Dragonfly Mornings

Micro-schooling

2012-02-09T17:57:00.000-06:00

School has been going much smoother around here since our reboot. Everyone is happy with more music, more projects, more fun and less busywork. Especially me! Which is strange when you think about it, because straying away from a curriculum puts lots more work and strain on the teacher. It is worth it when your seven year old asks to listen to the cell song again because he didn't learn all the words yet. Score!

This week our lessons have been tiny. Minute. Micro in fact. It started off with this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zafJKbMPA8&feature=colike

Is that not the coolest? The boys LOVED it and so we kicked off our study on the smaller things in life. Just to keep them in the cell mindset we colored these pictures from Crayola's web site:

http://www.crayola.com/free-coloring-pages/print/human-cell-coloring-page/

Tomorrow for supper we are having something fun to cell-ebrate the end of the week. A animal cell pizza like this one from Journey 2 Excellence.

We have been talking about size and scale with the boys for math, so one of the assignments this week fit right in with our Lego Club assignment. This week we were supposed to build something that was a smaller scale than a mini-figure. C picked out an Egyptian tomb.

Homeschool Re-boot

2012-01-31T16:23:00.000-06:00

I have been a unit study kind of gal for the last five years. For you public-schoolers, unit studies are in depth studies of things, events, or issues that your child is interested in, or that you think they might be. For five years, this method worked for my kids individually and as a group. We have studied a huge variety of scientific, historic and artistic ideas seamlessly as part of our life. If they wanted to know about chocolate, we studied chocolate, but we also studied the chemistry of how it is produced, the South and Central American cultures that first used it, the math ideas behind cost of production and profit margins, the European places that are now famous for their chocolate and then cooked up some chocolatey goodness.

This year, we all (kids included) flipped out and bought curriculum. Blame it on having a teenager for the first time, blame it on this being my seven year homeschooling itch, blame it on aliens reprogramming us, but for some reason we all panicked. I think for me it was two words that loom just nine months away - HIGH SCHOOL - and for the kids, well, they said they would like for school to have an end. HA! Now some of our new books have been great for us (New World Explorers), some of it has been okay for us (Marvel's Math for Second Grade) and some of it has been dreadful (5th Grade McMillan Math Text). Unfortunately much of it has been dead boring. School for the first time has taken on the look of deepest punishment; sad faces, groans, crying and anger.

One of the hardest, but best, things about homeschooling is recognizing when something is NOT working and being able to say, "I don't have to keep doing the same thing for no reason. If this is NOT working for MY family. We don't have to keep digging ourselves into this hole!"

We have been life learning this week (thank you week of flu germs) and they have LOVED learning again; chemistry, writing, art, design, cooking, math, history... They have come to me with a million questions and I have looked up about 999,995 answers. I didn't know the melting point of dark chocolate (high quality is 93*F), the heat at which a body denigrates (1600-1800*F), or the reason that certain smells are bad and others good depending on the person (thank you Medical News Today!). I am happy to report that I did know that outdoor planting season here begins March 22nd. Yeah me!

Their lack of love of this kind of school has pushed me to remember that I am in charge of this show! If these materials are causing my kids to hate learning and life, then there is something wrong with the materials, not them!

"The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. " ~Alvin Toffler

So this week, I am unlearning and relearning what school looks like at our house.

Debember 2011

2012-01-17T21:13:00.000-06:00

December held our first try outs for a play. A and G were both excited about the idea, but C opted out. My middle kid that LIVES in costumes and play acts all the time? Yep that one. Anyway, after some initial nerves, they both made the cut! Wizard of Oz, here we come!

Christmas Eve at my Mom and Dad's is always a blast. We were lucky enough to get Cris to come as well as Dolores' cousin Lizette.

These necklaces are ones the boys designed for me as a Christmas present with a little help from Mom. G's is the shorter and C's is the longer. They both picked wings for me. :o)

Lou's office party is one of the few times of the year that we get to dress up.

I checked an item off my Day Zero list; see the Nutcracker Suite.

G's Cub Scout pack marched in the parade.Since they were near the front, they also got to watch it!

Our church Christmas Play.

Our Tree

Roamschoolers' Dirty Santa - SO fun!

Galaxy of Lights in Huntsville

Beachy Thanksgiving

2011-11-30T14:22:00.000-06:00

November Wanderings

2011-11-30T13:13:00.000-06:00

October's End

2011-11-05T11:22:00.000-05:00

I feel like I missed October altogether this year. We had a family round of a virus and then G had two more rounds of illness that we have yet to diagnose. Between all that we were cooped up for almost two weeks. At least we made it out for a few fun October events!

Tate Farms Field Trip

Cub Scout Pack Meeting

G got three belt loops and two pins

Halloween

This year's theme was obscure characters, didn't you hear?

Austin is Ike from Fire Emblem

Carson is Link from Zelda

Griffin is a Gryphon

I revised my Mary Poppins costume again this year

Well That's Not a Good Sign...

2011-10-18T16:37:00.001-05:00

We've all likely seen the joke about the "bad" sign before. I got one of those the other day in the form of lined paper taped to my storm door. The handle of the door was covered in scotch tape and the sign read, reassuringly to the writer's thinking I'm sure, "CAN BE USED!" Oh my. While I had run to the store for some milk (where do they put all that milk?) the older two boys had gotten into an argument and in the process, my door handle had been ripped apart. Rightly concerned that they would be in trouble for wonton destruction of my house, they pieced the parts they could find back together and taped the knob and said letter up.I took a deep breath and made a decision. This was a teaching moment... for ALL of us.

Dear Self;
Lesson 1 - Isn't that just the way we do things in life as adults too. When we've messed something up and don't want to right it, we hang labels on it; "still works, mostly," "almost good," "well worn in", "just a small case of ___". Who are we kidding.
Lesson 2 - They don't need you to be angry about the expense and the work. SHOW them.
Lesson 3 - You wanted boys. Congratulations. Along with the fun parts comes this kind of stuff. Toughen up, cookie! You'll laugh later... probably...

Dear Kids;
Lesson 1 - Somethings have to be fixed and not with scotch tape. Some things take "I'm sorry", some take a monetary investment and some require time and TLC.
Lesson 2 - Confession is good for the soul. Don't blame each other. It doesn't help at all.
Lesson 3 - Elbow grease goes a long way toward fixing things.

The sordid details were sorted out - all of the who, whats and wheres - and it was decided that they owed me some time off (for real) and to fix the handle themselves. On a trip to Lowe's they found out that door handles like that cost $10 or two hours worth of work in the form of babysitting. They learned that putting the handle back together while keeping the cats out of the house wasn't as easy as they imagined. They also stayed home together for those two hours without tearing anything else up, allowing me to head out early to a ladies conference at our church. I'm sure that won't be the last time things are broken in my house - it is almost a daily occurrence - but I'm hopeful that it is the last time the door handles will be ripped off.

Happy Bike-iversary!

2011-10-10T17:05:00.000-05:00

Lou and I will celebrate our 14th (gulp) wedding anniversary tomorrow. It is SO hard to believe that we have been married that long. We've hit a lovely point in our marriage where were are comfortable with ourselves and each other. Enough that this year we are choosing to celebrate late. We had a wonderful trip to Nashville a few weeks ago and we have a family trip to the beach planned for Thanksgiving so I saw no reason to spend the money. Lou however had a brilliant idea...

This, folks, is my first new bike in 20 years and the first working one I've had in 15. She has that great rack in the back for a basket (picnic anyone?), wide handlebars and a seat built for comfort. Anyone who knows me know she is a little... girly for me. Lou made sure to point out how funny I looked in my black t-shirt, camo pants and aviator glasses riding a bike that could be named Bertha. I told him to hush. She is lovely and rides like a dream. Here are a few pictures from our five mile inaugural family ride.

Pumpkin Pickin'

2011-10-05T16:29:00.000-05:00

Day Zero

2011-10-03T16:04:00.000-05:00

I have started a new project. Just what I needed right? This one, however, is just for me. It's called Day Zero. The premise is that you have 1001 days to finish the 101 things on your list. Fun right? It's a great way to make yourself stretch a bit on a time schedule. Just what I've been needing! You see I have all these things on my daily list that are just... boring. "Clean the laundry room, take cat to vet, explain schoolwork to kids..." You know the drill. Anyway, I'm having a ball thinking of things I have never done that I want to try, or start doing again, in the next three years.

