Does this dress make my hair look big?

I will never run out of reasons for why this dress should be mine.

The buttons? True love.

I know there are several (expensive) reasons why it should not be mine.
I know it isn't bright colored or springy.

I know I am 28 (am I? eek!) and have outgrown the appropriate age for buying an "Easter Dress".

but this is the time of year when I start pining for a pretty new dress, so let's just ignore those reasons for a few minutes and admire how pretty it is.

because I need want it anyway

and I think it wants me.

Also...

I want Mae Whitman's (from Parenthood) new short haircut.

I couldn't find a pic on the web, but here is the link for the episode. She's in the scenes around 13:00 and 34:00 minutes.

Cute, yeah?

I think I could rock it.

It's much better than the mess I've going goin' on with my hair now, and I am reeeeallly over having hair past chin length.

Like, really over it. It is tangled and frizzy 100% of the time, heavy, and I don't have time for that kind of high maintenence. I'm ready to just cut it myself.

Which I might do tomorrow, if it ends up being a bad hair day.

I have so many posts to catch up on, including preschool posts and Gringo Fiesta.

Tomorrow?

Probably Monday.

Happy Weekend!

Do you still buy an "Easter Dress"?

How often to you get your hair cut?

My original plan was to grow it out, but I am lacking both in patience and normal hair, sooooo I'm ready to quit that plan.

Be Mine, Valentine

Some photos to accompany Aaron's post:

I didn't take any pictures of us the night we went out to see Mamma Mia.

I really wish that I had, because we looked pretty decent.
It was a fun show. I do like the movie better, but you just can't beat Meryl Streep and Amanda Seyfried. The actress that played Sophie in the play looked and sounded just like Maeby from Arrested Development, and I had a difficult time not wondering if she was actually just a 16 year old that was skipping school and living a double life where she pretended to be a professional actress/movie producer ;)

On the actual Valentine's Day, we decided to go to dinner as a family.

Here we have Corbin, eating everything in sight, including a napkin and some crayons.

And here is Quincy cutting up her food, but not actually eating any of it.

Reese ordered cheese pizza with bacon on it, spaghetti, and an orange italian soda. Quincy had a cherry italian soda and some bread. Corbin ate a full loaf and a half of bread. I probably ate the same. Everything was really good. I'm in love with the spicy romano chicken bowtie pasta there. Yum.

We kept things pretty simple for Valentine's Day this year.

Reese and I made her homemade valentines on one of the days that we were snowed in. Half of them open the wrong direction, or the writing inside is upside down, but I think they are the cutest things ever.

For Quincy's valentines, we downloaded and printed the valentines that "cousin Jenny" (that's what my girls call you, Jenny...cute, right?) designed for her work. We attached them to little boxes of conversation hearts. I made peanut butter chocolate suckers for my girls and the kids in my preschool class, with a note that says, "You are a hoot!".

And since it was Jacob's last day of preschool, his also says, "I will 'owl'-ways be your friend."

For my Valentine, I purchased no lingerie, just showed up for dinner dressed the way he likes me best: sloppy ponytail, jeans, and a t-shirt. Nothing fancy.

but not just any old tshirt, either (y'all know how Aaron feels about tshirts)...

I wore a Lakers shirt

...to go with the Lakers shirt that I got for him for Valentine's day. (Can I just point out that buying my husband another tshirt is a sign of true love? 'cuz it is.)

His and Hers Lakers shirts.

Now we can be that couple.

At least it's not his and hers matching haircuts. (Flowbee, anyone?)

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day

this is aaron.
Happy Valentine's Day. The kids are all hopped up on sugar, they don't want to go to bed. We had a great time at Johnny Carinos. Corbin ate everything in sight. Quincy ate nothing as usual. Reese ate enough to get dessert. Meg and I went and saw Mamma Mia on Satruday night, it was really good. What a perfect weekend.

An Opening

I have Good(?) News and Bad News.

The Bad News:
One of our Friendly Frogs is leaving us :*(
We are very sad to see him go, but excited for his family and their new adventures together!

Keep in touch Sweet Mr. Jakey! I love you! You can do hard things!

The Good News:
There is an opening in the Friendly Frog class!

Young Learner Preschool Enrichment

Wednesdays 8:30-11:30am

$55/month

Call or email me if you are interested and I'll tell you more info about the program and send you copies of my mission statement, parent letter, and our daily schedule. Or talk to any of the moms that have sent their children here, and they'll give you a reference.

