Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Big Reveal....

Wow....what a project. Remember I said we were going to redo the bedrooms? Well, we did. I am so excited about the results. It was quite a lot of work, though. Much more than I expected. We probably made 10 trips to the home improvement stores last week between the two of us.....

The girls room before....

Misc. furniture before...


The results...

I let Avery put her own stickers on...


"Free" shelves I picked up while curbside shopping....and check out my make over toy box - that is the one pictured above!

I covered the switch plates. Thank you Martha for the skills!!!

New shelves...

And can you believe it??? I even hung curtains! I also used an old plant stand as a stuffed animal holder...
You will have to go over to Jake's blog for before pictures of Jude's room...



Jude's new comforter won't be in until Thursday but his old sleeping bag is a perfect match!
A "new" bookcase....
Jude loves his new space...

That is his mice....
I redid this too...

When Jude got home from West Virginia and saw his room he said, "Thank you Mommy for making me my own room...." How sweet is that?

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Projects...

We have so many projects going on right now....

This weekend we are taking the kids to West Virginia. We plan to leave Jude & Elise there for a week. While they are there we are going to rearrange, paint and clean out the bedrooms. Right now Jude & Elise share a room, mainly because Elise likes to sing and talk at bedtime and when we moved to this house Avery was still a baby & it was very disruptive. Basically, Jude could handle it better. But now we are making the big change. Elise & Avery are going to be in a room together and Jude will get to be by himself. The problem is....the smaller room is pink. Jude doesn't like pink (well for a bedroom anyways). I am hoping to transition Avery into the big girl bed during all this as well... It will be the first time my kids actually have "themed" type rooms - you know, actually decorated for a kid.....

I am also going to shampoo the carpet.

Then we have the garden project....it takes a lot of time. I love gardening and I've become a little obsessed. I'll post new pics soon.

I am also going to have a garage sale. Gasp.... I've said I would never have another garage sale again after the last 3 that I have had! But I am going to try again. I am planning and sorting everyday. Hopefully it is a success. The kids want to have a lemonade stand. I told them that would be fun. It could be money for the Wii fund.... I think my sister is going to join in the garage sale fun & possibly some other friends. If anyone local is interested let me know. Oh....also we are looking to borrow some tables. I am going to need 8-10 of them. I will keep you posted on the details. It is going to be a good one. I am going to see a bunch of handmade stuff I've made but never got around to selling.

Speaking of selling... A friend asked me to make four slings and she even wants to pay me. How cool is that. I haven't even replied to her request but I will get around to that....

And lastly, I would like to paint my bathroom. I don't know if I will get to that but I am sick of the pink/blue theme (yikes).

If you are wondering how I get it all done - I have a simple (and quite obtainable) answer.... I barely watch T.V.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

I posted this quiz....

On Facebook. Many of you took it but if you haven't you can. I wanted to have a chance to explain my answers. So, here is the quiz with the explaination at the bottom of the post!


1) Which job have I done in the past?
a) Server/Dancer
b) Abstinence Teacher
c) CPR/ First Aid Instructor
d) Insurance Sales
e) All of the Above...


2) Which activity haven't I done?
a) Gone on a blind date.
b) Watched a UFO fly over my house.
c) Stage dived.
d) Called Howard Stern on the telephone.
e) Gone sky diving.


3) What type of lessons did I take as a child?
a) Piano
b) Roller Skating
c) Gymastics
d) Ballet
e) None of the above


4) Which vacation have I NOT been on?
a) Camping on an island with no electricity.
b) A Caribbean Cruise
c) Sight seeing along the coast of Maine.
d) Backpacking in Colorado.
e) Family Vacation in the Outer Banks.


5) Where did I get my cat's name???
a) She is named after a childhood friend.
b) My boyfriend picked it.
c) A Poem by E. E. Cummings.
d) My favorite movie.
e) She already had the name when I got her.


6) What type of building did I get married in?
a) None...it happened on the beach.
b) Church.
c) Courthouse.
d) Barn.
e) Gazebo


7) Who was my best friend in High School?
a) Heather, my sister
b) Steph Norris
c) Jen F.
d) Mitch
e) Tiffany


8) What instrument did I play in the 8th grade band?
a) Bass Clarinet
b) Tuba
c) Drums
d) Piccolo
e) Cello


9) What am I allergic to?
a) Eggs
b) Dogs
c) Wheat
d) Corn
e) a, c & d


10) Which fact is true about me???
a) I used to shave part of my head.
b) I pierced my own nose.
c) I went out with a man I met by dialing the wrong #
d) I have a hole in my nose (on the inside).
e) All of the Above...




Okay...Here are the results.
1. All of the above. Most of you got this. I wasn't a dancer-dancer. I worked at Joe's Crab Shack and we had to do this little line dances. It was so fun. I did teach an Abstinence program for years in middle schools. Also fun. I was certified to teach CPR & First Aid through the Red Cross but I only taught for the agency I worked for. It was not that fun. Selling insurance - totally not fun at all.

