Buffet Patience

You patient 'lil birds! Life is good & busy. Right? My dance recital is on Saturday & I can no longer touch my toes. For a dancer it's a little humiliating, but I'm coping with poking & prodding my sweet "peanut" as he nudges me back. Oh for the things to come lovey. :)

So we are in the works of a great room transformation! We figure since we will be in our house for a few more years instead of moving... we'll make some changes to freshen it up & make it new to us. Luckily we know how to do it cheap.
The first of many changes to come...

WE SOLD OUR ENTERTAINMENT CENTER!!!!!

And lookie here what's replaced her...

A big beautiful wall!

Remember her?


& her. {sigh} She's had a complete face lift.
And although she's not fully decorated yet... she will be very soon.

A new t.v. Welcome to the digital age Hinzes.

new hardware from Lowe's & Hobby Lobby.

Total cost of buffet transformation?
Buffet: $100
Paint: $10 for a quart (Dove white from Valspar)
Hardware: $45

$155
Not bad since I was coveting this from Ballard Design for a whopping $800...


Other things in the works...

pictures
repainted bookcase
new Craigslist Nightstands
new picture wall
NEW PAINT COLOR!!!!

Can't wait! Is this called nesting? Hm...
Well our nest is going to be lovely.

Hallelujah!

Lookie here at what I just picked up today. Been lookin' for one for months & holy cow you'll never guess how I found her. {Story to come...I promise.}

Take a look at her. Can't wait to get my paintin' hands on her great bones. She's a great one & only cost me $100.
Check back next week to see what I do with her.

Now I just have to sell this Razmataz puppy. Any takers?

Yawn

see image here

see image here
Next month Hus & I will be celebrating our 10-year-anniversary.

How did that happen? Where does the time go?

Old people usually give their random two cents with cheesy grins at the grocery store. (In an old person voice), "Enjoy those kids because 'time goes so fast.'" This statement is usually followed by a sentimental expression that makes me want to smack their wrinkled old cheek because my kids are running around asking for sugary cereal or fighting over who gets to ride on the "fun side" of the dang cart. Usually I want to mutter, "Seriously? Do you not see this? This is going to last FOREVER!!!" But yesterday when I was sitting at my kitchen counter with two littles on my lap & one squirming in my belly I thought,
"Time goes so fast. How in the world did I get 3 kids?"

Old people are so wise.

10 years of marriage & 12 years together, I'm still learning stuff about Hus. Most recently last night while lying in bed, I began to wind down & yawned deeply as my body relaxed & sunk further into our plush mattress.

Hus laughs. "I can't stand how you yawn like that. So airy & loud."

My body stiffens slightly. "What?"

"It's kind of obnoxious."

Shocked a bit. "You are annoyed by my yawns?"

He pauses. "Only because you do it every night about 15 times before you go to sleep." He pauses again. "Every night for ten years."

I smile because I know he's not really mad. But I can't control it. I yawn again.

"Oh come on!"

"I can't help it. It's what my body does." I feel a little self conscious as I feel another one creeping on, aching to make it's way free. I slowly open my mouth & try to be quiet & as I do so, Hus joins in with his own yawning imitation. I stop in mid yawn unsatisfied by the anticlimactic effect of relaxation, feeling jipped.

I try again & he joins in--mocking me yet again.

RRR... now my blood starts to boil making all my previous yawns worthless.

He releases another yawn in a sudden gust & I roll my eyes in the darkness.

It's quiet for a moment & his voice changes. "Hm... that actually feels really good. My eyes are watering. Why are my eyes watering? I have tears."

I chuckle. "So are mine. That's what happens when you yawn like that."

"Wow. They're like relaxing tears. It seriously feels really good."

I want to laugh out loud, but I contain myself. "So you're saying my obnoxious yawns are awesome?"

"Yeah, I guess I am."

It was a hilarious exchange that could have ended very differently--like him sleeping on the couch. But instead it brought us closer. My supposed weakness is now fantastic & I can't wait to see if obnoxiously yawning will become a nightly routine for both of us now.

Here's to marriage & male evolution.

The Arizona Renaissance Festival

The last time I visited the Renaissance Festival was the spring of 1994. My shorts were short, my Nike's were white & my hair was straight & parted in the middle. But the only thing that seemed to be different nearly 15 years later at this grand festival... was me. I guess that's the nostalgia of the Renaissance. It's a magical place stuck somewhere in time, unchanged, in which we can go & visit for a short time.

