Life can be funny sometimes.  We have to replace our oil tank this year, a $1400 expense. Then on Wednesday morning, hubby’s car quit.  It needs a new clutch and transmission.   Last, but not least, I am hoping to go back to school full-time in the fall for a 2 year program.  So we will be living off one income and hopefully a student loan.

We got a quote for the car.  It’s going to cost approximently $1500-$2000….yikes!!!  Hubby is going to call around and get more quotes obviously.  My father was a mechanic for years and has some connections, so perhaps he can find one for us.

But you know what?  I’m not stressed.  Why you ask? Because I have faith that God is looking out for us.  I’ve been truly blessed in finding work and I am loving what I am doing.   I should really be freaking out right now, but I’m really not.   A little concerned, yes.  But I’m not losing any sleep over it.  Sometimes you just have to have faith.

I woke up yesterday feeling like I had a weight on my chest, a sore throat and the chills.  NOOOOOO!!!  I really don’t want to be sick…not now!  I’ve gotten 3 calls to sub this week and I really don’t want to miss them.   Since yesterday, I’ve been pumping myself full of hot liquids, cold medicine and vitamins hoping I can get rid of the cold before it gets too bad.  Of course it doesn’t help when you have sick people all around you.  Both my daughters have been sick the past 2 weeks and I’m surrounding with coughing kids at school.  Let’s hope I caught it in time and this flu bug will take a hike!

Here is what’s for supper this week.

chatelaine’s speedy mexican joes

kraft’s layered fiesta casserole

js’s chicken pot pie

**I doubled the recipe for the topping on the pot pie and added cheese on top the dough before putting it in the oven.

tracey’s cold pasta - cooked whole wheat spaghetti, raw veggies of your choice, 1/8 cup of both italian and french salad dressing. mix together and serve.

kraft’s sante fe chicken

kraft’s buffalo chicken party sandwiches

js’s macaroni and cheese

This topic has come up more than once in the last week so I figured it would make a great blog entry.

Everyone has pet peeves.  Here are a few of mine:

1.  People throwing cigarette butts out their car windows…grrr, I HATE that.  I am even considering taking their plate info and reporting them.

2.  Tidying up the living room only to find a half hour later, it’s a mess again.

3. When my family sticks dishes in the sink without rinsing them first.

4. Coming out of a store with an armload of bags and a few kids and the person in front of me not holding the door open.  It doesn’t happen too often thank goodness.

5. People belching at the dinner table.  gross, I hate it.  sometimes I want to just let one rip and say “how do you like that?”

6. When my son lies to me constantly and then doesn’t understand why I don’t believe him when he IS telling the truth.

7. I’m not a big fan of laundry, but it drives me when cloths are taken out of the dryer and then thrown in the laundry basket without being folded. (ahem!)

8. Hubby getting up before me and not putting a pot of coffee on.  I NEED my morning coffee.

9. Inviting family over for a special occasion (ie. birthday) and having them show up an hour late without calling.

10. People criticizing others for the way they do something.  Everyone has their own way of doing something.  Just because they do it a different way doesn’t make it the wrong way.

I love it!!!  I’ve had 3 calls to sub in the last 2 days.   I’m really enjoying it and I love the school I’ve been at the past 2 days.  I know some of the teachers and everyone is pretty friendly.  Not only am I given “duties”, but I also eat in the lunch room with the staff.   A great way to network!!   They have headsets at the school for the teachers and some of the kids have specialized “computers” to help them with their work.   Technology is a wonderful thing.

I did things backwards this week.  I bought groceries and then made my meal plans from what I had.  The items I keep on a regular weekly basis include:

pasta, potatoes, chicken stock, stove-top stuffing, cheese, pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, can of black beans, onions, salsa, cheese, milk, eggs, frozen broccoli and corn.

Canned pasta sauce was on for 79 cents somewhere a few weeks ago and I stocked up.

I also made a haddock dish we had growing up.  I’m not sure where my mom got it, but it’s one of my favorites.

WW Spaghetti and Turkey Meatball Stoup

Cheesy baked haddock in egg sauce

Broccoli and cheddar cheese soup

Easy layered vegetable bake

Chicken dinner

I am sitting in the kitchen at my computer utterly freezing! I’ll be happy when this cold snap is over.   The last two days I’ve been trying to keep the kids occupied as it is way too cold to go outside.  I’ve been wanting to take them to the pool, but that is definitely out.  We played cadoo the other day.  Grace enjoyed it…when gabby wasn’t taking all the game pieces and the cards from the playing board.  

Grace got an easy bake oven for christmas and she’s been wanting to use it but I keep picking up the wrong bulbs.  I guess it pays to read the instructions carefully.  First I picked up the wrong wattage, then I picked up soft white bulbs which they don’t recommend you use.  *sigh*   There won’t be any shortage of bulbs in the house. 

I need to reorganize my bedroom closet…again!  I despise the closet organizer I have or perhaps I need to get rid of some cloths.  Either way, it’s a pain in the but trying to find something to wear when you have to go rooting through piles of cloths.  Did I mention I hate everything in my closet?  I need a new wardrobe. 

Seems like that is what I am doing lately.  I applied to go back to school and should hear back by the end of march whether or not I am accepted into the program.  I’m hoping if I don’t get in, I will at least be put on a waiting list for next year.  I’m still waiting for my ROE so I can get my EI started and I am still waiting to get some calls to supply teach.  It wasn’t until last week that I finished all the necessary paperwork to supply teach.  Now the school board office has to send out an updated list to all the schools and my name should be on that list.  ALOT of waiting…but that’s ok.  I am really enjoying my time at home and I really needed the break.    I never made any resolutions this year, but if I were, one of them would be to slow things down and enjoy life more.

Poor gabby has been vomiting for almost two days.  I thought for sure she was better , but she threw up this afternoon.  This will be the third time I’ve washed the blankets on the couch.   The poor girl.  I wasn’t feeling the greatest this afternoon either,  but I think it just may be the new medication I’m on for my shoulder.  At least I hope that’s all it is.  After vomiting for 6 months straight with all 3 of my pregnancies, I HATE being sick.

I’m using the Kraft site for my meal plans next week.  I have some meals saved in “my recipe box”.  I just have to select the ones I want for the week and select “shopping list” and the site creates a shopping list with the items separated by category (ie) pantry, dairy, breads, deli etc.   Very, very handy.

broccoli and cheddar soup

chicken bruschetta bake

lasagna toss

power salad

easy bake strata