Glimpses of Real Life

I'm just gonna say it; "My kids are funny."  Now, I am not saying that we are a laugh a minute all day and night, but in all honesty there is a lot of laughter in our home. Sometimes, it's at our own "expense" and other times, it just because they think of the craziest things and then actually say them out loud.  Here are just a few examples:

Example #1:
Miss M  was on the DVR the other day looking for Little House on the Prairie shows on Hallmark and came across the episode where Mary's daughter is killed in a fire at the blind school. "Oh Mom, I think this might be a new episode."

I told her that I thought Michael Landon died over a decade ago so I didn't think so.

She then asked me if, when I was kid, they marked the new episodes of Little House on the TV so you would know. I explained we just turned on the TV and what was on, was on and it was all new (except for that summer rerun time)!

Example #2
I took the girls to the Muppet Movie last week when they had a day off of school. It was an experience because the movie itself is unique. Part musical, part comedy, but all pure fun.  Miss A and Miss M asked me if I knew the Muppets. I said not personally, but explained they were around when I was young.  "No fair, you had the Muppets and Laura Ingalls."

Example #3:
Mr C went to a dance at an all girls school a few Fridays ago.  He went all by himself. Solo. All of his friends bailed on him that day and he was really looking forward to going.  Don't see to many girls at his all boys school!  It was a neon dance and a benefit for children in Africa. Mr C kept trying to convince a friend to go saying that hey "it's girls and its helping little African children get computers; a win win for everyone."  The friend would not budge so Mr C went alone. 

I would never have done that and still won't.  I'm so proud of the young man he is becoming.  He is bold, courageous and ready to have fun no matter what.  Oh, and his neon shirt; bright orange. It read: Jesus Christ Save Me!  (I might not have worn that either)

Example #4:
Miss A, Miss M, and I were driving out to get Mr C from Golf tryouts the other day.  They were giggling and talking about "life." I heard the funniest part of the conversation and almost wet my pants; Miss A first said, "I thought that Kaylee was dating Travis.  How can she like Carson? Is she cheating on two boys!"  Miss M responded,  "Yes! She's a triple cheat."
Now I've changed the names to protect the not so innocent, but I thought they were talking about a Disney show or a book.  Instead, it was real Sixth Grade drama.  When I asked how Miss A, a first grader, knew the parties involved I loved what Miss M had to say; "Geez Mom, she's my sister, we talk." 

We later had a discussion about gossip versus talking, but I love that these sisters are having those kind of conversations.  Sisters.  Friends.

That's real life around these parts; a little crazy, part silly and just innocent family fun.  Wouldn't have it any other way.

Busy week and deep thoughts bring a chuckle to my heart.

Last week was a lost week in many ways as the girls had off Monday and Tuesday, Mr C had conferences on Thursday so he was out at 11:30 and had no school on Friday, and then Miss A had her school musical on Friday too so that meant there was only one day in which to "git er done" around here!  I took that as my chance to eat lunch out with a friend.  Who cares that it became brunch/lunch and was nearly time to pick up the kids from school!  It was a refreshing break and I loved it.

Needless to say, when I had chance to get things done off my to do list, it was working at lightening speed.  Not only did I have my 40 bag challenge awaiting me, I had a number of volunteer jobs that needed my undivided attention. I find on those days I work best if there is music in the background, the fireplace roaring, and a big glass of ice tea awaiting me.

I listened while I worked.  It sounds a little like Snow White (whistle while I work), but I got to listen to some great sermon podcasts and some great talk radio.  What was really amazing was how a lot of the "talk" I heard dealt with standing firm in the faith and not giving into compromise or worldly standards.  Every blog I read talked about this wave of political correctness and how the world is chipping away at what is right.

Now while a part of me wants to just pack it all in and head to Little House on the Prairie or Amish Country, I know that that this is not what God is calling me to do!  If He ever did I might have to bring along Air Conditioning........just saying!

