Done!

Well its finished. Not perfect, but finished and made with a lot of love for my precious Junior Mint. Mr. Miller said it looked great and said he had a talented wife, I think he is trying to win brownie points. None the less it did make me feel good, see why I love this man and put up with him!

I pieced together the back with scraps that I had left over. Don't mind the Cat's rear in the picture. She loves any fabric that comes out of my room. She has been helping me with the blanket. I think she has a little attachment issue.

We are getting ready for the big party tomorrow and Henry and I will be leaving soon for our adventure to the airport to pick up the Deacon and Pops.

Holiday Travel - 1 vs My Diet - 0

Well we all know how much good stuff there is to eat over the holidays. Let's just say I enjoyed myself a little too much. I had lost 8 pounds prior to our trip, well they found me in Georgia and hopped back on for the ride home. I am happy to say that I have shed 4 of them again. I will beat this.

The Deacon and Pops gave us a Wii game system with the Wii Fit accessories. We have been using it and I do believe it works. I will keep you posted. If nothing else the boxing is a great way to get out your frustrations. Plus watching Cameron box is hilarious.

cAkE!

Well I made "trial" run at the cake for the party on Saturday. I used the Sour Cream Almond Wedding Cake recipe from Pioneer woman. I made it in the GF version. I used the Namaste All Purpose GF flour mix. I think I would try it again GF but use my Pamela's Baking Mix. I also used a Betty Crocker GF white cake mix. It had great flavor but was very dense as GF. When you make it GF it will not be as tall and it would if you made regular. It was still tasty, as you can see!

Since I am the main GF person in the house I will probably make it per directions and not GF for the party. I plan on using my favorite Ina Gartin Cream Cheese Icing. Yum!

sour cream almond cake (wedding cake)

1 box(es) (18.25 Oz. Box) White Cake Mix - I used the Betty Crocker GF white cake mix
1 cup All-purpose Flour - I used the Namaste All Purpose GF flour mix
1 cup Sugar
¾ teaspoons Salt
1-⅓ cup Water
⅛ cups Vegetable Oil
1 teaspoon Real Vanilla
1 teaspoon Almond Extract
1 cup Sour Cream
4 whole Egg Whites

Preparation Instructions

Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir together with a wire whisk.
Add the remaining ingredients and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Pour into greased and floured cake pans, filling each pan a little over half full.
Bake in a preheated 325-degree oven until cake tests done. Baking time varies depending on the size of pans used. When using the GF and in my gas oven it took about 45-50 in one square 9x9 pan.

Look who's 1!

Look who's 1 today! I know I can't believe it, my little Junior Mint is 1 year old today.

We are getting ready for the big celebration on Saturday. Lots of friends and family. The Deacon and Pops are flying in from Valdosta and Mimi will be joining us from Topeka.

Today Mama is making a cake and finishing a quilt. I have never made a quilt before. I took my inspiration from Heather at Shivaya Naturals. She talked about a Perfect Spring Blanket back in May. Check it out, cute. www.shivayanaturals.com/2009/05/perfect-spring-blanket_9532.html

I found this darling flannel in the remnants basket. I brought it home and when through the cupboard and found some coordinating solids. I have the top done and attached to Organic Cotton batting. I need to sew the back on and we will be done. Henry will have his own quilt!

I found a recipe on Pioneer Woman for a Sour Cream Almond Cake, it is supposed to be like wedding cake. I have converted it to GF. I am going to make a trial cake today for the party on Saturday. After all he has to have a cake on the real birthday. I will let you know tomorrow how it turns out!

Menu Planning

Menu planning for the week is such an essential part to our Rhythm here. Without it I would be able to have a grocery budget, another essential part for us since we are now a one income family. I thought I would share our menu this week. When I make my menu I always consult what is in the freezer and pantry. Then I look through cookbooks and put pen to paper. Once this is done the list gets made and there that chore is done and ready for our Friday night outing to the grocery store. The reasoning behind Friday night shopping and planning is that our Fresh Connect delivery comes on Friday and I need to incorporate what is in the box to what will be on our plates.