Here is a bit of a sample:

# 5. Learn to identify 10 (new) constellations.

#14. Learn to change my own oil.

#29 Audition for a musical

#48 Memorize two new piano pieces

#60 Visit Scotland

So far I'm up to a list of 68 things for the next three years. Anyone have any suggestions of things to add?

Welcome Autumn Hike

2011-09-25T20:38:00.000-05:00

Arrowhead Landing

Turtle Sunning

Rough Green Snake Baby (Pencil sized)

Mount Ant-suvious

Half-way there - Mile 2

The Tennessee River

Bama Buckeyes?!

Green Snake #2 = Extra Large

He didn't move when we walked right over him and then only when G pet his tail.

Barge

Dragonflies abounded

Me. :o)

Total hike distance 4.5 miles + total hiking time 2 hours 30 minutes = Priceless!

End of Summer Fun

2011-09-14T14:45:00.001-05:00

The weather is hot again today, but it is so great to have a few days in-between where the temperature only rises to 75*. We are hoping to get in a few more swim days before the water us just TOO cold anymore - meaning nearly frigid for the boys.

Walking the labyrinth in Huntsville

Pavers from the labyrinth

Walking the labyrinth with friends

Overlook at Burritt on the Mountain

Sci-Quest fun!

Playing in the creek at the Park

Swimming at Smith Lake

Slip-n-Slide with our Church

Playing with the littler kids at the party

First Cub Scout campout

Bicycle Rodeo

Cub Washed kid

Austin's baptism

Valley wildflowers

Morning Glories

Train tracks

My hikers

Thursday Thinking

2011-08-11T14:51:00.001-05:00

Things I'm thinking about today:

1) Tree houses. Our visit to Katy's house got me thinking about building a tree house here. After checking out the backyard, there are only two places it could go and not touch a power or phone line. Hrm. Not ideal, but I'm just dreaming... right?

2) Bed Frame Bench. Along the lines of building again, I'm wanting to make a bed frame bench to go on my back deck. Mom and Dad were kind enough to lend me their four piece outdoor seating arrangement for showing the house, but they will need it back when the weather turns nice. Especially because Dad built a new deck! They have an old frame with a cracked foot that will work out perfectly for me!

3) Bedroom Switcharoo. It's high time Austin had his own room. Part of us wanting to move was about each of our boys having some personal space (doesn't really happen in a shared 10x 10 room) so we are putting the younger boys together and I'm hoping to redo GA's room into something like these:

4) Gardens. If I'm staying, I'm going to put in all those things I've been waiting for our permanent house to put in:

Climbing roses out back

A line of Berries so I can stop picking on the side of the road

Hostas, hostas and more hostas. Did I mention the shade?

Azaleas. They are the only thing that will flower in all that shade as well.

Magic on Monte Sano

2011-08-09T13:50:00.000-05:00

Hosting a party for 35 isn't for the faint of heart, but when Katy invited such a large group out for the day, none of us wanted to be left out! We started off the day meeting at Monte Sano's Club pool for a group swim.

What a view!

Homeschool "special" Olympics Table Basketball Team

G is enjoying his new goggles.

Diving board adventures.

Well, maybe not DIVING per se...

As if getting us all together for this wasn't enough fun, Katy invited us all back to her place to let the kids play and snack.

These chairs just begged to have a picture made. Have they got a great view of what?

Back yard = Kid paradise!


Their pressure gun shot out towels and sawdust. Fun!

My favorite part of the back yard: Tree house!

This tree house was high on charm with vine covered hand rails...

and sea shell garlands.

Karen mentioned how she would LOVE to spend the night up there and Katy's daughter said, "Oh, it's been done!"Not to be out done the inside of their house was just as charming and kid friendly.

Skeleton man had an accident. Can someone give him a... hand?

My jokes aren't funny, but Carson laughs anyway. <3

Katy's baby had a painting accident that resulted in foot prints that no one wanted to clean up. CUTE!

There were adolescent chicks to pet.

I was told this beauty will lay pastel eggs one day.

I loved so many things at Katy's house. Even her salt and pepper mushrooms.

As the day turned hot(ter) the chairs moved in the shade of the trees.

And so did the kids.

It was a great day of visiting and playing and not heading back to school. Many thanks to our hosts!

Traveling Old School

2011-08-09T11:15:00.001-05:00

I'm old enough to date myself with bands and sayings from the early 90's but there are some things I don't recall. Like how people used to say, "Gee, I'd like to see the Grand Canyon. What is the PRETTIEST route there?" No such thing in my lifetime. People that drive more than 10 hours are considered too cheap to fly or just plain crazy. Since my Aunt Kathy came to stay with Mom for a week and help her get things running again after her surgery - which was SO sweet of her - we had the added benefit of her visit making Mom want to get OUT of the house and do something. Hip be darned! In that old school manner they decided to drive around and look at some of the tornado damage and see a few things in the area on the way.

Here are the boys all loaded up around 10:30. We rushed school a bit to get to join in the fun.

I didn't take any pictures of the areas we visited. There is still so much to be done. In areas where there has been clean up done, the ground itself is still embedded with glass and metal. Trees that weren't snapped in half still hold large sections of tin grotesquely wrapped around them. There just aren't words for what happened to our state. Alabama, however, is nothing if not independent and resilient. I've never heard anyone complain. One thing that really brought it home for the boys and I was seeing Bear Creek Canoe Run (click here to see the blog about our canoe trip last June) and the area around it GONE. The area around the river has nothing standing, but about half the welcome cabin.

The drive itself was quiet the adventure. One of the things that I think kept people thinking how fun that drive to the Grand Canyon would be is that they didn't have Google Maps or TomTom telling them that they had another 2,000 miles to go. Had I realized that the circular drive we were heading on was 160 miles round trip and that we would be stopping for lunch at 3pm.... Well, my spirit of adventure may have been dampened a bit. I'm glad I didn't know!

After tour around for a several hours we saw a sign for Natural Bridge. Here was a place we had never been! Aunt Kathy asked if we wanted to stop since we still hadn't eaten. For sure! Who cares about eating when there is something new to see? It even brags being the largest natural bridge east of the Rockies.

The paths were really well kept and the arch was HUGE!

My explorers searched for a way up, but were disappointed.

Indian Head Rock

There was a great little picnic area by the creek and another large pavilion for groups.

Griffin said he needs one of these!

It was definitely somewhere we want to go back to with our Roamies one day. The "hike" was more of a leisurely amble down 100 yard pebbled paths, but the trees were cool and the scenery beautiful.

After another 45 minutes of driving, we finally made it into Cullman. We were pretty well starving and decided that Cracker Barrel was the place to go. We also stopped at Berkley Bob's for tea and I talked Aunt Kathy into a couple ounces of Peach Roobois. Mmmmm. I hope she likes it! We toured around some of the tornado damaged areas there too before heading back home so they could be late for their supper date with Nathan. Luckily they were running behind as well, so no harm done with our massive adventure.

Just think, if I had over thought this, planned it out on GPS and decided it was too far for us on a school day, we'd have missed out on a great day out with Mom and Kathy. I think I like traveling old school...

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful...

2011-08-08T08:25:00.001-05:00

August in Alabama is frightful. I know that song refers to the freeze-fest that is a northern winter, but in the deep south, August rules for bad weather. If the weather is nearing triple digits with humidity in a range that favors gills, it's best to come up with some things to do INDOORS.

Like build a fairy house! Griffin and Carson had made me these pencil holders for Mother's Day a couple years ago as a free project at Lowe's. We just aren't pencil holder people. With their permission, we turned them into fairy houses for a fairy garden we are working on in the back yard.

We also attended VBS. It was Panda-licious.

There has been a lot of building going on. Loads of Legos, Bionicals and Bey Blades have made our indoor time creative time as well.

This is our neighborhood mystery cat. She turned up a few months ago and we know she is somehow related to our Winter. Mother? Sister? Who can tell. We've named her Mrs McGonagall because of her "spectacle" markings, but you can call her Minerva. We spend time musing over the relationships of the cats, if she has a family (she spends a lot of time in our driveway watching over our cats) and whether she is really an animagious.

