Brothers

There is no question that brothers have a special bond.  But between twin brothers I think the bond is something extra special. 

  Most nights, Logan and Stockton lay in bed talking, laughing, playing pretend games for close to an hour before finally letting themselves fall asleep.  Of course, we get frustrated with them and ask them over and over to settle down so they can sleep, but deep inside I love hearing their chatter and sword swooshing noises and declarations of triumphing over the enemy.  

We I am trying to decide whether to put the boys in  the same or separate 1st grade classes next year.  They will be in Spanish Immersion which has 2 homerooms and so they will have the same teachers, workload, activities, etc. as each other no matter what.  But trying to decide which way will help them flourish the best is hard.  Everyone says, "parents of twins are very adamant about having the twins together or separated."  But I'm really not sure!!!  When my boys were placed in separate Primary classes I was not very happy.  Stockton had a very difficult time going to Primary after, as he relied greatly on Logan's presence to give him comfort.  Now after a few years, it isn't that big of a deal (except the whining that happens when one of them comes home with a treat and the other doesn't.)  Anyway...   

On one hand I love to see them rely and help each other.  I would love to see them grow even closer from the time spent together in the classroom.  On the other hand I am starting to see more and more how different and individual they are.  I wonder how much being in separate classes would lead to letting their individuality shine through.  In a setting where they weren't being compared, where they didn't have their brother to rely upon, if they would be able to reach their fullest potential better.  

I have asked the boys several times in the last few months and the answers are almost always the same.  Logan says, "I want to be in a separate class!"  And Stockton says, "I want to be in the same class!"  It breaks my heart that they don't agree.  I asked Stockton why he wants to be with Logan.  "Because I will miss Logan if he is not in the same class!"  How very sweet!  

Stockton is not so much worried about what everyone else thinks.  He is almost more independent in that way.  He will do what he wants.  He isn't as social.  He enjoys playing with friends, when they are getting along.  And he's not afraid to speak his mind and tattle when he sees injustice among other children.  He also is more likely to act up and get himself in trouble.

Logan, on the other hand, is very tenderhearted.  He cares deeply what others think about him and wants everyone to like him.  He is highly social.  He loves craves attention and affection and can cry/ get angry easily when he is feeling left out.  In that way, he seems a little less independent...even needy sometimes.  Which is exactly why I think he needs to be in a different class than Stockton. 

They balance each other so well.  Yes, they are boys and will wrestle, argue, fight, run and jump and yell.  But with each of their strengths they have the potential to be so great together!  

The other day, Logan found himself extremely angry (due in part to feeling left out) and unable to control himself ended up punching some other (older and bigger) boys.  Oh boy, did that kid get in trouble!  And he cried for a good long time!  But he did his best to make amends with the best attitude I've ever seen a kid have!     

Then comes Stockton, trying to save his brother from all the trouble he has wound up in.  Stockton prayed that night (using very odd wording) the idea that he could take away Logan's trouble from him.  I asked him what he meant and near tears he told me that he would like to take Logan's punishment because he felt sad that Logan was in trouble.

  

Boys can be hilarious, disgusting, obnoxious, and so very sweet all rolled into one very cute and very individual little man.  The responsibility to raise them to be kind and strong and smart and respectful and polite and hard working and gracious is no small task.  We want them to be a gentleman as well as manly.  We want them to be funny as well as respectful.  We want them to be strong and genuine.  We want them to be so many things.  And so many factors go into who they will become...not just parents, but siblings, extended family, friends, teachers, and neighbors will influence them.  Watching their personalities blossom is really quite amazing. And I only pray that we can do the best job that we can to help these two spunky and fun loving boys to be great young men who turn into loving and righteous husbands and fathers.

Whistle While Work

Yesterday morning I was sitting a midst the piles of laundry waiting to be folded and I began watching 2 year old Aubrey.  She had taken a clean dish towel from my pile and was "cleaning" the piano.  

The thing that struck me was that she was singing as she was wiping the piano.

I smiled as I thought of how many times I have seen Ellie sing as she was cleaning as well. 

Then I thought, "Do I do that?"  

I honestly don't think I've done that for a really long time!

