Stalled

I’ve been working slowly on the living room corner gallery wall.  SLOWLY!  Like maybe one picture every week  :)  It has been fun though to find a variety of things to incorporate, both personally meaningful and inexpensive.  There are still a few spots I need to fill and a couple frames that need photos or artwork, but I’m getting there.  Oh, and it has gotten quite cold here so I’m waiting for one last warmer day to spray paint a few frames! 
Here’s a very little sneak peek…the mirror may be changing though—I like it but maybe not in this space. 

I have found an amazing amount of nice free artwork from the internet.  So fun!  Still, this is taking a lot longer than I thought it would.  :)  I should know by now to think of a reasonable time frame and then multiply that by 10 for the real time it will take me. 
I also found a couple of pieces of artwork at Goodwill today that will go well in this room (hopefully!  It is still in the bag so I’ll have to try it and see later…)
In other news…I have been working like crazy on our Christmas photo card, so fun!  Hopefully I will get it done early this year and not at the last minute like other years. 

Enough Time

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I don’t have it. 
Do you?? 
I bet not.  Few if any of us do. 
Time to do all our daily tasks and then what feeds our souls and minds as well?  Forget about it.  It is a constant battle for me, both externally and internally.  With three kids I’m split multiple times a day between this child and that child, this task and that child, this task and that task.  I think I must look like a crazed mother hen running all over the house yet getting very little done.  But, the crying child must be comforted.  Those dishes, they aren’t going to wash themselves.  That Mount Doom of laundry??  It will not get miraculously clean and back in dressers without me. 
I’m sure it’s even more difficult for those who work outside the home too. 
Then there is the internal struggle.  When, at the end of the day, I have a few minutes of peace to myself…what should I do??  Oh yes, I really should read that book I started a while back for my book club.  But I’m feeling a bit frazzled and I just need something light and oh look, one of my favorite bloggers has just put up a new post!!  Down the rabbit hole of blogs I go.  (It is a fun rabbit hole!) 
Or, maybe I’ve been thinking all day that I’d love to work on a project but by the time those free moments come I’ve lost my inspiration and creativity for the day.  There is a pile of (clean) laundry on my coffee table and I could fold it while watching some Netflix or perhaps even a movie with the husband if I’m lucky.  I can’t face tomorrow with those clothes on the table.  The toddler will certainly only pull them off and scatter them about the floor if I leave them.  (Don’t tell me mine is the only toddler with this obsession!)  I’ve been wondering what is going to happen to Miss Stewart in this episode of Foyle’s War anyway. 
Anddd…I really should spend some time in prayer or start reading that mother’s devotional book again.  But once again I’m hopping into bed and only  have a few moments to say a few quick prayers and a quick “sorry God for anything I haven’t done my best today” before falling asleep the second my head hits the pillow.  Because in a few short hours a toddler will awake waaaay too early and not want to go back to bed. 

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My internal struggles with time often crop up during the day too when I have just a few minutes here and there to do something that fuels that creative outlet.  (For me it is generally house beautifying creativity, but I’m sure you could fill the blank with your own version of creativity or relaxation—writing, reading, knitting, cleaning (I’ve heard there are some people out there who see cleaning as relaxing!!  Who knew!!), etc.  I get wrapped up in my ideas for this and that (or perhaps even a small project or part of a project) but am snapped back to reality by cries of hunger for a snack.  It gets discouraging time and time again to start something and have to put it away again and again especially if you need lots of tools or supplies for it. 
Why am I writing this?  Oh, I don’t know.  Perhaps you’ve had a day like this and you need to know that someone else has days like this all the time.  Not bad days…just days that there isn’t enough time to “do it all”.  My mind is bursting with ideas for this and that and wow, that pinterest recipe looks really really good…but that’s not happening today.  I’m a work in progress on being contented with the amount of time I have to get things done every day.  I love making our house a home and reading how others do so and seeing their projects and I like to share my little victories too.  Keeping up with other bloggers isn’t my job…being a wife and mother and making a home is. 
And sometimes I need to shout, shout, let it all out and realize I have enough time for what I need to do and not necessarily what I want  to do.  :)

 

(All the octopus clock pictures are dedicated to my husband, who wants a playful octopus clock more of like this except with waving tentacles in our bedroom:)

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Emotions--Me and Moving

Here’s where I’m going to talk about my feelings. 
Mostly my feelings about moving, don’t be too worried!
I’m going to put it right out there:
Moving sucks. 
We’re at a standstill with our lives here at this house.   We know the end is near, our work here is done.  Normally at this time of year I’m busy planting in the yard, scouring the neighborhood plant sales for new varieties and planting vegetable seeds in the garden.  This year I’ve only planted a couple pots because…you can’t dig up the whole garden and take it with you. 

