Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is heavy. So since we are in the middle of moving right now I decided to save myself a bit of time and go through some of my old photos. Here is a picture of my youngest this past fall. As you can see, she was determined to pick up the "ball", but it proved to be a bit to heavy for her. She sat there straining, huffing and puffing for quite a while. Such a determined young thing. And mean mommy that I am, I just sat there and took pictures instead of helping her.



So there's my take on this weeks theme. For other views on this week's theme visit TNCHICK.com or PhotoHunt

I spilled it

I am trying to win a Wii. Not for me mind you but for the kids (Hubs is included in this category). Well Ree over at Pioneer Woman is having one of her famous giveaways but she wants us to share an embarrassing moment.

Well I can't very well share it with her and not share it with you guys. After all, it's always more fun to have a really embarrasing moment and then have everyone point and laugh at you.

So without further ado, I'll share one of my many embarrasing moments. Hubs and I are recent Catholics. We joined the church about three years ago. At that time we both had to do our First Holy Communion. This is where we eat the communion wafer (Body of Christ) and drink the wine (Blood of Christ). We had been instructed to be very careful not to drop the wafer so naturally I was very nervous about this. But I handled it just fine. No shakes or slip ups there.

But then I moved over to the wine. I don't know what happened, I really don't. I went and reached for the cup and it all seemed just fine. I put the cup to my lips and prepared to take a sip. Then it happened. I spilled the wine (Blood of Christ) all down the front of my white blouse. I just froze, I didn't know what to do. I couldn't move and I couldn't hand the cup back to the Eucharistic Minister. And I most certainly couldn't let the priest see that I now had all of God's Blood down the front of my shirt, let alone the 200+ people that were there for Easter Vigil. As I'm standing there I am wondering what was the Father going to say to me or do. Will I be doomed to a million Hail Mary's for this? Well the Eucharistic Minister assured me I was okay and prompted me out of the way. At which point I found my feet and rushed back to my seat.

I can still feel the embarrassment creeping up my face years later. And as for me spilling or dropping anything since then, it hasn't happened. I'm extra carefull now.

Sweet Dreams

You may recall how I was lucky enough to head out of town a few weeks back. A friend and I hopped in the car and drove the four hours to Austin. We left Friday afternoon after school let out and ended up driving through rainy weather most the time. But since I wasn't the one driving, it didn't really bother me. Except for the fact that as a passenger I get sleepy. I didn't used to be this way but I seemed to have picked it up somewhere along the way. Now being a good passenger I didn't actually fall asleep. Instead I just yawned a bit, well okay a lot and talked about everything that came up with Linda.

When we finally arrive at the hotel, it was cold and rainy. And we were hungry. But since Linda didn't want to get out and drive around anymore we decided to just get some snacks in the sports bar that was in the hotel. And it worked out fine. By the time we had eaten and finished off the drinks we ordered it was getting a bit late. (For me at least because you see I turn into a pumpkin at 10pm everynight) We went back to our room and got ready for bed since we had to be at our conference at 8 the next morning. While washing our faces and brushing our teeth we noticed there had been a leak in the ceiling at some time and commented on how bad the roof was stained. And that was that so then we went to sleep.

Silly me thought that by being four hours away from my children, in a hotel room, would mean that I would get an entire nights sleep without interruption. I was wrong. I was very worried about snoring...either from me or from Linda. You see we hadn't ever shared a room before so it was all new territory. But I had warned her so she at least was prepared for some noise during the night. I was not. So there I am sleeping as soundly as I can and I assume that Linda is doing the same.

That's when I hear this amazing crash and rumble. I jump up and it's completely dark. I'm automatically thinking it's Linda and that she has somehow fallen and hurt herself. But it wasn't she is still in the next bed looking just as startled as I am. So brave girls that we are we turn on the light and go off in search of what that awful noise is that woke us up at 5 a.m. We didn't have to go far. When we got to the sink area we saw that the entire area was a mess and everything was covered in water. It turns out that the stained ceiling we noticed earlier had collapsed.




Why would it collapse just like that? Well whoever had gone in to fix the leak before had just put a big bucket up in the ceiling and then put the ceiling tile back in place. So when this big bucket filled up with water and began to overflow, it got to heavy for the ceiling and it all came crashing down.

So there went my chance at a good night of uninterrupted sleep. Instead I had to deal with wet makeup and clothes and even worse than that wet carpet. We did call down there and get a new room but by that time, sleep was elusive. We did get a free breakfast while we stayed there and they discounted the room that came crashing down from our bill. But still, I think I would have preferred the sleep. As for the guy who put the bucket up there in the first place, I think he needs a lesson in gravity.

Wordless Wednesday

"Just like Pappy"



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My Soul Mate

I just love my Hubs. He's normally such a quiet sort who will only cut up around those that know him best. But don't be fooled, he does have a fun side that you will see in him every now and then. Take for example the day Hoss came home from preschool with some googly eyed glasses a few months back. I had already been playing around with them with the kids but Hubs decided to join in the fun. And I was quick enough to get a few photos.

Here you see my hottie of a man all googley eyed over Me...



Then I put the googley eyes on and found some redneck teeth to go along with them. Then I struck my best love struck over you pose and Hubs snapped a picture.



