A New Look...again!

Well, I thought it was time to update my look (again!).  I kind of treat this blog like I do my home.  Can you tell I get bored with things easily?  I tried finding a great winter scene, but to no avail.  So, I figured this background was the next best thing, seeing how it seriously resembles our hardwood flooring!

Anyhow, I don't have much to tell.  I've been busy getting caught up on my bookeeping.... You'd think that I'd learn my lesson and just keep it up to date, and I know that I tell myself every time I get caught up that I'm not going to let myself get months behind, but apparently, I still haven't learnt my lesson!  However, (for) now, I am, once again, all caught up.

I had a very exciting weekend...kind of.  Last week, I heard through the grapevine that we were getting a Restoration Hardware here.  So, Saturday morning, I looked it up, and alas!  It had already opened!  So, off I headed, with a friend, to go and check it out.  And check it out, we did.  Oh.  My.  Goodness.  I am in love...

Here are a few of my favorite things....

Oooh, mama!  There were many, many, many more lovely things, that I covet, but alas, here I sit.  Drooling  at my computer.  And all over the catalogue.  Every night.  As I gaze adoringly on these beauties.  Enjoy!

Scary Mom Makes A Visit

I decided the other day that it was time to decorate our home for Christmas.  So, last weekend, I pulled out all nine Rubbermaid containers (yup, I said 9!) of my Christmas/winter decor.  The day got off to a great start...and continued on with me doing all the garland and decorations except for the trees, which I needed Art to help me with.  He was out at a meeting all day, so when he came home, exhausted, I convinced him to help me just put up the trees so I could decorate the pre-lit one.  However, due to....my life?....it got put off and put off until the next evening, which we were finally able to put up the lights on the non pre-lit tree.  I must put in a side note here to remind myself: Putting lights on Christmas trees makes both Art and I extremely cranky!  And what makes me even crankier is when we run out of lights, so that we need to wait another day to finish.  Question: How is is that we can run out of lights when we've been using the same lights for the last 4 years?!

Anyhow, all this to say, decorating my house for Christmas, with boxes strewn around everywhere, not being able to find my floor anywhere, makes for one scary mama!  Just ask Art.  Or my Girls.  Or my sister in law who was here as well.  Or my other girlfriend who stopped by to check on the progress.  Scary Mom did come out.... And she stayed for a few hours.... And then, praise the Lord, it was bedtime!

I was able to finish up my decorating on Monday night at about 11 pm, just in time to give my house (another) thorough clean because Art had clients coming to the house early Tuesday morning... Ahh, yes, the joys....

All this to tell you, I'm going to let y'all in on a (not so) little secret.  Here it is:  I could never be a hoarder.  I almost lost my sanity, having my house looking like a bomb went off in the middle of it for 4 whole days.  I don't know what it is, but truly, it makes me crazy.  Scary.  Afraid of myself..... But alas.  Now my house is clean.  And decorated.  With furniture all re-arranged.  And scary Mom is gone.  For the moment...maybe never to return?  One can wish, right?

Something old (again)

This bad boy was given to us by some friends.  We had been admiring it, as it was sitting in their garage, and they were wanting to get rid of it, so we excitedly accepted it.  It has a whole mirror huge thing that sits on top, but for right now, that (you guessed it) is in our basement..... We use this to store our games.  I am dying to paint it, but my woodworker husband just can't bear to watch me do that....yet... :-)  One day....  We've also talked about using this as a vanity, but he also can't bear to cut a hole in the top of it for a drain.  So, we will enjoy it like this, for now.... I'm sure one day, it will be altered in some form.  Anyhow, not bad for free, right?

The Answer

The Answer: YES!

Not only are they taught to work together and be responsible, but I also end up with clean, organized drawers, and, if something gets broken (very unfortunately!!), I have a perfect excuse to go shopping!

The Cost

Although I love that one of The Girls' jobs is to empty the dishwasher, the fact that they do this chore comes with a cost....

 One of my favorite bowls, which of course, the pattern is now discontinued, was broken the other day.  I know that it was an accident, but it still makes me a bit sad.  This was a wedding present.....

Art did glue back the pieces on the bowl, but of course, it's never the same.  So, here's the question: Is having The Girls empty the dishwasher and break an occasional dish worth the cost?

I know what my answer is....what's yours?

Yummy Goodness

Farmer Sausage

+  Bulls eye Guinness BBQ sauce

 Baked in the oven for about 35 minutes = Yummy Goodness!

A picture speaks a thousand words....need I say more?!

Farmfair

This past weekend, we made it out to Farmfair in the city.  Ironic, really, that to go to Farmfair, we had to drive into the city, but that's for another day...

Anyhow, we had a great time, hanging out as a family.  We got to milk pretend cows (which I have a video of, but can't upload it...), play with baby chicks....

...and rope pretend calves

As we were leaving, we asked The Girls what their favorite part of the day was.  Their response? "The mints!"  At the Alberta Egg Producers booth, they were giving away note pads, highlighters...and little tins of mints.  If I would've know that, we could've just gone to the store and bought a few mints!  Oh well, it was good fun anyway!

