Oops

I finally finished our Christmas cards.  After addressing all the envelopes and writing a newsletter I was exhausted.  Then at the last minute after everything was complete, I reread the letter one more time.  I realized I had wished everyone a "truly wonderful 2014"!!!  Everyone in the family proofread that boring letter and not one of them noticed I had written the wrong year.  Oh well...

Thanksgiving 2012 cont.

Evan, Maria, Leah and Jenn - Papa is on the right.

The feast served buffet style.

I wish we had taken more photos.  Mom and Maria...Do you have any photos?

2012 Thanksgiving

Whoever said, "Getting ready is half the fun" is absolutely correct!  Bob and I had a great time preparing and cooking all of the great food for Thanksgiving.  Our new kitchen really got a workout!

Bob brought back tons of chocolate from Switzerland.

Those tiny squares were filled with rum!

8 of us were in the house early for breakfast.  I made coffee cake from my Grandma's recipe.  Although the ingredients match Grandma's perfectly, I have adapted the method so the dough can be made in the bread machine.  Success every time!

I made two of these coffee cakes and they turned out so well!

 

Thanksgiving business

( I am trying to catch up.  I wrote this little post way before Thanksgiving and was trying to figure out how to attach a picture I had on my phone.  I have conquered the phone/computer picture dilemma and wanted to post this old one anyway. )

It has been great getting ready for Thanksgiving in my home country.  It was easy to find all the ingredients I needed to make our feast.  In contrast, shopping in Belgium for the past four years was always a challenge. 

I am thankful this year to be living in the USA!!

Bob spent the past two weeks in Germany.  It is duck season there and he was lucky enough to enjoy some of the finest food he has ever had.  He sent me this picture.

My table is set.  I am so proud of it!  I hope our guests feel welcome and eventually full.

 

Rant and Rave Tuesday #1

Since this is my blog and I can write whatever I want, I have decided that Tuesdays will be the day I get to complain, rant, rave, get on my soapbox, be bossy or just whine.  So my first Rant and Rave Tuesday installment is about the restaurant Olive Garden.

I have noticed commercials on tv for Olive Garden advertising two meals for $12.95, one meal for today and one meal for tomorrow.  Here it is:

I just think this is ridiculous.  I love to go out to eat but paying to eat my next meal out of Styrofoam just sound gross.  For a family of four, those two meals for today and tomorrow, not including drinks or tip, would be $51.80. (With drinks and tip would probably be $70.) 

Today I went to Kroger just to see what I would spend if I were going to make 2 Italian style meals.

Meal 1- Chicken Alfredo, salad, soup and ice cream
Chicken 3lb. - 5.31, Ragu Alfredo sauce 2 jars - 3.53, pasta - 1.38, salad with dressing, avocado and lettuce - $4, veggie soup for 2 days $2.25, ice cream $2.49 = $18.96
Meal 2 - Spaghetti with meatballs, salad, soup and garlic bread
Beef for meatballs - $2.79, pasta - $1.38, sauce - $1.77, salad $4, soup $2.25, bread - $1.78 = $13.97

That brings both meals to a total of $32.93.  I will even give another $5 for spices, an onion, butter, etc, just in case, bringing the grand total to $37.93.  I believe my 2nd meal includes things that Olive Garden does not provide like soup and salad.

I really wouldn't make pasta two nights in a row for my family so don't thing these two meals are common at my house.  The kids like variety and Bob really doesn't like pasta that much.  But I am confident we could create 2 excellent non-Olive Garden meals for $37.93 easily.

Bottom line:  I would rather cook 2 of my own meals for half the price than go to Olive Garden and overpay.

Working Girl

This week I was lucky enough to work Monday through Friday.  I am a teacher and I can't ever remember a day when I didn't like my chosen profession.  I have NEVER said, "I hate my job."  Working with kids gives me so much fulfillment.  They want to learn and share and grow.

