The Kids Are In Heaven - Pool Progress

The kids are in heaven.  For the past two days they have been glued to the picture window looking out into the backyard and watching all the action take place.  Taylor declared this morning "This is the most exciting thing we've ever done!"  I on the other hand came home from work last night to find the big hole dug into our yard and started almost hyperventilating.  Typically Art would very easily be able to pull me back down from the ledge, but he was working late.  My mom instead had to try and calm my nerves.  She just kept saying though "There's no turning back now, what's done is done!"  I finally had to yell, "That's not helping!"  I take just after my worry wart father and you'd think after almost 45 years of marriage she would know how to properly calm down a nervous person.  

I wish I could just do something without having all these doubts and trepidations and insecurities.  But it's just in my nature to worry and agonize over every decision I make.  Since I can remember it's been my dream to have a pool.  We bought this house specifically because the yard was big enough to put a pool in!  And once it starts happening I get wrapped up in the possibility that I might regret my decision.  I wish I could be more carefree like Art.  But I'm working on it. 

After the guys left last night at dusk, we ran out there and jumped in the big hole and ran around.  The kids were having the time of their lives.  That made me happy enough to calm my nerves. 

This morning the first thing Taylor did was pull up her chair and settle in to watch the action.  I love how in to this whole process they are.  Love their inquisitive nature and all the questioning and observations.

 And after just two days, this is what our yard looks like.  It's amazing what they accomplished in just two days!  You can see the transition from shallow to deep and the little corner bench is even molded into the dirt!

By the way we're keeping the big elm tree in the backyard.  The canopy of the tree shades over half the pool, and I just love that.  You don't see that very much in these parts.  They had to cut into a lot of the tree's roots and I half jokingly said to the pool guy, "if you kill my tree, I'm gonna kill you."  I am probably now known as the crazy tree lady. 

Nesting

"The greatest work you will ever do is within the walls of your own home."
- Harold B. Lee

6:30 pm Friday night
my children were running around the neighborhood, my son without his pants on
they were unfed
nothing on the stove prepared
my husband nowhere to be found, at work still solving some crisis
I'm frantically putting finishing touches on a sewing project I promised someone
my house in disarray
barking orders at my children
snapping at my poor husband as he finally walks in the door, exhausted
"where were you, why didn't you call?"

I stopped, looked around, and instead of crying to discover what had become of my house,
picked up the phone, ordered CPK, and vowed to start fresh the next day.

5 am I woke up on Saturday morning and started ripping through my house like a tornado
or a pregnant woman nesting
but I am not pregnant
just a woman who takes her job seriously as a homemaker
and my oh my how I had been sloughing off at work

I realized on friday night that my first and most important job, is homemaker,
that is wife and mother to this family.
I am the head of this household.
I am responsible for how this place runs.
and lately I had been running it like a loony bin.

I started by taking down the tired old spring decor of birds and eggs and nests.
sounds like a silly place to start I know.
but as good a place as any
I freshened things up by adding a summer theme throughout the house.
and I didn't spend a dime.
by the time Taylor woke up she was able to help me pick out stones for our little memory frame

the frame holds special stones and rocks and shells that we have collected over the last few years of family trips.

 the broken stone marked fertility stone was given to me by the Saks DMM on a work trip in the Virgin Islands.  he told me to sleep with it under my pillow.  i was pregnant the next month, no doubt due to the fertility stone :)  it used to be shaped like a heart but has since been broken somewhere along the line.

upon breathing new life into our little house, we packed up and went to Tanaka Farms for CSA Day, where we picked veggies, barbecued them, and then picked strawberries until our bellies were full.
it was wonderful
except the part where art had to leave to go fix that work crisis that was still going on.

after Tanaka Farms the kids and I headed to Trader Joe's and I proceeded to break my previous record and spend $200 on groceries.
i bought flowers for myself.
my pantry and fridge is stocked and my heart is full
during nap time i cleaned out my pantry and fridge and threw 2 trash bags full of food away.
i had really let things go around here.

after a little pool and BBQ at the neighbors,
we came home, put the kids to bed,
art went back to work again,
and i went back to work.
i organized all of my crafting and sewing supplies.
nothing fancy, just functional
put all my most used items out and easily accessible so i stop ripping through bins like a loon,
leaving the room in disarray when i can't find something.
i separated seasonal fabric, from scraps of fabric and whole pieces

i cleaned our room, putting away laundry that had stacked up for days
i cleaned the kid's drawing station, throwing away old markers 

i was exhausted
but i felt at peace again
ready to be back at my job the next morning
ready to be the kind of mother and wife i like to be
and through all that cleaning and organizing, i was also recharged to CREATE.
excited, actually downright giddy, to get out my sewing machine

and by the time i crawled into bed at midnight, aching from the work
art walked in from work
crisis solved, order restored at work,
genius husband of mine, how i love him

so it may not have been the most relaxing weekend, or most peaceful,
but i feel at peace nonetheless.
i am officially ready for summer to start and to have some fun.

what did you do this weekend?
i hope it brought you peace as well friends.

p.s. i did get to end my weekend with a margarita and Sex & the City 2 with the girls.  that was pretty fun ;)

Home Sweet Home

Hello.
Goodbye.
That was it, just wanted to get the pictures of me off front page...sort of tired of looking at myself HA!