Of course the ultimate indoor time filler is school. My Mom had to have her hip replaced at the end of July, so the boys and I started school while we cared for her. While it might seen cruel and unusual to start school two weeks early, I guarantee we will all be glad for some time off in the beautiful October weather! Here Griffin is showing off the start of his Diorama for Apologia's Swimming Creatures.

Of course we can't stay inside forever. [Seriously, have you ever been trapped in a house with three rambunctious boys?] Tomorrow, I'll fill you in on our outdoor doings as well.

July 2011

2011-08-07T14:55:00.000-05:00

Dear Blogger, Do you love me again? Really?! I'm so happy we're together again! I've missed you!

All my Blogger frustrations seem to have dissipated with a summer off. Either that or it's teasing me with a little extra storage space. I can't believe how much I've missed sharing our adventures on here, so should it lock up again, I'm going to pay up and not shut up. ;o) Here is a quick catch up of our July:

4th of July

Family Reunions with the Woods and the Bullards

Crossing the Bridge

2011-07-07T17:47:00.000-05:00

Ever feel like this picture. There may be something good waiting on the other side of the creek, but there is no bridge and the water is flowing fast, it's cold and you might slip on the way.... It's so scary your toes curl under and you freeze where you stand.

That is pretty much where I've been for the last couple of months. Putting our house on the market was tough. I had never been on this side of it, but opening your home is a very personal thing. Having people you don't know looking through everything... Many people don't even have their closest friends over and here I was cleaning up my closets for strangers. Thinking of it as NOT your home anymore is rough as well. Usually after a few weeks or months on the market, after a few showings, the right person comes along and your house if their house. Not so for us. Being that open and being rejected over and over pretty much sucks. After ten months on the market, we are calling it quits. Technically our contract runs until the 22nd, but no one has looked at the house at all since our last price drop a month ago, so it's pretty much dead.

Here I stand, having jumped in on the big rock in the middle of the stream, and now I'm all wet. Is it a failure to not sell? Or do I get back up and see what lies on the other side of the stream? Which path do you take when the one you've chosen looks like a dead end? I'm not sure today, but I'm going to get up and and give myself a little time to dry off before leaping again. I can't wait to see where life takes me next.

This One's for Esther

2011-06-30T16:27:00.000-05:00

So it was brought to my attention that my blog has essentially died. I haven't posted in months and poor Esther has had nothing to read. My reply was that blogger has cut off my pictures (I have maxed out my space usage) and that blogging without pictures is like talking without my hands. I just can't do it! So, just for Esther, I am compromising. Here are some of my favorite moments from the last few months that I painstakingly downloaded into another photo site.

APRIL

MAY

JUNE

So far summer has been good to us. The only thing that could make it any better is one of these:

Three more weeks until our contract expires.

Perhaps a Solution?

2011-04-09T16:12:00.000-05:00

I have been thinking that I my usage of this web page may be worth the cost of extra storage, but I wanted to check all my options first. I have checked into archiving without much avail, but I think my answer may lie in my Picasa account. Turns out that my laziness in resizing my pictures has prematurely used all my storage. At the moment the best potion I can find is in resizing every picture in the Picasa program individually. If anyone has a better option, I'd love to hear it! Spending that $5 a year to start over is sounding pretty good about now!

Blog Sadness

2011-03-27T17:29:00.002-05:00

According to Blogger. I have used up all the room on this blog. Since I don't make any money off it and I don't want to PAY to have a personal blog I am pretty much up a creek.

So for now I'm putting this blog on hold. I'm really sad about it, but what are you doing to do?

St Patrick's Day

2011-03-17T21:55:00.000-05:00

Food. Friends. Sun and Fun.

Hiking the Mountains

2011-03-16T12:36:00.000-05:00

Spring is in full swing. My guys all have spring fever on top of spring allergies. I'm making an effort to see they all get in at least a walk around the block each day, but last week we made a special trip to two different mountain trails.

Rainbow Mountain was a short hike with just us. We did about half a mile and back with lots of playing on our favorite rocks.

At Green Mountain we met with friends and hiked the long trail around the lake, putting in another 2 miles.

Project 52: Week 11

2011-03-14T21:34:00.000-05:00

Spring

I've been extra quiet lately, I know. Lots going on in my little head that I'm not sure how or whether I want to share it. Spring has sprung here and there are lots of things to get done. I'm spring cleaning the house for showings. AGAIN. Flowers to buy, a pool to clean, outdoor furniture to get ready and a time crunch.

Back to work...

Project 52: Week 10

2011-03-09T15:21:00.001-06:00

Underneath

Wait, you say, what happened to week 9. Vegetable? He left me feeling very uninspired. Time to move on!

Fish Tales

2011-03-02T22:22:00.000-06:00

A pond, some fishing poles, a warm, sunny day and some hot dogs and marshmallows over a campfire make for the most perfect kind of days.

Project 52: Week 8

2011-03-02T22:15:00.000-06:00

Spirit

Orchestrating the Perfect Thursday Morning

2011-02-24T14:56:00.000-06:00

In the homeschool community there is an amazing game of "telephone" that takes place via email. Someone gets a notice that this or that great event is taking place and has extra room (fewer schools are doing things these days thanks to all the testing) and the event coordinator is opening it up to homeschoolers. Just such a heavily forwarded message reached me a couple of weeks ago and we scored four seats to the Young People's Concert series with the Huntsville Orchestra's performance of Lemony Snicket's the Composer is Dead. It was the perfect mix of formal orchestration and hilarious hijinx.

My Clarinet, Trumpet and future Saxophone

Beethoven's 5th

High School student's amazing performance on Bassoon

The Composer Is Dead

If you have the chance to visit the family concert (also FREE) this Saturday, I would highly recommend it. I would also suggest printing out this great guide to go with the visit!

Happy Birthday to Me

2011-02-23T18:31:00.000-06:00

On your birthday it's important to play...

relax with friends...

and eat.

Check off another great birthday for me!

Four Seasons

2011-02-22T15:14:00.000-06:00

I have missed having four seasons. I mean here in the deep south we do have three seasons (cool, warm and hotter than the dickens), but I missed having four real and solid seasons to go through. This year I got my wish.

Our Spring was cooler than usual and lasted until May. Usually in May we are all dying of heat stroke and swimming every evening. Not this year. It was cool and rainy. Camp-outs and warm weather activities had to wait. We prepared to sell our house. All the preparations were ready by the end of April. Well, almost all.

Summer came with all it's usual fury to the Southland. Temperatures soaring into triple digits with humidity nearing the same. The rain stayed through most of the season so there was plenty of goodies to be had at the local markets. Lou searched for an above ground pool to fit our existing deck. It took all summer to find and get in and set up.

Autumn this year was quieter than usual. The rains tapered off and the colors were muted. The leaves didn't turn as quickly or as prettiely as they sometimes do. Fall this year was more brown and less red. We started school with little excitement. There was a house to be sold and a move to be ready for; we were finally on the market. Several showings later, we were still hopeful.

Winter this year has been strangely white. Snow after snow has fallen, until the local schools have added Saturday school days to the schedule to make up for all the days off. I have loved it. The quiet that comes with being snowed in is in stark contrast to the business of the rest of my year. The house didn't sell and we didn't move. Instead we waited out the quiet.

And still we wait. Spring has been teasing us the past two weeks with warm temperatures and sunshine. I feel ready for the new beginning in a way one only can after a real winter. The house finally showed again this weekend after weeks of nothing. No offer came. Big decisions loom ahead and change is in the air.

Project 52: Week 7

2011-02-22T12:05:00.000-06:00

I'm a little late posting this week's project: Romance. (Stomach bug be gone!) To be honest my ideas of romance don't generally meet Hallmark's standards. The most romantic things to me are most clearly seen in nights like our date night this week when I really wanted Chinese and even though Lou didn't, that is what we got. Ah, true love as seen through my heart shaped sweet and sour chicken.

Project 52: Week 6

2011-02-14T10:28:00.000-06:00

The stomach bug finally left us on Wednesday and I've been playing catch-up. This week's assignment is, um, Body Parts. Let's try to keep this G rated people! LOL!

Feet

Freckles

Fingers

I can't resist adding my favorite one from a couple of years ago:

Project 52: Week 5

2011-02-07T21:12:00.000-06:00

Stomach bug has hit our house this week, so I'm cheating. This is an old picture. Hopefully my kiddos will be well again soon and next week's assignment will go better.

