tonight at dinner zach finished his first helping of spaghetti and said, "more."
i said, "how do we ask for more?"
zach, "more mom!"
a few weeks ago some friends had us over for dinner and games. their little girl, who is 3 walked into the kitchen and looked at chris, then whispered to her mom: "is he a giant?"
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Saturday, May 17, 2014
bummer.
i found a camper last night that would have been P-E-R-F-E-C-T. it was a winnebago, sleeps 6, good-sized bathroom, good bones and in good solid condition, and with a white stove that wasn't ugly for a 70's camper. only about an hour away and $600, which i would have tried to get down to at least $500, that's my goal. pay $500 and stay under $1000 for total renovation.
i've done my homework. i have fabrics picked out, tile for the floor...
got chris on board with it and then..."SOLD." poo.
this....
could have looked similar to this... (I want a solid-colored door) and add some red in...
think white and duck egg blue paint...get rid of nasty curtains.
becomes this! polka dotted cushions, bright and airy!!!
with a nice side shelf for decor and storage. and sheer curtains like these....checkered floors, my adorable new vintage picnic basket. ah...can you see it?!
kitchen before... new backsplash (not sure yet), bright, breezy curtain, white paint, i would exchange knobs on stove for vintage red ones, cutesy towels. this had great counter space!!!
and the bathroom was big too, which i would probably convert the shower area into shelving and make the room more for storage. most places we would camp would have restrooms and showers and i have a portable 5-gallon bucket with disposable bags and a toilet lid that i would rather use than deal with hook-ups etc. think skirt around the sink, new curtains, paint and floor. this is a great space.
this camper was only listed for a day before it sold. things on KSL go fast, especially as refinishing vintage campers is growing in popularity. i have some competition to keep up with...
i've done my homework. i have fabrics picked out, tile for the floor...
got chris on board with it and then..."SOLD." poo.
this....
could have looked similar to this... (I want a solid-colored door) and add some red in...
think white and duck egg blue paint...get rid of nasty curtains.
becomes this! polka dotted cushions, bright and airy!!!
with a nice side shelf for decor and storage. and sheer curtains like these....checkered floors, my adorable new vintage picnic basket. ah...can you see it?!
kitchen before... new backsplash (not sure yet), bright, breezy curtain, white paint, i would exchange knobs on stove for vintage red ones, cutesy towels. this had great counter space!!!
and the bathroom was big too, which i would probably convert the shower area into shelving and make the room more for storage. most places we would camp would have restrooms and showers and i have a portable 5-gallon bucket with disposable bags and a toilet lid that i would rather use than deal with hook-ups etc. think skirt around the sink, new curtains, paint and floor. this is a great space.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
response to my daydreamin' post.
yesterday i posted on my blog about some of my daydreams. tonight chris and i were looking at it and talking about it. our dreams couldn't be farther apart. sometimes it makes me ponder how opposites really do attract and how somehow, someway we seem to make our lives TOGETHER work out.
he hates my vintage camper. boo, i'm getting one anyway.
he does not want to live in "the middle of nowhere" in some "spooky house inhabited by people on the other side of the veil." direct quote. oh well. i still have a way of persuading him into seeing what i see. it's worked before anyways, maybe it could work again?
like i said, it's going to take a LOT of convincing to get those chickens! he said the only chickens that he's going to have are in a KFC bucket. lol, at least he makes me laugh
he hates my vintage camper. boo, i'm getting one anyway.
he does not want to live in "the middle of nowhere" in some "spooky house inhabited by people on the other side of the veil." direct quote. oh well. i still have a way of persuading him into seeing what i see. it's worked before anyways, maybe it could work again?
like i said, it's going to take a LOT of convincing to get those chickens! he said the only chickens that he's going to have are in a KFC bucket. lol, at least he makes me laugh
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
scout. the puppy dog that we had for 5 weeks.
i've always wanted to have a dog for our family. i grew up with the best dog in the world "Sir Captain Morgan II." i have such fond memories of his love, protection, cuddles and spunk.
brady had been begging for a pet for a couple of years and on his 8th birthday we decided that he would be ready for that responsibility. what i didn't expect was that mommy wouldn't be ready for that responsibility. we had just recently moved into our house in idaho falls, were up to our eyeballs in remodeling, i had been newly called as the young women's president and we had a 16-month old little baby who was deeply afraid of the yappy little puppy who liked to chase him and nip at his feet.
we surprised brady with him after i'd taken him shopping to get all of the necessities for a puppy. he didn't know that we were actually getting a puppy, just that we were preparing for one. we'd talked many hours about the responsibility and care it would take, as well as reading lots of books from the library. we were well prepared figuratively. just not in the real world sense. too much at one time. and to top it off, it was winter. puppy wouldn't move out in the cold. couldn't take him for a walk and you can forget about trying to get him to go potty outside.
