School girls.

TIME FOR SCHOOL....GET UP, GET UP!

Brush teeth, wash face, comb hair...

Our big 1st grader!!!  Grace started last Monday.  

Eat breakfast, make bed, wash hands!!!

Our big preschooler!  Ryann started on Tuesday.  

This is me grabbing an apple on our way out the door to school!  I have been trying to get my workout in before the household wakes up.  Early mornings, but worth it!!!

And we made it!!!

We are settling into our new routine and the girls love school.  Grace had 100% on her first spelling test and is regaining the math quickly.  It will be an exciting year for both girls.  They think it is so neat to have each other at the same school.

I am looking forward to some Lisa time when we are in a full routine.  

Back in the swing of it!

This is a picture of Grace...not me, but pretty much sums up the way I have been feeling at the end of each day since school started last Monday.  That is why you haven't heard from me! My day begins somewhere around 5:30 a.m. and by 9:00 p.m. I am toast!

My goal this week is to get my shit together  (grocery shopping is already done,) and then I will have time to blog and everything else.  

Still have some fun vaction pictures to share and first day of school has come and gone.  Stay tuned....bare with me while adjust to running around like never before.  Wouldn't have it any other way!

The Mermaid Cottage

So, about a month ago now we had been visiting my sister in Sacramento for 12 days and had an invitation to stay with our friends Jerry and Dalton and a beach house in Laguna for the following weekend.  We drove down to L.A. for a couple of days , where Derek and Jerry had some calls business, and the girls and I decided we wouldn't mind hanging out at the beach.  We even caught up with some of our friends who live in the area.  All good fun!!! 

 But, here is where we ended up....the coziest little cottage.  Luckily Dalton's sister is the owner and we got a good price, but I think rent is about triple my mortgage for a week.  Anyway...

This is the front door.  Sooo cute...

(Sign says:  "memories you'll presevre for the rest of your life." It hangs on the mantel.)

and this sign represents everything...romance, great memories, our little family...the perfect summer stop!

We enjoyed this place and felted so blessed to have stayed here...

This is the little porch on the front of the house, a perfect spot for adult beverage and relaxation.

And then you enter the little kitchen.  Don't you just love the red refridgerator?  

The view from the living room...breathtaking!

This is the upstairs living room complete with a port hole from a real sunkin ship.  So cute!

Here is the upstairs bedroom.  A deck overlooking the front porch below.

And this is the downstairs bar that walks out to the back porch and bbq.  We enjoyed hanging out by the fire after the kids were tucked in.

Dalton was refusing to have her picture taken.  Every one (about 4 pictures) has her hand in front of her face.

We crashed in this cute little room downstairs after some hard beach time.  Every room was decorated so cute.  Liked I said...we were blessed.

Cheers to a wonderful stay at the mermaid cottage!

I will do another post with our beach pics.

Happy birthday D!

Today is special....it's Derek's birthday!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY HONEY!

This is Derek on his 30th birthday...when everyone celebrates the day one foot falls in the grave.  Thank goodness he made it nine years later...yes, he is 39! (Next year the foot will fall again...)

(pictured with Grace in her Broncos uniform)

He is the best daddy EVER!!!

(pictured below with Ryann as a proud new daddy...again)

When I was going through my pictures I found this one of him helping me out with the vacuuming!  A chore he doesn't often do.  That is why I took a picture.  

Derek, just wanted to let you know your wonderful, my best friend and I love you.  Can't wait for the carna asada!!!

COWABUNGA!

We went to the water park today.  Fun!  Perfect weather.  It started out to be the perfect day.  But, there was an incident...I was in the kiddy pool with Ryann while Grace was off going down waterslide with her friends.  I noticed a lady whispering to the life guard and pointing.  Curious, I watch to see what is going on.  I wanted to be sure someone wasn't in trouble.  They are looking around the pool whispering and pointing...whispering and pointing.