Sleep

Early Valentine's Day Fun

2011-02-04T16:52:00.000-06:00

Griffin was so excited this morning about his first valentine exchange. After band we got to the Skate Castle early to set up.

How cute did that turn out? It's his "snail mail" box. We had somehow missed out on the fact that this is a BIG deal. LOL! There were way more boxes than we anticipated.

50 actually. We had only brought half that many cards so we passed out what we had and then picked our favorite boxes.

First place

Second place

Third place

Shout out to Keilee for her FABULOUS box.

Carson's eyes got huge when he saw all the candy Griffin got in his box. "What do you have to do to get that candy?" he asked. I think next year we may have two boxes. I would also like to thank the moms of girls because I have now racked up on pencils too girly for Griffin. Tinkerbell and Tangled? Score!

Today I also got my first "I'm a teenager and you are embarrassing" wave away.

The Year of the Rabbit

2011-02-03T19:37:00.000-06:00

Kung hei fat choi!

I love Chinese New Year. Okay, I love any reason to hang out with friends and learn about other cultures. Today was the SEVENTH Chinese New Year Esther and I have shared. We had met only a few weeks before the first and when she invited us to celebrate I was so excited! I think it was the first time we had been to their house as well. She gave me this little Rooster (2005 was the year of the Rooster) and he's been standing guard over my kitchen ever since.

So today for our seventh year we ate and chatted about old times and talked about the Disney trip in September with Cathy while I ~~cried~~ hoped we could figure out a way to make it.

Red foods for luck

Oranges for health and wealth

Ramen for longevity

We were all very amused when it started to snow.

And then it started to SNOW....

and we decided maybe it was time to get off the mountain....

So happy year of the rabbit everyone. I'm staying in my hidey hole for a while until all this clears back up again.

Snail Mail

2011-02-03T08:24:00.000-06:00

Valentine's Day may be more than a week away, but for our homeschool group, the big day is tomorrow. During our monthly skate day, the kids will be bringing boxes for a contest and valentines to exchange. We have never done the exchange as I am not a fan of V-Day and neither of the older boys care about such "mushy" stuff. Griffin, my love bug, was taken with the idea for the first time this year. I let him come up his theme and, being a kid after my own heart, he picked snails.

We worked last night on his box idea and, after several failed attempts, I think we have a design that will work and look how he wants it to. It is still a work in progress. We did however find the perfect cards online thanks to Zakka Life.

Aren't they cute? We modified the original design a bit, but changing from suckers to chocolates at G's request. We used a cool temp glue gun to attach the candies. He can't wait to get this box finished and give his treats to all his friends tomorrow!

Doughnut Follow Me

2011-02-02T09:08:00.000-06:00

I've been a bad, bad girl....

Starting a cardio workout has made me hungry! But not for just anything, no, for CARBS. Fried carbs. Enter Betty Crocker's favorite doughnuts.

Favorite Doughnuts

3 1/3 cups Gold Medal Flour*
1 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons shortening
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk

Heat ~~fat~~ or oil (3 to 4 inches) in deep fat fryer or heavy kettle to 375°(I use Medium heat and let it preheat while I'm mixing). Measure 1 1/2 cups flour and the remaining ingredients into large mixer bowl. Blend 1/2 minute on low speed, scraping bowl constantly. Beat 2 minutes medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally. With spoon, stir in remaining flour. (This next part is fine if you insist on your doughnuts being round with a hole, but I find it easier to just plop them in and only have the "holes") ~~Turn dough onto well-floured cloth-covered board; roll lightly to coat with flour. Roll gently to 3/8 inch thick. Cut dough with floured doughnut cutter.~~ With wide spatula, slide doughnuts into hot oil. Turn doughnuts as they rise to the surface. Fry 2 to 3 minutes until golden brown on both sides. Remove from oil; do not prick doughnuts. Drain on paper towels. Serve plain or, if desired, sugared or frosted. Makes 2 dozen doughnuts.

*If using self-rising flour, omit baking powder and salt.

They turn out so much better if you get the song from this movie stuck in your head while you fry them:

http://www.silverscreenclassics.com/video_streaming.php?id=00465001

Are they as good as they look? Nope. Better. I usually make up a batch and freeze half for later, otherwise I eat them all at once. It's not as bad as it sounds. The boys usually only leave me about four. Just as a disclaimer, if you are working out and trying to loose weight this is NOT the way to do it. Doughnut do as I do!

Project 52: Week 4

2011-01-31T14:24:00.000-06:00

Tired

Every time I drove by this truck two words came to mind. The first was Mater (Thanks for that Pixar.) and the second was tired, so I knew when I saw that this week's assignment was Tired, that the little blue truck would finally be my subject. I was really just fishing for a reason to take his picture.

Home at Last!

2011-01-30T19:06:00.000-06:00

Friday night I was setting the boys up with my Mom so I could have a long awaited Mom's Night Out with my homeschool friends. Pizza plays a big part of my get away plan and while I was picking it up, Mom arrived at the house. When I came inside I started to put down the pizza when Austin said, "Mom, I think there is something in your room that you need to see." Oh, great. My mind started filling in the blanks with all kinds of messes little boys and furry dogs can make. I walked in the room and turned on the light, pizza in hand, and there stood my DH home three days early from his three week long desert trip.

Being the articulate lady I am when surprised, I said, "What are you DOING here?!" After all I was late for mom's night out. We both laughed at me and I ditched the pizza and got some long awaited hugs.

Being the sweety he is he insisted that I go right then for my night out while he kept the kids. So for the past few days we have had date night, watched movies together, hiked with the boys and eaten real meals at the kitchen table. It is SO wonderful to have my best friend around again! Poor thing is wiped out from all those 14 hour days though. He is asleep on the couch again! LOL!

Filing

2011-01-27T22:55:00.000-06:00

I'm not sure it's quite common knowledge, but I have inherited quite the temper. I used to think it was a throw back from my Great-Grandpa on my Mom's side, who was quite the eccentric and used to do things like make a hospital break through a screen window with a butter knife or drive his tractor on the roads when they took his drivers license. He made an easy scape goat for most anything odd in my personality. In the past few years, I have tried to file away observations of my Dad's family since I grew up over 500 miles away from them. I have noticed a thread of similarity in the Beadle clan. In this case, a propensity for throwing things and being very grumpy when interrupted from tasks. Case in point:

Sad isn't it? All I needed was a sleeve for a CD. I knew some had been put in the filing cabinet, but I dread touching that thing. You see the drawers were meant strictly for hanging files. Any attempt to cram tons of crap in the bottoms of them results in said bottoms sagging and catching so that all the drawers open at once and none is accessible. Factor in a morning rush and voila spectacular temper tantrum. When the bottom most drawer snuck out with the rest and smashed my toe, I threw the drawer in my hand on the floor and kicked the darn thing. My toe didn't thank me.

So today I spent hours going through the rats' nest of absolute junk in the drawers; warrenties from items we haven't owned in 8 years, the instructions for my toaster (I got that one I think) and electric bills from 2000. I also found the quirky; ACT scores and grades from college for both DH and me (found out that my psych prof gave me a D instead of the A I earned. Having died two weeks after exams and 15 years ago, I'm pretty sure it's a mute point.), some pictures of tombstones and a copy of Home Maintenance for Dummies. At the request of my sweety, I made two bags of trash. The first was, well, just trash and the second was items to be shredded. I can not believe how many things before 2006 had my SSN on them! Yikes!

I labeled files for taxes from all 13 years we've been married (why do we have all those?), our current housing contract, the boys' school samples and records, insurance information and auto loans.

So after many hours of working on it, the dumb thing still looks like this:

Turns out those drawers were broken before I got a hold of them. Not as broken, mind you, but enough to make me feel slightly less pathetic. The flimsy bottoms were cracked and the corners were falling apart. So for now I'm filing that job away. Things to do Saturday: Guerrilla Glue the Drawers Together! I'm also planning to see if I can get my DH to let me burn the other bag or maybe rip it to shreds in a violent fit of temper. Sounds like so much more fun.... HA!

Today

2011-01-26T18:51:00.000-06:00

Today....

I got to drive on my favorite road.

There was an unfortunate altercation between a giraffe and an evil T-Rex at Cracker Barrel.

