HOME - The . Thome . Home .

Life’s a Beach.

September 13, 2013 by thethomehome

There are times with two littles that the day can seem to go on forever.

They bicker. They make giant messes. They push every mommy button known to man.

The other morning, after doing SO much house stuff, I turned to the clock in hopes of seeing a near lunch time number.

It was only 8:25.

And if you watch Cougar Town, you’ll know this Andy moment, all I could say out loud ….

“Come on!!”

So, I did all I could do. Break away from the shuffle of day to day chores and take the kids down to the lake.

Who ever thought the lingering smell of Lake Erie fish and dirty sand could calm a soul so?

We headed back to the car so the germ freak mom could clean the boys feet and hands.

They talked and talked about the beach the whole 2 minute car ride home.

I’m grateful for those dirty beaches.

The sound of the waves crashing onto the rocks.

And the fishy smell we all try to ignore.

45 minutes of breaking away helped turn our entire day around.

Big Day, Pre-K.

September 11, 2013 by thethomehome

It seems like I was just sitting down writing this post One Look.

As the first day of Pre-K approached I could only think about how fast the next year was to come. And the next. And the next.

Truth be told, I am nothing short of ecstatic for Brody to be back at school. As a stay at home mom, there definitely comes a point where your ready for your kids to spread their wings and do new things. The only thing that kept rotating in my head was the fear factor. This year, he is just at school for a few hours, three days a week. Next year, (gulp) it’ll be full-time. I stayed up an extra hour the other night just tossing and turning, chatting Dan’s ear off about how scared I was to let Brody go for “that long”.

Just like last year, I drop him off, run an errand or two, and like that over protective mama bear I am, I sit in the parking lot and wait till his class is over. I have never gone home in between, I like being in the car. For some reason it justifies not being there to watch over him to me. Now, for Kindergarten next year I do not know how I will get over this hump. Trusting someone else with my sweet B all day long. Hoping and praying that he stays safe. That kids are nice to him. That he doesn’t get scared in new situations.

Give me a whole year. Ha. It’ll take me an entire year to prep for this. With all of the unthinkable things that happen on the news, it is hard to feel comfortable letting your kids out of arms reach. So, I just pray. I pray that Brody will be safe. I pray he always knows I am here to talk, when something doesn’t feel right. I hope he always knows that even though I am not standing by his side, that I am one car ride away. I hope this year will help me come face to face with what every parent avoids. Their kids growing up.

I take a deep breath. Dress him in his outfit of choice (he loves clothes just like his dad) and watch him squeal with excitement as he runs to his classroom door. He happily says goodbye, as I do too. This year for just two hours. Next year a lot more. All I have to remember is that each goodbye will be followed by heart felt hello, each and every time.

Jalapeño Popper Dip

September 9, 2013 by thethomehome

One thing my husband would change about me? My love/hate relationship with sports. See, he grew up a hockey player + a sports lover to the max. I grew up playing sports, but in a “go out there and fun” kind of way. So, I guess I never really took sports seriously, or got that into it. Still to this day, I complain when I know a long baseball game will be on t.v., or when four hours of a saturday will be spent with my husband glued to the t.v. Hello football season, goodbye husbands.

I do enjoy going to sporting events though. To me, it’s an entirely different experience. One thing you won’t catch me complaining about though, is the food that comes along with football season. This year, I am going to do my best to focus on the food, and less on the game. Maybe use food as my distraction for the time spent wasted watching our Cleveland teams lose? I’ve got a new attitude towards sports this year, and I know Dan will be ever so grateful.

This dip will definitely be thrown into the mix a few more times this season. We made it a few weekends ago, and it turned out better than I had expected. The original recipe was a little over loaded with fat. This was, although still not healthy, doesn’t make you feel AS guilty indulging in it as the first recipe! The topping was supposed to be Ritz crackers with melted butter and parmesan cheese (a lot of it ) and I simply used bread crumbs with olive oil and it worked out great. I used low-fat cream cheese, which usually has a higher sodium count, however, it was only 10mg, so worth cutting back on the fat. And, finally, using a mayo based with olive oil made this dish even lighter. So snack away! Whether you love football season or not, I guarantee you will love this dip!