I use music as a motivator to get my kids to do Saturday morning chores or to push me through a workout.  I use music as a "fun" thing to get the wiggles out at night or to dance to in the car.  I have even tried to use music as a motivator during Ellie's homework time.

But how often do I truly "whistle while I work?"  

Not much, lately, that is for sure!

I remember my Grandpa Cannon would always whistle while he loaded the dishes into the dishwasher.  He usually whistled something like "Washington Post March" by John Phillip Sousa.  

Something upbeat and happy.

What is innately in us that makes makes my girls naturally sing while they work?

I think it is that we feel good when we work, whatever type of work it is.

Work helps us feel accomplished.

Work helps us build confidence.

So why do we learn to hate work?  

Work seems to be the opposite of "fun."  

Which is what most people desire isn't it?

If work is the opposite of fun than work isn't fun.

And how many times have I told my children

work before play?

But I don't think that is necessarily true... it is just our mindset.

I think work can be very enjoyable!

I've had many "fun" times while working hard.  

We have emphasized in our family the last year that 

WE CAN DO HARD THINGS!

But how often do we do hard things begrudgingly...instead of with a song in our hearts?!

I think I need to set a better example of "whistling while I work." 

Maybe then when we tell our dear 3rd grader that homework can be fun she might believe us!

And be a little more willing to complete the things that are hard for her happily!

And maybe if I work with a song in my heart I might enjoy folding my piles of laundry a little more!

    

Pictures are Worth a Thousand Words

My mom and I play a puzzle game online.  She just created a new puzzle from this picture of the 5 oldest grand kids eating ice cream outside an old fashion ice cream shop in Philipsburg, Montana.  We were enjoying some time at a cabin on Georgetown Lake with family last summer.

Looking at this picture I realized that as imperfect as this picture is, this picture will be a family favorite for a long time to come.  

And then it hit me...how many times do we look at a picture years later and realize it is a favorite.  A picture that helps you recall the details of a trip, feelings, love, family.  

And what is amazing is that you never know when or what that picture will be, until later, sometimes quite a while later.

And usually, they are not professional pictures.

They are not edited.

They are are real pictures of real times and real memories.

In this digital world how many photos can we instantly snap with our cell phones?  I know I have hundreds of pictures on my phone and computer.  I know for sure I don't take enough time to find those special and meaningful pictures and DO something with those pictures.  It has made me stop and ponder how my kids will be able to look back at photos of themselves.  How fun is it to look back at our childhood pictures and try to remember or see how even then our personalities showed!  How can I best preserve those memories for my children?

This very imperfect picture recently taken with my cell phone shows all my husband's siblings and spouses. I think this will be a special picture as well...or at least I hope it is.  

Technology today has made it so much easier to use, organize, and share our pictures.  But on the same hand it also makes it so much harder.  So many more photos, so many more options than before...and oh the digital storage!  It is a blessing to be able to store so many photos, but what about actually seeing them?  How many do we print or preserve in a way for our kids to see?

I know I need to be much better about this.  It use to be something I was very good at when I was regularly scrapbooking, but as I have made the transition away from traditional scrapbooking it has become a challenge.

Here is my wake up call!  I am going to get my photos organized and figure out the best way to preserve those memories for my children for years to come!!!  

Why I Do What I Do

I never thought I would feel like I had to justify what I do.  I thought I was just being a fun mom.  I was hoping the little extra smiles would be worth a little extra work.  But after reading this blog post that is floating around Facebook right now from the blog Rage Against the Minivan I feel I need to tell my perspective.

I am a stay at home mom.  I have 4 kids between the ages of 2-7.  I am a creative person who enjoys sharing my talents with my family.  I am also, according to my 7 year old daughter, the meanest mom in the world.

I saw a quote the other day that I just love! "Instead of saying 'I don't have time' try saying 'it's not a priority.  Often that's a perfectly adequate explanation....If we don't like how we are spending an hour, we can choose differently!" -Laura Yanderkam (I'm not sure who she is, but I think she is one smart lady.)

