Stuff My Kids Say

Lately, my children have been saying some pretty funny things. It is always funny to take a look into their little world, and try to understand the way things must be from their point of view. I've started writing them down:


We drove over a skunk on the highway and immediately our car was filled with the stench of skunk spray. Reese held her nose and began gagging dramatically, while Quincy reacted a little differently...
Quicny: (sniff. sniff. Looks down at her diaper. sniff. sniff. looks around. Furrows eyebrows. sniff. sniff.) "Hmmm....Hey. You poopy, Mommy?"

*****

While driving past Town Center (bank, grocery store, salon, etc.), Reese asked me if we could "stop at the Piggy Bank and get some money and a sucker".

*****

One night, about 30 minutes after the kids had finally fallen asleep, Quincy suddenly began screaming hysterically from her crib. This is totally unlike her, so I rushed in and frantically asked, "are you okay? what's wrong?!"

She pointed to the bed across the room and her sound asleep sister, frowned, and complained,
"Reese won't play with me."

*****

The other day I grew REALLY frustrated in my battle with Reese to put her own shoes and socks on. Really. I thought I thought I might snap. She sat on the floor playing helpless and claimed that she suddenly was totally incapable of doing the task on her own.

Me: Reese. Put. On. Your. Socks.
Reese: NO! I CAN'T Reach! I CAN'T DO IT!
Me: Yes. You. Can. (deep breaths, meg) Put them on. You are old enough to get your shoes and socks on by yourself. ...WithOUT help.
Reese: Yeah....Well....YOU are older than ME, and YOU can reach, and YOU had to ask Daddy to help you put YOUR socks on today.

Indeed I did, Reese. Well played.

Pasta Goodness.

Chicken Artichoke and Red Pepper Bowtie Pasta.
Yes I know. My photos are lousy, but this recipe is BOSS.
That's right. We're bringing "boss" back.
But only when in reference to things that are super cool.

2 chicken breasts
water
basil (fresh if you have it, but I used dried and it was good)
1 TBS Christopher Ranch minced garlic (or the real deal if you are cool and actually own a garlic press)
1 can quartered Artichoke Hearts in WATER
1 red bell pepper
1 small zucchini
2-3 TBS sour cream
fresh grated Parmesan cheese
olive oil
bowtie pasta

Cook chicken over med heat in skillet with garlic and a little water to keep it from sticking to the pan. You can use oil instead for better flavor, but it isn't necessary. Cut into bite size pieces.

While chicken is cooking, cut the red pepper in half. Dice one half and set aside to add to the pasta later.
Blend the other half of the pepper with a small amount of water in a mini-prep food processor or blender until smooth. Fold in sour cream to make a delicious pink sauce and season with basil.

When the chicken is nearly done, add a tablespoon of olive oil and the zucchini (diced, julienne, whatever you prefer) the diced red pepper, and artichoke hearts. I cut my artichoke hearts up a little more after draining the liquid from the can.
Cover for a minute so the pepper and zucchini will be tender.
Add your pink sauce and heat through.

serve over bowtie pasta with some bruschette on the side. Yummy.
Serves 4, takes about 20 minutes to prepare.

"In Summer I Can Taste The Salt in the Sea. There's a Kite Blowing Outta Control on a Breeze..."

Dear Kids,
We all had such a fun weekend.
Too much fun, I think.
It almost seems necessary that it would all come crashing down on Monday.
Quincy, you had a fever of 103* and I finally got you to sleep sometime around 3:30.
Reese, it was about this time that YOU had a bad dream about a dragon dog with laser eyes (thank you, Bolt on redbox) that was chasing you. Even though mom and dad PROMISED you that no such "dragon dog" existed, you were up every 15 minutes for several hours. On my LAST attempt to get you to go to sleep, you shouted "GOOD NIGHT MOMMY!" to me down the hall...and your sister woke up.

