Adventures......

The end of the summer has really shown itsself as a super fun time.  Lots and lots of little adventures!  We have only a week left until the kids start school, so it is important to relish every moment!  :) 

Here are some pics.....

Chicago--on a gorgeous Wednesday!  We took a wonderful sunset cruise, and hit Navy Pier and all its fun attractions!!!

We made sunflowers!!  Ok, so the seeds and the sun made them, but we are so excited to see them in our backyard!!

The dogs are LOVING swimming in the creek behind our house.  So cute!

THe kids.....posing outside Jason's office in Chicago



Country Mouse, City Mouse

We go to Chicago a good bit as Jason works there and, it is not too far away.  The cool thing about Chicago and cities in general is that there is always something fun and interesting to do or see.  There are so many amazing restaurant choices, so much great shopping, fun attractions and parks.  Chicago is especially nice because it has a lake shore area.  Lake Michigan is a beautiful backdrop for the big, bright city! 

The city is neat, and fun, but --cities are HARD.  By hard I mean, constant competition.  If you drive in the city it is a constant barrage of honking, yelling, non-loving hand gestures, everyone in a big rush.  If you are not rushing, you are sitting in endless traffic.  While walking people bump into you, they speed past, get aggravated by the lolly-gaggers.  It's rough!!  Then there are the LINES.  Lines for everything.  If you go to a good restaurant, you will wait.  Go for ice cream, LINES, stores, LINES, bus, LINES, train, LINE.  Oh, and that train, there may or may not be seats, and people will aggressively make sure their ass gets to sit.

I used to live in a city so I suppose I shouldn't be so shocked about the chaos of city living, but I am!   We lived in Nashville over 6 years ago now.  I have forgotten how to handle all the traffic and craziness!  We visited Nashville for one day this summer and it is much more chaotic than I remember it.  Much heavier traffic.  Exacerbated by the bad drivers!!  :) 

I enjoy our visits to the city.  In fact, we are heading down there again tomorrow.  It is definitely not boring!  I just relish coming home to the small town life.  I love walking down to the park at whatever pace I choose and enjoying the peaceful quiet of our front porch.  

Here are some pics from Chicago this past weekend.  We went to the airshow.  It was amazing.  Then we got ice cream at Ghirardelli.  Lily got a banana SPLIT.  Insane!!  :)

On the train.....

In front of Daddy's building...

On the Lakeshore for the Air Show:

Eating the Ghirardelli Sundaes!

Silliness on the train ride back......

She was exhausted from the full day.  I think she is so beautiful when she is sleeping.....

<3

Simple.

I am a relatively simple gal.  Things that make me really happy include never running out of toilet paper, freshly cleaned sheets--and the best of all a fridge full of fresh food.  I love cooking, and I love eating even more.  I like to look into my fridge or pantry and have everything I need to make a great meal.   I don't like "scrambling" or having to run out for odds and ends all the time.  I am happiest when I have thought it out, and I know I am stocked accordingly.  There really is SUCH peace in that. 

Tonight for Dinner, I am making a couple healthy selections I recently came across.  I am hoping that they are as delicious and interesting as they sound on paper!!

Makes 4 servings.
Approximate cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 Tbs fresh lime juice
• 4 tsp raw honey
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
• 1 cantaloupe (3 lbs), quartered and seeded
• 1 avocado
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together lime juice, honey, oil and sea salt; set aside.
2. Cut each cantaloupe quarter in half lengthwise.  Run a knife between the flesh and the skin of the melon, discard skin.  Slice each wedge lengthwise into 1/2" pieces.
3. Cut each avocado in quarters length-wise and then into 1/2" thick slices. Add cantaloupe, avocado, and grape tomatoes to bowl with dressing and toss to coat.

Makes dinner for two adults.
Approximate cooking time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

For Salmon Cakes:

• 1 lb salmon fillet (skinless, with bones removed)
• 2 eggs
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 2 Tbs coconut flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• coconut oil

For Mango and Cilantro Salsa:

• 1 large ripe mango
• 4 Tbs chopped cilantro
• 1/2 cup red onion, minced
• olive oil
• sea salt

Instructions

1. Check salmon carefully to be sure all bones have been removed. Chop into a fine dice and set aside.
2. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Mix in coconut flour, salt and pepper.
3. Mince jalapeno and add to the egg mixture.  Add the salmon and combine completely.
4. Warm a skillet over medium-high heat, and add coconut oil when pan is hot.
5. Test the pan to be sure it is hot by dropping a tiny portion of salmon mixture in the pan-- it should sizzle immediately.
6. Add the salmon mixture to the coconut oil in small (3") cakes and fry until they are golden brown on the outside, and cooked pink on the inside (a minute or two on each side). Let the cakes rest on paper towels when taken out of the pan to absorb any extra coconut oil.
7. Meanwhile, prepare salsa by combining diced mango, red onion and cilantro in a bowl.  Drizzle with olive oil and add sea salt to taste.  Serve on top of salmon cakes.

