my blessed life

We've been in Ohio this week. Hamilton, to be specific, which is in the Cincinnati area. Hamilton is the town I grew up in. It's been 12 years since I've visited so I've been having a blast this week seeing lots of *old* friends and showing my kiddos all the familiar sights. I'll be back soon!

We're out having fun this week! So I may not be here everyday, but I'm still around. This weekend we've been having fun in St. Louis. We enjoyed our drive here. Then we had fun at the Arch and the Science Museum. We even got to experience a tornado while we were at the museum. Thankfully it didn't touch down and passed by quickly~luckily we are old hats with tornados, being from the South and all. We just hung out with about 150 other museum-goers who hadn't yet left either. So if you wonder where I am this week, we're out making memories!

I have this small, accidental collection of straw hats. I love them! Each one has special memory associated with it. For the past few years most of them have been stored away, but this Spring I thought I would get them all out so that I can enjoy looking at them. And they're handy so that I can grab one on the way out the door on a sunny day! Going clockwise from the top right: The one on the top right was purchased at a charming little Victorian shop where I worked for a few years. It's part of a collection of Mary Engelbreit hats that were produced. I love the fruit! The one below is from Jamaica, purchased at an outdoor market. It's handmade, excellent craftsmanship. I've had it about 20 years now. At the bottom left is one that I picked up on a very sunny day in Annapolis, Maryland. It's gotten the most use~I love it! The middle one on the left is from Hawaii. I bought it on my first trip there in 1993 and, yes, I carried it all the way home on my lap ...

This weekend we're taking off on another road trip. As time-saving as flying is (unless you have delays), I have to say that road trips are my favorite. Sure, there's the cramped leg space at times and sometimes whiny kiddos in the backseat and too much fast food. But there's also the freedom to stop whenever you need to stretch your legs, great sights to see out the windows, and the space to bring your cooler. All great reasons to take road trips, in my book! I have been busy getting my car in shape for the trip. Some of the essentials that I have stashed in the car are: sunglasses umbrella phone charger gps (this is my hubby's essential item) dvds & cds sanitizer wet wipes extra napkins in the glove box extra straws extra plastic ware sunscreen bug spray first aid kit notepad & pen I've recently added some fun road trip games to the car, too. First of all is my all-time fave game to play while traveling by car~ the license plate game ! On...

I'm loving my new luggage tags!! Hobby Lobby, you rock! The red ribbon ties really *pop* on my luggage. Now to get those suitcases packed for our trip...

0151. relaxing weekends 0152. no-agenda-no-schedule family time 0153. playing miniature golf with my kiddos 0154. watching how cute The Princess is when she's lining up her shot 0155. watching how funny Mr. B is, totally NOT lining up his shots 0156. and celebrating their differences 0157. time well-spent with grandparents 0158. a wonderful godly family heritage 0159. listening to my husband read to the kiddos 0160. the amazing faithfulness of God

Today is my and Vince's 13th anniversary! It's been a wonderful 13 years. I'm looking forward to where the next 13 takes us! Our wedding day Leaving the reception On our honeymoon in Paris, France On a trip to NYC Fern Gully, Jamaica Fresh lobster on Prince Edward Island, Canada The Rocky Mountains, Colorado In Washington D.C. Skiing in Winter Park, Colorado On our 10th anniversary trip to Maui, Hawaii Fort Morgan, Alabama Fall 2009 Spring 2010

I'm keeping this week as simple as possible in the kitchen. Vince is gone all week and the rest of us are preparing for a trip later in the week, too. I will also be doing a small amount of freezer cooking (3 meals) so that we will be prepared when we get home from our trip. Two days after we return home we have company arriving. I thought having our meals already (mostly) prepared would greatly alleviate my stress levels since arriving home from a semi-long trip puts my house in a state of chaos. I can focus on laundry and cleaning then instead of cooking. I'm actually feeling a little bit overwhelmed by all I have to do this week. But it'll all get done. Oh~and did I mention that we are also wrapping up (the majority) of The Princess' schoolwork this week? I know, I'm all about trying to overdo it. When will I ever learn?! I must tell you about our fave meal from last week though. I have been focusing on creatively using up leftovers and needed to...

Actually, I bet it was that random number generator, but does it really matter? :) Econobusters had a cookbook giveaway a couple of weeks ago~and I won! The cookbook is Gooseberry Patch 's new one, Dinner$ on a Dime. To enter you were to leave a comment telling your family's fave frugal meal. Well, ours is definitely pinto beans and cornbread (which we are having tomorrow night, of course). The kids love it and it's so nutritious and cheap. The cookbook came in the mail this weekend and I am really enjoying looking through it. I can already tell it will probably become a favorite of mine. If you get a chance, check it out! Thank you, Econobusters and Gooseberry Patch!!

This week I was given a couple of surprise treasures! This sweet person knows my likes very well, I must say. She had acquired a couple of random plates and "thought I might like them". Might?!?! I love them!! This first one is a dinner plate. It's American made, with sweet flowers and gold around the edges. I plan to hang it in The Princess' room. It flows perfectly with the plates already hanging in her room. This second one is more of the bread and butter size. It's Limoges with a lovely fruit pattern that I don't remember seeing before: "Pomona". I know I plan to use this some where in my living room, but I'm still deciding if I want to hang it or put it on a stand. I love these colors though, it matches so well. Have you noticed the sweet quilted sampler that I'm using for this shot? I love this little piece and recently re-discovered it. I bought it in my pre-child days with the idea of hanging it in my nursery one day. And...

"How does one become a butterfly? .....You must want to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar." Trina Paulus

...because the day has finally come when my daughter has become obsessed with detective books! I've been collecting them for years now (of course, I read them all as a kid~mostly from the library) and have been so looking forward to the day when my children would read them. I loved, loved, loved these books!! I was Nancy Drew and I'm sure I drove my parents crazy creating a mystery out of everything. This past year, my daughter first caught interest in detective stories when she read a Nate the Great book. Very cute books, I must say, and even though I didn't read them when I was younger, they are from a couple of generations ago. She is also getting into The Magic Treehouse books plus a few random juvenile mystery books I saved from childhood. She is also getting very much interested in the ones I've been collecting all this time, even though she probably won't really start reading them for a little while yet. But waiting patiently in our Learning Room is...

0141. perfect Spring weather 0142. hanging out with friends 0143. and eating great food 0144. hanging out with my family 0145. watching my kiddos blow dandelions 0146. and make little wishes 0147. flying kites 0148. and picking flowers 0149. worshiping the Lord with a different part of our spiritual family on Sunday 0150. ending the day with good books

This week I'm getting a little cooking break at the beginning~woot! We are visiting Vince's grandparents today in Oklahoma City. We're also celebrating our anniversary a little early because Vince has to be out-of-town on the actual day next week. The rest of the week I will be focusing on cleaning out the fridge, freezer and pantry as much as possible since we have a trip coming up soon ( I am finally ready for a trip !). So here's the plan for the week: Monday: {will be in Oklahoma City for the day} Tuesday: {going out for our anniversary} Wednesday: Salmon Patties with Potato Cakes , Peas & Carrots Thursday: Baked Spaghetti with Olive Cheese Bread Friday: Homemade Pizza Saturday: Grilled Chicken w/ Slow Cooker Baked Potatoes What do you have cooking this week? This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie .