The Sandbox Story

The second weekend of the sandbox build took place this weekend.

The sandbox won.

I think this quote sums it up "...such is the transition from designer to builder. It's so EASY to DRAW the wall straight". 


It wasn't that the work was really that hard but I think it was tedious. Very tedious. And tiring. Measure 16 times, cut once. Measure again, cut again. Repeat. I can draw just about anything and I can even envision it in my head constructed but building it and fitting it together are vastly different things.

I've always admired carpenters and builders - what doesn't look hard is actually quite intricate and complicated.

We were building a sandbox. A box - a rectangular shaped box with a lid. Sounds perfectly simple for two (relatively) novice builders. And I suppose, in theory, it wasn't that hard, it just seemed to take a very long time to complete.

And it isn't complete yet. We have a box and a lid and a cubic yard of sand. The handles and trim are still to come...

But two weekends of (hard) work and it's play worthy and ready. Saturday afternoon and part of today was spent digging, piling, packing and raking. This morning, shortly after rising, I found TroubleMaker at the back door strapping on his sandals - his destination? The sandbox, of course!

So many things, so little time... The Sandbox Saga

I am feeling inspired and very random. I have a to-do list a mile long and no plans to actually complete any of it... I'm tired and excited and a lot worn out. Visions of great and amazing things to do to my home and yard dance in my head - driving me a little crazy because I don't quite know how I can get it all done.

This weekend I want to build a sandbox. I've drawn a plan, calculated the sand we'll need and I've marked off the area in the yard where the sandbox will be built. I'm -->thisclose<-- to building it.

And it scares me.

I'm a real, live grownup. I own my home and I'm free to whatever I want to it. This scares me a bit. A lot.

I think it scares my husband even more. He likes my vision - he just doesn't like being the one has to execute it.

We aren't "handy", really, we can figure out just about anything we set our mind too but sometimes the attempt takes a couple of trips to the home store to buy parts. Twice.

Our latest endeavour is my wish to give our son a sandbox. I've got it drawn (in three dimensions even), calculated the board feet, planned a lid (as our neighbour has seven cats) and started to dig out the area. My husband even purchased a wheel-barrow so that we move sand and dirt as needed.

The weather forecast is agreeable, we have the desire.. Will it result in a sandbox?

Menu Plan Monday: Summer Heat

It's summer.

Like really summer. We've had three days of full sunshine. So much sunshine that our sad, soggy vegetables (that didn't die in the June frost) are blooming even though they haven't grown much in weeks.

It also means it is hot. Really hot. Sticky hot.

I don't like being hot.


But today's post is not about my like or dislike of heat. It's about food. Food that one can prepare and eat without charbroiling one's family by turning the house into a sweat lodge.

This is how our week is looking.

July 18 to July 24
Dinners

Monday: Craquelin et fromages avec crudités
Tuesday: Tuna Salad sandwiches with tossed salad
Wednesday: Roast Turkey sandwiches with tomato cucumber salad
Thursday: Falafel Stuffed Pitas
Friday: Hot dogs and burgers with Caesar salad and chips
Saturday: Grilled chicken bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwiches on Ciabatta bread with Greek salad
Sunday: Alberta Cheese steak Sandwiches

I can almost taste the Cheese steak sandwiches - I 'invented' the recipe last year and it was amazing. I'm drooling just thinking about it! And for those who are wondering, yes, I'm going to roast a turkey (breast) roast. My Mom borrowed my counter top roaster, but I figure if I do it on low in the oven with the fans going, it should be too bad? We'll see... At the moment, I just feel like eating left over Sesame Noodles with chicken bouillon and curling up for a nap.

This week, I'm linking up to Joy in My Kitchen as she is graciously hosting the Menu Plan Monday while Laura enjoys a vacation! Thanks for popping by and did you check out my review of the Taste of Thailand?

Menu Plan Monday - Summer has come!

