Over Father's Day weekend, we visited the in-laws in K.C. We decided that it would be a good time to let Buddy see his Grandmother's "remembering spot" in the cemetary. He learned this summer at Vacation Bible School about Jesus dying for us. It was the first time we talked at all about death, and we figured what better way to teach the subject than through Jesus. We took him to the cemetary, expecting a lot of questions. We explained it was the place to go to remember his Grandma since she has gone to heaven. (Of course, we didn't even broach the subject of what is really in a cemetary.) He seemed to understand the concept, but he really wanted to walk on the retaining wall and look at everyone's flowers. As we left, we asked if he had any questions for us.
After a few minutes he told us he wanted to run a cemetary when he grew up. Now, keep in mind his dream job now is to be a "wild animal doctor." (Not a zoo vet...unless they send him out into the field) I asked if he still wanted to be the wild animal doctor, or if he was changing his future career completely. He said he still wanted to be a wild animal doctor, and his wife would take care of the cemetary. Afterall, "she can't just cook all day. She needs something else to do... so she can take care of the cemetary." I'm so glad that he has thought this through and is considering his future wife's feelings. I know I don't want to be in the kitchen all day...what a thoughtful little man!
As for Boo, the night before I was convinced I could sleep in a double bed with both kids by myself. Not sure what I was thinking. The idea used to work, until Boo decided she was a natural entertainer and didn't want to sleep if she could sing, dance, jump, and talk to others. One of the countless times we were trying to lay quietly and "play oppossum," Boo turned to me, smiled, put her arm around my neck, and said, "you're my best friend!" Talk about tugging at every heart string! I was so excited!!! She then rolled over and said Buddy, "you my best friend." I, being the mature adult replied..."what about Mommy?" Nope...she changed her mind. Her brother was her best friend and no amount of guilt was going to get her to say it was me again. For a brief moment....I was on cloud nine! That's alright - I will settle for all the times she says she is "Mommy's girl."
**Side note, ever since that night she has been naming Daddy, Buddy, and Mommy as her best friends. (Depending on who is playing with her and giving her all the attention and love she wants at that moment.)
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
New Idea....
As I laid in bed awake last night, I finally made a decision. I have been truly procrastinating on this blog (about six months now) as I tried to determine just what I wanted it to be. I originally had all these great ideas about just posting projects I completed each week. Well, if you are a procrastinator or love someone who is, you know that completing a project a week is like building a pyramid each day out of sand. It seems impossible.
Now, I have wasted six months of truly documenting life as it happens here with a 2 year old and a 5 year old. I promise, there is never a dull moment. Therefore, I decided to simply turn this blog into my personal scrapbook. Mainly filled with the kids and life....with a few projects that actually get completed scattered in there. It is my hope that each week I will have a post about life, love, and maybe, just maybe, accomplishing things.
Let's see how this goes....
Now, I have wasted six months of truly documenting life as it happens here with a 2 year old and a 5 year old. I promise, there is never a dull moment. Therefore, I decided to simply turn this blog into my personal scrapbook. Mainly filled with the kids and life....with a few projects that actually get completed scattered in there. It is my hope that each week I will have a post about life, love, and maybe, just maybe, accomplishing things.
Let's see how this goes....
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Organizational Challenge #2
This week's challenge was to clean and organize the kitchen drawers and cabinets. Because my husband and I both lived on our own for years before finding each other, we brought a lot of kitchen gadgets into the marriage (not to mention all of those we received as wedding gifts six and a half years ago). While we have worked hard on pairing down items, there are still some drawers and cabinets that you don't want to open for fear never being able to close them properly. For instance, our knives drawer is still a point of contention. I believe we only need a handful of very sharp knives, and he sees no point in getting rid of old knives that just need to be sharpened. What we are left with is a drawer FULL of very dangerous knives (some very dull)....a drawer which will have to be battled in the near future because it was not even touched in this week's challenge.
