6 Months DTE

Wow, no posts in an entire month?  I will catch up soon, hopefully at least!  I'm at least remembering to mark our monthly DTE-iversaries.  So were we are.....6 months!

hahaha, this pic is just cracking me up tonight!  (source)

Hard to believe it was half a year ago when our dossier was finally complete and headed to Ethiopia!!

And here are our (unofficial) standings:

Infant Boy (<18 months) = #67

Twins/Young Siblings = #33

Toddler Boy = #22

In fundraising news, we are planning a yard sale at the end of this month.  We have already received some donations, and we are thrilled!  We are able to use our church's youth center gymnasium, so rain or shine, we will be able to do this thing!!  It will be a lot of work setting up, but we're excited about the way God provides.  Please keep us & this fundraiser in your prayers!

5 Months DTE

So yesterday marked 5 months since our dossier headed to Ethiopia.  I held off posting because I was hoping I might hear of someone's referral.  Unfortunately there weren't any.

Here's where things (unofficially) stand.

Infant Boy (<18 months) = #69

Twins/Young Siblings = #34

Toddler Boy = #24

Last month I was very thankful for no movement in the toddler line (because no movement is better than backwards, right?)  This month we moved backwards 2 spots.  Boo.  That's pretty much all I have to say about that.

PS:  This has absolutely nothing to do with our adoption, except for the fact that it is one of our main fundraisers....I have started a closed facebook group for my 31 business.  If you don't already have a preferred consultant, and would like to stay up to date on all the news & specials, you can request to join the group here. 

Pizza Fridays: 2 Ways

In an effort to make life a little easier as far as meal planning & preparing goes, I have officially declared Fridays as pizza nights at our home!  We've been at it a few weeks now, and we all look forward to Pizza Fridays!

I love pizza.  I could probably eat it every single day.  Hot, cold, lukewarm....doesn't really matter.  It's kind of the perfect food.  I also love the variety you can have with pizza.....it's not just about cheese & pepperoni!

The first Pizza Friday we did have just the normal pepperoni and cheese kind.  I used this recipe (from my dear college roomie) for the dough.  I had some string cheese so i cut it lengthwise and wrapped it in dough around the edges - stuffed crust!

There is just something sooooo good about homemade pizza!!!

Our real favorite though, is grilled pizza.  Have you tried it?  I love that the weather is getting warmer and we can grill more....pizza on the grill is delicious!  Here's the recipe we use (courtesy of another dear friend.....my friends make some good pizza!!)

Ingredients:

• 2 c flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 pkg quick rise yeast
• 3/4 c warm water
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Add the yeast into warm water and let sit for a few minutes.  Make sure it gets foamy, or else you need new yeast!

Mix yeast mixture with the rest of the ingredients.  It works perfectly in my KitchenAid with the dough hook attachment!

Let rise.

Divide into 4 or 5 sections and roll out, adding flour as necessary.  Spray both sides with cooking spray.  (I roll ours out pretty thin....use your own judgement on this one!)

Grill over medium heat until it is cooked enough to flip....you'll be able to tell when it's done.  Instead of flipping, now is the time to add the toppings to the grilled side!  We like to set out a topping bar like this one....

Pizza sauce, pesto, ham, pineapple, bacon, spinach, green peppers, pepperoni, mozzarella, parmesan, red pepper flakes, italian seasoning.......anything you want.....time to clean out the refrigerator!

Here's J with his pizza.....so proud!!

Now that the toppings are on, grill again until dough is cooked and cheese is melted!

ENJOY!!!

Linking to: Thrifty Decorating, For the Mommas, Craft-O-Maniac, Raising Homemakers, The Frugal Girls,

What We've Been Up To....

I've definitely been slacking in the whole "posting more often" thing.  We've been so busy lately I haven't taken much time to do anything uber-creative....and when I do a fun project, I've typically forgotten to take pictures  :)

Just for proof that we're still alive and well, here's what we've been up to lately...

Playing outside & being cute

Making Resurrection Rolls

Dyeing Easter Eggs

Sightseeing with our new friend from India

Disney on Ice ~ loved watching her!

A few other random things...
We've enjoyed hosting two international students over the past two months (a high school boy from Japan for 3 weeks in March and a college student from India over Easter).
J started tee-ball!
We're gearing up for the school year to be over......J & I started making a list of things we want to do over the summer.
I've decided to start going through the book Operation World with J each morning.....we've been having a great time learning about other countries.
I'm getting ready for a new summer season with 31 - I have the new catalog and I'm loving it!  There's also going to be a 31 outlet sale coming up.....if you don't already have a consultant and would like to receive information about it, you can email me at angiem31 (at) live (dot) com .... and I'll be sure to get you the info!

Hope you all had a Happy Easter!

4 Months DTE

It has now been 4 months from our DTE (Dossier to Ethiopia) Date.

 

(Image Source)

You might remember that earlier this month we received the news that our estimated wait time has been extended again, this time to 18-24 months.  Quite a jump from the 10-16 months we were hoping for only 4 months ago.

