First Day of School Photos

Posted on September 3, 2014 by Mom of 4

Fall is here, hear the yell, back to school, ring the bell,
Brand new shoes, walking blues, climb the fence,
Books & pens…I can tell that we are gonna be friends.

Love that song! I will tell you more later, about WHY it is stuck in my head at the moment. Pretty exciting stuff!

So, school is back in full swing at our house. For the first time in 6 years, our family is attending somewhere other than Central Christian. Our family goes back 30 plus years at that school, but the Lord called us to a different school this year. I will share more about that tomorrow, but for now, here are our first day of school photos!

I can’t believe summer is over!!!!
~T

With Cherries On Top….

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Mom of 4

I am lonely today! Did you know Avery started 3-School last week and will now go every Friday?

Yup, it’s just Paxton and I here a good portion of the morning.

{SIGH} How is it that all my kids are so quickly approaching school age?

3 of my 4 are in some form of school, 1 or more days a week. WAH! My years as a Stay at Home mom seemed to stretch as far as the eye can see, but in reality, they are quickly passing by. I don’t like it. You know what they say, “Days are long but years are fast.”

Anyhow, I thought since it was so quiet here, with Pax taking his morning nap and all, I’d use this time to update you on things at the Ferguson home……..

This is the space formally known as my front yard:

Apparently we have a crushed lateral pipe that needs fixing, promptly!

This was taken day 1 of digging. You should SEE it NOW! Twice this at least!

Look at Ty’s shovel parked next to his daddy’s, AWWW!

This is poo water:

Every time my kids go outside they ask “Ew. Who tooted?” Yup, it’s disgusting!

This is the Tahoe:

Well, the wheel of the Tahoe…hey, it’s the only photo I could find in a hurry!

It died on me in the middle of the gas station, multiple, multiple times. The middle, as in the DRIVEWAY. Not the side, not at the pump, the MIDDLE. Of course! It will cost $700 to repair.

This is Saprina, our beloved kitty:

She is MIA and my kids are totally broken-hearted over it. Lots of tears last night and this morning.

This was my checking account balance as of last night:

$250 worth of bills will hit in the morning.

This is the pile of dishes. Nasty, crusty dried Mexican night dishes:

I decided to leave them as they were, as in all over the kitchen counters, to go get the kids down early. They all had school the next day, so it seemed like the right choice. I usually AT LEAST give them a good rinse and stack them neatly, before doing bedtime, but this time? Nope, that would’ve been TOO convenient!

This is where I did dishes last night after Dale hit the point of no return on the pipes during bedtime songs and prayers…..this occured BEFORE he could warn me that no running water was going to be allowed until further notice!

Super crusty dishes plus cold water doesn’t equal very clean dishes. Yuck. I will re-do them as soon as the water privileges are back!

The list of things that broke this week goes on longer than I’ve mentioned, but I am going to choose to quit here, lest you think I’m a complainer. Rather, I’d like to say this:

God is SO good.

Here is the tractor, loaned to us for free to fix the broken poo-water pipe, saving us from renting one:

By the way, here is the culprit of the broken Lateral line aka Poo Pipe:

ROOTS!

Here is the Lowe’s gift card we were blessed by early this morning by one of the Lord’s vessels:

We used it for NEW poo-pipes. Thank you for the blessing, Angel from the Lord! This Do It Yourself Project just saved us the $1500 it would’ve cost to hire it done!!!!!!

This is my ride until the Tahoe is fixed, loaned to us by a generous uncle:

I might be a truck girl after all!

*I am jumping in here to add a new note before I publish this, I just got off the phone with Dale. Remember how the Tahoe cost $700 to repair? Guess who is getting a $700 commission check in 2 days. YUP, us! God is GOOD!

Here is Pax, totally entertained while I make supper:

No crying baby at my feet!!!!

Yay for free entertainment!

I wish I had good news about little Saprina, but she is still nowhere to be found. We did drive around last night and talk to some neighbors. We also put up a few signs to make Destiny feel like we are doing SOMETHING to find her wayward friend. Even our wiener dog, Sophie runs around outside, whining and crying, running to and fro looking for her BFF, Saprina. 😦

May the Lord guide her little furry steps safely back to us, or may the right people see the signs and return her….Amen.

Remember my $4 account? Here is our bank account the next morning:

PTL! Just in time and just enough to cover the $250 in outgoing bills, with a little extra even!
Know why? Because God is a God of EXTRAS.

He is lavish in His love. Even down to details we deem “silly”.

And there is more…..

Here is my cherry on top for the day:

Sweet treats from a precious friend who knows my need for comfort food, as well as my major Ice Cream weakness! She even picked one of my top 2 favorite brands, and look at all those flavor choices!!!

One scoop of each? Why yes, please!

And….another cherry on top!

WHAT?!

A Bonus bonus?!

Another person sent over the Christmas décor I wanted from her garage sale but knew I couldn’t buy! What a great surprise!

God is good all the time, All the time God is good……

He always provides, and sometimes even throws in a couple cherries on top!

