Beautiful Day for the Park

We headed off to Millenium Park today. The kids really liked it, and it was a nice change from the usual park close to our house. I didn't bring clothes, so they weren't able to play in the fountains. But I will make a point to do that next time, as well as pack a lunch.

Cashing In

Today we stopped by the library to pick up prizes for reaching the 1st pit stop in the summer reading program. The kids earned a few freebies from Sonic, some Magic House coupons, and these snazzy straw glasses. They have been quite a hit since we got home.




Speaking of, our credit union hosts a "Night at the Magic House" every May. They always give out door prizes, and this year Carlie actually won.



Pretty sweet prize. Although with the mortgage interest they get from us every month, I think they can swing it.

Time to Cool Off

Some days, you just need ice cream!

Wickedly Good

Has it really been 10 days since my last post? I guess I've been busy. Today, I finished off the weekend with a Kappa Delta theater outing at the Fox. We went to see Wicked.



It was fabulous! My favorite songs were "Popular" and "Defying Gravity." The only negative thing I could say about it, if I had to, is that the 2nd half (after the intermission) wasn't nearly as good as the first half. The songs just weren't nearly as powerful, and the story seemed rushed. Maybe it was just the venue. Possibly seeing it in another city may make a difference. If I do see it again, I would pay the big bucks to be closer. The 2nd to last row in the UB makes it difficult to get all the facial expressions, even with binoculars.

Always Looking for Bargains

With Doug and Casey's wedding coming up in October, I figured I better start looking for my dress. Casey was kind enough to let us select any dress we wanted as long as it was David's Bridal Apple color. I'm normally not one for strapless dresses, but I came across this one on ebay and ended up winning.



The dress had only been worn once, and the cool thing was, the girl threw in matching shoes, purse, and straps-- all for a whopping $45 (which included shipping!!) Don't know if I will actually wear the shoes. I do not wear heels, and these bad boys are probably 3" or more high. I don't think Casey would want me stumbling down the aisle like a cheap drunk. Doesn't matter though, even if I ditch the shoes, I still got the dress for 75% off of what it would have been new. I always love a good bargain.

Your New Favorite Pants

NOT! I got my daily email from LOFT and was shocked to see that these would be my new favorite pants



Really? These have got to be some of the ugliest, most unflattering pants I have ever seen. Plus, they are silk. Not what you want to wear in the St. Louis heat and humidity. The back of the pants have an elastic waistband and no pockets. Sorry, even Cameron Diaz could not make these look good. These will be on their "final sale" rack by summer's end (if not before.)

New Neighbors

A couple of baby fawns and their mama have pretty much taken up residence in our backyard this past week.

Dinner on a Dime

Last night I made a quick and easy chicken recipe from a book I picked up at Borders not too long ago. Mike raved about it, but will probably be grossed out when he reads the recipe below. The meal itself was under $10 for our family of four, and we had leftovers to be eaten at tonight's meal.

Baked Chicken Tenderloins (8) $2.69
Frozen Green Beans $0.99
Grapes $2.49
Pillsbury Grands Biscuits $0.69 (I had a coupon)



Baked Chicken Tenderloins Recipe

Heat oven to 375. Spray pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Use a pastry brush to cover chicken top and bottom with mayonnaise.

Roll chicken strips in Italian Seasoned bread crumbs and place in pan.

Bake for 35-45 minutes until juices run clear.

(P.S. Mike would be grossed out because mayo makes him gag.)

It's That Time Again

Hoping the haircut and highlights (not the facial expression) turn out a little something like this...

EZ Key Lime Pie

THIS

+

THIS

=

Freeze at least 1 hour prior to serving. YUM!!

A week of Highlights

In the midst of me getting things done, here were some other goings on...

Carlie's last day of school

Carlie and Mrs. Fry

Yes, Miss O. is also in kindergarten. She just has a good 10 inches+ on Carlie.

Greek Festival

A celebration of culture, food, fun, and all things Kappa Delta (Ha!)

Getting Some Stuff Done

This late day post is because I have been spending the day getting stuff done. I finally finished painting the crown moulding that has been up almost a year now. That would make for quite a boring picture, so no picture.

Here is the first nugget of wisdom (we are studying Proverbs) brought to you by Pastor Ron on Procrastination.

**Perfectionists procrastinate because they want everything perfect.**
I can so relate


Perfectionists, is this you?

