To Do Lists...

Today was a day full of odds and ends.

Our morning started out with the kids playing nicely for a few hours while I read, did some chores, and worked. Then, we were pleasantly surprised by another FaceTime call with Alex. It is always so wonderful when he calls. Since he hasn't been there that long, we don't know when to expect his calls, but hopefully soon, we'll figure that all out. We learned that there are definitely some items that Alex didn't bring that he needs, so I'm working on getting a care package together to send him. He's going to be getting a driver's license out there....crazy isn't it?!? As a result, I have to send him some civilian clothes and shoes.

After we were finished out call with Alex, we had to head to the auto body shop. A couple of days before Alex deployed, he was on his way to Camp Pendleton, driving on the 15, when a HUGE piece of metal came bouncing down the lane he was in and bounced off the top of the hood and kept going. When he finally arrived at his destination, he saw the damage it had caused. My goodness, we are so thankful it didn't hit the windshield. Anyway, I had to go take the care for them to take pictures and whatnot, so that we can get it repaired. I have included some of the pictures below.

Once that was taken care of we came home and had lunch. I used some leftover, homemade meat sauce and made Organic Zucchini Lasagna Boats. Here is what I did if you are interested in the recipe:

Sauce:

The quick version is:

2 cans of organic tomato sauce
Grassfed ground beef (sometimes I use turkey)
1/2 a large onion, minced
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
Basil
Salt
Pepper
Oregano
Parsley
Red Pepper Flakes

Cook ground beef with salt, pepper, onion and garlic and drain. Then add sauce and seasonings to taste and let simmer for at least 30 minutes, but if you can let it simmer for over an hour, it deepens the flavor. 

**You can also roast 8-10 large organic roma tomatoes, some garlic cloves and sliced onion and then add to a blender to make your own tomato sauce***

I make a big batch of sauce and then I cut a zucchini in half and hollow out the middle. Then, spoon on sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella and throw in a 400* oven for 15 minutes!

Once we were finished with lunch we watch an episode of American Ninja Warrior. My kids were introduced to that show by my parents when Alex and I went away for our Anniversary in July and we had a new episode that hadn't been seen yet. It's so fun to watch them get all excited when someone makes it. Madison keeps saying she wants to be on that show! 

 When the hubby leaves there are still a few things that need to be taken care of, so today was the day I worked on those things. Aside from getting the process started for fixing his car, I had to call our auto insurance and put him on "deployed" status...saves us a little money. Then I had to call Verizon and suspend his number while he's gone. This was easier said than done, and actually didn't get accomplished today because of how difficult they were on the phone. So, I will go to the store in person and do it. 

Tonight, I'm missing Alex extra. I simply want to just give him a hug and have him here. I know from past experience, this feeling never goes away, but I'll adjust. 

Well, it's getting late, so I'm going to go fill my diffuser, read a little and go to sleep. Thank you to all of you who have still been sending lovely Facebook messages, posting sweet messages, and sending text messages. Knowing all of the support I have means so much to me. 

Until tomorrow....