Apple Oatmeal Muffins
My children’s new school wants the students to eat healthy. How dare they. Oh, wait. That’s a good thing. I wanted to come up with a healthy-ish, portable snack that would pass muster with my kids and conform to the school’s healthy eating policy. Now listen. I’ve baked some amazing muffins in my time. Delicious, eat-them-all-in-one-sitting muffins. Healthy? Mmm. Not so much. I think all of my muffin recipes fell off the healthy train somewhere between the powdered sugar glaze and the cinnamon sugar coating. I knew I wanted to incorporate apples and oatmeal into my healthy concoction. I made this important decision while lying in bed one night. By the way, 11:30…
Boy Room Vignette
On Friday I showed you the display shelf I made from a silverware tray. Ready to see the rest of the wall? Your wish is granted. Other than the dresser, which is from IKEA, all of the items on this wall are things we already owned. The wood arrow was made with scrap wood. The “T” is one of those cardboard letters from JoAnn’s. It has been painted and repainted over the last 5 years. The step stool was made in high school shop class one million years ago and we finally gave it a makeover. The bookshelf was a found object left in the trash. That painting was made by a…
Display Shelf from a Silverware Tray
Our kitchen in Ireland has no shallow drawer to hold a silverware tray. It’s a conundrum. Instead of throwing the silverware tray away, it was still sturdy and useable, I decided to put it in a box and wait for a silverware drawer to magically appear inspiration. Most of my good ideas, like this one, came to me in the shower. We’ll just stop there because I don’t want to scar your mind. My idea? I could turn that silverware tray on its end and make it into a shelf. SHAZAM! Then I did a little dance and almost slipped in the shower. The first thing I did was notice how truly…
I’m Starting to Like Zucchini Because I Hide It In All the Foods
It’s true. I’m starting to like zucchini. Not on its own. Goodness no. I haven’t hopped on the crazy train. Yet. I’ve been hiding zucchini in all sorts of meals for the past month or so and no one in my family has noticed. Not even “he who has the refined palate” aka Handy Husband. The trick is to grate the zucchini up so that it blends in well! (I use my cheese grater for this task.) I’ve put grated zucchini in soup and chili, spaghetti, lasagna, pizza sauce and pesto. It blends really nice with the green pesto. Last year I also put zucchini into blueberry muffins. That was more…
Moving to Ireland: Primary School 101
Editor’s Note August 2018: New legislation passed in July 2018 will greatly change the school admission’s process in Ireland. For all of you American expats moving to Ireland with kids in school year 2019/20, I think (and hope) your life will get a little bit easier. I’ve tried to note in the below story where my experiences would now be different when the new legislation takes effect. Last week my kids started school. In a foreign country. I am the first to admit, over the course of my children’s lives, I have spent way too much time worrying thinking about their education. I really thought, at least as it relates…
Moving to Ireland: First Week of School
PHEW! We survived the first day of school. It’s the second day that’s the real killer. And the day after. And the…you get my point. via GIPHY It’s been an awesome summer. It’s also been a long, long summer. My kids were ready to be with their own kind. I was ready for them to be with their own kind – for at least a few hours a day. I was nervous dropping them off though! So nervous. My jazz hands were working overtime that morning to make sure my neuroses didn’t rub off on my kids. Fake it ’til you make it! The first day of school is always a…
Shovel Head Owl Art
It’s hard to find an appropriate title for “she took a rusty old shovel head and a bunch of random metal scraps and made something cool.” But that’s what happened. As you might have guessed, this is a Junk Whisperer project. Who else do I know that would turn a shovel head into a funky, awesome piece of outdoor art? No one. The Junk Whisperer had the vision for this shovel art project, but she used the mad welding skills of my uncle to make her vision come to life. Interestingly enough, my uncle is quite the talented guy, as are many of my relatives. He made my first car –…
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Summer’s Twilight
For us, summer is almost over. It’s been an extra long one. Normally, the kids would already be two weeks into their new school year, but Irish schools start a bit later than schools in Georgia. I call it a moving bonus of sorts. For the kids. I think of this time of year as summer’s twilight. The season is coming to a close and I’m going to miss all of the fun summer dished out for us this year. I’m really going to miss the unscheduled, flexible nature of summer. I’m taking this week off from blogging to just be in the moment with my kids and husband. We’re going to explore,…
Living in Ireland: Exploring Our New Country
For our friends and family back home, today is just a little bit of random life as viewed through our iPhone lens. We know Ireland’s beautiful summer weather is fleeting, so we paused for a picture one night. I’m not 100% sure, but I think Handy Husband was trying to blend into his surroundings. This is hard to do when you are standing next to a kid wearing multiple colors and prints. I admire her sense of style bravado. Wearing an uniform to school is going to be a big adjustment for this 9-year-old. She did ask me if she could wear any headband she wanted to school. My answer? Well, they didn’t…