Daddy jumped in to pinch hit for awhile, but at this point it was light outside.
The damage had been done and Mommy got a grand total of 1 1/2 hours of sleep last night.
Dad left for work with me begging him to take me with him.
Kasey's Bed and Breakfast seemed to have happened a century ago. Was it really only yesterday that I was snuggled up with 4 pillows for that quiet, comfortable, heavenly night of sleep?
Ahhhh....sleep.
I needed sleep.
ANY form of sleep.
I was desperate.
I thought I could stick you in front of the tv and go lie down for one of those wannabe excuses for rest that we mothers call a power nap.
You must REALLY love it when mom is tired and grouchy, because you immediately let me know THAT was a CRAZY idea.
I collapsed on my bed, but only enough time had passed for a single exhausted tear filled with yesterday's mascara to slide from the tip of my nose to my white pillowcase before I heard a flood of tears gushing from the living room.
Quincy scratched Reese's face to get the "pink baby potty".
Reese bit Quincy's thigh to get it back.
Quincy. We use words when we want something. We do not scratch.
Reese. Your sister is not a piece of fried chicken and you are old enough to work out a problem without fighting back.

The consequences?

Clearly, no sleep for me.
Aside from the "time outs" they were both given, Reese will be missing out on all treats until Quincy's bruise goes away. Reese hunted down a band-aid and is nursing her sister back to health as quickly as possible, in hopes that the purple crescents will have disappeared in time to have some of Daddy's birthday cake next week.
And that's how our day began.
I sang the Hallelujah Chorus when nap time was upon us.
The house...a disaster, but finally QUIET.
I nearly crapped my pants when the garage door opened.
I was not expecting a daytime visitor and the creak of the door cut through the (FINALLY) silence in the house and caused me to jump out of my skin.

"I still can't find my Blackberry, it's not at my desk like I'd thought." Aaron said. He came home to search for it during lunch...hoping I might have found it during my weekly deep cleaning of the "Monday house".
"I haven't seen it. And I OBVIOUSLY have not cleaned yet. If you go down the hall and wake up the kids I will strangle you" I responded from my make-shift bed on the sofa.
-only a moment too late.
"Daddy! Daddy!" Reese exclaimed as he opened our bedroom door.
15 minutes of searching later, the truth came spilling out of her.
"Daddy, I know where you lost your phone. It's lost inside my pillowcase."
My daughter, the clepto.

Nope. Not in the pillowcase on the bed in MY room, where Reese was taking a nap. In HER room. Where Quincy was sound asleep.
I tiptoed in and retrieved the phone that had been "missing" since Saturday. Quincy managed to stay asleep until after the 1 hour battle it took me to get Reese to go back to bed.

And then we started all over again.
As I accepted my fate that I would just have to be sleep deprived today, I decided to suck it up and make dinner (which was AWESOME, I'll post the recipe later this week). We ran a few loads of laundry too. Even though I was tired, it felt better to get SOMEthing accomplished today.
Before we knew it, Aaron was home.

We ate dinner, and Aaron sent me to bed, offering to do a quick family night lesson on his own.
I practically flew down the hall and kissed my pillow goodnight.
Immediately I fell into a deep sleep.
I awoke to giggles. Contageous giggles. I was giggling myself just from the sound of them. Where were they coming from?!
Outside? What time is it?
Only 20 minutes had passed. I got up and looked out the bedroom window to see Aaron helping the girls fly a bright pink Barbie kite through through the cloudy evening sky. They were beside themselves with excitement. An excitement I can totally understand. I'm almost 27, and have zero memory of every flying a kite in my life.

Sleep no longer mattered.

I threw my shoes on and joined them outside with camera in hand.

Kite
Lyrics and Music by U2

"Something is about to give
I can feel it coming
I think I know what it means
I'm not afraid to die
I'm not afraid to live
And when I'm flat on my back

I hope to feel like I did"

(yes, I was so distracted by the kite that I fell off the 2 foot edge of the driveway that drops off. I was holding Quincy on my hip and the camera in my hand, and tried to protect both from hitting the concrete. I saved them, but the result was a pair of skinned knees and knuckles where my camera clenched fist covered my belly as it too came crashing toward the cement.
Classy. I'm fine. Quincy has a cut on her ankle. Baby is moving fine. At least it doesn't look as bad as it feels. I will try to be more sympathetic next time one of my girls take a crash. Ouch!)

