our wonders

1st Time on Ice

2011-12-29T21:28:00.000-08:00

I've never used these before or been with a kid who's used them. Wow, what a difference it makes on the amount of fun someone who can't skate can have. We wouldn't have been there as long if it wasn't for this walker thingy. We gave it to a little boy when we left who was begging to take his skates off until he got one of these. Great invention.

And if ice skating wasn't enough, we had to take a couple rides on the horse drawn wagon.

Trunk or Treat on Halloween

2011-10-31T21:13:00.000-07:00

My natural born cowgirl and her side kick hip hop dancer. Ready to round up some candy.

We met up with some crazy friends to make the rounds with.

Don't mess with the ears.

Stopped to take a picture with Payton and Tenley's 2nd grade teacher, Mr. Lewis.

Backyard Movie Night & S'mores

2011-08-09T14:47:00.000-07:00

Planting the friendship flag in the front yard means anyone and everyone is welcome! A summer event we love to have in our backyard is a evening outdoor showing of a movie. We gather all the blankets we can find, put on the coats and pj's, munch on some popcorn and candy while watching a movie amongst mosquito's and dew. Sound fun?

There's so much fun to be found in a backyard with friends!

A tic, tac, toe board created from some beach rocks collected over a previous summer trip.

Roasting S'mores!

Lemonade and Popcorn available all night at the stand.

How many kids can fit in one trampoline?

Even a game of Limbo, the creativity never ends...

Show time!

Sometimes all you need is a river and friends

2011-07-29T16:39:00.000-07:00

Summer Horse Camp

2011-06-25T21:57:00.000-07:00

For Payton's 8th birthday us and all the grandparents got together and sent the two girls to horse camp for the first week of summer. What a blissful week! They had a great time, were worn out at the end of each day and were just plain happy and content. Payton's horse for the week was Skeeter and Ailin started with Hotrod and then moved to Dancer.

Ailin and Hotrod.

Payton and Skeeter.

Killdeer

2011-05-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

The other day we decided to go on a search for the hidden nest of a Killdeer. I had told the girls that when I was growing up these were one of my favorite birds. I love the sound they make. I always remember seeing them in big open gravel lots. I liked that they spent more time on the ground it seemed then in the air. I'm not sure why they pick these areas. We have two large open gravel lots at the beginning of our street. And we've been blissfully listening to the Killdeer calls. So I explained a bit about the Killdeer nest and how they are very difficult to see, and that I've never even seen a Killdeer egg in person and then we started out looking for them. It was the second trip up there that we did find them. The amazing part is the way the Killdeer get so close to you and fain injury when you are close and slowly walk away from you when you start to leave the area of the nest. Leading you away. So armed with this info, when the bird was walking calmly away from us we would turn around. She or he, they both were there, then would scamper back toward us and spread her wings and tail out like she was injured and couldn't fly. The closer she got to us while doing this the closer we got to her nest. Until eventually we spotted 4 pretty little speckled eggs settled in a nest of gravel. After having a good look we quickly left so the poor mama bird didn't get too worked up.

Slugger

2011-05-14T17:17:00.000-07:00

Sworn In

2011-02-23T15:16:00.000-08:00

After three years, Dion was finally sworn in as a
City of Bellingham Police Officer.

It also happened to be his birthday.

Whooo's your valentine?

2011-02-14T15:41:00.000-08:00

One of our favorite valentine card creations to date.

And two of my three favorite valentines.

Our Christmas Tree

2010-12-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

The hunt is on....

The mini tree.

The headless tree.

The hugging tree.

The perfect tree.

This year we went to Small's Northwest Evergreen.

We enjoyed hunting for the perfect tree, feeding the ducks and the

complimentary candy canes.

And this tree is my all time favorite tree.

Ballet Recital Christmas 2010

2010-12-18T13:55:00.000-08:00

Ailin and Rhiannon

Mount Baker Theater

Bethlehem

2010-12-13T23:00:00.000-08:00

A local church puts on this outdoor replication of Bethlehem at the time when Joseph and Mary arrive for the census. We are able to walk down the streets of Bethlehem. Purchase fruit and vegetable from the store fronts, discover there are no rooms available at the Inn and pay our tax. This is our first year attending and we enjoyed it and thought they did a very nice job with the entire production.

Mary and Joseph arriving in Bethlehem.

The birth of Jesus.

My Christmas Wish

2010-12-01T14:58:00.000-08:00

***UPDATE***
We discovered in January while making a visit to buy cat food. Both cats were adopted by separated volunteers at the center just before Christmas. They were both getting too old to compete with the vast supply of kittens and the volunteers couldn't let them stay in those cages any longer. It's nice to know they have a home.

This year in May we lost our cat of 14 years to what looked like pneumonia. A couple weeks earlier, unknown to us at the time, a couple of kittens were born that eventually landed in our house and hearts. These two have been great companions and friends to our two girls. We adopted them from the animal shelter inside PetSmart here in Bellingham. When I was bringing them back one day for one of their kitten shots I learned they had another brother and another sister still there waiting for a home. I was surprised and a little sad that while their brother and sister were playing with homemade cat toys, sleeping in doll cribs, and falling asleep in the beds of their adopted family. These two were still in their small little cage at a store.

Each time I go to the store to buy cat food I visit them. They are still there. They are 7 months old now and don't have as good of a chance of being adopted because they seem to be surrounded by a whole new group of small kittens. Lily, the girl is black with longer hair. She apparently is the only one who looks like her mother, she was also the runt of the litter and wasn't there the day we adopted her brother and sister because of her size. She is cuddly and purrs a lot when she is pet. Logan, her brother is a bit shy. He looks like an exact mix of his brother and sister who are now ours. His body shape and facial expressions are the same as his brother. He even has the black spot on his nose. His coloring is like his sister. I see our two cats when I look at him. He seems to have the same sweet, lover boy disposition of our Casey, and it makes me just want to love him too.

Lily

Logan

We obviously can't adopt them. Two cats are plenty for our family, and I don't want them adopted by someone who can't commit to them for their whole lives. I would love to see them stay together, It is apparent they have bonded, being together since the day they were born. It is also a gift to see the way our two cats love each other and are connected. It's good to know these two have that as well.

Our two, Casey and Quincy

So my Christmas wish is that these two would get a good home soon and together. I've noticed the price is lower. They are each $60 to adopt. That is a good deal taking into consideration they have had all their shots and have been neutered/spayed as well.

It would be wonderful if someone I knew adopted them, I would love to see Logan and Lily out of a cage and with a good family. So much I would even pay for one of the adoption fees. So if you are looking for a couple of cats to love....

Our Reading of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

2010-11-29T21:22:00.000-08:00

As a family we have been slowly reading through the Chronicles of Narnia with the girls at night. We've finished The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian and are currently working our way through The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

Payton is incredibly sharp at all the details of the book and has a great grasp of what is going on. She asks questions often, and sometimes we can answer. These books are not the easiest to read and, occasionally, I am at a loss for what a certain word may mean for the time. But it doesn't lack in excitement. The story is very creative and inventive. Saying that, Ailin does usually fall asleep.

Tonight was especially exciting. I am writing about this particular night of reading to one, remember this time when we are reading these books as a family and two, to specifically be able to recall a funny incident. We are at the part of the story when the crew is on board the Dawn Treader and they are in unchartered territory. They have already had some excitement with dragons. So anything can happen. Here is an excerpt from the book...

Then Lucy looked out the stern windows and said: "Hello! I do believe it's stopping. And what's that?"

They all tumbled up to the poop at this and found that the rain had stopped and that Drinian, who was on watch, was also staring hard at something astern. Or rather, at several things. They looked a little like smooth round rocks, a whole line of them with intervals of about forty feet in between.

"But they can't be rocks," Drinian was saying, "because they weren't there five minutes ago."

"And one's just disappeared," said Lucy.

"Yes, and there's another one coming up," said Edmond.

"And nearer," said Eustace.

"Hang it!" said Caspian. "The whole thing is moving this way."

"And moving a great deal quicker than we can sail, Sire," said Drinian. "It'll be up with us in a minute."

They all held their breath, for it is not at all nice to be pursued by an unknown something either on land or sea. But what it turned out to be was far worse than anyone had suspected.

OK. Here Payton speaks up. "I was going to say sea turtles until they said it was far worse."

Silence for a few seconds.

Then she continues,

"Snapping turtles?"

At this point the suspense was completely gone and in it's place was laughter. I won't finish the excerpt. You'll have to read it yourself to see what was trailing them. As for us. It wasn't quite as menacing as the author most likely intended it to be.

First Snow

2010-11-20T11:44:00.000-08:00

After waiting all week and checking the temperature to see if it was close to 32° the wished for snow finally arrived. Bedtime was delayed about an hour as the snow was beckoning.

First thing in the morning though, they were dressed and ready to play.

2010-10-13T11:19:00.000-07:00

Ailin Turns 5 from Dion Terry on Vimeo.

Museum Day

2010-09-27T21:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday we took advantage of the free museum day. We went to a Children's museum we probably wouldn't have normally gone to, only because of the distance from our house. We had a good time, the museum was fun and had plenty for the girls to do. Payton's favorite part was by far the water area. Especially the raised river flowing down the center of the room. You could move logs around and build dams in different areas of the river in order to change how the currents flow. She spent most of her time there. Ailin loved the tree house. It was a pretty cool tree house with a couple different entrances and a pirates ship wheel at the top as well as a balcony that looked out over part of the museum. Inside the tree house was a dress up box, with pirate garb of course. After the museum we stopped for dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory. A fun Saturday that wore us out!

I want one of these musical benches in my house.

Dressing up in the Treehouse

Payton's River

These were great to. Perfect for Ailin. You press a button and a stream of water is shot into a bucket, there are four different sized buckets. The water makes a sound like a drum roll. We had all four going at once, I'd like this in my house too. I think Ailin would agree.

The view from the trees house and there's Payton's river.

Zambia, Africa

2010-09-20T22:41:00.000-07:00

Well we took Dion to the airport last night and 24 hours later he is still in the air, just about ready to land in South Africa. He still has many hours to go and one more flight before he makes it to his destination, Lusaka, Zambia.

This whole journey began just a couple of months ago. Dion was asking God to use him and along came an offer to go to Africa to work with the Christian organization, Seeds of Hope International Partnerships (SOHIP). He has always wanted to go to Africa and the offer came from a friend who he's worked along side before at his company, Thorn Clothing. At the time he said yes and didn't even think of all that would need to happen in order for him to get to Africa. Needless to say, it has been a busy couple of months getting ready. Passport, vaccinations, prescriptions, packing lists, and funding.

About the funding...God is faithful. We really didn't expect not to be able to pay for the trip because it was obvious to us God was sending him. So He'd take care of it. But knowing that and then seeing Him provide first hand is something greater still. We were blessed beyond our expectations by our friends and family. They were generous in giving to God and because of that Dion is able to follow God on this journey and impact everyone he encounters along the way.

