Sunday Outing!

Idaho!  Such a beautiful state.  I love that we don't need to go very far to be surrounded by beauty.

This afternoon, we packed a small lunch and headed to the Bruneau Dunes State Park.  When we were stationed at the base here, we had taken my mother and brother in law to the park and had stayed overnight in the cute little cabins.

We loved it so much that we've always wanted to return, so when we found out we were returning to the area we immediately put this one on the list of the first places to visit.

It was cold today, and even though we were all bundled up, one thing we didn't think about were gloves and I tell you my fingers were freezing.

So cold indeed that the lake was frozen with quite thick ice.  When we arrived we were surprised to see hundreds and hundreds of Canadian Geese, just walking on the ice and honking away......while others took turns flying up, circling around and returning to the frozen lake.

After hanging out around the lake a little and watching the geese, we had our little picnic and then made our way to the dunes.  If you've never heard of the Bruneau Dunes, they boast the tallest single-structured sand dune in North America with a peak rising 470 feet above the surrounding desert floor.

And of course, you have to climb them.

All the way to the very top.  It's not very hard, but if you haven't exercises in a while (like me), it does hurt the legs, quite a bit LOL

You get up there whichever way you can, and trust me we did.  You pull, you push, you fall, whatever it takes, right?

Of course the way down is the best part, if you ask two little boys who slid, climbed back up and slid down again and up again and so forth.

I was just happy with sitting atop the dune and looking out at the beautiful views below, and the dunes certainly provide plenty of camera worthy shots.

Can you see all the geese in the middle?  This was on the right side of the lake, if we had to go over by car to the other side, that is where all the other geese are.

Plans have already been made to return in the summer for a weekend.  We will stay at the cabins, we'll fish, we'll climb more dunes, enjoy the observatory, star gaze from the cabin porch and completely disconnect from the world.

Truly can't wait, and if you ever make it to the area, you should definitely check out the Bruneau Dunes State Park.

I also wanted to show you my progress on my Crochet Mood Blanket, below are the squares from day 1 through 5.  I'm really enjoying this challenge and matter of fact, I'm working on square 6 at the moment and will finish it tonight.

Well, it's late and I'm going to go sit with hubby and watch an episode of the show Alphas which we are enjoying at the moment.

Have a blessed Sunday night,
Sandra
xoxoxo

Cold and cloudy Friday morning!

Good morning my sweet friends, how are you all doing today?

I know a lot of you on the East coast are dealing with some very nasty weather, I've been thinking about you and praying that you're all safe and sound and keeping warm.....well, as warm as you can get.

It's a cold and cloudy day here in Idaho, we're expecting some rain, some ice pellets and some snow too.  Guess a little bit of everything huh?

Since I got all my errands done yesterday and all the bills paid, today is dedicated to just plain ol' housework and homeschooling.

I have the lessons all ready for the kiddos, and I've also started my laundry which seems to multiply as I empty the basket.  Will have to iron later this afternoon.

Since I don't already have so many crochet projects in the works, I've decided to jump in on another.  Oh boy!  I just couldn't help it, I saw a post from one of my favorite blogs Le Monde de Sucrette, and she was talking about a big Crochet Mood Blanket that a bunch of bloggers are doing.  I immediately jumped in and joined the Facebook page.

I'm a little behind, so I plan on going with simple smaller squares and making at least 3 today.

Here are my color inspirations for my mood blanket.

So excited about this one. If you want to find out more about it, make sure to check out mummy-stacey on Instagram. The main idea is this:

mummy_stacey on Instagram had the great idea to make a blanket consisting of a square-a-day (or week) and using different colours to reflect your mood! Will you do 365 or 52 squares?

So you can either crochet a square a day, or a square a week. Not too bad right?

Since today is a slow day around the house, I am sure I can get started on the squares and take them along with me as I move from room to room, or while the kids are doing their school work.

With this weather, everyone seems to be snuggling on couches with blankets and trying to stay warm.....even the puggies.

Miss Lola prefers my bed to snuggle and relax, while Miss Bella is more into the fire thing, so much so that the other day she was so cold she got closer and closer and ended up a little too close and burning herself.  Silly pug.

Well, I have laundry needing to be switched from washer to dryer so I need to get that done.

Hope your Friday is a good one :)



For lunch I have a lot of salad leftover from last night, so I'm going to cook up some chicken nuggets, cut them up and throw them in.  I'll make a quick honey mustard dressing for it and call it good.

Dinner will be a simple Beef Stroganoff served over rice.



Death comes to Pemberley
Sleepy Hollow



Laundry - washing, ironing, putting away
Homeschooling - 4 kiddos that need to be up to date and ready for the end of the first semester
Crochet - 3 squares to make today

Groceries and a Hair Cut!

Whew!  What a hectic day, I am sitting down for the first time today, unless you count the 30 mins in the salon chair.

I sat down last night and made up the new Menu Plan and the grocery list.  Things haven't been easy, money is very tight at the moment as we make the transition from retired to civilian and get everything figured out.

To say that my food budget has been cut dramatically would be putting it mildly, but I do like that this is usually where I shine.  I like the challenge and I like making do with what is on hand.

My budget, though not different total wise, does have to factor in another 4 people, and shopping monthly instead of every two weeks.

It's been tough but it's also forced me to go back to basics, to make simple filling food and to rely mostly on homemade products instead of store bought.  What a crazy change it's been.

I am so proud of myself though because I managed to get groceries for the month, for 8 people, for $199.  Now, I still have to pick up milk and one or two items, but that shouldn't push me over by too much.  Yay me!

