The Gallagher Crew

Getting rid of Ellery....

2012-02-06T13:48:00.003-06:00

Grady seems to think that he only needs two sisters; Briley first, then Molly. He says we can get rid of Ellery. His next thought is we keep them all, then have 2 more boys. Twin. We are going to name them Finn and Lightening. (Lightening after Lightening McQueen, of course!)

Honestly, if we could guarantee a boy, we'd probably have another. Statistically though, the odds are not in our favor. I'm not a betting girl, but historically we've proven a 25% chance of having a boy. Not the best odds! :)

Ellery stopped sucking her thumb!!!

2012-02-03T23:27:00.000-06:00

We finally got Ellery to stop sucking her thumb. HUGE accomplishment!!! We put a glove on her hand each night before bed. Surprisingly it stayed on. She's been an avid thumb sucker since birth. I didn't think it would be this easy....so she was obviously ready. The first day I caught her during the day, and then a few days later I noticed that I hadn't seen her with her thumb in her mouth lately. Then after a week or so, we took the glove off and she hasn't needed her thumb since! YAY!!! I hope its that easy with Briley when then time comes....

American Heritage Girls Joining Ceremony

2012-01-11T13:21:00.001-06:00

Homeschooling Week 3

2012-01-11T13:19:00.003-06:00

Molly was reading to the kids for "rest" time. Not much resting going on, but quiet, happy kids = happy mamma!

Joe corrupting Briley

2012-01-01T13:18:00.000-06:00

Daddy and Briley concentrating really hard on their lego XBOX "game." Daddy is really playing. Bri just thinks she's playing.

A picture a day....

2011-12-31T08:37:00.000-06:00

I'm going to do my best this year to take (and post) a picture a day!!!

Sisters???

2011-07-14T17:08:00.000-05:00

Any chance these two are related?

Any chance at all?

Just checking, because I wasn't quite sure.

OK. I guess that answers it.

How to put on your shoes (according to Briley)

2011-07-13T13:14:00.000-05:00

Go find a shoe....any shoe will do. Any size. Any color.

Set the shoe in front of you.

Pick up your foot with your hands. Take foot and insert foot into shoe. (Note: Don't put the shoe on your foot, but put your foot into the shoe.

Ellery's first tooth

2011-06-27T21:18:00.000-05:00

It was quite traumatic. She won't look in the mirror or at the tooth. She wouldn't eat dinner and I had to brush her teeth.

But its done! (The big tooth has been in behind for awhile....can we say braces? :)

Daddy's little helper

2011-06-27T07:32:00.000-05:00

(Photo and commentary by Joe)

We were installing one of those cabinet-mounted garbage cans. This was the frame and roller board. Flawless execution with the phillips screwdriver! Daddy is soooo proud. Poor little guy though... Now that Mommy knows he can use tools, I am sure he'll be put to work around the house!

Another one from Grady

2011-06-26T21:37:00.001-05:00

Its waaaay past bedtime and we are wrestling to get the kids in bed. They have been playing with our foam alphabet set (a toy which I brought downstairs to take to donation months ago, but they have played more with this than almost any other toy we have in the house...so it stayed!) and I've asked them to put them away and go upstairs.

The girls have obliged, but Grady is dawdling. Then he simply starts to walk towards the stairs. I said "wait a minute buddy, what did I just ask you to do?"

He slowly walks back with his head hung and starts to put the letters away.

I asked where he was going.

He answered, "poop" and then starts to squirm.

"What" I asked?

"Mommy, I have to go poop," he answered.

"Well then go" I replied! (Can't argue with that now can I???)

Thoughts from E

2011-06-02T12:46:00.000-05:00

The kids are happily (or so I thought) playing upstairs while B naps. I walk out in the living room and hear E yelling at Molly:

NOBODY CALLS ME A LIAR EXCEPT FOR MOM!

Hmmm....think we've had a bit of a fibbing problem at our house lately???

Dinosaur poop

2011-05-19T21:39:00.000-05:00

Grady's all to familiar call from the bathroom....."All done pooping Mama," was followed with this today "and it looks like a dinosaur poop."

Really? And what, exactly, does that look like I wonder? Want to know? I'll spare you the details.

Briley is in her own room

2011-05-18T11:51:00.002-05:00

I just took down the crib in our room *sniff* and she has now spent 2 nights in a row *sniff* in her own room upstairs *sniff, sniff.* Why am I having such a hard time with this? Because it's our last??? I have been purging the baby stuff. All the big battery operated and plastic toys. Swing. Bassinet. Johnny Jump-up. I even have our double stroller and double jogger listed! I just need to clean the exer-saucer and that goes. When Briley and Grady have grown out of their clothes, I consign, give and donate them. The first load was the worst, but now its very freeing. I'm seeing space emerge in my house, garage and attic. Maternity clothes are long gone. I'm even starting to get rid of the things that Briley has yet to play with. Amazing how the more kids I have, the less stuff I'm wanting to keep.....well, the brightly colored plastic stuff that is! :)

Another Ellery-ism

2011-05-05T22:25:00.001-05:00

Molly is studying for her "Patriot Test" in school and we're talking about the Declaration of Independence. Among other questions, the study questions ask about some of the men who were involved in writing it, one of which was an ancestor of mine. Well, I then had to explain what an ancestor is.

Later, on the way to school, Ellery asks, "who else is our Aunt's Sister?"

Thoughts from E

2011-03-15T21:23:00.001-05:00

Poppy walked Ellery to the bathroom (why does he always get potty duty???). When she came out, they headed back to the pool. Ellery says, "that's weird. We wash and dry our hands....then we get right back in the water."

Auto flush toilets

2011-03-12T21:19:00.001-06:00

Still on vaca in Mexico.....

Poppy took Grady "potty" and Grady finished first. He was telling Poppy how he beat him and then asked how to flush the toilet. Poppy said, "hang on a minute and I'll show you" but as Grady walked away the toilet flushed. He was so excited and says, 'WOW....I just walked away and it flushed all by itself!" (Picture a wondrous hand gesture.) "We don't have those at home!"