I was able to talk to him just before he boarded his flight in New York for Johannesburg. I'm not sure if there will be opportunities for him to call. There will be updates about the team on Thorn Clothing's Facebook page. Dion took some steps to keep the girls from missing him too much while he is gone. He has written letters for each day that we will read before bed time. They read the first one tonight and in the letter he told them he made them each a CD and hid in under his night stand. Their little faces lit up and they were running to our bedroom before I even finished the sentence. I can't wait to read them tomorrows letter.

Ailin-isms

2010-09-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

I've been holding on to these little Ailin phrases thinking there has to be something creative to do with them, because, man this girl is full of them. So while I'm trying to be creative I'll just post them.

"My heal hurts because I ate too much popcorn".

"Mommy, Nika is a great cat, you know why?" "Why?" "Because she can blend in with dirt."

With the neighbor girl.
Keston: Ailin!
Ailin: I'm at your house!
Keston: I'm at your house!

After listening to me tell her about something I did as a little girl she said,

"Are you going to be little again, because I want to see you do that."

Payton's Baptism

2010-09-06T12:23:00.001-07:00

Blessed beyond all expectations! Payton wanted to be baptized because she wanted to obey God.

It's that simple. Very proud and humbling moment for us.

Purple Sea Stars

2010-08-16T10:59:00.000-07:00

Swimming Lessons

2010-07-25T22:35:00.000-07:00

Here we go! The girls spent two weeks at the pool this summer learning to

do some wild and crazy jumps off the diving board, oh and to swim too.

Children's Art Festival

2010-07-18T11:11:00.000-07:00

This year we finally made it to the Children's Art Festival in Mt. Vernon. We've been told it was a good festival for kids and have been meaning to go each year. The girls had a great time. We weren't planning on staying the whole day, but we did. They crafted and painted, and crafted some more.

These sisters really bonded this summer, they spent all their time together,

so really there wasn't much choice in the matter!

Painting...

Painted...

Crafting...

Meeting a K9 and learning more about what he does.

and playing on stage.

Painting a real dead fish.

Which made for a fun final painting.

We stayed the whole day because Payton won a doodle book and a dozen Krispy Creme donuts at the first raffle drawing. She wanted Ailin to win too, which meant we had to be present for the rest of the drawings. They didn't have any trouble staying busy.

Walk around Lake Padden

2010-06-30T21:49:00.001-07:00

One of our summer adventures.

Kittens

2010-06-25T10:49:00.000-07:00

Quincy & Casey

These two felines couldn't have fit in around here any better. They are the most content and patient cats I know. They are whisked away at bedtime and snuggled with like teddy bears-one to each girl-and they don't sneak out until after the girls fall fast asleep. They put up with sitting in laps for movies, being picked up and carried around whenever they are spotted and they lay quietly and happily in the crib, horse barn, box or just about anywhere.

Missing

2010-06-08T13:48:00.000-07:00

Dear Mrs. Robin,
We were so very excited that you came to our backyard to build your nest. It is a very pretty nest and we think you did a great job. We were so excited to have you here that we moved chairs to sit at the door to watch you, we immediately went to the library to find books about you and your feathery friends. We just couldn't wait to see how many eggs you would lay, watch them hatch and then watch them learn to fly to the roost where Mr. Robin will be sleeping for the next few weeks.

So we are quite concerned that we haven't seen you in a couple of days. Is the nest to small? Did you and Mr. Robin have a spat? I hope there were no cats involved. We think that maybe you have moved on to a better nest, although this one is quite nice. We hope you are just off enjoying some wild single time before you have to sit for 2 weeks on a bunch of eggs. We will be waiting patiently until you return. But if you don't we understand, a nest 2 feet from a trampoline may be a little much.
Patiently waiting,
Your hosts

***UPDATE***She's back!

Building Day

2010-06-06T14:28:00.000-07:00

This morning Ailin and her daddy noticed a mama robin and the beginnings of her nest on part of our pergola. By this afternoon her nest was formed and she was bringing in mud and grasses. We watched her push these into the bottom of her nest with her body. Busy, busy bird. As we learned the last time we had a robins nest in our yard, after the nest is formed she'll lay an egg a day until she's done and then sit for 14 -16 days until they are hatched. Then the constant feeding begins. I loved watching them the last time and am excited to see it all again. Her nest is right outside the kitchen window, so I'll be more inclined to wash the dishes for the next month or so!

Disney World

2010-05-16T16:06:00.001-07:00

We just returned from our first trip to Disney World in Orlando, and the first to any Disney park as a family. The weather was gorgeous. Hot, not humid. No rain or storms as predicted. We flew into summer. Leaving the deceptively sunny days accompanied by an annoying chill at home. The crowds were manageable, we seemed to hit a week with nothing huge planned at the park, which apparently is rare. And the magic was everywhere. We had dinner with Princesses, breakfasts with Mickey Mouse and his many friends. The girls collected hugs, smiles, autographs and pictures from fairy godmothers, Mary Poppins and Burt, an Alien and countless other characters scattered throughout the parks. We were amazed by the shows. The Circle of Life and Finding Nemo were the favorites. I watched my oldest daughter marvel at the dancers with a smile that was a bright as the stage lights. They were brave as they conquered Splash Mountain, and then returned to do it again. They were delighted by It's a Small World, as were we, remembering it when we were young. (I know the song is now in your head). The were lit from the inside when they met their favorite characters of all time, and then were pampered and transformed into smaller versions of their favorite characters. They were loved tremendously by their extended family and made lasting bonds and memories. It was a magical vacation.

Drive in Movie Night

2010-04-07T13:02:00.000-07:00

We like boxes here. So far we've made a castle, a gingerbread house, barns, treehouses and forts. Today we made a car. The girls are taking it to church tonight for drive in movie night. They get to watch UP in their car with snacks and PJ's. Sounds fun.

M's take the A's (last season!)

2010-03-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when our little family of four plus two recruited grandparents travel into A's territory to join 11 more family members, I should mention, they are A's fans.

Doing the wave

My Little Mariners Fans standing ground amongst a sea of A fans

Easter with Family in 2009

2010-03-28T14:19:00.000-07:00

Sun Day

2010-03-25T10:56:00.000-07:00

Have we forgotten how to have fun? This is such a simple, yet powerful thing the Principal and his staff did for the kids.

There have been a few negative comments about this day, 'this is what tuition is going to, they'll stay home a play video games anyway, tax payers money'. Silly stuff, (none of which came from anyone associated with the school or families of the school), none of it holds up to the positives that can come out of giving a gift of one day to someone.

Yesterday was a gift to the kids of BCS and the parents, I for one think my tuition went a long way yesterday! Thank you to the Principal and the Teachers, they are a model to kids that adults can still have fun, life isn't just work, technology and stuff. I hope these kids remember that in every day life they can still find the joy and fun....

Mischief Managed

2010-03-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

We've always loved St. Patrick's Day at our house. As the girls and their Dad have a we bit o' Irish blood in them. I'm only Irish by marriage.

This year though is the first time we've actually been visited by those mischievious munchkins. Yes, we had a really live Leprechaun in our house last night. How else could you explain the chaos we found our house in the next morning?

They tipped over chairs, opened every cupboard and drawer they could find, left glitter all over the table, they even took every pair of the girls shoes out of their closets and left them on the stairs. (It was kind of funny watching the cat work her way down the stairs in a zig zag pattern). And I'm not sure how the girls slept, because those pesky gold hoarders piled every stuffed animal they owned on top of their beds.

Payton and Ailin did make a trap for them. We heard if you capture a leprechaun they are forced to tell you where the gold is. The girls were hoping to make him tell us where the pot of gold was hiding, I was rather hoping for that too. But they are quite clever. And prepared. We didn't count on him having a rope with him, so he was able to climb right out. But he left his rope, so hopefully one of you caught him later in the night.

We had to have breakfast with green milk, because they apparently can get into the refrigerator. And as I'm sitting here, I think the white carnations we have are turning green too! But the kicker, they seem to have no manners when it comes to being a guest, if that wasn't obvious before, they stepped in green paint and left footprints all over our kitchen floor!

Next year we'll have to get more creative with our traps, if not just for the pot of gold, he should stick around to help clean up! Although, it was nice of him to leave chocolate coins after every prank.

My Little Gymnast

2010-03-09T17:07:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I forget Ailin is growing up too. She was the baby, and while Payton was involved in Gymnastics, Horse Lessons, School and Ballet, Ailin was toddling around while we sat on the sidelines. Now that she's older she has been patiently waiting her turn. For the last 6 months or so she has been wanting to do Gymnastics. And her day finally came. I can tell by the smile she had the whole time that it was everything she dreamed it to be. She was a champ.

One Less Tooth

2010-03-01T22:22:00.000-08:00

So I'm realizing it's never just about loosing a tooth. After tooth number four fell out, I could see that there are-and are going to be more, memorable stories behind each lost tooth. I've never claimed to have the greatest memory, so I thought it was best to tell the story of how each tooth was lost here, so when asked about it many years later, I don't have to admit, I can't remember!

Tooth One: Very wiggly, yet it snuck up on us, we didn't even realize she had a loose tooth until it was nearly ready to come out. I remember Payton's expression when I asked her if she wanted me to pull it. You could see instantly her processing what that meant and she stated she would get back to me later with an answer. Needless to say she never did. All it took was lunch with a bagel. She was sssssooooo very excited because she would finally get a tooth pillow from her Kindergarten teacher the next day. I seriously think she was waiting the whole year for that. After getting the pillow, she wanted to carry it around all evening with the tooth in it. Twice the tooth refused to stay in the pocket and I had to search the carpet hoping to find the tiny thing. We did, both times.

Tooth Two: This one we almost lost completely. She lost it at school while eating her snack. The teacher placed it in a zip bag and sent it home with a note to me. Yet I couldn't find the zip bag. After a few emails the teacher was able to find the zip bag in the classroom garbage can. It was so small that the bag looked empty. The tooth fairy was watching out for her teeth yet again.

Tooth Three: Her first front tooth. It was very loose for a long time. At a friend's birthday sleepover it became so loose it was just barely hanging on. Her friend's dad said they were considering pulling it the whole evening. But decided not to. So when we arrived home I asked to look at it, while looking I pulled on it quickly. Out it popped. I'll never forget the look on her face, surprise, what did you just do to me mom, and then a smile.

Tooth Four: PE. A boys head, and out it came. It wasn't even quite ready. She went to the office and was comforted by her fabulous Kindergarten teacher, because well, that is a traumatic way to loose a tooth. (I think the tooth fairy paid double for that one).

Tooth Five: PE. The same boys head. This time it only knocked one loose that wasn't at all loose before. She wiggled and wiggled it for a while. With the intention of having her 1st grade teacher pull it. She apparently has a reputation for pulling teeth at the school. And she must do a good job because it's a desirable way to loose a tooth there!

