Menu Plan Monday

The Thai Turkey Tacos from Miss Mommy were a great hit last week. We are definitely adding this to our favorites list. We also enjoyed, again, the Japanese Salad from that same post.

I also made my Sausage and Bean Soup for the first time since moving to Scotland. Of coarse I can't find my recipe, so I had to recreate it from scratch. It turned out fairly well, so I posted the recipe last week.

The new term at the University starts this week, so our lives are about to get very busy again. But it is so nice to have Darren home again after he was traveling so much the last two weeks.

We are back up over eight hours of daily daylight and gaining about 5 minutes more each day. We watched tiny snow flakes falling this morning and it is quite chilly, but there is not much wind and the snow didn't stick at all. I think spring must be just around the corner... maybe...

Here is the menu for this week!

• Monday -- Loosemeat Sandwiches
• Tuesday -- Beef & Broccoli
• Wednesday -- Beef & Refried Bean Burritos
• Thursday -- Broiled Cod Parmesan
• Friday -- Chicken Fajitas
• Saturday -- Homemade pizza
• Sunday -- Jacket Potatoes

Check out more great meal ideas at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

We love painting

The weather has not been very inviting lately. It is cold and windy, even when its not raining. We are forced inside and are enjoying some rainy-day activities. Today we pulled out the water paints.

For mommy's peace and enjoyment both kids put on their paint smocks, and I covered the table with an old shower curtain. Now I could relax and they could have fun.

We normally paint free form on blank sheets of paper, but today they wanted to paint pictures. Joshua was excited about Thomas and Abigail wanted to paint Toy Story pictures. It was easy to photocopy pictures from their coloring books for use with paint. Now doesn't that look like fun!?!

Menu Plan Monday

We have now been home for twelve days, after a wonderful, six-week visit to the States. In a strange way, meal planning is a true sign that we are settling back into daily life here in Aberdeen. The chaos of jet-lag is slowly lifting. We are plowing our way through the disorder to create order, routine, and peace again.

I might be feeling a little too energetic about the menu tonight. It just feels good to think about cooking again after almost two weeks of simply throwing things together.

Darren was gone for four dinners last week and will be out of town for at least two more nights this week, so we have a few kid dinners again this week.

Here is the menu for this week!

• Monday -- Quesadillas and veggie dips
• Tuesday -- Macaroni 'n cheese and chicken nuggets
• Wednesday -- Thai Turkey Tacos
• Thursday -- Broiled Cod Parmesan
• Friday -- Homemade pizza
• Saturday -- Chicken Tikka
• Sunday -- Sausage and Bean Soup

Check out more great meal ideas at Organizing Junkie.

Happy Monday!

Sunrise, Sunset!

This was the view out our window at Sunset this week.

We are safely back in Aberdeen after a full six weeks in the States for the holidays. It was one of the best visits we had -- very relaxing and refreshing; and we got to spend time with family and friends. It was a little hard coming back.

But we were so blessed coming home to good friends. Emily picked us up at the airport, fed us lunch and dinner, turned on our heat and made sure we settled in. She has also taken care of me and the kids (for meals, play time and fellowship) this week while Darren has been out of town. We are blessed!

Life is slowly settling back into routine. Joshua is back in school and both kids have finally settled back into a good sleep routine. It has taken us the full eight days (a day for every time-zone crossed) to feel like normal; jet-lag was the worst this time. Darren has been down in Edinburgh most of this week for a lecture series that he has been looking forward to for years.

We have been greeted by incredible weather. It has not rained once since we arrived last Thursday, and the sun has been out almost the entire time. It is cold, but dry. The sunrises and sunsets have been beautiful, brilliant colors -- even as I type I can see bright pink covering the gray-blue clouds as the sun comes over the horizon. Breath-taking!

So life continues, one sunrise and one sunset at a time. We settle back into routine. And rejoice in all the blessings and beauty God has given us!