Thoughts from E

2011-03-10T21:18:00.000-06:00

We are vacationing in Cabo with my parents. The girls are playing "Mermaid" in the water with Poppy (grandpa) supervising (in his bathing suit). Ellery says to him, "you can be the daddy mermaid. You are just perfect because daddy mermaids don't have to wear shirts."

My nephew...Mac

2011-03-05T13:20:00.001-06:00

Look at those eye! Luv. Him!

Its weird seeing my little sister with a baby. I keep thinking she's nannying and will return this kid to his rightful parents soon. But he looks too much like his mom and dad to be someone else's child. :)

She's had a rough go at it, with a colicky kiddo, but he's rounded the 4 mo mark and is growing out of it. If only he'd sleep for her now! But she's been a trooper and is still willing to have one more.

But he sure is cute, so Paige....if you're missing him one day.

It was me. I have him. (He fits right in at our house with that blond hair and those big blue eyes. No one would even notice. The best part...I didn't have to gain all that pregnancy weight....or I could still say...."oh, I just had a baby...it'll come off and have an excuse for not losing the weight from B...and the weight from G....and E and M for that matter! But I digress...

Happy Mommy-ing Paige! You're doing a great job! Thanks for sharing him with me.

Now I can wait a few more month before I have to go out and have another one.

I am kidding people. We are done.

Macallan

2011-02-24T10:15:00.001-06:00

He is 4 months and all I've seen are pictures. I am so sad about that. I haven't been able to kiss him, to hold him, to babysit so my sis can get a break. ( I do field phone calls and emails and respond with all of my wonderful advice! :)

Here he is!

Mwah!

Sweet boy, that'll have to do until I finally get to love on you next week! Can't wait!!!

And now Hot

2011-02-17T14:20:00.001-06:00

Its 80 degrees outside. In one week, we've gone from -25 to 80. I wonder what next week is going to be like...

Can you say C.O.L.D???

2011-02-10T09:24:00.001-06:00

Instead of getting up at the crack of dawn (who am I kidding...I was up before 6:30 with Briley) to go workout today, I thought I'd skip the early morning (kidding again...I've been skipping for 3 weeks since Joe's been out of town!) and shovel the driveway. For all of you not aware of what's going on down here, our weather is Cra-Zee! Blizzards, feet of snow, cold, cold, cold. Anyway...right before I put Briley down for her nap, I checked the temps. -25 degrees. 25 degrees BELOW ZERO. Negative. Huh??? Its warmer in Alaska! I checked again. Seriously? That's not with wind chill. That's the actual temperature outside!!!

I think I'll wait until her afternoon nap.

My sweet boy...

2011-02-04T19:37:00.001-06:00

Throwing a bit of a tantrum

And then laughing when I played it for him.

Briley walking

2011-02-03T19:39:00.001-06:00

Here she goes....

New weatherstripping???

2011-02-02T21:06:00.002-06:00

I'm just sayin'

Cuz that's snow.
(The door was closed and locked all night.)

January pics

2011-01-31T21:35:00.000-06:00

While the cats away.....

2011-01-30T21:47:00.001-06:00

At least he chose blue....

Thoughts from E

2011-01-30T15:55:00.001-06:00

We are watching "The Chronicles of Narnia" and there is a scene where the fireplace is on. E and G are commenting on the fire and Ellery says...

"And it stays on. All the time. You see Grady, some people don't have switches for their fireplaces to turn them on and off."

Applejuice

2011-01-09T18:32:00.003-06:00

We are sitting at dinner and Grady asks Goggy (grandpa) if he can have a drink of his applejuice....

Um...maybe in about 18 years?

December pics

2010-12-31T21:13:00.000-06:00

More Cookies

2010-12-30T15:15:00.000-06:00

I'm handing out cookies to Joe and kids after lunch. I give each of the kids one and Joe two.

Grady says, "Hey....why does daddy get two and we only get one?"

"He's a man and you are kids," I answer.

"Do you love him more," he asks?

(In context, this is something that we say to the kids when they are complaining about so-and-so gets more. We answer that we love said child more. All the time, to all the kids, so they totally know we are kidding!)

Whack-a-mole

2010-12-12T15:16:00.002-06:00

We are sitting in a restaurant with the whole family the other night addressing each kids needs as they arise, which in public is every 2.7 seconds. Molly, then Grady, then Briley, then Molly, then Briley, then Ellery, then Grady, then Molly, etc.

Joe turns to me and says "Whack-a-mole."

"Huh," I ask?

"Do you remember that arcade game whack-a-mole? That's what we do. Whack. Whack. Whack." He says doing the hand motion over each of the kids heads.

Then he says, "I'm the one in the middle that you get 100 points for and the kids are all around me worth 10 points. That's what you're playing all the time!

YUP! I'm an expert whack-a-moler! I'll add that to my job title.

Ellery and her "jeans''

2010-12-10T11:47:00.001-06:00

The other day, I had a conversation with Ellery which went a little something like this:

"Mom, I can't marry Grady, can I?"

"Um, well, no honey. He's your brother."

"That's what I thought. Because if we are married and both wear the same jeans, something will happen."

Hunh? (To myself.) "What do you mean sweet-pea?"

"Nanny told me that." (Thanks, mom.)

Molly pipes in, "yah, something bad will happen to your kids, like they won't listen or something."

OK...so where exactly did Joe and I go wrong?

Happy Halloween

2010-10-31T20:48:00.002-05:00

Ellery the Cowgirl, Molly the Angel, Briley the Pumpkin and Grady the Conductor

Oct pics

2010-10-30T20:46:00.000-05:00

Sept pics

2010-09-30T20:31:00.000-05:00

Too many kids...

2010-09-24T20:19:00.000-05:00

Joe and I were just finishing up dinner and chatting, while the kids had declared it "yucky" with one look and had mostly left the kitchen. You see, we've been having a bit of an....uh....issue...lately with the "No's" and being ignored and such. Well, I asked G to pick up something he had just dropped and he said.....drum roll....No. After Joe dealt with that I asked "what is with the disrespect going on in this house? Where did we go wrong?"

