flibbertigibberish

Last, last, last, last-minute Valentines

2012-02-14T14:30:00.000-07:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's not like I didn't know WEEKS ago what our plan for class valentines was, but in typical Angie fashion, we were finishing them up in the car on our way to school this morning.

Yes, I could've taken the pictures WEEKS ago when we decided what this year's valentines would be. But instead, the pictures were taken last night around 5:30.

Off I sent them to walgreens.com. They'd be ready in an hour, but since I had a hot date last night, I thought it'd be no problem to pick them up on our way home. And that would've been fine... if the store was open that late. The darkened entrance was a dead give away that my lack of planning skills had once again done me no favors.

Walgreens opened at 8:00 this morning. School starts at 8:30. Uhh, no problem. I scrambled to get four kids and myself ready this morning in order to be there when the doors opened, but we got there at 8:15 instead. With the tape dispenser in the back seat and the girls' hands working furiously to finish their Valentines, we drove the one block to school and Emma dashed inside, just a few minutes late, but with adorable Valentines in hand. Addie finished hers in the car on the way to school after MOPS while eating her lunch. Some may call it rushed and bad planning, I call it teaching the the life skill of multi-tasking.

It looks like I don't need to worry about valentines for another 364 days! Whew.

Last year their valentines looked like this:

In case you want to plan ahead and make similar ones for next year (you could start now!), they're a breeze to make. I just hung up a sheet/blanket as a backdrop (optional). Then I took a picture of the girls with outstretched arms.

Next I uploaded the picture to picnik.com to add the text and hearts, uploaded it to walgreens.com to get them printed, attached the candy, and voila! Adorable valentines that are cheap, super easy, and totally cute.

Yesterday I was ready to wimp out and do the traditional perforated valentines, but the girls insisted on these. I'm glad! The scramble and the effort are worth it.

Maybe I should start next year's valentines tonight. Brody will be in school and I'll have three sets to worry about. Oy.

I Am A Material Girl

2012-02-05T14:25:00.001-07:00

Even though the Broncos aren't playing, if I think hard enough, I can probably name the two teams that are playing. But I can tell you who's performing at halftime in a nanosecond.

Madonna is set to take the halftime stage at the Superbowl later today, and I admit, I'm excited to watch. I feel a kinship of sorts with Madonna. You might not know it, but I was in the Material Girl video.

Well, okay, it was a remake.

A long time ago when MTV was barely born, my 2nd grade music teacher, Mr. Dennis, had us break into groups to create music videos. There was a catchy new song out called, "Material Girl," and Jessica, Kristen and I were going to nail it.

We had a couple of days to choreograph and plan our big video debut. We'd lip synced our song a hundred times, our hair was perfectly crimped and teased, and our neon leg warmers were in place.

I'm absolutely certain we had no idea what the song was about. Madonna's message of living an affluent, extravagant life was lost on us 7-year-olds. I'd never seen the video and it was probably many years later when I finally saw it for the first time. And maybe that's when it hit me: our version of Material Girl was so... different.

For a solid four minutes, my innocent 2nd grade friends and I traipsed around our music room, bobbing our heads, dancing, and flinging brightly colored fabric strips.

Fabric strips. You know, material.

It's a version you won't see Madonna perform at the Super Bowl show today. But as I sit and watch her perform today with some like-minded crafty friends, it seems appropriate that a bunch of material girls would be cheering on the Material Girl.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!

Feelin' the Christmas Love Until Valentine's Day!

2012-01-31T06:00:00.002-07:00

The Christmas decorations have been packed away for almost a month now.

Except for the Christmas cards.

I just can't bear to put them away! I have them displayed on a large stretch of wall that I walk by a million times a day. I love seeing the smiling faces all day long of so many people that I love.

And so, I've made the executive decision to display Christmas cards until... Valentine's Day! It's the holiday of looovvve, so why not have a daily reminder of the people God's put in your life to love?

And besides... um... I *still* haven't sent out our Christmas New Year's Valentine's Day cards, and I know there are others out there who intend to send them out as well, and so I will keep them up while I wait for them in the mail. And for those reading this who have yet to receive our card, you need to know that being nixed from next year's Christmas card list would break my heart and is among my biggest fears.

Okay, that might be just a little exaggeration, but I do love getting your cards.

When I took down all the Christmas decorations, I switched out the red velvet ribbon I had the pictures hanging from for a simple piece of twine. Now it seems less Christmasy. I think next year I'll use these teensy little cute clothespins since they'd be less distracting. And I might need to add another row. It's getting crowded!

Gary and I made a sign to display over our cards. It says, "I thank my God every time I remember you." (Philippians 1:3) At Christmastime, it's perfect with sprigs of holly and pinecones garnishing it, but take them off and... voila! A perfect way to display cards through Valentine's Day.

When I finally do take down the cards, I think I might make one of these ideas that I found on Pinterest.

These prayer sticks are such a cute idea... if I can get the guts to cut up the beautiful pictures!

But if I chicken out, I love the idea of these little books. The link will take you to printable covers to make your own. Love it!

Are you still displaying your cards? Do you think I'm just in denial and will display them until Mother's Day after I've finally sent out May Day cards? What do you do with old Christmas cards?

When massages go bad

2012-01-19T19:53:00.000-07:00

The girls' latest bedtime stalling technique?

Nightly massages.

I mean, how are you supposed to stop them mid-backrub and send them to bed? Smart girls.

They start by laying out a big, soft blanket and put pillows side by side, right next to the warm fire. Then they instruct us to lay down so the massage can begin. Seriously! I'm supposed to deny them this loving, selfless act of service? ;)

So there we were the other night, getting our romantic couples' massage. Emma hit this spot that was just right. I groaned a blissful groan.

That's all it took for the massage to take a quick turn. Addie lit up and exclaimed, "Let's see what noises DAD can make!" And with that, she gave his back a few good rubs and soon she was delighted to hear a deep, "HUBBA HUBBA!"

His outburst was met with uncontrollable giggling. Next, Emma couldn't wait to see what sound I would make.

Oh, there it was. That spot on my left shoulder. "Aaaa-OOOOOO-gah!" Mimicking an old-timey car horn brought on squeals of laughter.

Daddy was next. "Sweet Betsy!!!" I'm pretty sure Addie fell off his back at that one.

Our soothing massages were no longer relaxing, but had turned into a competition of ridiculousness.

"Ohhhhh yeah!"
"Sweet mother of pearl!"
"Kowabunga!!!"
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!!!"

It's hard to believe they were wound up when we finally ushered them up to bed, isn't it?

In these moments of delirious laughter, I am so in love with my family. Thank you, Lord, for those fun, unexpected minutes before bedtime!

Pinterest Dinners By a Former Idiot

2012-01-17T11:20:00.000-07:00

A common evening conversation:

Gary: "What's for dinner?"
Me: "Something new! I'm trying a new recipe!"
Gary: [all color is washed from his face and panic sets in.] "Oh."
Me: "Get excited! Yipppeeeeee!"
Gary: [ulcer begins to form over aforementioned new recipe]

The last two nights for dinner, I tried new recipes from Pinterest! Gary was so thrilled.

Sunday night I tried the Brown Sugar and Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin.

Picture and recipe from ww.candcmarriagefactory.com

It was so-o-o-o-o-o-o-o good. Everyone liked it and I've been given permission to make it again.

What I'd do differently:
1. The recipe says to cook it in the crock pot for 6-8 hours. I tasted a little at 7 hours and it was perfect. In my crock pot, 8 hours made it just a little bit too dry.
2. Also, an hour before it's finished, you're to brush on the glaze. At that point, I poured out the fatty juices/water in the bottom of the crock pot. No no. I shouldn't have done that. It probably contributed to the touch of dryness when it was finished.
3. I wish I would've either made more glaze or saved some to serve with the pork upon completion.

But it was still really, REALLY good. I'll definitely make it again. Easy and yummy!

Last night I made Crockpot Italian Chicken.

