Tuesday Love

Tuesday may be one of my favorite nights of the week. Not days, but nights. Tuesday daytime is okay... Monday is over, it's almost Wednesday. But it's still Tuesday. And sometimes? Sometimes I think Tuesday is harder on a five year old than Monday is.

But, Tuesday night? Tuesday night is so wonderfully amazing! I see my girls. There are seven of us from high school that hang out on a weekly basis. We rotate homes and take turns making dinner for each other. Does everyone make it? No. In fact, I missed the last 2 Tuesdays. And sometimes the gathering is really small. There were three of us tonight.

I made spaghetti with homemade sauce with an Italian Balsamic grape seed salad. One friend brought the red wine, another the bread. We dined and discussed life.

We talked about husbands and significant others. We talked about the upcoming elections. We talked about work. We touched on important topics, we chatted about the unimportant. But the topic of conversation isn't what matters.

No, what matters is that I still see these beautiful women quite frequently. These women that I met years years ago (I met one of them 21 years ago!). These women that are six of the most important women in my life.

And when there is a lull in conversation, as there often is among close friends, a certain puppy-boy entertained us by bringing all of the pillows out to the living room.

Big, Gaping Hole

When we bought our house, the previous owners had taken and/or sold everything. Including the kitchen sink. There was no microwave, no fridge, no range. No dishwasher (although there was a space for it, thank God!). No water softener, no washer, no dryer. Shower heads were missing. And the kitchen sink really was gone, too. It's like that old phrase, "everything but the kitchen sink," only opposite: "everything including the kitchen sink."

Right before closing, an oven/stove and double sink were purchased and installed for us. We lucked out, too, with other appliances. An uncle got a new washer and dryer, we got their old ones. My parents had a fridge in their basement for us to take. We got a dishwasher for Christmas. We spent a whopping $150 on appliance, so we could have a microwave. But there was still a gaping hole between the fridge space and the range. It was as though someone had taken a piece of the countertop and base cabinet. Unless the previous owners had a beautifully large range.

But, for over a year, we lived with the empty space. First, we used it as a storage space for pop and water. Then, we moved the garbage can and recycling bin to that area. We had hoped, someday, to find a base cabinet that would fit so we could better conceal our garbage bin.

Well, my friends. That day was today. In all of our trips to the Home Depot since we've been homeowners, we finally decided to wander down the cabinetry aisle today and were shocked at the price of a single base cabinet. Hubs and I were expecting to drop a couple hundred dollars on one cabinet at some point. Today was not going to be that day; there are other things that are a bit higher on the list of priorities.

The prices shocked us. Under $100 for a 15 inch base cabinet? Are you kidding me!? Sold. Right then and there.

We bought that cabinet right up and brought it home. It's currently resting between the oven and the fridge, without a countertop. It doesn't match the rest of our cabinets (they were custom cabinets), and quite frankly, I do not care. That space is filled. We no longer look at the garbage can and recycling bin. And it is white (the future color of all of our cabinetry in the kitchen). And, we're getting a piece of butcher block for the countertop in the next couple of days.

I am one happy chica.

Weddings

Today, as I get ready to attend two weddings, I am constantly reminded about how wonderful my husband is. He really is a gem.

He puts up with my tears (there have been quite a few of those, lately). He puts up with my exhaustion. He puts up with my love/hate relationship with our house.

I dislike the hole in the floor and the unfinished wall from our Wall Demolition. I love the fact that the wall is gone, creating an open floor plan on our main level.

I don't really enjoy the fact that we live in a cookie-cutter neighborhood. It just isn't my style. I love and adore the fact that we're on the outside of said neighborhood, with a large lot and privacy. With room enough for 4 raised garden beds, maple trees to tap and an Earth-friendly compost bin tucked away from the house.

I despised the color of our house, for it reminded me of old parmesan cheese that had gone bad. But the wonderful husband and I tackled that project this summer.

I get irritated with our lack of kitchen storage, but am so thankful that my husband just laughs and shakes his head after I reorganize and he can't find anything. Funny story. He was just out of town with our brother-in-law. He made a comment along the lines of upon his return home, he'll have to learn a new organizational system, because it most likely has been changed (it was).

Do I hate my house? No, not at all. Do I get irritated with it? Of course! But am I so thankful for having these four walls and a roof? I sure am.

And really, I don't love my husband and think he is a gem just because I puts up with me and my thoughts of the house. But, this post would never end if I gave you all of the reasons I love my husband.

A Little Something Called MEA

As a teacher in Minnesota, I feel extremely exhausted during the months of September and October. By November, I'm back into the groove of the school year and life is back to normal.

Being that it is still October, though, I am completely exhausted. But oh so thankful for this wonderful statewide conference we have called MEA. In the past, I have gone to a session or two during the two day conference, but this year was a little different. MEA is on a Thursday and Friday, giving teachers the two days off from work. Being that it was directly after two twelve hour work days, I decided rest was much more important.

And rest I have, indeed! Yesterday was complete with a two hour nap! TWO HOURS!  I don't remember the last time I snuck in a two hour nap.

I have yet to nap today, and don't assume that I will. You see, this weekend is filled with joyous events. This afternoon, I am meeting up with some wonderful ladies--my dear old college roommates. I have sadly fallen out of touch with them, but have begun to make an effort again. We will have a happy hour this afternoon, and the fourth roommate's wedding tomorrow.  The husband's family is also in town this weekend, also for a wedding. Also on Saturday. I'm going to try my hand at double-duty. I'll be at the ceremony of one wedding and the reception of another. Busy, busy. But so much fun...and so much love!

I also have the daunting task of putting together our Halloween costumes. Of course, I could just buy them, but they are so much more fun to make! I haven't bought a costume since I've known my husband, and I have to say the creative juices get juicier every year!

And finally, I have some posts planned! One being the Halloween costumes, of course. The other being a painting project. I'll give you more details on that, later.

For now, I'm off to meet up with the beautiful roommates!  I hope y'all have a fabulous weekend!

{recetas} Applesauce

Oh my goodness, a post on a Monday!? That hasn't happened in the longest time! It feels so good to be back!

I most certainly love homemade applesauce over the store-bought variety. During my first year of teaching, I decided to have the class make applesauce during our unit on fall. that was the first time I had ever tasted the amazingness of homemade applesauce.

What you need:

• Apples. Lots and lots of apples (3 to 4 pounds) of different varieties
• 1 cup of water
• A few shakes of cinnamon

What you do:

• Peel, core and slice the apples. I was lucky enough to purchase the Apple Master from my local Mills' Fleet Farm. If you don't have this and plan on making lots of apple-y things, invest in one (it's only $15!). It cuts the prep time by an hour, at least.

• Place all of the apple slices in a pot (or slow cooker-SUPER easy!). Pour in the cup of water. If you use a slow cooker, set it to high. Sprinkle with as little or as much cinnamon as you'd like (or completely leave it out). Cook the apples over medium-low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes. I don't really time it, I just stir the apples occasionally. When they get nice and soft, they're done.

• Use a potato masher to mash the apples. OR (my preferred method) send the apples through a food mill or grinder. I use my handy-dandy Kitchenaid mixer and attachment. This will create a smoother applesauce, while the potato masher leaves it kind of chunky.

When all is said and done, you can enjoy some nice warm applesauce. I prefer cold applesauce, so I put as much as I can into 4 ounce or pint sized Mason jars. I would only store the applesauce in the fridge for a week. Otherwise, you can freeze the single-sized servings and place them in a lunch box. I take one out of the freezer each morning, and it is completely thawed by lunch time!

Isn't he the cutest puppy-boy you've ever seen? We're planning on bringing him on his first camping trip soon, so he is getting some practice time in with his "pack." Who knew I could love a puppy so much!?

Linked up here.

Do I Already Have a Post Named Hiatus?

Hello my friends...it has been ages!

As you may or may not know, I'm a teacher and school has started. I have been finding it difficult to create a balance between school and life, especially with parent/teacher conferences next week already!

I'm here to say, though, that I will be back in full force soon. It has been hard to be so neglectful of this blog. In fact, I think about it daily. But when I get home from work, I find it difficult to do anything besides make some dinner and hang out with my husband.

I hope you understand?

I have continued to check on the Home Organization "class" over at A bowl full of lemons. It's been difficult to keep up, but I've tried my best. My house, though, is just so different. It's already fairly organized. I will continue to check in on the organizing thing. Especially when it pertains to my house. Oh, I am so excited to continue organizing!

Anyway, that's me for now. Busy and quite tired!

Still enjoying this puppy boy, though!