Any Suggestions?

So, I'm kinda liking this table for the kids out in this part of my house. But, I'm trying to decide if it feels awkward. Is it too much for this part of the room? Is it worth any awkwardness if it gets some serious good use?



If I decide to leave it, what in the world am I going to do about it's finish?

I would consider leaving it it's natural color but it has some serious stains, not to mention the partial spray paint job the last owner did (thanks rach).

Do I paint it white? Black? Bright red?
Do I cover the top with some funky patterned paper?

And while your contemplating your suggestions, don't look to close or you'll notice the half painted, doorless hutch. And the gazillion picture frames with strangers pictures in them.

And why in the world is my lamp still on at 12:30 in the afternoon on a beautiful sunny day?

Things to do with your Kids #4

Next time your at Walmart, spend $2 and pick up some golf tees.

Next time you unpack something with foam, get out those golf tees.



And maybe a hammer.








After he was done hammering, he decided to make it a space ship.



And when he got upset that his space ship broke in two, he decided to put it back together a different way.



And for younger ones who can't quite use a hammer, poking them straight in is just as much fun.






They sat for over an hour and played with this stuff. It was incredible to watch and I ended up with over 40 pictures of them!

10 Years Ago

After Michelle's comment about going back 10 years, I started trying to figure out what exactly I was doing 10 years ago.

February 1999. Four years post-high school.
I would have been 22, and Jason, barely 18.

That's pretty much all I'm sure of.

I seriously can't remember much more than that. Is it hard for anyone else to remember 10 years back?

Where was I working? What was I driving? Who were my friends? What was my hair like?

I'm thinking I may have been still living at home but getting ready to move to Spokane. An adventure that only lasted 3 months. Or was that the year before? Or the year after? Or maybe that never really happened...

But, Rachael was a senior and I think I remember driving back home for her graduation.



I seriously can't remember.

So, I'm going to spend some time tonight, after the kids go to bed, searching for some details. I'm going to have to make some phone calls, and dig through some old pictures, just to figure it out. How pathetic is that?

Is it normal to have this poor of a memory?

And if it's this bad already, what will it be like 10 years from now?

I really better have this little blog of mine published otherwise at this rate, I may not even remember my own name or that these three children really do belong to me...

Doing Our Part

Jason and I went to Portland this weekend and did our part to help 'stimulate the economy' with some of our tax return.

I'm still reeling from the effects, both physically and financially. We got some crazy good deals on some really fun stuff like bunk beds and a vacuum cleaner (what does that say about us) amongst a few other things.

I met IKEA, and fell in love.

Then I met Anthropologie and fell in love again.

Too bad IKEA is pretty much in my price range while Anthropologie will have to wait for some other lifetime when I come back as a millionaire.
I did buy some of those pretty little bowls though and can't wait to go back for a couple more.

It was a very fun, fast paced two days, and we thank my Aunt and Uncle a TON for letting us stay at their place and my three amazing Goude Girl Cousins who took excellent care of my kids and my house (especially Katie).

So, how much time did I spend in IKEA (it was one on my 'ponderings' from this week)?

Uhhh, like 7 hours.

And how much did I spend?

It's too painful to type.

Date Night

He held my hand.

He shared his popcorn.

He sang along to all the music.

He asked me if I thought it was 'awesome' when Marty kicked his skateboard under the bed.

He fell asleep on my shoulder and had to be carried to the car.

We had an excellent time watching



at the theatre, but he told me I couldn't call it a "date".



And for anyone surprised that I would take my 4.5 year old to see it, I can only say:

We all watched it and turned out just fine.

Her Drug of Choice

We have an addict in our house. And I will admit that I am acting as her 'supplier'.

But then she decided to take things into her own hands. Apparently I wasn't supplying at the right rate, speed, or frequency.

Step 1. Open cabinet door



Step 2. Make sure the coast is clear



Step 3. Insert DVD



Step 4. Turn on TV



Step 5. Wait for image



Step 6. Cry for help



Step 7. Verbally assault "Supplier" when denied a hit



Step 8. Continue to rant and rave about the injustices of being denied your fix





The sad thing is, it's hard for me to deny her of her needs. There's some great side effects of her addiction.

