Growing Pains

I just dropped off my two oldest at camp for the week. I do believe that gives a new definition to the term "growing pains".
I get Emily settled into her cabin reminding her of all the little motherly things. I tell her be sure to hang up your towel after your shower so it doesn't stink, here's your good clothes, your play clothes, etc.. In typical childlike fashion she endures the lecture all the while her eyes staring right past me and out the door. I am sure she was thinking wrap this up mom, there is a whole lot of fun waiting for me. So I take the hint and end my speech realizing she will probably not remember anything I tell her anyway. "I'll be back to say goodbye after I get your brother in his cabin." "O.k.," she shouts back to me as she goes running past me toward the door. I am sure she was thinking I better make a break for it before she starts to tear up or give me more rules that I won't remember once she leaves.
I get in the van to drive over to the other side of the camp to get Isaiah situated in his cabin. There were more girls than boys this year. The additional girls cabins were going to be housing workers so they had to put the boys into the cabins the girls usually stayed in. The boys cabins have more bunks so they could hold the extra girls. I take my son into the cabin and help him pick out a bunk. I tell him, "I stayed in this very cabin when I was little." "What?" He replies I think more out of horror than anything. He starts reading the bunks where girls have signed their names and silly little quips. He had one bunk picked out but I thought another would be better. "Amber loves boys," he reads off the bunk I had picked out.
"Mom I can't sleep in this one, whoever sleeps here Amber will love." I roll my eyes and he takes the hint getting his bed made up. I once again start into my motherly lecture. I feel this child has never been here before, surely he will want to hear my sage advice. Of course I received the typical Isaiah response. To every suggestion I have he of course has a "better" way to do it. I see this is a battle I am quickly losing. I now end the passing on of my wisdom and tell him to ride back up to front with me and I will tell you and your sister Good-bye.
"Mom, I want to go play," he replies. "Just ride up to front with me," I say while giving him the look that tells him, it's not really a suggestion. Looking for a chance to escape he says, "Can't I just walk up there while you drive?" I can tell by the look in his eyes, he won't really be missing me at least not today. "Give me a hug," I say resigned to the fact that I have been replaced at temporarily by the allure of the Gaga Ball court. I give hime one last plea to remember to shower and off he runs shouting back promises I am sure he will not keep.
I drive off to the front of the camp in hopes I will have a better response to my leaving from my oldest. I find her on the merry-go-round already engrossed in a conversation with several new found friends. I can tell once again, mom has taken a backseat in the attention category. I give her a hug squeezing a few last remembrances about being careful about what she eats. She gives me a hug and does the slow backing away thing. Nodding in agreeance with what I am saying as she cast glances over her shoulder looking for a means of escape.
Can it be that I am that old already? My children old enough to be off on their own for a whole week. Taking baby steps toward their future, while mom takes one step back. Weren't they just crying as I left them in the nursery, not wanting mom to be gone from them or out of their sight for even one minute? It is perhaps not only children that are the ones to experience growing pains. I feel I have just been forced to grow in one morning several inches in a matter of minutes.

Vacation at Home

We are not taking a big formal vacation this year, so we are trying to have a few fun days around town. Yesterday, Grandma and Aunt Susan took the kids to the waterpark for the afternoon. (I got to spend the afternoon at the Doctor's office laying still for a picture of my gallbladder) Today we slept in, went for a walk, played games, went rollerblading and biking, out to Eat at the Boathouse and now some Fireworks.
It was our first time ever to eat at the Boathouse which is only a block and a half from our house. What's even funnier is that we lived in this town for about 4 years before I even realized there was a restaurant around the corner from our house. It was pretty good. The neighbors are having their roof done and the construction guy asked if it was ok if he drove his truck up our driveway so he didn't have to haul the trash down the hill. He gave us a certificate for that, I wasn't expecting that. But of course, I don't turn down a free meal.
Sunday we will go to Tim's family party at his Aunt's house. They do a hayride and a supper and fireworks. Then on monday we will take the kids to a friends house to swim and then hang out at the party there for awhile.
Two of my sister's and their families along with my mom are at Family Camp. I wish we could have gone, but we are registered for next year. So for this summer it's just finding more fun activities around home. That's ok though. I thought it was a nice afternoon as I sat on my couch and looked around at the kids all playing games. Enjoying family is really what a vacation is about, not where you go.