So now you can see why Hubs was so googley eyed over Me... I'm quite the looker in this picture. In fact Hubs thought it was so great he took another picture of me on his camera phone. Just to have with him at all times. But for whatever reason, when he showed my beautiful picture to his friends at work, they all cringed.

Some guys don't know a good thing when they see it...that's all I can say. But thankfully Hubs does. Nothing like googley eyes and redneck teeth to make you fall in love all over again.

Only if your Hot

A Conversation with Hoss:


Hoss: Mom, when I get big can I go jogging and running and doing exercise in the neighborhood outside without my shirt on?

Me: You want to run outside without a shirt on when you get big?

Hoss: yeah, Can I?

Me: Only if your Hot and handsome.

Hoss: Yeah, I will be.

Can you feel my redneck pride in my son rising up in my chest.

What are they teaching him?

***UPDATED*** With his teacher's response.


Z. gets home from school today and since he hasn't been feeling well I ask him how he's doing. He says fine but that he has a lot of homework. So off he goes to start working on it. A little while later he comes out and ask me and Hubs if we know how to do Mexican Division? Both of us just look at each other and try not to laugh and say what, since we were expecting a joke? And he says do you know how to do the Mexican division? So this is how the conversation played out.

Me: What do you mean by the Mexican division?

Z: You know where you do division and it looks like your playing hangman.

Me: Well I know how do a kind of division with a box that looks kind of like hangman. But I call it long division. Let me show you. And I do.

Z: No mom, that's different than Mexican Division but it's kind of the same. And he takes the paper from me.

So he shows me a "new" way of doing what I know as long division with some tweaks here and there. It's definetely not the same way I did long division but it comes up with the same answer. I just can't get past the name it was given, "Mexican Division". Z. isn't any help since he just said he thought that must be how they do it in Mexico.

I know this may upset some of you but I truly do find this whole thing funny. And I can hardly wait to get the answer from his teacher as to why it's called "Mexican Division". And just to be sure I wasn't old or anything I googled Mexican Division and nothing came up. So now I really am anxiously awaiting the answer from his math teacher as to why in the world it is called Mexican Division? And I did tell Z. that I'm sure that it's not called Mexican Division because that's the way they do it in Mexico.

Alright for those of you who are actually still curious as to his teachers response I'd thought I'd share it with you.

Z. is correct; we are learning "partial quotients" which is how they divide in Mexico. It helps make division easier for the students who can get stuck very easily on the traditional method of long division. It is where the students break apart the dividend by using multiples of 10, and subtract those pieces from the whole.

Mmmm...okaaay! Since I technically never learned math IN Mexico (just the border town across the Rio Grande) I truly can't 100% contradict her on this one. But I really do kind of want to. ;)

Because I'm really at a loss here

I'm to tired to think of anything interesting to write about. So this is what you get instead. A quiz on the kind of American English I speak.

Your Linguistic Profile:

55% General American English 20% Dixie 20% Yankee 0% Midwestern 0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

I can understand all the scores except the 20% Yankee one. I'm not a Yankee and haven't even been further north than Virginia. So how in the world did I score a twenty percent there? I'm curious as to how you guys score, so if you take the quiz let me know.

So then I'm looking at other quizzes to take and I come acorss this one called "What's my Girl Smell"? Well how could I resist that one. I've always been curious about what my girl smell is ya know and here it is:

Your Scent is Mango

Sultry, sweet, and mellow You enjoy every moment of life!

What's Your Girl Smell?

Mango...never would have guessed that one in a million years. No I was thinking more of the soap smell, wearing the same shirt the kids wiped thier hands on yesterday smell but instead I got mango. I don't even care for mango's that much but apparently it's my smell. Who would have thought it?

So there you have it. My thoughts are not working today so instead you get worthless quizzes and what I think of them. I'm sorry about it, really I am.

What are they trying to tell me

I'm driving in the car this morning and K. looks at me and says so sweetly "I like your Zebra shirt". So I look at my red and white striped shirt and just say thank you sweetie.

Then this afternoon, Hoss is in the kitchen and says "Whoa, Mom, you look just like a zebra".

What is it exactly my kids are trying to tell me. I'm feeling very self conscious in a zebray kind of way. And I'm just not sure I will wear this again.

Basket Gremlin Strikes Again

It happened again today. That darn basket gremlin stuck me at the grocery store. Normally I am able to keep most of his mischievous purchases out of my basket. But today for some reason I missed what was put in the basket. And since I had the help of three of my kids to put the groceries onto the cash register belt, I missed them there as well. When I was unloading my groceries at home. I found an abundance of extra cookies and crackers. I also found an extra box of juice bags. But since we go through those so quickly I really don't care about that one to much. But unless you think that gremlin was only after junk food, I also found a poked in kiwi. But that little guy wasn't actually in a bag, he was found left alone in the basket while I was loading the car. Still not sure how he ended up there since he wasn't there while I was paying. All I can say is that those darn gremlins were definitely moving faster than I was today.

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is old fashioned. And there is nothing more fun to do as a child than swing. So here is a picture of my kids having some old fashioned fun. Big brother Z. is winding up little sister K. so she can spin around is circles until she is dizzy.



