Fitness Friday

I didn't walk everyday this week but I was incredible busy with physical activity each day. I am feeling it in my muscles too. My chest is sore, my back ackes and my legs are stiff but it's all good. I am trying to drink enough water but doing so is difficult in this heat. I am not use to high tempatures that don't cool in the evening. I have started looking forward to my evening walks though. It is nice to have a walking partner to talk to. Kaylyn and I have a good time walking and before I know it our walk is done. It may be the slow route but I am enjoying this diet/wt loss plan.......

Food Storage Shelves: Project 26 of 52

A tribute to my dad....

After being unable to find a set of shelves I liked for my food storage I set out to make my own. I searched the internet. Got an idea of simple shelves to make. "I can SO! do this" I said. I worked on them last night, using 2x4's and plywood we already had.

Then I worked to finish them today.  I even had the older boys helping me during nap time. Oh boy! My dad is going to be soooo proud of his country girl, I thought. Voila! All done, uhmmm. Somethings wrong! Somehow, despite all my careful measuring I still managed to get the shelves crooked. UGH! I was so frustrated I gave up. Instead, I fixed lunch and looked online for some shelves to order. Unable to find anything at a reasonable price I set out to organize (or attempt to) the basement. This is the area where all of our unpacked boxes have been dumped. We have a narrow pathway of boxes waiting to be unpacked. Of course to unpack those boxes I need another couple of rooms finished. I did however have the bookshelves set up. I can now say that my books are out of the boxes.....

We love to read. And yes, we often re-read again each of our books. 

I also managed to repair Matthews train table drawer. I plan to finish setting that up for him tomorrow, complete with his Thomas trains. I was feeling pretty good about everything, except that darn shelf. I worked on grapevine garland I want to hang around my front door.

I searched for any coupon deals for school supplies or clothes.

I went back downstairs, looked at the shelves and turned around. I just don't have the upper body strength to push the screws in while holding everything in place. I didn't know how I could fix them myself. So I went into Josh's room and put up the rest of the insulation in the ceiling.
Then Robin got home. We had dinner and he helped me fix my shelves. Horray! I had been so excited to do this "without my hubby" but once again I needed  him. Gotta love that man! We got the shelves moved into the storage room and OH MY GOSH! I love them! They are great and hold a ton of stuff. Our food storage went from being stored in boxes on the floor....

....to stacked neatly on our new, self made shelves. Organizing makes me feel so good. It brings order which I tend to thrive on. Robin said, "now I don't have to dig through boxes to find what we need". 

What do you think? I love them.

Thanks to my dad, who taught me to use tools and work with wood. Who knew helping dad build on the house would be useful in my own home. Guess my dad did!
Linking up....

Dry Erase Board: Project 25 of 52

A couple of weeks ago I found a 20x30 frame on clearance at Micheals. It has some scuffs on it but otherwise was a great frame. I wasn't sure wheather I would craft with it or frame a poster picture of the boys. I opted to craft it. 

I picked up a bit of fabric at Walmart. Placed it under the glass. Then I needed something to spice it up. Today I found just that at a local craft store called "Homebody". I have fallen in love with that store. It is small and wonderfully inviting. I found just what I needed; rushed home and finished my dry erase board.

Of course photos come at night after the boys have gone to bed so the lighting is off but....

I am thrilled with how it has turned out. I plan to add some vinyl lettering for chore assignments on one side of it. But I was so excited I had to have it up.

Here is a sneak peak at what else I am working at for now. Can you guess what they are?

All this in between feeding the hollow legs of 4 little boys, building a bedroom and storage room and generally living. Never a dull moment around here!
Linking up to...

Organization tips: project 24 of 52

As I unpack and find storage solutions to fit our stuff in our new home I thought I would share some tips on organizing. I am not a pro but here are some things that have helped me manage 4 little boys and their toys.

1- I live by the motto "A place for everything and everything in it's place". Assign a place for everything then recruit the kids to get everything into it's place. When someone asks for the scissors they know right where to go.

2- Use baskets: It's helpful to have baskets to hold like items neatly in the closets.