There's some pretty fantastic bonding going on between her and her brother while taking in an episode... or two, or three...





But it's times like this that make me wonder if I should pull the plug...



I... mean... really.

Yes, that is my nakey, 22 month old daughter, straight out of the bath, getting her hit. She couldn't even take the time to throw some clothes on. She heard the words, "I love you, you love me, we're a happy family..." and she was pulled in, once again.

But it's soooo hard to deny her when you hear her singing

"a ug a me a eww," (translation: "a hug from me to you,")

and when you catch yourself being a little more 'green' while brushing your teeth because the words

"...while I'm brushing my teeth and having so much fun, I never let the water run, no, I never let the water run..."

actually make you turn the water off.

So for now, this house will continue to support the big, green and purple, insert-your-own-negative-adjective, dinosaur, Barney.

Happy Birthday Babe...part 2

Well, I promised that there would be more for Amys birthday and so here I am. I have to admit that I was trying to stall because I was trying to think of something clever to write, but alas, nothing clever was coming to me. I couldn't even think of anything Friday-the-13th-related.
So, with nothing clever or funny to say, I'm just going to put it out there. Happy Birthday Amy! I realize of course that it is a bit late to wish a happy birthday considering that her birthday was two days ago. It is also a bit late to wish a happy birthday considering that her birthday probably didn't turn out as happy as she had hoped. I couldn't get the day off of work so she was alone with the kids all day and the kids were apparently not behaving well. So I will amend my statement and say instead , sorry that your birthday wasn't everything you hoped it would have been.
Wait, what is that I see? Oh, it is a shimmering light at the end of the tunnel. I did manage to get Monday off of work and we have a baby sitter arranged for at least a little while. So there is hope. Amy, I wish you a happy un-birthday. After all, if there is anyone who deserves to have one day of fun and happiness and peace, it's you. You are a great wife and an even better mother and I really do wish you all the best on your special day...part 2.

Celebrations, Two Years in a Row

Some girls wake up to breakfast in bed on their birthdays. I woke up to a talking Batman card. And for me, it doesn't get better than that!



The talking part says: "Well, a guy that dresses up like a bat, clearly has issues."


Spencer was ecstatic about it and was very proud himself that he remembered to get me the two things I asked for:





Socks and flowers. Last year he picked out this fire helmet "for me":





In the afternoon, we delivered valentines cookies to Jason and his co-workers at Signs Now. They had a little surprise for me...



I was the proud recipient of Felicia's Famous Kitty Litter Cake. Thanks Felicia, I can truly say that I will NEVER forget the cake I got for my 32nd Birthday. Even the kids were hesitant to eat any! Friday evening I went shopping and out to dinner with my mom, and picked up my birthday sugar cookies from my aunt. I finished off my day with a phone call from Michelle. It was fun to talk to someone who laughs with you, not at you, as I was having a little pity-party.

For Valentine's Day, I decided to have my parents and grandma's over for dinner. I can't believe I didn't take pictures of any of it! I was way too busy getting everything ready to even think about my camera! We started with salad and rolls and then moved on to salmon, chicken, asparagus, and baked potatoes. We had sparkling cider to drink and laughed every time Spencer asked for more "spriter" to drink. My mom brought an ice cream cake and a fruit tart for dessert. They were both wonderful. Excellent for breakfast as well. As we we're all sitting around complaining of full bellies, I finally remembered to grab my camera.















Last year, we filled the kids' room with red and white balloons before they woke up in. Spencer start whining as soon as he sat up in his bed because he didn't want us to "make a mess in his room." He was seriously mad. Sophie was sick that morning but still enjoyed playing with all the balloons. I can't believe how little she was!

Happy Birthday babe!

More to come.

Kitchen Helper

We'll be spreading some Valentine sweetness over the next day or two so we put on our aprons...