Tooth Six: This girl is loosing teeth like crazy. Today she was playing with her sister. Fell on the slate entry way. Didn't realize she knocked a tooth out, one that was just beginning to loosen up. She was frozen in front of the mirror worried about where all the blood was coming from. She was ok, and the tooth was waiting for her where she fell.

Queen Snake Girl

2010-03-01T13:44:00.001-08:00

This face shows Pure Joy. Sunday was beautiful. Sunny and warm. We ventured out into the neighborhood with the dog and a bike and the neighbor friends. Our dog happened upon a nest of Garner snakes. And if you've been around here awhile, this is very good news for Payton. Pure Joy.

Look away if snakes are not your thing...

They had 8 crazy snakes at one time, 9 if you count the one that didn't make it.

All the kids eventually picked them up and overcame their fears to hold these squiggly little guys. It brought about an hour of excitement. I am not exaggerating though when I say that there is absolutely NO hesitation when Payton, Queen of Snakes, reaches for them. If she hesitated they wouldn't have had 8 to play with. She has no fear.

I love seeing the sun on these bright little faces. I'm so glad spring is showing up early around here.

And Kaya deserves a big thank you for the discovery...

The Beginnings of a Cowgirl

2010-01-04T18:21:00.000-08:00

There really isn't an animal created that Payton doesn't love. She's been cuddling them since before she could crawl. I know she longs for a kitten and a horse of her own. Here she is taking horseback riding lessons for the first time. This is Getter. I told her she will always remember the name of the first horse she rides. I remember my first horse lessons, I learned on a horse named Rojo. She was told that while she's with a horse she gets to be the boss, she can boss her around as much as she wants. That was a rather successful statement. She took control quite naturally and was doing it all in no time.

Doesn't she look great on top of a horse? It was quite fulfilling for me to see her riding and loving it so much. She's becoming a cowgirl. We were talking about new years resolutions or wishes and I asked her to think of one thing she might like to accomplish this year. She came back with a drawing of a farm and the words "build a farm." She's dreaming big!

A Few Christmas Highlights

2010-01-04T11:28:00.000-08:00

This is Chrismas Eve. The girls are about to open their PJ's and Webkinz.
Aren't these the best gifts-when the excitement can't be contained?

Pure Joy.

This is the first year all was done and ready by bedtime. I could have gone to bed at a decent hour for once. No packages to wrap, no toys to assemble. But did we get to bed early? Nope, had to wait for the excited little girlies to fall asleep first. They just couldn't do it. The anticipation for the morning was just too much...

Let the unwrapping begin....

When Ailin visited Santa this year she told him she wanted a pink puppy, a brush and a mirror. I was sure she must have seen that set up on a commercial. So we searched websites, we searched stores for this elusive pink dog and her fancy salon. Couldn't find it. Let alone just a pink dog with some hair to comb! (When Payton was little she asked Santa for a fish and water; smart of her to think of the water. Now that I could do, there's a whole store dedicated to that kind of thing.) So back to the pink pup. Three days before Christmas we found the three different aspects at Yaeger's and pieced them together in one gift. She was thrilled.

Grandpa got the most unusually present of the year. This is the mask part of the costume for Davy Jones from Pirates of the Carribean.

Having Grandma and Grandpa and cousin Alex celebrate
Christmas with us was the best part of our holiday!

And this is how our wonderful Christmas Day ended.

Christmas Eve Sleeping Babes

2009-12-24T23:15:00.000-08:00

December 24th, 2009

Payton sleeping with her new Christmas pj's and her Koala Webkinz, to be later named Katy.

Ailin sleeping with her new Christmas pj's and her Jaguar Webkinz, already named Aleah.

December 24th, 2008

Payton sleeping in her new pj's and her first Christmas Webkinz dolphin, Crystal. This was the first year I tucked a Webkinz into the jammies. While out shopping with Payton, she decided she wanted to buy a Webkinz for her sister who had previously owned the deer in October for her birthday but...it was one of those rare toys that just vanished. There was a buy one get one half off sale, so I got two. But the tradition comes to begin when Payton was convinced that this was going to be the Christmas eve present Ailin just had to open. I wasn't about to give up the pj's as a Christmas eve present so we wrapped it inside. It was so much fun it's now the standard tradition!

Ailin sleeping in her Christmas pj's and her first (well technically second) Webkinz deer, Serra.

December 24th, 2007

I fear these are lost forever; or stuck somewhere inside my crashed hard drive.

December 24th, 2006

Payton sleeping in her Christmas Eve footy snowman pj's in green.

Ailin sleeping in her footy snowman pj's in blue.

December 24th, 2005

Still looking for these. Could I really have forgotten to take pictures of Ailin's first Christmas Eve?

December 24th, 2004

Christmas number two, her last as an only child. More just makes it better!

December 24th, 2003

Payton's first Christmas. She was 7 months old.

This Years Advent Calendar

2009-12-01T21:00:00.000-08:00

Happy December! And so begins the Advent Calendars!!

We love our traditional Advent Christmas books and are still doing them this year. With a little something new. Along with opening one new book each night and reading it together we added some advent activity cards. The girls get to open the card with the current date on the front and inside is an activity to do for that day.

Today's activity was to do a Christmas Craft. (Crafts are a big hit in this house, Payton could spend her whole day doing them if I had enough prepared!) These cute little trees were the final result.

Some of the activities are "Go Pick Out a Christmas Tree," "Drink Hot Cocoa with Fancy Marshmallows," "Take Food to the Food Bank," "Watch The Polar Express," and "Sleep under the Christmas Tree."

What's your Christmas Advent Tradition?

Leaf Jumping

2009-10-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

Her Happy 4th

2009-10-23T13:20:00.000-07:00

Starting her birthday off right, with colorful decorations and berry topped waffles. I love celebrating my girls! The birthday girl always has a special decorated chair when she wakes up in the morning. It's evolved to even decorating her room so a smile hits her face first thing.

Her first party was a dinner at home with family. Below are just a few pictures of her happy day.

Ailin has been asking for a guitar since Christmas of last year. I do not know where she got the idea, or where she may have saw one up close. She finally got her wish! Now we are gonna have to learn to play it.

I found these great kitchen tools made especially for kids. They are great. I find myself using the measuring spoons myself!

This apron I made to go along with the kitchen supply theme, I'm currently making a second for her sister.

The next morning was time for her birthday party with friends. Can you guess the theme?

This little girl and all her happy little guests were going to be cheerleaders for a day. We had the party at our friends gym here in town, home of the Silverstars.

There were two birthdays girls at this event. Our neighbor and friend Hanna shares a birthday with Ailin. Same day, same year, Hanna was born the 9 am hour in New York, and Ailin was born the 9 pm hour in Washington. They share a lot of the same neighborhood friends, so it makes sense to share the party while they are still young. It's great to have the extra help planning and pulling it off.

Two real live cheerleaders were there to teach the guests a few moves. They taught them a small cheer and took them through a tumbling routine. They were loving this!

Then we had pizza and cupcakes topped with licorice pom poms.

And made a megaphone craft. Hanna's little sister Ania was loving the stickers!

This gym is where Ailin has her preschool. It's such a great space. Perfect for a birthday party!

Ailin you are 4! Hoping you have just as much fun this coming year as you did the last!

Last day of 3

2009-10-12T16:46:00.000-07:00

This little one will be 4 tomorrow.

Ailin, I have enjoyed four years of your snuggles, hugs and cuddles. I've wondered at your natural joy and your genuine laughs. You have brought us too many smiles to count. You are adventurous and full of spirit. You have a crazy sense of humor and bring laughter to us each day. I have watched you thoroughly enjoy your first 4 years of life and I pray that you will have many more years of joy to come! I love you! Happy Birthday!

Ailins 1st Day of Preschool

2009-09-15T20:35:00.000-07:00

Ailin is now a preschooler. She was thoroughly excited when she first discovered her school, met her teacher, packed her first lunch bag, and set off to her very first day.

For first and last days of school, birthdays and special celebrations, we wake up to a crepe breakfast with our own picked berries and a decorated chair at the breakfast table. Ailin was so full of happiness upon seeing her chair, I lost count of how many hugs she gave me. She was also very thankful I laid out her clothes for her the night before. Who knew?

She is my Little Star. Technically I am one of her teachers, but I'm not sure she understands how to process that. I am still called mom, and when she talks about her teacher it's Miss Danielle. I'm ok with that, I think it's great I get to see who she is at school!

I love this girl's smiles, she never runs out. You can still find one just under the surface even during her grumpy moments.

Berries

2009-08-31T21:24:00.000-07:00

So this year we continued our tradition of berry picking.
We began with strawberries. We did attend the strawberry festival again this year and enjoyed all the fun festivities, especially the magic show by Sterling Deitz. I think we have enjoyed our own home grown strawberries much more this year. It is late August and we are still getting bowls of strawberries! I'm considering adding a second garden next year just for strawberries. Ailin's getting a bit better at picking only the red ones, but she still eats the occasional whites.

Then we tackled the raspberries and blueberries. My friend Shawn introduced me to Bjornstead farms. I was thrilled about this farm. Very good prices and large delicious berries, and lots of them too. It's our new favorite berry farm. Grandma and Grandpa come over every August from North Idaho to pick a years worth of blueberries to take back with them. We both picked more blueberries than ever this year. 1o buckets!

We've currently been picking the free wild blackberries growing all over our neighborhood. So far 5 quarts are in the freezer and we've been enjoying blackberries over vanilla ice cream! I love that picking berries is a normal and fun thing for our girls to do. I know it is and will always be a special memory for them. It's something they can be proud of each time we make blueberry pancakes for breakfast or berry crepes for Christmas morning or special days of celebration.

We are planning on picking huckleberries next summer when we visit Grandma and Grandpa in Idaho. I'll have to learn how to make huckleberry syrup to top our pancakes!

Gift for Giving

2009-07-09T21:37:00.000-07:00

This is a thank you gift I received for watching three cats for my friends and neighbors Shawn and Mady while they were on a family vacation. This tag was attached to a reusable Trader Joe's bag with the foods you see listed inside. Isn't this the greatest gift idea ever? Shawn has a gift for giving, and her daughter is following in her footsteps...This tag was attached to another bag filled with books from Mady's own library.

I know there are tons of people around here who have received an incredible, creative and thoughtful gift from Shawn. And many more have received a meal in a time of need or celebration. I just wanted to say thank you to Shawn for so generously giving of yourself to so many people. She, I'm sure would rather I didn't post this because she genuinely gives out of love for others and not for praise. But I wanted you to know Shawn that you are an example of how we should love our neighbors and you are truly appreciated!

And...it was rather rough watching the cats.

