While we waited for Kelly to come home from shopping with a friend, Harry found a warm and cozy place to snuggle.

He even decided to sleep with grandma in her bed that night, which was all well and good until the stinker decided that he needed to go outside at 4am.  Between Harry’s bladder and Anthony’s Sonic Boom alarm clock going off at 6:30am and then every 10 minutes for the next 1/2 hour, grandma found it hard to get a good night’s sleep. Sorry grandma.

After mom, Carl and I attended Westwood’s Ash Wednesday service (which accounts for the ashes on our foreheads) and we then ate dinner, Kelly came home for a 2-1/2 hour game of Dominoes while the boys scattered to play Xbox.

I won 6 out of the 12 rounds, thereby kicking everybody’s butts big time.

It was sweeeet!

The next day (yesterday), Kelly had to work all afternoon and I did school with Zack while grandma chilled on her IPhone and/or the computer. But when Kelly came home, we ladies enjoyed a lovely Spinach Feta Florentine Chicken dinner while Anthony went to a friend’s house and Carl took Zack to lacrosse practice.

Then it was time to head to the Mystic Lake Casino.

Grandma planted herself in front of the Blackjack tables and gave Kelly $20 to go keep herself busy.

Kelly and I wandered around playing the 1 and 2 cent slot machines, with Kelly losing and winning her fortune over and over. She would get down to a few dollars, get it back up to $10-15, lose most of it and get it back up again.

She finally stopped at $10 and cashed out her winnings so that she had enough to meet a friend for coffee later that night.

I don’t think the blackjack tables were kind to grandma and we all went home smelling like a dirty ashtray and without any refreshing cocktails thanks to the backwards local casino that allowed smoking but did not serve alcohol. Grandma was thoroughly unimpressed with our local offering.

It’s been a good first half of a visit with grandma so far and we look forward to some more time together the next few days. I’ll have more on the rest of our visit on Monday.

The walls have now been painted a lovely shade of Valspar “Field of Green.” This is my new favorite paint! It truly is one of the first paints that I have used that actually covers in one coat, with very minimal touching-up required.

Painted by Kristy

The cabinets have been painted a warm, deep chocolate-brown using an amazing product from Rustoleum, called Cabinet Transformation. There was no stripping, no sanding and no priming required, so it was super easy to do. I have plenty of the products in the kit left so I’m thinking of doing our master bath cabinets as well since I really love the fresh, new, updated look.

Painted by Kristy

The tile floor is in progress and will hopefully be finished up by next weekend.

Carl's contribution

A new shower curtain, towels and rug have been purchased…gotta love Kohl’s, especially during Kohl’s cash week.

Shopping by Kristy and Anthony

It’s been a flurry of activity over here. There are a few more finishing touches needed, like new hardware for the cabinets and drawers, new lighting fixture and new faucet. Plus we need some decor for the walls. So you will have to wait for the big reveal for a few more weeks. The anticipation is killing you, isn’t it?

Thanks for giving us the kick in our butts that we needed mom! Glad that we can always count on you to lend a hand.

The original blogger linked to an Etsy shop where you could purchase a kit with all of the supplies to make 10 of these necklaces. I placed an order just knowing that these would make a great gift for some special people in my life. When I arrived home from Chicago last week to find my package waiting, I immediately knew that they would make a sweet remembrance for my mom and 5 cousins using my Aunt Shirley’s photo.

I began by unpacking all of the supplies and printing off (6) 1 inch by 1 inch photos of my aunt that I found on Facebook.

I spread a small amount of the Diamond Glaze on the back of the tiles.

Then I placed the photos (which had already been cut out) face down onto the tile.

After letting them set for a short time (about 10 minutes), I then placed a coat of the Diamond Glaze on the back of the photos to protect them. After allowing them to dry for several hours, it was time to attach the bails (hooks) to the back of the tiles. However, I quickly realized that my kit did not include “everything” as there was no Superglue. So I had to improvise with what I had at home, which was Gorilla Glue.

After applying a small amount of the Gorilla Glue and attaching the bails, I lined them up on a piece of plastic.

Then I laid some floor tiles on top of the bails while the Gorilla Glue cured. I used floor tiles because it was a heavy item that I happened to have nearby due to the boy’s bathroom renovation.

After allowing to set for several hours, the bails were secured.

*Important note: Don’t use Gorilla Glue. Wait and go buy Superglue if you have to. It was at this point, when I removed the tiles, that I realized that the Gorilla Glue expanded out from behind the bails. So there was lumpy, yellow goo on the back of the tiles that I found very aggravating. Plus some spread onto the front of the bails, which I then had to use a razor blade to scrap off.

