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Monday, October 31, 2016

Halloween 2016

2016
 
2015
 
2014 
 
2013

2012
I absolutely cannot find any family pictures from 2012.  I think its because we all were a bit preoccupied in setting up the best surprise announcement ever.  Three pregnancies at one time - due within weeks of each other. 
 
 
2011
 
2010
 
2009
 
 2008

Saturday, October 29, 2016

Deja Vu

With gorgeous temperatures still hanging around this weekend, it was the perfect setting to get dressed up and head out to a local Halloween Parade.  Afterward as I was looking back through the pictures, I had the strongest feeling of deja vu. 
 
Where, oh, where have I seen this picture before?


That's right... 
It reminds me of years past at the same Halloween Parade.
 
 
Apparently this parade does not bring out the best in us. 

Thursday, October 27, 2016

About time!

I did it!!
 
I finished my Thanksgiving 'Gobble' craft!!!
 
 
What you see as quite normal as Thanksgiving is still a month away, I see as quite an achievement.
 
See...  I purchased the 'Christmas' craft set below last November!!
 
 
And here it still sits... 
 
 
So the fact that I received my 'Gobble' set as a gift in July and I already finished it is nothing short of a miracle.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

My Lunch Date

Some of my earliest memories of home life are the days after my brother and sister left for school.  I remember the days my mom making an extra large buckwheat pancake for us to split and how she would iron while watching a soap opera.  I remember being picked up from preschool (although I don't ever remember being dropped off).  And I remember my dad coming home for lunch every day.
 
  Sometimes he would have leftovers, other days a peanut butter and lettuce sandwich, or Mom would fry up a bologna sandwich with onions and mustard.  I don't recall what I ever ate but I just remember my dad being there and the smell of his pipe.  Those are the days I cherish.  Those are the days I long for with my kids, to give my kids.
 
  And today was one of those days. 
 
After preschool, there was nothing on the calendar.  Nothing.  Just come home, make lunch, and have a date with my little Holly.

And it felt good.

Big eyes.
 
Not so big eyes. 
 
Pretty much normal eyes. 
 
Best we got. 

Friday, October 21, 2016

Just another day

For whatever reason, my body has been waking up in the 5am hour for over a week now.  No matter what I say, or how late I stay up, my body just won't stay asleep past this hour.  And so my day begins.
 
 
6-7am - The children start to rise and one heads off to school while the others are happily enjoying the treats Daddy let them pick out.

 
7-8am - Mornings are never consistent with children.  Some days we are on our game, ready to tackle the day with time to spare.  Some days we are still getting ready while driving off to school.  Thankfully this was an 'on top of it' day and I got to sit down and read a bit while the kids watched TV before heading out the door. 

 
8-9am - One kid goes here, the other there.  Lots of quality time in the car every morning.

 
On this particular day, after dropping Holly off to school, I had to run home to get my mom and get back to the school for Grandparents Day.  Holly's school is in the middle of nowhere surrounded by cornfields and, honestly, I enjoy the drive.  Every day, little by little, I get to watch the seasons change and the sun rise.

 
9-11am - Grandparents Day. Its funny the things you remember from your childhood.  I remember having Grandparents day.  I don't remember what we did and I don't remember what happened afterwards, but I do remember that my grandparents were there and that's all that matters.  Hopefully the children will have those same memories.

 
11am-Noon - A quick pit stop at home to grab lunch, make some phone calls, pick up the house, get laundry going and, of course, sneak in some Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

 
Noon - 1pm - Errand time!  Jake decided, with a little coaxing, to give wrestling a try.  Now in these younger years of less competitive leagues is the time to give things a try.  If you like it, keep going.  If you don't like it, you're finishing out the season so suck it up. 

 
We also made a run over to the recycling center to turn in 5 more bags of pop cans!!  The price wasn't the best but I have the money in my pocket and more space in the garage. 

 
1-2pm - Back home and time for a pick me up.

 
I also needed to put the recycling money where it goes - the vacation fund!  In January we started the penny a day challenge where you start with a penny and increase (by a penny) every day until the end of the year.  At the end of the challenge, you will have $667 - a nice nest egg for a vacation.  We're behind (it gets hard to throw $2+ in jar every. single. day) but we're sticking at it.  Now matter when we finish it, we'll have the same amount of money.
 
 
2-3pm - Didn't you hear?  My Jacob got married!  Mr. Q (Jacob) married Mrs. U and we were invited to be guests. 



 
3-4pm - Back home and back at it.  It was homemade pizza night and I was in charge of making the dough... 

 
...and the homemade croutons for salads.

 
4-5pm - Time to load up the van and head on over to the Cider Mill for our second pressing of the season.  If you haven't had fresh pressed cider, you are missing out.  It tastes sooo different from the store bought stuff. 


 
5-6pm - Back home.  Again.  Prepping pizza toppings and getting the salad bar ready to go for our dinner guests. 

 
6-9pm - Packing Party!!  Our friends and I have a deep passion for Operation Christmas Child and all that it stands for.  We shop, shop, shop all year with anticipation of this night.  Packing our boxes. 


 
9-10pm - After all that hard work, we need a reward, right?  I found a new donut recipe on Pinterest and was lucky enough to have my guinea pigs friends willing to try them. 

 
10-11pm - Bree has been asking to watch the original Parent Trap and who am I to deny her such a request.  I love the old Disney movies!  Even though Bree had enough energy to craft the night through, the other two did not.

 
11pm - Midnight - The hubby was kind enough to start a fire earlier in the evening but with dinner and shoeboxes, we didn't have time to enjoy it.  Throw a couple more logs on, start the movie over again, and that completes the end of a wonderful day. 

 
Although most days aren't as full, this really isn't a stretch of what a typical day is like.  Three kids, a house, my mom, her house, a marriage to tend to daily, my own soul to fill, and work is a lot for anyone.  Something has to change.
 
And that it will.
 
More on that later.   

Sunday, October 16, 2016

My own Pdub

Lets set the scene:

We just got back from our last camping season of the year which means.... an astronomical amount of laundry - clothes, sheets, blankets.  Dishes weren't done before we left.  Emptied school bags and papers littered the tables and counters.  Holly and Jake created the biggest train track you ever did see all over my living room floor.  The house was in shambles, I had a headache I couldn't shake and on the way home Holly screamed the whole time that she was sick and promptly crashed as soon as she hit the couch.  It was definitely one of those 'adulting is hard' moments. 

Enter Bree.

"Mom, can I make dinner?"

Now you would think this was one of those 'the sky opened and the angels started singing' moments but instead it was like nails on the chalkboard.  One day, not too long ago, dear Bree wanted to make breakfast for hubby and I.  When completed, we headed out to the table to discover bowls of cold home canned tomatoes with an asinine amount of salt and a few sprinkles of cheese.  Having to stomach a similar dinner when I just wanted to check out as a parent, plunged my stomach to my feet.

However.  I was pleasantly surprise when she pulled out our beloved Pioneer Woman cookbooks and began scanning the pages.  She, on her own accord, decided that we were having meatloaf for dinner!  With little help,  deciding on the side dishes (curly fries instead of mashed potatoes, broccoli as the veggie, and cheesecake for dessert) the list was made, shopping was done, and my little pdub started on her task.



We feasted with minimal complaints from other family members...



... and lived to tell the tale.  But the most important lesson to be learned that day was - When you slave over making a meal for the entire family, you appreciate someone else cleaning it up.

And so the boys did. 

Pioneer Woman's Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf