This week

Last weekend Mike and the kids (mostly Bev) put together Andrew's furniture. It looks great--and it seems quite sturdy. Mike and I put the shelves up and Andrew is just getting his legos put back together from the move. Legos cover his floor at the moment. I will post some pictures soon.
Friday while A&B were at school, C&J wanted to go out and ride scooters. We live on a dead end street with very little traffic, so the kids can ride bikes and scooters in the street. I looked out the window and Christian had put Jess in the bike stroller and was carting her up and down the street. They play so well together.
Sunday morning before church, I got out of the shower to this sight. Mike had gotten Christian ready and he was checking himself out in the mirror. He wants to wear that green tie every Sunday.
For school, Bev had to do a project about vegetables. We decided to be creative and make a vegetable creature. So, last night she put this guy together. His body is an eggplant, feet are broccoli, hair is lettuce, lips are a peapod, nose is from red pepper and eyes are sliced carrots. I don't think he will be with us for long--he was already a little wilty this morning.
Weekend project: get organized. With two kids in elementary school and two in preschool, there are a ton of papers to keep track of. I got them each a clipboard (and decorated the backs) that everything will go on. I have got to be organized or I'm mean when I have to try and find things.

Project Central

Okay, so this truck load of stuff from Ikea...
And this stuff from Ikea...
Are going to help me put together a bedroom for Andrew.
Right now he is sleeping on a mattress on the floor.
His legos don't have a home and his clothes are spilling out of the rubbermaid dresser. I have been looking for bedroom furniture and just haven't found anything that I wanted. I took Andrew bed-shopping. That was interesting. He decided early on that he wanted a waterbed. Then he changed his mind and decided that he wanted a big loft pirate bed. We found something that was a pretty good option, but it was going to take 6 weeks to arrive.

I have never purchased furniture from Ikea, and I do have some reservations about the sturdiness of the stuff. I also look at those boxes and realize that they don't put themselves together. It will be an adventure.

This was the first project I did in the new house. The first thing Andrew said when he saw it was, "Mom, where's Korea...oh, and you cut off part of Alaska--poor Uncle Ben." I had to make the thing fit, so I had to make choices--difficult choices. Anywho, it's my favorite thing in the house.
In other project news, I ordered these clothespin cabinet pulls for the laundry room--they make it a little more fun to do the laundry.

Catching up

This is one of my favorite gifts Mike has given me. Sure, I ordered it myself, but it's the thought that counts. It is my fault that he has a hard time buying gifts for me. A woman makes these "Heart for Africa" necklaces as a fundraiser for her daughter who is adopting from Ethiopia.
Andrew had to do a report on an Olympian. With the move and all, we didn't watch much of the Olympics, except for Michael Phelps. Of course, someone already took him, so Andrew didn't know who to pick. We got on the internet (sweet internet) and searched for events that we didn't see that interested him. I didn't even know that Taekwondo was a sport at the Olympics. Three siblings fron Texas all medaled at the olympics in Taekwondo. He had fun giving the report in front of the class. He told me that at the end he taught them about the ki-hap (I think that is how it is spelled.) That is the yell/war-cry done in karate. I am sure his teacher really appreciated that.
Enjoying the end of summer. The kids each got to pick an activity that they wanted to do before summer ended. Bev mentioned that she was ready to return to Mulligans for mini golf. A few years ago our trip there ended in tragedy. A few holes into the trip, she got stung by some wasps. Since then, everytime we have driven by Mulligans, the whole scene gets rehashed--the number of stings is argued, where they came from is discussed, never going there again is mentioned. Mini golf was a hit.

My Three Favorites...Tag

What are the last three things you purchased?
1. Flowers for Natalie's wedding
2. Cleaning supplies from Target
3. Lunch at Chick-fil-a

What are the last three songs you downloaded onto your iPod?
1. ABBA songs
2. I'm Yours
3. I'm Still A Guy (Mike tells me this will help me understand him better.)

What are your three favorite movies?
1. When Harry Met Sally (all time favorite--I only have it on VHS, and in the old house the tv in my craft room had a VHS player. I watched/listened to it almost every day the last few weeks before moving, as I packed.)
2. What About Bob?
3. First Knight (Richard Gere :)
It's hard to list only three.

What are three things you have not done yet?
1. Unpack the craft room.
2. Paint furniture for Bev's room
3. So many more things for the house, but for today, I have not read to C&J yet.

What are three things you can't live without?
1. My family & friends
2. My internet, sweet internet
3. Chocolate and Peanut Butter together

What are your three favorite dishes?
1. It may sound cliche, but those pork salads from Cafe Rio are my favorite.
2. Grandma B's chicken noodle soup over mashed potatoes
3. Mike's shepherd's pie :)

What are your three favoite TV shows?
1. The Office (such anticipation!)
2. Law and Order (I love the re-runs too)
3. I watch Larry King almost everyday.

What are the last three places you have traveled to?
1. Maui
2. Playa del Carmen
3. Liberia (last year)

What are your three favorite desserts?
1. Brownies
2. Strawberry Shortcake
3. That peanut butter/chocolate ice cream thing from Cold Stone a.k.a. heart attack in a cup.

What are three things you would buy if money was not an issue?
1. Lots of big trees for my empty yard.
2. A big trip to Maui with my whole family.
3. One of those big RVs to tour the country in.

If you could have three wishes, what would they be?
1. Health and happiness for my family.
2. Peace on Earth
3. To love exercise (I just don't)

Three people I tag:
1. Melanie
2. Julie (if you haven't been already)
3. Katie & Courtney

Internet, sweet internet

Oh, how I have missed my sweet internet. I didn't realize just how dependent/addicted I was to it. So, peeps, the blog is back in business. Man I have missed you. I miss reading your blogs and I miss writing mine.


I am loving the new house, it's just taking a while to get settled. We had a lot of stuff to get in and get put away. I am up to my eyeballs in projects to do. I am putting cabinet hardware on all of the cabinets. I am painting my childhood vanity and dresser for Bev's room. I put up a wallpaper wall mural world map in Andrew's room (it is my favorite thing in the house.) We are shopping for bedroom furniture for Andrew. The problem with that is--and I know this will come as a surprise to ya'll--I am picky. I have an idea of what I want and just can't find it.


The kids had a blast opening the boxes of their toys. They had been in storage for a whopping two months and you would have thought it was Christmas when they finally got them back. Andrew and Bev have been off track for the last three weeks. They have been a big help. I am excited for them to go back to school, but I will miss them. I get love notes everyday from Bev in the laundry shute. One read, "Have fun doing the londry. Love, Bev."


Since I posted last, I had a birthday. So now, if I live to 70 my life is half over. I am pondering a lot about things I want to accomplish over this next year.


Mike and I celebrated our 11th anniversary. It has definitely been an adventure. I hope it always is.

Anywho, it's good to be back internet. I really missed you.