So funny...

Tagged

SuburbiaMom tagged me for this a while back. I just realized I never did it.

OOPS.

7 things that I can do:
Fix 'owies' with a kiss
Crochet
MULTITASK
Say no
Cook without a recipe
My job
Be kind

7 things I cannot do:
Be patient
Be perfect
Keep my kids quiet in Church
Be home as much as I would like
Heal loved ones
Get enough sleep
Decorate

7 things I say often:
SHHHHHHH!
Wait your turn.
I can't understand you when you're whining.
Amen.
Are you kidding me?
Any word from the committee yet?
PFD did what?! (Just for Karen...)

7 things I plan to do before I die:
Travel extensively
Go back to school for at least a Master's degree
RETIRE
Learn to throw pottery
Read voraciously
Go to culinary school
Pursue photography

7 things that attract me to Matt:
His eyes
The way he holds me when I'm sad
How he interacts with our children
His thoughtfulness
How he understands what I need before I do
His intellect
His selflessness

7 favorite foods:
Chocolate
Mashed Potatoes
Mom's Pineapple Pie
Matt's Marinated Steak
My Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
Reuben Sandwiches
A really good salad

7 people who I would like to do this

(but only if they want to...):
Carrie
Heather
Anji
Jamie
Tanya
Tyra
Lori

Mix-it-Up Monday: Bead Bracelets

We did this project on Saturday and the girls had lots of fun with it. (Mom and Dad not so much, but that mostly had to do with the number of times we picked tiny beads up off the floor.)

I purchased some inexpensive beads (a different bag for each child - no fighting!) and stretchy string, all for under $5. We put each bag of beads in a small bowl, tied a bead at the bottom of a length of string for each of them and let them go to it.

(I'm sharing pictures only if you agree not to judge me for the fact that they still have their pajamas on and it was like...3 in the afternoon when we did this.)

Lyssa showing off her final product.

It was easy, cheap and entertaining.

Liam suggested push-ups for next week's activity. We're still in negotiations...

In which I realize how fast two weeks passes...

Has it really been two weeks since I posted last? That sure went by fast. I have been absorbed with snuggling sick and/or cranky babies. Try as I might, I just couldn’t pull myself away from them. (Okay, I didn’t try that hard because seriously which is better: sitting at a computer or kissing their chubby little cheeks?)

But now they are feeling better and don’t need mom’s attention quite so much, I can give a run down on what we’ve been up to.

• Voting: What a wonderful opportunity to participate in an historic election! I was lucky enough to get to the polls when there were absolutely no lines. (I tend to take my time voting so it was really nice not to have someone oozing impatience breathing down my neck this time.) I must say that overall I’m impressed with the general public and their interest in the races. I think more people actually took the time to educate themselves, not only on the presidential candidates, but the candidates for their local offices as well. Although my candidate didn’t win, I am always grateful that we have a chance to cast our vote. (And I am grateful that we can hear about something besides politics in the news now. Two years is an AWFUL long campaign season.)

• Anniversary: Matt and I celebrated our EIGHTH anniversary. (Although my dad keeps asking me if I’m sure it’s really eight years and not five. When I remind him that I have a five year old and I had her AFTER I had been married for a while, he just shakes his head like he thinks I’m crazy.) We went out of town for a night while my parents took the kids. I forgot what sweet BLISS it is to be able to sleep in as late as I want to, and what wonders a full night of rest can do for the dark circles under my eyes. We didn’t get to do the things we had planned because of the inclement weather, but it turned out better because of it. Matt surprised me with a trip to the jewelry store to pick out a new ring. We couldn’t find exactly what he had in mind, but found these that have some sentimental significance.
  
  
  We had a nice lazy, relaxing time. It was honestly probably one of the best anniversaries we’ve had. I love him more everyday.

• November Family FHE: Every month my entire family gets together for a big family home evening. This month it was collecting the walnuts under a neighbors’ tree and cleaning them up. It was fun to get to see everyone, as always. We were able to put mom and dad’s new back porch to good use as a walnut cleaning station and cafeteria for the soup and hot chocolate. Dad and Liam took a little nap together on the couch. I wish I had had my camera there to snap a shot. They looked so cute together with their little bald noggins poking out of the blanket they were snuggled in. I love seeing the two of them together.

