House Update and Hayden Update

First our house update…GOOD NEWS!  We were able to get closed on our construction loan today so construction can begin!  I will update with pictures at the end of the week.  You will be shocked at how different it will look from the last update! 

Hayden update…Mother’s intuition got the best of me today.  Hayden just was not really getting much better with his cold.  Runny nose, grumpy, whiney, not the greatest appetite, only happy outside or if you were chasing him around the couch, waking up during the night, and getting more of a cough.  So, finally I decided at lunch time today, I probably should try to get him check out just to make sure there wasn’t something more to it.  If you remember we had this same exact thing while we were on vacation in Gulf Shores.  We took him to the doctor  in GS and they said it was just a summer cold that took forever to get over!  But, I decided to bite the bullet, call to get an appointment, and go wait our turn at the doctor today.  After an hour and a half wait corralling a very busy 16 month old in a waiting room full of sick kiddos and germs, we were seen.  Sure enough…he was beginning to get an ear infection in his right ear.  He is also getting a new tooth on his right side as well.  Poor baby!  I always struggle with the teething/ear infection dilemma and what might be wrong.  I am so glad I went with my mommy instincts today!  Pink bubble gum antibiotics here we come!

Our Saturday

Today was a good day!  Jeff woke up at 4:45 AM to go with his brother, Matt, to their golf tournament.  They played with some guys from Jeff’s work. I think there were about 20 teams total. The golf tournament benefited a Christian Children’s Home in New Mexico.  The grandfather of a guy that Jeff works with founded the home.  They played at the Cowboys Golf Course in Grapevine.  Sounds like it was a pretty awesome course.  Jeff and Matt’s team ended up 7 under par.  Sounds pretty good to me!  They didn’t hang around to see how they came out in the tournament.  The best thing, I got an awesome  t-shirt out of the deal!

Hayden slept till about 7:45 this morning.  YEA HAYDEN!  I took him over to spend some time with his Nana and Papa.  I met Cindy at Good Samaritan and we both found a couple of things.  I got Hayden a little ball sorter toy and a bag full cookie cutters for $2.  Kind of an expensive trip today.  :-)  Then, we headed to Canton to Laurie Anna’s Vintage Shoppe.  So overwhelmingly unbelievable!  She is such a talented designer!  After Laurie Anna’s we went to an antique mall, another home decor store, and then to Goodwill.    We ate lunch at Rod’s BBQ Shack close to Dog Town in Canton.  It was really good!  I think they had the best pinto beans I have ever tasted! Their BBQ sauce was so good too!  We even splurged for dessert.  I had strawberry cake and Cindy had strawberry cheesecake. Yum! Our last stop was Paul Michael. 

Here is a peek at what I found…

I got the burlap bird pictures, roll of burlap “ribbon”, monogrammed hand towel, the hooks, and the chalkboard sign at Laurie Anna’s.  I love those hooks!  I think I am going to put them in our new entryway cabinet similar to this one that I am having made to match our other furniture.  We can each have our own little cubby! 

I got the awesome antique scale, the two bigger plates, and the old jar from the antique mall.  I got the top white plate for $1.50 at Goodwill!  I am so excited about the plate wall I am going to do!  I really love it when I find cool plates for such a good deal! 

I also got this sign at Laurie Anna’s today. I am so in love with it.  I just love everything that it has to say!  

Jen, we missed you today!  Wish you could have been with us!!

What a week!

Whew!  What a week!  Our week has been kind of an “off” week and has been busy, busy!

Monday, we spent most of the day at home after Robin’s senior parade. I honestly can’t even remember what else we did on Monday.  :-)

Tuesday, we took the dogs to the groomer , I ran to Canton to pick up some cabinet samples, and we made a couple of Wal-Mart trips. 

Hayden got this horrible looking whelp on this back.  He kept scratching it uncontrollably.  We still aren’t exactly sure what the cause was.  He did have an ant in his diaper (around this area) on Sunday.  So sad!  But, this didn’t start happening until Monday night.  Tuesday morning it looked so bad!  I was so torn on whether I should take him in or not.  I didn’t know if he might have an allergy to something that bit him or if something worse than an ant bite. I thought the way it spread/ made an oval was kind of strange.   Anyway, we were using Benadryl cream for the itching but that really wasn’t making the swelling go down.  I finally got some Hydrocortisone cream and it started improving.  Thank goodness!!  He still has a little bit of a rash there, but it looks so much better.  He got an ant bite previously on his foot and it swelled up quite a bit too.  What do ya’ll think?  Do you think it could be an allergy?