Thai Chicken Wraps

This is one of our family's favorites meals.


Tortillas
1 lb Chicken breast
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 Tblsp. Olive Oil
1 bag Broccoli Slaw Mix
1 Medium red onion, cut into thin slices
Fresh Ginger

Peanut Sauce

In small Saucepan combine 1/4 cup Peanut Butter, 1/4 cup sugar, 3 Tblsp. Soy Sauce, 3 Tblsp. Water, 1 Tblsp. Butter and 1 tsp. bottled minced garlic, Heat until sugar is dissolved, stirring frequently.

-Rinse Chicken and Pat Dry
-Cut Chicken into small pieces
-In Bowl add chicken, pepper and garlic salt - toss until all chicken is seasoned
-In Large pan pour some olive oil, once hot, cook Chicken until done
-Remove Chicken from skillet and set aside
-Add Broccoli Slaw mix, red onion and grate in some fresh Ginger(I cut off the peel before I grate it in)
-Cook vegetables until tender (you might need to add a little oil if your pan is too dry.

-To Assemble, spread sauce on warmed tortillas, top with chicken and vegetable mix.

Homemade Patty Melts

I made homemade patty melts a few weeks ago and they were so yummy, I thought I would pass it on. 

Prepare Hamburger patties  and grill them up ( I seasoned mine with garlic powder and onion powder)
Carmelized Onions -(Cut up onion and place in pan with a Tablespoon Butter and 2-3 tsps. brown sugar and saute up)
Cheese Slices (whatever you like, I just used American and that turned out really good)
Sourdough Bread(I bought mine from Wal-mart in the Bakery section) (if you go in the early mornings they have day olds on a discount rack)
--Melt butter and add a little garlic salt and onion powder- Pour over or spread on bread
Place in hot pan, butter side down
add hamburger patty, onions, and cheese top with another slice of bread
Grill up like a grilled cheese.

Enjoy!

Free Activities

I am finding there are tons of free activities you can take your family to if you just look and plan ahead.  Last night the library was hosting a Brazilian Carnival.  They had a drum troupe come in and play various styles of Brazilian music.  Then they taught us how to play, even I took part in the action.  It was lots of fun. 
Today is the read-a-thon at the library.  We stopped by got free doughnuts, there were people there to read books to the little ones and you could sit and read as well.  All the pages you read while there go onto their tally board. 
I will try to post information for free activities or low cost activities as I find them for surrounding communities.
Get out and have some fun as a family.

Summer Activities

Well today is the official start of summer activities.  My kids don't do a lot of activities and I recall why now.  I love watching them do different sports and learning new things, but with four kids I can see it can get real hectic real quick.  Emily is doing tennis this year and piano lessons.  She wanted to try out the trumpet which is fine since I own one.  I told her maybe we could wait on that. 
Josie was going to do tennis as well but I opted for Gymnastics instead which is only 4 sessions in the evening.  Shorter and Daddy can help take her.   She is also going to the Summer Kids Academy for some extra math help. 
 Isaiah is doing peewee league baseball.  I was hoping to get them into swim lessons but I couldn't find a time that would work around the other events.  Both Emily and Isaiah get to go to Bible camp for a whole week.  This will be Isaiah's firts time, I'm a little worried about that.  Emily went last year, so I know she should be ok.
 Luckily Kacee is too little for any of the events.  We will get to go to Grandma's house for a few days and then there will be our Church's Daycamp.  Plus Emily and Isaiah and myself are helping out with a puppet/drama for church. 
That should keep us busy for awile.  It will be lots of fun to see what all the kids learn throughout the summer.  They just grow up too fast. 

Kacee's Sayings

Yesterday while at the store we bought everyone a painting project.  Well, Kacee let me tell you that girl remembers stuff like that.  Today when she got up she goes to the closet and gets it out, she's ready to paint.  I tell her, "No we can't do that today." 
"Why," asks the 2 year old.
 "We have to clean, but we'll do it on another day." 
"Oh, Wednesday, ok?" she tells me.
"Yeah, sure we'll paint that on Wednesday."
    Randomness! I think Wednesday and Saturday are the only two days she knows.  I must say those two days alot. 
Another one of her things is "5 minutes ok?" That's whenever I tell her it's time for bed or to stop playing etc..  Or when I ask her to do something, "I can't how."  That would be I don't know how.  That or she tells me "I busy."
I love listening to this stage of kids and how they try to use big words but they don't always know exactly what they are saying.  Or they know all too well what they are saying!!

A day out

No extra kiddos today so me and my four had a day together.  They have free lunch at the school for kids for the summer, so I took the kids out for lunch!!  Then we went to Mankato and played in the park and took some pictures.  What day would be complete without a visit to the Doctor? (for me that is actually true as of late)  Then we went to a couple of stores and picked up some rainy day activities.  Then home for playtime outised, some homemade pizza, and a movie.  (Daddy got to out with some friends)
Overall it was a fun day, very beautiful out. 

Summer

I do like summer but it seems to be a lot of work, for by the time I get all my projects done in the yard, you'll get about one week to enjoy them before winter covers them up.
I decided to work in my yard.  I am working a new little flower area along my stairs.  I had to evict several ant hills in the process, they were non too happy about that.  Luckily they weren't fire ants.  I have that half done so hopefully I can finish it all up this week. 
After that I need to fix my front flower bed rock area.  It seems that the landscaping paper needs to be replaced as weeds have overtaken the area.  You see my neighbors had nothing in their front yard.  I put in my little landscaping, which wasn't awesome but considering I did it myself it didn't look too bad.  However the neighbors then had professionals put in beautiful landscaping and flower gardens.  Our front lawns are on a hill so it makes it hard to mow, thus the landscaping. 
I would also like to work on my lawn and killing off the weeds there and planting more grass.
Well I guess I'll stick with the front yard project for now, that's what is more visible.

Easter Poem

Loving Me to The End
Betrayed...
                 ...for 30 pieces of Silver
Denied...
                ...three times by His own disciple
Innocent...
                ...but they traded His life for that of a murderer
Scorned...
               ...by those He came to save
Beaten,Bruised, and Broken...
                                             ...yet the crowd still cried for more
Crucify Him, Crucify Him
So he went
                 He hung on that cross
                 He took my pain
                 He loved me
And when he uttered His last words
        He loved me still
But death could not hold Him
       Just as He promised He would rise
He conquered death for me
                none of us deserved it
                few of us ask for it
               some of us deny it
Yet He did it
Died and rose again
Loving me to the end

--by Nicole Perrizo

Homemade Chocolate Cake

I have an awesome recipe for homemade chocolate cake.  I find it's better on the next day.  It seems to get more moist on the second day.  Now to serve it up, forget the frosting, instead coolwhip, raspberries and chocolate sauce.  I will post the recipe for the cake later.  I can't wait for dessert tomorrow.

Construction

Well, we are heading into some construction projects.  I haven't had to do to much major construction in my own house so we'll see.  We are repairing the water damage in three rooms, plus putting in a water drainage system in the basement.  Top that off with a new roof this summer and hopefully the Perrizo waterpark will be officially out of business. 
I'm a little nervous about what will happen.  Living in an old house tends to make projects that should be simple take twice as long.  I'm hoping not because I have to replace a couple windows and I don't want to get stalled with them out.  Well I guess all my worrying will not change anything, so I need to put some prayers in for quick work with no extra surprises. 

Winter

Why is it so hard to get motivated in winter?  I should have all my indoor projects done since it's too cold to go outside, right?  Yet I just want to cuddle under a blanket and watch a movie.  Soon it will be warm, well maybe not soon, but eventually anyway.  When that one day comes, I am going to want to be outside in the warmth and I won't get any of my projects done then either.  I guess I am going to have to come up with some other to get motivated then. 