More on this piece of artwork later.
Right now I have a little birthday prep to do for a 3 year old little boy.

Happy Day to you!

Had To Share Part 2

can a glass of orange juice really taste sweeter served out of a sweet decanter?

can a cupcake really be fluffier when the flour and sugar are scooped with care?

not really, but it sure makes the process fun.

had to share how $3.95 made me a little happier this week.  it was my treat to myself.
aluminum scoops from Sur la Table
glass decanter from Smart N Final

Excuse My While I Organize My...

...My Everything...

Beginning with throwing out creepy, crappy toys like these ones

What are these things?!?! I'll tell you. They're weird, strange, ugly, scary, cheap giveaway toys from Happy Meals. If America needs another reason why we should not let our kids eat fast food, these "toys" should be the poster children:

"Don't buy Happy Meals because your house will end up
being cluttered with nonsense toys like us!"

{for the record, I do buy Happy Meals for my kids once in a while and I don't apologize for it,
but these particular toys were given to my kids from our babysitter's collection of happy meal toys.
It's a long story.}

Anyhow, back to the point of this post.

Ever have a big project looming, but you just can't seem to find the motivation to kick start you into gear? That's where I'm at right now. For me organization, or the lack thereof is quite debilitating. I can't concentrate, I feel anxious, I have a hard time sleeping. I know, I have problems.

So while I have a bajillion dresses, skirts and pj bottoms that need to be sewn for an upcoming craft fair that I'll be participating in, I spent my weekend ORGANIZING! It just had to be done. I was inspired by Clover Lane's 40 Bags in 40 Days challenge for herself. And while I may not be Catholic and I am not resolving to do anything for Lent, I do allow myself to steal inspiration from just about any source that I can find.

I mainly worked in the kid's rooms. Here's a recap by the numbers:

6 40 Gallon trash bags filled with donations and hand me downs, between 2 rooms
2 trash bags filled with garbage
8 storage bins completely cleared out
4 drawers completely cleared out
1 very happy mom

Here are some before and after pictures.

Bags from Taylor's Room filled with clothes she doesn't wear anymore,
toys, stuffed animals, books, etc.

I can't stand messy bookshelves, it's like disrespectful to books.

This is her nightstand drawer. What a mess!

Ahhh! Much better :) Hi Baby Jesus!

Empty dresser drawersUgh, the nightmare that is her closet! I could use the excuse that we just moved in 6 weeks ago, but to be honest it gets really bad like this at least every couple of weeks.

this is a stash of books I found in her closet. She and her brother like to pick an item (this week it was books), and take a million of that item and hide them somewhere. The hiding places change. One time its the closet, next time it's under the bed, next time it's behind a chair. Are my kids the only ones that do this?

Syd's clean bookshelf
Bags from Syd's roomA clean closet for my boy :)

While doing this I had a few Ah-Ha moments (I love those). We are really trying to get Taylor and Syd in the habit of keeping their rooms somewhat tidy. To me its a value I find very important. Growing up I learned to try and take care of the stuff I had because I wasn't going to necessarily get something new if I trashed what I had.

I get so frustrated with Taylor, more so since she's older, because I see her just throw stuff wherever, and not take care of her things. But it dawned on me that A), we need to do a better job of leading by example. So instead of just telling her to clean her room, I need to show her what the expectations are and how to manage those expectations. DUH! And B) these kids have TOO MUCH STUFF! How can I expect them to keep things straight when they have 10 Barbies, 20 t-shirts, 40 toy cars?!? We need to cut down, and stop bringing things into the home. I kind of felt a little disgusted with myself and disappointed that I filled 6 bags of stuff.

Anyone have any thoughts on teaching the fine art of being tidy to young ones? I could surely use some guidance in this department!

On a lighter note, it wasn't all work and no play. Sunday morning the kids practiced with the big daddy camera and took some pretty sweet shots. Syd took the one below of Taylor.

Taylor took this one
And Syd took this one. The camera was getting heavy at this point and he couldn't continue to hold it up, which is why Tay and daddy are crouching down to get in the shot

And meet the chillest baby boy ever. Carter Brandon Gerding was born on February 19th and is just a doll. One second he was awake, and then the next he was asleep. So peaceful. No ssshhhing, swaying, bouncing, patting or rocking was required.
It was a unique experience for me :)

And finally, I will be on and off the bloggity blog for a few days as I tackle my sewing. I made my craft project list, went to the fabric store yesterday and picked up some sweet goods, and will begin a sewing extravaganza!

Have a great week everyone. Details on the craft fair will be forthcoming.
Oh, and I will commence the Two Things I Love Around My Home next week!