INGREDIENTS:

2 8oz packages of 1/3 fat cream cheese softened
1 cup Kraft Mayo made with Olive Oil ( 1/2 the calories + fat of regular mayo )
6-8 pieces of cooked crispy bacon, chopped
1/4 cup diced green onion
1 tsp garlic powder
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup – 1 cup of jarred jalapeño. Remove the seeds + chop. (get hot or mild, whatever you and your guests will prefer … adding more or less)
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
drizzle of olive oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350* Spray a 9×9 pan with non stick spray

In a large bowl, mix together the softened cream cheese and mayo. Add the garlic, salt, pepper, jalapeño ,bacon, and cheeses. Stir everything together until everything is evenly incorporated.

Spread the dip evenly into the prepared dish.

In a small zip lock bag, add the bread crumbs and a drizzle of olive oil. Shake it up to get all the bread crumbs wet. Add the bread crumbs in a nice even layer over the dip.

Bake at 350* for 25-30 minutes, or until the dip is slightly golden and bubbly.

Recipes inspired from :

183. Jalapeno Popper Dip – Simply Gourmet

Top Spot.

September 6, 2013 by thethomehome

Nothing beats sitting on the front steps with the boys after a long day of no napping. We wait in anticipation for the big man on campus (Dad) to turn to corner and pull into the drive. The kids are thrilled that they get to look at someone else’s face besides their moms all day long. And I could just leap on my man for gratefulness of an extra hand.

Prior to painting the house + re doing the front door entrance, taking pictures of the kids in their favorite spot wasn’t anything worth showing. I would always try to zoom in, and cut out all the grossness that lurked behind them in the picture. What a gallon (or 11) of paint can do, because that has all changed. The other evening, I could not get enough of these cute boys on these steps. Now our time spent on the stairs will be well worth sharing pictures of to family via text! And since I do not have all my readers cell phone numbers, why not share the love and show off these exhausting amazing kids we get to call our own!

Looks like we have two potential buyers for the house (wink wink)

If I would have known that our usual evening on the front steps would have turned into such a cute “photo shoot” I probably wouldn’t have had them dressed in such random articles of clothing. Oh well, that’s just us keepin’ it real for ya 🙂

HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE!

Whole Wheat mini Pumpkin Pancakes

September 4, 2013 by thethomehome

Dan – “What are you making?”

Me – “Mini pumpkin pancakes, for the kids”

Dan – “Why pumpkin? Pancakes should just be plain”

Me – “Really, Dj? – then don’t eat them”

Oh, Dan. If he only zipped his lips for a few more minutes until my batch was made and he gave them a try. Because, let me tell you, he ate his words. He snatched a mini pumpkin pancake and couldn’t believe how good they were, and how moist they turned out (seeing they are whole wheat).

What woman doesn’t enjoy being right? I know I do! This batter makes a large batch, which is perfect for freezing all of the left overs and keeping them on hand to heat up for a fast morning breakfast.

I used a small cookie scoop to portion these so the boys would feel extra special to receive these bite size beauties. Be sure to make these soon. With fall coming near, they are a nice addition to breakfast, or dinner if you live here.

By the way, check out this blog:

A Beautiful Mess

a hip blog with their own App’s you can purchase to help make your pictures even more neat like the one above! I am obsessed.

See?

Keep it plain

Or make it cute.

Now, back to the recipe!

INGREDIENTS:

3 cup whole wheat flour
3 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
3 Tbsp sugar
1/2 heaping tsp cinnamon
15 oz pumpkin puree
2 eggs
3 tsp maple syrup
2 cup milk (whole or 2 % or soy or almond)
3/4 cup plain applesauce

DIRECTIONS:

In one large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and cinnamon.

Add the pumpkin, eggs, maple syrup, milk and applesauce. Start stirring, until everything is fully incorporated. Make sure not to over work the batter, keep it fluffy!