Right then M walks into the room and says, "having to much kids."

Nuff. Said.

August pics

2010-08-31T13:28:00.000-05:00

What a wonderful day!

2010-08-29T19:11:00.000-05:00

Today our first born went down in front of our church to publicly profess that she had accepted Jesus Christ, our Savior, into her heart! We are so proud as parents and are looking forward to her Baptism next weekend.

A week full of milestones for miss B

2010-08-28T19:11:00.003-05:00

This week she started to crawl AND also had her two bottom teeth break through. (So...that's why she's been so cranky!!! :)

This baby...

2010-08-22T17:08:00.000-05:00

I just love her! :0) (Well, of course I do, right?) No really. She is the sweetest thing. Always ready with a smile. Very happy. Good sleeper. Cute as all get out. (Yes, I know I'm a bit bias...) Besides the newborn stage, this is one of my favorites. The 6 month age. You know. Where they are up on their hands and knees rocking back and forth. On the verge of crawling...but not quite mobile. At this point all I have to worry about is a little spit-up on the carpet (well, in her case, a lot of it.) But I do know what's coming...

Figuring out this computer

2010-08-18T13:14:00.002-05:00

I will be posting pics as soon as I can figure out how to get them off of iPhoto and onto my blog....

Ever feel like you're losing your mind?

2010-08-18T12:16:00.000-05:00

It's happening on a daily basis lately (no comment needed from the hubs here...). I walk into a room and totally forget why I went in there. Then I walk back to where I started....still no clue. Oh well. I'll figure it sometime today, I hope. It can't have been too important, right? Old age? (30 something is old, right? At least I thought so when I was 15! :) Lack of sleep? 4 kids? Too busy? All of the above? Yes, I'm a bit busier than most, but I can't think of something I'd cut out. Except for cleaning the house. And laundry (as I look at the 8 loads that have taken over my couch today.) Oh, and the dishes and cooking. And my weekly trip to Wal-Mart (not many choices here in this small town.) Gosh, what's left? :) Oh yes, the kids. I'll keep them....most days anyway.

And while it's on my mind....at what point did my just-turned-3 year old learn how to use the DVD player and remote??? I'm just askin'. I certainly didn't show him. Hmmm, does he have 2 older sisters? Who like Tinkerbell? Cuz that's what he wanted to watch today while I sit here and fold 8 loads of laundry. (Did I mention that already?) I was trying to convince him that Chuggington (trains) or Thomas would be better, but no...Tinkerbell. That's what he requested.

(See? I am losing my mind. This post probably doesn't make any sense to anyone but me. But thank for reading it anyway.)

First day of school....first day of school....first day of school!

2010-08-11T17:08:00.001-05:00

Finding Nemo anyone? (Could not get that out of my head today! :) Well...the time has come to send #2 off to Kindergarten. I am split on this one. She'd be the easy one to home school. She's a mama's girl. Always with me, by choice. She's a homebody. Which is why I was so surprised that she didn't want me to walk her in (I still did) and when I went to kiss her goodbye at her new desk, I got the mom-you-are-embarrassing-me-please-leave-now look. I sooo expected that from #1 (who was clingy and wanted me to home school her for the first 6 weeks of school) but not from E.

After we dropped her off, G, B and I stayed rather busy. It really felt like a preschool day, but I know that next week when she's gone everyday, instead of only 2, it'll really hit me that she's a "big girl." Check back next week to see if I'm in tears...

Edited: she LOVED school. But then 30 mns after she was home she said, "Mom, I think I want to try home schooling tomorrow." (Love her!)

Edited again: Day #3. Mom's thoughts, can she please just stay there all day? She came home quite the pill and immediately got sent to her room. A few minutes later it was silent. I went to check. Out like a light! :0) A bit tired are we???

Edited yet again: After Day #4, she decides every night that she wants me to home school her tomorrow. Every morning she forget though and is excited to go to school.

Last edit, I promise: She cried today at rest time. Cried for mama. Breaks my heart. I miss her too. Luckily I have 2 more at home that distract me from missing E. But what a mess I'll be when they all go off. Whatever will I do with all my free time? I have 5 more years to worry about that though. Maybe we'll just keep having babies so I can stay busy? (Kidding mom!!! We're still done.)

My new friend

2010-08-10T16:53:00.000-05:00

This is what happened when I left for a quick errand. I came back and this had been ordered. Mind you, my old computer was 10 years old. That is ancient for computers. I'm sure my DH was really sick of hearing me constantly complaining about how slow it was, so...he bought me this. He customized it and everything. I'm sure I have no idea of the power this baby has and it'll take me weeks to transfer all my data over. Heck, it took me all morning to just get my calendar and address book transferred! (Probably due to the fact that I'm refusing to spend more money and get an iPhone right now only because I don't want to pay the monthly charge for the data plan. That's the frugal side of me. Which tends to take over most of the time. But I digress...)

Anyway....its kinda fun. Looking forward to getting to know each other better.

I'm still here....

2010-08-10T16:32:00.003-05:00

Hi there. Yes, I'm still here and attempting to blog. We've had quite a busy summer. I'll briefly recap:

-4 kids home between the ages of 0-7
-A month long trip to Seattle and Anchorage
-Started a new business with a friend
-Husband traveling with work
-MOPs coordinator
-Did I mention 4 kids home all summer?

Looking over that list, it doesn't sound like a lot, but I feel like I was a lot busier! Anyway, M and E go back to school tomorrow (E's first day of Kindergarten...sniff, sniff...not sure how I feel about that) then G starts preschool (another milestone in our fam) next week. I'm assuming I'm going to have a lot more free time with 1/2 the crew gone during the day. So, I intend on posting a lot more....but first I'll have to get caught up on everything that I let go this summer...

More to come...