2. LOL. Many people missed this one. I've been on exactly 3 blind dates. I did see a UFO. It was a real Unidenified Flying Object. Other people saw it to (although at the time I didn't know that) and there was even an article in the paper about the sightings. It looked NOTHING like the UFO's on TV but it was GIANT and not like anything I have seen before. I think it was probably some government thing.... You know I've stage dived. Howard Stern. I was like 'why do people believe THAT?' Then I realized it is because lots of people call Howard Stern - what I should have said was called Howard Stern at his PRIVATE residence. And yes I did that. I have not gone sky diving and don't plan to EVER do something so stupid.

3. Yes I took Roller Skating Lessons. I even had the little skating skirt. Someday I will join the roller derby.

4. I went camping with the Miller family and their foster children in Florida (Cayo Costa). It was an island with no electricity. I was pregnant. It was fun and I'd like to go back. Jake and I went on a cruise for our honeymoon. We probably won't ever do that again. We ate like pigs and I gained 10 lbs in one week that I have yet to loose. We've been to Maine and loved it. And we have been to the Outer Banks several times....also like that. But backpacking? Jake and his family are into that and I am not saying I will never try it but I am not too keen on pooping in the woods. Just sayin'.

5. My cat - Molly is from a E.E. Cummings poem.
maggie and milly and molly and may
went down to the beach(to play one day)
and maggie discovered a shell that sang so
sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles,
andmilly befriended a stranded star
whose rays five languid fingers were;
and molly was chased by a horrible thing
which raced sideways while blowing bubbles:
and may came home with a smooth round stone
as small as a world and as large as alone.
For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it's always ourselves we find in the sea

6. Yes, it is true. We got married in a Barn. It was part of our hillbilly theme.

7. Steph Norris was my best friend through middle and high school. I didn't meet Jen F. until college. Tiffany and I always knew each other but didn't become friends until after I graduated. Mitch was the boyfriend.

8. Bass Clarinet.

9. Well, you know I am allergic to everything.

10. Yes I used to have an undercut and shaved the bottom half of my hair. What was I thinking? I did pierce my own nose. What was I thinking? I did go out with a man I met by dialing the wrong number. What was I thinking. Yes, I have a deviated septum from a botched cauterization. I could wear a bull ring but that would just look silly wouldn't it?

So, you want to know about the guy I went on the date with. I was at a middle school and I was calling another middle school. The number on the paper I had was incorrect but I didn't know that. This guy answers and says something like Hello, can I help you. So I think it is the school. He explains and then we chat for a few minutes. He was studying for some big board exam. He was a Resident student. He said he would like to take me to lunch. We ended up going to my FAVORITE mexican place and I made my friend Megan go with me. He was much older and nothing special. He sent me a postcard from some other country. Never heard from him again.

Monday, June 08, 2009

Kiddie Weekend...

Saturday, JenF, Heather and I took our kids (minus Avery) to Memphis Kiddie Park. It is a little amusement park for smaller kids (50 inches or shorter). It was my first time there and it was great. It was pretty inexpensive - $24.50 for 25 tickets. Each ride costs 1 ticket. We still have 8 tickets left. They are good for 2 years. Nice. So, next time when I go and take Avery I can purchase another "book" and we should have the perfect amount. It is very cool that there isn't an admission price and the adults are free. Plus I didn't feel bad when we left after only a couple of hours. If you live in the area I highly recommend it. I am not a big fan of festival or fair rides - too many horror stories. These seemed much safer. Maybe I was kidding myself. LOL. Here are the pics from the Kiddie Park...
Elise on the merry go round.
Boat Ride.

Jennifer & Allie

Elise, Lizzie & Reichen

Jude.

Heather & Allie

Jennifer & Lizzie
Indy & Jude.

Elise on her first roller coaster. I don't think she liked it very much...

After the amusement park I ended up with two extra kids.....hmmmm.

So Jake and I took them to the wading pool. Here is Reichen.
After church the next day, we took the kids to the fountain park. They had a lot of fun.






Then we stopped for some "cute" pictures.


There's more....after the fountain and pics....we decided to go on the Falls river boat. It is a little tour of the Cuyahoga River. The kids got to drive the boat. Avery spent most of the ride trying to jump out of the boat!







And lastly....we went and got Rita's italian ice. YUM. The kids all signed up for the reading program at the library so they got free ice. You gotta love that price.

Thursday, June 04, 2009

For Real????

This is a conversation I had with my kids....

Me: Pretty soon we will have cherry tomatoes growing in our garden. We will be able to go out to the garden and pick them. Isn't that cool?

Elise: That is back breaking.

Me: What did you just say?

Elise: Picking tomatoes is back breaking!

(Reminder...she is four!)

Jude: Yes Mommy - you need the Topsy Turvy. You can grow your tomatoes upside down.

Elise: And Peppers...

Jude: And Herbs!!!

Me: Are you kidding me? My kids have turned into a walking Topsy Turvy commercial.

Jude & Elise: You should get one of those Mommy.