3- Shelves, Shelves, shelves. I love to have shelves to stack supplies on. I assign twin sheets, full sheets, queen sheets or towels all their own spot and stack them neatly on the shelf.

So finally I got my pantry organized. It made me feel oh, so good to have clutter controled. 

I won't show you the basement but it is a work in progress. I desperately need to get some shelves for my food storage. Then I will have my crafting shelves back.

Whats on the Menu

Summer cooking is fun but I pretty much just want salads and fruit. Plus with the heat we are just not as hungry. Of course the exception is always the boys. I'm HUNGRY is always around. I am gonna have to search from some more recipes for summer time. So for this week here is the plan.
Basil Pork Chops
Deli chicken
Chicken Salad Croissants
Taco Salad
Cobb Salad
Flank Steak Pinwheels

I didn't figure lunch or snacks out. I spent time shopping online for school clothes instead. Got some great deals though. We will be having some milkshakes and smoothies. A little vanilla ice cream with a bit of milk and fresh fruit= pure YUMMINESS! Homemade milkshakes are just refreshing.

Fitness Friday

I didn't do to bad this past week despite not loosing anything. I nearly met my activity goals, there was one night I just couldn't get my energy up to do stairs on my break, otherwise we walked every night. I didn't add the weights in though for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason is that I have not tracked them down from the move yet. Yeah, we still have many boxes to unpack but it is slow going until rooms and shelves are finished in the basement. My other reason is how FAST these ladies walk. I am out of shape I admit it but I never thought of myself as a slow walker. I am also the tallest and yet there are times I have to do the quick step to catch up! Last night I just let the other two go ahead. UGH! I was so out of breath. We walk 2 miles in about 40 minutes. Last night I think it was closer to 30 minutes. That pace is not bad, I can handle it but when we start climbing some pretty good hills, oh yeah, I start to feel it. Seriously, tell me why I am not dropping pounds? Plus, Robin and I have been hauling sheet rock downstairs every morning before it gets to hot. That's like 20 trips downstairs. It's gotta count for something! I am somewhat sore each morning but still functional, acutally come to think about it I wasn't as sore this morning as I thought I would be. Hey, maybe I am making headway after all.

I didn't do as well on my water intake but that is a daily challenge. I find myself at the end of the day and having not had enough glasses of water. I have gone to always having a glass of ice water sitting on the counter. Then when I walk into the kitchen I'm reminded and can just grab a drink; I refill it and leave it sitting on the counter for next time. When I go to work I fill my mug with ice water and mindlessly drink it while I am getting report. It doesn't take long for me to get my water in that way. I just have to get it filled first thing.

I think I am going to rejoin weight watchers online. They are having a deal where sign up is only $1 until August. I find my biggest barrier to wt loss is that I don't eat enough; especially of the right foods. This means my body holds onto food ie. energy, longer. If I increase my intake (I'm talking healthy foods- fruits and vegis) then my body knows more is coming and we are not in famine season. If you want to see fuel effeceincy let me show you! Highly efficeint body right here! lol. I did well on WW before and with life settling down a bit I think I could do well again. I have already gotten a exersice habit going..... for me that is a huge hurdle. Of course it helps having ladies that I enjoy walking with. The time seems to fly and I work harder than if I were by myself!

Oh baby! Next year I will be totally in shape. No hiding under a swimsuit coverup for me! (ok, maybe I will still use the coverup. I've never beed THAT comfortable in a swimsuit.;-)

Good luck with your goals. Keep on a working!

My devious conspiracy!

Robin mentioned going to the drive in to see Eclipse and Letters to Juliet. So my I figured I could take the boys to the pool, get them wiped out, have dinner, put them to bed and put the oldest in charge. So far so good but the moment we got home and relaxed a bit before dinner, this is what I found.....

