Something fun for me!

I have been trying to be careful about shopping--because we are watching our budget--but mostly because we already have TOO MUCH STUFF. I have varying levels of success at this, but when ever TD or I get something new, we put at least 1--preferably 2--things in the donation basket. However, I have been in the market for shoes that are better for my feel (danskos/birkenstocks/earth) for a while.

I got these earth shoes last summer and I adore them. They are incredibly comfortable and are one of the only shoes that have never given me blisters. And I got them for about 60% off on Overstock.com. But since TD is almost a foot taller than me, I'd love to have some supportive, comfy, good looking shoes with at least a 2 inch heel. I'd looked at Dansko clogs for a while, but they are $$. And then I saw these babies--they meet all my criteria, and then some! I flipped over the color and the (faux) snakeskin accent. Awesome!

When I did a search for them, it turns out Sierra Trading Post has them on sale. So needless to say, I got something fun for me. Now I just have to figure out which pair of shoes will be going in the donation pile to make room for these...

Menu Planning

The main reason TD and I manage to eat at home so often is that I plan out our menus in advance for the entire week (sometimes two!). I keep a calendar in my outlook email and put the menu for every night of the week. That way I can refer back, I usually try not to repeat things within a month, unless its one of our favorites (bean burritos I'm looking at you!)

When TD moved in, I wasn't sure how he would feel about eating vegetarian meals. He has taken to it very well with no complaints! Yay! Since we both are very happy meat-eaters, we do that about half the time. Other than an occasional rotisserie chicken when I'm feeling lazy, we don't buy ANY meat at the store. Everything we eat is wild game from my family's ranch in central Texas, or from my father's and brother's escapades in Alaska. Lately we have been eating Dall Ram from Alaska. We are very lucky to have this great source of healthy, eco-friendly meat available to us. 

Normally I plan meals and make a list on Thursday or Friday, and we go shopping over the weekend. So, what are we eating this week?

• M: TD is out of town, I will eat MORE beans and rice
• T: This is TD's birthday and I have a work dinner event. FAIL! but there will be carrot cake with cream cheese icing. (TD will likely eat a frozen chicken patty--sad)
• W: yellow daal with greens and curried potatoes
• Th: Fritatta with red peppers, cheese, and smoked turkey plus sauteed greens
• F: TD's big birthday dinner to Neptune Oyster!!! We rarely eat out at fancy places these days, so we are really stoked for this!! I may only eat raw shellfish for my entire meal...see above for what we are in store for. Happy Birthday TD!!

Home sweet home

As I mentioned previously, we are selling the condo that I have lived in for 2 years (with TD for 1). Its been a short period of time to own, but as we know that we will be leaving the Boston area with no plans to return, now seemed like the time to sell. We initially thought of renting the house out for a few years, but decided we wanted to avoid being absentee landlords if we could help it.

I called the realtor who had helped me buy the house, and within a week she was showing it to other agents, and 5 days later we had a full price offer. So, we probably could have asked for a little more (you were right Dad!), but TD and I are happy that we won't have to keep our house in showing condition for much longer. We are naturally very neat and decluttered, but the thought of having strangers walking through your house kicks it up another notch. Plus it will be nice to pull my vacuum back out and put the heater back in the bathroom.

Everything is falling into place, including the home inspection; the last hurdle is for the buyer to secure her mortgage funding. This should happen April 1 and we will close on June 1. So, pretty soon I will have to start calling moving companies...ugh. It feels like we just finished unpacking Tom's stuff. Moving a few more times is probably in the cards for us for the next couple of years, so I just have to suck it up. Ah, the glamorous life of two baby academics! I absolutely LOVE this place, though I admit it is a little small for 2 people, it is working really well for us right now.

Plus, the kitchen is pretty much my dream kitchen, since we installed a dishwasher in November. Well I would add an induction or gas range and heavy duty exhaust hood, but that's it. I love having drawers rather than cabinets and the open shelving has really grown on me. I really love how we have the house decorated, it really feels like us. So I'm going to be sad to leave, but excited to set up our new home in __TBD__. In the meantime, here are a few more pics of our current place.