So there's my take on this weeks theme. For other views on this week's theme visit TNCHICK.com or PhotoHunt

I'm a spring/summer gal

I am officially here to declare myself a warm weather person. That means that I'm tired of the cold. I'm ready for the warmer weather to start back up. I'm ready for spring. And it's not like I even have a lot of winter weather to deal with living in Texas. But I am tired of being cold during the little cold weather that we do have. So here you have it I'm no longer going to deny it. I'm a spring/summer girl. But if you ask me in August when it's hotter than heck, I may just declare that I am a cold weather person. Guess we will just have to wait and see.

The First Tooth Fairy Visit

Hoss lost his first tooth on Monday. He was eating an apple and it pretty much came out then. He was torn between laughing with excitement and eagerness at the idea of the tooth fairy along with fear that it would hurt to actually get the tooth all the way out. So I just had him open his mouth and told him that I didn't think it would hurt at all for it to come out. And during that time I was able to pull the last little bit to get it, Hoss didn't even realize I had it until I showed it to him in my hand.

He was even more excited the next morning when he found some money under his pillow. Now if I can just come up with a good reason for the tooth fairy to keep his tooth maybe he'll stop asking me why she kept it. Here he is in all his toothless glory.

Wordless Wednesday

Anticipation



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Had a Blast

I had a wonderful time this weekend in Austin. My friend and I drove down there in no time at all. Lots of good conversation and a few laughs. We both learned so much from our weekend course. I can't wait to start trying out some of what I learned. I wish I had more time to go into details of all that was taught but even now I'm sure I am forgetting stuff as I sit here. All I can say is that if you ever get a chance to go to any of the courses with RMSP then by all means do it. You will not be disappointed.

Now I really should go off and take care of some of the things that need to be done.

My Foot Warmer

It's been colder than usual lately. Which means that my feet have been colder than usual. Even with my thick socks and slippers they are cold.

In fact about the only time my feet aren't cold is when I can sneak them underneath someone sitting next to me. Hubs really doesn't like this much and the kids never sit long enough for the chill to completely leave my feet. Which leaves me with one choice. Our dog Gigi. This dog just emits body heat like you wouldn't believe so my feet warm up pretty quick if they are underneath her. The only problem is that in order for my feet to remain warm and snug under her, I have to also pet her. Normally this wouldn't be a problem but Gigi is one of those dogs where if you give a scratch, she expects a belly rub. And then next thing you know she'll be trying to sleep in your bed with you. Now that's just not something I can do.

So as you can see, every night about the time my feet are freezing, I'm faced with the same dilemma. Do I let the dog warm them and then have her pushy dog self try to climb into our bed later in the night or do I just deal with my cold feet on my own and sleep without the dog trying to sneak into bed with us. It really is a trivial problem to have I know. And any true dog lover would just let Gigi warm her feet and then sleep in her bed afterwards. The thing is I am more of a dog liker than a dog lover. This means that my like has it's limitations which means I am doomed to suffer from cold feet. Until I get this look from her every night. It's kind of like this one in which her expression says...


Hey let's make a deal, I warm your feet in exchange for sleeping on the soft bed. So then I warm my feet on her and later that night I shut the door so she can't come in. And then I feel guilt for about two seconds and then I fall asleep. Until the next night when we do it all over again. Gigi isn't really a good negotiator but at least she keeps trying.

Wordless Wednesday

"Ice Poinsetta"


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Driving the Roller Coaster

One of the many things that I truly dislike is a roller coaster ride. They just make me sick. Hubs and the kids though, they just love them. So whenever we go to Six Flags or any other amusement park I always pass on the big rides and just look forward to the kiddie rides which I am able to stomach.

But I've discovered another roller coaster ride that I just love. Since I live in a fairly large metroplex area we have lots of bridges and overpasses that go up pretty high. And like me as a child, my kids love it when we go on the highest one. But they have taken it a step further than I ever did as a child. They pester me nonstop until I tell them we are about to drive up on the big overpass at which point they all stick their arms up in the air and start telling each other excitedly, we are almost to the top...hold on here it comes. Then once I peak at the top and we start to descend, the screams and laughter break out and for them it's just like a roller coaster ride (well okay I'm sure my nine year old Z. doesn't really think that but he participates just the same). So here I am driving in my minivan chugging along anywhere from 60-70mph depending on how late I am, and it's complete roller coaster chaos in the car. Anyone looking in our van would see one thirty something mom speeding down the road trying not to laugh. While at the same time four pairs of arms are waving around in the air and four mouths are screaming in roller coaster like joy.

For me it's the best of both worlds, I get a part of the excitement of what my kids experience when dad takes them on a real roller coaster but I never actually have to get on one. Instead I can stick with the smaller rides that don't make me sick. What could be better than that?

Four Days and Counting

I have four days left until I get to enjoy my last Christmas present from Hubs. And I am getting so excited.

I will head out Friday evening just me and another friend and we will drive our excited selves down to Austin. Where we will both then spend the remainder of the weekend cooped up in a hotel conference room attending one photography class after another. Yes, I know this doesn't sound like fun for some of you. But for me, this is BIG stuff. I'm hoping to come away from these courses with just a little bit better knowledge of what I am capable of doing with my camera. Because at this point it's all user error.