NOTE: July 6 Update... I decided to try something new - I changed the meal Tuesday (as I was not feeling what I planned) and thought it would be nice to post a "New Recipe Review" the day after it was tried. I will be labelling all "new" recipe selections so check back the day after the meal was scheduled for a review!

Ahhhh... I feel all zen and relaxed and refreshed. Our holidays were absolutely amazing! We ate like kings (thanks to my Dad and step-Mom for keeping our bellies filled and the dishes done), slept like giants, and made like sloths for seven incredible days. There wasn't a care in the world except wondering what snack to eat next.

That's not 100% true - I dug more dirt and piled rocks and sticks and pine needles that I've ever done in my life. I chased balls, named squirrels and explained that Jasper was not home to dinosaurs and had to give a brief geography lesson to my three year old on why we could not just drive to see the big T-Rex he climbed to the top of last year. I wrote and wrote and wrote (posts coming soon) and had time to think, reflect and appreciate nature at it's finest. I even had time for a little shopping in town with my Mom (who drove up for the day).

My husband was perfecting the art of photographing wildlife. Thankfully, the wildlife was unusually cooperative! Twelve black bears, many mountain goats, elk - mommies, babies and bucks and even a few deer posed for his camera. He even got some amazing shots of people cliff diving! Once he gets them processed, I'll post them in the coming weeks along with the posts I wrote (on paper, no less, while we were camping).

It's going to be a tough week - getting back into the groove of getting up at 6am but I feel positive and recharged - my holiday was just what I needed!

It's July here - the only month I've not seen snow in (well, I have - at higher elevations - but none has fallen on my grass during this month) - which means it's HOT. I like summer because I get to experiment with all kinds of new salads and sandwich combinations and foods that don't require me to turn on my oven! Well, except for today because we ran out of propane for the BBQ as I was toasting the garlic buns for dinner! Here is all our yummy salad and barbecue goodness for the coming week!

July 4 to July 10
Dinners

Monday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches with veggies & dip
Tuesday: Tortellini in Creamy Tomato Mushroom Sauce with Bread Sticks
Wednesday: Waldorf Tuna Sandwiches & Raspberry Salad
Thursday: BBQ Pork chops with Spinach Salad
Friday: Weeknight Lasagna Toss
Saturday: Hamburgers
Sunday: Chicken Burgers

Note: Underlined menu items have the recipes posted below.

Thanks for popping in and for more fabulous menu planning ideas, check out the Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday!

Raspberry Salad
Lettuce - combination of leaf, head and red leaf lettuce
Craisins (optional)
Pine nuts
Raspberries
Snap peas
Baby carrots

Toss all ingredients together and use Kraft's Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing to dress to taste.

Spinach Salad
5 cups baby spinach, torn to bite size pieces
4 large white mushrooms, sliced
2 to 4 hard boiled eggs, diced
4 strips bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

Dressing
4 tbsp vinegar
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Mix well - until sugar is dissolved

Mix salad ingredients well - tossing with 2 to 4 tsp of Olive Oil. Coat with dressing and toss again.

52 Week Challenge: Week 25 - RVing made easier! The Power of a List

I know I said I wasn't going to post this week, however, it occurred to me on the drive home from my Mom's last weekend, that I needed to get my act together regarding our upcoming vacation. I have six days before we leave - and I work five of those days and I'm meeting with a client one night this week so that leaves me Sunday to get it together...

I like lists. I love making lists, I love following lists, I love striking things off my lists. I'm a list-o-holic and I get it from my Mother. She likes lists too. She is probably the only person I know who itemizes her dinner lists so she doesn't forget to serve anything. We were at her house today for a Father's Day barbecue. She had a list - and as she got everything out, she checked it off. It was awesome and just a little inspiring!

How do I prepare for this? I make lists. Lists for what clothing we need, toiletries, food, activities, regular gear, things we need to get, toys, books, crafts, staples. There are lots of lists to be made and a bit of shopping we need to do. I have to (well, I don't have to but I do) bake for the trip - cookies are a must, granola bars, snack mix, trail mix, dog treats...

