Have you been watching Revolution on NBC (or Hulu)? We are hooked! The premise of the show is that all the power all over the world has gone out and now the story picks up 16 years later. Part of the show that I love is that it really gets you thinking about what you would do in that situation. One of the things that the show has got me thinking about is saving our pictures. It is rare that I print out pictures and since all of our pictures are pretty much only on my computer, if anything were to happen to my computer so many pictures of the girls would be lost.

In addition to getting more pictures printed, I also have been on the search for an easy way to back-up our pictures on the Internet. This morning Emily over at Imperfect posted about how ThisLife had saved lots of pictures for them that would have been lost when her computer crashed. I clicked over to the site and so far it seems really great, I really like how easy it is to send pictures from iPhoto to ThisLife and how they detect duplicate pictures and automatically keep the highest resolution of the image. If you click over through my referral link, you and I will both get an additional 500 pictures of storage! Pretty Great!

Weekly Meal Plan

I am feeling pretty good! The only time my tonsil spots bother me now is when I yawn. Yawning really hurts but thankfully I don't need to yawn constantly :)

Feeling better means I am back to cooking! Yay! Having meals brought to us was such a blessing but we also ate more than our fair share of fast food and boxed macaroni and cheese. Time to get back to normal!

Weekly Meal Plan 10/22 - 10/26

Monday- French Dips w/ Steamed Broccoli
Tuesday- Salmon w/ Carrots and Baked Potatoes
Wednesday- BBQ Chicken Pizza w/ Caesar Salads (Using PW's Pizza Crust)
Thursday- Nate's Birthday Party
Friday- Macaroni and Cheese w/ Bacon Green Beans (I'm using my new favorite Mac and Cheese recipe! I'll post it after I make it!)

{I am going to try to hold off on using freezer meals for a while so that they can be saved for after my surgery!}

A Few Projects

Since we have been home a lot recently I have been on a bit of a crafting kick. I haven't really done many projects since Claire has been born so it has been fun to be back to crafting!  

My Sister's birthday was last week so I made her a glittered Starbucks cup! I used Krylon Glitter Blast Spray Paint which is a total pain, because of the glitter the cans get clogged almost immediately. I had to make 2 trips to Michael's to return the faulty cans before I got 1 good can to finish the project. A total pain, but I really love the finished cup! 

I am in love with all of the printables from ForChicSake.com! I printed some iPhone Charger wraps for myself and for my sister. Since I can't use my beloved purple iPhone charger, I love that I can now have a fun non-knock-off charger! 

I just love monograms and want to monogram everything, It is good I don't have an embroidery machine because I would honestly monogram everything. I REALLY want monogrammed bedding for Christmas. 

I have been using my Silhouette machine a lot lately for our little preschool and my cutting mats had lost their stickiness. I saw an idea on pinterest of spraying the mats with Krylon Easy-Tack to make them sticky again. This is a great idea... UNLESS you lack common sense like I do. 

I carefully taped off the edges of my mats with painters tape and then I took the mats outside, sprayed them, and left them to dry. The leaving them outside to dry part was my mistake! My mats were COVERED in little tiny aphids. It was so annoying... I spent an entire afternoon naptime picking bugs off of my cutting mats with tweezers. DUMB! If you do this, bring them inside to dry!!! 

I can't take any credit for this next project but I am so excited that it is finally finished! I have been looking forward to the girls room looking like this since we brought Claire home from the hospital and moved Kenley into her big girl bed! 

Claire's big girl bed is finished! Super special thanks to our Dad's and Brian for making this happen! The beds are based on this tutorial but we added the headboard and changed the dimensions a bit! We made them so that I can easily store stuff under their beds too which is awesome! Now that Claire's bed is in the room I have double the storage space! 

I have also been busy making some presents for Kenley's best friend Gracen. Her birthday is in November so they are top secret until then! 

D is for Donuts!

Each week at Pre-Pre School all of us Mommies chip in to bring foods that start with the letter of the week for lunch. This week was D so of course, I had to bring donuts! 

Kenley helped me make this pumpkin spice donut recipe last night and they turned out absolutely delicious! I highly recommend that you make them! 

Now I need to think up something creative for E... Any ideas? 

When it's not good news from the doctor....

