Memory Lane

We're getting there. As we spend our last few days in this house, I'm having such mixed emotions. I'm very thankful and excited for our new house, but I'm also saddened as I remember all that made this house a home. I'm very aware each time I put Caroline to bed that soon she will have a new room, and her sweet nursery will be painted over to suit the new family. She's very excited about her big girl room. Last night we drove by the new house and she squealed out, "My big girl room!" We were happy she remembered the house and remembered what we'd told her about it. I've been concerned about her reaction to the move. Because of the move, we've put off moving her out of her crib, but I know it's time. Not just for her, but for me as well. It's starting to physically hurt to lean over and put her down in her crib. I'm certain this is because of my ever-growing stomach, but now seems like the right time. So many changes.



2 weeks old....her first Thanksgiving. My friend Jenn gave us this bib and yes, it was HUGE on her, but I loved having her in that bouncy chair in our dining room while we ate.



Her first Iron bowl. We won--War Eagle! Aaron said she was his good luck charm. :) The Grotto has been our family room, and I know we will miss it.



Her first Christmas, she fit inside her stocking. She had no clue anything special was going on, but I loved carrying her out on Christmas morning.



Napping with Daddy in the Grotto.



Daddy with his two little girls. I won't be able to see Caddy running around the new house. Every once in a while, I can picture her napping in the Grotto or eating in the corner of this kitchen. She was such a big part of our life for a long time.



First Easter. I loved taking pictures of her in the pink chair in her nursery when she was little.




Following her surgery, she wore braces on her arms to keep her hands out of her mouth. She got good at crawling around. I told Aaron we needed to make sure no Evolutionists saw her like that. She seriously looked just like a monkey when she crawled around keeping her arms completely straight.



She loved having her hand stuffed in her first birthday cake.



What's cookin?







(That's a turtle in the yard!)








These pictures just represent the surface of memories we have in this home. That's exactly what it is too...a home. A house is just walls and a roof. Laughter and love make the home, and we have treasured the joys we've experienced here, and we've learned from the heartaches. We're moving on, and will miss the memories, but that's what's so wonderful about memories. They're always right with you. I am so excited about the new memories we'll make in our new home. We'll have the pitter-patter of another little one in this home and we'll meet each day with prayerful hearts and keep our eyes open for the little things that make a house a home.

life happens when you're busy making other plans...

I've been sort of dreading posting this for a while now. Aaron and I have been prayerful in our efforts to be content with what we have...and something very unexpected came along.

In January (about a week after I posted about trying to utilize our house instead of thinking of what we don't have) a co-worker of Aaron's approached him to see if we would be interested in selling our house. She and her husband were wanting to buy in the neighborhood we lived in and she knew we weren't planning to be in this house forever. When he came home and told me that...I think I almost dropped the chopping knife in my hand, which would have meant a trip to the ER for a possible toe re-attachment, but somehow, I was able to keep my hands around the handle of said knife. So, we prayed about this new development and thought about it A LOT..making pro/con lists and wording more prayers to our Heavenly Father. In the end, we decided to let the family come look at the house and from there we would decide what the best decision was. So they did, and the liked the house, but ended up buying a different one. We moved on, thankful for what we have and forgot about it.

Mid-March rolls around and Aaron comes home and says someone else wants to look at the house. The family who had already looked but didn't buy told their sister and brother-in-law about it and now they wanted to come look. We prayed again, and gave it some thought, and decided to again let them come look and then make a more definite decision. This time we were presented with an offer within an hour of them leaving. We were in shock, to say the least. We prayed more and again went over the pros and cons, and Aaron contacted them with a very set price. We weren't looking to sell, so we weren't pressured. That day, the other family decided not to buy. We again thanked the Lord for all that we have and got back to life as usual. Until a week later, when out of nowhere Aaron received a text message from the family saying they had changed their mind and would meet our price, should we still be interested in selling. We were on our knees again, and in the end, we decided to sell. So, we're moving in 2 weeks. It's crazy, but fun and exciting at the same time.

