I recently came across a list ideas of how to entertain your toddler on a road trip. The author claimed there were 101 activities on her list, the list went from 1 to 10. She was planning for a 5 hour drive. Wow. I hope she makes it. Her list included blowing bubbles in the car. I kid you not... anyhoo...
Being that we live approximately 1,300 miles (no joke) from our families and we have approximately 4 too many children to be able to afford to fly to Grandma's house we're familiar with road trips. It takes a hair more than 22 driving hours, not counting stops, and one night in Albuquerque to get us to Utah. Dad and I started joking about our own list...
So, without further adieu... here's our list of 151, thoroughly tested, things to do with your children on a road trip:
1. Watch a movie, but not until we've past the airport. Until we pass the airport it's not really traveling.
2. Read a book. You remember books right?
3. Listen to your mp3 player.
4. Look out the window. Farm country is beautiful.
5. Keep your hands to yourself.
6. Watch another movie.
7. Quit bickering or I will pick the movie for you.
8. Eat your snacks. DO NOT shove your uneaten snacks between the wall and your seat. Ahem, Pinky!
9. Shut up and watch the movie or something.
10. Group screaming session.
11. Take a freaking nap. You're going to be in here for 2 whole days... napping will make it go faster.
12. Try not to make Mom climb over the seat to sit between you two. No one will be happy about that.
13. Fold your arms and look out your own window. Do not touch, look at, or breathe on the person next to you.
14. Holy crap! It's dark out, go to sleep. We won't be there for at least three hours. Sleep. NOW.
15. Group crying session.
You're welcome and enjoy your trip.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
The Things I Make and Then Post About For Some People...
It's Evelyn's fault I am doing this... ;)
I made three of these last year, one for me and one for each of our mothers for Mother's Day. They ended up belated because 1) I went and had a baby four days after Mother's Day and was too tired to do anything but create life in the few weeks leading up to the day and 2) they were too big to ship so we wrapped them up and drove them home with us in August. Late or not, they were a huge hit! This gal has got some great templates and directions, but I tweaked it a bit...
Come closer... closer....
Pretty awesome huh?
Alright, since I didn't take pictures as I made them I'm going off of memory here...
You're going to need a piece of foam core board cut to 18x24 inches and four sheets of light, neutralish, 12x12 scrapbook paper. Make them all the same if you want or different like I did mine... it's your project.
Measure and draw a light pencil line across the center of your board and then rotate and do it again so you end up with something like this... sort of like window panes.
Now glue your 12x12's on there on those lines to form your background. Make sure all your edges are lined up well and none of your white board is peeking through. You can glue them on however you want. Sticks, runners, spray... I wouldn't use regular old Elmers. Ever. For Anything. It sucks. I used runners but it took a lot and if I did it again I'd just glue stick it. After they are glued on you'll have to trim about three inches off of the top and the bottom, turn it upside down (I did mine on the carpet) and use one of these type things...
to trim the extra paper off.
So now your background is good to go... and you get to argue with the computer a bit.
I used Paint Shop Pro to print a six page template that I had to cut out and then piece together, it was a hassle. If I had it to do again I would order a poster from FedEx-Kinkos for $20ish. In a heartbeat. But in case you were wondering...
Download the tree PDF from HERE.
Open in PSP and go to Print Layout.
Drag the tree into the frame and click NO when it asks you if you want to scale it. It'll look like this...
Click outside the box and drag the tree so it looks like this...
Print that, I would recommend printing your template pieces on card stock. Then repeat for each of the other corners. Then print middle sections, it'll work out to be 6 sheets of paper, divided like this... sort of. The pieces will over lap a bit...
After your pieces are all printed lay them out so the tree looks right and tape together with packing tape, again, they are going to overlap... don't panic. Tape the front and the back and then cut out the tree using one of the above shown blade thingies and smooth, swooping strokes. A mat like this is helpful if you have one, if not use cardboard and do it on the carpet, not your table... just in case.
Once your template is all cut out toss the tree part and keep the frame, so it's like a stencil. Then you can trace it onto your tree paper with a pencil.
I used brown contractor/craft paper. It's like $9 a roll at Lowe's and you can use it for EVERYTHING. My entryway is wallpapered with it. No joke. Brown paper packages tied up with strings anyone? I kid you not I am using it for Christmas wrap with some of that red and white twisted string this year. ANYWAYS, trace the tree. I used silverware to hold the stencil and the paper down while I traced. Go slow.
Remove stencil, replace silverware and use either the rotary mat (shown above) or cardboard and an xacto knife to cut out the tree, smooth swooping strokes here people. Make the SWOOOOP noise while you do it, it'll help :).
Once your tree is all cut out you're ready to glue it onto your prepped foam core board. Use a glue runner type thing for this. One that makes dots, not dashes or solid lines... Elmer's makes some that I buy at WalMart that work just fine and are waaaay cheaper than this POS I paid too much for at Hobby Lobby.
Don't buy that one. It seriously sucks.
Lay clean sheets of paper over your cardboard or rotary mat and run the dots over the entire tree, all those pesky little branches need to be covered. Don't worry when they roll up and stick to each other, you'll get to pull them apart later :) After it's all glued lay it down STARTING WITH THE TRUNK OF THE TREE. Center the trunk over the seam in the papers. Easy peasy. Smooth the trunk out and start working your way up the branches until you've gotten them all. Some of them will have curled up and stuck together a bit, don't panic... just pick them apart carefully and stick them down.
Voila! Tree ready for leaves. Guess who gets to cut all those bad boys out? Haha. You.
Again, download the template HERE. I printed that sucker right on the leaf paper. There are two shades of green, one for girls and one for guys, but the difference is subtle. As you can see HERE, she used two different colors... Greens were the ones that I liked when I was at the store touching all the paper. Buy 8.5x11's of those so you can print right on them, I can't imagine what a nightmare it would be to trace all those leaves. Then, once again... smooth, swooping cuts to cut out all the leaves. Use big scissors. This is not the time to break out the 5" Fiskars. Also, I say buy two sheets of each color and print two sheets of each color so if you screw stuff up when you are writing on them you can fix it quickly. You don't need to cut out the second sheet, just have it standing by.
Once all your leaves are cut out lay them out on your tree, remembering that there are two different colors for males and females. Use the diagram she's got HERE to help. After they are all laid out, and you're sure they are correct, glue them down. Again glue use a glue runner that makes dots and some clean paper to glue on.
After you've gathered all your info you get to start writing the names on. Gathering and writing is the fun part. I learned while doing this that Dad has ancestors way back on his maternal grandmother's side from the town in Luxembourg where Vianden Castle, my favorite of the castles we saw when I was a kid, was. I was SO excited when I found that out. Seriously. Made my whole day. The place is gorgeous.
Use the same diagram you used in the last step to get everything on there in the right place. I used this pen...
SUPER fine tip. Great lines and I think it was $1.99 to boot. I love Zig pens.
Once you get out to the smaller leaves it can get to be hard to fit everything on, I only put names and birthdates on mine. Also, stick a sheet of paper under your hand, just in case, to prevent smudging. Go slow, check and double check you're putting the right name on the right leaf. And if you mess it up, no worries... that's why we printed more leaves. Cut out a replacement, CAREFULLY peel the old leaf off and stick down the new one. No one will ever know. I promise.
Now comes framing. Frames this size can be pricey so either 1) watch for a 50% off sale at Hobby Lobby (they have them all the time) or 2) use a 40% off coupon. Either way, expect to pay $25-30 for a good looking frame.
If you buy an open back frame you'll need to pick up some glazier points (also in the framing department) and, I would recommend, a sheet of plexiglass. I got my plexiglass at Lowe's for $4. I use plexiglass in large things like this because I have kids and if they manage to knock it off the wall I don't want anyone getting hurt and I don't want to have to clean up 18x24 inches worth of shattered glass.
HERE is a great how to on glazier points. Don't worry, they're pretty easy. If you have trouble getting them to go it with a screw driver, like I did, try a metal spackle knife. There's a learning curve here but don't stress out. You'll get it, and they're on the back anyways. Space them about four inches apart all the way around.
Once it's all secure attach a hanging wire to your frame if necessary, there are usually directions on the package (OOK is a great brand for great directions on the package). HERE is a video how-to in case you need it.
There ya go Evelyn. Call me if you need help ;)
I made three of these last year, one for me and one for each of our mothers for Mother's Day. They ended up belated because 1) I went and had a baby four days after Mother's Day and was too tired to do anything but create life in the few weeks leading up to the day and 2) they were too big to ship so we wrapped them up and drove them home with us in August. Late or not, they were a huge hit! This gal has got some great templates and directions, but I tweaked it a bit...
Come closer... closer....
