Projects...

Here are a few of the things I've been working on the past couple of months...

Matching Halloween skirts and leggings for my girls...





Halloween costumes for the kids...



Fabric doll house with custom family for Avalons Christmas gift...

It's official...

I am a terrible blogger! I could be one of the worst out there! I don't know, it's a bit ridiculous really. I think I am relying on my facebook posting and pictures to be my blog- but I am really gonna try to give it some effort ( I know, I've said it before). Here is an update on our to-doings!

Todd: He started a new job, a second job, last week. He now a Pharmacy Tech. at JMH (or whatever they call it now). He will be working every other weekend after he gets through his initial training. The kids are sort of bummed to not have him around as much as usual. Isabella even said last night, "It's a lot different now that daddy's got a different job". It should help some cash flow issues though- reducing stress all around.

Isabella: She started girl scouts last month and is loving it! That means, all you girl scout cookie lovers out there will be getting hit up in a few months! She is also doing great in school and reading on a third grade level!! I always knew I would have a good reader in her- she has had a love for books since she was just months old. She was a ballerina for Halloween, handmade costume by momma of course.


Tommy: He is also doing great in school! He is learning to "read" small books, using sight words. You can just see the look of accomplishment on his little face when he finally gets something...understands it. He has been going through an extra sensitive period that has been a little rough on all of us, but he will pull through I'm sure. He was a scarecrow for Halloween.

Aiden: He is not in preschool, but spends most of his time with mommy and Ophelia! He is plenty ready for "Bubby and Sissy" to get home from school everyday. He is doing great getting himself dressed in the mornings. He is asserting a lot of independence lately. I wish he would show some interest in using the potty, but he is still not ready. He was also a scarecrow for Halloween.

Ophelia: She is gaining her little personality at warp speed. I am not sure what kind of child she will be yet though. She is walking all over and is quite proud of herself! She was an owl for Halloween.

I have been busy- like a little Christmas Elf. I am attempting to make the bulk of our kids Christmas gifts and am making toys and stuff like crazy!! I will post some of the things I've made, but a few, I can't because they are for my sister, and I know she will be spying on this to see what wonderful items she will be getting ...;) That was sort of an inside joke!! I will post my projects in a new blog...not this family update one!

One more thing....I am setting up an Etsy shop after the first of the new year. In the meantime- I am taking orders on custom Pillowcase Dresses, Wooden Family Sets, and Hairbows, and felt food sets from now until the end of Thanksgiving. These are awesome Christmas gifts! Email me directly for details, photos, and prices!!

Weekends are more fun...

Happy End of Monday! I had a great weekend! Not only was it relaxing, and uneventfull, but also very productive!
Friday eve. Todd hung my new shelf that he made from scratch! Our inspiration came from a shelf in Kimswick that we wanted to duplicate. So, for around $40 we have a new wall length shelf, and a fresh coat of yummy chocolate paint on our main wall in the living room! Here is a photo of my new bookshelf. Of course, now I have to get some fun decor to go on the shelves!!

Saturday was spent attempting to cut the grass. That was short lived bc Todd got rained out. I spent the morning and afternoon finishing up Isabella and Ophelia's Twirly Skirts! I am so excited about how they turned out! Here are the pics, and here is the link to where I found the tutorial!!http://houseonhillroad.typepad.com/photos/twirly_skirt/skirt_002_1_1.html This is a great and easy tutorial, complete with step by step pics and directions!

I also made
two (Owl of course) birthday cards for my brother and brother in law! My husband also made them some sweet pickles straight from the cucumbers from our garden! I topped the jars with some fabric, ribbon, and a cute tag! Come to find out, Kevin doesn't like pickles, and I have no idea if Chris does or not! LOL! The thought was there anyway!

Saturday evening was spent at mom and dads celebrating mine, Chris's, and Kevin's bdays! I was surprised by a "new to me" bike given to me by my dad and mom!! Woohoo! I am so excited! Can you see the bow dad made for me on the front? I love it! We spent the eve. together visiting and letting the kids play.


Sunday morning was spent at church of course. Then Sunday afternoon was dedicated to finishing the grass, and other outside/house stuff. Sunday eve. we took the kids to Walthers Park to ride their bikes! They had a blast riding and playing in the creek. We really had a great weekend, and I am looking forward to a great week also! 2 more weeks till school starts!

