Allergies are the pits, aren't they???

About a month before we left Idaho, I suddenly developed allergies.  It was so bad, especially because the doctor put me on Zyrtec and turns out I am allergic to THAT too.  I thought I was going to die LOL

Then we got here to Arizona and I had a really bad dry eyes attack, I didn't even know what was going on, my eyes were blood shot and I mean BLOOD shot, I couldn't blink without it hurting and I felt like I had sacks of dirt swimming around my eyeballs.   After going to the eye doctor, he asked me how long I had been in Arizona and when I told him "just a month", he smiled and told me that a lot of people who come to this State develop dry eyes.

This place does not play when it comes to allergies, it really is the pits for any allergy sufferers, people with respiratory issues etc.

The whole of last week we had very high winds kicking all the pollen and other nastiness around.  Usually on days like those, I stay indoors and avoid it all, but since it was testing time, not only did we have to leave the house, but we had to stay outside waiting for the kids.....that was it for me.

I've spent this weekend suffering pretty badly with these allergies, and I'm about done with them.....they need to just GO.

They make me so miserable, truly, and I'm usually such a happy, smiley person that I find it hard to deal with myself like this LOL

Eyes so itchy, rubbing hard, make up disappearing.....this is how I'm looking this weekend, no shame.   And for some reason, anytime my immune system feels attacked, I get cold sores. 

So, aside from a quick trip to JoAnn's for some felt so I can make Jasmine's Birthday present, I came home, got laundry started, fed the family lunch and then moved to the bedroom where I spent all afternoon while the hubby and kids played together.

I'm so grateful to have a wonderful husband who takes care of me and the children, he is only too happy to hang out with them, and I think it helps that they are not little anymore, they're teens and tweens which means they don't need mommy's full attention every second of the day.

Is there a better way to read Jane Austen?  I don't think so, because chocolate goes with everything.

When I came back from JoAnn's the wind had died down a little, so I grabbed the camera and snapped some pictures of the flowers in the garden, they are looking so gorgeous and I love different colors spread out under the kitchen window.

Sunflowers.....these grow like crazy.  We keep laughing because the kids say they're going to grow taller than the house lol

Until dinner time, I lay down for a while, watched some Little House in the Big Woods on my laptop and tried to relax and let the allergy meds take effect.

I'm thinking today may be another day of the same, except for some homeschooling which we need to catch up on from last week.

Oh and this was last night's dinner, another recipe revisited, I had forgotten how much I enjoy these and it had been a few years since I had made them.

I think it's the beauty of having a food blog, you can go back through the archives to the very beginning and find treasures you had completely forgotten about. Tell you one thing, my family and I are loving these *lost* recipes again :)

If you want to try these for yourself, they're very easy to make, and you can find the recipe on my food blog, Chicken Egg Rolls.

Alrighty, I need to get some laundry going, and I also need to see what I need for dinner so I can take it out of the freezer, I'll be making Pepperoni Pizzaz and some Garlic Bread.

Here's hoping your Sunday is a LOT more interesting than mine. 

Blessings,
Sandra

A sigh of relief!

I am up super early on this Saturday morning, not that it's usual for me on the weekend, because I do like sleeping in a little, but I crashed last night around 8pm.

It's been an exhausting week in more ways than one.  The testing is finished, the children enjoyed it, they both say it wasn't very hard and think they did well, so now we await the results which will be out in the summer.

But aside from the rushing back and forth between the testing site, and then rushing home and still having to do lessons, and housework and cleaning etc......there have been other things at play.

We've had the worst wind here lately and it's wreaked havoc on my allergies and dry eyes.  My vision is so poor at the moment, everything is blurry in the distance, my eyes hurt when I blink, they feel so gritty and they're red.   I've been relying on my eye drops for some relief.  Aside from that, Nicholas and I are struck by allergies kicked up by all this wind, and if you suffer from them too you know that it's not a walk in the park.

And if all this wasn't enough, we have had one of the hardest weeks here in America.  This country has been hit so devastatingly hard, that we can't but feel on edge, and heartbroken, and sad and angry.  It's a rollercoaster of emotions.

My heart is heavy.  I feel like our world is just lost, and there seems to be no ending in sight.  You can almost hear the plea of Christians crying out to Jesus for help.

I am not American, but my husband and children are.   But you see, I have lived in this country longer than I've lived in any other country, including Portugal and South Africa, and though I'm Portuguese and grew up in South Africa and love the country.....I am at home here in the USA.  THIS is my home, I love this country, I love it's people and when something happens here it rocks me to the core too, and I feel it just as much.

I will never understand acts of violence on this scale, or any scale for that matter. 

I will never understand pure hatred and evil.

I will never understand disregard for human life.

I will never understand looking someone in the face and knowing that you are going to hurt them or kill them, without feeling any kind of remorse.

And I will never understand turning your back on a country that has taken you in and given you opportunities and benefits that SO many people out there in the world, only dream of having.

It's sickening!

