Cream of Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

I found this recipe online (not sure how I stumbled upon it) but thought it sounded good and liked even better that it didn't have a bunch of dairy in it to make it "creamy" (Chris can't eat much dairy). It's listed as a healthy twist on Wild Rice soups (we have plenty of those non-healthy versions in our recipe box too!) and it helps you use up the turkey that is cluttering up your fridge right now.

I, of course, added my signature white wine while cooking the veggies (the 1 Tbsp of olive oil simply didn't look like enough!) and we all thought it was PERFECT-O!! I used a dryer white wine we discovered on Friday ~ the legendary black box refrigerator wine :~) I had read on a blog somewhere (I know ~ shocking) that the person swore by their Black Box wine. So, we decided we had a $20 burning a hole in our pocket and it's not bad! We got the white, but I don't recall what variety it is ~ Chardonnay? Anyway, Chris said it tastes just like the Kendall Jackson Chardonnay they always drink when the Japanese are over here. Not too shabby ~ our box wine is equivalent to 4 bottles of wine and if you can find it on sale, the KJ sells for $13 or so a bottle.

Getting back to the recipe, Chris and I love mushrooms, so we just got a package of sliced shrooms and used the whole thing ~ didn't measure. Then to our delight we learn that the boys now, too, like mushrooms!! Proof that if you keep serving them in what you are cooking, they will get over complaining and will acquire a taste for them!!

Cream of Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

A quick rundown

All last week Brayton was sick with a cold and home from school (they only had Monday, Tuesday and an early out on Wednesday) and if Thanksgiving would not have been in there, I think he'd have missed the whole week of school!  He finally started feeling better Saturday afternoon and Sunday he told us all day about how good he felt!  Tuesday at school, they had earned a popcorn party for their DEAR time (Drop Everything And Read).  I promised him his own special DEAR time and I read with him.  We popped marshmallow popcorn and he had juice on a blanket in the living room (note the dog watching and waiting for a piece).  On Wednesday Chris and I had to drag Bray along with us to get groceries for Thanksgiving and since he felt so badly, we took two carts and he rode in one.  He fell asleep while we were grocery shopping (poor thing!) ~ we did treat him to ice cream at Culver's though (which he promptly told his brother about when he got home from school!!)

 Thursday we had Thanksgiving at home.  I got a lot of Christmas shopping done online and I LOVE that!!  They had Black Friday deals on most websites on Thursday and lots of free shipping.  Friday we decided to decorate our tree and put out Christmas decorations.  I looked like hell, so of course, Chris took pictures of us!

 SEE?!  I have Olive hair ~ you know, the girl from Popeye??

Saturday, we decided to watch the Polar Express and Chris wanted to bring the surround sound speakers upstairs to make it really exciting.  I was cleaning up from supper and had thought at one time that I should check and see where he was because he'd been MIA for awhile.  Well. . .  He was getting the box with the electrical stuff down so he could run some speaker wire so it would really be "surrounding" us and the ladder tipped.  This is the scene in the garage.  The blue, empty tote at the bottom is the one that had the electrical stuff in it.

 Here is all of the electrical goods spilled all over the garage floor.

 Sorry, I had corrected this one before uploading it, but it turned it on the side again.  The empty space on the shelf between the blue and orange totes is where the electrical tote was stored.  As it fell, Chris let go of it and tried to catch himself ~ he landed on a bike and the saw.  Doesn't feel so good!

Our movie was great with the surround sound though, so he might have thought it was worth it :D  In fact, I made him turn it down because I was afraid things were going to start falling off the walls and off the shelves!

This Monday, Taite was home sick from school.  He had a headache and was talking about seeing blue dots ~ UH OH!!  I gave him ibuprofen and sudafed because he had dark circles under his eyes and had him lay on a heating pad because his headache was on the left back side of his head!  He felt well enough to go to school today and they had a basketball game tonight.  I really should get a picture of the coach and his helper :~)  Bray is the stats helper for Chris and his only complaint (Brayton's) is that he doesn't know what all the motions mean for penalties.  After the 6:30 game, Taite was starving so we stopped at HyVee since he has to take birthday treats to school tomorrow.  As we were checking out, the cashier made a joke that since I used a credit card, I needed to "sign my life away" and I told her I was signing away my first born :~)  She quickly assured us that she would take him in a heartbeat and then here is the weird part.  She asks us "Does he like trains?"  We all stared at her like she suddenly grew horns and started talking gibberish.  The word "like" for how Taite feels about trains is not even close to being accurate!  She wrote down some information for us:
Mapleton
Dec 19
#10 Tower
Noon - 4:00

