The Best of Times

A Christmas Gift

2012-01-23T20:54:00.000-08:00

Alexa got a new apron for Christmas. I made it for her. I guess you could say I cheated. Okay, I cheated, bigtime. It was an already sewn, denim apron. I just "customized" it for her, but she appreciates it like I sewed every stitch myself.

She couldn't wait to try it out. So for the Feast of Saint Agnes, she and I made a vanilla cake together.

Nevermind that it was from a box. She still cracked the eggs (which was hysterical to watch because she was so grossed out by the "gook" inside), and measured the oil and water. She mixed it all up with the beater and helped me pour it into the pan.

We went a little "fancy" with the bundt cake pan. It turned out to be a pretty, tasty cake.

We made a glaze from scratch using vanilla, milk and powdered sugar. We kinda guessed with the measurements on that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~Some snowflake sprinkles were added for a finishing touch.

I thought that was the finishing touch, but apparently Alexa decided it needed some color and pizzazz and glammed it up a bit with green sugar sprinkles when my back was turned. "Now it's finished!" she declared.

It was almost gone by the end of our Teatime. ~~~~~~~~~~~~

We managed to save some for Taylor.

I've missed these relaxing Afternoon Teas. And so have the kids, apparently. Of course who am I kidding? They are crazy for cake. They like hearing an interesting story or two about a Saint, but everything is better with cake.

We didn't do a craft with this Teatime. I was trying to keep it low key. I was pleasantly surprised by how much Evan remembered about Saint Agnes. I have been reading to him every day....one Bible Story and one Saint Story, but I wasn't sure just how much he was retaining (or even paying attention). The girls each knew a bit about her, too, so we discussed her heroic life during the Caketime.....I mean, Teatime. ;)

Alexa's handmade (....ahem....) apron held up very well, and she can't wait till we bake again!

Have a pleasant week, everyone!
TTFN
~Tina

On a Reading Frenzy

2012-01-22T06:28:00.000-08:00

I think I mentioned in a Daybook once, that I had long since gotten out of the habit of reading books for me. Just for me. For pleasure.

I read for information and knowledge and inspiration.

I read to educate, to entertain and to share and bond with my children. Picture books, chapter books. Lots of delightful books, really, and I enjoyed, still enjoy, reading stories with my kids.
It's one of my favorite things in the world to do.

But, over this past summer I began reading for me again, just for fun! And it is so fun! I completely enjoy it!
I have found that 13 year old girl inside myself again. The one who can't wait to slip away and become deeply involved in someone elses life. It feels like I'm right there for the ride of their lives! I have laughed and cried. I've become angry at the injustice (and stupidity in some cases) and have been so anxious to see what's going to happen next! (To the point of losing sleep because I can't put the book down!)

I am thrilled with books now.

I will continue to read to my kids, because that's just a wonderful experience for all of us. It's one of the best parts of being a parent. You get to sit, super-snuggly-close if you want to and dive into another world with your favorite little people! And afterwards you can talk about it, if they want to and it can open doors to all kinds of great conversations and insight into their cute little minds and how they feel about things.

Awesome.

I want to start a personal log or journal of sorts. I want to list all the books I've read and review them, for myself, to know if I should ever venture to reread them or recommend them to a friend.

But before I go on, I should mention that I do not care at all for cheesy romance novels.

Ick. Blech. Gross.

I gave them a fair shake, too, I have to say. I wanted some sweet little Christmas stories to read during Advent. Just something with a cozy feel to it. I ordered 2 from the library. They had good recommendations from other readers.

Ick. Blech. Gross.

I finished them because I didn't want to feel defeated or like I gave up too soon. "Maybe it will get better" I'd say to myself. No. It did not. Both books were just cheesy. Possibly they are just not my style. Maybe they rated so high because there are a lot of other people who prefer this kind of book. So if you do, don't go by my judgement. They were just not for me.

I don't shun romance in books always. I like the classic Pride and Prejudice and such. But this modern day malarky. It just left me with a feeling of, "Really?.....oh come on!"

Now that I dissed a certain type of book, I should mention some I liked. I've always like Little House books. They take me back to my 13 year old-book-lovin' self. Maybe that's why they still appeal to me. I recently reread The Little House on the Prairie and The Long Winter and enjoyed them both immensely. Good wintertime reads.

I also read more from my kids shelves......The Cottage at Bantry Bay series (it was ok), The Letzenstein Chronicles (4 books....loved them all), And a bunch of other classics.

More recently I read The Secret Life of Bees (good book!), and The Hunger Games (excellent, excellent book!). I ordered the 2nd one from The Hunger Games series from the library and it should be in by next week. CANT WAIT! And my sister recommended books by Patricia Cornwell (I think that was her name). I will order a book by her from the library, once I finish the Hunger Games series.

In the mean time I'm reading Eat, Pray, Love. I've just begun to read it tonight so I can't say how I feel about it yet. Perhaps I will let you know in a future post.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It snowed again last night, just a little. Just enough to put a layer of fluff on top of the ice, which is on top of a ground layer of snow. Looks cold out there! I'll find out later when we venture out for Mass.

Well, stay warm everyone! And if you come across any interesting fiction stories (without the gush), let me know!

TTFN
~Tina

If You Fill Them, They Will Come

2012-01-14T17:35:00.000-08:00

That is a cheesy title. Yes, I'm aware of this. It's all I've got right now.

We have bird feeders in one of the trees in our back yard. I've mentioned this before. The tree is pretty close to the house and very visible from the school room window. We only fill it during the winter. I kept putting it off this year, but finally got to it this week. Evan's pretty happy about it. The birds fluttering around the tree and eating off the feeders in the back yard add just a teensy bit of excitement to our rather drab looking wintertime back yard.

We filled them Friday.

We get tons of birds here, as you can tell by all the nests.

And Alexa and Evan left some treats for the bunnies, too.

We went inside and had some ......um.....hot.....liquid ....drink that is sweet. And chocolatey. I'm sure you can't imagine what it is (sarcasm). Actually I'm pretty sure you could guess as I seem too have an addiction or unhealthy obsession with the stuff this time of year. I can't help it! It's good stuff!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today we checked the feeders before breakfast and they seemed to be untouched. Evan was disappointed but I told him it takes a little while for the birds, squirrels and bunnies to realize that the buffet has reopened.

By mid afternoon, one of those critters must have gotten the word out, though.

We had a pair of cardinals stop for lunch, too, but they didn't stick around for a picture.

I'm looking forward to getting the Blue Jays and hopefully a woodpecker now and then this winter.

The ninja squirrels stopped by the tree at one point, too, but we didn't see any rabbits.

It's been a mostly indoors kinda day today, because it's so cold. I really don't care for the cold at all, but whatcha gonna do.

I'm trying to enjoy the seasons as they come but I really, really, really can't wait till our beach trip this summer. You think I talk about hot chocolate too much? Wait till the beach trip gets near. I will probably never shut up about it.

Hope you're having a sunshiney weekend with your favorite people!

~Tina

Relaxed Winter Schooling at Home

2012-01-12T06:56:00.000-08:00

I love days like these.

Days that have a schedule, but not really.

We have things to accomplish, many things to learn, but not a list of places to be with rigorous time constraints.

That's when our learning feels more natural.

Some subjects, like handwriting, really do require sitting at a desk or table. And with Evan, the core subjects work best at my desk because he understands he needs to try to focus when we sit there (although I do have to mix it up a bit with him to get his wiggles out).

But I love it when we can relax on the floor as the sun shines through, or get cozy on the couch as I read to the kids and we discuss history or their religion lessons. It just feels right.

I especially love it when it's in the middle of Winter, and it's freezing cold outside, but yet the sun is shining. And the warm sunbeams are streaming in through the curtains, stretching across the floor in our front room.

I can totally see why cats tend to sit right in those sunny spots.

I hope you are enjoying your Winter!

TTFN
~Tina

Snowy Monday!......and yes, it's another post that ends in hot chocolate.

2012-01-11T14:45:00.000-08:00

Every morning, I check the weather on the internet, as I sip my coffee. On Monday, the weathermen called for some rain, but that was about it. We went about our day....breakfast, prayers, school, lunch.

I checked the weather after lunch briefly too, when I checked my email (and facebook....yes, I'm on facebook), while the kids were on their freetime break. At this point there was a chance of a few flurries....perhaps a dusting in some areas.

I was really hoping we'd get something.....something. I knew it wouldn't be much, but just something that could pile up a little, and get the kids excited.

Within just a few minutes, some really nice, fat flakes came cascading down out of the sky. I called Evan to the sliding glass doors to look out and man do I wish I was video taping that moment. His face went from a "what, mom?" to a "OH.MY.GOSH.LOOK AT THAT!!!" He started jumping up and down and exclaiming "It's snowing! It's snowing! It's snowing!"

I kept telling him it wasn't going to last or pile up at all, but we should still enjoy watching out the window it while it lasts. But who was I kidding? We couldn't just stay inside and watch from behind the glass. We had to take this moment in and get as much out of it as we could!

In Northern Virginia, snow is a hit or miss situation.
An all or nothing. And the weather forecasters were positive this was a nothing.

We have, in the past, been in the direct line of an awesome, snowpounding, whiteout, blizzard of a storm. And we have also had winter's go by with only a flake or two dropping by for a very brief visit.
Every year it's anybody's guess how much snowfall we'll get around here.

Those whopper storms are only every few years, when everything in the universe aligns just right. They are very rare.

So I wasn't about to let this moment (and that's all this might be....a brief snow moment) go by without at least trying to catch a measly snowflake or two with our tongues, without feeling soft, cold snowflakes landing on our eyelashes. We had to get out there...... fast, before it just stopped.

So I went into hyperdrive to get ready (and procrastinated, yet again, with taking down the tree).......and we bundled up and headed out to the back yard.

We laughed, and ran around a bit. The ground wasn't even covered, so the yard was kinda muddy.

I need to get a cute hat like Sky's. I had to borrow John's since I don't have my own.

A walk on the sidewalk (and out of the mud) amidst the snow flurries seemed like a good idea. We went through the neighborhood, breathing in the cold, fresh air. It's quite invigorating and makes you feel so alive, taking a walk like that.

We did start to feel a little too "invigorated" and the kids began complaining a bit of frozen toes, fingers, noses, etc. I think they were just in "kahoots", trying to get sympathy so they could talk me into some hot chocolate.

Little did they know I had planned on it, already. I mean come on....if you've ever read this blog before or know me at all, you know that boatloads of my winter posts end with hot chocolate. I love the stuff. Don't judge me. ;)

We peeled off the wet/slightly muddy clothes (one of the children....not mentioning any names.....ahem.... nine year old girl), thought it would be cool to try to make a snow angel in the whopping 1/18 inch of snow in the backyard.

In case you are wondering, it doesn't work. It just melts the snow in that one spot she landed, and smashes the grass and smears the mud in an almost recognizable angel formation.

She does get an A for effort and bonus points for enthusiasm! We love that girl! (who still shall remain nameless)

Everyone got dry and cozy and then we sipped our hot chocolate and ate the last of our gingerbread family. We hate to see them go. Actually we like to see them go, because they are yummy!
But we hate to see them gone. :(

You're not really shocked by the vast array of Swiss Miss I keep on hand, are you?

Taylor was at school, so she didn't get the walk in the snow with us. Well, actually she did get the walk in the snow, but just not with us. The snow kept falling and she had to walk from her bus stop, so I guess she did have her walk in the snow. And I made her some of my fancy shmancy hot chocolate when she got in. :)

And as an added bonus to my day....the tree is dooooowwwwwnnnnn!
YES!
I win.

TTFN
Happy Winter, Everyone!
~Tina

They Made Me Do It

2012-01-07T20:31:00.000-08:00

Okay, not really.

They didn't make me do it.

It was more like "convinced me to see the benefits of it".

I was all set to take the tree down today.

