Change is Good...

As you know, I've been giddy for some time about moving home to Arizona this summer.  The projected date was the end of June, you know, after the school year ends and my Love Nugget finishes his fellowship at the hospital.  Then we would take this amazing road trip across the country--everybody so happy, looking at the beauty of America, no fighting, and nobody gets hungry or has to use the bathroom ever, and we would have a glorious time riding into our home state with tears streaming down our faces.

{uurrrrrch!}  Slam on the brakes to my daydream....change of plans.  Our home has tentatively sold much sooner than we thought it would in this bad market. {yay, but...dang it!}  We have to get out of our house before school lets out and before my Love Nugget is done.  I can either 1.) move our junk into storage and live in an apartment with 4 kids for 1.5 months {barf}, or 2.) head west with the kids, get settled into something, and have Love Nugget join us when he's done {barf}.  Niether is perfect, but I'm opting for the latter.


SO...it's been chaotic here at my house to say the least, hence the lack of posting.  Having to keep the house spotless to perfection was agonizingly exhausting (can I get an 'amen' from you who understand this?!) and I'm glad that part is over...so now it's on to a whirlwind of packing, preparations, and moving forward.  Wahoo!

Our little family is so happy/proud/anxious to finally see the end of my hubby's training and go HOME.  This will definitely be an exciting adventure!  Stay tuned...this should be a fun ride!

And...talk about change....my baby girl is 2 years old now!!  Can you believe it?!

 
Oh, and although I cried a little tear about not taking a 'before' pic, I recently had nine inches of my long, blonde hair cut off.  {gasp!}  I know, I know...but it was time.  And my hair was at that 'gross-cut-it-off' stage.  I've been growing it out for about 2 years, did it...enjoyed it...now I'm done.  I LOVE fresh, new, flirty haircuts and my Hair Goddess did an amazing job.  Now I have to learn how to style it correctly.....still learning....  Change is good!

Coconut-Lime Tropical Smoothie

Since Mother Nature is loving me, and wanting to help me through my stress, we were granted a full week of 70-ish degree (give or take) weather.  Pure. Heaven.  I wore skirts, flip flops, and the weather was warm on my skin.  Whatta sensation!  I'm definitely not used to that.

So what you do when there's a house full of kids, it's toasty outside, and everyone is tearing off clothing?!  (well, maybe it was just me tearing off clothing... kids were begging me to stop...I can't remember now...)  

We make smoothies!!

This was one of those things where I was craving something and I happened to have some key things in the pantry/fridge.  So I started playing!  Food is play for me.

Here's the gist of what we put in this triumph:

A blender 2/3 full of ice to start with..then...
3/4 can of coconut milk (or the whole thing depending on how much liquid you need)
1 can crushed pineapple, juice included
Juice of 1 lime (no zest, though--makes it too zesty)
2 bananas
about 1/2 c. sweetened, shredded coconut
1 T. sugar (or you could use honey) to taste.  Add more if it's not sweet enough.
1/4 c. wheat germ
Handful of chia seeds
(you could even put spinach in this and tell the kids that it's lime!  haha.  How sneaky of you!)

Blend and serve.  As it is with all smoothie recipes---if it's too thick, add milk or liquid as you go.  You could also add some yogurt - I'd suggest something mild like vanilla.