I don't have a demanding church calling, I don't have a ton of "extra curricular" things going on.  In fact, every time I sign my kids up for something I now make sure it is just a short commitment thing because I HATE taking all 4 kids to karate or swimming or gymnastics.  It is a huge pain for me!  My goals right now are really quite simple.  I am trying to be the best me that I can be.  Which right now just means being a good mom!  But I fall short of this EVERY day!  I yell more than I should.  I get impatient.  I feel less than motivated at times.  My list could go on of things I do wrong as a mom.

But then I look at what I do right as a mom.  I make my kids work (which is why my kids think I'm so mean.)  I read with them and try to teach them.  I make a homemade meal 9 out of 10 nights and we eat dinner together as a family.  And every once in a while, I try to make the everyday humdrum of life fun.  I am not great at "playing" with my kids.  I'm not great at laughing with them every day.  I'm not great at celebrating the little things.  But I can put a smile on their face with some silly leprechaun tricks or a special "love potion" drink for Valentines day dinner or a surprise dessert in the middle of the week to celebrate Pi day.

I can't speak for why others do or do not celebrate the "phone it in" holidays, but I know why I choose to spend my time this way.  I am a creative person who doesn't have many chances to "create" much of anything now a days.  Scrapbooking and crafting gets set aside for homework and piano and homemaking and laundry.  Maybe taking the time to do cutesy things for my family is part of my "love language" or maybe it is just an excuse to create.  How many people use St. Patrick's Day as an excuse to drink?  Well, I don't drink so maybe holidays are my excuse to do creative and fun things?

I don't travel much, or run races every weekend, in fact I barely get the minimum exercise requirements in so I don't blow up like a balloon.  I don't go out to many movies, or go out with the girls very often and I only put in the minimum amount of work it takes to keep my home in semi descent shape.  I am not in any book clubs, but Pinterest is my "virtual" club of awesomeness.

So I have to quickly tell the story of Saturday, March 16.  My 7 year old had asked to make a leprechaun trap and I told her we could after her work was done.  I spent from 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. trying to get her to accomplish a math worksheet, cleaning the toilet, practicing the piano, and doing her Spanish reading.  Yes, the better half that 4 1/2 hours was spent with ONE child.  However, once her work was finally done it was time to go to a birthday party for some cousins and visit with Grandpa.  By the time we got home and dinner done, it was bedtime and I still needed to go grocery shopping.  So I left the hubs to put the kids to bed and took off.  When I got home at 10 p.m. my husband said that E was still upset about not making a leprechaun trap and he told her he would see what he could do.  He asked if I had bought any candy, which in my attempt to be healthier, I really had nothing to leave.  So after the groceries were put away and I sat down for a few minutes, I had a fun idea.

It took me all of about 25 minutes to type up a silly note about how the leprechaun was disappointed because we hadn't left any gold and that he decided to play some tricks on us.  The toilet water had turned green as well as the milk.  It only took me a couple of minutes to make some leprechaun prints on the toilet seat and fridge.  The leprechaun left the kids some green veggies.
As I lay in bed Sunday morning listening to the giggles and squeals from the front room and shouts of "What? No candy?  Green vegetables?"  I felt like the 25 minutes I spent the night before was all worth it!  They truly got a kick out this years leprechaun visit!

I guess this is why I build up the little holidays more than the average mom.  I love their surprised faces, their smiles and giggles!  I love making a humdrum, normal day into something a little more special.  Why not?  They are only kids once!  And once they grow up and remember these fun days I hope they know that I did it out of love.  As bad as I am at communicating my feelings, I hope they understand that it is one of my ways I express love.

And I feel confident enough about being a good mom, that I don't feel guilty if I skip or play down a holiday if I'm not feeling up to putting in the effort at that particular time.  I don't look at other pictures of fun holiday traditions on Facebook and think, "I"m such a horrible mom that I didn't make leprechaun hats for my kids!" So what I'm trying to say, without offending those who are so irritated by the posting of cute leprechaun footprints, that for me it's a choice to spend my time and use my talents that particular way.  And seeing pictures on Facebook shouldn't be what we base our judgement of other moms on.  I know I have had to remind myself many times that when I see pictures of all the "fun" things other friends do on Facebook or blogs that that picture is only a small part of what their life is really like.