We stopped for a few minutes at a pet store and this guy kept posing so I finally agreed to make him famous on my blog. World, this is Marcos. You owe me one buddy.

I also saw this van with an inexplicable dead bird on it.

Only Eight Weeks...

2011-01-25T11:37:00.000-06:00

In a short few weeks Spring will be here. The official start of the warm season and 12 hours or more of sunlight. For six glorious months the sun will favor the Northern Hemisphere and we only have eight weeks until it begins.

I'm looking forward to getting dandelion bouquets, to planting my flower boxes and to pulling out our flip flops.

I'm not sure what doors are going to open or shut for me. These next few weeks could bring happy changes or major disappointments. The housing market favors the repossessed houses of which there are many. Their heartbreak is our heartbreak too. Who wants to buy a full price house these days? Apparently no one.

If nothing else we will hopefully have some closure. I can hear several house project calling my name and it would be great to know whether to pursue them or not; whether to invest money, time or myself into this house in limbo.

These bleak days of winter uncertainty won't last much longer. Only eight more weeks until Spring.

Project 52: Week 3

2011-01-24T09:14:00.000-06:00

My week in Macro:

Reading Displacia

2011-01-22T12:24:00.000-06:00

I have created a name for what happened to me this week. I am calling it Reading Displacia. You see I picked up some AMAZING books a couple of weeks ago:

Some really wonderful books were sitting on my nightstand... and I could NOT read them. I started The Elegance of the Hedgehog with enthusiasm and delight and within 100 pages, but brain quit. I swear my IQ dropped to 80. I suddenly didn't understand and struggled through each chapter knowing I wasn't appreciating it as I usually would.

I thumbed through The Ghost Map and Thread of Grace with little interest and even less comprehension.What was happening to me? I needed distraction in the worst way and, for the first time in my life, my books were failing me.

Much of my new found Reading Displacia can be blamed on the departure of my husband on business for two and a half weeks but part of it was due to the snow that has been ~~plaguing~~ gracing the south lately. We are not accustom to long hours without sun light. Is this the winter the north dreads so much? I can see why now! My mind was in desperate need of distraction and these were, like the snow, just too deep for me to trudge through!

Wednesday, I got three new books. They are just "fluffy" enough to keep me interested and, as I have passed the half way mark of Lou's trip and finishing books, I am starting to feel myself again.

Hopefully my RD will pass and I will have my functional brain returned and check out my "smarter" books again, but for now a little book candy was just what I needed to get back to myself again.

Windy Wednesday

2011-01-20T13:45:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we met friends at the library for a bit and thought we would go for a nice short hike. After all it was supposed to be almost 50* and sunny just after lunch. We picked up our respective meals and headed to Green Mountain to hike. As I opened the car door I realized that the temp had NOT hit 50, or 40, or had even risen in the least since 7 am. The Crawford crew was retreating back into their car after eating as quickly as they could. We ate in the car. Once a couple of other friends made it to the mountain top we began to consider our clothing situation. The past several days had lulled us into believing it was March and not mid-January. Most of the kids were wearing hoodies. We put together as many extra coats and hats and mittens as we could find and headed to the covered bridge. I took pictures, I promise, but I was shivering so badly that most didn't turn out.

The kids ran ahead, but were called back. That was enough hiking for me! My ears were frozen and I was feeling miserable. I wrapped a fringed scarf around my head and ended up resembling some kind of psychotic Tunisian. Poor Austin had a cold and here I was running him around on top of a mountain without gloves. Sigh. We opted out of the rest of the day and took our snuffly heads back home for some movie time and hot tea! The day wasn't a total loss. I did manage to find three new books and get in a few macro shots that didn't stink too bad for this week's Project 52 assignment.

Chai Latte

2011-01-19T16:08:00.001-06:00

Being off caffeine and milk and drastically lowering my corn syrup intake has made me rethink what I drink. Most commercial sweet tea has caffeine and soft drinks are loaded with corn syrup so when I eat out I am usually restricted to water. Yes, it has made me much healthier thanks to lots of water, but a girl can't stand to drink cold water all the time when the weather is so cold out. Finding this box on my local Publix shelf made me VERY happy.

Decaf Chai Tea! Combine that with this yummy dairy free product...

and you have the perfect caffeine free, dairy free Chai Latte for a cold winter day. Yum! Back to enjoying my nice hot cup...

Thrifty Finds

2011-01-18T17:22:00.001-06:00

Have you ever walked into a store and found the perfect item just waiting for you? Today was my lucky day. Not only did I find my new favorite shirt, but I found it on SALE for $2 at a thrift store. Score! It is just perfect for this weather and I can't wait to wear it!

It was menswear that had been miss shelved, but it fits like the perfect 80s ballet shirt.

LOVE!

My second purchase was athletic wear. I have been wanting a sweatsuit that was not as slouchy as good ol' Hanes, but not velvet or sequined. Surprise - they are hard to find. Today I found one like this by Reebok.

Yes. It is bubblegum pink. Not my usual style, but it fits well, is super comfortable and the pink might be fun for spring. At $6 for the set I couldn't resist.

My third find of the day was an Old Navy V-neck fleece. Those darn things sell out within a couple weeks in my size every year. Well today I got this one for $2. HA!

Anne Taylor would be shocked that her khaki pants went for $3.

I scored a like new black pencil skirt from NY and Co for $1.50. My old one was stretch cotton and had been through 15 years and three pregnancies with me. It was time to upgrade...

And one of these too.

I then I lost my mind and bought some of these...

They look SO cute on (thanks to the Bella Dahl label), but the color kind of scares me. I found four tops that matched in my closet so I think there is a chance I'll really like them. Hey, all the cool people are wearing them right? Right?

The real challenge comes when I get home. My closet is your standard double bi-fold door sized and I do not have a chest of drawers. The room I have with my closet organizer is the room I have. NO MORE. (I do admit to having a Space-bag in the attic with clothes one size smaller/larger as needed.) So when all this came in, I pulled out just as many items to go back out and I'm not sure what to do with them yet. For now I'll just enjoy my honeymoon with my new stuff.

Chocolate Chip Almond Cookies

2011-01-17T19:23:00.000-06:00

My sweet tooth got the better of me today. I wanted cookies and badly. I had a pouch of sugar cookie mix and several ideas for a "new" cookie. Here is what I came up with.

Chocolate Chip Almond Cookies

1 Pkg Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix
1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, melted
1 egg
1 tsp almond extract
6 oz Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips

Mix the first four ingrdients until well blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop onto parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake at 375* for 8-10 minutes.

Project 52: Week 2

2011-01-17T11:39:00.000-06:00

Breakfast

Project 52: Week 1

2011-01-14T16:05:00.000-06:00

I'm joining Esther at http://ecrawfordphotography.blogspot.com/ for her Project 52 photography challenge.

Week One: Cold

Sledding

2011-01-11T17:15:00.000-06:00

Sledding is not so much an activity of repose.... but I enjoyed every minute! Ten inches of snow is a once in a life time deal in Alabama, so we couldn't waist it. Having grown up in NW Ohio, I remembered a lot about how to bundle up, packing down snowy lanes and what to do with all the wet stuff when you are home again. I guess that stuff really sticks with you!

What I didn't remember was how exhausting walking up a snowy hill is! Couldn't be that age is finally catching up with me, could it?! ;o) I think that the boys were just as tired so there is no major concern that my geriatric state is deteriorating.

Winter's Repose

2011-01-09T22:53:00.001-06:00


Picture by Lou Woods

repose¹

1. a state of quiet restfulness; peace or tranquility

2. dignified calmness of manner; composure

1. to place (oneself or one's body) in a state of quiet relaxation; lie or lay down at rest

2. (intr) to lie when dead, as in the grave

Winter's repose. Sounds so poetic. Why aren't there more poems written to the wonder of a day spent in "a state of quiet restfulness; Peace or tranquility"?

Snowfall in Alabama requires only three things to make it perfect winter repose:

1. Depth - roads and schools don't close for a flurry - usually

2. Electricity - often our snow is mixed with ice and it's a real downer to freeze inside your house

3. Bread and Milk - because should the power go out, you will be eating cereal and sandwiches until it all thaws.

I have high hopes of a day of snowy repose with tea and books, movies and games and an attempt at sledding tomorrow. Death of the daily round - repose for all!

