Getting Back to Normal

The kids have been so excited to have Will back. Saturday was such a long day waiting. His flight did not get back until 10 PM. Poor Meli had a fever the past two days, so she was still cranky. Colin was feeling better and had an excessive amount of energy to show for it. He was literally bouncing off the walls all day. Partly, he was very excited to see dad. I felt bad for him being cooped up in the house with two sickies.

The kids made a big "welcome home" sign for Will. This occupied them for quite some time, so I could finish up shampooing the carpets. That was my surprise for Will. The shampooer was so heavy...I did not realize how much carpet area we have! The carpets are new but there were a few stains here and there. Plus, the heavy traffic area needed some TLC. That is what happens when you have kids. They look brand new now!

A friend mentioned that I have not shared any recipes lately.  Now that we are back to normal, these are the ones I am trying the next few weeks.

This Chicken Teriyaki  is a favorite of mine. I do add different veggies (like water chestnuts, baby corn, and broccoli)...it is such an easy crockpot meal.

I will be trying for the first time:
 Lemon & Rosemary Chicken
Chicken Cilantro Soup (I am thinking of trying leftover turkey)
Quinoa, Black Bean and Corn Tacos

I will let you know how they turn out!

~ Love, Hugs & Kisses ~

The B Family

Is it Really Only Wednesday?!?

It feels like Will has been gone for quite a long time...but in reality he has only been gone for 5 days. That does mean only a few more days until he returns! Actually, the kids are doing a lot better. The first few days they spent testing me and using me as a punching bag (of sorts) for their frustrations. Not literally a punching bag, but I imagine this form is just as tiring. We have been keeping ourselves entertained and doing special meals that we have not had in a while (since daddy has no self-restraint with sweets).  We have gone crazy with cinnamon rolls for breakfast, making cookies for post-dinner treat, sugary cereal, etc, etc. We had a movie night last night with some friends. The kids had a great time. We watched Mulan (our friends had never seen it) and we had an easy dinner of pasta, veggies, fruit and baked apple slices with cinnamon & sugar for dessert.

 

The weather has cooled down the last two days...and it is raining today!  I am so ready for fall. I enjoy warm weather, but only for a normal season. Then I am ready for the next one. I like my four seasons. I do not think I could live in a state that was hot majority of the year. I love my fall clothes too much! It has been unusually warm here. So the break has been nice. Our last few softball games were miserably hot.

The kids were very sad about dad being gone the other day, so we decided to decorate for Halloween. Super early! The kids got in costumes and then we started decorating. Meli was a fairy with "grammie's purse". Then she decided she wanted to be Snow White. She changes her clothes at least 5 times a day. It can be very tiring.

Fairy

Snow White

The kids love facetime with daddy. Even though, I think most of the time they are looking at themselves.

Facetime with Rusty (Grandma Liz's dog)

Facetime with Daddy and Grandma Liz

The first three days that Will was gone the kids would end up in another bed by morning. The first morning, my mom was here and Meli snuck in with her around 4 AM. Then at 5, she moved to the floor with Colin. The next morning, they both came in with me at 4 (not cool, once I am up I rarely go back to sleep). Then Meli joined me at 5 the next morning. I have been letting the kids sleep together, which they love. They have a little trouble getting to sleep, but they tend to sleep longer which is nice. I am excited when I get to sleep until 7.

blanket thieves



MiMi and Daddy time

 

The Man is 35

Will is on a work trip , so we have been celebrating his birthday scattered throughout the month. He is so busy this time of year - I forget how much I dislike September because of that. We did manage to celebrate his day rightly so...If I do say so myself!  I am glad it worked out, because he does deserve to be celebrated. He works so hard and is such a great daddy and husband.

 

A few weekends ago, I surprised him with new tennis rackets and a 6:30 AM match. My knee has been bothering me, so it was not much of a challenge for him...but there will be a rematch! After our game, we went to Off the Waffle for breakfast. Will had the Self Ful-filling Prophecy with egg, bacon and cheese on his waffle. It was really good. I (for once) was the safer eater and went with fruit on mine. It was still different having pears and apples on my waffle. Next time, I am either going to try the Goat in Headlights, Cyclops the Greek, or The Hot AVO. Great, now I am hungry. Here is the website, http://offthewaffle.com/. If you are ever in Portland or Eugene, I highly recommend.

 

We were feeling adventurous after breakfast, so we headed to Voodoo Doughnuts. Obviously, it was a cheat day!

 

The following weekend, we were in Eugene hanging out with friends...so we hit up one of our favorite restaurants (The Vintage) there for an early birthday dinner. Amazing crepes! Will surprised me by ordering a liquor drink (I have never seen him do this). He is just not a fan. Apparently, the Lavender Lemon Drop is fantastic though! His friend recommended it. It was pretty funny to see these two men get purple drinks...and me with my Bourbon Old Fashion that looked a bit more manly.

 

The kids and I made tacos and homemade cake (and granulated sugar frosting - his fave) for his actual birthday. The kids had fun picking out his gifts and wrapping them. Poor Will had to leave for Virginia the next day for work. We are having our first week with dad gone. So we will see how that goes! The roles are reversed. Will gets to see how it is to be gone and I get to stay home with the kids. Who on the first day were being little pistols. I have never had them act so badly. They were grumpy and out right defiant. Meli kept asking "where is dad?". She knew he went on a plane, but does not quite understand where he is at or doing.

The kids got to decorate their own slice. They also got a candle. Meli is a notorious candle blower thief

1st Grader

Growing up

Colin had his first day of school last week. I cannot believe that he is in first grade! So far, he is enjo ying the full day and is so excited about having lunch in the cafeteria. We have already got a good routine going. We made a new To Do list for the kids to hang on the wall. It is working a lot better having it visually available. The kids get to check off things as they go with hearts or smiley faces (I love Velcro). If they do a good job for the week, we make a trip to the dollar store.

 

Sorry, a bit off topic. Colin's first day of school went very well. His teacher seems very nice. Meli sure misses him while he is gone.

My babies

Meli made a sign for his first day. The whole family went to pick him up, which was a big surprise for Colin.

So excited to pick Colin up from his first day

Silly girl