Archive for November 2013

Monday, November 25, 2013

Weekend Update: Trees are up!

Our trees are up and the stress of the season came right along with it. Can you feel it? I can!  

Vance was first to finish his tree in his room. He always saves the star to put on last.  

Vaughn finished hers right after Vance. She does not have a tree topper and keeps reminding me that we need to get one. 

The kids love having trees in their rooms. They love the glow of the lights and being able to call it their own.

We put up our main tree too but right after getting the star on top it snapped in two. Looks like I'll be shopping for two tree toppers this year! 

Today I'll be making a mad dash trying to get my to-do list done. It includes finding activities for a third grade winter-themed classroom party. Anyone have any good ideas? 

Hope you all had a good weekend! 



Friday, November 22, 2013

Friday 5: Celebrating Simplicity

5 noteworthy and toast worthy happenings from the week.

Here's to getting fun mail. 
My first Vox Box showed up this week. It's so much fun getting free stuff to try out!

Here's to nightly headstands. 
The only thing I was ever really good at as a kid was hula hooping and headstands. Teach 'em what you know, right?    

Here's to organization.
Finding out that these little oranges fit perfectly inside the kid's lunch containers made my day. This is the exact reason I should not be allowed in the Container Store. 

Here's to losing teeth. (The natural way.)
She pulled it out on her own and the other big tooth is wiggly too. I have a feeling someone will be wanting their two front teeth for Christmas.

Here's to quiet nights.
Nights like these with the kids working at the table together make the numerous busy nights we have bearable. 


Cheers!
What are you toasting to tonight?

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Christmas Fairy Door and Magic Window

 Let's face it. The holidays are here. I may not be ready yet but our fairies have already decked their halls.



 To be honest, I was excited about the idea of decorating the kid's Fairy Door and Magic Window way before I had even made them and snuck them into their rooms. I love extreme proportions which is the exact reason I have a giant paintbrush in my office and a tiny rubber chicken in my wallet. Tiny lights? Tiny wreath? Yes, please!


Decorating was easy. All I did was drape the lights around the door. (My kids are good about not touching.) For Vaughn's wreath I did switch out the bow. The wreath came with a red bow but I preferred a white one for hers so I cut it off, tied a new bow, and hot glued it on. I stuck a little piece of wire in the back and made a loop so that it hangs onto the door knocker. 


I did the same for Vance's lights - just draped them around. To hang the wreath I put a tiny drop of hot glue on the back of it and am crossing my fingers it will peel off the plastic window when it's time to take it off. (I think it will work fine.)


Want to see how I made the original Fairy Door and Magic Window? Check out these links: Fairy Door and Magic Window

Hopefully these little decorations will buy me some more time and hold the kids off from wanting to drag the trees out! I need at least one more week!

How about you? Are you ready to decorate?

Sharing with these parties this week:



Monday

skip to my lou

making the world cuter

sew can do

the diy home sweet home project

sumo's sweet stuff

Tuesday

not just a housewife

Sugar Bee Crafts


bebetsy.com

Wednesday

cherished bliss

ginger snap crafts

Thursday








Friday, November 15, 2013

Friday 5: Celebrating Simplicity

5 noteworthy and toast worthy happenings from the week.

Here's to the start of basketball season. 
Vance practices in what is known as the "asylum" and is the scariest place ever. How do you get there? Take the remote, winding, wooded, dark road and hang a left onto an even more remote and darker road. Climb the steep hill, drive under the stone passage way and park past the cemetery. Say a little prayer before getting out of the car and, oh, bring a coat because there isn't any heat. 

Here's to morning hugs. 
This child normally has to be woken up and physically removed from her bed. On this particular morning she arose on her own but needed lots of cuddling before she could consider getting a move on. 

Here's to half days of school... 
and to suffering through horrible movies just for the enjoyment of your kids. (I'm looking at you, Free Birds.)

Here's to The Nog. 
I don't drink the stuff but the kids love it and it is always exciting seeing it in the stores for the first time of the season.

Speaking of The Season...The kids have been hounding me to play Christmas music in the mornings. Who knew that Perry Como looked so much like Paul Simon?
Here's to the spirit of The Season and to the excitement of the kiddos.  

Cheers!
What are you toasting to tonight?

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Soundtracks of Our Homes

Every house we have lived in has a soundtrack. 
I can hear a certain song or show and instantly I'm taken back. 

