chasing away the winter blahs...

*the phone is on the fritz*
*rick received a jury duty notice in the mail*
*the builder is not going to fix the draft in sofia's room*

Okay, so it's the end of January. I need to "get away" from these everyday annoyances. I'm tired of the winter, already. Hope that groundhog doesn't see his shadow.

Since I am not the world traveller, I'm off to the "sunshine" in my kitchen. This is what we had last night for dinner:



I got the recipe from my new best friend -- Giada. Of course, she doesn't know that she is my new best friend -- but nonetheless, she is. Why? Because she has recipes that are easy, quick to make, and, my family actually gives me compliments on the food! Here is the link for this recipe -- Chicken Saltimbocca I didn't add the spinach -- Rick turned his nose up at it. We ate this with caesar salad and pasta (shells) with butter/cheese. As I was preparing the chicken, some pieces turned out to be too small to roll, so I fried those with panko (japanese breadcrumbs) for Sofia.

The most time consuming part of this meal was the chicken preparation. So, if you're not into the chicken cutting and flattening thing -- just buy the thin sliced chicken cutlets at the supermarket.

it's too noisy here...

There was alot of traffic here earlier this morning -- and -- noise. At the time these pictures were taken, we could not imagine how "crowded" it would be here after all the homes were built.

Looking south towards "front" of house

Looking east towards driveway

I do not like the noise. And I liked it better when I could look out my front window and not see...

THEM!

All of those houses were built during the 3 years we are living here (this picture was taken this morning) -- and I haven't even painted my bathroom yet. Maybe I need some of whatever those workers eat for breakfast!

hmmm...needs something...

Sofia carefully cleaned Great-Grandma's espresso set. It turned out so pretty -- and is a bit delicate -- so it is now displayed on top of the kitchen cabinets (until we get an "official" display cabinet). I explained to Sofia that this is very old -- and a family treasure -- not for everyday "play". I needed a reason to use it (this is totally self-justification) -- and, to take it out so Miss Sofia and I can have a "special" snack time.



Here is my reason!



This is a late Christmas present to myself. Hopefully it does the job right! I got it at Wal-mart yesterday for -- $34.99! :-)

We need more of...

these!

So, we can have more of...

this!

These are only some of Sofia's art supplies. As she was putting them into this Grandpa Larry (a.k.a. Larry Love) box, she remarked that if she didn't have so many art supplies then her art area would not be so messy.

Pause to scratch head. Okay, so does that mean I don't have to buy her any more art supplies? Or, does that mean that she doesn't want to be responsible for putting away the art supplies that she has already?

Pause head scratching as Sofia yells this from next room -- "Hey, Mom. Can I have the bigger box from Grandpa Larry now? I have more stuff to put away."

Pause to scratch head again. I can already see the next question coming at me. It goes something like this... Hey, Mom. I put all my art stuff away. Can we go to Michael's so I can get some stuff for my next art project.

Pause head scratching. Sigh...

running in circles...

January is proving to truly be the beginning -- but it won't let me finish anything! Everything I want to do seems to come with a roadblock attached to it. Okay, now that I understand that (I only realized it at this very moment while I was typing venting) I can flow with it. I guess it's a good thing, because I am actively working on a few things that have found their way to my "new" list (a.k.a. the list you see in the background picture) Among these are: Paint the master bathroom (this is entirely "Martha's" fault -- and who made her the boss of colors anyway?), Replace light fixture for the bathroom (this is because the home supply store does not carry the perfect light fixture), Finish painting Nicholas' room (throw blame to the color red for this), Hang new curtains (the curtains shown in the picture for this post "do not speak to him")...

Can you see the lightbulb blinking over my head? These are not "new" things for me -- I am actively finishing projects that have been in limbo.

So, if I stay on track -- I can close the circle for each of the projects I mentioned. Maybe I'll let one of the kids take a picture of me jumping up and down and clapping when this happens!

I was feeling overwhelmed (again) and all I had to do was stop and take a deep breath. Ahh, I feel recharged! Thanks for lending an ear eyeball. :-)

now...

I'm...



Fourteen!



For a Tuesday in January, it was a good birthday. The sun was shining. We ate homemade shrimp parmigiana for dinner. We had ice cream cupcakes from Coldstone Creamery. We spent time together. Nicholas officially turned 14 -- 14 minutes ago! Happy Birthday to you!

where am I...

Can't you see me? Way UP there waving...I have the seat over the wing...

Just kidding... I am so overwhelmed and disorganized this Monday morning -- I think if I just start moving I will be fine. Isn't January supposed to be the month when you can stop and catch your breath a bit? It is never that way for me. I keep running and then somehow I skid into February.

Okay, I think the coffee is kicking in. Time for me to decide what kind of birthday cake I want to put some love and hugs into for Nicholas. I like the way warm homemade brownies topped with Coldstone creamery ice cream sounds.

What do you think? :-)