Kitchen, Before and After

Before

Before

After

After

New countertops, backsplash, sink and faucet, paint and knives :) I'm a happy girl and love to be in my kitchen.

A closer look at the backsplash.  Can you see the seam?  I covered the outlet cover to match.

Kiddos

Rebecca took this picture of Joel while they were on Spring Break.

And I took this one of him checking out his books at the library. It really belongs in the "Library" post but I didn't feel like putting it there. Too much effort.

Rebecca took this one of her and Clayton. And I was struck with this knowledge: my kids did inherit at least one trait of mine after all! Can you guess what it is?*

Rebecca took this picture of Clayton, and I had fun editing it.

*they'll never have to use lipstick. I should hope the boys wouldn't want to, even if they had the very palest of lips, though...

Library

Over Spring Break a couple weeks ago, Rebecca asked if we could go to the Library. Both boys were a bit under the weather but when asked, insisted they were fine. I thought a trip out of the confines of the house might do them good, so we went.

Whoa! Pretend this picture is properly exposed please. It's the only one of it's kind that I got and I had my camera on the manual setting. Once the shutter clicked, all three thought their duty was done and scattered. If you ignore the brightness of their faces it's really a nice picture. I worked on it for some time, trying to correct it and this is as good as it gets.

The kids at the Nature Center

John found these building sticks and Rebecca put this together.

Joel is self-conscious of his teeth.  He thinks they're buck teeth, so I either get a picture where he's not smiling, smiling very unnaturally, or covering his mouth.  This is one of the better pictures of him.

Clayton found this eagle? puppet and wouldn't put it down.  He worked diligently setting the bird up on a couple chairs so it would look like it was sitting unassisted.

Nature Center

Sunday after lunch we thought we'd check out the local nature center just for something to do. The kids love it.

Reverse story time: Clayton reads like a champ!

A nice place to spend a foggy afternoon.

Skirt

Rebecca needed a skirt for her fifth grade concert. Last Wednesday she asked if I could make one. Thursday I bought the fabric, she helped me cut it out, and we sewed it up in about 1 1/2 hours. Next time won't take as long because I'll know the steps.

I got the pattern here:  http://www.houseonhillroad.com/photos/twirly_skirt/index.html

I'm still here

It's been a long couple of weeks since I last posted.

A lot has happened...kitchen remodel, a case of head lice, laundry,

snowstorms, laundry, birthday parties, grocery shopping, laundry,

putting the house back in order after said kitchen remodel and case of head-lice, laundry, and that brings us to the present.

You'll excuse me for not writing about the lice as it happened...I was afraid we'd become outcasts if anyone knew. Now that it's over, I'm ready to come clean (pun intended). I've learned a lot, become stronger, and am now an expert on the stages and reproductive cycle of a louse. Our washing machine got a workout, as well as the water heater, gas dryer, and vacuum cleaner. I've no doubt that the gas bill will be through the roof, and I know the real meaning of a mountain of laundry. We beat it though, and I don't care who knows anymore.
Onward!

Call 911

Our cat climbed this tree. Who knows why...but for whatever reason, she was near the top at one point.

"Here Kittykittykittykitty!"

She made her way back down, slowly...cautiously.

And then she sat just out of reach and meowed pitifully. How is it that cats can scurry UP a tree, but can't get down with the same confidence?

Rescued

It was touch-and-go for a few minutes. I'm sure Joel was convinced that poor Fiona would spend the rest of her life in the tree, but she eventually found her own way back down. We didn't even have to call the Fire Department.

Whew! Back safe in his arms. He's a little worry-wart when it comes to his kitty. He gets completely stressed out if we let her run around unsupervised outside. Then she climbs a tree, and he comes unglued. I think I've finally convinced him that it's what kitties do, but he just can't help but worry about her.

"My turn to hold her!" Joel reluctantly gave her up so Clayton could give her some snuggles.

They love their kitty.

Spring Break

It doesn't look very Spring-y around here, and yet the kids are on Spring Break. It snowed last night, so John put them to work this morning shovelling off the apron. A few dollars might have been offered as motivation.

I'm not sure how we're going to survive these days off. Maybe I'll rephrase that last part--the kids have a week off, not me.

So far today they've been pretty good, but then it's only 10:15. Friday they were also home from school and if that's an indication of how this week will go, I'll check myself into the Funny Farm. From what I hear, the kids are well-liked and thought highly of all around school. Get them all together in a small area though (say, the backseat of a car or even a 2,000 square-foot house) and they turn into monsters.

Please excuse my pessimistic attitute regarding my children. I try to find the joy that's hidden in raising them, but when all they do is fight and pick on each other I tend to go a little crazy.

I hear they're normal, so that's one consolation.