I keep trying to start this blog post in my head and I get two sentences in and give up. I think it is because in addition to the information that I want to share there are a lot of emotions and feelings that I am still working through. Part of me just wants to say "Hey, I need another surgery" and not talk about anything about the situation but the other part of me feels like I have all of this stuff that I need to get off of my chest. I'll try not to be over dramatic but you have been warned!

The rambling begins now...

I try to be pretty transparent here on the blog because that is just how I am in real life. When you have gone through multiple bowel obstructions and surgeries you sort of lose your filter on what is appropriate to talk about :).

A little backstory.... I haven't really brought this up to many people, but we have been trying to have another baby since around December. We didn't have to try at all to get pregnant with Kenley or Claire so this (almost) year of trying has been really challenging for us. I can totally see where God has used it to draw out so much sin in my life for me to deal with. It has been and is a sanctifying process.

We knew that with my complications during Claire's pregnancy that there could be problems with conceiving in the future but typically to be seen by a fertility specialist you have to be trying for a year. Thankfully because of my history, I was allowed to be seen a little sooner since who knows what kind of weird things could be going on in my insides at any given time. A little over a month ago I had my first appointment with my fertility specialist who did an ultrasound and found 3 large cysts on my right ovary. My doctor prescribed me birth control because sometimes the hormones from the birth control can shrink cysts. I was shocked when I left the appointment. Who goes to a fertility doctor and gets prescribed birth control? This girl of course! 

This past Friday,  I had my follow-up appointment to check on the cysts. Unfortunately the news I received was that my cysts have grown considerably and have taken over and completely damaged my right ovary and my right fallopian tube. Almost immediately when the ultrasound started,  my doctor said "you need to have surgery". In my mind I was thinking.... I *just* had tonsil surgery! I still feel like crap! I don't want to have to recover from another surgery! 

I will get a phone call this week to schedule the surgery. It seemed to me like they wanted it to be soon. It will be done through my Kenley c-section scar so I am basically looking at a c-section recovery minus the baby. They will also do a biopsy on everything that they remove to hopefully rule out cancer and other scary stuff. Though it is most likely just due to my crazy scar tissue forming body.

The good news is that my left ovary and left fallopian tube look good right now. The hope is that once all of the damaged stuff is gone then my left side will work like a champ and our chances of pregnancy will be increased because the left side will be the one that ovulates every time. I know that I have had crazy pregnancy medical stuff and people have voiced their opinion to me that we should just be done because my body can't take it. I really feel like God has another biological child for us. A future pregnancy will probably not be easy on me, I understand that. My pregnancy with Claire certainly wasn't easy but she was worth it! We have wanted a big family for so long and I don't feel like God gave us that desire in vain. {We are also still very much planning to pursue adoption as soon as we can as well.}

So that is about it for the update on my life :) I will update with the surgery date and more details as soon as I know more!

Yesterday & Today

Yesterday, the girls let me sleep in! It was awesome! When I checked the cam to see what they were up to, I saw Kenley in Claire's bed and they were giving each other sweet hugs. What a perfect wake-up for a Mama! 

This tonsil thing has really been kicking my butt. I have been pretty miserable the last few days, swallowing is awful and I am so hungry for real food! 

I knew that we would have a whole day at home yesterday so I had a few tricks planned up my sleeve to occupy the girls. They have been watching way way way way too many movies lately and I really want to break out of that habit!

Occupy Girls Idea #1... Threading cereal on pipe cleaners. I thought that Kenley would spend more time on this one but she wasn't that into it, probably because Claire just kept eating the cereal so then Kenley wanted to eat the cereal so that Claire wouldn't get it all. 

Hoping homemade hot cocoa would soothe the throat. It didn't, I barely made it through a sip.

Occupy Girls Idea #2... "Hey! Lets color this box so it can be a zoo for all of your animals!" 

This one actually lasted a while. I may never throw a box away before it has been colored on again! 

Occupy Girls Idea #3... A princess movie with homemade popcorn. It was only 11 and I was already so desperate for some chill time... 

Do this: Throw some popcorn kernels in a paper bag, drizzle with a tiny bit of olive oil, shake, fold up open end of bag, microwave for 1 minute 25 seconds. Add butter and parmesan cheese. Serve to your people. 