...and the outside lights and decorations.

When Alexa gets in her silly moods, she has Evan in hysterics! I know this picture is a little blurred, but it really captures just how much his big sister amuses him.

I know this warm weather was perfect to get those down.

But as Evan and Alexa also pointed out, these warmer days are rare.

And fresh air and mild temps will soon be only something we long for as we look forward to Spring.

So how could I say no to spending some time with 2 of my favorite people in our backyard on an evening like this?

I just couldn't.

So the tree still stands, fully decorated.

And we are one of the last people in our neighborhood with the outside lights still up.

I'm okay with this.

There's always tomorrow.

Wonder what they'll talk me into next. ;)

In my defense, though, the house did get cleaned on Friday

....bathrooms, kitchen, dusting and some laundry.

So, we'll just have to see about tomorrow.

I'm not worried.

Hope you are making the most of your weekend. :)

~Tina

It Makes My Heart Glow

2012-01-07T06:54:00.000-08:00

Evan says this now, anytime someone does something kind, or says something kind to him.

"It makes my heart glow"

And he smiles.

I know I'm probably partial to that smile, in fact I'm sure I am,

But that smile makes my heart glow.

This was on an afternoon I had planned to clean.

Evan had other plans for us.

He said, "The girls get to have a fun afternoon, why can't we?"

(He was refering to them being dropped off at their Girls Club)

I knew he was right

but it is hard to put the work aside sometimes.

and I know the work needs to be done,

but on this day

after a specific request from my son,

how could I say no?

We played "monster tag",

and he giggled so hard he had to stop running at times.

And we discussed our shadows

as I pushed him on the swing.

When our shadows hid from us, and the wind picked up

it was time to head to the van for water

and to warm up a bit.

Then time to head home, where I faced this...

The tree that needs taken down.

Remind me to fire my little "house cleaning fairies".

They suck.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But I continued to ignore that mess

and instead enjoyed more time with my boy.

I'm so glad I listened to my boy

and my heart.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This day, this special time with Evan

really made my heart glow.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Make it special!

~Tina

And for the record, the cleaning fairies never came,

but I managed to clean it all the next day.

And the tree comes down today.

Good Morning to Me

2012-01-06T21:33:00.000-08:00

First thing in the morning

His sweet little boy hands

Showing me how much he loves me

It's the perfect way to wake up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Have a nice day :)

Daybook Looking Back on Advent (long post warning)...but pictures included so it's okay.

2012-01-05T21:41:00.000-08:00

For today, Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

(actually very late the night before through...umm Thursday night...took me a while to complete this thing!)

I am thinking:

Do I really want to start this post so late at night? It's been so long and I miss it, so...yeah, I'll go for it.

Outside my window:

It's very cold, and dark of course. It's not raining or snowing or windy.

I am wearing :

A new purple jammies set that I got from my in-laws for Christmas. The pants have peace symbols and winking smiley faces on them. They would suit Skylar very well.

Doesn't matter to me what's on them. All I know is they are a soft, warm fleece and I never want to take them off.

Ever.

It has a matching solid purple top that is cotton, with a plunging neckline I could do without. But the pants are delish.

And I'm wearing some purple and pink striped fluffy slippers.

I am hearing:

Evan's peaceful breathing and the white noise of the sound machine.

I am hoping:

Evan gets over his stomach virus quickly and that no one else gets it. Part of what makes Winter such a crappy season is the abundance of illnesses.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am also hoping that my kids enjoyed their Advent season and that I didn't wreck some wonderful moments with my "stressing tantrums".

Grownups can be such babies sometimes!

(yes, I am refering to me)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our simplest traditions are always a hit.

Evan gets so excited when I bring out our Christmas picture books and Children's Nativity sets. We have the Little People Set and the Playmobil Nativity.

The kids always enjoy baking. I know they would prefer we bake from scratch
(simply because it tends to be messier and messier = funner around here).

And we do, on occasion, but I'm ok with using ready-to-go-dough.

I know this disqualifies me as a contender for "Mom of the Year", but I've made my peace with that.

The Christmas parade was exciting. We haven't seen it since Taylor and Skylar were really little, so we were all looking forward to it.

We had fun during most of the parade and it was a beautiful, chilly day.

Taylor invited a friend to go to the parade with us, but unfortunately she got sick partway through and her mom had to come and pick her up. Poor thing. Not the best experience for your first time at a parade, which is what it was for her.
We need to take her with us next year so she can have a much more pleasant parade experience.

The parade was so cheery and festive.......
............and long,
so Evan didn't quite make it to the end.

I'm lovin' the shoes. They must share my affinity for Elf Culture. ;)

Thankful for:

Meaningful Advent Traditions

A local Catholic high school hosts a St. Nicholas Day Carnival of Saints every year.
We've attended for the last 6 years or so, and they look forward to it each Advent.

Our Saint Nicholas Day Celebrations here at home are a tradition I started with my kids a few years ago. They awaken to find a few small gifts and treats in their shoes. This year, though, they found their treats in cozy, new slippers.

We own The Miracle of Saint Nicholas, but the other two are from the library. Evan's favorite is The Baker's Dozen.

This is supposed to be a the Mitre of Saint Nicholas. Before you go all "cookie critic" on me, you must realize I cut them "freehand" and it was a last minute idea for the treat for Evan's K Group which I was hosting that day. It got cancelled due to many ill children, so we enjoyed them at home as part of our own celebration. Poor sick K Group....
but very fortunate older siblings in our house. ;)

This year we participated in our home school groups Advent Retreat for Children.
The children were divided into two age groups.
There are some amazing ladies who volunteered to organize and run this and it was a pleasure to see them in action with the kids. Skylar and Alexa were in the older group, and I stayed to help out a little with Evan's group.
My mom was still in town from her Thanksgiving visit, so she assisted with me.
It was a great morning focusing on the real meaning of Christmas with the children.
I have pictures from this event, but don't want to post them without the permission of the wonderful mom-in-charge of our group.

Our Advent Wreath is always special and important.
Unfortunately, I was not so good at remembering to light it at mealtime this year. It did sit there, in the middle of our dinner table, reminding us of this important season of waiting. But I just kept forgetting to light it.
As Sky would say, "Epic Fail, Mom".
Well, at least I can get another year out of those candles.
(I'm a glass half full kinda girl)

Guess I should have cropped out the paper plates and water bottle first. Oopsie.

Next year I hope to majorly simplify my plans.

But it's going to be hard to decide what to remove.

It will take some serious thinking about what wasn't necessary this year, and what just didn't go over well. There are certain things the kids would really miss.

Some of their fave's have nothing to do with the true meaning of Christmas, but they don't take away from it, either.

If I tried to skip these traditions, my children would at best, stop speaking to me and at worst, probably tie all my shoelaces together and stick bleach in my shampoo bottle.

So for starters, I think we'll keep decorating those gingerbread houses.

My kids couldn't imagine December without them.

Praying for:

My dad's wife, my sister n laws mom, John's sisters, a local family that lost their young mother, another local family that lost their 15 yr. old daughter shortly before Christmas.....

From the kitchen:

in December it was fudge, cookies, and sweets and treats of all kinds. The regular meals were rushed quite a bit some days, so usually not the healthiest.

But we are gettiing back on track, so our diets need to be brought back to the real food groups.

Not the ones in Elf (candy, candy canes, candy corn, sugar and syrup).

Looking back:

to Skylar's 13th birthday! My children are growing up so fast! I have two teenagers now?!

What?!

How?!

Looking ahead:

Some birthday parties that my girls are invited to, Evan's K group getting back in session, Girls Club, karate, dance, Taylor getting her permit, Taylor turning 16!, Taylor's trip to NY, some exciting field triips for the younger kids, a Valentine's Day party for the younger kids.....

In my heart:

Cherishing moments we spent with family on our trip to Pittsburgh.

(so many photos in the post already...will save those for another day)

Right now:

hittin the post button on this sucker and hittin' the sheets!

This week:

is practically over, but we do need to clean tomorrow and take down the tree....and Sky has a Christmas party to attend, and Alexa has dance....and Tay hopes to go out with a friend.

Well, this took forever to write. I know there were a ton of pics and a lot of focus on this past Advent, but I wanted to reflect on it a little before moving on.

Sorry if it was boring, but I like to have it recorded her for myself, too.

Well, have a great weekend!

TTFN

~Tina

2012

2012-01-02T01:45:00.000-08:00

It's here.

A new year.

We are older, and hopefully wiser.

In a year's time, you are bound to learn some things.

Many things, hopefully.

Important things and some seemingly trivial things too, I'm sure.

Life is a process, a series of experiences that teach us about many, many things.

Some of the things we learn are important to our jobs, our daily tasks, our survival.

Some are important to our soul.

I am being very vague here, partly because the important things we learn vary from person to person.

I can only tell you what they are for me.

In 2011 I tried to be "present"..... to really listen. In the moment. Appreciating what I have, who I have, right now. In front of me. Talking to me. Sharing something with me.

I failed.

I tried, and when I didn't get caught up in the "rush rush, hurry hurry" of it all, I did ok.

But many times I failed.

I am very thankful for a forgiving, merciful God. I am very thankful for a forgiving, and merciful family.

I am trying again. I try every day...somedays with more "awareness" than others.

On those days I tend to do better.

So again, for 2012 I will try to live in the moment. I will try harder to be present to those who are with me right now and really listen to them.

I'm sure I'll fail again, on many occasions.

But I will keep reminding myself every day of what's most important.

So maybe this year my goal will not only be to live in the moment, but I think I'll add "simplify".

Too much on one's plate doesn't leave much room for living in the moment.

Because you're too busy making plans for or rushing off to the next moment.

Simplify, and live in the moment. That's what I need to do.

In this moment, I need to get some sleep. It's 1:40 in the morning and I have a sick little boy. Poor thing has a stomach virus. He's really going to need me to be present to him tomorrow.

Hope this is a quick little virus that goes through his little system rapidly.

Also hope it leaves the rest of us alone.

Happy New Year to you all!
May 2012 be a year full of joyous moment and peace in your heart.

TTFN
~Tina

Another Teen..... :/

2011-12-14T06:43:00.000-08:00

We officially have another teenager living in our house.

Be afraid.

I know I am.

Just kidding!

It's Skylar's 13th Birthday, today! Happy Happy Birthday, Skylar! You rock like pickles! And we love you so, so very much!

In The Blink of an Eye

2011-12-14T06:35:00.000-08:00

Well, what d'ya know? It's mid December! How the blazes did that happen?! I want to catch you up, but I really am lacking time lately, like everyone else, I assume. It's always such a delicate balance....living life and posting about it.

I don't like short-changing either one, but if I have to, it's gonna be the "posting about it" part that will have to fall short.

I am however, going to try to catch you up....a little at a time.

Here we go.

Halloween....it was a lot of fun! It always is. It's a favorite holiday of the kids (and John) for sure.

That's our rag doll, Darth Vader and Alice in Wonderland.

Thanksgiving was awesome! It's my fave holiday for the mere fact that it's so chilled out. It's family oriented and relaxed and cozy. Did you know the word "cozy"is one of my favorite words in the universe?

My mom was here. I love that lady! The food was great! They say too many cooks spoil the broth (or something like that), well not here, baby! We all pitched in and made a wonderful dinner and dessert. Yum, yum, yummety yum!

Sky and Grandma Jo

Desserts were fantastic! I love a good meal, but dessert has always been my favorite. I am probably a horrible example to my children, with the amount of sugar I can consume. But, I try to keep it in check. ;) It's hard, though, with this selection.

Smiley Face cookies brought from PA! Yummaaaay

Sunday night, after a relaxing Thanksgiving weekend, we began our Advent with a festive drive through light show.

Everyone all cozy in the van?....yep!

It was a good way to start the Advent season, (along with Mass that we went to that Sunday morning) and it was wonderful to Grandma here with us!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On Tuesday evening, Skylar had a karate belt ceremony and Grandma was here for that, too!