I have a simple dry erase board that I write the menu out on. I can make notes on the side as to recipes in certain cook books if needed.

week of 1/22 - 1/29

friday ~ steak, baked potatoes, broccoli

saturday ~ pancakes, eggs, sausage

sunday ~ taco soup

monday ~ Chicken and Noodles, fresh broccoli

I had a whole chicken in the freezer, this is a great way to make the dollar stretch. Slow cook a whole chicken in your crock pot and you can usually get 2 - 4 recipes out of that chicken.

tuesday ~ tacos

wednesday ~ grilled cheese, tomato soup, applesauce

thursday ~ left overs

friday ~ chicken corn chowder, salad, pumpkin corn bread

Your menu planning does not have to be difficult. Make it customized to your family. Good luck and let me know if you see a difference in your grocery budget, I know you will.

Heart 2 Heart ~ part 2

This weekend we finally got out to get the supplies for our care kits. Which really was OK since on Wednesday St. Thomas More, Cameron's school, sent home a note stating they were supporting this particular cause also. We prayed as a family about what we could give up. We agreed upon 50% of the grocery budget for the week and I took part of my earnings from the Diaper Swap to fund 6 kits from our family. It was a great outing for the family and really great to show Cameron how important it is to give. I will say that his school has done an outstanding job explaining to the children about this tragedy. They took the offering from Wednesday's Mass and donated the proceeds, held a bake sale on Friday and also had $1 dress down day.

Tonight we were at the store getting the ingredients for Junior Mint's birthday cake and I met a young Mama with her Mother and little girl. I know I can't go anywhere without making new friends, anyways her Mother shared with us how this young Mama and Nurse was boarding a plane tomorrow with her co workers from St. Joseph Medical Center to help in Haiti. They were taking over $500,000 in medical supplies to take care of the Haitians. Grandma said her mission trip was to take care of her beautiful 15 mos old grand daughter. I thanked this young Mama for what she was about to do, she was brought to tears and I said don't cry but know we will be praying for you and your efforts.

Isn't it amazing when we step back and realize what we can do to help others out?

Out of the Mouths of Babes ~ part 2

Yep, I did it again. Mother of the year award right here, down in front... Maeghan gets it again!

Yesterday when I was picking Cameron up for school I was in a rush because the "Hens" were coming to my house for Bunco. Junior Mint and I walked up to get him and he was very excited about the bake sale today to raise money for Haiti. Therefore he was not paying attention and talking a mile a minute. I got Junior Mint in his seat and went to fasten Cameron's seat belt. When I got to his side of the Urban Farm Truck he had just dropped his backpack right there on the ground for me to get. Wouldn't you know it just slipped out and I said, " I don't have time for this c#$@!". Yes, I know there I was in a Catholic School parking lot, children every where and I lost my cool. I thought I said it low enough and only so I could here it, but OH no, radar aka Cameron heard it all. This was his response, "Mama, why don't you have time to C$%#?". I look over just as he said that and there was another mom putting her kids in car just laughing at the situation. I wanted to crawl under the truck. Note to self instead of saying those things out loud just say them on the inside. They hear everything!

A fresh look

When you live in a small house such as we do, you are constantly trying out new ways of arranging furniture to get the most use out of your space. I am not complaining but just stating a fact. I love my house. I love that it comfortable and cozy, that I can clean it in under 2 hours. The fact still remains that Mr. Miller and I have a lot of stuff.

So occasionally I move things around. This month it has been the kitchen. I moved the fridge so we could move in a cabinet, which left us with this desk. I love this desk, when we lived in the condo it was left out by the dumpster. It is missing its drawer but other than that it is in perfect shape. So you know me, the dumpster diver, I had to have it. When we moved into the house I used it in the kitchen to house the microwave, cookbooks and canisters. Now that I have moved the kitchen around it is going to serve many useful purposes for us. I can use it as an extra buffet when family is over and my most favorite is a place other than the dining room table to write. I finally have a spot with a note pad, pens, school directory and a place to read the mail.

Eggplant Gratin

We have been trying to get our Rhythm back here and part of that includes the weekly meal plan. I plan a menu every week and make our grocery list from that menu. This really helps me stick to our grocery budget. Part of the meal planning is based on what comes in our Fresh Connect delivery on Fridays. http://www.freshconnectkc.com/ (Check them out they are offering a $5 off your first delivery special right now.)