Husband & I thought it would be a fun & "out of the box" family experience to take the kids to this seasonal 30-acre village. Well it was. We chowed on bread bowls & cold brews, bought mythical crafts, laughed at the acrobat comedians, chatted with the village folk, got sprinkled with fairy dust, watched a jousting tournament & shouted for our favorite knight, pet day old lambs, rode the butterfly rides, the dragon slide & jumped on the ginormous trampoline apparatus. Phew... I'm just tired writing it... you can imagine my pregnant exhaustion after the entire hullabaloo.

So although a bit more cleavage may have been seen than I'd like (especially by Son) & some interesting folks came out of the woodwork in the later hours... it was well worth it.

My only regret is not splurging on a turkey leg. Son would have LOVED it.

Grainy.... I know.

The kids' favorite part - Twig the Fairy. She reaches in her pouch, hands them a star, glass stone & sprinkles their hands with fairy dust. It was magical.

She mesmerized Dot by playing her flute.

My knight & princess

Don't let go Dad. Hhhhheavy!

The Dragon slide was a thumbs up!

That's just awesome.

Royalty.

The car ride home.

Nighty night.

Can't wait until next year!

With one more knight of course.

Irish Time - Week One - Corned Beef & Cabbage

My father {Marty, as I like to call him. Because he's Martha incarnate in the male form}, is one of the best cooks EVER. He taught me everything I know about cooking {besides you Mom} & his daring innovative in the kitchen makes him a marvel to watch.

We were always blessed with good home-cooked meals filled with wholesome ingredients, time & love. I try to exemplify this in my cooking for my family & now I'm passing along some of our traditional meals for this festive time of year. One will come today {Corned beef & Cabbage} & one will come next week {Corned beef Sandwiches - Rubens}. Be sure to cook the first on March 17th & use the leftover meat for the next recipe meal. Double Irish score. And although I'm mostly Scottish, it's the same island, so close enough.

Corned Beef & Cabbage
allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 3 pounds corned beef brisket with spice packet
• 10 small red potatoes
• 5 carrots, peeled and cut into 3-inch pieces
• 1 large head cabbage, cut into small wedges

Directions

1. Place corned beef in large pot or Dutch oven and cover with water. Add the spice packet that came with the corned beef. Cover pot and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer approximately 50 minutes per pound or until tender.
2. Add whole potatoes and carrots, and cook until the vegetables are almost tender. Add cabbage and cook for 15 more minutes. Remove meat and let rest 15 minutes.
3. Place vegetables in a bowl & cover. Add as much broth (cooking liquid reserved in the Dutch oven or large pot) as you want. Slice meat across the grain.

Enjoy mates!

Happy Birthday Hus!

Oh life has been busy. And I PROMISe I have so many fun things to post. Raising a righteous seed, teaching dance, being a good wife & growing this baby have taken up a wee bit of time this month.

HOWEVER... I could not let Hus' b-day go by without telling the world I am so fortunate to be married to the funniest, kindest, most compassionate, loving, talented, handsomest person I've ever met.

I hope your day was filled with as much love as intended. Thank you for making our life bliss.

Happy Birthday Hinze!

New Reads

It's always fun to take the kids to the library to find some new reads. On our last outing we found this gem called "The Cheese" by Margie Palatini. I thought it appropriate because the kids have been singing "The Farmer in the Dell" for months & this book has a fun twist on the bizarre nursery rhyme. So we've been enjoying this in our nightly repertoire for reading time the past week or two.

After taking Son to school today, Dot & I returned for an afternoon snack. I opened one of our coveted canned peaches & scooped it with a big spoonful of cottage cheese. Dot looked at me warily & began eating her peaches. When her peaches were digesting nicely in her tummy she started to get down without touching, or looking at her helping of cottage cheese.

I simply said, "What about your cottage cheese?"

With seriousness & resolve she continued climbing down off her stool & looked at me in the eyes like I'd forgotten an important rule, "But the cheese stands alone Mom."

She toddled off as I bit my lip & giggled at my child's conclusion. That smart cuss.

How do I argue with that? Apparently the cheese does stand alone.