You wouldn't want to run into her in a dark alley. She'd kick your butt!

Great job, Skylar!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Then Grandma had to go home. :(

It's always great to have her here....

Always hard to say goodbye.

Our Advent has been very busy, fun, exciting, full, interesting....etc. etc.

I hope to post more on that in the next few days.

Hope you are having a pleasant, peaceful, blessed Advent.

Have a great day! Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

No Matter What

2011-11-02T12:01:00.000-07:00

Evan, Sky and Alexa had a blast last Fall when we made a trip to a local farm that really "does it up" for Halloween. They have the "haunted hayride", the corn maze, tons of slides, haybales to climb on, animals of all kinds, goats to visit and feed, and tons of yummy food. All kinds of cozy comfort foods like nachos with cheese, hot chili, hot apple cider, hot chocolate (noticing a theme here?....in the crisp Autumn air, you need all that "hot" to warm up from the inside out), hot soft pretzels, hot dogs, and Kettle Corn. The food is a definite part of the charm of this place, at least for me. The kids enjoy it, too, but they are there for the action!

We had some things working against us this year. We wanted to go on the Friday before Halloween, since that is when Skylar's friend was able to come with us. But illnesses crept in at the beginning of the week. Then the forecast called for rain. Once we got through the brunt of the illnesses and were on the mend, we still had the issue of rain to deal with. They close this place when it rains. The weathermen eventually took rain out of that days weather predictions and put in chilly temps.....no, make that cold temps. Not bitter cold, just around 50 degrees. Those temps combined with Evan still having a little sinus issue, made me leary of this plan, but if we didn't go on this exact day, we wouldn't be able to go at all this year. And Evan (and the girls) wanted to go.....no matter what.

So Friday morning, the sun was shining and I took that (along with Evan's begging and pleading) as a sign that we were meant to just go for it.

The day went well. It was definitely cold, but we dressed in layers and had hats and gloves. We were as prepared as we could be.

Alexa doing her best "Tarzan", then dropping into the soft foam pit.

It was truly a ton of fun. We met some "locals".... ;)

And got a little sillaaay.....

This was a day full of laughs.

And thrills.

And a hayride with lots to see along the way! (Actually, our dear sweet tractor driver informed us we were sitting on straw, not hay. So technically it was a Straw Ride)

These guys don't look like they are from around here. ;)

It's especially exciting when it looks like it's just a bunch of "props" with some Star Wars music playing as the wagon rolls by. But then out run a couple of aliens for some meet and greet and some high 5s!

There was so much to see.....The Creepy...

One of Evan's faves....the Invisible Man

The fun.....

Right at this point the tractor driver told us the train was coming and we might not make it across!.....Then, when we least expected it, he blew a pretty freakin' loud horn, scaring children and parents alike....

Yeah, we had loads of fun on that ~~hay~~ straw ride.

That's the troll on her troll bridge up there.....threatening to not let us pass under. We had to promise her some apple cider on our next visit. Little does she know she's going to have to wait a year. Hope she's not too thirsty.

Look! It's daddy! Haha

And we got to visit some cute little animals.

This little piggie went to market, this little piggie stayed home.....

And some BIG animals.

This little piggie had some SERIOUS roast beef!

The goat pen is a part of this place we can never pass up. Especially for Alexa (my future vet). It's pretty cool that you can go inside the pen with a ton of goats all around you and just visit and play with them. (or for a dollar you can feed them an ice cream cone full of goat food)

I tell my kids this all the time. :)

We made some fun memories.....

I get by with a little help from my friends.....

or standing in front of the haystack works too.

I guess it's good that Evan and the girls were determined to go.....no matter what.
Because it ended up being a pretty awesome day. :)

The timing didn't work for Taylor joining us, since she had school. Hopefully that works out better next year.

Hope you are enjoying some of the beautiful outdoors before it gets too cold.
TTFN
~Tina

An Autumn Saturday

2011-10-22T19:22:00.000-07:00

We've been having a good weekend around here, and it's only half over. Cool! And it is quite cool, actually....outside, too. There's a really crisp Fall chill in the air and I'm likin' it.

This morning we slept in, for the most part (8 am is sleeping in with a 5 year old in the house). Skylar had karate this morning and I've been doing some laundry off and on today, too.

After lunch I took the girls to the mall and John took Evan to run a few errands. First they went for a cookie at Subway (John had a coupon for a free one) and then they picked up a few things at the grocery store and stopped in the bank quickly, too. From the report Evan gave me when the girls and I got home, he and daddy had a good time and he even got a lollypop from the teller at the bank!

The girls and I split up at the mall. Taylor and Alexa off looking for homecoming accessories for Taylor and Sky and I went in search of some Fall clothes and a coat for Sky. No luck on the coat, but 2 sweaters for her (and 2 for me. :D....), all on sale, so we were pretty happy.

This evening I made my BBQ chicken pizza while John and Taylor went to Costco. The pizza was yummmmmmaaaayyyy.

After dinner it was already getting dark but Evan wanted to play outside. It was pretty chilly, but a good chilly, not a freeeeezing chilly.

So I took him and the younger girls for a neighborhood walk in the dark, equipped with flashlights for all.

Evan and Lexa kept telliing each other scary stories as we walked along, then kept freaking out over every little noise.

I was mostly concerned about them not watching where they were going and tripping on a large random pinecone,

but everyone survived the adventure and we headed home for some hot chocolate.

Our resident magician, The Amazing Daddy, performed some magic tricks for the kids.

He amazed Evan with this one! How does he do that?! The secret is....his magical powers. :)

Taylor has a friend sleeping over tonight and we have Mass tomorrow morning. The Steelers play tomorrow, but we don't get the game. :/

I'll be planning school and checking papers in the afternoon along with finishing laundry and I'm sure the girls and Evan will get in some outside playtime. Tomorrow night is CCD and youth group.

Then Monday it's back to school/work for all.

Wait.

Nevermind Monday. Forget I said that.

Let's enjoy the weekend while we have it!

Hope you enjoy yours! Make it special!
TTFN
~Tina

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like.....Halloween

2011-10-20T09:55:00.000-07:00

My children love love love Halloween. I could give or take it. I think some people go overboard with the scary, gory stuff. I just like it for the fun of seeing the kids dress up and have a good time.

My kids have always enjoyed playing dress up. And walking outside in costume, seeing neighborhood friends in their costumes, AND filling a bag with treats, makes it all just super exciting for them. So I can't blame them a bit. I enjoyed Halloween as a kid, too.

I'm jumpin' on their bandwagon and makin' it a little festive around here.

Makin' some spooky ghosts

Decorations everywhere.......

Evan wants to make the house "spooky" so I'm pulling out everything we've got in the garage.

And I went a little "happy" with the Halloween sprinkles at dinner last night.

Sky helped (you gotta watch that girl around sprinkles....she's as bad as her mother).

The rest of the kids didn't seem to mind. Yummaaaay!

Some of Evan's nature collections from our walks. He likes to decorate the house with his "treasure".

I am enjoying this time of year with all the oranges (my favorite color), reds and yellows. The chill is in the air today so we are going to head out to enjoy it for a bit. I think I'll bake up some muffins, too. They are not homemade so don't be impressed. I just keep "add water" boxed mixes on hand for days like this. I score points in the "Fun Mom" category without all the work and hassle of it. ;)

Hope you are enjoying these colder days.

Make today a special one!

TTFN

~Tina

Feeling Really Appreciative Today. For.....

2011-10-16T06:17:00.000-07:00

A really good cup of coffee, with just the right amount of French Vanilla Creamer.
The last "flower" of the season. Picked, just for me.

Sunny, Autumn days when the warm colors of the leaves seem to sparkle as the sun sends little slivers of light through the branches of the trees. (Hope you enjoyed my poetic moment of the day.)
The playground

Nyquil. That stuff kicks major butt.
The music of The Script and Coldplay....two of my faves right now.
Saving money. Not buying cheap stuff, just getting good stuff at cheap prices. There's definitely a difference.
Waffles
Getting engrossed in a really interesting book, until I can't keep my eyes open, then drifting off to sleep at night.

Christmas shopping early. I know I shouldn't feel this way, but Christmas shopping has become a chore to me. It takes away from the special Advent season when I get consumed with my "To Do" list. So if I get the shopping mostly done before Advent begins, I can enjoy the season and share it with my children in a much more relaxed, simplified, low stress way.
Vaccuuming....it's the only part of cleaning that I actually enjoy. For real.
Porch swings. I wish we had one.
Hearing my little boy laugh so hard, he can hardly catch his breath.

Decaf coffee. I actually like the taste of decaf over regular, but I need the swift kick in the pants that regular provides.
My faith. This is obviously not a list of my faves in order of importance, or this would be way up top. My faith is a gift that I am thankful for beyond measure. It has blessed my life in so many ways.
Texting. Keeping in touch has never been easier.

Watching Steeler football games with Skylar. So glad one of my kids is a fan! I love that the Steelers don't have a bunch of sparkly, underdressed, obnoxious cheerleaders. We fans don't need encouragement to cheer for our guys!
Thanksgiving. I love the simplicity in just celebrating the blessings God has given us.
SuperTarget
Sunsets....I would probably like sunrises too, but I have no desire to get up early enough to see one.

Playing board games with my kids.
The endless energy of children.

I could go on and on. And I will, another time. Every day is a good day to look around and feel content and thankful for every one and every thing God has blessed you with.

Hope you are enjoying your weekend!

Make it a special day with those you love!

TTFN

~Tina

A Rare Occasion

2011-10-09T06:07:00.000-07:00

When the kids were little, we would go out almost every weekend. We'd go to the mall, to a restaurant, to a bookstore, something like that. Just something as a family for a little time with all of us together. The older they get, the harder that is. Everyone going in different directions. And we don't go out to eat very often anymore anyway, because of the expense and also the "unhealthiness"of it. I can cook fresh, healthy meals at home for much cheaper than most restaurants. And malls just tend to make us want to spend money we don't really have, for things we don't really need. So our "family outings" have become fewer and farther between.

But today we decided to head to a mall we haven't been to in a while. And since it was all 6 of us, we decided to make sort of a little day of it. We kept it very low key. Part of the fun is the drive there, singing and dancing in the van, everyone getting their groove on.

When we got there, we let Evan play at the little play place (can you believe he's almost too tall for it?! My baby?!). Then we stopped in the little candy store and let each of the kids pick out their favorites (and me too....I love cinnamon bears!).

Everyone got to have a little sample of their candy, just a few pieces so as to not spoil their dinner. We looked around a bit. Taylor took Sky and Alexa to Hot Topic and John, Evan and I went to Hallmark. They had some Halloween decorations that caught Evan's eye. And once we got inside, we spent some time checking out all the Hallmark Christmas ornaments.

That was about it for the mall. It was crowded and we were just window shopping anyway, so it was enough time spent there. Then we headed to dinner. We went to the Silver Diner. What a fun place to eat. I originally wanted to go for the nostalgia, but after checking out the new menu.....wow....the food was so good! They have healthy menu options now too (always a plus).

The kids got a kick out of the cardboard cars that come with the kids meals and the jukebox at each table.

It was a lot of fun.

Oh, but as a side note....to the people in the booth behind us. It is not cool to choose "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor over and over and over again from your juke box for the rest of us to suffer through. Really?! There should be a limit on the number of times you can play a song. At one point I was pretty sure the person choosing the song was NOT going to survive the meal, if Taylor could figure out exactly who they were. I am quite thankful the food was so good, because that song, repeatedly, was enough to make us lose our appetites. And Taylor was about to go out of her mind.

But, we didn't let it ruin our time. We had a blast, as a family out together.

My kids are some really cool people. And they are fun to hang out with. Their dad isn't so bad either.

We should do this more often.