" 'Cause hardness, it sets in

You need some protection
The thinner the skin

I want you to know
That you won't need me anymore
I want you to know
You won't need anyone, or anything at all"

"Who's to say where the wind will take you
Who's to say what it is will break you
I don't know, which way the wind will blow..."

"...A man who sees
The shadow behind your eyes"
"In summer I can taste the salt in the sea
There's a kite blowing out of control on a breeze
I wonder what's gonna happen to you
You wonder what has happened to me..."


"...Did I waste it?
Not so much I couldn't taste it
Life should be fragrant
Roof top to the basement..."

Our FHE lesson was a simple object lesson. Kites are held up by the wind. They have a string that we hold onto to control the kite. We are like the kite (Barbie, naturally) and the string represents rules. Mom and Dad and Heavenly Father represent the people holding the string. The trees and power lines represent obstacles and temptations we face every day.

Sometimes we think that we might fly better without so many rules and things that we have to be obedient to. Sometimes it feels like Mom and Dad or church are holding us down and trying to control what we do.

But what happens to the kite without a string? The wind will blow it around, but only across the lawn along the ground. The kite (we) need guidance (string) from those who love us to help us reach our highest potential. Too much freedom, or flying too close to negative influences can result in trouble, or a lost sense of self worth. When we make bad choices, we attach ourselves to our decisions (tree) and inhibit our freedom until eventually, the string snaps and we cut off the help and guidance of the Spirit.

Next time, we will take the kite to the lake, so we can let it fly without the hassle of trees and power lines to get stuck on...or ditches in the driveway for me to fall in.

Bad day?
Wonderful day.

Boys vs Girls Weekend

MARCH MADNESS.
It's a real disease.
I've talked about this before...long ago on the blog, I'm sure.
The symptoms are generally the same.

THIS year....the symptoms are FABULOUS.
I think Aaron might have actually lost his mind, and I am reaping all the benefits!
My home is stocked with every combination of chips and dip a girl could crave.
Aaron took up residence on the sofa and geared up for another weekend of nonstop basketball games.
Seeing that I was less than excited about a second weekend of this, I was SENT AWAY away for a girl weekend at the fabulous Meadows B&B.

Kasey's house.
A perfect suggestion.

The weekend was wonderful. I kept feeling bad for Aaron the whole time, thinking he couldn't be having NEARLY as much fun as I was. But each time I called to "check in"...I was told to "quit feeling guilty and just relax and enjoy the break" and was reassured that, he too, was having a fabulous time, and that the kids were fine.

And they kids really WERE fine. GREAT, actually. The girls LOVED all the extra one on one time with Dad, and were thriving on their balanced diet of Pudding, PEEPS, Popsicles, Pop Rocks, and Juice Boxes. Oh! and to round out those 5 basic food groups...FUN DIP.
He put the kids to bed early Friday night and soaked up some nacho cheese dip and NCAA goodness.

My Friday night was spent with a few other gal pals, stuffing our faces with delicious food and watching Twilight on DVD. I will admit that it IS better the second time around, but I still wanted to fix Edward's horrible accent, and Bella's annoying 'chew on your words before you say them' non-habitual stutter. I can't believe I took ZERO pictures of the evening. Fun Fun FUN times. We finally called it quits at 3:30am.

I slept in...and on Saturday morning, I awoke to the smell of bacon.
We met up with Jen for Pedi's.
The day was spent shopping, eating, laughing, obnoxious singing, and scrapbooking.
I had a second night of uninterrupted sleep (this time we went to bed a little earlier, so I could actually get the rest I was sent there to get). It was great. Aaron started snoring about 6 months ago, and with the added weight/discomfort of pregnancy, constant need to go pee, and two little girls that often wake up before the sun...I can't remember the last time I had even a 6 hour stretch of deep sleep, without at least one interruption. It was glorious... and I managed to squeeze in a loooong hot shower (with no little people coming in to open the door and tell me something) before I headed home Sunday morning. It seems I've also forgotten what it's like to not have to rush through a shower.
I felt extra clean.
Thanks Kasey for opening up your home and entertaining/spoiling me all weekend! You rock!