So yes, I'm very glad to put this week behind me, in more ways than one.  I feel exhausted and I feel like I need a day to climb under the covers, hide my head and just sleep it all away.

On the bright side, I can finally come around and visit everyone today, am so looking forward to it :)

Need to make a run to JoAnn's this morning for some white felt for one of Jasmine's birthday presents.  Then I have some gardening to attend to, some sewing to muddle through and tons of Jane Austen books on my Kindle to read.

Should be a quiet, relaxing weekend, just what I need.


WHAT I'M COOKING:

Lunch - Mini Pepperoni Pizzas
Dinner -  Homemade Chicken Egg Rolls, Salad

Cooking Thursday - Sausage and Broccoli Skillet

Good morning, I am actually putting this post up from the testing location. I was unable to connect to blogger this morning from home and thought I may only really get this post up tonight, but thankful I have wifi here :)

Here's today's recipe, easy, quick, and yummy.

4

Sausage and Broccoli Skillet

Prep/Cook Time: 25 minutes

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. sweet Italian pork sausage, casing removed
1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Broccoli Soup (regular or 98% Fat Free)
1/2 cup milk
1 bag (about 16 oz.) frozen broccoli cuts
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
6 cups hot cooked corkscrew pasta
Crushed red pepper (optional)

Directions:

COOK sausage in medium skillet over medium-high heat until sausage is browned, stirring to separate meat.

ADD onion and garlic. Cook over medium heat until tender. Pour off fat.

ADD soup, milk, broccoli and 1/4 cup cheese. Heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 5 min. or until broccoli is tender, stirring occasionally.

TOSS with pasta. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Serve with red pepper, if desired.

OH how I miss my blog right now...

I miss coming in every day and showing you pictures and chatting, and going by your blogs and reading up on your adventures and what you've been up to.

Last week I didn't get much blog reading done, this week we're back to the same because of State testing.  I am just not finding enough hours in the day for everything that I need to get done, and I'm mostly running around from one place to the next.

By the time night time rolls around, I fall onto my bed and am OUT for the count.

So, tell me, what have you been up to lately, anything exciting, interesting?

We've been busy with the testing, preparing for a certain young lady's birthday, helping my brother and sister in law with paperwork and other things related to their immigration, laundry and cleaning, cooking, homeschooling and...and....and.....you know how it goes.

Yesterday afternoon, we set up our pool, and Nicholas and Lola had a blast swimming around while it filled up.

Not even two hours later, we had housing at our house telling us to take down the pool because they have now banned pools from the base.

I can't even begin to tell you how disappointed and sad my kids are, and it ticks me off that I have to do this to them.

This base has really gone downhill since we've moved here, more and more I am just ready to pack up and go.









We always enjoy watching them in the pool :) Guess we'll have to find different ways to keep them cool during the summer.

I usually don't drink soda, I drink water, but in the summertime there is just something about a bottle of coke that jolts my memory back to my childhood. All of a sudden I am sitting in a *pastelaria* (bakery/cafe) in Portugal and enjoying a bottle of coke and a cake. What fond memories those are.



While I was out there, this was also going on and it's never a good feeling when you hear your name, turn around and see this LOL



And here's my girl. She is at that age that hates having her picture taken, so she hides and whines and won't let me photograph her, it's always a good day when I can get the camera in there :)

She's grown so much and next week will be turning 14 years old, how time flies.





Just a way to relax after a day of testing.  We still have two more days ahead, reading and math and those are not exactly the kid's favorites, so they're not very thrilled.

Remember I told you that the next menu plan is all about going back to my blog, to the very first posts and remaking family favorites.  Last night was the first recipe being revisited and I had forgotten how yummy and simple it was to make.  Sausage and Broccoli Skillet.



Tonight, I'll be making Ham and Cheese Chicken Rolls with Garlic Mashed Potatoes.  Can't wait to revisit that one too :)

Alright, I have tons of laundry to get through, homeschooling and some bills to pay. 

Again, I am sorry I haven't been by to visit anyone, I do hope to get some time this weekend to come and say hi, so if you don't see me before then, now you know why :)

God Bless,
Sandra
xoxoxo

Busy Week!

I have been so extremely busy the past few days, I haven't really had a chance to sit down and recharge and I'm facing a week of pretty much the same thing.

Starting this morning we have State testing, and usually it's not too bad, but the problem this year is that unlike previous years where they had the kids go in at the same time, this year they test at different times.

Nic is testing from 9am to Noon and then Jasmine tests from 1pm to 4pm.  Needless to say, the testing location is not close by and we can't drive back and forth, so we'll be stuck there all day long.

If you know me, you'll know that I don't like being stuck somewhere doing nothing, I have to be doing, moving, fixing. 

So, I'm taking my crochet, I'm taking my Kindle, I'm taking some of the kid's schoolwork so we can get things done while we wait.

Anyway, I have quite a bit I need to finish off here in the house before leaving, I'm getting dinner started so I just have to finish it up when I get home later.

Have a wonderful day :)