Legally Blond

2011-01-08T19:32:00.000-06:00

With the hubby getting sent away for three weeks for work, he decided what I really needed for Christmas was a girls night out, so I got tickets to Legally Blond. I love tickets!

Duck Tales

2011-01-07T17:43:00.000-06:00

The boys and I have been working our way through an Apologia science series called "Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day". We have enjoyed it immensely. Birds have always been a part of our daily lives, thanks in part to a suction bird feeder in the living room and in part to some Eastern Phoebes who nested on our porch for three years, so spending the last few weeks studying about them has been fun for us all. This week's lesson focused on feathers and how they work. When we read about the birds oiling their feathers, my mind went strait to the hours we spent at the local Wildlife Refuge watching the winter migratory fowl (mainly Mallard ducks and Canada geese) preen and oil. So between activities today we headed down to see who was in town this winter....

Sandhill Cranes

Griffin checking out the cranes

Sandhill cranes and a few ducks

While the boys always enjoy the cranes (with the addition this year of a lone Whooping Crane) and the duck antics always make them laugh (who can resist a diving Ringneck Duck?), the real show started after about 30 minutes.

This Red Tailed Hawk swooped in and caught something right at the waters edge.

While we watched, three Crows started closing in hoping to snatch some of the hawks lunch. NOT GONNA HAPPEN. He thrashed them pretty well and they kept their distance.

We never did see what he caught because of the high grass, but at one point there was fur/feathers flying as he plucked his kill. Talk about an awesome nature study! Next week we will go out again in search of more preening ducks.

Roast Beef: two ways, two days

2011-01-05T19:01:00.001-06:00

Is there anything that screams winter more than roast beef or stew? Here is an easy way to get two meals out of one large cut of meat.

Roast Beef

One large shoulder roast (or cut of your choice)
One cup water
One onion, quartered
One bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Place in a crock pot on low for 3-4 hours.

That was easy. On to day two.

Beef Stew

8-12 oz leftover Roast Beef with onions
16 oz beef broth
8 oz mushrooms
garlic
2 Tbs olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes with celery and onion
1 can diced potatoes
1 can diced carrots
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried thyme flakes
salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large pot while chopping mushrooms. Brown with chopped garlic until tender. Add beef and heat until bubbly again. Add remaining ingredients and heat to boiling. Turn down and simmer until ready to serve. Serve with crackers or rolls.

Of course an easier way is to serve that roast beef is in sandwiches. Either way you can cook once and eat at least two meals from that one. Happy winter cooking!

Cleaning Up and Clearing Out

2010-12-29T13:08:00.000-06:00

The aftermath of Christmas begins to bother me earlier each year. It used to be that I would have my tree up by Thanksgiving and down after New Years, but no more. The paper and boxes that wouldn't fit in the can would sit in the corner until the next week patiently waiting their turn out side, but no more. I used to listen to Christmas music until Chinese New Year, but no more. This year was a record. Everything is up four days after Christmas. Does that make me look like a bit of a Scrooge? I hope not. Christmas this year just exhausted me. Between multiple illnesses and travel, I was wiped out before it even began! That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. Who could be out of the holiday spirit with all this going on?

No, my weekend was lovely, delightful, blessed in so many ways, but it was tiring.

The last few days all I could think was, how soon can I clear my house and, by proxy, my head. Not soon enough. The boys didn't mind when the tree came down even though there are still gifts for family and friends we didn't see due to illness or timing. The clearing out of the mess seems be as reassuring to them as to me. Life continues - on with the show!

This show is returning to its regularly scheduled house sale plan. Three months in the process we have received all positive feed back. The four people who looked love the house, but who would want to buy at full price what they can get for half price in repo? I was deeply discouraged last week (my plan was to spend Christmas at our new house and buy the boys new furniture for their rooms and a play house) when Griffin, 6, hugged me and said what I had said to him so many times; "God has a plan!" Oh, the faith of a child! So I bucked up and resumed carrying on:

What I needed was a distraction.

#1. Clear out Christmas ~~clutter~~ decorations.

I can't seem to think clearly in a messy house anymore. Blame it on age or finally growing up, but it drives me nuts. Putting up the decorations bring me almost as much joy as taking them down again.

#2. Clear out toy boxes.

The boys got toys for Christmas. Because, you know, they don't already have eight boxes of toys in storage while we move. It's fine though. Most of those are probably ruined by now thanks to melting/freezing batteries. Sigh. There is a major clearing out of the (toy) storage unit planned for February.

#3. Clear out the closets.

We have way too many clothes. Many of which we never wear. You have have heard the old study that people wear 20% of their clothes 80% of the time? I believe it! I think part of the problem in my closet is that I have two wardrobes; a home one and a work one. Why do I need a work wardrobe? As a stay at home, homeschooling Mom with no need for an extensive fancy wardrobe in the need future, it's time to pare down.

#4. Donate everything.

I have done all these steps before and ended up no where because the stuff was "saved" for yard sales or friends or freecyle. No more. All donations are put in the trunk and delivered ASAP to the local thrift stores. Karma has to kick in at some point right? What you give out to the world will surely come back in some form. Maybe even a house offer.

#5. Take the month of January off.

Not from work or school or chores, but from running around and making myself needlessly busy. We have been sick SO much in the past two months you would think we would be sick of home, but if I'm not ever here, I can't get stuff done and when I have a moment here I am working. There is never any time to play or read or dream if your days are filled with appointments. I plan on doing something fun for Chinese New Year on February 3rd as a coming back out party.

I'm wanting to sit down and work on the budget for time and money for the year some time this weekend. There are so many things I want to do and seemingly neither the time or money to do them. It's time to clean up and clear out our home, our finances and our schedules!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T18:09:00.000-06:00

Christmas Eve at Mom and Dad's

Christmas Morning and a surprise snow storm - the first white Christmas Alabama's had in over 50 years.

My Grown up Christmas List

2010-12-21T13:24:00.000-06:00

This time of year my kids are obsessed with lists. To make life easier on our extended family we started each of the boys an Amazon wish list. They update daily well into December and can often be heard running down the hall yelling, "Oh, I forgot something!" To further uncomplicate things, we forced Lou to get a list too. Have you ever tried buying for a grown man who is into electronics? "Now that was a what kind of graphics card?" Since that was everyone but me with a list, I joined in. Now I know that the things on our grown up Christmas list are usually things like health, job security, happiness for our kids, or a new house in my case.... but those things are hard to wrap. When I started my list I found I didn't know what I wanted. Didn't I know ME at all? What did I want anyway?

How about this little beauty. Yeah, it's a crock pot. I started small. This one however has settings that allow you to cook meat to a certain temperature and then keep it safely warm until you get home, it can start and stop on schedule with the push of a button and can all but cook the meal without me. After consistently leaving my crock pot on for a couple hours longer than anticipated and finding a less than savory meal waiting, this would be a God send. Further practicality prevailed with the addition of a gas grill and a heavy duty blender.

Then I started loosening up....

A blue bike. A pretty, girly blue bike. I could ride around the block with the boys, telling them to keep up with me instead of slow down while I walk along. While I was at it, I added a little wicker basket for the front.

I spotted these while browsing for Thanksgiving ideas. Do I need new dishes? Not really, but I adore these. A set of ten would last a lifetime. Will I get them at $55 a place? Doubtful, but I love to see them on the list and say - THAT is what I like.

When I came across this one I was in LOVE. I have an obsession with the Union Jack and this seemed like the perfect way to keep it with me all the time. Heehee. If Santa doesn't come through this one is going to find it's way here by the new year.

How about the gift of music? I love this movie and the music to it transports me somewhere peaceful instantly. It is the perfect remedy to loud boys and muddy floors.

And speaking of muddy floors... one of the last things I added: shiny, RED rainboots. I think they could brighten up any rainy day.

How about you. If Santa was to visit your house, would he (or you) know what you really wanted?

Happy Birthday to Jane Austen

2010-12-17T12:56:00.000-06:00

In honor of Jane's birthday we had a party complete with treats, art projects, air soft war, Wii games, an egg drop and a book swap. Totally fun, if not totally Jane.

Chocolate Pretzel Bark

2010-12-17T10:05:00.000-06:00

If you are looking for a super easy candy to make for Christmas, this is it.

