Outside...

It has been raining like crazy around here all week. Last week, before the torrential rain, the kids and I got outside to experience nature in all its sunny, dry glory! I had forgot about these photos until I saw Jeff's blog (http://www.inmyeyyes.blogspot.com) today.

Allison's 3rd Birthday

I have been immobile due to a lower back injury/muscle spasm thingy. Thankfully, after two trips to the chiropractor and 1 trip to the Doctor, I am now moving again! Tuesday was Allison's 3rd Birthday. We celebrated the weekend before last since this past weekend was super busy around here! Although it has almost been 2 weeks since we celebrated, due to my bad back, I am just now getting around to posting a few photos from her party. I want to thank Grandma, Grandpa, Papa, Aunt Anne & Uncle Greg, and Bob, Carolyn and Levi for joining us to help Allison celebrate!

Carnival Night

Tonight was the school carnival. The kiddos were VERY excited all day. We helped set up this afternoon for a couple of hours after lunch and both Ryan and Allie had the chance to scope things out and decide what games and prizes would be the best.


There were many things in town going on tonight including a speech by Bill Mills a former Olympic champion who Ryan got to meet tonight (Mr. Mills was super nice and posed for a photo with Ryan - I'll post that Saturday and even let Ryan wear his National Champion Ring ~ You can see it on Ryan's finger in the photo), but we were able to make it to the carnival at Ryan's school for a short period. Long enough for Allie and Jeff to win a cake at the cake walk. She is very proud of her cake and excited to eat it on Saturday. She talked about her cake and the cake walk several times during the evening and probably would have ate some cake tonight if she hadn't fallen asleep in the on the way home. Her cake has oreo cookies and cherries on the top. She informed me that the cookies are all hers.

Ryan enjoyed the hoop shoot game and did very well winning several prizes. He came away from the hoop shoot with a big inflatable basketball and a baseball as well as a big inflatable hammer.

A few trips to the duck pond and the fishing game and the country store and we had spent our tickets within a quick 30 minutes. The gym was hot and crowded so we left after the 30 minutes, grabbed our supper at the McDonald's and headed to the baseball fields for the night
game.

The game wasn't all that great for our team, but the kids (especially Allie) enjoyed trailing after a stray, but friendly dog who had apparently been hanging out on campus all week and being taken care of by different college kids. The dog was beautiful, dirty and HUGE! He appeared to be a mix of St. Bernard and something else. He was the sweetest thing! Allie nicknamed him frisky but he really was very mellow. One baseball mom from our team fed the dog the chicken she had made her son for supper. We tried to convince Jeff to let us take the big friendly guy home, but he said "no" and wouldn't budge!

When we left the baseball fields at 9:30 the big ol' dog was laying up in the bleachers enjoying the cool breeze while the baseball team finished up the work on the field.

P.S. The photo of Ryan with Mr. Mills is the ONLY photo I snapped tonight because my camera battery died right after that. When we got to the carnival I realized the batteries were dead and so there are no videos or photos from the carnival :(

2 IMPORTANT lessons learned today :)

Today I learned 2 important lessons.

1.) When using a latex enamel paint, you SHOULD NOT touch the brush/roller/paint bucket and try to scrub it out with water. This just WON'T WORK!!!! You will just end up with a very messy paint covered hand.

I learned this the hard way.

After a few moments of panic and some very nice comments from the kiddos (Apparently a hand COVERED in black paint doesn't look like a "mommy hand" to my kiddos. Instead it looks like a monster hand)

I finally got smart and read the back of the can. Well, let me tell you, the acetone and mineral spirits the can recommended, don't quite do the trick when your hand is plastered with paint.

The chemicals did manage to make me dizzy and clean my hands well enough to let me make a margarita (just kidding about that part I was already dizzy enough without the drink) then run to the computer and google another remedy. For those who are wondering, use olive oil and salt. Make a paste and rub it on your hands. Then rinse with hot water and dish soap. Not completely perfect, but did a good job to get most of it off and it was the nearest thing to a spa treatment that I have had for a while!

LESSON #1 ~ learned to day. Now on to Lesson #2.....

2.) DO NOT leave your children with your cell phone unattended! I was mowing the front lawn today while the kids were playing outside. My cell phone was in the garage on a table (next to the lovely cabinet I was painting before I messed up my hands with paint.). My phone rang and Ryan brought it out to me.

After I was done, I asked him to please "put the phone where it wouldn't get lost". Well, the pant's pocket of a five year old is not a place where the cell phone "won't get lost". I did notice Allie using the phone while she was driving her power wheels jeep. I saw Ryan holding the phone once in a while. I briefly wondered exactly who they were chatting with and hoped it wasn't 911!

When I was finished on the mower, I asked Allie (the person I saw with the phone last) where the phone was. She shrugged her shoulders and told me she didn't know. "I losted it" was the exact phrase in response to my question. After a massive search of the yard, the cell phone did reappear.

It was in the first place I should have looked and the exact same place I store my phone when I'm not using it ~ in the front compartment of the jeep under the hood.

