This is what went on at our house today. These boys had a blast. When they were done, I had to hose them and the dog off before they could come in the house! When my husband sees the holes out back that they dug out to make mud, he's going to be quite unhappy.

Here are two projects I've worked on this week:

I got this printer's drawer at a yard sale. I cut up scraps of paper for each opening. Can't decide what else to do with it, though. Right now, it's sitting on the floor in my livingroom below some freefloating bookshelves.

The mini book is a make and take project I made for a crop I'm going to on Friday. It's a few library cards tucked into a library pocket. On one side of the card is a photo with a list of that person's favorites on the other side. Quick and easy!

My children never cease to amaze me.

First, we went to a bookstore. While we were in the children's section, Ethan, my mom and I were actively looking. Sam, on the other hand, instead of looking, had a seat at a miniature table and proceded to do his homework!

Then at Bible Study, they were sitting under the table (as usual). Ethan and his friend Wallace had two tiny Lego dudes and a miniature ball. First, they were pretending that the dudes were kicking the ball back and forth. Then Ethan got a pad of paper and I quietly watched to see what he was up to. He labeled the numbers 1, 2, 3 then made one that said home base. Then he and Wallace proceded to play a game of miniature baseball! Truly, I do not know how they come up with these ideas!

Here are a few photos of a class I'm teaching at Scrapbook Village on the 18th. It's a "Mom's Memories" book- basically a place to jot down the everyday stories. Should go together rather quickly and easily (I hope!)

I'm finally feeling better after three days of feeling sick. Man, I hate being sick!

The boys and I were eating out tonight with my mom. Sam was eating his ice cream with a plastic spoon. For some reason, this comment came out of his mouth, "Mommy is probably the only person in the world who washes plastic spoons!" (Yes, sometimes we reuse plastic spoons. They're clean. I didn't realize it was such a big deal!) He said it like he couldn't believe that I do that! My mom and I laughed and laughed.

Well, I got the fourth book in the Twilight series. I can't wait to get started reading it!

twilight and stuff

Okay, so I've started reading the Twilight series on a friend's recommendation. And, oh my word, these books are fantastic! I started reading the first book on a Sunday evening. 498 pages and three days later, I was done- and hooked!
I'm now a third of the way through the third book. I have been finding all sorts of spare time to read, like when I dry my hair or while I wait for dinner to boil . . .

Yesterday while I was waiting for the boys to get out of school, I got to the last two pages of book two before the fellas hopped in the backseat. We went through all the stories from the day as we drove home, as usual. Then, we ran some errands. I really wanted to finish those last two pages. So, I told Sam to let me know when the light turned green. We did this for several lights in a row, and I finished!

Then Sam pointed out that there were some cars waiting at a green light instead of moving. Ethan piped up and said, "Maybe they have somebody in there reading a Twilight book and there's nobody to tell them the light changed!" (That boy sure can call 'em!)

Phil has changed from third shift (11p-7a) to second shift (3p-11p). We think this shift may allow him more quality time with the family. So, tonight the boys and I drove out to the plant to bring him dinner. He loved the tacos and salsa, and I think he enjoyed our loud company. Sure, he had to tell Ethan to stop hanging so far out the window, then had to tell him to get out from behind Sam and go sit in his own seat. Certainly, he wouldn't be able to find this kind of company in the breakroom!

My kids go through phases where they get really excited about something, but before too long, they lose interest. Examples: Pirates of the Carribbean, Marvel superheroes, Bioncles. . . Well, you'll be surprised to hear their newest obsession- chores! Yep, they have been coming home excited to check things off their chore list. Now, before you start thinking grand things about these boys, let me tell you something. They have an ulterior motive. They want money! We've had a chore list for at least a year. Almost every week I print off a fresh one, but it would stay pretty empty. Last Friday, I took the boys to Target and let them spend all the money in their wallets, so now they feel they need to earn some money! (That was my ulterior motive!)
On one hand, it's great that they're finally helping out around the house. On the other hand, it would be nice if they were doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. I guess I shouldn't complain. . .

Our little Chloe is getting bigger everyday. . . and I'm falling more in love with her everyday! What a doll! I'm pleased to announce that she is potty trained! Yep, she stands by the back door when she wants out. If somebody doesn't notice right away, she gives the door a little scratch. Man, I'm proud of her!

Here's a picture of a project I made. I used an envelope and part of a free sample of some Sassafrass Lass paper to create this. The paper felt retro to me, so I used a picture of my husband when he was little.

I'm working on creating a "Mom's Memories" journal/scrapbook for a class at the Scrapbook Village. I'm pretty excited about it. More pics to come soon.

Cute story from earlier. Ethan was singing to himself this afternoon. Here's what I heard to the tune of Take Me Out to the Ballgame, "Buy me some crackers and Applejacks. . ."

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!