Texas benefits

I am a big list maker, many lists are made in my head on a daily basis and some lists are even penned onto paper. So, it seems appropriate to make a list of things I have found in the new town that I really like:
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H.E.B Plus: this is a great grocery store. They have a very large produce section, nice seafood, a large organic department, and a great selection of salsa. This salsa is "fresh" with chunks of veggies. It tastes like it just came out of the food processor.

Tortilla chips: a good salsa needs a good chip. Our first grocery run I grabbed a bag of the usual corn tortilla chips that have served us so well in the past. Martin immediately corrected me and grabbed a brown sack of chips. He was right. They are so light and crispy. They are local too.

Avocados: They are so cheap here!

Belle Maman: a great little maternity & infant store that is literally minutes from our driveway.

Traffic: there is very little to deal with.

Craft Stores: We have a Joann's, Michael's & Hobby Lobby in the same shopping area.

Kolaches: We have a Kolache Factory up from the house and stopped in today to sample a few. YUM. I had seen these on the Food Network so I kind of knew what they were. They are very tasty and I see many Kolache stops in my future. Basically it is a yeast bread with a sweet topping or a savory filling. We had both and I couldn't pick a favorite unless absolutely necessary.

Library: there is one close to the house and we stopped in today for story time. The girls loved the children's section and there is comfy adult seating within eye shot of the tot area.

I am sure there is more to like I just have to go out and find it. Not a bad start though for less than two weeks in the new town.

Quirky Things

I suppose there is a period of adjustment after moving into any house. We have been here a little over a week and a lot has been improved. There are next to no boxes inside the house, bedrooms are comfortably put together, and hallways have been nearly cleared as we find homes for things we don't intend to use right away. Some of the charming points, odd things, and tacky things are observed in this blog. You can decide what is what:

Almost-avocado-green bathroom tile:

This is the pattern on every inch of the walls and ceiling in EVERY room except the bathrooms:

A rosebud knob in the master bath. I believe both bathrooms have this detail on the drawers & cabinets:

Fancy chandeliers in the master bathroom:

Large kitchen windows. Large windows in general:

The house has lots of pocket doors. There are 5 that I can think of right away. Other than less space and a blue-gray carpet that I can't find any love for everything else is in good condition and well taken care of. It is home for now and I know we will get accustomed to the things that bug us. Before we know it we will probably be questioning where the year went.

Howdy Y'all

Out with the old. I took this photo of our old living room moments before we left our old home and hit the road. Nothing homey about it at this stage.


In with the new. We are in Texas all together. Yah!

We are definitely in a smaller town which will be an adjustment, but I can picture us living here and being happy and active. We are renting for the first year - another adjustment - but it will work out fine. All the boxes are unpacked and things are gradually finding a place. Storage will be tricky since this house is smaller, but it will force me to be choosy about what I keep and any future purchases. The girls are getting accustomed to their new room and have been great sports about the big transition. On our way to TX from FL I would name the states as we crossed the lines. Louisiana made a big impression on Ainslee and she even made up a song and sang it over & over again. She pronounced it easy-anna. Her song consisted of singing the name over and over with a vocal flourish at the end. Very cute & very entertaining during the long car trip.

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The week in between Orlando & TX was spent in North Florida at my mom's house. We went to the beach a lot, shopped and visited friends. It was a lazy week smack dab in between two very busy weeks. I hope to have the house finished up soon so I can catch up on all the blogs I haven't read in weeks. I have missed them! Hope everyone is enjoying the summer. Talk to you soon.

The busy work continues

I have seen this glassy expression quite a bit over the past week. I have done an okay job at maintaining our routine and keeping the girls outside as much as possible, but then I get started on a project and next thing I know this happens:

I am sure you can guess what her gaze is fixed on. But in the meantime I was able to do some of the organizing to prepare for Monday. Our pantry is pretty skimpy and both refrigerators are down to essential items. There is enough for some wacky, thrown-together lunches but that is about it.

Last night was spent shopping with Martin and the girls for Martin's father's day gift. He picked it out so I know he will love it. He has a 1964 Malibu that takes up one bay of our garage and is in pretty bad shape. It does run but it isn't really road worthy. He swears he will restore it one day or have it restored. He has been toting this car from coast to coast for over a decade. He loves it and I hate it. After getting married we decided to go ahead and have our wills drawn up. He willed the Malibu to his best friend because he was afraid I would sell it for scrap metal if anything ever happened to him. I can't say his instincts were entirely wrong!

