Ten on Tuesday

1.  My parents' house sold in less than a week!  For full asking price!  They are just beside themselves with joy that it happened so quick!

2.  Rich has a rocket launch out of Cape Canaveral next month and since the boys have a random Friday off of school at the same time, we decided we all might as well go to Florida!  We haven't been since my sister's wedding almost 2 years ago and I'll get one last chance to visit my childhood home.  

3.  I'm going to be an Aunt! My sister and her husband are expecting their first baby in August and to say we are super excited would be a major understatement!

4.  Rub-a-dub-dub 5 boys in the tub. . .

 

Some friends from Montana came for a visit to Los Angeles for the long weekend, bringing along their 3 handsome boys.  The older boys are almost the exact same ages as Hayden and Benjamin and they really enjoy playing together!  They stayed with us for 2 nights, then headed out to stay at Disneyland for a few more nights before they head back to snowy Montana tomorrow.

5.  Since we knew they were coming, we arranged for a perfect SoCal weekend for them -- a glorious 70+ degree day with sunshine and bright blue sky!  We rustled up some extra bike trailers and did what every other Angelenos does on a day like that -- head to the beach!  Not to leave them too jealous of us when they head back to Montana, we had to show them that L.A. winters can be chilly, too.  Today, it was windy and just slightly above 50 degrees.  I may have lost my Montana heartiness, but I swear that 50 degrees in SoCal feels MUCH colder than it did in Montana.  I'm sure it was perfect for them at Disney, though.  Those "cold" temps drive away the crowds of locals, who instead bundle up in sweaters and ugg boots and huddle in Starbucks with their non-fat-soy-decaf-venti-lattes to stay warm. 

6.  I had my first real "celebrity" siting on Monday.  We joined our visiting friends at Disney California Adventure for the day and as I was waiting in line for a Fast Pass, a face I new walked past and got behind me in line.  It was Meri from the TLC show, Sister Wives, which is a reality/documentary show that follows the lives of a family of modern-day polygamists.  There are 4 wives in the family and 16 kids, and they've been on my t.v. for 3 seasons now.  Since it follows their everyday lives, I feel like I know them. It was surreal, because I wanted to say hi and start a conversation with her, like she was a friend, but I knew she's never seen me before in her life.  She was on her phone, so I didn't want to bother her, but I would have totally said hello and been friendly if she wasn't on her phone.  I didn't want to seem stalker-ish but just comment that I've enjoyed watching her family.  I never got the chance, but I did manage to sneak a quick picture of her, which I know seems totally stalker-ish.  At least I could be discrete with my iphone :-)  

I saw 5 of the kids walk by, but never anyone else from the family.  And there was no camera crew with them, in case you were wondering!

  

7. In the midst of our holiday weekend, we had a visitor all the way from Australia!  We had never met before and the last time Rich saw him was probably 25 years ago!  But, I've been hearing about him and his family pretty much since I met Rich.  When she was in high school, Rich's mom spent 1 year living abroad in Australia with Cam's mom's family.  Then Cam's mom spent a year living with Rich's mom's family.  They've kept in touch since then (gosh - must be close to 45 years!), meeting for vacations and following their kids growing up.  Cam was in the States for a couple of weeks of skiing and had a free evening before flying out of LAX to head home, so we had him over for dinner and enjoyed some fun and fascinating conversation (I could listen to an Aussie accent for days!).  I've now added Australia to my list of must-visit places.  

It's nothing fancy, but I had to snap at least one quick photo for their moms to enjoy!  :-)

8.  The Whole Living detox is coming along, but with a weekend trip to Santa Barbara and friends in town I haven't been 100% faithful to it.  My main goal was to reduce the amount of processed foods and wheat-based grains that I eat and find ways to easily and tastily incorporate more veggies into my day.  And to that, I have been faithful.  One of our favorite recipes so far is this Cauliflower "Rice" Stir Fry.  You use cauliflower as the "rice" and it was amazing!  (You'll see "cleansing broth" on the ingredient list -- it's basically a homemade veggie stock, which was simple to make but you can also just buy a can of it at the store for an easy shortcut.) 

9.  One night last week, my heart nearly burst out of my chest it was filled with so much joy. . . Hayden read a bedtime story to me rather than the other way around.  He's been able to read for a while, but he still prefers it when we read the stories.  He specifically picked out See Me Run because he wanted to read it to me.   