 

As of today, 4/2/12, we are (unofficially)....

#70 for an Infant Boy

#34 for Twins/Young (<4) Siblings

#22 for a Toddler Boy

 

If you saw last month's DTE update, you will recall that we were #69 for an infant boy and #33 for siblings.  Backwards movement can be very disheartening!  We are thankful that although we haven't moved up in the toddler boy line, we are holding steady at #22.  No movement is better than going backwards!

So in summary, this was a pretty stinky month for us, numbers-wise!  BUT, we have had encouragement in other ways!  Our friends the Webbs brought home their sweet little guy from Ethiopia this month.  And in the last week, our church friends received a referral for their daughter in China, and some more friends got the call that there was baby waiting for them domestically!  God is in the business of setting the lonely in families!  (Psalm 68:5-6).

April Fool's Day Ideas

Last year I didn't plan in advance for April Fool's Day, so I didn't post about our meal until that evening.  I'm re-posting it here in case you want to have a fun April Fool's meal for your family!!


When Jackson woke up this morning, I told him to go look out the window, that God had pulled the best April Fool's joke on us.....the ground was covered with snow!!  What a crazy way to begin the month!  I didn't have any pranks ready throughout the day, but I did have a few jokes up my sleeve for dinner tonight.

I have been seeing the cupcakes that are actually meatloaf and mashed potatoes, so I used that idea and changed it up a bit...

After putting cupcake liners in the muffin tin, I flattened out refrigerator biscuits (I had the big ones so I tore them in half first) and pressed them into the liners, leaving a little "well."

I then added a spoonful of ground beef (I had cooked it in advance) and a little cheese and baked them at 350 for about 17-18 minutes.  I wasn't really expecting the biscuits to rise that much, the "well" I expected to be filled with meat kind of disappeared, but oh well!

I added the icing (mashed potatoes and food coloring) and the cupcakes were ready!



Jackson wasn't quite sure what to think!!  Thankfully he thought it was funny and wasn't too disappointed that we weren't actually eating cupcakes.  We also had applesauce, but I served it warm....which is something we did quite often growing up, but I don't think Jackson had ever eaten it like that before.

Yep, that's right, there were no vegetables.  I kind of forgot, and then didn't want to add just plain ole veggies to a special fun meal....so we were vegetable-less tonight.  On to dessert!  :) 

Our dessert was a breakfast theme!  I know most of you have probably seen this "toast" already, it's been pretty popular in blogland....

If you haven't, I'll share the secret....it's sliced poundcake, toasted!  To go along with the breakfast theme, I also made the "fried egg sundaes" I saw here, and although mine didn't turn out quite as good, they were still fun!  (The "eggs" are marshmallow whip with a dollop of lemon pie filling.)

I love this little smirk when he tasted his toast....

We had a fun April Fool's "party" (if there's cupcakes, it's a party, right?), and I already can't wait to start planning for next year!  Did you pull (or fall for any) April Fool's pranks today?  I had to make a quick stop at the grocery store to get some of my ingredients, and when I got to the cashier I realized I had left my wallet at home ~ guess THAT joke was on ME!


Fast-forward one year and I haven't yet started planning for this year's April Fool's Day....which is coming up SOON!  Luckily there are lots of great ideas out there!  Here's a few more links for inspiration.....

*KFC Fried Chicken & Sides
*Faux Chicken Nuggets
*Pizza Cake
*33 Harmless, Pesky Pranks
*Fried Rodents (seriously thinking about doing this one!)

There are LOTS more, but those are some of my favorites!  What is your favorite April Fool's prank?



Linking to:  Someday Crafts, A Turtle's Life for Me, Somewhat Simple, House of Hepworths, The Frugal Girls, Ladybird Ln, Bubbly Nature Creations,

New Fundraiser...and it's a Great Deal!

Hi Friends!  Just wanted to update you on a new fundraiser for our adoption, and this one is perfect for all of us deal seekers!!!!

Have you ever used the website Restaurant.com?  Basically, you can buy restaurant gift cards for a low price!  Here's how it works:  you can type in your zip code and it will give you a list of restaurants in your area.  Each restaurant will have a list of offers you can buy.  For example, you pay $5 and get a gift certificate for $10 (good on a total purchase of $20).  Depending on what offer you choose, you can really save a lot of money!!  Personally for us, when we go out for dinner, we order waters, no appetizers, and no desserts to save a little money.  When we have one of these gift certificates, we feel a little less guilty "splurging" on dessert!

Anyway.....onto the fundraiser!  We are partnering with CoupAide.com ~ you can check out our website here.  You pay $20 and get a $50 gift certificate to Restaurant.com ~ great deal, right?!  The deal gets even sweeter....out of the $20 you pay, $10 goes towards our adoption!

I'm excited for this new fundraising opportunity!  Please feel free to share it with your friends, on your blogs, or scream it from the rooftops ;)