Keeping my promise

Dramatic title huh? I am, of course, referring to my once a week blog promise. So, technically this makes twice in one week, but the first doesn't count since it was the origin of the promise. Make sense? That's ok- it does to me! LOL! This week has gone as good as expected with 5 kids (one not mine), and nothing to do. Well, I had plenty to do- they have been bored stiff! My kids are so funny! They are finding themselves very bored lately. I am trying to teach them that I am not their constant source of entertainment. Our house is bursting with toys, games, craft supplies, not to mention their imaginations. I think our TV needs to turn off a little more! I have gotten plenty accomplished this week. I am working on two matching "Twirly Skirts" for the girls. The kids are getting their pics taken next weekend, and I can't resist matching at least the girls. Hopefully they will be done today and I will post pics. I almost have the laundry completed and put away- woohoo for me! Todd has my shelf painted and will be hanging it tonight! More pics and posts to come. Gotta go work on my skirts!!

Looking for my gifts, finding my wages...

I will start by saying, I have not blogged since April. No excuses really- just doing other things. I am going to make it a goal to blog every Fri. Even if it is boring, and mundane. That being said, I am going to admit that this summer has been a struggle for me. I never wanted to be one of "those moms". You know the kind. The ones that say, " I can't wait for school to start again". But, that's exactly who I've turned out to be. Sometimes I am not sure that I am cut out for this job. The wages are low, if not invisible. My job is high stress, monotonous, and never ending. I don't get weekends off, and I work about 19 hours a day. I don't get bathroom breaks by myself, and I am in high demand every second I am awake (and many that I am asleep). Such is the life of a stay-at-home mother to 4 right? I know that there are many who would love to stay at home and be with their children. So, I have decided to attempt something very out of my character. I am going to try every day to look for my gifts, and search out my wages. There has to be something everyday that makes this all worth while. Monday was an especially hard day. The children were at their worst. They fought, yelled, hit, lied, disobeyed, and demanded all day long. After they were in bed, and I could breathe, I realized something. I looked up at my Entertainment cabinet and saw these pretty wild flowers that the kids had brought me after I had chased them outside. I took them at the time and placed them around my candelabra to make them happy. They were so proud of themselves. It was just another thing for me to do at the time, so I took them reluctantly, but with a smile. But, that evening I remembered this song that a dear woman at church sang one Mothers Day. Patti Govero made me cry that morning singing "A Handful of Weeds". It's such a touching song and I thought of it when I looked up and saw those flowers. I realized that those were my gifts for the day. My payment for my hard work and desperation was a handful of weeds, and they were beautiful. I snapped a picture and decided that I would look every day for my payment. Some days it may not come until I have some peace to think about my day. But, I am hopeful that it will be there amongst the chaos. Tuesday Tommy drew me a picture. This one depicted Tommy and I holding hands. He gave it to me and wanted me to hang it up on my bulletin board. When I went to hang it, I realized there was no more room! Then I realized this was my gift of the day. My children are very creative, crafty, and love to give their projects away. I like to think they get that from me! So, I snapped a pic of my wages for the day, My children's art work, that they had made especially for me! I feel very special that they took the time to make me something from their hearts. Those of you that know me, realize that this optomism is out of the box for me. This could be a welcome change in a new direction. Below are the lyrics for "Handful of Weeds" by Sherri Easter. Read the words and let them touch your heart.

Handful of Weeds
Four years old, with dirt on my face
I'd been out in the yard
pickin dandelions all day
I burst through the front door
when I'd gathered enough
to give to my mom, to show her my love
when I held out my hands
she looked down at me,she said
I've never seen flowers
as beautiful as these

she's the one
who told me about Jesus
she's the one
who taught me to sing
she deserves, an armful of roses
she's satisfied with a handful of weeds

Now that I'm older and out on my own
I wish I could find more time
to make it back home
I couldve done better, I know in my heart
than to scribble a note
on a last minute card

And then she calls on the phone
and the first thing she says
is I've read this card over and over again

she's the one
who told me about Jesus
she's the one
who taught me to sing
she deserves, an armful of roses
she's satisfied with a handful of weeds

She's always known
what true love means
and I want her to know
what she means to me !

she's the one
who told me about Jesus
she's the one
who taught me to sing
she deserves, an armful of roses
she's satisfied with a handful of weeds

She's more than satisfied, with a handful of weeds.
....

