Thursday, February 27, 2014

Just a little life.


This is the spin draft on our 1920's wood stove...I think it's pretty.
The stove keeps our house so warm.


This sometimes happens to the school room table.
Okay..this often happens to the school room table.
It's how you can tell it's the end of a school week.^^




Our 10:30 school break...we baked strawberry banana muffins.

On Monday Jeff brought daisies home to me....Twenty years ago we went on our first date.
Ice skating and ravioli in the middle of a snowstorm.
It was perfect and feels like it happened yesterday.


Antique books on the mantle. I've only read two of the four.

It's almost the weekend!
XxOo

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

The "Never Agains" of Boys.


If you raise them right, you will Never again have to...
...pump gas.
..kill spiders.
...open car doors.
..shoot anything that needs to be shot with an air soft gun.
...take out the garbage.
..carry in groceries.
...shovel snow.
.....make a fire.
..do painting projects.
...change a light bulb.
..start your car in the middle of winter.
.....be in want of a pocket knife.
..check out scary noises in the basement.


You will also Never again....
...be able to go bra-less in your own home.
...have a bathroom that doesn't stink a couple times a day! {tip of the day~ keep candles on hand}
..wear those short shorts your husband likes you to wear around the house.
{unless you're in the bedroom with the door closed}
....order one pizza for your family.
..keep the cookie jar filled.
...trust where your tweezers have been! {don't even ask...}


Boys. Young Men.
They will sweat a lot, eat a lot, wrestle a lot and laugh at gross things.
Things in your house will break, things will get dirty...especially your floors.

The male gender.
They are protectors. They are defenders. They are strong.
They love a challenge. They are competitive.
They are boys.
The men of tomorrow.

I am grateful for the privilege of raising boys along side the man that I love.
Boys make life fun and I like having them around.

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Seven/Fifty-Two

I have always loved the "portrait of your child a week for a year" idea.
The past two years I have wanted to, but never got around to it.

I'm getting a late start....seven weeks late!
But...I know in years to come I will be happy I did this little project. :)
Especially with my older kids..it's easy to take photos of little ones,
but as they grow older, they don't like their picture taken as much.

So here we go.... 






He's reading a book about Valley Forge.
He's watching Sherlock Holmes on my ipad.
I know who the sixth grade class clown would be if he wasn't homeschooled.
She loves hats.
She's watching her daddy.

XxOo

Monday, February 17, 2014

Monday Here.


My sister is a full time caregiver to a sweet woman in her 90's. My girls visit on Monday afternoons.
Sam joined them this week for a surprise project Auntie Caitlin is doing with them today.

They also were just prank calling my house.
(and other family members at work and home....they wanted to order a cheese pizza)
Yes, my sister is a good influence! ;)

I didn't even know it was them.
How sad is it that I couldn't recognize my own kid's voices!? Ha.


Today we are having our 127th snowstorm of the season.
While driving in some areas around here, you can't even see a lot of the farm fields because the snow
is piled so high on the sides of the road. It looks like you're driving through a tunnel of snow.



 

Jeff is working from home today....he made popcorn. (with coconut oil)
We're mature, I know. ;)

Hope your week is off to a good start.
XxOo

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

He doesn't bring me flowers.



I will occasionally give him a little reminder that I like flowers,
but somehow buying flowers never seems to make it onto his to do list.  ;)
So....I buy my own.

And it's okay. Do you know why? because he does things for me flower buying husbands don't do!
Better things. Things I wouldn't trade for flowers. {Like chocolate!}

However, flower buying husband's wives may like the fact that they get flowers and wouldn't trade that for the things other husbands do instead of flowers.

Don't compare your relationship or your man to someone else's.
{How would you like him comparing you to another woman?..yeah, didn't think so.}

Each relationship is different and special in it's own way.
If you start comparing, you will never find happiness and contentment with the person you are with.

I love the man I'm married to for so many reasons. He is quite the catch.

Valentines Day is just a couple days away. Anything special you're doing to get ready?
Do you celebrate big? small? not at all?
We usually don't celebrate big, but this year we're going on a date. Yay!
Tomorrow the kids and I are making homemade Valentines and baking a strawberry cake.
XxOo

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Meet the grandparents....1950 something.


Frank and Helen.
She makes a great tiramisu and the most fabulous cannoli cake.
He makes the best homemade Italian sausage.

He and I have played a few practical jokes on each other over the years...mine are always better.
They bought me my first car...a 1974 VW Bug with a sunroof.

We would sleep over night on the weekends...
....they would make us whatever we wanted for breakfast. {I usually chose waffles}

I wore her wedding gown on my own wedding day.
He taught me how to drive stick shift in a school parking lot.

I still use the afghan she made for me when I was seven.
Their wedding cake stood three feet tall.

It states in their will I get the vitrola in their basement when they die....
...yeah, I'm ALMOST positive it says that.

The smell of cooked peppers and garlic reminds me of their house.
I'm their favorite grandchild...no matter what the others say. I'm the favorite.

Love them so much.
XxOo

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Hello Tuesday. I think I'm going to like you better....

...better than Monday that is.
Despite the sunshine, it was a cranky day.
unmotivated. self centered. negative. bad hair.

But Tuesday...Tuesday we (more like I) are making a choice to find Joy. :) 




I am loving the new Le Creuset dish our friends brought us back from Paris.
I've been finding reasons I need to bake in it.
Friday night dates with Jeff....one of the reasons I don't like the weekend to end.
I need to stop eating sweet treats...like doughnuts and chocolate filled croissants! It's soooo hard.
Sweetest little book series....Flicka, Ricka, Dicka.
We've been reading them forever, but were missing the strawberry story. I bought it last week.


Something we started doing at our house two weeks ago....
Jeff told the kids after every meal to wash their own dishes...plate, cup, fork...etc.
This has been very nice for whoever the dishwasher is at the time. The sink isn't so overwhelming.

We're off to the history museum this morning.
Hope you have a wonderful day.
XxOo