Girlie day...

Daddy worked late, brother has after school sports fun on Wednesdays...

it was just us girls for most of the day.  

We like it like that sometimes.  

Small victories...

Parenting is not for the faint of heart.  Parenting two highly intelligent, highly imaginative, creative and crazy kiddos totally takes someone just a little tougher and crazier than the rest.  Basically...I just do my best to keep up.

At the beginning of the school year, Jacob came home all excited the day of his first library visit.  He proudly showed off his library book.  We read it all week.  Each week he was delighted to bring home another book.  Then the enthusiasm started to wean.  We'd read the book when he first brought it home and then wouldn't look at it again until the hunt to find it to put it in his backpack.  After he'd read the last several books to us I asked him why he wasn't checking out more challenging books.  The librarian only let him check books off of the kindergarten shelf and he'd read them all already.

A note to his teacher addressing the issue (I do believe she has my email address memorized).  A reminder to him yesterday morning as he left to--politely--ask the librarian if he could check out the higher level books.

Jacob was one very excited 5-year-old when he showed me his library book yesterday!  And then we sat and he read "There's a Wocket in My Pocket".  I love hearing my son read.  And I love that he's excited about reading.  He read the entire book by himself tonight...cover to cover with his sister sitting beside him, hanging on to every word.

It took a little prodding but the little man stood up for himself.  And I'm more proud of that than any other part of this.  And I'm totally looking forward to story time tomorrow.

Day dreaming...

I'm thinking peach cobbler...

And maybe canning some peach preserves...

Assuming, of course, that the critters and fungus leave these alone this year.  

Regardless...the sight of wee small peachlings makes me happy!

Lines drawn...

Summer of 2000 found us moving...new state, new duty station.  Apparently the months of July and August are  busy times for military movers and we ended up camping out in our new apartment for two weeks whilst we waited for our furniture, and everything else we couldn't fit in the back of a Dodge Dakota, to catch up with us.


Emergency measures were needed and, seeing as it was infinitely cheaper to go with a ready made set of curtains rather than purchase a new sewing machine, I purchased (on clearance) a set of curtains.  Full length denim to block out the street lamp that was directly outside our window.  The only set I've ever had to buy...and they've followed us--sometimes remaining in the storage chest, sometimes fitting perfectly.  They went up on a pair of windows when we moved in to this house--a back room that has gone through various changes.  The final change was being transformed into our own bedroom.  The curtains never fit well--too short to be floor length, to long to stay as they are.  My 3rd world upbringing--reuse or repurpose all I possibly can--kicked in.  A quick trim and hem and the curtains were fit to the windows.


A recent uniform change left my husband with a closet full of useless shirts.  Apparently they can't simply be disposed of or donated somewhere due to the risk of falling into the hands of someone bent of impersonating a police officer.  I watched--horrified--as he cut up one shirt and threw it away!  I told him I would destroy the remainder in a much more useful and resourceful way if he would just put down the scissors and walk away!


This afternoon he looked over at one of the "new" bedroom curtains and pointed out that the hem was uneven.


Oh, that's fine...it so happens I just came into a surplus of navy blue material...


No.  No.  No!  You are not using my old uniforms to fix our curtains!


Looks like I get to go shopping for brand new curtain material!

Our one Easter (sorta) craft...

One dozen blown out eggs...(innards saved for baked yummies)

Food coloring dye...

Sharpies for details (they get so excited when I break out the grown up markers!)...

Lovely eggs drying...

Ribbons hot glued for hanging...

One rosemary bush delightfully adorned...

And not a single zombie to be found!

An open letter to Spring...

Dear Spring,

I love you.  I adore you.  You bring sunny days and greenery...living things my tropical being craves.  Each year I look forward to your arrival with great antici--pation.  My happy thoughts are filled with the knowledge that I will be able to go out and frolic without pairing socks with my Earth shoes.  My lily white legs will be exposed to Sunshine and Warmth.    

But, girl...you have got to lay off on the pollen... 

(I hosed her down yesterday afternoon!)

The double whammy of Oak and Maple have me under house arrest.  There's not an allergy medication out there that leaves me free to move about the great outdoors while still maintaining some level of functionality as a human being. 

Now looking forward to Summer.

Your's truly,

Finishing touches...

A house with character is a wonderful thing...and something this abode is not lacking.  Whomever it was that finished the upstairs apparently left his (or her) level in the truck on construction day.  We have chosen to embrace that.  Resistance was futile anyway.  

While transforming the upstairs area into a space for the kiddos, I wanted to do something that tied the rooms together.  

Another mural? Nope.  Give them something they can color and draw on themselves? Score!

And a magnetic chalkboard? Double score.  A royal pain in the posterior to apply, but totally worth it!