Snow Day

We got some snow (~3 inches) last Tuesday night but I wasn't worried about the kids not having school on Wednesday because we're never out of school unless it's really bad. And it wasn't really bad. 

But they didn't call me this time to ask for my opinion and they cancelled school. With the holiday, this meant Lila didn't get to go to school all week until Friday. AWESOME. 

The first snow day of 2016 and we made the most of it. By making Valentine cookies of course. 

Homemade sugar cookies - I did so much better this year. Last year they were edible but not that good. Keeping it real.

Then we iced them. Or ate the icing. We're not telling.

After it warmed up a little, the kids went out to play and I went out to shovel the steps and sidewalk because Scott was at work.

They went out 3 times over the course of the day and I didn't even get upset about all the wet clothes. I came up with a system to let them in the basement, right by the laundry area. It was a winner.

Mississippi Roast

So. Fun fact about the Boyle family. We do not really like roasts. I know. Terribly exciting. 

However, since we purchase a quarter of a cow every so often, we have an abundance of roasts.

So that's kind of a problem. 

I've tried many different kinds of roasts over the years. I've even gotten advice from some very fabulous cooks. Most of them say something like "OHHHHHHH, this is the best recipe ever. You just put the roast in the crockpot, add a can of soup...or spice...or condiment...or vegetable. SO EASY!" 

Well. It's apparently just not that easy for me. Because I've never had a roast turn out like anything Scott and I ever wanted to eat again. Womp Womp. 

I was reading a blog (Kelly's Korner) post last week and stumbled upon something called "The Mississippi Roast." Even though the ingredients did not sound like you should put them together, I decided to give it one more try.  

Mississippi Roast

Chuck Roast 

1 packet of dry ranch dressing mix (I used Hidden Valley)

1 packet of Au Jus Dressing (I used McCormick)

5 pepperoncinis 

1 stick of butter

NO WATER

Cook in crockpot on low 7-8 hours (my crockpot cooks really fast so I cooked it for about 6 hours and it was so tender)

Oh.my.word. Divine. 

This is not my picture. I served it right out of the crockpot because I'm fancy like that. 

www.thehungryhousewife.com

I served it on rolls with a side of green beans. And I cant wait to have it again. Scott ate it that night and for the next lunch and dinner. We have definitely found our winner roast.

Most of you fantastic cooks out there have probably already made this a million times. But if you haven't, make it! And lest you think, "I'm not making this because I do not like those ingredients." Believe me, I have never eaten nor will I ever eat a pepperoncini. Ever. And I don't eat gravy when it is served either but the mixture of these ingredients together is the bomb. Yum!

Ruel

The Corse Family grew in numbers last week! Sarah, Hamil & Thane welcomed a baby boy on Tuesday, January 12th. 

Ruel Catiline Corse

We are SO happy he is here! Hamil & Sarah are doing well and Thane is a proud big brother. Lila & I made the trip south over the long weekend to meet him.

Lila was absolutely smitten. She wanted to sit still and hold him more than anything else.

And for her to choose to sit still is not her nature.

Sweet nephew! We're even on the Corse side for grandchildren - 3 girls, 3 boys.

I had to take this one because it's the only time I saw him with his eyes open. Oh that sleepiness of newborns. Can't beat it.

She adores him. Absolutely adores him.

Lila's Wish

Lila had kind of a rough start to January so one day when she was sad, I asked her what would make her feel better. She thought for a minute and said "I wish we could go look around at the Disney Store and have lunch at the Bread Company at the mall." I told her I thought we could make that happen. 

Since she was with my parents that weekend, we didn't get around to making good on the promise until last week. She wore her new sweatshirt that Nate told her made her look like a teenager. 

I thought her smile might break her face. 

Anything that makes her feel older is the highest of compliments. 

We were probably in the Disney Store close to an hour. She looked at every.single.thing. Three times.

We didn't buy anything...ok, we bought a cup. Because the cup she's been using has seen better days. And they were 60% off. She just likes to look and talk about every item in GREAT detail. I'm just along for the ride.

After our time at Disney, we ate at the Bread Company IN THE MALL. It's her favorite one and she says we never go there. That is not the most convenient one so I guess we don't unless we are at the mall. So I was happy that something so easy made her very happy! It was a sweet day with my sweet one.

Kitchen Updates

It occurred to me that I don't think I've done an "after" post on our kitchen, that was completed...ahem...almost a year ago. If I did, I'm too lazy to go back and find it:) So one day a few months ago, when the kitchen was super clean, I took some pictures. Too bad it's taken me until now to post them..ahem. 

Here is a before picture of the sink view. I wish I had been better about taking good before comparison pictures.  

And here is the after of this same area. We still really like how it turned out. We wanted to go as light as possible because it is a small space, but still have some elements that make it cozy. I think we accomplished this simple vision. 