Then she proceeds to tell us what this is.  On December 19th, her husband's friend who collects Lionel trains is having an open house so people can come for free to see his 3000 square foot basement which is laid out with a million dollars (or millions of dollars ~ I don't remember exactly) worth of model trains running. 

WHAT?! 

Taite is already in heaven and counting down the days ~ hey ~ since his birthday gift isn't here yet, I could make him a paper chain to count down the days to the 19th!  He is scheduled to have a basketball game on the 19th at 1:30, but since it's about an hours drive away from here, we'll skip the BB game because I'm pretty sure he will want to hang out watching these trains (in person!!) for the whole 4 hours!  When Taite has free time, he sits with the laptop and watches model train videos that others have posted on youtube.  I hope he doesn't wet himself when we get there . . . hehe

I have a confession. . .

I'm not Catholic, so I'll give my confession, to you, my blogger friends.  I would rather blog-stalk than update my own blog.  My husband hates it, but I am obsessed!  I love the ideas, creativity and motivation other bloggers give me!  Where my husband could easily print reams of paper with coaching tips, plays and practices; I could use the same amount of paper printing ideas, tips and projects for decorating our home or making projects for people!  He's learned to pretend he's interested at least :D

Since my last posting, I've been able to get some retail therapy in. You see, the thing with having an "off" day and a husband who travels for work is that when you say you need to go shopping, you don't get any arguments! Just a sympathy look and a kiss goodbye.  This is one thing I was thrilled to find at a consignment shop!  It's a UpperCase Living and it was only $4!!!  I see after trying to get it ready to put on the wall, why it might have been at the consignment shop ~ I had to "help" almost each of the little letters to stick to the transfer piece (if you've done this before, you know what I'm talking about, if not, sorry!).  I loved the price, loved the saying AND I didn't have to bug Monica for it!  Yea!! :P

 Last weekend we went to a craft show.  We wandered around and then found this perfect little stand that sold great wood products!  I bought the "clearanced" shelf in the corner and the tree picture hanging above the couch (please don't pay attention to the lamp on the stand with no shade ~ I found the lamp at a "flea" market and loved the shape, but still don't have a lamp shade for it, but don't worry!  I found an idea on a blog today and know exactly what my lampshade will look like!!)  The tree picture, I'm sure you've seen before and the saying, I thought, would go perfectly in our sitting room, since already, a lot of reading gets done in there.  I'll tell you later the complete saying (so perfect to remember when living your life and helping little ones learn the right way to live their lives too!)

 OH, on Saturday, we had a busy day!  In the morning, the boys had BB camps at the high school, then in the afternoon, Taite's 2nd BB team was in a tournament and that night the boys were going to go to a puppet show with G&G and Chris and I had our first Gourmet Club dinner.  It dawned on me that morning, how under pressure I would be to make our Chilled Curry Carrot Soup and Brown Irish Soda Bread.  Then to top it off, as I was getting ready, Chris called (he took Taite to the school with the tournament early) that I would need to be there earlier than the first game (I think it was coach gitters since he's the only coach and is learning at 5th grade, they don't want to listen so well. . . )!  I was hurrying to get ready because I had like 15-20 minutes to dry my hair, get dressed and put my make-up on ~ not necessarily in that order.  As I was drying my hair, in the mirror, it looked like I had a squashed lady bug in my hair (had NO idea where that would've come from) but as I was trying to get the "bug" out, my hair fell out!!!!  It was actually a place where I had melted my hair!  I have NEVER had something like that happen before and it really freaked me out!!  But, I had to get to the tournament, so I combed out that section to get all the yuck out and finished styling my hair.  Here is portion of my loss. . .

 This is how Chris and the boys get the most use out of our basement.  Practicing.