Picture from homeiswheretheholmansare.blogspot.com

Looks good, right? Well, Pinterest is a funny thing. I kept seeing this recipe pop up, so I decided to finally click on it an make it. The blurb under the picture gives crockpot directions:

4 chicken breasts, 1 packet Zesty Italian dressing seasoning, 1 8 oz. cream cheese (softened), 2 cans cream of chicken soup; Cook on low for 4 hours. If sauce is too thick, add a little milk. Serve over pasta.

Perfect! But when you click on the picture, it's a totally different recipe. It's for White Cheddar Chicken Pasta. Hmmm. So I made the crockpot version (which is not pictured, by the way), and my family liked it and has requested it for future dinners. I thought it was okay, but I'm really curious about the recipe that's actually pictured. I'm putting it on my to-try list!

And not to worry: Even though I've critiqued a few recipes, this is not turning into a recipe blog. I've said it a million times, and Gary's panic over a new recipe proves it - I'm not really a good cook. At all.

See Exhibit A:

I bought this 2 weeks before my wedding day, when it dawned on me that I'd be cooking for someone THE REST OF MY LIFE and I'd only really made chocolate chip cookies and cereal. I was scared out of my mind, and wishing I'd paid attention when my mom was trying to teach me to cook.

I still use the receipt as a bookmark.

Fast forward 12 1/2 years, and I can proudly say that my husband is still alive; I have neither starved or poisoned him. I still don't claim to be a great cook, but I've come a long way. In fact, I'm ready to get rid of this book... but I can't. I'm kind of sentimental like that.

What Pinterest recipes have worked for you lately?

wiww {8} {on saturday?}

2012-01-14T16:43:00.001-07:00

First of all, I'M OKAY.

That last post was a tad emotional. I felt like I was a weepy mess all day, and while I really feel like there's never a need to justify or explain away any tears for any reason, I can admit that there may have been just a teensy weensy little touch of *MPS that came into play. (*I've scrambled the letters so ordinary people will have no idea what I'm talking about! Sneaky.)

That darn MPS. It makes intensifies everything.

Moving on...

I'm a few days late in joining the wwiw party over at The Pleated Poppy, but better late than never. I only have pictures from one day...

This is what I wore to church last Sunday.

dress - Old Navy

leggings - WalMart

cardi - Kohl's

boots - DSW

belt - very old, no idea where it's from

necklace - made by me!

But I got home from church and immediately changed into this:

GO BRONCOS!

Okay, so I probably wouldn't have posted wwiw this week since I'm so behind, but I just had to share my Broncos love. Because, as you've probably heard, they WON on Sunday!

And I'll admit - I've worn the hat 4 times in the last week, and I'm wearing the exact same outfit at this very moment, because they play TONIGHT!

(Yep, I know it's all backwards. Thank you, webcam!)

Kick off in 1 1/2 hours! GO TEBOW! GO BRONCOS!

Updated to say: BUMMER. Love my Broncos anyway!

Go over to Lindsay's blog to see what other bloggers wore last week!

(They probably didn't wear any Broncos gear. Just sayin'.)

Tears

2012-01-11T22:30:00.000-07:00

The kids are finally in bed, and I just collapsed on the couch for the first moment of not being "on" all day.

And the tears started coming. I've been a little weepy all day, in fact.

I cried first thing this morning when I received sweet emails from a friend who I miss so much.

I cried when I remembered that one year ago today, I received news that my friend Joanne had had a life-changing stroke. And I cried when I thought back on the past year. Tears of thankfulness that she's still with us, and tears of compassion for the trials she's endured this year.

I cried out of frustration mid-morning when Chloe would not stop crying and throwing herself on the floor in fits. I felt like such a big baby crying right along with her, but I was at a complete loss. I was probably the one who really wanted to take a nap at that point, but decided to put her down instead. Lucky girl.

I cried when Gary called home late this morning. Poor Gary, he didn't say a thing to earn those tears. Those ones just happened. I tried to explain why I was crying, and he responded with, "You want out of our family? Our marriage? Out of being a mom? I don't understand..." I smiled through my tears and said, "Nooo, not 'I want out' - I'm WORN out!" BIG difference!

But then I cried again after lunch as I helped a new friend process her grief after losing her baby recently when she was 18-weeks along. My tears were stirred by memories of my own baby Joshua, and for the heartache I know she feels.

I cried later this afternoon when parenting seemed too much to handle. I feel so inadequate to do this mom thing sometimes.

I cried when Gary stopped by home in the midst of his busy Wednesday and helped me deal with our kids for a few minutes. Tears flowed as I watched one of my beloved children wrestle with matters of the heart. Oh, how I need the Lord's strength and direction with this little one.

Finally, just before I set out to tell this tale of my tears, I read another message from a friend. This time, tears of joy came as I read great news of a sustained pregnancy. Tears filled my eyes as I thanked the Lord for answering prayer in bigger ways than we imagine.

I'm glad today is just about over, because I'm a little tired of all the crying. I wouldn't even say it was a bad day. It was just a day filled with reminders over and over again of how we just can't do life without Jesus. Just can't.

And now, I'm thankful that tomorrow is a new day.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3:22, 23

When One Pin Leads To Another

2012-01-06T21:05:00.000-07:00

When I joined Pinterest, one of the first things I pinned was a delicious, cheesy chicken enchilada dish. In fact, it looked so yummy that I pinned it again a few weeks later without realizing it. It's on my "Oh My Yumminess" board twice. Here's the picture and link to the recipe: White Chicken Enchiladas.

Source: www.joyful-mommas-kitchen.blogspot.com

Anyway, I made it last night!

I thought it was really yummy, although I might add more green chiles next time. Gary thought it was just okay. Chloe devoured it.

Emma loved it:

And Brody loved it too:

Addie... not so much:

She did NOT like it, and made it quite clear to us. In our house, you eat what's served, or you don't eat. No alternatives, not even PB&J as a back up.

So we compromised, which is when Pinterest came to the rescue. I had seen this idea about a month ago:

Source: www.realsimple.com

The number on the dice is the number of bites you take. Easy.

And so we got the die (lucky for her we could only find one) and she rolled her fate.

And when she wasn't happy with that, she rolled again.

And again until she got the ONE. And that's when Gary and I made the decision to add all of the numbers up and told her she needed to take EIGHT bites before being finished.

I chose not to take a picture of the ensuing melt-down.

Speaking of Pinterest... need an invite? Give me your email address and I'll send you one! Also, you can follow my boards here!

Alisa Burke Inspired Christmas Wreath

2011-12-20T16:27:00.002-07:00

I'm a big Alisa Burke fan. If you haven't heard of her, I encourage you to visit her blog and see some of her fabulous artwork. You will be inspired!

Her seasonal wreaths inspired me to make one of my own, and this is what I came up with!

I just drew some holly, berries and pinecones on some book pages with a fine-tipped Sharpie. The good news is that they don't have to be perfect. Just go for it!

I painted them with watercolors. And since my kids were painting their own masterpieces, I just used their Crayola watercolors. You don't need anything fancy!

Then I cut out the shapes, leaving a bit of the plain book page showing around the edges.

Grab a embroidery hoop, some hot glue, and start layering the pieces on to form your wreath.

Voila! (It looks a bit squarish, huh? Maybe I'll add a few more leaves.)

I hung mine on a mirror in my dining room with a thin red ribbon, along with some pinecones.

Simple and unique!

Songs of Christmas Past

2011-12-17T23:11:00.002-07:00

You know how music can often bring you back to a place instantly?

Christmas songs are like that for me. There are certain songs that in a moment, transplant me back to 1987 in our Christmas decked family room; my sisters and I in matching pajamas, my Mom laughing at our antics while my Dad made biscuits and gravy.

A few years ago, I made a CD for my family as a Christmas gift so that they could relive those special moments through song. To this day, these songs are so special to me, and my heart wants to BURST when my own kids are singing along to these songs which I hold dear.

And so I present to you...

Almost all of these songs were critical in our celebration of Christmas in the Olson household growing up. (Except for a few... there are a couple of more recent songs on the CD that I added just because I liked them.)