Over a griddle, or large sauce pan, on medium-low heat, melt a teaspoon of butter. Use a mini cookie scoop and plop the batter onto the pan, forming tiny circles. Watch closely, they will only need 2 minutes or so on each side.

Continue to make the pancakes until you run out of batter. I simply placed cooked pancakes on baking sheet to the side to keep things moving smoothly!

If you are freezing them, let them cool completely. Store them in an freezer gallon size bag. I put parchment paper in between two layers to utilize the space. When ready to eat again, simply grab the portion of your choice and microwave until warmed through. (Each microwave is different, ours took less than one minute)

Yum Yum! Eat them up! The boys ate theirs with “apple fries” – which stressed Brody out because he wanted apples, not fries. Way to try to be creative mom, just confusing the kiddos!

Recipe inspired from:

Silver Dollar Pumpkin Pancakes | The Pioneer Woman Cooks | Re

Hello, Curb Appeal!

September 2, 2013 by thethomehome

Happy Labor Day!! Dan and I are relaxing today, recovering from the birth of our new home. We are doing great. I did not need any stitches, and Dan did not faint. The house looks beautiful, and we couldn’t be prouder home owners.

The house is painted, and we are loving the face lift. SO glad we took the plunge and did it, and did not put it on the “if we are here for a few more years…” list. The house is still up for sale, and the market came to complete stop in mid July. A lot had happened over the summer, things we have yet to share, and this may be a good time to explain why we took the painting plunge!

In June we decided to list with a realtor and forfeit the for sale by owner route. Our home sold to a nice family in EIGHT days. Count it – nearly a week and it was off of the market. We were set to close/move July 23. We had four short weeks to get hunting for a home and pack up our lives and move on. We were thrilled. Contractors in and out, pricing different things the new buyers wanted but, everything was moving smoothly. They adored the home, and all they wanted from us was $$$$ to build an extended pad at the end of our driveway. We agreed, not because it was a violation, but because if it sealed the deal and made the process smoother, we were not going to argue over a few thousand dollars.

Two weeks prior to close, inspection day came. We were nervous. We knew we had done everything to bring this house up to code, and went above and beyond to maintain the home. THIRTY minutes before the inspector came, our realtor called and said that the inspection was cancelled, there was a hiccup in the buyers financing. We didn’t panic right away, because the banks are crazy now-a-days … we knew “hiccups” could be fixed. One insane week of emailing back and forth and waiting on the news if it was all going to be okay, we got word that there was no hope in fixing the issues that popped up with their financing, and the deal fell through.

Starting from scratch with selling the home was just a pain in the rear. For a few weeks following we were fairly swamped with showings. Cleaning a house, top to bottom, and trying to keep your kids busy was exhausting! Nothing worse than leaving your house for a few hours after a day full of scrubbing, to hear back “They LOVED your house! They just want a 4th bedroom”…. or “They LOVED everything, but wish there was more square footage”. We wonder why people look at houses when it doesn’t meet any of their criteria?

Then things just went completely stale. Interest rates went up, things just came to a stop. The summer buyers already made their purchases in May/June, and we knew we would be sitting for a bit. The only thing we could come up with that would improve the chances of selling our home was fixing the outside. Our pale white aluminum siding was in need of a new look. No power washer in the world could get er’ clean. It was a Thursday night when we decided to that we would grab samples the next morning and start painting. By Friday afternoon I tackled the front bottom of the house, and we were feeling great about what the house would turn out like. We had 2 days to get it done, so we needed to move FAST!

Lacking curb appeal can take a much bigger hit on the selling of your home than you may anticipate. Look above our door, and the bay window at the dark gray yuck that would never come off when washed. They were like permanent dark circles underneath the eyes of the windows. ICKY.

Pick a color, any color. No, really, I did. I purchased 7 samples. We both knew we wanted a shade of gray. Dan wanted a darker tone. We love the look of gray houses with black shutters. We did as we were told to do, and painted fairly large samples on the side of our house Friday morning.