Anyway, there you have it.  My little soapbox about not judging other moms and looking at what we do individually that makes us good moms.  And that we all choose to spend our time and energy and money in different ways.  And that we all have different talents that we share with our family.

Witch Craft or Medicine?

About 5 years ago I started having back problems...NOT fun, I tell ya!

I spent several weeks seeing both a chiropractor and a physical therapist.  It was a really long healing process.  The chiropractor my friend referred me to was weird!  He was into all this holistic healing stuff, Chinese medicines, homeopathic type stuff.  I didn't really believe much in that kind of stuff, but whatever.  The adjustments definitely helped.

Anyway, ever since then I've had on and off problems.  This last summer it got really bad again.  It was to the point where I was in pain more than I wasn't and just could deal with it anymore.  So back to the chiropractor I went.  It was a different guy this time though.  He was good.  He was more a sports medicine guy.  I liked him better than the first guy, but he kept telling me I needed to walk.  So I started walking every night.  It helped a ton!  But then he told me I needed to start pushing myself more and more.  So I tried.  But every time I tried I would end up hurting so bad!  I felt frustrated that I couldn't just go out and run like I use to.  So after my initial care ended...and I was mostly out of pain, I greatly reduced visits to him.

Out of the blue last week, I got a phone call from my original chiropractor's office saying they wanted to update my file and would love for me to come in for a free re-evaluation.  I thought what the heck, couldn't hurt!  So I went in.  He had set up a whole new evaluation process including these weird tests to evaluate my internal organs, blah, blah blah, and did a new spinal evaluation, including x-rays...which I had never had before.  

I go in to meet with him today as a follow and here's the kicker...my right leg is 1/2 in. shorter than left leg which is causing my spine to be all bent out of shape!  Well, no wonder my  lower back hurts!  So he tells me a heel lift would most likely do me wonders with some occasional maintenance visits.  So we are trying that for now to see if that helps.

Anyway, to get to the real point of this post...

He went over the results of these other Chinese and German tests (that I thought was just weird to begin with!)  and concluded that I had adrenal fatigue.  He told me that a special dietary supplement would help me not feel tired anymore and I wouldn't want to take a nap every day at 1 or 2 p.m.  I was a little shocked because I hadn't even told him I was having low energy issues at all!  I felt like he had been spying on me or something because everyday for the last 3 or 4 weeks I have felt soooo tired right at 1 p.m.! (And yes, I have even snuck in a few naps over the last month)

Anyway, I came home and looked up adrenal fatigue and was surprised at how many "symptoms" I really felt!  So I bought the most expensive bottle of little pills I've spent ($30 for a month's supply of a special dietary supplement.)  I am really ready to do anything to help me feel just a little bit better.  

So hopefully, this helps!

I'll know here pretty soon if both the heel lift and the little bottle of magic pills work!  Let's cross our fingers...and toes!

Thank Goodness for Febreeze!

This is my story of my "oh-my-gosh-does-this-really-have-to-happen-right-now?" moment yesterday.

So my dear Mr. S is 3 1/2 and totally not potty trained.  His twin brother is.  But he for some reason has struggled with the concept and I'm about ready to pull my hair out that he doesn't seem to get it...or want to get it!  I was feeling poor last week while at the store buying another package of pull-ups...so I got the cheap ones...mistake #1!  

Yesterday, Mr. S got diarrhea.  Ewww!

My visiting teachers were coming later that morning and I didn't know if he was getting a stomach flu type thing or if he had just eaten something bad.  I figured I had a few hours to decide if I should cancel visiting teaching.  Well, he seemed fine the rest of the morning so I didn't think much of it again.

After cleaning my house (I swear visitors is the only thing that gets my house clean lately!)  I was sitting watching a few minutes of t.v. with my boys playing in the living room and my visiting teachers show up.  I walked to the door to let them in and noticed something all over the piano chair.  I initially thought that Baby Bree had spit up all over and then on closer inspection realized that Mr. S had another problem where his cheapo pull-up didn't hold up.  I'll spare the rest of the details on this part.

