the real reason is to buy hair color for her highlights.
Next we drove to her place in SUNNY weather, and she, for some reason, entrusted me to highlight her hair. I did warn her first.
She busted out the gnarly tye-dye FUS shirt, and for however-long I added reddish streaks to her hair. And foil. I had fun putting foil in her. Who knew?

There was a lack of a hair dryer, though, so Bethany just flipped her hair dry. It was hilarious, offering this wonderful picture moment:

Makes ya wanna say "Duuudddeee", doesn't it? Awesome. Bethany-Mohawk, all for the sake of dry hair. She said it turned out ok:

(I hope so!)

We visited her friend in an antique store/consignment shop, and there were some pretty cool things in there. I need to go back one day and actually buy things. Just not a wobbly table. ;)

Finally we headed back to get ready for the night. 

This first meant a trip to Kohl's for some shopping. I managed to not buy anything, but having a giftcard made it easy for Bethany, and she picked herself up some nice earrings & jeans to go out in. We had to get gussied up, ya know. Accessories required (at least in my mind).

We headed to this awesome Italian restaurant for dinner, Marcella's. DELICIOUS. Oh my goodness, it's a good thing we don't live closer. I'd be ginormous from eating there. I enjoyed it, though, ordering 4-cheese tortellini in an alfredo sauce with chicken and spinach. YUM. 

It was preceded by this incredible appetizer of cheese, honey, apples, and bread:

We were seated around 7:45 p.m. Ha! I'm normally getting my pjs on around then. It was invigorating to just be OUT & about that "late" again. The world is just coming to at that time, for many people. Not usually for this momma, but it was fun.

From dinner we made our final stop, but it was the best: the dueling piano bar. 

Oh my goodness, I LOVED this place. MUST go back. 

The music was awesome. The performers/employees were so talented, doing such a variety of music.

It was good enough to make me not care about the cover charge, or paying $4 for a single bottle of beer. (in fact I ordered 2;). 

I especially loved the guy playing the fiddle. Such an awesome instrument. The bachelorette party there was slightly dumb, with their blow-up toys. All in all it was a great atmosphere, though. And it helps that the one pianist is the beholder of Bethany's eyes. Not that I blame her-he was a cutie!

Not the best picture, but that guy you see is HIM. Mmmmmm. Bethany's-mmmm. 

It was a great time. Truly. I came home very tired & feeling old, but not all of us are 25 any more. ;)

Happy 25th once again, Bethany! Thanks for having me, and I hope you had even half as much fun as I did!

Almost 60 Puts a Smile On My Face

Spring seems to have arrived here in Ohio! 

We hit nearly 60 degrees yesterday & today, and it felt GREAT.

I got out there with Brennan in the jogging stroller and walked-walked-walked. 

We did an hour yesterday and an hour today. 

My mojo is back. ;)

The sun really does cheer me up, though. I notice it in my boys' attitudes, too. Aidan has been able to be outside for recess, including end-of-day recess right before I pick him up. It's so nice to see him playing with his classmates, smiling, happy. Speaking of Aidan, his registration is complete for next year. Crazy to think I'll have a 1st grader!

They're forecasting rain for the next 5 or so days-bla. At least we enjoyed the sun so far. 

It's made me realize just how ready for spring I am!

Rain or shine, it won't stop us from celebrating St. Patrick's day next week. I'm buying my corned beef tomorrow, I bought my cards today, and I'll be playing leprechaun again this year & hiding chocolate coins for my boys. Rain can't come between us & our Irish blood! 

Soaking up the sun...it's felt great.

March 8

-less than a month until Easter
-just over a month until Aidan turns 6, Brennan 3
-2 months exactly until I turn 30
-4 years ago today we lost our 2nd baby; hard to believe it's been 4 years
-it almost hit 60 degrees today

March 8 is one of those dates. It's a nagging "almost time for x, y, and z" date. Time to plan birthday parties, Easter plans, tax return spending, and realizing our first big loss.

Today was actually a pretty good day.
I got out w/ Brennan and walked w/ him in the jogging stroller for 60 minutes.
I cleaned the bathroom completely, vacuumed the entire house, replaced my shower curtain, and cleaned the bedrooms.
We had 2 more window estimates.
We almost hit SIXTY degrees! (us Midwestern folk get excited over that;)

It was a good day. I feel back to myself. I feel some peace.
I am so very grateful for the signs of spring.
After all, March 8 means only 2 more weeks until it's officially spring!

Menu Plan Monday--March 8, 2010

Monday: Marinated Pork, barley, broccoli

Tuesday: Grilled Cheese, apple slices, raw carrots

Wednesday: Meatloaf Muffins, potatoes, green beans

Thursday: Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings

Friday: Easy Fried Rice (never got to the other week)

Girls Night!

Girls' SATURDAY, day & night!

I'm heading out soon to meet Bethany and we're celebrating her birthday.
I'm a bit nervous to be away from the boys, but I know it will be a ton of much-needed fun.
(although I realized this will be my first night away from Brennan, ever. Huh)

On the agenda: getting our eyebrows waxed (Bethany's 1st time...I promise pictures;).
Some shopping. Maybe the movies. Eating out. Eating too much.
The Piano Bar.
Food.
Alcohol, perhaps.