Last Friday we got a beautiful Eggplant in our delivery. I wanted to make something new. So here I sat at the computer and searched for Eggplant recipes. Mr. Miller actually sat and looked with me, we found one by Ina Gartin. I do love her style of cooking. I did make a few changes and I know you all are surprised by that! The recipe was for Eggplant Gratin. This was amazing. Cameron wouldn't try it, but Henry loved it and so did Mr. Miller.

Eggplant Gratin

Good olive oil, for frying
3/4 pound eggplant, unpeeled, sliced 1/2-inch thick
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
1 extra-large egg
1/4 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup good bottled marinara sauce (I prefer to use Newman's)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Heat about 1/8-inch of olive oil in a very large frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is almost smoking, add several slices of eggplant and cook, turning once, until they are evenly browned on both sides and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Be careful, it splatters! Transfer the cooked eggplant slices to paper towels to drain. Add more oil, heat, and add more eggplant until all the slices are cooked.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the ricotta, egg, half-and-half, 1/2 of the cheese mixture, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.
In a shallow baking dish place a layer of eggplant slices, then sprinkle with cheese, salt and pepper and spoon 1/2 of the marinara sauce. Next, add a second layer of eggplant, more salt and pepper, ricotta mixture, and finally rest of the cheese mix on top.

Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the custard sets and the top is browned. Serve warm.

I served with rice pasta and the remaining sauce. Yummy!

Whats my job?

Not long ago I talked about changes here at Green Acres. Thank you to a very good friend, I had the opportunity to go back to work Monday through Friday and 8 -5. Normal hours, wow, I don't know the last time I had a job with normal hours. Well long story short I had to let the opportunity go because it was not working out in the daycare department. I decided it was best that she focus on another candidate. Plus the cost, my goodness to keep Junior Mint in full time and then after school care for Cameron plus summer care well you guessed it there went 50% of the income before taxes. I was going to really be in the hole. I have bounced back and forth on what to do.

Last night Mr. Miller helped me see what my job is and that it was useful, appreciated and that I was really good at it. Sorry ladies, he is taken! Well here it is:

Job: Mama and Wife

Description: Hand Holder, Lover, Dream Soother

OK, so we all know that dishes, laundry, carpool driver, cook and diaper changer falls in there too but I am focusing on the big 3. Mr. Miller also informed me about how many people I touch outside of these 4 walls through this blog. Here this started as a dare by my husband and has turned into such a meaningful part of my life and so many others. Thank you all for letting me share our crazy, mixed up world with you.

Sometimes we take for granted all that we have in our lives and feel that we need to make up for our short comings with possessions and what job we have.

We have learned so much this past year, it has been a long year and at some times a tough one to travel. I am blessed to stay home and yes, it is a right and a privilege. We have made many changes and have learned and grown from them.

"What can I do?"

I know this question has plagued us all this last week with the devastation in Haiti. We have asked that question over and over again here at Green Acres. Yesterday, while at church, our Deacon Linda put it into perspective for the Millers. She talked about how personal this tragedy was to her with her outreach work in Haiti over the years. She also reminded us of how lucky we all were to be in homes with electricity, clean and running water, food to eat and medical attention if we needed it.

Linda talked about the faith of the people of Haiti and how they were probably praying and fully relying on God at this point to get them through. She said our first priority is to remember them in Prayer. Prayer is the foundation to get us through and without prayer where would we be. Secondly she talked about a foundation called Heart to Heart International. http://www.hearttoheart.org/. We as a congregation are going to be assembling Heart to Heart Care kits. These personal hygiene kits help disaster survivors fight water-borne and airborne diseases that linger long after a crisis hits their region. Below is a list of what is in these kits.

