Countdown to the Big Move...

T-minus 58 hours and counting.

With every passing minute I remember another KC face I've missed so much and can't wait to be near again... followed by another Texas face and friendship I will miss so much.

With every passing minute my anticipation and excitement grows as I envision many a girlfriend dates I have been dying to catch up on.

With every passing minute my stomach twists into another knot in anticipation of living long distance from my dreamboat hubby for five excruciating months.

*sigh*

Moving is complicated...

Moving without my husband is even more complicated.

Packing = 95% Complete

Having my wonderful hubby's help this weekend proved much more productive than I had anticipated!  =)

He even "staged" the apartment so that everything we're loading up for my move is in one room.  This way, when our moving crew arrives, we can simply tell them that all boxes/furniture from the guest bedroom is to be loaded.  

I think Friday loading is going to go a lot swifter/easier than we anticipated - thanks to some wonderful folks' assistance!

We called the packing quits at about 4:00pm so that we could get ready to go meet our friends {aka: the moving crew} for dinner and a show.  Saturday evening we met the official requirements for being released from Texas: attending the performance of "Texas" the musical at Palo Duro canyon.  It was so great!

It was an awesome time spent with some wonderful friends.

I'll put a few pictures up whenever I finally get my computer back in working order so that I can upload pictures!  =)  Power cord has been ordered and it should arrive in KC this weekend just ahead of us!

Countdown to the big move: 5 Days

Seven Day Forecast

A predictive summary of the week ahead of me:

{I wish that were my chandelier and those were my arched windows and doors}

All followed by the long trek from the Texas panhandle back to our KC home... in a U-haul truck.

I've never been a good packer.

Last time we made this move {in reverse} I had the wonderful help of one husband, one father, two mothers, one sister and several friends.

This time the packing is mostly up to me since family is in KC and the hubs will be at work all day every day; except for this weekend during which he has graciously offered all of his mad skills and muscles to my assistance.  =)

You see, with most things in life, I am a go-getter.  I make my list and get it done.

For some reason, packing is a totally different ball game for me.

I am:

Slow

+

Indecisive

+

Scatterbrained

=

A Bad Packer

I hope we get a lot done this weekend because the likelihood of me getting much accomplished without my hub's help... yikes.

Well, I'd get it done... but it would be a gruelingly slow, indecisive, scatterbrained process.

Did I mention that I'm a bad packer?

Hang in There My Sweet Adell Dell

At approximately 8:00pm, on the evening of Wednesday, July 21, 2010, Adell Dell slipped into a coma after suffering from declining electical charge for several minutes.

 

Upon the attempt to recharge it was discovered the power supply had frayed and was no longer capable of conducting the proper amount of juice necessary to revive her.

 

I sincerely hope for a speedy repair of the needed equipment in order to pull Adell from this coma as soon as possible.

 

In the mean time, I will hope and pray that she does not slip away completely while in this unresponsive state.

 

{Oh, and please excuse my absence until the situation can be resolved.}

 

 

Dear Adell,

 

I love you and thank you sincerely for your faithful service to me over the years.  We have been through so much together. 

 

Please, if you are holding out on me because of my recent talk of leaving your for Mr. Mac, you must understand it is only because that would be best for both of us and does not mean I care for you any less. 

 

You have brought me through years of homework, papers, research, pictures, videos and so many memories.  I want nothing more than to enjoy these last few months we have together before our inevitable parting of ways.  I hope you understand. 

 

Please come back to me so that we can experience our last days together as they should be.

 

Sincerely Missing You,

Whitney

DIY Votive Holder

I'm never willing to waste a candle holder, even this winter printed with an impossible to remove sticker votive holder.

So I decided to take matters into my own hands...

Nothing a little hot glue and hemp string can't fix...

And voila!  A votive holder for any season.  =)

Simple solutions,

that's how I like it.

I'm Back!

For a bit anyway!  LOL

The next several weeks are going to be crazy.

Allow me to outline my life for you...

{This is "week 1"...}

Week 1:  Work, pack, run some final Amarillo errands, attend the "Texas" musical with our Sunday School class as one last shebang before the move

Week 2:   Work my last few days in the office {tear}, finish packing, load the truck {with the help of some awesome friends!} and move back to KC where we will unload/unpack me as much as possible in one day... I won't be touching those boxes again for a while because...

Week 3:  Spend every waking moment with my BFF as we plan the finishing touches for her big day... then have the actual big day

Week 4:  Vacation with Mark's fam... the first time we will actually get to spend the entire week at the lake together with his family -- yay!

Week 5:  Take a breath.  Finish unpacking and settling back into the house, prepare for school to start, final preparations for Kristin's wedding

Week 6:  Start school {for two days anyway}, fly to Cali {skipping the rest of my classes that week} for Kristin's wedding, then hopefully get to hang out for the rest of the weekend with some wonderfully sweet friends before heading back to the real world

Week 7:  Settle into classes and adjust to life as it will be for the remaining four months before my husband will finally bid farewell to Texas and rejoin me in Kansas City...