Offerings

2009-07-08T21:18:00.000-07:00

There is a gap in the fence that separates our backyard from the backyard of our good friends.
Besides talking to one another through the boards, treasures such as flowers, notes, and small toys have been passed through. They have even traded strawberries from each others gardens.

July 4th

2009-07-04T23:00:00.000-07:00

Our day was spent at a couple of local parks, with family and friends. We spent the evening waiting to watch the Bellingham Bay fireworks from Boulevard Park. It was a nice show and a fun time.

Trampoline Antics

2009-06-18T17:39:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa came for a visit and left joy in our backyard. Little miss Payton has been asking for a trampoline since she took gymnastics when she was three. Well her wish finally came true.

We've been out there every day and evening since the thing landed in our backyard. It's brought laughs, creativity, prevention from boredom and a bit of exercise as well.

We've been learning and creating trampoline games and the like. Thought I'd share. If you know of any fun and inventive games, please pass them along.

Crack the Egg (or Nut-as it's called here). One person (the nut) rolls into a ball (arms wrapped around knees to chest) in the center of the trampoline and the others bounce around them trying to get them to unroll or 'crack'.

Tip the Genie. Similar to the above game. One person sits in the center crossed legs with hands up (like you're meditating) or with your hands on your knees. The rest of the energetic little bouncers try to tip the genie over.

Bucking Alligator (or whichever animal is handy). We have a large water toy shaped like an alligator. It has a handle on the shoulder, one person ride's the alligator like you would a bull in a rodeo and the others try to bounce them off. This one is a workout for the bouncers legs and stomach muscles as you are laughing hysterically at how high the riders can be bounced without actually falling off.

Jump the Snake. Two people sit on opposite ends of the trampoline and wiggle a jump rope on the surface of the trampoline and the third person jumps over it. If the snake touches the person she trades with one of the holders. The snake can be as wiggly as the ability level of the jumper.

Speaking of snakes, one was found on our front doorstep the other day, don't they realize by now who lives here?

Duck, Duck, Goose. (or cheese, cheese, mouse or whatever you call the game) Played the same as on the ground.

Reverse Limbo. Using the jump rope, two people hold it taught and continue to increase the height as a jumper sees how high they can jump over the rope without touching it.

Follow the Leader or Add On. First one is self explanatory, the second, one person does a trick the next does the same trick then adds something and the third does the first two tricks then adds something and on and on until someone messes up.

Seat Bounce Competition or Pattern. See how many seat bounces you can do in a row, or what kind of pattern you can create.

Bouncy Balls. Adding all shapes and sizes of balls to the trampoline while bouncing.

Spray Park Trampoline. Place a sprinkler under the trampoline on a hot sunny day.

Or just bring out a CD player and put in some lively music and just bounce.

We like the song Popcorn.

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for the summer fun!

Chore Charts

2009-06-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

We've been using these little computer created chore charts for a few weeks now. They are working very well. My 6 year old can read the chores and place stickers where appropriate on her own, she or myself help our 3 year old with reading the chores and placing the stickers only where they belong. They have been very excited about doing chores. This is our first real practice with daily chores. They have always been expected to help clean up in any way that's needed in the past. This just gives them their own responsibilities.

Since it's a hard copy on my computer I can update chores as things change. For the Spending time with God entry. We have given the girls each a CD of worship songs that they like to sing out loud. They each go to their rooms and play the CD. Payton likes to read from her new bible and Ailin likes to look through hers. I like listening to them sing from behind their closed little doors. It is definetly something I hope becomes a lasting habit around here.

So far I have an abundance of little stickers around the house. I have yet to shop for cheap replacements. I imagine you could find good deals here and there, dollar sections from Target or craft stores, or Walmart. Another option would be to purchase a stamp set. That makes me a bit nervous as all ink does in my house, but it may be more cost effective. I personally like the variety of stickers they can choose from.

Party Girl

2009-06-15T14:37:00.000-07:00

Party #1
Birthday morning started with our traditional celebration breakfast. Crepes stuffed with cream and fruit. We spent the day together as a family and the evening with friends for a Memorial Day BBQ.

Payton with her sister.

This little girl is 6. I still think of her as 5.

Party #2
The school party of course. No pictures, as I wasn't there. She brought cupcakes and was the helper all day. She was serenaded with a birthday song and got to pick a gift from the birthday box. She was very excited. Being the end of the year, she's seen nearly all her other classmates celebrate their birthdays. Anticipation makes it that much more enjoyable.

Party #3

11 girls.
11 pieces of cake.
11 scoops of ice cream.
11 sleeping bags.
11 pillows.
11 glow in the dark lanterns.
11 make your own pizzas.
11 colorful gifts.

11,ooo giggles.

The cake.

A gluten and dairy free cake. (except the vanilla waffer).

Blowin' out the candles.

Watching the big screen movie.

Party #4
We celebrated with family at our house for brunch and waffle sundaes. Yum! I threw away a lot of cake from past birthday parties, but we didn't throw away any of these.

Our choice of toppings...bananas, strawberries, pineapple, chocolate, caramel, m&m's, whipped cream, and of course, ice cream all stacked up on a nice warm waffle.

The gifts from family were all about clothes. She does like getting clothes for her birthday, see the smile? I like her getting clothes too.

Until next year....

From 5 to 6 in pictures

2009-06-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

Payton is 6!!! from Dion Terry on Vimeo.

Goodbye 5

2009-05-24T17:37:00.001-07:00

Our 5 special moments of the day

A special morning at the park

A special surprise visit with the cousins

A special new charm bracelet from Mely

A special accomplishment

A special treat for a special 'nearly' 6 year old

I can imagine us having 100 kittens

2009-05-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

Payton wakes up tomorrow to her last day as a 5 year old.

This week she has been focused on learning two things, riding her bike without training wheels and whistling. She is getting quite good at them both. Her dad has been teaching her. Today she put the brakes on and skidded to a halt and said she left a birth mark.

I can't believe she'll be 6 and starting first grade next year. She has a busy spring. Turning 6. Her first ballet recital. Kindergarten Graduation.

I was looking back through her baby book and remembering when she was first born. The first thing the doctors noticed was how long her eyelashes were. She used to laugh uncontrollably when she was 9 months old while I bounced a ball up in the sky. She loved her dogs and would crawl all over them as a toddler. From the age of two shes loved snakes and frogs. She has yet to find her first frog or snake this year, but she's looking. Last year just before turning 5 she cut her own hair because she was hot and sweaty. It was down to the middle of her back and she cut it just above her ears.

Payton is a loving, nurturing girl. Nearly everyday she creates something for her sister. It can be in the form of a card or some fort in a corner of the house. She loves to give. Today she made me (with dads help) a cup of coffee with one of her drawings on a card to go with it. Then after breakfast she, without me knowing, decided to clean my room to surprise me, she thought it would make me happy since my "room is always messy".

She is a doodler. She loves to draw and she is very good at it. When she was three and four she would draw giraffes. She was the only person I've known who knew what ossicones were. google it.

She is my little camp counselor. Some of her favorite moments are when she has a few friends over and she gets to orchestrate the whole playdate.

She would love to own a bunny. Or 100 kittens.

Tomorrow we decided to do five special things while going through our day... and something about balloons that I'm not quite sure about.

One more thing, she will always be my baby.

Tan lines. Or mud lines?

2009-05-01T14:53:00.000-07:00

Happy May Day!

Sunny. Warm. No (or minimal) wind!

We enjoyed the afternoon outside today, and had a
glimpse of the lazy summer days to come.

Words from Ailin

2009-03-26T10:21:00.000-07:00

I don't know where she first got this statement, but she has been saying it often.

"I lub you mom, I'm gonna keep you porever."

While driving a while back when the sun was out and we had the windows down. It seems like it has been many, many months since we've driven with the windows down. It is nice to see little glimpses of the summer to come.

Me: "Is it too windy back there?"
Ailin: "No, It's not, I'm not blowing away see? I'm buckled."

She makes me laugh

2009-03-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

Ailin: Mom can I please buy a rainbow?

Mom: You want to buy a rainbow?

Ailin: Yah.

Mom: Oh, where do you want to put it?

Ailin: In my room.

Last week it was a roller coaster. In her house.

UPDATE:

today we painted rainbows.

Devyn-ism

2009-03-14T16:15:00.000-07:00

'Boo' -Devyn, our guest baby.

The name she has for our dog, whom she just loves.

She also likes taking her bone.

The dog has been lovin' on her big sister.

Sorry about the germs Chloe.

The 6 hour sandwich

2009-03-12T18:54:00.000-07:00

My parenting technique when it comes to food is "I make the food, they can eat it". If they don't want to, the next meal is when the next meal is. Unless I'm making something I know they won't like (really, really spicy food for example) I don't do choices for dinners. Making two different meals in one day to me feels like I robbed myself of an idea for dinner on another night. So really, my kids know they should try everything before they decide it's inedible, they are pretty good about eating their food in general, and when they choose not to, they know it's pointless to ask for something else, they just wait till breakfast or the next meal.

Well lately, I've been trying hard to save money in the grocery budget. It can be a struggle at times, I want them to eat healthy (and organic if possible). But for everyone money is tight. Payton likes this one particular type of bread. Nothing special, just plain old wheat bread. It's just not the cheapest and it hardly ever goes on sale. To set the stage...I got a great deal on a loaf of bread the other day and made the girls turkey sandwiches with mayo and mustard, no dreaded cheese. (trying to be fair). You know something she'd like. Plus I bought some extra snacks that are not usually around because we have a couple of extra kids here this week. Well, something happened when I saw three little girls with plates empty of all the great snacks and fruit and on each plate was one whole uneaten sandwich. Whatever my philosophy was at the time flew out the window and I calmly stated that today we were not leaving the table until we finished all of our sandwich. Yep, it came out of my mouth for all to hear and therefore, now I had to enforce it. I was calm and smiley the whole time as they practiced not so good table manners hanging out at the table eating nothing. Ailin began to nibble while the fun table time was happening. 45 minutes later she finished hers. And proceeded to leave the table. Chloe was behind her by about 15 minutes.

But my sweet stubborn Payton. She actually sat with her sandwich without even taking a bite for 90 more minutes. By that time the other two were out playing in the sun. Payton had a headache from crying and asked to lie down. Not being a completely cruel mom, I let her and she fell asleep for about an hour. When she woke up I gave her the choice to eat her sandwich then or at dinner time. The rest of us were having spaghetti and garlic bread, which is one of her favorites.

Fast forward to dinner time. She sat and watched us eat her fave food and still refused to eat. I was thinking of the dreaded breakfast to come...finally she decided to talk about it and we decided to grill her sandwich up, (I am nothing if not willing to be flexible). So by 6:00, she had eaten the pesky little sandwich. I filled her plate with spaghetti and bread and she was the cheeriest of all little girls!

Lesson learned? For Payton and her ability to eat bread-we'll see. For me and opening my big mouth? Yep, lesson learned.

