Category Archives: family life

>The Great Minivan Trade Up

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>Have you met Dad of Divas? He’s a great Dad and a very creative guy. He and his family are working on an innovative project to procure a lovely family vehicle. He describes it best in his own words.

I was reading recently about Kyle McDonald who traded one red paperclip to eventually trade up (14 trades later) for a home in Kipling Saskatchewan , Canada . I even found that now they are trying to trade up the house!For those of you that have been following me for a while, you know that J-Mom and I have been looking at getting a minivan for quite some time, but for us it has been an issue of money (being on one income and all). In reading about Kyle and his project, I have decided to try something a bit unconventional. In our research, J-Mom and I have decided that we really would like to get a Toyota Sienna. We chose this based on our test drives, safety features, reliability and overall value for the product.
Why a minivan you may say…well, if you have ever tried to lug around kids, family members, the kids’ friends in vehicles that only hold 5-6 you may now understand our dilemma.What I am offering is to try a new trade up project for a new (or very gently used – preferably new) Toyota Sienna. Do I know whether this project will work, no. Do I hope it does work, sure thing!I will promise this to all of my readers, if this does go anywhere, you are sure to hear more about it along the way no matter what happens (it should be fun). (I wonder how quickly something like this could potentially happen???) What I am looking for is for people to offer trade ups that have some value to others. Seeing that I live in Northeastern Wisconsin and have a more limited travel budget, I am looking for things to be somewhat transportable (yet again, of value). If items are products, please make sure that items are in working order. If trades are for services, events, vacations, etc, please specify the parameters that must be followed.So what do you get in return, well first, you get some items that may be valuable to you. Second you get to be a part of history! Third, you will get notoriety and free publicity as I will make a big deal regarding my trade ups! Fourth, for the person, company, etc, that does finally get me to my goal, I will promise you praise beyond compare on this site, and if you would like a continual product review (a year in the life per se of a Toyota Sienna owner) So don’t call me crazy, just call me industrious and creative… I look forward to what happens!
So be a part of history as I have never found anyone that has done this type of trade up… and help me to achieve my dream of becoming a minivan family! Even if you don’t want to trade up, please share this with friends, colleagues, other blog networks. Thank you for your support!!!!

If you would like to check out the progress of this endeavor, Dad of Divas is here. If you have an idea for publicity or if you’d like to offer a trade, please email him at dadofdivas at gmail dot com. It’s been a fascinating ride so far, and I predict it will get even more so as his trade values get higher and higher.

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>Reclaiming the Kitchen

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Some people straighten. Some clean. Some de-clutter. Me? I have to reclaim, just like companies reclaim the land after mining. I hope I do a better job than some…but I digress.

Here it is, in full color: the reclaiming of the kitchen table. The “before” picture is first.

The contents of the table reflects the way the day (and week) were going. Whether you can see them or not, these items are all present on the Incredible Bulk of Table Trash.

gift wrapping ribbons
gift wrap tags
small scraps of gift wrap
a wedding gift wrapped in plain off-white paper
large pieces of plain, off-white paper
wrapping tissue in a handful of different colors
1 sweatshirt (La Petite’s)
1 bag of audio books (Amigo’s)
1 cable box, no longer in use
1 cable remote control unit, no longer in use
1 pair khaki pants, tried on but not yet worn (Amigo’s)
1 bag from Steve and Barry’s

Here’s the story. We were headed to my cousin’s wedding. I bought the gift the night before the wedding and then made a trip to Steve and Barry’s because Amigo had, I’m not kidding, nothing to wear. I thought a pair of nice khakis, a white shirt, and a tie would do the trick. While I was at Steve and Barry’s I made the trip worthwhile by picking up a baby gift for another cousin. On my way to the checkout I bought a batch of small items to go in my gift stash.

That accounts for most of the items on the table.

A few days later, it looked like this.

The khakis are still there because Amigo wore the other pair (not visible in the first picture, but still part of the chaos). I hadn’t decided whether to keep or return these (How much would the gas cost to get me across town to the store? More than the $8.98 pants?). Gifts are wrapped, given to one and mailed to the other, S&B bag is hidden in the attic, and wrapping trappings are in their places on their basement shelves. However… the table still plays home to a three ring binder (Amigo’s), shirt (La Petite’s), broken radio (worthy of a post in itself), and still, the cable box and remote control.

Eventually we finished the reclamation effort and set the table. Yes, set the table, as in having an actual sit-down family meal again! Husband was cooking on the grill, we had corn from the farm market, and we were ready to put the table to its intended use again. Oh, I forgot one detail.