Hope your weekend is wonderful and that you are making the most of it, with those you love the most!
TTFN
~Tina

A Super Deluxe Fun Afternoon

2011-10-07T05:54:00.000-07:00

Anything worth getting excited about is "super deluxe" to Evan. That's his term for it and I love it.

He and I spent the afternoon together today. Taylor was at school, John at work and Sky and Alexa had a girls club to go to. Everyone was out and about except my little guy and I (or is it "me"....grammar is not my strong point).

Anyhoo, it was so freakin' gorgeous out that we could not pass up the chance to grab some of that sunshine for ourselves. So after we dropped off the girls we went on a nature walk.

Evan thought we were just going through the neighborhood and he was A-OK with that, but I had a teensy bit more in store.

When he was little, as in still-in-a-stroller-not-able-to-walk-yet little, I would take the kids to this pond/walking path/playground tucked back in a neighborhood near our house. Since he has no recollection of this, he had no idea this place existed.

We began our walk and he seemed to be cool with it, then he caught sight of the pond. He said, "Whoa! That's a BIG pond!" It is kinda big actually, especially for just being smack dab in the midst of suburbia.

We walked closer and saw some action in the water.....some turtles and frogs.

He had a bit of trouble seeing them as their camouflage was working well for them, but I pointed out the circular ripples in the water and how they indicate movement.

He thought that was pretty neat and was trying hard to see them.

But then he slipped and hit his knee on the edge of the walkway. It wasn't too bad and he didn't cry but he just kept rubbing it and moving it around and that's when he noticed the playground not too far off.

Then suddenly the nature became somewhat boring and old news to him and off he went. He healed quickly at that point too. Oh the healing powers of a beckoning playground. :)

It was a small playground right next to the path that was next to the lake, so I was able to still watch the pond and him at the same time. I noticed some geese and ducks. They were causing a bit of a ruckus.....maybe a territorial thing. I don't know, but they were noisy.

That got Evan's attention back to nature. He came over to the fence at the edge of the pond to watch with me. He thought they were "pretty cool".

The ducks and geese noticed us and seemed to be quite accustomed to people because they started heading across the pond, towards us.....at a rapid pace.

(We had a bit of an incident with the feathered ones in the past, when I used to bring the kids here. We would bring bread to feed them, but then they get to where they demanded it. They'd get pretty feisty. It's like they're thinking...."yo! you looked at us, we came over, now give us bread!.....or else!" )

So having learned from the past. I got Evan back to the playground and within a few minutes they were heading back to the other shore. I felt a small sense of relief.

I wasn't that worried to begin with. I could take on the geese. Yeah there might be 15 of them, but I'm much taller. I could take'em, if they wanted to start something.

The geese were cracking me up a bit as I noticed them dunking their heads down in the water for food. It reminded me of a scene from the movie Aristocats. The scene where the 2 geese are trying to find O'Malley who went under water. They say, "Bottoms up!".....

then "Deeper!"....all said in their English accents so it sounds more like "deepah".

I always loved that part.

We played a bit more at the playground then continued on and saw a butterfly and some interesting trees and little wildflowers and eventually a weeping willow tree. Very cool. We both felt the tree looked like a sad person with their shoulders and head just hanging low. We agreed it's a beautiful tree though.

We headed back on the path (avoiding eye contact with the ducks and geese, for obvious reasons) and after another brief stop at the playground, then went home.

We had some yummy cookies and milk! We made the cookies yesterday! They are Halloween shapes with icing and sprinkles on top. They look almost too good to eat.

Then Evan and I watched a Winnie the Pooh Halloween movie and snuggled on the couch till it was time to pick up the girls. Awesome afternoon.

Beautiful weather, great company, refreshing walk. I love that little guy!

It was a Super Deluxe Thursday afternoon!

Hope you have a super deluxe weekend, too!

Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

But seriously....a word to the wise....watch out for those "innocent looking" feathered ones.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-05T20:39:00.000-07:00

Go HERE for more Wordless Wednesday posts. :)

The Simple Woman's Daybook

2011-10-02T20:13:00.000-07:00

For Today: Sunday, October 2nd, 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am hearing.....

the heat kicking on. I am not a fan of putting the heat on too early in the Fall as it seems to lead to dry skin, static everywhere, chapped lips, etc., but it was feeling really cold in this house last night. My numb feet could attest to this.

I am wearing......

light blue long sleeved jammie tee, and light blue striped jammie pants. I also have my sage green throw over my shoulders. With the heat on, I am still chilly. I would love to move to Florida....if my entire family would come with us. Guess I better adapt to the cold.

Outside my window......

seems cloudy so far. And it's only about 46 degrees.....brrrrrr.

(I miss summer!)

I am thinking.......

I miss summer!....and I hope we can get through these cold viruses soon, so we can start enjoying some of the fun outdoor events of Fall.

Thankful for..............

a positive attitude yesterday. Even though we couldn't make it to the Fall Festival like we usually do (because of Evan and I being sick), Alexa came up with the idea of decorating for Halloween. And so that, along with watching some fun Halloween movies, eating popcorn, ordering pizza, putting on a Halloween CD and jamming with Glow Sticks to Monster Mash and other "Scary" tunes, saved the day from being a total bummer. My kids were rockin' out in the dark with glowing rings all over their bodies. They used the glow sticks as drum sticks, and had a blast.

I am reading...........

Caddie Woodlawn. I am working my way through all the books on our shelves. I need to get some grown up reads, I really do, but in the meantime, I read what's available. I am really enjoying books....more than I have in years!

In my prayers...........

my mom and aunt who are on retreat.....for their safe return home. For my dad, whose health always concerns me. I'm so glad I got to talk to him last night. It was a short conversation because I have laryngitis, but at least he knows I was thinking of him, as always. For all unborn babies everywhere. That they will be welcomed into the world by their loving mothers and fathers and seen as the true gift they are.

I was hoping.....

to participate in the prolife chain that reaches across our town today. We always try to participate in the prayer chain, showing our support for an end to the tragedy of abortion. But being sick this year means we'll have to miss.

I am hoping......

The 40 Days for Life recently began, so I hope to be a physical part of that sometime over the next few weeks. The innocent victims of abortion are always in our prayers, but I would like to more fully participate, once we are well, by praying outside the local abortion clinic.

From the kitchen..........

bbq chicken pizza, pulled bbq chicken sandwiches, salsa chicken, grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, green pepper casserole etc. Back to the warm-your-house-and-tummy recipes of the cold weather months.

As for education.......

(prepare yourself for some bragging) my oldest attends public high school. She did so well last school year that her GPA earned her an award at her school. There were only 60 in the school of 2000! We are proud of her hard work and dedication.

Skylar is taking classes at a nearby church and she is enjoying herself (and learning) a lot. The classroom environment is fairly new to her (other than CCD and VBS) and she's handling it well. She's made a few friends, too.

And Alexa is working hard on her schoolwork. She's a bright girl and works well independantly, for the many of her subjects.

Evan hasn't had "school" for the past week due to illness. Colds...go away! Right now!

please?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The liturgical year.....

Feast of The Guardian Angels:

Angel of God, My Guardian Dear,

To whom God's love commits me here,

Ever this day, be at my side,

To light and guard

To rule and guide

Amen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more Daybook Entries, stop by Peggy's. :)

I hope your weekend is/was cozy and enjoyable! Make every day count!

TTFN

~Tina

Back to Normal

2011-08-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

Irene came......and went.

For us it was just rain, rain and more rain.....and a little wind.

No power outages, no flooding, no downed trees.

I am not complaining one bit. I am quite relieved about the whole thing.

We played it safe and prepared and just rode out the storm which for our area, ended up being much milder than originally predicted. That was very good.

We just spent the day playing games, watching movies, talking and eating. And Taylor had her friend Shen over, so they were mostly hanging out in her room (which is why she's not in any pics).

Skylar and Alexa worked together in their room for a time, making some videos together. Some of them singing, some of them just being silly. It passed the time, took their mind off any worry about the storm and they had a good time together. (And the silly videos are hysterical!)

Our damages were......~~very little~~ nonexistent.
.
See for yourself....

Nope, don't think we'll be sending these pics into Nationwide to make a claim. Don't think they care much about that tipped plant on my front porch or the "leaf damage" on my back deck.

No damage.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We are fortunate and I thank God we are OK. I know many people are dealing with major damage to their homes and property and lives were even lost due to this powerful storm. My heart goes out to them and their families.

A local girl, about my daughter's age, was coming back to Manassas from a vacation with her family. Due to the power being out, the traffic light wasn't working and she lost her life in a tragic car accident.

My prayers go out to all who are suffering from the ravages of Irene.

Hope this next week is filled with beautiful (and safe) weather.

TTFN
~Tina

Waiting for Irene

2011-08-27T13:08:00.000-07:00

Irene is chuggin' up the coast. I am hoping and praying for the safety of those in the direct line of fire. Sadly, there have already been some casualties in North Carolina.

We here on the western outskirts of DC are under a Tropical Storm Warning. So we made preparations, but we aren't going to panic. No need. I filled all of our flashlights/lamps with batteries. Hard to find D batteries as of yesterday, but after 2 stores, we managed. I thanked God for that one.

We have 2 cases of water. Not really sure why that's necessary for us, but we do drink bottled water even when we're not under the threat of severe weather. So it will not be wasted.

I have lighters and candles. We have gas in our vehicles and plenty of nonperishable foods. I also have charcoal for the grill in case the power goes out for a few days. We'll be fine.

I ran to the store this morning for some Tropical Storm Yummies......ice cream and cones, chips, and the makings for home made pizza. Now we just wait and go on with life as usual.

I took some pictures on my way back.....

Dreary and dismal, but rather uneventful so far. I am not complaining.

Uneventful is good.

So in the meantime, before Irene arrives, I thought I'd let the kids have a little fun.......

They got a little wet, but it was warm, so I'm sure they'll be fine. Better than fine, actually, because they needed that little bit of fresh air and freedom.

It's been an interesting weather week here on the east coast.
Hope you are safe and sound, wherever you are.

TTFN
~Tina

Soakin It Up While We Can.....

2011-08-27T06:42:00.000-07:00

We were taking advantage of an absolutely beautiful day. The kids thought it was pretty cool that they could take a stroll across the country before we even walked into the park. :)

Alexa catchin' some rays in Florida ;)

We went to the playground on this gorgeous, sunny, low humidity day.

Perfect day for swinging and climbing and sliding and enjoying the last rays of the warm summer sun.

It was just slightly breezy and the sky was so blue, just a perfect clear blue.

After many hot, humid days that kept us stuck inside, I think the general consensus of this day was, "WAHOOOO!"

So much swinging for Evan. "Push me higher"......."higher, Mommy, higher".

Then the earth shook. I literally looked at my feet to see if I was imagining the movement. It felt, perhaps because I was standing on mulch, like the earth got jiggly....kinda like I was standing on a soft mattress and someone else jumped on.

Then I heard loud noises behind me. I turned and saw the large metal poles of the basketball hoops rattling back and forth. I looked up, thinking there must be a helicopter flying VERY low overhead.

But no, that wasn't it. All of my children were on swings, and didn't feel a thing. There was no one right near me that I could exchange looks with. The kind of looks that could confirm that I was not losing my mind.

Luckily, my sister saved me from questioning my sanity any longer.

She called, from Pittsburgh, and said, "Where are you?" I said, "the park".
She said, "did you feel that?".

I was thinking how in the heck could she know the earth just moved under my feet here in VA, the whole way up in Pittsburgh....within a few minutes?!

Apparently the earth shook her up there, too. And she confirmed her suspicion online.

Yay for me being sane! Yay for my sister helping me to realize it! And yay for a beautiful (end of) summer day!

Oh.....

and before we left the park, we came across this little guy.

Maybe he came out because he was as freaked out as I was when he felt the earth shake.