Wednesday, Mom, Hayden, and I went to Greenville to get Mom’s chemo shot.  Then we ran to Rockwall to look at appliances for Mom.  She ended up ordering a new side by side fridge, upright deep freeze, and a dishwasher from North Texas Appliance.  We ate at Joe Willy’s for lunch.  Then, ran to Hobby Lobby, Kohls, Bath and Body Works, Ross, TJ Maxx, and Cosco.  We definitely made a day of it!

Thursday, Hayden and I took Mom to her eye doctor appointment and we ran to B G Home Decorating to talk to the lady there about our countertops.  I think we are getting close to finalizing that decision.  :-)  Then, we went back to pick up Mom.  Mom found out that she has the beginnings of cataracts.  So, she ended up not getting new glasses because the doctor couldn’t ever get her to have 20/20 vision as he changed the lenses out.   Poor Momma!  One more thing to worry about!   After that, we went to the VF Outlet.  Mom and I both found a few things there.  After lunch at Juan Pablos, we ran to Lowes so I could pick up some Valspar antiquing glaze for my furniture projects.  I haven’t ever used it before, but thought I might give it a try.  Last but not least, another trip to Wal-Mart! 

Then, last night Dad came home from my brother’s house with his eye really bothering him.  It continued to get worse and got to the point where it took his breath away to close it.  I made a trip to the store to get him some drops and we tried to see if there was anything in there, but couldn’t see anything. He had rubbed his hands on milkweed and we thought maybe a piece of that was in there.  Anyway, I ended up taking him to the ER late last night.  Surprisingly, we didn’t have to wait too long.  They numbed it, put some dye in it, and looked at it with a black light.  They couldn’t find anything either.  We almost wished that they would have found something so we would have known what was causing the pain.  They sent him home with a prescription for antibiotic drops and some pain medication.  It was starting to hurt pretty bad again by the time we got home.  Luckily, he was able to get some rest.  It was swollen and still a bit irritated, but did feel better this morning. 

Hayden has also been in kind of a funk with his sleeping the past week or so.  He has been waking  up quite early in the mornings (like between 4:45 AM and 5:45 AM) no matter what time he goes to bed.  Sometimes, we can get him to go back to sleep.  Sometimes, not so much!  He has even been waking some throughout the night as well.  Wednesday night he was up 3 different times.  Since that night he has had a runny nose and a little cold. Now we all have it!  Gotta love those summer colds!  UHG!!

Today, we have not done much of anything!  Thank goodness!  None of us really felt like doing much between just being exhausted and not feeling well.  I did work on my furniture projects this morning while Hayden and Jeff took a nap.  I got a coat of Kilz on my Good Samaritan chest of drawers and the Jenny Lind bed that was my grandparents.

I am so excited about tomorrow and Sunday.  Tomorrow, Jeff is playing in a charity golf tournament and Hayden is going to spend some time with his Nana.  I am going with Cindy to Laurie Anna’s Vintage Home grand opening in Canton.  Have you local gals ever been to her store?  I have only been there once and it is so awesome!  Her new store is going to be so much bigger and better!  Of course, we will make a stop at Good Samaritan to look for any good deals before we go! 

Sunday, I am going to the Divine Consign sale in Plano.  I have never been and I am looking forward to the adventure!  I am particularly looking for Hayden a new stroller since our Chicco stroller burned.  Something  in between umbrella stroller (which he is too big for already) and our jogging stroller.  Basically a lightweight umbrella type stroller with a basket and drink holder.  :-) 

I will let ya’ll know if we find any goodies tomorrow or Sunday!  We are hoping to actually get started on our house next week.  We are finally scheduled (LONG story!) to close on our loan on Tuesday!  Keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer that everything goes as planned!

Hope you have a good weekend!

In the life of a senior…

It’s official.  Robin is a senior!  Mom and I got up bright (actually still dark) and early this morning so we could go to Robin’s senior breakfast and watch the senior “parade” to school.