But it’s not just that.
My heart is in this home. 
Maybe it shouldn’t be.  Maybe it means I’m too attached to things I shouldn’t be attached to.  But I get all emotional thinking of the day we’ll drive away and the house will not be ours anymore.  I brought my past two babies home to this house.  I know my way around it in the dark.  We’ve sweated, cried (well, that’s probably just me), and even bled (mostly my husband) in making this house our own.  I’m pretty invested.
I realize I’m not being forced to leave this house.  We’ve been hoping for the past few years that we could do just what we are doing…selling our home and finding something with a few acres where we can really put down roots and live for the foreseeable future.  I’m excited for that future.  I’m excited to find our next house, to make it our own, to see all the memories we will make there.
But, it’s still tough!  Change is tough!
I know once we actually find another house I’ll feel better about it.  (We haven’t found a new house yet…eeek!)  I think then I’ll be able to start planning our future there more concretely.  Right now it feels like we’re at a dead end instead of  at a new beginning.
I am  glad that I have a house that I can feel that way about.  I wish everyone could have a home they feel this strongly about.  I’m hopeful that soon our “new” house will come on the market and we can buy it and I can start investing in that home and that one day it will feel homey like this home too.
It’s a bittersweet time.  One that will pass and things will look much brighter!!
(I hope I’m not coming off as some sort of first-world complainer—I realize there are those who are homeless, or live in homes they don’t like or are not ideal.  I know there are many many worse housing situations than the one we are currently experiencing!)
Update:  we accepted an offer on our current home a couple weeks ago and we are in the inspection process.  Everything looks promising that we will close the end of next month.  So far we have not put offers on any houses so hopefully soon one will come up that is what we are looking for!

Five Favorites (Vol. 3)

Joining Moxie Wife for her Five Favorites Link-up…

1.

Corned Beef Hash

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Yum, yum, yum.  I don’t really care for corned beef all that much, but this is amazing.  I don’t put as much horseradish as it calls for (and I don’t normally even like horseradish but it adds a wonderful flavor here) but otherwise I make it like it says.  Big thumbs up from the hubby and whole family.  Next year we’re not even cooking up the corned beef for it’s own meal first.  We’re cooking it just for this!!

2.

Chalkboard Word Find

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I thought this was a super cute idea!  I don’t even have any chalkboard paint in my house, but I do like how it looks and it would be fun for older kids.  Ok, ok, adults too!

3.

Sweetness overload.  Do not go to this blog if you don’t like kids, cuteness, babies, or a good laugh.  Do not blame me if you die of Adorableness Overload (it’s a Real Thing). 

4.

Revlon Colorburst Lipgloss

My husband got me two of these (Crystal Lilac and Rosepearl) a while back after I left a blog open on the computer and he saw that I had been reading about these.  I don’t even recall what blog it was and I didn’t even recall reading about these when he gave them to me, but regardless of how and when he/we found out about this lip gloss, it is great!  It doesn’t feel icky on the lips and it moisturizes nicely.  I am not a lipstick gal (at least not yet…but I wasn’t a nail polish girl either until recently) so this gives me just a little hint of color and shine but isn’t too in-your-face.  (He’s a keeper!)

5.

A 5 year old who likes to do crafts just like her mom.  She is still not quite to that age that she can do things by herself so it can be a bit frustrating/challenging for both of us, but it will be a fun thing for us to do together when she is older so I suppose we should start now!  I found a bunny in one of her coloring books for her to cut out and trace on scrapbook paper, then cut out again.  I did one (mine is above) and hers is coming along nicely:

We’ll see where and how they end up.  :)

Five Favorites Volume 2

Joining Moxie Wife for her Five Favorites link-up…

1.