I was teaching 2nd grade in the same classroom all week at the school where I used to teach.  I was next door to an old friend and ate lunch each day with some of my old teammates.  It was great!

One of the highlights of the week was the Veterens Day celebration this afternoon.  Any Veteren or active military personel with a child/grandchild/niece/nephew/etc at the school was invited to a very special ceremony.  The school choir say God Bless America and 2 other patriotic selections.  The Veterens were asked to stand while their branch of the military was called and then they paraded across the stage with their school age child and introduced themselves. It was very special. I remember Bob's dad even got to come to this celebration years ago when the girls were in elementary shcool.This annual event has always been a favorite with all the kids and teachers. If you click on the link below, you will see a report from 2006 when the mayor visited my classroom on Vet's Day!  (The funny thing is I didn't even know that picture existed until I googled "Sugar Grove Vets Day Greenwood"!)

http://www.greenwood.in.gov/egov/docs/1163538115648.htm

 

And now...The finished Kitchen!

Here it is!!  Our kitchen is done.  I still have to figure out how to cover the windows and our new table won't be finished for 12 more weeks, but really it is done.  We just love it!



Isn't that tv cool in the end of the island?

The chair area faces the tv in the island and is where the screened porch used to be.





This picture is a little dark but shows the cool lighting in the island and side cabinets.

This is the old desk!  It still holds desk-like stuff in the drawers.  They have dividers.

What do you think?

Kitchen- Photo Group #3- Construction

The pictures today of the kitchen show the transformation of the space.  This is probably a little boring but when you see the final result you will be shocked.  This work took place during the summer of 2011.  This gave us the opportunity to finish the space with tile, paint, cabinets and appliances slowly over the next 8 months.  We set up a makeshift kitchen in the dining room.  We had a gas grill in the garage, a fridge, microwave, electric skillet and griddle.  Of course we lived in Belgium during this time but did come home at Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring Break and and then for good in July.

There is the wall between the kitchen and screened porch ready to to come down.  The porch has already  been closed in on the west wall.

Combining the two rooms.

Those big spaces in the wall will be windows.

New Kitchen window over the sink.

The new space it really big!

Look at all those lights!  Bob's brother is an electrician.

This is LEAH.  She and Jenn helped a lot but Leah made herself a tool belt to really get into the construction.  She is quite crafty!

Kitchen - Picture Group #2 - the demolition

This is the 2nd installment of pictures of our kitchen remodel.  This project started in 2007.  Bob finished an attic space above our kitchen and made it into a bedroom for Maria with a bathroom, walkin closet, bay window and even a closet built just for shoes.  At that same time Bob started the plan for the kitchen.  But then we moved to Belgium and the project was put on hold until 2011 when we started the project again knowing that we would come back to the US in 2012.

These are the doors leading out to the old screened in porch.  That is Bob standing out on the sub floor that will eventually be part of the kitchen.  Those doors were kept and are now located in the exact same position but just at the edge of the sub floor where Bob is standing.

Here is the old screened porch.  Have I already said how much I loved that part of our house?  The brick columns are really the only things left from the old structure.  A new crawl space was dug out.  There is also a door to the right of the picture leading into the family room.

Here is the heart of the old kitchen without cabinets.  Take note of the window.  In the new kitchen it is in the same place but it is much taller.  If you look closely above the window you can see that Bob thought ahead and put in something he refers to as a "header" above the old window when he raised the ceiling.



I added this picture too even though it was taken before the ones up above it.  I wanted to show the beautiful wood floor which Bob and his brother layed in 1999.  It felt odd taking it up  but there was no way to keep it with the addition of space to the overall kitchen.

 Tomorrow's picture will be of the construction.

Kitchen - Group #1 - The Beginning

Over the next few days I want to show the transformation of our kitchen.  This is group #1 which means you are seeing the kitchen as it was.  Built in 1991, our house was quite typical of the style of houses in our neighborhood.  The ceiling was originally 8ft just in the kitchen because the original owners wanted it to be "cozy".  We also had a 4x6ft ceiling light which dropped down another 6" over the island.  It felt very closed in.  At the time these pictures were taken, Bob had already raised the ceiling another 12" into an attic area on the 2nd floor.  (That attic space became Maria's room, but that is another story.)



