Bedroom art

I hunted for a long time for artwork or photos to go above my bed. With the newer furniture and new bedding I wanted to choose something that went well with all of it. I didn't want anything too crazy and I didn't want to have to explain anything abstract. I also decided that photos wouldn't be the best idea, because those would be outdated pretty quickly. So, I was reading Linda's blog about her experience with Prowl and figured I'd give it a try.  I got a lot of really great ideas about what to put there, how to make it matchy or not matchy and then I saw these and knew that was it.

My bedspread is green, brown and cream, the walls are cream and my curtains are brown, so finding this comforter set was awesome. And now, these wall art pieces match the starburst pattern I have on the bed perfectly.  I love how simple it is and how well it goes. Now I just need to find a way to pad the back of them a little bit so rumbly thunder doesn't rattle them so much :)

Next up, dip dying my lamp (maybe!?) and an attempt at long term meal planning.

Summer catchup

Really, truly I am the worst blogger. I always believe summer will be fun and relaxed and slow. It is not. Summer is a mad rush to do as much fun things as possible, while still working and doing home improvements and anything else you can't fit in during the school year. I really think I would hate (and my children would) year round school, but sometimes it seems like it'd be a little more predictable for planning breaks and vacations.

So far this summer we've done nothing. We'll be taking vacation in August and then we'll likely visit the state fair and/or an amusement park. The oldest really wants to horseback ride again, so I need to look into that. We're expanding our deck, which is looking amazing and we're trying to get into the pool as often as possible - which has been difficult with the coolest July ever.

I'm subscribed to the HGTV Handmade channel on Youtube, which has given us a few cute ideas for storage and display items this summer. Here's the bracelet holder the oldest and I made, it was fun and cute and pretty easy. I also spray painted my iron table and chairs that were on the upper deck, but will now be a beautiful sea breeze blue/teal and moved to below the new deck. I'll get a picture of that when it's all done.

Two paper towel rolls, a dowel cut to length, platform

Don't Stop Believin'

We've just had a general music concert and a band concert for the oldest. She is not a fan of the singing class, but loves playing the flute.  Feel free to watch the other videos in the channel. I've done some catching up today...

Speaking of too grown up...again

Finally got back the Kindergartener's spring photos. I swear, it's some conspiracy between the photographers and my cute kids to force me to buy all the pictures. Fine. They win. She loves this shirt with it's tank top under and the pretty flowy top.

too grown up and beautiful

We got back Spring photos for the oldest today. She is so beautiful..and she looks so grown up. I'm a little afraid of our future with such a pretty smart girl.

  

We've been on spring break and such also, maybe i'll get around to posting about that someday.  It's just so busy with work, and both of them in school.

Too much snow

The snow can stop now. This is too much, we are officially out of places to throw it. The husband keeps having to adjust the snowblower to throw higher and I don't think it can go much higher. We're out of room. We're done. And it's supposed to ice/snow Wed. night again. The kids are never going back to school (snow day yesterday, they're back today) and they'll end up going to school until July.

The snow banks are taller than the trash cans

The snow has just about taken over the mailboxes

The dogs have to have a path shoveled and they still don't want to go.

Abduction

I am fairly sure...let's say 80%...that my 6yo has been abducted and replaced by a completed different child. Starting in late September and up until last week, I was driving her to school. She had motion sickness and was throwing up on the bus, she even threw up in my car a couple times when I started driving her. This week, I kept her home sick on Monday - we were both sick really - so she could fight her cold just one more day. Tuesday it was super windy and cold, so the roads got a little slick. So there was a two hour delay for school. I suggested maybe she wanted to try the bus, since she slept in and had plenty of time to be ready. She agreed.

She has ridden the bus every day since.

EVERY DAY.

This morning, I took her to the stop (it's four houses down the street, which is awesome) and when we got there her neighbor friend came as well. The 6yo turns to me and says "you can go now".

See, clearly she's been replaced.

I have no words. I am both super excited that I don't have to drive her, super excited that she's growing and learning and comfortable with her friends, the bus (her Grandpa drives it), and school...and I'm also sad, just a teeny tiny bit..that she doesn't need me quite as much anymore.

Terrible Blogger

I am really terrible at this. Most of the time I feel like whatever I might have to say isn't worth saying out loud, or in writing, because no one cares about it but me. So then I talk myself into not writing anything and end up with a blog that hasn't been updated since November. Well. Sorry. How about a general catchup...

