Sunday, November 30, 2008

7 days to PARTY!

Friday morning began and so did Christmas transformation! This is the 7th year that we will host Joe's work Christmas party. Because I've done this before I think... no big deal. And then I get out my lists and look at all of the decorating to be done and I think AAAAAAAGH! How will I ever accomplish all of this?!?!?!?!?!

Boxes to be unpacked.
Joe brings home the tree.
2 trips to Fred Meyer and 6 strands of lights later the tree is lit.
Baby girl helps.
Phinneous helps.
Pepe helps.
It's finished... well, almost. I ran out of ornament hooks and my skinny red garland isn't quite long enough... back to Fred's.
Ah... it really is 9 1/2' tall... Joe is 6'5"... it's a tall tree (and it was a steal... $35)

Friday, November 28, 2008

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Not so Thankful for this feast.

Baby girl was a bit overwhelmed at her Thanksgiving Feast. This is year 3 at this feast... you'd think she would be a pro by now... that is not the case. We have a case of too many people, too many cameras and aaaaagh!

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

A look into me...

I was tagged by this from a mom from my son's soccer team... I'll try my best.

TYPE ONLY 1 WORD. IT'S HARDER THAN YOU THINK!!!
1. Where is your cell phone? counter
2. Your significant other? Joe
3. Your hair? ponytail
4. Your mother? home
5. Your favorite thing? camera
6. Your dream last night? none
7. Your favorite drink? coffee
8. Your dream/goal? masters
9. The room you're in? green room
10. Your fear? safety
11. Where do you want to be in 6 years? teaching
12. Where were you last night? basketball
13. What you're not? discouraged
14. Muffins? pumpkin
15. One of your wish list items? camcorder
16. Where you grew up? Vancouver
17. The last thing you did? pour
18. What are you wearing? pjs
19. Your TV? on
20. Your pet? loud
21. Your computer? necessary
22. Your life? terrific
23. Your mood? happy
24. Missing someone? yes
25. Your car? dirty
26. Something you're not wearing? ring
27. Favorite Store? Target
28. Your summer? memories
29. Your favorite color? orange
30. When is the last time you laughed? yesterday
31. Last time you cried? Saturday
32. Who will/would re-post this? ????

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

They found it...

The children found my hiding place... you know, the place where you stash the gift to be opened for that holiday. I thought that I was so clever. Apparently, I'm not. So, what do you do when your kids come to you and ask about the box behind the bar with those three little initials that they've been wanting for a year? You LIE. Yes, that's what I said, without blinking or batting an eye... you LIE! And then they run off, skeptical, but content. Your heart rate goes up... way up and you think well, at least it's a gift from us and I know that they will love it. Do you think they may forget about it? Yeah, that's what I thought. Wishful thinking.

Monday, November 24, 2008

Paint Day!

This week, the big guy, is home from work. While the kids and I still have 2 days of school this week, he will paint the kitchen and family room... which will then complete the kitchen remodel (well, except the three new lights I want ).

Here are the colors: From barn red and straw yellow (not pictured) to Macadamia Nut and Latte. The kitchen will be Macadamia Nut. The family room has a chair rail... the top half was straw yellow, but will now be continued with the Macadamia nut. The bottom half will be latte. So excited!



Sunday, November 23, 2008

Staying Motivated

Do you ever have those moments when you look around and think, "WHAT happened?" Friday was my day to accomplish the "get it put away" tasks. What I thought would take forever, really wasn't too bad.

Laundry: 1st place - 30 minutes


Kid Dining Room table: 2nd Place - 5 minutes

Other accomplishments of the day:
  • snuggle time with baby girl (very important),
  • Costco,
  • fill-up with gas,
  • book store (birthday shopping),
  • groceries put away,
  • uniforms found (swim team, 2 basketball),
  • snack bags packed.
It was busy, but I had a plan and it all happened, relatively smoothly.

Friday, November 21, 2008

Random Musings

1. Velma... this is for you... in sympathy.


2. Why is my house always a disaster... we're talking tornado level... when someone stops by that has NEVER been here before? It was bad... really bad. I guess I'll be cleaning today.

3. Children... I tell baby girl that I will be out raking leaves while she watches her afternoon show. I finish and take the recycle bins to the curb and my neighbor stops me and says something to the effect that baby girl is at his house. WHAT?!?!?!? She came out looking for you and said you were gone so she's inside watching Tom and Jerry. WHAT!?!?!?!? I apologize profusely to my neighbor and reply, "As you can see, I've been in the backyard raking leaves." We start to laugh... this is so baby girl. You need to understand that my family room has 4 huge windows (we're talking floor to ceiling) and a double slider door. That is 5 opportunities too look out and see me in our 4 feet (not 40 acres, not 40 feet) but 4 feet of yard. So, I head over to collect her (my neighbors are awesome... retired grandma and grandpa... I have no problem with her being there, but I was HOME and in VIEW) and I see baby girl in the recliner, wrapped in a huge white fur blanket watching Tom and Jerry with a glass of juice. Oh, my... we all chuckled over this stunt.

