Grow, Garden...GROW!!!

Today we had one thing on our minds...get that garden in before the rain comes tonight! So today while Kendall was at school, Noah and I went and picked up some plants ...tomatoes of all varieties, red, green and orange peppers, yellow squash, zucchini, eggplant, and cucumbers. Normally the only thing we buy plants of is tomatoes and we do the rest by seed, but we're a little behind this year, so I figured I'd splurge and make sure the garden gets off on the right foot. We also planted pumpkins, green beans, and more cucumbers and zucchini by seed. I still have spinach, lettuce, cabbage, and watermelons to get in...but hey, we definitely made some headway today! Here's Kendall and Barry putting in the tomato plants (I helped too, but had to take time out to take some pics!)...
And here is a bird feeder Kendall made out of a straw, peanut butter, birdseed and string. This was after she decided that planting the garden was getting a bit boring for her...she disappeared shortly after the first row was done...and came back with this!
Bring on the rain! Let's see that garden grow!!!!

Things on my mind...

Here are a few random things that have been on my mind...

1.) I challenge Kenny Chesney to write a song that does not have to do with summertime! I love that all of his songs are happy, relaxing, and make me feel like laying on the beach or driving around with the windows down...ahhhhh, summertime!!!

2.) I hate the new Gavin Rossdale song. UGH. It's boring and slow and just UGH. (No offense to any of you who like it!) I have never been a fan of sad songs, or just plain downer songs...I need happy, upbeat, inspiring music!!!

3.) I need to finish up my painting. I have 3 walls that still need a second coat! Why is it that you can be on such a roll with a project, but once you stop for a sec, it's hard to get going again??? I'll try to get it done this weekend.

4.) We HAVE to get our garden in this weekend! OMG, we are soooo behind schedule! I can't wait for my yummy tomatoes!!!! And cucumbers!! And zucchini!! And pumpkins!!! And green beans!!! And STRAWBERRIES!!!!

5.) I'm having a light week at work. I am refusing to worry about it, and instead enjoy the extra hours of solitude. I even went shopping (gasp!) on Tuesday after work. I needed new work clothes. My nine year old shorts are looking a little worn....

6.) Our baby chicks are growing so fast...it's amazing! I can't believe they will be laying by the time Kendall goes back to school in August!

7.) YogaBurn Rocks!!! Barry and I did it last night, and I feel so long today...and a bit sore, I must admit!

8.) I am feeling the need to sit down and scrapbook!

9.) Tomorrow I need to sit down and work on our summer calendar. Kendall has Camp Invention, Zoo Camp, and soccer. Noah has a one-day zoo camp. We have various playdates we are trying to set up with families we don't see much during the school year. We are going on vacation in August (yippee!), and I need to schedule a trip to visit my brother in Michigan (and meet Logzie!!). All of this must be carefully coordinated. Plus, we have some day trips the kids and I want to do too...it's going to be a busy summer!

10.) It has been forever since I had pictures printed. I need to get on Shutterfly and get busy while they have free shipping!

11.) Grocery shopping today!!

My Little Chef

I was so excited when Kendall got to that age where she could realistically help me cook. Most of the time she is good for rolling out cookies, or decorating cupcakes, or sometimes even doing a bit of measuring, but she gets bored quickly. It's ok, really, I had just always thought it would be fun to cook together...and maybe it will be one of these days when it seems a little more exciting to her. Our latest kid movie from Netflix is Ratatouille. The kids have been watching it like CRAZY, and they love it! Of course, I love it, because I love to cook...but I thought the kids just liked it because it's animated. Well, it turns out I have a little chef in the making!

I went to take a shower yesterday, and as usual, sat Noah down with his cars and a movie. He requested Ratatouille. I told him to enjoy his movie and I would be in the shower if he needed me. After I was finished and drying my hair, I could hear him running around out in the great room, so I turned off the hair dryer and went to see what was going on. He wasn't there! I called for him, and he came running, with a wooden spoon in his hand...

"What are you doing, Buddy?"
"I want to cook! Wike Remy!"
"You do? Ummm...ok, well let me finish drying my hair and we'll cook something, ok?"
"OK, Mama. I sit wight here!"

So I finished drying my hair and came back out. There he was, as promised, sitting on the couch waiting.

