D turns 6!

i don't know how it's possible, but this little girl of mine turned 6!

she wanted a knocknasheega (camping) themed birthday. so her daddy pulled out the retro pop up trailer, set up a campfire, camping chairs and s'mores. and of course an adorable custom camping themed birthday cake courtesy of aunt sarah.
we had an amazing sunset to top it all off.
she was so happy all night.
pine tree anyone?

springtime :)

these pics were taken a few weeks ago... but you can see the weather is perfect here in az right now. it is the most beautiful day today and pdubs worked in the yard for several hours and i walked out to a little slice of heaven right in my backyard. did i ever tell you how much i enjoy run on sentences?

we found a container for this little one
hangin' in suits and sippin' off the hose.
baxter is getting quite big. he seems to be a nice addition to our family. he already "fetches" which is so amazing to me as our other dog was a husky (RIP koda) and the only trick he did was "run"

the kids like to unknowingly add a "d" to the end of his name. it makes for an entertaining time while listening to them repeatedly call his name.

on another note... this little 3rd grader had an overnight at school. they are preparing for their big trip to camp surf. she was so excited.
we had to say goodbye at the door :( she lugged all those bags by herself.
bye. bye.

magic thoos....

somebody finally lost that top tooth....

she was so excited about it. after her first day at school with it out, i asked her how her day went.

she said "it was tough. i couldn't even thay my best friends name" (Sydney)

well today i asked her if her friends liked her magic shoes (that's what she calls them)

she said "yeth. thydney hath the thame thoos. thept they have a thtrap acroth the top. altho, thydney was thick today. and tho wath lincoln."

funny...

my friend had mentioned banana cream pie and it had been on my mind since...

it was a hit. the babies kept taking swipes out of it.
S prepared lunch for her sisters on a half day... mayo sandwiches with a tiny bit of ham :)

do these kids look like they are having fun or what?

really?

paully bought this today.

really? and i'm the one who has the reputation for buying things we don't need.

when did shaking the bottle become not effective enough?

recentness...

i like this...

S and i love to go the farm and splurge....
R really likes his daddy... and his backpack
mommy and me matching minnetonkas :)
the only reason they are even remotely considering entering a feis..... the crazy solo dresses...

baby gate

what do you do with a recalled crib? make a baby gate out of it of course.

daddy's little helper :)

happy balentimes day

the kids usually swap the v for b and/or the second n for m.... so it's balentimes day over here.

i bought myself a holga camera that i have been wanting. i'm super excited to develop the film.
this little gem was on sale at fry's grocery stores for only $4.99. it will be a big hit for whomever receives it... as barbies are a hot commodity in this household.
p and i shared dinner with my bro and sis and their sos. (significant others)
S and i made the most adorable valentines ever for her class. we copied the idea from another blog. this blogger stopped blogging, i'm so bummed because i love everything she does, but all of her crafts are still online... katydid.

we cut out little hearts for heads... S decorated them all differently
we then taped bodies together out of strips of different colored paper. i ended up just using clear tape around them... it took forever.
next, i traced S's hand and copied it onto white card stock. i used an exacto knife to cut around her pointer finger... on the paper of course... not around her real finger...

we glued the heart heads to the mini bodies and slipped them on the fingers... and there you have it! custom finger puppets instead of candy. S was so proud and signed them all herself.

all gathered in her bag... ready to pass them out.
passing them out...
here are my other little love bugs on valentines day.... they selected heart inspired clothing to wear...
i made this little jumper for big S when she was in kindergarten. L wore it in kindergarten and now it's D's turn. looks pretty good, but then again it's really only been worn 3 times.
and to top a lovely day off, we decided to make crepes at 11:30 :) oooh... i also got a new phone that makes adorable little movies....

so far today i have....

1. got the kids off to school, on time, happy, with permission slips signed and valentine cookies in hand.

2. had a fun spontaneous escape to my fav. treasure hunting spot... found some matching minnetonkas for D to match mommy. precious.

3. ate lunch at pei wei. delish, but my steamed chicken was a little more slimy than usual.

4. purchased floors for the office that paully "surprised" me with a demolish... but no remodel in sight. had to take matters into my own hands. at this store, they listened to my order, made eye contact, and then typed in something totally different into the computer.... hence a double and over charge, a return, a credit back and then a new invoice. was then late to pick up the kids at school.

5. picked up kids. had one kid throw a major tantrum until purposefully puking in the backseat. fun times. never thought i would hear myself say... "if you throw up... you are picking it up." i just passed back my empty cup.

6. got home. had the kids unload the new floors into the house, wiped some bums, got puked on by baby and opened a michelob ultra.

7. bribed a child with an entire package of red vines to learn to ride a bike. long story in that but perfectly sensible if you knew the logistics.

8. heard husband threaten certain death if he has to pick up one more empty wrapper today.

9. handed doggie treats out and am fully and whole-heatedly entrusting my 5 yr. old with the training of the new puppy.

10. am enjoying the rest of this beautiful afternoon outside with the kiddos.... until the babysitter comes in a few hours.

i want this so bad....

• i guess i'll have to make it. casserole carrier

baby, it's been cold outside!

we were very surprised when we noticed this on our fountain.....

we also got this.....
baxter. paul named him.

i like how S calls his kennel his cradle.

i just hope he catches on to the whole house training thing soon.

heart broken

my heart is breaking tonight for a friend who lost her precious 5 yr. old daughter this evening. she went to sleep and didn't wake up. this little girl was in my mary's club and in my atrium class. she was so beautiful and so sweet and it is hard to believe that this has really happened. i had randomly been looking at pictures and looked at one of her just 10 minutes before i got the call. so she was so freshly on my mind when i was asked to pray for her. i am so heart broken for her family. it is my worst nightmare.

this week i was listening to the song we live by superchick in the car and i, for some reason, really paid attention to the lyrics. it talks of holding your kids close and recognizing that each day we have here is a gift. it also makes me think of the song held by natalie grant. another beautiful and sad song about being held up in impossible times.

as i went back to sewing and finishing a project that one of my daughters waited until the very last minute to do... one of those... "oh mom! i have this huge project that needs to be sewn and finished and is due in the morning" type of comments.... i am not as angry as i might have been otherwise. with tears burning in my eyes, i am so grateful to be up late finishing this project for her.

a riddle...

i think he's trying to tell me something....

i just can't figure it out.

home school

yesterday we stumbled upon the asu surplus supply warehouse. it was awesome. we found the old desks that paul and i used to sit in when we attended asu. the kids wanted them so they could play school at home. they were only $10!

this one thinks she is clever... writing in french. i may have forgotten most of what i learned in the 8 years of french that i took, but i'm pretty sure she has some questionable sentences on there....
L likes things nice and tidy....
little S likes to draw people... and her name.
D is working hard on a fancy lady.
i also found this awesome stool for $5.
and this huge chalkboard we are going to hang in the basement. D is super excited to practice her cursive on it... that is what she does at school she says.
we also found the perfect retro desk to use in the office. now we just need a floor....