i really think we learned a lot from this venture, and will be much more realistic about the next time we decide our family is really ready to welcome in another doggy member. for me, that means that we will be beyond the baby years. i just can't do both.
when we got scout he was 10 weeks old. he's a "chiweenie," a chihuahua and dauchshund mix. we did find him a good home where he has been very loved.
brady meets scout:
brady had been begging for a pet for a couple of years and on his 8th birthday we decided that he would be ready for that responsibility. what i didn't expect was that mommy wouldn't be ready for that responsibility. we had just recently moved into our house in idaho falls, were up to our eyeballs in remodeling, i had been newly called as the young women's president and we had a 16-month old little baby who was deeply afraid of the yappy little puppy who liked to chase him and nip at his feet.
we surprised brady with him after i'd taken him shopping to get all of the necessities for a puppy. he didn't know that we were actually getting a puppy, just that we were preparing for one. we'd talked many hours about the responsibility and care it would take, as well as reading lots of books from the library. we were well prepared figuratively. just not in the real world sense. too much at one time. and to top it off, it was winter. puppy wouldn't move out in the cold. couldn't take him for a walk and you can forget about trying to get him to go potty outside.
i really think we learned a lot from this venture, and will be much more realistic about the next time we decide our family is really ready to welcome in another doggy member. for me, that means that we will be beyond the baby years. i just can't do both.
when we got scout he was 10 weeks old. he's a "chiweenie," a chihuahua and dauchshund mix. we did find him a good home where he has been very loved.
brady meets scout:
again, i am missing a bunch of pictures. i had an adorable one with him and my dad, him and brady and one with me as well.
shawnae had a silly app to add a mustache on him. he's so cute!
here's a few snippets of life with a baby and a puppy- remarkable alike, no?
smoked salmon chowder.
i got the original recipe here, but of course, {true to myself} i cannot follow a recipe to save my life. i added the liquid smoke in the original recipe, but feel like it needed more, so i tweaked it. i also omitted some steps and simplified the process. worked good for me and was super easy. just what i like. delicious.
too lazy to take a pic. this from here. looked the same, of course!
i added some garlic, exchanged the heavy cream for a powdered milk conversion (simply because i didn't have any cream on hand) and omitted the creamer. didn't feel it was necessary and didn't want to buy it.
in the original recipe she instructed to boil potatoes by themselves and then to cook the celery and onion in butter. also to add the milk and cream into the roux. i cooked all my veggies together (such good flavor! and smells amazing) and drained about 2 C. of the water out after. i didn't want to lose all of that delicious broth so instead of adding in chicken broth i added in 3 tsp. of chicken bouillon. i never buy chicken broth anymore. i also made this adaptable to using your food storage items. store what you use! and use what you store!
i made the roux and the added it to the pot, along with the milk. it was super easy and everything thickened up just fine.
i had made fish chowder many times and love it, but never thought to use salmon. i hope you and your family enjoy as much as we did! serve with some crusty bread or homemade breadsticks!!! a sprinkle of croutons would be yummy as well with a nice salad on the side.
smoky salmon chowder
8 C. potatoes, cubed (or use 6 and add in 2-3 leftover baked potatoes)
1 stick butter
3 ribs celery, diced (or equivalent of freeze-dried from food storage)
1 small onion, diced (or equivalent of freeze-dried from food storage)
3 tsp. minced garlic
2/3 C. flour
3 tsp chicken bouillon
2 C. milk (or use 2 C. water and 6 T. dry powdered milk from food storage)
1 C. heavy cream (or use 1 C. water and 1/4 C. dry powdered milk from food storage)
2-3 leftover grilled salmon fillets, flaked into chunks
1 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
3/4-1 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke (or to taste) *optional
in a large stockpot, cook potatoes, celery, onion and garlic in enough water to barely cover, just until tender. drain 2 C. of water and return pot back to the stove. add in spices and chicken bouillon.
in a saucepan, melt butter. whisk in flour, cooking and stirring over medium heat for a minute or two to create a thick roux. add into pot of potatoes and broth and continue stirring over medium heat.
add in milk and cream (or substitutes if using) and stir well. stir in salmon and liquid smoke and simmer, stirring frequently until soup is well thickened and warmed through. remove from heat and adjust seasonings to taste.
too lazy to take a pic. this from here. looked the same, of course!
i added some garlic, exchanged the heavy cream for a powdered milk conversion (simply because i didn't have any cream on hand) and omitted the creamer. didn't feel it was necessary and didn't want to buy it.
in the original recipe she instructed to boil potatoes by themselves and then to cook the celery and onion in butter. also to add the milk and cream into the roux. i cooked all my veggies together (such good flavor! and smells amazing) and drained about 2 C. of the water out after. i didn't want to lose all of that delicious broth so instead of adding in chicken broth i added in 3 tsp. of chicken bouillon. i never buy chicken broth anymore. i also made this adaptable to using your food storage items. store what you use! and use what you store!
