My Baby is TWO!

Penelope  turned 2 during all of the hustle and bustle of Christmas.  We were able to slow down (due to most of us getting a nasty stomach bug) and be at home to enjoy time together.  She's such an animated, independent, spirited, stubborn, loud, sweet, sassy, rough, loving, amazing big girl.  She loves to help me clean and she makes plenty of messes.  Penelope has mastered clearing her dishes from the table and putting them in the dish washer.  She is quite proficient at cleaning out the dish washer as well.  A favorite pastime of hers is rifling through the silverware drawer, licking various spoons and forks, then putting them back where they belong.  Germs, what germs?!  Like Alexander and John Paul, drawing and coloring are a favorite activity as well.  Paper and walls have had her artist touch added to them.  She's great at writing the letter O and announces it every time.  Penelope Rose, you are adored by your family!  Happy second birthday!

   

So Excited

I'm SO excited to finally be back here!  Our computer died a while back, hence the silence here.  However, we were just given a used laptop (thank you Mom and Bean!) so now I can finally use a computer again.  I've been getting by using my wonderful EVO phone, but I was too frustrated with trying to do blog posts from it that I gave up.  Anyway, I'm back and am so excited to be writing and posting again.  So much more to come in 2011!  Happy New Year!  :)

Chef JP Goes to School

John Paul is so excited!  Tomorrow he goes back to school. Alexander has been back to school now for almost a month.  The preschool open house was almost 2 weeks ago.  John Paul is so excited that tomorrow morning he finally gets to go back to school with Miss Jan and all his friends, and the kitchen.  Back in the spring, he wanted to have Miss Jan over for a play date...or in his exact words, "Mom, when can I have some alone time with Miss Jan?"  My response, "Umm, buddy, what would you and Miss Jan do if you could have a play date with her?"  John Paul, "Mo-oom, we'd play kitchen!"  Fast forward to tonight and our conversation.  I asked him what he would do when he got to school in the morning and he replied, "Play with the kitchen stuff."  And here I was thinking he'd say something about Legos.  Jaime and I wonder if the boy will end up being a chef or just a foodie like us.  Miss Jan, ready or not, he's all yours for 7.5 hours a week, there's plenty for the chef to learn!  :)

Already!

Today was Alexander's first day of second grade.  Already.  Yes, it's still August (although the weather today is hinting at autumn!!!!).  Yes, he's that old already.  I'm still not believing it completely.  Today and tomorrow are just half days, but he had to wear his uniform, get up on time, be to school on time, sit at his desk, bring all his school supplies, etc.  He sits right next to his good friend, Brennan. Alexander has known Brennan since they were babies.  I have a picture of the 2 of them lying next to each other before they could even roll over!  We are so excited for this school year and it's such a big one...1st Reconciliation and 1st Communion.  When I picked Alexander up, he said his day was great.  I asked him if they played any games and he went into a detailed explanation of the Starburst game.  Evidently each kiddo got to pick a couple of Starburst candies out of a bowl.  Depending on what color they chose, they shared various things about themselves.  Alexander chose yellow and orange.  He got to tell his class about his summer (specifically he told them about the T-Bones game he and Jaime went to over the weekend as well as our trip to Chicago) and his favorite food (pizza...not just any pizza, but the pizza he ate over at Brennan's house). 
Here's to a fabulous year full of growth, friendship, and learning! 

Testing a post via phone

Tomorrow Starts A New Beginning

Tomorrow morning I take Alexander to school for his school pictures. 

It's the official unofficial start of the school year.  Wow! He's starting second grade.

I've had so much fun this summer with him (and of course my other 2 kiddos). 

We stayed incredibly busy doing all of the things on our summer checklist and we had plenty of down time too.

Side note: It's amazing how few pictures I've take with my camera since I got my new phone. I really need to put the phone camera down and pick up the real camera more!

Evo Love

 Over the weekend Jaime and I got new phones...we seriously upgraded from what we had.  We now each have an Evo.  Wow! These are amazing phones.  We are in awe with the technology nowadays. We spent too much time this weekend playing with them and getting them all figured out, downloading apps and whatnot.  This morning I'm in the process of making a little clutch to carry mine in.  I'll post pics once it's done...I keep getting interrupted by little ones :) 

4th of July Weekend

What a fun weekend we had here! Our order of Simply Fun games came in just before the weekend started.  We haven't stopped playing them.  These games are so much fun and dare I say not near as mind numbing as Candyland and other games of the sort.  I highly recommend you check them out~there are toddler through adult games. 
Jaime did lots of grilling~ribs, fillet mignon,corn, pineapple, and sweet potatoes. And so, we all did lots of eating. :)  With all of the eating of course some outside time was in order.  Along with running around the backyard, we went to the Arboretum for a walk (shortened due to the little rain shower that passed through).
We finally got more rain about the time the fireworks show was to start.  We went and parked, but weren't sure if they were going to cancel.  I'm so glad we went and decided to stay because it was a wonderful show and leaving was the easiest it's ever been! Hardly any traffic.  Penelope was incredibly excited. She kept jumping and trying to reach out to touch them, and oh the squealing!

Pretties for P

 My aunt has made Penelope some cute dresses.  Last week we got a surprise in the mail from her.  She made Penelope a tutu, headband, and a dress with bloomers.  It all coordinates with shades of blue and purple.  When I opened the box she insisted on wearing the headband and tutu immediately :)

 She's such a sassy, girly girl, but is so tough and loud.  We just love our Rosie!

World Cup

We've been watching the world cup this summer.  John Paul has taken to kicking a soccer ball around the house, around the yard, at Alexander's baseball games, and would take the ball with him everywhere he goes if I let him.  I'm enjoying watching him improve his skills, use up his constant supply of energy, and get so excited for the upcoming soccer season.  He's never played on a team before and outside of the World Cup hasn't really watched or seen soccer.  He tells us he's going to score in every game.  I'm excited to watch him play :)

Wednesday=Beth Day

This summer Wednesdays mean Bethdays.  I have hired a sitter, Beth, who is wonderful with all three kiddos.  Beth comes over on Wednesday mornings usually for about 2 hours so that I can either run errands or clean without being interrupted. Last week, due to the US Soccer game and Jaime staying home for it, I canceled Bethday and instead have her for 4 hours today.  Ahhh, the luxury!  I was able to peacefully run errands this morning and then clean.  I can not express how much I appreciate this luxury. Thank you babe for letting me hire Beth and thank you Beth for taking great care of my kiddos :)  What do Wednesdays mean for you?

New Toys

Today I picked up some new-to-us toys for Penelope from a friend.  Her little girl has outgrown the doll house, shopping cart, and little princess vanity.  Penelope is having SO MUCH FUN with her new toys. And, shhh, but the boys are too :) 
It's a busy day around here with Bible study this morning and Little Angels (essentially VBS for toddlers) then summer school and baseball practice this afternoon.  I also have to run to Old Navy to get Alexander some new flip flops--his broke this morning.  Good thing ON's 30% off the entire store is still going on!  Hopefully they'll have his size.
The humidity is at bay for now and the day is gorgeous out.  Maybe we'll make it to the pool tonight as well. :)

This Morning

This morning:

• kids slept in while I gardened, enjoyed a cappuccino, and some quiet reading time
• bowls of cereal and homemade GF currant scones for breakfast
• sprinkler time
• now, boys are watching Ace of Cakes, Clone Wars Cakes~that as much Star Wars as I'm letting them have lately :)
• P is enjoying some b.

How's your summer morning?

What We Are Up To

Some of what we've been up to...

baseball (both with real bats and balls and gloves as well as imaginary),

 playing chess and other fun games,

eating lots of fresh fruit (Penelope seems to be living on blueberries alone!)

and gardening.

Yesterday we made our Summer 2010 poster. We're ready with lots of fun things to do and places to go.  Today we were able to check off several things...Slip and Slide, reading, laughing, game of tag, playing games, and Legos.  Of course many of these will be done repeatedly this summer.  :) 

Window Box How-to

 Have you ever wanted to add a window box under your windows?  I have! They look so gorgeous overflowing with flowers. 

I saw a link over on Just A Girl for a place called Hooks and Lattice and fell in love. I even ordered a free catalog to peruse.  Oh my, they are pricey!  Then, I found this little tutorial over on How Does She.  She even gives the prices of the materials needed...the entire project was under $5!  Now, that I can afford and it looks like a simple enough project to start and complete.  Check it out and add instant curb appeal.
Picture sources:
http://z.about.com/d/landscaping/1/0/-/I/purple_orange_window_box.jpg
http://sydandgoose.typepad.com/syd_and_goose/images/2007/04/09/12_60_77_web.jpg

Fun New Blogs

I've found some fun new (to me) blogs that I just have to share!  I love it when I stumble upon new inspiration, great pictures, wonderful tutorials, new stories.  It's like making new friends :)

So, first up is Noodlehead.  I've read her blog a handful of times in the past couple of weeks and I'm really enjoying it. This week she's been posting about sprucing up your kitchen.  Tonight (children willing) I'm going to make the pretty dish towels/mats.  I've got a couple of towels that are begging to be cut up and made pretty again.
Next, is Fly Through Our Window. Great photography, tutorials, stories. Real life :)
Also, A Pretty Cool Life is a fun read with plenty of eye candy too.  She's got a Flickr group as well as an Etsy shop that's definitely worth checking out.
Lastly, 33 Shades of Green...what can I say? She's got crafting, cooking, and designing all in one place. 
Wait, one more~Little Bit Funky~I've read SO MANY pages here, but must remember to turn the volume down when I'm reading at night.  She's got a heading at the top of her blog called 20 Minute Crafter.  Seriously 20 minute crafts. So perfect for those of us working during nap time, late at night, or in between everything else going on in life. 
Take some time and have fun reading and being craftily inspired!

Extra Practice Never Hurt

My guys do a pretty decent job when it comes to brushing and flossing their teeth. I'm proud to say that there are no cavities so far in their little mouths.  Sometimes, however, this twice-a-day routine can get dull.  And a hot summer is just about here (tomorrow at 10:30 it officially starts for us!)  I need some fun activities for all 3 kiddos.  I came across this awesome idea (some people are just pure creative genius!) and I know we'll be doing this one for sure.

Don't forget to brush and floss when this fun time is done :)

Popcorn Lollipops

We go through a lot of popcorn here.  It's a quick, healthy, and gluten free snack.  So, as soon as I saw these over at Brown Paper Packages, I just knew I have to make them.  I mean, just look  at them

Need a close-up without the wrapper?

I thought so. :)
I checked out the recipe, and at first it looks good, but then I saw the Jello part.  A couple of nights ago a good friend shared a little tid-bit about Jello and gelatin.  Now I'm not so sure I want to eat that stuff.  (That and since I don't have a box to check, I'm not 100% sure it's gluten free.)  So, I think I'll make these cute treats more like Rice Krispie treats, but with popcorn and no color...unless I dye the marshmallows.  Hmmmm :)  Enjoy!

Fancify My T-shirts

I'm a T-shirt wearer, but I've been wanting to look more dressed up, pulled together, cleaner, and fancier, so I've found some fairly easy ways to fancify my T-shirt wardrobe.  Here are a few of ideas:

And these last ones...not T-shirts, but fit the bill of getting a little dressy :)

Most are knock-offs of some pricey T-shirts at places like Target, J-Crew, Anthropolgie, and others.All of these ideas are already tutorials, so they're that much easier :)
Photo credits: Ribbon Flower, Ruffle Shirt, Center Ruffle, Dressy Tunic, and Alice Dress.

Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls

 I would LOVE to make these yummy Cappuccino Cinnamon Rolls. Just the name alone got me hooked, then I saw the pictures.  Oh my! I've got to clean my kitchen so I can get some baking going. :)

Happy 4th Birthday John Paul

Four years ago this crazy, energetic, life-loving, loud, independent, caring, long-haired, tough, little dude was born.

Happy 4th Birthday little man, big helper, big brother, Lego builder, castle builder, explorer, patient bird watcher, jungle gym climber, oatmeal and sugar eater, brand new scooter owner, havoc wrecker!  I love you and wouldn't have you any other way :)