We didn't take him home, but I named him anyway. I was gonna come up with something "cheesy" dealing with Earthquake. Something like Shakes, or Quakes, but I like just plain Herbert.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! We are expecting some sort effects of Hurricane Irene. We are under a Tropical Storm Warning. We are prepared, but not expecting much in our location.

Happy weekend!
Stay Safe!
TTFN
~Tina

Just Ducky

2011-08-23T06:38:00.001-07:00

These little guys crossed our path this morning. So adorable! They reminded me of a class of young children, the way they were all in line, single file. And yes they did safely make it to the other side.

TTFN

~Tina

Their Moonlanding

2011-08-19T19:49:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, growing up in small town, PA, we looked so forward to our summer carnival. It was for one week every summer, third week in July (and still is). It was the highlight of the summer, especially when I was a teenager. It was full of games, rides, familiar faces, cute boys, great food and fireworks (on the last night). It was a blast! Excitement seemed to fill the whole town as evening approached and the carnival was about to begin. It was referred to as the Moon Landing celebration, appropriately named for our town. I have made the trip to PA at the right time some years, and have taken my children to this exciting event. Only it wasn't as exciting for them as I remember it being for me. They enjoyed it very much, but it isn't "theirs".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My children don't have that annual carnival here where we live. We have The Fair. It's about 5 minutes from our house and I've taken the kids almost every year since they were really little. We missed last year and when I mentioned to Taylor that we were going this year, I saw it. I saw in her the same excitement I used to feel, back in my home town. She was pretty happy about my decision to make a point of going this year. We ordered the tickets ahead of time, so I couldn't change my mind. ;)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We went on Wednesday, before the rides opened so we could continue our tradition of visiting the animals first.

These were my favorites! The three little pigs! So freakin' cute! I know they are pigs and will grow up and more than likely be pretty stinky buggers, but right now I could just pick them up and snuggle the cuteness right out of them!

This mama and baby were precious, too....

On to the rides! Taylor was planning on meeting her boyfriend there, but he was coming a little later. So Taylor and Skylar took off for a while to ride the big, fast, you're-out-of-your-mind rides, while I took the younger two to the sane rides.The one below looks like a regular round the track car ride, but it's actually like the whip at Kennywood in PA. He loved it! And poor Alexa was a teensy bit jealous that she was too tall.

Evan's favorite thing in the whole place. Yeah, he loved being able to jump, and jump and jump. Wish I had a room in my house for this.

Game time......go fishing and win a

light saber. okay.

Or a cute little purple monkey. Alexa won the banana at a different game. Look at the expression on the banana's face. He's like, "I knew she couldn't resist my charm". Little does he know, he's just a food source for that monkey.

We caught up with Taylor and Sky at this ride. I remember riding this same ride at our carnival with my big sister. It was my first fast ride EVER. She kept telling me to laugh.....instead of panic and embarrass her, I assume. But it worked. And I loved it after that.

Tattoos....panda for Sky

Malifiscent for Alexa (it glows in the dark)

This very cool contraption is an old fashioned homemade ice cream maker. The ice cream it makes is quite yummy.

Sky and I had the peach, Evan and Alexa had chocolate. Wish I had a spare room for that machine.

We took our ice cream over to wait for a magic show. Got great seats that way, and had a place to sit down to eat. Sky volunteered to join in the show. I have a whole video of it. She had fun with it.

A very large balloon.....he used a leaf blower to blow it up. no joke.

Alexa got to pet the little magic bunny used in the show.

This lovely "hat" was from her role in the show. Oh yeah, she got her cow groove on. Really, you'll have to see the video. I'll try to get on that.

There is a ride I've seen at the fair many times. I wouldn't have even rode it as a teen, during my bravest years. It looks like a nightmare to me. It combines spinning, jostling around and very tight spaces. No, no, nopety no. Sky was game. She begged me to let her go on. Well, I can't let my fears influence my children, or at least I shouldn't. So I let her go on. Wow. (found out later that Taylor rode it too)As you can see, she survived. And then went right back on. You go girl! Better you than me.

Bumper cars! Who doesn't love bumper cars?!A fun house....they said it was fun, anyway. I didn't go in, so I couldn't say. I'll take their word for it.

We met up with Taylor and her boyfriend. They reminded me of my teen years, going to our carnival when John and I were dating. Ahhh....the good ol' days. To be young again.

Getting late.....time for some final rides....

We spent several hours at the fair, and made lots of memories. The kids all thanked me profusely and said what a fun day it was. I think we need to go back again next year, too. I'm pretty sure they'll agree.

Hope your summer is still a blast! Enjoy every second of it! Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

So......Whatcha Reading?

2011-08-16T20:25:00.001-07:00

When I was a very young girl, I loved it when my mom read to me. I remember 18 Cousins, Old Black Witch, Christina Katerina and The Box and of course my little brother's endless requests for Green Eggs and Ham. I loved those stories, and the countless others she would read to us, and I loved the time with her. Trips to the library were mini adventures and I can still picture the tiny parking lot behind the building and the low bookshelves of the children's section clearly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I continued to enjoy reading as I grew. From the time I was proficient at it, until my mid-teen years I would have trouble tearing myself away from a good story. It was amazing to me how real a fictional story could feel.....how completely drawn into a story I could become. But then my life got busier. More school work, friends, and a steady boyfriend. The drama of my teen years left little time to read, not to mention a major lack of interest. There just wasn't time to read for fun and it became less and less important. After I got married, I was busy working and just lost interest in books in general.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Then we had children. The fond memories of my mom reading bright, colorful children's books to my siblings and I came rushing back. I wanted that for my children. So began my renewed love of reading....to them.

We put money, time and effort into getting some wonderful picture books for our children. I would read to them at least twice a day, if not more. My children seemed to look forward to this as much as I did.....the snuggling, the shared adventures, the laughs. This benefited not only our relationship, but also their interest in books.

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As each of the children grew and learned to read on their own, they still continued their love of books. All of my girls love to read. The library is still one of their favorite places. And Alexa, although she's 9, still enjoys sharing stories with me. We take turns......one of us reading while the other is doing the readers hair. Then we switch.

At the end of the chapter, we have had some laughs....not only at the story, but also at each others new "do".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And Evan looks so forward to our story times together. The promise of stories is what gets him to cooperate every night for bed! And he'll sometimes just sit and look through a stack of books in his room or on his bookshelf. Even though he hasn't learned to read yet, he still gets completely immersed in a good book.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since becoming a parent, I have read countless picture books, children's chapter books and parenting/homeschooling books.

But I haven't read for fun,

just for me

in a long,

long,

long

time.

Until this summer.

This summer I picked up a book off our bookshelf.

It was the first in the series of the Letzenstein Chronicles.

It was a little hard to follow at first....the characters and how they are related

and know each other. But I worked through that and quickly became

immersed in this story, this time period and the adventures involving these people.

Luckily I had bought the whole series (4 books) some time ago, because

at the end of that first book, I was sad it was over, so I comforted

myself with the fact that book 2 was waiting for me on our bookshelf.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I went through the entire series of those books, then 4 more from our bookshelves that are mostly historical fiction adventure books. This might not be a big feat for other adults but for me this is major progress. I am just working the way through the books we have, then I'll have to start using the library.......for ME. How cool is that?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Any recommendations?

I'd appreciate it. I can put them on hold at our local library and have my Fall reading list all ready to roll. I'm not excited about summer ending this year, but I am psyched for this!

So, watcha readin?

TTFN

Have a great day! Make it special!

~Tina

Back to the Daybooks

2011-08-14T08:30:00.000-07:00

For Today, Sunday, August 14, 2011

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Outside my window.... it's a dreary, rainy Sunday morning. The perfect day to sleep in, especially since we go to the 11:30 Mass. But can someone please tell that to Evan? He was up at 6:45. :/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am wearing..... light blue striped pajama pants, and light blue T, ankle socks and my hair is up in a messy pony tail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am hearing......the faint sound of Pink Panther on TV in the other room. Evan is watching it. I told him if he wanted to wake up that early, he would have to sit downstairs and watch a show so as to not wake everyone else. I am beginning to hear some stirring upstairs in the girls room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am thinking.....about this coming school year, and what clubs the kids will be in, and what classes they'll be taking. I need to work on some sort of schedule. But it's tough when I'm so desperately trying to hold onto what's left of summer. Summer......don't leave me!!!!!!!! I thought you were my friend!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am hoping..... we get some nice weather over these upcoming last weeks of summer. We still need to hit the fair, Splashdown, and we have a family reunion to get to.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Plans for today.....Mass at 1130, continuation of writing out school plans for the first nine weeks, I should start thinking what to make for dinner, too. Since it's supposed to be raining all day, I think we'll probably stay in, other than John's trip to Costco and the kids and I heading to Mass.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later this week.....it looks like rain, or a chance of rain almost every day this week. There is one rain-free day midweek, so I hope we can get to the fair that day. We might take Alexa's friend bowling with us on one of the many rainy days. And the dollar movie's are on Tuesday and Wednesday. We also have a doctor appt. for Taylor and Sky has karate. I would like to have one of Sky's friends over this week, too and I'm sure my oldest will get together with her boyfriend a few times.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

School prep...... most of the curriculum is ordered or already here. I stuck with the same old same old for most subjects (if it ain't broke, don't fix it), but Alexa and Sky are going to be working with me 3 days a week on American History. We are using From Sea to Shining Sea from CHC. Looking over it last night, it looks pretty good. We'll also add real stories/books to it. And I hope to take some field trips as the History lessons get into more recent history. I think they'll remember it more that way. Evan is Kindergarten level and I'm still trying to decide on his Phonics program. Everything else is set for him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am thankful for......this wonderful summer we have had, vacation in PA with our family, the health of those I love, especially my children and parents. Also for the rain, since everything that grows outside was beginning to look dead. Our grass looks like straw. I'm thankful for the VRE and this city we live in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

From the kitchen.....pasta, steaks and hot dogs on the grill (if we get a break in the rain, because I am not standing out there on the deck, over the grill with an umbrella again.....yeah I did that last week), veggie pizza, not sure what else. I'm not ready for Fall, but I am ready for the change that Fall brings to our menu.....Stuffed Pepper Casserole, Salsa Chicken, BBQ Pulled Chicken...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Reflecting on last week.....Alexa had her dance camp and loved it! I have a video of the dance show but can't find a way to upload it because the file is too big. John mentioned something about "zipping" it, but the only thing I zip are my jeans, so he'll have to school me on that one. I'll keep you posted.

Our 19th Wedding Anniversary was last week, too. He bought me dark pink roses and I bought him an engraved pen. We went out to dinner.

I did a little Christmas shopping last week....just a few things. And bought some supplies at Joann Fabrics to make a few gifts.

I organized the bookshelves and decided on which ones to give away/sell. Last week was not too exciting for the kids, except Alexa.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A picture to share....

Greeting each other after our trip to PA without Daddy. Evan sure missed him!

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For other Daybook Entries, stop by here.

Have a great day! And make it special!
TTFN

~Tina

An Amazing Day of Firsts

2011-08-11T05:39:00.000-07:00

Last autumn, I saw on FB that U2 had added another stop to their 360 tour. This stop just happened to be in Pittsburgh, the area that I grew up in....where most of my family still lives. This is where my sister lives and she is the biggest U2 fan I know. I have never been to a concert. ever. But I thought "We should do this". I sent her an email and apparently she saw it on FB too and had already been thinking this was an opportunity she did not want to pass up. When our wonderful mother found this out, she decided to get the tickets as our Christmas presents from her!

The tickets went on sale, my mom grabbed up a pair and we were set! Now all we had to do was continue living life as before .......and wait about 7 months for the actual show date. Easier said than done, but luckily we both lead pretty busy lives and it was nice to know we had this to look forward to.

We planned our summer trip to PA around this concert. Things fell into place beautifully. Both my nephew and my son have birthdays around the same time....same time as the concert, too. So on our visit we enjoyed birthday parties, a day at Kennywood and this amazing concert!