 

This is the desk.  It was fun for about 10 years but then it just became the catch all for every homeless item in the house.  You know what I mean..."I don't know where to put this so I will just stuff it over by the desk."  The cabinets were filled with everything from advent candles to liqueur to bills. That middle drawer held at least 100 pencils, pens and markers, half of which didn't work. It also held 7, yes 7, scissors.

To the right of the desk was the refrigerator, microwave and oven.  Massive.  The refrigerator never worked well. The freezer door didn't shut all the way unless you smoothed out the gasket with a spatula and fridge froze every head of lettuce that stayed in there longer than 10 hours.

This is the island obviously.  It had a cooktop with a grill which I never used, not even once.  On the other side were 2 burners.  That is correct, 2 burners.  I have no idea how I cooked with just 2 burners for all those years.  When we moved to Belgium and I had 5 burners, I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  It was great!!!

This is basically the kitchen on its way to being demolished!  I remember when my friend Jennifer and I hung that border.  Actually, she hung the border and I watched.  I remember how expensive that border was.  It was from Longaberger and had matching chair pads, placemats and napkins.  Sooo 90"s.  That wall to right will eventually disappear.  On the other side of it is/was our screened in porch.

And here are the doors leading out to the screened in porch.  We loved that porch with its wonderful breeze flowing through it even in the summer.  We used it all the time.  I will really miss it but what we got in return was much better.

One more picture. 

Tomorrow will be the next picture in the series leading up to the finished kitchen.  In case you were wondering, these pictures where taken in the spring of 2011.  Since we were living in Belgium at the time, we could let the project take as long as we wanted.

Commitment to Blog

You have no idea how much guilt I carry when I don't post on this blog!  I have a Facebook account so I tend to put quick pics on there instead of blogging.  I really don't like Facebook very much.  Right now it is filled with political comments and status updates from the same people everyday.  I don't write more than a sentence on Facebook which is quite depressing since I LOVE writing my thoughts on this blog.

Since we returned to the US, I really didn't think I had done anything that seemed exciting enough to write about.  Hmmm.  I was wrong.  Here are the things that have happened since my last blog post on Sept. 11...

• I have had 3 mammograms, 2 biopsies and a lumpectomy.  All is fine, thank goodness.  Going through a breast cancer scare in October when everything is pink and awareness is highlighted at every turn, is not ideal.
• Maria was on TV practically every weekend with her sideline work with the Purdue football team.  She is a Trainer and wants to be a physical therapist.  It is so cool to see her heading toward her goal.
• We have been to 3 Purdue football games and watched them lose A LOT!! My hopes of following the team (and Maria) to a bowl game in a warm location on New Year's is slowly slipping away.
• Leah and Jenn have adjusted well to their new high school.  They are so lucky to go through new things as a team.  They walk into a new situation as a pair with an automatic best friend.  Lucky girls.  They have learned that every school has a "mean girl", maybe even more than one.  I hate when another kid makes my kids cry.  I hope my kids are never the one who makes anyone else cry.  On a positive note, their grades are excellent.
• Leah and Jenn are playing with the New World Youth Orchestra in Indy. Leah just found out she is 1st chair Bassist. Jenn is 2nd chair, 2nd stand.
• Bob got to stay home for much of the time when I was going through my tests and surgery.  That was nice.  He is now back on the fast track of traveling to places near (Chicago) and far (South America and Zurich).
• Bob and I got to travel to the Ryder Cup in Chicago.  We had a great time watching the US let their lead slip away.  This was probably the last Ryder Cup we will go to since the next one will be back in Europe 2 years from now.  We are slightly interested in going to more golf matches closer to home.
• We got a Pool!!!
• We got a new deck!!!
• We finished the kitchen remodel!!!
• We got a new HVAC system!!!
• We have no money left and will be eating peanut butter sandwiches for dinner for the next 3 years.  Just kidding.  We have saved the entire time we were in Europe and Bob has worked really hard.

