storms a brewin

it's coming.

all the new and crazy changes are close upon us!

house closes today (or so help me)

then starts the cleaning, remodeling and arguing.

next will come the baby.

hopefully AFTER all the cleaning, remodeling and arguing.

just this weekend i find myself wanting to prepare everything i can before the changes.  we canned two batches of the husband's mom's salsa, made some good old spaghetti sauce that simmered for 24 hours.  (included straight from the garden: zucchini, yellow squash, onions, fresh herbs, and mushrooms) then we seemed to hit every single store possible, buying basics...like a broom, cleaner, paint for house and anything else we could think of.  by the time 5 rolled around i was dead...i told derek to go on without me. 

here goes nothing!

which animal is favorite

me: what is your favorite animal?
me: this is a very important question.
The husband: what is this for?
me: doesn't matter.
me: i just want to know what your favorite animal is.
The husband: so you aren't going to buy something with this animal on it?
me: no, i am going to buy and animal in the shape that you like for our child.
The husband: Well, I like Scarlet Macaws
me: (in my mind i'm thinking...who the devil says Scarlet Macaws are their favorite animal?  but instead i reply with) are you being sarcastic?
The husband: no
The husband: but I don't think I would buy anything shaped like one
me: any other kind of animal?
The husband: I like snow leopards
The husband: and I like Galapagos tortoises
me:  (i'http://www.etsy.com/listing/96529811/monster-high-custom-snow-leopard-with?ref=sr_gallery_2&ga_search_query=snow+leopard+toy&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=ZZ&ga_min=0&ga_max=0&ga_search_type=handmade
 (I have been searching Etsy for a handmade stuff toy and when i searched for snow leopard, very few results popped up.)

The husband: what the heck...
me: apparently, you pick the most exotic animals to like...there aren't many of any of those animals.
The husband: tigers are cool.
The husband: and i guess i like elephants too
The husband: and buffalo
The husband: and moose

so, in the end, i haven't found the right toy yet, maybe if the husband didn't love such exotic animals i could find one.

but it is oh so cute still.

Or maybe, just maybe...
they are extinct.

HA!

oh, and my favorite animal?
a donkey. 
for reals...so i guess i can't make too much fun.
see blog (yes i blogged about it) 
called i <3 asses

a time of food for all

woke up early saturday and wanted some pumpkin pancakes with a cinnamon syrup.  sounds delicious right!?? well, much to my dismay, the only pumpkin in the house was an actual pumpkin from the garden and it would simply take too much effort and time to cook that pumpkin (though, i've found it's usually much more delicious)  so of course i ran to pinterest! see below.  

 

the next two picture are very smallish vegetables that belong to Veggie Taleshttp://veggietales.com/  while mom and i were busy making salsa and spaghetti sauce, the han decided to get creative.  it took a couple times apparently to get Bob the Tomato right, because i found these two randomly cast outside.  

i have a vegan dog.  i took her outside and she goes into the garden and starts eating weeds.  we call it grazing.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 very ripe medium banana
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 flax egg (1 Tbsp flaxseed meal + 2.5 Tbsp water) i just used an egg.
• pinch salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 Tablespoon almond butter  i just used natural PB
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
• 3 Tablespoons almond milk (or sub other milk)
• 1/2 cup rolled oats (or gluten free oats)
• 1/4 cup whole wheat or unbleached flour (or sub other flour)
• 3 Tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips (non-dairy for vegan)

Instructions

1. Preheat a skillet to medium heat or about 300-325 degrees.
2. Prepare flax egg by mixing flaxseed meal and water and letting set for 3-5 minutes. or egg.
3. Mash your very ripe banana with baking powder.
4. Add flax egg, oil, salt, vanilla, almond butter, almond milk and stir.
5. Stir in oats and flour until just combined.
6. Sprinkle in chocolate chips and fold gently.
7. Scoop scant 1/4 cup measurements onto lightly greased griddle.
8. Cook for 2-4 minutes on each side – until golden brown.
9. Serve plain or with a small drizzle of maple syrup and a few additional chocolate chips for melting.

Serving size: 3.5 pancakes Calories: 400 calories Fat: 18 g Sugar: 20 g Fiber: 6.5 Protein: 7 g

Notes

* Should yield 5-6 small pancakes.
* Make gluten free by using gluten-free oats and flour.
* Adding 1 Tablespoons of honey, maple syrup, sugar or agave nectar is optional for extra sweetening, but I didn’t find it necessary.
* Reheat great the following day in the microwave.

 note: the husband prefers milk chocolate chips...which we do not own, i thought it was just dandy with semi sweet chips.  also, i cooked mine real slow so they woouldn't be so soggy in the middle.

