Top Ten Tuesday

Borrowing this idea from Roan... because I wanted to post, but didn't want to think too hard about it.

Top Ten Recent Happenings in Burlesonville (in no particular order):

1. I had my last "planning meeting" with my contractor yesterday! Which means that I have everything I need to take to the bank to get this party started. It has been SUCH a long process, this planning stage. Mostly that's my fault, because I've made a gazillion changes since the first draft. I have a super-patient contractor, though, who has yet to fire me.

2. Kate is wrapping up her last week of rehearsal before opening night. She is playing a China Princess in the Pied Piper's Playhouse production of "Oz". It opens this Friday and there will be 10 performances between Friday night and the next Tuesday afternoon. Craziness! It's worth it to see how much she loves it, though. She has definitely found her calling. I don't think I would have made it through the insane rehearsal schedule (they take this stuff seriously), if it weren't for being able to swap out with my friend Michelle. Her daughter is in the play as well, and just happens to be Kate's BFF, so it works out well.

3. We had a birthday party for my Dad last Tuesday. He was 60! And he just loved the fact that almost every card he got TOLD him he was 60! We grilled burgers and got together with family at his house. It was a laid back and fun night.

4. We wrapped up Bible study my oldest two girls were in last Wednesday night with an Almost Slumber Party. It was so fun! Most everyone, including the moms, showed up in pajamas. The girls finished their study, then we ate hot dogs, had ice cream sundaes, and then the girls watched Tangled while the moms visited.

5. We had the stomach virus! There is almost nothing I hate more! It was the night of the Almost Slumber Party, after we'd gone to bed. I was awakened by Lia, who had come to let me know that Kate was throwing up. I had been having trouble sleeping, so I'd gotten a set of ear plugs and taken a melatonin, which knocks me out. I was so out of it! I managed to get up and walk to their room to find that Kate had indeed thrown up... from off the top bunk! You just can not imagine the mess, the splatter pattern, and I'll spare you the details. All I know is I just stood there not knowing what to do in my half-sleep state. And I may or may not have ruined our vacuum by suggesting Mark vacuum up the solids... Anyway, that was at 12:30 a.m. By 3:30 a.m., I had joined her. Thankfully, Michelle came to the rescue by coming and picking up the other three children that morning, since she'd been thoroughly exposed the night before anyway.

6. We went dog shopping on Saturday. We didn't find anything we wanted. Correction: we didn't find anything I wanted. The kids wanted every dog we saw. We (I) have decided on a Yorkie or Yorkie mix, and we're just going to wait it out till we can find a rescue one in a shelter somewhere. In the meantime, I'll be taking the kids to the shelter here regularly to volunteer their time walking the dogs and playing with them. This gives the kids their pet fix, and helps the animals at the same time.

7. Mark is planting fruit bushes at the "new" house, mowing the yard, picking up limbs, and planning his garden spot. He's so excited about it, and it's looking gorgeous. The previous owners had done lots of work on flower beds and such, so springtime there is just lovely. Lots of really old flowers and flowering bushes, irises, hydrangeas, etc... I can't WAIT to actually live there. This might be the slowest summer in history.

8. My sister in law is an excellent photographer, and she met us at the new place to take pictures of the kids in front of the old house before it becomes the new house. I want to frame one of them to put in the new place.

9. Sunday, I got the fun privilege of going to Birmingham with Mark to the big farmers market where he gets all the ferns and tropicals for the greenhouses. It was so nice to just be with him alone on the drive there and back, and it was really neat to see the big market. We talked a lot about future plans.

10. I have hardly cooked at all! When I do, it's on the grill, or in the crockpot, because the oven here doesn't work well. But mostly, it's been sandwiches or soup or breakfast-for-supper. No baking and no big spreads, though. I can't wait to cook in my new kitchen! One recipe we've found, though, has made it's way into a once-a-week spot on the menu! It's peel & eat shrimp done in the crockpot, and it's FABULOUS. It's a loose adaptation of a recipe I found on a crockpot-cooking website. I'll wrap up this post by sharing what I do.

Crockpot Shrimp:

2 lbs. shell-on shrimp, raw
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup worchestershire
dash of hot sauce
small palm-full of dried basil
1 stick of butter

Toss the shrimp with all ingredients EXCEPT butter. Place in a crockpot, throw in the whole stick of butter, then cook on high for two or two and a half hours. It's done when all the shrimp are pink.

I serve this with a Caesar salad and new potatoes. And french bread to sop up the juice! Actually, that's how I serve it to my family. I just stand at the counter and eat this like it's going out of style, no side items needed!

Hope everyone has an awesome Tuesday!

Blessings,
Em