10.  I have a crush on Phillip Phillips.  He's the winner of last season's American Idol.  On the show he was simply adorable. . . humble, nice, cute and a good kid.  And, he could sing.  When I heard he had released his first album, I was eager to check out it out and after sampling all the tracks for a few seconds giddily purchased it.  My first and only iTunes album purchase!  And I've been playing it constantly for weeks!  He has his own unique style -- folksy, rock, a bit of country.  It's reminiscent of Dave Mathews and Mumford & Sons, but he's definitely his own.  The video for the newest song to be released from the album (Gone Gone Gone) just came out and I bet you'll be humming along before the end!

Wednesday Eight

1.  Hayden's latest favorite phrase, "No way, Jose!"

2.  Friday is the 100th day of school, so Hayden's homework this week has been all about 100.  There was a list of sentences that he had to finish and the first set went like this:

I wish I had 100 dollars.
But I'd never want 100 of my little brother.

3.  I found this homemade granola bar recipe and am giving it a shot tonight.  In my mid-prep taste tests, I give it 2 thumbs up!  Hopefully the kids will love them, too. Source: http://www.wholeliving.com/130434/nonuttin-chewy-chocolate-chip-granola-bars?czone=eat-well/healthy-lunches/school-lunches

Ingredients:

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 3/4 cups gluten-free quick-cooking oatmeal
• 1 1/4 cups gluten-free crisp-rice cereal
• 1/2 cup mini gluten-free semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup lightly packed light-brown sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup honey

Directions:

Spray an 8-by-8-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray; line baking sheet with parchment paper, leaving a 1-inch overhang on all sides. Set aside.

Place oatmeal and rice cereal in a large bowl; stir to combine. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, mix together brown sugar, oil, and honey. Place over medium-high heat; bring to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add to oatmeal mixture; stir until oatmeal mixture is fully coated and well combined.

Evenly pour oatmeal mixture into prepared baking dish; sprinkle with chocolate chips. When mixture is cool enough to touch, press down into pan. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into 16 (1-by-4-inch) bars. Granola bars can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week, and frozen up to six months.

4.  I think we eat pretty healthy around here, but I'm always looking for ways to incorporate more fruits and veggies into our diet.  I end up reaching for quick snacks and with just a little planning, I know I could do better.  I was at Whole Foods the other day and a magazine caught my attention at the checkout.  It had a 21-day action plan to whole eating, with a meal plan and recipes.  The gorgeous food photography sealed the deal and I added it to my order.  When I got home, I realized that Whole Living magazine is a division of Martha Stewart Living.  So I'm not surprised at how well-organized it all was.  So, I'm giving it a go and jumping in!  You can find all the recipes here:  http://www.wholeliving.com/216880/2013-whole-living-action-plan

5.  I love how often I notice one of my kids singing a little tune.  Just off by themselves, playing, doing a chore, whatever. . . they seem to be in song.  We had been listening to a Top 40 radio station in the car a bit so I often overhear Hayden singing, "You don't know oh oh, you don't know you're beau-ti-ful!"  

6.  After being on radio for a while, we've managed to get back to a kid-music phase with Raffi.  I considered it a small victory when we ditched the kid songs, but Raffi is a pleasant change of pace.  And I love that we're all belting out his folk lyrics as we cruise around town.

7.  If you're looking for some good television, look no further than Sherlock.  It's a British mini-series with six 90-minute episodes, so it will keep you busy for a few nights at least.  I just read they are starting production on 3 more episodes next month.  Yay!  We've been watching it through Amazon Prime, but you might find it on Hulu or Netflix, too.

8.  If you're looking for a house in Orlando, do I have something great for you!  After living there for 27 years, my parents have decided to sell!  It's the house we moved into when I was in 2nd grade.  They are staying in central Florida, but moving about an hour away to a great retirement community.  It's a great move for them, but seeing the house listed is a little bittersweet. . .
http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3012-Harbour-Landing-Way_Casselberry_FL_32707_M59374-47504
If you do buy it, you have to promise to let me come visit every few years and check in on my old room ;-)


Happy Wednesday! 

      

Out for a ride!

Such a weird weather weekend -- mostly gray, damp and cool.  With the glorious exception of a few hours on Sunday afternoon.  Glorious enough to pull out the T-Bird, in fact.

With no babysitter, I wasn't able to go cruisin' with my honey, but he did take his second best girl for a little drive. . .

Maggie loves rides in the T-Bird!  And when they got back, Benjamin wanted a turn, too. . .

Next time we get some sunshine like this, we're hiring a babysitter for a few hours!