January 13: Family Reunion Time

We didn't have an official family reunion this weekend, but it kind of felt like it with all the relatives in town.  It started when my Florida relatives decided to make a trip up to a visit.  Then we decided to go as well, and my Indiana and Ohio relatives came over too.  I have some fun aunts and uncles and cousins, and we all had a good time together.

My aunt Debbie, who always tried to convince us that she was our favorite aunt when we were kids, also tried to convince our kids that she was their favorite great aunt.  In all the pictures, Debbie is always surrounded by the kids!

It was a surprisingly warm day for January on Friday, so we all took a little trip to the park.

Friday night, the cousins all hung out at my sister's house.  My cousins from Florida, Kyle, Rachel and Logan are on the couch with Daniel.  My brother Seth, my sister Elisabeth, and my sister-in-law Katie are on the floor.  (My cousin Chloe had to skip out early to put her kids to bed).

It's always kind of crazy when the whole family gets together at my mom's house.  My mom has a big collection of toys, and the kids always want to play with every single thing at the same time.  With all the toys and all the people, it is always a full house.

My mom bought my girls and my niece Braxen pink/black outfits for Christmas, so we put them all together for some pictures...along with my cousin Chloe's kids Madalinn and Crosby.

 Overall, it was a fun weekend.  After leaving my mom's house feeling sick and horrible a few weeks ago, it was a much more pleasant visit this time around!

January 10: Visit with Grammy Lois

We are back at my mom's house for another visit.  A bunch of family is coming into town tomorrow for a visit:  Uncle Todd, Aunt Debbie, and my cousins Rachel, Logan and Kyle and also Uncle Dwight, Aunt Martha and my cousin Chloe and her kids Madalynn and Crosby.  It's like a mini family reunion around here!

On our way here today, we stopped to visit my grandma, who is currently living in a nursing home.  I am always nervous taking my kids to a place like that, because I want them to be on their best behavior!  The girls did well.  We were able to find a fairly quiet hall where we could sit and visit, and the girls could run around without being in the way too much.  Audrey even got to go for a ride with Grammy Lois in her wheelchair.

On a side note, I really need to get my camera back out.  Since I got my iphone, I have just been using it to take pictures because it is new, and it is convenient.  But the quality is just not the same!

January 9: Our Library Routine

I'm not sure that this is really a blog-worthy topic, but it's all I have for today.

I have been noticing lately how much Audrey is a creature of routine.  She loves to follow the same routines every day, and she loves when she knows exactly what is going to happen next.  I think it is a fairly normal and good thing for kids this age to like routines, but Audrey seems to have an exceptional appreciation for the expected routine.

Like today, at the library, I realized that we have a very set routine every time we go to the library. I never set out to make it a routine, but we just always do the same things every time, without even thinking about it.

First, we park in the garage under the library.  It is a little more expensive than parking on the street, but you never have to drive around looking for a spot.  Plus, if we park below the library, we get to take the elevator up to the library.  This is still a very fun thing for my girls.  Audrey always pushes the buttons in the elevator, and now Isla has decided that she too needs to push the buttons after Audrey pushes them.

Once in the library, we head to the book return slot.  Audrey and Isla take turns putting our books and movies down the slide.

Then we go to the children's section.  First we look at the books.  Audrey has started picking out her own books, and we usually get 4-5 books (though today we came home with 7).  After the books, we head to the movie section and pick out two movies.  Then, recently, we have been going to the audio CDs and picking out a Disney movie soundtrack. (We then listen to that CD in the van for the entire two weeks we have it checked out, and Mom and Dad are always ready to return it!).

While Audrey and I are picking everything out, Isla loves to just wander around the children's area, going up and down the aisles.  There are some toys that she sometimes plays with.  Today, she brought her baby doll and bottle, and she spent the whole time carrying her baby around and stopping to feed her in various places.  Sometimes Audrey plays with the puzzles or puppets or colors a picture.

I rarely browse the shelves looking for books for me, but I often have a book waiting on hold for me to pick up when we check out.  Our actual library doesn't have a great selection of books. But the system that our library is connected with has pretty much any book you could ever want, you just have to request it. 

Then we go back down the elevator and back to the car.  The whole process is about 45 minutes total.

And I usually (always) drive through McDonalds on the way home for a Diet Dr. Pepper. 

Such an exciting life we lead around here!  =)

A Productive Day...and a Baked Potato Soup Recipe!

Today was the first day since before Christmas that I have felt productive and motivated.  For the past two weeks, we have just been in survival mode.  Daniel and I are still fighting some congestion and coughing, but finally today I was able to regain a little sense of normalcy.  I crossed several things off my to do list, and I made a real meal for my family for the first time in a long time!

One of my tasks for the day was to start organizing and decluttering the kitchen.  I sorted through several cabinets and found a big pile of pans, bowls, and kitchen stuff for the garage sale pile.  However, before it made it to the garage sale pile, Audrey and Isla discovered it.  They thought this random collection of pans and utensils was the best thing ever!  And so they spread everything out all over the kitchen floor and played for a long time.

I'm trying to use the camera on the iphone and test it out.   It's not quite the same as the DSLR, but it is probably a slight upgrade from my old phone.  Isla looked so cute tonight in her pajamas, carrying around her blankets and ready for bed.  I kept trying to get a picture of her, but she just didn't want to stand still!