Needless to say that I was a little flustered trying to get him and the living room cleaned up...all while my visiting teachers were sitting in my family room patiently waiting to visit.  I'm sure they were thinking, "ah! we don't want to get sick!" or "that smells disgusting!" or "should we just go?"  I was so sickened by the smell that I even pulled out the Febreeze and sprayed everywhere as to cover up the odor!

But fortunately my visiting teachers were very patient and kind about the situation.  Every once in a while something like that makes me all worked up, flustered, a slightly mortified!  But I guess everyone has those moments!

Thanksgiving Printables

I get to host Thanksgiving this year for my husband's side of the family.  We are expecting around 17 peeps...including a handful of kids...mostly mine. :)  I was trying to find something fun the kids to do...not like they can't create their own fun, but I figure a little something might help calm antsy kiddos for those last few minutes of quiet conversation at dinner.

Click here to link to busybeekids

Anyway, I came across this awesome website with great Thanksgiving printables...and believe me, I looked at a lot!  Like...

This one from Whatever Dee Dee Wants

This one from Kinder Latino

This one from Parents magazine

I ended up printed the place mats, some word searches, some dot to dots, and some mad libs from Busy Bee Kids Printables.  Hopefully, it will be a fun little addition to Thanksgiving dinner!

Not So Cutesy Chore Chart

As school has started in full swing, I felt the need once again to have a new chore chart for Little Miss. She is in the Spanish Immersion program in first grade and it is a little intense!!! I needed a way to reward her for her hard work.

I tried a cute idea from Family Fun, but it totally did not work for us!

So I chose to do something more like this.

However, mine's not nearly that cutesy. But it is a very functional chore chart.
Basically, I took an old clipboard and spray painted it blue (to match her desk.) I glued her chore chart to the clipboard and slipped an overhead transparency in the clip w/ a vis-a-vis marker. When she complete her chores she (I) can check off the chore.On Monday evening, we tally up the previous weeks' checks and that is how many points she can redeem for prizes (such as ice cream, small treats, etc.)
Then we can just wipe off the chart and start over for the new week.
She LOVES it!
It has been so rewarding the last few weeks!
I also created my own weekly chore chart schedule.I didn't do anything cutesy with this. Just printed it and put it on my fridge. I've had this schedule in my head now for a while, but having it printed out to look at daily is a big help for me. Not only does it help me remember what I need to be doing, it looks so less daunting, than a huge "to-do" list. Don't get me wrong...I still have my "to-do" list. But now when I have "pay dentist bill" on my list I know I am going to do that on Wednesday, and not keep procrastinating day after day.

Fresh Food Feeder

Miss Sunshine has 2 teeth now. She is starting to crawl. She also has a growing appetite. I came across these fresh food feeders at Walmart and decided we needed to try it out.
We love it! (meaning both baby and I)
So far she has tried some melons, strawberries, bananas, cooked carrots, and mango. Her favorite by far was the cantaloupe.
I can't believe it took 4 kids before finally trying this nifty contraption!
Now the question is how long it will last.

Jewelry Holder

I found this lovely cabinet piece at the D.I. for $6 over a year ago. I just knew I could do something with it since it was in great shape, just a little funky in color. I originally thought I could do something for Little Miss' room for her special things.
I almost took it back to the D.I. a few weeks ago, because I just didn't know what to do with it. But I didn't. And then, suddenly it came to me. It would be a perfect jewelry holder!

So I pulled it out and took off the door. I originally thought I would paint and replace the door, but ended up leaving the door off. I also used those white cup holder hooks and screwed them up to the upper lip of the cabinet.

I primed it gray and then used Rust-o-leum 2x coverage in espresso. Love it!

I couldn't believe how perfect if fit in my bathroom cubby, that had originally been holding all my lotion and homeless jewelry. Now my lotion and jewelry have a nice looking home. Yay!

Here is a final look at my bathroom. And guess what? It drives me crazy to see model home perfect pictures of areas we use ALL the time. So this is the way my bathroom looks, junk on counters and all...of course, I did quickly wipe down all the counters and mirrors before snapping this picture. :)

Well, it is 10:30 at night and dishes still aren't done for the day, but hey, at least my bathroom is clean and organized!

