If A Boy Spills His Cheerios.....

...inside the truck on his way to school, his mother will have to scoop them off to the side so they don't get stepped on, crunched and made into a gravely, crumby mess.

Later, when picking up a friends daughter from pre-school, the mom will have to actually clean up the Cheerios because now there are two sets of feet just waiting to stomp on them.

When the moms friend comes to pick up her daughter, she has a conversation about cleaning car seat covers. The mom thinks to herself that she really should clean her own little girl's car seat cover because she honestly can't remember the last time she did!

After picking up the two older kids from school, the mom spies some stray Cheerios she missed earlier and thinks that a quick round with the shop vac will get rid of them for good.

Now, the mom can't just do a quick run through with the shop vac, and since she already has it out she may as well pull out the car seats and vacuum the whole truck.

If she's going to take out the car seats she should go ahead and wash the covers that go with them.

While the car seats are out, now would be a good time to wipe down the seats with some leather cleaner.

And why not get the windex and spray down all the inside windows too?

When that's all done and the truck has been put back together, the mom will step back and admire her work.

Then she will go inside and realize she really worked up an appetite. And even though it's close to dinner time, she's thinking that the perfect snack would be a nice little bowl of Cheerios.

You Didn't See That......Did You?

Yes, that was my little girl who fell into the fountain. But you didn't notice, or stare too much at the crazy woman who got up and ran to get said little girl. Did you?

It all started when the weather cleared and gave us a promising day of warmth and sunshine. It had been raining for almost two weeks straight, so we decided to take advantage of the day and head to the park and maybe take in a museum. And so we took the weather at its word and headed out to a local hot spot for such a day as today.

First stop, the park. The kids enjoyed taking off their shoes and climbed the structures and slides. Then we threw some balls around and did a little chasing, all the while enjoying the giggles and smiles.

Next up we walked museum isle and enjoyed street performers of all variety. Isabel and I got 'ersty' so Ryan obliged us all with bottled water and an ice cream with sprinkles. And as we sat eating our fare, I noticed one musuem near by that have a very enticing sign, which read, FREE ADMISSION. Now a family on a budget on the lookout for money saving opportunities can not pass that up. And so we partook of said opportunity. However, the family must keep in mind that museum staff get a little antsy when 3 year old little girls try to climb the statues or dart behind the rope. So Isabel had to be content with piggy back rides while inside the free musuem of Russian and American art.

Once outside we spotted yet another free opportunity. This one boasted plants and flowers. The 3 year old little girl did much better in this one! However, the kidlets were not too impressed with the flora and fauna, so off we went.

On our way to the truck we stopped at the soon-to-be infamous fountain. Now, this fountain is huge in diameter as it is tall in it's hieght. And as Ryan and I sat down not too far from the edge, the kids were off and running around and around this monstrous attraction. We watched with diligence and told the kids not to touch the water, and, for the most part, they complied. Isabel made me nervous though as she would stand at the very edge and lean over to put the teensiest tip of her finger on the surface. Inside I was bunching up and wanting to yell "Isabel! No touch!", but I refrained so as not to make a spectacle of myself and just let the girl be free in her explorations. I relaxed a bit, but kept a watchful eye on her as she continued to go 'round and 'round.

Never ingnore a woman's intution. It's better to be safe than sorry, and to look a fool and to remain dry. In this case, however, I ended up looking the fool regardless, along with an all wet Isabel.

As she followed her big sister by the fountains edge, she slipped on the wet surface and tumbled in. For the next few moments I can recall the events only from an out of body perspective. I jumped up and yelp. Yes, I do believed I made some sort of audible, now-embarassing, sound. Not knowing how deep the water was, I quickly made my way to where Isabel had taken the plunge. By the time I reached her though, she had already stepped out of the water and was making her way to me (thankfully we now know that the fountian is only about a foot or so deep). And Isabel was drenched and a little shook up, but was otherwise fine.

What an adventure our day had become! A nice sunny day, playing at the park, ice cream, free musuems and a nice little dip in an obliging fountain. A day to remember, that's for sure!

Words I Love to Hear...

"I go potty, Mommy."

These words, together in the sentence above, tell me that my 3 1/2 year old is heading to the bathroom to take care of her business. And they are a signal, telling me that my time of changing diapers is finished. Oh, what joy! What joy!

Up until this point, I have been changing diapers for well over seven years. To me this is amazing. I never thought about how long I'd be in the diaper changing stage of life, but looking back it seems like a long time. However, when in the midst of it, I never really thought about it, I just did it, for it had to be done. But now! Now, I am on the other side and it feels oh so good!

Goodbye diapers!

Goodbye baby stage of life!

Ah, now that's just sad. I'll miss the baby stage, but I won't miss those diapers!

Simply Valentines

It's Valentines Day again!!! And I've learned my lesson. Last year I did too much for the kids classrooms and friends. And the year before that I did a somewhat large valentine project as well. This year, this year I've learned my lesson and went simple.

Since Mae has been in preschool, I have been having the kids make their own valentine cards. This requires me to cut the paper and glue it all together and (most of the time) fill out each card with the names. But that comes after they have stamped each little bitty card with valentine stamps. Oh, and then the past couple years I've had to take those cards and affix them to the valentine goodies. Not this year! Nope. This year I broke down and shelled out a few bucks and let the kids pick out some store bought valentines (gasp!...shocking, I know).