Reading Edie's post yesterday made me realize this. She was talking about how each of her holidays have soundtracks and this is what started me thinking how sounds (and smells!) are linked to so many memories. 

Going back, waaaayy back....

If I hear the Sex and the City intro song it immediately takes me back to our first townhouse. Every Sunday night we would have family over, cram into our tiny family room and watch the line-up of SATC, Curb your Enthusiasm, and Band of Brothers.

Our next place, our first real house, would be Norah Jones. We would listen while making dinner together and turn it up loud so we could hear it outside while dining al fresco.

An odd mix of Amy Winehouse, Janet Klein, Colbie Caillat, Super Why, and the Guitar Hero songs take me back to our second house. 

After moving from our second house and before moving into our third house we lived at my parent's house for a few months. Pinky Dinky Doo and other PBS shows bring me back to Vaughn's newborn days. (Vance may or may not have watched a lot of morning TV during those intense newborn/regressing 3 year old/living out of suitcases time of our lives.)

Things got a little edgier with 50 Cent at our third house. His Candy Shop song was new and overplayed by the radio stations that we listened to while painting rooms and peeling wall paper. Also, the soundtrack of Juno, a certain lullaby CD, Bob the Builder, and Diego's Moonlight Rescue will always bring me back to this house. 

We are still happily compiling songs at our fourth and current house.

I love that our brains work this way, well at least mine anyway.  Do you have soundtracks for events in your life too? 



    

Monday, November 11, 2013

Friday 5: The Late (Birthday) Edition

Here's to 
and

for clearing their busy work schedules 

so that 

could celebrate


 and to

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When this trip presented itself approximately 50 tons of Mommy Guilt came with it. Going meant I'd be gone for my birthday, would miss the Mother and Son school event, helping Vaughn with her Star Student stuff, Watch Week at ballet, going on Vance's field trip, being the mystery reader for Vaughn's classroom, and missing Vance's last soccer game. I couldn't believe so much was happening in 4 short days.  

Not going meant I would miss the rare chance of a Mother-Daughter-Sister trip with a side bonus of seeing family in Texas. (Not to mention missing out on fantastic shopping opportunities.) I've never been on a girl's trip and I, myself, have only been away from the kids for a total of 3 nights. Justin travels the world - I can go to Houston and not have everything fall apart, right? Right! I'm going!

I have never shopped marathon style like this. On Thursday alone we did 7 hours at the Nutcracker event without ever (ever!) sitting down. We ate lunch standing up! On Friday we hit it hard again with another 7 hours. When we couldn't find our size we had the store order it and ship it directly. When that service wasn't offered we took to our phones and ordered it ourselves. It was resourceful shopping at its finest. 

It was hard being away from Justin and the kids on my birthday but I knew we would celebrate when I got back. My mom and sister planned dinner for my birthday at Truluck's, which was a great way to ring in year 35.  

I am so glad that I went. Yes, I missed things at home but I would have missed even more if I hadn't gone. So many great memories were made in 4 short days. 

Justin and the kids planned a little party for me when I got back into town. The house was clean, they put up signs, made and decorated a cake, planned dinner, and it was all so special. It felt nice to be missed.

 Like I said above, none of this could have happened without Justin and Mark moving their schedules around in order to be with the kids. A huge thank you to them!

Hope you all had fantastic weekends too!

   

Friday, November 01, 2013

Friday 5: Celebrating Simplicity

5 noteworthy and toast worthy happenings from the week.

 Here's to pumpkin picking.
(Which kind of looks like interpretive dancing if you look closely.)

Here's to pumpkin carving.
(Only one bandaid was needed!)

Here's to spooky lunches... 
(...laced with gummy worms as a Halloween finale.)

Here's to surviving a flu shot.
(An email from my doc reassured me that I wasn't dying and was only suffering from the shot hitting a nerve ending. Still super sore today but, hey! at least I'm not nauseous from the pain anymore!)

Here's to having a great Halloween despite pouring down rain.
(This was the only picture I got of the kids the entire night and had to edit it a ton to brighten it up. I didn't capture Vance's beard (he was Jesse James) or Vaughn's details (she was a vampire princess) but it was a great night with friends. I am thankful for the kids not having school today because we all stayed up way too late celebrating.

Cheers! 
What are you celebrating tonight? 



 

Copyright © Charisa Darling | Premade Blog Design by Lilipop Designs