Linking Up to:

Task Cards

As I thought about summer, I came to a firm conclusion that I needed to have some sort of routine. While I hope we have a fun, relaxing summer, I also need to have some sanity. I came up with what I felt would work for my kids.

I created a "task card" for each child. (I have called it a task card since my 6 year old daughter is already convinced chores are hard and bad.) Since my boys are just barely 3 I needed something very visual. Some of the clip art is a little funky, but hey it was free on Microsoft Word.

This is how it works:
Each child is expected to *make their bed *eat breakfast *get dressed *and do one chore first thing in the morning. Once these 4 tasks are complete than they can play outside, watch cartoons or do whatever until lunch.
(maybe you don't have to remind your children to get dressed or eat breakfast, but mine have a tendency to want to play before these basic things happen.)

We eat lunch together and then the kids are expected to go to quiet time. Oh, quiet time! This has been an interesting go in and of itself! Actually, Little Miss (6) is pretty good to sit in her room and listen to books on cd, color, or look at books. But my 3 year old boys...now that can be a challenge some days! But we're still in training and it's slowly getting better.

After quiet time we have "summer school." My kids, especially Little Miss, LOVE this time. I will post a separate post on what we do for summer school.
As long as their tasks are done than they can play or watch t.v. until dinner.
Then they have their dinner and bedtime tasks.

Included on the task card is one chore. This is how I've decided to divvy out the chores. I created 18 chores on the cards (that is 1 card per child per 6 days a week.) Each child randomly selects one card a day. It's been fun so far because the kids look forward to drawing their cards. It must seem like a game for them. And Little Miss has been more than willing to help her brothers with their chores. And yes, there is vacuuming and mopping on the cards, but I figure my Friday (or Saturday) cleaning will adequately make up for whatever the small kiddies' cleaning skills lack. It's all about the training and the consistency, right?

I tacked these all up in their hallway so it is easy to see. I didn't laminate them or make them real durable because I figure it will only need to last through the summer and then I'll end up changing things again.

So I'm reading "The Parenting Breakthrough" (by Merrilee Boyack) which is an excellent eye opening book and I might end up changing everything! But we'll see how this goes for a while.

I look at lots of mommy blogs...and this idea came from a mixture of a couple blogs I saw. But I'm horrible and didn't mark what they were so I really can't give credit where credit is deserve.

Summer Bucket List

So I'm going out of town next week and have a million things to do before then. But I decided I just wanted to sit here and blog for a few minutes.

As summer started approaching I had a hundred ideas floating around in my head. (Along with a hundred things already going on!) I needed to organize them the best I could. And being a habitual list maker I began making lists. Lots of lists. So then I needed to organize those lists.

And here's what I came up with:

*our summer bucket list
*a new "task" chart w/ accompanying chores
*and a summer school calendar with daily themes

I know, I know... maybe I went a little overboard, but there is reason for my madness.

So here is my first list... our summer bucket list. Some of these things are things we already have planned, some are things I want to incorporate into summer school, and some are just fun ideas to do when we are bored (which 4 days into summer and that totally hasn't happened yet!)


I typed up my bucket list, printed it, cut it, and glued it onto cute patterned paper and stuck it in a old picture frame. I pinned it up in the kid's hallway. I think it is such a fun idea!
(I know these pictures are horrible! I wish I could take better photos!)

I'll post my other two "lists" soon.

Real Mom's Dinner: Since DH is gone tonight and my plan was for enchiladas and most of our family won't eat those I think we will just have cheese tortillas and grapes.

Disposal Dilemmas

A few weeks ago my husband peeled an orange and stuck it in the sink, to be disposed of by the lovely garbage disposal. I got after him and told him orange peels couldn't go in the disposal. He was confused and asked why I could put lemons in the disposal (to clean it) but not orange peels. I realized I didn't know why, but that is just what I had been taught.

Being Type A, I googled it. And I found out some interesting things on garbage disposals.

So the bad news? According to most plumbers, very little food should be going down the disposal. It is meant for the food that does get left behind.
But really...who is going to scrape out their kids' bowls of cereal into the garbage when there is a perfectly capable tool right there to clean it up neatly?

So on the one extreme you have people who say you should not put ANYTHING down the drain, and on the other hand there are people who will put EVERYTHING down the drain.
Okay, almost everything...minus the notorious potato peels.