When CLo went down for her nap, Kenley was able to do Occupy Girls Idea #4... A little halloween princess paint kit from The Dollar Tree. 

She loved it!

I really needed to catch up on some very neglected laundry so while our sheets were in the wash, I let Kenley have some jumping on the bed time in hopes of wearing her out a bit. 

So that was yesterday. 

Today was a bit better! I didn't feel the need to take any of my oxycodone and I was able to eat semi-solid foods! Yay me! We got out of the house for a bit to the library for toddler time and to run errands since I was able to drive and I think that really helped with my spirits!  

{I was able to eat some soft scrambled eggs with velvetta and some Taco Bell pintos and cheese! My eating habits have looked horrible since my tonsils have been removed... My former healthy self is really disappointed in the amount of junk that is getting into my body! I would estimate that I have eaten more processed foods (probably all I have eaten has been processed foods) in this past week than in almost the entire time we have lived in Washington. Yikes. Oh well! One day I will feel good enough for healthy food again! I just know it!} 

When we got home from our errands, Kenley and I did a little craft while Claire napped. I halved this homemade puffy paint recipe and let Kenley go to town with it! 

Concentration.... 

I really love that Kenley is getting old enough to do crafts and artsy stuff now! 

So that is what we have been up too! I also did a few Pinterest crafts tonight while Brian and I watched The Avengers. I can't share the pictures yet though since they are birthday gifts! 

Also, I am kind of bored. I would appreciate it if everyone would start blogging and pinning things like crazy so that I have lots to look at on the internets. Thanks! :) 

Here's hoping tomorrow is another almost good day! 

Funny Shots from the SpyCam

We have an awesome baby monitor system called Fos Cam that enables us to watch live video of the girls room from our iPhones and computers. I absolutely love it. Here are some of the funny things we have been able to witness because of the cam! 

Kenley can almost always be found in hilarious sleeping positions...

This was the same night, 20 minutes later...

A few weeks ago we moved Claire out of the crib and into her big girl bed. For the most part she has done really well at staying in bed, but then there are the other times....

One night we were able to watch them both climbing over the edge of the rail and throwing themselves onto the bed. It was hilarious! We almost didn't want to go in and make them go to bed. 

CLo trying to make an escape... 

Fun times for the Ronk's! 

iPhone catch-up

I have been pretty lazy about uploading the pictures from my phone onto my computer lately, so here is a big catch up! 

I have been trying to teach Kenley how to use scissors. Man. It has been hard! We have been contemplating homeschool and this scissor thing is enough to make me want to throw the towel in already! More on the homeschool thing later. Right now it is just a bunch of ideas swirling around in my head and on my pinterest boards. 

Dipped cones with Daddy after he received a book scholarship from a Marine support group. It was great that we were able to go support Daddy, but next time we will get a sitter so that I can pay attention to supporting him! :)

Hanging out in the cry room at church because CLo had a Quasimodo eye thing going on. It turned out to be a stye and still looks bad. Poor girl. 

Bed head hugs

The rule is... If I have to push one of these awful car carts in a grocery store, then I buy myself chocolate for the ride home. 

Getting the kombucha habit started early. 

I have learned an awesome new trick. In one afternoon I can keep the girls entertained, read a book (In relative peace) , and clean the bathtub if I let the girls play in the tub with bath crayons! It's awesome because they will play for a super long time so I can read and then when they are done I have to clean the tub to get the bathtub crayon off the walls. It's a win! 

This product is a total lie! It is NOT mess free! The glitter is NOT in the paper. The glitter will be ALL over you and all over Daddy's suit while he leads music. This product is not a good church bag activity!

Kenley and I went for a little date to buy her first day of school outfit. I let her play on the ride on things and then we bought a white chocolate, dark chocolate, caramel covered apple from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. It was awesome! 

Kenley now has the job of walking Rucker. I think they both like it! 

We have artichokes! Yay! They are by far my favorite vegetable! 

Trying to keep the girls entertained since I have had my tonsils out has been rough! The other day I drew big letters on paper and then let her cut up some tissue paper and glue it on to the letter. It turned out to be a really good project for us! 