• One new hand towel
• One new washcloth
• One wide-tooth comb
• One small bottle of
shampoo
• One new individually
wrapped toothbrush
• One travel size tube
of toothpaste
• Ten (10) adhesive
bandages
• One individually
wrapped bath size
bar of soap
• One plastic travel
size soap dish
• Two (2) one-gallon
size zipper seal bags

Here are the instructions for these kits:

1. Place all items in one zipper seal bag,
seal it, and place the top of the filled
bag into the bottom of the second bag
and seal it.
2. Collect banana boxes from a local
grocery store, place cardboard or a
paper bag in the bottom, and place
10 completed Care Kits in each box.
3. Complete the Care Kit Information
Form (available online), insert it in an envelope with financial support for shipping
($1.00 per kit), and place the envelope in the box.
4. Secure each box with packing tape and mark the outside of the box “10 Care Kits.”
(If sending multiple boxes, please mark box "Form Inside" so we collect your
information efficiently.)
5. Add necessary shipping information and ship to our warehouse:
Heart to Heart International, 1021 Pacific Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102
© 2006 Heart to Heart International

If you are in the Kansas City area there are many local drives going on. Our parish, St. Peter's Episcopal Church at 100 E Red Bridge Road, will be collecting them and delivering them to Heart to Heart. There is also a collection sight at the Wal-Mart on I-70 and Blue Ridge Blvd.

These are items we all take for granted but are in such need to these children of God. Cameron is out of school today and the boys and I will be making a shopping trip. We are going to take 50% of our grocery budget for the week to do this. Does this mean more Macaroni and Cheese or sandwiches and soup for week? Yes, but at least it will be something warm to eat, and God will provide. Won't you take a moment and see how you can help?

Cozy and Comforting

On a day like today I was needing something cozy and very comforting. It is in the low 30's, foggy and just plain dreary out. I decided to make some granola. I have never made this before and it is one of my favorite go to comfort foods. I love to put some in a bowl and add yogurt and spoonful of creamy peanut butter and it is a great meal that keeps you going. I lived on this post delivery with Junior Mint. I had to have a high protein diet to promote healing from my "belly birth fiasco", aka my c-section incision opened 8 days post op. You can say it, ooh! That is another story in itself. Back to the granola, I found this recipe in one of my many cook books and I thought I would give it a try. Wow, lets just say I will never pay $5.99 at the store for their Granola again.

granola

1. 3 1/2 c oats, either quick or old fashioned
2. 1/2 c honey
3. 1/3 coarsely chopped pecans (optional)
4. 1/4 butter (1/2 stick)
5. 1 tsp vanilla
6. 1/2 tsp cinnamon
7. pinch of salt (optional)
8. dried fruit of your choice, about 1 1/3 c

Heat oven to 350. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except dried fruit; mix well. Isn't my bowl lovely? Mr. Miller gave it to me along with 3 nesting bowls for Christmas. I just love vintage Pyrex and somehow I have become attached to this pattern, its the Early American.

Next spread the mixture evenly in a 15 x 10 inch jelly roll pan.

Bake 35-40 minutes or until golden brown, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool completely and add your dried fruit. I didn't put fruit in this time but I will as needed. I am storing it in one of my beloved vintage canning jars.

I know what I am having for breakfast tomorrow!

Banana Sour Cream Bread

This is the Kings Cake that we made last week. It is a wonderful anytime, go to, quick fix! We put blueberries in the middle but you could substitute with anything, I was thinking Pecans, Chocolate Chips or raisins?

Banana Sour Cream Bread

1. 1/2 c. shortening or oil
2. 1 c sugar
3. 2 eggs
4. 3 ripe bananas, mashed
5. 1/2 tsp vanilla
6. 1/2 c. sour cream
7. 2 c flour or for us I used the Pamelas GF baking mix
8. 1 tsp baking powder and soda
9. 1/2 c blueberries (optional)
10. 1/4 tsp. salt
11. 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Cream shortening and 1 cup sugar until light. Beat in eggs; mashed banana and vanilla. Add sour cream and blend on low speed. In a separate bowl, measure the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Gradually add this to the banana mixture and blend. Save your blueberries or raisins etc. in a separate bowl for later.

Generously grease a 6 1/2 cup ring mold or tube pan. Spoon half of the batter around the Pan's bottom . Sprinkle the blueberries or your choice over this layer. Sprinkle cinnamon on top. Cover with remaining batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until done. Cool about 5 minutes and remove bread from pan.

This recipe can double as a cake. If so, you may want to frost it with 1/4 cup butter, 1/2 cup mashed bananas, 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice, and 1 pound of confectioners sugar. We had vanilla ice cream with ours!