Pretty awesome huh?
Alright, since I didn't take pictures as I made them I'm going off of memory here...
You're going to need a piece of foam core board cut to 18x24 inches and four sheets of light, neutralish, 12x12 scrapbook paper. Make them all the same if you want or different like I did mine... it's your project.
Measure and draw a light pencil line across the center of your board and then rotate and do it again so you end up with something like this... sort of like window panes.
Now glue your 12x12's on there on those lines to form your background. Make sure all your edges are lined up well and none of your white board is peeking through. You can glue them on however you want. Sticks, runners, spray... I wouldn't use regular old Elmers. Ever. For Anything. It sucks. I used runners but it took a lot and if I did it again I'd just glue stick it. After they are glued on you'll have to trim about three inches off of the top and the bottom, turn it upside down (I did mine on the carpet) and use one of these type things...
to trim the extra paper off.
So now your background is good to go... and you get to argue with the computer a bit.
I used Paint Shop Pro to print a six page template that I had to cut out and then piece together, it was a hassle. If I had it to do again I would order a poster from FedEx-Kinkos for $20ish. In a heartbeat. But in case you were wondering...
Download the tree PDF from HERE.
Open in PSP and go to Print Layout.
Drag the tree into the frame and click NO when it asks you if you want to scale it. It'll look like this...
Click outside the box and drag the tree so it looks like this...
Print that, I would recommend printing your template pieces on card stock. Then repeat for each of the other corners. Then print middle sections, it'll work out to be 6 sheets of paper, divided like this... sort of. The pieces will over lap a bit...
After your pieces are all printed lay them out so the tree looks right and tape together with packing tape, again, they are going to overlap... don't panic. Tape the front and the back and then cut out the tree using one of the above shown blade thingies and smooth, swooping strokes. A mat like this is helpful if you have one, if not use cardboard and do it on the carpet, not your table... just in case.
Once your template is all cut out toss the tree part and keep the frame, so it's like a stencil. Then you can trace it onto your tree paper with a pencil.
I used brown contractor/craft paper. It's like $9 a roll at Lowe's and you can use it for EVERYTHING. My entryway is wallpapered with it. No joke. Brown paper packages tied up with strings anyone? I kid you not I am using it for Christmas wrap with some of that red and white twisted string this year. ANYWAYS, trace the tree. I used silverware to hold the stencil and the paper down while I traced. Go slow.
Remove stencil, replace silverware and use either the rotary mat (shown above) or cardboard and an xacto knife to cut out the tree, smooth swooping strokes here people. Make the SWOOOOP noise while you do it, it'll help :).
Once your tree is all cut out you're ready to glue it onto your prepped foam core board. Use a glue runner type thing for this. One that makes dots, not dashes or solid lines... Elmer's makes some that I buy at WalMart that work just fine and are waaaay cheaper than this POS I paid too much for at Hobby Lobby.
Don't buy that one. It seriously sucks.
Lay clean sheets of paper over your cardboard or rotary mat and run the dots over the entire tree, all those pesky little branches need to be covered. Don't worry when they roll up and stick to each other, you'll get to pull them apart later :) After it's all glued lay it down STARTING WITH THE TRUNK OF THE TREE. Center the trunk over the seam in the papers. Easy peasy. Smooth the trunk out and start working your way up the branches until you've gotten them all. Some of them will have curled up and stuck together a bit, don't panic... just pick them apart carefully and stick them down.
Voila! Tree ready for leaves. Guess who gets to cut all those bad boys out? Haha. You.
Again, download the template HERE. I printed that sucker right on the leaf paper. There are two shades of green, one for girls and one for guys, but the difference is subtle. As you can see HERE, she used two different colors... Greens were the ones that I liked when I was at the store touching all the paper. Buy 8.5x11's of those so you can print right on them, I can't imagine what a nightmare it would be to trace all those leaves. Then, once again... smooth, swooping cuts to cut out all the leaves. Use big scissors. This is not the time to break out the 5" Fiskars. Also, I say buy two sheets of each color and print two sheets of each color so if you screw stuff up when you are writing on them you can fix it quickly. You don't need to cut out the second sheet, just have it standing by.
Once all your leaves are cut out lay them out on your tree, remembering that there are two different colors for males and females. Use the diagram she's got HERE to help. After they are all laid out, and you're sure they are correct, glue them down. Again glue use a glue runner that makes dots and some clean paper to glue on.
After you've gathered all your info you get to start writing the names on. Gathering and writing is the fun part. I learned while doing this that Dad has ancestors way back on his maternal grandmother's side from the town in Luxembourg where Vianden Castle, my favorite of the castles we saw when I was a kid, was. I was SO excited when I found that out. Seriously. Made my whole day. The place is gorgeous.
Use the same diagram you used in the last step to get everything on there in the right place. I used this pen...
SUPER fine tip. Great lines and I think it was $1.99 to boot. I love Zig pens.
Once you get out to the smaller leaves it can get to be hard to fit everything on, I only put names and birthdates on mine. Also, stick a sheet of paper under your hand, just in case, to prevent smudging. Go slow, check and double check you're putting the right name on the right leaf. And if you mess it up, no worries... that's why we printed more leaves. Cut out a replacement, CAREFULLY peel the old leaf off and stick down the new one. No one will ever know. I promise.
Now comes framing. Frames this size can be pricey so either 1) watch for a 50% off sale at Hobby Lobby (they have them all the time) or 2) use a 40% off coupon. Either way, expect to pay $25-30 for a good looking frame.
If you buy an open back frame you'll need to pick up some glazier points (also in the framing department) and, I would recommend, a sheet of plexiglass. I got my plexiglass at Lowe's for $4. I use plexiglass in large things like this because I have kids and if they manage to knock it off the wall I don't want anyone getting hurt and I don't want to have to clean up 18x24 inches worth of shattered glass.
HERE is a great how to on glazier points. Don't worry, they're pretty easy. If you have trouble getting them to go it with a screw driver, like I did, try a metal spackle knife. There's a learning curve here but don't stress out. You'll get it, and they're on the back anyways. Space them about four inches apart all the way around.
Once it's all secure attach a hanging wire to your frame if necessary, there are usually directions on the package (OOK is a great brand for great directions on the package). HERE is a video how-to in case you need it.
There ya go Evelyn. Call me if you need help ;)
Thursday, October 27, 2011
3 for Thursday
If anybody read this I would apologize for my absence... but no one does. So onward...
Three objects to my left:
Brand spankin' new cable internet modem. We dumped DISH and AT&T and bundled with Suddenlink. I can hardly wait to let AT&T know... hates the phone company we do.
A stack of papers, mostly from the elementary school. Because no matter how hard I beat the "Stack of Papers Monster" back he just won't stay gone.
A consignment agreement for Dad's old clarinet. She thinks she can sell it before the end of the year. Cross all your appendages for me, I am DYING to get rid of the miserable thing and get my piano.
Three songs I can’t get out of my head:
Edge of Glory by Lady Gaga (I know, I know... even her crap isn't all crap... Bad Romance is another fave of mine)
Three reasons I could wear the Super Woman costume on Halloween:
Three objects to my left:
Brand spankin' new cable internet modem. We dumped DISH and AT&T and bundled with Suddenlink. I can hardly wait to let AT&T know... hates the phone company we do.
A stack of papers, mostly from the elementary school. Because no matter how hard I beat the "Stack of Papers Monster" back he just won't stay gone.
A consignment agreement for Dad's old clarinet. She thinks she can sell it before the end of the year. Cross all your appendages for me, I am DYING to get rid of the miserable thing and get my piano.
Three songs I can’t get out of my head:
Edge of Glory by Lady Gaga (I know, I know... even her crap isn't all crap... Bad Romance is another fave of mine)
Three reasons I could wear the Super Woman costume on Halloween:
 |
| Booger Head in Batman jammies climbing onto the table, his newest and most annoying trick. |
 |
| Crew of monsters all good to go for the Trunk or Treat. Rapunzel, the Reluctant Dragon (haha, kidding), Clark Kent, and a "super scary Shark" who fell asleep and drooled on himself on the way there :) So scary. The poor kid biffed it really bad and hit the curb while Trunk or Treating... fattened his lip and got blood all over the shark costume... |
 |
| She was so excited to win! Glad she inherited her father's winningness... my family doesn't win stuff. |
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Dear Thursday,
I am really disappointed in you today. I used to really like you. But until the television season starts back up again you really don't have anything special to offer, you're no different from any other day. So I guess you can see why the way you presented yourself is totally unacceptable. If you can't get your act together I may not be able to see you anymore. And since the mattress and I aren't on the best of terms anymore I'd really hate to see that happen. So please, for both our sakes (not to mention the children) let's try to do better next week.
