Unfortunately for him, I was bored and he was in a five point harness. And I’m not easily dissuaded. Especially when I could tell he wasn’t really too irritated. Just mildly.

I feel like I haven’t been true to myself. Maybe it’s this almost 30 thing. Or that I’ve been squeezing myself into a mold of what I think I’m suppose to act/feel/be like.

I’ve almost finished reading a book that has given validity to thoughts and beliefs that have been swirling around in my head for years now. I’m feeling like I’ve been given permission to question the foundations that my life has been built on. Are they sure? Will they stand under my questions? Are they right? Or have I been living on them just because that’s what everyone around me tells me is right. There is a shifting going on.

My blog has been around for nearly three and a half years now. That’s quite a long stretch of time for this average girl to be broadcasting her average life. And to have anyone take time to read the words!  I love having this place where I can come and write down my family’s every day, every days; a place to put my thoughts, my dreams, my photos. I love to ask you questions and I am thrilled when you share your opinions. I thrive on all of this.

But… the blog feels fluffy.

And I’m not really into fluffy. All the time, anyways. Some fluff is good. I mean, seriously, rice krispies treats are made with fluff and baby, do I love them! But, if all I ate was rice krispies treats, I’d wither up and die. I need real food. Good, healthy, balanced foods.

I don’t really know where to go from here. I hate not having a resolution. I do know that I am going to concentrate on being more true to myself. I’m going to keep asking the tough questions and figure out who I really am.

That’s a good start, I say.

{I do have to stop here and give her some major points. Eliza maintained being potty trained throughout the entire ordeal. And if girlfriend can handle telling me when she has to go to the bathroom whilst her intestines are hatin’… I’m thinking that we are golden on the diaper-free front.}

Judah had been sick a couple of days before Eliza. But he was sick for one evening and then was done with it. Eve never got it. I was sick for three days. Daniel was queasy for one evening. Weird, huh. Weird and very exhausting.

I am usually envious of large families. Until my family is sick. And then I realize sickness traveling through five people is way more than enough for me. I’m not sure that my washing machine could have handled much more. And I know that I was beyond my breaking point. It wasn’t as if I could have laid on my bed all day like I certainly longed to do while I was sick. Nope, mama had to be mama and carry on. That’s life.

Thankfully, today everyone felt back to normal. And it was a gloriously beautiful day… outside too! The kids and I ventured out of the house to visited one of our favorite playgrounds. We had a wonderful time in the fresh, soft, warm breezes. I completely relished not being surrounded by walls; I loved feeling the sun warming my body, listening to my kids play (and fight, of course!).

I took some photos of Eliza enjoying her freedom from the house. I could tell that she was just as happy as I was to be outside. She made sure to bring her full personality along…

Do you see the smirk?

We lovingly call her an old lady. She groans and grunts and acts likes she’s 97 years old. Here she gives you her best grumpy old lady face. She’s absolutely fascinating. And completely addictive.

She happily wore her glasses (”eyes” as she calls them) cocked off to the side. No worries. No cares. It didn’t matter that they left a red dent on her face before Mama realized and fixed ‘em. She’s totally chill.

And she looks great in polka dots.

Hope your day was great and your house is germ-free!!

My new sewing machine:

I’m excited. I think. More scared, to be truthful. I waited like five hours to open the box. It frightened me.

When I bought my first dslr camera, I opened the box and was able to start taking photos. Not good photos, but photos nontheless. With the sewing machine, I opened the box (it was a struggle, man. I think I broke out in a sweat trying to pry the freakin’ machine out of the box!), took the machine out and stared at it. And then I took a photo of it. Because that’s what I do. I think I heard it laugh at me, actually.

I’m not sure what my next step is. Perhaps buying some of the accessories I need? Reading the manual, for sure. Fabric?

Yikes. I’m intimidated. But excited too!

But I was (and the kids too!) more excited to see Daniel come walking through the door. Best part of the day (any day), hands down.

And he brought me flowers. Because he loves me.

Happy weekend to you!!

I know, everyone has their own favorite pancake recipe, and I’m no different. But, in case you want to try out my trusty old standby, here it is:

(I apologize for the uninspiring pancake photo. Totally took it on the fly! Trying to feed everyone and get Daniel out the door, on time, was no small feat.)

Andrea’s Trusty Pancake recipe

(Chocolate chip pancakes today!)

Place in a medium bowl:

3/4 cup milk

2 Tablespoons oil

1 egg

Add in dry ingredients:

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

Mix lightly. Fry over medium heat in a lightly oiled (not butter!) pan. Smother hot pancakes in butter and pure maple syrup (or Aunt Jemima’s, if that’s what floats your boat!). Eat!

I always, always double the recipe. And that feeds my family of five nicely. I also use rice milk which makes the pancakes slightly less fluffy but ridiculously moist. Cow’s milk is perfect, though.

Here’s to many delicious pancake mornings! Enjoy!

It was busy.

It was supremely tasty.

Friday night we ran lots of errands and then Daniel took our family to a local Mexican restaurant. So fun! We ate our dinner while listening to live music. Loved that.

The food was mouth-watering delicious and authentically New Mexican.

We had a wonderful time until Judah melted down in the parking lot. Such is life.

Saturday we headed out to the Palo Duro Canyon near Amarillo. Amazing. Seriously breathtaking. It’s a wild sensation to be driving across the plains, surrounded by enormous fields and stinky cows, and then BOOM. A huge canyon. Red walls, massive rocks… a refreshing change of scenery.

The kids had a fantastic time “trailing.” Daniel and I realized that I don’t do so well with “off-trailing.” I’m not so adventurous, apparently. Along the trail we saw some interesting animal tracks; some that struck large amounts of fear into my heart. Like, the fresh ones that looked like them belonged to a large cat. I got the chills looking at those! Yikes! Good thing Judah brought his “trusty ‘ol gun,” as he fondly calls it.

Daniel explored a cave and took the kids up the side of a cliff. Fun times in the beautiful weather. Unfortunately, because the trail was so low, we lost the sun and warmth fast. Brrr! I couldn’t get back to the truck fast enough. Eliza and I were popsicles! Daniel and I took a second before leaving to take a couple of photos, proof that we were actually at the canyon with our kids. I live with a goof-ball. A mean goof-ball. These photos were right before he stuck his ice-cold hands onto my back!

Since we were so close to Amarillo, and Target (!), we headed into town. Hiking made us very hungry so we stopped at Blue Sky for some burgers. Daniel had heard it was great and indeed, it was! I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of grease.

And the Anaheim chili sticks… awesome!! Wowza. I wanted to lick the bottom of the basket. I refrained. It was touch and go, though.

Sunday, we recuperated.

An awesome weekend! I am so thankful that Daniel is home. Life is so much happier, goofier, tastier, and more adventurous.

P.S. Not so sure about the big photos. I’ve never really cared about them. But, with the (blasted, horrid, I am horrible at making them) blog boards, bigger was better. We’ll see about the bigger photos… I find it annoying to have to scroll down to look at the whole thing.

Such a pretty word picture, isn’t it?

I live in the d.e.s.e.r.t. And my skin hates me right now. I make sure to drink plenty of water, and while that helps, it’s not the end all. My skin needs extra moisturizing. I use a wonderful lotion on my skin from the shoulders down, but my face…. it needs help.

Currently I am using Caudalie on my face. I got it at Sephora. I like that it doesn’t have a strong perfume but I feel like it clogs my pores. And that is no-good.

I wash my skin with Clinque, which sounds really old school, but Daniel and I both love it. First of all, it does a good job. Secondly, it cost like fifteen dollars and it is going to last the two of us probably six more months.

Do you have any suggestions on a facial moisturizer for me? I am feeling a little desperate here…

Thanks ahead of time!!

My funny Valentine
Sweet comic Valentine

You make me smile with my heart

You’re my favorite work of art
Don’t change a hair for me

Not if you care for me
Each day is Valentine’s Day

How was your Valentine’s Day? Do anything special? We didn’t. But it was still sweet ’cause I’m with him.

P.S. Lyrics from the song, My Funny Valentine

The Valentine’s Day tea party was a success.

The girls had a wonderful time from what I surmised.

Eve said it was all she had hoped for.

And I lived.

I deem that a success. Hooray!

I kept the party small and simple. I work better that way. I read a line on someone’s blog this last week and while I can’t remember the exact wording it went along the lines of: sometimes simple is not only good enough, it is the best. I took that to heart.

Five little girls and one big girl were invited. A two hour party. Simple. Good.

I bought little princess crowns at Hobby Lobby and heart shaped bracelets at Target. I set those out for the girls to help themselves to. They played for a bit in the beginning. Mozart wafted through the air while the girls decorated sugar cookies with either pink or white frosting and some sprinkles. Consumed. Chocolate cupcakes with pink frosting, chocolate covered strawberries. Fancy tea cups steaming with red berry tea. Consumed.

They played a bit more while I cleaned up the food.

Little girl imaginations crafted their pretty party favor boxes with glitter and glue and candy hearts, a few stickers and some ribbon.

Inside the boxes went homemade chocolate caramels.

That was that. Simple. A bit magical. And good.

I liked it. We’ll do it again next year.

I want to write. I just don’t have a specific subject to write about, and rattling off without a purpose is a blogging/writing no-no.

But, I’m going to do it anyway… I’m a rebel without a cause. Or something like that.

