Menu Plan Monday--May 31, 2010

Monday: Happy Memorial Day! Grilling out Hot Dogs
Tuesday: Crock Pot Chicken Tacos
Wednesday: Angel Hair Pasta (omitting chicken to make it meatless)
Thursday: Italian-Style Rice & Beans
Friday: Cauliflower Fritters served with Zucchini Sticks

Posting today because tomorrow we'll be going to our local parade! Enjoy your Memorial Day, and God Bless all our military & their families!

Farmer...Aidan?

Kindergarten field trip to the farm! 

Aidan & his class had a great time (despite the heat) feeding animals, enjoying a barrel ride, and being on the farm.

Aidan fed goats, mules, pigs, chicks,  and we saw a 600+pound hog. With a smashed in face and tons of flies covering him. It was quite the sight! (unfortunately I didn't get too great a picture of the hog)

This farm was great. A lot to offer year-round, and the people leading the field trip were so great with the kids. If you live in the area, I recommend Country Lane Tree Farm! 

Here are some scenes from our field trip:

feeding goats 

Aidan & his BFF petting the bunny

This "train ride" made of barrels was a blast! The driver did not go slow, either. The kids loved it.

"Grandpa Bob" helping Aidan milk the cow

Remember this old-school playset McDonald's used to have? It was on the farm as part of the play area! It brought back good memories for me. :)

The lucky kindergartners got another train ride at the end-to the parking lot! Grandpa Bob was great.

I'm so glad I was able to go on this field trip with Aidan. And I'm grateful Patrick was able to work from home yesterday so Brennan could stay home.

I can't believe Kindergarten is almost over. I've loved this school, the teacher has been great, and Aidan has some spectacular classmates. I hope 1st grade will be as wonderful!

Summer Top 10

Aidan's last day of school is a week from today.
In his nervousness & excitement, we've been making lists of what we look forward to this summer. (since Aidan loves school and never wants to miss a day, we need to ease his feelings about not being in school).

So here is a list of our Summer Top 10:
-in no particular order-

• Summer Rec Programs, which start a week after school ends. Aidan is signed up for tee-ball, a one day Science Camp, Sponge Painting Camp, ad another arts & crafts thing. All but one day during the work week are busy with summer rec programs!
• TOY STORY 3 comes out! We plan to go see it as a family. I can't wait!
• My parents 50th anniversary party in SC. There has been so much work & time put into this, and these past 2 weeks I've been really busy bugging people for pictures for the slideshow. I can't wait to see my parents enjoy their party!
• After the party is a week in their Gatlinburg timeshare! Unfortunately Pat has to come back home for his class, but we hope to make the best of it. Aidan loves to see his southern cousins!
• Sometime this summer (probably August) we also plan to go up north to the cabin. Pat went there growing up, and it's a beautiful gorgeous place that offers many good memories. Northern MI is truly beautiful. So different from the lower peninsula.
• Playing in the sprinkler and kiddie pool!
• Family bike rides
• Aidan plans to master riding without training wheels
• Brenna being potty trained! (we're about 95% there!)
• There is talk of going to see Eclipse while in Gatlinburg. I hope so! That JACOB is some HOT STUFF!

That's certainly not all I have to look forward to for summer, but a good list of 10. 

What are you looking forward to?

Wordless Wednesday: Us, 6 Years Ago

Me, Aidan & Patrick, May 2004

It was Like Watching a Baby Being Born

Brennan finally pooped on the potty. And I'm not talking rabbit-sized droppings, here. I mean the kid
p-o-o-p-e-d.


It was like watching a  baby being born.

Brennan was on the potty, nervous & scared.
I was sitting next to him, looking down there to see his progress.

Brennan wanted to be done, I was yelling "PUSH BRENNAN!"
He'd grunt & push...

He was shaking.
He was sweaty.
He was crying.

I'd yell again "Push Brennan! You can do it!!!"
More pushing.
More crying, sweating, exhaustion.

"You can do it, Brennan! PUSH!! Push it OUT!!!!"

Anticipation.
 Hope.
The time has come.

Finally....finally it happened.
His business was done.
He was still shaking, but he sure looked on at his work in the potty.
He looked on with pride. I looked on with tears in my eyes.
My boy did it.

And it kinda felt like watching a baby being born, with many of the same words being spoken. ;)

Menu Plan Monday--May 24, 2010

Monday: Crock pot Chicken & Dumplings 
Tuesday: Make-Your-Own Pita Pizzas
Wednesday: Honey-Mustard Pork, Potatoes, peas or geen beans
Thursday: Freezer night/leftovers
Friday: Boys' Night to Cook (usually breakfast for dinner)

Muddy Fun

Kindergarten Soccer Game, 11:00 a.m.

T-storms last night plus rain this morning, MUD.

6 year old boys playing soccer on a muddy, muddy field:

Wordless Wednesday: Homemade Mothers Day Gift

Aidan made this at school. It's my new favorite decor in our home. :)

Flashback

I was looking through pictures this morning for my parents 50th anniversary party, and I came across this one:

Well tear at my heart-strings, I had forgotten about this one!

I love this picture. Aidan was going on 4, Brennan almost 1.
Herein lies the downfall to digital cameras: it's too easy to not print pictures. Back in the day of 35mm, I'd have printed this baby & framed it.

They may be 3 years apart, but my boys love & adore each other (most days;). I love pictures that actually reflect their bond. They are certainly more than just brothers. They are friends.
What a blessing.

How Was Your Weekend?

Ours was nice. :)

We had Aidan's soccer game on Saturday (they won!), followed by a family outing to one of our MetroParks. It was a gorgeous day for the park (despite being a bit wet & muddy), and it was really nice to spend time together, in the fresh air, especially knowing that Pat starts back to class this week. Summer sessions are always much more hard-core and busy, so it was nice to get in the quality time.

The water levels were high, but it was gorgeous.

We found the covered bridge & loved walking that path. Even better was finding the unique play area at the end.

The best part of that crafty little park? This cool thing:

 

It's the coolest version of a spit&sin I've ever seen. Or a stand&spin, depending on how daring you are. We did both, and you can bet I'm including Pat & I in that! See:

Of course, it makes you incredibly dizzy, so you could end up like this:

We enjoyed the hiking, cooler-than-normal weather, and all the fresh air. 

Some might say we enjoyed it for too long, checking out these red faces:

Maybe we're just living life to the fullest. ;)

Oh, and we finally watched the movie Avatar. I thought it was good, but not as good as I expected based on all the hype. And it's my opinion that it didn't need to be so long; a shorter movie & they could have still ended it well.

So, that's our weekend. How was yours?

Menu Plan Monday--May 17, 2010

Monday: Quesadilla Casserole (trying McCormick's new Recipe Inspirations)
Tuesday: Crock pot Applesauce Chicken, barley, green beans
Wednesday: Impossibly Easy Southwestern Pie 
Thursday: Cereal Night (here comes my mom of the year award;)
Friday: Michigan-taking hubby to airport

Prayer Request

Please pray for a woman named Teresa.
Tomorrow she is having surgery on her brain at U of M in Ann Arbor.
She is only 36 years old, a wife and mom to 2 boys, almost the exact same ages as my boys.
She has had several brain hemorrhages, dealing with this since last summer.

I don't know Teresa very well, but I feel god has had us run into each other for a reason.
We met last summer when both of our boys were doing Soccer through the summer rec program.
They're another Catholic family of 4, living not too far from us.
Teresa seems like such a peaceful person. Very nice and friendly. I wish the best for her.

Please keep her and her family in your prayers.

Wordless Wednesday: the Newest

Our newborn niece, Mackenzie (isn't she beautiful?)

I got to meet her on Sunday, at one week old. 

Precious newborn!

30 has Started Off Well

Saturday I turned 30.
Really? I am 30?! Saying it & seeing it in print feel odd. But not a bad odd.

The day was wonderful. My father-in-law came super early to pick up the boys (as in he was at our house at 7:45 in the morning! And they live an hour away!). They were beyond excited and ready to leave Pat & I. They stayed the night with Pat's parents, and apparently didn't miss us too much.

Shortly after the boys left with Buppa, Pat & I hit the road. We traveled the Ohio Turnpike and went to Pittsburgh, a city where we have many fond memories from our college and dating days.

The weather wasn't nice.

Cold, rainy, windy...but we had NO KIDS! We talked in the car without interruption (even though after a bit, we missed those interruptions;). It's amazing how little food & drink you bring in the car with you when you have no kids. And how making it to the potty isn't as big a deal.

We drove straight to the Strip District downtown Pittsburgh, arriving in time for lunch at Primanti Brothers. I do believe it's one of the world's thickest sandwiches.

Your mouth gets a workout just eating it! It was fun. We ate at the original, ordering the original sandwich, too. (in case you're unfamiliar, Primanti Brothers is famous for the area, having been featured on the Food Network and Travel Channel).

We drove around downtown Pittsburgh, finding the places where we used to go, reminiscing, seeing how it's all changed. Carson Street looked much the same, all the yellow bridges did, too. Driving through the tunnel was great...so many memories.

We headed to Robinson Township and found a place to stay-Springhill Suites. It was right in the middle of everything-shopping, restaurants, and my personal highlight-Half Price Books. Why don't we have one of those around us?
We checked in and enjoyed going to the bookstore, picking up surprises for the boys. I was super excited to find ONE copy left of Boys Should Be Boys, excellent condition, and only $7.98! I snatched that up for myself. We bought Magic Treehouse books for Aidan, and a gigantic school bus puzzle for Brennan.

Traffic there was crazy--worse than Greenville's Woodruff Rd area during Christmastime.
I was craving Mexican for dinner, and knew I wanted a daquiri. So we opted for Don Pablo's for dinner. It was delicious. I had my strawberry daquiris, bean dip, and steak fajitas. SOOOO yummy.

The weather wasn't getting much better, and we were kind of tired (must be that old age of 30;), so we were in for the night. It was nice to have some time just the two of us. Long overdue!

Sunday we drove home via Steubenville, the town where we went to college.
The place where we met. :) It's been since October 2003 since we last saw the campus (driving to John & Erin's wedding!), and WOW has it changed! Sure looks like some alumni are making nice donations.

Our weekend concluded with our niece's 4th birthday party in Michigan. We also got to meet our new niece, Mackenzie. She's just precious!
It was a great weekend.

If my 30's have started off this well, I can only count on it being a good decade.

*I had more pictures to include, but blogger's upload kept failing. Boo to blogger*

Menu Plan Monday--May 10, 2010

Monday: Barbeque Chicken Quesadillas

Tuesday: Tex-Mex Rice and Bean Casserole

Wednesday: Pork with Peaches, Wild Rice

Thursday: Frozen Food Night (slightly unhealthy;)

Friday: French Toast--Boys' Cook

For the First Time in Almost 7 Years

Patrick & I are getting a night away just the two of us. 
No kids.
No phone.
No sharing our food.
No wiping little buns.
Not even taking the kids to church!

We haven't had a night away just the 2 of us since our honeymoon almost 7 years ago. I am really looking forward to this! We're heading to Pittsburgh tomorrow-it will be a fast trip, but hopefully very fun.
We had our first dates in Pittsburgh, so many good memories are there.

My generous in-laws are taking the boys, and we should be on the road by 8:30, hopefully arriving in Pittsburgh in time to have lunch at Primanti Brothers. MASSIVE sandwiches.
Station Square is on the list, the strip district (not strippers, but store vendors, etc;), maybe a drink at Harp & Fiddle, and the shish kabob guy on Carson St. Oh, the best, fattening food you can find...mmmm.
I am seriously looking forward to a BIG strawberry daquiri. I think that welcomes 30 nicely, don't you?
Also on my list is chips & con queso.

My in-laws have taken the boys for the day before, but we were in our house, getting things done. Being away from the home is an entirely different feeling. Someone else to worry about messes, making beds, cleaning toilets...it's fabulous. So relaxing.

The weather is supposed to stink, but I don't care. As long as it's safe enough to travel, we're going.
I feel a wee bit guilty not being with Aidan & Brennan on my birthday, and not waking up to them on Mother's day. I feel a little guilty my mother-in-law will be watching them from the moment she wakes up on Mother's day. But Pat says they're excited. I hope he's right.

I am so excited.
Good way to kick off my 30's, if you ask me.

Oh FUN! (if you liked Julie & Julia, check this out)

Some crafty blogger is doing the Julie& Julia thing with the new Jillian Michaels cookbook.
Lindsay (the blogger) made the post about it here.

Master Your Metabolism

I don't have any of Jillian's cookbooks, but the reviews on this are looking great.

Maybe this cookbook will be my first. ;)

I've added the blog to my blogroll. I'm looking forward to the updates & recipe reviews.

Wordless Wednesday: Before This

Came the proposal.
And he proposed to me 8 years ago this day.
On a Saturday. Down on one knee.
Our friends close by to celebrate.

And now we're living our happily ever after...

Around Here, This is the Potty Talk

Sums it up quite well this week so far:

Menu Plan Monday--May 3, 2010

Monday: Pasta Night (meatless)

Tuesday: Sticky Teriyaki Chicken, Rice

Wednesday: Ground Beef Tacos *Happy Cinco de Mayo!*

Thursday: Pizza Rolls (frozen; easy night for momma;)

Friday: Easy Slow Cooker French Dip (new recipe)