So that gives me four days to work my tail off. so that when I get home after a brief two days, the house won't be falling down around me. I can dream can't I?

Oh My..

Some days I just feel like I go from one mess to another.

A. is currently on her third top of the day and it's barely naptime now.

Touch the Clouds

I took the girls to the park this morning since it was a nice day. While there we spent a very long time on the swings. But as K. is begging me to push her higher on the swings I got to thinking about how all the kids love to swing. It must be an age thing because both boys before K. used to say the same thing, push me high enough to touch the trees and then they move on to push me high enough to touch the clouds.

How many times during the past nine years have I heard that one request? I really don't know, all I know is that it's a lot. And I know I will hear it for a few more years to come since A. isn't far behind her sister in that department. And every time I hear one of them ask me to push them high enough to touch the clouds, I am able to envision all my children's faces at the same age asking me the same thing.

It's really a sweet memory that I tend to forget about until the next time I'm at the park. And each time I really stop to think about all their little faces begging for more it puts a lump in my throat.

Wordless Wednesday

The first winter bulbs to appear.

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My Winter Blue Toes

What do you think was it a bit to wild and crazy for an old gal like myself?

Hubs wasn't to excited about my blue toes but since it really is only me that sees them this time of year I thought why not? I was just disappointed that the girl that paints on all the designs wasn't there otherwise I would have added a cute snowman to them as well.

I can't believe I said that

There are just some things that come out of my mouth and I can't believe I actually said them. Or that I really needed to. I seem to be saying things in this category more often than not lately. Let me enlighten you on my latest I can't believe I had to say that moment.

I am in the bathroom putting my makeup on. Baby A. comes in to help like she does every morning and reaches for my makeup brushes. I take one look at her and have to say "A, you can't use my makeup brushes until your boogers are gone". To which she replies....Noooooo!

Some days I really wonder how I ever got in this position.

Pee Faster

I was on the phone last night with my brother. During that time of complete chaos where I am finishing making dinner, setting the table and getting food in front of my starving children I attempted to carry on an adult conversation. That really was a bad choice on my part. Why would I ever think I should be able to talk on the phone while my four children are still living at home.

But I digress, let me get back to my story, I really do have one. I finally had all the kids at the table happily (if not quietly) eating and watching TV at the same time (bad mommy I know, but I was trying to talk on the phone). When it happened. K. had to go potty. Nothing new there. The kids always have to go to the bathroom once dinner is served. I don't know why it's that way but it is. So K. gets up from the table and stops just long enough to grab the remote control and then she paused the show (gotta love DVR) so she could go potty and not miss anything. Well bedlam ensued and I soon had an uprising on my hands of all the other kids screaming that she paused it and they were watching that and it's not fair that she always pauses the TV when she has to go to the bathroom. So I did what any good mom trying to have a phone conversation would do, I walked into the bathroom and told her to pee faster and ran off with the remote control. I then had three happy kids and one unhappy girl crying in the bathroom that she can't pee faster. But she was almost done so by the time I got there to help her I really wasn't needed anymore.

Yep, my brother sure was lucky he got to talk to me on the phone last night. I've enlightened him beyond what he probably felt was necessary and I have reached a new level of mothering where I now order my children to pee faster.

My Commando Girl

I have a daughter who surprised me the other morning. I won't name names but it's the only daughter I have who still wears diapers. At least she was wearing one when I put her to bed the other night. When I heard her stirring in the morning I went in to get her and my sweet girl had gone commando on me. She had pulled down her pj pants and somehow removed her diaper. Then she slept that way all night long. And it was cold that night, my poor baby must have froze her bottom off. When I went in to get my commando girl there was a big wet spot in the middle of her crib sheet. At this point I was just glad it was only wet and nothing more. She was so proud of herself, I could see it in her eyes. So I scooped her up and redressed her in all the appropriate attire, then I changed her sheet. I hope I never wake up to that kind of surprise again. I mean I am all for losing the diaper but not really in that way.

My new BFF

I'm never far from my new BFF. My drops help me get through the days and night with hardly a cringe, cough or tear in sight. Honey Lemom your my new best friend, until back to the medicine cabinet I put you again.

To Paint or not To Paint

that is the question. Right now Hubs and I are trying to decide if we want to paint. When we bought our home six years ago we painted it completely on the inside. I just picked a neutral beige color and away we went with the paintbrush. Now we are thinking it's time to paint again. The decision is now do we change the color? I have always loved this color we currently have but Hubs hasn't really cared to much for it. He likes a lighter color (read into that white) while I prefer it darker. So now have to pick a color we can both agree on. And you would think it would be easy but it's not. Then I get to thinking, what about adding some new color. It would be easy enough to do but then if I don't like it then poor Hubs has to paint again and I'm sure he won't like that. As you can tell I am no Martha Stewart. So I guess I am going to be spending alot of time in the paint section getting lots of those paper things with paint colors on them.