In case you are wondering, they didn't call 911, but judging by the assorted numbers listed on the dialed calls part of the phone, I think they may have been having some interesting conversations with people in China!

Make a wrong turn and....

Last night, we tucked Allison and Ryan each in their own beds. In the middle of the night I went to peek at them and just check in. I started in Allison's room and was shocked to find Ryan squeezed into her twin bed snuggled next to her. I guess he was sleep walking and made a wrong turn when he left his room. He ended up crawling into bed with Allie and just snuggling in!

The Easter Egg wrestling match!!!

A simple request to pose with their bowl of colorful Easter Eggs makes two tired kiddos crazy and starts a wrestling match! The black eye on Ryan is NOT from his sister. It was a baseball that popped up and got him in the eye as he was bending down to scoop it up!

Easter Eggs.....

Two tired kiddos. Easter egg dye. A bowl of colorful and cracked eggs. Kids wrestling and fighting on the floor. Easter was fast approaching!

Golfing...

Saturday was such a beautiful day! After our Easter egg hunt and lunch, the guys wondered out onto the golf course to play just a couple of quick holes before heading off to catch a baseball game. Jeff made such a great Caddy for Ryan while he warmed up and got a few swings in to prepare for the nice weather that is ahead!

Beautiful Girl

I have to give a special thanks to Daddy & Grammy for getting Allie dressed like a princess twice this weekend! I know it wasn't always an easy chore, since Miss Allie can be stubborn and has a mind of her own sometimes, but she looked beautiful on both Saturday and Sunday!

I am very blessed to have both a healthy boy and a girl. Miss Allie is still my baby and I adore her even on the days she is a little challenging!

Ryan is a daddy's boy. A man's man who at times (usually when he is tired) can be a snuggly momma's boy. I am amazed at his caring heart and his athletic interest and ability. I love to observe the love and friendship he has with my parents and the speical bond he has with his daddy. The moments he shares his feelings and cuddles on my lap are not as frequent now that he is growning into a big boy, but that makes them extra special and I love it!

Miss Allie is a different story! She is momma's girl all the way!!!! Although it can be a chore keeping her in line, she has me (and grammy, daddy, grandpa, etc) amazed by her and wrapped around her little finger! :) Her little girl mannerisims. Her love of babies barbies, make up and hair. The way she tries to take after me! My little girl is going to be 3 soon and I can't believe it!

Time is moving too quickly and my babies are growing too fast.

Easter Weekend Part 1

Once again the weekend with Grandma & Grandpa visiting has gone too fast! It was a busy weekend with a great Easter Egg hunt on Saturday morning at the Country Club followed by lunch and a little golf for the boys then a baseball game in the afternoon.

We were sooo busy we barely had time to squeeze in egg dying with tired kiddos on Saturday evening.

Are they here yet?

Time can go soooo slow when you are 2 or 5 and waiting for your Grandparents to arrive!

The kids were playing outside yesterday while waiting for Grandma and Grandpa to arrive.

Easter Treats

Ryan's last day of school before Easter is on Wednesday. I realized this at about 3 p.m. today. I had been planning to make some Easter treats to send to school. Soooo, this evening I whipped up some bird nests' and some Easter Smores to send for the class and teachers.

The bird nests are made with Total All Bran cereal. I have seen these done with Rice Crispies and things. I suppose the Rice Crispies would taste better, but the All bran is healthier (even when covered in sticky marshmellow) and looks more authentic. The eggs are cadbury eggs ~ YUM!

We are so Lucky! Grandma and Grandpa are visiting us almost every weekend in April! The visit this past weekend was waaay too short, but we are counting down to Friday when they are sheduled to arrive again!


This is a shot of the boys in the guest room watching the Final Four :)

My Favorite thing...

I am wishing for a cricuit cutter thingy. But, since Christmas is many, many months away and the triple digit price tag isn't in the budget right now, I purchased the Martha Stewart circle cutter to fulfill some cutting needs. I tried it for the first time the other day and.... LOVE it!!!! The circles were perfect and super easy to cut! The heart was a left over from another project (will post some images of that project soon ~ it is a banner that goes with Miss Allie's new room redo!).

The room looks bigger...

I am painting Allie's Room an nice beige color (the same carmel color we have in the rest of the house). Previously it had been that wonderful 2 color (my past obsession ~ Wallpaper in the middle with two different colors on top and bottom halves of the wall) with border. Looking at the almost finished room which is now one color, I commented to Jeff that it made the room look bigger. Jeff kind of snorted in that stupid man way and stated that the room was still the same size! I realize that, but there is a illusion of a larger room when it is all one neutral color! I guess you just can't see that if you are a male.

I don't wanna be 3...

Last night I was talking about Allie's upcoming birthday before her bedtime. The past few days she has been excited about her approaching party, but when we talked about it at bedtime yesterday, she started to cry. She held up 2 fingers and told me "I don't wanna be 3 (free as she says it), I wanna be this many. When I asked her why, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "Cause I don't wanna go to preschool I scared. Big kids might run me over."