New Looks

Last week with all the snow and having my extra little helper at home, we accomplished a lot. Cameron and I took down all of the Christmas on Friday as a surprise for Mr. Miller and "NO" the outside exterior illumination is not down yet, as soon as it thaws we will take care of that. When it was all put away poor Cameron had such a sad look on his face. "Mama, what comes next? This is boring around here!", so I said well Valentines Day. He then asked if I had any Valentines Day decorations and I really don't so we decided that we should make some.


I went down to the scrap box and found some pink and brown flannel and decided we needed a table runner. I found a piece that was 10x44 in the pink and brown cupcake material. Mr. Miller says it looks like Strawberry Shortcake has invaded his house, little does he know that for his comment I am going to make matching Napkins today just for him to use. I know it is the little things in life that can make a wife smile through meals. Back to the project, I then cut a piece of pink flannel to size and sewed a simple seam around 3 sides with right sides together. I then turned the fabric right side out and did a simple zig zag around to finish.

Voila! A Valentines Table Runner that I didn't have to purchase anything for. I used my tall multi purpose hurricane and put one of my Christmas Pillars in on top of whole coffee beans to bring out the brown. I am thinking of swapping out the beans for conversations hearts. I will let you know.

I decided that the dining room still needed something. Mr. Miller and I had a bedroom set that belonged to Gigi. I still have the dresser, it serves as a great storage piece for me in the laundry room. The mirror however was just collecting dust, so I thought about it and said to myself why not take the legs off and hang it in my dining room. Mr. Miller is always leery when he comes home from work and I start with " I was thinking...". He agreed and this weekend he brought that wish to fruition for me. It is always so pleasing when you can look around at what you have and see what new things you can do to it to change things up a bit. This project cost us $2.50. We had to buy the wire and hooks to hang. I can handle a new mirror for that price.

I am amazed at how it helps my dining room not seem so small. I also joked that it is a good reminder every time I open the fridge, since you can see yourself in it from the kitchen. It makes you ask "am I really hungry or bored?".

My Visitor

Last night or I should say early this morning around 2:45 Henry woke up and wanted to eat. So I wearily stumbled to the kitchen and fixed a bottle. I love when I go in there and it is just him and I, he gets so excited and it just melts my heart.

The moon was so bright last night and we looked out the window. We had a visitor or I should say 2 of them. I had a Mama Doe and her Fawn were nestled under my apple tree. I showed Henry, she looked at us and didn't startle. She just cocked her head to the side, ears popped up and she nodded at me and just loved her little one. I felt as if we were exchanging greetings and acknowledgements to each other. Words were spoken without even uttering a sound. It was such a peaceful moment between 2 Mama's taking care of their young.

Priceless

After dinner last night Cameron built a fort on the couch by using the quilts, couch cushions and coffee table. This provided about an hour of entertainment for the boys. Henry just laughed and laughed. While Mr. Miller was putting Henry to bed and I was cleaning up from dinner this is what I found. Priceless. I guess snow days are harder work than most people think. Of course this was 8pm and he has been up since 5:30am this morning, but it did provide Mama and Daddy with some peaceful conversation.

Let it snow...let it snow...let it snow!

The view out my back door this morning. I think I have a patio out there somewhere and there should be a fire pit infront of those chairs.

Wow! What a week, we have had more snow and frigid temps this week. We were expecting snow yesterday and single digit temperatures. I kept Cameron home with me since the bulk of the snow was supposed to be falling when I should be picking him up from school and I had that Mom instinct of "are you crazy, I am so not risking the lives of my children" so I made an executive decision. Cameron, Junior Mint and I had our own Epiphany Party and as Cameron called it " school at home". As it turns out it took Mr. Miller almost 2 hours to do what is normally a 20 minute commute home. He made it safe and that is all that counts.

We researched Epiphany and found out some interesting facts. Cameron had a great time calling the Deacon, Pops, Mimi and Gigi last night to share what he learned. We learned the 3 Kings names and about the gifts they brought. We also found out why the "Kings Cakes" are circular ~ because King Herod stopped the Kings in route and asked if they would share where he was. The Kings thought wiser of this and knew that Herod once again was up to no good and so they travelled in a circular route to their homelands. There you go! We made a Sour Cream Banana Cake with Pamela's Flour Mix. I tell you that GF Mix is the best! We hid Blueberries in the middle for the treasure. This cake was great and I will share the recipe soon.