Wish me luck as I try and make up my mind. Just think, none of this would have even been an issue if we hadn't gotten a new TV and opened up an entire wall in the family room. It just suddenly looked like it needed some new paint. Funny how one simple change can cause so much additional work. But at least I can blame that part on Hubs. I was after all completely happy with the previous setup until he went and changed it. Now it's going to cost him some serious elbow grease.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all my friends and fellow bloggers. The past year has been a very fun one for me and my family. And as I look back at some of what I wrote about during the past year I realize something. We are BORING! Our family never did anything really big that could count as a milestone. Nope not us, we stayed home and didn't vacation anywhere. But even in all of our Boringness we still enjoyed ourselves. We revelled in all the small ordinary things like snotty noses and Popsicles. And even though I'm sure it's boring for millions of people for our family it was just right. And hopefully for you few readers that come around our boringness didn't do you in to much. I can't promise not to be equally as Boring in the future but I hope to improve on it a tad bit. So Cheers to you my friends and raise your juice boxes to a Happy Healthy and Fun New Year!

Glad to Humor Him

I have to admit to being to the doctors office five separate times this past week. Four of them were to the kids doctor. So this morning on my latest visit my kind pediatrician, who has a personality like my brothers, walks in sees me and just laughs. As I am pleading my case that I am really not one of those freak moms who likes to be in the doctors office just because, he reassures me that it's fine. Its just been funny for him to see me come in four separate times with a different kid in tow each time all in one week. So I'm glad that I am able to humor him. That is my job after all, to provide other people a brief bit of laughter at my expense. Especially when I can really see the humor in it also. I guess I can just be thankful that we only have four children otherwise we would be back there again soon.

Man of the Year

It has been quite the week around here. We had family in for Christmas so were all set to enjoy ourselves. But then it happened, the dreaded virus struck. First one and then another started to feel bad. By the time Christmas morning rolled around, only half of us were even healthy. But even those numbers couldn't last. From what I can tell only my Hubs has stayed healthy. Which is quite unusual in itself since he always catches what the kids have. My family went home and took with them a very unwelcome present. And this Christmas goes down in history as the germiest one ever. And my sweet Hubs is definitely up for man of the year. He's taken such good care of all of us and the house at the same time. After a week of feeling terrible I am finally coming out of the worst of it so can now only fully appreciate all he has had to put up with. He has even kept up with the laundry which is hard enough to do when your not dealing with a bunch of sick people. As well as taking down all the Christmas decorations so I wouldn't have to do it. Yep, he's definitely up for Man of the Year. Where is that write in ballot?

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is light. So I thought of this great ice sculpture of a horse with a wreath around it's neck. You can see how the light is coming through the ice sculpture. Really breathtaking I think.


We saw this and many more ice sculptures at "Ice" over at the Gaylord Resort this past week. It truly was amazing all the different ice sculptures. They have this amazing Nativity scene in ice. I just wish those pictures would have done it justice. The kids had the most fun on the giant ice slide that they went down just before the exit. So if any of you are in the Dallas area, go check it out. It's a lot of fun.

So there's my take on this weeks theme. For other views on this week's theme visit TNCHICK.com or PhotoHuntw

Wordless Wednesday

His first game.

For other WW click here or else you can click here .

Are you a Peeker?

It's that time of year when our houses are brimming with presents for our families and ourselves. Which brings me to my question, Do you peek into your presents? Now I must tell you right off the bat that I am a reformed peeker. I come from a very distinguished family of peekers (all extended though...see how I distance myself from them now).

Growing up I could find the presents that my parents hid within days of it being brought into the house. I would pillage through the closet, crawl through the attic and even unlock the camping trailer all to get to the unknown presents calling my name. Naturally my mom soon became aware of my little problem and decided that she would start to wrap the presents. Little did she know that it only slowed me down that first year.

I became so good at unwrapping and rewrapping presents that no one ever really believed that I had peeked. They would tape entire edges of the wrapping paper and then look for evidence of my peeking. They never could see it though. Yet whenever they quizzed me about what was in the present, I could always tell them. Right down to the size and color.

I had such a problem peeking that when I finally did finish peeking at all my presents I was sad that I couldn't peek anymore. So I did what any little sister would do. I started peeking in my brothers presents and then rewrapping them. And again my family didn't really believe me when I claimed to know what was in his presents as well. But one Christmas morning as I handed out presents to everyone I proved it once and for all. I was able to tell them not just what was in my presents but what was in everyone's presents under the tree. Yes as you can most definitely tell, I had a serious peeking problem. So I decided to peek no more.

And I didn't for a very long time. But when Hubs and I were dating I told him about my peeking problem. And of course he didn't believe me. So naturally he had to test me. Once again I had to brush off my old rusty peeking skills (which really weren't that rusty)and I proved to him how great I was at peeking. He had double wrapped my present thinking he was sneaky but even he was impressed that I had peeked and re double wrapped the present without a trace.

So here I am today, years after my last peeking challenge by Hubs and I can completely and honestly say that I am not a peeker. I guess I have gotten old and the challenges just weren't enough for me. Now I actually look forward to being surprised Christmas morning because that really happens all to seldom. But I guess that since technically I still wrap most of the presents I do know the majority of the gifts under the tree.

Christmas Tour

It's definitely looking like Christmas around the blogosphere. And BooMama is hosting a Christmas Tour of Homes. And since I love to visit other people's home I decided that I better show off my small bit of Christmas decorating that we have.