I came home to bathed children and fresh tulips on the table.
REALLY!

Aaron,
You are wonderful. This weekend was great. You knew what I needed without my even have to tell you or ask. More importantly, thank you for giving me a life that even after my fun, relaxing, weekend, I was still excited and happy to come home to. And thanks for the pretty flowers. Thanks for everything. I love you.
Hugs, Megs.
If this is how it's gonna be, I hope he catches March Madness every year!

Peanuuuuut, Peanut Butter! And JELLY!

Once a year...
I buy berries.

Lots.
and LOTS of berries.
And I make my own jam.
LOTS and LOTS of jam.

This year I recruited the help of Sleeping Beauty, and the Naked Chef.
We smashed the berries.
Changed "costumes" and put hair "pretties" in.
Added sugar and fruit pectin.
Took breaks for "flying lessons" and removal of the hair pretties while the pectin cooked.
Poured the finished result into containers, and....

TA-DA! Our one year supply of jam.

We go through 2 of those little guys a month, so I made 24 jars worth.
That's 176 ounces of Strawberry, Raspberry-Blackberry, and Mixed Berry Jam.
Freaking awesome jam.

Iron Woman Could've Been Dead.

That's right. Dead.

Remember this post?
The follow up was that after a few days I DEMANDED to speak with a nurse and she "couldn't confirm the dose" on the SLOW Fe, since Iron supplements can vary between brands, but if that is the brand my doctor told me to take, then I "SHOULD be fine taking the recommended dose" of 325mg twice a day...which ends up being a total of thirteen iron pills. THIRTEEN!

Um. SHOULD BE?
No thanks.

I decided to take one in the morning and one at night, and every now and then (when I felt extremely tired, I would take one with lunch) in addition to my prenatal vitamin.

It helped with the dizzy spells, but I still feel tired all the time.
I had an appointment today, and TOOK THE BOX of Slow Fe in with me to the office so I could get a REAL dosage from a REAL doctor.

My doctor is on Spring Break, so I met with HIS nurse, who is FANTASTIC.

I told her the situation.

She looked at the box and said, "Thirteen Pills?! Slow Fe is totally different than other iron supplements. Yeah that would probably kill you. Or at the least you would have ended up in the hospital. Do you remember the nurse's name who told you to take that much? I need to speak with her. Thank goodness you ignored their advice."

Um, how about "I'm sorry we almost poisoned you and your baby. We're glad you think we are as stupid as we actually are. Let us make it up to you by waiving that last payment of $400 that you'll be making today, as an apology. The $1200 you've given us so far should cover the damages."

I wish. Stupid office. Stupid assistants.

Love Dr. Hannah, Love Dr. Laurie....pretty much everyone else in that office sucks.

And if my iron levels hadn't been in the SINGLE DIGITS, I probably would have been overdosing on iron even by taking 3 a day. Luckily I was SUPER anemic, so the additional iron wasn't harmful. And apparently, all that OJ I've been sucking down has actually caused my body to not absorb as much iron as I could be...so Thanks again to Simply Orange!

"Post #400. Meg Rants and Raves About Random Stuff #...?"

Seriously?! Who BRAKES on the entrance to the highway?
BLUE HAIRS. That's who.

You know the type. BIG...i mean BIG black protective eye wear, handicapped sticker in the dash, macrame seat cover, and a silver-blue head of freshly permed wiry hair atop a head barely tall enough to see over the mustard yellow crocheted covered steering wheel of an Oldsmobile....sometimes a Cadillac.

I would LOVE to attend a POA meeting in Bella Vista where the biggest public concern of the evening is NOT what to do about the increasing Goose population on the Golf courses, Tickets for parking in front of mailboxes, and potholes on roads no one drives on, or dogs without leashes, but HOW THE HECK all the "oldies" at the meeting plan on getting home that night. Seriously?! What are they doing out after dark?

Did they drive themselves?

They shouldn't have.