Some of these songs are not popular, but they are gems. I'll highlight a few (with my most favorite saved for last):

Born to Die sung by Barbara Mandrell: BEAUTIFUL.

This song spells out the gospel in a touching and poignant Christmas song. I grew up with these seeds planted in my heart:

Shepherds gaze in wonder
While angel voices sing
This night of nights has come
And brought the world the long-awaited King

The earth is filled with gladness
And yet the heavens weep
For heaven's eyes can see
He was born to die for me

Jesus
Baby Jesus
Is that a tear in your eye?
Jesus
Baby Jesus
You must know you were born to die

It must have broken God's heart
For the future He could see
Yet He formed His hands and feet
Knowing one day they'd be nailed to a tree

So all the world could know it
A gift came from above
For God so loved the world
That He gave His only Son

Jesus
Baby Jesus
With a tear of love in your eye
Jesus
Baby Jesus
You knew You were born to die

Jingle Bells sung by Barbra Steisand (1967): So fun!

I was recently thrilled to learn of a friend who shares the same love and enthusiasm for this version of the Christmas classic! Her tradition is the same as mine - my sisters and I would race through this song as fast as we could, making sure to get every word and rhythm perfectly right. I'm happy to report that my girls are VERY good at singing this song and I couldn't be happier. "Upsot?"

And finally... the song I wait to crank up every Christmas season...

Jesus Is Born Today (It Is His Birthday) sung by The Oak Ridge Boys (1982): Christmas!

To me, Christmas just isn't Christmas without this song blasting through the house. This song IS Christmas. My Dad would wake us up on Christmas morning (no, we weren't the kids who would wake up at 5 a.m. to open presents) by blaring this song through the stereo system. The joyful sounds of this song echoing through the hallways of our home would accompany our fun family morning.

And now, I just love the sweet voices in my backseat singing along to one of my favorites. And just like my sisters and I, they erupt in giggles when the guy with the super low voice sings, "...birth-day!!!" The excitement in the first few notes of the song really rev us up. It's impossible not to feel the joy of Christmas morning with this song in the background. Christmas is a celebration!!!

Okay, whew. I'm getting a little worked up over this song. I'm a little disappointed though - I went to make sure it's on iTunes (because I know everyone will want it after this review), and although it is, it's NOT the same version I grew up with. It's a little different, slightly more cheesy... but it's still great. Maybe they re-released it - I'm not sure why it's not the one I have. I also found this hilarious video of them singing live. And it's not exactly like the version I love either. But, oh my... don't judge. The '80s were not kind on facial hair or fashion.

I was going to end with that song, but I have to include one more. "O Holy Night" is my most favorite Christmas song that exists. It chokes me up every time. The Oak Ridge Boys' version of "O Holy Night" is my favorite. (And again! I couldn't find it on iTunes!)

What Christmas songs are must-haves to make your celebration complete?

Receiving the Gift

2011-12-14T13:00:00.001-07:00

"I'm telling you about this in person so that you can't turn it down," she said.

We stood on my driveway, me a little nervous about what she had to say, and she a little excited about her proposition.

My friend had arranged for someone to come clean my house for me.

Immediately, panicked and guilt-ridden thoughts started swirling around in my head.

"Why does she think I need someone to clean my house?"
   "Addie was at her house the other day... did she tell her our house is dirty?"
   "When she dropped Addie off, did she peek in and see the mess?"
   "Do I seem like I'm a slob?"
   "Does she pity me?"

No. She just wants to bless me.

And I felt a nudge. Receive the gift.

She was right - had she called to offer it over the phone, I would've talked her out of such a crazy idea. Like pushing back a thoughtfully picked out and wrapped gift, I would've turned her down and refused the help.

Receive the gift.

After we made arrangements for the housekeeper to come over, I hemmed and hawed and second-guessed my decision to allow it. I don't deserve it - maybe others need it more than me. My house isn't messy enough - I can handle it myself. But then again, maybe it's too messy - can she handle it? Maybe this can all just wait for another time. Nah, nice thought, but she shouldn't come over.

Receive the gift.

With anxiety often taking over the excitement I should've felt, I scurried around my house and did just what the housekeeper was coming to do. I cleaned mirrors. I picked up toys. I wiped down counters. I could do this myself, and then, see? I'd have no need for her.

Receive the gift.

And then I realized: is this not unlike how I often treat the ultimate gift? God's gift to the the world - to ME? His son Jesus?

Sometimes I push Him aside with every excuse not to accept the gift: I'm not good enough. I'm not worthy. I'm not bad enough. I can handle this myself. The timing is bad. Not now... not now.

Or I think that yep, it's time to get serious and go deeper. But first... FIRST! I try to clean up my life a little bit and get things just right. Because THEN I'll be ready.

But that defeats all that he came to do for me.

Receive the gift.

Long ago, in a dirty, humble, smelly stable, God's Son Jesus, the King of Kings, was born in the flesh. He came in person. Maybe he knew we might turn him away otherwise. He came in the form of a chubby, cooing, dimpled, irresistible baby.

And yet, for each thought I have about this Christmas miracle, about this baby being born just to die for me later, another thought surfaces about how surely it wasn't meant for me. No, I can't accept it. I can't live up to all that is required. My life is too messy, too busy, too comfortable.

We hurry about our lives trying to fix our own problems and carry our own burdens and cheapen the gift that the Master Gift Giver has offered us for all of eternity. Jesus didn't come to see how good we could be. I heard once that God doesn't love us because we're good. He loves us because He is good. I'm thankful for that, because sometimes I feel pretty unlovable. He didn't come to find out how great and perfect our lives are. He came to save us from ourselves. I need that.

And so as Christmas approaches, I'm trying to really learn how to accept the gift. I'm ignoring any attempts to push it away because I don't deserve it. I'm realizing that I don't need to hurry around making my life seem perfect for Him when He wants to do it himself. Instead, I'm basking in the anticipation of the climax of this Christmas season; in the gift of love special-delivered straight from God's hands to us.

"He came into the very world he created, but the world didn't recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him." John 1:10-11, NLT

Reject him? I can't. I can't put my hands up and refuse this gift, no matter how unworthy I feel, especially now, this Christmas, when the gift of Jesus is put so blatantly in front of me. I am loved. YOU are loved. You ARE loved. You are LOVED.

Receive the gift.

"But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God." John 1:12, NLT

One Man's Trash

2011-12-12T11:18:00.000-07:00

Last Christmas, Gary and I agreed to not spend any money on each other's gifts. Instead, we were giving a chunk of our Christmas budget to Kids Against Hunger.

So imagine my surprise when I came down the stairs on Christmas morning to find two HUGE presents wrapped just for me!

Here is the awesomeness of my husband: knowing I'd been searching the world for two (reasonably priced) french doors to hang as giant picture frames, when he saw them, he got them for me. The twist is that he found them in a dumpster.

There they were: two beautiful, weathered, white french doors all alone without a home. After getting permission from the dumpster's owners, Gary rescued them from certain demise and brought them home for me. He and the girls printed out pictures with a white border, discreetly taped them up behind the glass in each panel, and voila! Beautiful.

We hung them last Christmas after the decorations came down, and this year it's fun to see the lights reflected in the glass. I'm thinking about garnishing them with a bit of garland or sprigs of pinecones.

I've never been so pleased. Best (and cheapest!) Christmas gift ever.

This is when it pays to have a frugal hubby!

Love ya, Gary!

Teacher gifts they'll LOVE!

2011-12-09T10:45:00.002-07:00

Not sure what to give teachers at next week's holiday parties?

Read on for teacher gift-giving tips!

A disclaimer: I'm not a teacher. I've never been a teacher. (Well, unless you count all of those summers I played school with my sisters and insisted on suggested being the teacher because I'm the oldest. Naturally.) But I have a lot of teacher friends, and these suggestions are from them.

