Week of April 19th

We had a very busy weekend around here that, of course, went by in the blink of an eye.

First we made a list of all the projects that need to be completed to get our house ready to sell.

So many thiiiiings, not enough time or energy

Admitting you have a problem is the first step to getting better, right?

That list encompasses all of the things that arise while living in a 45 year old house for 8 1/2 years, with small kids, and little time, and a propensity to procrastinate on things (+ a bathroom reno that probably should have either been done years ago or not at all :/ ).  *sigh* I wish we had worked harder at getting things completed this winter, but we do procrastinate and I've always done my best work while under pressure (I like to torture myself that way) so I guess we couldn't have done things any other way!

We worked allllll Saturday and unfortunately, didn't get a whole lot checked off the list.  Whomp, whomp. More progress in the bathroom (sooooo close to being ready to move beyond working on the walls. I think things will start chugging here soon!) and I powerwashed all the things, scraped old paint, and repainted all the trim as well as our shed (which still needs another coat).  It was pretty tough work!  Lots of up and down the ladder and the wood wasn't in greeeat shape so I really had to work the paint in.  But!  It's done! (Or, mostly anyway.  Darn shed.)

8 hours later and covered in paint.  At least it was gorgeous outside so I got to soak up plenty of sun!  And hey, look, you can see the bathroom wall progress behind me.

And we also got grass seed down (included in that was digging out more of the giant hole in our front yard, laying down topsoil, as well as hitting a couple of the regular patches in our backyard that need re-seeded every year thanks to poor drainage + dog running around.  Grow, grass, grow (please)! We're crossing our fingers that what we've done out front will take care of the giant hole once and for all.

You know what physical labor isn't good for?  Manicures.

I took the picture on the left on Saturday morning because I'm adoring Essie's Ballet Slipper right now.  And then by Saturday evening my nails looked like the picture on the right.  Except I actually just took that picture because it's now Monday and my nails STILL look like that.  I can't get the paint to come off!  :(

I digress.

Even though it feels like we will never get everything done and that progress is as slow moving as molasses, I will say that I feel a little bit better about actually checking things off the list and making some progress. Gotta keep it movin'!

Sunday I had a prenatal visit, then ran to the grocery store while Mark was at home with the kids, working on the bathroom walls, and hanging a new overhead light fixture (woohoo!), then we went to my parents' house for dinner, came home, put the kids to bed, and I folded laundry.  So basically, busy the whole day and feeling like not much got accomplished. Story. of. my. life.

We're technically approved for closing on the new house, but have to fix a bit of siding that has come loose on the house before we can actually officially close (so random, but these are the things we deal with when buying a house.  ::facepalm::).  We really need to close by 5/1 so we're going make it happen cap'n.

In news other than The Housing Situation That's Dominating My Life, Molly is up for letting me do fun things with her hair and I'm loving it!

She's a trip.  She calls braids her "Elsa braid"  Love!

Off to hopefully get some more work done!

Here's what we're eating this week:



Sunday:  Dinner with family

Monday:  Strawberry Spinach Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

Tuesday:  Sloppy Joes with Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Wednesday:  Chicken Fajitas

Thursday:  Leftovers

Friday & Saturday:  Out


I'm linked at Menu Plan Monday hosted by OrgJunkie.com

Week of April 12th

Let's see here...

Last weekend the boys went to a monster truck show while Molly and I attended a baby shower.

Mark and I decided to have a late dinner per usual on Saturday, but it was pushed back due to festivities. So, after Molly was in bed, and while waiting for the boys to get home, I had some quite time with my book and a Cadbury egg to tide me over til dinner.

Nothin' wrong with that.

Sunday was gorgeous!  I had an interview at 10am and then hit the grocery store afterwards.  I found some limes on the produce clearance rack and decided that called for Margarita Sunday.

Freshly mixed marg + beautiful day + {different} book = Sunday perfection

We have been trying to spend as much time outside as possible. 

I can't even tell you how thankful I am that we can get outside to play.  It feels amazing to not be stuck in the house all the time while at home and we love soaking up some vitamin D!

I'm glad that we're already moving on buying another house because this time of year, once we can get out to enjoy our backyard, I start feeling like, pscht!  We don't need a bigger house, too much effort to buy/move/sell, we're fine here!

It's like I experience springtime amnesia.  I'm too appreciative of our outside space and when winter rolls around I'm harshly reminded of the realities of 2 young kids trapped in a small space :/

Things are still moving on the new house.  We had our second appraisal, yes second, because after the first one the appraiser ended up in the hospital before finishing the report (these are the things that happen when we try to buy a house) so we had to get a second appraiser in there to re-do things.  Of course the second appraiser neglected to consider in his report that we're buying the house as-is so he has to modify a few things before everything can be finalized (these are the things that happen when we try to buy a house).  ANYWAY, hopefully things will be squared away very soon and we'll have a final closing date set before too long.  I'm just ready to have things squared away.