The kids are doing good; everyone is keeping great spirits even though we have been housebound for couple of weeks now. Between the snow (I KNOW! It’s not normal for here. The town was completely paralyzed for days.) and Daniel taking the truck to work every day, it’s been a challenge for me and the kids. We were use to being on the go-go-go, living in NY, that this new lifestyle has been an adjustment. Not necessarily hard or bad, just a rearranging of my thought process.

School is superb! Eve has been doing well and we are proud of our little first grader. For me, having a dedicated school room is a tremendous blessing. Our time spent schooling each day is much more effective than it was in New York. Eve is learning by leaps and bounds and it is a thrill. Last Thursday we had a pretty tough day (it was all me being tired and grumpy) but my perspective received a face lift after watching a school bus drive by the house during nap time. I realized anew that our days (even the bad ones) are a blessing; we are together – learning, playing, sharing life without interruptions. And I know that having Eve at home and teaching her here is my present calling and even on our worst day I am thankful for homeschooling and all that it brings to my life.

As far as post-deployment goes, it’s been really good. To tell you the truth, I have no idea why we have such an easy time of it. The previous post-deployment was the same thing. There were literally no bumps. I say this not to brag at all. I don’t understand the whys but I am truly thankful for the seamless transition of being apart and now being together. I can tell you that our marriage is a lot different than it was before. Saying “I’m sorry” and extending forgiveness is quicker and easier, we kiss more often, appreciation for each other is much higher… the only thing that we haven’t changed, but that we had discussed while Daniel was deployed, is going on more dates. And that is because we have a babysitter lack. But, I’m working on it!

One last big thing before I hit you with all the small piddley stuff…

One word: Nikon.

Yup. I’m switching from Canon to Nikon. (I’m keeping my Canon, though, once I get her back. ‘Cause I love her deeply.)

I’ve known for a solid year and a half that I wanted to buy a full frame Nikon but it just didn’t make a whole lot of sense financially. I mean, I had a beautiful Canon camera (40D) and great lenses (18-55mm 2.8, 50mm 1.4, 85mm 1.8), why would I do such a dramatic switch? All I can say is, I like Nikon better. I have researched the crap out of both brands and I made my decision. Sometimes I feel nervous and wonder if I am doing the right thing but as a life-long overthinker, it’s typical to have that reaction. I’m going to love my new camera and lenses. We are going to have a beautiful time together. Period.

Now, for the piddley but still matters stuff:

*Daniel’s motorcycle is literally in pieces in the garage. He bought a new muffler and is switching the paint job from bumblebee yellow to sleek and sexy black. Hence, I am truckless.

*Our garage is about to become Crossfit central. So excited for all our equipment to arrive and the blood, sweat, and tears that are sure to quickly follow.

*Still no pictures on the wall. This week they will come.

*Saturday is Eve’s Valentine’s Day tea party. We (I) couldn’t do our 2nd annual Christmas Tea in December so Valentine’s Day it will be. Still working on psyching myself up. It will be FUN. LOTS O’ FUN, right?

*Eliza is still chubby. Oh wait, that’s not a news flash.

And to answer a few questions:

A bunch of you asked about agave syrup… agave syrup is indeed sweeter than sugar. By 1/4 or 1/3 or something. I should look it up because I don’t remember. I use it in all baking – cookies, cakes, ice cream, custard. I use it in tea, coffee, smoothies… everything. I can taste a slight difference but I’m kind of ultra sensitive to taste differences. I use the “raw” agave syrup. It’s darker in color and less processed. I don’t use it exclusively. I still use raw sugar and honey a lot. I just like having an alternative for when I want to give my kids an extra special treat. I feel like it tones down the high and crash of sugary foods.

I am buying a sewing machine. I am. It’s going to have to be online because I live in the middle of the desert, man. Pinto beans we have, sewing machines, we have not. You all gave me the BEST advice and motivation and encouragement and links. I can’t thank you enough. I’ll be asking more questions once I have my machine. Prepare yourself.

And now… a few links to cute, informative, fun new blogs I have found recently:

These hamburger buns and I have a date in my kitchen. I won’t be using King Arthur flour, though. I have tried it many times because I keep thinking it’s a fluke, but to me it tastes rancid.

Kate doesn’t know me. I’ve commented on her cute and fun blog a few times. She and her Air Force husband live in Japan (their base is at the tip top of our dream sheet)… stop by and say hi for me! She’s got a great linky side bar too…

I will be making these “deliciously dandy ding-dongs.” I promise.

I check these two fashion sites every day. The first one is “Uber-Chic for Cheap” and “Stuff Under Twenty.” I love finding a deal. Bet you do too.

I need one of these dresses. Any one will do. I will never have one, though. Too expensive for me. What I love best is that she donates to awesome charities.

And the last one… wouldn’t this fabric be super cute as curtains in my kitchen? I think so!

I’d love to link to more cute, fun, informative blogs. Email me and let me know if you have one or know of one!

Well. Apparently I had a lot to say. You are officially all caught up now.

Bye!