A tooth and a bagel

2009-03-04T22:34:00.000-08:00

My first baby is growing into a child. Sure, I know that usually happens. But sometimes things just happen that shouts out "their growing up!" It usually brings tears to my eyes and makes me beam with pride. Then I just gotta squeeze her so I swoop down to pick her up and realize just how big she is getting. It's vicious. Isn't there another option?

Today was a milestone in her journey to bigness. She lost her first tooth.

She was so darn excited when we saw it wiggle (quite a bit) yesterday. I know, I must not be paying much attention when I brush those little teeth. But yes we only just discovered it yesterday. She really wanted it out and asked me to pull it at one point, then said she'd get back to me later about that.

No need. She ate a bagel and left the tiny little white tooth on her plate without even realizing it.

"Mom, now every time I have a loose tooth. I'm just going to eat a bagel"

Well it's a good thing I just brought home a dozen Costco bagels.
The tooth right next to the hole is wiggly.

And the winner is..

2009-02-28T21:19:00.001-08:00

Congratulations Kimberly!
I'll bring your gift to you on Wednesday.

Paperwork

2009-02-27T21:02:00.000-08:00

This little idea that I'm sharing is something I heard about a year ago and at the time I thought it was adding something to my desk instead of eliminating. And eliminating is what we are all wanting to do with paperwork. But I've been noticing that I have many of these things already floating around in different places in the house and this might just be a solution after all. I first heard the idea from a local organization company called Organized at Last. I've heard the owner speak a couple of times and I think she has a great company and does a lot to help people become organized. I've also heard Real Simple sells a product like this as well. I just made my own, and not including the cost of paper, printer ink and my time it cost me less than $12.

I call this little notebook my home operations manual. If you're more creative than me I'm sure you could come up with a better title. Basically it's a notebook that contains any information that you need to have accessible for the daily running of your household. You can tailor it to the specific lifestyles of your family. Anything that falls under the category gets kept there. For example, one of my categories is phone numbers. If you have three kids in school, you belong to a bible study and and a moms group. You most likely have a phone lists for each of those areas of life. They can be hole punched and filed under the phone number category and you always know where to go for a number.

It's just a plain three ring binder with pocket dividers (the pockets are important). You can add other things as well like business card holders.

Here's a few suggestions for categories and just a few things I've thought of to put in. These are all tailored to your specific needs so this would look different for each family.

Phone Numbers - class lists, neighbors, relatives, kids friends, groups, work emergency numbers.
Calendars - school year calendars, work schedules, clubs, groups, birthdays, a master calendar.
Home Care - emergency plan, address, phone #, garbage/recycling days, utility lists and numbers, babysitter instructions, house sitter instructions, pet instructions, location of shut off valves, location of fire extinguishers, smoke detector battery check date, home alarm information.
Holiday and Vacation Planning - lists, ideas, collection of resources(brochures), local/seasonal activities, camping lists, family favorite locations, timeshare information, birthday planning, gift wish list for family members, packing lists.
Home Projects/Wishes and Dreams - magazine clip outs for ideas you love, gardening schedules, lawn care schedules, home repairs, budget lists, home improvement.
Activities and Clubs - church info, memberships, clubs, awana, camps, ballet, lessons, etc., local resources, schedule of local activities.
Meal Planning - restaurant menus, templates for weekly/monthly meal planning, shopping lists, seasonal favorite foods, family favorite foods.
Family & Individual Goals - things to accomplish.

Thanks to my friends Shawn and Chantel for sharing your ideas for categories. I especially love the camping idea. Shawns family loves to camp and it's not just sleeping in a tent when you camp with them. She makes yummy gourmet camp food, brings creative crafts for her kids and plans appropriate activities. What a great place for her to keep delicious recipes and great craft activities so she's just a few steps ahead the next time she goes camping.

Thanks for sharing your comments and tips on organizing. There are a lot of great ideas. I get most of my ideas from hearing what works and doesn't work for my friends and other moms. I think it is great when we share with each other and help each other out by sharing our strengths.

So who wants to help me out with my wardrobe 'style' and shopping. So not a strength with me!

You all have one more day to leave a comment. Either share a tip or ask a question. (Or tell me where to shop:)) Tomorrow at say around 7:38 pm (or whenever) I'll randomly pick a winner. You'll get your own Home Operations Manual with a list of category ideas and 8 pocket tabs all ready for you to personalize for your family.

The snow is back

2009-02-26T09:11:00.000-08:00

It's a beautiful day! I love seeing all the trees covered with snow. The sun is out so I'm sure it won't be around for too long. We'll be out enjoying it while it lasts. Payton's school was postponed until the afternoon, so they've already been out making snow angels!

Book Boxes

2009-02-25T21:06:00.000-08:00

This is a flower box purchased from Lowes that Payton and I painted and decorated with wood pieces from Joannes. We did this about 2 years ago. It held her CD's for her stereo in her room. But...once Ailin began to walk and climb she was always into the CD's, so it then became a catchall for random things.

This is what happened when I started to look for a place for her books. They were in her closet in a basket, now they are read much more often. My plan is to do this in Ailin's room too and also in the downstairs closet maybe with longer boxes. Apparently it's still winter here and the stores aren't carrying flower boxes yet. We'll call this a summer project then.

I still like baskets for books too. We keep one in the living room mostly during the summer months when we visit the library. This helps me to keep track of them too.

Anybody have some other tips for organizing books? I'm sure one day I'll have to break down and buy a bookshelf. But until then I still have many more kids books that could use a clever system. I love all the tips you all are leaving so far!

The next organization post I'll reveal the giveaway prize ...

Toys, toys and more toys

2009-02-24T14:44:00.001-08:00

Less is more when it comes to toys, unless you own a toy store!

At any given point in the day, if I were to look around my floors in my house, the majority of clutter is made up of toys. It can be overwhelming, especially if it feels like you are always picking up and never actually get around to the cleaning part.

This is one area I feel I've got down. Before being a mom I created and ran after school programs. Being in charge of the budget, I was determined to keep the supplies for the kids from being lost or damaged. Now, I'm still the same way, as I am still in charge of the budget!

My system has been tested over and over and for me it has worked each time. A few weeks ago when we had extra kids in our house for a weekend, It never took me more than 2o minutes to put away toys. My girls have friends over quite often and it's easy for them as well to clean up before the play date ends. (Now if I can just have as good a system with dishes!)

So here goes. My unprofessional advice on organizing toys...

Dedicated space for toys. Look honestly at the space you have and decide where you want to have the toys.

When the girls were babies I had a big basket in the living room. This worked well because
1. that's where we spent time together, and 2. they didn't play on their own anyway at that age.

As they grew up and became quite mobile in their playing, I didn't really enjoy toys in the living room, I know, shocker! But I do have one toy area in the family room, the rest of the toys are in 4 other spaces.

the girls rooms (that's 2)
a closet under the stairs (1) and
an odd shaped closet upstairs(1)

Closet under the stairs.

Provide homes (containers) for each type of toy. Find what works for you and your style and budget.

I like plastic containers the best, the one's I use have handles on the lid and are easy for the girls to open and close. They are just the right size for the shelves in their rooms. (I found these at Joannes, they are often 50% off). I've used baskets before and still use them for other things, but I found they weren't durable enough for toys and daily play. When my kids are playing with a certain type a toy, there is always the container right there with them, making it easier to put away when they are done. This alone is worth spending money on containers. :) They don't need to be pricey, but they do earn their keep. I think it's my greatest tool for keeping the toys usable and organized.

Payton's room.

Ailin's room.

This is the linen closet in Shawn's house, she decided to remove
toys from Keston's room and dedicated this shelf for her toys.
All the containers are labeled and easy to reach.

Labeling is a great idea here for helping the kids learn to put away their own toys. If they aren't reading yet add a picture with the words as well. This is something I haven't done yet, but know I should. Baby steps!

Large toys. They seem to find their own space, for example the doll house contains it's own accessories and claims a spot against the wall in the girls room. Some toys have a part that is larger, for example pet shop animals all belong in one container, but the clubhouse to the set won't fit, so it has it's own spot right next to the container on the shelf. Still together. Some things don't need containers. Example; the light bright. It just has its own home on the shelf.

Large collections. In our house it's dress up clothes and stuffed animal accessories (like dress up clothes for animals). It could be train tracks and the like, trucks, legos. My solution is large plastic containers that slide under the bed. In Keston's room we used a tall basket for dress up clothes that fits perfectly in the corner of the closet. The main thing is that it has a home that is easy for the kids to get things out of, and put them back into quickly and easily.

A toy box could work too. I generally don't like toy boxes for the purpose of putting a variety of toys in. It's hard to find and play with one thing and it's hard to keep track of the pieces or parts. But if you use the toy box for one type of toy, it works great as a container. We have three toy boxes. One with horse toys in the family room. One with stuffed animals in Payton's room. And one with all the Fisher Price Little People and their buildings in Ailin's room.

Games and Puzzles.

What I don't like about puzzles and games are the boxes. They don't hold up, and they take up a lot of space. But since I have this triangular shaped closet that wasn't being used well, I've put the games there and actually really like it. The closet is right outside the girls rooms so it works in keeping the toys somewhat centralized.

We have more games down stairs in the closet under the stairs. Most of these I've thrown out the box. I put the game pieces in a ziplock bag, labeled it and then put them all together in one box on the shelf. The game boards all stay together and slide right next to the box of pieces on the shelf. Another idea for the game boards is putting velcro on the back of the boards and fasten them to the walls of a playroom or play closet. This can double as art. :)

I do the same thing with puzzles. Remove the box and contain all the pieces in a ziplock bag. If you want you can make a mark on the back of the puzzle pieces. For example one puzzle has a blue square on the back of the pieces. Another puzzle has a green triangle. Or you can label with the name. This helps you put the right pieces back together if they happen to get all mixed up. All the puzzle bags are in one box on the shelf. Lots of space is saved this way. So what about the picture? If you need the picture consider photocopying the box and keeping them all in one folder tucked on the shelf next the the puzzle box.

Miscellaneous Toys.

Not all toys belong to a collection, yet some seem to be quite special to their kids.
In Ailins' room I have a treasure basket at the bottom of her closet. She keeps her special toys, like a cow flashlight, a key ring, a current art creation, etc. When the basket gets to overflowing it's time to throw stuff out. Payton's is the bottom drawer of her dresser. I like the basket better but she has the room in the drawer so we're using it. There is one box on the shelf in the downstairs closet that is dedicated to these miscellaneous toys. When it gets too full I weed through it. This box I find is great to bring out when the kids need something to kick start their imagination. You never know what treasure you'll come across again while looking through the box.

Containers for everything.