But really most garbage disposals are fully capable of grinding up just about anything, but there are few things you should NEVER put in your disposal.
*Potato peels
*fiberous or stringy foods such as celery, asparagus, artichoke hearts, etc.
*rice and pasta (because it can expand just like potato peels) -I'm really bad at this one.

Anyway, so my new motto is, if I can realistically scrape it (meat scraps, leftover apple slices, etc) put it in the garbage. If not, it goes down the drain (mac n' cheese, cereal, etc.).
All citrus can clean the disposal great. However, I only do this in moderation. I don't put all the peels from the 2 oranges I give my kids down the drain. Just a few pieces.

Also, grinding up ice cubes can sharpen your blades in the disposal...who would've thought!And if you really want to deodorize your disposal you can buy disposal cleaner at the supermarket. Or if you cheap, like me, use 3 Tablespoons of Borax (found in the laundry aisle) let it sit in the disposal for an hour then run HOT water and run the disposal for several minutes to clean it all up.

There you have it...the skinny on garbage disposals.

Real Mom's Dinner: Last night we had pork chops, parley red potatoes, carrot sticks, and pineapple. We will either have homemade pizza tonight or broccoli and beef...it's almost 5:00 and I can't decide.

Smores' Treats

I LOVE smores!!! My favorite way to make them is with the fudge striped cookies and a fire roasted marshmallow. A while back I kept seeing recipes for smores cookies and thought "I've got to make those!" But I never did.
Well, I recently bought several boxes of Golden Grahams cereal because between the sale price and my coupons they were 75 cents a box. This morning after popping a handful of cereal in my mouth, I realized how easy it would be to make some Smores Treat bars.
We have tried the pre-made Golden Graham cereal bars before, but they were pretty gross. My kids wouldn't even eat them!
But I figured a marshmallow base and bits of chocolate would by yummy!
And it really was! Okay, so after some thought I realized this was probably not a new concept (turns out there are several recipes out there for this kind of thing.) But if your tired of the same old rice crispy squares, try substituting Golden Grahams and tossing in small chunks of chocolate bar (wait until marshmallow goo has cooled a few minutes so the chocolate doesn't melt.)
My kids still weren't too hip on this treat...not quite sure why...so I guess I'll have to take them to a neighbor so I don't eat them all!!!
Real Mom's Dinner: 5 Buck Pizza...It's Friday and my DH is going to be gone to a business dinner. Ugh!

Kitchen Table Redo

I have wanted to paint my kitchen table for over a year now! It was a beautiful natural wood color that matched the cabinets in our first home beautifully. And now our cabinets in this home are much darker. (And I knew my DH would FLIP if I tried to paint the cabinets...he he he.) The table was bought new, but in the last 8 years, it has taken a beating...marker stains, fork stabs, etc. I knew a new dining table was out of the question right now. So I started making plans to paint.

Before:But I thought I would wait until it warmed up and then I got pregnant and then my DH wouldn't let me paint anymore...at least in large amounts that was noticeable.

So in preparation for Miss Sunny's Baby Blessing I decided I was going to do it...no matter what!

Over several weeks in the cold, cold January in the cold, cold garage, I slowly painted my chairs...one at a time. First, I did a light sanding (I didn't spend too much time on this part.) Then I primed it with a gray spray paint. Then I spray painted it black.
Fortunately, the picture doesn't show my many mistakes. I ran into a little trouble when deciding what to use as a top coat. I tried a couple of different things on a couple different chairs, so in person they look a little different. I really don't like the triple coat clear top spray paint. I may go back some day and fix it, but my dear twins are destroying the chairs faster than I can fix them, so I don't know if it's worth it.

I did the same process on the bottom half and under the table. It isn't perfect looking under there, but I figured no one over the age of 6 is going to be underneath there inspecting my work.

Then I sanded the heck out of the top using a heavy grit, a medium grit, then a fine grit. After a good cleaning I stained it using a stain with a polyurethane (Minwax Polyshades Pecan Gloss) already mixed in. I ended up doing three coats to darken it until I decided I was finally okay with the color.
My final product and I LOVE it!!! I am soooo happy with how it turned out!!! And I've learned a lot about painting and staining. I'm so glad I pushed myself to do this! It has made my kitchen feel a lot more "put together." At least to me...and that is what matters, isn't it?!

