The Good Ol' (Blog) Days

I've been working on my next book and it's almost done! This book will be longer than the first since it will cover a year and a half of our lives. I made an executive decision to get my blog books on track with the calendar year versus yearly on my blogiversary, which is in May.

As I work on the finishing touches, I have been thinking back to how this blog looked when I first started it. I think the dots template was my first, but I seriously don't remember what my first header looked like! So, just for fun, I am planning to add a few screen shots of more recent changes (headers especially) to the new book. I want to remember what this little ol' blog looked like years from now.

Just like you take pictures of the kids to show how they've grown, I wish I would have done a better job taking "pictures" of my blog along the way. I can go to any post I've ever written, but I haven't really kept a record of the actual appearance of the blog on the screen. That's too bad because my blog has evolved a lot over the years. As I've learned more, it has become more "custom" and less "template".

So, if you have a blog (and you're a bit sentimental like me) you might want to take a screen shot once in awhile to help you remember what your blog looked like "way back when". I don't have any full screen shots but here are a few old headers...

Header Fall 2008

Header Christmas (December) 2008

Header Winter (January) 2009

Header Christmas 2009

(Cleaning) Lesson Learned

I recently read a great blog post titled: "What I learned from having a cleaning lady, and 5 reasons you should learn too." You should read it too!

Long post title, short lesson. One good deep cleaning will save you a LOT of time in the long run. I know some of you thought my cleaning lists were a little over the top but I'm telling you... taking a few days out to work through those checklists will make your house a lot cleaner from here on out with much less effort.

I spent the better part of Friday working on cleaning the kitchen, (it's the one room I didn't get to before the holidays and vacation) but I'm not quite done yet. I'll write up a post and a checklist to share soon... get ready though... the kitchen is the hardest room in the house!

Best Internet Finds of 2009

Last year about this time I posted my personal "best" internet finds of the year, so I thought I would do it again. There are so many wonderful websites and blogs out there! I know a lot of people use the internet for the wrong reasons, but there are lots of good, even uplifting, sites out there as well.

In my opinion, blogs are where it's at! No matter what your interests or hobbies, there are blogs out there for you! Google a few of your favorite things and see what comes up. Then get yourself a reader! It will make your blog reading so much faster and, therefore, more enjoyable. [I'm planning a post on readers soon. Seriously, everyone should have one.]

Freebies 4 Mom- this one isn't really "new". I've been reading this blog for way more than a year, but for some reason I didn't put it on my "list" last year. Heather will hook you up with THE best freebies online. Don't let the "mom" part fool you... there are freebies out there for everyone!

Homeschool Freebie of the Day- speaking of freebies, this is another awesome site. It's not just for homeschoolers. There are free e-books, audio, and downloads of all kinds. If you have kids or are just interested in learning something new... check it out.

Fit to the Finish- one of my favorite finds of the year. Diane is a fellow mom of many who lost over 150 pounds and has kept it off. Inspirational and practical. I want to be like her when I grow up. :)

Picnik- need to edit a photo? Make a collage? Add a funny caption? This is the site. Free and fun.

Librovox- offers tons of audio books all for free. All the books are read by volunteers. I highly recommend A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (read by Steve Anderson). I was truly sad when the book ended.

Swagbucks- need free money? Okay, maybe not free money but free gift certificates (to place you shop already, like Amazon). Just search the internet through Swagbucks and earn! Several bloggers mentioned that they were able to pay for Christmas using gift certificates earned through SB. [If you are interested in joining, please click through this link or email me. I get a few extra "bucks" for referring people.]

Grammar Girl- need to brush up on your grammar? I know I do! Sign up for the GG daily email and especially the podcast! You'll learn all sorts of stuff and laugh while you do.

Cake Wrecks- Need a good laugh? Look no further. Photos of cakes gone horribly wrong with the funniest commentary around. A new favorite!

6 Year Med- Stories from a med student. Heartbreaking at times and always very interesting.

Facebook- I finally joined the fun this past year. I've had a great time connecting with old friends and getting to know people better. If you're thinking about joining FB but aren't quite sure... just do it! (Peer pressure... it's a wonderful thing!) And if I'm not your "friend" on FB yet... add me!

The Prudent Homemaker- I don't even remember how I came across this site. What I do know is... it's a wealth of information on saving money and living within your means. Recipes, links, crafts, and just encouragement!

MomAdvice- Amy's blog is full of ideas to save you money and have fun with your family. I absolutely LOVE her weekly link roundup. I have found so many awesome recipes, crafts, books, and blogs through her links!

The Cutest Blog On the Block-want to add a special background to your blog? Check out all the cute (and really easy to install) backgrounds available. And if your brave enough to try and make your own there is a tutorial here. I've been dying to try it!

Go read last year's post for more... there are lots of great sites listed... most of them I still visit daily... via my reader, of course! And, please, share your favorite sites in the comments.

Date Night (at Home)

This past fall, my dad shared some venison with us. He suggested we save the best cut to fondue and serve it with some shrimp cocktail. So... being good, obedient children that's exactly what we did! Instead of using the fondue pot my dad also suggested using the FryDaddy, which worked quite nicely. To round out the meal we had some bread with two dips (one store bought spinach, the other homemade oil and herbs), both were delicious.

We fed the children early and kicked them out of the kitchen to watch a movie. We set out our spread, then ate and chatted. The food was excellent. We took a short reality break to clean up the kitchen and get the boys to bed before we settled down to watch a movie. We had Netflix send us "The Proposal". You won't get glowing reviews from either of us, but it was still fun.

I voted we should make this a monthly event. Coming up with delicious food to eat is easy (although if you have any recipe suggestions I'd love them). It's the movies that are hard to choose... we don't sit down to watch movies together very often because our taste in movies differs so much. Got any good movie suggestions?

Belated Birthday Post

Better late than never, right? We celebrated the twins birthday with just a small family party on the Saturday before their birthday. We thought we'd squeeze the celebration in before Roz left to go back to school. Since Grandma Linda and Pa are gone on vacation it was even smaller than normal! We actually had a good bit of cake leftover! Not that there were any complaints about that!


The boys didn't really express an interest in any crazy cakes this year so I just made a simple (aka boring) cake for each. Eli requested chocolate and Justus requested white. We had pizza burgers with several other favorite snack-ish foods (taco dip, olive bread) and, of course, the cakes.

Cousin Cooper enjoys a good party!

On their actual birthday we had pizza and cookie bars for dessert. A birthday package arrived in the mail so the boys were able to open a few gifts as well.
There's nothing like a birthday to remind us how time flies! Hope you had a very happy birthday Eli and Justus!

February Menu

Here is the February menu. As a reminder we have two week rotating lunch menu, one planned big weekend breakfast, and usually something in the crockpot for lunch after church on Sunday. I don't really plan veggies and side dishes ahead. We usually have a nightly salad and then some kind of frozen veggies. Side dishes are usually whatever sounds good and I have on hand (potatoes, rice, breads, etc.). If you want any recipes let me know.


Click the calendar above to enlarge. The monthly menu is also available anytime by clicking on the "Monthly Menu" tab near the top of the blog.