On the day of the concert, I had to get my kids where they needed to go. Two of them stayed with my brother, his wife and their kids.....sleepover! And my teen and my son stayed with my mom and my sister's family. I am still so thankful to all of them for pulling together and helping us out. This would have been impossible without them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once the kids were all settled, we were on our way. My sister drove. She's brave like that. We went down in the afternoon, to get good parking. The day was gorgeous! Absolutely perfect! No rain, low humidity and still warm temps. Amazing!

Parking was practically magical. We got into the lot we wanted....the one that would be easiest to get out of. We were second in line for when the lot opened!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once parked we headed towards the stadium. I, playing the role of tourist, took many photos. It was so beautiful! We checked out the stadium then headed to the casino. My first time ever in a casino! How cool is that?! Grownup playground! Under 18 not admitted. I tried to get carded but it didn't work. :/

We walked around, checked out the machines, played penny slots and decided where to eat dinner. We also signed me up for a casino card. They just happened to be running a promo, so I got 15 bucks to play around with on the slots! Fun! My sister and I talked, laughed, enjoyed games and free drinks (non alcoholic, of course) and then enjoyed a great light dinner at one of the casino's restaurants. It was a "grown up" blast! I even left with 11 dollars! Woo hoo! (yeah, I don't get out much)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We then headed back to the car to drop a few things off. We arrived at the stadium and found our seats. Of course I took more photos. We were still plenty early so we went to shop a little. We got mini buttons and key chains! Very cool! Neither one of us wanted to fork out 3o bucks for a T-shirt we will probably never wear, but I proudly show off my key chain every chance I get!

My sister-in-law had tickets for this concert, too. She was coming with a couple of friends. We waited for them on the rotunda, where I took even more pics! (And we munched licorice.) The view of the city and the river was amazing. And it was kinda cool watching all the traffic and crowds we were NOT in. Then we spotted my sis-in-law. They came up and after introductions and hugs, a kind couple took our photo. So nice of them....surprising considering they were from Cleveland. ;)

We had to go our separate ways since our seats were not together. It was nice seeing/meeting them and it was another thing that worked out well! My sis and I found our seats and waited. The concert start time was 7 but U2 didn't come on until 9.

Then it was time......they were about to emerge.

From where?

Right. Near. Us. Awesome! They began the show as the crowds roared! It was a fantastic show! Amazing! I've never been to a concert before, but I just can't see how any other concert could compare to this. Bono brought up a couple to slow dance during With or Without You. And he brought up a young boy during another song. They let the audience sing the first verse of Still Haven't Found What I'm Lookin For and it gave me chills. 60 plus thousand people were there. I would do it all again. Actually I would LOVE to do it again! The whole day was amazing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We left a tad bit early to try to beat the traffic. We got to listen to the last song as we walked to the car. We got out of the parking lot just in time, before the crowds got too crazy.

And another first on our way home..........

We both saw a shooting star! It was a fabulous day. Just fabulous!

That night, I snuggled next to my little boy and drifted off to sleep with dreams of my sister and I and our BEAUTIFUL DAY!

TTFN

Have a great day, everyone! Make it special!

~Tina.

The Highlight of My Summer

2011-08-04T07:31:00.000-07:00

This summer has really been amazing. So many wonderful experiences and memories being made. We are truly having a good time. Partly because I am making a conscious effort to not waste away the days. But despite all the fun we are having here, the highlight so far for me was definitely the trip to PA to see family and enjoy summer with them. John wasn't able to come with us, so it wasn't perfect, but it was awesome, none the less.

(This post is going to be out of order from what we did on the trip, but that's just the way blogger works. I never remember to load my pictures last event first, so it is what it is.)

KENNYWOOD! My mom, my brother and his family joined me and the girls for a day of fun and fast rides, superdelicious food, and games. We woke up to rain on this day, but we went for it anyway. We didn't have much choice, given our busy (yet superfun!) schedule while on this trip. Glad we did!
Tattoo for Taylor ....oh yeah, she wishes it was real.

Alexa was painted into a beautiful butterfly.Evan.....thrilled to death that he won this penguin (aka Pengwee)

THE RACER

We rode the Racer. For Evan and Alexa, it was their first coaster EVER!

Both gave this one a major

thumbs down.

I have never seen Evan so petrified. The look of sheer panic on his face was unmistakable.

He wanted to ride it, honest he did.

I didn't sugar coat it. I told him up front that it went fast,

but that it was one of the milder coasters in the park.

I even showed him POV youtube videos of it.

Still, it was a big "never again" for him. I felt bad for him and tried to help him get through it.

I covered his eyes and kept talking to him, trying to comfort him.

He didn't actually cry....just looked extremely freaked out.

After it was over he said....

"That was a dumb ride! Why'd you take me on such a dumb ride?!

I hated that dumb ride!"

Yes, his fear went to displaced anger immediately after exiting the coaster.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LOG JAMMER

Evan and Alexa rode this for the first time, too.

Alexa...thumbs up!

Evan.....thumbs down!

(I think this boy likes to go fast, he just wants to be the one in control)

Skylar's beautiful facepaint! "Starry Sky"....haha...get it?

PIRATE PARROT.....a legend around here.

THE PITTSBURGH PLUNGE

We didn't actually ride it, but you get wet just as a spectator.SHOWTIME

There was an empty stage just beggin for a show, so the kids thought they'd pitch in and help out a bit.

POTATO PATCH FRIES

yuuuuuummmmyy

Brayden and Evan

Cousins hanging out in KIDDIE LAND.

I think the rides in this part of the park get a thumbs up from both of these little dudes.

Evan and I lookin' "so cool" in our 3D glasses.

We were on the Garfield ride.

It was a fun day. We love this place. So many memories of being here as a kid and a teen with friends and even with John when we were dating.

I am feeling my age, though. I could not take the fast rides like I used to. I felt like I had to recover each time I got off of one.

But it's still all good.

My teen and preteen girls were off on their own doing the daring rides.

It's their turn to be the wild ones.

They can have it. More power to them. :)

This trip also had some fun in the "down times". Like pillow fights with Pap Pap and icecream, hugs and chats with Nanny.

Dinners out with family at Kings and Eat-n-Park

(two of my favorite restaurants)

We celebrated my nephews 3rd birthday while up there.

He's so cute!

The kids practiced their aquatic skills and cooled off in their pool. I didn't go in.

I refrain from putting on a bathing suit whenever humanly possible. I like the water, I just don't have a flattering bathing suit right now, so I decided to spare everyone.

Evan's 5th Birthday was celebrated at Kings Restaurant. Pretty much the whole family was there.

Special days are so much more fun to celebrate when you are with the people you love.

Grandma got Evan a Phineas and Ferb cake!

He was thrilled!

My big 5 year old boy!

I have lived away from my family for many years now. We look forward to the trips home, enjoy them while we are there, then we are sad to leave.

But once we get back here, back into our groove, we adjust and I get over my homesick feeling rather quickly.

This time, well, it was different. I don't know why.

It could be that we had such and amazing time...

but we've had great times before.

It could be that we didn't stay long enough for me to miss this place.

Or it could be that I am getting older and realizing how short life is and how invaluable times like these are.

It's been a week now, since we returned here. The homesickness is just beginning to subside. And I am so thankful for technology that keeps us in each others lives.

(BTW....my sister and I had a fantastic day together when I was in PA. I hope to write a whole separate post about it. It needs it's own post. It was a beautiful day!)

Well, I hope your summer is filled to the brim with beautiful days.

Take it all in! Enjoy it!

Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

One Month Left

2011-08-01T07:01:00.000-07:00

Once again, summer is whizzing by. It just keeps chugging along, at a rapid pace, like a speeding train. It's not waiting for me to use the time wisely, it just keeps on going.

Ahh...but this year, I'm taking a moment to catch my breath, before it's too late.

I'm making myself aware of the limited time left, before it's completely gone. And we still have a full month to go!

So where do we stand? Well, in looking at the list I made a month ago, I'd say we are doing pretty well.

The first 8 things are done and each one was a blast! I have loads of pictures, and amazing memories, to prove it. :)

The tickets are ordered for the 9th thing on the list and we are working on number 10.

We haven't made it to the waterpark (but still plan to~ I found a coupon!) and most of us had to miss the fireworks (due to rain and illness). Although Lexa and Sky got to go with neighbors.

We've made it to the dollar movies a few times (once with friends!) and to the farmer's market.

But we have yet to do the lemonade stand, make s'mores and catch fireflies. (Hey, we could knock those out in one, fun day!)

I have been grilling weekly and we've been getting a good bit of outside time, but not every single day. I need to remember to get the kids out in the morning because it's just rediculously hot in the afternoon.

I'm feeling pretty good about how this summer is going. So far, overall it's been a rockin'!

Autumn has always been my favorite season, but in the midst of a summer like this, I might be changing my mind about that. I could totally see moving south, where it's warm, or even hot, all the time. But, I would also love to move closer to family. (I MISS THEM!) Unfortunately, most of them are north. So, we will probably just stay put. :/

I do love this area, and this house, so I can't really complain.

I just need to bloom where I am planted. And for right now at least, my butt is planted right here in northern Virginia.

It's another super hot, but beautiful day here. I guess I should move along and see what blooming I can do today!

Have a great day! Make it special!
TTFN
~Tina

2011-07-04T06:10:00.000-07:00

Be safe as you celebrate! Make it a beautiful day to remember!

~Tina

Summer Time.......Well Spent

2011-07-03T19:16:00.000-07:00

At the end of the school year, if not earlier, we begin looking forward to summer. In our somewhat distorted and "wishful thinking" memories, we see summer as endless days of great weather, just waiting to be filled with camps, vacations, pool days, cookouts, play dates, reading just for the fun of it, and anything else we can think of. But, if we are realistic, we know that summer usually seems to slip by all too quickly and we are left with that feeling of "where did it go?"....just like when you eat an entire bowl of rocky road ice cream, then look down in disbelief, trying to solve the mystery. You are pretty sure you enjoyed that big bowl of sweet deliciousness, but you just didn't pay attention to every bite. Sometimes, you just went through the motions without being fully aware of just how tasty it was. I want to be aware of this summer. Actually I want to be aware always, but we'll just start with this summer. So it's not just about the plans, some of which I'll list below, it's about the focus....the attention. Am I in the moment? Big or small, am I really there? Am I focused on who is there with me? Am I taking in the people, the conversations, the sights, the sounds, the smells and even the tastes? Here's some "places" I plan to be this summer.

celebrate Alexa's 9th, Evan's 4th and John's 4o~something.... birthdays
visit with my dad and his wife and my siblings and their families at my dad's house in the country
participate in our church's first VBS in 10 years
grow veggies in a container garden with the kids
take the children bowling at least a few times on those hot hot days
get the children signed up for our summer reading program at the library...then READ, READ, READ
have a blast at the U2 concert in Pittsburgh with the best sister EVER
spend the day at Kennywood with my kids, my mom and my brother and his family....(one time on the Thunderbolt and some Potato Patch Fries and my day will be made)
go to the county fair
help the children enter some of their art and handcrafts in the fair
go to the theater to see some dollar movies with friends
see the fireworks from a cozy spot on our blanket on the museum lawn. Have a little picnic there, too, and don't forget the glowsticks! Bring lots to share!
create some rosary bracelets
share some chapter books with Alexa (her reading to me) a chapter a night.
catch fireflies
make and eat s'mores
grill out as often as possible
Farmers Market!!!!!
children start on Christmas gifts
daily outside time, no matter how hot it is, even just for a little while.....vitamin D intake!
make one trip to our local waterpark
Sky and Alexa need to have a lemonade stand. Actually I need them to, as a necessary part of their childhood.
Alexa gets to dance her little hip hop heart out at a local dance camp. She can't wait.

