Horray for Leap Day, or End of Februrary Wrap-up

Ah, February 29th, it's like a pseudo-gift.  You get an extra day, but not really.  And these days, I'd rather NOT have more of the same.  So February was a bit of a wash in my book.  Yes, I got a major project done, the girls' quilts finished up and sent to my mom, but I have also been dealing with stomach-bug kids and constant headaches for me.

First up, the quilts.  Here they both are before I boxed them up and sent them to my mom (Cat Hollow Quilting) to quilt them up for me.  I am very pleased with the border, I think it adds to the quilt, without detracting from it.  And I lucked out on buying my backing fabric, I hit JoAnn's at just the right week to use a 40% off coupon on 108" wide fabric, it went on sale for 20% off the next week, that saved me more than a pretty penny for backing for 2 quilts.

I tried another two recipies.  They were both a miss.  I made cake mix cookies, and they were only so-so.  I also made a Mustard Rubbed Pork Roast.  It was okay, but both the Peach Glazed and the Garlic-Rosemary Pork Roasts are better, by a lot.

My other major project this month was to have ALL the dishes done before bedtime, everyday, for the entire month.  Oh, this one was a doozie for me.  And the only way it happened was because my sweet husband helped me out so much!  But, it was nice to wake up every morning to a clean kitchen.

Unfortunatly, we've spent much of Feb sick.  And I've had some seriously upsetting headaches thrown into the mix as well.  I even got to go have an MRI/MRA done!  Turns out my brain is still nicely in place, and that my 4 children have yet to make my head actually explode-they do get some props for their efforts.

And, now on to March!

February 12 in 12, not what you were expecting...

You may notice a few things are "off" about this month's 12 in 12.  Firstly, there are only 9 pictures.  Yes, I know.  There are actually 9 because a sweet husband took the last 3 for me, I only managed 6.

1. Eating breakfast before church
2. The girls "getting ready" for church, one day they won't be using pretend make-up
3. After church Lego time
4. Eme and Maddie playing rather nicely together
5. And now a big jump to getting ready for bed and Maddie pretending to be too tired to walk up the stairs(yeah, I could have taken a few inbetween 1 and 7)
6. One of my projects: skirts for the girlies (what I spent my afternoon doing)
7. The couch where I slept b/c of
8. The stomach bug hit me too-
9. (actually the next morning) Eric entertaining Maddie and putting the couch back together again
10. What I didn't take pictures of, but should have: we took naps (it was glorious); our home teachers stopped by; fresh 7-grain bread and lasagna for dinner; we made cake batter cookies for dessert; Eric worked on his "medicine bag" for Mountain Man; after sending the kids up to bed, Eric and I finished watching Hamlet, the second half-our Valentine's gift early.

Unfortunately this was a double 12 in 12 event.  Yes, I was supposed to take 12 pictures on the 12th, but my body decided to opt for being terribly sick for 12 hours instead.  I went from being fine to wishing I was dead in about an hour.  My sweet husband even moved the couch from the family room into the hall so I could be right in front of the bathroom (it also ment he could get some sleep).  I passed the night that way until I just couldn't be alone any more, so at 3:30 am my husband helped me up into bed.  He even stayed home to take care of me and Maddie too.  They picked me up some little violas on a Home Depot run to cheer me up too!

February is off to a good start...

I had my final follow up with Dr Hatfield for my knee.  And I'm happy to announce that I've been cleared to RUN!!  Nothing serious, like a marathon, but like I was going to do that anyway.  I celebrated by going out and buying new running shoes.  Not my first choice in color, but when they're on clearance and I can save $30, I'm good with it.  But now I've been running 5 times, 10 minutes each (I have to ease back into it, it has been a full year since I was running), and I have felt better/happier than I have in a long while.  I forgot how much I need to run.

Ms Maddie and I have been back to the zoo, this time we took cousin Roan with us.  Those two have such a good time with each other.  It was fun to spend the day outside, out in our amazing Arizona weather, it will be far too hot again far too soon.

I did get both quilt borders finished up, and they'll get sent off today!  These are my first "real" pattern-oh, I've done my own patchwork pieces before, and I've done my own block placement/layout each time, but this was the first time I just sat down with some graph paper and didn't adjust a pattern, but made one from stratch.  I am so pleased with how these two quilts turned out, and so amazed at the difference in apperance color choices make.

Also, I've already gotten in two new recipies, one we'll definately have again (salted caramel chocolate pretzel bark) and one we won't (citrus mustard pork roast).  But that's the whole point, isn't it, to find new good ones and weed out the less than stellar recipies, right?