Milestones, Accomplishments, and Talents...

We have had quite a busy, and fulfilling April. I wanted to catch everyone up on our shenanigans, especially those of the kids!
Isabella is nearing the end of her second year at Dietrich's Dance Studio, and her recital is just a few short months away. For Bella, it's not about the 10 months of practice, or the exercise, or even the social interaction, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE RECITAL!!! And why is it all about the recital you may wonder? One simple word sums it all up- MAKEUP!!!!! Bella is definitely her mothers daughter when it comes to 3 things, 1.Being Sassy 2. Boys 3. Makeup. So, needless to say, when it was time last week for dance pictures, Bella couldn't wait to get ready. We rolled her hair in hot rollers, put on eyeliner, eye shadow, mascara, blush, lip liner, and gloss- and Voila! My little girl went from 7 t0 17 in half an hour! Of course , she couldn't stop looking at herself in the mirror either. All I could think was- "Wow, if this is even close to what she will look like in 10 years, we are in big trouble!". She also had two entry's in the Art Show today. Here is a picture of her still life. She also has developed into such a big helper, and little mother to Ophelia. While Todd and I were cutting the boys hair this evening, we layed Ophelia down in her crib. She started fussing, so Bella got her out of her crib and sat down on the couch- Ophelia promptly fell asleep right on her sissy's lap! Bella was so proud!
Tommy also had a very big month!! He had a starring role in Little Dragon's Preschools Production : The 3 Piggy Opera!! When his teacher, Mrs. Huffman suggested that he take on the role of the "Brick Pig", I was shocked! If anyone knows my Tommy, then they know that singing a solo in front of several hundred people is def. not his cup of tea. But, Mrs. Huffman assured me that he was practicing in front of all his friends, and singing very sweetly, and she just knew he could do it! The eve. of the play came around and he was noticeably nervous! He said "Mom, I'm real nervous!", so then I got nervous!! I thought, who cares about the play? I don't want him to get nervous and forget the words and get humiliated. Tommy has a very sensitive heart, and he doesn't like it when he thinks people are making fun of him. I was so scared for him. Once the play started though, he turned into a little star! He ran up to that microphone and sang his song so sweetly!! He had 2 solo's at the microphone and he was wonderful! My heart was so swollen with pride- what a brave guy! This pic. is of Tommy, and Bella with Mrs. Huffman. She is retiring this year from Little Dragons and will be missed.
Aiden had finally parted ways with his binky!!!! Yeah!!! I am also so ready for him to be out of diapers and wearing big boy underwear. Although, he hates to get his diaper changed, he refuses to sit on the potty. I should just feel lucky that the binky is gone. We are going to buckle down and really try this summer. He is also such a daddy's guy. In these pics he is keeping daddy company while Todd picks up tree limbs from our cut down tree. He just sat out and talked to Todd, and watched, and looked at bugs- he had a great time.
Little Ms. Ophelia Jane is becoming quite the social butterfly! She now drinks her bottle as if she is a goat at Grants Farm. She sits completely upright, and looks around wildly at everything and everybody while trying to drink! It's so funny! She is also attempting to try to crawl, but it looks more like a really chubby inch worm- except she doesn't get anywhere! It is adorable! She has also graduated to the big girl bath seat and enjoys her baths very much!
My accomplishment this week is that I cut the boy's hair tonight for the first time!! I think they turned out ok. Tommy wanted a mo-hawk like his friend Chase at school. We are going for a "surfer" look on Aiden, so his is just long and shaggy still. What do you think? Not bad for a first timer huh?

Family Vacation Spring 09

We just got back from our first (and prob. only) family vacation for this year. We left last Thur. eve. and headed down to Gulf Shores, Alabama. If you've never been, I would highly recommend it. It has gorgeous white sand beaches, wonderful weather, and a very family friendly atmosphere. We drove down, caravaning with my mom and dad- both vehicles loaded with kids and bags, and of course enough snacks to feed us for a week! We made the haul driving 12 straight hours. After many rest stops, food breaks, and a couple of Britney Spears "baby on my lap" moments, we arrived early Fri. morning. Our main reason for picking Gulf Shores, is that my grandparents vaca. there every year for about 6 months out of the year. They stay in an RV park with a bunch of their retired friends, and relax in the warm weather. We visited with them a lot, played at the beach enough to get sand in our hair, ears, and other various places that need not be mentioned. We went on a dolphin cruise, got sunburned, and maybe a little more "tanned" than I would have liked(thank you for all your comments), our kids tasted salt water the hard way, Tommy got knocked in the head with a wake board, we ate the BEST BBQ we've tasted (and got a little sick from it also), and one of our children commited their first real crime (don't ask). We left Alabama on a balmy 80 degree Sunday, and arrived in Missouri early Monday morning to snow. While the grownups are still sleep deprived and recovering, the kids have bounced back quite enthusiastically...meaning they are completely jacked up! We had a great time, and I am quite sure we have made many lasting memories- some of the best we even caught on video. Of course, Tommy "hates the beach", and "hates the dolphins", and Isabella had to "spend her birthday in the car (insert whiny voice)", and Aiden was just Aiden....Ms. Ophelia was the best by far! But then again she hasn't learned to see her mothers "optimistic side of life"....sarcastic undertones???? Here are a couple of pictures of our trip to Gulf Shores...enjoy!

The daily grind

I was contemplating what I do every day, this thing I call a routine. I think I am gonna change the word to monotony. Really- will the laundry never get done? The dishes, the toys, the dirty laundry, and the toilet, oh and cooking too. I don't think I am meant to be domesticated. Just some random thoughts on a crabby day.

Tommy's theorys and everyday randomness...

Tommy's theory on why men go deer hunting:
Tom-"Mom, did you know deer have beer in their belly?"
Me-"Really? What's beer?"
Tom-"I don't know. You know? Man's drink it"
Me- "What man do you know that drinks beer?"
Tom- " I don't know, but I know that some mans drink it"
Me- "OK"
Tom- "Well, that's why mans go deer hunting."
Me-"So they can get the beer from the deer?"
Tom-" Yeah, they cut open their belly's and drink the beer."

Tommy's advice on how to be "cool":
Tom- "Hey mom, do you know how to be cool?"
Me- "How?"
Tom- "Just be like yourself and then you will be like cool"
Me- "That's very good Tommy"
Tom-"Do you know where I learned that from?"
Me- "Where ?"
Tom- " I learned it from myself, cause I'm pretty smart."

Tommy's request for a you-tube video (strictly his fathers influence)
Tom-"Hey mom, you know that one thing on the computer where theres a bag on a porch and then it gets lighted on fire? And then you gotta step on it and then you get poop on you?"
Me-"What? I guess- the bag with poop on the front porch? Yes, I've seen it. Where did you see it?
Tom-" On the computer with daddy. Can we watch that again when we get home?"
Me- "Uh, no Tommy. You'll have to watch that with daddy."
Here's the link if your at all interested in the poo bag video:
http://minibytes.mondominishows.com/poo/main.asp?Affil=fan

Will the vomiting never end?

Ok- we are going on a week now of either vomiting or diarrhea and frankly I've grown tired of it. It has only been Aiden and Ophelia thankfully, but come on! Is there no end in sight? They are both so calm and good about it, that I hate to complain. They are just so pitiful though. I am just tired of vomit-end of story.

Playing catch-up once again

I am going to attempt to catch up once again...cause I am a slacker blogger...One family member at a time- Here goes:

Todd:

The fried pickle has died...it's dead. Last week Todd called home at about 7:45 and told me that he was broken down on the side of the highway. Something was wrong with the bus, and he wasn't sure what it was. I loaded everyone up (post-bath, pj's on, and 15 min. before bed time) and went to retrieve him. Obviously we couldn't leave his baby all alone in the dark, so we had to take it home with us. We attached a chain from my car, to the bus and started the rather short trip home. A five min. trip, took us 45 minutes, all the while Ophelia is screaming, and Isabella is convinced we were gonna die! I was quite livid, but for all accounts held my tongue. Todd has been driving my dads green Chevy truck, which brings back a lot of memories when I hear it pull up at about 6:30 at night. I could always here the truck pulling onto Holly Hills and new it was dad! With the death of the pickle, comes momma having to drop Bella off at school in the morn. So, instead of our usual lazy routine of taking it easy in the morn. we are rushing to get 4 kids up and at em' just to drive to Athena and home again. Not fun! Needless to say, I cannot wait for the bus to be resurrected once again! Todd also celebrated his 43rd birthday March 10th. We got him some gardening supplies, and a pair of vintage style Nike Cortez that he has been wanting for some time now- I surprised him and he was very excited!

