10 Things I have to buy in the spring

It has been so nice outside lately.  We often get a ton of rain early in spring but it hasn’t happened yet so I’ve been out of the house more & I am so thankful.  It has eased the cabin fever for all of us.  A friend and I even have been walking a couple of times at the park!  The change of seasons really makes me happy!

1.  Strawberries—they are so much cheaper now.  I love fresh strawberries.  It is like the smell of fresh cut grass.  It makes me think of SPRING!

2.  Jeans—why does it seem my kids all out grow their jeans about 2 weeks before we start wearing shorts full time.  ARG!

3.  Seeds—I love the thought of planting things.  This is the first year that we’ve gotten started this early.  Thank you God for the warmer weather & sunshine without a ton of rain(yet)

4.  Salad—We eat a lot of salad.  It can be hard in the winter to “want” salad.  Too cold and it just doesn’t seem as natural as in the spring.  I love lighter salad type food as it gets warmer!  We planted seeds just last week so soon we can go out & pick our lettuce!  Yum

5.  Plants—Joshua and I wandered around a plant nursery this morning while we waited for the fish store to open.  We were both SO excited about planting our garden.  I was sad that I am not quite ready to buy plants.  Soon very soon!

6.  Flip flops—I don’t personally wear them but my kids love them!  They some how don’t fit in the ones from last year.  Or they have a strap that is broken or one is missing.

7.  Birthday presents!  Joshua will be another year older in a few weeks.  His birthday will be here before we know it!  My youngest can’t really be that old can he?

8.  Shorts—it seems like I can’t ever find shorts that I like.  I am thinking about cutting off my jeans from this winter and using those.  With all the “extra” movement I am getting this spring compared to last spring I plan to be a few pounds lighter by fall so I won’t need these jeans.  I guess I just solved my problem.

9.  T-shirts-It seems I am continually on the look out for a favorite t-shirt.  I have a couple but they are getting pretty old and holey.  I wear those around home but need a new nice one to work in to the rotation.

10.  Curriculum—okay I usually buy it in the summer but I start THINKING about it in the spring.  School is finishing up in the next month or two so I am mentally getting geared up for next year.  After a nice break for a few weeks this summer.

Spring has Sprung!

I am seeing the evidence that winter has lost it’s hold!  Now I am not ready to go to the pool but I do believe that spring has arrived!  Here is what I’ve seen over the last couple of days.

1.  I keep thinking about what I can plant in my garden—haven’t tilled it yet though

2.  Daffodil’s are in full bloom(hmmm need to rake around them)

3.  Boxes of clothes are everywhere because it isn’t warm enough to completely put away the winter stuff—arg!

4.  The grass is SO green.

5.  I hung out my laundry for the first time this year.

6.  We are reaching the last 1/3 of our books for school!  Oh yeah!

7.  Bible Quizzing Nationals is almost here.

8.  I have gotten to go on 2 walks in the last week at the park.

9.  On Sunday I was in a skirt instead of pants(I hate being cold)

10.  My sandals have come out from the back of the closet.

All these things are making me super thankful for the warmer temperatures & sunshine.

Clogging Lessons & Crockpot Mexican Chicken

On Thursdays, the kids have been taking clogging lessons. 

It is great for developing coordination and is a good work out too!  I haven’t been able to join them because of my hip pain & surgery.  But now that I am recovered it is time to try something new!  The only problem is that when I get home I am SO tired from the lesson that I don’t want to fix supper.

So my answer to this problem is to get out my crockpot!  She works so well to feed my family!  Last week we tried a new recipe & it is a keeper!  So next time you need a simple meal that is filling & ready to go when you walk in the door make this one or check out some of my favorite crockpot recipes!

Crockpot Mexican Chicken

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in to strips

2 T flour

2 T taco seasoning mix, homemade or store packet

1 green & 1 red pepper(or any color you have)

1 cup frozen corn, or 1 can corn, drained

2 cups salsa

Pour 1 cup salsa in the bottom of a medium crockpot.  Mix flour & taco seasoning.  Coat each strip with flour mixture.  Place each chicken strip in crockpot, and add the peppers and corn.  Top with remaining salsa.  Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

Feeds 6-8 people.  We love to have this over brown rice with chips & sour cream.  You could also add beans &/or shredded cheese to stretch it further.

Reading, too much of a good thing?

Do you have voracious readers in your house?  I do.

Some days it makes me crazy.  Like yesterday.  It was beautiful outside.   I walked through the house & saw children INSIDE reading.  I was appalled!

I just won’t put up with that.  I sent them outside to play. 

Seriously reading can be come an obsession just like any other activity.  Like playing on the computer—stepping back from that land mine.

Cartoon books—oh my.  I find them everywhere!  We have an old collection of Garfield, Calvin & Hobbes, Beetle Bailey etc.  I have to say—only on Sundays because if I don’t I find them curled up with a comic book avoiding their math.  Sigh.  This is a serious problem can’t you tell?

I should know since I LOVE to read.  As a teen I used to stay up until 2, 3, 4 . . in the morning finishing a book.  My mom did (?still does?) the same thing.

Very rarely can I do that now.  I have some how realized that sleep is more important than good book.  HA!

I don’t have much time to sit down and read.  Too many other projects, duties & responsibilities.  Sort of sad in a way.

A friend of mine was asking about good books for her son and I started making a list.  Mainly because her son is a bit older my Joshua, who is working his way through the Redwall series right now. 

I need to be ready for when he finishes though.  I read most of the books the kids do(or I used to) but this is one series I never read.  It is about mice with strange accents—I know from all the quoting of the books that happens around here.

Luckily for me his older sister(affectionately called the librarian) has read a TON of books.  Oh and his older brother used to have time to read(before college and math took over his life) so we have walked this road before.

I want this spring/summer to be a time for deliberate reading.  Not just pleasure reading(their choice) but assigned reading(my choice) that isn’t based upon our current history study.  So I need to make some book lists.  As I work these out I will be posting them here for everyone to use!

However, since we already have a problem with “over” reading in the house, we are going to have to balance time in ACTIVITIES and time with our nose in a book.  Such a sad problem to have.

Actually it is a good problem to have and I am glad to have it.