This is What Happens....

When I take my husband grocery shopping with me.  He makes me buy yucky food....food I would never buy otherwise....

The other day, I took him grocery shopping and he made me buy Pilsbury wiener wraps.  Him and The Girls loved their "special lunch"....me?  Not so much!  See what I do for him?!  I give, and I give, and I give....

 I called these babies "Pigs in a blanket..."

I must admit, The Girls were pretty excited...

A Perfect Question

Yesterday, we were hanging out, relaxing at home when I was asked the perfect question:
Hannah:  "Mom, can I PLEASE organize the kitchen drawers?"

Me: "Let me think about that....Yup!"

I had asked The Girls to clean out the dishwasher, and in doing so, they were inspired to organize the drawers.  It started out with the cutlery and dishes, and moved on to include almost every drawer in my kitchen.  All 4 of them got in on the fun, too!  It would've gone on to finish all the drawers, except it was time for bed.

To top off the perfect question, this is what I heard as I tucked The Girls in:

Hannah: "Mom, thanks for letting us organize the drawers..."

Abby: "Yah, organizing is fun!"

Hannah: "Can we do more tomorrow?!"

Yup, this is a true story.  My work here is done...I have successfully passed on my love of organizing to (at least) a few of my daughters!

Lest We Forget

It's funny (not ha! ha!) how many thing we take for granted. I was having a conversation about Remembrance Day with my girls the other day when I picked them up from school.  They had done an art project at school with a cross and some poppies, and so we were talking about freedom, and war, and remembering. 

I am thankful that we live in Canada, a country where we take our freedom for granted.  However, many have paid the price for our freedom, so we must remember.... It is our history, and unless we remember, we will be bound to repeat it.  So, thank you to all who have walked before us, laying down their lives for this country we call home.  Thank you to the families who have given their loved ones...for us.  It kinda makes one think, doesn't it?   

The Whole....

...brood.  These are the people I get out of bed for every morning....literally.  

Oh, how I am thankful for my family!

Outside Fun

It was a beautiful day, and we headed outside to clean up the remains of summer around the yard. The kids helped, and Art came out as well, and we enjoyed one of the last warm days of the year, I am sure....however, I think I've said that half a dozen times, but really, I do believe this weather's not gonna last!

 The view from the top of our "holy hill"

 Even Moses got in on the fun!

Molly's "New Bed"

Lately, when I go to get Molly up from alone time, this is how I find her:

Sound asleep...on the floor!  I even found her one afternoon on the hardwood floor in Hannah & Abby's room, asleep.  When she sat up, she had lines on her face from the heat register.  It must've been a warm place to lie her head....

Crazy Hair Night

A few weeks ago at Awana, the girls had "Crazy Hair Night". Hannah was anxiously awaiting the night, because she loves doing crazy things with her sisters hair, so immediately after alone time, the crazy hair preparation began! The girls let her do whatever she wanted, and in the end, Abby even ended up winning a prize. Here's the creations:

 Doesn't look too crazy....

 Or maybe it does

 A little bit of ribbon to dress things up

WOW!  All I have to say....WOW! 

Here's the beauties!

Jack o' Lanterns

Last week, on the night I went out to see Secretariat, I had bought pumpkins for the kids to do jack o'lanterns.  Our kids have never done them before, since we usually are out for Halloween, so it was quite a novel concept for them.  I had found some pictures in a magazine of some pumpkins that I loved, so I left that with the Girls and Art, and headed out for the night.

This is what I came home to:

Art outlined the houses, and the girls painted them with black paint.  When they were done, he cut out the windows where they asked him too.  And, to boot, Hannah even looked up a recipe for roasted pumpkin seeds, wrote it out, and then her and Art made them.  I must admit, I did touch up the paint a little bit the next day, but they did really well!

Candy!!

Every year, after trick-or-treating, we dump out all the candy and go through it.  We organize it (of course!), chuck out the yucky stuff, and basically just have fun with the girls.  We finally did that last night, with some friends, and it was quite fun to watch the kids revel in their mass of candy...all 33 lbs. of it! 

Happy Halloween

Halloween always is a bit of a challenge for us in our household...not for any moral issues, but rather, because it's Abby's birthday.

This year, we ended up spent the evening with some good friends of ours.  We headed there for dinner and cupcakes, and then took the kids trick-or-treating.  This was the first time we'd ever been trick-or-treating in town, so it was quite the experience for our girls.  It was great weather (no snow!!), and we had a very fun time walking and talking and watching the kids get free candy!

 Our girls...the 2 cowgirls, the fairy princess, and the scarecrow

 the whole brood...add in another princess, buzz light year and a glow stick girl

 The scarecrow...with a 5 ft. arm span

 The little girls were gun-ho, and outran the big girls

 By the end of the night, Hannah had learned how to maneuver her masterpiece.  I kept saying that this was a Dad's costume idea...completely cool but totally impractical

 "Trick-or-Treat!"

 Here's the mother lode...we weighed it when we got home, and it was whopping 33 lbs. of candy.  Hooray for Halloween....lots of candy for me...I mean the Girls....!