However!!!.......I did do a little project for the kids teachers. I only had to make three and it was so quick and simple, so I made two more for my friends. This is what I made


Aren't they cute?! You're probably wondering what they are, so let me tell ya. They are paper packages filled with M&M's or candy hearts! (for instructions go here) I went to a friends stamp workshop at her house last weekend, and along with the scrapbook page and valentine card, we also made one of these. They are so easy to make that I thought it would be perfect to give to the teachers for a little valentine gift. I think from start to finish for each one, probably took me no more than five minutes. See? Simple, easy and totally cute! You should try it! I think these would be perfect, too, for party favors. All I'd have to do is choose different paper and voila! it'd be perfect!

Happy Valentines Day!!!

Casting Off

The three weeks have come and gone since Caleb got his cast on. He did a great job of handling life with a cast. As the days led up to the big removal, I tried to prepare him and give him something to look forward to. I asked him to think of things that he couldn't do with his cast on then we'd pick one off the list and do it when it came off. We thought of things like going to a sandy park or the swimming pool (or hot tub since the weather here is 'cold'). And it was decided that we'd go to the hot tub.

However, the weather was not notified of our decision, and it rained.

So I planned on having Caleb's Cast Off party at home with our neighbor friends from down the street over instead. I whipped up a batch of homemade cinnamon rolls and had hot chocolate waiting along with some big ol' fat marshmallows! My boy had to have something to look forward to and it was the best I could do.

the spread!

Caleb's appointment was directly after school, so we zipped over as soon and the kids got out. I sat next to Caleb on the exam table as the nurse cut off his cast. I had planned to sit off to the side and take pictures but once I got there I knew that Caleb would need me to be there beside him, so I let Mae take the pictures (and she did a great job!).

Once the cast was cut and taken off, Caleb (and I) was unprepared for how his hand would feel. As he put it 'it feels weird!!!!'. And that is when the crying began. After the initial shock of weirdness (and crying) past he quieted down as I explained that his muscles were just weak from unuse and that his hand was fine and nothing was wrong with it. Oh, and I told him that cinnamon rolls and friends were waiting for him at home. After that he felt better.

Then, after getting more x-rays taken, Caleb was given a removable brace to wear for another 3 weeks. I was unprepared for that! I thought we'd be all done. But apparently I was wrong. The good part is that he can take it off and doesn't have to wear it all the time, and we do not have any more doctor appointments!!!

Here are a few pictures of Caleb's journey through the casting off procedure

cutting the hard part of the cast

getting a little freaked out by the cutting and buzzing of the saw

starting to feel the 'weirdness' as the cast comes off

hey, I think this might feel kinda funny...

"It feels wierd! It feels weird!"

all better and looking forward to cinnamon rolls and friends!
can you say 'cast off'???!!

I Always Said I Was Frugal

I made a few bucks today! Wanna know how???

I did the grocery shopping last night (no kids, great time to go!) and while there I bought a bag of frozen chicken. My total amount was larger than I expected, so this morning I went over the receipt. I had thought that my bog-0-chicken was on sale, they charged me $11.99 and I thought it was more like $6.99. So I called the stores phone number that was on the bottom of the receipt. They checked and said it was on sale for $9.99. Well, ok, so I was overcharged by two bucks. But still, we're on a tight budget while we pay off our debt so you betcha I went down there to get my measy two dollars!

After returning to the store and having the helpful guy at the customer service desk recheck the sale price, I was given the full amount back. And when I say 'the full amount' I'm not referring to the two bucks....I'm talking about the full amount of the bag-o-chicken! They refunded the entire $11.99 because I had to return to the store! Who am I to argue with store policy??

Ha! I got twelve bucks AND my bag of chicken!

Did You Know....

A few months back I had a new friend over for lunch, and I baked up a nice batch of brownies to be enjoyed afterward. When it came time for me to cut and remove them from the dish, I ran into a problem I often have....the brownies stick to the knife and get all torn up!

My friend had a brilliant solution that I had never heard of before; use a plastic knife. I admit that I was skeptical. But I tried it and voila! it worked!

Who knew that cutting with a plastic knife could bring such joy?

Did you?

Red is the New Green

We recently went to an auto show, and while we were there we passed by the Toyota dealer as they were handing out reusable bags. The kids each took a bag and we continued on our way. I was quite excited about these new bags because I had big plans for them.

I had been wanting some reusable bags to use at the grocery stores, but I've been picky. Picky because I don't want bags that have store names on them. I know it's weird and just something I should just get over, but I didn't want to take a Target bag to use in Safe Way. See? Weird. And I'm also picky about price. I know, I know, they can be had for pretty cheap, but not if I want a generic no-name bag!

Enter my new (free!) bags from the Toyota dealer! The bags are big, and sturdy, and red!, and have Toyota written across the front. Now, we are typically a Honda family, but I think I'll make an exception here (we did once own a Camry and it was a very good car!). I knew that I was going to use these bags often and who knows really how long they will last, so I had Ryan and Mae go past the Toyota dealer once more to pick up two more bags. Score! I am now the proud owner of FIVE reusable grocery bags!!!

I have thought this through, and I keep my trendy, store-neutral bags in the truck so that I won't forget them when I go to the store. And it's worked out pretty good too, for I have yet to leave them behind whilst going grocery shopping. Oh, and the number? Perfect! Five is a great number. I think we may have used all five at one time, but never have we had to supplement with plastic! Sweet!

Take a peek at my new Green bags! Aren't they fab?!