Preparing for the move...

In preparation for the move, I really haven't been grocery shopping in a while. Other than picking up milk, bread and eggs, for the several "snowpocalypses" since Christmas, we've been living off what's in the pantry and freezers. Tonight was a realization that we had no food in our house, just random food items. This is what I had to work with:

Cabinets- A vat of butter flavored Crisco, AP flour, enough coffee to make one pot, cornstarch, baking powder,Nesquik (Chocolate or Strawberry), vinegar, S&P, cocoa. Pop-tarts, grits, popcorn, oatmeal, fake potatoes,
miscellaneous canned goods and pancake syrup.
Fridge- Almond milk, chocolate syrup, Cheerwine, cranberry juice, pickles, jalapeno pepper, salsa, *baking soda, eggs, 2 slices of cheese, leftover rice, Fettuccine Alfredo from lunch, organic beef broth,hot sauce, an assortment of condiments, honey butter, crushed pineapple and the brown bag has Clay's chocolate turtles from Christmas in it.
Little Freezer- ice cubes, fish sticks, cubed beef, shrimp,
half a bag of French fries, chicken nuggets, veggies, a jar of yeast
and Chris' itty-bitty Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Big Freezer-Ice pop, anyone?

*That said baking soda-not even five minutes after I took that picture, my youngest takes it out of the fridge, opens it and begins making "sandcastles" on his little table. Then he & his brother rake it off onto the floor and begin rolling in it. Good times. Hey, they did help me vacuum. :D

Chris & Ayden ate "Daddy pancakes" and pickles for dinner. (Clay makes a whole box of pancake mix at one time and then freezes them individually so the boys can have pancakes that their Daddy made anytime he's not with us. Sweet, huh?) And I had a 2 egg cheese omelet with salsa and jalapeno peppers. Yep, crazy dinner, but it was tasty. Look's like I'm going to get very creative with dinner the next few days.

Goodbye BBQ Capital of NC……

I’ve made a list of things (not people, so don’t get your panties in a wad) that I’ll miss in North Carolina, a TOP TEN if you will. Drum roll please……

10. Infinite numbers of BBQ restaurants within a 10 mile radius, all proclaiming theirs is better than the other 12 you passed on your way there. I’ll miss “The HoneyMonk” the most. Lexington is famous for its western NC-style BBQ (chopped pork with a vinegar- and tomato-based sauce, usually served on a bun).

9. Door to door salesmen or evangelistic groups knocking on my door on Saturday mornings.

8. Traffic on I-85. (Dang, I’m going to miss all the construction work at the Yadkin bridge.)

7. Mountains. From what I hear Kansas doesn’t have them.

6. The BBQ Festival-one whole day devoted to bbq pork cooked just the right way.

5. Food Lions. Yep, I’m going to miss my Food Lion shopping experiences.

4. Bojangles. Kansas doesn’t have them. :(

3. Cheerwine, available in any store: a single can, 6-pack of bottles, 2 liter, glass bottle, 12 pack, in Slushie form, and even when made into Cheerwine Cake. ($25 just to ship some to Kansas. *sigh*)

2. The shores of the North Carolina coast. The ability to drive 4-6 hours and reach the nearest beach of my choice…Carolina Beach or OBX (North or South).

1. Small towns and the people that live in them. (aka-Tyro, Reeds, & Churchland)

Count Down to Kansas.....

Yep. It's January 2011, the year the Army sends our family to Kansas. I can't pack, I can't prepare, I can only wait. I took my husband to the airport on Sunday for a flight to his new duty station and here it is Wednesday and we have a house waiting for us later this month. The "Hurry Up & Wait" hasn't happened with this somewhat fast paced PCS and I'm unsure of how I feel about that. Normally I have time to prepare myself for things, but this is happening whether I like it or not. We have a time frame for moving and everything, even an address for the new house, I know which school my son will be attending and things to do within a 4 mile radius of our new home. (A bowling alley & a rollerskating rink-enough said.) <- check out that link! Oh & I about forgot to update you all on my 12 weeks of Wal-Mart cold turkey. Well....I made it 5 weeks before my youngest son had a vomit-fest in the back of our Jeep while visiting my husband in Va. I did get a really great deal on a long sleeve shirt & pair of pants for him. Anyway...I tried to stay away, but vomit overrides any "goal" that I've set for myself. So, I'll be mobile blogging in the next 2 weeks while traveling & settling into our new home. The next time you hear from me, I might be on my way to Kansas in our Wagon Queen Family Truckster.

