Nick, Nick, Nick

Nick came up for a visit, which we always love. The joy of Nick coming is that he's easy company. He doesn't care if my house is a mess. We don't have to be running around doing stuff all the time. He just likes to come up to hang out. That, and my kids LOVE him! He's great to have around and as much as I try talking him into moving up here, he just won't have it. Maybe I'll wear him down... eventually. :)

What's for dinner?

In an attempt to eat healthier, home cooked meals I thought I would share some of the more interesting and better tasting meals we've tried. Tonight's was pretty good and easy, too. I am ALL for easy. And as an added bonus, the kids even liked it! SCORE!!

Grilled Zucchini Flatbread

*Juice of one lemon

*3 garlic cloves, crushed

*1 Tbsp Olive Oil

*3 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise

*4 flatbreads (naan)

3/4 c. crumbled goat cheese

1. Combine lemon juice, garlic, oil in a zip-lock bag. Add zucchini and let stand 30 minutes.

2. Remove zucchini slices and place on grill rack and grill until tender (1-2 minutes per side) Take off grill and put on plate.

3. Place flatbreads on grill rack and grill until lightly crisped. Flip over and sprinkle with goat cheese. Place 1/4 zucchini on top of each flatbread. Grill until bottoms of flatbreads are lightly crisped. Cut flatbreads in half and serve.

*For a little extra flare I added some chicken breast (self canned, thank you) and some red onion. It was really good. I think that a lot of different veggie combinations would work for this. Use your favorites!

Sidney's home

Let me start this post by saying that Sidney HATES when I talk about her to other people. Especially if she's around to hear it. Lucky for me she doesn't read this blog!!! (and if you live around here, don't you dare mention to her that I posted this!)

So she came home from Girls Camp today completely exhausted and stinky after not showering all week. She had a really good time and she's really glad she went. But then she lost it and started crying. She was telling me about some of her frustrations with some of the girls at camp who didn't seem to feel like following the rules, about how some of the girls were making fun of another girl and it really bothered her, the fact that she didn't get to shower all week, and that she was completely exhausted. She went on for almost an hour about a lot of different things. I guess what made me so happy about this conversation is that first, she is definitely a rule follower which is generally a comforting thought. Second, she cares about how people are being treated. Third, she cares about her personal hygiene. Fourth, she hasn't completely lost the need for her mom. As she grows up she talks less and less about things. I usually get one word answers to all my questions about her day. But today she just let it all out and kept talking and talking. It was so refreshing and good to hear what she cared about, the fun things she did at camp and even all of her frustrations.

She is a great kid and I am a lucky, lucky woman to be her mom.

Maybe it's time to blog again...

Ok folks, here's the deal. I just stopped working my 2nd job and so I find myself with a little more time on my hands. Now I can do the things I've been too busy to do for the last 8 months (including blogging). It's quite a relief to be done working the 2nd job. I didn't mind the job (that much) but it was taking too much time away from my kids. So, we live without the money.

Here's a quick update...

The kids have been out of school since May 22nd. They have both started lessons on their instruments and we spend lots and LOTS of time at the pool (as the weather permits). Sidney is at Girls Camp this week and it has been pretty quiet around here with only one kid around. Chris makes them read a book (once a teacher, always a teacher) and practice their instruments at least 30 minutes every day. Besides that they sleep until 10:00, watch TV, play video games and do what kids should be doing during the summer months.

As for Chris and me... we both work. I work in the mornings for my brother, Lynn. Chris is home with the kids during the day and then he works at Carrabba's at night. We are just about 7 weeks away from him (the girls and I are staying here for the first year) moving to Ohio to start law school. We're still hoping that the school in Iowa that he's been wait-listed at pulls through, but at this point everything is done for school in Ohio, so it'll be much easier to go there. There are days that I can't believe this is happening. Law school is a little overwhelming for me and I'm not even the one going! It's going to be a big change for our family, but one I'm pretty sure we're all ready for.

And that's pretty much what's been going on around here. Not very exciting, but that's life I guess. So here's hoping that I can get my butt in gear and keep it up. Here's hoping...

The blogging dilemma

So I am getting rid of the Thanksgiving background on my blog and I did a quick check of everyone's blogs and I'm pretty sure everyone has just about given up. I actually got excited because a friend of mine from Vegas finally got a blog a couple months ago and put one post and hasn't done another. I really love reading my friend's blogs. I love keeping up with old friends that I don't get to see every day. I love the concept of blogs. But I sit here and wonder... why bother?

I can't believe it's November

How did that happen?