"So, you want to cook something, eh?"
"Yeah! I want to cook cookies!!! Wif chocowate chips!!"
"You do? Well, we don't really have time to do cookies before we pick up Kendall. How about if we make brownies instead?"
"YEAH...BROWNIES!!!!"

So we went about making our very favorite Ghiradelli Double Chocolate brownies. Noah had to be involved in EVERY. SINGLE. STEP. He had to wear an apron. He had to pour everything (with my help, of course), and stir everything, and even use the mixer (with my help, of course!). He made sure I set the timer, which is something I hardly ever do. He even had to help with licking the beaters...DRAT! That's usually MY job!!! LOL! He was so interested in every part of this project, and it was so much fun! Shoot, he even helped me clean up!!! I think Noah and I will be doing some more cooking together very soon... Enjoy the pictures!!

Tragedy Strikes!

Yeah. That's right. We started off the weekend with the first tragedy. On Friday morning, Kendall got dressed for school, came down for breakfast, and as usual, went to feed Scout and Sam. Everything went A-OK with feeding Scout. Too bad it couldn't have gone as well with Sam! Poor little guy was belly-up in his aquarium. Now, for those of you who personally know Kendall, you know how emotional she can be, especially about things like this. She was hysterical, and we did NOT have time for hysterics. I told her that maybe he was just sleeping and I would check on him as soon as I got home from taking her to school...but I had every intention of getting on the phone the MINUTE I got home and calling the grow-a-frog hotline and having them send me a new one! Which is exactly what I did. Then that evening, Barry and Kendall buried Sam and made a little grave marker for him. He said she did really well with it, so that was good. So, yesterday, the new "froglet" came in the mail and now we are happy again. And for the record, she did not name the new froglet Sam II, which I though was a sure thing. She named him Hoppy, even though he will never live out of the water, therefore never hopping...but whatever!
Then on Sunday, Barry was out mowing down the sides of the lane when he spotted a little turtle making his way across the drive. Barry stopped, scooped him up, and brought him home. Kendall was ecstatic! And it certainly took her mind off of Sam! Normally, we let her observe the creatures she finds for a few hours, and then we let them go back to their homes. But she begged and begged until we relented and told her she could keep him overnight until her friends got here on Monday. But after everyone left, he needed to go home. She agreed and all was well. Here he is in the "habitat" she built for him in the baby pool...The afternoon was going along swimmingly...Mom and Joe stopped down for a visit and we were all sitting out on the deck, having a snack and catching up. Kendall went down to check on her turtle and all at once we heard gut-wrenching screaming. The only words I heard were "SCOUT KILLED MY TURTLE!!" among all the wailing and screaming. I took off down the stairs and sure enough, Scout had killed it. It was not a pretty sight, I must admit. He was chewing on it and there was blood everywhere. I grabbed a sand bucket and scooped it up ASAP and took it to the trash can. Scout didn't know what the hell was going on. Kendall was screaming bloody murder, yelling at Scout that she hated him....you get the picture. It was horrible. It took me a while to get her calmed down, but even longer for her to forgive Scout...in fact, I'm not sure she has yet. So I guess we now know that we shouldn't have a turtle... Live and learn, I guess.

But after the tragedy of the weekend, everything is back to normal here, I'm happy to report. Calm has been restored to the cabin. Thank goodness!

Happy Saturday!

Happy Saturday, everyone! My Saturday started off soooo good. I was the first one up! I got to wake up when my body wanted to, not when someone needed breakfast, or wanted to play, or needed to get ready for school! It was awesome! But being that it was 6:45 (WTF???), I didn't know what to do with myself. So, I decided to make myself some tea and then got busy making some homemade blueberry muffins, eggs, and turkey sausage. When I was finished, and the kitchen was cleaned up, I roused the troops from their slumber and summoned them to breakfast. What a nice way to start the day! Wish we could do it every morning...The only thing on our agenda for Saturday was work. The grass needed mowing, the garden needed planting, the last of the mulching awaited us, and of course, with the weather being so nice, I wanted to wash all of the bedding and get it out on the line. The kids had one thing on their agenda too...PLAYING. All kinds. They checked on their chicks, dug up worms in the garden, played in the sandbox, drove the jeep, did bubbles on the deck...Of course, we had to take time out to have a snack. It was such a beautiful day, that the only thing that made sense was watermelon...
Even Scout was up for lots of playing. But he gets so hot in the sun that after a while, he just wants to lay down and rest. Today, he picked Kendall's beach towel as the perfect napping place!
Barry and I were not as productive as we would have liked. To start off, Barry couldn't get the mower running. UGH!!! NOT GOOD! Our lawn was so high, we could have baled it...and I'm not kidding, either. He tinkered around replacing parts and working on it most of the morning, and when it still wasn't running by 1:30, I called the neighbors to see if we could borrow theirs. They were getting ready for the graduation party they're having on Sunday, so they were mowing! CRAP. Then Barry got on the horn to our other neighbors, who we knew were spending the day painting, and got the OK to use theirs. So finally, I started mowing around 2:30. It took me a while to get the hang of their mower, because it is one of those big zero radius Club Cadet jobbies. It drives completely differently than my big mower. Anyway, I got the whole front done and Barry did the sides and around the pond. We just have to do the back yet.