Keep in mind when giving your holiday gifts next week that you might want to look beyond your child's teacher. Don't forget the:

art teacher
gym teacher
music teacher
bus driver
principal
vice principal
school nurse
crossing guard
reading teacher
Spanish teacher
librarian
lunch lady
custodian

...and others!

Of course, you're not obligated to give a gift to anyone, and certainly not everyone on this list. Just think about who has impacted your child's life this year and who deserves an extra "thanks" this time of year!

With that said, I have two words to summarize this post:

APPLES!

The apple thing is only cute for so long, and I'm here to tell you that most teachers don't want one more apple pin or apple picture frame or apple notepad. You can probably stop there and get just about anything else and you'll be a step ahead of the apple-loving crowd. But here are a few more tips in case you want some guidance.

Other gifts to think twice about... Teachers never want to seem ungrateful, but many would prefer you think outside the box and stay away from the following:

Mugs - they get a million. It doesn't matter what it says, what picture is on it, how funny or cute or clever it is. No mugs. Especially mugs with apples.

Kitschy plaques and knick-knacks - there is only so much desktop and shelf space in the classroom for those personalized plaques and frames and chalkboard wall hangings. They get eight bazillion their first couple years of teaching and they're all the same. I didn't talk to a single teacher who REQUESTED one more of these.

Food - this might surprise a lot of people, because it seems that homemade goodies are such a perfect, appreciated go-to gift. Just be aware of dietary restrictions, the excess of sweets they receive this time of year, and some teachers' concerns about the ingredients and cleanliness precautions when the goodies were made. I've had several teachers tell me that while appreciated, a lot of those homemade goods go uneaten and thrown out. But then again... some teachers LOVE them!

Okay, Ready? Let's move on to what those teachers will LOVE!

A handmade card from your child. Most teachers will agree that this is by far the most meaningful, appreciated gift. Seriously.
A note from you. They want to know that you acknowledge and appreciate all of their hard work.
That note you wrote? Send a copy of it to the principal. What a boost to the teacher for the principal to hear your praises!
Drawing or piece of art by your child
Cold, hard cash. It seems impersonal, but trust me, no teacher will ever turn it down. If you want to go beyond slipping a crisp bill in a card, how about this ADORABLE idea? Bind a bunch of ones together to make a money pad for your teacher. Seriously adorable. or you could figure out how to fold it into clever origami:
School supplies. Pencils, paperclips, paper... it will get used! Oftentimes, the items used in their classrooms are paid for from their own pockets. This might seem boring, but do a quick Google or Pinterest search to find some darling ways to package these items creatively. How about pencils encircling some pretty Christmas poinsettias instead of sunflowers?
Classroom materials. Beyond school supplies, some teachers have a "wish list" of items they'd love to have for their classroom. Ask them!
Books for the classroom
Volunteer! Give your time in the classroom. Make a "coupon" or just put it in a note, either way they'll appreciate it!
Book of stamps
A stack of blank homemade cards (coupled with the aforementioned book of stamps...?)
Journal
Ornament. Some teachers are ornamented out and may not prefer this one. But if it's a special one that your child picked out, made, or will remind your teacher of your child, then go for it! But NO APPLES! ;)
Unique drink mixes. You could try Mexican Hot Chocolate or Friendship Tea or...
Magazine Subscription
Movie Tickets
Personalized stationary and notepads - vistaprint.com is a great place to start!
A donation in their name to a charity of your choice, or one you know they'd appreciate
A 6-pack of their favorite soda
Dig in their trash! Find out what they like. What's in there? Candy bar wrapper? Used tea bags? Give that to them! (Not the trash...)
Stylish jewelry. Not "teacher" jewelry. You know what I mean!
Babysitting. If your teacher has children, why not give them an evening of free babysitting?
Flowers or a Plant - We made these for Emma's teachers a few years ago:
Something for their pet(s)
Scarf
Candles
Useful, practical household items - one teacher even told me toilet paper!
Purses/tote bags
Bottle of Advil... no, seriously!
Hand sanitizer
A bag full of gum and mints
Bottle of wine - you might have to know your teacher well to pull this one off
Tickets to a sporting or theater event
Wish book. Have your child or the entire class compile a book for the teacher about "What I'd Get You If I Had a Million Dollars." The teacher will love their sweet and funny ideas.
Fun, teacher themed tees like this one or this one you can find at Cafe Press
A package of thank you notes - for all the other gifts. And no matter what, let your teacher off the hook and tell them you don't want a thank you note. Why give them more work to do?
A membership to a local museum or zoo
Ski pass (if it's local)
Group gift - get together with the other parents and pool your money for a large gift card or big-ticket item you know your teacher wants
Personalized labels - so many of their classroom books and items are their own. Help them keep track of them! vistaprint.com, Mabel's Labels, and many more.

Gift cards are GREAT! (And should be higher up on this non-prioritized list. They WANT gift cards!!!) Remember, any amount is a gift. A $5 gift card, when coupled with others they'll receive, goes a long way! You could get gift cards for:

  41. Restaurants
  42. Starbucks
  43. Amazon.com. Perfect for personal or classroom use.
  44. Mall
  45. iTunes - this covers music, apps, etc. An acceptable gift involving an apple!
  46. Manicure/Pedicure (paired with cute gloves, socks or slippers?)
  47. Massage
  48. Gas
  49. Car Detailing
  50. Car Wash

Afraid a gift card is too boring? There are some CUTE packaging ideas out there! Look at this one from the awesome gals at eighteen25:

They have a gazillion more cute teacher ideas here.

Or what about this gift card holder for a male teacher?

This list of 50+ is just the beginning. Do an easy Google or Pinterest search for "teacher gifts" and you'll be bombarded with cute ideas. Here are a few to get you started:

http://www.skiptomylou.org/category/teacher-appreciation-gifts/
http://www.skiptomylou.org/2009/05/01/teacher-appreciation-gift-ideas/
http://www.tipjunkie.com/back-to-school-2/?awt_l=CcU.F&awt_m=3bABdIC0Lv_yc4R (scroll down to the section about homemade gifts)

The bottom line: make your teacher (and other school folk!) feel loved and appreciated! No matter what you do, they'll be thankful!

I hope this list got your wheels turning. If you have other clever ideas, leave a comment! I still need to figure out what my girls' teachers will be getting!

Thrifty Leg Warmer Tutorial

2011-12-08T06:00:00.002-07:00

I found pictures of these sweaters-turned-leg-warmers floating

around Pinterest the other day and raced out to make them.

Aren't they the cutest?

Call them leg warmers, call them boot socks, but I call them FUN.

And they're so cozy this time of year. And red for Christmas? Perfect.

Here's what to do...

I got a sweater from the thrift store for 99¢. Then I cut off the sleeves.

The sleeves are cut at an angle, so I evened them out by cutting straight across.

Now at this point, you can stop if you have no sewing skillz. Seriously. The first two times I wore these, I wore them just like this! I just stuffed them down in my boots and no one was the wiser. But let me warn you, if you do it that way, you'll be left with a whole lot of tiny yarn pieces that will shed everywhere each time you wear them.

I want you to know that I'm a "good enough" kind of seamstress.

So I promise you can do this, no matter how much sewing experience you have.

Here's how to finish them.

When I tucked them into my boot, they were a little wide down at the bottom.

I turned it inside-out, and sewed a straight-ish line to narrow them.

And then I cut off the extra off the side.

Next I zig-zag stitched the raw edges on the side and on the top in order to cut down on the fraying and aforementioned stray yarn pieces.

Finally, I just folded the top (which is actually the bottom) of the leg warmer over, and sewed another straight-ish line around to hem it.

It will look like this:

This looks pretty shoddy, I know.

But once you turn it back right-side-out, it looks fine.

VOILA!

I admit, I've worn them three times in the last week.

The first time, I wore them to a Christmas party with skinny jeans, tall black boots and a tank and a cardigan.

The second time, I wore them to church and a baby shower with a black/gray striped dress, scarf, leggings and my tall black boots.

I wore them again yesterday to a Christmas brunch,

with skinny jeans, a tank a cozy gray sweater.