I cannot even BEGIN to tell you how many times I have nearly rear-ended someone on the highway here. Blue Hairs break for birds near the road. They come to a complete STOP at intersections and wait at a yellow for the light to turn red. I think I have actually SEEN the old guys reaching for their nitro pills to avoid the heart attack they are having from the stress of trying to turn left at Oldham to get to the Sonic.

There is one local gas station in town with little old guys that come out to pump your (over priced) gas. I don't stop there often because of the price, but once in awhile will put a few bucks in out of convenience. I always feel super guilty when I see them limping (really, like they have a replaced hip or artificial knees) toward my car. I feel even MORE guilty when I read their name is "Guy" or "Buzz" or "Herb" or "Vern", because no one born in the past 80 years has that name. Names like "Walt" and "Sal" automatically put you in the group of people who should be at home, sitting in your chair. You should be watching Westerns at top volume, eating all the cookies you want and telling your grandkids funny stories with inappropriate racial slurs and language that would make grandma gasp if she over heard.
At that age you just should not have to be pumping gas.
AND you should not be driving.
I'm just sayin'...
I don't believe in age limits on driver's licenses. I believe in senile limits.
Once you hair reaches a shade that resembles any of the following...

DO NOT PASS GO.
DO NOT COLLECT $200.
YOU SHOULD NOT BE DRIVING.

"Simply Irresistible!"

Look out Simply Limeade.
I've found a new "Simply" juice to love.
FULL of perfect pulp.
Just the right amount of tangy-ness.
Simply Orange, you have officially given Tropicana Some Pulp Orange off it's throne and will be taking it's place in my frig.

Due to extreme satisfaction, I MIGHT just have to venture out of the citrus family and give Simply Apple a try.

"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me..."

Little Girls,
I do love to hold you.
Apparently the real estate market is looking up. Lately, you will fight over the prime piece of property that is my lap...particularly during church. I can't help but feel smug when Daddy offers to take one or both of you onto his empty lap and gets rejected. Sometimes you just need your Mommy. It's like you know my arms will soon be often occupied with a baby brother, and you are trying to soak up all the attention and snuggles you can get, by getting as much time on my (crowded, lumpy, and certainly uncomfortable) lap, cradled in my arms as you possibly can.

I'm soaking it up too.

But guess what? I know a secret. You don't need to worry, because Mommies don't run out of love. When we grow a baby, we grow more love too. It's that simple. When brother arrives, my arms WILL often be busy, and my lap WILL often be occupied. There WILL be changes. But I love you all, AND I have enough love for you all...and even a little extra.
I promise. I will make more time, and create more space on my lap and room in my arms for all of you.

Extra Hugs and Kisses,
Mom
Can you even see my face from that angle? Or just the mustard stain on my shirt that I know is there but I CAN'T see?

"Get Off Of My Bed, Yeah That's What I Said..."

Tonight's the night.

We've been meaning to put the girls in the same room for a few weeks now. We had one failed attempt and gave up.

Reese:
-takes 10 minutes (sometimes longer) to put to bed.
-requires a 100 item long list of "Rainman" activities that MUST be done in order before she can settle down for the night.
-sleeps with the closet light on
-sleeps with the door cracked open a precise distance (using a stuffed dog for measurement, and he MUST be facing her, and the ears must he folded down)
-sleeps with a hoodie sweatshirt on over her jammies, with the hood on and sleeves rolled once.
-has 4 loveys. "Kitty", "Brown Bunny", her PINK Care Bear, and "Baby".
-Baby must be wearing his pajamas (yes, he unfortunately came with a change of clothing) AND his hat. The hat must be pulled on tight, but "not touching his eyebrows".
-If I am the one putting her to bed, she will NOT sleep unless she has had a chance to say the following to me: "goodnight mommy, goodnight Brother, I Love You Mommy, I Love You Baby, Sweet Dreams Mommy and Baby"
-I MUST reply with "goodnight, I love you, sweet dreams" followed by a promise to give Dad a hug and kiss when he gets home.
-While she changes into jammies, she needs a detailed agenda for the following day, and sometimes the day after that.
-The final thing is always her calling a question from her bed to me (escaping down the hall) "Mommy, can I twirl my hair".
Me: "yes, Reese. Twirl your hair. Whatever....just. go. to. sleep.
Reese: ok, but not too tight?
Me: fine. I love you. good night!