We smoked two turkeys for both sides of the family on Thanksgiving which was delicious and fun. I went out that night with my aunt-in-law and mother-in-law for some black friday..or brown thursday as I prefer to call it..shopping. I bought a couple small gifts but didn't find much and fighting the people was not worth it. I did find the perfect comforter set for my bed though, on sale, at JCPenney. I love it. It's the Galaxy 10-pc Comforter Set and I did NOT pay that price for it. It looks fantastic on my bed because the walls are the cream color and my curtains are the brown..and green is my favorite color, so it's perfect. I almost didn't buy it, but my cohorts convinced me I could always return it if it didn't work vs not buying it and it going out of stock or something. So they were right. I love it.

Christmas was crazy. We planned to smoke about 16 pounds of pork shoulder for a large husband-side dinner/birthday/Christmas but the weather cancelled those plans. So we still smoked some pork, the gathering was just smaller. Still delicious. The husband's sister and her husband and toddler came up from GA to visit and it was really great. To see them and see how big she's getting. I got a Hoodie Footie from the husband and some really nice silver hoop earrings. The girls got me more socks (I love socks for some reason) and bath&body soaps. The girls got what they've always wanted, Deluxe Webkinz accounts and stuffed Boo animals, among other things. It was a great week.

New Years was uneventful, the kids spent the night with the grandparents, and we played Final Fantasy XIV most of the night. On New Years day we headed over to the in-laws to watch a bowl game (Go Hawkeyes! they lost.) and do some puzzles. I love doing puzzles, I just never make the time to do it.

School break started a day early due to snow..and was extended by two days due to super super super freezing temperatures. It was -40F here at some point with the windchill, -27 without...it was a little crazy. So the kids stayed home, the rest of us worked and they finally went back to school last Wednesday.

We tried a new restaurant with some friends recently - saturday night - which was really great fun. However, I woke up at 230am on Sunday with what I think was food poisoning. I don't know whether to blame the pork belly from the restaurant or the frozen yogurt from the dessert place. Either way, I'll be avoiding both for awhile. After three days of queasyness - which feels disturbingly like morning sickness - today my stomach seems much better. So Monday I stayed home sick, and I kept the 6yo home as well because she's working on a cough/cold. Tuesday it was super super windy here, which was freezing some roadways, so school was delayed by 2 hours. So the 6yo agreed to ride the bus, since she had plenty of time to get ready and read and play beforehand. So loved it and Grandpa loved getting her hug when she got off. So this morning, she wanted to ride the bus again...and she did. So it's possible (shhh don't jinx it) she might be fully ok with school now. I'll still drive her anytime she feels like sleeping in a little, but it was really great to see her ready and happy to ride the bus with her friends. Now if she could just stop catching colds from all of them.

ELEVEN !

That's right. I now am in possession of an ELEVEN year old girl. She's smart and tall and beautiful. She has loads of friends and she's learning the flute and she's started caring about what she wears and what matches and her hair. She still hates bath/shower night and going to bed for school, but she also hates waking up early. But she loves the bus rides and her friends and fifth grade. She's pretty fantastic.

This happened.

Halloween

Batgirl

 

Happy Halloween everyone. I'm grateful that it's over. Halloween should be moved so that it's ALWAYS on a Friday or weekend. Week night trick or treating is just exhausting. The 6yo went as Batgirl and had the best time. She kept seeing kids that ride her bus, which was blowing her mind. Apparently kindergarteners do not understand WHY they're on the same bus. It was hilarious. The friend in the picture is also a kindergartener and they ran into another friend which blew both of their minds. It was hilarious to watch. And then the 6yo started trying to make play dates. "You wanna come to my house sometime?"

friends on a candy hunt

The soon to be 11 yo (thursday the 7th) wanted to trick or treat with her friends. I think I was misled on the plan, but it worked out ok. She went with her friends, and her pumpkin was overflowing with candy. She said it was the best time ever.

11yo and friend on the hunt

It was around 45 degrees so we've had worse Halloween nights, but it stopped raining about an hour or so before we went out so that worked out pretty well. The kids are so excited that they don't get cold, so the 6yo had gloves on but kept refusing her coat. The 11yo went with gloves but at the end she was wearing her jacket also. I was wearing my big winter coat with gloves and I was still freezing. It was a pretty good night, and they were pleased to miss bath night and go to school again with pink hair. Of course, the 6yo's cold got the better of her this morning and she's had trouble from both ends, so I kept her home from school. I still have every confidence she'll grow out of this eventually. For now, she's bored on the couch.

And now, more halloween cuteness.

Growing so fast

We had church directory photos taken a few weeks ago. I intended to buy nothing...and bought everything. It's a racket for sure, but the photos were good and we hadn't had any family pictures in awhile. The girls are growing too fast..they should stop that.