July pics

2010-07-31T18:51:00.001-05:00

Jun pics

2010-06-30T18:19:00.001-05:00

A perfect match

2010-06-28T15:55:00.000-05:00

Vinyl, meet my Silhouette. Silhouette, meet vinyl. Then Silhouette and vinyl meet my crazy organization obsession. There. I'm sure you will all play together nicely.

I've had a Silhouette machine since I'm moved to a city without a scrap booking store. It was my gift to myself 3 years ago when we moved out of Washington to uh...a less populated area. I was feeling sad and knew I would go through withdrawals of not being able to die cut at my leisure, so I bought it with grand intentions. Don't get me wrong, its been used, but three years and two more kids later, it hasn't been used as much as I anticipated. But that has all changed. Between this and my usually strong obsession towards organization, my house will be going through a transformation over the next few months

My first try at this. Labeling our playroom bins. Only one of my four kiddos can read, but this will help out in many ways. Babysitters. Weekly playgroup clean up. Me. (OK, so its mostly for me.) Our playroom can get quite messy at times. Its the price I pay to have an hour to get things done. Sometimes I'm amazed at what they can do in such a short time....and then how agonizingly long it takes them to clean it up. (Another project this summer....edit playroom toys...but that's another post.) Anyhoo...I bought these wooden plaque-type things at Hobby Lobby awhile ago with the intentions of labels the big wicker baskets in our playroom. But then I got home, looked at my vinyl, looked at my Silhouette, got scared and hid the supplies. Repeat for 4 months. Finally last month I decided to face my fears. After it was over I was rather pleased with myself, mostly for being able to check something off my ever growing list, but also because I knew I had opened up a whole new obsession!

The project

2010-06-28T01:12:00.002-05:00

The short version....I spray painted the wooden plaques. I painted both sides so that when the kids grow and their toy stash changes, I can use the other side. After the paint dried, I used my handy dandy crop-o-dile to punch holes in the wood. (Yep...it goes through that too!) I then took a brown antiquing stamp pad to the edges. Choosing the font was tricky, because the had to be bi g enough to read, but narrow enough to fit the longest word in between the holes. (Yes, in hind sight, I should have used a font a little less similar to my own handwriting.) Put the vinyl in the machine, had it cut the letters, removed the part around the words, then applied the transfer tape. Cut out each word then applied it to the wood. Removed the transfer tape and voila! I used jute to attach them to the baskets.

We have 6 wicker baskets and they are are done. Now I need to tackle the red plastic bins on the upper shelves. Will post a completely picture when the room is done.

***Please disregard the toys that have been ~~cleaned up~~ shoved under the shelves by my children. For some reason they don't think that I can see them.

May pics

2010-05-31T18:01:00.000-05:00

Potty Training: 3 down, 1 to go

2010-05-07T09:16:00.011-05:00

Yup. I did it. I took on the challenge of potty training the boy. I bought all the supplies, scheduled it on the calendar, and hunkered down, mentally preparing for a long battle. 4 hours. That's is. That's all it really took. One morning. Really? Why in the world have I put this off for so long??? Granted, he's only 2 1/2, so it wasn't put off THAT long, but still. I could have had changed 1 diaper less? What was I waiting for? Maybe, the birth of #4 and the fear that he would revert? Or my sleep deprived nights to end so that I had enough energy to take on the potty beast? Anyway, didn't matter. He did it. Much easier and quicker than my others. AND we are completely out of diapers. No diapers during the day. No diapers at nap. No diapers at night. My disposable spending just increased by about $50 a month. Yippee!!

April Pics

2010-04-30T17:27:00.001-05:00

March Pictures

2010-03-31T17:18:00.001-05:00

Thoughts from E

2010-03-04T18:54:00.002-06:00

She was rubbing her eye and then accidentally pulled out an eyelash. She looks at me and says, "I'm ok. There's no need for a doctor or the emergency room."

S-p-e-l-l-i-n-g

2010-02-28T20:21:00.000-06:00

My dear son is over the moon about trains. At Christmas, we watched "Polar Express" every day. I mean every. Single. Day. You know the part where the 2 kids are on the back on the train singing a little song about Christmas? Well, the G-man has been humming that since mid-December. All day. Every day. It was adorable....at first....but now is getting a little old.

We're sitting at the dinner table this evening and he started humming it. I look over at Joe and say, "I'm just about S-I-C-K of that song," with a smile (kind of). Molly turns to us and says, "he sure does L-O-V-E that song!"

Yots and yots

2010-02-26T20:21:00.001-06:00

I've decorated G's room in a sailboat theme. On the walls, I have a couple of phrases written. "Come sail away with me," and "row, row, row your boat." Every time we change him (and that's a lot) we talk about the letters, the color of the room, the boats and lighthouses. He's a talker. Big time. I'm changing him today and he says, "O. O, mama, O." I say, "that's right bub! What other letters do you see?" He says, "yots, mama. yots and yots of them." (For those of you that might not be up to date on your toddler speak, yots = lots!)

2010-02-12T21:26:00.000-06:00

B's Birthday

2010-02-08T21:08:00.000-06:00

Gallagher's new addition...

2010-02-08T13:00:00.003-06:00

Briley Gallagher
Time: 7:40 a.m.
Weight: 7 lbs 7 oz
Length: 20 inches

Dressing up

2010-01-01T20:20:00.000-06:00

My 4 year old (girl) is helping my 2 year old (boy) dress up in her dress up clothes. I think its hilarious since it was the little boy's idea. (My hubby doesn't think its as funny.) Seeing him walking around in a tutu cracks me up. Boy do I wish I ~~wasn't so lazy and would go get my~~ had my camera with me!

Picture blocks

2010-01-01T16:07:00.008-06:00

I love it when I find a great blog that I can use ideas from for our MOPS crafts. My goal as Creative Activities Coordinator is to expose the moms to an assortment of crafts that are easy to do and something that I would want to take home myself. This is definitely one of those!

