Scenes From The Week

I'm trying to do better with my picture a day gig so I've gotten into the habit of lugging my camera around with me.

Here's Monday thru Friday:

Waiting for Big Sister to get done with religious ed. class.

Our regular dinner guests.  My husband really hates toys at the table.  As for myself
I pick and choose my battles.

Legos during lunchtime.  My 4 yr old is starting to get into them.  I loved Legos as a kid and think
that they are still a great toy.

Hungry Hungry Hippos.  Not surprisingly much cheaper than when I was young.  And I'm not talking
price either.

My oldest and her Squinkies.  I find these things in the most peculiar places.

And today, another preschool party for my boy at the local bounce place.  He's already bouncing off the walls so I can only imagine what some cake and juice are going to do to add to the insanity!

I Am Not Eating That

I hear that phrase from my 7 year old at least 4 out of the 5-6 nights I make dinner.
It starts while I am preparing the meal and doesn't end until it stares her in the face at the table.

It's starting to get a little old... but won't be stopping any time soon.

Last night I made a recipe that I had 'pinned' during another episode of time wasting on my part.  Chicken Broccoli Supreme from this blogger.  And it doesn't use any of the cream of chicken, mushroom, etc. types of soup.

The picture looked like a crowd pleaser.  What's not to love about recipe that includes chicken, butter, cheese, and not a load of preservatives?

Turns out that she was "not eating that".   

A Thursday Night

After baths and if they are good all 3 get a little "Angry Birds" time.  Seeing a four year old like this still seems a tad bizarre to me.  Wonder what it will be like 10 years from now because truthfully, technology scares me a little.

I said I wasn't...

but I did...

on to potty training #3 and seriously hoping that it's easier than potty training #1.  I always heard that it was the boys that were the tough ones but big sister fought me til the bitter end and my son was a dream.

Messages from Santa

Have you heard about the Portable North Pole? 

(source)

Last year my neighbor told me about a website that sends your child a video from Santa.  Her daughter was enthralled with all that he knew about her and his message especially for her.  It arrives by email, because in this day and age even Santa has no time for the postal service.

As a parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle,  you are able to select several different options for a more personalized experience including their age, the special gift that they want, if they have been naughty or nice, and a few other things.  All of this info is then taken and put into Santa's special book of files which he reads out of in the video. 

I made one for each of my kids again this season.   After watching them several times a day, I'm not too sure that his message actually sinks in but hopefully your children are better listeners!  Click on the video message from Santa link to start.

The Elf

Our little elf friend has made his return again this year and I must say that he is not exactly doing his job.  Oh sure, we've read his story, talked about his jobs, looked for him each morning, and asked lots of questions about how he can do what he supposedly does.  But, the kids just aren't that mindful of their behavior around him.

Maybe I should start leaving cryptic letters attached to him when he comes back from Santa.  Then again, that probably won't work either!



Punching Bags

That is what my two oldest children have been using each other for lately.  Punching bags.  It is getting progressively worse.  I don't like what you have said to me...whack.  I don't like the way you said that to me...whack.  I wanted to play with that first...whack. 


I am at my wits end with all of this behavior and I really don't know exactly how to stop it.  I remember when I was younger my sister and I used to scratch, kick, hit each other and my mom would get so angry that we were doing those things.  I didn't get what she got so upset about.  It didn't really concern her, or so I thought.  When my kids hurt each other it hurts me as well and I just want everyone to love each other and get along -ALL the time.  Unrealistic?  Very.  But it is a dream of mine. 


I guess I can keep dreaming.  But until it comes to fruition I'm doling out lots of time outs!

Not an uncommom occurance

Believe it or not having a big pile of leaves on my (ugly) kitchen counter is not out of the norm for my house at the moment.  Walking home from preschool today my 4 year old grabbed a handful as he came into the house and announced he had to bring them inside so he could start storing up food for the "pet buck that Santa is going to bring".  Ummm, yea.  I'm not sure how to really break it to him that Santa will, in fact, not be bringing a pet buck.  At least not this year.

Tooth Fairy Pillow

I was thinking the other day that it's been awhile since we've had a visit from the tooth fairy.  When my oldest was in kindergarten she came pretty frequently but her visits are few and far between now.  Not that I'm complaining.  I find loose teeth to be kinda of nauseating.  I couldn't pull any of my own as a child because I was deathly afraid of wiggling and yanking a tooth out of my mouth. Yuck.

But that is not the point of this story...

After the first one came out I wanted her to have something cute to put the others in.  I had one of those generic little treasure chests from the dentist.  I'm sure you may remember what I mean.  You could only open and close the lid a few times before it would snap off.  I really hated that!  So I grabbed some fleece and leftover embroidery thread and whipped up this little ballerina.

I stitched a little piece of felt onto the back for the tooth to be kept safe. 

The pink material was actually part of a onsie she wore as a baby.  Sigh...where have the years gone?

Say click

Every now and then I grab my son's camera and go through the pictures that the kids have taken.  I do this mainly just to delete the majority of them so he has enough memory to take more.  I have a good laugh most of the time.  There must be an endless source of fascination taking pictures of the floor, ceiling, TV and sofa cushions because I have erased literally hundreds of those shots. 

But every now and then I come across a few gems that I keep:




I can't even say how many pictures have been taken of my backside.



 Everyone looks better in a mustache, no?

There is just something about this one that I really like



Of course what I like best is getting a glimpse through his eyes of things he thinks are important in his life.

My most dreaded chore

Two of my children sleep in bunkbeds.  Perfect for a room that would not allow two singles side by side without giving up a lot of play space and feeling a bit cramped.  I really do like them and they work well. 

However when it comes time to change the sheets my love turns into disgust, exhaustion, and sometimes some not so nice words.  Starting with the dreaded top bunk I couldn't help but snap a shot of this:

Now, my oldest is on the small side for a 7 year old, but where exactly is she sleeping?