I don't have a fancy template for my lists and they aren't necessary organized in any particular fashion but I know, without a doubt, that I couldn't plan a successful trip without a list. Even the trip to my Mother's, which I've made a 1000 times, is generally done with a list... Especially if it is an overnight trip! We dared the turn-around trip without a list... And guess what?

We forgot our fur-son's food!

So, how do you organize? Are you a list junkie like me? Do you wing it?

This week, I decided to ORGANIZE my lists - what a good idea, I say! I pack the same things all the time - so why not create a master set of lists to use to make my life easier...

This week, I'm going to share with you two of my lists. The first is an RV Checklist - we have a motorhome and although it is essentially a duplicate of my bricks & sticks kitchen, I feel more secure knowing that I've double checked all the essentials before I leave. I also know the other list I can't live without is my clothing/activities list.

I've created both in a handy-pdf for everyone to download an enjoy and use to make your next trip a little more organized! Please note, the preview looks a little weird, when you open it, it is better but I'll need to revise the font type.
RV Checklist_Basic Inventory



Of course, these aren't exhaustive lists and I've already thought of 4 other things to add to the RV list (walkie talkies, matches, barbecue lighter & tongs) but it's a start and oh-so-pretty!

Clothing Checklists

Do you have a list? Are you a list keeper? Do tell and share what works for you! I'm linking up this week to the Org Junkie's 52 Week of Organizing. Thanks for stopping by and come back soon!

Menu Plan Monday - The Vacation Edition

This week, my week only has five days in it. Yay! I say "yay" because I leave for holidays on Friday. Yay! I like holidays. I like this holiday because I'm going to Jasper National Park. Yay! Mostly, I'm just happy to be going anywhere and spending time in my favourite place on Earth.


Athabasca Falls

This week is going to be CRAZY busy - I have a bit of shopping to do (recently learned with all the rain we've had here that one pair of running shoes and one pair of rubber boots is not nearly enough for one very puddle happy three year old), packing, planning and getting things ready to leave for Friday. I hope to do a tich more baking too... I got two types of granola bars made today and one batch of my honey's favourite cookies but I wanted to try these cookies and I'm hoping to get a batch of my fur-son's favourite PB Cookies made for our trip. However, TroubleMaker is sick and I think I am getting sick (my throat is VERY sore) and the only thing I want at the moment is my pillow...

This week is again about convenience and using up what fresh things I have left in the house. Short of a few bits of fruit, I don't want to buy a whole bunch of food before we go.


June 20 to June 25
Dinners

Monday: KD & fish sticks (TroubleMaker has been asking for this for days)
Tuesday: BBQ Chicken & Rice w/ Garlic Parmesan Asparagus
Wednesday: Meatloaf and noodles
Thursday: Tuna sandwiches & Salad
Friday: Bye, bye birdies!!!!! Up and away!!!!! TTFN!!!!!
Saturday: Soaking up fresh Rocky Mountain Air!
Sunday: Still lappin' up that fresh air!


One of the Locals

Have a great week and I'll see you in a couple weeks when I'm back from holidays and getting back into the groove of summer and working! Thanks for popping in and for more fabulous menu planning ideas, check out the Org Junkie's Menu Plan Monday!

Menu Plan Monday - Tasty Foods!

It's almost June. Really? Where did the first five months of this year go?! I'm not ready for June. June means summer and holidays and my son starting playschool in September. I'm NOT ready for that. Nope. Not at all...

It also means it is only a few more months (four, likely) until we have snow again. I like snow, i don't even mind winter but after a seemingly endless winter, I've had more than enough for right now!