So let me begin at the front door where you will be greeted by Santa. If it's after dark then he has sparkling lights to show you in. But then again if the batteries are dead (which is often the case) you won't even notice the lights on the wreath. But you will see the pretty white lights on the house that Hubs puts up for me every year.


On my dining room table is my Holy Family. It means the world to me since it was my grandmothers. It was given to me after she passed away. I always love taking it out each year and hate to put it away. I never thought I'd love paper mache so much.


On our kitchen table is our Advent wreath. It's a very special one this year made from a paper plate and green garland and four small white votive candles. My three year old made it at church for us and she is so proud when we light it every night. So this is the one we are using. After all, it's not every year you get a new Advent wreath.

Next you will come into our family room. We have a small tree (it's small since technically I can put the star on top without a stool) covered in way to many decorations. But with four children all wanting to put them on the tree, every branch is prime real estate. We have all our stockings hanging from the mantel. And yes, I am a bit of a Type A personality in that they must all match. But they have the cutest snowmen on them. And although you can't see it in the picture my Christmas tree skirt also has cute snowman faces all around it.

On my mantle I have my Advent calender tree for the children to open each night. But since my children don't know what patience is, we always have issues about waiting for their night to open the box. So instead of opening a box every night it usually turns into an every four night event. Then all the kids get to open a box at the same time and no one gets left out. I don't know why it doesn't bother them to go days in between but it doesn't. I also have a few more of my snowmen on one end of the mantle.

On the other end of the mantle I have my Santa collection. I have gotten a few here and there over the years and now I think I may have a Santa addiction. But since it only affects me once a year I don't worry to much about it.

Next we will head into the kitchen where I really don't have to much to share. Except this lone little Snowman paper towel holder. It was given to me one year and I really like it. He's always sitting by the hot stove so it's a wonder he hasn't melted yet.

I also have my Christmas dishes in the kitchen. Every year the kids are anxious to start using them. So out they come and then all the food gets pushed aside so they can look at the pretty tree and presents on the plate.

Now BooMama asked us to share a special holiday treat with those of you who dropped by. And I must admit that treats just don't last long in this house. So sadly I don't have any pictures of recent treats to show you. But please know that if you come by you will get a lovely cup of tea or coffee. And if your super lucky you may even get a Surprise Snowball.

Surprise Snowball
40 Hersey Kisses
2 c. flour
1 c. Margarine
1 c. pecans, chopped
1/2 c. sugar
1 c. powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Unwrap Chocolate kisses and set aside. Blend together margarine, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add pecans and flour to mixture, mix well. Chill dough mixture for about 10 minutes. Shape dough around each chocolate kiss covering completely. Bake at 375 for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and roll in powdered sugar while still warm.

Thanks for stopping by and just be warned that those Surprise Snowballs are addicting and messy to eat with all that powdered sugar. And if your interested in seeing some more homes then head on over to BooMama.

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is small. And so I decided to show a picture of my oldest daughter when she was a bit smaller than she is now on a trip down to South Padre Island. She is also covered in a lot of small grains of beach sand. It took a while to get her clean.



Then of course we have another picture of two of my children when they were smaller. Here, my son's small head is the only thing sticking out of the sand. And my small daughter at the time was very proud of her work.


So there's my take on this weeks theme. For other views on this week's theme visit TNCHICK.com or PhotoHunt

Life Before TiVo

or in my case DVR. It seems like such a distant memory. How on earth did we live like that. No rewind, no pause or no recording of live TV. It's amazing how much we use it. And I really fought against getting it for almost two years. What was I thinking. I love DVRing. xoxoxo

Wordless Wednesday

That was one hungry catepillar.

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Some of my favorite Christmas Ornaments

I've seen some other bloggers out there posting about some of their favorite Christmas ornaments. And since I'm partial to a few of mine, I'd thought I share some of them. The sad thing is that there are a few of my most prized ornaments that didn't get put on the tree this year. With my youngest around and pulling on things I decided to give them a year off and they should hopefully make their return next year. So maybe next year I will get to show you those ones.

First off we have a favorite off all my children. It's one of Santa's face and he is always getting fought over who will get to hang him up on the tree. Whoever does do it always puts him front and center and then everyone knows that Santa is watching everything they do for the rest of the month. Some days it helps their behaviour and other days it doesn't.


I also have a fondness for snowmen. This is one of my favorite snowmen. He's a very simple snowman but I just really like him.


Now as a mom, I am always excited when the kids bring home ornaments that they have made at school. This year is the first year that Hoss got to bring home one and he is very proud of his Christmas wreath. I think it's pretty neat to.


This next one was made by Z. when he was in first grade I think. I truly love it. It's his hand print in white paint. But they didn't stop there, no, they added little touches to all his fingers to make them look like snowmen. How cute is that? I had to put this one up pretty high this year to keep it away from tiny hands.


Then of course having two boys, I have a Santa playing football that gets fought over. Poor Hoss never stands a chance against Z. in hanging this one. Z. practically smells it out before it's out of the decoration box and grabs it first. Z. has become all about football in any form. So yes, this is one of his favorites.