-Trouble completing projects because your own high standards haven't been met? (Like those scrapbooks gathering dust because the pictures aren't that good, and the paper and stickers aren't quite right)

- Preoccupied with details, rules, schedules others don't care about?


Ecclesiastes 11:4 says "If you wait for perfect conditions, you'll never get anything done."


Wise Moves for Perfectionists to stop Procrastinating
* Focus on achieveable, not ideal
* Put a time limit on tasks
* Make short, practical to-do lists
(for example, --Finish painting crown moulding-- Check!)

Is This You?

Pastor Ron gave a great message last night on Procrastination. I will post some of the sermon notes tomorrow. If this is an area you are struggling with, the notes can help you figure out why you procrastinate and how to change it. He showed this video, and some days I can definitely relate... Time to "Get Some Stuff Done!!" (Make sure to have the volume up so you can hear the narration.)

Friday Fun

Have y'all seen this? It just makes me laugh, but we need more people like Dale Peterson in my opinion...

The Next Nastia

Carlie had her trial gymnastics class over the weekend. She loved it! The instructor said she is very good for her first time, and she should be ready to move up to the next level by the end of the summer session. Here are some highlights.

Beautiful Day

Noah and I headed to Main Street St. Charles today just to get out of the house since it has been raining pretty much nonstop the past week and a half. The Missouri River is really high right now. I didn't get any pictures, but it will be taking over Frontier Park in the near future.




No visit is complete without checking out Riverside Sweets. I don't get the fascination with flavored taffy. Out of all those choices I would have just gone with the Vanilla, but I know I am in the minority.


I'll take that one, please...



After walking around and not buying anything (although a few things caught my eye), we headed to Mikkie D's for lunch. The one on 5th is a tad dirty, and the fries were not hot, but Noah still enjoyed it. We just share the 2 cheeseburger combo meal, a much more cost efficient option than a happy meal and fish combo.



It was just nice to get outside and enjoy the beautiful day. Tomorrow is to be much of the same, but the rains come again on Thursday. Ugh!

Take The Challenge

I am really getting tired of my legs not really having much shape or muscle definition. Although I continue to do Zumba twice a week (I may up that to thrice) and run/walk 3 miles twice a week, nothing seems to be changing in the appearance of my legs. (This could be do to the massive quantity of M&M's I consume on a daily basis.) So, I am challenging myself to complete the Two Hundred Squats Challenge.

Basically, you spend 30 minutes per week for approximately 8 weeks to build up to Two Hundred Consecutive Squats! Awesome! I took the initial test and did 36 squats, not too bad for someone on the higher end of the 30-39 age category. Hopefully I will start to see a difference over the next 3-4 weeks.

Mike has been doing the Hundred Push-ups Challenge (same website) and is up to 45 consecutive, but it may be a little more.

Let me know if you decide to "Take the Challenge". Just click on the above link and take the initial test. Once completed I plan to move on to either the push-ups or sit-ups. But one goal at a time, don't want to get ahead of myself. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Favorite Books/Children's Books

This week's Show Us Your Life at Kelly's Korner blog is on our Favorite Books and Children's Books. Growing up I think I read every Nancy Drew book on the bookmobile. I also read those books where you could choose your own mystery, but I don't remember what they were called. Remember? The ones where if you thought one thing, you turned to a certain page, and if you thought something else, you went to a different page.



In High School I really didn't like things that were required reading. However, the one book I really did like was A Tale of Two Cities. The best part was trying to figure out what in the world that old lady was knitting!



I don't read a ton of fiction books now, which probably explains my ho-hum writing ability. Usually I read books on personal finance/investing, growing in my faith, or autobiographies of sports figures.

My "favorite books" (in the fiction category) would be James Patterson's Women's Murder Club series. These are must reads for any mystery buff. Murder, Mystery, Suspense, and Lindsay Boxer rocks. There is a new one that recently came out, but I am #237 on the library hold list, so it could be awhile before I get my hands on it...



Another fiction book I love is Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. This book made me laugh out loud. Probably because it reminds me of several people I know. And, of course, it has the personal finance angle-- go figure. The movie was absolutely horrible though. Didn't parallel the book much at all. I tried to read some of the other books in the series but didn't finish any of them.



Here are a few on the non-fiction side I recommend...





And, as far as Children's books go... our kids love the Wemmicks series by Max Lucado (and Nancy Drew Clue Crew- gee, I wonder where they got that from?)