I then wanted to personalize the backs of the pendants so, using my Cricut, I cut out “mom” for my cousins and “Shirley” for my mom and little hearts and applied them to the backs of the pendants. *In this photo, you can see the unsightly Gorilla Glue. Bummer. I applied another layer of Diamond Glaze over the vinyl to keep the edges from curling up.

After slipping the chains through the bails, the necklaces were complete.

I then made the following cards for each of them.

After putting each necklace into a plastic baggie and attaching it to the inside of the card, they were ready to be sent out.

This was such an easy and very cute project. I look forward to making some more with the rest of the materials that I have from the kit. But first, I have to buy some Superglue.

With Base Camp’s “Flying High” STEM field trip curriculum, students learn about the physics of flight (gravity, lift, airflow, thrust, drag, etc.) as well as the many careers that support the aviation industry. They will apply math and science concepts to several hands-on learning activities. Developed to the Minnesota State Standards, interactive activities can include:

• Forces in Flight (Balsa Glider activity)
• Propulsion Modes
• Aviation Careers
• Control Surfaces & Impact on Flight
• Aviation Instrument Overview
• Flight Simulator
• Aeronautical charts
• Air Traffic Vocabulary & Terminology

The field trip started off with 2-hours of lecture and discussion in one of the classrooms.

Zack was absolutely thrilled to be there.

I thought that he might be happier when they moved on to the flight simulators.

But by the look on his face, I would say not.

And as he purposefully crashed his airplane into the ocean, I knew that I was right.

I then thought that perhaps things would pick up after the formal part of the day when Zack had an opportunity to participate in the 2-hour optional rock climbing and archery open house.

But the lines were long and slow-moving and we were both out of patience. So after an hour, we called it a day.

I’m never signing Zack up for another homeschool field trip. Oh, except for the field trip to the Mall of America Underwater Adventures that we are signed up for in 2 weeks. But AFTER THAT, no more. Oh, except for the field trip to the Humane Society that we are signed up for next month. But AFTER THAT, no more. And I mean it.

XBox 360

God

Family

Snowboarding

Computer

By Anthony (age 15):

Snowboarding

Skateboarding

Hanging out with friends

Listening to music

Xbox 360

By Kelly (age 21):

The Strokes

Macaroni and Cheese Pizza from Mesa Pizza

Beavis and Butthead

Playing Mario Kart with friends

Cognitive Psychology

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!

A Big Shot is an embossing and die cut machine that is used in stamping/scrapping.

The cream paper was embossed and the butterflies and tag were cut out with the Big Shot.

A blog that I follow had a Big Shot Club whereby, for a monthly fee, I received 4 projects a month for the past 3 months. And then I received a large order of various accessories (which I picked out) for my Big Shot at the end of the club. The card above was one of the projects from the club.

I have a card template that allows me to cut various shapes into the cards, including the heart-shape. The red words were also done with the Big Shot and a letterpress die.

Last week, my order arrived with all my new Big Shot accessories. I spent the weekend putting together the last of my monthly projects and creating some cards of my own with my new goodies.

The solid blue cardstock is embossed with a subtle design.

I wish I could say that it was peaceful playing in my stamping room. But Carl was pounding away in the bathroom next door as the boy’s bathroom renovation is underway. And Anthony kept coming in and whining and complaining about how much his life stinks.

I need to get a lock on my stamping room door. And ear plugs.

But we were surprised to learn that a brand-new Elmhurst Hospital had recently opened and the old hospital is housing the rehab center where Grandma Donna is currently staying on the fourth floor, while the rest of the building is vacant. In fact, the whole building will be torn down at the end of the month.

We thought is was neat to go to the place that our son was born and to walk the halls where his birthparents had been and met him face-to-face for a very brief time so many years ago.

So after asking the rehab nurses where the maternity ward had been 15 years ago, we snuck down to the 3rd floor and walked the halls.

We had hoped to get into a delivery room but the doors were all locked. At since we did not have a desire to be arrested, we decided against breaking and entering.

There was just something neat about being in the place where Anthony was welcomed into the world…about being in a place that his birthparents had been and held him and talked to him for the one and only time.

I am glad that we got to experience it before the building is no more. It was one of those special little gifts that God so graciously arranges for us and for which we are grateful.

**Side note** my niece goes to the same high school that my brother, John, and I graduated from 30 years ago. (Thirty?? How is that possible?) Go Glenbard North Panthers!

We were even able to catch up with Bryanna’s mom, Alex (my brother’s ex-wife).

We saw Bryanna’s hip hop dance, for which they were awarded 2nd place with qualifications for State.