 These little gems arrived last Friday and took the total 6 weeks to get here!  They are ooohhh so comfy and were worth the wait.  Chris was disappointed that they don't have swivel chairs, but we couldn't get them in this color of wood at this price (well, it was actually lower without the swivel).  We had priced gliders at another furniture store and they were at about 3 times what these chairs and ottoman cost us!  Yes, I will take that price difference ANY day!!  And for the price we paid, we still got to choose the fabric!  I love Love LOVES these!!

 What to do with a sick little boy. . .

Yesterday night (hehe ~ someone, maybe Steph or Jeremy used to call it that) Bray came down with a fever.  I didn't even have to wait 25 minutes for the stupid thermometer to tell me he had one.  His eyes were all glassy and he looked dazed (I'm guessing it was a high one).  He went to be early, woke up early and stayed home to recover.  Last night we snuggled in my new glider and read Shel Silverstein poems and today he felt much better.  So, we rearranged his room!  He mentioned yesterday that he thought it would work better to put his bed in the corner and then he'd have more room in his room.  Well, the original plan would've covered up the heat/ac vent so we modified our plan and he LOVES it!  He has a whole corner to play in and after Taite got home from school today, they sat in Bray's room and just hung out.  After he watched me put up the "words" in our bedroom tonight, he wanted to know if I could get him one for his wall that says "Football Rocks" ~ um, no.  :~)  Well, unless. . . I got a Silhouette SD for Christmas and then I might have to try to make him something for his wall (I'm dropping that hint to Chris every chance I get LOL)

 After a day of re-arranging and cleaning (got rid of a paper bag worth of junk out of Bray's room and he was thrilled that in his cleaning he found his Mp3 player and camera ~ lol) his nose was really stuffy, so I put him in the tub with the menthol bubble stuff.  With one ship, a shark and a lion, he was game for playing in the water a little bit.

 This is a common site at random places throughout our house. . .  Today Bray asked if he could get a garbage to sit by the couch so his pile of kleenexes weren't laying on the table.  * * * so sweet * * *

 These are the purses I made for little girls (I have a couple designated already).  I was going to send one to Josey since I hear she likes to carry one of Steph's around, but then I found out she LOVES pink and these just don't have enough pink, so I'll make another one :D

So, here is the saying from the picture in our sitting room with the tree:

Living Life

Life is not a race ~ but indeed a journey. Be honest. Work hard. Be choosy. Say “thank you”, “I love you”, and “great job” to someone each day. Go to church, take time for prayer. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh. Let your handshake mean more than pen and paper. Love your life and what you’ve been given, it is not accidental ~ search for your purpose and do it as best you can. Dreaming does matter. It allows you to become that which you aspire to be. Laugh often. Appreciate the little things in life and enjoy them. Some of the best things really are free. Do not worry, less wrinkles are more becoming. Forgive, it frees the soul. Take time for yourself ~ plan for longevity. Recognize the special people you’ve been blessed to know. Live for today, enjoy the moment.

Bonnie L. Mohr

I'M BAAAAAAACCKKK!!

So, I am dressed for success (didn't take a pic because that never works) and I have my flower travel mug (for smiles), the weather is sunny and warm again today AND Chris needs my help becuase with 2 jobs and 3 coaching jobs, he is B-U-S-Y!!!  Have a great day!!!

My Therapy

Through a window, it looks perfect. 

Perfect House ~ check

Perfect Family ~ check

Perfect Marriage ~ check

So why doesn't it feel perfect?  I am working from home today because I can't stop crying.  I feel so stupid, really.  What is wrong with me?  PMS?  no.  Then what??  I really don't know.  I think it's just one of those days.

Perfect House
I love our house.  I just wish the basement was finished and we were done with that mess.  I can't wait to watch a movie in our movie room.  I can't wait to go down to my sewing room.  I can't wait to send the boys downstairs when they have sleepovers and there can be sleeping bags and all sorts of things strewn around the living area down there.  Instead of Taite's room having his queen size bed and two queen sized air mattresses squeezed into his room for a sleepover.

