Birthday Wishes

I've been trying to decide if I feel like blogging today and I really don't... :) But I do want to wish my amazing brother, Elliot, a Happy Birthday. There are 7 years and two sisters between us but I love spending time with him! This year will be awesome for him as he marries his fiancee, Ashley, in October! We both will have gotten married at the ripe old age of 22...which is still older than our parents who married at age 21. :) Anyway...I couldn't ask for a better big little brother! Oh and he most certainly will not like this picture. :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELLIOT!

I HOPE IT'S A WONDERFUL DAY!

Dishes

Rocks in My Dryer is hosting a Spur-Of-The-Minute Dish Carnival! And since I love dishes and have been singularly uninteresting and uninspired lately, I thought I would participate (please forgive the photos - I am NOT a good photographer). Anyway, I had to stop buying dishes because we were running out of places to store them - that's how much I love them and have a hard time resisting when I find good deals. I have 12 place setting of Snowman Christmas dishes that will not appear because they are already packed away in the scary recesses of a closet. So, without further ado, I give you...our dishes...

These are our everyday dishes. They are navy blue on the outside and light blue on the inside. My parents and grandparents gave them to me for my birthday a couple of years ago. They are Asian inspired and I love them!

This is our wedding china. We have about 19 place settings and I use it regularly. I (gasp) wash them in the dishwasher and have never had any problems. We have many serving pieces as well as salad and dessert plates and saucers. When we selected our china, we tried to choose something that we thought we would use; it's also the most place settings we have and I'm from a big family so family dinners often include many people!

This is my other set of china. I fell in love with it at an antique store and it was a GREAT deal! I haven't used them as much as I would like because they are not very easy to get out. One of these days, I'll have a better storage system (or more cabinet space) that will accomodate all the dishes.

We have a couple of other plate sets like these - I purchased them for $1 or less for the whole stack. I love the earthy colors and the pottery appearance. They were a steal and we've used them a lot!




So as you can tell, I enjoy dishes. I've learned a lot about the presentation of food over the years and I think sometimes (maybe often) the right dish is instrumental in food appearance! Sometimes I serve plates before they go to the table but more often than not, we do family style. I use serving dishes all the time - my mom always did and I guess it rubbed off - in a good way. :) Hope you enjoyed the dish tour. I have many other single dishes that could merit a spot but I'll spare you. Have a wonderful day!

Sometimes & Always

Sometimes.
Sometimes life is overwhelming.
Sometimes feelings of discontent creap in.
Sometimes life isn't fair.
Sometimes I struggle with feelings of entitlement.
Sometimes I want people to understand.
Sometimes I need time alone.
Sometimes I need friends.
Sometimes life doesn't go according to my plans.
Sometimes I just don't understand.
Sometimes I want things to be different.
Always God is faithful.
Always.

Thankful

I'm so thankful and relieved to report that today was a MUCH better day! I actually can't believe how much better it was! The boys played so well and had so much fun pretending and laughing together. It brought joy to my heart to hear them. Both of their speech therapy sessions went well which was also a huge blessing - Calvin has not been very interested in participating lately.

Andrew is working late tonight, so the boys and I decided to do a picnic on the floor upstairs. I made calzones instead of my regular menu plan (I'll probably just move the enchiladas to Friday) and we watched Toy Story. We had a great time! They are really at such a fun, interactive stage. You can check out what's new with them on their blog.

Favorite Things

It's been awhile since I've written about the boys current favorite things (here and here) and I like to record it so I will remember...

Calvin's Favorite Things:

Snack - Any kind of bar (granola, cereal etc.)
Animals - Dogs & tigers
Foods - Applesauce, cookies, chocolate (the latter two are not allowed very often but that doesn't stop him from asking!)
Movie - Cars, Ratatouille, and Monster's Inc.
TV Program - Curious George
Song - Head & Shoulders, Knees, & Toes
Books - Officer Buckle and Gloria
Color - Blue
Characters - Mack Truck, Lightening McQueen, Monster's Inc. characters (according to him)
Indoor Activities - Train Table, forts under the tables, coloring
Toys - Cars, Trucks, Planes, and Trains & puzzles

Calvin is still working on potty training but is getting there. He loves letters and numbers and is constantly pointing them out and identifying the ones he knows. He blesses us with his spontaneous 'I love yous' and has even been adding names at the end. He is very affectionate and still likes to be rocked and held. He enjoys his friends and loves to hang out with Mommy.