-Mom
PS-If you could put in a good word for me with Friday I would really appreciate it.
-Mom
PS-If you could put in a good word for me with Friday I would really appreciate it.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
3 for Thursday
Thanks to Evelyn for giving me the push I needed to do this today...
Three accomplishments that I have under my belt:
1. Dad and I are approaching our 10th anniversary.
2. This month alone I am throwing one baby shower, making invitations for another, making two Christmas stockings for a friend, starting a pre-school co-op with this fun lady, starting volunteering at the school again...
3. I bought a curling iron and used it without burning myself.
Three things that my grandma and I have in common: (I'm gonna go with Great Grandma here...)
1. We both think her daughter is a little unbalanced.
2. A love of reading.
3. We both love getting letters from each other in the mail.
Three plans for Labor Day:
1. Not getting up at 6:30am to get monsters ready for school
2. Recover my kitchen chairs. Hopefully. Dang kids.
3. Drive an hour to the Scout Store to stock up on awards for Pack Meeting next week.
Three ridiculous things I have spent money on:
1. Shoes that I can't wear because I have crappy feet.
2. Cat toys, and a cat bed, that my cat doesn't even look at when she walks past them.
3. I'm going to agree with Evelyn on this last one. Dumb boys in High School. I could just smack my 16 year old self.
Three things that only time will fix:
1. I like to think that someday I will be well rested...
2. Hopefully our finances.
3. My calendar. Counting down to the end of soccer, again.
Three pictures:
Three accomplishments that I have under my belt:
1. Dad and I are approaching our 10th anniversary.
2. This month alone I am throwing one baby shower, making invitations for another, making two Christmas stockings for a friend, starting a pre-school co-op with this fun lady, starting volunteering at the school again...
3. I bought a curling iron and used it without burning myself.
Three things that my grandma and I have in common: (I'm gonna go with Great Grandma here...)
1. We both think her daughter is a little unbalanced.
2. A love of reading.
3. We both love getting letters from each other in the mail.
Three plans for Labor Day:
1. Not getting up at 6:30am to get monsters ready for school
2. Recover my kitchen chairs. Hopefully. Dang kids.
3. Drive an hour to the Scout Store to stock up on awards for Pack Meeting next week.
Three ridiculous things I have spent money on:
1. Shoes that I can't wear because I have crappy feet.
2. Cat toys, and a cat bed, that my cat doesn't even look at when she walks past them.
3. I'm going to agree with Evelyn on this last one. Dumb boys in High School. I could just smack my 16 year old self.
Three things that only time will fix:
1. I like to think that someday I will be well rested...
2. Hopefully our finances.
3. My calendar. Counting down to the end of soccer, again.
Three pictures:
Glorious, homemade, Oreos. Mmmm.
Stinky playing games on Dad's Zune while waiting for the dentist. When I took Ralph we watched Muppet videos on YouTube on my phone... not sure what we would do with the kids without the aid of electronics sometimes.
Baby Booger Head back on his birthday. *Sniff sniff* The little turd is growing up way to fast.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Tap Tap Tap
Is this thing still on? Hello?
Okay so I suck.
No surprise there right.
It was hot. Like record breaking hot... but I guess I don't have to tell you because it was hot wherever you are too. Ugh.
We had a crazy busy summer. Which was TOTALLY different from last summer when we didn't go anywhere because Booger Head was brand new and I was too afraid of having four kids to go out in public.
In June Stinky got baptized. It's a big deal and we are so proud of him and the sharp young man he is growing up to be.
My parents flew out just eight days after my poor Mom had abdominal surgery. Dad's folks and his two single siblings came, along with one of his younger brothers and his family (see the previous post for pictures of a cute baby that does not belong to me). We had a lot of people here. Not HERE here... because we haven't the space to house them all. My folks stayed HERE here a couple nights but when everybody got here they all stayed at a hotel down the street... which was less than pleasant for my parents. Sorry guys.
We all sweated our way through a week of Twilight Camp with the Cub Scouts, of which Dad is the Cub Master and I am now the Committee Chair. At a local park, from 5-9pm every night, for a whole week. I only suffered two nights but Dad and the big kids suffered all week... it was hot. But not as hot as it was about to get I guess... and the kids had a good time. And that's what matters.
July was a bit easier. Sort of. We had less stuff planned I think...