Got out some flour...



and went to work mixing, stirring, and rolling...



and then we cried when our mean mom said, "No more dough. You've had enough."



and then we felt better when we snuck some on our own...

First Five

The first five...

The first people to leave a comment on this blog will receive something made by me.

However there are some limitations

1. I make no guarantee that you will like what I make.

2. What I create will be just for you.

3. It will be done this year.

4. You have no clue what it is going to be, poetry, shoes, bags or a little invention of my own. I may bake something and mail it you . Who knows? Not you that's for sure!

5. I reserve the right to do something extremely strange.

Here the catch, if you choose to do this. You must post this on your blog and be ready to make something for five people too. This will be fun! When you receive the fabulous item I make you, you must post a picture of it on your blog.


**I just made it on the first five of this girl's blog. Seems like such a fun thing to do! I'm excited!

Geeks

This is what geeky couples do for fun on a Wednesday evening while eating ice cream. We find it to be addictive. States Level 4 is my favorite so far. We're going to test our knowledge of capitals next.

Photo Tag

My SIL, Christen, tagged me. So, here it is. The 6th photo from my 6th folder.



This is Spencer and Colton breaking the rules at the McMinnville Aviation Museum. We didn't notice until after the picture(s) was taken that there were signs all over reminding people to stay off the aircraft(s).

This crazy part was that we ended up at the Museum at the same time by pure accident. Rachael and her family had left a day earlier than us, heading to Portland before continuing on to the coast. We headed out early and made a stop in Portland for breakfast, then continued on. We both took different routes out of the Portland area and hadn't heard from each other at all that morning. As we pulled in to the parking lot of the museum, we were still debating whether we would park and get out, or just drive around the lot looking at the planes. Suddenly Spence yells from the back seat, "Look! There's Colton!" To which we of course replied, "No, it just looks like his car." We parked, and as we were walking through the lot, Rachael and Kent pulled up next to us. Apparently, Colton had just pointed us out, and they had initially dismissed him too! Crazy to think that we left Pasco, they left Beaverton, without talking to each other and with no plans to even stop at the musuem, and we ended up in the same place at the same time. We walked around together, took the kids inside, and hit the road again, headed for the coast.

**I tag Rachael, Lisa, and Shayla.

Activity Idea #3

Lisa's prize from this post consisted of the following:

1. Golf Tees for pounding into playdough or styrofoam
2. Homemade Kool-Aid playdough
3. Put-n-Take Jar with tongue depressors inside
4. Sprinkles for cookie making
5. Spatula, also for cookie making
6. Squirt bottle for water activities
7. Squeegee for little hands to wash windows
8. Magic Treehouse Book
9. File folder games (not pictured yet because they're not finished...I'm such a slacker!)

I hope her and the kids have enjoyed their activities. Lisa, I would love to see some pictures and am anxious to know if Tyson liked the put-n-take.

Put-n-take jars are one of my favorite things. The purpose is as obvious as the name. Put something in, then take it out. You can use any jar with a lid, and anything that will fit inside. I've used tongue depressors, popsicle sticks, pennies, erasers, bouncy balls, etc. It is an excellent way to develop some good small motor skills and can keep some kids busy for a good length of time. Here's Sophie playing with her most recent put-n-take:





Those are little erasers, in the shape of bugs, that I found at the dollar store. As you can see, I didn't take the time to fancy-up the jar, I usually don't and she doesn't care! These are super quick and easy to make, especially if you don't care what the container looks like. For Lisa's I covered this container with scrapbook paper:



And the one Sophie is using is just a small Pringles can. Once you have your container, decide what you're going to have the kids put in the jar. That will help determine how to cut the lid.




This one had some pretty sharp points so I cut the tips off. Be careful not to make the whole too big, it's better if there is some resistance when they're putting in the objects. Put the lid back on, give them their objects to put in, and let them play! Some lids may be hard for them to get on and off so be prepared for a little assistance, let them try to do as much of it as possible since it's another great way to strength motor skills, and teach a little independence!