Adios!

Leaving for San Diego for a week alone with hubby tomorrow morning. I'm trying hard to ignore that feeling in my gut of leaving the kids. Trying to focus on the bliss of no dishes, no laundry, no dirty diapers and no tantrums. ;) Pray real hard for my inlaws! :)

My Silly Monkeys and a Really good salad

I totally have camera hams. The other day as I witnessed Maressa sit down next to Micah while he was chatting with Grandma, I thought it was too cute.
Soon as I had camera in hand...

The others came in one by one. lol

These are two mischievous kids I know of...brothers.......
being boys.

And lastly, this is my favorite summertime lunch.
My favorite salad combo includes: iceberg lettuce (cold and crunchy), shredded cheese (marble mont. jack and cheddar), sunflower kernals, prepackaged oven roasted chicken slices (Hormel all natural) and raspberry vinagrette dressing. Side of juicy orange slices and whole grain bread or couple of Pepperidge Farm snack sticks.

Memorial Day = Yum!

We are having a small gathering (well small so far, but I tend to invite as I go, so depending on who I come along that doesn't have plans) Monday evening. The menu goes as follows:

*Baked 'Fried' Chicken~ I'm following all of Martha's tips for preparing the chicken except I like to smother mine in crushed potato chips and bake in oven for a bit healthier version.
*This KFC version of coleslaw from TSR site
*Spicy Western Beans~always a big hit
*This TDF salad
~Snicker Salad~
5 apples diced into bite sized chunks
5 snicker bars (yeah go ahead and eat that extra 6th one in the pack ;) , diced
1 tub whipped topping
small package of french vanilla pudding mix
Toss all ingredients together. It's funny to put this out on the buffet and then watch people take their first bite without telling them what it is....it looks just like potato salad! lol Then watch them go back for more and it disappear!

And for dessert, ice cream sundae bar!

Pictures to come!

Have a safe holiday!

Sew handy

It's times like this that it's super nice I know how to sew. Yes, it is handy when it comes time to give baby shower gifts and sew unique outfits for the girls. But I love when I can alter things to look better.
I got this simple, inexpensive outfit for Maressa this spring. Cute and comfy for our hot summers. However this girl is long and skinny. I got the top in 24 months. When I put it on her the chest was WAY too wide and the straps wouldn't stay on her shoulders. So I pleated the back of the shirt and sewed on a button to hide the pleat.

She had another set in yellow that I did the same thing. They turned out so cute and fit perfectly across the chest. .

Now I'm trying to tackle this huge pile of half done projects. Got through 2 bibs and a pair of shorts so far. Oh and performed surgery on a dog and tiger this morning.

Need a good laugh?

The bobbin winder on my ancient or should I say vintage sewing machine broke a couple of years ago. So this was my engineer husband's solution for me. Yes, I wind my bobbins on a drill bit. I want to get this some day, but have yet wanted to spend the $30 for it. Plus as soon as I get some 'free time' I will go new machine shopping. :)

Roly Poly Terrarium

Kalla has a fascination with roly polies (aka pill bug). She was collecting them one day and asked to keep them (like her friend Maria). She originally put them in a shoe box with leaves. The next morning she informed me Cutie Pie died. So, I did some googling and found this handy info. Got this little container at Walmart for around 5$. Then we went to work collecting dirt, a broad leaf weed and some roly polies.
The kids have even named them all. lol I think one is Cutie Pie II. They spend most of their time under or on the little rock we put in there. It is in a good location in the corner of the box and the kids are able to still see them under or on the side of the rock. They take turns spritzing it with water every day.

Also, we have been very busy. Last week was Z's graduation. It was very cute. As they handed them their certificate, they read a little bio on them that we filled out a few weeks ago. Z's particulars were:

Hobbies/Interests~piano, basketball, tball, riding bike, playing legos and playing with brother and sisters.

What he wants to be when he grows up~A dinosaur digger, basketball player and baseball player.

Favorite book~One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish

Favorite thing about school~playing outside and listening to the listening books.

He makes quite the handsome graduate if I do say so myself!

Then Saturday we had a early tball game, dunked him in the bath and dressed him up for piano recital at noon. He will finish his piano program this Dec. and we will all be glad!

My Girl

Kalla~ "Mom, do I look like a mom?"
Me~"Well, you look like this mom."
Jeans, tee and flip flops have become Kalla's staple just like her mom. And oh yes the big bag. The difference in that being that the stuff in her bag is actually for her. The stuff in my bag is for everyone but me (all I need is a wallet and my cell phone!) And the baby in tote 24/7.

She's even taken an interest in sewing. Not quite old enough for the machine I've started her with a little embroidery thread and needle.

She traces the outlines of the flowers on the fabric.

This 4 yr old has me totally smitten. Though she did inform me that she doesn't want to be a mom because we do too much work in the kitchen, with toy iron in hand she asked, "Mom can I have some fabric so I can make you a shirt?"