See pin for pancakes here.

actual website here. 

my grub board on pinterest:

includes healthy and some not so healthy

 

can you smell it? this was actually written a while ago

it's only at first light that you can smell it, yes, it's the smell of thrifting and yard sale-ing. last saturday, after bountiful baskets pick-up, the mama and i went on a search, with the kona of course. (was written months ago...)

purchases completed:

1. piano books.  so excited!  there is a book "60 Progressive pieces we love to play" my mom has that's been out of print and i haven't been able to find it. . . UNTIL NOW!  except...of course the cover is missing and a few pages.  $6.00

2. second baby high chair.  which i realize is completely unnecessary and doesn't yet match the other but for $5, i couldn't just leave it!

3. picture of another baby high chair.  also five dollars.  i've had it for about a year now...maybe more. debating on a color to paint it...or leave it? also $5.

4. lovely afghan.  i realize that i should crochet it, but it was already done and $2.00

5. giant bag of tennis balls.  mainly for my brothers dog, bowser, but again it was a dollar people.

6. pirate party bounty for the cousins birthday, also a dollar. 

7. some lovely vintage bottles of men's aftershave.  $2 a piece.  (pricey i know)

8. i find myself drawn to these crazy old pyrex containers, these were green, well, and i needed them to match the orange that i already have.  $2.50 (side note, i may or may not have accidentally dropped one of the lids on some crystal glasses on the tables. i only broke 3 out of the 7.  i tried to give the guy some money, but he wouldn't take it.  Such a nice old man.)

6+5+2+1+1+4+2.5= $21.50

$21.50 = awesomeness.

Sorry pictures are missing, but I was just getting irritated that i didn't have anything blog worthy as of late...getting lazy as the belly grows!

love me some green beans

 

yes, those are giant bags of green beans that needed to be cut for canning.  and yes, we look this awesome while cutting and watching the olympics. 

i love your eyes...its like you can see straight through my heart.

 

yeah, that's what the waitress said the other day to me...i guess it's a compliment?

so, the fetus is still determining a lot of what i eat.  like cheesy things.  

people, i am lactose intolerant through and through

 i have avoided dairy items for over 10 years now, and pretty consistently too.   it's amazing how this kid is turning my world upside down. 

7 years of marriage

finally got a husband wife shot, but then we couldn't leave kona out. . . 

kona wanted a kiss too 

(don't worry, we washed her good to get all the moose poop out)

sitting around the campfire (that may or may not have been banned, we still aren't sure) you have a lot of time to talk.  so of course we talked about baby names (always an epic failure), fixing up the future house, parenting skills we are lacking, why did kona have to chase off the moose. . . ya know, deep conversation stuff. sometimes there are long lulls in the conversation, but we're okay with that. 

the husband all of a sudden says 

"the next 20 years are going to be ridiculous."

it's so true. 

with babe(s) coming, moving, fixing up the new old house, trying to balance home life with mama life, living on one income, we have LOTS of big changes coming our way.  but it's good, we're excited for the new life.  life has been fun with just three of us for the last seven years, but we've always felt somewhat stagnant, like we were missing something more . . . so here's to our little family, that hopefully will be come 5 soon!

 

happy 7 years love, i'm excited for the rest!

lego nazi's are real in campers

even though the bunting says "husband and wife" that usually means the husband and the kona

sometimes, husbands get tired of pictures.

camping naps are good for tired husbands and dogs

bunting is possible while camping 

(finish product coming soon)

fact: my husband is a lego nazi

things you didn't know about lego nazis

1. you need to offset all bricks when making a house, otherwise you have failed structure wise

2. bricks need to be all the same color

3. if you have to make a mutli-colored roof and HAVE to use a smile face yellow lego, it's a sad, sad day.

4.  you are not allowed to bite the legos to take apart, it causes teeth marks and that's a big no-no.

its a good thing we weren't lego friends as kids

campers delight

tinfoil dinners need to happen more often

hiking may or may not be much harder when 30 weeks pregnant

turn off vehicle lights while fishing

jumper cables would be nice if vehicle is dead because of lights

pretty sure rv's are meant to go over 20 mph

tree coverage is important while doing business

don't squeeze the fish too tight, but if you do, sometimes they live

i really do have a thing for dead trees

camping continued

more tips and thoughts

getting lost on the mountain is okay when you end at a private lake

even better when the private lake has a salamander/newt colony (still to be determined)

kill all the mosquitos, Jurassic park is fake

dead trees are still pretty

sometimes, dogs ruin everything, but yet we still like her

overalls still work at 30 weeks pregnant

gps' are not as good as paper maps, but make do if no paper map.

2.5 miles of rocky roads is not always worth looking at a pond.  research people, is key

anniversary camping style

went camping for our 7th anniversary in the high uinta's

tips brought to you by harmony and derek

baby wipes are best

generator campers suck (no offense)

reservations are a good idea

don't let your dog roll in moose poop. . . twice

always keep plastic bags handy (look up broken tail syndrome)

ponderosa trees smell like butterscotch, not vanilla