From Today's devotion time

For my Bible study, we are working throught the book of Ephesians.  This week's chapter was chapter 4.  There were lots of familiar verses of course, but then what's fun is how something new stands out to you every time you read it.   Verse 32 is one we all teach our kids "Be ye kind, tenderhearted to one another..." .  I love this verse and use it with my little ones all the time.  Today I was reading in the NIV and it says "Be Kind and compassionate..."  Think about that, it's not enough to just be kind but you also need to be compassionate.  I know for myself that I can be kind to people, but that is where I leave it, just enough to get by.  Compassionate, that's a big word, I mean big in it's meaning.  When I think of compassion, I think of a deep love for someone else, wanting to protect them, take care of them.  That's a lot more then not yelling at someone that does something annoying, or sharing some food with someone.  Compassion is a deep care and concern for a person's well being.  I think I am going to need a little more time with this thought.  My corrections with my children need to be changed a little to, because it's not enough to tell them just to be kind.

Memorization

I was originally thinking how can I help myself lose weight and I thought when I am busy or distracted I do pretty good.  I had to come up with a way to distract myself so I thought maybe I could work on memorizing my verses for my bible study.  I put up the verses in my kitchen over my stove, over the microwave, by the fridge water dispenser, on the snack pantry, etc.  The idea was that when I was going to eat I would instead take time to memorize a verse.  It works quite well.  I didn't realize how much wasted time you have while you are doing things like waiting for toast, or standing over the stove.  I am feeling pretty good about putting my wasted time to use.  I think I will add in some places like the mirror over the sink,for while you are brushing your teeth or washing your hands.  Don't laugh, but across from your toilet, you can't tell me that time doesn't add up in a day.  How about above your computer, on your steering wheel (of course that is just for red lights). 
Try it and see how many verses you can learn in a week or two.

Water, water everywhere.

I realize that we all have issues in our life that God allows us to deal with.  I'm not complaining because mine are very trivial in comparison to others.  I do wonder why all mine have to do with water. (waterleaking in my walls, roof, basement, hot water pipes, windows, etc.) I've been thinking about it, it seems a bit of an odd dilemna.  I'm not sure what I am supposed to learn.  I suppose patience and trust because what can you do about some of these.  Perserverance, maybe, I mean it is the same issue over and over.  I am trying to learn, Lord, so please take note. 
I am however glad I don't live on a houseboat because I think my house would have sunk by now with all the leaks we've sprung in our house.
 I will say to any problem we have in life God is still very good.   Thank you Lord for the trials that remind me that you are there to help us.  Thank you that we can call on you when we face hard times and that you listen. 

Here's the thing about Procrastination...

Here's the thing about Procrastination, once you are one, well I think you are stuck.  See once you start procrastinating well you are always too busy catching up with life and doing only what needs to be done to get ahead.  If by chance you do start to plan ahead for something well you probably had to procrastinate something else to make time to do the planning and the doing, which of course you procrastinated on.  So see it is a very vicious cycle.  I would like to help all my friends out and give them this advice in advance but alas I procrastinated and now most of you are past the point of applying this information before you have been thrust out into the cold cruel reality of life. 

Exercise

Now you are supposed to exercise to stay in shape but also to lose weight.  However whenever I exercise I only seem to gain weight.  Now I know that muscle weighs more than fat but if I am trying to lose weight seeing the numbers on the scale go up is not helpful.  I also am more hungry so I feel like eating all the time.  So all of this seems counterproductive once again to the losing weight theory of exercise.
I am going to stick with it and hopefully some day eventually it will all pay off I hope.

Finally

Do you have those projects around your house that just never seem to get done?  I have plenty of them.  I can scratch one thing off the list.  When we moved in there was nasty shag carpeting in the hallway.  Needless to say we ripped it up but the glue and staples remained.  I decided to work on my upstairs bathroom tonight.  One of the ugliest parts of it was the staples and glue by the doorway.  I pulled the staples and scraped/sanded the floor in front of it and a piece of the hallway.   I did fix the floor around the toilet, paint the walls and improvised the trim by the floor.  It looks so much better.
 Of course the rest of the hall is still covered with glue.  Oh well it's been there for 10 years a little while longer won't make much difference I guess. 

