I passed! I have been putting off getting my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification for years and finally decided this was the year to get it done! The company I work for is strongly encouraging employees to get this certification and they recently sent me to a PMP Bootcamp. I thought the PMP Bootcamp was good but I left feeling like I had a lot of gaps in my knowledge. I ended up doing three basic things to prepare for and pass the PMP exam: Continue reading PMP Mindmap for PMBOK 5th Edition
Construction Loan Closed!
Its been a long time since our last post on building our dream home! The last post we made was regarding our Master Landscape Plan and was posted back in mid May.
Since that time we have:
- moved out of our old home and into a rental house,
- we got our plans approved by the HOA,
- we finalized everything with the builder and signed the builder contract,
- and we worked on getting approval for the construction loan.
On October 17th we closed on the construction loan and were given the green light to begin construction!
For those that are following our build process and would like to have a little more detail on securing a construction loan just keep reading. Continue reading Construction Loan Closed!
Paper Pizza Prank – Your kids will love this!
Let me set up the story first and then I’ll explain the pizza prank. Back when we only had three kids we used to frequently do homemade pizza nights. We would spread out the dough and pizza sauce and then divide the pizza into sections using cheese for lines. Continue reading Paper Pizza Prank – Your kids will love this!
Communicating Chore Expectations
I know I can’t be the only parent who has ever dealt with the following situation. It’s Saturday morning and it’s time for everyone to do their weekly chores. You give the orders and you proceed to attend to your own weekly duties. You march full steam ahead, hopeful that each child has their zone under control. Periodically, a child will come to you to inform you that they are done with their responsibilities. You smile to yourself because you know that you are well on your way to an orderly house and fun times as a family. When you finish with your tasks you breathe a sigh of relief and you start to tour your clean home.
Only … it’s NOT clean!
Inspections of each zone reveal atrocities overlooked by each child. Missed dusty surfaces. Half-cleaned toilets. Neglected mirrors. Toys under beds. Crumbs in the corners. Sticky drinks rings on the counters. Perhaps a stray napkin or two.
How could the kids POSSIBLY think this is CLEAN?!?!?
I used to get angry at this scenario. Week after week I would have this experience. Same show, different episode. I was so frustrated with what I perceived as laziness and indifference to a job well done.
One day it occurred to me that the kids did not have a clear picture of what my expectations are. I was looking at their attempts with perfectionist adult eyes. From their point of view, they DID do their job and often seemed confused over my dissatisfaction. Continue reading Communicating Chore Expectations
Curried Tuna Salad
This curried tuna salad is the perfect combination of sweet, sour, and salty! It has just the right amount of crunch and sass. We love to serve it on whole wheat bread with arugula and tomato slices. It is also lovely served along side a fresh bowl of orange slices or fruit salad. Perfect for a luncheon or baby shower! Continue reading Curried Tuna Salad
Lemon Garlic Kale Salad
Think your kids won’t eat kale? This super easy Lemon Garlic Kale Salad is a snap to throw together, and has quickly become a family favorite! This is one salad that benefits from allowing the dressing to soak in a little. The olive oil actually helps the nutrients from the kale to be more bioavailable. Use organic lemons and organic kale for a worry-free treat that you won’t soon forget. I can’t keep this one stocked at my house, folks! It is gone as quickly as it is made. If you think your children won’t like kale, this is a perfect recipe to try. My kids couldn’t be convinced to eat kale until they tasted this. Now I have a 17-year-old daughter who can be found sporting an “I LOVE KALE” t-shirt. And this is the recipe that made her a convert! Continue reading Lemon Garlic Kale Salad
The Ultimate Dad – A Father’s Day Tribute
If you have gone to the movies or watched television in the last decade or so, you may have noticed a disheartening trend in the way the modern day dad is portrayed. Often the father figure is subtly (or not so subtly) represented as detached, aloof, clueless, lazy, disorganized, selfish, clueless, foolish,absent, and uninvolved. I don’t know what kind of men the rest of you are dealing with out there, but I am grateful that the father of our six children is a stark contrast to the above stereotypes. He is the polar opposite of all of those things and more. I couldn’t have asked for a better dad for our kids and I am eternally appreciative of the father and husband he is to us. I wanted to take this opportunity to tell him thank you for all of the big and little things he does for us daily. Continue reading The Ultimate Dad – A Father’s Day Tribute
Lemon Chicken Quinoa Soup
This Lemon Chicken Quinoa Soup is light, bright, and deliciously satisfying. Loaded with both flavor and nutrition, you can’t go wrong with this one! Our children rarely all like the same meal, but they all give this one an enthusiastic thumbs-up! Start with an organic, pasture-raised chicken and home-made stock. You will be setting yourself up for an incredibly wholesome meal, minus the bad stuff that usually comes with chicken soups. Who really needs MSG in their soup anyway? The tumeric is what gives this dish it’s beautiful yellow color. The addition of quinoa gives a hearty and nutritional bonus. This is truly a delicious, satisfying meal! Continue reading Lemon Chicken Quinoa Soup
Preserving the Harvest by Liz Porter
Many of you know that we have been attending classes at Lady Slipper Nursery on Saturday mornings. This Saturday we had the opportunity to attend Preserving the Harvest by Liz Porter of Buckeye Creek Farms. Liz led a fun, informative class and gave tips for both newbies and veterans alike. She had excellent suggestions for tools, methods, and resources. Specific topics discussed were pressure canning versus water bath canning, blanching before freezing, canning additives, and the canning of Continue reading Preserving the Harvest by Liz Porter
Homestead Master Plan
For those of you that have been following our build process, you know that we purchased land for our dream home a couple years ago. We have been slowly working towards making our vision a reality. Part of that process was taking what was in our heads and getting it down on paper. We received the help of many people in helping to take a vague idea of our vision and slowly turn it into an executable plan. Two key people stick out as key contributors though. The first is Casey Norris with Lady Slipper Rare Plant Nursery and the second is Doug Bork with Elements Landscape LLC. Continue reading Homestead Master Plan