We started teaching the monsters to swim using this program. Our little neighborhood pool is 4 feet at it's deepest but Stinky and Pinky are paddling around like pros. They've finished level two and we'll move on to real strokes as soon as soccer is over... more on that later. Ralph won't put his face in the water. But he also won't stay on the stairs or in the shallow part (6 inches I think) and it makes me nervous and he ends up in trouble... grrr. Booger Head LOVES the pool but hates the baby floatie. He wants to bob around but you have to hold him, and if you try to get him to float on his back he'll freak out and try to pull all the skin off of your neck.
We also started working with the older two monsters on bike riding. Yes. We suck and neither my 8 year old or my 6.5 year old knew how to ride a bike before this summer. It's hot here. And I don't like sweating. Pinky took to it really fast and Stinky was just a few days behind her. They were both doing great. And then Dad pretended that he was a third of each his weight and age and tried to pedal Stinky's bike up the driveway and into the garage and snapped the crankarm right off. So now we wait for the bike to get fixed. Stinky has since told him, more than once, "next time you want to show me something on the bike, get your own."
We continued with bike riding and swimming in August and signed the three older monsters up for soccer. Again. Because some people never learn. But this season is going to be extra fun...
Extra Fun
Serves 6
3 young soccer players, 2 of which are old enough to practice twice a week.
1 Dad who is assistant coaching at least one of the teams.
2 fields where games will be played, located 10-15 minutes away from each other.
At least three games every weekend, sometimes four.
One car.
One Mom who hates sweat and parking at the soccer field.
One Booger Head who will be drug along for the ride.
Record breaking heat... we're still talking highs of 100-105 here.
Combine and cry for the next 8 weeks.
See? I told you. Extra fun.
Not to mention Soccer Mom Barbie on Pinky's team. "Let's have matching socks! Let's do cute hairbows!" Before she gets any more great ideas I'm just going to say now that I will not be donning a bedazzled shirt ever. for any of my children's extra circular activities. EVER.
It's going to be fun. I can tell already.
Booger Head started walking. And climbing. The little turd. And Mom is one step closer to crazy. It's a good thing he's so cute.
I purchased and cooked, for the first time in my entire life, fish. Salmon to be precise. And it was delicious. Cook it like this (you'll have to scroll a little bit) and serve it with lemon, garlic and dill butter. Your life will never be the same.
And of course back to school... after hours and hours of shopping, washing, packing they are back at school. Here are some things I learned...
Famous Footwear sucks. Crappy store, crappy organization of shoes and crappy selection.
Those prepackaged school supply kits come with a $22ish convenience charge. I only had to hunt down one thing.
First graders are too cool for Disney Princesses.
When the Justin Bieber GT folder vanishes from the backpack that you are SURE you put it in when you bought it, it WILL be all. your. fault. Just like it was when you couldn't find a JB Tshirt. Drama, drama, drama.
Pinky also got glasses this summer... as you can see from the required "On the doorstep on the 1st day of school" picture...
I hope you're all enjoying the return of regular naps :)
Okay so I suck.
No surprise there right.
It was hot. Like record breaking hot... but I guess I don't have to tell you because it was hot wherever you are too. Ugh.
We had a crazy busy summer. Which was TOTALLY different from last summer when we didn't go anywhere because Booger Head was brand new and I was too afraid of having four kids to go out in public.
In June Stinky got baptized. It's a big deal and we are so proud of him and the sharp young man he is growing up to be.
My parents flew out just eight days after my poor Mom had abdominal surgery. Dad's folks and his two single siblings came, along with one of his younger brothers and his family (see the previous post for pictures of a cute baby that does not belong to me). We had a lot of people here. Not HERE here... because we haven't the space to house them all. My folks stayed HERE here a couple nights but when everybody got here they all stayed at a hotel down the street... which was less than pleasant for my parents. Sorry guys.
We all sweated our way through a week of Twilight Camp with the Cub Scouts, of which Dad is the Cub Master and I am now the Committee Chair. At a local park, from 5-9pm every night, for a whole week. I only suffered two nights but Dad and the big kids suffered all week... it was hot. But not as hot as it was about to get I guess... and the kids had a good time. And that's what matters.
July was a bit easier. Sort of. We had less stuff planned I think...