Barring a move to another city...we don't want to move again. We plan to be in our new house for a long time and we went into house hunting with that in the forefront of our minds. We had discovered over the last 3 years that we were not older-home compatible. We are just not good at home repairs and never ending to-do lists, and that's ok. We wanted something relatively new. In the end...we ended up downsizing slightly in square footage, but the home we purchased we are completely in love with. Coincidentally a very good friend of ours build the home for a family we know a few years ago, but they are a military family and were transferred. We didn't know all that at the time, but it turned out so perfectly we know prayer played a part in our finding that specific home.

It's going to be hectic around here for a while...but we're excited about our new corner of the world!

Spring

We've been enjoying the beautiful weather lately. It's so wonderful to see the flowers blooming and the trees beginning to bud and come back to life after the cold winter.

We had company for Easter. I did ok with my eat-from-the-pantry challenge. I didn't go grocery shopping, but we ate out a few more times than I had allotted for. Oh well...not a total bust, I did get several items used up from my freezer and pantry. We had a good time with Aunt KK and Uncle Jud for the holiday. It's always fun to be with family!

Easter Eggs and a Challenge

Today has been a fun day! Caroline and I dyed Easter Eggs! Aaron helped by taking the pictures. :)




(I was really excited to have something to use those birthday cups for! Those are leftover from her 2nd birthday...not her first. The company sent me the wrong ones! Anyway...glad they got put to some use!)






I really enjoyed dying the eggs with her and I think she enjoyed it too. Well, she liked it except for the part where she accidentally spilled the cup of yellow on her leg. She did not like that one little bit! We got through it though. :)

So...now the challenge. I've read a lot about this on Money Saving Mom, but I've never actually attempted it myself....an eating from the pantry challenge. Basically, you try not to shop for groceries for a scheduled amount of time by eating from your pantry, fridge, and freezer. I love to coupon and shop sales, so I do have a pretty well-stocked kitchen most of the time...and right now we're bulging at the seams. My last trip was a week ago. I was able to get 2 HUGE boxes of Corn Flakes for very cheap...not remembering the exact amount at the moment, but cheap enough that I bought them. We don't normally eat Corn Flakes, but Aaron will eat almost any cereal, so I'm not too picky and buy what I can get a good deal on. Anyway....since I have 2 ginormous boxes, I'm on the lookout for recipes that use Corn Flakes. We're having company this weekend (Aunt KK and Uncle Jud!) so I'm going to make Corn Flake cookies. Tonight I'm making a potato casserole I got from my friend Becca years ago when we used to have a supper club. I'm so excited to make it. I had all the ingredients except cream of mushroom soup, but I do have cream of chicken, so I'm going to substitute and hope it turns out ok! :) I'm making sausage balls and eggs to go with it. I've had the sausage in my freezer for a while...it's time to use it!

I also found this recipe for a chicken meal that sounds good. Did you know you can go to All Recipes and search for ingredients you have and it will pull up recipes using the ingredient! I also found this for french toast, so we'll probably be having that for breakfast next week. French toast is one of Caroline's favorites so I know it will be a hit!

As for my Eating-From-the-Pantry challenge...I'm starting with dinner tonight and I'm going to try and avoid the grocery for a week. Yes, that includes having company this weekend...but we're planning to go out for one meal while they're here.

Meals Ideas:

Breakfast:
Cereal and milk
French Toast
Pancakes
Scrambled Eggs with Toast
Oatmeal
Frozen Pastry
Fruit (grapes, apples, strawberries)
Peanut Butter-Banana Muffins

Lunch:
Grilled Cheese sandwiches
Peanut butter sandwiches
Fruit (apples, strawberries, grapes)
Leftovers
Totino's Pizza Rolls (never had these before...got them for free a few weeks ago at Winn Dixie)
Cheese and crackers with yogurt/applesauce

Dinners:
Sausage balls, eggs, and Potato casserole
Spanish Chicken and Rice
Pork Chops with Mashed Potatoes
Baked Spaghetti
Honey Mustard Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
Crunchy No-Fry Chicken
Layered Enchilada Bake

OK...thats all I've got for now! Wish me luck!