But summer does appear to be hear, even if she doesn't technically arrive until June 21... But it's light, it's warm, the birds are singing and the grass is green. It doesn't get much more summery than this! This makes me happy. Although I don't always cope well with the heat, I do like barbecuing, spending time outside, camping and eating lots of fresh, seasonal vegetables and fruit! Our fridge will be brimming with lots of ripe fruit and vegetables, all yummy and fresh and it won't taste like last year!

Our vacation is coming up at the end of June and I'm looking forward to that. We did a similar trip with my parents the year TroubleMaker was born and I'm looking forward to being able to share my favourite place on Earth with my son, who is now very aware of where and who he is and is starting to form lasting memories! So bring on summer, bring on the sun, the backyard inflatable pool, slurpees, sunburns and hat season, I'm READY!!!

What does Summer mean to you? Or winter, if you're on the other side of the globe? ;)

May 30 to June 4

Dinners
Monday: Crockpot Barbecue Beef Sandwiches New Recipe
Tuesday: Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Wednesday: Hamburgers & Salad
Thursday: BBQ Pork Chops
Friday: Weeknight Lasagna Toss
Saturday: Family Barbecue at my parents
Sunday: Chicken Burgers

Lunches
Monday: Cottage Cheese with onions
Tuesday: mini bagel pizzas
Wednesday: -
Thursday: -
Friday: Grilled Cheese sandwiches
Saturday:
Sunday:

Breakfasts
Monday: Granola with yogurt & berries
Tuesday: Toast
Wednesday: Cereal
Thursday: Cereal
Friday: Muffins
Saturday: Bacon & Eggs
Sunday: Bacon & Eggs

For more great menu planning tips and tricks, check out the Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday and we'll see you again next week! Thanks for stopping by!

52 Week Organizing Challenge: Week 21 - The Outdoor Organizing Project

There are lots of things on my list of things to organize. Some are big... Ok, most are big but every so often something creeps up and says "ORGANIZE ME!"

That is what happened this week. My original intent was to get back into my office and do some more cleaning an purging, however, it is the end of May and we are most likely free from frost and snow. So it means GARDENING season is upon us! I'll add now that there is a frost warning tonight. GRRR!!!! My poor tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, marigolds, petunias and gerbera daisies!!!!

How does one organize a garden? Well, you see... I'm botanically challenged - and before you Google it, it is a real affliction. ;) My green thumb is green enough but I often have a hard time differentiating weeds and plants. Case in point - our gardens. When we moved in, the former owners had mad gardening skills. They had the side garden all decked out in shrubs and colour. We quickly dug up many of the plants, mistaking them for weeds...

the pretty German Statice I dug up by accident during year two

We added a few, killed a few more but mostly, it's just overrun with dandelions and weed-like plants such as Yarrow, Lamb's Ear and the rogue poppies and sunflowers that grow like weeds (such as wild onions and dill) in this neighbourhood.

Poppies - grow like weeds

This year, I've had enough. With my full time job, blogging, crafting and home renovation projects, something had to go. So I chose flower bed. I spent this weekend on a backyard mission to tidy, purge and organize the yard into a user friendly, attractive, kid friendly place that I can sit and enjoy once and while instead of spending every weekend morning weeding, thinning and filling bag after bag with weeds.

The East garden was simple enough. It's the one I've done the most damage too over the years. What remains are day lilies, tiger lilies, hyacinth, tulips, some weird tulip like plant with teeny little flowers and the very hardy Nanking Cherry tree I got as a Mother's Day gift from my niece, sister and brother in law. I also added some Hens & chicks a couple years ago that took over... I thinned those last year only to see they had babies... Like 100 babies!

So I pulled up all the new edging I pounded in last year, encircled the plants I want to keep (there were six) and that's it. We're digging up the weeds and planting grass. I then hope to get add a couple of fence mounted flower baskets for colour.

I planted four pots of flowers and decided to overhaul our patio. Every thing came off, I washed it (yes, I actually washed paving stones) and then reorganized everything! It looks amazing! I finally feel like we are starting to make our house ours!