They had a breakfast at our church this morning at 6:30 AM.  I think it is the responsibility of the junior class to feed them.  They had donuts, pigs in a blanket, fruit, etc.

  After breakfast, they go “tag” each other’s cars.

Robin’s truck…

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A few of Robin’s friends.  My cousin’s daughter, Morgan, is on the left.

Then, the parade to school.  We thought they would have a  police escort, be honking their horns, all be together in a line to school, etc.  But, it really didn’t turn out that way for some reason.  I guess lots of traffic on the first day of school might have had something to do with that!  Nonetheless, I think they enjoyed it!

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Robin, I hope you have a great year!  Keep your head held high, work hard, don’t get involved in all the petty drama, and make the most of it!  We are so proud of you and the leader you have become!   We love you so much!

Hayden and the scooter…

Hayden’s new favorite thing is to sit on his Nanny’s scooter. 

I take that back, he really LOVES to go for rides. 

But, if he can’t go for a ride, he likes to kick back and relax on it…

Play with the buttons, climb on in, etc.  See that cup in the basket?  He loves to put his things in the basket too.

It’s the little things in life (like staying outside all day or climbing on the scooter or rolling around on the bed) that make this boy happy!

House Update 8-15-10

Over the past two weeks, we have gotten a new roof!   Not too much going on right now.  Still waiting on the bank.  To say we are anxious would be an understatement!

Oh yes, and we got these beautiful new roof vents.  Aren’t they nice and LARGE?  We did not have roof vents before and it seems that was a big mistake. 

We spent Friday afternoon looking at more countertop options, tile and carpet options, etc.  Hoping these next round of bids will be a little more encouraging! 

I just have to say, the bid process is so time consuming and is such a pain!  Dealing with the insurance company on our inventory replacement is such a pain too!  Did you know that even though you have replacement cost insurance, they depreciate everything you own and only after you replace those items, submit your receipts along with a ton of other paperwork, will they give you all your money for those items?  I thank God that I am not working!  I am not even close to being finished with submitting our inventory sheets. God obviously knows what is in our future and knows that me staying home is/was the best thing for us!  We have been through so much in the past year and a half.  I can’t imagine having a full time job away from the home, having a new baby, being a mom and wife, having a sick Momma, building a new home (TWICE), and dealing with the insurance company.  Praise the Lord that we listened to what God was telling us was best! 

Maybe next time, I will have some EXCITING news to share!  :-)

All my teacher/education buddies…I am thinking about you!!  I hope you have a great first day back tomorrow.  Enjoy each other this week, get motivated, and learn a lot too!  Stay positive, smile, build relationships, and make a difference!  I hope you have a super year!

Thankful

We were so thankful for the rain yesterday.  Even if it only lasted for about 10 minutes, it “cooled” down to 89 degrees and we took advantage of it!  The humidity was like 150% and I was sweating like crazy!  Hayden was so happy to be outside and was loving all the puddles!

Such a little boy!  Getting muddy and all!

 

Check out these curls!

 

We don’t want to be greedy, but a little more rain and some cooler temperatures would be GREAT!  I don’t know about ya’ll, but I am so ready for FALL!

Thursday Fun

We had such a fun day today!  This morning we had a playdate with Payton and Grace and Parker!  Hayden had such a fun time playing with the girls and ALL Payton’s toys!!  Of course, I think his favorite things were all the different balls!  Hayden thought Payton’s cozy coupe car was pretty cool too!  Santa might need to bring Hayden one of these for Christmas!

Sweet sisters…Grace and Parker.

They did a lot of playing…

And a lot of reading…

And Hayden did a lot of loving on Grace.  He LOVED Grace!

When we first got there…

Marla had to practically peel him off of her when we were all getting ready to leave.  He kept wanting to kiss and hug her and climb on top of her.  Oh my!  Grace was such was such a trooper and just took it all in!  Not sure if it was love at first sight or he thought she was a baby doll or maybe it was both.  :-)

We enjoyed our time together so much!  Kristin, thank you for having us over!  We hope to do it again soon!  Hayden was WORN OUT when we left!!  We had to run to a couple of errands and Hayden fell asleep in the buggy at Hobby Lobby!  Poor baby!  Gotta love playdates!!

