Pour yourself a cup of coffee...this is a long one

So we had Gabe's birthday party last Sunday and it was such a good time. You know the best part? I didn't have a thing to clean up. Who cares about the kids having fun...who cares if Gabe had a good time...who cares about remembering the boy's 6th birthday forever and reflecting on the last year of goodness. All I know is that I didn't have to clean up. So this was the best place ever for a party because you can have a bunch of kids running around being crazy loud, making a mess, getting teh energy out and it is just not your house! Who ever thought of this gig was a genius. He did have a great time though and thought it was great to have all of his friends in one spot. I've already announced that next year there will be no parties. They can take a friend to Chuck E. Cheese and that's it. Hey, that's a place where you don't have a mess to clean up too. Brilliant! No parties at home any more.


Here are a few pics of the gorgeous cake my mom made. Of course it is a pirate ship and is just completely awesome. She made it andn then put the sails on and candles when she got there. Gabe was so excited to see what LoLo made for his party since Ella got the castle. The kids all thought it was great too.

What in the world? This girl is such a drama queen trying to steal any attention away from Gabe that she can. She hurt her foot so bad and went into such a crying fit that they got her an ice pack to put on it. As you can see she is just in such pain and agony over her severe injury.
The church had a hayride about 30 minutes outside of town at a meeting center and it was fun. This is a pick of all of us waiting to get freezing cold on the long hayride that pulled us fast and created a major wind chill. Good thing we came prepared!! What is my hand doing? That is weird. It's just sitting there dead.

So yesterday Ella came home from preschool yesterday with a report from a clinic who did a hearing and vision screening stating that she had great hearing and terrible vision. Her right eye was 20/80 and the left was 20/100. So after a bit of guilt for not realizing or noticing that my little girl had any sort of vision problem I decided that I needed to take her in for an exam. We were able to get into a clinic that had opened only a couple months ago. The doctor was fabulous--like seriously he was just wonderful and had four kids of his own and know exactly what to say and do. Long story short, he said that her actual vision was 20/70, but he did not recommend glasses for her because she was so young and had never shown any signs of problems. I am supposed to bring her in next year for another exam unless she starts squinting or having problems in school or watching the tv too close or something. I was really glad about that though only so I can put off dealing with glasses on the kids for a bit longer. I know it is inevitable considering Micah and my vision and our family's history with it as well. I just really didn't feel like dealing with the maintainance of glasses on a four year old right now.

Here is Gabe the future optometrist telling Ella about how the equipment works. He has never been to the eye doctor and that was the first time he had every seen that equipment. He just has to instruct his little sis though.
And then finally I had a few evenings to work on some scrappy pages. Here are four and I have more coming up. After this weekend maybe. I am also working on my Christmas cards and they may be finished after a weekend at the Bell's this weekend. I'll work on them in the evening after the kids go to bed.

Here's what I've been up to...

So it's been a bit since I have blogged. I was thinking about what has been going on since then and we have been just crazy busy. I have Mondays and Fridays off so that helps me catch up a bit on things, but then even Saturdays and Sundays are spent working. Things are going well though. I have two buyers now, one listing, and one more potential listing. Funny how just those few things can keep a person bustling all the time. I worked on my transcription the past two weeks and that gets so time consuming in the evenings. It pays for chilcare though and I am grateful to now have to worry about that expense every month. Very grateful.


Since I didn't have any work I decided to take a couple evenings for myself and do some scrapbooking. I only have like three or four pages left for my 2006 album, but I still started on my 2007. The pictures were there and I just couldn't help it. ha! Here are the four I did over the past two nights. I don't know how Amos can pump out 10 layouts a night, but I can't.

This is my absolute favorite picture from last year--so of course it had to be on the first page I scrapbooked. I just love the way Charis is looking the other direction and she is so beautiful and the colors and lighting are awesome. I think she'd be a great model. Look at her. Caleb looks like a total stud coming out of that tube slide as well. I only had like four or five pictures from our whole time together in July. I layed in bed for almost the entire time sick. Bummer. I'll have to make up for it at Christmas. I need some pictures of the kids with their grandparents.