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Alstroemeria.  Especially Trader Joe’s cheap alstroemeria.  Just what is needed for these dreary March days with dingy melting snow, puddles of ice, and temperatures fluctuating between hopeful and downright disappointing.  Bonus:  they last forever so I can enjoy this late winter pick-me-up for quite a while!

2.

A four year old who vacuums. 

The entire carpeted area!!  And she does it really well!  Can I get a yeah and a woooh?!!  Anyone who has little kids knows how HUGE this is.  Couch and bon-bons, here I come!  (j/k of course, as anyone who has little kids knows!!)  She does it every week! 

Please don’t be jealous.  Or try to kidnap her for your own carpeted areas.

3.

Working with What You Have

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I’m loving this series that Emily is doing over on her blog about how to work with areas in the home that are challenging and cannot be changed right now for various reasons.  She has great practical and budget-friendly ideas..I’m especially liking her post on long, narrow living rooms (raises hand here).  I’m sure we’d all love to wave a magic wand and change a few things around in our home, but budget and time, etc. don’t allow. 

And her cute twins are adorable!

4.

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This tablescape is just too pretty.  Wouldn’t this be a lovely Easter dinner table?  Of course, at our house I’m not sure it would last long with a 2 year old around, but a girl can dream, right? 

5.

Sleep.  I know, very lame, but it is a perennial favorite for me so I’m adding it.  A certain cute 6 month old is going through a phase of waking multiple times a night and it is starting to get old.  Hopefully he’ll get that tooth/decide nighttime is not for partying/realize he likes sleep as much as I do soon.  I really can’t complain though as he has been a wonderful sleeper since birth. 

Five Favorites

I have never done a link party before, but I was inspired to join one by one of my favorite blog reads, Moxie Wife.  Listing some of my current favorite things can’t be that hard can it?  No, not difficult at all. 
Here you go!

1.  Essie “Sugar Daddy”

I have worn nail polish on my fingernails probably twice in my life, and immediately removed it because I thought it looked awful.  I decided to try it again with something very subtle, and love this one!  It gives a shine and just a hint of color and looks great so far.  I’m sure it won’t last long (especially grouting tile in the next few days!) but it was a nice little pick-me-up for a Sunday in March.

2.  Herringbone backsplash

Since I’ve had tile on the brain a lot lately, I was blown away by this gorgeous backsplash that the talented Marian installed in her kitchen.  Beautiful!!!

3.

 Kids say the craziest things.  My two year old thought he was giving me a compliment yesterday when he told me:  “You’re the biggest mommy in the whole world!!”

Smile.

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4.  A good cup of tea.

I have not always been a fan of tea.  I grew up drinking herbal tea when I was feeling under the weather, but didn’t have much use for it otherwise.  Then I spent a couple years in Ireland in my early 20s and grew to like the black tea they drink like water there.  Now I make myself a cup of tea at least a couple times a week year-round.  If I’m happy—tea.  If I’m sad—tea.  If I just need a little down time—tea.  I usually drink Irish Breakfast tea but really almost any kind of tea will do.  I like mine with 3 cubes of sugar and a little cream.  (In case I ever meet any of you in real life and you offer me tea.)

5.  My 6-month-old baby.  He is my chubbiest and happiest at this age.  He first giggled on my birthday at almost 2 months old.  He has a mop of hair that his older sister loves to style with bows and barrettes.  Wow how time flies!

Pop it Up

 
Have you ever had this experience:  you are making a recipe, you see how many dozens/servings it makes or how many people it feeds, and you think, “yeah, right!!  It will never make that much!” and you make it anyway and surprise, it does make as much as it said it would (and more!) which is a huuuuuge amount! 
I had that experience today.   I don’t believe I have ever had it before.  I have had the opposite experience many times, especially regarding cookies.  What, they really expect us to use 1 teaspoon of dough for one cookie???  ONE cookie!  Can you empathize?  We’re not throwing a doll tea party here.
This came about because I was making caramel popcorn today for something this weekend.  I popped some popcorn, made the caramel, and then had to pop way more popcorn because that just wasn’t enough and I didn’t want each puff to be completely encased in caramel.  Sometimes too much of a good thing is an awful thing.  So now I have several gallons of caramel popcorn sitting in my kitchen.  Way more than I needed. 