Chocolate Pretzel Bark

1 pkg of Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips (approx 2 cups)
1 cup of pretzels, crushed
1/4 - 1/2 cup of nuts of your choice (I favor pieced pecans), optional

Put chocolate in microwave safe bowl and heat on high for one minute. Stir and heat for 30 seconds, again on high. Sitr. Repeat if needed. Once the chocolate is melted, stir in the pretzels and nuts. Spread on a cookie sheet or casserole dish over wax paper until about 1/4 inch deep. Refrigerate for about an hour until set. Break into pieces and enjoy!

Christmas Projects... for Next Year

2010-12-14T19:36:00.000-06:00

Sometimes you see something online and you just think... I could do that! When I find something I like I have started copying the pictures into a file for later reference. These are the ones I have found this year and want to try my hand at:

I love the look of the printed page, so I'm a sucker for any project made of old books or music sheets. This one especially spoke to me with the little bird and Christmas theme.

This was an idea I had for images to use to make coasters. It is a set of the 12 days of Christmas. Cute!

I thought this wreath would be great for any time. I love the star fish in the middle for summer! I think for Christmas I would put snowflake ornaments and some white ribbon.

Not only do I want these chairs, but I would want some beautiful ribbons to go on the backs year round - Fabulous!

Perfect Sugar Cookies

2010-12-13T18:03:00.000-06:00

I'll admit that Christmas tends to bring out the perfectionist in me. This year is the first time in seven years that I am not making my "perfect" Christmas cookies. Is it painful? Yeah, I bit, but, darn it all, I can't eat them anyway!

photo from notsohumblepie

Decorative Vanilla Butter Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1Tbs pure vanilla extract
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Blend in vanilla extract. Add egg; beat for one minute. Stir in flour gradually. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Roll on floured board; cut. Bake 325* for 12 minutes.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

These cookies are buttery and best of all, they bake up without changing shape on you. I collect snowflake cookie cutters and this recipe allowed each little angle and edge to shine through. Frosted with coarse sugar and non-perials they were cookie perfection.

Allas, the first ingredient - one cup of butter - has parted us forever. Sigh. These cookies just don't work as well with the non-dairy margerine I have been using. They are great with Willow Run butter at $4 a pound, but not my $.75 Blue Bonnet light. What is a cookie diva on a budget to do?

Give it up and diva no more! LOL! It turns out that Pillsbury sugar cookies - the kind in the refrigerated roll - have no dairy in them. So this year for the first time I bought my cookies, sliced and baked them without my beloved snowflake shapes (which are still in storage) and frosted round cookies with dairy-free frosting.

And they turned out pretty darn good if not snowflakey.

The FIrst Snow

2010-12-12T18:20:00.000-06:00

Snowy days are few and far between in the deep south, so while lots of places got more impressive snow, we were thrilled to have big fat flakes dust our home.

Our house

Misha

Griffin

Polar Express

2010-12-11T14:40:00.000-06:00

All of my sons were train boys. Thomas was a favorite, but any engine would do. When stopped at a railroad crossing we were usually the only car that rolled the windows down to get a better listen to the rail's clickitty-clack. My youngest son has grown up with a love of all things Polar Express because it had the added bonus of staring his favorite person: Santa! This year I was thrilled when CurrClick offered the lap book for free. I quickly snapped it up and printed it out to go through with G over the Christmas season. His favorite thing so far was from his favorite scene in the movie.

Yeah, we got it!

Here is the recipe to make your very own REAL Polar Express Hot Chocolate mix.

6 1/2 cups powdered milk
1 (5 ounce) package non-instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup powdered chocolate drink mix
1/2 cup powdered non-dairy creamer
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

In a large bowl, combine powdered milk, chocolate pudding mix, chocolate drink mix powder, creamer, confectioners' sugar, and cocoa. Divide the mixture between two 1 quart jars. Seal, and decorate as desired. These can be stored in a dry area for up to 3 months.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:
Hot Cocoa: Dissolve 1/3 cup cocoa mix in one cup boiling water.

Warning - this makes a LOT of hot chocolate mix, but at 1/3 cup per serving it goes fast! We actually made one batch and saved the rest of the ingredients for another batch later - likely next week at this rate!

Looking like Christmas Inside and Out

2010-12-10T13:34:00.000-06:00

This is our Jesse Tree. We love the free Advent book we've been working through from A Holy Experience.

Ignore the junk on the counter and table. I'm getting ready for a party and things are in a bit of disarray.

New Ornaments

2010-12-09T13:38:00.000-06:00

We have several new ornaments this year. For the past few years we have been picking out ornaments when we travel instead of the junk we used to come home with. Not only is it more practical to carry home only an ornament from vacation, but it makes putting up the tree mean that much more to everyone. Here are the new comers:

This one is from my Mom. She gave it to me for Christmas last year as a remembrance of my trip to London. Since it is the first year I get to display it, it's up here.

We took a family trip to Chattanooga with my Sister in Law, her two boys, my in-laws and husband's aunt and girls. The highlight of the trip was the Tennessee Aquarium.

The boys and I go on field trips all the time, but one in particular stood out for this year; SIFAT. This ornament was hand made overseas and the proceeds go into the SIFAT program.

This one is Griffin's pick for this year. He found this one early in the season and HAD to have it. I have more trains on my tree than anyone I know...

Constance made these adorable spoon snowmen for each family in NACHO (our homschool support group). Isn't it cute?

Griffin's hand ornament that he made last Christmas.

This is the ornament I pick up IN London at the Tower. Again it is the first time it's been in the tree and I LOVE it.

Carson's hand print ornament from last year... his hand was almost an inch longer!

This was the trip I had a hard time finding an ornament to buy. DC is such a mecca of travelers you would think that in July they would have had more ornaments, but no. I couldn't find one I liked, so Lou picked this one.

The one trip I didn't get an ornament for was the trip we just took to the beach. I really wanted something "beachy", but all I could find after a full day of shopping was a goldfish or a hounds-tooth ball with monogram. Sheesh. I think I was at the wrong shopping center. I am thinking that I will print this picture of the Man-o-Wars on the beach and put it in a frame ornament. Unless anyone can find a Man-o-War ornament. LOL!

A Finely Dressed Christmas Tree

2010-12-09T11:58:00.000-06:00

I would love to say that I have one of those Christmas trees. You know, the ones with the beautiful color scheme:

the one with the great theme:

or the just plain pretty one:

Mine falls squarely in the homey and traditional category with lots of children's ornaments and helpers that put them up.

I'm just thankful that it is finally up!

Ugh, Christmas Tree

2010-12-06T16:05:00.000-06:00

Ever have one of those days? We've been having one after the other around here. The last few days of illness free days have freed us up to do things like catch up on school, clean up the house and decorating for Christmas. But even that hasn't gone off without a hitch!

Friday's Skate Day

Ever seen over one hundred homeschoolers in one place? Ever meet every one of them by name? We did! LOL! The December Skate Day was loads of fun.

Saturday afternoon date to See Deathly Hallows followed by some of the prettiest skies I've seen in months.

Sunday evening aggravation; the "Pre-Lit" tree.

Monday patch up. Three strands of lights later it looks right again.

Ugh, stupid Christmas tree! Now to decorate it!

A Beachy Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T15:43:00.000-06:00

Beach bum weather for two days of swimming fun, cold wind and stomach bug for two... but still SO much fun and totally worth it!


Tiny Man O' War

My Dad

Large Man O' War

Building a Highway

Thanksgiving Lunch

The boys hanging out upstairs in the "kids lounge".

Many thanks to Uncle Randy and Aunt Kim for hosting us this weekend. We loved being with you all for the holiday!

And the Band Played On...

2010-11-23T17:44:00.000-06:00

Pictures from the boys' first band recital. They were REALLY nervous, but played Jingle Bells and Aura Lee without a hitch or squawk.

Griffin was REALLY wiggly. Poor Lou.

Carson's Clarinet

Austin's Trumpet was harder to see

G is SO excited about starting in two years. He wants a sax like Daddy.

Great job guys!

Boys Bedroom Ideas

2010-11-20T19:58:00.000-06:00

With the house still sitting on the market and nothing happening, I'm trying to distract myself with plans on how I'd like to decorate the boys new rooms, assuming they ever have any. I wish I would mark these when I save them. I have no idea which blog these came from and for that I'm very sorry! Here are my top three ideas.

I love the timeless color scheme and the white wall panels makes this one perfect for an any child.