We got another 6+ inches last night and school is called off today by them. Cameron wants to go out and play but I feel some movies, books, dinosaur play and hot chocolate calling our names.

Broccoli and Cheese Soup

It has been mighty cold since we have come home this week. Last night was the perfect soup night. I made Broccoli and Cheese soup. I found a recipe in my "Make It Fast, Cook It Slow" book by Stephanie O'Dea, and with a little tweaking it came out perfect for my family. Stephanie has a great blog, www.crockpot364.blogspot.com, check it out. She has a lot of Gluten Free too!

This truly has to be one of the best Broccoli soups I have ever had. Cameron and Junior Mint could not get enough and Mr. Miller was loving it. I need to figure points still and I am sure they are not great but it was worth every bite.

broccoli and cheese soup

1/2 white onion, diced

2 C milk, I used organic skim

1 quart chicken broth

black pepper to taste

1/2 tsp salt

2 (10 oz) bags of frozen broccoli florets

1 C each of 3 different shredded cheeses ~ I used vermont white cheddar, sharp cheddar and velveeta

Use a 6 quart slow cooker. Place the diced onion, small pieces are best, in bottom of pot. Pour milk and broth in next, they will soften the onion, add seasoning. Stir in the broccoli. Cook on low for 7-9 hours or high for 4 -6 hours. The broth will be done when onions are soft and translucent. Stir in the cheese about 20 minutes before serving. The cheese will be stringy and stick to the broccoli. Some people might opt for blending the soup for a more consistent looking soup. However we were fine eating it just as it was. Serve with biscuits or crackers and we had a spinach salad. Yum!

New addition to our rhythm

Cameron loves to read or to be read to, so we have decided that every evening without fail we will be reading a book or 2 or 3! I know we should all be doing this anyway but admit it, it sometimes gets pushed aside.

While we were on vacation I couldn't help but go into the local Goodwill and of course came out with books. It is such a great resource for finding gently loved books. I walked out with 2 videos, and 13 books for $14. Can't beat that! One of the books was an "Easy Reader" about dinosaurs. Last night Cameron discovered the book and brought out his dinosaur collection and was teaching Henry all about them. I loved watching it, Henry just looked at his brother like a little sponge and Cameron was so animated with the Dino's. When Mr. Miller got home and after he had his Chicken and Noodles we read the book before bath time. It was such a relaxing time.
I am challenging each and every one of you to look around and decide how can I better spend time with my loved ones in 2010? You just might be surprised.

Back to our Rhythm

Well vacation is done. We are unpacked, OK so 95% unpacked, I still need to finish with the big red tote. Yes, it is twice the size of the one we took to Georgia, Thanks to the Deacon and Pops. I will say she did get it all in there and it was much easier to load the Urban Farm Truck to come home. Laundry and getting through the pile of mail and newspapers is on the list today.

Rhythm, it is such an important part of ones life. We all have a certain Rhythm in our homes and lives, this is something that I have learned while being at home and from my blogging buddies out there. If we don't find the rhythm it can be complicated, yes there are days that your rhythm will be out of "tune" but at least you have a guide to get it back.

My rhythm today includes making chicken and noodles for dinner, planning Junior Mint's 1ST Birthday Celebration ~ yes I said 1ST birthday already, getting back to eating right again and just getting my house back in shape.

I will get to take Christmas down on Thursday, we celebrate the 12 days and the wiseguys have not come yet. Cameron reminded me of that last night when I told Mr. Miller I was ready to take back my house. He is a smart little guy and he knows just what to say to keep Mama in check.

One Small Change

I am sorry this is a day late. We got back home last night to Green Acres! We were welcomed back to Kansas City with gently falling snow. It was beautiful! After the boys went to bed Mr. Miller and I snuggled on the couch with a favorite quilt and a bottle of Merlot and just watched the snow in the dark and comfort of our home. Home, is there ever such a wonderful place as home? Vacations are wonderful and we did have a great time, but I was so happy to be home.

We had some Deer while we were gone!

Now on to subject, One Small Change...we have decided this month to install a low flow shower head. We have wanted to do this for a very long time and now we are going to do it! Water is such a precious resource to us and we need to take care of it. I hope you all have gotten the chance to check out Suzy's blog, http://www.hipmountainmamblog.com/, what change are you going to make?