Perfect Family
Our immediate family is perfect (well, most days that is).  Brayton is not liking basketball and I am uncertain about letting him quit.  At DV if they don't start playing as early as can be (like kindergarten) then they won't be worth anything later.  My fear is that Brayton won't play this year and will regret it when he is older, but then again, I'm talking about a 3rd grader.  His favorite things are made up football games that he's played in his head.  Not even on the Wii.  You see it's like the Kenny Roger's song "The Greatest".  Brayton is the best quarterback, running back, punter, wide receiver the game has ever seen.  Isn't that what being 8 is about?  Living in a fantasy life?  He hit home this morning when I was talking to him about basketball and he said "you're saying I have to play basketball".  Guess I need to talk to him after school to admit that he's smarter than I am sometimes. 

Does anyone else have problems with Daylight Savings weekends??  I really don't like them just because of what they turn our boys into.  They aren't happy, rested, easy-going boys.  Yesterday it was so beautiful that I suggested we walk to the park so the guys could practice basketball.  It didn't go well and I know it's because of the lack of sleep.  All 3 were frustrated when we came home. . .

Perfect Marriage
I know that Chris and I are different.  Special.  There aren't many other couples who could be married for 12 1/2 years and have worked together for 7 or so of those years.  We've figured things out, we are each others' best friend.  I'm scared.  Chris shares his concerns with me about my happiness.  I can't voice my fears for fear that it will come true.  You see, I'm afraid that our perfectness cannot go on forever and something will happen to Chris and I will be alone.  I'm strong enough I'm sure I can handle the boys and surviving.  It's actually living that I would have trouble with.  Jane's daughter, Ericka, recently lost a good friend who was very young.  Her and her husband did not have kids.  She was his world and he is devastated.  I know the boys would keep me going day to day, but I, too, would be devastated.  I know I'm getting caught up in a lot of "what if's", but Chris does a lot of traveling and it's always my fear that something could happen.  I didn't used to be this type of person, but moving away from family and being treated differently after the move really makes you think about what is truly dear to you and your heart.  It also makes you think about "what would I do. . . "  I don't have the close friends nearby anymore to rely on.  I've met plenty of people, but no true friends yet.  So, I pray.  I pray that God will be with Chris as he travels and he will return home safely to me.  After all, it was obviously his hand that made sure we met oh so many years ago.
 
So I trudge on in my daily activities, thinking these thoughts, crying a little and knowing things will get better (because it's all in my head).  In fact in about an hour Chris will probably come home for lunch and put all my fears aside because he will recognize that I am upset and that is why I am "doing laundry" at home today.  And so, instead of curling up in bed to lose myself in a book, I will, in fact, fold the laundry on this beautiful sunny day.

Just random stuff

Brayton brought home this pumpkin from school.  First off, I had tried to find his on the wall of the classroom when I was there for a reading time last week.  I couldn't pick it out by the handwriting and I couldn't see his name written on it, so I had to ask him if he wrote all the words himself.  Yes, he had.  The thing that stuck out at me about this project is that the words were very descriptive even though there weren't very many.  I'm sure that in his mind, he had a whole story in his head that went along with all these descriptive words.  That's just the way he rolls. . . . :D

 At the consignment shop where I apparently don't sell anything unless Jane buys it (hehe) I dropped off more stuff and then had to do a little shopping last Saturday before the USD game.  I found this wreath and I think it looks absolutely perfect on our front door.  The best part?  It only cost like $6!!  The one I like at Hobby Lobby was $75 and that was after the 1/2 off discount!!

 Before the tournament that Taite was in, Chris and I finally broke down and bought the stadium seats!  They cost the same amount as the plain ones at Scheels, so of course we had to support the PTO.  They said someone gives them a super deal on them so they can compete with Scheels ~ yeah for that someone!

 This simple ball has kept our boys and the neighbor kids busy for hours these last few nights!  Last night I finally called the boys into the house at 6:45 so they could eat supper.  It was so nice outside and the kids were all playing so nicely together that I couldn't break it up. 

 Remember my cute, black hole purse?  Well, right after I got it, the magnet started pulling out of the fabric because it wasn't put in properly.  The store took it back with no problems, but I was on the lookout for a replacement.  The complaint I have about purses (that aren't sewn by me) is that most of them are SO HEAVY!  Before you even get anything in them, they weigh about 5 pounds it seems like!  I was THRILLED to find this purse at KMart for the same amount of money as my broken one AND it had built in organizers!!!  I am in love!