They're fun to wear. You can let them just barely peek out the tops of your boots, or wear them tall and slouchy. I've even seen them folded down over the tops and even worn OVER the boots! Cute no matter how you do it!

I have two more sweaters waiting for me -

one with stripes and a fair isle knit. Can't wait!

Let me know if you try it!

Bonus picture...

My little photographer (Emma) got bored while taking pictures:

I love her!

(That's "Angie + Gary" for those not "in the know.")

Happy Thursday!

Cute, Not Cute, and Other Randomness

2011-12-05T21:05:00.003-07:00

The other day, Gary and I were out somewhere and saw a man wearing this sweatshirt:

Okay. I'm sorry, but if you're over the age of 10, I just sort of don't think this sweatshirt is very cute anymore. If you're 30 like this guy was, it's seriously not cute. I don't know, maybe it was a joke. Maybe he lost some bet or some intense game of Farkle and was forced to don this costume-like sweatshirt. But I think he was serious.

However, this:

...is cute. I found these jammies at the grocery store of all places for just $6! I couldn't resist. My little Buzz pushes those pretend, fleece buttons and zooms all around the house. He couldn't be happier.

So to recap... CUTE:

NOT CUTE:

Friends, girlfriends, wives -- protect your men from wearing this fashion faux pas. Because even if the Disney Store does tout the sweatshirt by saying,

Take a fashion flight to infinity and beyond in our colorful costume-style Buzz Lightyear hooded sweatshirt. You'll be a warm Space Ranger all winter long in this zippered hoodie that provides out-of-this-world fun!

...please know that it's definitely "beyond." Beyond ugly.

UPDATE!
Good news! It is sold out.
Bad news! That means there are far too many grown up Buzz Lightyears walking around out there.

- - -

It's been cold here lately. COLD. I think the high today was 4 degrees or something absurd, with a windchill of -10. So needless to say, we stayed in all day, and my girls had indoor recess at school.

Addie was so excited to tell me about the game they played during recess: Heads Up 7-Up. Hello! Coolest indoor recess game ever! (Except for the name-all-the-state-capitols game I loved to play, but keep in mind I was (am) a major dork.)

But I have a confession: I always cheated. Didn't everyone, though? I'd keep my head down, but with eyes wide open, I'd study the shoes that walked by me when my thumb was tapped. I always knew who picked me. Whew. I've been carrying that guilt with me a long time. I feel better.

- - -

Hooray for trash day tomorrow! Because every time I've thrown something away this week, this little friend has popped out to say hello:

Freak. Me. Out. Late at night, when Gary's out of town and I go to throw something away, the last thing I need is a humanesque object rising out of my trash can. Give me a heart attack! It reminds me of the mannequin robot from a few years ago...

- - -

Allllllright. I'm going to bed. G'night!

Thanksgiving Road Trip

2011-11-28T16:40:00.000-07:00

Over the river and through the woods...

...And through the Western Slope

...And through boring Utah

...And through a little corner of Arizona

...And through Las Vegas

...And through Southern California...

To Grandmother's house we went!

We piled in suitcases and strollers and DVDs and coloring books and snacks and Dr. Peppers and Pillow Pets and four kids and we drove straight through,

all the way to California for Thanksgiving.

It took 16 hours.

Sixteen.

Hours.

I helped Gary with the driving. I drove for one hour.

(Brody's special road trip glasses make time go faster.)

But we got there and hit the ground running!

(After a nap.)

Our week was rich with family and friends. It was a lot of fun to go and just be together and visit with some of the people we love most in this world.

Some highlights:

We went to the CU vs. UCLA football game at the Rose Bowl! So fun.

The girls made us a sign to hold up.

We certainly brought it with us... but then OOPS!

We accidentally left it in the car...

Even though it was an AWFUL game, we had a blast with our friends

Thomas and Kristen (and Aubrey!).

We went to visit Granny and took an entire family picture

while everyone was there together! Pretty rare these days.

And then...we got to celebrate Thanksgiving TWICE!

Once with Gary's Mom's side of the family:

And again with Gary's Dad's side of the family:

In between all the fun, we had fun going to the park, taking bike rides, playing games and horsing around with Aunt Heidi and "Uncle" LV.

And then we piled back in the car for the

very

long

drive

home.

It seemed to take three times as long to get home.

But we passed the time with car dance parties,

the Toy Story movies and lots of good talks.

Is it crazy that I won't mind when we have to do it again?

And then we were home.

Brody kept telling us the whole time that he wanted to be home.

It's a pretty good feeling when your kids look forward

to going home because it's a place they like.

And I'm glad to be home too. I've been away a LOT lately, and I'm homesick!

I got up the next morning and tackled all of the

laundry non-stop until it was done. I love getting settled back into home.

Home.

That's something to be thankful for.

What the Shell?!

2011-11-16T13:37:00.004-07:00

Okay, you guys. Brace yourself for something totally mind blowing.

Well, maybe not mind blowing. Amazing? We'll go with amazing.

We were in Florida last week.

We went at the same time last year and had a fun time walking the beach and finding a seashell here and there. But this year? Word on the street (er, poolside) was that Tropical Storm Sean churned up the ocean enough to cover the beaches with seashells.

And I mean, COVER.

There were stretches of beach where sand wasn't even visible. It was all shells.

This land locked Colorado girl has never seen anything like it. I was so tickled!

I began exclaiming my excitement to Gary and squealing with delight.

(I'm not exaggerating.) The more I saw the thousands of shells on the beach

and studied each one I picked up, I couldn't help but wonder...

Why aren't people

talking about shells?!?

Shells are amazing! They're beautiful!

I was giddy at the thought that Gary and I were the first humans EVER

to lay our eyes on some of these shells. We were modern day explorers!!!

Move over, Ponce de Leon!

I half-expected to see news helicopters hovering overhead.

Can you sense my excitement?

I turned to Gary and said,

"Isn't this AMAZING?!"

He shrugged and said, "Yeah."

Yeah? Flat, monotone, YEAH.

I guess he just couldn't match my level of excitement.

"This is EXCITING, Gar-Bear! Get excited!"

And with that, he did a cartwheel.

I laughed so hard.

But seriously, let's talk about seashells.

I had lots of questions and I needed answers.

Did you know shells are a creature's exoskeleton?

I didn't know that. I mean, I knew crabs walked around finding shells to occupy,

but I didn't know they were actually once part of a snail's body.

The shell is what remains after the snail dies.

My friends and I conjectured that maybe shells were made of their poop.

They're not.

Did you know that those really big, beautiful shells you find in gift shops

and airports are actually harvested, which means that the creature inside is killed?

By the time most naturally abandoned shells make it to the shore,

they're usually broken in pieces.

Did you know it's not illegal to take shells from Florida beaches

unless they're still "alive?" It's true.

But one shell I brought home had a little stowaway inside. Oops. And yuck.

Sanibel Island is known as the seashell capital of the world.

It's on the gulf side of Florida. I'd love to go there sometime.

Like all the beachcombers I spied on the beach, I was taken by these little beauties and couldn't resist. I came home with quite a seashell bounty. Wanna see?

First I'll show you the largest and smallest shells I found,

in comparison with a penny that I also found on the beach:

I KNOW!!! Can you believe it? That sucker is HUGE! The pointy part in the bottom left side of the picture was sticking out of the sand next to a little reef that was exposed at low tide. I wiggled it a little and pulled out this enormous shell! I was shocked!

This little cutie is about the size of my entire palm and literally washed up on my feet.

I'm pretty much the Shell Whisperer.

I love that spiral!

I was curious how that spiral forms so I googled it.

Basically...

Seashells are created by snails. When snails are first born, their skins are soft, then they harden and calcify and detach from the rest of the body. They continuously grow around their own shells more and more, which is where the spiral comes from. When the snails die, the soft portion decays and the hard shell remains.

Some shells are also those of clams, scallops, or oysters. Depending on the location, any of these might be more numerous than the shells of snails. In any case, the process of formation is similar: A soft-bodied mollusk secretes calcium carbonate which accumulates as the shell as the animal grows, then the empty shell remains when the animal dies.