I kinda cheated on this list. Some of these can already be checked off. Alexa's birthday was so fun! Had a blast seeing everyone at my dad's! Yummy s'mores....enjoying the farmer's market and grilling out on the deck. etc. I took lots of photos and I hope I can post at least some of them. It's been a fantastic summer so far! It's been really hot and muggy at times and Alexa and Sky have both had bouts with illnesses. But summer isn't perfect, but it is awesome. And we are making as many living-in-the-moment memories as possible.

Hope you enjoy your holiday weekend! Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

My Baby Girl

2011-06-25T05:28:00.000-07:00

She's obviously not my "baby girl" any more, but being that Alexa is the youngest of my girls, I guess I'll always see her that way. Despite her strong desire to be with friends, and her begging for her own email, she's my little girl. She's has come out of her shell over the past couple of years and an amazing young person is developing right before my eyes. She's funny, friendly, creative, and curious....about many things. Though she is influenced by friends, her big sister and (hopefully still) me, she's finding what she enjoys and what is most important to her. She likes music by Adelle. And not just the famous songs. She listens to all her songs, learns the lyrics and sings along with her. And we are discovering that Alexa can sing.....really. She's pretty darn good. She also wants to be clear in the fact that she's not that little pink-loving princess anymore. She's an older girl, with older tastes. She likes "stylish" clothes and dark colors of nail polish. Her appearance is becoming more important to her, but luckily it's not anywhere near obsession. She just likes to feel good about how she looks, mostly for parties or going to the movies, etc.

Seems I can't deny it. My baby girl is growing up. I might, on a rare occasion, miss that little frilly pink, sparkly, princess-lovin' little girl. But I am very happy to see this beautiful, witty, fun-lovin' young girl emerge and I am blessed to have front row seats.

We love you, Alexa. Happy 9th birthday sweet girl!

And remember....You're perfect to me.

2011-06-19T05:26:00.000-07:00

To all the great dad's out there!

Especially to John, my husband, who works hard for us every day.

We love you!!!!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And to my dad.....

who I've always been close to.

I love you!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope all daddys have a wonderful day!

God Bless!!

TTFN

~Tina

My New Favorite Place

2011-05-27T05:36:00.000-07:00

Our town has a farmer's market every Thursday and Saturday. We've never been, but I had heard it was awesome. Since we're on a bit of a health kick here, I wanted to get the kids excited about fruit as "treats". And when it comes to fruit and veggies, the fresher, the better. So we headed over to Old Town this past Thursday morning, after getting an oil change in my van. It was a hot, beautiful morning and our friend, the sun, was out too. :) The Saturday farmers market has more vendors, but also more crowds, so this was perfect for us. We came home with some really great yummies! We bought fruit, veggies, fresh whole grain bread and even some scones (yeah, that was Evan's pick). And I made the kids a very fresh, delicious lunch that day. We will be back! We'll probably do this weekly for as long as it's open. Don't you just love it when you discover something awesome right in your own backyard? :)

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Have a great day, everyone! And make your weekend special!

TTFN

~Tina

Weekends Rock

2011-05-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

A Springtime weekend began with beautiful weather on Saturday. Hmmmm....what to do? For Alexa, it's a "no-brainer". Play outside with neighborhood friends. But they were all roller blading and my girls don't have rollerblades. So they've never acquired that skill. On this particular day, Alexa decided to be a little brave. And her friends decided to be quite generous. She borrowed a pair from her friend. And the lessons began....pretty good lessons from patient friends. They cheered her on and lended a hand when needed. It was pretty cool to watch.....from across the street, where Evan and I were pulling weeds and trimming bushes, sweeping up and laying mulch.That boy was workin' hard for sure.

Once the work was done, we took a well deserved break. The best kind of break on a hot day. A popsicle break. Really is there any other kind of break on a day like this?! I think not.

Skylar did help us pull some weeds too, then went off on a life saving mission. She figured out that some of the "weeds" we were pulling were actually baby trees. Some seeds had fallen from our front yard trees into our landscaping and started to grow new trees. She stopped pulling and began saving. We let her keep one. She planted it in a cup and it now sits on our counter waiting to get big enough to be planted in the back yard. That girl is very green, I tell you. It was a good weekend. A really good weekend and the sun was our friend.

Hope this warm weather is making for some awesome Spring days for you, too. Have a great day! Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

Another Spring Daybook

2011-05-23T05:48:00.001-07:00

For today: May 23rd, 2011

~~~~~~

I am wearing: soft stretchy yoga-type pants in navy blue and an orange T. Not that I worked out our anything, don't be silly. That stretchy, soft material is super-comfy for sleeping in, too, and I just haven't gotten dressed yet.

Outside my window: sunny and warm at the moment. Going to be in the 80s all week, but every day brings the chance of a thunderstorm. I'm ok with that. It's still beautiful most of the day.

Our front yard looks great! This past weekend, John mowed, Sky and Evan pulled weeds with me, and Evan and I freshened up the landscaping. We trimmed bushes, picked up sticks that fell during the winter and layed mulch.

It looks like somebody actually lives here now. :)

I am hearing: WowWow Wubbzy on the TV in the other room. And some chatter of young girls upstairs. I think they are trying to avoid the inevitable start to their school day. But they'll get hungry and have to come down at some point.

I am thinking: about upcoming birthdays, planting our container vegetable gardens, CVBS at our church, making a trip to my dad's at some point, testing for the girls, curriculum choices for next school year, trip to PA this summer to do loads of fun stuff with family and possibly see a friend or two, John at his new job, and Taylor not feeling so great last night. Lots on my mind...

From the kitchen: I need to get to the store. But this week I plan on making BBQ chicken pizzas, grilled chicken salads, tilapia/rice. I look forward to getting my grill up and running again, too. This weekend we'll probably have burgers and turkey dogs, a veggie tray, s'mores and hopefully loads of fruit from the farmer's market.

I am praying for: the health of my parents, John's sister, my sister-in-laws mom in FL, people all over the world and in this country suffering from natural disasters....and many other things.

Our Memorial Day plans: We had plans for Sunday to meet up with my siblings at my dad's. We were really looking forward to it, but that got messed up and it's very disappointing. We'll make the best of it and have the whole weekend here.

I plan on grilling burgers and turkey dogs and making up a fruit tray and possibly veggies, too. We are trying to eat much healthier lately, (especially minimizing sugar and fat intake). We might go to a pool or have some sort of water battle in the yard with squirt guns and water balloons. We'll see.

I am hoping: to get all of the girls' testing done this week so we can get on with SUMMER!

Plans for the week: finish testing girls, get our container gardens started, grocery shopping, cleaning the grill and cleaning off the deck in preparation for this weekend, bathing suit shopping for girls?, and work on Father's Day gifts. Oh and I need a haircut and the van needs an oil change. Evan has his final preK group meeting Thursday morning. It will be an end of year party! Sky has karate, too.

From the schoolroom: testing! and wrapping things up for this school year. We might do math every other week this summer, but somehow, the kids aren't too fond of that plan. Go figure...

Planning our summer: CVBS, Alexa and Evan's birthday parties, dance camp for Alexa (maybe), trip to my dad's and to the lake near his house, trip to PA (Kennywood, nephew BD party and U2 concert with my sister!~ oh yeah!), organizing school room, planning and ordering curriculum, trips into DC on VRE, etc....

I am reading: some books I purchased from the festival at our church. The one I'm reading now is a biography about Blessed Pope John Paul II, but I can't remember what it's called at the moment.

Some recent happenings: Evan's preschool group had an exciting visit from the fire dept. last week. The 4 firefighters were very good with the kids taught them about fire safety. They also took them outside to see their fire truck. so fun!

Taylor teched for a play at her school last week, which means she was extremely busy, tired and having fun with her friends.

I celebrated my birthday last week (same day as Bl. Pope JP II~he was born exactly 50 years before me!) at Red Robin with John and the kids. It was a blast!

John started his new job. He's taking the train and metro to get there, which is much less stressful than driving around here. He likes it so far!

Pictures to share:

(the kids and I at Red Robin for my little birthday dinner last week~John took the photo)

(Evan lovin' Taylor's new gorilla friend)

Enjoy your week! Make it special!

For more Daybook Entries, go to:

Peggy's!

TTFN

~Tina

A Quiet Ride

2011-05-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

About once every week or 2, we head to the library. It's been a favorite place of ours since my oldest started walking. We've been to storytimes, craft times, movie times.

We've attended shows featuring Ronald McDonald, puppets, clowns, reptiles and magicians.

The library has so much to offer and we have always taken full advantage of the awesome free programs for kids and families.

But our all time favorite use for the library is the most basic.

```````````````

Books.

Just plain reading.

And when we leave the library, with armloads of books, we get in the van, and everyone gets comfortable.

````````

The radio/CD player is turned off.

It's a unanimous decision.

And a very peaceful ride for me.

```````````````````

I am kinda jealous, though.

Wish I was back there in the third seat, chillin' out with my latest "read".

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Speaking of books, I found some great deals at the booksale at our church festival this weekend. Awesome, awesome deals, and I only looked around for a few minutes! Next year, I'm going to try to get there earlier and take more time with it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you find some time to open a good book this week! Have a great one! Make it special!

TTFN

~Tina

2011-05-08T05:59:00.000-07:00

To my mom

and to John's mom

and to my grandmother

and my sister, and sisters-in-law

and to all the mothers I know and love

and to all mothers everywhere.

(but especially my mom~~LOVE YOU!)

TTFN

~Tina

An Adventure in DC (the getting there and back)

2011-05-07T15:13:00.000-07:00

John doesn't begin his new job for another week or so, and Taylor had off of school Friday so we thought it might be a good day to make a trip to DC....to the ZOO! We live fairly close, yet have never been. I know you can just "hop on the metro" as I've been told, but it's not nearly as easy as it sounds, especially with children.

We began the day pretty early....6 am to be exact. We did what we had to do to get ready for the trip, then it was 7:30 and we realized we were too late to take the VRE. So we drove (through rush hour traffic) to the Vienna Metro. We were blessed to find a very nice lady walking out of the parking garage who pointed out an excellent spot for us. She said, "a great spot like that.....that never happens!". We thanked her profusely.

A very kind stranger.

We got to the Metro ticket machines and stood there like a couple of chimps. That machine was so complicated, we knew we'd never figure it out by ourselves and still get to the zoo before closing. So we asked a Metro worker for help. He seemed irritated at first, but quickly softened up and showed much patience with us when he saw how thankful we were. And boy were we thankful!

Another very kind stranger.

We boarded the train and Evan was so excited and nervous. I could see Alexa and Sky grinning, too. Other passengers boarded and they were clearly not as thrilled at this ride as we were. And somewhere in their daily commute, most of them lost their sense of humor and possibly their ability to smile. That's okay, though. Evan was havin' a blast and would say, "weeeeeee!" as we moved along the metro rail. We tried to shush him a bit, but then I thought, "so what, he's not being too loud and he's having a blast. Some of these people could take a lesson from him". He sat with Taylor and she helped to entertain him with games on her ipod. Thank goodness because it was about 30 minutes until we had to switch from the orange to the red line.....or was it red to orange?

When we got off the metro to switch to the other line, we had to make a bathroom run. We looked around but couldn't find one, so we followed everyone else, went out through the exit and headed towards the escalator.

It was the steepest and longest escalator I have ever, ever seen! It was seriously intimidating. They don't usually bother me, but this one did.

John took Alexa's hand, I took Evan's and the other girls just stood by themselves.

About half way up, some yayhoo comes barreling up my right side, shoves into me forcing me to let go of the rail. I lost my balance but fell forward, thank goodness, instead of back. He was an older, larger man and he was sternly mumbling something along the lines of, "I need to get through here, sorry, but I need to get through". I said, "What the heck?!". Then I grabbed the rail again. Within seconds, a very rude 50-something woman pushed past me, on the right again forcing me to let go of the rail and lose my balance. She, like the man, also pushed past my two daughters and John, holding Alexa's hand (forcing him to let go).

