Details, Schmetails

This past weekend we took an impromptu trip to Omaha to see the airshow and go to the zoo after our painter called and said he wouldn't be able to start working on our house until the 8th. We had a great weekend doing fun family stuff. And spent one afternoon in Lincoln, Nebraska, looking at minivans I had found on Auto Trader.

After looking at a few vans over the past few months, we just weren't finding one that was what we wanted at a price we were willing to pay. Until we got to Lincoln.

We found a van, equipped exactly the way we wanted, the color we wanted at the exact price we said we would be willing to pay. We weren't in a pinch financially by buying the van, so we figured we'd sell the Passat as soon as we could, but weren't in a rush to do so.

Imagine our surprise and delight when we sold it tonight - for the exact price we said we wanted for it. To the first person who came to look at it, without even advertising it. The guy who bought it works with a friend of ours right here in Adrian.

Now, you tell me. Do you think God is in the details?

Catchin' Up

This summer has been a whirlwind. We had family visit, Ashlyn and I went to Disney, we took a little trip to Okoboji, Iowa (courtesy of Britney's Uncle Doug and Aunt Kris). We went to the Sioux Falls Airshow and did some major work on our house. I finally feel like I can breathe a little and thought it would be a good time to catch up on blogging!

Here are some random pictures of the things we did this summer. I hope you enjoy them!

I also hope to start recipe Wednesdays back up again. And will hopefully have some awesome "before and afters" to show of some projects from the summer!

I Hit The Mother Load!

Today the kids and I went to Sioux Falls for some shopping. I decided to hit the thrift stores since it was National Thrift Store Shopping Day. Bet you didn't know that one, did you?

I love to shop at thrift stores. I'm not usually big on buying clothes or shoes there, but today was the exception. I found Carter 3 shirts and a pair of shorts, a pair of pants for Ashlyn, a brand new dress for me (still had the tags) and 2 pairs of boots for me. One pair I had been looking for for over 5 years!!! The other ones were just for good measure. The best part - my total! Only $22 for ALL of that! The dress alone was originally over $60 :)

The only bummer was the $4 pair of Steve Madden boots that my feet absolutely refused to fit into. I sadly left them behind...

Product Review

Tonight we froze some sweet corn so that we can have that yummy summer taste in the dead of winter when it's 20 below outside.

The "product review" is for the new Kernel Cutter from Pampered Chef. Yes, I used to be a consultant, but that was a couple of years ago. I had a party in May and ordered this just to see if it was any good. Some of the other tools that have been tried failed miserably, and we all just went back to using good old knives.

Not anymore! This new tool is AWESOME! I could fly through the ears of corn, my hand didn't get tired, and there wasn't nearly the waste on the cob. It was well worth the $7.50! Fabulous!

Out of the Mouth of Babes

So today Carter and I had a conversation that went something like this.

Carter: "Mom, when can I watch TV?"

Me: "When mommy's show is over, then you can watch."

Carter: "Well, how long will that be?"

Me: "Just a few minutes."

Carter: "Well, how many is that?"

Me: "You just need to learn to be patient"

Carter: "That will take too long."

I couldn't have said it better myself!

Adding Another Line to the Resume

So, tomorrow I'm going to try my hand at stucco. Yep, stucco.

We've been trying for over a year to have our house painted. The kicker is that before we can have it painted, there are a few things that need to be repaired. The stucco is one of them. It's not too bad - just a couple of spots where the stucco has come loose from the lath, has cracked and is starting to come off. There are 3 spots that are probably 6 square feet each. Then a couple of other smaller areas.

Why am I doing it? Because the one thing I really really really really hate about living here is the construction industry. There's only a few months a year when it's even possible to do work on the outside of your house. So, I started back in April calling contractors, for the second year in a row. I finally found a reliable painter. But, finding someone to fix the other things has been next to impossible. I've had a few people come out and look at what we need done, but even after umpteen follow-up phone calls, no one gives me a price. We don't want to just say "come do it" and then get a bill for $10,000...

I worked for five years in the commercial construction industry. One of my "jobs" was soliciting bids for our projects. Of course there was always a few contractors who said they would get you a price, but then failed to. But overall, the response was good. I just don't get why they don't need the work - or at least won't tell me they won't do it. They just act like you don't exist.

OK - enough of my rant. If you think of me tomorrow, send up a couple of extra prayers - for wisdom to know what I'm doing and for patience!!!! I'll let you know how it goes. And if it goes really well, I'll even post pictures!

Home Again, Home Again...

Have I really been home almost a week and haven't updated yet? I think I'm in denial that we're actually home and away from family once again. This was probably the most fun trip to Disney World I have had in a very long time. Thanks, Britney, for taking such good care of Carter and letting me go on this trip! I think my mom said it all better than I ever could... Ashlyn and I got back from our trip last Friday. We had such a great time and she was COMPLETELY SURPRISED! It was well worth all of the extra work to make it such a treat for her. We all laughed and cried when she saw my mom (Nana) for the first time. Ashlyn knew we were going to Disney World, but had no idea that anyone else was meeting us there.

Here is a link to all of the videos I took this week. Click on the "see all" link to the right of the first video - there are 6 of them!

Here are some of the pictures from the trip too.

Enjoy!