Any good ideas for extra caramel popcorn?  I was thinking maybe St. Valentine’s Day neighbor gifts, but that might be a little weird. 
Have a great day!!
Liz

Our little getaway to Le Chateau

A couple weeks ago my husband and I took a little weekend vacation sans children (well, except for the latest little bean which we just couldn’t leave behind!).  It was lovely.  We try to get away for a couple nights by ourselves every year which can be tricky, but this year in spite of our almost 2 year old getting sick the day before we left, it worked out. 
We went to a larger town a few hours away which was the perfect distance.  It didn’t require hours and hours of driving and it was in many ways very different from where we live. 
The first night we dined at a most interesting restaurant.  It is called Le Chateau and this is what you see when you pull up:

Isn’t it gorgeous?
This French restaurant is housed in a historic mansion and is run by two chefs, who are actually husband and wife.  The wife has a most exquisite French accent and is a most gracious hostess.  Her pronunciation of my husband’s name on the voicemail confirming our reservations is something worthy of imitation.  He agrees.  : ) 
The food is wonderful.  The menu is rather small, but what they do, they do well.  We started off our meal with an amuse-bouche of chilled asparagus veloute.  It was delicious;  I liked it better than my husband who is a bit skeptical of cold soup however.  Although I had heard of the term before, I thought our server told us that this was “Amish brew” when she brought it out to us and I had her repeat it.  I was wondering what on earth Amish brew was!!!
Then we got a platter of bread, whipped butter, and olive oil for dipping.  The bread was amazing!  There was the traditional French baguette and then a more flavorful foccaccia-type bread that was delicious dipped in olive oil. 

I ordered a salad as I was very very hungry.  It again was wonderful.  The flavors were not too intense yet were definitely not your average variety.  I love balsamic vinaigrette and it was perfect on this asparagus, tomato confit, snow pea, and spring green mix. 

(My husband is trying to decide what he should order!)

I ordered a pasta dish with scallops and was not disappointed.  Yum!!!!  The scallops were so succulent, and they went well with the fettucine and roasted red peppers.

 

So, so delicious and full of flavor.

My husband got the little neck clams with a wine sauce and angel hair pasta.  It was also delicious but being a scallop lover I, of course, preferred mine. 

His main dish came with a bowl of lemon water for finger cleansing:

I almost forgot!!!  Our surroundings!!  We had requested the Peacock Room and it did not disappoint.  What was especially lovely was that we had this room all to ourselves for most of our meal!!

(Look at that floor!)

Behold the peacock:

 

Every touch was perfection.  This house was restored with great care.
I wish I had taken a picture of the ladies’ restroom!  It also was beautiful.
For our final course I chose a Pear Champagne sorbet.  I devoured it before I even took a picture.  It was so refreshing and delicate, just what I wanted after the meal.  My husband ordered a pear tart and it was also good, but just didn’t hit the spot like the sorbet did. 
We had excellent French pressed coffee with our dessert and my husband got all fancy and tried the brown sugar lumps. 

I enjoyed the meal!

We had a wonderful weekend, and this meal was one of the main highlights for me.  What fun!  I hope to go again. 

Delightful.

A shower

Over the weekend another girl and I threw a shower for my close friend Ashley. 
It went well I think, although in my current 7-month pregnant state it was a bit overwhelming and not every candle got lit before the guests arrived. 
And I may have had the guests get ready for a game when it was actually time to eat.  (still embarrassed, though they were all good sports)
Whew!  I’m glad that is done, although I was happy to do it for my dear friend. 
Here are some pictures of the desserts I made:

Raspberry Mousse Torte

I found chalkboard contact paper on Amazon and made the food signs up the day before.  The great thing is that I can re-use them again and again for various functions!

Flourless Chocolate cake

The other hostess made the paninis, they were delish!

I wish I had taken the time to take more pictures of the decorations and the other food.  We were so busy though getting it all together I barely had time to pull out my camera.