The trick is, loads of soups (Chicken and Rice, Swiss Chard, Kale, Potato and Onion, Minestrone), pasta (Chicken and Sausage Ragu, Spaghetti, Hay and Straw) , homemade pizza, stews and meals that stretch far and can feed a crowd.

I never thought it would be doable, but I'm here to tell you that it is.  It's not easy, but it's doable.

I will be taking this weekend to bake for the freezer, and that will include homemade hot pockets(pepperoni, ham and cheese), bread (buttermilk, artisan, white bread, date and nut loaf), bagels, soft pretzels, muffins.

Lots of salad and veggies as side dishes, they're cheap and much healthier too.

Something else I've gotten into the habit of doing too, is shopping the reduced meats.  As long as I cook them right away, or chuck them in the deep freezer, they are good to go.  I've been able to stock up on a lot of meat this way, and then I shop from my freezer while making the new grocery list.

So here's what my menu looks like for the next month......

Friday 3rd - Beef Stroganoff with rice
Saturday 4th - Spaghetti with salad
Sunday 5th - Swiss Chard Soup, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Monday 6th - Costoletas de Porco a Moda do Minho ( Portuguese Pork Chops)
Tuesday 7th - Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Chicken
Wednesday 8th - Rissois de atum c/ batata frita (Tuna Rissoles)
Thursday 9th - Frango ao molho (Oven baked chicken in a tomato sauce) w/ rice
Friday 10th - Peixe com natas (Creamy Fish bake)
Saturday 11th - Tomatillo and Cilantro Chicken Enchiladas
Sunday 12th - Chicken and Rice Soup, Sandwiches
Monday 13th - Sausage Rice
Tuesday 14th - Homemade Pepperoni Pizza
Wednesday 15th - Hay and Straw
Thursday 16th - Feijoada c/ arroz (Portuguese Bean Stew)
Friday 17th - Burgers and Cheesy Fries
Saturday 18th - Rosemary and Roasted Garlic Meatloaf w/ Mashed Potatoes
Sunday 19th - Beef and Broccoli with Rice
Monday 20th - Dad's favorite chicken w/ spaghetti
Tuesday 21st - Padre Island Shells
Wednesday 22nd - Asian Beef Wraps
Thursday 23rd - Pepper Steak with Fries, Mixed Veggies
Friday 24th - Garlic Cheese Pizza
Saturday 25th - Sausage and Potato Fry
Sunday 26th - Minestrone Soup, Lemon Yoghurt Loaf
Monday 27th - Sausages in tomato sauce, rice
Tuesday 28th - Chicken and Sausage Ragu, Salad
Wednesday 29th - Samoosas with Salad
Thursday 30th - Roast Fish, Potatoes and Veggies

Something else I did while I was out, was get a quick haircut at the Base Salon, I always go there because it's so much cheaper, I also used a gift certificate so technically, I didn't pay for the cut.  I tried to grow my hair but I have to be honest and admit that I just can't take the long hair anymore.

It's so much easier for me to have short hair, so I went back to my cute bob.

Feels like a huge weight off my head, I have such thick hair that it becomes quite impossible to deal with.

I feel much better and definitely ready for the new year :)

Now, I need to get going so that I can pay a few bills and get schooling ready for the kiddos tomorrow. But before I leave, I wanted to let all Beth Moore fans know that she is currently giving away all of her books for the Kindle or Nook. You can check this link, and please do check before downloading the books as some are not yet free but will be in the next few days.

Have a wonderful night my friends, and I'll see you back here tomorrow :)

Hello January....Hello 2014!

A blank slate, a completely white book just waiting to be written.

I used to hate the end of the year and the beginning of a new one, because I always felt like I didn't know what was around the corner and I worried about what was to come.  Ridiculous!

The past few years I have chosen to concentrate on the bright side of things, to think about the fact that it's a whole new unwritten chapter that I get the privilege to pen.  What is more exciting than that?

Will there be things that are out of my control?  Absolutely, but for the most part it's up to me to make it the best year possible.

I started today on a quiet note.  Hung around the house, puttered around a little here and there, got all the holiday decorations put away and things cleaned up.

Hubby and I also reorganized our bedroom and moved some things around.

Dinner was supposed to be beef stew but the men got a sudden craving for burgers, so that is what we had instead.  The stew will be for tomorrow night, at least I don't have to worry about making dinner right?

It's now almost 11pm but I am still plugging away on the computer, working on the new menu plan and grocery list so I can go shopping tomorrow.

The hubster and I will be making a quick trip to base for some errands, some groceries and I'm hoping, a hair cut for myself.  I've let my hair grow super long but honestly, between you and me, I don't like it.....I think my long hair days are over and I'm ready to go back to my spunky bob.

So yeah, this is how I spent my first day of 2014, looking forward to the future and not worrying about things I have no control over.

How did YOU spend yours?

Crochet Mood Blanket 2014!

I'm so excited about this challenge, I've never really joined any challenge before as I don't like committing to something that I am  not sure I'll be able to stick with.

But this one?  Right up my alley, and besides, I think it will be a great idea to end the year with a beautiful crochet blanket.

Does it mean I won't crochet anything else this year?  Absolutely not, I have a lot of projects in my list and I'm also wanting to finally start selling my creations, something that I wasn't able to do before due to unforeseen circumstances.

Anyway, enough talking, I will be updating this post with photos of my blanket progress.

4mm crochet hook
Worsted weight yarn
Simple Filet Crochet Starburst Squares
Joining using the Flat Braid Method

Day 1 - purple

Day 2 - light blue

Day 3 - Pink 

Day 4 - Green

Day 5 - light brown

Days 1 through 5 complete!