(It's not metallic pea green, but it'll do.)

The South

\the 'sau'th\, noun

The place where...

Tea is sweet and accents are sweeter.

Summer starts in April.

Macaroni & Cheese is a vegetable.

Front porches are wide and words are long.

Pecan pie is a staple.

Y'all is the only proper noun.

Chicken is fried and biscuits come with gravy.

Everything is Darlin'.

Someone's heart is always being blessed

Toto...We're not going to be in NC anymore?!?!

Fear not loyal blog readers-I have not abandoned you, I just found out a few weeks ago that we will be relocating to............................KANSAS.

Yep, the "Hurry Up & Wait" is FINALLY over and we're moving to America's heartland of ruby red slippers & tornado drills. My blog posts might be few and far between in the next few months until we're all settled in. But, none the less, you will enjoy the tales of my cross country journey, the good, bad & hilarious from the east coast to the middle of America.

My feelings on the whole issue are well....how do I put this?

To put it frankly, I feel like I'm being banished to a third world country.

(You're thinking-"Seriously, she's feeling banished?!?! What the ham sandwich?") Oh, but I am! I've done my research on the area of Kansas that we will be moving to and there's NOTHING there. It's true! The closest Sam's Club is 55 miles away, 2.5 hours to the closest Whole Foods or Trader Joe's or anywhere else I do my shopping. I'm leaving behind Cheerwine (God's gift to the Carolina's, however they do ship to our new zip code), a 4 hour drive to the beaches of North or South Carolina, Southern hospitality and our family & friends.

My Mom is having a difficult time with her "baby girl" leaving (yep, I'm the youngest child), she was secretly hoping for my husband to be stationed in NC or along the east coast, but sadly we're not. We're moving 1100 miles away.

However, as in the name of the blog itself

How to Turn an Average Day Into an Adventure

that's what we are planning to do.

So, hang on and be patient, because you're going to hear tales of my family's crazy and amazing cross country adventure. But, first I'll leave you with a bit of fun from Wal-Mart.

Merry Christmas!

A Year in Status....

My favorite status of 2010-
(a prediction or God's sense of humor, you decide)

What's the deal with the tornadoes?
I don't live in Kansas!

*click on the picture, another window will pop up and enlarge the text

Sharing funny tweets that made my day!

RedHourBen Ben Stiller
RT @thesulk: I'm glad people can't see my blank stare on the other side of their hug

funnyordie Funny Or Die
Morgan Freeman's voicemail greeting must be incredible. (via @brianlaaane)

And finally a tweet from the other night-

Homemade pickled jalapenos=clear sinuses & indigestion from hell. Chugging #pepto by the bottle.

A reply from Pepto the next morning-
@nikki_rumm Check back of bottle or Pepto.com for indications, warnings & dosage directions. Plz tell us more @1-877-894-4976 (M-F, 9-6 EST)
My reply to Pepto-
@Pepto I took the recommended dosage. Thx for your concern on my tweet from last night & my health & safety. #Pepto is awesome! :D
Additional Tweet-
Loves that #pepto is concerned for their consumers health & safety on the correct dosage. :D
Reply from Pepto-
@nikki_rumm Thx for letting us know! Hope you're feeling better today! Yup, we've got you covered!

LOL Awesome huh? Yay! Pepto-Bismol!

* Pepto-Bismol @Pepto Cincinnati, OH
Pepto-Bismol® is the only leading brand of medicine that relieves five stomach problems such as heartburn, nausea, indigestion, upset stomach, and diarrhea. http://www.pepto-bismol.com/