I believe containers are a good investment. There are inexpensive ones available. But you can always use what you have, this purple box was not being used and now it holds all the coloring books and activity books. Throw out or donate what is outgrown. Even in the playing realm, It's hard to see and use what you've got if it gets lost in the amount of stuff you have. Having less also brings out a bit more of the creative play imagination.

OK....

It's crunch time! This is the last week of the month. Stay tuned! For all your hard work, I'll be hosting a giveaway at the end of the week. All you need to do is comment on any of the posts this week about organization. When you comment either share an organization tip or ask me a question! Have fun organizing!

My Husband Is...

2009-02-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

A strong man of God. In everything he does he strives to put God first. I can't tell you how important that is in every aspect of our lives.

A loving husband. I have been blessed beyond all reason to be married to this man. He has loved me through all of my faults, big and small.

A committed husband. I have an unwavering faith in the security I feel about our marriage. He has been committed through it all and I see his commitment going strong through out all the upcoming years.

An intentional dad. He understands the charge he has from God to raise his two girls. And he does it with grace, love and commitment. He has a great amount of patience. He as the ability to share laughter and fun with his all his girls.

A partner in parenting. He is always willing to improve us as parents for the betterment of our girls. He never discourages but encourages us to be as one in this journey of parenthood. He steps in to help at any moment. I never feel like I'm in it alone, he is just as important as a dad as I am as a mom, and we are doing this together.

A forgiving man. He has forgiven much in me. Small and great. He is an example of what God's forgiveness looks like. He has shown me what great things can come from forgiveness and healing.

A compassionate friend. He truly cares about his friends. He cares about what matters most, he does not want to miss an opportunity to see his friends experience the wonderful gifts of God.

A hard worker. I have not had to work one day since our first daughter was born. I am very aware of what a great blessing that is. He has worked hard through good times and hard times. He is a good steward of his time and money.

A romantic and creative date. He puts thought into the time he spends and the gifts he gives. I feel spoiled often by him. I also feel loved.

The love of my life. Thank you for always loving me. I am very happy to be your wife!

and...

A year older today. Happy 34th Birthday! I Love You!

Home Alone

2009-02-21T09:15:00.000-08:00

One day when the sun came out, they went and
dressed themselves for a walk to the mailbox.
It was COLD, the mailbox was as far as we went.

So I'm currently in my quiet house alone. The girls had their first double sleepover at a neighbor friends house. So what am I doing? Blogging about them, looking at pictures of them.

It was nice to sleep in a bit and Dion and I had a date at Boundary Bay. We went to buy him a birthday beer. It was nice knowing we didn't have to rush, and we could go do anything we wanted after. But it was rather strange not having them here, and I don't mind if they don't make it a habit!

Happy Birthday Jen

2009-02-18T08:22:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to an incredible wife, amazing mom, and true friend.

I Love You.

Love Dion

$75, a bookcase & a laundry room

2009-02-17T15:54:00.000-08:00

"Hey smart girl" As I was handed a software program I thought was long gone. Thinking the whole time, dang, I spent $75 to replace this thing and here it is on my disorganized bookshelf. I'd like to say it was hidden behind stacks of books but no it was in plain sight about five feet from where I sleep every night.

These 'Monica Closets' have got to go. It's funny how when you think you've got something down, it becomes awfully hard all of a sudden. I've felt REALLY unorganized lately!

So Saturday was the end of that closet. I now have a fully clean and organized bookshelf. And I know what is on it.

What works for me when organizing a bookcase is sorting by category. It's how my mind functions. The books aren't alphabetized or anything, although I did group authors together, but they have to be by the books that are similar in some way. For example, Marriage books in one area. Women's and Parenting books together. History and Biography. Fiction. Bibles and Reference books. etc. Also, donate books you know you won't read ever again. This might be very different if you are an avid book collector, but if not, you're just storing something for no reason. Plus, you may have just created room for new books.

One of my worst habits, I'd say one that just frustrates me the most. Is when I just take a pile of laundry out of the dryer and plop it down on my bed to be folded/hung up at a later time. I never make it up to my bedroom in the daytime to put away these clothes, so at bedtime the pile gets pushed to the floor as I am too tired by that time to put it away.

Changing this bad habit of mine was my motivation for organizing the laundry room. I needed to be able to keep the laundry out of my room until it could be put away. I happened to find an old shelf with a rod in one of my closets from a former house and put it up in the laundry room. My first thought was that there was not enough room, but I did it anyway and it's the most useful part of the laundry room, after the washer and dryer of course.

A coat rack at kids height helps keep the
entry way cleaned up.

I think there are many useful products for a laundry room out there. My suggestion is to look at your habits and see what it is you personally need help with then find a product or system that addresses that habit. Mine was needing a place for clean clothes. Therefore a shelf is a product I would need.

I also needed a place to sort dirty clothes. Before I purchased a three bag sorter, it was always on the floor during laundry days.

Here's a few tips on how to make your laundry room work for you.

1) To make the most of the shelf, make sure there are always empty hangers downstairs. We're more likely to hang everything up as it comes out of the dryer if there are empty hangers handy.

2) Have a different colored hanger for each person/closet. No sorting later. Older kids can grab their hangers easily to hang up themselves.

3) Use the top shelf. One idea is to place baskets on the top shelf. Determine what you may not have homes for when doing the laundry. For example. I have two baskets, one is for clothes that need to be washed carefully (delicates) These don't get sorted in the usual baskets, so they needed a home. I combine this basket with clothes that need stain care. The second basket is for clean clothes that need to be ironed (non hanger clothes) and clothes that need to be sewn. I have a small basket on the washer for lonely socks, waiting for a match.

I got this little idea from my friend Shawn.

4) Generally it's a good idea to store things in a room that make sense for the room, or serves a purpose for the room. A laundry room does tend to be a catch all room which is OK as long as it works for your systems. I use mine to hang coats, backpacks, keep slip on shoes/snowboots in the winter. I also keep things like shoe polish and lightbulbs in the cubboards along with the cleaning supplies. A labeler is one of the greatest tools for organizing, because it helps you maintain, helps others in your household maintain and find things and it keeps things that don't belong out.

These we purchased at a home store and put up ourselves.
They hold a greatmany things that I wouldn't know
what to do with otherwise. Sweat Equity!

5) You can label your sorting baskets too in order to help younger kids learn to sort clothes by colors. Mine aren't yet but I plan on it. I'm thinking of iron-on fabric from the craft stores with the color names sewn in...

6) Since my main goal was to hang up and fold clothes in the laundry room, I had to make it so I liked being in there. If you want, put up a few decorations that make it pretty. Utilize the inside or outside of cupboards (or the wall if you don't have cupboards) to put up to do lists or prayer lists. You can keep a pen in there as well. As you're folding and hanging up clothes you can pray or jot down ideas or tasks for your to do list.

This orange basket is packed with essentials for the park.
I kept it in here all summer. Since I didn't have a place to move it for the
winter it stayed. I found I still used it for the first aid kit (instead of going
upstairs when I need a band aid) and for the picnic blanket when
we had pizza and movie nights.

Just so you don't get the wrong idea. This is my couch right at
this exact moment. I don't always succeed.
You've got to give yourself some grace.
The difference: I used to look at these piles
and feel like I just couldn't figure it out.
It was disheartening and frustrating. Now I know that there
is a way to eliminate them, the system is in place. It's basically
just dependent on discipline.
Even then, you can't have perfection every day!

Oh, one more tip that works for me. I've discovered that I can get a lot of ironing done while watching a movie before bed. I bring out the iron and the clothes that are hung up, and the basket of to be ironed clothes and get to work and enjoy a movie at the same time.

I could possibly put an ironing board in the laundry room and iron as I'm hanging things up, but I think my space is a bit too small. It's good to be realistic about the space that you have and make it work for you in the ways it can.

14 Things I Love

2009-02-14T21:00:00.000-08:00

being a mom

grace

art with my girls

being married to my husband

sister love

coffee

family

watching daddy moments

her adventurous spirit

friends who are more like family

trees

living next to my sweet friend

celebrating someone special

this little curl

Cousins!

2009-02-09T14:36:00.001-08:00

What would it be like to have four kids instead of two? Or to have boys?

Our nephews spent the last three nights with us, and we all had a really fun weekend. Their mom had the opportunity to go to the Grammys. Apparently being at the Grammys constitutes a LOT of standing. If you were watching she was in the "mosh" pit. The space between the stage and the front row seating for the celebrities. Really close to the performers. The stage actually cuts through this area and has a second stage on the other side, so they are almost surrounded by a stage. Can't get much closer I guess! It's a standing area and apparently you have to check in at 11 am. And before standing in the pit, you have to stand in a holding area for hours before they let you in. In your 'approved' formal wear.

So for the excitement here: some differences between the boys and girls; it's a bit (a lot) louder, there are way more toys out than usual, and all parts of the house were used-sometimes all at the same time. OK, so that might not be a gender thing, it could be the number difference. But I did notice with a little man in training, the toilets needed to be cleaned more often. And the rooms smelled a bit different while they were sleeping. More of a boyish musky scent as opposed to a sweaty girly scent. The kids were all great and had plenty of fun.

Today, we are all napping.

A Remarkable Life

2009-02-07T11:45:00.000-08:00

It's amazing the amount of people one can reach when they tell their story. I'm positive that is this is one of the top reasons this family chose to share the daily joys and struggles of their son, Kyle. We will keep their family in our prayers.

Extended Holidays

2009-02-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

No one ever told me the holidays are longer when you have kids.

Valentines Day began yesterday here. With all the crafts, valentines cards, yummy treats, valentine songs (yes they have songs). You just can't fit it all in to one day anymore.

After making these cute little felt bracelets, we just couldn't stop, so we used the little heart paper from a russell stover chocolate box the girls received from their aunt to make the face of this sweet little paper stuffed owl.

It even has a little heart stuffed inside. Who needs build-a-bear?

I like blue hearts, red hearts too.
I like yellow hearts, how about you?

Shawn's List for Total Home Organization

2009-02-05T14:44:00.000-08:00

1. Define a knitting space, possible small basket for ongoing projects or a large bag for extra yarn and needles with a folder for patterns.

2. Put an out basket at your front table for all the fabulous etsy stuff, all the lovely cards and gifts for your friends...and for bills.

3. You’re a fabulous DGL, now go and organize your MOPS notebook.

4. Reorganize laundry room cabinets, remove things that can live somewhere else. Add something pretty to the room. Or something inspirational. Maybe put up a list of daily prayers that you can read and pray while folding clean clothes.

5. The one desk shelf that is in need of de-cluttering in your otherwise fabulously organized desk. Use this new found space for Etsy stuff!

6. Your kitchen is clean. pretty, and most importantly delicious and healthy food is made there daily. Organize the pantry and cupboards. Group things together, put less used things up higher. Remove things you don’t need. See if you can reassign some of the drawer clutter to other parts of the kitchen (grouping) You may get an extra drawer out of it.