This last one is one I just found this year. It's a small wooden ornament of the Holy Family. I love this so much that I'm thinking that I will keep it out year round for us to enjoy. Originally I thought it was a small Holy Family statue, but when I picked it up I saw the hook and string to hang it from the tree with so I realized it was really an ornament.

But then I get to wondering if it would be sacrilegious to then put it back on the tree at Christmas time. After all if it's been in place of honor all year long would it really want to go back on the tree? Oh, how my mind works sometimes. Putting emotions into inanimate objects. Anyways, give me your opinion on that one would ya?

Restocking and Baking

I'm restocking our medicine cabinets today or at the very least throwing out the super old stuff. (And yes that was restocking and not packing). Hubs and I have decided once again that we love our current house so much right now that we really don't want to leave it. Even for the extra space, the extra money we would spend just seems sort of crazy to us since I'm officially a stay at home mom. See I told you we were flaky people lately. So we finally made a decision (we even spit on it...okay we really didn't do that)that we aren't going to go anywhere until our youngest is in school.

So now i can focus on more of the Christmas activities that I've been feeling like I missed out on last week. I'm way behind in my baking and picture taking. Have I ever told you how much I love my kitchen. It really is perfect for me. It has just seem so lonely lately without any treats being created. Now if I can just find my camera that Hubs packed up, then I could take some pictures of the baking about to ensue. To me that definitely takes precedence over unpacking those few boxes left.

Shopping Online

I've been doing a lot of shopping for Christmas online lately. I truly don't like to shop much and will generally do anything to avoid the crowds at the stores. But then I get to feeling a bit guilty. I see the shipping charges and think to myself "you really could have saved this money". But then I remember how cold it is outside and how I have to drag anywhere from one to four children with me. Once I calculate in the numerous potty breaks, snacks and tantrums avoided, I always decide that the shipping costs are well worth the hassle it saves me. Plus it has the extra benefit of getting something "fun" in the mail. Yes, I do like online shopping.

Flaky

Hubs and I are turning into some serious flaky people. We love flaky biscuits,flaky pie crusts, flaky pot pies, you get the idea. We never dreamed we would be flaky people. We always thought we were more consistent lovin' kinds of people. You know the soft, moist, spongy kind. You put something in the oven and your always guaranteed the same results over and over. That's not necessarily the case with something flaky. Some days it works out perfectly but other times there is just to much shortening to make it flake just right. But over the last year we have proved to ourselves and our families that yes, we are the most flakiest people they know. I guess flaky isn't always a bad thing. It can make for some delicious meals at least. It just really surprises us is all. Maybe we should join a meeting or something. We could stand up and introduce ourselves as Mr. and Mrs. Flaky. Do you think it would help?

Photo Hunters

This weeks theme is long. So here I am pondering what sort of pictures do I have that can be described as long. And I decided on a picture of a bridge that's close to our home. It's not the longest bridge in our area but I think it has some of the most character to it. Up until about six or seven years ago it was still in use. The scary part was that it was a one lane bridge. So when you would drive up to it you would check as best you could that no cars were coming from the other direction and if it was clear you would drive as fast as you dared to get across it. It was always a short adventure that felt much longer to get across than it actually took. But since school buses had to use that bridge (built around 1887), they decided to build a new "overpass" right next to it. Now the "Old Alton Bridge" is just a park for us to go walk around in if we want to. The kids love going there.

So here you can see what the LONG reinforced boards on bridge look liked. You can also see some of the LONG steel bars that make the shape of the bridge. (Sorry I know there is a technical name for these things but I don't know what it is and didn't just want to refer to them as the red thingies).


Here's another view of Old Alton Bridge.

I guess the days of driving across this bridge are LONG gone now but not the memories. Those will stick around for a LONG time.


So there's my take on this weeks theme. For other views on this week's theme visit TNCHICK.com or PhotoHunt

Packing Stinks

Let me just tell you that I truly hate packing. Whether it's a suitcase for a short trip or just reloading the diaper bag. But truly, the worst of it all has to be packing for a move. I detest it so much that I try to do as little of it as possible. I'm trying to talk Hubs into believing that we are suddenly rich and we should just hire professional movers to come and pack us up. He's having none of it though. No sirree, not my man. My man is way to manly to let someone else come in and pack up our prized possessions (and I use that term very loosely). Nope, my man wants us to pack ourselves up and then he wants to move us himself.

My manly man is out to kill me with packing. I did the very least packing I could possibly do during the day. You see in my world, tiny little elves, fairies or gnomes (I'm really not sure) come to pack up all our stuff while we sleep. So when Hubs gets home from work I proudly show him my two boxes of packed items. Hubs loves me to much to really tell me what he thinks of my two boxes but I can see it in his eyes. But I am not to get off that easy. No, not me. My sweet manly man starts to pack after he has been working all day. Then naturally I feel guilty so I start to help. During all this late night packing my four wild indian children are running around like crazy. Meanwhile I keep trying to convince him that really we should hire movers, all to no avail. So I keep on packing.

And just in case you don't know it... Packing Stinks.

