I thought I had better write an updated blog post least you all think I have fallen off the edge of a cliff on one of our hikes! Truth be told there hasn’t been any time for hiking lately. Long time readers of this blog know that two years ago this month our daughter Katy got married and around that same time our son David move out as well. We became “empty nesters” over night!
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This summer Katy and her husband Esau bought a house not too far from us but the seller wanted to do a rent back and their lease was up on the apartment so they moved in with us. Then David decided he wanted to move back home to save money and finish up a couple college classes so a few weeks later we moved him back home!
We have done a lot of this lately! We have this moving thing down pretty good. Hubby Tom recently retired so the timing of all this was perfect!
Now that Katy and Esau have access to their house we are there everyday getting it ready for them to move in. That means we have been doing lots of cleaning. I forgot to take a before photo of the oven. It was beyond dirty – it took me two days to get it to sparkle! Esau’s family came over to help and we had a cleaning party! Many hands make light work and everyone pitched in to wash walls, doors, baseboards and bathrooms.
Hubby has been working long and hard to get the garage floor free of oil and grease with awesome results!
I don’t know why these photos are so little – I couldn’t get them to post at a normal size! But you get the idea of what an improvement there has been.
Paint Splatter Removal
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I spent one day at the house just working on removing paint splatters that the previous owner left behind. I was pretty pleased with my results!
The painter has started working his magic and it’s amazing how quickly the professionals can get this job done. It would have taken us at least twice as long to all the painting done. Next up will be new carpet and then it will be ready for them to move in.
I have been making good use of my new Cuisinart Slow Cooker this week. I can start something in the morning or even at noon and we can come back home to a cooked meal. We really enjoy the Easy Vegan Mexican Casserole. It feeds a crowd, the leftovers can be used to taco salads, burritos, burrito bowls or tacos. I made it Sunday and we were happy to have something quick and easy to reheat this week.
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Easy Mexican Casserole
Pyrex Snapware
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These Pyrex Snapware containers were recently purchased at Costco and they are amazing! I need to go back and get another set. They are microwave and dishwasher safe. Great for leftovers.
More Quick Fix Vegan
Nutmeg Notebook
Today I will be staying home and cleaning my own house, making a menu for the coming week and restocking the pantry and fridge. The work never ends does it?
I ordered this cookbook from Amazon and it came yesterday. Lots of folks on Instagram like this one. I will be picking out some recipes to put on the menu next week. I like the idea of only spending 30 minutes or less on meal prep. There are far too many things that need to be done outside of the kitchen these days. My friend Eve who I met on Instagram and got to meet in real life in San Francisco sent me her list of tried and true recipes from this new cookbook. Of course the Pumpkin Brownies recipe she tried are going on my menu!
We have truly enjoyed having a full house. It’s been fun to have time to cook in the kitchen with Katy again. We adore our son in law – he is easy to be around and he makes us laugh all the time! Of course son David still likes to twirl me around in the kitchen just like he did years ago! What a delight to have meal time chats with the young adults. The house is so full of life and laughter with everyone here! We are going to miss them so much when they move out.
Wishing everyone a safe and relaxing 3 day weekend!
Tami
Add Your thoughts…
That Mexican Casserole looks so yummy! For some reason, your link on that recipe isn’t working for me?
Hi Amy! Thank you for letting me know the link was broken – I fixed it!
Have a wonderful weekend! 🙂
So much going on but good things!!!! I hope you get to hike soon though cause I know you love it – how is the foot??
Snapware is the best!!!!
Have a great long weekend!
Hi Jody! I hope we get to go hiking together soon. Hubby went with our son to go back country hiking and camping this weekend. My foot is doing pretty good – I am so much better! Thank you for asking. I love the snapware. Hope you are having a great weekend. 🙂
That casserole looks great!
It’s it amazing what just cleaning will do to a place?
Yes, Lori cleaning makes a huge difference!
Glad you are enjoying the full house!!!
I also bought the pyrex snapware at Costco and love them!
Have a great weekend, Tami!
We are pyrex snapware pals!!! I think I will get myself another set as I really like them! Hope you are enjoying a relaxing long weekend Andrea.
Wow, lots of fun stuff happening in your neck of the woods! I like that they can get some stuff done in the house without it being full of furniture. I suck at painting – the last time I tried was 13 years ago, and um, let’s just say we needed to hire a professional to finish the project!
Oh yes Biz it’s so much easier to do all the home improvement projects with an empty house! I’m not too bad at painting but I’m a little rusty at it! Like anything else in life the more you do it the better you get.
Tami, Can I ask you what you you used to make that oven sparkle like that? I’m wary of the products I’ve attempted as they seem so toxic. Good to hear from you again. Frances
Hi Frances!
I used Easy Off oven cleaner – yes it is toxic! The oven was so dirty with baked on junk that I had to go for something strong to get it clean.For the glass I used baking soda and water – made a paste, scrubbed with a rag and then rinsed it off with plain water. I had to clean the racks twice – they were so dirty it was difficult to get them clean.
Hope that helps.
Blessings,
Tami
wow you’ve been busy. I love the picture of you and the kids–just beautiful!