For dinner tonight, I made baked potato soup.  We are big fans of this soup, so I thought I would share the recipe with all of you.  I also made these bread machine breadsticks and this crispy edamame.  (Notice the small serving of edamame on my plate...I'm not a fan, but Daniel loves it!).

Ok, so here is the recipe for the soup.  I adapted it from this recipe to make it lower fat and a little healthier.  It is by no means a low fat recipe, but I do think that my version is considerably less in fat and calories than the original.

BAKED POTATO SOUP

8 Russet potatoes, baked, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
4 cups lowfat milk
2 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup bacon, crumbled (when feeling lazy, I just buy the bag of real bacon bits)
4 green onions, chopped
8 ounces Cheddar cheese
8 ounces light sour cream

In a large saucepan or stock pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Whisk in flour until smooth and cook about one minute.  Whisk in milk, a little at a time, stirring constantly until thickened.  Stir in chicken broth.

Stir in potatoes, salt, pepper, bacon bits, green onions, and cheese.  Simmer over low heat until thoroughly heated.  Stir in sour cream and heat through.  You can serve it topped with bacon bits, green onions and cheese if you want.

January 4: Back to the Doctor

We took Isla to the doctor today because she has been super irritable and not sleeping well.   She has an ear infection.

While there, they weighed her and she weighed in at 20 lbs, 12 oz.  If you have been following the saga of Isla's growth here, then you may know that's not good.   A weight loss of almost a pound!  She was 21 lbs, 8 oz at her checkup two weeks ago.  I suspected that she was losing weight as she has been not feeling well for over a week now, and her appetite has not been normal.  I'm sure that is why she has lost weight.  So as she starts to feel better, she should start to eat better and gain some weight back.

But, the doctor doesn't like to see her weight moving backwards.  So we have to go back yet again in three weeks for another weight check (and a recheck of her ears).  And it's possible they will go ahead with the bloodwork that was planned for two weeks ago but got cancelled because she had gained weight.  Things are just up and down all the time with this girl

She did eat a really good lunch today after coming home from her doctor's appointment.  Then she drank two full cups of milk (unusual for her).  Grow baby Isla, grow!!  Here she is showing off her sticker she got at the doctor's office.

January 3: Book Blog

I took the plunge and started a book blog.  You can find it here:  www.toofondofbooksblog.blogspot.com

I already rate and review books on Goodreads, and I plan to continue to use Goodreads because I love it.  If you follow me on  Goodreads, the reviews on my blog will look suspiciously the same as my Goodreads reviews.  But I thought it would be fun to have my own little corner of the internet where I could rant and rave about books. 

Sorry the year has started a little slow on this blog.  My family has just had a rough time for the past week, so there is not much to post.  We still aren't well yet.  Pretty sure that Isla has an ear infection now, so we will be making a trip to the doctor for her tomorrow.  Audrey is back to school and Daniel is working.  Other than that, we are just in survival mode trying to keep up and make sure everyone is fed and somewhat clean and rested.  Stay tuned, happier times should be coming soon, right??

January 1: Things I'm looking forward to in 2013

It has been almost a week since Isla and I first got sick, and we are still not better.  Well, we are better than we were last week, but we are not 100% yet.  And Daniel and Audrey still aren't 100% yet either.  I think I would put us all in the 60-70% range. 

All of this sickness and not feeling well has put me in a grumpy mood as we start this new year.  I just want to feel good, and I want my family to feel good.  I know that we will eventually get back to normal.  So to put myself in better spirits, I am making a list tonight of some things I am looking forward to in 2013.

1.  My new iphone.  I finally got an iphone!  This is a pretty big deal, as I have never had a smart phone.  I have always had a cheap, free phone with no data plan.  I just started texting last year.  So I am excited to finally catch up with the rest of the world and be one of the cool kids!

2.  Reading new books.  I got $65 in Barnes and Noble gift cards for Christmas, and I am starting to stock up my Nook with lots of new books to read this year.  I'm also thinking about starting a book blog.

3.  Oscar movie season.  It's that time of year again!  I don't know if I will be able to see all the nominated movies this year (the nominees aren't even announced yet), but there are several that are on my list to see in the near future including:  Silver Linings Playbook, Les Miserables and Zero Dark Thirty.

4.  Saving money for a new kitchen.  I really want a new kitchen.  I don't think it is going to be possible to remodel our kitchen this year, but I have decided this is going to be the year to build up our kitchen remodel savings account.  Maybe 2014 will be the year of the new kitchen.

5.  Warmer weather.  There are still a few months of winter left, but after that...it will get warm again!

6.  Isla will talk.  I feel pretty confident that by the end of 2013, either with or without the help of speech therapy, Isla will be saying more than she is now.  And I really look forward to that day!

7.  Possible 10 year anniversary trip.  Daniel has been saying for years that we need to go on a big trip to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary (December 2013).  I'm not sure how big the trip will be (due to #4 above), but I definitely think we need to make this a priority.

I'm sure there will be much more to look forward to in 2013, but that is a good list to keep me thinking more positively.

Happy New Year!