Making an Impact

Tonight for our family devotions we were talking about how short our life here on earth is and what are we doing with it.  I was thinking about that and decided our life is like a cry uttered at the bottom of a deep valley, all those on the mountains may not hear my cry while it is uttered but they may hear the echo for quite some time after.  I suppose if your cry was forceful enough you could even cause an avalanche. 
It's very easy as a stay at home mom to not feel like I'm really doing anything in the world, or will my voice be heard, can I really make a difference?  I can, you can through the lives of our children and those that they come in contact with and so on.  A while ago we had to make a mission statement for our lives for a Bible study I am in.  At first I thought it was kind of dumb but I did it and it has made a huge impact on me.  I realize that even in the mundane daily tasks (as they so often seem), I can be making a huge impact for Christ.  He may not call us all to be Billy Graham's but we all have a unique call on our lives. 
So if you haven't done so, make a mission statement for your life.  What are you here for?  What are your goals?  What does God have in store for you?  You never know how far your echo can reach.

Ahh the Terrible Twos

Hurrican Kacee has hit in full force in the Perrizo household.  It seems to have stalled out and seems to be growing.  I think if Hurrican Katrina was a 4 this is at about a 7 or 8.  In place of wind we have screaming, in place of rain we have hitting, stomping, kicking, throwing, etc.  It is definitely leaving a wake of destruction everywhere it turns.  Just like a real hurricane there seems to be no way to get it to move or die out.  I guess I will just have to try my best to hurrican proof my house and wait this storm out. 

Getting Organized-Home Office

I love organizing, really I do.  I have taken several different pieces along with some of my own creations in creating an organized home office system.  So I will let you in on some of my secrets.
I have everything I need at my small desk area. 
 Inbox/Filing
Mail- We all get it and sometimes lots of it but what to do with it all.
 I have 3 bins on my desk one is an inbox, one is a to do box and one is outgoing mail
The inbox is where all the mail goes and waits to be filed.  Sometimes I have things like insurance claims or medical paperwork to fill out and those would be found in my to do box, the outgoing should have a spot for envelopes, stamps and letters and bills waiting for their due date to be mailed.
Now eventually you need to do something with all that inbox stuff right?  Well I have one file drawer to hold it all.  That's right and I'm not talking about the garbage can (though that is also effective.)
In my file drawer I have several files Bills to Pay (obviously the bills you need to pay that month wait there until they are paid), upcoming events (for party invites, etc.), misc. info. to keep, coupons, Kids School information papers, Sunday School/Awana Papers (these files hold schedules, teacher information, phone #'s etc.), paycheck stubs, Utlitiles, House payment, Credit cards, School loans, Vehical Loans, etc., Then there is a Tax information file, a bank file, Insurance file. 
This way all the inbox mail can be sorted directly down into the proper category.  It's quick and easy, no more lost bills, no more paper clutter all over the house. 
Household Binder
Now to keep track of paying those bills I have one Household Binder. 
I have a calender (printed from Outlook in the front) with a To Do List, this keeps track of all the events, bills, everything we are responsible for or need to do each month.

 Next we have a monthly budget, this how I track how much money we make and how it should break down each month for our budget.  After that is the Bill Payment Schedule and Envelopes Funding tracker.  This is where I have broken down all the bills we have to pay each month by their due dates and then I divide them into which paycheck they will come out of and after you subtract your bills the leftover money is spilt out into your budget Or envelopes for each thing like gas, food, etc.  (this will come off the monthly budget sheet with some minor changes as sometimes their are unique expenses for different months).   The Next Tab is the Expenditure tracking and Debt Snapshot/Paydown.  Here I track my monthly expenses for things like utlities, insurance, etc.  .  Then I also have a sheet for each bill or debt and track the monthly payment and amount left, it helps to see it getting paid down. Next I have a space to keep track of all my accounts, logins and passwords.    Then I have a menu and grocery list, Then a Shopping list for Household items and a wish list for items I am waiting to purchase because they are wants or more expensive like a new ceiling fan. Then I have a system I use with the kids a Strike chart and Reward zone list.  Finally I have a cleaning list for me and the kids, plus it tracks when they do extra jobs and earn spending money. 
It sounds complicated but it really isn't.  I have taken several years to adjust to all of it.  Each year I would add in a new part of organizing and soon enough Voila, you got it together , well kind of anyway:)

I have all of this available in Excel Format if you want it let me know, I can send you a copy and you can tweak it to make it work for your family. 
Sorry I wanted to put some pics of some of the different sheets up but it's not letting me do that right now.