It's been hard to come up with a good blog post lately.  I don't have a cool new home improvement project or home decor idea to share.  I really don't cook or bake a lot right now, as it's hard to get used to someone else's kitchen.  All I can really do right now is tell you about how we're still living with my parents, and we're still searching for a house of our own.  Searching, but not finding.

So when I came across this recipe for Gooey Butter Cake on Pinterst, I decided to get back in the kitchen and bake.  St. Louis is famous for Gooey Butter Cake, and I've always loved sampling it when we're out so I was super excited to try it out for myself.

What You'll Need:

• 1 package of yellow cake mix
• 3 eggs
• 8 tablespoons melted butter
• 8 oz package of softened cream cheese
• 16 oz powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla

What You'll Do:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine the cake mix, 1 egg, and butter and mix with an electric mixer until mixed well.
Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan.
In another large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth.  Add 2 eggs and vanilla and beat together.  Add the powdered sugar and mix well.
Spread batter over cake batter in pan and bake for 40 minutes.
Don't over bake!  The center should be very gooey.

If you had told me at any point in my life that at the age of 32, I'd be living with my parents along with my husband, two-year-old daughter, and two dogs, I would have said there was no way.  But, here we are.  It has been an adjustment to say the least.  You can imagine how the combining of two households (who each do things differently) could be challenging.

Example:  As I'm trying to sneak a snack in the pantry closet, my dad walks by and says "Oh!  Eating a candy bar?!"  Then I hear "Candy?!" followed by little running footsteps.  

Even more challenging is finding a place for all of our stuff on top of what my parents already have.  I feel bad that their brand new house is completely taken over.  For example, there's a castle in the dining room.

While Jason and I didn't have a huge bedroom at our old house, it was a decent size so fitting all of our clothes and things into an average size "guest" bedroom has been fun.  At one point during the unpacking process we finally just said screw it and left everything piled in boxes, shoving them into the corners of the room.


I now share a closet with Katherine, which isn't so bad since she doesn't have many hang up clothes, as long as I don't mind stepping on tiny toys while getting dressed.  Katherine loves her new room and most of her stuff fits into her bigger-than-she-had room.



One challenge has been finding a place to work on blog and etsy stuff.  I'm currently working in an "as-is/where-is" state.

Speaking of "where-is," we've enjoyed playing the daily game of "where is the _____?"  The item in question is either a) in a box somewhere in my parents' house or b) in a box somewhere in the storage unit.  If it turns out that the item is in the storage unit, then it's time to either a) cut your losses and forget about the item or b) go out and buy the item new at the store.  Case in point, Jason couldn't find his hair clippers.  After looking "everywhere," he determined that his hair clippers must have ended up in the storage unit.  After buying new clippers, he found his old clippers tucked neatly under the bathroom sink.  An obvious place to put them.

The house hunt has been steadily disappointing.  We've scoured the web and actually gone to several showings with no luck so far.  I'm not sure what some people are thinking when they list their houses for sale.  One should at least remove the kitty litter from the floor and dishes from the sink before posting photos online.  No one wants to look at your house to buy it if it looks like it smells like old food and cat feces.  Also, if you're taking photos for your home listing, make sure Cousin Lanny isn't sitting on the couch munching on a sandwich at the ol' TV tray.  No one wants to see a man eating in your listing photo.  One last thing: You may love the idea of lime green walls and blue marble floors, but others may not.  Price your home accordingly or invest in a new home decor palette.  I can't.

Thanks for letting me rant and vent on this fine day.  Now there's some Inside Out bedding in the laundry room calling my name thanks to a certain two-year-old who won't use the potty.

I always jokingly said that the movie Post Grad was my life story, but it's becoming a little more true every day.

I got brave a few months ago and cut my hair.  I maintained that length for a while, but this past week I cut it a little shorter.  While I liked having longer hair, the change has been exactly what I needed.  I've been looking for some products to make my hair look like "Pinterest Hair," and I think I've found a few new bottles to add to my hair care collection.  

I got a couple of gift cards from Beauty Brands for Christmas, and it was literally the perfect gift because I love this store.  So with my new haircut, I decided to try to some products.
amika Touchable Hairspray - While I've been a loyal Big Sexy hairspray customer for years and years, I love this hairspray from amika because it's not as heavy as Big Sexy and is great to use if you want some movement with a flexible hold.  I've become a huge fan of amika products lately, continually using their dry shampoo, texture spray, and straightening balm.  

Moroccanoil Shampoo and Conditioner - I don't usually do the "expensive shampoo" thing because, after all, it's just soap for your hair.  However, I've learned over the years that the better the shampoo, the better your hair looks and feels after washing it.  I had heard great things about the Moroccanoil line and decided to try out a shampoo and conditioner in the travel size (because who wants to try a bottle of shampoo at $28 a pop).  After using the shampoo and conditioner my hair has felt great, and hasn't had any "winter frizz."  I'll probably invest in the regular size bottles soon.

With no new house on the horizon yet, it's nice to have a change.  Even if it is just my hair.  Look for my perfect Pinterest hair coming to a pin near you soon!

.....but it did rise.  The creek, I mean.  It rose a lot.  But I digress.

It's not unusual to be completely out of sorts over the Christmas holiday, but this year was much more stressful than usual.  I feel like I've been wandering aimlessly through life for the past week, and although Jason has been on "vacation" for the past two weeks, it's been anything but relaxing.

We had a lovely and enjoyable last Christmas in our house, followed by a very long and soggy move.  We moved out of our house the two days after Christmas during what was described as the worst flooding/rain St. Louis had seen in decades.  So that was awesome.  We spent multiple days moving soggy items into our storage unit and my parents' house.



My parents live off of a major creek that flooded so bad that the main roads in and around their neighborhood were completely covered with multiple feet of water, leaving them impassible.  Thank the good Lord that there was a back way out of their neighborhood (that is usually gated), making it possible to actually get in and out of their neighborhood.  Otherwise, we would have literally been up a creek.    

But even though it was hard to imagine during the floods, we did get our house emptied and cleaned out.  It was very surreal to see our empty home.  It was the first house we ever owned and it was where we brought Katherine home from the hospital.  I probably would've been more sad than I was if it weren't for my extreme exhaustion that made me numb to those last couple of days before we officially closed on our house.



The day after we signed away our house was New Year's Eve.  There honestly wasn't a single part of me that wanted to go out and enjoy a typical New Year's Eve.  In fact, we barely made it to midnight.
Three nights after that, Jason surprised me with Wicked tickets and a much needed date night.



As for our new living situation, you could say it has been interesting.  I haven't lived with my parents in over a decade, so it's been tempting to revert back to my old teenage self with attitude and frustration.  I'm resisting so far.  The most challenging part of this transition is learning to use my parents' overly techy appliances.
"When the oven beeps once, you have one minute left on the timer."  
"When the refrigerator alarm goes off, you've left the door open too long."  
"When the washing machine plays 'Dixie' your laundry is done." 

Overall we are adjusting to our new living arrangement, and we're grateful that we have a place to stay until we find a house.

Here's to hoping we find a house soon, Lord willing and the creek don't rise.  Again.