This week started off with a bang: last Sunday morning I had three problem cabinets cleaned out with items all over the newly organized countertops. (I would highly suggest only tackling one cabinet/drawer at a time so you aren't forced to stay in the kitchen until you find new homes for each item.) As the days went on, I found that I am still not 100% satisfied and will be working to re-do some of the cabinets yet again.
Here are a few pictures of before and after, but note that I will be editing this blog in the coming weeks to show the new organizational systems I have in place for my pot lids, tuperware, and baking supplies.
This week started off with a bang: last Sunday morning I had three problem cabinets cleaned out with items all over the newly organized countertops. (I would highly suggest only tackling one cabinet/drawer at a time so you aren't forced to stay in the kitchen until you find new homes for each item.) As the days went on, I found that I am still not 100% satisfied and will be working to re-do some of the cabinets yet again.
Here are a few pictures of before and after, but note that I will be editing this blog in the coming weeks to show the new organizational systems I have in place for my pot lids, tuperware, and baking supplies.
As you can see, the baking items used to just get crammed back in the cabinet.
This cabinet used to just get filled with miscellaneous items (the baby monitor and children's medicine). I realized I had to keep the cd's in here because there is a cd player/radio mounted to the underside of this cabinet.
Here it is: the notorious "junk drawer" that also housed the kiddie silverware. Somehow it wound up looking like a goodie bag. I couldn't believe all that I found in here when cleaning it out (that's what happens when it isn't child-proof latched and your four year old is responsible for it).
In these pictures you will see I have tried to find a better home for the pots and pans. I thought the turntable cabinet would be better so I could easily get to all of the pots I needed instead of having to pull them out each and every time I needed to cook. These cabinets will be redone in the next few weeks as I find the correct organizational tools I need to store the lids.
I vow to tackle the dreaded knives drawer in the coming weeks and get back to you on the pots and pans solution. I just have to keep reminding myself that 2012 is going to be my most organized ever!
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Fun accessories!!!
My addiction to Pinterest has taught me many things: that I LOVE to gather ideas that I may never do anything with, that there are many projects out there that are do-able in a day, and that handmade gifts are my favorite (to name a few).
My 3 neices (ages 16 to 20) are hard for me to shop for because they are no longer kids that like toys, but there are only so many gift cards I can give. I know they would probably appreciate going to shop for themselves the best (after all, what girl doesn't want to be set loose in a store with a gift card in hand to pick out what they want), but I like knowing that I made something for them. (Hopefully, something that they like and can look at, think of me, and realize how much I love them.)
Unfortunately, I made these items before I started a blog so I did not take pictures of each step. You will have to bear with the instructions and wait to see the finished products :)
I made them each two presents, the first was a wooden bracelet made out of (are you ready?) a popsicle stick. How fun does that sound??? After searching on-line and at Michael's for the popsicle sticks with the shape I wanted, I came up empty-handed. Then, my dear friend called one day saying she found the popsicle sticks at Hobby Lobby. (Ahhh, it was almost like angels singing because it was so great to hear.)
The bracelets only required a few simple steps. First, you soak the sticks in water for three hours. After that was the hardest part: bending them to fit in the cups without splintering the wood. The only tip I can provide is to go slowly and bend it a little at a time. After drying in the cups for a day, they are the shape of the cup and you are ready to mod podge on scrapbook paper of your choice. loved how earthy they looked. (Maybe next time I will find something to put them in that is more oval in shape to better fit on smaller wrists.)
The second item in each picture was a scrabble tile necklace. This project was a little more time consuming. I first had to find images I liked for each person. I ended up searching online for images and uploading them to Walgreens to print out in a collage. (I recommend printing a few different collages because they randomly place the images in different places so they are not always the size you want.) Once you have the images printed and cut to fit on the Scrabble tile, you simply attach the image with some craft glue or mod podge directly on the back of the tile. After the picture dried, I sealed it with Americana Triple thick Brilliant Brush-On Gloss Glaze (found at Michael's). One tip I can provide is to make sure you don't shake the glaze before putting it on because it will put air bubbles on the project that you will be able to see once it dries. After three days of drying time, I super glued on a bail to the top of the tile and added a necklace. I chose to glue on a small bail directly on the top so the necklace could face either direction (showing off the image or their first initial).