However, He does call my family and I to stand firm. We are to know the Truth and not fear standing up for it in the world around us.  As a sweet way to affirm that this is truly God working on my heart, my husband just happened to pass along an email he'd gotten with a great story about compromise. Not only did it confirm that it's ok to have standards, convictions and lines in the sand it also made me chuckle a little bit. 

Nothing like a little humor to bring a lesson home. I've not shared this story with my children yet; I'm waiting for the moment that I need to "preach"' a little life lesson, but trust me it's stored away in this momma's heart and mind.  I know it's a lesson I'm still learning as a Christian living in the World, but not Being of the World.  I just know that I'm grateful that God uses moments like this to work on my heart and gives me opportunities to see that His ways are always best.

 I'm thinking a batch of brownies might just be in our future! 

Dog Poo Brownies (I'm not sure who deserves credit for this story; I got it from the Christian Businessman's Association weekly email" Fax of Life".)


A father listened to all the reasons his children gave for wanting to see a particular PG-13 movie: it had their favorite actors, everyone else was seeing it, even some church members said it was great, it was only rated PG-13 because of the suggestion of sex-they never really showed it, the language was pretty good-they only used the Lord's name in vain three times in the whole movie, the video effects were fabulous and the plot was action packed. Yes, there was the scene where a building and a bunch of people got blown up, but the violence was just the normal stuff, it wasn't very bad. Even with all these explanations for the rating, the father wouldn't give in. He didn't even give them an explanation for saying, "No." He just said "No."

Later that evening, the father asked his kids if they would like some brownies he had prepared. He explained that he had taken the family's favorite recipe and added something new. They asked what it was. He calmly replied that he had added dog poo. He stated that it was only a tiny bit and that all the other ingredients were gourmet quality. He had taken great care to bake it at the precise temperature for the exact time. He was sure the brownies would be superb.

Even with all the explanations of the perfect attributes of the brownies, the kids would not take one. The father acted surprised. There was only a small amount of poo, so what could the problem be? He assured them that they would hardly notice it at all. But they all held firm and would not try the brownies.

He then explained that the movie they wanted to see was just like the brownies. Satan tries to enter our minds and our homes by deceiving us into believing that just a little bit of evil doesn't matter. With the brownies, just a little bit makes all the difference between a great brownie something really gross. He explained that even though the smallest amount of dog poo makes the brownie totally unacceptable, they seemed to having no problem watching a movie of similar ingredients. The people who make movies and TV shows would have us believe their entertainment is acceptable for adults and youths; but they are no more so than dog poo brownies are good to eat!

Now when this father's children want to do something or see something they should not, the father merely asks them if they would like some of his special dog poo brownies and they never ask about it again.

40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge

This Lenten season, I will, besides cleaning out the clutter of my heart and mind in preparation for Easter's glorious celebration, also be cleaning up the "stuff" that's overtaking our drawers, closets, and other spaces. I'm taking Clover Lane's 40 Bags in 40 Days Challenge.

Over the next six weeks, I'll be collecting at least 40 bags of stuff to giveaway, toss, or donate to the Goodwill. I'm all over this idea. I've been reading Clover Lane for a number of years and have always loved how uncluttered and organized her home and life seems to be. I figure if she can do it with five kids; I can easily do it with three kids. 

Here's my list of the areas I plan on tackling over the next 40 Days. Once I've finished cleaning an area, I'll report back how many bags we're generating.  I'll be honest that because I work best in short little bursts, I'll probably not tackle the entire room in one sweep.  While I love progress, I'll probably work a few small projects on busy days and then tackle the big ones on days set aside for nothing else but cleaning.

The Kitchen: Pantry, Cleaning Supplies, China and Specialty Items, Art Cabinet, Junk Drawers and Paperwork Storage

The Family Room: TV Cabinet full of DVDs and CD's,  Bookshelves

The Computer/Study Room: Computer Armour full of old computer games, files and gadgets; Mr C's Desk

The Dinning Room: Hutch Clean out (this has become scrapbook storage #2 and GS stuff) Dust and Reorganize decorative shelves, top of the hutch; seasonal decor hideaway- must go

The Laundry Room: Cabinets and Coat Storage, Hooks and Laundry Organization.