Apparently this air compressor thingy will facilitate the restoration & mobility of the ol' Malibu in some fashion. That was the story I got anyway. Last night we had a great, and much needed, rain storm. Everything is wet and soggy this morning but I'll take it.

The yard has really never looked better. Our first year in the house we added a bunch of blooming shrubs and plants to add some color to the all green front & back yard. Finally, everything has decided to take off. Just in time for the new owners to enjoy. I hope they do too. We spent our honeymoon in St. Lucia and there were huge bougainvillea bushes everywhere in every color. We bought this one right after starting our yard projects since it reminded us of our great trip. This is the first time that it has bloomed and filled out so well. Well, back to the busy work. Hope you all enjoy the weekend!

Busy but not getting much done

I know I am not the only one that has days like this. We are less than one week away from moving and I am trying to get things organized for the moving crew. This weekend will be devoted to packing clothes for the next couple of weeks, sorting toys & books to bring on the trip and some misc. tedious tasks. Monday is the pack up and Tuesday is the move out day. YAY!!! I am hesitant to get too excited considering the last experience I had, but the closer we get the more excited and relieved I am.
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Today I took advantage of Martin being home and escaped for a few hours during nap time. I had a yummy lunch in peace and quiet. No one asked me to share my food or have a sip of my drink. Sound greedy? It was so nice. It also made me realize that once baby number 3 arrives it will be that much harder to have these afternoon outings. Sigh. I love being a mom, but I also love having time to myself. I will have to find a balance. While I was out I found the girls some real panties. They have a choice of Dora, Hello Kitty, and The Little Mermaid. They are washed and folded and waiting for tomorrow morning. I haven't showed the girls yet. They are going to love them. The girls are doing great with the potty and they are much further along in the process than I had anticipated.
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Lastly, I am looking for a single serve coffee maker and was hoping that someone may have some advice. I have only looked on the Linens & Things website and the two that appeal to me are the Tassimo & Keurig. Both look very indulgent. I can check out a consumer best site, but thought I would throw the question out here as well. Hope everyone is enjoying summer!

Pig-tails and the morning walk

We typically do our outside play time before 11 am or after 5pm. Otherwise it is too hot to enjoy much. This morning we were ahead of our normal schedule and took a neighborhood stroll. The first photo is my pregnant shadow. 17 weeks now. Martin usually does the photography and with the first pregnancy we took a monthly photo. So far I have two photos this time around. This one doesn't even really count because it looks distorted to me, but it will do for now.

The girls have pig-tails for the first time. I love them. They like them too. They were shaking their heads & laughing because the hair was tickling them. I have a feeling Dad will be a fan as soon as he sees the new hair-dos too.

These are just fresh-faced babes. Sweet and cooperative. For a short time anyway.

"Cheese"

No boo-boos or bike wrecks this morning. Nice and peaceful. I am hoping this sets the tone for the rest of the day. Wishing a nice and peaceful day for you all too.

Family

I have some butter beans simmering on the stove which made me think of my oldest sister which made me start feeling very nostalgic & sad. I am the youngest of three girls. My sisters are 16 months apart in age and I am 12 & 13 years younger than them. I grew up feeling like an only child for the most part. Once I hit my 20's and started thinking more adult-like I realized how great my sisters are. I still think they are great and the older I get I realize how lucky I am to have them. They are both my favorite sisters but in different ways. We all three live in different cities and the oldest in a different state (NY). This past March we were all three together for over a week which is such an oddity and so much fun! Pam, the oldest, is an avid reader. She has three children and a great husband. She is completely non-judgemental and I have never seen her envious or jealous. She hates hot weather and gets very grumpy when she is even a tiny bit hot. Kim, the middle daughter, has a great head for numbers, she is very level headed, she has two Cocker Spaniels, she loves to run and can be amazingly laid back which is rare in my family. I love 'em both. Pam is unable to find butter beans in NY so whenever she visits FL we have them a couple of times so she can get her fill. Tonight I will be thinking of my great sisters and wishing they were here to help finish off all the beans!!