• Speaking of Cameras…a long time ago I coveted a camera that was just coming out on the market. I mean REALLY REALLY coveted. My sweet hubby suggested that I use it as a motivational tool to help me reach some goals I was in the process of setting. (I must apologize to him for my original hostility toward the idea. Sometimes that psychology degree of his gets really annoying when he’s right.) So guess what…I reached my initial goal and now I’m the proud owner of THIS baby. I took it out for a spin during my lunch hour at work one day and had a lot of fun trying out all the features. Here are a couple of the results:
  
  
  
  
  
  I’m still trying to figure it all out, but I’m hoping the quality of our family photos will improve (as well as the quantity) once I learn how to use it.

• Mix it up Monday: We made our tent:
  
  
  We turned off the lights and gave them flashlights to keep them entertained for a couple hours. Somehow every toy and activity seemed more intriguing to them if it was performed under the cover of a blanket tent. I think we’ll be doing this more often. I’ll also resume doing the mix-it-ups next week. We have a few projects in mind to try out.

• This week has found us shuttling McKenna to various birthday parties and trying to comfort Alyssa when she had the misfortune of having to stay home with mom. It has been good for McKenna to have some time with her friends. It's just hard for the little one left behind. While McKenna was gone last night she kept erupting in tears while saying, "I miss McKenna!" (Basically the same routine we go through every night except substitute 'Daddy' instead of 'McKenna'.) Funny how she doesn't seem to like her quite so much when she's home.

That's pretty much it for the most part. I'll spare you the details on the newest sickness that has plagued our house. I'm just hoping someday we will be able to go disease free for at least a couple of weeks in a row. We're all going stir crazy locked up in here!

Mix-it-Up Monday: Blanket Tent

The kids had lots of fun with the pumpkins this week. I didn't actually get pictures of us carving them though. OOPS. But that aside, our approach this year was a little more successful than years past.

The girls actually dove in and helped clean out their own pumpkins this year, something they have refused vehemently in years past. I don't know what magically changed about it this year, but hey, I'll take it.

The other thing we did differently was having them draw what they wanted their pumpkins to look like on a piece of paper for us before we drew the face on the pumpkin itself. Everyone was happier with the results (the Girls because their pumpkins were closer to what they actually wanted and Mom and Dad because there was less whining and crying).

All in all, really fun.

The only sad part was that we didn't get to eat Matt's amazing pumpkin seeds this year. They got a little more toasty than we had planned...like BLACK toasty.

So...the plans for this week. We're going to make a big tent out of all the blankets and chairs we can find. (And I'm not going to make a fuss about it or get after them to clean it up.) I've shown the kids how to do this a couple times in the past, but it didn't work out the best with the kitchen stools and the small blankets. This time we're breaking out all the blankets in the linen closet and going to town. And if they can handle it, I just might let them sleep there.

Halloween!

Wow! What a wonderful Halloween this year.

The weather MADE it. It's the only year I can remember that the kids didn't need a coat. It's so depressing to get the kids all dressed up and then have to cover them up with a big bulky winter coat. They loved, loved, LOVED being able to actually show off their costumes.

Matt also had the night off for the first Halloween since we've had kids old enough to go Trick-or-Treating. It made the whole evening a lot easier. I have always packed up and taken the kids to Grandma and Grandpa's neighborhood before. That way if one of the kids got tired halfway through or if we had a baby we could leave them with Grandma while the other one got to finish. This time, Dad got to take them out while I passed out candy with Liam.

It was our first experience trick or treating in the new neighborhood. I'm so glad that they still do the house to house thing here. Trunk-or-Treats make me sad. A big part of the fun on Halloween for me was getting to go to the different houses. The best part about it now is that the kids burn off some of the extra sugar by walking around. Definitely makes it easier to get them to sleep on Halloween night.