We started teaching the monsters to swim using this program. Our little neighborhood pool is 4 feet at it's deepest but Stinky and Pinky are paddling around like pros. They've finished level two and we'll move on to real strokes as soon as soccer is over... more on that later. Ralph won't put his face in the water. But he also won't stay on the stairs or in the shallow part (6 inches I think) and it makes me nervous and he ends up in trouble... grrr. Booger Head LOVES the pool but hates the baby floatie. He wants to bob around but you have to hold him, and if you try to get him to float on his back he'll freak out and try to pull all the skin off of your neck.
We also started working with the older two monsters on bike riding. Yes. We suck and neither my 8 year old or my 6.5 year old knew how to ride a bike before this summer. It's hot here. And I don't like sweating. Pinky took to it really fast and Stinky was just a few days behind her. They were both doing great. And then Dad pretended that he was a third of each his weight and age and tried to pedal Stinky's bike up the driveway and into the garage and snapped the crankarm right off. So now we wait for the bike to get fixed. Stinky has since told him, more than once, "next time you want to show me something on the bike, get your own."
We continued with bike riding and swimming in August and signed the three older monsters up for soccer. Again. Because some people never learn. But this season is going to be extra fun...
Extra Fun
Serves 6
3 young soccer players, 2 of which are old enough to practice twice a week.
1 Dad who is assistant coaching at least one of the teams.
2 fields where games will be played, located 10-15 minutes away from each other.
At least three games every weekend, sometimes four.
One car.
One Mom who hates sweat and parking at the soccer field.
One Booger Head who will be drug along for the ride.
Record breaking heat... we're still talking highs of 100-105 here.
Combine and cry for the next 8 weeks.
See? I told you. Extra fun.
Not to mention Soccer Mom Barbie on Pinky's team. "Let's have matching socks! Let's do cute hairbows!" Before she gets any more great ideas I'm just going to say now that I will not be donning a bedazzled shirt ever. for any of my children's extra circular activities. EVER.
It's going to be fun. I can tell already.
Booger Head started walking. And climbing. The little turd. And Mom is one step closer to crazy. It's a good thing he's so cute.
I purchased and cooked, for the first time in my entire life, fish. Salmon to be precise. And it was delicious. Cook it like this (you'll have to scroll a little bit) and serve it with lemon, garlic and dill butter. Your life will never be the same.
And of course back to school... after hours and hours of shopping, washing, packing they are back at school. Here are some things I learned...
Famous Footwear sucks. Crappy store, crappy organization of shoes and crappy selection.
Those prepackaged school supply kits come with a $22ish convenience charge. I only had to hunt down one thing.
First graders are too cool for Disney Princesses.
When the Justin Bieber GT folder vanishes from the backpack that you are SURE you put it in when you bought it, it WILL be all. your. fault. Just like it was when you couldn't find a JB Tshirt. Drama, drama, drama.
Pinky also got glasses this summer... as you can see from the required "On the doorstep on the 1st day of school" picture...
I hope you're all enjoying the return of regular naps :)
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Hey! Remember That Blog I Used to Have?
What could be a more perfect way to come back than with the first item on Evelyn's Three for Thursday prompt list?
Three excuses...
I'm tired.
It's summer "vacation."
I have four monsters who kept me INSANELY busy between the middle of May and the end of June. Perhaps we'll cover all that another day... And then I took a week, or two, to try and recover and instead of relaxing I got sucked into some furniture refinishing/decorating projects. The results of which are AMAZING.
See...
I eat meat and drink milk. A few years back my Mom was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes and after some time on meds and being unhappy with how they worked and didn't work, and how she felt while she was one them, she decided to try adopting a mostly vegan diet. It worked and her blood sugar has stabilized and she's gone off all of her diabetes meds. She has a lot more willpower than me.
Three Things I Am Waiting For...
5pm. When Dad will be home.
Ed McMahon to show up at my door with one of those big checks.
August 22, when my house will be significantly quieter during the day.
Three Things I Want To Be When I Grow Up...
Skinny
Well Rested
Content
Three Things I Do Because They Are Good For Me
and NOT Because I Like Doing Them...
Give up caffeine... again.
Floss. It's just gross.
Wear fancy flip flops that don't make my feet hurt and never wear cute shoes anywhere any more. (I can't even begin to tell you how sick it made me to spend that kind of money on flip flops but they are one of 2 pairs of shoes I own that do not make my feet hurt so bad I can't stand up in the morning. Yay for Plantar Fasciitis!)
Three Things I Appreciate About My Middle Child,
or Middle Sibling...
I have no middle child. But I have a brother who is the middle of three and the only boy...
He is HILARIOUS. With a capital "H."