Yummy Beef Enchiladas

As promised, here is the recipe for our favorite beef enchiladas.  I originally found this recipe here on Kelly’s Korner Recipe Blog about a year ago.  I have made a few different ways and I feel like Sunday they tasted the best ever!!

So, here is the recipe from Sunday’s beef enchiladas:

1 lb of hamburger meat

3/4 small yellow onion chopped (I use the rest for my guacamole)

One-half of small green bell pepper chopped (optional-I have also used green chilies)

One small can of chopped olives

One can of cream of mushroom soup

One can of GREEN enchilada sauce (You can use two if you like them to be REALLY saucy!)

One 8 oz bag of Shredded Mexican Cheese

One small package of corn tortillas (You can also use flour-but corn are less soggy and taste better to me!)

Brown the meat with the chopped onion and bell pepper.  Once that is done, remove from heat and mix in can of chopped olives.   Add 1/4 to 1/3 of can of cream of mushroom soup to your meat mixture.  Fill each corn tortilla with meat mixture and sprinkle with cheese ( I like a lot of cheese!) then roll up.  You might want to lightly spray your glass pan before adding the enchiladas.  Add leftover meat mixture to the top of the enchiladas.  Mix green enchilada sauce with the rest of the cream of mushroom soup and pour on top.  Make sure the entire top is covered with sauce (otherwise the tortillas tend to dry out).  Top with remaining cheese.    Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes until bubbly!  I serve it with mexican rice, refried beans, and homemade guacamole.  Delicious!! 

These are GREAT leftover too! 

PS…I don’t typically like olives plain, on pizza, salad, etc.  But, I love these enchiladas!

My recipe for guacamole:

2 avocados

2 small roma tomatoes chopped

1/4 of yellow onion chopped

Jalapeno or Green Bell Pepper (just a personal preference if you want either of these)

Cilantro (to taste)

Garlic salt and pepper (to taste)

Squeezed lime

I love me some guacamole!  Do you do anything different when you make it??

Ok, let me know if you try the enchiladas and if you liked them!!

Refurbishing scorched dishes!

I had been dreading this project of trying to clean up my Granny and Grandmother’s dishes that were in the attic at the time of the fire.  Not sure why I was dreading it.  Standing at the sink for hours?  Scared of the outcome?  Nasty, smelly job?  But, I decided I needed to get it done so I started Saturday and finished last night.  I had three sets to do.  The restoration company had already done some of it and had had pretty good luck with it.  But, they stopped when they couldn’t get them clean and we didn’t want to pay them to scrub our dishes. 

I tackled my Granny’s dishes first.  The before…

The after…

This set definitely cleaned up the best and the easiest.  I put Dawn, Baking Soda, and White Vinegar in the sink and let the dishes soak for a while then scrubbed them with a SOS pad and a non-scratch Scotch pad.  A lot of this set has a crackly pattern in it now like this…

 

But, I think it just gives it character!  :-) 

But, a lot of them look like this…

I am so happy!!  Aunt Barbara or Aunt Mary Helen…do you know anything about these dishes?  Where they came from?  There is no information or brand name on them.

Then, I worked on my grandmother’s dishes.  I really had two different sets that looked very similar.  Part of it goes with a set that Mom has.

The before…See that lid on the right?

Check it out now…

These were a little harder to get clean!

But, here is how they turned out…

Here’s my advice for this post.  If you are storing dishes somewhere and want to do what you can to protect them in case of a fire, wrap them in bubble wrap in a cardboard box.  Some of my granny’s dishes were wrapped in bubble wrap.  Yes, some of the bubble wrap was totally gone!  And, although it was a pain to get the bubble wrap off, it really helped save those dishes.  I think the ones with newspaper around them just fueled the fire! 

Another tidbit…If you are like me, I put most of my things in totes that I store.  I did and probably still will.  But, with that being said…the things that were in cardboard in the attic were much better off.  The plastic totes melted to whatever was in there and those items were not salvageable at all. 

Ok, enough on that!  Next post…yummy enchilada recipe! 

Weekend Wrap-Up

Whew!  We had a busy weekend!  How about you?  Time has come to start all over on getting information, prices, bids, etc. on everything for our house.  I guess our weekends for the next couple of months will be consumed by this project! 