Yep, he is wiped out alright. Now how long will he sleep? Hopefully not long so that my plan for a quiet evening will still work out. But oh boy, did he have fun at the pool. There is a big area that gradually goes up to 3'5" in a lazy river area. It was perfect for a mom with boys who don't know how to swim. Tyler got so comfortable that he got himself in trouble a bit for chasing after the big boys without waiting for mom. They even had a slide that was just fast enough but not too much so for young kids. Josh was able to take Tyler down it without problems- except for moms panicked heart! I was reminded at the blind love and trust that our children have in us. Matthew and Tyler had no worries with mom there (I can barely swim myself). Matthew clung to me whenever we went around the river with both arms tight. Even if I slipped he had no doubt mom would keep him safe. Tyler was the same way when we went down the slide and he flew out of my arms. I was humbled by the unrestricted trust they showed in me. It made my mommy heart smile. I hope to always live up to that trust.

We stayed for about 3 hours and had a great time the whole time. Chalk one up for the city of Tooele. What a nice indoor pool for families! Deseret Peak is 10 minutes away; it's outside so we will try that one out sometime. Although I have heard it is more money. It was only $7 for mom and 4 boys to get in. You can rent tubes too. Plus swim lessons, yep gonna check into that. It's gettin' better here!

Whats on the Menu

Since we didn't eat our meals from last week I am just repeating those. I guess that is how summer is, we had BBQ's, grabbed a quick pizza or just had something light. Before I knew it the week was over and we hadn't eaten anything I had planned. Guess it makes this week easier. So I thought I would share some of my regular standby's. Rob loves pasta so spagetti or any other pasta is always a go. 

I also enjoy Fruity Chicken salad. Just top your lettuce with grilled chicken, mandarin oranges, grapes, shredded parmassan cheese and poppyseed dressing. Yummy! even the boys enjoy it. Of course they love the oranges but they will still eat the rest.

Hamburger pinwheels are my favorite. Just sprinkle browned hamburger on rolled out biscuit dough then roll up like cinnamon rolls. An onion with the hamburger adds great flavor too. Slice like cinnamon rolls then cook until browned. Top with tomatoe soup. Gravy is good too if you don't like tomatoe soup. Tacos or nachos are a frequent flier too.

And of course with summer BBQ anything is fabulous. Especially because Rob is in charge of the BBQ. Just add a little green salad, noodles or potatoe salad. The boys love hotdogs anytime. With Bountiful Baskets it's easy to add a fruit or vegi side. During the winter months a nice chili ro taco soup becomes another stand by. What are your favs?

Bountiful Baskets

Oh, how I have missed getting my Bountiful Basket. It is a produce co-op that started in Arizona and has spread to Utah, Idaho, Washington, and Wyoming. It is run entirely by volunteers. They have enough buying power to get the same prices as major supermarkets but the produce is sooo much fresher. I hate how my produce goes bad in a week. With BB I have had lettuce still be good 3 weeks later! Yep, 3 weeks. I get a large basket filled 50% with vegi's and 50% with fruit for only $15. They also have other stuff you can add to your baskets. This week we got some cranberry granola bars that the boys have loved. They were surprisingly good. We get lots of produce. The weeks I don't get it I still spend $15 or more for much less produce. Check it out! You will love it.

Here is a peak at what we got this week.

Bountiful Baskets

Project 23 of 52: Swing Cushion redo

For the past couple of years my covers to our patio swing have been more than worn. My parents gave us the swing several years ago for Christmas and we have enjoyed it oh-so-much. I love to sit out reading a book while the boys play in the yard. I don't enjoy however paying $30-$50 a piece for replacement cushions. This was my first attempt at recovering something and as usual I learned a few things. I was looking for just a slip cover type of design but next time I will cut strips for the sides. It will make more seams but I think it will also make a crisper look. I got the fabric at Walmart for about $2/yard. I have enough left over for some pillows too. Overall, I am pleased. Now I need to look into redoing the canopy. Yikes, I'd better see if they have more of the same print......

The before, YUCK! And this picture doesn't show the worst of it. Trust me, wind, sun, heat all work havoc on furniture.

Ah, the after. I wanted to add some buttons but haven't yet. Hmm, not sure I will. Things are pretty basic with boys but functional.

Scrapping Sunday

We had a great 4th. I thought I would focus on 1 kit a week and  work several pages from that. I didn't find as many 4th of July kits as I thought, maybe I just didn't look in the right places. I tend to stray away from kits that I have to register for a store. I have a couple of digiscrap stores I am registered for but I can't possibly remember all the passwords and logins for everything we have to remember. I am going to have work on a system for this as it is. None the less, I rather like the way several of my pages turned out. My style is simple. I want to see the pictures and sometimes the background in the pictures more than the embelishments. I guess this helps in time too. It doesn't take as long when you add fewer embelishments etc.