4. End of year soccer party... I am the Soccer Mom... therefore it has been my responsibility to purchase gifts for players (dog tags... slightly disappointed, but cute), gift for coaches, reserve a location, etc. Finally secured a location on Monday... very cool... The Rock Pizza... ever been... everyone loved it. Dog tags purchased and arrived weeks ago. Pepe and I create a photo poster for each boy from Costco.com at the beginning of the week.

Thursday... big celebration day.
1. Kids off of bus, get snack

2. Head to Costco to pickup posters as well as cake that dear friend ordered. On the way to Costco call dear friend realizing that we do not have a way to cut cake... she will bring such item. Whew... disaster avoided.

3. Pick up items at Costco... have not yet had time to purchase coach gift certificates... no problem we'll get them at Costco. Amazingly, Costco does not have what I want. Stunning, I know.

4. Next to Pizza place is Fred Meyer... we'll get gift cards there... Go in with three kids in the rain, see gift card station... pathetic assortment... Aaaagh! Cruise through store, find big assortment... 2 gift cards to PF Chengs... Yum... Disaster avoided.

5. Back out in the rain, across the parking lot into pizza place. It is 5:15... "your upstairs area will not be ready until 5:30"... no problem at least we get the upstairs area... slight panic with 9 8-yr-old boys to entertain for 15 minutes (plus siblings), but the pizza place is smart... sees many children and gets us upstairs quickly... disaster avoided.

6. Everyone arrives, begins to order... I'm settling down... this is going to be great and then I realize what I've done... I begin to giggle and sink into my booth... I FORGOT the boys dog tags at HOME! All I can do is giggle... and then explain what I've done... Uh, hello... isn't that the whole point in the end of year celebration... to give the boys' their gifts. DISASTER!

7. At least they get a poster... dog tags to arrive soon.

Whew... have a great weekend.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Tag... How fun and RANDOM is this...

I HAVE BEEN TAGGED
This is what you have to do.......
1. Go to your pictures
2. Upload the 4th picture of the 4th folder
3. Post it
4. Tag 4 of my friends




If you are reading this....you're tagged! This was a lot of fun... Daddy and Baby Girl celebrating their birthdays together... Cupcakes for baby girl and Rum Cake for Daddy!

Sharing Time

I've started following this blog. She has a darling give-away happening right now and great simple ideas and advice for life with kids, crafts, books, etc. Check it out.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Black and White November - Basketball


The hubby is helping out with the basketball team. Since the kids didn't want their pictures converted to black and white... I've converted the Assistant Coach (when he has time) :)

A little basketball

Phinneous...
Pepe...

and so the season begins!

Monday, November 17, 2008

In the Patch in Black and White

Proudly, I put away the remains of the kitchen remodel... the table in the living room is gone! Of course, that means it's time to do a little redecorating. I committed to myself, from our Living Simply book group this week, that the living room would transform to my quiet space. My space for reading, studying, being. The space is beautiful and, sadly, never used.

I am a visual person and have learned that I am a very kinesthetic learner, therefore, I need a visual... something to inspire me.

Aagh, beauty. Three things that make me happy; a picture of the boys very little in the Tulip Garden, the pitcher purchased on vacation in WI and carried home on the airplane and my inspirational pumpkin. It looks wonderful... I took this picture for my month of Black and White photos... as I look at it I see all of the little details... but something is missing...

... warmth. I need warmth and color in my life. My kids, my busy, my commitments... my walks with my son, a snuggle and a movie with baby girl, a basketball game with the other son, the hustle and bustle. I need the warmth of my life.

What warms you? What inspires you. This will serve as my inspiration during this season of my life.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Tagged!

I've been tagged by my friend Sarah.

Rules:
1) Post the rules on your blog
2) Write 6 random things about yourself
3) Tag 6 other people at the end of your post

Here are six things that I have accomplished over the weekend:

1. Updating the entrance to our home...

2. Did you want to know how much it rained this week? Here is how I found my outdoor candle. I spent time tidying up the back porch... grill cover on, plants winterized (I put them in a corner... don't think I've gone crazy or anything.)