There you have if folks, my life for the next seven weeks... absolute mayhem.  Ha!

I'll post a few pics from Nicole's Bachelorette Party this last weekend as soon as I can.  Right now... I still need to order my shoes!

{Didn't find any at the outlet malls in Branson like I'd hoped, bummer dude.}

Later gators!  =)

Life as of Late

So I wanted to share some new recipes the hubs and I have been pleased with lately, but first I thought I'd update you on the most recent happenings of our personal life.  =)

First of all, Franny {my awesome little Ford Focus} rolled over 90,000 miles on my last trip back from KC!  Go Franny, go!

{Please, no comments on the dust... or the speeding.  LOL}

Remember how we inherited Ms. K's puppy?  Well here's re-introducing the newest member of our little family, Mr. Skylar Kal Young... 

Before                                                                  After

{We've never been big fans of one syllable type names for pets so after much deliberation, we expanded his name from "Sky" to "Skylar" and added "Kal" as a middle name in honor of Ms. K whose last name was Kaliszewski.}

It has also been raining torrents here in the Texas panhandle the last several days... so much so that it about washed this little town away!  Okay, not really... but we did have a river running through Bayley and Skylar's usual playing field...

{Don't mock my silly video, okay?  lol}

Okay, now the the initial reason I began this post...

Yummy new recipes!!!

Lately I've become bored with our usual diet {as I am often known to do} and have been scavenging new recipes from anywhere I can get my hands on them; magazines, internet, T.V., friends... so needless to say, you will probably be seeing many of the "approved" recipes up here!  =)

Okay, without further ado...

Corn Salsa

Ingredients:

Fresh Corn

Fresh Onion 

Julienne Zucchini

Fresh Red Bell Pepper

Cayenne Pepper

Salt

Cilantro

Saute corn, onion, zucchini, red bell pepper, cayenne pepper and salt together.  Add a bit of cilantro if desired.  {All ingredients can be proportioned according to your preference... I also added a bit of lemon juice to mine for some bite.}  Serve with your favorite tortilla chips...  super simple!

An Extra Whitney Style Tip:  Tonight we actually topped this salsa on lettuce with some of my favorite "Mexican style" dressing:  

{2-3 T of taco seasoning mix shaken in to 1 bottle of tomato vinaigrette}  

It made for one very delicious salad! 

Chicken with Sun Dried Tomatoes & Noodles

Topped with a Creamy Mushroom Sauce

Ingredients:

3 T Olive Oil

4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast Halves

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

3/4 cup Water

1/4 cup Thinly Sliced Sun Dried Tomatoes

1 T Red Wine Vinegar

2 T Fine Chopped Basil Leaves

4 cups Hot Cooked Wheat Rotini Noodles

Shredded Parmesan Cheese

1) Heat in skillet over med-high heat.  Add chicken and cook 10 min. or until well browned on both sides.  Remove Chicken from Skillet.

2) Stir together soup, water, tomatoes, vinegar and basil in skillet.

3) Return chicken to skillet and heat to a boil.  Reduce heat to low.  Cook 5 min. or until chicken is cooked through.  Serve chicken  and sauce over noodles.  Top with shredded parmesan cheese.

Okay folks, hope you enjoyed!

"Drowning Doesn't Look Like Drowning" by Mario Vittone

Well folks, we're arriving in those "heat of the summer" months which means we're all looking for every opportunity to take a refreshing swim.  Unfortunately, we don't always take the precautions or do the water safety research to assure that our fun in the sun stays accident free.

I ran across this article while reading a friend's blog and thought it was worth posting myself.  I've never heard this information on drowning before.  After reading, I believe this article is something anyone and everyone who enjoys time in the water should read and understand.

Drowning Doesn't Look Like Drowning

It's a short, easy read and definitely worth your time.  Be water safety conscious; take a quick peek, I promise you won't regret it!  You never know, this information could help you help someone in need of rescue!

Fireworks, Fun & A Little Bit of Sun

Well every year since Mark and I started dating I have joined him and his family on their bi-annual trips to Tablerock Lake.  

Here's celebrating the first lake trip of 2010.  

My fifth summer of tagging along, improving my skiing/wakeboarding skills, relaxing with my sweetie and enjoying time spent with a wonderful family I can now legally claim as my own!  =)

First thing's first: Bayley participates in yet another swimming lesson...

{If you couldn't tell, she's not super fond of the water.}

But she's already willing to go deeper than she was last year and she does have webbed feet... truly, she's meant to swim!

Besides, mommy & daddy love the water, so Bayley must learn to love the water as well.

{This will be the rule when children come along as well.}

Readers, might I introduce myself... at one of my finest moments.

Our first run out on the boat and I was a little excited to feel the lake breeze in my face again...

Mark clearly was not as thrilled as I was.  Ha!

No, he was just worn out. 

I'm pretty sure he still doesn't know I snapped this pic while he was shnoozing...

Silly girls and a hungry boy...

And a scalp massage via my hub's toes... lovely.

Later...

Headed out for an evening cruise and to steak out a spot for the fireworks show!