Playful Decorating

This is our playroom. So far painted and bookshelves done and pillows made. Still needs to be done: finish painting top moulding, carpet replaced, ceiling fan and brassy door knobs replaced, order new media stand (just the stand in white) and finish my wreath.
This is what I started with. This pic is from when we moved in. It's a lovely room as far as size and layout goes (just needs to be updated). The dining room overlooks it with a half wall in between. It has door out to the deck and the far door on the right is my sewing/craft room!
Here are closeups of my built ins. I painted them white and replaced all the hardware with silver. For storage and decorating I used various baskets and galvanized pails ($6 at Home Depot). I will eventually paint little squares on the pails with chalkboard paint and label them. I used a glass canister to display/house marbles. Pails store various kid games and cards.
The other side has some toys, board games and canvas storage of various building blocks.

My decorating style is very casual and clean. This room is the most 'cluttered' as it holds 90% of all the kids toys (they are in the cabinets below and the half wall I didn't show has a wooden kitchen set, kid sized upholstered rocking chair and canvas playhouse.) This is also our only tv room.

I'll take more photos when it is truely done....but it might not be til next year! lol There is still more needed to do to the rooms I started on last year: mine, kids bath and Kalla's! :)

Dangerous Cookies

I just tried this recipe off of Top Secret Recipes the other day. It's their Mrs Field's Chocolate Chip cookie recipe. Fantastic! These are so YUM!! I don't really know if they taste like Mrs. Fields or not, but they are really good! I highly recommend this recipe. I didn't do any altering myself, except I didn't have enough choc chips, so I cut up some chunks from a semi sweet baking bar. Very chocolaty!
While I'm talking about cookies, I thought I'd share my very favorite things for making cookies. Mostly the stone. I don't bake cookies on anything but. Makes for very even baking and wonderfully crisp edges. And I love my pampered chef bowl. It has measurements along the side and comes with a handle and a lid. So when I didn't have time to finish my cookies the other day I simply put the lid on and popped it in the fridge. Now I just need to get a scoop for making perfectly round cookies. :)

I Spy Bags

I just made these for a birthday party we went to this past weekend. They turned out SO cute! So I will share my how to. If you are not the crafty sort and still want one, you can find many many versions on etsy.com

You will need:
*fun printed fabric cut 9"x 9"
*solid fabric (white or light colored) cut 7"x 7" , then cut 2" square window in the center
*clear vinyl cut 3"x 3"
*doll fill beads
*printer iron on paper
*small objects, I used colored paper clips, a penny, plastic rings, miniature dice and many many different shaped pony beads...find these in the bead section of craft store (Hobby Lobby has a ton)...I got dolphins, fish, turtles, stars, hearts, bears, trains, airplanes, etc

Start with the solid fabric. Make little clip art for every item you plan to put in your bag (or you could just use words, but it's nice for the non-reading crowd to have the pics). I also included a letter bead for the letter of child's last name and added that to the clipart. I also put on the bag their name. You will have to play with this part. I kept printing my samples on regular paper and cut it out to see how to fit it on the square. Also remember if you are doing iron on paper, all words and letters must be flipped backwards to print. Once you have it like you want, iron it on to the fabric.

Next, sew your vinyl square to the back of your fabric inside the window. I found the easiest way to do this was arrange the vinyl where you want and pin it from the front of the fabric. Then I cut out a piece of tissue paper and placed it on the other side of the vinyl (the inside of the fabric where it will touch the feed plate). Then I sewed a wide, close zig zag all the way around the square window.

Next place your window piece on the wrong side of your printed fabric centering it. Fold up the printed fabric over the edge and sew along 3 sides only. Now place objects and beads in bag. Sew up the last side and you are done! ;)

My kids are wanting one for themselves so bad. They helped me make these gifts (they helped with the filling part). Even my 6 year old found it amusing and the 2 year old wouldn't give his back. lol These will make great distractions for church and car rides! I plan on making theirs soon!

It was a lovely weekend

I awoke Sun morning to the kitchen table with a beautiful bouquet and cards from my family.
And Zachary made me quite a handful of drawings through out the day. The wonderful pencil drawings of me and him, a flower and a very artsy "You Are Best." Then a lovely lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant where they handed out a rose to all the moms. All that and a wonderful husband at my service that afternoon....he asked me what I wanted him to do, so I put him to work helping me install a canopy on our deck.

Saturday, I had a yard sale. So my awesome hubby took all 4 kids to a birthday party by himself that morning at a jumpy place. Then when the kids were all napping I took my yard sale booty to Home Depot and bought plants, many wonderful plants and bushes. We've been in this house for almost 2 years now and the front 'flower bed' areas by the door have been painful to look at. Empty, but for many weeds and way over grown bushes. So when the kids woke, wonderful hubby watched/occupied/played with them nearby on the driveway while I planted all my treasures and trimmed and weeded for hours. I am so much happier with the left side now. Hubby says "I don't get it." lol Bless his engineer self. lol

Go fly a kite!

I forgot about these pics until I downloaded my camera today. This is last Friday and a delightfully windy day and I took the kids to the park...all by myself! :) We took their little kites that they got in their Easter baskets. First time they've ever flown a kite and they loved it!
Kalla got the running til it goes up thing pretty quick.
Even little Micah got a little flying action with his kite.
They had a really good time.
And Maressa was happy in the swing.