Patrick's Favorite Things:

Snack - Dried Fruit
Animals - Dog, Elephant, Dinosaur, Giraffe, & Turtle
Foods - Fries with ketchup, chocolate
Movie - Cars
TV Program - Clifford
Song - Head & Shouldres, Knees & Toys
Book - Cars book
Color - Blue
Characters - Cars characters - he know them all
Indoor Activities - Reading Cars book, train table, forts
Toys - All transportation toys but especially the Cars ones

Patrick is growing like a weed and eating us out house and home. :) He is not very interested in potty training lately but we are still working on it. He talks all the time and we love having conversations with him. He is a big helper - always willing to unload the dishwasher, put away coats and shoes, or let Pippi out. He has been so loving towards all of us and always wants to account for the whereabouts of everyone in our family.

Innocence

The wonderful children whom I love and who are resonsible for all the hair pulling...don't they look so innocent? :) They certainly pretend to be. :) Today is fresh and we are staying home. I was blessed with some great restful sleep last night and I'm as ready as you can be for whatever the day may bring. :)

Parenting Woes

The boys are in bed thus ending Day 2 of very tough parenting. I'm exhausted! This isn't the first time I've written about a challenging day but it seems to come in spurts. Even at our delightful play date with Catherine and her kids, both of my boys were quite disobedient at times. They have willfully defied us, been extremely unkind to one another, and completely ignored the basic rules that they have known for quite awhile. I'm not sure I can take another day of it. I'm praying for rest and renewed patience. As we prayed with the boys this evening before bed, we prayed for obedience to us and kindness towards one another.

Tomorrow is a new day...I'm so glad.

Miscellaneous Things

For the first time in my life, I have had some heartburn. I had it last night and I've had it some today. My husband has suffered with if for a few years and I've felt bad but now I can truly empathize. It's awful - hopefully mine will go away and stay away.

We test drove an Odyssey Friday night and LOVED it - well, as much as you can love a minivan. We aren't quite ready to purchase a new vehicle but we are in the number crunching and investigative stage. We recognize that a larger vehicle is a necessary purchase if God has a 3rd baby planned for our family.

This week is a week of celebration in our family - 1 yr. of marriage for my sister and brother-in-law, my brother's 22nd birthday, and our 6th anniversary (the 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively). My poor brother had to spend his 16th and 21st birthdays celebrating marriages instead. :) Oh well, I don't think it scarred him too seriously! :)

The boys are keeping busy. We enjoyed a tantalizing breath of spring yesterday. Today is wet and rainy. We are all ready for warm weather! I can't wait to get outside and plant flowers, vegetables, and herbs. The boys love playing outside with all their fun toys. And I'm also ready to grill out and eat lots of yummy salads and fruit. Come spring, come!

MPM: 3/3-3/9

Last week went almost entirely as planned! The only big change is that I made a teriyaki roast instead of stew today. I did my shopping for the week yesterday - mostly fresh fruits and vegetables. We are working to more effectively budget so I will be working a lot from my pantry this week. :) I made a new sauce last week but I wasn't totally happy with it (needs more seasoning) so I think I'll wait to post the recipe until it's perfected a bit more!

MONDAY: Sweet & Sour Chicken, Brown Rice, Wontons (the filling is from this recipe)
TUESDAY: Black Bean Enchiladas, Chips & Salsa, Corn
WEDNESDAY: Ravioli w/sausage & mushroom filling (made with wonton wrappers), Peas
THURSDAY: Tomato Gorgonzola Soup, Tuna Sandwiches
FRIDAY: Pizza, Grapes, Carrot Sticks, Chips or Pretzels, Cookies (Movie Night!)
SATURDAY: Dinner out for our 6th anniversary!
SUNDAY: Eggs, Bacon or Sausage, Toast, Yogurt, Fruit

The ravioli will be my original recipe - I'll let you know if it turns out! Monday and Thursday are new recipes from allrecipes.com. Tuesday and Friday are old standbys. :) Sunday is usually brunch for us. Orgjunkie has many more menu plans! What are you having this week?