I napped on the way out...

Father & Son

The next day, we actually saw the SUN!

Strappin' in for a wakeboard run... I don't look tired or anything... Ha!

...in spite of fatigue, I conquered BOTH wakes!!!

{This is a new accomplishment for me}

...and didn't even get my hair wet, YES!

Since I hadn't wiped out yet, I decided to attempt wakeboarding "goofy foot."

{aka: on your "off" foot}

It took me I think three tries {and some funny falls!}, but I finally got up and made a pretty good little run of it.  Crazy how strange it felt to be up on that other foot!

Then it was my hubby's turn...

He's a rockstar.

We're not even going to talk about how bad he puts my puny efforts to shame...

{What do you think?  Did he land it or not?}

And of course he also took a turn on slalom, though he was a little disappointed his usual ski was in disrepair...

Then it was my dad-in-law's turn...

Mind you this man is turning 49 here in just a few days...

Clearly, he too is a rockstar.

We had a wonderful weekend full of fun, family, games and smiles...

and traveled home {always too soon} with really, really, really sore muscles!

Looking forward to the August trip!

Fab New Friend!

Yes folks, that's right... today is a double post-er!

Mostly just because I wanted to share this fabulous find with you all!

While blog surfing this afternoon, as I so often lurve to do, I stumbled across this fabulous site:

The Ribbon Retreat

...which is also linked to this fantastic blog.

All kinds of adorable instructions, patterns & projects for free!!!

I've already saved numerous PDF's with instructions on how to make all kinds of covered clips and bows... even bug bows!!!  Oh my word, there are these lady bug and bumble bee bows that are precious!!!

With all these baby girls being introduced into our lives, I can't wait to get started on cutesy little clips, shoes and headbands for all of these cuties we can't wait to meet!

Fuschia Finalists

Okay Readers,

I've got it narrowed down to two finalists.

{Yes, I know, I'm taking forever to make this decision}

First, remember this is the dress the shoes are going with...

And now, without further ado...

The Fuschia Finalists!

Wild Diva Enya for $18.20

-or-

Qupid Dede Ruffle for $21.80

I really need to make my purchase before the day's end, so show me some comment love and...

Let the voting commence!

A Beachy Bridal Shower

A few weekends ago Miss Carissa, Alyssa and myself threw a beachy bridal shower for this lovely bride-to-be...

But first, the "before" pictures of my beachy bridal shower / wedding projects...

Soon-to-be ring pillow...

Soon-to-be flower basket...

Ring Pillow & Flower Basket Materials 
Pillow: $7.00 @ Wal-Mart (I just ripped the extras off of it)
Pail: Cutting Pail $3.50 @ Lowe's
Star Fish: $3.00 @ Hobby Lobby
Sea Shells: $4.00 @ Hobby Lobby
Ribbon: $1.50 @ Joann's
Spray Paint: Silver $3.00 + White $3.00 = $6.00 @ Wal-Mart
Hot Glue & Gun: $0.00 (already had on hand)

Soon-to-be not ugly couch pillows...

...and the super cute buttons for those soon-to-be no longer ugly pillows...

Couch Pillow Covers Materials
Brown Material: Flat Sheet $3.00 @ Wal-Mart
Vintage Buttons: 50% off of $3.50 = $1.75 @ Joann's
Thread: $0.00 (already had on hand)

Okay, so back to the shower...

The coffee table transformed into bridal shower bliss...

The finished flower basket became a sand / seashell filled centerpiece...  
{Notice my lovely, recovered pillows in the background... I told you they were soon-to-be not ugly anymore!}

I picked the lilies from my mother-in-law's garden; the mini vases are little votive candle holders.  The tea light holders were on sale for $0.50 at Wal-Mart a few weeks back.

The sand and sand dollars traveled back with me from our Padre Island trip.  I borrowed all the other incredible shells seen at this shower from my mom's collection that was just donated to her by a dear, dear friend.

Sweets, Treats & Munchy Eats...

We kept the menu light in line with the breezy theme.
Fruity chicken salad served on crackers, fruit kabobs, a veggie tray, homemade summer salsa served on chips with cupcakes and kisses for sweets and lemonade, sweet tea and water for drinks.
 I was also thrilled to put my thrift store milk glass vases to use!

I decided to go ahead and set the ring pillow out for another little decorative piece.  Of course the ladies loved the opportunity to take a "sneak peek" at some of the goodies for the big day!

The lovely bride with her mommy and sister / maid of honor...

The "streamer globe" {as I referred to it} was Carissa's brain baby.  It turned out so cute I decided to leave it up!  It will probably still be hanging when I move home here in a few weeks...

I spray painted the clothespins for that classic "forbidden words" shower game...

Thank the Lord that Miss Kristin confused my camera with her mother's and began snapping pictures of the flower basket and ring pillow!  I forgot to take any "finished product" pictures so I was thankful to find these "accidental" pics on my memory stick later!

All in all I think it was a beautiful shower with beautiful friends, family and smiles!  Kristin received many beautiful gifts and I hope she felt adequately showered in love by the end!