With a 3-hour break and a plan to find a local nondenominational church, our prayers were answered with a small congregation meeting right in the auditorium at the high school. It was an experience complete with lots of hand-raising and shouts of “Can I have an Amen?” The animated pastor jumped around the stage telling stories and preaching from the Bible. It was…interesting.

After a bite of lunch, it was time for Bryanna’s pom dance, for which they won 1st place.

It was fun to watch Bryanna dance for my alma mater and it brought back memories of sitting in the stands and cheering Kelly on during her high school dance career. I’m glad that we got to see it.

After the competition, it was Super Bowl time! My Aunt Gale graciously hosted us all at her house. We visited with Rob and Lisa again for a bit before they had to leave before kick-off.

Two of Gale’s boys, Justin (on left) and Jeff (on right) and their significant others were there also.

Jessica, Jax and Jaedon (with Justin) and Kate (with Jeff)

When Carl and I first met and would visit with Aunt Gale and Uncle Don, her boys were toddlers who loved to jump all over Carl and wrestle on the floor with him. Now if they were to do that, they would crush him. However, it’s fun to have the next generation of Martin boys hanging all over Carl….so weird!

Gale served all sorts of delicious food and everybody helped bring stuff as well. There was chicken chili, pizza, chicken wings, appetizer, fruit cheesecake, and this amazing Snicker’s cake. And more Martinis were consumed. They were soooo good.

The guys enjoyed a great game, from the National Anthem to the very end.

It was another great day spent with family.

My dad and his girlfriend, Carol, are on either side of me.

Thanks for hosting, Aunt Gale! And thanks for coming to visit with us everybody else. We loved spending time with you all.

After picking Carl up from the airport on Friday, we went to visit our friends, Scott and Amy, and their daughter, Maddy.

We enjoyed some authentic Chicago pizza while playing with the toddling 9-month old Maddy and catching up with her parents.

Maddy kept us entertained with her antics. It was nice to visit with a long-time friend and his new family.

On Saturday, Carl and I visited with my 96-year old Grandma Donna, who is currently at a rehab center, regaining her strength after a recent hospitalization and awaiting a procedure on her spine to ease some chronic pain.

Grandma looked amazing and was as sharp as ever! We went to the common area for a game of Dominoes and before long, my Aunt Gale arrived, a while later a family friend arrived and then more family arrived. It was a real party!

Family friend, Ahmed, Grandma, me, Carl and Aunt Gale

Me and grandma with grandma's niece, Bernal and grandniece, Ariel

It turned in to a 3-1/2 hour Domino marathon with lots of fun and laughter filling the ward.

After our visit with grandma, we quickly headed back to mom’s house for a game night, since no trip to Chicago would be complete without one!

Game night consisted of mom, Carl and I, along with my sister-in-law, Cheryl (on right), my niece, Bryanna (in pink, on left), Bryanna’s friend’s, Brianna and Amanda, and their mom/mom’s friend, Diane.

(Sorry for the somewhat fuzzy photo...it's mom's fault)

My brother, Rob, and his fiance, Lisa, joined us later in the evening.

Mom served all sorts of yummy food, like spinach dip, cheese and crackers, pigs in a blanket, cheese sticks, pizza and more. Mom even indulged my Crantini habit of late.

We played Whoonu, Apples to Apples, Last Word and Quelf, the game that I bought for Christmas, which my family could not get into but was just perfect with a large group and several silly, teenage girls.

My husband had to wear lipstick and seemed quite happy about it.

It was a really great day spent with family, food and good fun. Thanks for hosting game night mom. We appreciate it! There’s more visiting to come tomorrow.

Sadly, we gathered together again this week to mourn the death of Aunt Shirley after a very short battle with cancer.

Funerals are a bittersweet time. Although you are mourning a lost loved one, it can be a time for the rest of the extended family to reconnect.

We spent hours looking at old photos and hearing stories of  our parents and grandparents and reminiscing of times together in the past.

Estranged family members reunited and established relationships for the very first time.

My cousin, Frankie, and his daughter, Kim

We toasted and celebrated to a life well-lived.

We filled Aunt Shirley’s home with love and laughter to help her children get through the day.

Three of her girls...Leslie, Tracy and Judy

I talked with some cousins that I haven’t talked to in years….some since I was a teenager. I met children of cousins that I have never met or have only known through Facebook.

It’s unfortunate when a funeral is the occasion to draw families together and there are always the promises to make an effort to get together more frequently.

It’s times like this that really make me miss living so far from family. I miss the big, wild, crazy holiday celebrations. I miss the summer barbecues and backyard parties until the wee hours of the night. I miss the cousins growing up and sharing life together. I miss my family.