i made the roux and the added it to the pot, along with the milk. it was super easy and everything thickened up just fine.
i had made fish chowder many times and love it, but never thought to use salmon. i hope you and your family enjoy as much as we did! serve with some crusty bread or homemade breadsticks!!! a sprinkle of croutons would be yummy as well with a nice salad on the side.
smoky salmon chowder
8 C. potatoes, cubed (or use 6 and add in 2-3 leftover baked potatoes)
1 stick butter
3 ribs celery, diced (or equivalent of freeze-dried from food storage)
1 small onion, diced (or equivalent of freeze-dried from food storage)
3 tsp. minced garlic
2/3 C. flour
3 tsp chicken bouillon
2 C. milk (or use 2 C. water and 6 T. dry powdered milk from food storage)
1 C. heavy cream (or use 1 C. water and 1/4 C. dry powdered milk from food storage)
2-3 leftover grilled salmon fillets, flaked into chunks
1 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried dill weed
3/4-1 tsp. salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp. liquid smoke (or to taste) *optional
in a large stockpot, cook potatoes, celery, onion and garlic in enough water to barely cover, just until tender. drain 2 C. of water and return pot back to the stove. add in spices and chicken bouillon.
in a saucepan, melt butter. whisk in flour, cooking and stirring over medium heat for a minute or two to create a thick roux. add into pot of potatoes and broth and continue stirring over medium heat.
add in milk and cream (or substitutes if using) and stir well. stir in salmon and liquid smoke and simmer, stirring frequently until soup is well thickened and warmed through. remove from heat and adjust seasonings to taste.
sandpoint, idaho august 2013. family friends & a wedding.
my cousin elene got married last summer in beautiful sandpoint, idaho. we also have good friends who were living in sandpoint at the time so we had the perfect excuse to go for a visit, see a beautiful area we had not yet discovered and spend wonderful time with family and friends.
the trip up to sandpoint was loooong. about 9 hour drive in the middle of the night through fog. i drove almost the whole way and avoided what i counted of 19 deer (4 fawns), 2 foxes and a coyote. the kids did well, as we left at dinner time and they fell asleep around 9 p.m. i believe we pulled in at our friends' nels and rachel's house at 4 a.m.
we had a short night's rest and then ventured out the next day after playing with our friends in the morning (they still had some family visiting from Utah that we overlapped a little). rachel you are a champ for letting us come amongst the craziness!!!
we decided to take the day and tour coeur d' alene, which is a beautiful lake-side town that had an almost coastal feel. after window shopping in downtown we decided to treat ourselves to a fancy lunch at the dockside restaurant.
we spent almost $100 on lunch but the view and the fun of doing something fancy and spontaneous was worth it. chris and i enjoyed some calamari with delicious dipping sauces, sandwiches, burgers and fries. the kids had their own special little burgers and sides and we decided to top it all off with some sundaes. the kids shared one and chris and i ordered their specialty to share. it was de-li-cious!!!
when we got outside there were gorgeous red geraniums everywhere. it reminded me of some of the coastal hotels in new england.
the docks went all around the marina so and there was an awesome bridge so we took a walk and enjoyed the scenery.
we spent the second day of our vaca boating and swimming at a lakehouse with the family. morning started off with a delicious pot-luck breakfast. zachary and olivia stayed behind with auntie donna
while the rest of us headed out to a shallow "sandbar" in the middle of lake pend oreille that allowed us to stand and swim around. we enjoyed some ultimate frisbee and football in the water. my cousin snapped this pic of me and chris, which makes me look naked and feels slightly paparazzi-ish.
the next day we went for a walk on a lovely nature trail. the kids loved the boardwalk and exploring of course. trying to get good pics of 8 kids...
the wedding.
the venue was beautiful. elene's colors really popped and it was a nice time for everyone. she was absolutely stunning. i was so glad that we could make it to support her and brady in the beginning of their marriage. it was special to be there with our family together.
the cakes
cousins: arison, isaac and me
rachel took me blueberry picking! it was absolutely delightful, and i'm very glad that she thought so too since she'd already gone several times in the week before. i was able to bring home enough blueberries to last me until next blueberry season! we've enjoyed smoothies, muffins and blueberry pancakes. oh that is something i miss so much from back home in maine. we went blueberry picking every summer and ate so many blueberries that our bellies hurt.
later we went swimming at the beautiful sand point beach. i wish i had taken more pictures here and i could have sworn i did, but we must have been having too much fun.
here's a cute one of rachels' little clara (same age as zach)
the little princesses: elsie, olivia and violet
we had so much fun with our friends even though the time was short and we had wedding activities going on. zach and clara made me laugh with their hilarious get-ups. all the kids got along quite well, and if you ask me you could {hardly} tell that there were 8 little children under the age of 9 running around!!! thank you so much nels and rachel for being some of our bestest friends and for letting us stay with you!!!
