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Mom in High Heels

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Posts posted by Mom in High Heels

    Yet another military thread - how much prep do you do when you move?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Declutter, declutter, declutter! That's my favorite part about moving!

    I don't put out things, but I do use painters tape to tape up all the glass frames and mirrors. I put an 'X' and then a 't' over it. If the glass breaks in shipping it won't destroy the art/picture under it. I take all the art off the walls and all the tabletop photos and put them in one place. It just makes it easier on the other end to have them all unpacked together.

    We designate one closet or room for stuff that we don't want packed and put a big X over the door with tape. I make sure all important paperwork and passports are in that room.

    I put all my silverware and small kitchen items in ziplock baggies because we've lost pieces before in all the wrapping. Actually anything really small I put in ziplock. Sadly I lost my college graduation tassel because it got mixed in with paper (I think).

    I'm sure there are other things, but I can't think of them right now. I'm watching Twilight and I'm all distracted by Edwards super awesome hair. :)

    Ack! I'm going to Italy on Wednesday and I'm not ready!

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    We were just in Rome last month! I loved it. I agree about buying your ticket at the Forum/Paletine Hill instead of at the Coliseum. Your ticket gets you into both and there are practically no lines at the Forum.

    Also, regarding dress codes in churches, many of them don't allow open toe shoes! Considering Rome is like the home of the sandal, I found this to be incredibly funny.

    Have a great time!

    Calling all Military Wives....

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Does he have a college degree at all? If so and he enlists (meaning not an officer) he would go in as an E4, which isn't great, but a WHOLE lot better than an E1 ($1889/month v $1447/mo). You also have to remember that he will get health care for himself and the entire family (yay!) and BAH (housing allowance) based on where you're stationed if you don't live on post, BAS (food allowance) which for enlisted is $323/month (this is only paid to the soldier, not per family member). BAS and BAH are NOT taxable. If you live overseas, you'll get COLA (cost of living allowance), based on where you are stationed and rank and is also not taxable. If he speaks any foreign languages fluently (or enough to pass the test), he can also get and extra $50/month per language. We have a friend who is fluent in 4 languages and banks an extra $200/month because of that. The benefits can be great (especially in this economy), but it's a different life.

    My dad was in the navy when I was growing up so I was used to the military life. When dh decided to join the army (a year after we were married), I was thrilled because civilian life was weird! :) It can be really hard sometimes, but the military has been really good to us. Dh has been in 14 years now and came in as an E3 (he's had 3 years of college) and in 11 years made his way to E7 (E9 is the highest you can go) before getting picked up for warrant officer. He's now a W2 and makes decent money. We do just fine on his salary alone. It was harder when he was lower rank (but mostly because I have expensive tastes<-that's right, I own it), but a lot of people do it with no problems.

    Best of luck to you both.

    Anybody else never taught how to manage a home?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Both my parents are neat freaks and kept the house spotless. They usually shuffled me out of the house while they cleaned though. I had chores to do, but rarely did them up to my mom's standards. They were crazy for cleanliness. Crazy. It made me crazy. For all their cleaning and homemaking though, I was never really taught how to manage a home. I wish my school had offered home ec. I would have taken it. I too was not anything financial. I'm crap with money.

    My house isn't a huge mess or anything, but it's messier than I would like. Dh is crazy messy though and I swear I can't keep up with him and his constant pack-rattyness.

    Living internationally as a child

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    I personally didn't, but we live internationally right now and Indy loves it. He doesn't want to move back to the US! We live in Europe and it's a wonderful experience. He's met so many people from all over the world and has been to 9 countries. He loves exploring and going new places. As a child I would love to have lives in another country. I say go for it if you can. Kids are very adaptable and while they may be nervous at first, I'll bet they love it.

    Toy Story 3

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    We are! We love going to the movies and go often and Indy loves TS1 and TS2. He can't wait to see TS3. Unfortunately it usually takes the military theaters and extra week or two to get new movies (we have only one screen, but it only costs $4 to get in) so we'll have to wait a while for it to get here. I'm not sure who's more excited, Indy or me and dh! :party::party:

    So what easy dinner are you making tonight?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Chicken Broccoli Casserole! This is hands down the favorite meal in our house. Indy would eat it every day if I cooked it. It's super easy.

     

    Ingredients:

    Cut up chicken breasts

    Broccoli (I use fresh, but frozen will do)

    Lemon juice (to taste-probably about 1 tbsp)

    Salt and Pepper (to taste)

    1 can Cream of Chicken soup

    1 cup mayo

    Shredded cheese

    Bread Crumbs (I actually crush Ritz crackers because we prefer it)

     

     

    Squirt lemon juice, salt and pepper over chicken and cook in the oven until done (about 15-20 minutes).

    Cook broccoli on stove top until just tender. Drain. Spread broccoli over chicken. Mix soup, mayo and more lemon juice (to taste-we like it tangy) and spread evenly over broccoli. Cook 10 minutes. Sprinkle cheese on top of sauce and cover with bread crumbs. Cook 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted and bread crumbs are slightly browned. Serve over rice.

     

     

    I could make this dish in my sleep. It doesn't take long because I do all the prep while the chicken cooks. Dh and Indy get soooooo excited when I make this. We have it almost weekly and if I skip a week they complain. I did the Ritz crackers once when I discovered, in the middle of making it that we were out of bread and bread crumbs and we actually liked it better than with the bread crumbs.

    Do YOU have a free-range kid?

    in General Education Discussion Board

    Posted

    Indy is pretty "free-range" I guess. We live in Germany though so I feel much safer letting him go out than when we lived in America. We live in a "quad" with 3 buildings surrounding a huge central courtyard/playground and a road on the 4th side (there is an 8 foot fence between the road and the playground) and Indy goes out all the time by himself. I check on him out the window every now and then, but mostly he's out alone (with other kids). There's no way I'd let him do that in America because *I* wouldn't feel comfortable with it. He has rules of course; he's not allowed to go to other quads without asking or into other buildings to ask kids to play without asking, but mostly he can do what he likes. Everyone here is like that. German kids go all kinds of places alone. We see them at grocery stores, on the strassenbahns (street cars) and buses alone. Teenagers go backpacking across Europe all the time. No big deal. America just isn't like that and I think it's sad.

    Compare Sonlight and Winterpromise?

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    We started the year off with SL 1 and 8 weeks in Indy was bored to tears. He loved the stories, but was tired of not having anything to do. I sent it all back and we changed to WP. We loved it. There was a lot of reading, but there was also so much to do! Too much to do really. At first I nearly drove myself crazy trying to do it all until I talked to Don at the company and he told me we weren't supposed to do it all, just pick one or two activities per week. After I calmed down it was great.

    Secular science

    in K-8 Curriculum Board

    Posted

    R.E.A.L Science Odyssey from Pandia Press. We have the Level 1 chemistry (they also offer life science and earth science) and can't wait to start. I love the set up and guide book. I bought the ebook ($39) and printed it off (it was over 400 pages!). They have it laid out with a 36 week schedule, labs, student sheets and information. The supplies needed are pretty basic and won't cost much (you can find inexpensive lab kits and hard copies of the books here). Indy can't WAIT. He asks every day to look at the book. Yay science!

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