I'm linking to Domestically Speaking's Power of Paint Party

St. Patti's Day

We made a leprechaun trap.

The leprechaun took the coins, but left some Twix candy bars in the trap.

The leprechaun also turned our eggs green.
*Mental note: kids will not eat green scrambled eggs.

Little Miss was disappointed the leprechaun didn't turn our milk green like last year,
so I let her put in a few drops of food coloring.

We colored shamrocks and rainbows.

We had green grapes, honeydew, and green Pasta-Roni.
*Mental Note: kids struggle eating food that is green...
unless she drops the food coloring in herself.

We made chocolate cupcakes with green frosting.
And I thought a hidden rolo inside would be fun...and yummy.
*Mental note: when hiding chocolate inside cupcakes don't push it down to the bottom...it sticks to the liner.

We all wore green...except for dad. But he handled his pinching well.

Little Miss apparently had a blast at school with leprechauns, rainbows, lime sherbet floats, etc.

And we called Grandpa to sing him happy birthday.

That sums up our fun St. Patti's day!

Real's Mom's Dinner: Hot dogs with white cheddar and shells Pasta-Roni (dyed green) and green beans.

I'm Back!

Okay, so I've taken a much needed break from this little hobby of mine. Not that I've taken a break from crafting, just blogging. I had a darling baby girl in December and life's been pretty crazy since!

My last couple posts were about a my December Daily Album. Well, I'm happy to report I did do it. I mostly finished it. Although it wasn't quite as complete as I wanted it to be. It started out really cutesy. Then the middle of the month is pretty bare.

The end just has a few notes thrown on the pages.That crazy project is done. Will I do it again? I don't know. I'll decide next November.
Maybe I'll do a Summer Fun Album.

So I have lots of ideas for this blog. I might be changing things up. But I definitely will be posting a little more regularly now.

Real Mom's dinner: Last night we got together with some friends. We had some seasoned chicken. mashed potatoes, homemade mac n' cheese, and strawberry shortcake. mmm....

My Daily December Album

First of all, my goal for this project was to not spend any money. Although I like my homemade album, next year I will probably go out and spend a few bucks on an actual album of some sort depending on how this year goes.

(For a more detailed description of project and samples go here.)

My favorite part of my homemade album is that I reused cereal boxes. It makes me feel a little green. :)

My least favorite part of my homemade album was the time it took. Yes, it did take a little time. But hey, it was free!

So my original idea was to have a 6x6 album so I only had to use 1/4 of a piece of paper. But then I thought and realized that however I bound the album would take up a little room. So I made the pages 6x7.

I used a sturdy cardboard box to make a cover...had to actually measure!

Then I used cereal boxes (had to raid my recycling bin) to cut the pages. Again, had to measure pretty good.


Then I took 16 sheets of coordinating paper (from one of those big blocks of paper) and cut two 6x7 pieces from each sheet. I then glue sticked them to the cardboard, cut down as needed, and inked the edges. The good thing about the 6x7 is that I have leftover coordinating paper to make backgrounds, pockets, etc.
I covered the cardboard with burlap, using hot glue to stick it on good. Then I cut out circles and used some brown alphas to create the dates.
Some sample pages...Then I embellished the front a little from my Christmas scrapbooking stash. And I'm pretty much done!

Oh wait, the binding. Ha ha.

So my intentions are to drill 2 holes in the edges and just use the loose leaf rings to hold it together. Haven't gotten that far yet.

I do have a stash of "stuff" to use when I'm ready to actually do every day. The original idea was to put your embellishments on each page BEFORE hand to lessen your work during December. But I think that would bug me. I can't just "adapt" my idea to the page format. I think it would less stressful for me! So I'm leaving "as is" until December.

I'm linking up to:
Tatertots and Jello
It's Fun to Craft


REAL MOM'S DINNER: Plan on having beef enchiladas. Not everyone will like those so we'll whip up some cheese quesadillas. :)