We also got photos of them individually which are so good. The 6yo is always suspicious and the 11yo is always posing. It's a funny and adorable combination.

The 6yo is also doing much better with Kindergarten. I've been driving her to school for a little over a week now so she's getting a little more rest and she's avoiding the carsickness of the bus. She's fine on the way home because it's a shorter ride. She's the 2nd stop, so in the morning she has to ride an extra 30 minutes after she gets on, but on the way home, she's still the 2nd stop so she's off pretty early on.

Also, a word of warning. I've been giving her children's claritin while she's had a cold, to keep the snot that ends up in her stomach overnight to a minimum. So I give it to her at bedtime, it keeps her from puking first thing in the morning. After a few days,t he claritin kicks into her system and she...was...active. Let's say that..Active. So I put her to bed on Sunday night at 8pm because they take a little bit to fall asleep and they have to get up at 645/730 to catch the bus/get to school on time. at 825 we hear thumping upstairs...what the...she's standing in my room.

Me: "What are you doing? "
6yo: "I'm not tired."
Me: "Ok, but what are you doing in my room?"
6yo: "Staying up."

She'd also gone into her sister's room and climbed up her loft bed ladder, shaking the bed a bit, as it does...and freaked her out as she tried to fall alseep. So...no more claritin for a bit. The cold has mostly subsided so she can fight the rest. I'll not give it to her so many days in a row next time, giving it time to build in her system, hops her up.  The next morning she said she had been under my bed...I cannot even fathom why. She was hopped up :)

Birthday girl.

The five year old turned six a couple weeks ago. I know that I "should" have planned and thrown her a party with her friends, but it's just so much work. I'd rather wait until she's got a good group of friends and just invite them. Next year. Maybe. We had family come over of course, and everyone brought gifts which is really all she wants anyway.

Six

She got clip on puppy earrings, lip gloss and nail polish, a new Lite Brix set, a new webkinz pegasus and some things I can't remember. She came with me to pick out a cake and get some balloons and I think she had a great day.

Hello Kitty lip gloss and purse, puppy clip on earrings

She still doesn't want to go to school. She still throws up before she gets on the bus nearly every morning. So this morning I drove her myself. She still threw up before we left, but at least the bouncy bus didn't make her throw up again. She'll ride home on the bus like normal (she never gets sick on the way home) so she'll still get to see grandpa (he drives it). And maybe someday she'll get used to this whole going-to-school-without-mom thing. I'll drive her as long as she needs me to.

I lied. School sucks.

I spoke too soon. It hasn't passed. She's puked probably 15 out of the 20+ days she's been going to kindergarten. I know its nerves because she's not sick and she only throws up before she goes to school. I put her on the bus, she's fine maybe 50% of the time, the other 50% she is weepy and sad. Sometimes she even throws up a tiny bit on the bus. This morning I tried children's dramamine, but it doesn't seem to be enough or in her system enough to get her on the bus. I'll try again tonight by giving it to her before bed and again when she wakes, maybe i can get it into her system enough to prevent the puke. Even if I can't prevent the nerves.

I'm 90% sure she has a good day when she goes. She plays and has friends and sees her cousin every so often. She comes home and says things were awesome. But every morning she doesn't want to go again.

Gah. It sucks. I hate it.  I really hope this doesn't last all year...but I have no indication that anything is going to change anytime soon. What would make it better? According to her, if i go to school to be a helper or something, that would help. Ugh.

This too shall pass

And it has! I think. I hope..I forcefully WILL it to be so. I put her on the bus this morning with no tears and no sadness, just a big hug and a wave. She was chatting up her neighbor friend before they got on and it was fantastic. I could tell she was starting to come around after school on Friday. She was saying things like 'I don't want to go to school...but I have to.' and then she'd talk about her classmates and she's remembered more names than I ever will. This morning was fantastic.

I also acquired some echinacea drops to give her periodically to help build her immune system as well as some organic vitamins with extra C and Zinc to help her fight whatever she does catch. Let's hope we can stay ahead of all the colds those kids like to pass around.

So. YAY for Kindergarten now. I am so relieved after that bus load...my entire day is going to be fantastic. I can work alone, which I always knew I'd love when I got back to it, but I can also really focus because I'm not worried about how my baby is doing. She's great!

Thanks for all the lovely comments on the last one. That was a rough week.

Sad Kindergartner

I put the 5yo on the bus this morning, crying. She doesn't want to go to school anymore because she misses me and doesn't like leaving me. She asked why I can't be her teacher, or a helper teacher, or ride the bus with her, or something! Gah. Breaking my heart. It will get better..won't it ?