He works really, really hard.
He's one of those easy going, easy to talk to type guys and it's really cute to watch him interact with my kids.
Yeah, he and his girlfriend Maren are those annoyingly photogenic type people. Seriously. Every picture they take is this cute.
Three Truths About Me...
I care what you think. But not enough to change me.
I'm not one of those people who think all children are adorable. I love mine, I like yours, but the rest of them...
I'm largely unmotivated. Which is why my house is always half way clean and my laundry is always half way done.
Three Pictures...
Three excuses...
I'm tired.
It's summer "vacation."
I have four monsters who kept me INSANELY busy between the middle of May and the end of June. Perhaps we'll cover all that another day... And then I took a week, or two, to try and recover and instead of relaxing I got sucked into some furniture refinishing/decorating projects. The results of which are AMAZING.
See...
And... (x3)
Pretty dang snazzy, huh?
Three favorite children's books...
Any of the Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems
17 Things I Am Not Allowed To Do Anymore by Jenny Offill
Oh The Places You'll Go by Dr. Suess
Three Decorating Styles I Like...
Ummm...
Good Looking & Inexpensive. My living room furniture came from Big Lots. We paid less than $800 for the sofa, loveseat, and rocker recliner combined. I have kids. Four of them. There is no point in shelling out big bucks for stuff they are just going to ruin. This looks decent and it won't hurt as much when we throw it upstairs with the kids when we get in a new place.
I like clean lines and simple patterns. I can't stand over done, ornate, carved and blinged-up, crap. It's just gross.
I want my house to look like the kind of place where real people live comfortably. Not some catalog picture or Parade of Homes type palace.
Three Things I Do Differently Than My Mother...
I sleep in. My mom in an awesome nurse/nursing instructor and she gets up at all kinds of ungodly hours for work and school things. Aside from all the blood and other nasty crap, "early" is another reason I could never be a nurse.
I turn the thermostat down and I leave the ceiling fan on high year round. My poor Mom is always cold when she comes to my house and I'm always melting when I go to her house.I eat meat and drink milk. A few years back my Mom was diagnosed with Type II Diabetes and after some time on meds and being unhappy with how they worked and didn't work, and how she felt while she was one them, she decided to try adopting a mostly vegan diet. It worked and her blood sugar has stabilized and she's gone off all of her diabetes meds. She has a lot more willpower than me.
Three Things I Am Waiting For...
5pm. When Dad will be home.
Ed McMahon to show up at my door with one of those big checks.
August 22, when my house will be significantly quieter during the day.
Three Things I Want To Be When I Grow Up...
Skinny
Well Rested
Content
Three Things I Do Because They Are Good For Me
and NOT Because I Like Doing Them...
Give up caffeine... again.
Floss. It's just gross.
Wear fancy flip flops that don't make my feet hurt and never wear cute shoes anywhere any more. (I can't even begin to tell you how sick it made me to spend that kind of money on flip flops but they are one of 2 pairs of shoes I own that do not make my feet hurt so bad I can't stand up in the morning. Yay for Plantar Fasciitis!)
Three Things I Appreciate About My Middle Child,
or Middle Sibling...
I have no middle child. But I have a brother who is the middle of three and the only boy...
He is HILARIOUS. With a capital "H."
He works really, really hard.
He's one of those easy going, easy to talk to type guys and it's really cute to watch him interact with my kids.
Yeah, he and his girlfriend Maren are those annoyingly photogenic type people. Seriously. Every picture they take is this cute.
Three Truths About Me...
I care what you think. But not enough to change me.
I'm not one of those people who think all children are adorable. I love mine, I like yours, but the rest of them...
I'm largely unmotivated. Which is why my house is always half way clean and my laundry is always half way done.
Three Pictures...
My monsters with their adorable cousin Kayli.
Booger Head at the sprinkler park.
We had some new family pictures done the beginning part of June and this was the winner in the "Shot of Monsters Together" category. We bought these stupid balloons thinking, "We can pretend to be those people! Sure bring on the balloons!" Before we had even taken a picture Stinky had lost two and popped one. So here you have...Pinky watching the two balloons floating off into the atmosphere while mourning the loss of her favorite orange balloon, Stinky pouting because he lost his balloon holding privileges, and Ralph trying to keep Booger Head from stealing his balloon. Booger Head's balloon was tied to the back of his overalls. Awesome. The amazing Keli White captured them perfectly.
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