I didn't take any before pictures... Too much to do and no camera handy! And I don't have any 'after pictures' either... I know - after Laura suggested always taking pictures to make your story pop and have it be an inspiration! But I figure since the 'finished' project isn't exactly finished, once I get the grass in, I'll update!

Thanks for popping by and I hope you think 'out of the ordinary' for one of your upcoming projects - gardens, like drawers and clsoets, need our love too!

For more great inspiration, check out all of us participating in the 52 Week Challenge at the Organizing Junkie's site!

You know you're in the country when...

It's late - around 12:30am (MST) and the house is quiet. I'm at my Mom's for the official start to Summer (in my province anyway) and the whole house is still and silent.

And as I sat here catching up on some blog reading, I heard a gun blast. Now I am not a gun expert but I would suppose it was a shotgun - probably fired off at some random animal a mile or three away from my parent's farm. It left me with a weird feeling - not frightened or anything but just curious to know what on earth got shot as the night is dead silent (no pun intended). Often we hear the coyotes crying and dogs barking and I know they had a bear in the area a couple years back but there was barely even the constant din of the highway traffic.

You know you're in the country when you hear a gun being fired and it isn't followed by the scream of police sirens!

MPM#15

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I love, love, love this picture. And what makes it even sweeter for me is twofold - first, being married to a photographer has its benefits - my Husband (Blackstone Images) took the picture... Second, I pickled all that produce! Granted, I did not grow the produce (I do have a garden - more on that later this week)... I did grow the sunflowers and the dill! Well, technically, they grew themselves but... Ya. Ok. My husband took the picture and he's totally awesome (and the picture is taken in front of our super fantastic pea patch).

I pickled five pounds of cucumbers, a pound of carrots and some yummy garlic (all of the produce was locally and organically grown)! I did cucumbers last year (or was it the year before?) but I've never done carrots or garlic but I love them and just had to try them out myself. I cannot wait to open them and eat them!

This weeks menu is mostly filler - we are heading out to Elk Island National Park this Thursday with my family - Dad, Mom #2 and all my siblings!

Here is our week at a glance!
August 16 to August 22
Monday Chicken Caesar Salad
Tuesday Crock pot Hamburger Casserole
Wednesday Tater Tot Casserole
Thursday *camping* - BBQ Hamburgers, chips
Friday *camping* - Open fire roasted smokies & baked beans
Saturday *camping* - BBQ Steak, Gramma's Potato Salad
Sunday Fish sticks & KD

Lunches
My darling husband seems to be coping well with my recent lack of lunch time menus... He's been doing lots of good things - cottage cheese with onions & cucumbers, yogurt, cheese & crackers... There are always lots of yummy things in the fridge to eat and they are getting the hang of it!

Breakfasts
Cereal, toast, bagels, muffins, bacon & eggs!

Hope you have a great week and check out more Menu Plan Monday cooking and meal planning ideas over at Org Junkie!






Basic Muffin Recipe (from a 1950's vintage Blue Ribbon Flour Cook book)
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
4 tbsp melted fat
3/4 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients and add wet. Blend until just blended together. Add 3/4 cup lightly floured berries.

Pour unto greased muffin cups (I use liners). Bake at 400 F for 15 to 18 minutes. YIELD: 12 muffins

Gramma's Potato Salad
4 to 6 cups potatoes, cooked and cubed
1 cup celery, diced
2 or 3 green onions, chopped
4 to 6 eggs, diced (reserve one whole egg for the top)

Dressing:
3/4 cup Miracle Whip
1 tsp mustard
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp white vinegar

Combine dressing ingredients and let rest. Toss the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl, drizzle dressing over top - reserving a small amount. Toss salad to combine. Slice one whole egg and garnish on top, coating each slice with a little of the reserved dressing to it doesn't dry out. Sprinkle lightly with paprika. Refridgerate all day to allow flavours to mingle. Serve chilled.