The wallpaper treatment in this room breaks up the dark chocolate color. I like that even though the room isn't that big, a larger bed has been used in the space. It's the perfect room for a little man!

This one is a departure from the other two, but it the built in bed that strikes my interest. Wouldn't it be fun to have a little curtain to make it shut off from the world?

Sunset Over the Tennessee River

2010-11-19T12:17:00.001-06:00

On the way home from Mom's appointment we crossed the Tennessee River. It never fails to be an amazing view even after 20 years.

A Thankful Heart

2010-11-18T18:00:00.000-06:00

The kids have been sick today and yesterday. Luckily for me, there is a generic form of Zofran now that makes the stomach flu much easier on moms. That said, I have had some time on my hands to daydream and web-surf today. My object du jour? Place settings for Thanksgiving day and beyond.

Take this one for example:

or this one:

I thought about how nice my table would look with some dishes like this:

or this:

Suddenly it dawned on me. I was in entirely the wrong state of mind for THANKSGIVING. Instead of looking at all the wonderful things I have in my life already I was thinking about all the things that I didn't have. So I challenged myself; what could I do quickly with what I already have?

I think it turned out rather nice for taking about three minutes to put together. I think if I had some time to think about it, I could put together a lovely table without buying a thing and THAT is what Thanksgiving is all about.

Cloche

2010-11-17T09:10:00.001-06:00

I'm not the kind of girl that likes fluff, chotchkies, stuff.... you know, the things that are pretty but don't really DO anything in your house. You will understand my surprise when I tell you that I have been loving these cloches.

Heather Bullard Design

Let's be honest, they do nothing besides, maybe, keeping dust off your display. After seeing them in several magazines and blogs I decided that they were something I really wanted. What's a girl on a budget to do? Search the thrift stores of course!

Seeing as how they are very popular there wasn't much to be found, but I managed to find this little cloche in a most embarrassing position;

attached to a wooden board...

with a knife on a chain...

waiting for cheese.

Poor thing. I free her from her bondage and stuck her in a more suitable location.

What do you think? Cloches yes or no?

Christmas Countdown: 40 Days

2010-11-15T21:08:00.001-06:00

I love The Graphics Fairy. She has the best vintage pictures like this wreath. I added the Joyeux Noel myself. Don't you think it would be perfect to use on a stocking or Christmas card? Only 40 more days until Christmas!

A No Show

2010-11-13T21:55:00.000-06:00

When I got home from our big SIFAT trip last night I had a message from another Realtor asking to show our house... 5 hours ago. I called her back, not wanting to fail to follow any lead, and got her on her semi-functional cell phone and she said they had asked to see our house specifically. I have to admit I was a little excited about that. Maybe we had had a "drive by" showing already! Through the crappy connection I caught that they would still like to see it, either tomorrow (Saturday) or Monday. Uh, what? Okay, just let us know and please show the house if you can't get a hold of us. So last night after getting up at 5am and walking about three miles, I started the clean up process. It went surprisingly fast. I think we've found our groove, but what I really wanted to be doing was relaxing!

Ash has the right idea!

This morning, I finished up the cleaning tasks I like to do before a showing; sweeping, vacuuming, mopping and putting out my nice linen table runner. I had promised the boys BLT's for breakfast but told them that because the smell we were going to have to wait until lunch and have it at Gran and Grandpa's house. So around lunch we packed up and headed out to Mom and Dad's to share lunch with them. We waited there for the call, but when none came by 1:00 we gave up and headed back to work on some more projects. I'm glad someone wants to see the house, but I'm just thinking that this Realtor of theirs wasn't very considerate leaving us waiting all day like that. Thanks lady. All will be forgiven, however, if she brings us an offer we can accept!

SIFAT Field Trip

2010-11-12T21:23:00.000-06:00

5:15 - My coffee maker wakes me up. Ugh. Alarm didn't go off. Rush to get ready. Remember why I don't get up that early. I feel like throwing up.

5:50 - Karen calls and they are running late as well. Thank goodness! I have time to get my sunglasses from Mom's house!

6:05 - My kids are stunned; the morning sky is red. (Note to self: wake kids up early from time to time.)

6:15 - Pick up Karen and Keilee and hit the road. Only, 3 hours to go...

7:30 - Kei not feeling so great. Carsickness strikes.

7:45 - Stop at gas station for motion sickness pills and bathroom break. Not feeling so hot myself. I'm driving. Drat.

8:05 - Stop again. Bathroom and food. Maybe something to eat will help? Ugh.

8:30 - Keilee is feeling better. I'm still puny.

9:00 - We realize that we should have come up on our turn to 82. Crap.

9:40 - Turn around and find a post office to ask directions to SIFAT.

8:55 - Call coordinator to let her know we are not dead. Just late.

9:45 - Finally arrive! Thank you God! Now I can do without the stomach ache, please?

10:00 - Our group arrives in Guatemala. Fresh corn tortillas - looked and smelled great!

10:30 - Rope bridge time!

11:00 - Hang out in the Philippines. Learn to dance the tinkle. Tingleinky? AH! Tininkling! Thanks Wiki.

11:30 - Brick making class. Boys leave the cat alone!

12:00 - Lunch

12:30 - Ugandan huts and goats. Checking the "pantry".

1:00 - Water purifying in the "slums".

1:30 - The guy in Bolivia is awesome. Talks about the politics and the people and their propensity for eating Guinea pigs.

2:00 - Finish up and hit the store. Scored a great ornament for our vacation collection.

Off Leash Training

2010-11-11T15:47:00.000-06:00

I've been wanting for a while to train Misha to stay "off leash" while we are in the front yard. I figured the best way to do that is to start off running away with her. You see, she's had this problem ever since she was a pup, that if a gate gets left open (or she figures out how to open it again) she takes off like a shot and runs amok until we can catch her again. About six months ago, around her third birthday, we reached a milestone. When she got out, I called her and she stopped and waited until I leashed her and brought her home. The same thing happened two more times this summer and I figured the time was right for a near home trial run; a LONG one to make sure she was ready to be home again!

Misha never saw this Anole, but the boys spotted it!

A boy and his dog.

Catch a falling leaf and you get a year of good luck or the reversal of bad luck.

Lucky!

Misha did a whole lot of sniffing and peeing. I think it was all the deer she was smelling!

My plan is working! That is one tired pup!

For the first time out she did amazing. We took the leash in case the needed it, but we didn't. Just as we were about to come home a couple of neighbor boys were walking past (back toward the trail head) and she decided to go with them. They very sweetly told her no and go home. I called her and she came right with me. Two years ago I would have said that would NEVER happen, but here she is following her pack! Thank God! She definately needs lots more training before I'd trust her with big distractions, but it was a very encouraging start.

Oh, and I'm still working on the best trick ever. She likes socks, so every time she brings me one I give her a treat. 90% of the time I get them pre-chewed now, but I'm making her follow me into the laundry room to get the treat. Think I'll ever get her to put them in the laundry for me? She IS easier to train than the boys... ;oP

Courage Enough to be Imperfect

2010-11-11T11:01:00.000-06:00

Anyone else need this sign? I tend to be a perfectionist. I can't seem to stop with having something be good enough, it has to be perfect and I completely ignore as the rest of my life falls into chaos. Ever make your kids remake their bed, rearrange the dishes in the dishwasher or refold the towels because the weren't "right"? Every redo them yourself? Maybe you do need this sign too.

This one cracks me up. It's so true! Today I am focusing on being more aware of the way I speak and act around my kiddos. Not just toward them, but toward myself as well. Seeing my perfectionist tendencies manifest themselves again in my middle son is painful. My trying to convince him that playing his clarinet so well after six weeks is a wonderful accomplishment isn't enough to keep him from moaning his inability to play Mozart yet. So, for today, let's really focus on having the courage to not be perfect.

What's Your Number?

2010-11-10T16:25:00.000-06:00

The first thing you need for this project is the ability to see something as it isn't... yet. Take for instance Halloween signs at 80% off. At that price you can surely figure something out right?

I had taken the numbers off my house to paint this summer and still hadn't replaced them as they had been GLUED to the side of my house. Ew. So when I saw this trick or treat sign at Hobby Lobby for less than $3 I knew I had my solution. Using the existing numbers, a hymn book I bought at a thrift store for .10 and some decoupage, I came up with this: