March 20, 2012

Outside Temp: 40 F (A little chilly this morning, but mostly in the 30's most of the day)

What I cooked today:
Walnut Chicken: I've needed to go into town for ground beef for the last week.  I have 1 package left, so I used up the last of my chicken tonight.  Ugh, that means I don't have any chicken either.  I knew I should have picked up chicken 2 weeks ago when chicken was on sale.  Anyway, the family liked the dinner and it all got eaten up.  It seems that whenever I make Chinese chicken, with fried rice, everyone eats it all.  Perhaps I should learn something from that.  But, it will get very, very old fast if I made it every night!

Update:
With all the snow yesterday, we were unable to get our car out of the driveway, to get the kids to the post office to get the bus.  So, we got up a few minutes early, and walked.  Two blocks.  To catch the bus.

Now, I know, 2 blocks doesn't sound like much.  But I'd like to point out that a few of the drifts were over 2 feet high.  (not that we were trudging through that for 2 blocks, but it was about 200 feet.) And Katie is only 4ft 4 (or so).  So, we walked in a line, with Allen being the lead and finding all the really big holes.  Me in second, holding Katie's hand.  There were a few places where she barely could get her leg out of the hole and into the next.  Connor took the last position, so he could help Katie if she fell.

Amazingly, it only took us about 10 minutes to get there. 

The best part was that as I was walking home, after making sure they got safely on the bus, I heard the snow plow start up.  Typical. 

Patrick and I spent about a 1/2 hour shoveling our drive this afternoon, so that I could get the car out to get Ryan into school.  Then, a neighbor came by and plowed the rest of our driveway for us!  So cool!

We dropped Ryan off, and headed into Stanford, so I could get my TB test (required to substitute teach).  We spent about an hour chatting with the nurse there, as I should have expected.  It seems that the people here are so nice, that we (especially Patrick) can't help but chat, for hours!

On the way back, there were about 3 cars in the ditch, from running off the road.  And, of course, the jack-knifed big rig... all in a 15 mile stretch between the school and Stanford.  Fortunately, I love our snow tires and we didn't have any problems.

Once we got home, Grandpa stopped by to pick up the kids for sledding.  There were some complaints that the snow was too icy, but fun just the same.  One of the drifts was quite high, and the kids dug out a section, then added an ice cave.  Too fun!



Katie, hanging out in the ice cave.



 The drifts were taller than Ryan!  

 Awesome brother Connor, always helping out! 

Not bad for a Tuesday. 

December 7, 2011

Outside Temp: 16 F (the snow has stopped, for now.)

What I cooked today:
Patrick's Tomato Soup Stuff: He offered to cook tonight, which is just great.  I had a bit of a headache, so it was really, really nice to not have to cook dinner.  Of course, the dishes didn't get done, so I'll have to do them tomorrow morning.  :)

Update:
The snow came in today, as we were sledding, which was awesome.  It was about 25 and the snow started in flurries, so you could see different shapes and formations when it landed on your hand or something.  So pretty!  The snow stopped after a few hours, and I think it won't be back until around Sunday.  I just hope it stays cool enough to keep it from melting, or else the kids will be ticked that they can't go sledding!

We talked with the people in Geyser about our snow tires for the van.  We realized that as awesome as the snow tires are on the Aveo, we really can't legally fit all 6 of us in it.  We need snow tires on the van.  There was no snow on the main highway roads, but the roads in town were a little snowy, and the van kind of slid around.  It was time.  So, the tires have been ordered and we should get them sometime next week.

The guys at the place we are getting the tires have 2 really cute kittens.  Ryan kept chasing them around the garage.  I really, really wanted to bring them home with us, but we are trying to be strong.  It didn't help when Lance said we could take them... :)

The kids brought home a flyer about a bake sale at the school.  They are raising money for the Great Falls Women's Shelter at the YWCA, which I thought was kind of cool.  Each class is donating baked goods on a different day, and all the money raised is going to the shelter.  Of course, that means I need to make cookies, or brownies or cupcakes 3 times in the next week and a half.  Fortunately, I have everything I need already here, so it shouldn't be a problem.  I just need to remember to actually do it!