Friday, Jeff, Hayden, and I took at trip to Tyler to go to a supply company to get prices for our tubs and toliets.  :-)  Then, we went to Furniture Row to look at living room furniture.  We did not find anything there that interested us.   The exciting news is that we were able to order our dining room table and chairs, our bedroom furniture, and some furniture for Hayden’s room at Canton last week.  We are so excited to see how they turn out!  Lunch at Mercardo’s  (Like Posado’s)!  SOOOO YUMMY!  Then, to Counterscapes.  We spent quite  a while there looking at all the options for our countertops, vanities, and for our shower.  We made a few selections so we can get bids and see what will fit into our budget.  We are hoping to get quartz for our countertops.  L-O-V-E it! The best part about Counterscapes is they had a ton of toys for Hayden to play with!  Awesome huh?   Then, a trip to Gander Mountain was in store!  Looked at safes for a while. Found one we really liked (FIREPROOF of course!) but we are still thinking on it!  Jeff looked at guns, but no luck.  Last stop in Tyler-Kohls!  We actually both found new tennis shoes and socks.  YIPEE!   I got some Reebok SimplyTones. I am anxious to see if it makes a difference toning my backside.  Ha!  Then, we had a birthday get together/cook-out at Jeff’s parents’ house to celebrate the 6 of us that have July/August birthdays.  We had one tired boy after a long day out and about! 

I think Hayden likes his Daddy’s new shoes! 

 

Saturday morning I got up and went to Good Samaritan (our local thrift store)!  It is only open on Saturday mornings.  Ya’ll…you can get some GOOD stuff there for so CHEAP!  I am hesitant to tell you what I got because you might want to go and get all the good stuff before I do!  ;-)  Check out what I got…

A Little People Farmhouse for 50 CENTS!!  He already has most of the animals that go with it that I had already gotten at GS.  I have been eyeing these at Target for $40.  50 cents is so much better that 40 dollars!!!!!!!!!  I also got him a set of awesome blocks for 50 cents.

This side table for $1.50.  This will go great in our living room…after I do a little magic!

This ladder shelf for $10.

And finally, the best thing…this dresser for $10!  It is in such great shape!  It will look great in our extra room…after I do a little more magic! 

I am so in love with the feet on it.  :-)

 

Then, Saturday afternoon we took a trip to Rockwall.  First stop, North Texas Appliance.  We went in there to look mainly at refrigerators and dual fuel ranges.  We spent longer in there than we expected, but we ended up buying our new washer and dryer.  We got an AWESOME deal!    Want to do a little more research before we decided on the fridge and range.  Then, to a flooring store to look at options for our shower.  Dinner at Johnny Carinos.  Bass Pro was next!  Jeff had his eye on a gun they had on sale.  So, he was a happy new gun owner when we left.  Hayden was in heaven looking at all the wildlife and fish in there!  We even got to see a few of our friends in there too!  Great to see you Bo, Rhonda, and Dee!  Last stop…Culvers for some yummy custard!

Not sure he is real excited about another shopping trip!  But isn’t that hat cute?

Honestly, Hayden really did GREAT Friday and Saturday.  He went with the flow, the in and out, and was very patient! 

Today, all I wanted was to STAY HOME and do nothing!  Well, we pretty much did stay home except for a quick grocery store run and it was so nice! I think we all needed some time at home and I am praying for forgiveness for skipping church!  The do nothing part…well that didn’t so much happen!  Hayden decided to wake up a little 5 this morning.   He took an early morning nap and we all took one this afternoon.  I spent most of my free time today doing laundry and cleaning scorched dishes.  Remember these?

I am pleased with how they turned out.  I am saving the details for another post.  This one is already long!  :-)

Then, tonight I actually cooked dinner.  I made one of Jeff’s favorites!  Enchiladas.  They are so easy and so yummy!  I will share the recipe in another post too. 

 

Can you tell I am getting tired?   5 AM was a long time ago!  I have formed a really bad habit of staying up until midnight or after pretty much every night.  

Hope you had a great weekend.  We accomplished a lot this weekend and I feel really good about it!

PS…we miss you Nanny, Granddaddy, and Auntie Robin!  Hope you are having a great trip!