Super easy....that is everything except finding pine 4x4 posts!!! I opted to modge podge paper to the top of mine because I'm too impatient to wait for baby #4's picture. I did, however, spend many hours spray and hand painting these blocks (60 of them) in the middle of winter during a cold snap. I'm just now posting these because I gave some as Christmas gifts to family members who read this blog...and didn't want to spoil the surprise.

December pictures

2009-12-31T12:38:00.000-06:00

A Christmas Tidbit from Ellery

2009-12-25T12:39:00.001-06:00

Els is chatting with my mom on the phone today and mom was asking her about Christmas. After answering some questions, she paused and said, "Nanna, how did you know it was Christmas here?" Nana says, "it's Christmas, too. It's Christmas all over the world." Another pause from E. "It is" she says? "I didn't know that." Nana says, "Yes, everywhere. Call Goggy and ask him if he is having Christmas there, too." Ellery says, "huh? It's Christmas in Anchorage too?"

Visit with Santa

2009-12-24T22:30:00.007-06:00

Today is Christmas Eve and the busy neglectful mom that I've been lately has put off our annual Santa picture to the last minute...so...off to the mall we go. On the way there we were prepping G that we were going to see Santa and that he was going to ask what the kids wanted for Christmas. I was hoping that this would be the first year without a screaming kid (no such luck) and was trying to preemptively calm the fears of our 2 year old. We get to the mall and the girls go right up to Santa, give him a hug and hop on his lap. Hesitantly Grady looks over at him, checks him out, then runs up, gives him a quick hug, takes a few steps back and yells at him "Nanas" then runs away. (Nanas = Thomas the Tank Engine). Needless to say, the next few minutes were spent forcing G to sit on Santa's lap so we could snap a quick picture (which we did end up getting...its not good, but we have it!)

Oh, and...I overheard the girls telling Santa that they wanted magic wands. Not sure where Santa is going to come up with those, but while he's making them, I'd like one too!

The Nutcracker Ballet

2009-12-20T20:56:00.006-06:00

In keeping with the season and trying to be a good parent that exposed her children to culture (well, as much as I'm going to be able to in this small town) I thought I would take my girls to go see the Nutcracker. Not. My. Best. Idea. I think it would have been a little easier if I wasn't 7 1/2 months pregnant and of course the fact that its TWO AND A HALF HOURS long, so for a 4 and 6 year old that's like 3 weeks. Anyway....the house lights finally went down after 15 minutes of this conversation:

Child: "When is it going to start Mom? When?"

Me: "5 minutes, sweetpea."

Child: "That's what you said last time" (which actually happened to be 5 minutes earlier and and would have been correct if they had started on time.)

Me: "I know punkin, but that when it was supposed to start."

Don't these people know that there are antsy children (and a lot of them from what I saw) sitting in the audience???

Here is just a tiny snippet of the conversations that were interrupting everyone around us (poor, poor people who thought they were coming for a nice afternoon of cultural entertainment)

Act I: the party -- these are just a few of the questions I got

M: "is this supposed to be a party?"

M: "what are they doing?"

E: "Can I sit on your lap?" (mind you...belly out to here, no lap available anymore.)

M: "why isn't anyone talking?"

M: "is this all it is??? Just music??"

E: "I feel like I want to take my shoes off, can I?" (sure, why not, we're going to be here for awhile.)

M: "Can I sit on your lap?" (see above)

E: After Act I ends "it that all? Is it finally over? This is taking forever" (nope, just the first act....)

At Intermission: E: "Can we go home now???"

Note to self...wait until they are older...much, much older before trying this again.

Bribing Santa

2009-12-10T21:03:00.000-06:00

I walk into the living room the other day to see this on the tree...

The note says, "To Santa, I love you, From Molly." Hey, its worth a try, right?

Thoughts from Ellery

2009-12-02T20:46:00.003-06:00

Molly comes running into my office saying, "Mom, there's a problem. Mine and Ellery's toilet is plugged." Most likely someone used it and "forgot" to flush, but I went to investigate...just in case. Sure enough, no problem at all. Ellery helped me try to figure out the problem. She squatted down really low and looked under the toilet. "Mom," she says, "it doesn't looked like our toilet is unplugged."

Aahhh the mind of a 4 year old. You can plug and unplug a toiled just like a lamp!

We've pick out a name...

2009-11-30T20:49:00.001-06:00

Another ultrasound confirms its a girl and i'm actually starting to believe it now...especially since G has said that all along. We have picked out a name. One in which my mom is not especially fond of, but we all love it. The girls are calling her by it. So are we. Every time I try to get G to say it, he shakes his head and says, "no, dede" (his rendition of baby.) I'll give you a hint....it starts with a B and ends with a Y....and no its not baby! :) Now to figure out a middle name...

The Cheerio Incident (and November pictures)

2009-11-30T19:17:00.000-06:00

Another MOPS craft and a great teacher gift!

2009-11-23T16:58:00.007-06:00

Personalized hand sanitizers. So easy and so cheap. I made a bunch for teachers and friends who are having babies soon to include with gifts. Here is where I found this one!

October pictures

2009-10-31T19:13:00.000-05:00

M's first report card

2009-10-22T21:46:00.004-05:00

Now that she's in first grade, I guess we get report cards sent home with them. (The school figures she's still too young to figure out the whole checking-the-mailbox-before-mom-and-dad-do thing.) Before I tell you about her grades, let me back up a month or two.

We get all her work sent home, so I see the grades she's getting on a daily basis. When I say all, her work, I mean ALL her work! They first month I saved it all...in a pile...in my office...at my husbands request. When I realized that this was only ONE months worth of work...I selectively edited what I'm keeping (sorry babe). These papers kept coming home, mostly with the grades of S+ with some number grades, but those were always 97-100%. I kept seeing S+ after S+ and being the overprotective mom that I am, I was started to get a tad bit defensive. I mean, whoa, she's only 6, how perfect do you expect her handwriting to be anyway? See, where I come from, the grades are E = Excellent, S = Satisfactory, then you get the S+ and S- if applicable, and there must have been something else (N = Needs Improvement) but being the stellar student I was, I never got one of those (right mom??? =)

Well, like I said, we received her report card in the mail and all I saw was S+ ALL THE WAY DOWN THE LIST!!! Hunh??? Not one single excellent? Seriously??? We must have a talk here! Then I happened to glance at the top to see that the S+'s that were everywhere...well...they were the highest grade she could get. Oops! :) Here in OK, they grade by S+, S, and S-. So...silly me. No need to approach the school and start arguing her case.