While the kids were playing up on the deck, I finished planting flowers and spreading the mulch, so we did get that finished. And I did get all my bedding washed, so that's something! We didn't get to the garden, though, so we'll work on it Sunday before we head off to the graduation party.

Now I know you're all thinking, "All you people do is work!!!", and while I know it seems that way sometimes, I assure you that we are enjoying it! It feels good to fall into bed at night completely tired and having accomplished so much. And, to put your minds at ease, we are taking Monday completely off from working. We have invited a group of friends over to cook out and fish and let the kids play in the sprinkler and sandbox...and just sit and relax. ALL. DAY. LONG. No working, I promise.

Hope you all have a wonderful long weekend too! Don't work too hard!! Heehee!!!

Scout Goes to School

On Fridays, Kendall's class has share day. Every Thursday night/Friday morning, she scours the house for her next share item, hoping to impress her teacher and classmates with whatever she chooses. You see, it's important for your friends to be INTERESTED in what you bring! Well, for about the last 4 months, Kendall has been bugging me to let her bring Scout. I kept putting it off and telling her that we needed to wait until the weather was warmer, when Scout wouldn't be such a mess. So here we are, with only 2 weeks of school left, and I was being read the riot act. What could I do? So on Friday, Scout went to school!
Each kid got to give Scout a treat, they all got to pet him...and then they just took off, running and playing. Scout couldn't have been happier to have so much attention! They ran and ran and ran...until Scout just collapsed in the van. And more importantly, Kendall's "share item" was the highlight of the day! She was thrilled!
Now I'm sure that every time we get in the van to go to school, Scout is going to try to go along. Because after all, school is fun...especially if you are the star of the day!

Meet Sam...and the chicks!

Here he is, Kendall's grow-a-frog, Sam! He came to us as a tadpole, but now his tale is disappearing and his back legs are formed. Kendall and Noah check on his progress every single day and report to us what exactly is happening. Isn't he cute? And such an easy little pet...which is what I like!

Now this other science project, on the other hand, is a little more work! Last night Barry picked up our 2 week old baby chicks. Aren't they sweet? The kids (and the dog) are beside themselves with excitement! Kendall was up at 6:15 this morning, fully dressed and ready to go so she would have plenty of time with her chicks...yeah, she usually gets up at 7:45, so I wasn't all that happy to see her at 6:15!!! But anyway, here she is, bedhead and all...playing with her chicks!Kendall is a natural with animals (and bugs...and reptiles...). She spent the entire morning hand-feeding her chicks, checking the temperature in their box, and making sure they were all happy and not crowding each other.
I hope these are the last pets we'll be getting for a while. A dog, a cat, an ant farm, one grow-a-frog, 2 roosters, 2 hens, 11 chicks...it's a little much, don't you think? And to think Barry wants steers too...I'm tired just thinking about it!

The Greatest Show on Earth!

So we went to the circus Saturday night...and it was SO MUCH FUN!!! The kids had no idea what to expect, and to be honest...neither did we! It has been so long since Barry or I have been to the circus. But it really was fun! Kendall loved every bit of it. She sat on the edge of her seat, laughing hysterically or staring, mouth wide open and eyes as big as dinner plates. Noah's favorites were the clowns' little car and this big double wheel that hung from the top of the arena that spun while the clowns climbed all over it. He was completely bored with the acrobatics. Barry and I just thought it was lots of fun! Here are a few pics:

Me and my two monkeysKendall took this picture...not too bad, eh?

The clowns were very silly, and the kids thought that was great!