I melted right there and then caved and let her little almost free year old bottom sleep in my bed with me last night since she was feeling "scared to be free". Jeff was kicked to the guest room to make room for my squirmy almost 3 girl ~ amazing how much room such a little body can require!

"I shall Call him "squishy"

Unfortunately for the caterpillars in our area, Allie has gotten over her fear of touching and picking them up. The other day when she found one she had to hold it while it was resting on the stick and became hysterical when it crawled onto her hand.

Now, since daddy showed her they were harmless, she is picking them up and collecting them like crazy!

Today she was carrying one of her "friends" (as she calls them) around in her hand. The poor bug was pinched between her forefinger and thumb. She kept giggling exclaiming that it was wiggling its head! A few minutes later, while still carrying it around, she announced that she wanted to name her new caterpillar "squishy".

I didn't ask why she selected the name squishy for her new caterpillar but, for some reason, I don't think squishy is going to survive for long hanging out with Allie.

Sharing a chair

We have lots of seating in the living room but today these two decided to be friendly and share a chair while watching TV together.I just love the little feet together in the chair! Allie was eating pizza while sitting with Ryan. Ryan eventually didn't like her messy face and hands next to him.

Messy Glitter Masks

We broke out the glitter on this rainy day to decorate some plastic masks I had stored away. My mask is on the bottom with the black feathers. Ryan's mask has the blue feathers and lots of stars and Allie's mask has the pink feathers.

And Now...See post below for the before shot of these babies!

We have this.... In my normal ADD style, I ordered these during a burst of ambition last Fall. They sat in my laundry area unplanted for a month or more until my poor hubby took pity on them and stuck them in the ground one afternoon. They are not in a straight row, we aren't really sure what their exact color is and we really have no idea what to do to care for them now that they actually bloomed and we have no "real" landscape plan as we go along with these things. But, we will enjoy them while they last!

It worked!!!

Yeah! We may have a green thumb after all! We started with this last Fall....(please note the cute photoshop hand I took the time to add as a visual aide to help you to see the Flower Bulb in those little hands) :)Mr. Ryan had his Football Eye Black on that day to prevent the glare off the soil while doing his gardening. Doesn't he look tough! :)

Heeelloooo Spring!

I am not allowed to have a Mastercard anymore - You know ~ some problem with my loooove of shopping and lack of "charge it" restraint :)

But this would be my Mastercard commercial. Yesterday outside we saw noted some signs of Spring! Enjoy.

• Fashionably late supper with kids that have dirty faces and clothes. $10+++
• More floor cleaner to remove the footprints on my clean floor from kids tracking in dirt after playing outside - $5.00 +++
• The return of our friends the small, black ants that always appear for a few days during the rainy spring months (I will be calling and pestering the exterminator more times than I do my husband over the next few days trying to get rid of these little pests!). - $50 ++
  
• More stain remover for grass stains that will soon be appearing on the knees of little kid pants - $5.00 +++
  
• Sign up from Summer Baseball - $20.00 +++
  
• Gas for the Mower and Beer for My Hubby who is out in the hot sun $30.00+++

Watching spring reappear and my kids enjoy nature again - Priceless

Yesterday outside we saw noted some signs of Spring! Enjoy!
Look how cute these hands look holding those sticks with bugs on them! Miss Allie went hysterical when these little buggy guys (as she called them) crawled off the sticks and onto her! Even when big brother picked them off her and saved her she still wouldn't touch them! It was sooo cute! :)

More mattress diving

OH! I forgot to mention that Big Buster got a new doggie pillow stitched and stuffed by the kiddos and I. When I remember to take photos I will post pics of the Cute dog fabric and dog bone/treat fabric we used on the pillow. This pillow is HUUUGE and stuffed like crazy (thanks to help from my two kiddos)! The dog has yet to warm up to the pillow. I think the big, hairy, spoiled guy likes the couch or the "guest" bed (sorry Grandma and Grandpa ~ you may have to share the guest bed with Buster when you visit) and feels that these are better places for him!

The kids loved seeing pictures of themselves in their air and so above are more photos of the kids practicing their skills :)

New Mattress = Fun with Old Mattress

Last weekend EVERYONE in the house (even the dog) got new mattresses and box springs! I was sooo excited (now to just convince the kiddos to remain in their own beds for the ENTIRE night ~Somehow one or the other eventually winds up down in our bed before the night is over). The kids went from an ancient double (Ryan) and a few year old cheap queen (Allie) bed to brand spankin' new twin beds in cuuuute headboard/footboard combos that are HIGH off the ground!

We kept the queen for the guest room turned play room that is now going back to a guest room and are planning to haul the old double bed mattress and box spring off to the dump. The weather was turning nasty last Friday, so we placed the double bed box spring in the garage to await its trip to the dump.

Jeff being the thinker that he is, knew that it was going to be one of those stuck-inside-with -nothing-to-do type of weekends, so he suggested we keep the double bed mattress part inside and let the kids jump all over it on the living room floor.

That is just what we did and they had a BLAST!! above are some photos of them jumping and diving onto the mattress to catch a football.