We congratulated her, loved on her, and took her out to dinner to celebrate. She got to choose the restaurant and dessert. I figure the best way to keep the good grades coming home...make sure she knows what a good job she is doing. Make her proud of herself, and let her know we are proud of her too!

Another MOPS craft - fall wreath

2009-10-19T17:05:00.002-05:00

First off, let me say, I am not a florist, nor a wreath maker, and...keep in mind...I have to come up with these crafts for $2 or less per mom...50 moms each meeting! Mini wreath form + wire + floral stems cut apart + ribbon = fall wreath.

D-D-D-D-Gog

2009-10-10T22:36:00.002-05:00

So I get the G-man up from his nap and we're hanging out in his room on the floor looking at a wooden puzzle, void of all pieces, and talking about what pictures are there. Its an alphabet puzzle, so we're going through it. We keep coming back to Choo-choo (train) and Gog (Dog). I say to him, "D-D-D-D-Dog," because I'm attempting to teach him the proper pronouncement of the word. This is what he says to me, "D-D-D-D-Gog." Ok, so close enough.

September pics

2009-09-30T18:57:00.000-05:00

It's a GIRL...I think...

2009-09-29T22:42:00.002-05:00

Luckily we already have a lot of pink around here, so this might just work out fine. Although I'm not so sure that I believe the U/S tech. I've felt all along that its a boy. We have a boy name. Grady's pregnancy and this one were identical. (The girl's were identical, too). We have the space in Grady's room (I'm NOT giving up my craft room!!!). So...if it really is a girl, I sure hope she likes navy blue and boats! I have more U/Ss at 28 and 32 weeks. I'm going to have them check again...just in case.

Redoing the guest room...

2009-09-15T12:44:00.005-05:00

Starting this week, we will have company in town for the next 40 +/- days. Lately the guest room has become a dumping grounds for all my ebay, etsy, craigslist and sewing projects. Knowing that bed will be used soon, I've begun to clean it out. (Side note to my guests...please don't look through the closet, its a bit scary!!!) Anyway. I've never LOVED the curtains in there and let's not get started on the fact that we've been here for 2 years and there are STILL no pictures on the walls. Anyway...I'm trying to get the finishing touches on some rooms before baby #4 comes because after that...nothings getting done around here! :) So, I'm blog hopping one eve and I come across The Nester and immediately *heart* this site! After reading about window "mistreatments" I decide I HAVE to change one of my windows...and this was an easy one to do!

The iron hooks just happened to be on sale at Hobby Lobby last week, so of course I grabbed them! Can't beat $5 a piece!!! I already had the curtains, but had sewed a rod pocket into them to hang on the rod I had originally put up. Honestly, the hardest part of putting these all up...ripping out the seams! :) I already had the clippy-rings leftover from who knows what! (See honey...I really will use the things I keep!)

After I got everything up, the window still needed a little something. I was going to make a sign, but at my weekly trip to HL this week, wall decor was on sale (again) so I grabbed that cute sign and just put it up. (Babe...I'm hearing you when you say "stop making things and just buy them!"...but just this once!) I love how it all turned out...and I already have a place to reuse the curtain rod...which I'm sure I'll be posting as soon as its done!

Now I'm on to the girls valence to try another type of "mistreatment." Then I'll hit the master bath, then....oh never mind....you get it!

First MOPS craft - jute wrapped vase

2009-09-14T19:44:00.007-05:00

Last year I planned on posting the MOPS crafts that I organized. I think I might have gotten one posted??? This year....I'm aiming for more! :) Keep in mind that I have a $2 budget per mom, so I'm creative and frugal! Here's the first one, a jute wrapped vase. You start with this...

How do you do this??? So easy! Choose the back side of the vase, add some glue, add the jute...wrap. Add some glue (in a line up the back side of the vase), wrap the jute, add glue, wrap...oh you get it, right??? Here's some options of what I ended up with...

Now add your candles or flowers or just display them as is! Now while that glue gun is still smokin' hot, grab that ugly lamp base you've been meaning to donate and wrap that, too!

One thing I've learned about having kids...

2009-09-12T08:06:00.004-05:00

Don't ever open your mouth and talk about something they've done or haven't done. Let me explain. The other day I was chatting with a friend and scissors were involved (usually with me, some sort of craft is! :) Anyway...we got to talking about scissors and hair and our kids. You know where this is going. I mention (kinda of questioningly) that my kids have yet to attempt self haircuts. See...that was my mistake. Had I kept my mouth shut and never said anything, I'm sure I would not be making this post. But no...I had to go and open my big mouth.

I walk into my bathroom last night to start the bath for the kids. I looked down and what do I see? Hair. Long strands of curly blonde hair. Luckily the girls were right behind me so I didn't have to scream loud enough to wake the whole city...just the neighborhood. And then I notice one child is no longer behind me. Ellery. The child whose hair is an uncanny match to what is lying on the ground.

For the first time in my life, I did not run for the camera. Usually in any situation involving my children, I grab the camera first...then help! Not this time. I wasn't sure if I was upset, sad, angry, but man...she was scared. Especially since I told her I would have to cut her hair to "fix" it. (Just between you and me...she was going to get a haircut anyway to trim off the green ends for the swimming pool...but I didn't tell her that and let her suffer a bit.) All through the bath, she was wailing "I don't want you to cut my hair. I don't want to look like a boy. I don't want to go back to school." Over and over and over. I didn't do anything to calm her, as I wanted to make sure this would NEVER happen again! Kinda mean, but I'm hoping it worked.

After I cleaned her hair up (luckily she has a mess of curls so the damage isn't that noticeable) she was complaining (read:still crying) that she doesn't like her short hair. (It's not that short...but short for her). I haven't checked on her yet this morning, but I'm sure she remembers.

Oh and I found out what scissors she used. I was perplexed because all the scissors are out of reach. All except little plastic ones that boast about not being able to cut hair...and I've tried them...just to make sure...and even those are locked up. Anyway...she got into my bathroom cabinet, opened up my manicure toolbox, and found my manicure scissors. Good thing they have small blades, or she might have "boy hair!"

Molly's teeth are getting knocked out

2009-09-03T21:37:00.006-05:00

Well, ok, just one...but this was done by her sister. It was loose anyway, and she wouldn't let daddy touch it. All it took was an elbow to the chin as she and her sister were wrestling and...pop...out it came! Her 5th tooth.

Now we're waiting for another incredibly loose one to fall out...(which did a few days later because her brother knocked her in the mouth with a book and out it came!)

Girl or Boy????

2009-09-03T21:36:00.002-05:00

I know it seems like I've been pregnant for like 2 years now, but really, its only been 16 weeks. Check back on the 29th. That's when my ultrasound is scheduled....

Yes, I'm still here...

2009-09-01T20:43:00.002-05:00

Just a bit busy. I will get back to posting regularly as soon as I catch up with life. Oh....wait...is that ever going to happen??? :)

August pics

2009-08-31T10:45:00.000-05:00

Oh boy...did I just make a big mistake...

2009-08-07T19:55:00.002-05:00

I'm sick. I'm hungry. But I'm sick, so I don't want to eat. But I'm hungry and need to eat. What's a girl to do. I'm STARVING now since I've been sitting around wondering what to do. Well, let me just warn you...don't go looking at this website. Don't. Really. Don't do it. Ugh...you can't say I didn't warn you...again. I made the fatal error of looking through some of the cooking section. Then I saw it. A simple picture. A picture of pasta. Yummy looking pasta. I could just tell. Alfredo. Mmmm. I'm a gonner. I clicked on it...just to see if it was a link. It took me to this. It looks so simple. How can something so simple be so yummy, and so so bad for you? It can hurt that bad? I'll just try it. Just once. And I did. And now, I'm sitting here with a belly ache of a different kind. The over-indulgence type of belly ache. The kind where I just want to lay around and let the Alfredo seep through my veins.

Now where's the ice cream?

Another one from Ellery...

2009-08-04T09:20:00.004-05:00

We have an upright electric piano in our living room, something I married into. Don't get me wrong...I took piano lessons for years as a kid, and at one point was quite good, I just don't practice anymore and it messes with my decor. Well, the kids LOVE the piano and actually know how to work it (all the demo songs and such). They'll turn it on and dance around in the living room. Quite cute!

Well, this morning, they are on it and had the volume full blast. My usual remark, "volume please." Ellery pipes back, "you never let us play adagio." (What she meant was Crescendo, but I'll forgive her 4 year old self for the mistake.) Molly turns to me and says, "that means loud, mom." Oh, right...silly me.

Have they been watching Little Einstein's???

Got some time to kill???

2009-08-02T10:49:00.003-05:00

Last night, after a long afternoon spent in Tulsa with some girlfriends. (I wish I could say we did some fabulous shopping, but I'd be lying...unless you call Whole Foods, Sam's Club, Fleet Feet and buying a maternity belt luxurious!!! :)

Anyway...by the time I got home I didn't feel like cooking, so the fam jumped in the car and went out to eat. The bedtime routines started after our belly's were filled (a good hour later than normal) and everyone hit the sack. That is everyone except for me. I should have listened to that inner voice that said don't do it...don't...you're so tired and need every second of sleep...but I didn't. I ignored it. I stayed up WAAAY too late and read. Read a blog. Well, a book really. And then as if 2 1/2 hours of reading last night wasn't enough, I got up early this morning, grabbed my coffee (1/2 decaf, of course....why bother you ask? I know...but I had to cut out the caffeine due to pregnancy. The things we sacrifice for our children!!!) and finished the story. And because I'm blurry eyed and tired, I'm going to share it with you. Hey, misery love company, right??? You'll be hooked. I promise. You won't be able to stop reading. Here ya go...you have now been formally introduced to the Pioneer Woman. Chat with you in a few hours...

July 2009

2009-07-31T10:02:00.000-05:00

Is this a Pottery Barn ad?

2009-07-25T21:04:00.004-05:00

I wish! Nope. It's just our backyard. Its FINALLY starting to come together. Those of you who know me, know that I've been on a year long search for chaise lounge chairs. Its taken that long because 1) we live in "the middle" 2) I'm very picky, and 3) there's a budget. (Isn't that usually the catch???) Anyway...I finally found the right style that had both single and double chaises and were affordable (I found an internet coupon for 20% off and basically got a chair for free!). But the best part??? The cushions. I have to tell you about the cushions. Cushions usually cost between $75-200, depending on style, color, depth, etc. Well, these babies...I found these guys at Garden Ridge for $30 a piece. You read that right...30 smakeroos! I'm still tickled with that one! They were on an end of the season clearance (cuz its July, you know...time to start decorating for Christmas, right???) so they were moving them out. And I found them. 4 cushions, 4 pillows, in the EXACT color and size I needed. This NEVER happens to me! But it did...so don't go asking me for any lotto numbers, cuz I used up all of my luck...on chaise cushions!

Now if I could just finally pick out a few trees to plant...

Oh, and thanks babe for putting them all together!

Back in the saddle...or on the horse...or whatever it is

2009-07-03T23:41:00.003-05:00

First of, no we don't have a horse, just using the saying. We got back in the pool today after the "incident" last week. (No I'm not expanding on that just quite yet. Still too recent of an event.) Joe and Grady jumped right in while mom waded around in the shallow end watching the girls splash around. I probably would have gotten in, but was feeling to tired and lazy to go change into my suit. It was too hot of a day not to get in and it was time. We've had a nice rest from outdoor activities but it was fun to be just us in the pool. It's a bit hot down here this summer, so as I'm sure you've guessed we are rather popular. I'd love to say its due to our fun and entertaining nature, but I'm guessing it might have a little something to do with the pool?!?! Anyway, we've been entertaining on almost a daily basis and I have a very nice tan to prove it...even with 30 SPF!

Well, its almost midnight. I stayed up late to finish another 2 scrapbook pages. I got creator's block in the middle of it, but still finished. I don't love how they turned out, but they are done. I've been having fun experimenting with new techniques and playing around.

Goodnight...I hope! :)

Bed-head and all (June pics)

2009-06-30T14:41:00.000-05:00

I've sorely been neglecting the picture posting aspect of this blog. I have this wonerful new camera and lots of pictures, but its tricky to get the pics onto the computer, edited and posted. So...here is my morning. Unedited, uncombed, unposed, but posted!!!

2 more pages...

2009-06-18T13:53:00.001-05:00

My two sweet girls!

What am I doing this weekend?

2009-06-12T18:25:00.001-05:00

You got it. Hopefully I'll have wonderful pictures to show you of how it turned out.

Post Note: Um....ya....on that...? Well, I got a few in the ground. That didn't work out so well and they have since been overtaken by these horrible weeds. Weeds on steroids apparently. Man do they grow big and fast down here. Others died in their little plastic pots as I wasn't able to get them all taken care of. The surviving few, ended up in real pots on the patio. Those are ok, but since we'll be having 100 temp over the next few weeks, if I don't remember to water them, they're gonners! I did mention how much I despise yard work, didn't I?

My name is Kelly and I'm a multi-tasker

2009-06-12T14:05:00.004-05:00

Really, its bad. I'm always doing more things than I should be...all at the same time. Like, I can't sit down to just watch TV, I have to be folding laundry, cleaning the kitchen or sewing. If I'm outside with the kids, I'm pulling weeds, cleaning the garage or back porch. Waiting for school pickup, knitting, cleaning out the car, or flipping though one of the gazillion magazines that are piling up. So, this is what I did at swimming lessons last night. A cute fabric flower. I saw something similar somewhere and thought I'd take a stab at it. This is for Ellery's hair. It's about 4" across and 1.5" high. Love it!!! And she's so excited to wear it. I'll get a pic of it in her hair (as soon as the smelly glue dries)! My first attempt was a little flat and part of the charm is the 3-D-ness (yes, making up words here). I hand stitched the first try and while cute, not exactly what I was after. This time I ran it through the sewing machine with the longest stitch length...MUCH easier and MUCH quicker. Anyway...love it (did I already mention that?) Going to make more. Ells will wear 'em...she's my girly-girl. Molly, I'm afraid, takes after me in the sporty-tom-boy area. Oh well, at least one of them will love it!

Uh oh....I did it...

2009-06-11T15:21:00.010-05:00

Thank you to all of you who have sent me requests to join. I finally caved. I gave in. I joined Facebook. Don't get your hopes up for me to be attentive to my account, just know that its there! I have no idea what a "wall" is or how post comments. :) ...and OH MY GOODNESS...was I really the last person on the face of the earth to join??? I think so!!! :) So, I have some questions....please leave a comment with an answer...or helpful advice about Facebook. (See, I'm use to blogging!!!)

1) Is it ok to add people that you went to high school or college with if you don't keep in touch? Even if said schools were many moons ago?

2) PROBLEM SOLVED - How do you add a picture? (Really, I'm so up on all the tech stuff and usually really good, but a little intimidated here...)

3) How do I change setting so that I don't see every time someone updates their account or sends a message to someone else? (Or is that kind of the point???)

4) KINDA FIGURED OUT - What is "wall-to-wall"?

5) PROBLEM SOLVED - How do I change my name to add my maiden name?

More to come...

Yay a custom patch order...

2009-06-10T14:16:00.003-05:00

What do you think??? This is my test run on a pair of Miss M's jeans. Somehow ALL of her pants have holes and I'm trying to get a little more use out of them for Ells. Anyway...someone ordered some custom patches on Etsy and here's my first "draft."

All that stuff

2009-06-04T21:29:00.003-05:00

We're in the car on our way to VBS this morning, and I look back at the kids in the rear view mirror. Ellery's staring at me, so I give her a goofy look and then smile. She says, "Mom, you are beautiful with all that stuff on." (Stuff being make-up). I'll keep her!

Is the world flat?

2009-06-03T21:25:00.000-05:00

Molly asks "Mom, if the world is round, why is it that everywhere we go is straight?" I started to explain about relative size and all that but, man, she's only 6; I'm going to have to get much smarter...before she does! =)

Woe is me (Ellery)

2009-06-02T17:42:00.003-05:00

So she comes down the stairs in this terribly melodramatic sad whine and after asking her to repeat herself...

This is what I heard: "Mommy I lost something I've loved my whole life."

This is what it means: "Mommy I lost (threw it behind my bed) something (a rock I got yesterday in VBS) I've loved (which changes daily) my whole life (all 4 years)."

Look familiar?

2009-06-01T17:33:00.000-05:00

Does your house ever look like this? Some days it seems that no matter how much time I spend picking up, every time I turn around, this is what I see. (Could that be because I have 3 little munchkins running around sabotaging me? Yup!) I always try to go to bed with the house clean, that way at least I can wake up in peace and not walk out of my room to work first thing in the morning.

The other evening, Miss M and Joe are snuggling on the couch. She takes off her glasses and sets them on the coffee table and burrows under the covers. Joe says, "Please take your glasses over and put them on the counter so Grady doesn't get them." Her reply, "that's OK Dad. I don't need to. Mom will take care of them. It doesn't matter where I put them, mom always takes care of them." OK...so apparently I'm picking up after them a little too much. But how do you get a type A gal to stop??

Oh, and yes, if you were wondering, I do feel like laying down in the middle of it and just giving up! (But then I'll just wake up to a mess.)