the only pictures i'm now missing are a group pic of all of the kids in a circle, a group of me, chris, nels and rachel in a circle and then a pic of the four of us all standing...i'll be happy with all the ones i recovered and we'll have to recreate the others the next time we're all together again!
the trip up to sandpoint was loooong. about 9 hour drive in the middle of the night through fog. i drove almost the whole way and avoided what i counted of 19 deer (4 fawns), 2 foxes and a coyote. the kids did well, as we left at dinner time and they fell asleep around 9 p.m. i believe we pulled in at our friends' nels and rachel's house at 4 a.m.
we had a short night's rest and then ventured out the next day after playing with our friends in the morning (they still had some family visiting from Utah that we overlapped a little). rachel you are a champ for letting us come amongst the craziness!!!
we decided to take the day and tour coeur d' alene, which is a beautiful lake-side town that had an almost coastal feel. after window shopping in downtown we decided to treat ourselves to a fancy lunch at the dockside restaurant.
we spent almost $100 on lunch but the view and the fun of doing something fancy and spontaneous was worth it. chris and i enjoyed some calamari with delicious dipping sauces, sandwiches, burgers and fries. the kids had their own special little burgers and sides and we decided to top it all off with some sundaes. the kids shared one and chris and i ordered their specialty to share. it was de-li-cious!!!
the kids enjoyed the fish tank on the way in
when we got outside there were gorgeous red geraniums everywhere. it reminded me of some of the coastal hotels in new england.
the docks went all around the marina so and there was an awesome bridge so we took a walk and enjoyed the scenery.
we were going to go swimming at this beach but decided to head back to sandpoint as we were pretty tired.
on the way home our van literally broke down just as we turned into our friends' driveway. it literally just stopped. luckily they had a friend in the ward who was a mechanic who came over and took a look. we needed a new water pump, so off it was hauled to his shop and got fixed a day or two later. again, rachel was a champ and chauffeured us around since we had family plans with the wedding to attend!!!
we spent the second day of our vaca boating and swimming at a lakehouse with the family. morning started off with a delicious pot-luck breakfast. zachary and olivia stayed behind with auntie donna
while the rest of us headed out to a shallow "sandbar" in the middle of lake pend oreille that allowed us to stand and swim around. we enjoyed some ultimate frisbee and football in the water. my cousin snapped this pic of me and chris, which makes me look naked and feels slightly paparazzi-ish.
my cousins rad, arison and lorraine
we all got cleaned up later and enjoyed a BBQ lakeside with a bonfire.
my cousin lorraine and her husband, geoff and my cousin arison and her husband, rad
me and my girl cousins...
elene, lorraine and arison
my cousin elene (bride-to-be) with her mom, my aunt brenda and her older sister, lorraine
at the bonfire: my cousin alison and her auntie lorraine
chris and zach chillin' by the fireside
the next day we went for a walk on a lovely nature trail. the kids loved the boardwalk and exploring of course. trying to get good pics of 8 kids...
brady, hazel (love her socks!), lilie, elsie, zach and clara in stroller, olivia and violet
the wedding.
the venue was beautiful. elene's colors really popped and it was a nice time for everyone. she was absolutely stunning. i was so glad that we could make it to support her and brady in the beginning of their marriage. it was special to be there with our family together.
mr. & mrs. brady steinke
the cakes
cutting the cake
first dance
dancing with her "pa," step-father, mike
dancing with her father, roger
a fun "guest list." everyone signed on the place where they came from to attend the wedding
i love this picture. i think my hubby looks *hot*
cousins: arison, isaac and me
lorraine and geoff
my aunt brenda and unlce mike
my aunt donna, uncle jim and cousin megan
my cousin alden and chris
with alden and ana
my auntie donn-donn
later we went swimming at the beautiful sand point beach. i wish i had taken more pictures here and i could have sworn i did, but we must have been having too much fun.
here's a cute one of rachels' little clara (same age as zach)
after swimming ice cream!
we had so much fun with our friends even though the time was short and we had wedding activities going on. zach and clara made me laugh with their hilarious get-ups. all the kids got along quite well, and if you ask me you could {hardly} tell that there were 8 little children under the age of 9 running around!!! thank you so much nels and rachel for being some of our bestest friends and for letting us stay with you!!!
brady and lilie are the same age as well. they first met on her birthday and his blessing day when he was 5 weeks old! they are so silly together...maybe a cute match someday?!
the only pictures i'm now missing are a group pic of all of the kids in a circle, a group of me, chris, nels and rachel in a circle and then a pic of the four of us all standing...i'll be happy with all the ones i recovered and we'll have to recreate the others the next time we're all together again!
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