All Moved in and settled......

PPHHEEEWWWWW!!!!!

This move took a lot out of Love, myself and the animals! We have said this many times before, but we will NEVER travel across the country EVER again. We will NEVER move across country again. Its comfort flights all the way from here on out. If we can't afford to fly, we don't go. And this time we mean it!

After the 3,000 mile journey with me driving a 20ft truck, with Bella, loaded to brim with our belongings. Our second car in tow, also packed with out stuff. A mini van, driven by Love, filled with our dogs, snakes and more stuff, we were EXHAUSTED. That may actually be an understatement.

Love had a GREAT idea to purchase walkie talkies for the drive since we drove in separate vehicles. It worked admittedly well. It worked so well that by the last two hours of the voyage, we were getting on each other nerves......over the walkie talkies.

Fatigue had gotten the better of us. 

The excitement of taking the trip disappeared in Ohio.
Being nice to each other was thrown out the window somewhere in Nebraska.
The big question of "Why didn't we just ship our stuff?" started to pop up in the Colorado rockies when once again Love had filled the truck gas tank, now tapping into our vacation savings.
And the exasperation set in after living with my parents for one week until our house was complete.

When the day came that we were able to move into our NEW beautiful home, we were more than ELATED!!! After one whole week of unpacking, organizing and actual restful sleep Love and I had our first home cooked meal. We smiled and said in unison "We are HOME."

I will be posting pictures of before and after with our NEW furniture and decorations.

The packing starts TODAY!

The joys and lows of packing...........

I'm the queen of procrastination. We move September 3rd and I have not packed one box. My Love has this amazing assistant that has started our packing process. Her only main task was our messy and over packed basement. But now that the basement is complete, it is now time I take over and organize ALL the boxes. 

Along with being great at procrastinating, I am an organizing goddess and I work well under pressure. All the box labels are pre-made and now I must get to work.

at some point today or tomorrow or maybe the next day.....lol

What is the best way to pack?

I say categorize every box to the room it needs to be placed for unpacking ease.

Label everything:

• Garage - Outdoor items
• Kitchen - Food items, cleaning supplies, dishes, glassware, small appliances, etc.
• Living Room - Tables, sofas, lighting fixtures
• Family Room - Tables, sofas, lighting fixtures, DVDs & Blu-rays, Dvd player, television, etc.
• Den/Office/ Library - computer, cables, files, books, etc.
• Bathrooms - # the bathrooms or add location
• Bedrooms - Master, Kids, Baby, Guest

Other tips are to Declutter your home - Trash piles & donation piles. Over the years of living in a home, the clutter adds up and you realize everyone has keep unnecessary crap for no reason.

For more tips - Two Men and a Truck have great ideas for moving by yourself or if you hire professionals.

Whats For Dinner - Salmon & Spinach

Last night I made one of my favorites. Salmon & Spinach. Now I grew up in a house where my mother was adamant that there was at least 3 food groups on a dinner plate for proper nutrition. Yes I am missing the starch or as well call it now, Carbs (carbohydrates) 

I used the following seasonings from Tastefully Simple. Onion Onion, Garlic Garlic, Spinach & Herb and of course Salt and fresh cracked Pepper. Very simple seasonings for a great flavor.

 Salmon

First I put 1 tbs. of Olive Oil in the pan with a generous amount of all the seasonings.

I flavor to taste. I was cooking only 2 large salmon pieces so I used about 1.5 tsp. of each seasoning. 

I heat up the oil with the seasonings. Mix really well them I add the salmon FACE DOWN so that the flavor is cooking into the fish first. Then I cover and let that cook at a low heat. The trick to cooking salmon on stove top is to low simmer it and cover giving it a steamed cook. That keeps the moisture in the fish cause it is very easy to dry out fish. Then I flip.....

And I cook the skin the same way. Low simmer and cover.

Spinach

Fresh cracked Pepper, Salt and Onion Onion. I add 1 tbs of real salted butter, but there are other healthier options. Canola oil, Vegetable oil, etc.

Low heat and cover. Mix well. 

And voila!!! A tasty healthy dinner. My Love is a HUGE salmon fan after seeing how I cook it. Last night he said it was the BEST EVER!!!

Tastefully Simple Seasonings that are versatile as dips as well.

Onion Onion

Garlic Garlic

Spinach & Herb

CLICK HERE to purchase.