December 6, 2011

Outside Temp: 37 F

What I cooked today:
Burgers and Mashed Potatoes: I'm still working on my ground beef recipes, and I've noticed that a lot of them require something that I don't have.  I hate that.  So, I went back to my old standby for tonight.  I should have enough recipes set aside soon so I can go to the store and make sure I have everything I need.  I think that's the secret to cooking dinner each night: planning and making sure you have everything you need ahead of time!

Pumpkin Bread: So, my sweet bread recipe calls for 7 1/2 cups of flour.  My pumpkin bread calls for 4 3/4 cups of flour.  I should have known there was a problem when I used my glass bowl for the flour and it was almost overflowing.  Needless to say, I used way too much flour for my pumpkin bread.  Ugh.  I still cooked it, but it turned out really dry.  I was tempted to toss it, but I was convinced that someone might eat it.  After all, if you put enough butter on it, anything can taste good.  :)

Update:
It was in the 40's today, which just felt hot.  Okay, not hot, but not cold either.  But tomorrow night, we should have snow again, so I think this is just how it works around here.  One day it will be below 0, and the next it will be 40. 

We have gotten into the routine (in the last 2 days) of going up to the parents for sledding after school.  The only problem is that we get there around 4pm, and the sun starts going down around 4:30.  So, after about an hour, the sun is down and it's dark.  I'm looking forward to December 21st (for probably the first time in my life).

The kids were worried that their snow would melt, but I promised that there should be more snow tomorrow night, so they're okay.  We will probably be taking them up skiing on Saturday, so hopefully, I'll have some pictures.  Of course, I haven't been on skis in years, and the last time, it was not pretty.  I'm not sure if Ryan can do skis yet, so we'll have to see how things go. 

Patrick and I have been (slowly) sealing the windows with plastic.  We did Ryan and Katie's Rooms yesterday, and it really seemed to make a difference.  We still have the boys bedroom and one window in our bedroom to finish, but I think it's helping keep the cold out.  Of course, it was pretty warm last night, so we'll have to see if it helps when it gets really cold.  I'm sure it won't hurt!

December 5, 2011

Outside Temp: 26 F (it was beautiful today!)

What I cooked today:
Chicken Noodle Soup: I was able to use up some of my chicken stock today, which was great because the kids were cold from sledding. 

Update:
We brought Ryan up to the grandparents before AND after school to go sledding.  He is so spoiled!  Apparently, he was great in class today, which I figure is directly related to the amount of snow time he had before school. 

After school, everyone got to go up and sled for about an hour before dinner.  It was a great way to end the day.  The sun was setting, to a beautiful sunset, and I had a rough time getting Katie and Connor back inside... they wanted to stay for 'one more run'. 

We also got the final, final, final documents on the house in California.  It closed last week and we are finally done with it.  Woo Hoo!  I still think my favorite part is that I don't have to pay HOA fees anymore! 

December 3, 2011

Outside Temp: 26 F (not snowing, but there is still plenty of snow on the ground)

What I cooked today:
French Toast: I made french toast for breakfast and added some egg nog, instead of just milk.  Everyone seemed to like it, although Allen and Katie said they liked my regular french toast better.  I guess I'll be making 2 batches of french toast for a while, at least until Christmas season is over, and I can no longer get egg nog in the store.

Patrick's Tomato Soup Stuff:  He called it Taco soup, but it barely has any taco seasoning, so I just can't call it that.  It's tomatoes with celery, carrots, onions and green peppers, with browned hamburger.  Then he adds Chili Powder, cumin and some taco seasoning.  Everyone ate it up and it was great after a chilly day of sledding.  And most importantly, I didn't have to cook it!  Woo Hoo, it's like a day off!

Update:
We went sledding today at the parents house.  Everyone had a great time, even though I still need to learn how to take good pictures.  Somehow, I managed to forget to take a picture of Allen, but I promise he was there... I'll be sure to get at least 1 good picture of each child next time!