A Whole New House Part II

Well, the painting is complete and has been since last Monday; I am just slacking on posting the pictures. So here is the rest of the pictures from the rest of the house...Oh, ya ignore the spots on the pictures I tried cleaning my camera lense and they were still there, have to figure that one out I guess.

The first two are of the entry way

Here is the dining room

This, obviously, is the bathtub area of the bathroom, I think this is my favorite spot

This is the little "room" where the toliet is in our bathroom.

An "inside" view of the retreat/office. Ignore my husband in his shorts. Believe it or not he was in the middle of organizing the office.

This is looking into the retreat/office off of the master bedroom

This is the master bedroom looking into the bathroom, ignore the stuff thrown about we were still in the middle of re-organizing

A Whole New House!

This past weekend we were finally able to have our house painted! It is so nice to no longer have all white walls!! Eric and I feel like we have a completely new home to live in and everything just feels so much warmer and inviting now. After having this done I have to say that I will probably never paint another room myself again, this was soooo much easier and faster! Here are a couple before and after pictures that I took of the process...(there are a lot so be prepared) Plus, I still have more to take of our bedroom and bathroom that was also done...

I took most of the pics from the loft...it was the only place I could be where I was out of the way

This is the living room

This is the Dining room

Downstairs hallway and our sample painting on the wall

The other living room walls

Other side of the living room...glad I wasn't on that ladder!

Looking down into the kitchen

Downstairs bathroom

The Loft

Upstairs hallway...it's not really that bright that is from the flash of the camera

Stairway

Living room looking up

Stairway looking down

I will have more to post soon from the other rooms!!

Guitar Hero for all Ages

Eric and I brought over our PS3 and Guitar Hero to play during the Easter festivities. Well, after about an hour of trying to get it to work on with the TV we finally got it and we all gave it a try...including Ken and Marianne...

Notice the concentration...

If you look very closely you can see who won...Marianne was on the right and Ken was on the left. Marianne beat Ken with a 73% note completion compared to 53% from Ken. And Marianne got a 17 note streak while Ken got 7. Total scores were...Marianne: 10,632 Ken: 6,815!

An Early Easter

Yesterday we celebrated Easter with Eric's family since Ryan, Brittany and the kids were down here for the weekend. First all of us "grown" kids got to do a money filled Easter egg hunt that we do every year. There were a few brutal moments during the hunt for the "bonus" egg, but it was great! I am reluctant to report that Eric and I came in dead last with a total of $11.00, so sad! =( It was a great time though and we all had a lot of fun. Then there was a candy filled egg hunt for Annika, Ashton and Dax. Each kid had their own colored eggs that they had to find. Here are a few pics...

Here is Dax going after his eggs...he's not too sure of the grass

Here is Annika getting her eggs, and sorry but my camera died in the middle of taking a picture of Ashton...

Yummmy!

I made this for dinner the other night as a start in trying to eat healthier and it was VERY good! It's kind of like a healthier version of shrimp scampi. Eric gave it an A+ and said we have to have it again. I just thought I would share it with everyone...

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables

4 tsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided

2 large red bell peppers, diced (I only used one and it was enough)

2 pounds asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 in lengths

2 tsp freshly grated lemon zest

1/2 tsp salt, divided

5 gloves of garlic, minced (I used about 7)

1 pound raw shrimp, (26-30 per pound), peeled and deveined (I used the frozen raw shrimp, much easier and cheaper)

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 tsp cornstarch

2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Heat 2 tsp oil is large nonstick skiller over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, asparagus, lemon zest, and 1/4 tsp salt and cook, stirring ocassionally, until just beginning to soften, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl; cover to keep warm.

Add the remaining 2 tsp oil and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, until fragant, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk broth and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth and add to the pan along with the remaining 1/4 tsp salt. Cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened slightly and the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, about 2 minutes more. Do not over cook shrimp. Return vegetables to pan and cook until heated through. Remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve over your favorite pasta. (Angel hair is the best) Makes 4 servings.

**You can also use chicken if you don't like shrimp.