7. Hutch. Organize your treasures you think are pretty, are part of a set you want to keep, and those you use. Display in a pretty way-you’ve got the eye for pretty displays.

8. Home school closet is a great space, just reorganize to the way you like it. A possible idea is to utilize inside of door for chores, school assignments, schedules, etc.

9. Re-caulk toilet, call neighbors when ready.

10. Go through VHS tapes. Baby steps here.

11. Create a relaxation basket or a devotion basket, hide candy there, put in your bible, journal or a book you want to read. Can be by your bed, by your favorite place to sit downstairs, by the fireplace, etc. (This one is optional.)

12. Upstairs linen closet. Could be a big project but worth it. It's a great space and it may create homes for things that don’t have one yet. Remove things that should go somewhere else. Crafty stuff especially. Some categories: Linens, Household Supplies, Gifting Area, Game Area, Luggage.

13. Keston’s room, Call Jen, I’m available either one day you are out or one day you are in - doesn’t matter. Reminder I have one child in the mornings.

14. We will begin working on a new modern, inexpensive, yet quality entertainment system.

15. Now you are sitting with a thoroughly organized house surrounding you, you are looking at your craft area, and you can tackle it with ease! All your crafts stuff should be right there since they have been removed form other parts of the house and you can see how much space you will need for each type of item. You’ll also have found any unused containers that can be used here as well.

16. Now treat yourself to something fabulous! We will tackle the bedroom and the garage later.

Now you have two free days to send Keston over for a play date. You have two free days for a on sight consultation and assistance. Plus you have to give updates! Have fun.

It's time for a list

2009-02-05T09:57:00.000-08:00

OK, step one in becoming completely organized is to put it all on paper. I took a pen and paper and started at one end of the house and walked through the entire house and wrote down everything I wanted to change. Sometimes I knew exactly what I wanted to do to make the change, other times I didn't have a clue as to how to change it, I just knew it wasn't working and something needed to be done!

After doing this, I was a little discouraged, so I did it again but instead I focused on what is organized and what is working well. So the positives of the house. (strickly relating to organization of course). This was helpful as a pick me up, but also it let me see some reasons why things were working. For example, when items were collected together in one area as opposed to a few areas throughout the house. (an exception would be cleaning supplies, more on that later). Or when they had an appropriate containment center.

So once you have your list if you want you can then refine it to make it lovely for you. Add some ideas if you know how things want to be changed. Shawn has a lovely list she is in the middle of at the moment, and is doing fabulous by the way. She also has some pretty funny stories about her adventures in organizing that I'm hoping she'll share soon! hint-hint.

One thing on my list is kids books. I have some in baskets in the closet of each girls room. Some down stairs in a toy closet. And some in random shelves throughout the house. I wrote it down as something that needed to be changed, but I had no idea as to how to change it. I don't want or have room for a bookshelf, I liked the idea of books in their rooms. Just not all of them.

I thought about it for a day or two and came up with a solution that I'm pretty happy with.

So go work on your list and check back for some tips on;
1. Organizing toys
2. Kids books
3. An organized laundry room
4. Closets
5. Bathrooms

My List (rough draft)
Appliances-clean and organize
Junk Drawer
Desk Shelf
Desk Drawer
Media
Garage
Occasion Dishes
Kids Books
My Bookshelf
Labels
Medicine Area
Travel Stuff
Papers
Kids Projects and Schoolwork
Home Operations Manual
Art Area

Happy Birthday Shawn!

2009-02-04T06:00:00.000-08:00

37 Reasons to Love Shawn

1. Selfless. 2. Cute Kids. 3. Honest. 4. Good. 5. Funny.
6. Real. 7. Faithful.
8. Creative. 9. Talented. 10. You've Got the Right Skills - K. 11. Smart.
12. Loving.
13. Prayerful. 14. A Wonderful Mom.
15. Patient 16. Supportive. 17. Resourceful.
18. Beautiful. 19. A Fighter. 20. Fabulous Hair. 21. Joyous.
22. Great Cook.
23. Determined. 24. Forgiving.
25. Stylish. 26. Dependable. 27. Smart.
28. Not Afraid of Spiders. 29. Always Growing. 30. Fun.
31. (soon to be) Organized.
32. The Best Neighbor 33. Giving. 34. Kind.
35. Adventurous. 36. Responsible.
37. A Friend.

Just Random

2009-02-03T14:08:00.000-08:00

"I stumbled on the ground." -Payton 26 seconds ago.

That about sums up Payton these days.

February is Organization Month

2009-02-02T16:27:00.000-08:00

This is it! The month of complete organization. Myself and my best neighbor and friend Shawn will be working to become completely organized this month. If we survive, I will be posting here and there and offering some tips and ideas, so we all can be organized together. I am generally a pretty organized person, although I have some major flaws in a couple, or maybe a few areas.

I'm pretty much just like this...

I have many of these doors in my house. (my bedroom, my bathroom, the garage, corners in certain rooms, junk drawers). So it's time to remove the doors! Stay tuned for step one.

A Christmas Blog Makeover

2009-01-29T14:17:00.000-08:00

I mentioned in an earlier post that my husband had told me on Christmas day I had one more present coming. He does know how to spoil me. Well this is it! I have just spent a few weeks working with the talented Danielle in designing my new blog! She did a fabulous job and was so easy to work with. If you get a chance, check out all the beautiful designs she has created by clicking on her button at the bottom of the page. She also has a fun blog of her own. Thank you Danielle, I love the design. And a big thank you to my loving husband!

Evidence

2009-01-27T12:57:00.000-08:00

I used to hate doing the laundry. It doesn't seem possible that that would ever change, but it has. I once read something along the lines of 'dirty laundry is proof that your children are wearing clothes'. Now that could mean that you don't have a bunch of naked little ones running around the house. Which can be a positive thing. Or it could also mean that you have the blessings of children in your house to wear these little clothes. When I read those words-(or something similar to it, I searched and searched for where I read these words of wisdom, but couldn't find them)-I began to change my perspective on laundry. I began to see the evidence of my healthy kids in the dirty clothes they have left for me. I thought of how sad it must make parents that may have lost their child, to see these little clothes clean and unworn. So now I choose the attitude to love doing laundry, because at least I have it to do.

This has begun to spread to other areas of the house. The messes you see in houses that have children tend to not be present in those that don't have children. Obvious statement I know, but stick with me. Sometimes I think I can't take another fort that empties out the linen closet, removes all the pillows on every couch and chair in the house, and leaves the dinning room table alone in the kitchen without a place for people to sit. I can focus on the fact that I have to fold all those blankets again or I can choose to see it as evidence that I have little creative blessings from God who live with me.

So I thought I'd share some evidence of my little joys...

This is a one of a kind entry way rug. Not seen in any home decorating magazines. You could hire the designers, but I don't think they are available to the public.

Payton-ism

2009-01-22T12:28:00.000-08:00

This is a Panda Cat.

Gifts

2009-01-11T22:09:00.000-08:00

On Christmas day my husband told me I still had one present coming. I wasn't quite sure what it was, didn't have much of a guess either. A few days ago I found out what it was, but I'm not sharing that yet. It's coming. :)

So anyways, last night he leaves almost immediately after we said goodnight to some friends we had over for dinner to go on a mystery errand that had to be done that night. When he returns he tells me he has my birthday present and wants to know if I'd like it now or if I'd like to wait until my birthday. Well what would you say? By the way he's not very good about keeping secrets from me about gifts he buys. But he CAN do it if he puts his mind to it. For example, our surprise date night to Vegas. Well, he started talking this little birthday gift up and it was obvious I wasn't going to wait until February 18th to see what it was. So I got my birthday present early this year and I have to say I don't think I've ever been more surprised about a present.

(Have you ever seen "How to Lose a Guy in 1o Days"? I think I felt just like Kate Hudson when she was told by Matthew McConaughey that she could wear the diamonds at the party.)

So you want to know what my fabulous husband has been planning and saving for for months now?

Since he could barely wait to give me the present he didn't wrap it of course, having just come from the store. So I sat on the couch with my eyes closed and covered, he set it beside me and when I opened my eyes I was the proud new owner of...a...

Canon REBEL xs!! With the zoom lens, with a disk that holds up to 2000 pictures!

So I think that it's way past due, but I'm creating a new category titled 'my wonderful husband'.

It's All About the Toes

2009-01-10T12:52:00.001-08:00

Payton received ballet classes for Christmas. She has been asking to take ballet for 4 or 5 months now. So she was thrilled. The day we bought her little ballet clothes was like Julia Roberts shopping for clothes in Pretty Women (after they knew she had the money). She was positively glowing. She picked everything out and a nice lady was helping her the entire time. As we were leaving the lady let her pick out a porcelein ballerina to keep. She might mark this day as one of her all time favorites judging by the smile that didn't leave her face all day.

This day was Monday and her first class was the same day. She sure enjoyed it.
Fast forward to Thursday, right before dinner, miss Payton was playing around with the dining room chair. (2 feet instead of 4 were on the ground-the chair). Something happened and the chair crashed to the floor and fell right on both of her big toes. Big scream, lots of crying the rest of the evening. She now has two very black toenails and one big swollen foot. She can't even put shoes on at the moment. The next day was her rescheduled Christmas party at school. She had to wear pink tinkerbell slippers with her fancy black dress. Quite cute, I thought.

After the big day at school, her foot was so swollen we plopped her down on the couch with some ice. Currently she can be seen hobbling around the house. Not sure how ballet will go on Monday...

Friends

2009-01-08T12:18:00.000-08:00

Paytons Prayer for Katie, "God please give Katie lots of friends at her new house, and help her to not be sad. Amen."
We'll miss you Katie!

Christmas Traditons (to be) 3

2009-01-03T09:23:00.000-08:00

1. The reading of the Christmas Story on Christmas Eve. My good friend Shawn came up with this idea and I'm glad she invited us to be a part of it. We both enjoyed it so much it has to be a new tradition in the coming years!

We spent the morning at her house. Had some fruit and coffee cake for a mid morning snack. Then Jenson and Mady each read a winter story book to the rest of us while we finished munching.

Then Shawn read the Christmas Story from The Jesus Storybook Bible as the rest of us moved the pieces into place at the manger.

It was a fun and peaceful way to spend Christmas Eve morning.

2. Homemade Ginger Bread Cookies. Never made them before. Last year at Christmas I received this as a gift from my Aunt. I packed it away for use this year. It was surprisingly easy to make gingerbread cookies. I need to make just a few easy adjustments next time, but definitely worth doing again. The cookies were cute too. The recipe I used for the frosting and the dough is from William-Sonoma. Very tasty.

We brought all the cooked gingerbread pieces to decorate with our friends after the reading of the Christmas story. I didn't take many pictures for some reason, I'll have to improve on that next year.

