Rolling

There is nothing quite like a stretch and a roll on a nice warm rock.

Together

It all started with the pipes. Well, honestly it started before then. It started at the beginning of winter when we realized that no matter how we budgeted our money we would never have enough check left at the end of the month. We prayed. I took on a very part time job working with my mother, Jason took a part time job at a store (in addition to his full time job at the jail), and still we didn't have enough. We considered having me find full time employment and considered what that would do to our family. We prayed. We asked ourselves: How much do we want to work to keep the house? Do we want to work and be away from home and our son in order to keep our house? Which was worth more to us: Owning a house, or a strong family bond? We prayed for guidance and direction. We apologized to the mortgage company for making a promise that we couldn't keep, and through negotiation agreed to sell the house. In the meantime they told us we could remain in the house, at least through the winter. We continued to pray. 

Once the decision was made to sell the house it opened up some opportunities. Jason had been keeping his eyes and ears open for a new line of work. He wasn't enjoying his job as a Corrections Officer. He took a job working at a factory making and packing plastic silverware only two miles from where my parents lived (and I was working part time) and forty-five minutes closer to home. We hoped with this change that he'd be able to volunteer at a camp near-by, be more involved at church, and possibly go to college. We kept our eyes and ears open for a new place to live. Both of our parents offered for us to live with them, we thanked them for their offers and told them we'd think on it.

Then disaster: the furnace broke, some pipes were busted, and we were forced to move in with my parents (who had the most space) temporarily while we sorted out all the issues. Three weeks later it was remarked: "We like you living here, you like you living here, we have room for you living here, so why don't you just live here?"

That was over a month ago. 

We have moved in. There is now four adults, one teen, one toddler, one small dog, one rabbit, one horse, five cats, and more animals on the way.

We are so excited to be living together. Stomper is showered in love, I get to bake and cook and never clean up (Mom likes to clean), Jason has places to do "things", my Mom gets the help she needs in the daycare, and my Dad gets the encouragement he needs to follow through with his projects.

Now that we are all living together we have started a new adventure....

Farming! You can read all about our new adventure here.

{This Moment}

{This Moment} A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember.

~via SouleMama

Day 3: Old FO

Day 3: Old FO

I made these mittens for myself (being modeled by my sister) about two years ago watching Emergency! on Netflix. It was my fist time doing stranded like this and altering a pattern to fit my needs. It gave me the confidence I have now to modify or rewrite patterns as I need them.

They are so super warm, which on this day is not necessary.

If you are looking for Day 2 skip on over to my Facebook Album.

If you are wondering why I am counting days check out this post.

Making Friends

Stomper made a new friend today. It was so nice having him play with a munchkin his own size that could keep up and put up with him. Many of the kids his size think he's too rough and they run away from him, which only gets him even more excited!

The older kids don't like playing with him because he touches everything and destroys whatever it is that they are making. I do my best to protect their projects and keep him busy with something else, but I can't watch everyone every second of the day.

Today a friend was in need so she brought her two girls over to play at the daycare. Of course the two littlest ones (Stomper and my friends daughter) decided that nap time wasn't for them (but everyone else was out cold), so I took them upstairs to have a little "play date" of their own.

They had a blast!

They chased each other, read books, dragged their blankies around, climbed on stuff, fought over toys, played with toys, chased the dog, it was an awesome time!

 
 Maybe this year we will make good on the promise to get together for more play dates!
 

30 Days of Crafting: You in Action

Day 1: You in Action

This is my first attempt at trying a photo-a-day project. If I have something else to post I'll post that instead (like on Friday) and my 30 Day photo on my Facebook Album page

News

 I have been sitting on a piece of fantastic news. I was afraid to jinx it and so remained silent.

 Today, March 5, we officially adopted Stomper!

 I am so thankful for the huge crowd of people who came to make our special day even more special: Bumpa, Mimi, Grandma, Auntie, Auntie Teeny, Grammie Kay, Grandpa Tom, Holly the photographer, and Jessie who came to watch some kids sleep so my Mom (Grandma) could get away from work for a few hours.

The day we took him home from the hospital

Last week, so big!

When I told Stomper he was going to be a card carrying member of the family his response was: "Uh oh"

This Weekend We Are...

:: Discovering new blogs: Guns & Butter, Crappy Pictures, and Play Based Learning

 :: Dreaming of sewing these animals

:: Feeling I could make this  or this one on my own

 :: Welcoming a new life into our church family

:: Thinking I need to do this ASAP, because we all could use a bit of color

 :: Wishing Stomper was a bit bigger so we could do this for him

:: Thankful for a warm home to come home to

{This Moment}

{This Moment} A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember.

~via SouleMama

Fun with Leftovers: Mock Stroganoff

Two days ago I put a frozen roast in the crock pot with some Worcestershire sauce, a chopped up onion, and a generous amount of garlic powder. I turned it on before 7:30am and for a few hours I left it on high until the roast completely thawed and started cooking. Then I turned it down to low and didn't eat it until 6pm that night. It made a very yummy supper. The leftover meat and the broth were put in separate containers and placed in the fridge.

A few days later I was in need of a quick lunch so I opened up the fridge. I pulled out the broth, the beef, and some macaroni noodles and stared at them for a few moments. I knew I had a quick meal, but what was it? First I poured a bit of the broth into a pan, got it hot, and added flour. I am not a gravy maker, at least not with out better preparation. I threw the clumpy mess down the drain and tried again. I chopped up the beef, poured the rest of the broth in the pan, added the beef to it, and brought it up to a simmer. Then I dumped in the noodles sprinkled on some grated Parmesan cheese and let that simmer for a few moments. Finally I took some slices of american cheese and laid those on top of everything, shut the heat off, and put a cover on. A few moments later, when the cheese was melted, I stirred it and served it.

Wow! Yummy! The kids ate it all up and so did my parents. I am definitely putting this in my back pocket for later. Here is a rough recipe for you to follow (you may need to adjust some of the amounts) give it a try and tell me what you think.

Mock Stroganoff (Rough Recipe)

Ingred:
2/3 Cup chopped cooked roast
1 Cup cooked macaroni noddles
1 Cup beef broth from cooking a roast
2-4 Tbs parm cheese (to taste)
2-4 slices american or other mild cheese (to taste)

1. Heat broth and beef in a pan until juices are boiling. Toss in macaroni noodles and simmer for a moment.
2. Sprinkle parm cheese over top and simmer for a few moments
3. Spread slices over mixture, turn off heat, cover with lid, and let it rest while the cheese melts.
4. Stir in cheese and serve