Source

You might know that there's a mathematical explanation too...

about the golden ratio and logarithmic spirals and the

Fibonacci sequence and all that mumbo jumbo.

But quite frankly, I'm afraid of attracting the wrong kind of crowd -

there are those who might stumble upon this blog by doing a

Google search for those kinds of things. ;)

In the end, I can't help but look at those gorgeous spirals

and think that our Creator does a magnificent job.

Doesn't this one look like a prop right out of

Pirates of the Caribbean?

I learned that all of these type of shells are called "olive" shells.

They're the South Carolina state shell.

Do you know what Colorado's state shell is?

Here's the loot... well, about 3/4 of it.

My kids are LOVING all of these shells.

Aren't they GORGEOUS?

Maybe I should've majored in conchology in college.

It'd be an excuse to visit tropical places, right?

Florida Highlights

2011-11-15T06:00:00.015-07:00

We got home last night from a week in Florida.

Ahhhhhh.

Yes, we were in Hawaii a few weeks ago. We're spoiled!

This time, Gary was facilitating a conference for EFCA student ministry
pastors and leaders. Along with a few other wives, I got to tag along!

Some Florida highlights:

A spontaneous harmonica performance from a cute little old man
in MeMaw's BBQ restaurant.
(You've got to try their hushpuppies!)

Lots of seashells.

Some dear friends: Heather, Jessica & Heidi.

(And Brooke. Brooke! You were never around when my camera was out!)

We spent countless hours confiding in and laughing with one another.

The view from our room.

A hilarious moment at Coldstone when I turned around after being the last

to get my ice cream, only to find that my friends were mocking me

with their own paper-towel-wrapped ice creams.

What a fun husband I have to set that one up!

(I still laugh thinking about it!)

Beautiful smiles!

And finally...

YES! THIS is the car we drove!!!!!

We were bracing ourselves for, well, worse.
We could hardly believe it.

Thanks to Gary's patience as he waited in a long line
and the fact that he didn't gripe with each snafu once he was at the counter,
the rental car company upgraded us for free to this Mustang convertible!

He looks goooood driving a convertible!

What a fun way to cruise the coast.

We were pretty psyched.

I'll take a bad hair day any day if it means feeling the sun on my
shoulders while we drive!

Our view when we looked up. :)

Not that we're ungrateful for the upgrade, but a word of advice:

NEVER use Payless Car Rental.

And that's about all I'll say about that!

More tomorrow about one of these highlights...

It will leave you amazed. No! Shell shocked.

wiww {7}

2011-11-09T00:01:00.001-07:00

A while back, I joined in with Lindsay at The Pleated Poppy for What I Wore Wednesday: a weekly post where hundreds of bloggers check-in and keep each other accountable for getting out of sweats and jammies and actually putting some effort into what we wear.

I stopped doing it because I felt so silly taking pictures of myself and posting them for all the world to see. It's not like I think I'm fashion savvy or anything. But you know what? It helped! It was fun to find pieces in my closet I hadn't put together before and try new things.

But then...

I got into a slump. In the last few months, sweats and sloppy outfits were becoming too frequent. And the truth is, I feel so much better and get so much more accomplished when I take the time to put an outfit together! It doesn't have to be fancy. I'd rather be comfy than fancy. It's just about the effort!

Join in the fun!

Saturday

Top: Downeast Basics (on clearance!)

Sweater: Old Navy

Jeans: Kohl's

Flats: Target

Sunday

Gray top: super old, no tag!

Tunic sweater: Goodwill!

Leggings: Walmart

Boots: DSW

Scarf: Boutique in Minnesota

You know, I'm not in love with this outfit.

I thought I'd try the tan/gray combo and I'm not a fan.

What do you think?

Monday

Top: Goodwill

Cardi: Kohl's

Jeans: Kohl's

Moccasins: Garage Sale!

Necklace: Boutique in Minnesota

Earrings: Bajalia

I'm a big fan of these earrings. Not only are they pretty and unique, they support a great cause. From the website:

Asian Coin Earrings inspired and designed by women who have been rescued from human trafficking in Asia. While working in their jewelry businesses, they are receiving literacy training and counseling to bring dignity, hope and a future.

How cool is that? Go check out Bajalia. They sell jewelry, stationary, home decor, and more. You could do some Christmas shopping and help women around the world at the same time!

Tuesday

Tank: Target

Sweater: Forever 21

Jeans: Gap (these have about seen their day...)

Converse: Target

Scarf: Boutique in... Minnesota!

Like I said before, I always feel goofy doing this. But it's really motivating me to shower (shower?! DAILY?!) and get dressed purposefully and thoughtfully each day. Whatever it takes, right? But I also feel silly because more important than what I wear is this:

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."

1 Peter 3:3-4

So just remember that when you're stressing out over which shoes to wear or whether or not grey and tan go together! Like I tell my girls: it's the INSIDE that counts!

Now go! Get showered, get dressed and take a picture.

I want to see YOU do this next week! It's fun!

And go over to Lindsay's blog to see who else linked up to wiww.

See This?

2011-11-08T14:36:00.000-07:00

See this?

This is how I eat my ice cream. Gary mocks me for it. I just don't like holding the cold pint of ice cream. I get so... cold. Eating cold ice cream. Hmmm. But also, I don't like having the condensation leak on me, so I wrap it in a paper towel. An ice cream diaper, if you will. But...

See this?

Why didn't I think of this first? It's like an ice cream Snuggie! She calls it an "Ice Cream Pint Cozy." Of course! I need one of these! This girl gets me. SHE GETS ME.

See Gary? I'm not so weird after all.

See this?

This is the show I watch while I eat my diaper-wrapped ice cream. I'm totally into the show. I think when I grow up I want to be a Pan-Am-stewardess-spy. That's my new goal for when the kids all grow up and leave the house. It's a really practical goal, and it sounds exciting, doesn't it?!

See this?

It's me at Skate City back in 6th grade. I ran across this picture last night as I cleaned up my craft room and just HAD to share it! Isn't it horrible? I may have worn the EXACT same pair of skates at last weekend's party. My friend Karian looks adorable, but I hope she doesn't freak out when she sees this. I, on the other hand...? Yikes.

I had so many comments from you guys with your own Skate City memories that I thought you'd appreciate these terrible pictures. Did anyone else INSIST on skating with a skirt/legging combo? It just totally made you feel like an Olympic skater. And those lights? Still there. Do you see the finger pointing on the far left side? Yeah, I'm pretty sure that was a spectator saying, "WOW! Look at that girl! She is destined to be an Olympic rollerskater! Take note!" Don't you think?

And here's a group shot... I don't know if any of these friends will click over from Facebook and see this picture, but if they do, I hope they don't unfriend me! ;)

(Um, LMNT, why aren't you in this picture?)

See this?

This is my sister and my two girls who all celebrate a birthday within just a few weeks of each other! We celebrated with a big family party over the weekend. But TODAY is my sister's birthday. Happy birthday, Amy! I love ya!

See this?

This is the suitcase I need to pack by tonight.

See this?

This is where we're going! Remember when I went on my business trip? Well this time, it really IS a business trip for Gary and I get to tag along! I'm eager to go and meet up with some other pastors wives and catchup poolside. Rough life, I know. Just one of the perks of ministry!

See this? This is the end of the post. Gotta pack!

Roller Skating Party Palooza

2011-11-07T14:30:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, the girls got the roller skating bug when they borrowed the neighbor girls' roller skates. Since then, it's been all roller skates, all the time. With their birthdays coming up, I knew just what to get them.

A lizard.

Just kidding! Roller skates, of course!

Emma requested roller blades, while Addie requested pink roller skates.

The plot thickened when they got the idea to have a roller skating birthday party. It seemed like a great solution to their new infatuation with skating.

So like any mom who grew up in Colorado, my mind went straight to Skate City. Is Skate City still in business? Why, yes it is! Is it still a little dirty, creepy and are the doors still covered in orange carpet? Yes, yes, and yes! I guess some things never change.