3. Life size gingerbread house from a box. Making houses and other things out of boxes is not new to us. I thought this might be a nice long term project during the Christmas break. We decorated it when we had ideas, or when we were in need of a quick project to engage in. A little bit each day. It was fun to play in too. When the girls had friends over we decorated something new and they played in it, so it was a collection of ideas and help from us all.

4. My friend Shawn, while you're celebrating Christmas in your new house next year, don't think I won't be delivering your presents by sled!

Snow

2008-12-31T23:18:00.000-08:00

So I know the snow here has caused some people problems, made life a bit difficult, and many were glad to see it go. But I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed the snow, especially at Christmas. It is a rarity to have a white Christmas here. I am also fortunate that I really didn't have to go anywhere while the snow was here, except down the street in a sled. So, I was happy to see big snowflakes falling at about 9:30 tonight, even though they are gone now. Makes New Year's just that much better.

Christmas Traditions 2

2008-12-30T12:18:00.000-08:00

1. Christmas morning Crepes. Technically the recipe was upgraded about a year ago to Swedish Pancakes but they still are crepes to us. This is our special occasion breakfast. It's a must for birthdays, first and last days of school, holidays, grandparent visits, etc. Whats even better is we stuff the crepes full of berries we picked the previous summer. Our bellies are ready to play with the Christmas morning toys!

2. The Christmas Eve P.J.'s are a must. This year I rolled a Webkinz into the middle of them. -Mostly because Payton heard about opening one present on Christmas Eve and she happened to know she was getting a Webkinz because she picked one out for her sister and it was a better deal to buy two. So she got one as well.- And that was her present request for Christmas Eve.
But the tradition that I usually almost forget to do is take a picture of the girls sleeping in their beds on Christmas Eve. I have every year so far. Last year I woke up at 5 am and remembered that I had forgotten to take one. This year I took one at 2 am after we finished putting toys together. But I still got the pictures! See the new Webkinz?

3. Putting out cookies and milk for Santa and Reindeer food for, the reindeers, of course.

4. Spending Christmas Eve with extended family is becoming a tradition. This year we all brought cookies for a cookie exchange which was delicious. Some extra presents get opened and the cousins get to play. The girls get to dress up in their Christmas dresses.

This will have a part three, as we did a few new things this year that I would like to turn into traditions. Part three coming soon...

Christmas Traditions

2008-12-20T21:52:00.000-08:00

1. Putting up the Christmas Lights. Dad's on the roof and the girls are in charge of the ground work. This is Payton's second year of helping and Ailin's first. They do a great job until the neighbors cute kitten comes over to see who wants to play. Then it's 'see ya, mom you help daddy'.

2. The gingerbread house kit. We put at least one of these together each year. I love that for my girls it's lots of fun to make, yet not so good to eat, they don't like gingerbread and many of the typical candies used. Wouldn't that be great to have all the fabulous Christmas candies and cookies around each December and not be tempted to eat them all?

3. Advent Calendar Books. This is our third year doing this little tradition, and I love it. We collect 24 Christmas, snow or winter themed books. Some bought, some from the library. We put them in a basket by the tree. Previous years I've wrapped them, this year I just tied them with a string. The girls pick one book out each night before bed and we read it together by the Christmas Tree. I have two girls so we alternate even days for one, odd for the other, it helps me keep track of whos turn it is. I think the girls are liking the string idea as they can choose the story. Many of the books are the same as previous years. Some I update as the girls get older. Others will stay there every year as they are becoming favorites. The last book to be picked on Christmas Eve is the Night Before Christmas. These books get packed away with the Christmas decorations and only come out for the month of December!

4. The Fire Department Santa. This one is very exciting for me. Who doesn't like a big red fire truck? How about a parade of 8 or 9 of them driving down your street with sirens blaring and lights flashing? Now how about they all stop and Santa gets out? Any kids gonna light up with that one! Our wonderful fire department visits different neighborhoods doing just that. The kids get to come out and take pictures with Santa and recieve a candy cane, AND get to sit in the firetruck! It's also a great way to give back, the fireman collect non perishable foods and new toys while they are here.

This year I didn't let in on the fact that the Fireman Santa was coming and we just happened to be all bundled up and out playing in the snow when they paraded down the street. I had the video camera in hopes of capturing that childhood amazment and excitement. If I can figure out how to post a video I just might have to. Thanks Santa from Fire District 4!

As I was typing this, a few more traditions kept coming to mind. I'll be posting Christmas Tradition 2 soon! What's your Christmas Tradition?

A Round Tree

2008-12-08T21:30:00.000-08:00

Our traditional trek through the forest (ahem, tree farm) in search of our perfect Christmas tree.

This was the girls choice this year, the only one they liked. And they both were very quick to claim it. Maybe it was because they were ready to stop following their crazy mom around trying to find just the right shaped noble.

This is not a noble, so hey, we saved money. Apparently it was very heavy. Thankfully they have a strong daddy who can carry/drag the heavy tree while running through an instant rain/hail shower. The minute the tree hit the ground the sky opened up. Fortunately this tree was rather close to the gift shop where they showered us with warm apple cider, popcorn and candy canes as we dried off.

My crazy girls. We enjoyed the rest of our day. It entailed putting up the house Christmas lights, attempting a nap :), decorating our big, round tree (and trying to keep it from falling over), watching the Polar Express (a favorite) and a hot cup of cocoa. A Very Christmas-y Day.

A favorite moment: On the way there, in an attempt to redirect the girls conversation/arguement, I asked what color tree they wanted to bring home. Payton was quick to answer green as if there was really no other choice. Ailin committed to orange. Brilliant mom, that just gave them something new to argue about :) So I told Ailin to let me know if she saw an orange tree.

So what did I hear about 5 minutes into our tree search?

"This one's orange mom"

Tagged

2008-11-15T20:59:00.000-08:00

Apparently I've been tagged by Chantel. I'm to post the 4th picture in my 4th folder and then share about it. Well since losing my hard drive I currently have 1 folder of pictures available to me...so I'll share the 44th picture instead.

These are my girls feeding the goats at a local pumpkin farm. You can see the feed container is empty so they are trying to share the one handful of feed that we did have. It wasn't as joyous of an event as it could have been! Come on girls, teamwork!

Sick Days

2008-11-13T14:58:00.000-08:00

*This post was actually written a couple of weeks ago, but I never got around to completing and posting it. I deleted a few others that never were quite completed, but couldn't delete this one. I want to remember this week. Even though she was feeling so miserable, I enjoyed the time we spent together getting well.

Payton just reached the end of the worst cold she has ever had. The poor girl just couldn't stay active for more than 10 minutes at a time. She hasn't taken so many naps since she was an infant. She even fell asleep at the dinner table. Probably because she wasn't eating, she had no appetite and a fever for nearly three days. It's good to see her bright shinny eyes again and to see her regain some energy.

Even though there were moments that brought me to tears, because I just couldn't help her sleep, or stop the fever or headaches for her; there were some joys amongst the week of having a sick kiddo.

Joy #1 Holding my 5 year old while she sleeps.
It has been a few years since I have been able to hold Payton while she sleeps. She is my first so I took the rocking your baby to sleep seriously. I did this till she was about 10 months old. Often we would take naps together in my bed as well. Again, first child...

Joy #2 Watching Ailin practice compassion for her sister.
At first it wasn't so natural. Payton was getting quite a bit of attention. But she soon realized that her sister was pretty much confined to the couch and seemed to be sleeping while she was allowed to be awake. Her bedtime was later than her big sisters! She then embraced the caretaker roll and was quite good at it. I enjoyed seeing her love her sister.

Joy #3 Watching Payton read
We created a few couch games this last week. One of which was typing out words on Ailins leapfrog and watching Payton read them. We came up with rhyming words, crazy stories, practiced our address and phone number and on and on. It was a reminder of how fast she is growing up.

Joy #4 Lots of opportunities to tuck her in and play with her hair.
Since she went to bed quite often, we created a peaceful, warm and cozy bedroom for nap times. And she usually fell asleep while I was still in the room.

Joy #5 Colds end and she's healthy and energetic again!

"A O E" no more

2008-11-05T13:44:00.000-08:00

Something to remember: For almost a year now, if you ask Ailin how she spells her name she will say "A O E." For the last few weeks she's been asking how to spell the names of her family and friends. This morning while snuggling in my lap she spelled her name "A I L I N" as she was spelling it the second time it actually registered with me. She was quite proud when I announced this new achievement to her daddy, and after a bout of shyness spelled her name again for her daddy to hear. You should be proud Ailin, you are learning so much!

What's a Pirates Favorite Letter?

2008-11-02T23:25:00.000-08:00

RRR!

I couldn't stop looking at my two smallish sized pirates all night. They were just too cute. The best looking pirates I've ever seen were out trunk or treating at our church on Halloween. The trunks were all lined up in the parking lot filled with candy. After filling a good portion of their bags, we went inside for the carnival games. It was a fun night. Lots of people and lots of candy. Many creative costumes and cute kids.

Meeting 'Mr. Tumnus'
This was our favorite trunk. It's filled with 'snow' and Mr. Tumnus has his hand on the lamp from Narnia, and the White Witch is on the other side of the trunk.

'walk the plank'

'Circus Act - Throw the Lion Through the Hoop'

The collecting of candy is fun, but watching my girls eat it and hearing them ask for more is not all that much fun for me. Last year we asked them if they wanted to pick out a few favorites and then put the rest in a bag outside on the front step. Overnight the candy would be exchanged for a surprise. They agreed and were thrilled to find two small toys (a my little pony and a purple poodle dog) sitting where the bag of tooth decay sat the night before. I like this little tradition, more so than the gorging on candy one, that I think it can be used and changed in small ways each year. This November Dion is going on a mission trip to Mexico to help build a house for a family, one thing that is well received by the children there, is candy. So this year the bag was left out for Daddy to take with him on his trip.

Backup

2008-11-01T21:51:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday night at 6:15 our hard drive crashed. We now have a new hard drive, updated software, and a very minimal bill thanks to a great friend of ours who knows macs. I also have a piece of metal on my desk that is our old hard drive.

What I don't have, that is trapped somewhere inside this piece of metal are my pictures of my family for the last year. The last time I backed up photos was October 30, 2007. Ironically I was in the process of deleting, editing, organizing and backing up when this happened. So here's a friendly reminder to backup photos. And to do that before the deleting, editing, and organizing!

I still have options for recovering these precious items, they tend to be pricey and un-guaranteed. So this piece of metal, I think will be taunting me on my desk for some time.

I am grateful for the blog. My purpose for keeping a blog is to record the special moments we share as a family, I tend to pick my favorite photos to post. So I am very thankful that they were saved. So all is not lost. (I still would love to get my pictures back!)

I will be posting even more favorite photos in the future and I will be backing them up daily as well (thanks to our new software)!

Happy 3rd Birthday Ailin!

2008-10-13T14:07:00.000-07:00