Oh, and 3 of the 4 last Fridays I've had one, or more, kid with the stomach bug.  Thank goodness we're on the last one today.  I need a break.

The Great Outdoors,

Sure, Aidan may have been out sick the day before, but he bounced back nicely enough to come along on a family hike.  It's weather like this that makes me glad to live here (it'll be a different story come June).

You may have noticed that my lovely brace is back.  I was a good girl and followed my doctor's instructions to the letter: wear that brace when doing any strenuous activities.  I felt just fine on the way up, but boy was I glad I had it for the return back down.

A January Recap

With trying to be on top of my projects/goals for this year, I want to make myself a little more accountable for my actions (or lack thereof).  And so I thought I'd give myself a quick recap of how I spent my month.

This month, Maddie and I hit the zoo, just us, and it was wonderful.  First of all, my knee DID NOT HURT!!! or feel tired or sore afterwards.  I'm seeing running again in my future :)

I did try 2 new recipies this month: nutella chocolate cookies and cheesy quinoa cakes.  Both were fantastic, and I added those recipies to another project.

We have had FHE every Monday this month, some went better than others :)

My other major project I worked on this month was my cookbook update.  I decided last year to update my "go-to" collection of recipies by putting them all into a private blog (maybe one day I'll print it off too :).  Then I can access it whenever we're off on vacation.

I also got a bunch of books read on my Kindle, who knew I would burn through books even faster than I did before?  I believe I finished two books, and read another 3 or 4.
For next month: I'd like to get the laundry washed, folded, and put away all in the same day for the whole month!  Have the dishes DONE by bedtime, for the whole month (this may kill me)  I've given myself until the end of the month to get the borders done for both girls' quilts and shipped off to my mom (she does long-arm quilting now if anyone wants some work done :)  And maybe read a little less, and spend a little more time with Maddie.

12 in 12-January

A good friend of mine did a 12 in 12 project last year, take 12 pictures on the 12th of each month.  It's just a snapshot of an ordinary day, and since I've gotten lazy about taking pictures of my not-so-little ones, I thought I'd make it one of my projects for this year.

Eme getting ready for school.

Made my bed, and put away the laundry!

On to the girls' beds.

My little helper.

Playgroup at the park.

Mailing off my passport application, our only errand of the day.

Maddie wanted a nap, not typical.

Cookies to welcome home the intrepid learners.

Perler Beads, the spent over 2 hours working on projects.

Dinner, beef stroganoff w/rice and carrots, plus a sink full of dirty dishes.

Davin told me he "made" a new friend today.

The aftermath of baths for the kids.

I probably would have gotten these up sooner, but Maddie woke up at 11:30 that night throwing up, and was up every 2 hours for most of the night.  Eme got it the next afternoon, and from there I spent 2 days doing laundry.

A New Year means new goals/projects/adventures

Like all (or most) of you, I like to make lists of goals I have for the new year.  Every once in a great while, I actually accomplish one of those goals.  I always start out well, but I fizzle out by the end of February, when I just loose sight of my goals.  And as I'd like this year to be different (ie successfull), I've got a new game plan for myself. 

I have friends who are great at setting goals and giving progress updates to keep themselves in line (which I actually enjoy, it's fun to know what you're friends are up to).  But, as this last year has shown me, I can't be relied upon to blog at a reasonable rate.  And even with the wonders of a smart phone, I still prefer a real spiral bound desk calendar to keep track of my life.  So I thought I'd embrace the pencil and paper this year, and put my calendar to use. 

Not only have I handwritten my goals list and posted it on my fridge to remind/guilt myself everyday, I've also written specific goals and their deadlines out in my calendar.  Who knows, maybe I'll accomplish one of my planned goals this year, not just the ones I make up along the way (which I'll also do).

So, look for final pictures of the girl's quilts by the end of Feb (they just need borders), Davin's quilt by his birthday (in Dec), my kitchen and family room painted (summer-ish), and a re-vamped garden this spring.  I might vent about the "splurge-free" month(s) I have planned-where I don't buy anything unnecessary, or about the treat-free month I see in my future (no cookies, candy, brownies, soda).  And for sure look for updates about my cooking adventures-I toyed around with the idea of 1 new recipe a week for a month, but settled on 1 new recipe a month, all year, if I find anything good that is.

And so, here's to some productivity this year! Good luck to you all with your own goals.