Kristen Blog

Me and Pikachu.  One of the happiest moments of my life.  💕. Isn't he ADORABLE? If you have never been to a mouse race, then you are definitely missing out.  Our boys' school/church had their annual auction this weekend.  It is always such a fun event, and I am happy to spend a night benefiting the continuation of this treasured gem.  Seriously...it is a rare community, and I have complete and utter peace sending my boys to school knowing they are safe and loved...EVERY SINGLE DAY... because ALL the students there are safe and loved.  It is as good as homeschool, only better.  Because EVERYTHING does not fall on me.  And they spend their days surrounded by REALLY quality friends. I love auction day!!  I have to admit, though, I cringed a little when I heard the theme this year. Mice?  Eeeeeek! Don't most people have that response to mice? Of course, I fell IN LOVE with those caged, white creatures, and I put $10 down on the first race for a mouse named Pikachu...because Po

  I threw together a cheesy, delicious potato, plus soup* this week, and it was a hit.  Popular enough to record for future use, so I might as well share and share alike.  FYI...this one hits alls the right buttons, because it is yummy AND vegetarian.  We can all eat it, and they all liked it! INGREDIENTS Cheese Sauce  (I used a different recipe this time.  This one is better.  I noticed the missing butter!)     Shredded Cheddar Cheese     Butter     Milk (I added extra milk later, since I needed to thin it out a bit.)     Salt      Pepper Yellow Potatoes (about 6-8 small/medium...I washed and did not peel them.) Broccoli (I used a steam in the bag version from Sam's and chopped them up after I cooked them.) Pasta (I used half a box of penne.) INSTRUCTIONS 1. Wash, slice and put potatoes on to boil. 2. Put water on to boil for pasta.   3. Make the cheese sauce as directed. 4.  Meanwhile...cook broccoli and pasta.  Continually check potatoes for soft, ready-to-eat texture.  Chop bro

We finally managed to carve them today.   We've had a wonderful weekend.  After an icky-dreary-rainy-blah week, we got a full weekend of sunshine and Matt. I focused on sleeping in and taking the mornings S.L.O.W., because THAT is what I miss the most during the week.   Beautiful days mean outdoor work around here. Well...they carved pumpkins, while I carved the tree.  :) Yep...I got permission to trim my low-hanging tree limbs.  So, one tree at a time, Sweet Jesus.  I trimmed 2 of the 6 that need it.  Of course, I may have gotten more done, but I HAD to spend about an extra 2 hours per tree removing leaves and cutting the remnants down into fire fuel that we will, likely, burn in one night.  It will be a FUN night, thought.  I mean, it would probably be more cost effective to just buy myself some cheap firewood at the store, but, THEN, I wouldn't be Kristen Ingalls Wilder, would I?   I may live in the suburbs, but I like to do as much self-sufficiency as I can.  And THAT means

I got to eat my arrogance for dinner this week.  Fell flat on my face (figuratively) in front of a captive audience.  Man, humility is a painful lesson.  I just want the world to know how awesome I am.  Is that so much to ask?  Actually, it IS, because (if you will remember) it's NOT ALL ABOUT ME (You either, btw.  I am SO not alone.). And speaking of under-appreciated awesomeness... As much as I LOVE baseball, I have appreciated the break this week!! My in-laws recently picked up and moved.  In their rush, my sister-in-law donated to my girls a plethora of sewing material and goods.  As a good friend put it, it's like Christmas, opening every box.  Because...my sister-in-law has ridiculous taste.  Amazing.  And her creativity and perfection in the tiniest of details is beyond humanity. It has been an interesting experience, sorting through some 20 years of her crafting life.  On the one hand, I think of the years of my niece and nephew growing up.  Her daughter was a dancer, a

  👆Me...when an OBVIOUSLY TERRIBLE umpire calls the kid safe and says my kid lifted his foot off of first base to snag that high toss from 3rd. I literally shouted, "Just because it looks like he couldn't doesn't mean he didn't!!" Now, I understand that "instant replay" garbage.  AND why the church leaguers were SOOOO mean to me when I (innocent and 17 years old) played my hand at umpire.   You guys...I am a perfectly, reasonable person...until it comes to baseball.  After a game, I let loose in the car, and my kid looks at me, genuinely, and says, "I can't believe YOU are a counselor." I'm working on it.  After a grown man said to me, in reference to coaching (and potentially damaging) my son, "You make me a little nervous."  And it's not just him.  I have seen it in their eyes.  I have actually reveled in it a bit, until I remember what I am SUPPOSED to be doing here. Good grief.  What a discombobulated display of the r

This kid had SO much fun.  Alldredge Farms was beyond worth the $3 entry fee.  What a day, we had.  Ladies and gentleman, please...may I have your attention? Ebenezer Kristen has left the building. Does this mum make my butt look big?  😂😂😂. I'm sorry. I couldn't resist.  This mum is OFF THE CHAIN.  It has already brought me so much joy! Man, it felt good to have a whole weekend where I didn't feel exhausted, angry, stressed and depressed all in the same time.  We even had a whole 2 days off together.  We took the kids to the Pumpkin Patch, AND I actually let them spend a dollar or two. I don't know what,  exactly, has been "wrong" with me lately,  except for a culmination of unfortunate events that occurred in too close a succession for me to successfully and quickly bounce back. Jesse has a new "thing."  Also, he likes to hop the fence at the dog park now.  Only if one of us leaves, so...at least he is loyal.  That is just my type. First of all,

I think I just had another whole week in my weekend.  And I am more than fairly certain I am not ready for Monday to roll around as fast as it is flying at me. Evan has been obsessing about October 1.  He started asking "how many days" sometime in mid-early September.  I finally looked at Matt when we had 5 seconds alone together and pulled this one up as the priority item for discussion (the list I keep up here in this noggin is so long...so long, my friends),  "Evan is going this movie.  This Venom vs. Carnage deal that, supposedly, comes out October 1."   "Is THAT why he has been counting down the days?!!!" By that evening, everyone had signed up for the theater the next day. And that is how we (fail to) plan things around the O'Hara house.   The movie theater is VERY expensive when you are hosting 7 people, by the way.  And I'm not even a fan of movies.  It's funny, I was talking to Matt about how all I ever used to do is watch tv.  So much