The Box That Doesn't Move

Ever see that Everybody Loves Raymond episode where the suitcase gets left on the staircase for days on end, with neither Ray nor Deborah willing to move it? Fights ensue for days and it stays for so long that one of them puts moldy cheese in there, and the other one puts fish in it or soemthing liek that. I don't remember the exact particulars, but we've got a similar situation goign on here with this box. Problem is , I don't think my better half even knows it!

We found this box about 2 weeks ago, after it had gone missing for a bit after the move. It's got odds and ends from our old master bathroom and was one of the last boxes we packed.

It has been sitting in this same spot for 2 weeks now. Actually, it has moved a bit. On the step stool, then back on the ground. I believe it sat on the counter for a couple of days.

I don't know why I just haven't unpacked the dang thing. I kept meaning to for days but kept forgetting.

Now, though I'm kind of thinking to myself, "well why doesn't he unpack the box?"
He must see it too right?
I unpacked almost every single box in this house.
The least he could do is unpack this one teeny tiny box right?

I know I'm being irrational at this point and I should just unpack the darn box.

But, now I'm kind of curious to see how long it will sit there.

2 more weeks?
2 months?

Anyone want to take a wager?
I'm calling 3 more weeks.

Brought to you by Zack Attack

I'm still in shock. I can't believe he did it. I can't believe he peed on my pillow. It had fallen off the bed at some point in the middle of the night and he decided to saunter over, squat down, and pee right on my pillow. What kind of an animal does that?

This kind of an animal

Smug, pompous, aloof, arrogant

The kind that isn't afraid to show you who's boss,
and will give you a swift swat in the face to remind you


All the while, saying
"But how can you be mad at me, look at how handsome and adorable I am?"


"Look into these eyes. They are the eyes of an angel, no?"


"I'll even pose for photo-ops in front of pretty flowers."


It's not like the cat had it that bad. This is how we used to treat him. He, along with the dog slept in our beds, slept on the furniture, slept wherever he wanted.


I say "used to" because a few years back he started getting real temperamental. If by chance, we brought home a cat food that he did not approve of, he peed on our clothes.

If we decided to move houses, he peed on our down comforter.

If by chance we didn't let him outside because it was storming outside the likes of El Nino and we didn't want him to get hurt, he peed on our beautiful, new white couch.

The white couch incident is where we drew the line.
That is when Zackary became an "outside" cat.

But then ever so slowly, as is often the case with sly predators, he ingratiated himself back into the fold. He was careful. He was calculated.
He hit us below the belt where we had to scream "MERCY!"

He used the KIDS!
I mean, he didn't even play fair. Look at how much they loved on him.
He never got terse or feisty with them.


Even when they smashed and smothered the living daylights out of him.
(why, by the way did someone not tell me Syd needed a haircut? Poor child)

And so we fell for it, hook, line and sinker.
We let him back into the house and he did whatever he wanted.
We were at his beck and call, getting up at 4am to let him outside to play.
Letting him sleep on the furniture again.
And then he peed on my pillow.
Damn you Zack! Damn you.
(I don't know what's more disturbing about this story though. The fact that Zack peed on my pillow, or the fact that Art tried to wash the pillow so that I can use it again. UGH!)

Valentine's Day Projects/Decorations

I finally got my act together and decorated for Valentine's Day with some of my homemade craft projects. They were all very easy in concept, although a couple of the things were time consuming.

The first thing I tackled was this felt heart garland. Because I wanted different sized hearts, I had to run a straight stitch through the middle of the hearts, as opposed to the tops, but I actually don't mind how it came out. Kind of gives it more of a handmade feel I think. I may be wrong, but go ahead and let me believe that :)

The next project was this burlap wreath. After making the first one I became obsessed and made 4 more to hang on all the doors in the house! The best part is that it's a no-sew project, but burlap does make a mess! Wait, the even better part was that I made 4 wreaths for $1.89!!! Burlap is super cheap and when you use your coupon from Joann's, even better.

Visit Craftaholics Anonymous for the tutorial. I saw her note on how to make less of a mess with burlap after I already cut my strips. So take note, dampen your burlap with a spray bottle first before cutting for less fuzz and mess. I also made the first wreath that's hanging on my door using her method of cutting the wire into two pieces and then bending them together, but I don't suggest this. It hangs a little wonky and I had to actually tape it down to the door a bit. Your best bet is to just bend your wire coat hanger into submission all in one piece. You will need pliers and wire cutters though to twist the ends together after stringing on the burlap and then to cut off the ends so they're not so much of a poking hazard. I used 4 2 inch strips for each wreath. I actually used about 6 strips for the one on the front door which is why it looks so full, but then started to run out of burlap for the remaining 3. Like I said ladies, $1.89 made me 4 wreaths!

Next thing on the list, was making these Valentine's pouches for the kiddos. I got the idea from a Pottery Barn one and decided, "I can do that!"

Taylor's is a little fancier with the rick-rack trim

We're filling the pouches with little notes and goodies each morning and the kids are so excited to check their pouches each day. It's like Christmas stockings! We're keeping it simple with handmade notes and treats we have laying around the house, but they don't seem to mind. A treat is a treat!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!