As she did this, she very rudely said, "Keep to the right, you're in Washington!!!!". I just thought, enough is enough. So I started shouting random things at them such as "If you're going to run, then take the freakin' stairs!!!" and "Could you be more rude?!!!" I shouted a few more things that I probably shouldn't have, and I won't repeat. (sorry mom)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At my little freakout, no one else attempted to pass us.

If I had been told kindly that this was how things are done on the escalators in DC and could we please move to the side, I would have done so willingly and SAFELY. But quite frankly,......."unwritten rule" or not, it's rude. It's dangerous. It's selfish. I don't care if you do this every day and you're busy, busy, busy and we are in your way. If you see a 4 year old boy, holding his mommy's hand and gripping the railing on a very steep escalator and you rudely push past, you are pathetic and there is no excuse for that behavior. You are probably the same person who sits in the isle seat on the metro, not moving in to let someone else sit down.

Two very rude strangers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yeah, we witnessed people doing that, too. They sit on the isle part of the seat, not letting anyone else sit beside them. They don't seem to care that others are standing, as long as they get two seats to themselves. Really people?!

More rude strangers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the bathroom run, we needed to get back on the metro to get to the zoo. There was no money left on our cards to do so. It seems you can't exit the metro to use the bathroom, before you reach your destination, or it totally nixes your trip. Nice.

So we talked to a person working at that metro station, and explained our situation. She was very kind and told us to just tell the metro worker at the next stop what had happened. We thanked her and then boarded the train.

Another very kind stranger.

We had no trouble at the next station, as we exited, because the metro worker was completely understanding and let us through without a problem.

Another kind stranger.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Finally, we are so close to the zoo! Well, not really close close, but closer than we've been all morning. We had to walk 4 or 5 blocks up the street to get to the zoo entrance. ugh. But it was a gorgeous day and despite the honking of horns and people on the road getting irritated with each others driving, we were able to take in the beauty of the area.....the flowers, the architecture, the sunny day.

NOW we are at the ZOO!!!

(I will do a whole separate post about the fun at the zoo itself, because it was a blast, and I took lots and lots of pictures that I can't wait to share. But this post is about the adventure in just getting to and from the Zoo. Who knew that would be an adventure in and of itself?! Certainly not me.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When we left the zoo, after all that walking around the zoo (it's HUGE), we were exhausted.....and our feet hurt. We walked the 4 or 5 blocks back to the Metro (taking turns carrying Evan because he was just "done") and were once again confused by the crazy metro ticket machines.

Seriously,

there HAS to be a simpler way to get a ticket to ride the subway! Someone needs to get on that, like yesterday.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As we stood there, yet again, like a couple of chimps....or chumps....fumbling around with this machine, a kind man noticed our struggle and offered to help. He was just a man, perhaps a commuter, but he was very knowledgeable about these mind-boggling-machines-from-hell. We were so incredibly thankful. He helped us through every step of this trying process and didn't part ways with us until he was sure we had our tickets. Really, as exhausted as we were, that was an angel, an angel I tell you, right there before us. I could practically see his halo.

We thanked him immensely, then proceeded onto the train.

Another kind stranger.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rest of the trip home was rather uneventful, except we needed another bathroom run during metro train switch and learned our lesson about not going out the "turn styles", so we asked a metro employee what to do. He begrudgingly guided us to a rather nasty "emergency"bathroom, but it still served its purpose and we moved on

(after ample hand sanitizer usage).
Another kind stranger? (yeah, I suppose...not the cheeriest, but kind enough)
~~~~~~~~~~~

Evan fell asleep on my lap on the metro ride home. We got to our van, then headed into what John refers to as "hellacious traffic".

It wasn't as bad as he had predicted, especially for that time of day, and we saved time by using the HOV lanes, too. We reached our home, exhausted, happy, and full of memories made. We talked to the kids about their favorite parts of the day, and their favorite animals etc. I'm sure they had an amazing and memorable time.

We slept very well that night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rude people will not deter us from going to DC. Nopety nope. I'm sure they wish they would. But we encountered far more kind people on this trip than we did unkind. And their helpfulness and smiles will stick with us,

while those that were rude will be prayed for, and then most likely forgotten so as to not ruin the memories of this day.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I look forward to posting on the actual visit to the National Zoo. It is a wonderful place.

I hope you all are enjoying some adventures and time with family this weekend.

TTFN

~Tina

Nature Study: The Food Chain

2011-05-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

This week's Nature Study was one that I knew Skylar would enjoy. The basis of the lesson was The Food Chain, but the main focus was on owls. Skylar loves owls especially since she saw the movie Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole

She loves that movie. It's not for the younger crowd, so I only took Alexa and Skylar to see it when it came out last year.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We gathered at the picnic tables at one of our local favorite nature spots. The mom leading the lesson this day began the discussion on the food web. It was very interesting. Then that led to the discussion of owls and some facts about them, how they live and what they eat.

Then out came the owl pellets.

I'll be honest. I cringed.

I am admittedly a wimp about "icky" things. I always have been.

I tried very hard to sound excited and not completely grossed out. I think I did a pretty good job.

The kids excitedly open their foil covered packets. They immediately began digging through the pellets to find the bones of whatever small animal that owl had eaten. In an odd way, it was like a treasure hunt, and the kids were getting excited over some of their bigger discoveries, like a rodent's skull, with teeth still in tact.Then we were off on a trail, with our scavenger hunt sheets in hand, to try to catch a glimpse of animals that the owl eats. We were also looking for holes up high in the trees, where an owl might live.

We didn't find a lot of what we were looking for, but it was still an enjoyable walk. (if you look closely, you can see the bird on a branch...that is one animal that an owl eats)

How can you walk on a trail through the forest in the Springtime and not enjoy it?

We found some unrelated discoveries.....tent worms....

And a little creek with tadpoles swimming around inside......

It was another great Nature Study Group meeting. I am so glad we are able to participate this Spring.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you are getting out there and enjoying your Springtime!

Have a great week!

Make some good memories for yourself and your children. :)

TTFN

~Tina

Easter 2011

2011-04-30T06:29:00.000-07:00

Our Easter weekend was....

special

(Evan's drawing of Jesus on the cross)

memorable

(Easter morning, Evan discovered that, because of his good deeds, his crown of thorns was transformed into a flowering wreath!)

fun

(Nanny and PapPap playing with Evan and Alexa)

beautiful

happy

silly

playful

colorful

joyful

delicious

(Taylor's homemade strawberry ice cream~~yummy!)

relaxing

(Alexa and I chillin' on the front porch)

peaceful

We made memories together.....

coloring eggs

and hunting for eggs in the yard.

We had days full of.....

beautiful weather

and lots of smiles

(The kids with Grandma Jo after Easter Mass)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was an awesome weekend

and we were so happy to share it with my mom and John's parents.

Hope your Easter was special, too!

TTFN

~Tina

Christ is Risen!

2011-04-30T06:21:00.000-07:00

Hope you had a blessed Easter, everyone!

Good Friday

2011-04-21T21:02:00.000-07:00

"O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me."

~Improperia (the Reproaches) of Christ

Looks Like a Good One

2011-04-21T05:40:00.000-07:00

I am looking forward to seeing

There Be Dragons.

Hmmmm....we'll have to work out a date night in the not-so-distant future. :)

Check out the trailer and you'll probably planning your own date night.

TTFN

~Tina

Nature Study Group: Wild Flowers

2011-04-18T13:13:00.000-07:00

We began with our usual picnic lunch. Then the kids were anxious to get moving. We ventured down to the nearby creek to take a look. It was flowing much faster and seemed deeper than the last time we were here 2 years ago. The kids couldn't resist. Evan picked up some stones and began tossing them in the water. and Sky made a discovery (which she put back where she found it). This week's lesson was on wild flowers. The same very knowledgeable mom taught the children the parts of a plant and the parts of a flower. She also taught about pollination and how flowers grow and tied it in a little bit with the lesson last time on seeds. She had some great handouts, too. The favorite handout was a list of wildflowers we might find in our area, with little photos of each. So the kids were off on their Wildflower Scavenger Hunt. There were quite a few beautiful flowers to see and....... lots and lots and I mean LOTS of mud to contend with. But in the spring, at a park such as this, that is to be expected. We tried to stay on the boardwalks and dry-ish land as much as possible, though. Of course the most famous wildflower that this park is known for is it's Bluebells. They were everywhere, creating a sea of light blue.

We ended up at another part of the creek and, though it was deep, it wasn't as fast moving. And you can see the many Bluebells on the other side.

(I'll try to identify the ones above a bit later)

Just breathtaking! Evan and I had a moment alone as we walked and I asked him who made this beautiful place. He answered, "God". And I said, "He sure must love us a lot to give us a place as wonderful as this to visit.." Evan agreed. :)

The kids were able to spot many different types of wildflowers, but the Bluebells were definitely the most apparent.

My kids returned to the van tired, happy, thirsty (yes I had water with me) and well....

a bit muddy. But like I said, that's to be expected.

And well worth it!

Have a wonderful week everyone!

TTFN

~Tina

{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}

2011-04-18T04:13:00.001-07:00

My Kids Edition.

Pretty.....Happy......Funny......Real.....

For more posts like these, stop by here and enjoy! (I know this is supposed to be a Thursday thing, but I just discovered it today, and don't have the patience to wait till this Thursday.)

TTFN

~Tina

Weekend Wrap Up

2011-04-17T19:02:00.000-07:00

Evan's soccer game was cancelled due to rain.

Taylor had an eye exam and will be the very happy recipient of new contacts.

California Tortilla is kinda pricey......but very yummy! We had it for lunch on our rainy Saturday.

The dollar store has lots of junk, but also lots of decent stuff. The trick is knowing the difference.

Went to see HOP! at the movie theater with the kids and John. Very cute movie! This helped console Evan since he was sad about his soccer game being cancelled.

Evan behaved very well for Palm Sunday Mass.

I decorated the house for Easter today. Evan helped me and he had a blast as we opened each box and he found more "treasure". He played Easter Bunny with me for quite a while after that. So fun!

The girls played outside with neighborhood friends today since the weather was nice. They seemed happily tired tonight.

Taylor had time with her boyfriend this weekend. So she's a happy camper, too.

Tonight John and I watched The Blind Side. Very touching movie. I teared up more than once. I'd recommend it.

Tomorrow begins a new week....holy week. And Nature Club meets tomorrow, too. Bluebells!

TTFN

~Tina

The Best of Times

A Christmas Gift

On a Reading Frenzy

If You Fill Them, They Will Come

Relaxed Winter Schooling at Home

Snowy Monday!......and yes, it's another post that ends in hot chocolate.

They Made Me Do It

It Makes My Heart Glow

Good Morning to Me

Daybook Looking Back on Advent (long post warning)...but pictures included so it's okay.

2012

Another Teen..... :/

In The Blink of an Eye

No Matter What

An Autumn Saturday

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like.....Halloween

Feeling Really Appreciative Today. For.....

A Rare Occasion

A Super Deluxe Fun Afternoon

****Wordless Wednesday****

~~~~The Simple Woman's Daybook~~~~

Back to Normal

Waiting for Irene

Soakin It Up While We Can.....

Just Ducky

Their Moonlanding

So......Whatcha Reading?

Back to the Daybooks

An Amazing Day of Firsts

The Highlight of My Summer

One Month Left

Summer Time.......Well Spent

My Baby Girl

My New Favorite Place

Weekends Rock

Another Spring Daybook

A Quiet Ride

An Adventure in DC (the getting there and back)

Nature Study: The Food Chain

Easter 2011

Christ is Risen!

Good Friday

Looks Like a Good One

Nature Study Group: Wild Flowers

{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}

Weekend Wrap Up

Wordless Wednesday

The Simple Woman's Daybook