The Big Kids' Rooms:  Drawers, Under beds and Closets

Miss A's Room: Storage Solution to Barbie Overload and American Girl Doll Stuff, Closet, Drawers, Nightstand, Books sorted and donated

Master Bedroom and Bathroom:Closet Purged and Organized, Scrapbook Nook, Dressers, Bathroom Storage Purged

Kid's Bathroom: Organize the Drawers, Sort through the Hair Stuff (two girls, enough said)
Guest Bathroom: Clean out Medicine Cabinet and purge the First Aid Kit

Basement: Kids TV Room; crafting, gaming all organized and purged; Storage Areas: Purge Seasonal Clothing and Kids' Clothing donated; Weight Room and American Girl Doll Dreamhouse Organized

Whoosh!  That sounds like three years worth of Lent!  I'm thinking I won't have any trouble coming up with 40 Bags in 40 Days.  I'm not even putting the Bonus Room on the list, I figure I'll need a real Spring Cleaning Item to look forward to and this will be it!

Sadly, I gave up Diet Pepsi for Lent so I can't even count on a caffeine high to get me through all this stuff!  I'm hoping that the "cleaning high" I'll get will be similar to the endorphins you get from running a marathon because this is sounding like a marathon to me!

Winter Time Fun: Visiting a Museum

Winter boredom can arise even when the weather outside is mild and your plate of "to-do's" is long.  There is just something about being trapped inside most days that makes you feel a little stir crazy.  To conquer that winter dull, we try to break things up a bit and take family outings. 

Saturday, after a morning of rearranging M's room (more to come), we snuck the kids out to Chick fil A and a visit to the big city Museum that had traveling exhibit of costumes from the Movies.  Real Movies. Epic Motion pictures.  Miss A had been begging to go see a stunning Red Ball Gown for months. Miss M, who loves to doodle and sketch, thinks fashion design might be cool to look into as a career. Mr C, well he doesn't share any of his sisters' interest in costuming which is why we "whisked" the kids away without telling them our destination!

We figured that lunch at Chick Fil A would buy us some time at the Museum.  We know the way to a teenage boys heart!  Thankfully, Mr C is such a good sport.  He found his own fun at the Museum.  He not only dressed the mannequin. but also tried his hand at the old ties; everyday experience of tying a necktie really helps. Mr C also talked his sister into buying some candy at the Old Fashioned Soda Fountain.  You see, food really is the way to a young man's heart.

We had a fabulous afternoon outing at the Museum and finished our day with the girls watching "A Tooth Fairy" while having a sleepover and the big kids watched "Moneyballs." Perfect.

Love a boredom buster day!

Seasonal Decorating the Front Door: St Patrick's Style

I'm not really one for seasonal decorations.  I don't redo my fireplace mantel every month, though I do ogle over those who do it with gusto.  I put up fall decor in September and replace it with Christmas decorations after Thanksgiving.  That is because it's sacrilegious to decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving.  One holiday at a time.  However, the day after Christmas, I start to get itchy to get my house back in order and take down the tree and return my home to "normal." 

One exception to the holiday theme decorating is my front door.  In years' past, I've had numerous wooden or metal signs, frames, hearts, American Flags etc.  My only handmade item was a beautiful quilted Christmas hanging that my mother made.

Last year, I ventured into wreath making; and made one for the Spring and another for the Fall.  They are the perfect amount seasonal/fashionable and fun.  Since then, I made a burlap Heart for Valentine's Day (and have plans for the Easter Season and Summer swimming in my head).  However, the next season that I really needed some decor for was St Patrick's Day.

Now you might be curious why a Norwegian/German/ English family (my husband would like you to know he's not the mixture-he's 100 % Norwegian, I'm the Mutt) would celebrate a traditional Irish Holiday.  We aren't even Catholic!  However, as Norwegian as my husband is, he was born on this completely Irish Holiday.  He's a St Pat's Birthday Boy! Mr C is a March Baby too; born on March 20th! 