Isabella:

Other than being grounded twice in two weeks for being extremely deceitful, she is trucking along rather well. Her dance recital costume came in and is so cute! She is getting excited about her birthday as well. It is quite amazing the drama that has already begun amongst friends, and also body/self awareness issues. If these past few months are just a taste of what is to come, than the entree will be quite flavorful. Here she is modeling a tutu I made for a Relay for Life silent Auction Basket.

Tommy:

He is bored- pretty darn bored! Especially on Fri. when there is no school. It hasn't been quite warm enough to send him out to play, so he has taken to aggravating everyone around him. He will dance in front of the baby for minutes at a time, make strange noises just to hear himself, take things away from his brother, and cont. ask me for food, noggin, food and more food. Kindergarten reg. is this week and that should be fun.

Aiden:

What a crack up lately! He is so talkative and expressive. He is convinced that all his friends are stupid, and tells me that almost everyone tells him to "shut up". He has such an imagination and so much character- def. the life of the party. Here is wearing Opelia's teddy bear hat, and Tommy's "Fider man" (spider man) sun glasses. What a nut!

Opelia Jane:

She is recovering from a bought with the "flu"- not sure if it was the actual flu, or just flu like. She vomited for about a day, and is finishing up some pretty nasty diarrhea. I am just glad she stayed hydrated. She is so perfect and wonderful-she amazes me everyday. She has discovered her toes and is quite impressed with them. She has also started sleeping through almost every night, and going to bed in her crib by herself!!! Yeah!! She is modeling an outfit I made for her for spring!

Me:

I am still working out at Snap, but not loosing any weight. I am getting frustrated b/c right now, I am craving everything in sight and out of sight as well. It is gonna be pointless to loose 5 pounds then gain it back when I am menstrual. We are going to Gulf Shores in 2 weeks and these humongous beeboes are not gonna fit into anything! I am gonna cont. to plug along and hope to see some form of a result soon. I also am going to be selling 31. They are monogrammed bags- hit me up if you are interested. I am also going to working toward setting up an online boutique- look for that in June/July. I will be selling my handmade dresses, bags, hair bows etc.... I've named my line "Ophelia's Fancy Pants" What do you think? I will be taking custom orders soon!!!! That's all for now- I am turning in!

I am taking $10 of it back!

Here is my $90 put to work...what do you think?

Girl Scout Cookies are the devil, and how $30 turned into $90...

Girl Scout Cookies are the devil:
It's true! First of all, they only come around once a year, so you are compelled to stock up. If you don't get them now, you won't have another chance for another year! Another year! So, before I tried to squeeze my lumpy body into lycra and made the vow to go on a diet, I bought 5 boxes of cookies. 2 Samoas, 3 tagalongs...I love them. So, after a dissapointing last week of restricting my calories to under 1400, giving up regular soda, and working out 5 days, and getting on the scale tonight and reading that I had gained a pound and a half...I decided to eat some dang cookies. I just downed 7 freakin girl scout cookies! Oh yes! 7! Binge eating at it's worst! I did get 15 minutes on the Eliptical in today-but seriously...I have issues. I am back on track tomorrow, and if that freakin scale doesn't move by next week then we will have some serious problems.
$30 into $90:
Isabella has dance class on Wed. nights from 5-6 pm. My mom meets me at Dietrichs and takes the baby's home, and Tommy goes to a friends for the hour. I have 50 minutes of peace and quiet mommy time. Sometimes I go to Alisons, sometimes I run to Walmart, and on a really good day I venture into Joann's. I cannot get out of that store without spending at least $30. I went there tonight with the idea to get the kids Easter basket fillers from the $1 bargain aisle. So, I started there, then I saw some super cute Spring decor. I took a deep breath and called Todd to get his opinion on buying some decor. Knowing he wouldn't care, I had already started filling my cart with 30%-50% off items. He said sure, how much? I said about $30 or so. Oh, that's fine he said. So I shopped and shopped and shopped some more...couldn't resist the fabric at $1.99 a yard. So, or course, I get to the checkout and $91.99 later I am walking out of the store with 4 bags and a shroud of guilt. I told Todd and of course he doesn't care, but then on the way home his wonderful reliable pickle broke down...engine trouble? Do I take the decor back? Any suggestions??? I really like it though!! He has assured me that he has a new engine in the garage....what should I do....help-Tina and Adrienne-you guys are really good with your $'s! Oh I also decided to give up my $60 hair color, the Wii fit I really want, and $60 of wall decor for the kids rooms...so I am kind of saving money at this point...right?