New window, sink, counter tops, beadboard backsplash and cabinets.

This is the other wall of the kitchen. New stove, backsplash, and microwave. We gained this cabinet and drawer stack to the right side of the stove. I know it doesn't seem like much, but it makes a huge difference in the efficiency of the space.

The fridge was probably our biggest disappointment of the remodel. We wanted a larger side by side fridge. But unfortunately, there is a sort of half wall behind the fridge space that limits what will go there. In the end, we decided not to bust it out because like just about everything in ~100 year old houses, it would have been a can of worms. So we got the nicest fridge that would fit. It looks dorm sized in these pictures, but it's full size and has worked out just fine.

I tried a panoramic. I'm really not that good at it!  But you get the idea.

Here is a before picture of the breakfast room, as we call it.

And here is the after. New cabinets, island top and stools. It has really turned out to be so useful. (still looking for something for the wall. I've been very indecisive about this part!)

If you haven't lived in this house for almost 9 years, then you might walk in this room and say that the island is too big for the room. But those of us that have lived here that long think it is exactly what we needed!

One of the corners of this room houses our wine fridge and the calendar. And a box on top of the wine fridge because it tends to be a clutter spot. So at least the clutter is now in a box.

The other corner is our information center and sometimes art work presentation area. Who knew Pac Man could teach such good leassons? Two is better than one.

To the left of this little area is our art supply closet now. I did not take a picture because it was probably a mess that day. As it is most days. (except today, I cleaned it up yesterday!)

We did not do the floor. I think we made a good call. The mess alone would have complicated matters tremendously. It's not my absolute favorite floor but it looks fine with what we've done.

So that's it! Is it a big, expansive kitchen? No. No, it's not. But with the updates, it is much more efficient that we notice the lack of space a little less. Even though it was painful, I think we would both say we would do it all over again. We learned so much and feel more prepared should we have to do a renovation on another house in the future!

Weekend with Nate

Nate is currently in "Ten Days of Torture" which means he has to be at all swim practices (4 per week) and this Saturday he also had a meet. For many reasons, I was glad I had already lined up my parents to take Lila last weekend! 

Scott had to work, so Nate and I went to his practice on Friday night and then came home and relaxed. We had to be up the next morning to drive about 30 minutes away for a swim meet. He was really dreading it but once we got there, he was all like this...

He is so my child...it's always worse in your mind. It was freezing in the crash area, so we struggled to keep him warm while keeping the clothes he had to take off to swim manageable. I think a parka is in his future. In the bullpen...

They make the parents watch from the observation deck so it's hard for me to take good pictures with my phone. But I thought this one showed just how big he is getting and how athletic he's looking! He's the one putting on his goggles in case you can't tell.

Swimming the breast stroke...he had an awesome meet! Improved all of his times and WON his butterfly heat!!! I was so proud I cried right there on the spot. And yelled. Yes, I yelled a lot. He said he could hear me all the way down there, which is pretty amazing. And embarrassing. For him.

This is what a swim meet looks like 95% of the time you are there. Times 500 swimmers. Waiting. Yes, the hood was up inside. It was that cold in there.

During the meet, it snowed about 1-2 inches out in Wildwood (where we were) and I was dreading going home to see what it was like in Maplewood. But lo and behold, there was no accumulation at our house. HURRAY. I'm sure we'll get slammed next week.

After Scott got home that night, we went out to dinner with our swimmer. He had to bring along some friends. Of course. I loved the one on one time with our sweet 10 year old.

Mamie

We experienced a very sad happening last week and I debated about writing about it here, but decided that although it was a hard time, we would want to remember.

For those of you that don't know, Lila has been in a very special pre-school class since she began her time at the Early Childhood Center in 2014. She is in an integrated class with kids that are have some type of special need. When she was initially placed in this class, I sadly admit that we were a little skeptical.

But now that we're on the other side, we would not have wanted it any other way. It has been an amazing experience for all of us, especially her. She has emerged as a compassionate, understanding leader and we're hopeful the strength and tolerance she has shown in this small setting will be with her always.

In her first year of pre-school, she had 2 main teachers, Mrs. Stacey and Ms. Mamie, and she loved both of them immediately. We all could not have been happier with the direction of the classroom and because Stacey was from our district and Mamie was from the special school district, all the needs of the students were covered. Lila adores her teachers and they are really the reason she goes to school every day.

This school year, we expected the teachers to remain the same but when we went to the back to school playdate, we found out that Ms. Mamie would be taking over a self-contained special school district classroom at the school. It was kind of sudden and Lila was sad because she and Mamie had developed such a special bond. Mamie assured her that she would still see her and even mentioned Lila coming to be her "helper" in her new classroom. Lila was ecstatic!

The first week of school, Lila told her teachers that she didn't take a nap anymore so she would need to go somewhere in the afternoons when the rest of her class napped. I was a little worried about her not napping but I decided to go with it after they told us that she would be going to Ms. Mamie's classroom to "help" in the afternoons.

Well, if I thought if she just went to school last year for the teachers, it has been magnified this year. Stacey and Mamie are who she talks about on Sunday night when thinking about going back to school. Mamie doesn't teach on Fridays so we've had problems with Lila wanting to go on Fridays. Some weeks it's just struggle. But we just look forward to the next Ms. Mamie day.

I saw Mamie in the hallway a few weeks ago and I thanked her for allowing Lila to come to her class in the afternoons. I told her it was probably her favorite time of the week and that we really appreciated her having her. How she responded brought tears to my eyes. She said that Lila was the best helper and leader and that some of the kids in her class really needed her. She said it was her pleasure and that Lila is so useful to the kids - she is always there to draw them out and make them a part of the group. My heart swelled with pride. And thankfulness that she had such an amazing role model to teach her about being helpful to those in need.

Lila's beloved Ms. Mamie unexpectedly passed away on December 30th at the very young age of 46.

Telling Lila was probably our toughest parenting moment to date. Delivering news that is going to break your child's heart is just plain awful. She was very very sad, but in true Lila fashion, she is handling it in a very matter of fact manner. She went back to school the next day and although she was sad, she wanted to go see Ms. Mamie's classroom to "see what it would be like without her." They took her and I've never been more thankful for Stacey and her kind and honest approach to handling this sad time.

Thinking back, I could have been my control freak self and made her take a nap at school the first part of this year. She truly still needs it. But something told me to go with it, and that extra time she got with Mamie will be treasured always. Lila is doing well, she's still sad sometimes, but happy to talk about Ms. Mamie and laugh at other times. She told us Mamie played the guitar for them, which we had surprisingly not heard before. She was comforted by the fact that the school is going to return the guitar to her family. She said there is one more star shining bright in the sky tonight. She is strong and wise beyond her years.

If I had the opportunity, this is what I would tell Mamie today (in short):

Dear Mamie,
We could never adequately express our tremendous appreciation for your bond with our sweet Lila. Thank you for sharing your gift with our child and so many other children  We are so thankful she got to see true service to others in action and pray having you as a role model leads her to develop this talent in the future.

We will miss you more than words can express and we are simply thankful we got to be a part of your precious life. XOXO

New Year 2016!

We had an extra special New Year's! After a couple of years of staying home and keeping the kiddos during the New Year's Eve float trip, we decided to get out of town this year. Thankfully, the Pooleys welcomed us to their house in Indianapolis!

We left on the 30th and arrived mid-afternoon (later than expected due to a turn I missed when I was on the phone, very uncharacteristic of me but I owned it). The kids always pick back up where they left off and immediately ran off playing.

Audra set up a babysitter for that night so the adults got an uninterrupted dinner out!  It would have been a great idea to get a picture of the 4 of us. Wish I'd thought of it!

On New Year's Eve, we hit up McAllister's for lunch and then...

went to play glow in the dark miniature golf! 

It was lots of fun, even though Nate showed his perfectionist side and wanted hole in ones on all the holes:)

Audra got the kids hats and noise makers to ring in 2016! They were all a hit! 

 and were hidden immediately the next morning:)

Marches to the beat of her own drum, this girl...

As always, we had a wonderful time with the Pooleys and very much appreciate them hosting us! Until we meet again...

Surviving the Rain

The day that Mimi & Paka left, it started raining. And it rained and rained and it rained until we thought we were going to build an Ark. 

So we tried to busy ourselves inside with some of the kids Christmas presents. Lila enjoyed some sketching. Nate enjoyed some light sabering (not pictured). 

And they both enjoyed their new tents from Nana & Wayne! They wanted to set them up in their rooms and they both slept in them that first night.

Lila was a one and done, she preferred her bed the next night. Which I was ever so thankful she decided since sleeping in the tent made her wake up at 5:30 AM.

Nate on the other hand loved sleeping in his tent (as did Truman) and he kept his up until we made him take it down the night before he went back to school.

All the rain was making us crazy...

so we ventured out to the Science Center (in the rain, did I mention it was raining?)

We got there when it opened and the crowds weren't too bad until we were getting ready to leave. Um. Drivers. Watch out in about 11 years.

I think Nate is holding on for dear life and it's a stationery truck.

We did everything they had to offer and most of it twice. I was glad to get them some activity.

Guessing the smell...

and building the Arch.

 

Good day at the Science Center and gotta love St. Louis for the free places to go when it's raining! Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of the families affected by the flooding. Although the small amount of water we had in our basement was super annoying, it could have been much much worse!