7 more days of school!!!

For the boys, it's 7 more days at Farmdale for good (i think).  We plan to transfer them to Lanc.Co Christian this coming school year.  It'll mean lots of changes, but the boys are fine with the move.   Which is ironic for me because they can be so argumentative on little things we choose for them, but on a big school move they were like "ok that's fine".   We are excited to have them in a smaller class setting, christian setting, and more flexibility in schedule and freer evenings.  We all liked our experience at Farmdale, but unfortunately there are changes taking place that weren't the best fit for us.  We are thankful to have gotten to know so many local people and we'll continue to be in touch with many.

We had a low key Memorial day weekend mixed in with a wedding reception at our house.  It was a pretty day Saturday during the reception, so thankful for the gorgeous weather.  Such a sweet couple, we were happy to give her the atmosphere she was looking for.
They made it look very nice!  It doesn't even look like our barn.

the bride made some games for the guests to play

Clay found a preschool friend, small world!

And for dessert- Rita's came! (Island fusion is a keeper)

Tuckered out after the wedding/sugar rush was over.

Sunday and Monday with no plans was such a treat.  Rod and i barely touched the 'to do' lists and just hung with the boys.  Found 3 litters of kitties, played basketball, kickball, mini bike, 4 wheeler, ground hog trapping, biking, campfire, gardening.  My favorite quote of the weekend was me overhearing Rod ask the boys:  "Hey boys, where's the scissors you used to cut the dead squirrel's head off?  I don't want mom to use it when she's cooking".  haha, what a life!

Setting off bottle rockets in the garden...there are no words for this bunch of boys

Except man do i love them

Salad dressings

We've been eating lots of salads here lately with all our hydroponic lettuces being ready for harvest all at once!
I love salad dressings, but unless you're buying the pricey, "all-natural" stuff, dressings really aren't good for you.  Check out this short link below: 


http://www.myredrabbit.com/myblog/5-reasons-you-should-make-your-own-salad-dressing.html

Ok, now I that scared you, here are my top 4 homemade salad dressing recipes right now.  They are easy to make and last a long time in the fridge:


Honey Mustard:
1 1/2 T Lemon juice
3/4 cup mayo
3 T mustard
3 T honey
1/2 T parsley flakes


Asian:
1 lime, juiced
8 T olive oil
8 T soy sauce
2-3 T sesame oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 T fresh grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, pressed


Caesar:
3/4 cup mayo
4 T grated parmesan cheese
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 T lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
add a bit of milk or water if it gets too thick


Poppy Seed:
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tsp. onion flakes
2 tsp. poppy seeds
2 tsp. sesame seeds
1/2 tsp. paprika


You can mix the ingredients in your food processor/blender or even mix by hand.  Nice and simple.  Honey mustard and Caesar are our go-to's.  The Asian is nice for something special.  And the poppy seed is delicious as a dressing for spinach/strawberry salad. 

The past several weeks have been really full.  Certainly full of good things, so no reason to complain.  But it's hard to feel at peace when you look at the calendar day after day and see there are many, many things that need done.  This time of year is always that way, but I think it feels more intense this year due to Adam playing baseball, new church responsibilities, greenhouse, and end of the year school parties/trips.  We also have 3 big events (50 or more people each) here in May but that's not uncommon.  I think it's all the things combined that is making it feel like I need more hours!  But alas, I have a plan for next year at this time.  If the boys are playing a sport it will have to be a winter one, our women's retreat won't be in May, and I won't be a room parent, i'll just be on the committee which is less responsibility but can still be involved....There, that should help. 

Some shots of our life here of late..

My first cupcake cake.  It was for Adam's baseball team after their game.  Not my best work, i am aware.

Clay with batch #1 of bunnies, 11 babies!  (batch #2 had 5 babies, #3 had 11)

I love flowers!  And i really love having neighbors that sell them!  

How to keep them this eager to hoe in a month from now?

I think i'm ok with this

Harvesting cucs, lettuce, kale and swiss chard!

Mother's Day, watching the Make-A-Wish parade along Rte 222

A really funny motorized scooter/bicycle combo that a friend of Rod's built.  He and his sons drove it to our house from Marietta.  The power/gas comes from where Rod is sitting and the steering has to be done in the front where Adam is!

Hope you all are having a fabulous weekend, thanks for reading. 

One blessed momma

5K

My first ever 5K race is in the books.  The day was fun, and to finish this thing that i never thought i'd do felt great.  But the real story is in the training.   I ran on and off during our winter of polar vortex's, but really trained hard the 3 weeks before the race.  I had many ups and downs with it, mentally mostly.  Many thoughts of 'who am i kidding', 'i am not a runner' and 'i'm not even out my lane yet and i need to walk' took place.  But there were exciting milestones too, like when i ran to Rod's parents house with all the hills, only walking twice, and running a full 3 miles for the first time on Easter Sunday with some cousins with only sneaking in a little walking when they weren't looking.  Those accomplishments kept me going and gave me hope that i can do this.  

I had to push through some physical issues as well, sore knees and a black and blue toenail, from it rubbing against my shoe!

I finished, without walking, in 28:55.  

The boys were a part of my training.  They often rode bike with me on my route, usually one at a time and they talked and depending on the child, encouraged me.  

There are 3 more 5K's this year that i plan to be a part of.  I hope to be able to maintain my endurance now, and not run every day but run a couple days a week so i don't have to start at ground zero again for my next race!