Playdough

I have to say that one of my favorite things to do with my girls are crafts. We make shirts, scrapbook, color, paint, and make all kinds of cool things. On our second day of being off from school (due to snow) - I decided it would be fun to make some homemade playdough. It was so messy and so much fun. Even Julia got in on the action. Although she thought the playdough were "bites". I'm sure it had nothing to do with the fact that we used koolaid to color it!!

Barbie Horse

My children are unique (to say the least). They are very creative and love to use their imagination. So you can only imagine my surprise when I walked into their bedroom and saw this...

Sure gives a new meaning to having a barbie horse, doesn't it? I must say it scared me - just a bit! Only my kids would create such a thing - well - maybe Sid from Toy Story might have thought of it! Run toys - run and hide!!

Revenge is sweet!

This is what my sweet Sophia looked like after her ever so loving sister threw a snowball at her face. It was so cold outside and Sophie was really very upset. She came up to me so I could wipe off her pretty face and I (of course) had to take a picture. And myself - being the wonderful mother I am - decided it was a prime opportunity to teach my oldest dear child a lesson. So... I promptly turned and threw a snowball at the little one myself. And you know what? She can dish it out...
But she can't take it!! Lesson learned.

One Tired Momma

Everyone who reads this most likely knows how truly crazy I can be! If you don't - well then by golly you are sure to find out as soon as you read this post. It's true that there are times when I feel completely overwhelmed with my everyday life. School, home, errands, and the half a million other things that I do run through my mind at all hours of the day. Thus, sometimes I can forget the most basic things: Did I have dinner tonight? Where are my car keys? Oops, I forgot to put the clothes from the washer into the dryer (sorry Donald - no work clothes for you). This happens to the best of us! A prime example of my forgetfulness happened the other day as I was cleaning up the living room and dining room. As the house got eerily quiet I came to the horrific thought that I hadn't heard from Julia in a bit - so I frantically holllered to the girls, "Is Julia with you?" They walked in the room and laughed at me because Julia - was sitting in her highchair eating the snack that I had given her no more than 15 minutes before!! Geesh! Oh, but it gets better. I have been nagging my husband for two weeks now to remove the high chair from our dining room. We don't need it there now that Julia sits with us at the "big" table and it was taking up wasted space. Everyday I would nag him about it. Everyday I would beg for him to remove it. The other day when I was cleaning I asked if he would, "please" take it to the basment." He looked at me and said, "if you want it moved so bad - carry it down yourself." Well. That wasn't very nice was it? I ignored him and went about my cleaning. Yesterday as I was getting dinner ready I went to accidentally put Julia in her old highchair and realized it wasn't there. "Thank you!!!" I told him. He looked me straight in the face and said...

Wait...


Wait...

He said, "I actually took it downstairs three days ago. When I asked you to take it down yourself it was already gone." He then looked at me and said that he waited for me to notice, but I just kept on cleaning.

All I can say is - Calgone - take me away! And maybe I should stop cleaning for a bit!

This...

is what tired looks like!

Benny the Bull

Ok - so when we named our new puppy I should have taken into account how names have an effect on how people behave! Now that's not always the case, but being a school teacher - we always have a list of names - these names are the - YOU CAN NEVER NAME YOUR CHILD THAT - kind of names. Oh, yes - I have that list. And even though it's not a very long list - I shudder when I hear that someone is going to name their child with "that" name! So when we chose the name Benny for our new puppy, I thought it was cute! Sophie named him after Benny the Bull on Dora and it just stuck. What were we thinking?!?! Benny - who up until that time was as docile as an angel - became everything his name stands for - a bull. We joke that we should have named him "Bully" - because that's what he is! You see - this 6 pound little puppy is a monster! You may think I'm joking - he's just a puppy you might say - well - you've never had to run from one end of the house to the other just trying to avoid him and his little puppy teeth. He reminds me of the bullfights - obviously our pants and legs are the red blankets that get our little bulls attention. It's kind of amusing to see the girls and myself running and jumping on the beds just to avoid confrontation with "the bull". He even has the nerve to bark and growl at Cisco - who has now decided to position himself on the couch to stay away from Benny all together. I AM told that this is a "puppy" thing and he'll grow out of it in 18-24 months! 18-24 months! By then we will have no pant legs left but hopefully he will grow into a good dog. Benny the Bull - you bet you are! Maybe we should have named him Wienie!

Cakes I've Made

When Anna turned one, I was determined to make her very first birthday cake. So I set out to take on the task of cake decorator. For those of you who know me - it seemed like a joke! I hate to cook let alone bake AND decorate a cake! But I did it. Donald laughed at my first attempt. It was a Raggedy Ann cake and I made it completely from scratch. There was not a cake pan for Raggedy Ann at the time - so I decided to just "wing" it. The first cake was so funny and no I am not posting that picture! It is in Anna's scrapbook, though. From there I have made every cake for them except two. Then this past year I was asked to make several cakes for the newest additions to the family. We had five babies turn one this past summer and fall and I made all of their cakes except one! I will have to get all of the pictures, but for now these were the ones that I could find easily. Enjoy!

Sophie's 4th Birthday


Anna's 5th Birthday

Julia's 1st Birthday

Vincent's 1st Birthday

My very, very, very first birthday cake! This was Anna's 1st birthday!

I also made Winnie the Pooh (2), Elmo, Barbie cake, Care Bear cake. heart cake, and the Dora cake.

Thought I would just share pics of the cakes I've made! Just for fun! I'll post the rest when I can find them!

This is it...

This is the reason I adore being a mother. I know that I post about all of the crazy things my girls do - and trust me - they always keep me hopping - but this...
these are the moments that I hold dear. It's priceless moments like this that I wish I could bottle and save to keep forever. Do I know that one day they'll grow up? Of course. Do I wish they could always be my little girls? Absolutely. But I know deep down that one day they will be young women. I can only hope that I raise them up to be the kind of women that people look up to. Each day I look at Anna and I can see her changing. Her face is getting longer and she's really growing into herself. Sophie grows by leaps and bounds and with her starting kindergarten in the fall - I just can't believe how fast these years have flown by. I'm sure my parents feel the same way. Yikes! To think I'm just like my parents. Boy am I getting old. So while I still can - I hug them like crazy and kiss their boo boos and sing them their nighttime songs - even when I don't always want to. So I will enjoy their innocence and I will embrace the craziness that is our life! There is NOTHING better. And I will remind Anna that when she is grown she has stated that she will never leave us - she is building a pink house in the front yard - but don't worry daddy - you can keep your favorite tree - we'll build around it! Sounds like a plan!

The Resolution!

As I sit here stuffing my face with this ever delicious, enticing, yummy, gooey, and mm mm good chili dog - I am reminded of my yearly resolution. Oh, yes - it's that time again - Weight Watchers here I come. Although I won't be showing my fat butt around there anytime soon! It'll take me a good while to get back down to my "free" size. Then I'll venture in. Come on - don't we all need to put on a little "winter" weight? I know I do. So, as I go back to school tomorrow, I will take my weapon with me (a Smartones dinner) and my main goal will be...

avoid the cafeteria food at ALL costs. This does not mean that I can "accidentally" forget my lunch on Bosco stick day and if I truly forget my lunch I must remind myself of the five and three letter words that my daughter adores - dun, dun, dun - THE SALAD BAR! Ooh - I get the creepy crawlies just thinking about it (insert shudders here). So - tonight I will weigh myself - then I will get depressed and then I will plan my attack! That also means no more soda. Cringe. I love my Sundrop. Oh Sundrop - how I will miss thee! But - it's either that or the fat farm! :) So wish me luck!