This is a page of the small fair we go to every year in a small town outside of Sioux Falls. It is the best little fair that is totally family friendly with no alcohol and very few weirdos.

Self explainatory.
And then the last is the kids when we were smelling the poppies at the bottom of the hill. I love this colorful layout. A good start on the 100 pages that need to go in the album. Maybe when I go to Tulsa at Christmas I can get quite a few more done.

So as I walked down stairs to get something I realized my husband has been a bit busy with his honey do list. I got a great deal on these curtains for the basement and he hung them for me. I also rearranged the basement a bit and I now am on the hunt for a great deal on a couch for down there. Nothing fancy just a nice couch that doesn't look like dorm furninture.

Then in the kitchen he hung up a new light fixture over the table and I finished the top valance. he also hung up blinds in the kitchen and dining. The next is the basement and bedrooms. A little at a time.
My depressing ironing pile. The only things lifei n there are collared shirts. I hate ironing collared shirts.
And I cleaned out my scrap room and it was looking great....until my parent's basement flooded and I needed to take home another 5 boxes full of junk I don't need but can't seem to get rid of. Now I have to reorganize again. I also need to put some pics on the wall and a bulletin board of some kind.



A random thought. So I had this meeting with a gal the other day regarding business and I really didn't know her at all. I just knew that she was new to the lending business as I am to the real estate business. So we have lunch together to discuss some opportunities we could work together on. After we get to talking it takes me about 2 seconds to realize that she is NOT a Christian just by what she is talking about and the words that are coming out. So we finish our lunch meeting and I am getting in the car and just have this pit in my stomach about how awful of a life she has without Christ. I am very sheltered because I have stayed home with my children for the past 6 six years with small jobs here and there that still were not working with others outside of my "circle". I do not have one friend who is not a Christian and I do not have a family member who does not claim to be a Christian meaning I do not know if they have a personal relationship, but they certainly do not drop swear words every other word or party like they are in college. They are all good people. So this came as a shocker to me. I feel like I am very blessed to have the friends and family that I do without having to decide between morals and people. It was just a tough thing for me to realize that there are people out there who have true evil in their lives and don't know it. I know God has put her in my path for a reason and I will do what I can to be the best Christian influence in her life. That has just been weighing on me.



Gabe had his 6th birthday yesterday. We don't have the party until Sunday, but we did little things to celebrate yesterday. For teh kids' birthdays we always wake them up in the morning together with a cupcake with one candle in it. They eat it in bed and Micah and I talk about how special they are and what they were like as babies. Our little tradition we have been doing since Gabe turned 2 and they love to hear us talk just about them and eat a cupcake for breakfast as well. Mom and I dropped off some cupcakes baked in ice cream cones at school yesterday. They were very cute and he was thrilled to be able to hand them out to his friends. Then we picked him up after school and asked what special thing he would like to do with us before we pick up Ella. He chose to go downtown to the diner and have a pink cow (strawberry soda and ice cream). We played tic-tac-toe and other paper games just us three and had our treat. Gabe was in heaven. Then he got to choose what we had for supper last night and of all things he chose hot dogs and everybody had to eat it with a bun (Ella usually does not want a bun) and macaroni and cheese. I made this mac and cheese out of shell noodles in the bag and the Ragu cheese sauce from teh spagetti aisle. DO NOT EVER BUY THAT CHEESE. It is so disgusting.

Anyway, that was our day yesterday and we are going to the gymnastics academy on Sunday to have his party. It will be a pirate party and mom is going to make him a pirate ship cake. I will defnitely have pictures of that, especially after the castle she made for Ella. She is good.



Holy cow I'm boring. I will stop now. Have a good weekend.

Prepare to be Amazed....

Prepare to be amazed. No seriously. Look what my mom did this year...










So I know that was a lot of pictures, but I just couldn't stop uploading them and I couldn't choose because they were all so cute. We were supposed to go to church tonight but we really were running out of time and we still had not eaten yet blah blah blah. So we went to the mall to trick or treat and the kids had so much fun. THey were definitely a hit and everyone loved their costumes. The foreign people at the "Dead Sea Miracle" stand were totally in awe of them and took pictures like teh paparazzi. Micah and I couldn't believe how they were taking pictures of them in all different angles. They must not have Halloween in their neck of the earth. We ate there too and then packed in the car to go to the neighbors houses. THey just had such a great time that it was really a lot of fun.