And that's how it's done. This is of course AFTER scripture time, prayers, potty, hug and kiss for mommy, hug and kiss for baby, and a drink. in. that. order.

OCD much? I really believe she might have it. We all know I do. Perhaps it's genetic?

Love her.
Ridiculous I know. But we've got it down and it really only takes about 10 minutes.
If I can't sacrifice 10 minutes to put my kid to bed...well that's sad.
Anyway, Reese thrives on routine....and change in the routine (especially at bedtime) can be catastrophic.

For example: Last week, Aaron tried to bypass the steps and just stick her in bed the other night so he could return to March Madness. He aborted her whole plan, and sent her to bed.

Repercussions? Reese goes psycho. Total meltdown.
Aaron tried to play "bad cop" amid the hysterics, and finally just said "goodnight" and locked the bedroom door.
Repercussions? Reese craps her pants, then gags from the smell and throws up on the floor. The hysteria approaches the "hold my breath until I pass out" stage.
A quick clean up, change of clothes, and a "goodnight mommy, goodnight Brother...etc" later, Reese is sound asleep in her bed.

We don't mess with "the routine".
Before you go thinking I'm screwing up my kid for giving in to crazy behavior...she DOES adjust on vacation, and goes to bed without problems when she sleeps at Kasey's. Her routine is a comfort at home. I put up with it because I too, have a psycho bedtime routine. I get that.

So back to the issue at hand.

Quincy:
-takes 30 seconds to put to bed.
-sucks her thumb
-has two blankies and as long as they are there she doesn't care WHERE she sleeps
-sleeps in a very dark room (I took the blackout curtains down last week to help her adjust to more light) with the door closed.
-We walk in, put her in bed, hand her the blankets, say "good night" and close the door.
DONE.

Reese was once this way too....a long long time ago. Then we took away the pacifier and all Hell broke loose. We messed with the routine and Reese will make us pay for-ev-er.

TODAY:
Quincy wakes up from nap with the dreaded words.
YUCKY MOMMY.

Poo.
EVERYWHERE.
Everything is in the washer.
The mattress, crib skirt, EVERYTHING, had to come apart to be washed.
The walls might need a coat of paint to recover from the nastiness.

With a crib in pieces and freshly washed "two blankies", I guess tonight is as good as any night to move Quincy into Reese's room, where there is a clean, assembled crib waiting for her.
We've been prepping them for the big move for awhile...especially the last week.
I have a battle plan.
I hope it works.
We will probably pay for it later.
Wish me luck.

"It's Been One Week..."

I spy some veggie sproutage. success!
We're also starting to feel a little BLUE around here.

I'm not sure why it looks all super glossy like that in the photo. It doesn't in real life.Isn't it amazing what 3 cans of spray paint can do? It needs one more coat of blue (especially the shelves on the changing table), and then I'm thinking of rubbing a stain on the edges to grunge everything up a little before I coat everything with the polyurethane. It's even cuter in real life. Can't wait to get the fabric around the bottom, and put the baskets back in the top.

The nesting instincts are getting out of control. With less than 10 weeks left, I'm running out of weekends! I'm also feeling the desperate need to shop for clothes. I haven't found a chest of drawers to keep all the baby's clothes IN yet...or the instinct to fill it with cute little outfits would probably be even worse.

"Stinker"Bell

Miss Quin,
You were rotten this morning. I love you anyway....maybe even a little more than I did yesterday. But for everyone else's sake, let's just be nice tomorrow. Please?

Love,
Mom.

Beany Burgers

Inspired by H's recipe over at The Dirt, and a recipe I got from a friend at church...we've come up with a Willy-Approved version of the Beany Burger. We're eating these bad boys like they're going out of style.

Sorry there is no picture....but let's face it, my food photos never make the food look as appetizing as they should. Hays has a great photo on her blog....but if you do follow the link and check out her blog, don't be "that" person and forget to leave her a comment. After all, Thanks to the inspiration from her beautiful food photos...we have created one more recipe for the "dude light a match" section of our cookbook. Yummy.

