Kindergarten & Everything for Sale

One of the girls' favorite things: dress-ups (with cousins this time)


Ruby at preschool playing "house"


Olivia feeling beautiful with new curlers and dress-ups.

This week was a big one for Olivia. She registered for kindergarten and got kindergarten shots. The whole process was a bit traumatic for her. She is full of nervous energy about it, even though it won’t start until the fall. She doesn’t really want to go to kindergarten, but then again, that’s where big kids go, and she wants to be a big kid… so her brain is having a tough time working out where she wants to be. I’m still in denial that she is old enough to go, but then again, she’s been in preschool for a while, so I guess it’s time. We are still hoping that she gets put into one of the charter schools in the valley (she’s on waiting lists), but if not, then we’ll see where she ends up going, because our house is back up for sale!

Yes, our house is for sale – again (www.lundstrom1.com). Hopefully we’ll have better luck selling it this time. It’s by owner for now, but we’ll probably list it officially soon. We’ve worked hard this week to de-clutter and organize to help it look more appealing (assuming anyone comes to look). Either way, it always feels good to de-clutter. We are selling because we really want to downsize (we are successfully living in half of our house right now - about 1200 of the 2400 square feet). We'd like to move somewhere in Logan that has potential to rent should we move abroad again - which we hope is in the near-ish future.

While we’re at it, our cars are for sale! The truth is we need a larger vehicle to make room for baby #3, so we are on the look-out for our latest dream car: a CNG SUV. We are generally opposed to gas guzzlers, so the CNG (compressed natural gas) option is really appealing – not to mention more affordable at the pump!

I met with the board of the Multicultural Center of Cache Valley (http://www.mccutah.org/) this week to present them with the gift of our preschool (www.unionpreschool.com). My sister Kristen and I have been running if for the last couple of years, but have decided it’s time to hand off the ropes to a more appropriate group. Kristen and her husband are moving to go to law school this fall, and I’m about to have another baby (in May), so I’m in no position to run the school on my own. We’d hate to see it fizzle away, so we hope they accept the gift (it would entail some work on their part). We’ll find out tomorrow what the final decision is – keep your fingers crossed!



Recipe of the week: Quinoa stuffed peppers

2 green peppers, halved through the stem ends
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
1 small bunch spinach, leaves torn into small pieces
3 medium tomatoes, chopped
salt to taste
1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
2 Tbsp (or more) parmesan cheese

Place peppers cut side down in a small baking dish. Bake at 400 until tender (about 40 min). While peppers are cooking, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, saute garlic, basil, oregano, rosemary, and red pepper for a minute or two, until they're very fragrant. Then add spinach, toss well, and cook until spinach is tender (about 5 min). Add tomatoes and salt and cook for another minute or so. Stir the cooked quinoa into the spinach and tomatoes, and then flip the squash over and stuff it with this mixture. Top each half with 1 Tbsp cheese and then bake at 350 until the cheese melts (5-10 min). Serves 2-3.

*Modified from the original recipe found here: http://fortunavirilis.blogspot.com/2009/10/quinoa-tomato-kale-and-garlic-stuffed.html