Orderly Conduct

I use canvas baskets a lot in my house. So much that it sort of looks like a canvas basket factory.
-An extra large ($16 at the red circle store where I never shop. shhh...) canvas laundry basket holds shoes in my closet, and another one holds our massive Littlest PetShop collection (thanks Missie!).

-large canvas baskets (Walmart $12 or $5 at the Associate's store when they have them, which is almost always every spring) These line the tops of our bedroom closets. You know that shelf that is so high, that you have to kind of throw the clothes up there, so it always looks like a mess? Now I just take the whole basket down, and everything stays in order. My closet baskets hold off season clothing, swimwear, ready-to-go gifts and birthday presents. The baskets in the girls room hold the Sweet Streets/Polly Pockets, Little People, Care Bears, Horses & Stable, and Ponyvilles. You can say it. My kids have too many toys. I agree...which is why most of them stay in the closet and I rotate which basket we get down each day/week. It's a great system, and they never seem to get sick of things. Plus, items actually get put away in the correct basket when they only have access to a couple of them at one time.

-small canvas baskets ($8.99 for two at walmart. 10 of mine were a housewarming gift from my friend in Green Bay, and most of the others were purchased for 1/2 that price at the Associate's store, but $4.50 per basket is still a pretty good price. I've had mine for 4-5 years and they have held up with LOTS of abuse)
There are 24 of these little guys on the shelves in my living room. The cream baskets keep Corbin's toys, Preschool/learning toys, and VHS tapes organized.
Six of them serve as cubbies for my preschoolers.

(last names blocked for privacy) Each of my Friendly Frogs has a cubby with his or her name on it. When they arrive at school, they put away any excess outerwear, backpacks, share items. They each also have a large t shirt in their cubby to serve as a smock for the really messy paint projects, and a large ziplock bag with a change of clothes and extra underwear, just in case. The cubbies are also helpful as a separation prop for those days when blankies and little toys sneak their way to preschool.

Canvas baskets=everything has a home.

Works for us!

Day Spa Willy

You've heard of that Day Spa in Vegas with the Arctic Ice Room where man made snow lightly falls down on you from a dome shaped ceiling?

Well Day Spa Willy is sort of like that,

except the snow fell in tons
and it is all outside
piled up in the street
preventing anyone from ever leaving the house ever again.

So we followed the "arctic spa" theme, and took advantage of Aaron being home. While he and Corbin had some father/son bonding, the little ladies turned on their "mrs. lady voices" and the grown up girl charm for a full spa treatment at Day Spa Willy.

Their total spa package included:
-a steam (shower)
-scented lotion massage
-"professional" shampoo treatment, a much needed deep scalp scrub (also done by resident professional hair washer), towel wrap, and blow dry
- pedicures with a sudsy foot spa


-sugar cookies to snack on
-I read another chapter of The Doll People to them, while they snacked and soaked

-cuticle treatments and manicures in valentine colors

-all followed by "relaxing music" while they sipped grape soda

Then the boys joined us again, and the relaxing music became the Killers, then Tai Cruz, and then a spontaneous dance party blew up in the kitchen like it's dynamite.

That was my favorite part of the day, perhaps the whole week.

Tia's Baby Shower

A month late, but I am finally posting pictures of the decorations from the baby shower that Britney and I threw for our friend, Tia.

The table (minus the food)
The setting was a lot cuter when it was full of yummy food! Spinach and artichoke dip, Kasey's homemade sourdough, fruits and veggies with dips, pound cake, apple tarts, and Britney made a million tiny Paula Deen Red Velvet cupcakes. I probably ate 1/2 of them.

I love any excuse to use pretty dishes...especially the little blue dessert plates.

The problem with dessert plates...not enough room for food! Instead, I had to keep going back to the table for more cupcakes ;)

The mulicolored dot fabric inspired the rest of the decorations... 60+ feet of bunting!
1/8 yard strips of fabric were cut into squares and sewed to ribbon and hanged (hung? I never know) from the ceiling. The photos just don't show how cute it was, but the effect was pretty dramatic and made a cozy environment to celebrate a very beautiful, and very deserving friend and her soon-to-be-born very beautiful baby.

Kasey came over the night before the shower and helped cut out these little onesies to hang from a tiny clothesline.

Yes! The cardstock print matches the table runner fabric, the ribbon on the dishes, and the fabrics in the bunting!

more bunting...

and some mini tissue paper pompoms above the table

pink and blue, since baby's gender was a surprise.

(see the cookie post to see what she had!)

We love you, Tia! Congrats on your sweet little arrival!