Acrobatics galore!

Noah and his $7.00 box of popcorn. He ate over half of it and then asked to go to the water fountain every 10 minutes for the second half of the show...

If you get the chance, get to the Ringling Brothers & Barnum & Bailey Circus, peeps! You will not be disappointed!

A Good Saturday Project

Being the "bug girl" she is, Kendall had been dying for an ant farm for about a year now. She finally got one for her birthday in January and was so pleased, I think she may have peed her pants! Well, as you all know, there are no ants around in January...and we thought it was silly to send away for the ants (and pay $4.oo for them to be shipped) when we have a whole yard full of ants just ripe for the picking.

With the weather finally getting warmer, and Noah napping, we pulled out the ant farm and plotted our plan of attack on the ants. I went out with her first, carrying a baby food jar, thinking I could just scoop them up. WRONG!!!!
Kendall would knock down the ant hill and the ants would scurry all over the place, panicking. I would then try to scoop them up with the lid of the jar. The problem was, I couldn't get them scooped up very well, and certainly NOT without getting a whole bunch of dirt in there as well.

So we had to admit defeat. We needed Daddy. Kendall went inside and described our problem. Sure enough, Daddy had a solution (as usual)! He came out and showed Kendall how to use a piece of paper to let the ants crawl on and then dump them into the jar. Why didn't I think of that???

With the ants in hand, we all came inside to get this project going. Pretty simple really, make 3 holes in the green gel, dump your ants in, and place the cap securely on top. And yes, I double checked to make sure it was fastened TIGHT. It cracks me up because these kids are obsessed with these ants and what they are doing.

So now we have an ant farm and a grow-a-frog going. Science projects abound here at the cabin!
Oh, you haven't seen the pics of Sam, the grow-a-frog yet, have you??? Well, I'll fix that soon enough! Keep an eye out for Sam!!

Mmmmm...COOKIES!!!

Here's what I did today....
Anyone for a peanut butter cookie????

A Little of This & That

Here's a quick Noah story for ya...

Earlier this week, I was changing Noah's clothes, and per our usual routine, when I change his clothes, he sits on the potty. So we headed into the bathroom where he plopped himself right down on his potty chair and began chatting about things like bulldozers and firetrucks and trains. I walked into his bedroom to get a fresh pull-up and within a few minutes I hear him yelling, "I poopin'! I poopin' Mama!!" And indeed he had...very exciting! So, we emptied the potty chair, flushed the toilet, and got him cleaned up. Now, by this time, I had to go the bathroom...and since we were already in there, I just told him to hang on a sec and let me go potty. Of course, he was fine with that, because he was still dancing around and singing about pooping on the potty...he's so funny! So I sat down and he walked over to me and asked if I would pick him up. I told him no, I was going potty and could he please be patient. So then he looks me straight in the eye and says,

"Mama, can I see your penis?"

"Ummm, no buddy...I don't have a penis."

(blank stare...like, "Whaaaaaat???")

"Boys have penises. Not girls. I am a girl, so I don't have a penis."

(A bit of understanding comes into his face, but he is still not convinced. I see his eyes drop to where he thinks my penis should be...) "Dat's not a penis???"

"No."

"Well I HAVE A PENIS!!!!!"

"Yes, you do."

"I WUV MY PENIS!!!"

Yes, apparently! How many times will we have this conversation???


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Today is the big community garage sale at the lake community behind us. I am sorry to report that in the wake of preparing for Noah's big party, I was too tired and unmotivated to get my stuff together. But no worries!!! Miss Kathy is having a multi-family garage sale in July and told me I could bring my stuff over then...and my friend Amy may do a yard sale this summer too! (and she tells me she really knows how to do a yard sale!! I could use the help since I've never done it before!) Maybe we'll just head over to the lake to walk around and see what's up...the weather actually looks nice today!

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I can't believe school is almost out. Kendall has really enjoyed her first grade year, and her teacher is awesome...we will miss her! But, Kendall has started the countdown for the last day of school, so I think she is ready for a break. I can't believe she is almost a second grader!

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Noah got this train table for his birthday. He and Kendall have been having so much fun imagining and playing...and playing SO NICELY together!!! I love that!! **************************************************************

Time to get another item listed on Craig's List. I've been loving getting all that stuff sold! It's kind of fun! What next? I'm thinking my Medela Pump in Style breast pump or the super-nice exersaucer... Yeah, I have this "thing" where I can only let myself list one thing at a time. I just think I'll have better luck that way, and so far it's working!!! Although, it could take me all year to sell all my stuff at that rate! LOL!