Well that's what we have been up to.  I guess we have done some pretty exciting things since moving back to the US!

 

Here is a typical day...

I know that everyone is like this and if you aren't I want to grow up and be more organized like you!

Read on...

First I made a list of all the things I wanted to accomplish today.
5:45am - I started off by putting in a load of laundry.  I also folded the load in the dryer. 

Halfway through folding, one of the girls asked if I had seen her lunch card.  I had just found it inside the dryer so I brought it out to the foyer to set by her backpack.

I noticed a burned out lightbulb on the stair lights so I went to the basement to get a new bulb.

While in the basement I emptied out the dehumidifier and whiped up the dribbles of water I spilled along the way.

I went upstairs to finish folding. I forgot about the light bulb because I got distracted by the water! Upon entering the kitchen I realized it was now 6:00am and I needed to get breakfast going.  I filled the coffee pot and laid out some food that the girls could eat now or take with them in the car.  When I opened the drawer where I keep the ziplock bags, I remembered that I needed bags and parchment paper so I put them on my grocery list.

My grocery list was still in the family room where I had left it the night before so I went in there, found the list and tidied up the room.

Being closer to my bedroom, I decided to also tidy that up, find my shoes and get prepared to be out in public driving the girls to school.

By this time the coffee maker had finished warming up and had produced a fine cup of coffee.  I entered the kitchen at the same time as the girls.  We all grabbed our stuff; coffee, breakfast, school bags, instruments, cash, purse, etc and headed out the door to go to school.

6:30am - As we passed the laundry room on our way out, I realized that load of clean clothes from the dryer was still not folded.

This is why I get nothing done!!!

Celebrating our arrival back in the USA!

 

After our travels in Europe and the UK this past summer we finally moved back to the USA!  We spent the 4th of July at an Indianapolis Indians baseball game, watched fireworks and cooked out in 102 temperatures.  The weather didn't matter.  We were just happy to be back.

 

Then we decided to see some of the beauty the United States has to offer.  Bob had to be in Las Vegas for business so we tagged along.  I think we only have a few pictures of Vegas but we did have a good time.  Nana and Papa came along too.  The girls went on a date with Papa to see Circ du Sole.  I have a cute picture of them which I will have to post later.

 

The Grand Canyon is so close to Las Vegas so we rented a car and spent a long weekend viewing the entire area including Hoover Dam and Grand Canyon National Park.  It was a wonderful experience and I am so glad all 5 of us got to see it together. 

 

This is us after a very hard 5 mile hike.  We started at sunrise from the El Tovar Lodge and walked along the rim of the Canyon.  The national park has really provided a beautiful area for the public to view this natural wonder.

Mom Dad and Maria

Jennifer Maria and Leah

 We were also lucky enough to view the Grand Canyon from a helicopter.

 

Just a few of the wild animals we saw in the Grand Canyon

Oporto, Portugal

 

 

 

 

After we went to London this summer, we went back to Belgium and checked out of our lease and said goodbye to our home of 4 years.  Then...it was off to Oporto, Portugal!  It was beautiful.  If given the opportunity I would get on a plane and go back right now.  We loved it.



The path we took from our hotel to the Douro
River.

We took a boat ride to get a lay of the land.

Those tiny little people by the door are the twins standing in front of the Bell Tower.



That white building is the bookstore where JK Rowling wrote parts of Harry Potter.

The bookstore at street level.

The staircase inside spired JK Rowling to write about the interior of Hogwarts.

It was hot in Porto but the ice cream was cold.

Many interior and exterior walls were entirely tiled.

We walked across the very top of this bridge.

We visited many port wine caves.

We bought a few bottles and tested every variety!