Beany Burgers
1-2 cans drained black beans (or about 3 cups black beans if you cook them yourself, like I did)
a little shake of garlic salt ('cuz I can't cook without it)
1/4 c canned whole kernel corn (not to be mistaken by that nasty creamed corn stuff)
1 c dry bread crumbs (or cracker crumbs, or whatever you have handy)
2-3 tsp (1/3 packet?) Hidden Valley Dips FIESTA Ranch Packet (not the prepared dip...just the dry mix)
1/4 diced onion (optional)
1 egg (beaten)

1/4 c cornmeal
2 TBS olive oil

Hamburger buns
sliced avocado
sliced pepper jack cheese

Mash beans in food processor, then mix in a bowl with garlic salt, corn, bread, fiesta seasonings, onion, and egg using a potato masher or wooden spoon.

Form into patties (makes about 6 small patties)
coat with cornmeal

Heat oil in skillet over med heat.
Cook 10-15 minutes, flip once...they're done when they're crispy!

Top with pepperjack (cover pan with lid 30 sec to melt cheese)
and sliced avocado

Seriously. Awesome. Enjoy!

Signs of Spring

We were at a local mall today and ran into a friend of ours that has a photo studio kiosk set up there. She happens to be Q's nursery teacher at church, so Quincy ran to her with open arms, and Ruthie took her over to see the live bunnies and baby chick she has there for spring photo props.

My kids happened to be in their typical Saturday attire of dress up clothes (crammed on right over the hoodies and sweatpants) so Ruthie snapped a couple of great shots of the girls with the bunnies, that I'll post later.
For now, enjoy the short (20 sec or less) videos I took. One of them starts out with Q saying "ruff ruff" to the chickie. Perhaps we should review our animal sounds. I wish I had thought to tape them with the bunnies. They could hardly contain their excitement, especially after Quincy poked one of them in the eye and the bunny wiggled all over the place. Reese was much more fond of the bunnies than the chick...who was starting to fly around a little by the time we left.
So cute! If we had a fenced yard, I would raise chicks in a heartbeat!

"You Complete Me"

Did I actually finish something? We have SO MANY projects going on around here, in addition to the regular mommy/kid routine AND being pregnant, that I am starting to lose track of which way is up.

I'm impressed that Aaron and I managed to complete about 75% of this project TOGETHER. (we don't play nice during project time and often fight over how something should be done, or who's way is better). We agreed not to spoil a good thing and he happily passed the "project buddy" torch over to Kasey, who came over to lend a hand for the final assembly...which turned out to be more complicated than we'd expected. Anyway, thanks K for sticking it out with me and helping get the job done! I feel so much relief being able to cross SOMEthing off my never ending "To Do" list!

Still a few little touch ups here and there (like that extra piece of backing sticking up off the top of the mini shelf was removed, along with 2 nails where I missed the target...and of course, PAINT! It will be blue tomorrow!) but overall...here's the scoop!

The inspiration:

Our version:

I guess I should've waited to photograph it until after it's hung on the cute pink wall and full of books...but you get the idea. And I'll probably post another pic after I paint the mini-me shelf, but just imagine that it is blue to match that dang cute bedding I'm going to make:

Mini Me Version:

Be Careful What You Wish For.

Some of you might have noticed the label on one of my recent gardening posts requesting that my sister, HolleeAnn photoshop me.

What I was HOPING for was that she might whiten my teeth, gimme a glistening bronzy tan, defriz my hair, remove the smoothie stain from my shirt, or perhaps push my funky-please-get-a-better-bra-pregnant-hooters back up over where they belong.
She granted my request to be "photoshopped" and hacked into my blog.
I opened a "draft" today to discover the results.

For your viewing pleasure...
before:

after:
Well....at least the garden is looking better!
And, HolleeAnn, how did you know I've been wanting some chickies for the yard?