Reluctantly, I scheduled their joint birthday party. Reluctant because:

1. I suspected it might get chaotic.

2. The numbers! They kept adding more people to the list. Yikes! Which leads me to...

3. The cost! Okay, it's pretty reasonable, especially when the trade off is not having the mess and chaos at your own home.

4. Um, it's Skate City. Carpeted doors.

5. I didn't feel like it was very creative. I have a thing for creative parties. This wouldn't exercise my need for creativity.

But, then I remembered the part about the no mess at my house and the part about not having to get my house perfectly clean and the part about how much the girls wanted a skating party and I was sold. Oh yeah, and the part about how when I was younger I secretly wanted to compete in the Olympics with my rollerskating skillz. I practiced my routines for hours in the street in front of my house. And then I found out rollerskating is not an Olympic event. I was crushed.

But back to the party...

I was right about one thing: CHAOS.

But it was fun. The girls would never describe it as chaotic, they'd only describe it as the most awesome party ever. But I learned a few things:

1. I'd probably meet all the kids/parents outside first, because our table wasn't ready when they told us to arrive and it was totally chaotic getting all the parents/kids on the same page about where to go. And we were clueless, so that didn't help.

2. I wouldn't do a skating party again for kids under 8... and even that's pushing it. My girls are crazy and adventurous and can skate, and I somehow forgot that that isn't the norm. Kids were clinging to walls and falling constantly. Oops. I think they still had fun though. I didn't get a single complaint from moms who willingly strapped on the skates, that's for sure!

3. I will brace myself for the chaos next time because WHOA I didn't know what hit me.

4. A combined party for the girls (whose birthdays are 2 weeks apart) is not a great idea when they invite so many friends. Our rule of inviting as many kids as you are old is a good one. Why didn't we stick to it this time?!? It was too many kids to keep track of at Skate City. I'm so glad some parents stuck around.

5. Did I mention the chaos?

But, it really was fun. The girls were all smiles.

And I couldn't help myself, and I did find a way to get creative.

First, I made them special shirts to wear to the party. I appliqued a fun little thing for each of them. Addie's is a 6 on wheels, and Emma's said "SK8" - and they loved them! I didn't have time to stitch around the design though, because I literally did these an hour before the party. Creative, yes. Planner, no.

For party favors, we made these dipped, candy-coated pretzels with a little tag that read, "I'm wheelie glad you came to my party."

I have about 51 1/2 weeks to plan the next party (I do things last-minute, remember?), but I'm thinking it won't involve wheels, disco lights or carpeted doors.

Happy birthday, sweet girls!

Boating in Kauai

2011-11-03T16:45:00.002-06:00

Ahhhh, Kauai.

Don't you just envision you and your dream guy cruising around the island in a hot red mustang convertible, with the top down, and the ocean breeze whipping through your hair? The sun beating down on you while you soak up the adventure and relaxation that is Kauai?

Me too.

Or don't you at least envision zipping around the island in an economy car? That awesome Ford Focus that was the cheapest thing to get off the lot? I mean, hey - if it takes you from point A to point B, and in you're in HAWAII, does it really matter? It's good on gas, it's easy to park... of course it doesn't matter.

Let me tell you a story. And take notes if you plan to rent a car anytime soon.

Before we left for Kauai, I was giddy with excitement. We'd booked our hotels, we'd booked our adventures, we'd dreamed about what we'd do. We were set. There was just one little "unknown" and we were even excited about that. When we reserved our rental car, we opted for the...

MYSTERY CAR!

(...Mystery Car! ... Mystery Car! <---echos)

Orbitz told us that for just $1 more a day, we would get the "special" - we were promised the compact car or larger. A mustang? A jeep? What would it be?! Worst case scenario told us we'd get the compact car - a Ford Focus. If it was good enough for the American Idols, it was good enough for us!

So as I waited for Gary to pull up and pick me up at the airport curb (he picked up the car while I picked up the luggage), I anxiously watched for our car.

Was that it? The Jeep? No.

Oh, that must be him in the Escape! Fun! Oh. Nope.

The Mustang? Seriously!? Nope, just some old guy.

I waited. Finally, my wait was over. Lumbering toward me was a silver beast, with Gary behind the wheel. Suddenly, I had flashbacks.

You need to know that I drove this baby in high school:

A 1981 Mercury Grand Marquis. Don't be jealous. It might've been awesome had it been 1981 when I went to high school. Actually, no. It probably still wouldn't have been awesome. And it still wasn't awesome 15 years later when I got to drive it into the school parking lot. I know you might think that this car probably boosted me to instant popularity, but you are wrong.

So when Gary drove up in this beauty, a two-thousand-something Mercury Grand Marquis--

--I thought to myself, "Sweeeet ride!"

No. No, I didn't think that. Don't get me wrong, I'm not that picky about cars, and more than anything I was thankful to be in Hawaii. But driving my grandparents' car around the island? Really?

Gary was on the same page. I got in the car and he was fuming. (It was actually very funny.) He kept ranting, "I paid an extra $1 a day for THIS?!" We went back to the car rental place and explained that surely there must have been some confusion. They explained that no, this is what we get.

We learned that when you sign up for the "special" deal, you get the leftovers on the lot. They'll rent you whatever cars haven't been reserved or rented already - the ones they can't get rid of. So until Grand Marquis are in high demand, this is what you'll get. There were approximately 137 of them sitting in the lot.

So we were bummed. For less money, we could've gotten a smaller, more economical car. So much for throwing the dice and hoping our mystery car would be something fun and exciting. I mean, here's an interesting fact: the Grand Marquis is 10" longer than the minivan we drive at home (our Honda Odyssey measures 202.9" vs. 212")!! WHAT?!

And, I admit that we were secretly jealous of our friends who were arriving the next day who would probably luck out and get the convertible after all. But guess what? That's right, there were two Grand Marquis cruising around the island last month.

THEY GOT ONE TOO. We've never laughed so hard.

So...

When given lemons, make lemonade, right? With two monstrous boats at our disposal, what else were we to do but a photo shoot?

I know that Kim and I make you want to rent one.

After seeing these, forget renting. You probably want to go out and buy your very own, huh?

We're just paving the way for that Orbitz Special to run them out of these Marquis. We make them look goooood.

And also? We squeezed the six of us into one of these cars. And when I say, "squeezed," I actually mean we had ample room. Take THAT, you stinkin' convertible.

Cave Girls vs. The Brodysaurus

2011-11-01T23:10:00.000-06:00

I'm a sucker for themed Halloween costumes. I guess it runs in my blood. One year my sister and I were a mouse and mousetrap. Another year, all of the adults on the street I grew up on went to the town Halloween party as a dozen eggs. Last year, my kids were all pirates and the year before they were a Wizard of Oz trio.

So this year, I threw out a few ideas to my kids. They immediately loved the cave girls and dinosaur theme. I made it clear to them that they could be whatever they wanted, that they didn't HAVE to go along with this idea, but they were more than happy to. (And my heart did a little happy dance.)

I planned to be ahead of the game and get the costumes done ahead of time (famous last words), but on Sunday afternoon on the day before Halloween, I finally did something about it. I've always been a procrastinator! The costumes were NOT complicated. Seriously, even those with very little sewing experience could whip these out.

All I did was take a jumper from each of my girls (or any dress would do if you don't have a jumper) and trace it, minus the arms. And then I just swooped my tracing down to omit one shoulder altogether. And then it was just sewing down each side in a straight line, and sewing that shoulder strap. Finally, just cut the bottom all zig-zaggy and uneven. That's it!

Of course, I did sew the arm hole shut on my first attempt, but we don't need to talk about that.

Seriously, so easy to make that even a caveman could do it. C'mon. You knew that was coming!

The necklaces were a cinch to make too. The wooden beads and plastic bear claw beads are all in the jewelry aisle of Hobby Lobby. A few of those and a leather string (same aisle) and VOILA! Cave girl necklace! Oh, and strips of fabric velcroed around their wrists and ankles for more accessories.