Nap Time dilemas

I don't know when it started exactly or why. But A. is having some serious napping/bed time issues. I'll lay her down and she will scream and cry for at least an hour or more if I let her. It truly has just gotten so frustrating for me. But it's even worse when my one and half year old doesn't get a nap. So just pray that we both get over our nap time/bedtime issues. Because obviously mom has some issues also otherwise this wouldn't frustrate me so much.

Wordless Wednesday

Hangin' With the Big Kids

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Catching My Breath

Ok, after the whirlwind of activity of the last few days, it's time for me to catch my breath. My mom was here this past weekend so we got to spend some fun time together. We were able to also get a lot of the kids present shopping done with out them being with us. Huge help for us. So thanks for that, Mom!

Then as some of you know, we have been looking to get a bigger house for over a year now. We have patiently been waiting for the right one. We put offers on two other houses but backed out because they just weren't exactly what we both wanted.

Well, Sunday we got a call to go and check out a new house which was almost finished being built. So we packed up and went to see if it was something we wanted to see inside of. And it was. So Monday we toured the inside of it and loved it. It isn't far from our current home so my children won't have to change schools and they can still see their friends easily enough. So all day yesterday we (and by that I mean me) were on the phone getting all the details hammered out. We signed the paperwork last night and we will be closing on our new home in two weeks.

So now we are in the process of getting our current home listed so we can either lease it or sell it. Hopefully everything will go smoothly from here on out. We are just going to be super busy trying to pack up and finish all the rest of the shopping needed.

Hopefully my sanity will remain intact. Well at least the little bit of sanity I had left anyway.

Busier than

a one legged man in kickin' contest. I promise to be back soon. Once Hubs has finished running me ragged. All is good though.

Happy Trails

The kids and I went out for a walk this morning. Only they specifically asked if we could go somewhere with a path or a trail. I agree but am thinking to myself "Where in the world do they come up with these things". So we went for a little walk along in an area I've been meaning to take them to for a while now. I was just waiting for it to cool down enough so the chiggers wouldn't be so bad. They were very excited to be able to walk through the wooded areas along the trails.

They were super excited to find a tree with a tree trunk that was hollow enough for them take turns hiding in.


They liked being able to walk across the bridge and being up high.But there all time favorite was dropping rocks into the water from way up high and hearing them splash into the water.

They spent a long time trying to decide who made the biggest splashes with their rocks. I think they decided it was a tie.
And now they are happily back home playing with one of the many sticks that somehow ended up in the van. You have to love it when the stars align just right for a nice morning out.

Wordless Wednesday

One of the views from our apartment: Merikoskik, Oulu, Finland


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Welcome to Scroogeville

I've been informed that I may as well be Ebeneezer Scrooge. My children told me this. Why? Because when they were outside yesterday they noticed that we are the only house without any Christmas decorations or a tree up yet. They went down the block looking at all the houses and came back and said that "Eveeerryone has one but us" (just insert your favorite whine here).

And so the torture has begun. When are we going to put our tree up, what about the lights on the house? It's not that I don't put up our decorations early every year, I do. But this year I decided not to do it the weekend over Thanksgiving. Mainly because it would give me one less week of Baby A. pulling on the tree. I am now regretting it. The kids have been to the store with me and know I have new decorations, so they want them up NOW! I keep telling them to be patient we will do it this weekend but patience and my children don't get along very well.

Best Before Date

You know how any food product we buy has a best before date. Well I must admit to being one of those people who doesn't really pay much attention to it. Unless it's milk. I'm always checking that date. My Hubs on the other hand does check the dates on food. Which means he is always throwing stuff out. He looks at me and tells me "It's gone off" to which I always reply in my sweetest voice "Where did it go?". Just drives him crazy...I love to drive him crazy.

So this weekend Hubs decides that he can't find anything in our pantry. To him it was a disorganized mess, to me it was marginally organized chaos. I knew the general area of where something should be and usually found what I was looking for no problem. So Hubs decided to clean out the pantry and organize it.

He brought in the big garage trashcan and got to work. He organized, sorted and every now and then asked me a question. We decided that we could probably give all the baby food away since we don't use it anymore. We (notice how I count my comments from the recliner as help)tossed out two big bags of old food, stale chips and whatever else he saw.

In the process he found my most favorite chocolate bar ever. It's called a Geisha and I can only get it when someone brings it back from Finland for me. It had gotten lost somewhere in the land of macaroni and cheese. So for me, the entire process was now worth it.

The only problem was the best before date was past. Oh what to do, what to do. Well I decided to go ahead and keep it. It is chocolate after all and it's my most favorite chocolate bar ever and no one is going to Finland anytime soon to bring me back some more. So it got put back into the now half empty and very organized pantry where it wouldn't be lost again.

But it didn't stay there, instead my Geisha bar started to call my name, begging me to come and open it and see if it had gone white yet. Because once it had then even I would have tossed it out. So I opened it. And it wasn't all white looking. I still had hope. Would the hazelnut filling still be good? I decided to try it and see. And just as fast I took a bite, I spit it out. The hazelnut filling was old. So I had no choice but to face the fact that my last Geisha bar was most definitely past it prime. I'm so sad, my surprise find was not worth eating and even more humbling than that is that now I must tell Hubs that yes he is right, I really should be more aware of the best before date.

I can hear him laughing now.