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We're going to the circus tonight! I haven't been to the circus since I was like, 8. But the Ringling Bros. Barnum Bailey circus is in town, and we scored half-price tickets (THANKS MOM!), so we are going tonight! The kiddos are super-excited, and to tell the truth, so am I! Should get some good pics from that....

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I think that's about it for now....hope you all have a great weekend!!

A Zooper Field Trip!

Today was Kendall's first grade field trip to the zoo, and what a crappy day for it! It was windy and rainy all night, and the temperature dropped significantly. But field trip day it was, so we dressed in layers and loaded up the stroller and sack lunches...and we were off! I felt like the whole day was a little rushed, as the buses were taking the kids (whose parents didn't come) back to the school at 1:00. It seemed like we got there, walked around for about an hour, went to the education class at 11:00, then ate lunch. We only had about 30 minutes for lunch, as the parents of one of Kendall's classmates knew a zookeeper that worked in the Gorilla area, and they had arranged for a personal Q&A session with him for just our group at 12:00. It was awesome! Then we had to be at the front gates at 1:00 to sign out our kids if they were not riding the bus home. That is when the meltdown occurred. Kendall did NOT want to leave. She was convinced that her "very best friends in the WORLD" were staying, and she wanted to stay too. We had actually planned on staying longer, but Noah was doing the "drunken sailor walk" and clearly needed a nap. And from the looks of Kendall's meltdown, she did too! So we had to have a pouting, crying, sobbing, attitude filled walk back to the van. Let's just say that she and her Daddy had a showdown in the parking lot when she decided that she was going to run away right then and there. Holy crackamoly. We were all exhausted when we left, and of course, I was left wondering how we (as parents) could have handled that situation better. I've said it before, and I'll say it again...I am so NOT the mother I wanted to be! I TRY, but sometimes fall short of the mark, I'm sorry to say. Well, another day, another lesson learned, I guess!

But alas, 20 minutes later, all was well and she had stopped sobbing and telling us how unfair we are and how mean we are...and apologizing instead. Well, I should hope so.

So, anyway, here are some pics from the field trip. I prefer to remember THESE moments and NOT the fit...LOL!

My Mother's Day

Today, for Mother's Day, we got up early and tried to beat the brunch crowd by going to breakfast. We went to my favorite breakfast place, First Watch...and Aunt Jessie met us there! We were super hungry, and believe me, there was NO shortage of food at our table. The kids both ordered pancakes (blueberry for Noah and chocolate chip for Kendall), I had a vegetable fritatta AND a belgian waffle with blueberry sauce(yes, I shared), Barry had a breakfast burrito and Jessie got the sauteed mushrooms and scrambled eggs. It was YUMMY!!!
And then, all the mothers got a complimentary box of chocolates on their way out...YIPPEEE!!!
We were home by noon or so. The weather was cold and rainy, so we played for a bit, sat on the couch and watched a movie...and then I decided to go lay in bed and read (gasp!) ...and ended up taking a much needed snooze, too! What a nice day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of you wonderful women out there! You ROCK!

A Big Party For My Baby Boy!

I can't believe it...my baby is turning 3!!! That's right, Noah's birthday is Tuesday, but we had his big party yesterday. Since his birthday is always on Mother's Day weekend, we have a combo party...and this year was GREAT! We had an awesome crowd of friends and family...and lots of little kiddos around to eat cake & ice cream, play, and fish. You can see all the great pictures here, but here are a few pics of the highlights... Me, Deetra and Jodi

The crowd out at the pond

Noah's reaction to "MONEY!!!"

Noah's cake...YUM!

Party on the deck!

Hot dogs, anyone??

Who said girls don't like to fish?

Time to sing "Happy Birthday!"

The girls, watching Enchanted. They knew EVERY line!

We were a little worried by Friday. On Thursday and Friday, it rained and got colder. But we were not deterred! On Saturday, the sun came out, it was an absolutely perfect day, and the party was a huge success! I have long ago learned that games and goody-bags are not necessary at a child's party...all they want to do is PLAY. So that is what we do. Good friends, family, lots of food, cake and ice cream, and most of all...FUN.