And as for today's weather, schools closed for a potential severe storm that never developed in our area.

Teacher Appreciation

Or these could be Mother's Day gifts. :) Here is a sample of what we are making the kids' teachers. This is a candy bar topiary. All you need is a styrofoam cone, dowel, styrofoam circle, terra cotta pot and candy. First put a sturdy tape over hole in bottom of pot. Then put styrofoam circle tightly in the bottom. Cut dowel to size with small hack saw. Push one end of dowel into bottom of pot and circle, other end in cone. Then hot glue mini candy bars to cone til covered. Put more (I used hershey kisses) in the pot to cover circle. Tie pretty ribbon and attach note "Thanks for being so sweet!" This is a fun project that the kids can help with.

Another cute gift is a pot with flower pens. My mom made this one for me years ago.

I've made these before for friends' gifts and they are super easy and would be great for teachers and moms too. I still use my flower pens and you know what, I've not lost a single one. We always know where they go back (plus hubby would never use them and they would never get 'accidentally' pocketed! ;) Years later only one pen has died. Anyway here's how to make:

Need~pot, black dry beans, floral tape, silk flowers, pkg of inexpensive pens and wire cutters (or scissors you don't mind cutting wire with). Tape hole in pot and fill 1/2 or 3/4 with beans. Remove caps from pens and discard. Cut flowers til only 3-4 inches of wire stem is left. Hold wire to pen with flower touching top of pen and use flower tape to hold it on. wind tape all the way down the pen til entire pen is covered. And your done. Stick pens, point down in pot. Fill with 5-6 flower pens for a bouquet. Large flowers work best for this project.

And one last flower pot project idea. I did this one last year.

These pots I spray painted white and then I let the kids paint them. Then I traced their hands on cardstock and wrote the words 'you are the best teacher hands down.' Then let the kids sign the hands too. We glued the hands to popsicle sticks and stuck them in a baggie of M&M's inside the pot.

Running in Circles

These days I feel like I'm running in circles. I get like this every now and again. Where I have SO many things I want to do and so many things I have to do. I get so overwhelmed that I am easily distracted and half start a dozen things and end up most of the time surfing the net trying to ignore that anxiety lurking within.
I make all these lists and before I start even crossing stuff off, there are five more things added. Right now on my project list is: finish painting the trim in the playroom, finish wreath for playroom, finish painting my bedroom, Kalla's room and stuff in the kid's bathroom. Then there is finishing K a dress and about 5 pairs of shorts, Maressa a dress and some bloomer/top sets. But those things keep getting put off as I have yet another baby shower to make stuff for and a bunch of birthdays coming up. Plus teacher appreciation, mother's day and having a yard sale this weekend.
And alas, all that must be squeezed in between cleaning. I love our bigger house and our four small children, but my goodness! The cleaning that must go on just to keep the kitchen from getting creepy and the bathrooms from turning brown!

I wish I could be just like a dandelion one day and just hang out til a nice breeze comes along to do all the work for me.

Pancakes and Pillows

This here is a mighty tasty pancake 'sandwich' I came up with. I've been really trying to get healthier breakfast options for the kids. For years we've done the frozen waffles, mini pancakes and french toast sticks and I've never really felt very good about it. I found whole wheat organic waffles in the freezer section one day and I bought a bunch. But K quickly decided she didn't like the 'brown' waffles and only will eat the yellow ones. Later I stumbled across Aunt Jemima's whole wheat pancake mix and tried to make a go of it. I made the kids chocolate chip pancakes with it. I figured that a few choc chips in the whole wheat pancake is still far healthier than 'yellow' pancakes slathered in butter and syrup. The whole sandwich idea was for my own set. I wanted to add something to the heavy, bit dry whole wheat and was looking for other options than syrup. Then the other day while trying to figure out how to get a little more protein in the morning decided to add yogurt to it. In this picture it's Horizon's organic strawberry between the pancakes. It is very yummy! So that's how we eat pancakes these days. Stacked with a dollop of yogurt in between and a big glass of milk. Mmmm mmmm!


And here are some pillows I whipped up the other day for the playroom sofa. The kids have been informed that these are 'mommy's' pillows and not to be jumped on, thrown or smashed. lol
These are their pillows. I made these floor pillows years ago when I barely could sew. The white ones actually...the denim I bought for my bed when I lived alone in an apt. The floor pillows are super easy to make and super durable. I simply bought a big canvas that painters use to cover the floor at the hardware store. It's nice and thick and durable. Cut out big squares and I used masking tape and acrylic paint to make the lines on them. Sewed it up and added stuffing. These they are allowed to lay on, stomp on, etc. In this pic you can see the new color for the playroom...and the hideous mauve carpet. That is the next thing I'm saving for to be replaced. I'm thinking a nice camel colored berber.
And it took all of 2.5 seconds when K woke from her nap to adopt her 'favorite pillow' of the new stash and made into a bed for her baby...fine by me as long as baby doesn't stomp on it or throw it on the floor. ;)