I'm excited & hope to make her birthday a great one!

Of course I hope Pat & the boys have some good boy-time, too. I know they plan to include donuts & making their own pizza for some fun. I aim not to call them too much.

GIRLS' NIGHT!!! Long overdue. Let's make it good. :)

Grocery Trip (Meijer) Updated

Today= Pay Day= Grocery Shopping

I'm mad at myself. I got home to find 3 coupons I could have used that I missed. That's what I get for rushing! Darn it.

Aside from that, I did pretty well still at Meijer.
62 items bought, $95.09 spent.

Good deals:
-Comet powder bathroom cleaner $0.88, 0.35 cents coupon, doubled, totaling $0.18 for Comet cleaner.

-Welch's brand grape jelly, on sale for $1.99, $0.75 cpn, totaling $1.24. That's only 5 cents more than the Value brand, so I went for it. I hardly ever buy the good brand, but it's worth it, in my opinion. Less sugar, better flavor, texture, etc. And for 5 cents more.

-Quaker instant oatmeal, on sale for $1.88, $1 cpn, totaling $0.88. Brand name oatmeal, less than a buck.

-Quilted Northern toilet paper-12 double rolls, on sale $5.49, $1 off cpn. $4.49
-Same for Brawny 8 pack paper towels. $5.49-$1 cpn, $4.49
     ~I had an in-store coupon for $1 off paper goods $7 or more, so I used that for these 2 items. So it really breaks down to $3.99 for the toilet paper & paper towels each.

-Freebies :)
     ~Ritz crackers, after buying 3 packs of Kraft shredded cheese (on sale for $2 each)
     ~Danimals kids' yogurt! GOOD SCORE! On sale for $2 each. I had both a Meijer $1 off coupon for the item, plus a mfr coupon for $1 off, so I got it for free.

-Not a coupon deal, but Meijer brand pasta is on sale for $0.69/box. Stock up time!

Meijer has Kraft mac & cheese for $0.60/box on sale.

-Meijer also has a deal on Kellogg's cereal. Buy 5 boxes, get $5 off instantly at check-out.
I bought cereal for $2.69/box, totaling $13.45. Subtract the instant $5, and that's $8.45 for 5 boxes.
That comes to $1.69 a box for BRAND NAME cereal.
**This is what I mean by store brand or Aldi's not always being cheaper. Deals like this make it less costly, depending on the sales and your coupons.**
UPDATE: Redplum has a Kellogg's coupon for $1.50 off 2. (I really need a working printer!)

I regret that I had no additional cereal coupons. I'm sure some of you out there would have. I can't print my own right now, and my cereal coupons were only for General Mills & Post.

I feel I could have done better, but my receipts cites $11.40 in coupons, so I'll take it & get over it.
I was feeling rushed and think that messed me up. Oh well. It's more the principal of it all than the amount. The coupons I forgot would saved me almost $2 more. They don't expire soon, though, so they will still get used.

I usually go through u-scan so I can watch each item as it scans, ensuring it's correctly priced.
Today I was hurrying, so I went through w/ an actual cashier. I learned I prefer to go through u-scan & take my time more.

We do have a freezer full of meat right now (pork, chicken, ground beef, a roast, and some steak).
We have plenty of cereal plus some school snacks for Aidan.
We have frozen veggies, plenty of pasta, barley & rice.
I'll need to replenish fresh milk and fruit, but for the most part, today's total is for 2 weeks. Not bad. (meat previously bought on sale, not reflected in today's total).

What great grocery deals have you gotten lately?

Grandparents Day

It's Grandparents Day at Aidan's school today.
I don't know who is more excited-him, or my in-laws. ;)

Both Marmar (Aidan's name for his paternal grandma, ever since he started talking) & Buppa are making the drive down here early this morning to participate. Aidan is a lucky kid!
They should be here in time to take him to school. First it's school Mass, then a reception after.
Aidan planned out the kids he wants to introduce them to, the art work he wants to show them, etc.
It's cute to see him so excited & enthusiastic about his "home away from home".

Speaking of grandparents....
We named the baby we just lost. I wasn't planning on it, but after some prompting from my dad, we did.
God does work in mysterious ways. When all of this was happening last week, Patrick actually had a dream that gave him peace about us having a girl. Baby #4, in his dream, was just that, so even though we don't know for sure, we went with a girl's name.
Ater his dream he had a strong feeling for the name Lily. I like the name, but wanted to know the meaning of it, first.
When looking it up, I learned it stems from "Lillian", which coincidentally is my grandmother's name (she passed when I was pregnant w/ Aidan).
I thought that was a faith-coincidence, so we agreed on naming our baby Lillian Hope. Not that it matters a ton, but it feels good to us. (I had been leaning towards Faith or Hope).

Lillian Hope is baby #4.
Partying up in heaven with Dorothy Grace (baby #2) and my grandmas, I'm sure.
Hopefully they're looking down on us and intervening. :)

Wordless Wednesday: Newly One

My precious godson/nephew turned one on Sunday. He's a cutie!