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31 December 2009

He made me cry!

Look what Adam gave me for Christmas -

Adam's calendar gift - Front







A handmade calendar.

With a different picture for every month.


Adam's calendar gift - January
Adam's calendar gift - February

January and February.  This might be the last time I get a paint print of his hands.

Adam's calendar gift - March
March came with a poem.  A poem that made me cry as I tried to read it aloud Christmas morning.

Adam was very happy with himself for being able to make me cry.

And I think it makes the gift extra special.




Adam's calendar gift - Close up of March's poem
"I am an older brother, and a kind person.
I wonder when life will be found on another planet.
I hear songs all around me.
I see life story's unfold.
I want for peace to last forever.
I am an older brother, and a kind person.

I pretend for every game.
I feel the pain of others.
I touch my inner thoughts.
I worry species will end.
I cry when they do end.
I am an older brother, and a kind person.

I understand the problems of our environment.
I say we can fix them all.
I dream when that day will come.
I try to make it come quicker.
I hope others will help.
I am an older brother, and a kind person.

--Adam"

Adam's calendar gift - April

April is really spring-y.









Adam's calendar gift - May

And so was May.








Adam's calendar gift - May's poem close up

And May brought another poem.















Adam's calendar gift - June
Adam's calendar gift - July
June is bright and July is patriotic.
Adam's calendar gift - August
August feels beach-y.  Its a good month to visit the beach.






Adam's calendar gift - SeptemberSeptember brings school and a fall sense poem.

"Fall is orange.
It sounds like busy squirrels.
It tastes like pumpkin pie.
And smells like turkey.
Fall looks like read leaves.
it makes me feel the comfortable chill in the air.

--Adam"

Adam's calendar gift - October

October with a scary monster (or bat) and a happy jack-o-lantern for Halloween.









Adam's calendar gift - NovemberNovember with leaves and a poem about pugs.

"Pugs
flat, faced
currly, tailed, snoring,
somehow they are cute,
Pugs

--Adam"


Adam's calendar gift - December
December - Christmas tree, gingerbread man, snow and snow man, COMPLETELY feels like December.


All the months really feel like those months.  The colors he chose.

The pictures he chose/drew.

They all feel just right.


The back of the calendar.  I made it big so you can see what he wrote. 
Adam's calendar gift - The back
The goofiness of it is so 'Adam'. 


30 December 2009

SNOW!

We got snow yesterday! It was a surprise snow, which is usually how it happens around here.  The weather forcasters said it was going to rain with perhaps a few flakes thrown in there.

At first it didn't look like it was going to stick . . .


As soon as it started sticking the kids came out of the houses, bundled up and ready for some fun! 

Right to left is Carus and her friend S who was visiting when the snow started, a neighbor friend H and her visiting friend H.


Snowball fights were starting and stopping all day. At first it looked like it was girls against boys.  But before long it became clear that it was a free for all.  One boy (not mine) was overheard saying to another boy "I want to get my sister right in the face."  And the screams he caused attempting to achieve that was heard around the neighborhood.


After long the kids started to team up to build snow forts and snowmen.


It snowed nonstop for about 5 hours and the kids were out for most of it.  I made them come in and thaw out with some hot cocoa (I know, mean mommy) for about 20 minutes halfway through.  They chugged their cocoa as fast as they could and ran back out . . .


The snowball fights continued to break out.  Adam and Carus - I think that blur was a combination of them throwing their snowballs at each other at the same time.


Adam is in the black coat and is going up against L in the grey sweatshirt.


Favorite pic of the day.  Taken about 4:30ish and the sun was pretty much gone so I had to use the flash to get the action.  B is the boy about to throw a snowball at/on L.


This was taken about 3:30 pm when it slowed for a few moments.  It got a bit thicker - I would say we have had 5 inches of snow.  It is already melting and it is so slushy outside right now.

I think it was a very great way to end the year and the end of the kids Winter break (they go back to school Monday). I wish we could get two snow days, but one was nice.

I need to order a rain sleeve for my camera - I was using a grocery bag for a bit to keep it dry, but it was hard to keep it from falling in front of the lens.  Then I was using an umbrella, but it was hard to balance the umbrella and focus the camera at the same time.

26 December 2009

Happy birthday Carus!

HAPPY 8TH BIRTHDAY CARUS!!!!!


Hope you have fun today!  Love you!



We kept the tradition of going to Chuck E Cheese for Carus's birthday party, though this year it was just family.

Next month (and year) we will have a 'friend' party - probably a sleepover.

I know we don't have long until she is too old to go to Chuck E.

We don't get a bday package - we just show up with our group, our gifts, and a cake.  We order some pizza and usually a salad or two and some drinks and then get a ton of tokens.  We hand out the tokens a few at a time, no more than 10, and that way the kids come back to the table every few minutes for a check in, a chance to eat, and rounding up for the opening of presents and singing of happy birthday.

A few more pictures from the party can be found on Flickr.

This picture was edited with my new software (photoshop elements 8).  I think I did okay, it was easy - remove red eyes, little crop, and warmed it up. I have sooooo much to learn yet!

25 December 2009

Merry Christmas 2009!

Merry Christmas everyone!


Hope you have a wonderful day with lots of food, fun, and family!!

Update:  I have uploaded pictures to my Flickr. Go check them out!

17 December 2009

The golden age

We are in the golden age.  When body parts and their functions are funny.

Wait, aren't you suppose to 'outgrow' that humor?

The other day Robert was helping Adam clean out his toys.  He found so many dirty socks it isn't funny.

See I told you my ability to get laundry done in a timely manner had nothing to do with his lack of socks.

While picking up the toys that weren't broken Robert was pointiing out the nerf balls that go to one of Adam's nerf guns that he was to pick up and said, "you have balls there, and there, and there."

To which Carus replied, "Heh, balls." (Boo, writing it out just doesn't do it justice....)

Decorating the Christmas tree later that evening continued the theme.

Me: "Adam, do you want to hang a red ball?"

Adam: "hahahahahahha"

Carus: "I have a lot of green balls to hang."

Don't even get me started on the word 'fart'.

16 December 2009

Wordless Wednesday



I might be considered biased, but I think my daughter is just gorgeous. 

Participating in Wordless Wednesday, check out the others at that link.

15 December 2009

i ♥ faces - “Pets Only!” Photo Challenge



And of course I had to 'enter' Yoda pug.  Check out the other participants here.


13 December 2009

I'm a little cheesy



Brownie points for the new oven.

Or should I say muffin points?

Either way, the other day I made these apple pie muffins and the oven cooked them BEAUTIFULLY!

They were browned evenly! There were no burnt sides.

No burnt bottoms!

I didn't HAVE to rotate them to cook evenly! I did rotate them because I'm used to that, but I didn't HAVE TO!

So far, the new oven is growing on me.

Oh, and the muffins ~ VERY GOOD.  The recipe can be found here at Tasty Kitchen and the only change I would make would be to add a little cinnamon, apple pie spice, or nutmeg to the muffin batter.  The crumple topping is perfect, the muffin just needs a little work.

10 December 2009

Why do they have to grow so darn fast!

When dropping the kids off at school yesterday morning, as I watched them walk towards the entrance, I notice Carus's socks. 

I shouldn't notice her socks, but I did because her pants were high waters.

And by high waters I mean - almost capris.  There was a good 2-1/2 to 3 inches from shoes to pants.

I swear those pants fit her last week!

Also outgrown this week:
By Carus - About half her shirts.  They are turning into middriff showing shirts.  Not good for a 2nd grader.  Not good for winter.
By Adam - His shirts too.  Not quite middriff showing, but definitely shorter than they should be.
By Adam - Winter coat, well actually he outgrew it last year sometime and since our winters are "normally" mild we just outfitted him with an old coat of Robert's that was too big.  This year, that coat of Robert's - yeah, it fits...

I'm pretty sure someone needs new shoes - probably both, but I'll wait until their toes are sticking out the end.  I give that 2 hours! HA!

09 December 2009

Wordless Wednesday - Favorite picture



I'm participating in Wordless Wednesday. Be sure to head over there for some more great pictures!

Bbrrrr!


I know there are others that are colder.  I'm just saying I'M COLD!!!!

Waiting for the news to start calling this "Artic Blast 2009". 

Maybe I should actually watch the news to see if they are...

Thankfully/unfortunately (depending on how you look at it) there has been no moisture so:

1. No ice/snow/freezing rain
2. Closed roads
3. Making driving hazardous - or more hazardous
4. Closing schools (another one that depends on how you look at it & who you're talking to)
5. Screwing with my Christmas shopping cause I'm a wuss that doesn't drive in snow (little scared, little nervous, little 'if I don't gotta, why should I').

08 December 2009

All by myself

I'm canning all by myself tonight.

I'm canning some homemade chicken stock.

Thank you again Gramma for teaching me to can!!!!

04 December 2009

The tale of two ovens. . .


My old, worn out, possessed oven.

The oven that jumps 300 degrees in 30 seconds.  That had uneven burners and one that didn't work at all.

The one that boiled the pumpkin pie, cook brownies in 15 minutes, and burn anything you don't watch like a hawk.

The one that is a bit of a fire hazard...

The landlord told us to find a new Whirlpool oven and he would get it for us.

So we did.  We looked around and compared prices and found a nice cheap one and gave him a call.

He went down to the appliance store and found a cheaper one.  We had done our research on the internet and apparently the cheapest online is not the absolute cheapest they have. 


The new oven. (Before install)

The delivery guys weren't able to install the oven because it is hardwired to the wall (no plug).  So it had to wait until Robert got home.

When he did get home and pulled out the old to put in the new he found that the old oven wasn't grounded properly.  So basically we could have been shocking the crap out of ourselves for the past 5 years. . . NICE!

Not happy about that one, my kids have used it.

The new oven is in and is grounded properly. YAY Robert!

There is 1 big burner and 3 small ones, and no window in the oven door - two cons for me.  And it's white.  Do you know how hard it is to keep white clean! I don't like white...it sucks!

I've been trying to hold judgement until extensive testing on it has been done and seeing how it performs - or doesn't perform.

I've made a few dinners and made some brownies - the jury is still out.  The night I made the brownies, about 20 minutes after I started them everyone started crowding the kitchen.  Where's the brownies?  I smell them so they must be done.  They took 40 minutes to cook.  People weren't happy about that.  That is just too long to wait for brownies.

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