My 3 neices (ages 16 to 20) are hard for me to shop for because they are no longer kids that like toys, but there are only so many gift cards I can give. I know they would probably appreciate going to shop for themselves the best (after all, what girl doesn't want to be set loose in a store with a gift card in hand to pick out what they want), but I like knowing that I made something for them. (Hopefully, something that they like and can look at, think of me, and realize how much I love them.)
Unfortunately, I made these items before I started a blog so I did not take pictures of each step. You will have to bear with the instructions and wait to see the finished products :)
I made them each two presents, the first was a wooden bracelet made out of (are you ready?) a popsicle stick. How fun does that sound??? After searching on-line and at Michael's for the popsicle sticks with the shape I wanted, I came up empty-handed. Then, my dear friend called one day saying she found the popsicle sticks at Hobby Lobby. (Ahhh, it was almost like angels singing because it was so great to hear.)
The bracelets only required a few simple steps. First, you soak the sticks in water for three hours. After that was the hardest part: bending them to fit in the cups without splintering the wood. The only tip I can provide is to go slowly and bend it a little at a time. After drying in the cups for a day, they are the shape of the cup and you are ready to mod podge on scrapbook paper of your choice. loved how earthy they looked. (Maybe next time I will find something to put them in that is more oval in shape to better fit on smaller wrists.)
The second item in each picture was a scrabble tile necklace. This project was a little more time consuming. I first had to find images I liked for each person. I ended up searching online for images and uploading them to Walgreens to print out in a collage. (I recommend printing a few different collages because they randomly place the images in different places so they are not always the size you want.) Once you have the images printed and cut to fit on the Scrabble tile, you simply attach the image with some craft glue or mod podge directly on the back of the tile. After the picture dried, I sealed it with Americana Triple thick Brilliant Brush-On Gloss Glaze (found at Michael's). One tip I can provide is to make sure you don't shake the glaze before putting it on because it will put air bubbles on the project that you will be able to see once it dries. After three days of drying time, I super glued on a bail to the top of the tile and added a necklace. I chose to glue on a small bail directly on the top so the necklace could face either direction (showing off the image or their first initial).
I hope you find a little inspiration in these projects and make something special for someone you love.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Organization Challenge #1
I did it! I signed up for the challenge of "52 Weeks To An Organized Home" (found at: http://www.home-storage-solutions-101.com/organized-home.html#join). The first week was kitchen countertops and sinks.
If you are like us, the kitchen counters become the dropping off point for virtually everything in the house. I try to maintain a workable space during the week while staying home with the four kids. However, it is during the weekends that things get totally out of hand. I guess it has to do with my wonderful husband being home, me getting tired of always cleaning it up, having no real designated spots for items, our weekly Costco trips that provide an overabundance of items and no place to put them, and the projects I want to do (but only make it as far as getting the supplies to the kitchen counters). Add all of those factors up, and by Sunday afternoon - there is hardly any space to use on the countertops. I can't believe I am going to show these before pictures, but here it goes. (Keep in mind the pictures were taken on a Sunday afternoon.) If your ready, take a deep breath, and scroll down.
Before:
(Notice the lovely flag from outside that is still sitting in the corner from the horrible winds last week, the 24 bottles of water that can't fit on the other countertop because my husband just bought 24 more bottles of water, and the gallon of paint that has been out for weeks for me to finish touching up baseboards after refinishing the hardwood floors....just to name a few things that should NOT be there.)
Well, now that you are probably completely disgusted. I do have after pictures that are a much better! We are still working on finding better organization for some items....and I am hoping that the next few weeks of challenges will help....but here are countertops I can see! I am now able to breathe a sigh of relief when I walk into the kitchen instead of getting frustrated by all of the mess!
After:
Here's hoping the next 51 weeks are as rewarding and provide me with a completely organinzed home/life!
Once again, the before and after side by side comparisons:
Stay tuned each Sunday to see how I did on the weekly challenge!
