Monday, July 12, 2010

Summah-time

It's July. In Kansas. Which is not as hot as July in South Carolina yet, and for that we are extremely grateful.

Here's a quick update:

We moved to Kansas. Manhattan, Kansas, in fact. January 26 we loaded up a U-haul and hit the road, pulling over long enough to drop a sweet pup at the cargo area of the Atlanta airport, so he could fly to his new home in Tucson, Arizona, where we hear he is extremely happy playing with his new doggie friend Oscar the boxer mix (I think!)!

January 28 we pulled into our new driveway in frigid Kansas. The wind blows a whole lot in Kansas during the winter, by the way, which we did not realize until we moved there. And it makes it significantly colder than a South Carolina winter. Brrr.

Almost 6 months later here we are still in Kansas and loving it. We miss our family and friends and church and small group, but we feel like we are right where we need to be right now and that is a blessing.

Oscar, the dachshund, had to be put to sleep Wednesday, March 10, 6 weeks after we moved. It was so very sad; he had a tumor that kept him from eating or drinking and there was nothing that could be done to improve his quality of life. It happened very quickly; the tumor was suddenly big enough to bother him and he was put to sleep the next day. I still hadn't found a job, so it was very hard to lose my little shadow who kept me company every day at home. I am thankful he didn't languish and suffer.

We have since gained a cat, Molly. She is very fluffy and quite affectionate, and while she isn't Oscar she is lovely to have around. I quite like her.

The girls we were caring for last fall went home December 22. I enjoyed the peace and quiet, but I missed them! They are with us this summer; we are going on our fourth week of summer fun and, boy, now I wistfully dream about the peace and quiet sometimes :) But we are so glad they are here! We have been to the splash park (free! I love Manhattan, KS!), several playgrounds, the recycling center (anything can be an adventure, right?), the farmer's market and the Hawaiian ice stand several times. We still need to visit the zoo and the new city pool with the big slides. And we need to eat a lot more ice cream.

Tonight I made an amazing dinner. Not necessarily because I am amazing, but because I had amazing recipes to use. We had:

White Bean and Mushroom Ragout over polenta; I used the instructions for polenta from this recipe. I just used some whole grain corn meal I had on hand, and it worked wonderfully.

Oh. my. goodness. It was delicious. The girls loved it. Hubs and I loved it. It was flippin' delicious. I will be making this again.

I miss you bloggy folks. I gotta get my bloggy mojo back.

Happy Summer!

9 comments:

Katie said...

Miss you too, friend! So glad to see you posting again. Will come see y'all next time we roll through KS. Come back and play in Nashvegas sometime soon, too.
xoxo--K

Unknown said...

YAAAAAAAY for blogging!
I mean the blog-o-sphere just isn't the same without you!
SC misses you...A LOT!

Kimberly said...

Katie and Heather, your comments make me feel like a million bucks; thank you!

Katie, you definitely must stop by when you are in the area and another Nashville visit would be lovely.

Heather, why did you leave me? Come back!

Nana Time said...

I am Sooooooo Glad you are back! I'd given up on stopping by your blog it had been so long but your comment on mine sent me scurrying back over here!!!

Take some pics of all these girly adventures and post em!

You are not in South Carolina any more, Dorothy!

Ashli said...

I can not believe you packed so much action into such a short post! Man, you are one busy lady! Have you gotten a job yet? I am so sorry about losing your dog. Our ageing dachshund, Libby, had a close brush with death in December, but is doing better for the moment.
I am impressed that you cooked such a fab meal and the girls liked it, too!
I want pictures of your new surroundings, Pretty please! Oh and you, I forgot how you look!
We miss your blog so much!

Kimberly said...

Gabby, thank you so much! You make me want to blog a whole lot! I do not have a job yet and I probably won't pursue anything conventional until after the girls go home...if I find something I can do from home I might do that.

I read a great comment from a mom somewhere online regarding food: We (parents) decide what and when and they (kids) decide if and how much. I require that they take a no-thank you bite of everything and if they want seconds of anything they do have to eat all of their first helpings. I try to have something really enticing on the plate that motivates them to want a second helping :) We have zero issues because they know they don't have to eat anything they don't want to eat. However I think I've pretty well brain-washed them into food submission at this point :)

Kimberly said...

Donnamo! So sorry I made you wait so long :( Thanks so much for stopping by! I will see if I can't get some photographic documentation of our Kansas escapades!

Atir said...

Dear Kimberly,
Thank you so much for leaving a comment on my blog - it means so much to have someone read it.

I am sorry about your little dog. I never had a dog before this one and I am really attached to her especially how she follows me around and I know that you miss your dog.

I hope you will be able to come back to South Carolina. When Princess and I go away to visit grandies, She virtually can smell the air and know that she is home.

sartoriography said...

Yay for your illustrious return to blogging! Let there be much fanfare! :) Happy to have you back with us in this strange, 2-d world. And glad to hear about your adventures via this medium, even if I did already talk to you on the phone and on g-chat. :)

Splash park? I want one.