Other additions:
a tiara, a bunny friend, more chicks, and of course....a big, beautiful shining sun!
I kind of feel like Uncle Remus in "Song of the South" (tell me some of you know what movie I'm talking about)
Reese's pic is my favorite:
Mary Mary quite contrary!

Other HolleeAnn photoshop fun:

before

after

before after

Thank You, Sis! I love them all.

My kids are going to start singing "Zippedy-Doo-Dah" any minute now...although, considering the current state of my living room, I think I might prefer "Whistle While You Work", "Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho, It's Off to Work We Go", Jezelle's "Happy Little Working Song", or...what's the cleaning song from Mary Poppins? "A Spoonful of Sugar"?
We could use some of THAT magic snapping action around here, today!

Gotta love Disney. Thanks to Mary Poppins, Snow White, and Cinderella, and many others, my kids might actually believe in the possibility that a bluebird is going to fly through the window and help me fold the laundry.

Perhaps if I sing...

"I Have Run, I Have Crawled, I Have Scaled These City Walls..."

And after nearly a YEAR of searching, (really...estate sales, craigslist-daily, ebay, garage sales, newspaper ads, ...everywhere) I have FINALLY found what I'm looking for!!!

25 bucks.
I LOVE THEM.

I will love them more when I learn how to reupholster and cover them in THIS.

Yummy.

Yellow + Blue = GREEN

I still haven't posted our fun with Rainbow Colors week.
Watercolors.
Note to Moms.
Once your child has had their face painted at a fair, they will forever paint their own faces at any given opportunity where they have free access to watercolors.
This a prime example of why I refuse to enter the risky waters of the temporary tattoo.
The girls also had fun mixing colored water ("juithe" if you ask Quin). Using little plastic pipettes.

The amazing discovery?

Yellow + Blue = not green,

Yellow + Blue = my kids had a LOT of fun while playing unsupervised on the patio for 20 minutes. The result was a LOT of blue dye smeared on Quincy's forehead (how? I don't know, I put the food coloring away, she materialized it out of thin air!), and the yellow water being poured into a watering can and used to water the daffodils. The blue water was also half empty, but I think that's because Q was thirsty, and the kool-aid-looking "juithe" appeared more appetizing than the urine-colored "juithe".

Feeling Green

haha, for once...I'm actually NOT feeling green!
Today's photos where all taken by Reese. I think her photography talent has surpassed mine.
Step 1: Ok, for those who might be interested...to build a raised garden bed similar to ours, you need the following:

3 2x10x10 pieces of UNtreated lumber. Treated wood (like for fencing, etc) has been known to have asbestos and other carcinogens in it. If your garden box IS built from treated wood (like those cute landscaping timbers) and you plan to eat what you are going to grow, just line the box with plastic or weed barrier or something before you fill it with soil.

Cut one (or flash a pretty smile and have the guys at Lows cut it for you before they load it into your car) of the boards in half so now you have two 2x10x10s and two 2x10x5s.

12 2 inch coated sinkers (nails)

a Hammer. If yo don't own one of these, it's probably because I broke it. Seriously, I broke 3 hammers last summer doing jobs that should have been done with a crowbar. Oops.

I think the assembly is pretty self explanitory. Use the 2 10ft boards as the long sides and nail the 5 ft pieces on the ends to form a box.


Ok, to take care of the grass (cough weeds) currently growing where the box is, you could rotatill the ground, treat it with RoundUp (but then you need to wait about 2 weeks before putting anything in the box...or you'll end up with Round Up in your soil, and it will kill your plants!), put down a layer of commercial weed barrier, or tear it out with Jenny's shovel, like we did with the first raised bed.

This year, we're trying another method we've heard is equally successful, and we're going with it because it's the least expensive and the easiest route and... well, we are both cheap AND lazy.

Step 2: Line the bottom of the bed with newsprint and cover it with a thin layer of soil. Spray with water. Add more soil. Done. The idea is that the newsprint acts as a wimpy (but free) weed barrier, and biodegrades over time as the weeds die. Hopefully it works!
Step 3: buy a larger shirt, because after seeing yourself in photographs, you realize that what you THOUGHT looked cute was a very warped perception and clearly a bad idea.