For her to stop nursing.
For her to start walking.
For her to loose her chubby baby cheeks.
For her to grow up!
Wishing this baby time lasted longer. . .
Happy 1st Birthday baby girl!

Exactly a year ago we were here…

And then last weekend we were back.

It’s all kind of a blur…and not exactly how we planned to spend our three-day weekend.
On Friday Serity had a mild fever and was a bit fussy throughout the day. Tylenol took care of it and I thought she was just cutting a tooth. But Friday night was rough–she woke up with a fever and didn’t sleep well the rest of the night. Then Saturday morning when she woke she was burning up, breathing heavily, and threw up. Then …

Today we played a variation of a cute spelling game I found in this* book.
I put several stickers (could also use tape, bingo chips, etc.) on the floor a foot or two apart. At the end of the sticker path was a coveted package of fruit snacks–one for each kid.
They started out on the first sticker and I gave them a word from this week’s spelling list. Ryan (K/1st) spelled the word and if he got it correct he could jump to the next dot. Emmy (Pre-K) listened to me say the first sound of the word and then told …

Even on a budget I love to decorate. My decorating style? Neutral with splashes of accent color, random perfectly-imperfect, and definitely funky junky. Lately I’ve been pretty obsessed with visiting the local flea market. It can be a bit overpriced and kinda trashy, but going there is always an adventure sometimes I can find awesome stuff.
Combine cool stuff with a bit of creativity and Wah-laaa! I give you:
Super cool vintage-y (and totally falling apart book):

Rusty iron star:

Using the pages from the super-cool-vintage-y-and-totally-falling-apart book plus scrapbook paper and old buttons:

Pages from an old etiquette book on table manners (modge podged …

One of the things I’m trying to do to get back into routine after a lazy summer is plan my meals better. Sure makes my days go easier when I already know what we are having for dinner before that awful hour-before-dinner hour.
My dinner plan this week:

Meatloaf, baked potatoes, peas, banana bread
Pasta salad with chicken, tomatoes (from the garden, yum), crescent rolls with homemade peach jam
Breakfast for dinner (french toast with peach syrup, scrambled eggs)
Chicken fajitas, spanish rice, (cheese, sour cream, shredded lettuce)
Dinner out
Leftovers

Download my FREE meal planner. (See how …

When I taught elementary school one of my favorite most-used, must-have learning tools were mini whiteboards for all my students. Since buying a whole set (out of my own pocket) was going to be pretty pricey one of my teacher friends and I went to Lowes bought a huge piece of shiny white panel board (also called shower board) for less than $15, and asked the hardware department worker to cut the board into manageable pieces. I think we each got about 30 mini-boards out of one 4′ x 8′ piece of panel board. I used …

Just had to sneak on here and write about this dinnertime conversation:

Jared: “Ryan, please pass the cucumbers.”
Ryan (grumpily sighs and then growls): “I do all the work.”
I couldn’t stop laughing.
Speaking of doing all the work, our chart says it’s chore time…

Since Jared teaches college, fall is a new beginning for us and now that we are back from vacation it’s time to shake off the lazy summer days and get back into routine. We’ve found our kids crave structure and we have a lot less meltdowns when they know what to expect. They are also more obedient and cooperative when asked to clean-up toys, help with dinner, get ready for bed, etc. because they know it’s part of the routine. I’m not saying things always go smoothly, just that having structure helps us rein-in the tantrums and power struggles. …

…a summer day at the park with cousins.
(Trip to Washington, July 2010)

A fried chicken picnic doesn’t hurt either!!

We spent the afternoon with some good friends making Koolaid playdough. I love this recipe because the soft dough smells so good and doesn’t stain your hands.
Kool-Aid Playdough

1 cup flour 
1/2 cup salt
1 packet unsweetened Koolaid (more if you want a more vibrant color)
3 TBSP oil
1 cup boiling water

Combine flour, salt, oil and Kool-Aid powder. Add boiling water. Stir together. Knead mixture until it forms a soft dough.Mix well and play! Store in a sealed container.