A recap because I am a slacker....

Ok, maybe not so much a slacker, but definitely have been putting off updating my blog until "later". So, I am gonna recap the last month or so in one posting. Read it if you want, but I wouldn't- rather boring stuff.

The end of January found us scrambling to find new insurance. We decided to let the Cobra coverage we had with Enterprise expire. The main reason being that it was costing us more than our house payment. So began the search for affordable, quality health care coverage. As a result of our researching we have decided to move to Canada...not really! We did have to scramble to get eye exams (only 2 sets of glasses for the 2 adults in our household), and dentist appointments (3 cavities for Tommy, and 1 for Bella) before the end of the month. We found something affordable through Anthem, but will never have what we had before. Oh, the changing times...

On Feb. 12, my guy Tommy turned 5!! We celebrated by having a party at school, a mini party at home, and a family party on Sunday. We got him a new bike (which he rides like he is in the X games), and he also got some new jammies, playdoh, and a couple of other small toys, and the Bee Movie. We are thankful that he did not get a ton of toys...We have too many people in our house to try to room toys also.

Feb. also brought two stress attacks for me. First one being that Tommys preschool teacher showed some concern about Tommy's readiness for kindergarten. She was afraid that he was just not "picking up on things" quickly enough. Tommy's personality is such that he just doesn't care too much about anything. He is very laid back, go with the flow, and very much a boy. I mean, that he is the very example of a boy that you would read about in Dobson's Bringing Up Boys...they just don't learn like girls. He is so smart, but if he feels he can't do something perfectly, or if he feels the slightest bit uncomfortable in a situation, then he won't even try. With a little research, and some great ideas from others, I am sure he will be well on his way to kindergarten in August. What's more, is that I was looking over his Valentines Day cards that he received from his friends at school, and more than 1/2 of the children's parents signed their kids' names, and the others were completely illegible. You should see Tommy's handwriting...I am just wondering if all those kids that can't even write their names are ready for kindergarten...hmmmm????

Aiden also had a talking jag this month. Over the past 2 months his vocabulary has grown leaps and bounds. About a week ago, he started stuttering over he M, and W sounds. A couple of days later that small stutter took over all of his words, and by the next day, he was so frustrated with himself that he just shut down and stopped talking all together. It was so sad to see him so confused with the situation. I of course went into "worst case scenario" mode, and started Internet researching right away. Was it a brain tumor, childhood leukemia, a speech problem that would plague him for the rest of his life? After many sleepless nights, and lot's of advice from friends and teachers, I decided to let it go. It was still exhausting to watch him struggle to speak. Then, just as quickly as it came on, the stuttering disappeared. He is back to his normal, talkative self now. My parent educator said it sounds like his brain needed to shut down to reorganize- and now his vocabulary is bigger and better than before. It's just amazing how God has designed our bodies.

I also finished a couple of Valentines Day dresses for the girls, 2 pairs of jammie pants for the boys, and some Valentines, and birthday gift. I'll just post the girls in their dresses.

New Projects

Hey All! Just wanted to share a couple of the new projects I recently made. This one is some items I made for Casey's baby shower: a diaper wreath, a blankie, a wrap, and a baby food jar party favor.

This is a pillow case dress made for Ophelia- my sister helped me with this one!