Things are moving along at a snail's pace as far as getting our house ready to sell.  I'm convinced there's no way everything will get done in a reasonable amount of time (because: facts) and Mark has assured me that things will get done (because: they have to).  One of us is being a little more optimistic about things than the other.  We'll see who is correct (FYI, I'm rooting for Mark).  I'm just trying to focus on how worth it everything will be a few months from now when we're all settled (theoretically).

To end on a happier note, Molly is a gal all about accessories:

She is too funny!


Menu for the week:


Sunday:  Grilled Burgers with Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Monday:  Fish Tacos with Mango Slaw

Tuesday:  Asparagus Carbonara (I opted for a half-carb version by adding zoodles to my portion)

Wednesday:  General Tso's Chicken (Crock Pot) with Brown Rice and Broccoli

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday & Saturday: Out


I'm linked at Menu Plan Monday hosted by OrgJunkie.com.

Week of April 5th

We had a busy, busy weekend, but I'm glad we were able to spend our Easter visiting with both sides of our family.

Jack is on spring break this week and even though it's supposed to be fairly warm out it's going to be pretty rainy so we'll be sticking to indoor activities.  We've already made a trip to Grater's to play with friends and eat ice cream and I'm trying my best to stick to my gym schedule without the assistance of Jack's school start time requiring me to get up and out of the house at an early hour.

Progress happened in the bathroom last weekend, but things are slow going as usual.  We had an appraisal on our hopeful house-to-be and we're awaiting word on how that went and a final projection for our closing date.  Eeek!

All this rain is turning the grass green and the daffodils are in bloom.  So thankful for spring!


Menu for the week:


Sunday:  Family gatherings for Easter

Monday:  Sweet Chili Garlic Glazed Salmon with Roasted Asparagus and Potatoes

Tuesday:  French Dip Sandwiches (Crock Pot) with Roasted Broccoli

Wednesday:  Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchilada Skillet

Thursday:  Leftovers

Friday & Saturday: Out


I'm linked at Menu Plan Monday hosted by OrgJunkie.com

Week of March 29th

What a week!

First, I can't believe it's Friday already or that it's APRIL!  Clearly I have completely lost concept of time.

Last weekend was pretty packed with doula work and because I was gone most of the weekend very little progress got done on the bathroom.  Whomp, whomp.  I'm hopeful for this weekend, but we'll see.

We have to get things finished because we're under contract on a house (!!!) {those aren't really 'excited' exclamation points, they're more 'what are we thinking' exclamation points.}  I haven't even mentioned it up to this point because I was very cautiously optimistic about things working out.  I'm still very cautiously optimistic, but it's becoming a little more real so... yeah.  Probably time to accept that its happening!  I'm not exactly excited yet.  There's a mountain of crap that needs to be completed before I can get from where I am now to excited.  It's going to be a crazy few months, but, theoretically, it will be worth it.

There's just SO much to do and worry about and so little time or energy to complete anything.  People do this all the time right?  I remember buying our first/current house as such a grand adventure.  The stress of selling a house, moving, and taking care of kids really cramps the fun the second time around.

One project that DID get accomplished this week was removing the tape from around our sliding glass door.  2 1/2 redonkulous hours of scraping and scrubbing and picking off tiny bits of tape at a time all while inhaling Goo Gone fumes and generally hating my life THE TAPE IS GONE!

I'm well aware you can see nothing in this picture, it's not very impressive in real life, but with the amount of work and frustration that went into this project it seemed like it was only fair to commemorate its completion with a picture.

The most insulting part is it's not like it was a rewarding project with a satisfying outcome, there's just an absence of tape now that's no longer there to annoy me.  Anyway, I'm glad that's done.  On to the next fun project.



Other recent highlights:


Herself at an impromptu dinner out.

We don't take the kids to restaurants all that often, but when we do we are always so happy with how well they behave and how enjoyable it actually is.  They behave so well because they love to eat so they're happy with food placed in front of them.  We were there eating for close to an hour and a half as both kids finished every scrap of food on their plates.



Jack's school pictures.

Adorbs!



I've been zoodling.

Love it!  Of course I'm the only one in the house who does... more zoodles for me!



And in other pretty food for the week:

Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpea Tacos

Love the colors.


Annnd this just made my day: DJ And Kimmy Are All Grown Up In The New ‘Full House’ Spinoff


Menu for the week:


Sunday:  Out

Monday:  Breakfast for dinner

Tuesday:  Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpea Tacos with Fiesta Lime Rice

Wednesday:  Grilled Brats with Cheesy Potatoes

Thursday:  Leftovers

Friday & Saturday: Out