Flea Market

                                              E trying to keep warm


I was up at 5:30 to get ready for the flea market.  I got E up at 6am and off we went.  M and I packed the truck the night before.  But how funny am I--I forgot to get small bills to make change.  So we went to D & D and paid separately and asked for small bills for our change.  Then we went to a mini market, got gum, and asked for small bills for our change.  My Dad was there and he helped us unload.  We had baby clothes and toys, high chairs, an exersaucer, bath tub and an easy bake oven.  By 10:30 am we had sold most of our stuff.  I would say it was pretty successful.  I was happy that I separated the clothes by month and season.  The only thing I would do next time is bring tables (I had the clothes in boxes and the toys on a blanket) and dress warmer!  lol  E hid in the truck for a little bit trying to get warm.  It was about 38 degrees when we arrived.  She did very well with making change.  I did have to talk her down on some of the prices.  I told we don't want to bring anything home with us.  My Mom came later to visit us.  There was a lot of people there--both vendors and buyers.  I am so glad we cleaned out our house.  We are going to be repainting it soon and decluttering will be a big help.

New shoes

I am finally taking the boys for new sneakers today.  A little overdue.  We were supposed to go last month.  E is off today so she will be my helper.  Which is a good thing because Squeakers cries, well, screams really.  It's quite the ordeal.
We finished painting E's room.  She picked a nice lilac for three walls and a darker purple for an accent wall.  I painted all her trim white.  It looks so clean. She likes it and is excited to decorate.  We have to look for new bedding and accessories.  Because she looooves to accessories!  lol

Gymnastics

Today was E's first day of gymnastics.  She did awesome!!!  She smiled the whole time :-)  It made me feel so good to see her so happy.  She really needs this boost of self esteem and self confidence.  She did the uneven bars, beam and floor. 
I don't know what our plans are for today.  It's supposed to rain off and on all day.  I wanted to take the kids to the covered bridge festival but not with this unpredictable weather.
M is painting and spackling E's room.  I will post pictures when he is done.
Alrighty off to find something for lunch.

Happy Friday

Yay for the weekend and no homework!!  I feel like we can't do anything during the week because E always has homework and at least 2 tests everyday.  I know I didn't have this much work in 4th grade.
We emptied out E's room and are repainting it tomorrow.  She picked out two lilac colors.  One wall will be a darker color for an accent wall.  Her room was the first to be painted in our house.  We picked out a bubble gum pink color.  We thought it was so dark!  We have learned not to be afraid of color.  Hence the dark chocolate living room walls, mossy green in the hallways and a darker grey/blue color for the addition.  And now we are going to repaint the whole house.  So many knicks and marks on the walls.  As my husband says, O the joys of ownership.

Rain, it's what we do here

Rain all day today!!  Oh, well.  My flowers and grass will be green and luscious :-)
Waiting to hear from E's soccer coach if she has practice tonight.  Our routine is drop her off and then head to the dike to walk two miles with the boys.  But with the rain it might be cancelled.
I am thinking about becoming a morning person so I could work out.  (insert laugh by my husband.  he knows how much I don't do mornings)  I am usually up early (E starts school at 7:45 am  Huge change from last year's 8:45).  Plus I don't sleep that well anyway.  I want to change my weight, get toned and have more energy for the day.  I have nice clothes that I want to fit into and I want to get rid of the twin belly/IF weight. I've got to get my mojo back.
Anyone work out in the am?  How do you do it?
The cornbread turned out great!!  Everyone liked it.  I did add a 1/4 cup of sugar.  Next time instead of using cupcake wrappers I am going to spray my muffin pan and pour the batter right in.  I do not know why I used the cupcake wrappers.  The muffins stuck right to the paper.

Rainy day

It is raining here again.  That's ok.  We could use the rain.  I cleaned out the boys' closet and put away clothes.  Their clothes  are usually in my bedroom in a clothes basket.  I put away clothes when they are sleeping.  And I won't go into their room because I don't want to wake them up.  I am getting rid of so much stuff.  E is going to sell all the stuff we don't want at the flea market.  We don't have room to keep stuff we don't use or need anyway.  Plus I feel more relaxed when things are orgazined.
Have you discovered Pinterest?  What a good time!! Tons of ideas for getting organized, meals, diy projects, kids, dogs, clothes, make up, make your own W.index, etc.  I have pinned tons of ideas now I just have to actually do them!
Yesterday's corn bread didn't turn out that great.  It was very dry and didn't have the usual yummy taste.  I'm going to try The Pioneer Woman's corn bread for our leftover gumbo.  I have made some of her recipes in the past and have had good luck with them.

Recipe: Skillet Cornbread

Prep Time: 5 Minutes  |  Cook Time: 20 Minutes  |  Difficulty: Easy  |  Servings: 12

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Ingredients

• 1 cup Yellow Cornmeal
• 1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 1 cup Buttermilk
• 1/2 cup Milk
• 1 whole Egg
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/4 cup Shortening
• 2 Tablespoons Shortening

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Combine cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Stir together.
Measure the buttermilk and milk in a measuring cup and add the egg. Stir together with a fork. Add the baking soda and stir.
Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir with a fork until combined.
In a small bowl, melt 1/4 shortening. Slowly add melted shortening to the batter, stirring until just combined. In an iron skillet, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons shortening over medium heat. Pour the batter into the hot skillet. Spread to even out the surface. (Batter should sizzle.)
Cook on stovetop for 1 minute, then bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
Edges should be crispy!

Gumbo and cornbread

It is pouring here today.  It does have benefits (besides watering the trees, flowers and grass):  I put away all of the boys's clothes, did all the laundry, straightened up E's room, and I'm going to get started on Zac Brown's cornbread which we will eat with our gumbo.  I loooove cornbread.  And it's made with bacon drippings.  Oh, yes, healthy eating today!! lol