The reclaiming of the table called for a celebration. Wine with the meal was most definitely on the menu.

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>Must get rid of that last bit of peanut butter!

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>Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies with a hint of Peanut Butter

Remember when we bought crunchy peanut butter by mistake and I had to bake cookies? Such a sacrifice it was! Well, a lovely day came along with a cool breeze through the house, no air conditioning needed, and the snack basket was looking a bit empty…you guessed it. Cookie time!

I used a recipe from the Good Home Cookbook, which is rapidly becoming my go-to source in the kitchen, and substituted the remaining crunchy peanut butter for part of the butter. Feel free to readjust the amounts, as long as the proportions are correct.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs or 1/2 cup egg substitute
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup walnuts – (optional)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Beat together the butter, peanut butter, and sugars in a large bowl. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract, then gradually beat in the flour mixture until just blended. Fold in the oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips.
4. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheets.
5. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until golden brown.
6. Let stand for 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Mmm. La Petite would probably eat these for breakfast. Me? I’ll eat them any time of day.

This post was written for Parent Bloggers Network as an entry for a contest sponsored by Brothers-All-Natural. But I must confess: even as I’m baking good things for my kiddos at home, I have a small package of Koala cookies (chocolate, of course) hidden behind my desk at school.

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>Actual "discussion" at the supper table

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>We were discussing, of all things, social skills and social awkwardness.

La Petite: I have good social skills. *Braaap*
Husband: That’s *Braaap* Excuse me. Care to try that again?
La Petite: *Braap* Excuse me. Was that better?
Me: (hides behind napkin and pretends not to be at the table with these two heathens)
Husband to La Petite: She’s going to blog this.
Husband to me: It’s spelled B-R-A-A-P.

Where was Amigo? In the den, already finished with supper, laughing and wishing he could belch on command like his sister and father can.

Happy Love Thursday, everyone. I hope your families are more civilized than mine.

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>Baseball?

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>We were on our way into Miller Park to watch the Milwaukee Brewers play (and CC Sabathia pitch!) when this drove past us.

It’s not really going uphill; I just grabbed my cell phone camera as quickly as I can and aimed out the window. It was a lucky shot.
I think the Hot Dog won the Sausage Race that night. He’s the one with the big smile facing backwards. Cute, huh?
The Brewers? They won, too.

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>Martha Stewart definitely wouldn’t make this one

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>Black Bean and Beef Burritos — well, it started that way.

1 lb. ground beef
I have that.
1 clove garlic
1/4 onion, diced
So far, so good.
1 15 oz. can black beans
In the pantry: can do.
1 cup jarred salsa
We’re out of salsa? When did that happen?
1 package flour tortillas
Okay, the package LOOKED full. I didn’t realize there were only two tortillas in it.
1 tsp. ground cumin
shredded cheese to taste

Based on the recipe and the actual ingredients present in my kitchen, here’s how it went.
Chop the onion. Saute until clear. Add ground beef and minced garlic. Stir and simmer until browned.
Drain beef. Return to pan.
Add beans.
Now here we go with the creative additions.
Add taco seasoning, 3/4 cup water, and 1 can diced tomatoes. (We didn’t have salsa, so this would have to do.)
Start water for….(drumroll)…. pasta. Yes, pasta. Why not? Martha Stewart doesn’t live here.
Add spices (cumin and a little chili powder: All right, already! I didn’t list chili powder in the ingredients! It wasn’t on the original, okay?!)
Simmer beef and bean mixture. Let it thicken while the pasta cooks. I used angel hair spaghetti. Yes, I did.

Reaction from La Petite: “What taste should I expect when I eat this? Mexican or Italian?”
She added parmesan cheese.
Husband added grated cheddar.

I called it Spaghetti Mexicana.

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>Passive vs. Active

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>A passive chore is something that “does itself” while I’m doing something else. I like those chores the best!

Passive chores:
crock pot cooking – cooks supper while I’m teaching school all day
laundry – washes and dries while I’m correcting papers at the kitchen table
cleaning the oven – well, it’s passive if you have a self-cleaning oven.
running the dishwasher – and then comes the tedious chore of emptying it
composting – and it takes a long, long time. But oh, so satisfying!
watering garden – hook up the sprinkler, let it run!
Making coffee – but that’s not really a chore.