These are the kits I used, although I think I am missing one.....

I LOVE Scrapping Sisters! They have a simple style and I can use almost all of their stuff. I have a lot of their downloads. You should check these ladies out. I have yet to see something I didn't like from them!

t-shirt redo.....

I have a t-shirt that is new but got stained right in front. I have been wondering how I can redo it to still get some wear out of it. After coming across this post I think I have found my solution.

What do you think? Simple. Yep, I'm adding this to my projects list.

Kaylyn, this one is for you! This is what I had in mind for your laundry. It would be perfect. Add a touch of class and decor while still being functional. Plus simple to make. What do you think?

See it HERE

Good people of the world

So often we hear all the bad things going on around the world and the bad choices people make I wanted to share some of the good in the world.

First, there were our fabulous neighbors in Idaho Falls. Several of the guys came over on different occassions at the drop of a hat to help move boxes and furniture. The offers of help and support were overwhelming as Robin was away and I cared for our family and prepared to move. I truely could not have done it without such support. Our friends came with smiles on their faces and expecting nothing in return. What a comfort it was to know we would be watched out for while dad was away. Thank you just doesn't say enough!

Then, we were met with the same generosity moving into the new house. Saturday morning literal streams of men came 1, 2, or even 3 at a time to the house. They made trip after trip down the stairs. And all those bottles of home vegis were not light! They stayed till the job was done and slipped away as quietly as they had come. Once again with smiles on their faces but also a few drops of sweat. These men did not know us but offered a hand of fellowship and a welcome to the neighborhood.

Finally, two strangers on the road...Yesterday I went with the boys to Idaho Falls to get our popup camper. We had not been able to pull it down with our initial move. Robin has been working and not able to pick it up and I also needed to get new parts for the tramp. On the way home I stopped to get a burger for dinner, made a couple of calls to say we were ok and were just moving slower with the trailer. POP! Thwamb thwamb thwamp. Oh, no!!! Oh, yes! I had blown a tire on the trailer. I was in construction and managed to get pulled off quickly (thankfully for construction). The red pickup behind me passed on by but the next thing I knew they were pulled off and backing up. Two nice looking guys got out, asked about the spare, took the jack from me and in 10 minutes had the tire changed! I learned that we did not have a lug wrench that would fit the trailer tires on the trailer. These guys had a ratchet set and muscled the lug nuts off. Once again with smiles on their faces. Now, I know how to change a tire and have gotten the jack out of the van more times this past year than I care to admit but ohhhh, how thankful I am for 2 nice guys to stop and help. I don't know what I would have done without the tools. They took care of it all, put the blown tire away, shook my hand, joked with the boys to "Be Good" and were off. Their plates said California but I didn't even ask where they were from but Tom and T.J- THANK YOU! I hope you have a wonderful trip! You'll never know what your service meant to this mom.

Yes, good people do still exist. They are the quiet heros doing everyday mundane tasks that for one person and in one moment make a world of a difference!

God bless you all!

Fitness Friday

WOO HOO! I am proud to say despite burgers on the road yesterday I am down another pound. That's a total of 3 pounds! I am focused on long term loss and improved health so I am ok with just a pound or two a week! What is even better is I have a walking partner. Fitness is always more fun with a friend. Kaylyn moved in a week before we did and has had many of the same trials I have. The Lord is watching out for us both. Each night we have been walking the neighborhood. We are getting in a couple of miles each night. We will work to increase that but it is a great start. Plus, I am giving added points for walking up and down hills. We get the muscles working pretty good. And yes, we walk more than we talk! ;-) Feelin' the burn and lovin' it. 

So this last week I almost met my goal. I had planned to walk everyday but missed Sunday and Monday. I am not sure how walking on the days I work will be so I plan to run some stairs on my lunch break. This will be a bit of a challenge cuz my body does NOT want to work out at 2 AM! But even a few trips up and down the stairs will help boost the metabolism. 