Well, then I look down and there is something floating in the water.  Yes people...it was POOP!  Some kid pooped in the pool and it was floating all around me.  YUCK!  YIKES!  I grabbed Ryann and we were out of there.  

They evacuated the pool and did all the proper chemical treatments.  I was grossed out to say the least!

Then the wind started whipping around like a tornado.  That is when we decided to pack up and go for frozen yogurt.  Somehow Grace's hair ended up in knots and she looked wild.  This was the only picture I  have from our outting.  

Quinoa recipe

(not a pic of the actual recipe, but you get the idea)

If you haven't heard of or tried QUINOA...let me bring you up to speed on this fabulous food!  It is the perfect food!  Because of my diabetes I can't do any type of rice and keep my sugars under control.  This is a great substitute!  I wanted to share with you a recipe from the Cooking Light magazine my neighbor lent me...


So delicious and yes...it is good for you.  A great side dish or a complete meal by itself.  


QUINOA WITH ROASTED GARLIC, TOMATOS AND SPINACH


1 whole garlic head (roasted)
1 Tsp olive oil
1 Tsp chopped shallots
1/4 tsp red pepper
1/2 c uncooked quinoa (rinsed to get the oil off)
1 Tsp white wine
1 c fat free chicken broth 
1 c fresh spinach
1/2 c chopped tomatos seeded
1 Tsp shaved parmesan
1/4 tsp salt


-Roast garlic in oven at 400 for 1 hour, cool for 10 minutes and squeeze the cloves out.


--Heat oil and sauté shallot and red pepper flakes for 1 minute.  Add quinoa and cook for 2 minutes.
Add wine and cook until liquid is absorbed then add chicken both and bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.


- Remove from heat. Add garlic, tomatoes and spinach.  Add salt and cheese.  Serve or refrigerate.  It is good cold.


serves 4, 1/2 c servings


130 cal
4.1g protein
1.8g fiber
16g carb
5g fat


We discovered quinoa about a year ago while shopping at Costco, but you can get it in the bulk food section of most grocery stores.   It is a grain-like crop grown primarily for its edible seeds. It looks like a grain, but it is a seed,  full of protein!  Its protein content is very high (12%–18%). Unlike wheat or rice (high on the glycemic index), quinoa contains a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans, making it an unusually complete protein source among plant foods.   It is a good source of fiber and is high in magnesium and iron. Quinoa is gluten-free and considered easy to digest. 


Quinoa has a light, fluffy texture when cooked, and its mild, slightly nutty flavor makes it an alternative to rice or couscous.  My experience has been it takes on the flavor of whatever you are cooking it with.  


If you haven't heard of it...give it a try.  I will continue to look for great recipes to share with you and anytime a recipe calls for rice I am going to use quinoa!  I even tried the flour.  It's not bad, just a little pricey.

Swim meet.

Sorry for the absense.  I haven't been in the blogging mood.  Summer is almost over and the kids and I have been having a blast hanging out, playing with friends, riding bikes and tomorrow the WATER PARK.  Whoo hoo! It will all come to an end in a week.  Grace will be a big first grader and Ryann will be off to preschool.  HOLY COW!  Anyway...I still need to share with you some of the fabulous pictures from our California adventure.  I promise I will get to it!

Grace had her first swim meet on Saturday.  It was really fun.  She was very nervous and the process was a little confusing...

I wasn't allowed to stand poolside because it was too crowded, so this is the best I could do.  Grace took 1st place in her 25 meter freestyle and 3rd in her 25 meter breast stroke.  She did awesome for the first meet.  She is a strong swimmer and we are working on diving head first.  I know she will be ready for some 50 yard swims next time.  She has only been on the team for two weeks, so we are very proud of her!

The dentist and a swim cap.

We will call this post random...but today we had to go in for our semi-annual dental check-up.  It was Ryann's first visit to the dentist....

