It’s not the prettiest view, but I *love* being able to look out a window while sitting at my desk – especially when it’s raining and I’m enjoying a tasty cup of coffee and listening to the sound of the rain on the rooftop.
M-I-Z! Z-O-U!
Laura wanted to wear her new Mizzou Cheerleader outfit, which made John want to wear his Mizzou shirt. They made quite a cute pair!
Labor Day Weekend Get Together
We had our annual end of summer get together this evening. A great time was had by all! Great friends, great food and drinks, fun conversation, and a beautiful evening made for lots of fun. We have a great group of friends and it was just fun to celebrate with them all. I’m already looking forward to the next get together!
Shopping and More Shopping
The photo is a great example of what shopping for the Kassel family means every month. Between Andy and I, we went to four stores today – Target, Hy-Vee, Aldi, and Sam’s Club – to buy all the monthly groceries, etc. that we need. The multiple bags in the photo are the culmination of three of those four stores with Sam’s Club coming after we put all that away. We still have Moser’s to get to tomorrow, but that shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes for just a few items. I think it’s safe to say that I’m exhausted after all that shopping, *but* the only trips to the store that I will need to make for the rest of September is for milk and produce. One marathon shopping day makes it all worth it for later! On a side note, it did occur to me today that my pantry is in desperate need of cleaning out. I will have to tackle that mountain of a task the weekend in September that Andy is out of town…
An Afternoon at the Winery
Originally, Andy and I were going to spend the afternoon at the A-Frame at Les Bourgeois Vineyards enjoying the outdoor views, some food, and a bottle of wine. After a slight change of plans because of the rain, Andy and I headed to Summit Lake Winery for lunch and a bottle of Norton. We relaxed and watched the rain and talked for a while. Before we left, we tasted a few more of their wines and left with a couple of bottles to fill some space in our wine chillers. Since it was only 2:30, we checked out a couple of local campgrounds in the national forest. As we were leaving the last campsite, we stumbled upon a sign that said “Winery.” Now, you all know us and it shouldn’t surprise you that Andy turned around and headed back down that road. We found a new, local place that opened late last year with some *really* good wines. We only had time to taste wines there, but we left Serenity Valley Winery with five more bottles of wine (now we have wine waiting to go into our wine chillers!). Andy and I had a great, quiet afternoon! We were happy to pick up John from daycare and get home to see Laura, but it is always great to sneak away for some quiet, parent time.
The Lists
My menu plan is complete through September 23. Next up, grocery shopping and monthly essential shopping…. My lists are ready to go for Hy-Vee, Aldi, Sam’s Club, Moser’s, and Target. At least after this weekend, I won’t have to visit a grocery store except maybe 1-2 more times for milk and fruit. And this is *why* I menu plan…..to avoid grocery shopping as much as possible!
My Helpers!
I had two great helpers while I was picking the tomatoes and peppers this evening. They were so proud of themselves! I was surprised at just how good they are at picking tomatoes. I’ll have to deposit that tidbit of information into the “Mom Bank” to use at a later time!