Of course, paint swatches always look different once painted on a surface. And, exterior paint tends to show up a few shades lighter. There were light grays that looked purple in the sun, we had dusty grays that appeared hunter green in the shade. Colors we thought we would love, we cringed at once they were on the siding. Once our final color sample was on, we knew right away it was a winner.

BEHR’S Dark Granite, ultra exterior – satin finish was the one that stole our hearts. I’m glad I wrote “we’re halfway there” on this picture. I was so pumped I did that all by myself in a few hours, I thought the rest would be so smooth sailing. Then 86* weather with high humidity – zero babysitters – and a scissor lift later, I realized this project was a big one, and we were only a smidge there. We tried our best to paint where there was shade first, because the humidity was so high our paint was drying faster than normal. I wish we would have set up a video camera of us painting, because we were flying the entire weekend!

Here are the before pictures. Which feels like I am showing you dirty laundry. I will never buy a white house again. MARK MY WORDS.

The siding we fixed in the spring was the same material, in the upper right corner. However, a brand new product, there for without 60 + years of wear and tear. It stuck out like a sore thumb.

I tackled the perimeter of the home on the bottom. Anything under 10 feet I was willing to touch. Anything else and my knees would have buckled out from under me. Dan was up high the entire time, and Papa John helped us finish the front top of the house which was a huge help!

The spiders during the painting of the house were one of the biggest hurdles to jump. I am usually a runner/screamer/vacuum grabber, suck them up, scream for husband when I see a spider personality. But, I did not have the time to be a sissy. These spiders were like suicide jumpers when the shadow of the paint brush came around, they jumped from their hiding spot so fast it gives me goose bumps to talk about it. I have never popped so many spiders with a paint brush in my life. It was super funny though to hear Dan and I squeal when a big one would make it’s way out. We were SO grossed out! Don’t worry – I let a few live. I do have a heart. If their web allowed them to make their way to the ground without the risk of crawling up my leg, they lived. I do have a soul.

NOW THE AFTER PICTURES!! MY FAVORITE!

The house is now a dark charcoal gray. We removed the front storm door (which was old junk) and gave the front door a fresh look with a gorgeous sea glass blue. (ENAMELWARE by Martha Stewart, color matched to BEHR) Dan did not like the door color at first, and as soon as it was “complete” he said he loved it. Momma was right! Spray painting the door handles/locks a clean crisp black really changed the entire look of the entrance of our home.

The brick on the foundation of our home now stands out, the gray compliments it so well. Where as before, it didn’t look nice at all. Even our landscaping stands out so much more. The bright greens against the gray is a nice contrast! We picked up some pretty fall mums for the front steps. This was a fun Home Depot trip for me, one of the 15 I made in one weekend.

The steps and front door have got to be my favorite part of the home now. The bay window stands out more, which is the best detail in our living room inside. So, I am glad the outside of the home now matches the feelings it gives you on the inside. We have had neighbors stop and complement our hard work, which was super sweet. We have had neighbors who have lived on the street for over 20+ years point on detailing on the house that they said they never noticed before until now.

We are SO happy we did it. And even more glad the blasting sun, squashing spiders, covered in paint, shaking on ladders days are over.

Here is the break down, on what it cost us to paint this home completely on our own in one weekend.

Cost of Paint:

Samples: we lost track @ 7. No more than $35 was spent on samples. Seems like a lot, but would have cost a heck of a lot more if we chose the wrong color!
TEN gallons of BEHR paint : $390
ONE quart of BEHR paint for front door : $15
Rustoleum spray paint for hardware : $7
TOTAL COST FOR PAINT: $447 (excluding tax)

Cost of Supplies:

New paint brushes : 3 for $50
Renting a scissor lift for the weekend : $275
TOTAL COST FOR SUPPLIES: $325

EXTRAS:

Mums for front steps : $30
New storm door to be installed : $123
TOTAL FOR EXTRAS: $153

Over all cost of this project was $925

I am so glad we didn’t add in the cost of the amount of food we had to order in because we had ZERO time to cook!