I did great on my water consumption. Still need to work on it but much better than I had been doing. 

So for this week my goals are:

Improve water intake- 8 glasses a day minimum

Walk everyday (stairs on work breaks)

Pump weights while walking the neighborhood to improve arm muscle tone.

How are you doing? What goals did you set and did you meet them? Just remember slow and steady wins the race! Come on ladies (cuz I'm not sure of any guys that read this) you can do it. Remember that great body and toned muscles? It's just around the corner.

Ok- actually the thing I love the best is just feeling better. As I drove in the van for 8 hrs yesterday I kept thinking of the blood pooling in my legs. It felt ohhh, so good to move. To use my muscles to get the circulation going. Yes, I am a cardiac nurse through and through. I have seen too many problems from nasty clots, both blood and cholesterol clots. I felt so much better after walking last night.

The other major bonus for me, especially right now, is to just talk! I talk with little boys all day then, as wonderful as his is, another man in the evening. Walking with Kaylyn gives me much needed ladies time! I am so thankful for a husband who is mindful of this and supports me by taking the boys and puting them to bed if needed!

Let me know how things are going for you! Good luck with fitness this week!

Life Unscripted.....

Some of you know about our trampoline excitment; how the wind decided it needed to reside in the street and not the back yard. Of course the best way for the WIND to carry something is in the AIR, which of course means OVER the house. Once again we have an opportunity to count our blessings. Little damage was done to the house. No kiddos hurt. A couple of bent pieces to the tramp but easily replaced. Yep, we are being watched out for still. So tonight I took pictures of the house damage. 

 

This is just above our back door.

It's incredible how you can see the exact outline of the bar from the tramp. I am still in awe of the whole incident!

It was getting dark so I didn't get pictures of the tramp...ok, okay, I got side tracked and THEN it got dark. Easily done in this house. Besides it is such a beautiful night and OH MY that sunset! We can see a portion of the Great Salt Lake from the back step. The orange glow of the sun setting behind the mountains, projecting over to the lake and the mountains beyond the lake. WOW! Beautiful! It is very quiet here too. Robin and I just sat on the back step talking and planning our backyard. Hopefully we will get that in before the end of summer. The boys are in desperate need of more area to run and roll and play. Especially Matthew. I think we are all missing our toys from IF. 

 

I am missing my garden, vegis and flowers, and the boys are missing the area to run and play, jump and swing, and build forts under the fort. Tyler has mentioned several times that we need to get a big playhouse like our other one. 

 

Yeah, that will be next summers project but he is gonna make sure we don't forget! And I doubt it will be quite this big, BUT it WILL have a slide. We were saving for one but never got it. This will be a must this time round. Matthew loves to slide! Of course, I could do without the sandbox undernieth, we'll see if the boys will let me veto that or over rule mom. It does provide hours of no running in and out of the house yelling, "mom I'm hungry" time. Hmmm, gonna have to think about that one! I may have to start planning the yard and my flower gardens to prevent total withdrawl. 

I have made great friends with our neighbor. The Lord is watching out for us both and helping us before we even know we needed it. My list of blessings through this whole ordeal is longer than I could have imagined. From big to little I can't deny that for some CRAZY reason the Lord needs us here in Tooele Utah instead of in our comfort zone in Idaho Falls Idaho.

I have gotten more of our pictures up, fixed the water fountain, finished another project, and got going on my coupons again. I have one more thing to do to my fountain before I re-reveal it. I also got our 4th of July pictures scrapped, you will get to see those on Sunday. For tonight a sneek peek at my next project post....

And I just couldn't leave without a glimps at our tramp legs. It's dark but you get the idea....

Uhmm, those joints are suppose to be straight. No 45deg angles on the legs! I.N.C.R.E.D.I.B.L.E!

What's on the menu....

Here is the plan for this week....Anyone have good lunch ideas?