We also had a party in Gabe's class that I headed up. It was also a good time. We did a couple crafts and had some good snacks and such.

And then I guess I am working in the opposite direction of the day, but the first thing I did this morning was close my very first real estate transaction. Holy cow I was nervous, but it went great without a hitch. And I got paid. Finally.

So that's it. That was our October 31st. And I know I'm a boring writer and don't seem to talk about much more than what we did that day. Sorry to bore you.

So funny...

This was so funny that I just could not stop laughing....


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5txJQO3WTRg

Some pages and scrapbook news

News Flash!!!

I know you may not believe it and that is okay, but I have stumbled upon an even greater kit club than Poppy Ink. I think I may change my subscription to this company. http://www.mysweetspuds.com/ It is so awesome and with their new changes over at PI I thinkn it would be the perfect opportunity to try something different. I just haven't been able to find anything I like until now. Sorry Corriekate...I may not be able to wait for the December reveal. But you know me and how I really don't like change, so I may be just fooling myself into thinking I am some flexible sort of person or something.

Here are some pics of some of my recent pages.

Some new pics

I was going through my pics on my camera and found this. So cute!! Gabe took it of us when we went to the pumpkin patch with his class.


And here is Ella's new haircut. I took Gabe to get his cut and asked the lady if she had any suggestions for Ella's locks. Her hair NEVER looked good. Ever. It is just very thin and stringy and she needed something. So the lady talked me into cutting a few bangs and taking the length off. It looks really good on her! Finally, a cute haircut.
Other than that it has been pretty non eventful around here. Micah is taking Gabe to the Oklahoma/Iowa State game tomorrow. We have decided to go to AR and OK for Christmas. I have another house going non the market next week. I have only three layouts left for my 2006 album. I finally found a couple pair of jeans that fit in the waist and are long enough.

I can't even think of anything else to write about.

Some stuff from my brains

Spewing from my brain...

--It only takes one field trip with parents of other children in your child's classroom to realize your pretty normal and your child is way sweeter and more well-behaved than you ever imagined.

--Where do cable channels come up with all of the same sex couples on their shows. Seriously. How do they get on tv all the time?

--When painting your house, paint on the opposite side your husband is on. It just works better that way.

--When painting your house and three months after you start still aren't even close to being halfway done, hurt yourself so you don't have to do it anymore. Slip and fall, break your arm, sprain your wrist, whatever it takes. It's just not worth it. Especially when you are two stories high in the back. And the sides are very sloped. Very sloped. And you're really scared of heights. And your husband thinks it's super funny to wiggle the ladder when you're at the top.

--Stay away from the Halloween candy aisle.

--Eat T. Marzetti's dressing from the refrigerator section instead of the stuff off the shelf. It is so delicious and yummy and fattening.

--If your child wants to count as high as they can when you're trying to get them to bed because it is 20 minutes past their bedtime, then just let them. They are going to count as high as they can (200) whether you are standing there or not and it is way more fun to count for mom than the black air.

--When there are choices between puking in the toilet or bucket, pick the toilet since there is hard floor surrounding the john when the kids miss a bit.

That is all for now. Enough spewing.

These are a few of my favorite things

Do you ever go through times in your life where you just have things that you're obsessed with? You know, the times in your life when there is a tv show you can't miss or a store you always find yourself in? Well here is my list:

1- Top Chef on Bravo. I watched a marathon on Bravo of this contest and got totallly caught up oon the shows and haven't been able to stop watching since. I have even watched the exit interviews online. Can we say obsessed? Good thing the finale is next Wednesday. I won't have to watch it anymore then.

2- Downy Simple Pleasures softener Rose and Lavendar. I want to dream everytime I smell this wonderful scent. It is so not my style and I don't know why I bought that overpowering smell of flowers, but I love it now and love walking into my laundry room because it is like a bouquet without the vase or the flowers.