Active chores that feel passive:
weeding the garden – I let my mind wander while I weed. I like to think I solve the worlds problems while pulling up clover and dandelions.
harvesting veggies – it takes so little time, but it’s so satisfying.
baking (especially bread in bread machine) – and the house smells so good!
making soup stock – letting the bones and scraps simmer while I blog or load the dishwasher, eventually yields as an end result a tasty soup or stew.

Today, Labor Day, I’ll be laboring in my classroom getting ready for school to start. That’s a very active chore, so maybe I can arrange for something passive to go on at home while I’m working there. Crockpot supper? I’m there!

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>The Black Clock of Death

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>I woke to hear Husband’s exclamation of panic. I didn’t have my hearing aids in, so I didn’t hear his exact words, but it was probably something like “%*$^##!”

Imagine the feeling of oversleeping, waking up with that sudden “Oh, no!” reaction. Adrenaline hits hard, and you’re awake with your heart racing. That was the feeling we had upon waking and seeing this.

The dreaded Black Clock of Death was present on our nightstand. The culprits? The small, adorable, cute, furry ones with Big Gnawing Teeth!


Peanut and Sadie had wedged themselves into a space much smaller than their tiny dwarf rabbit bodies and chewed through our radio cord, then followed up with the lamp for dessert. *burp*

Back to the story. Clad in the armor of the morning (a.k.a. pajamas), Husband dove out of bed and grabbed the travel clock out of the nightstand drawer. He then sprinted through his morning routine and was dressed before I came back upstairs with bunny food (not that they needed breakfast after their evening feast). That’s when I looked at the travel clock: 8:27.

“Honey, I think this is wrong. I think it’s still on Atlantic time.”
Husband freezes in place, zipping jeans. “What?”
“I said, I think this clock is still set to Atlantic time from our vacation. It’s two hours ahead.”
Husband sits down on bed, head in hands.
“I’ll check to make sure.” I went back downstairs, checked with three different clocks, and reset the travel clock for Six Twenty Seven. That’s 6:27, Central Daylight Time. Not, I repeat, not 8:27 Atlantic time.

Later, much later, after a full day of work in Central Daylight Time, Husband used his engineering expertise to fix the clock radio. The rabbits? They’re hanging out in the backyard for a while to give us time to hide any other bunny bait so they can’t get “wired” again.


And if you’ve had enough of bunny talk, check out MidCentury Modern Moms and their Back to School theme. No new little preschoolers or kindergarteners there; we’re dealing with teens, college kids, IEPs, ACTs, SATs, GPAs, and more! My post is up today.

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>Frustrating day with random blatherings

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>I want to be at school working in my room. Instead, I’m stuck here.

Phone tag! I left messages for local pediatrician and for specialist in Milwaukee. Now I need to wait for their callbacks. My cell phone is nowhere to be found – I think I left in in Husband’s car when we came home from Miller Park last night. That puts out the trip to school and any other errands because I can’t. miss. these. calls.

So I wait. And wait. And get more and more restless.

I scavenged enough late summer rhubarb for rhubarb upside down cake, which led to adding lots of goodies to the compost bin. Upside down cake is delicious; compost now has a layer of eggshells (crushed), banana peels from lunch, and rhubarb leaves on top of half a dozen corn husks.

I cleaned the kitchen (again, still, again) and ran the dishwasher.

I want to weed the garden and pick beans, but I can’t leave the house for too long because the doctors’ offices might call. If I miss either call, it’ll take hours to get back in touch.

Errands that remain undone: post office, mail books for paperbackswap.com. Walgreens, to buy strapping tape because I used the last of it to mail the paperbacks.

Outdoor chores that remain undone: Pick beans. Pick tomatoes. cut off spotted leaves on tomato plants before blight spreads. Water hollyhocks and rhubarb and anything else that needs it. Weed south side of the house; clover is taking over. Harvest spinach. Clean spinach. Prepare spinach for crockpot or for freezer.

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>Olympic Conversations

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>While watching swimming:

Me: Who’s that?
La Petite: Michael Phelps.
Me: I didn’t recognize him. He looks like an ordinary guy.
La Petite: I recognized his torso.
Me: chokes on coffee

Amigo: It’s road racing now. I think it’s motorcycles.
Me: It’s actually bicycles.
(Remember, he’s visuallly impaired, can’t see the tv well)
Amigo: It sure sounds like a motorcycle.
Me: Oh, now they’re showing a different angle. The camera following the bikes is on a motorcycle. That’s the motorcycle you’re hearing.
Amigo: Okay, I knew there was a motorcycle.

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