Oh, boy. My kids are something else. They spent the afternoon out back making mud pies, digging holes, and chasing Chloe. They even made a "fort" out of random things they collected from the yard- a soccer goal, lawn chairs, large rocks, a football practice net. . . . It seems that their idea of a fort is my idea of a mess!

I was talking to Phil yesterday while I made lunch. I happened to glance out the window and had to stop my story to holler, "Sam, make Chloe stop licking the lawn mower!" Then I went back to finish my story. Phil laughed and said that sounded like a line from a sitcom. Funny, but that's how it goes around here! I find myself saying things that I never thought I'd say:
"Chloe, stop eating the fireplace!"
"Who put a stick in the windmill?"
"Who hung a dirty sock on the wall?"
"Chloe, stop eating the table!"
"Why is the pepper outside?"

Yesterday, the boys and I decided to walk over to my mom's house which is three blocks away. I filled a basket with games and jackets and hooked Chloe up to her leash. Sugar, my tiny toy poodle, never really walks on a walk, so she rode in my basket. We took off. Ethan got to hold the leash first. Chloe decided she'd rather run than walk. Ethan was fine with that. Then when it was Sam's turn to take her, he only made it half a block before he tripped and dropped the leash. Of course, Chloe took advantage of the opportunity. She took off with Ethan trying to chase her down. Sam started crying more from being afraid of getting in trouble than from being in pain. I think we looked like a mini circus coming down the road! There was a lady out checking her mail, and she just watched us with a smile on her face until we passed.

These are the days! And I wouldn't trade them for anything!

Phil and I celebrated our 13th anniversary yesterday. We had a date night last Friday, so last night (Monday), we didn't plan to go anywhere. Instead we decided to order pizza and watch cartoons with the boys. When I told Ethan that we were ordering pizza for our anniversary, he looked at me and very quietly asked, "Do we get to eat some, too?"



Ethan and I finished up another project. He was chosen to be the Superstar of the Week in his second grade class. He brought home a poster to fill out about himself. He said we had to use scrapbook paper on it. I looked at it and couldn't figure out how we could do that. Finally, I talked him into a frame made of rectangular scraps. He is very frustrating to work with. He has his own ideas and doesn't budge easily. "But Mommy, I was thinking we could do it like this." or "Are you sure that's how you spell it?" Anyway, this is how it turned out.





This is a picture of Ethan's "How to" poster from last week. The pictures crack me up. Daddy was the victim. When he was heading out to the backyard to take the picture, I asked him to please pretend like he was really trapped. He told me, "Honey, I know how to fall in a boobytrap!"




This is Sam's cobra project.

After all of this, I've decided that the next project that comes home, Daddy gets to help with!

Wheew! Both boys have had projects to work on this week. We finished Sam's last night and sent it to school today. He had to do a report on the king cobra (his choice of animal) and also do a project to go with it. He and I had a great time working on the project. We turned a small box on its side and turned it into a habitat. It really turned out cute.

Ethan's project is a "how to" poster which isn't due until next week. He is unlike his brother, though, in that he doesn't wait until the last minute to do it. Last night, we took the pictures for his poster. His topic is "How to make a booby trap." It's a lost art, you know:) My boys seem to be experts at making them (I guess it's from years of practice!) He dug a hole, laid sticks over it, covered it all up with leaves, and got his daddy to walk into it. If nothing else, his teacher should be entertained by it!

"A boy is truth with dirt on its face, beauty with a cut in its finger, and the hope of the future with a frog in its pocket. . ." -unknown

Had a nice weekend. Ethan woke up on Saturday feeling much better. He's been pretty laidback all weekend- not full force just yet.

My grandparents were down from Iowa. They always stop on their way to the Valley, and then again on their way back. We had two nice evenings with them over at my mom's house.

Yesterday when Sam was getting ready to go over there, he came out dressed in his camo pants and hat. I told him that he looked like he was ready for combat. I guess that gave him some food for thought because he came back to me and asked if he could ride on the side of the car on the way over to Nonny's house. Then he was sitting in the bathroom when I went to check on him. A flashlight was sitting on the counter. He asked me to turn out the light so he could "practice going to the bathroom without power." Another brillant idea from my little genius! lol!

Here's a look at the make and take I'm helping with next Saturday, Feb. 7 at The Scrapbook Village. It's supposed to show my style.

Kids are like sponges: they absorb all your strenght and leave you limp. But give 'em a squeeze and you get it all back. -Barbara Johnson

I truly am blessed with my boys. They delight me to no end.

Finally, I'm posting again!

First of all, here's a picture of baby Chloe. Not such a baby anymore. She is growing like you wouldn't believe! She's only getting up once a night now, and after a trip outside, she goes right back to bed without complaining! Potty training is going pretty well, but we still have work to do. We are all totally in love with her!

Ethan is home sick today. I woke up at 4:10 a.m. to a little voice saying, "Mom, I feel like I'm going to throw up!" He wasn't kidding. Lesson learned: next time you feel that way, head to the bathroom, Mom will meet you there!

Dropped off my layouts to the Scrapbook Junkie last Sat. Here's a look at them. I used the scraps from the wedding papers to make this heart project. I backed an acrylic heart with a transparency, slapped a picture on it, then hung it with a little tulle and silver beads. The other layout reminded me of the seventies, so I did a layout of me when I was little. For a while, I was stumped about what to journal, but once I started jotting down memories, they just started flowing!

Made a family favorite last night: White Chocolate Chip Lemon Cookies. They are delightful! Here's the recipe:

2 sticks margarine 2 1/4 cup flour

2/3 cup brown sugar 3/4 tsp soda

1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tsp salt

1 egg 1 pkg white choc. chips

2 tsp. lemon extract

Beat margarine and sugar til creamy. Add egg and lemon extract. Beat until fluffy. Combine dry ingredients in separate bowl. Add to wet mixture. Stir in choc. chips. Bake at 350 for about 9-10 min.

The boys started back to school today. Ethan was very anxious, as I expected he would be. Whenever he has an extended break from school, he has a hard time starting back up. Sam, as usual, wasn't worried about a thing.

I put the finishing touches on my 25 Days Until Christmas album (see photos in earlier blog). I am so tickled with how it turned out! This is the project idea that I got from Ali Edwards' blog. She is so inspiring!

Our family has a new addition. Her name is Chloe. The boys got her for Christmas. She is delightful and endearing. Even though she's constantly nibbling on us, she has captured all of our hearts.


No matter how little money and how few possessions you own, having a dog makes you rich. - Louis Sabin

Whoo! I just love Christmas- the music, the lights, the baking, the shopping, the wrapping. . . but once it's over, it's over. I'm ready to pack up the decorations and reorganize the boys' room!
We had a beautiful Christmas. We are blessed to live so close to our families. We spent Christmas Eve at my mom's. Then we had our own Christmas on the 25th. After reading the Chrismas story from the Bible and opening our gifts, the kids got to play with their new stuff all day! Sometimes we're rushing to get here and there, and the kids don't get much hands-on time with their new stuff til after the holidays.
On the 26th, we headed up to my in-laws' house for a two day stay.
With all the hustle and bustle, I haven't had a minute to sit down and scrap. I actually have two projects that were intended to be Christmas gifts still sitting on my desk! The first thing I'm going to have to do is clean my area though. I always feel more inspired when things are clean!

"First keep the peace within yourself, then you can also bring peace to others."
-Thomas A. Kempis