 

 

I am SO excited to make these!!!  YUM!!

Giddy Up!

There is no creature on earth more peaceful, patient, or soothing than a horse.  It is almost as though they have a magical spirit about them.  I went to my orientation today for volunteering at SMILES.  It is a special organization here that does equine therapeutic riding for adults and children with disabilities.  People come from ALL over the area to participate.  Different schools, group homes and then even individuals come to SMILES to ride.  It is an incredible place.

As a volunteer I will get to lead the horses and\or side walk to help keep the rider safe and stable while he or she is riding.  I will also get to groom the horses and get them ready for the class sessions.  To say I am excited about this is a bit of an under statement.  I have wanted to volunteer here for SO long.  I love horses, and I love people.  To be able to work with both of those groups in such a positive and motivational way--what a gift.  I can't wait to get my training started and then start working!!! 

Aside from just being with my kids, being involved in their school, and being the first person they see when they are done with school each day, I also wanted to be an at home mom so that I could use my time and skills to volunteer.  I have gotten some advice from other stay at home moms who say that you should not take on TOO many volunteer opportunities at one time.  Apparently it is very easy to get in over your head.  So for right now, I am going to keep my work at the kids' school and then at SMILES.  I am pretty sure that with both of these, my house duties, and working out, I should have some pretty FULL days ahead!  :)

Before I left my job, I truly had been feeling like something was missing.  I felt like I wasn't doing anything meaningful.  I felt like the imprint I was making on the world was insignificant.  I wasn't doing things that really mattered to me.  I am so grateful that I am now being offered the opportunity to live my life with the purpose that I want it to have.  Life is constantly evolving, and truly, it is a beautiful thing. 

Busy Busy

It has been such a busy couple of weeks.  We traveled to Ohio for the official Bedwell family reunion!  That means, from my Grandparents down to their great-grandchildren were in Ashland Ohio to hang out.  The best part was that EVERYONE was there!!  All of my cousins and all of their babies.  It was SO much fun watching all the kiddos play together.  They got along so well.  Aidan actually had some boys to play with, too.  That was exciting.  I forgot to take pics most of the time, but I did get a few from an evening of slip-n-slide:

....Oh, and I did get this one of the girls riding in my uncle's convertible to the pool.  This is my cousin, Emily driving!

Slip-n-slide

I have had my nieces the past couple of days too.  It is fun having a car full of kids and getting out with them, going to lunch and swimming, and the park. 

Ok--just ONE home decorating picture too.  I FINALLY framed some of the professional pictures that we had taken.  They make me happy and they brighten up my dark chocolate wall.

:)





Excuse me...

I am out of control with the home\re-decorating\cleaning and organizing posts.  It's just that I am HOME.  I have the time, and the ENERGY to do these little projects that make my home even better!!!  It's so fantastic I can barely stand it! 

So today, we went to Target.  You know Target, right?  It's that magical mecca where all your dreams can come true because 1.) everything is relatively inexpensive, and 2.) almost everything is pretty!!  :)  Today our goal was to get the loft area upstairs into some sort of order.  I HATE clutter.  No, really, I can't stand for things to just be sitting around with no purpose.  I like my house in order.  It's my HOME.  It's a special place to me.  I want it to feel that way to anyone who may enter.  So the loft upstairs is mostly the kids' domain.  The upstairs has their bedrooms, a bathroom, and the loft.  The kids have free reign up there so I want it to be as cheerful and fun as possible.  We have the chalkboards on the walls, and then their toys are up there.  I like it to still look neat though.  I like it to be such that when they clean up, they know where to put everything and can get it back to the peaceful place it was before they started.  I found these closet maid shelf storage things.  They are CUTE and they have these colorful fabric drawers you can put in:



Lily's framed artwork:

Artwork from both kids line the main hallway upstairs....



It's fun being a homeowner, but "they" are right when they say that "a home is never done".  We have lived here since December of 2006 and still....it is a work in progress!!  I LOVE this work though, let me tell ya!

:)