SO, for a little over $1,000 if you were to of added in tax, we were able to get the job done. I am glad we did it ourselves, instead of paying a professional. However, if we did not have that scissor lift for added safety measures, I know we both wouldn’t have minded paying someone to do it.

DIY house painting … CHECK!

Dark Granite, BEHR

ENAMELWARE, MARTHA STEWART

Lemon + Dijon Chicken Marinade

August 31, 2013 by thethomehome

Winner winner, chicken dinner.

This marinade for chicken is so mouth-watering, I can guarantee you’ll make this every week. We use it for full chicken breasts, or cut into chunks for kabobs like seen in the picture above. Add this chicken to a light pasta, salad, or keep it plain jane on a plate. Either way, this marinade will become a go to for your chicken dishes. Using simple kitchen staples, this marinade only uses 5 ingredients and is made in a matter of seconds!

INGREDIENTS: (for two large chicken breasts ( 1 1/2 pounds ) ) Simply double/triple the marinade depending on the amount of chicken you have.

3 heaping teaspoons of Dijon mustard (we use a Trader Joes brand)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp salt + 1/2 tsp pepper
zest + juice of 1 lemon

DIRECTIONS:

Whisk all of the ingredients together in a small bowl, or shake it up in a mason jar. Pour over uncooked chicken in a gallon size bag and let marinade for 30 minutes – 4 hours in the refrigerator. Cook as you would like. Enjoy!

Sun Up Till Sun Down.

August 29, 2013 by thethomehome

Crazy weekend.

An entire house painted, with zero professionals, nor babysitters to help with the kids.

I’d say that deserves a moon man. Or at least the right to take away any performing rights to Ms. Cyrus.

Speaking of crazy people, we had no choice but the let these boys run wild this weekend.

Owen was in a diaper 90% of the weekend.

Brody golfed 99% of the day.

Mom and Dad somehow managed to do the unthinkable and paint the house.

Neighbors were shocked. We were flattered.

And the kids had a blast playing sun up till sun down.

And yes, Owen’s mop has been chopped.

After I took the picture below, I knew it was time.

Holy MOP top!

Watermelon + Feta Salad

August 27, 2013 by thethomehome

Sweet summer time is coming to a close. All of the last minute things we thought we would get done this summer are suddenly being accomplished by a mighty gust of the fall winds around the corner. Nothing to kick you off your ass like the thought of doing outside work in the winter months! So, like the crazy people we are, this past weekend, we decided to paint our house. Yes, me, dan, and papa john came to tackle this beast in just a weekend. It was exhausting, and extremely rewarding! I’ll share the final pictures with you all later this week once I finished the final touches. Back to summer…

Make this salad while the pickin’ is still ripe! My cousin had made this salad at a family gathering a few weeks ago, it was delicious. So good that I woke up the next morning, went to the store, and made it that day to bring to another family event. The salty feta plays so nicely with the sweet juicy watermelon. A complete unexpected combination of flavors, and super satisfying!

No cooking required. Simply chopping and stirring a few ingredients together. Salads do not get more refreshing than this very one!

INGREDIENTS:

watermelon (1/2 or more)
cucumber ( 1 + 1/2)
feta (small container)
handful of fresh mint
salt + pepper ( 1/2 tsp each )
1 small red onion
Zest of 1 lime and the juice of 2
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

Let’s keep it simple here. Chop the watermelon into chunks. Slice your cucumbers. Give the red onion a nice fine dice. Add all three of these to a big bowl. Julienne the fresh mint, place that into the bowl. Zest and juice your lime(s) into the salad as well. Add salt and pepper and a good drizzle of olive oil. Give it a good stir. And last but not least, add the crumbled feta to the salad. Stir, and store in the refrigerator until serving.

I still do.

August 21, 2013 by thethomehome

After a few years of blogging, it is hard to believe I have yet to share one of my most memorable moments of my life with you all. Today is our 4 year anniversary. Four years, two homes, 6 cars, 2 kids, 3 jobs, and a whole lotta figuring life out. All of this and I couldn’t be happier that I still get to share it with Dan.