If that isn't enough reason to decorate our door with the Irish Flare, I don't know what is! Plus, I found some adorable fabric in green and white that would make a great wreath.  All this to say our Front Door it is now all Irish.

Valentine Cookies and Homemade Cards

The girls and I got to create a little bit of Valentine's fun.

On Sunday, Miss A and I finished her little valentine's cards for friends.  We'd looked everywhere for Pop Rocks to give away, but settled on a homemade shovel with "I dig you!" and a packet of Fun Dip.  By the end of writing her name all 22 times, she said she was exhausted.  Next year, maybe we'll have to "stamp" her name on the card. Hate to think she's got writers cramp at seven!

Monday night as a way to escape going to the Skating Party (it's cold and flu season, yuck), we made homemade sugar cookie cutouts.   I'll be the first to admit I'm not really a baker, but I think I've finally found a cut out recipe that I like for sugar cookies.  Again, it was the blogoshere to my rescue.  Nonly have I found a great new recipe, but a great resource for all things cooking/baking!

As the cookies were baking in the oven at one temperature, Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pot Roast was cooking away at a different temperature thanks to my new oven!  The aromas of the Roast and the Sugar Cookies made the kitchen smell wonderful.  The cookies were perfect for all the frosting and sugar crystals the girls put on them.  I mean "all."

Thankfully, we have some great neighbors who received a delivered plate of cookies.  That way the sugar overload could be spread around.  Next time, we are going to try dipping some Easter Cookies into melted chocolate on the end just like they do on Pioneer Woman's Food Network show.  At least, that's what two girls in our house think we should do (the boys would probably definitely agree)

The pot roast was perfect and was paired with the best mashed potatoes ever.  It was a pre-Valentine's dinner that made all the boys in the house fall in love with me again. I'm just saying!

Finally on Tuesday, Miss A had her Valentine's Day party at school and she loved it.  We had some great games, an easy craft, and more cookies to decorate. She has the sweetest little girl friends. First grade is the best!

We "Rocked " The Valentine Box This Year

I would say the Dad and Miss A really knocked it out of the park this year making the Valentine Box for school!  Having been at the school now for nine Valentine parties, we kind knew that some people go way out to decorate boxes for the classroom exchange.

When Mr C was in 1st Grade (his first at the school having only moved to our school in April the year before), I had just sent a small brown bag with his name on it and few stickers. Thankfully, we were actually out of town on the day of the party or it would have been shameful.  There were rockets, robots, Hummers and army tanks that looked like they could take over the island of Manhattan.

The next year, we wised up a little and Mr C had a great box (in our eyes) and in the coming years he'd have a Bi-Plane, a Launch Pad, and a Rocket Ship.  Miss M's First Grade box really rocked: A Flower Garden with pencils as the stem and foam flowers on top.  It was stunning.  So much so that we convinced her to use for 2nd and 3rd grade too. 

In fourth grade, Miss M protested and said the flowers had all died so Dad and she made a fabulous Pink Pig. It was so adorable. Last year, Dad was hoping that Miss A would want to copy her sister and carry on the Pig. Yeah, not so much.  So we made an adorable IPOD with a play list that rocked.

This year, however, Miss A and Dad made the box to rival all others.  They made an acoustic guitar.  It was so Rockin' that Miss A said she'll use it for 2nd grade and maybe 3rd grade.  Some of her friends said that she must have some real creative parents.  It was fabulous.

Thanks to a large box of Russell Stovers candy we'd gotten for Christmas from a neighbor, we had the perfect box to carry off this large item. Throw in an old wrapping paper roll, black duck tape, fasteners, embroidery floss and some poster boards and it was a box to be showed off.

Miss A said that she was so proud of her box and her Dad.  When we delivered it on Monday along with her "I dig you" shovels (handmade by mom) and Fun Dip and heart pencil sharpeners, she had a smile on her face that was contagious.  She loved it all.

The only complaint was that it doesn't really play music, but it sure looks good.