3. Proud to call him my son... playing his last regular season game... one more weekend with an all-day jamboree to go.

4. Admiring the beauty and creativity of this baby girl.

5. The first of many basketball games with Pepe... he was practicing his "guarding" on a team player before the game.

6. Thrilled at the accomplishment of Phinneous to be recognized for "RESPECT" in his classroom. Doesn't that just warm your heart... every mom's happy day... respect. We had lunch with the principal. One child from each class is chosen each month... I looked around the room and the three first graders that were chosen were all friends. An awesome moment to see great friendships being made with great friends. Let's be honest... Phinneous was happy to sit there and eat his double beef cheesburger from Burger King but, as soon as he heard the bell to go to recess it was all he could do to not bolt. As soon as he was given his certificate he was "outta there".


I tag Karmyn and Deena. I don't have any other freinds with blogs (you know who you are), however, if you would like to particpate, PLEASE do!

Friday, November 14, 2008

Ping- pong Mommy

Yesterday was one of those days that just makes you feel like you're in a game... a game of ping pong.

Drop off kids A & B,
tidy house,
drop off kid C,
stop at store,
head to school,
set up class,
back to child B's school for Principal lunch (black and white photo to be added),
back to own classroom to teach,
tidy classroom for weekend,
pick up child C,
change clothes,
scoop backyard,
fill recycle container with leaves,
kids A&B off of the bus,
soccer practice,
dinner,
EXHAUSTED!

With my need to simplify, today did not feel very simple, however, I wouldn't change anything. As I thought about it last night I kept coming back to a statement made in our book group class... make it your simple. My simple will not be your simple. So as much as a felt like a ping pong ball, that is my life. I live my life to teach my kids to be great humans. Lunches with principals will throw a wrench into the day, but a very important wrench. Soccer practice at night is a need my son has to be active. Other activities; scooping, raking, errands, etc are just a 'must do'.

So, where do I find my simple. My simple is the little things that make me smile; a cleaned out toy closet, the 'process' of unloading my dishwasher, starting the coffee pot and moving the laundry in one fell swoop. It's getting rid of the excess 'things' in my life, not the extra 'doing' in my life.

What is your simple? I'm sure that it's not my simple. Learn from each other, but be yourself.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Playing with my Nikon D40

When you get a new camera, you must play with it. So, I've switched my settings to black and white for the November Black and White photos (see earlier post). Before I was changing the colors after taking the pictures, now I'm taking the pictures in black and white.




Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Facebook

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't so sure about facebook. I started "doing it" to stay in touch with my young sisters who are away at school... that's how you communicate with young sisters... that and texting (which takes forever, by the way). So, within the last couple of days, I have found some old high school friends and I'm loving it. I still prefer to have "conversations" via email or, even better, phone... but for a quick "how ya' doing girlfriend" message, I'll take facebook.

Have you found anyone interesting lately?

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Self Portrait


These are my eyes... tired from reading, sore from typing, but happy with life!

Monday, November 10, 2008

Time for a trip to Macy's?!??!?!


The list is very sweet and simple. That's our Phinneous.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Can you say...

Happy Girl?!?!
After a lovely Saturday morning in the rain watching soccer games. We headed downtown to the Heathman Hotel (gorgeous) for Zupan's Bite... it is a charity event for the Sunshine Division. We sampled wonderful food and drinks... I'll be back next year. The boys' were invited to go home with a friend, so it was Daddy, Baby Girl and me. I had spotted Nordstrom and suggested that we get Daddy his much needed shoes. Without missing a beat, Baby Girls says, "I need new shoes too." Well, she didn't get new shoes, but we did hit the sale rack and she bought a much needed pari of jeans (yes, she NEEDED them) and a darling top. What a happy girl!

Friday, November 7, 2008

Homework Mess by ME!

Thursday, November 6, 2008

November: Black and White

What? I didn't get into the garbage can.


Jeep... caught after a trip to the garbage can... GROSS!

Wednesday, November 5, 2008


A month of black and white... check it out.

So cute...

I ran across this blog and let me tell you it is darling. A very talented lady with great designs for little girls. Check her out... she has lots of give-aways and is opening an online shop 11.6.08. You will love her stuff.

Kids Crafts

This site searches the internet for great kid craft projects. Check it out... plan something, like this, or this to do with your little ones this week!

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Go Vote!



Today is the day... take part... go vote! (...For you D!...)


On another HUGE note... my son poured my coffee for me this morning! It is a BIG moment. Such a happy day!

Monday, November 3, 2008

And so it begins...

We host hubby's Christmas party each year... time to make the invitations. With the craziness of the fall, I haven't been very crafty. It was very nice to sit, relax and use the "other" side of my brain.


They are simple. In an effort to simplify my life, I want to also simplify Christmas. I want it to be special, but simple.

Photo 2: The inspiration. I pulled out an old crafting magazine and fell in love with this card, but I had already started cutting out all of my 'trucks'. So, I decided to incorporate the tree.

While I had everything out, I made the 'thank you' cards for Pepe's soccer coaches.