We were babies ourselves when we found out we were expecting Brody. “Adulthood” was thrown at us fast, and I have to pat ourselves on the back and say we handled everything the best we could. Now that we have Brody + Owen in our lives, it is just that much sweeter.

Our wedding day was not your typical wedding. And yet, our wedding was as memorable as any money chomping wedding you could attend. We are blessed to have amazing family members that are super talented and helped us pull the big picture together. Dan and I planned our wedding in 4 weeks. That’s right. We were insane. We had Brody who was 5 months old. And already house hunting. So the thought of an expensive, traditional wedding just made us sweat. We decided to just go get our marriage license, and throw a party. Word got out, and family all came together and helped us put together an amazing bash. Our aunt and uncle offered their backyard, which was the kindest and most daring offer that could come out of their mouths! Seeing that there were to be nearly 200 people attending. We were so touched.

From the food, music, flowers, dance floors, decor … it was chocked full of Pinterest ideas before Pinterest hit the web. Dan and I spent the entire morning/afternoon of setting up along side our aunts, uncles and cousins. It was the most heart warming day to see how much everyone wanted to help us out. We knew, no matter what anything ended up looking like, we would be surrounded by the best people we know.

Turns out, when that 6:00 hour rolled around, and Dan and I were waiting at the top of the stairs to come down, we were blown away even more by the finishing touches on our party. The flowers, done by my aunt, who collected wild flowers from gardens of her own and her friends. The dessert table, which was covered by homemade treats from all of our aunts. The music, which was all taken care of by a dear friend who drove all the way from Chi-town to keep our party alive. The lights hung in the trees, and all of our guests smiling faces just set the mood for a perfect evening.

Four years later we are still glowing about this special day. And always feel compelled to thank every single family member that helped us pull off our “let’s get married in four weeks, because we are insane” idea!

Setting up, the day off was a blast. A hectic blast. Dan and I were not worried about getting ready and pampered. It was so fun to have both sides of our family come together and create such a beautiful evening.

We both were shaking in our dress shoes the entire time waiting to be announced to come down. Our guests thought we already got married at the justice of the peace, and this was just a reception. However, we decided to surprise everyone, and the mayor of the city we were in came and married us in front of everybody. It was such a beautiful moment. Our entire group of friends and family just surrounded us as we said our vows, like one big hug.

Cake cutting was nearly done in secret. We did not want much attention on this, nor did we have the space in the dining room to squeeze all of our guests into! So, it was a sweet, simple, quick moment.

It didn’t take long for the party switch to get turned on. Our families both know how to have a good time. Dan’s dad built a dance floor for the middle of the yard. There were so many people dancing on that thing, it was hysterical to see!

We are a class act, this family. Since we only had beer and wine, something had to be done. So, “wine bombs” were created. We were swigging quarter cups full of red wine left and right, I still have the stains on my dress to prove it. Whoever said beer and wine won’t do?

We had the best night ever. Hands down.

Four years later I love this man as much I did when I was a 17 year old giddy school girl over him. We have created a life that I am so proud to call our own. Marriage is a road full of bumps, twists and turns that you never see coming. I could not have been luckier to have Dan right beside me through all of it. Year number four is sure to bring many more blessings. We cannot wait to see what life has in store for us. The good, the bad, we will be fine as long as we have our family.

Dan,

You are the best thing that ever happened to me. You are truly my soul mate. We’ve made it through the awkward high school years, a long distance relationship for years, career changes here and there, making babies unexpected and trying for, family issues good and bad and even home remodeling madness. We’ve always managed to climb up the hill together. Side by side. Day by day. Couldn’t be happier to be holding your hand through it all.

A bass player in a high school band, and a shy show choir girl would have made it? I knew it wasn’t just lust over you flinging your bass over your shoulder, or your tight pants. I knew what we had was what I had always prayed for. A relationship that has, and will stand the test of time.

Love you Dan. I said “I do” four years ago. And I still do love you more than the first day we kissed.

Happy Anniversary!