Today is my Grandpa's 90th birthday! We had a celebration for him on Sunday afternoon. Sunday was actually one of my hardest days post surgery but I am still glad that I went! 

Cousins! I can't remember the last time we were all together! 

Happy Birthday Grandpa! 

 More busy work to keep the girls occupied. 

Is this not just the cutest little person drawing you have ever seen? I am so proud of Kenley!  

She put her pants on her head and yelled "Mommy, I am a rabbit! ribbit, ribbit" hahaha

September Goals Recap and October Goals!

It's a little late but here is my recap for September! September turned out to be a month of sickness for the Ronk household :(

September Goals:

Floss teeth every night! Yay Success! 
Wear retainers every night. Yay Success! 
Start planning for Christmas presents Yay Success! I think I am actually almost done buying Christmas presents for the girls! 
1 load of laundry per day! The sickness got in the way of this goal a bit but really I kept up with the laundry pretty well so that was good! 
Make juice every week night so that it is ready the following morning. Whopping fail. 
Find a photographer and get family pictures taken. Leila is going to take our pictures at UW (next week pending that Claire's eye stye clears up)! 
Print pictures for the stinkin photo wall! (this one is contingent on us having pictures taken)
Be more consistent with reading to the girls. I started reading The Chronicles of Narnia to the girls as well as being more consistent with reading to them throughout the day. It is going well! 
2 Children's museum trips! Yay! Success! We hadn't been there in awhile and were very pleased to see that they had some new exhibits! 
Weekly meal plans! I plan to post these every Sunday night to keep me accountable as well! Success! 
Get back to running and fitness classes! Utter fail. I was sick. Husband was sick. Kids were sick. 
Celebrate an awesome 6 years with my wonderful husband! Yay! We had an awesome time at the dude ranch! 

October Goals:

Make it through my tonsil surgery and recovery (Spoiler alert: The surgery was a success!) :)

I would love to continue with the flossing and retainer wearing and laundry but it is just not realistic at this point. Hopefully soon though!

Big Batch Lasagna

In preparing for my tonsil surgery (which went great and my recovery is going better than expected), I spent a good portion of this past week filling our deep freezer with meals. In addition to making a bunch of freezer-to-crockpot meals I made 4 lasagnas. Lasagnas are kind of a mess to make so I like to make a lot all at one time so that I only have to deal with the mess once. This lasagna recipe is great for when you have a family over for dinner, or need to bring a baby meal, or just would like to fill your freezer with lasagna!

Large Batch Lasagna
Makes 4 lasagnas

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 package hot breakfast sausage
• 2 crushed garlic cloves
• 
  
• 8 (14.5oz) cans crushed tomatoes
• 4 cans tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 
  
• 8 eggs, beaten
• 2 - 3lb containers cottage cheese 
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 1 container parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• 
  
• 2.5 boxes lasagna noodles (uncooked)
• 3 lbs mozzarella cheese, grated

Directions:

1. Brown beef, sausage, and garlic together over medium heat in a very large pot. 
2. Once browned add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and parsley. 
3. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and allow to cook for 45 minutes. (I like to put the pot lid on the pot propped up with a wooden spoon to let some steam out while keeping the sauce from splattering everywhere.) 
4. While tomato sauce is cooking, In a large bowl combine eggs, cottage cheese, parsley, parmesan, and salt and pepper. 
5. Once sauce has finished cooking you can begin to assemble your lasagna.
6. This is the way that I layer my lasagnas: A little bit of sauce in the bottom of the pan then a layer of noodles, a layer of cheese mixture, a layer of sauce, a layer of noodles, a layer of cheese mixture, a layer of sauce, a layer of noodles, a layer of sauce, and then top with the mozzarella. I like to have all of my pans laid out so I can do each layer at the same time helping me keep the layers more even. 

• You can now bake your lasagna at 350 for 40 minutes and serve right away or you can immediately freeze your lasagnas. Once frozen the lasagnas will need to be thawed before cooking and again can be cooked at 350 for about 40 minutes. 

Firsts

Last Saturday while the girls were in the bath playing with their bathtub crayons I casually asked Kenley to write an A and she did! I didn't really expect her to do it without my help but she did and I am so proud of her!

Ever since that first A she has been drawing A's capital and lowercase all over the place! 

 So proud of our girl!