The bones in their hair are just cut from white cardstock and glued to a strip of fabric. Easy peasy.

They insisted on going barefoot for trick-or-treating (never mind that it was a balmy 40 degrees here in Colorado on Halloween night...), but school required shoes. I just tied a bunch of fabric strips onto their flip flops for that.

I think their hair was actually the best part of the costume. We put their hair in just a few foam curlers the night before so we'd have some body to work with. It was dry by morning, and then we ratted, ratted, RATTED their hair until it was big and crazy.

A little hairspray, a little more ratting, and soon we had perfectly coifed cavegirl hair. Combing it out that night was a challenge, but HEY! Nothing a pumpkin full of candy can't soothe, right?

As far as our little dinosaur goes, his costume was given to us by some friends. It was originally a dragon that looked like this.

(I didn't take a picture before hand, so this photo is from eBay, but it's the same costume.)

I was fine with it, realizing that no one would notice that it was a dragon and not a dinosaur. Fine... until I woke up on Halloween morning. Suddenly, I NEEDED a DINOSAUR. So with about an hour before we had to be at our first class party, our make-shift dinosaur was born. I created a dinosaur face with felt and pinned it over the top of the dragon's face. Nothing is glued on, so all I have to do is unpin it and we have a dragon once again.

The back looked like this:

Brody was pretty concerned about the dinosaur having such a short tail, so I pieced together what felt I had laying around to make a dinosaur tail. I fit it right over the dragon's tail, and a few safety pins later our dinosaur had a tail. An imperfect tail, but a tail nonetheless. And Brody was happy.

Happy Halloween from our cave to yours!

A Humbling Bedtime Story

2011-10-27T10:41:00.002-06:00

We snuggled into the couch together, Addie pressed right up against my side as we started reading our book for the night.

She had picked a Veggie Tales book, and I was not in the mood to read it. I wasn't in the mood to read ANY book.

Bedtime had not gone smoothly for the little two, who usually go to bed first. Chloe's diaper rash had her writhing and screaming and resisting sleep. Or maybe it was the teething. Either way, she was cranky. Brody wet his pants as soon as I got his jammies on him. It was his third accident of the day, and I was out of understanding and patience for it. As much as I want bedtime to be this sweet, meaningful time with my kids, there are nights like tonight when I go through the motions as quickly as I can, and put them to bed without much tenderness at all.

Once the little two are in bed, I start the bedtime routines with the older girls. This night, Emma was dragging out homework as long as possible, which was frustrating to me since it was getting late. Addie was getting whiny. As I sat on the couch waiting for Addie to bring me just ONE story instead of the stack of SEVEN she insisted on, I finally just grabbed one out of her hands and blurted, "Come on! This one will work. Let's go!"

But just then, the girls started fighting over a balloon. Lately they've been into drawing silly faces on balloons and playing with them. It's fine with me, until the ink starts getting all over everything and then the girls forget about the balloons and they just sit around inking everything up (you should've seen Chloe's face yesterday!). For whatever reason, this forgotten balloon under the coffee table caught their eye and they started fighting over it. At that point, I lost it. I grabbed the balloon, squeezed it with all my might until it popped and threw it on the floor. It was a fine display. I felt really mature at that moment. It was somewhat reminiscent of the Pink Plate incident of '08.

Emma was stunned. Speechless, she walked back into the office to finish her homework. Addie, on the other hand, was beside herself. "That was my FAVORITE balloon EVER!!!!!!" she wailed. I was exasperated.

"Sit down and read this with me NOW or just go straight to bed," I growled.

So...

We snuggled into the couch together, Addie pressed right up against my side as we started reading our book for the night.

I could feel her sobbing as I started the story.

She had chosen - or rather, I had chosen, when I grabbed it from her hands - a Veggie Tales book called, "What's Up With Lyle?"

I read through the book, counting down the pages until the end. Until bedtime.

Finally... the last page. Finally, thought Bad Attitude Girl.

Oh. Crap. Like in a scene from a movie, the whole night flashed before my eyes and I realized that I'd acted exactly opposite of how Paul instructs us to in this verse. Here I was, with a great verse to wrap up this book before bedtime, and I was the last person on earth worthy of helping Addie to understand it.

Except, I was probably just the right person.

The silence after I read that verse to her seemed to last forever. I lifted her on my lap to face me and held her chin in my hands. She started crying all over again before I said a word. I explained to her how I'd acted wrongly: I'd been prideful. I'd not been gentle. I was impatient and not very loving with her.

She was quick to agree with me. Ouch.

And then I asked her if she'd forgive me. She tearfully nodded and threw her arms around my neck. We hugged for a minute or two, and I felt so inadequate. But I knew that everything was right.

Being tired at the end of the night is no excuse for me to get short and snippy with them. Yelling at them or having unreasonable expectations does not teach them gentleness. When I start spinning out of control and acting like I'M the five year old, all I'm left with is equally out of control kids, and a sick feeling in my stomach.

It turns out Addie hadn't picked out the book. I hadn't picked out the book when I grabbed it out of her hands. No, God picked out the book. For me.

It's hard to swallow my pride and admit to my kids when I've been a big ugly jerk (and here I am admitting it to all the internets!). I know that if I'm not careful, I'm going to crush them and lose their hearts.

It's time for me to ask God for help (daily! hourly!), print out this verse, and display it where it can be a constant reminder to me. Anyone else out there in the same boat?

"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

Ephesians 4:2

The Difference A Day Makes

2011-10-26T11:06:00.000-06:00

This was yesterday:

I'm convinced the heart of autumn was residing at this park. The leaves were perfectly crunchy, a gentle breeze would send hundreds of leaves flying, giggles abounded from kids rolling down leaf covered hills, and the colors were vivid. I could've stayed there for days.

That is, if this hadn't been the forecast:

Classic Colorado weather! THIS is today:

Our first snow. As I'm typing this, We have close to 8 inches of snow and it's scheduled to continue falling all day.

So, what else is there to do besides drag out all the snow gear? Out from the basement and dusty corners of the closet came coats, hats, boots, mittens, scarves, earmuffs, gloves, and snow pants. Much of it was outgrown or missing, meaning that the girls went to school wearing rain boots instead, and Brody had some girly purple gloves. But that didn't stop them.

By the time I bundled Brody up, he was almost too tired to go outside. He just laid on the floor and it took some major coaxing to get him to go play.

And about 30 seconds later, he was back.

Isn't that how it goes? You spend 28 minutes getting the kids all ready to go, and then they spend a fraction of that time playing. So I forced encouraged him to go back out.

Chloe loved watching her big brother and sister play in the snow. And if it hadn't been nap time, I may have gotten her all cozy to play too.

But nap time trumped snow time.

Can I tell you a secret?

Lean in close, because I'll probably be banished from the club of tough Colorado moms if I tell you this. I don't like it when my kids play in the snow. Don't get me wrong, I love how it delights them. I love that they exercise and use their imaginations and have fun when they're snowing it up. I love that they're tired afterwards. But I dread getting them ready to go out and all the effort it takes, and really loathe the pile of wet, soggy snow clothes that sits by the back door when they're done. I usually suggest 23 other things they could do instead of playing in the snow, before I finally give in. Puzzles? Legos? Computer game? Coloring? Play-doh???!?!?! (On second thought, choose SNOW, kids!!!)

Bah-humbug, huh?

I know. But, because I love them, I suck it up and get excited with them. And if Chloe hadn't been on the verge of nap time, I would've joined them in the snow. And because I just adore the heck out of them, I wrap them in blankets when they come in and make hot cocoa for them. Nothing like a cold snowy day when I'd prefer to snuggle up by the fire and read a book all day to remind me of my selfishness.

And if selfishness trumped snow time, I'd miss out on these happy faces and some kids who had the time of their lives playing in the first snow of the season. Take these memories away from them or from me? Nope. Not a chance. As Gary reminded me this morning, I have the best job ever. I'm so grateful.