3- Brach's candy corn pumpkins. I think I am going to pull an Amos with these things and have to run to the dentist if I chew into another one. But they are so stinkin good and they are only here once a year so I have to eat them and eat them and eat them. MMMMM.... The kids love them too and they found my stash. Dang.

4- Poppy Ink. THis of course has been a continuous obsession and I have to check the MB every morning in search of what women I don't know from across the country and even across oceans are saying. Totally dumb. I love the ideas though and she did an online class last week that I took and put me in the mood for scrapbooking. Can Christmas come soon enough? I shouldn't say that in case we don't make it.

5- Cappucino cabin. McDonald's coffee has officially been replaced with a cup o coffee from the locally owned free standing coffe stand for a cup of coffee when I am on the run in the mornings. We have a McDonald's 7 blocks from our house and I HATE it. THey are the SLOWEST MCDonald's in the world. Really. In the world. I'll get my blood pressure up if I talk about it anymore. So I won't.

6- Amy Butler quilt. I finnished the edges and love my new quilt. I just have to put the back on and have it quilted by someone. It is so big and I can't wait to wrap up in the creativity and awesomeness of a fabric designing genius. I want to make five more for all of you, but I know you probably wouldn't have the same appreciation for it. Darn.

This pic shows the border of the quilt. I used the strip all the way around and then my favorite print of them all around the edge.

7- Sensual Amber. I love this scent from Bath and Body works. It smells so yummy and I want it all over my house. So I bought the wallflowers of it! Except for in my laundry room because that is reserved for the Downy aroma.

And that pretty much sums up my boring life. Oh yeah. We painted our house. At least the front. And I'm not quite done with that even. It looks way better than the pink. We took our front hand rails off and are replacing them along with the light fixtures and some more landscaping. We also need to replace the front door. I think we may do that at the same time as we do the roof and the deck next spring. I'll just paint it for now. It takes so long to do all of this stuff. We don't want to put anything on credit for it so we are just doing what we can that is not like thousands of dollars at a time. Oh well, we are grateful for what we have.

Here's a better idea of the color. Sort of a chocolate milk color.

I was going through my pics and forgot about this cute little picture I took of Ella on her first day of preschool. Is that not the best door for a first day of school shot? I love it!

Fall in SD

Well it is fall again. I totally love fall. No humidity, no bugs, no air conditioning. We went to the apple orchard on Saturday with the Bells. Totally fun. Kids had a ball, but it was quite nippy out. We did a hayride out to the orchard and picked tons of apples. I made mom and apple pie for her birthday on Tuesday. It was so stinkin good. I would have to say that pies are about the only thinkg I am good at making. Thanks to Momma Dar who taught me all her tricks. Here are some pics of the festivities. I had Sally's camera (Rebel) which of course takes fabuloso pictures. If only I had time to figure out the Photoshop program Corriekate gave me.





I guess I haven't blogged since Ella had her birthday party. She had five little friends over who all came in their best princess attire. We made crowns, hit the pinata, had a treasure hunt in rice (thanks Guru), and my mom made the most beautiful and yummy castle cake. Gabe insisted that he be included in the party, which was fine. He put on his cape and crown from when he was a king for harvest festival a few years back. Here are some pics of the party. I still need to take some of the so cute invite I made too. It turned out awesome.
Isn't this cake like the coolest thing you have ever seen? Mom spent her day off from work making it because Ella "needed" it for her party. So cute.
All the pretty princesses minus Connolly. They had so much fun together.
Here they are as I am telling them abou tthe treasure hunt. They found earrings, necklaces, and rings in the rice. I blindfolded them while the hunted and they had a blast. Plus it killed a lot of party time.


I listed my first house two Fridays ago and we finished the negotiations exactly one week later. It is to close on Nov. 1st and I am pretty stoked about the whole thing. Look at this right
here if you would like to take a look at my listing.

Mom and I did take a quilt class and I made the top of an Amy Butler quilt. I will post some pics. I totally love it and it is going to look oh so fabulous in my living room. You're going to be jealous.