Lunch

Chicken wraps

mini pizzas

nachos

mac and cheese

sandwiches

pancakes

Snacks

Golden Grahams mix

fruit smoothies

7 layer dip

fruit

cookies-n-milk

ice cream cones

vegis w/ dip

Dinner

Bacon Cheddar Burgers on the grill

Bowtie Pasta

Ham and Potatoe Casserole

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Smothered Steak

Project 22 of 52: Water Fountain

We are on the bottom half of the year and I am almost to my halfway point of my 52 projects. Not too bad considering the move and all. I am glad I did so many at the beginning. I have been able to get a few craft projects done. It is going to be touch and go as most of my craft supplies are still packed. I don't have a place to set things up yet but we are working on it. The boys rooms come first.....

As I scrolled back through my wish list of ideas I decided this water fountain would be great on my new front porch.

I learned a few things with this simple project but first here is a picture of mine...

I spray painted the pots. I couldn't find wooden balls at Home Depot so I used PCV pipe caps. They worked well but are not staying on. I have to find some different glue. I had used Gorilla glue. Of course with the plastic pots they don't tip and rock like the heavier pots would. I wish I had gotten a heavier pot though. I think it would look better. I may get a different one or just put a vinyl word on the plastic one. Gotta decide on which way. I found a kit with the pump, spray nozzel and everything. This works great. I have 2 different spouts to choose from. Matthew even thinks it's great....

His small soccer ball fits perfect on the spout. Even better is the drinking fountain. Don't worry I rinsed off the rocks...huh, yeah. Boys will be boys. Of course he managed to pull the spout off within a couple of days and now it is stashed who know where. *sigh* maybe the store will have another one. I also needed to seal the hole in the small pot. I would like to have the water trickle over the edge of the small pot into the large one but right now it drains out the bottom of the small pot.

Fun project. Easy to do. Requires drying time at several steps. Invites little boys to play.....Yep, I'll have to redo this then VOILA! I'll post my redo. Some projects just don't turn out the first time but they are still fun to do. Besides, isn't this how you learn?!

Scrapping Sunday

I didn't get much scrapping done this week. I did however download some great kits. I will try to do some of them up this next week and share next Sunday. Here are some layouts I have done in the past.

With a rainy spring we had slugs in the weeds. Tyler had a hayday as I was weeding. Makes my skin crawl but boys love this kinda stuff.! Perfect for this kit!

Fitness Friday

Ok, so as things are settling in I am trying to get back to fitness. I am totally out of shape and weigh more than ever in my life. Loosing wieght gets so much harder the older you get but staying in shape helps with balance and bone growth as we age too. No, I'm not old but I am not young anymore either. I want to join Weight Watchers online again but haven't done that yet. Gotta look at our budget with Robin first. In the meantime, I know a lot of things I can do. I also know the boys could benefit from more biking, hiking,walking, running etc. So my plan is to do a new challenge each week. Join in if you want. Share your ideas on my path to fitness. I would love to get back to my skinny jeans but mostly I want to improve my health, activity level and stamina.

This next week I am working on 2 goals:

walking every day

drinking 8 glasses of water each day

I have been better about walking but not consisitantly, especially after working all night. Also by the end of the day I often realize I was too busy with house chores to drink enough water. Water is fuel for the body to burn more calories. I don't drink much else so I know I am really dehydrated, especially in the summer heat. If I improve my hydration I will feel better too.

Anyone want to join the challenge? What goals are you working on? Baby steps and little by little I will get in shape.

What's on the menu

Here is this weeks plan.

Lunch:

PB&J (isn't this a summer staple?)

Ramen noodles with mixed vegis added

Pancakes (the boys love 'em any time of the day)

Mini pizzas

Mac & Cheese (another summer staple)

Anyone have some great ideas for kids summer lunch? I have a hard time with that one.....

Snacks

Baked Oatmeal with berries

Lemon Cream Dessert

Cookies

Apples

String cheese

Cheese and crackers

Popcorn

Not much changes with the snacks but anyhooo.....

Dinner

Parmasan chicken with green salad (get it from Jaimie HERE)

Chicken salad wraps with potato salad

BBQ Hamburgers with pistachio mallow salad

BBQ Chicken with corn on the cob

Sandwich ring from Pampered Chef wtih BLT mac salad

Crab Salad Croisants

So what's for dinner at your place this week?

Enjoy!