No cavitites!  Ryann was so brave.  She did great!  I still find myself clenching my fists while the dentist checks my teeth.  I hate the dentist!!!!  Well, he is a nice guy, but I don't like him touching my teeth.

In other news....Grace made the swim team!!!  Yeah!

And this is her new swim cap so her hair doesn't turn green.  Her first swim meet is on the 14th.  Whoo hoo!

Resort Satake...

On July 1st we went to visit my sister.  This was a planned, 10 day vacation to see my sis and her beautiful little family in Sacramento.  Had no idea it would turn into a safari down the California coast line (will explain as I go).  So, this was stop number one... that lasted 12 fabulous days!

The first thing we had to do was get these kids reacquainted.  They hadn't seen each other since March.  Doesn't take them long to play nice and have fun...

 The Sims girls waisted no time getting into the pool.  That is where we spent most of our trip.  Ryann learned to jump off the diving board and was diving in head first.  No more belly flops!

Gavyn wasn't so sure about sharing his pool with us at first.  But, when he realized we were staying for a few days he joined in the fun.

We celebrated the 4th of July with Steve's buddy Chris and his family.  They are very serious about the fireworks.  They set up ladders and 2X4's, play music and light up the night with blow torches and fire!

The girls enjoyed the sparklers until Grace dropped a spark on her foot.  Then they were happy to just watch from a distance.

Chris had to take Derek for a spin around the block in his new toy.  What a gem!

Karen and I thought it would be fun to take the kids to the park and feed the ducks.  The photo shoot was a lot like herding cats, but we got some good pictures of the cousins together.  All the really good ones are on her fancy camera, but she hasn't sent them to me yet.

This is one of my favorites.  Ryann was attacking me and my niece, Ella was so confused by all the commotion.  This is when we knew it was time to go.

One night Uncle Steve made sushi.

Uncle Steve is an excellent Sushi chef!  Sushi is a lot of work!!!  But, it is one of Grace's favorite meals and he loves Grace, so we were all lucky enough to enjoy this special treat.

Derek had to leave us girls for a couple of days and go to work in Fremont, CA.  So we stayed behind so I could have a little sister time with Karen and the kids.

Aunt Karen had a special day planned for us at Funderland, a special amusement park just the right size for our little ones.  We were so lucky to go on a slow day and rode all the rides over and over and over...

Face painting is always a hit with the kids!  Ryann was willing to give it another try even after the first bust with the butterfly back in Salt Lake.

She choose this cute little piggy which stayed on her face all day!

Grace choose a unicorn.

 Gavyn choose his hero Thomas and his friend Kailynn had a beautiful mermaid.

Funderland really lived up to it's name....a lot of fun!

A trip to the Satake's wouldn't be complete without a boat ride.  They are geared up for some serious fishing.

The fish weren't biting much, maybe because it was HOT, but Grace caught one.  Her first fish.  She was brave enough to get her hands in on the cleaning.

Gavyn wanted to take us to one of his favorite places, the train museum in Old Sacramento.  They have a really nice collection of trains.  A must see if you go there.

And no old town tour goes without a horse and carriage ride!  This is one of two for the girls on our trip (#2 is in San Diego).

And this is our dinner after the train museum...yep, live crab.  We let him crawl around on the floor for a minute before we stuck him in the pot.

Grace, our social butterfly, enjoyed making new friends all along the way.  This is her new friend Ava.  Uncle Steve works out with a group of friends every evening.  Ava's parents host the workouts and she is the same age as Grace.  Grace and Ava played dress up almost every night while the adults would exercise.  So cute!

And that pretty much sums up the first leg of our trip.

So, where did we go from here....

Derek had some business to do in L.A. at the end of the next week and we had an invitation to a beach house in Laguna.  The girls and I were in no rush to get home, so we decided to drive south with Derek. That is how we get to the beach (another post)!!!  

Thanks again Steve, Karen, Gavyn and Ella for all the fun!