Praise His name!

And Then There Were 2….

Posted on September 8, 2011 by Mom of 4

I have a “MOM, What’s for Dinner?” Recipe for you. Well, not really a recipe, more of a throw it all together sorta thing.

I had nothing planned for dinner, which is unusual for me. I love to try new recipes and usually have one picked out in the morning and prepping supper by mid afternoon. On this particular night, it was already 5:30, and we had just walked in the door from a SUPER busy day. The kids tummies were going off and the clock was ticking. Hmm, no money for frivolities like take out or pizza delivery, so it was time to come up with something, and QUICK!

Here is what I made:

Y-U-M!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let’s call it Garden Italian Creme Pizza. OR “MOM! What’s for Dinner? Pizza”.

I had one of these Philadelphia Cooking Cremes that I got for next to nothing with a coupon, yay! And a garden full of basil, jalapenos and red peppers. I also had a container of tomatoes that needed to be used. Hmm, what could I make?!

I took 2 crescents (set out for a bit to soften) and spread them into my bar pan from Pampered Chef, you could easily half this and make a circle pizza. I think circle pizzas taste better in general!!!! Dale thinks I am nuts.

“Shapes don’t make a difference.” Uh yeah, they do. Why do you think no one wants to share the first bite of pie? You have to eat the tip, its part of the yum factor!

Back to the non-recipe recipe. Ok, I just made a crust. Bake it until starting to turn golden brown, probably 425* for maybe 15 minutes? I can’t recall, just watch it closely and remember, it’ll go back in the oven again.

Next, spread crust with Italian Cheese and Herb Cooking crème. I used almost the whole thing for my big rectangle pizza, so 1 circle pizza would use half.

Wash and thinly slice 1 red pepper, seed & thinly slice 4 fresh jalapenos and thinly slice your basil leaves as well. Sprinkle all these garden goodies over your crème sauce. Top with mozzarella cheese (FRESH if you have time, which I didn’t) and top with tomato halves. Back in the oven it goes, just until the cheese is gooey, remember your crust is already baked.

OH MY WORD! We have had this TWICE now, and I don’t repeat recipes. It was that good!

In other news, Tylan started preschool yesterday!

Please excuse his butchered head of hair, er, lack of hair? He dipped when I dodged and snip…bye-bye long bangs that I loved. I’ve cut his hair always, but of COURSE this happens the week before school starts!!!!! Thankfully his luscious locks grow super fast and my little curly head will return quickly, but poor kid, talk about locking into history a rather AKWARD moment!!!! 🙂

“Oh look, here is a photo of Tylan on his first day of preschool.”

“Mom! What happened to my hair?”

“Sorry son.”

He’ll forgive me, right?!

Right.

Ok, it’s time for school, Buddy!

011 And then there were 2……

1st Day of School & BBQ Chicken Pie

Posted on August 23, 2011 by Mom of 4

Yesterday was Destiny’s 1st day of school, so I, OF COURSE, had to take the obligatory front porch picture.

Avery: “I’ll miss you, sissy.”

Sweet big 3rd grader….such a little lady!

“Take my picture too, Mommy! Do I go to school today?”

Soon, my little Peanut. All too soon…..

Thankfully, Tylan & Avery don’t start until September, so you better believe I am spending as MUCH time as possible enjoying my 3 remaining kiddos at home with me. I just still can’t figure out how in 1 year I went from 3 home except Friday’s to only 2 home and 1 lone ranger on Friday’s. My time as a stay at home Momma is flying by too fast!!!!!!

“Bye, have a great day! We miss you already!”

“Wait for me! Here I come…”

Just for fun, I thought I’d pull Destiny’s other school pictures up until now. A trip down Memory Lane if you will……can’t go far, she’s only a 3rd grader after all but boy has she changed! 🙂

So, I have a delicious new recipe for you to try, it came together really quickly and would be a great school night supper:

BBQ CHICKEN PIE

1 whole Refrigerated Pie Crust
3 whole Seasoned Chicken Breasts, Cooked And Chopped Or Shredded
4 whole Green Onions, Thinly Sliced With Tops (set Aside 2 T Worth)
¾ cups Of Your Favorite BBQ Sauce + More
2 cups Shredded Cheese
Cherry Tomatoes
Sour Cream For Garnish

Preheat oven to 425*. Lay crust out for 15 minutes. Place crust in pie plate or deep dish baker, press up sides gently. Prick bottom with fork and bake for about 7 minutes or until light brown. Set aside.
Toss chicken with 3/4 cup BBQ sauce and green onions. (set aside 2 T green onions for pie topping) Sprinkle half the cheese into crust. Top with BBQ chicken mixture. Squeeze a couple more tablespoons BBQ sauce and spread evenly. Add remaining cheese, reserved green onions and cherry tomatoes to taste.
Bake another 7 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cut & serve. Add a bloop on sour cream and fresh, halved cherry tomatoes to each serving.

Enjoy! It’s sooo good!