If you are like us, the kitchen counters become the dropping off point for virtually everything in the house. I try to maintain a workable space during the week while staying home with the four kids. However, it is during the weekends that things get totally out of hand. I guess it has to do with my wonderful husband being home, me getting tired of always cleaning it up, having no real designated spots for items, our weekly Costco trips that provide an overabundance of items and no place to put them, and the projects I want to do (but only make it as far as getting the supplies to the kitchen counters). Add all of those factors up, and by Sunday afternoon - there is hardly any space to use on the countertops. I can't believe I am going to show these before pictures, but here it goes. (Keep in mind the pictures were taken on a Sunday afternoon.) If your ready, take a deep breath, and scroll down.
Before:
(Notice the lovely flag from outside that is still sitting in the corner from the horrible winds last week, the 24 bottles of water that can't fit on the other countertop because my husband just bought 24 more bottles of water, and the gallon of paint that has been out for weeks for me to finish touching up baseboards after refinishing the hardwood floors....just to name a few things that should NOT be there.)
Well, now that you are probably completely disgusted. I do have after pictures that are a much better! We are still working on finding better organization for some items....and I am hoping that the next few weeks of challenges will help....but here are countertops I can see! I am now able to breathe a sigh of relief when I walk into the kitchen instead of getting frustrated by all of the mess!
After:
Here's hoping the next 51 weeks are as rewarding and provide me with a completely organinzed home/life!
Once again, the before and after side by side comparisons:
Stay tuned each Sunday to see how I did on the weekly challenge!
May 2012 be your most organized ever!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Coasters from cans
What do you give a wonderful neighbor for Christmas? Umm...coasters, of course! Our neighbors spent years designing and adding on to their house a massive addition (including an awesome "game room.") This room houses incredible games (shuffleboard, air hockey, a ton of those arcarde style games), booths for sitting, an amazing old bar, and countless collectibles. (Trust me...it is a great room!)
It all started with reading this post: http://www.theidearoom.net/2011/06/diy-soda-can-coasters.html. I asked my neighbors for some of their empty cans, went to Lowe's for some tiles, and got to work making them some coasters. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of each step along the way, but the link above provides a wonderful tutorial. I only made two changes while making the coasters: I opted to use Americana Triple Thick Brilliant Brush-On Gloss Glaze to seal the tiles (because I wanted the seal to be thicker than mod podge would provide) and I covered the entire bottom of the tiles with felt (hoping to better protect the amazing bar they have).
This project was easy, fun, and functional. Afterall, what better place to put your drink than on a matching coaster?
It all started with reading this post: http://www.theidearoom.net/2011/06/diy-soda-can-coasters.html. I asked my neighbors for some of their empty cans, went to Lowe's for some tiles, and got to work making them some coasters. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of each step along the way, but the link above provides a wonderful tutorial. I only made two changes while making the coasters: I opted to use Americana Triple Thick Brilliant Brush-On Gloss Glaze to seal the tiles (because I wanted the seal to be thicker than mod podge would provide) and I covered the entire bottom of the tiles with felt (hoping to better protect the amazing bar they have).
This project was easy, fun, and functional. Afterall, what better place to put your drink than on a matching coaster?
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Potty Rockin' in the House Tonight!!!
I was beginning to get frustrated today as my "to do" list wasn't getting any shorter, but this afternoon made me squeal with delight! Boo has been fascinated with the potty lately. For a month or so now she has wanted to sit on the big potty and pretend she was going (complete with saying "bye bye pee pee" and flushing the toilet). I was not going to really try to potty train her until spring break (when she was 23 months), but I noticed her dry diaper today after being out of the house a few hours. I decided to let her sit on the potty again (while singing my remix of LMFAO's Party Rock Anthem...."Potty rockin' in the house tonight, Boo boo went pee pee in the potty!!!" and my ever popular "Tinkle tinkle in the potty...boo boo likes to tinkle in the potty.") After a great time dancing in the bathroom while she sang and danced along on the toilet, I heard it!!!! She did it!!! She pottied on the potty!!!!!!! It made my exhausting day of sanding the stairs not matter!!!
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