MPM#10

This weeks menu was well followed and SO yummy! I've made the Enchilada Casserole three or four times and I love it more each time. I've modified the recipe - I add chopped onions and peppers (red & green) as well as about 1/3 of the corn the original suggests to the meat when it's just about finished cooking (I drain it first). I find that this adds some good hidden veggies and enhances the flavour overall. I finally got all three layers to fit this week too! If you haven't tried it yet, you must!

I had "Saturday" last week listed as "surprise"! Well - I was being covert in the event my Dad happened upon my blog that week... My step Mom and I had planned a surprise retirement party! After 41 years in the same job, my Dad finally hung up his hat so we HAD to celebrate! It was a complete surprise to him (it's hard to surprise my Dad - he knows or finds out about everything) and he was so excited! We had the usual summer barbeque fair - steak, chicken baked potatoes, potato salad, Caesar salad... Lots of desserts - it was great and everyone had a fantastic time!

This week, we are heading out to Miquelon Lake Provincial Park camping for four days! I've never been out that way before but they (the Province) did a whole bunch of renovations to the park a couple of years ago so it's supposed to be a good family park now. Regardless, it'll be very nice to finally get away for a few days camping in our motorhome!

So here is our week at a glance!
July 12 to July 18
Monday Chicken Burgers, Salad, chips (We're having company for dinner - my MIL and quasi SIL are staying after they take TroubleMaker on his first zoo trip)
Tuesday Up in the air because someone *ahem* is turning 36 today!
Wednesday Tuna Sandwiches & salad
Thursday BBQ hamburgers & chips
Friday Steak & Caesar salad
Saturday Smokies cooked over the campfire!
Sunday leftovers?

Lunches
Not much - TroubleMaker is at the zoo tomorrow and Wednesday is at the sitter's... I'm off the rest of the week and we're camping so it'll likely be snack-like food!

Breakfasts
Homemade "Eggos", bagels & cream cheese, Banana muffins & cheese cubes, Toast, Bacon & Eggs

Hope you have a great week and check out more Menu Plan Monday cooking and meal planning ideas over at Org Junkie!

Menu Plan Monday - third edition!

Well... This week marks the start of my new job. Five weeks ago, I quit my job of six years. I took three weeks off between jobs and now, I'm heading to the new place tomorrow morning...

So this week, since my schedule will be all new, I've tried to do 'easy' suppers - ones that I know will cook up quickly and easily. I'll be taking public transit to work - something I've never done before (save for the few years I took it when I went to college). And I've got the added challenge of having to transfer part way and catch a train!

I'm trying to add a few new vegetables to our routine. I get tired of the usual green beans, peas and the like so I'm going to try sauteing baby zucchini with garlic and butter (light on the butter) with fresh ground pepper. I really like cooked zucchini but I don't think it's something Hubby will be too keen on. TroubleMaker ate it readily when he was an infant but I find some of the things he ate well as a little baby aren't so well received now as a toddler!

The weather is warming up too and thankfully, the May long weekend is coming up! It's the week before the US long weekend and isn't met with the rampant fanfare the US holidays are... But it the 'official' start to the Canadian summer so I this menu involves a lot of goodies for Hubby to BBQ!

Without further adue, here is this weeks Dinners at a glance!

Monday: Tuna Melts and soup
Tuesday: Fettuccine Alfredo w baby zucchini
Wednesday: Sloppy joes
Thursday: BBQ chicken with Spanish rice
Friday: BBQ Hamburgers with chips
Saturday: BBQ Pork chops with BBQ veggies
Sunday: 2 Step Honey Dijon Chicken with egg noddles

Instead of embedding my weekly menu, this week, I thought I'd just do a quick run down of our breakfasts and lunches...

Breakfasts: Bagels & cream cheese, PB toast, Hard boiled eggs, muffins & cheese, cinnamon toast
Lunches: Cottage cheese, left overs, yogurt smoothies

Looking for more great menu planning ideas? Check out Menu Plan Monday