how far will we get?

Ethan is running around my computer room having just been kicked out of the craft room for coloring on my walls again! This is like the 200th time but I am counting my blessings because it was just pencil, not permenant marker this time AND I caught him heading for his second wall before he did any more damage!. So, we'll see how far I get with this post.
But I have had pictures and ideas I wanted to blog about. So, this will be a random post and may take me all day to write, but here we go!

Back To School!

I love getting ready to go back to school! First, we buy new school supplies. I love a brand new box of crayons, clean erasers, freshly sharpened pencils, sharp scissors... Then, we organize all our stuff! We divide things out, fill our pencil boxes and load our backpacks... This year, I personalized my kids bags with Heidi Swapp iron-ons. Don't you love it! I want to monogram everything!! This year, we didn't really need to shop for school clothes but we did need shoes. And let me say, prayers were answered when I found shoes for every child at Target AND they were on sale! So, with several days until school would start, we were packed and ready to go!
I think I decided I want to be a pencil sharpener when I grow up! There is something wonderful about the smell of the wood and the sharpness of the point and the pile of yellow lines growing... do you think that's a real job?


Fun Mom!!

The hose was out because I had cleaned the pool (and put it away), sprayed down the swing set and cleaned the front porch (including my rocking chairs). I went out just before putting kids to bed to make sure everything was put away when I noticed how dirty the garage door was. I asked Soren to run and turn on the water so I could spray it down. Well, unlike my usual neat freak, get to bed on time self, I decided to just spray Soren with the hose! And Megan. And Emily. And Kate and Ethan! Everyone was already in their jammies and Kelly was waiting for us to have family prayer- but, who cares? Well, normally I do. But I let loose and was rewarded with really great laughter and smiles on my kids! I can't promise it will become a habit, but I did have a good time forgetting the routine and just having fun! I couldn't help but think how proud Kristi would be of me!!

Tradition!

Even though I am jealous of people with lots of traditions, we don't have many of them around our house. We do have one though that I LOVE! Every year, on the first day of school, I give a new book to any child who is in school. Often, it ends up being more than one and this year I have four in school!! So, this is the stack of books for my kids this year. I am really excited to give them to my kids because I found books that are so perfect for my kids interests and reading levels!! I love how excited all my kids are about reading! It is the one homework assignment I can get behind!! Happy Reading!

Surprise!!


Of course I love good mail, but I received a couple of things in the last week or two that I was NOT expecting! My sister, Elizabeth, sent me a package with tags and ribbon... something she has never done before! We exchange kids clothes and christmas presents but a package full of fun for no reason at all! It totally made my day!! Thanks Elizabeth!

And then, I walked into my front room the other night and found a Stampin' Up bag sitting by the door. I asked the kids where it came from and nobody knew! AND, in addition to my order, there was a bundle of Bazzill books. I called Jill to find out what the deal was and she said, Lisa brought the books back from her retreat in Arizona for us! She had just slipped the bag in my front door- if there was ever a reason to leave your door unlocked when you leave, this is it!!! :) So, THANKS Lisa! It was SO nice of you to bring me my stuff and to haul back the extra goodies! I'm looking forward to scraplifting some great ideas!

So, You Think You Can Dance?

I think there has been enough time since the finale to say, hip hip hooray! Can you believe Benji won?!??! I have SO loved this show! I liked all the dancers in the final four, although I wish Allison had made it! But, I really expected Travis to win. When they said it wasn't Heidi, I wasn't surprised. When they said it wasn't Donyelle, I wasn't surprised. When they annouced Benji as the winner, I jumped three feet in the air and screamed! I didn't think I cared that much because I liked them all, but I was shocked and thrilled for him! I can't wait for next season! And in the meantime, Kelly is compiling a CD for us of our favorite songs from the show. Any suggestions?

Well, it has been eight hours since I started this. I'm sure there was more I would have blogged about if I had had time each day. But alas, I do what I can. It was fun to post again. l'd do it more if Ethan would nap! He fell asleep today in the stroller on the way to Emily's Kindergarten Evaluation and was woken by the hail storm we had to walk home in! A day in my life... sheesh!