Photo Dump of Christmas Vacation (so far)

I'm just going to put it out there - you might have seen some of these pictures if you are following me over on Instagram.  It's been a pretty busy couple of days!

So excited - I'm seeing my BFF in just a couple of days.  We are heading to Legoland (we surprised the boys on Christmas morning), and her family is going to meet up with us on New Year's Eve.  We haven't ever really lived near each other - we met back in college - so I'm SO EXCITED to see her!!!  

Yes, I broke the washer.  I know it was me since I'm the one that tried to wash 2 kids' comforters and towels at the same time.  It threw the basket off balance, made a horrible sound, created a burning smell, and completely died.  It was a good washer - lasted 10 1/2 years with our family of 5.  So last night we had to take the boys and go washer shopping.  Found a great deal on a top ranked model that fit our price range.  It'll be delivered next week… so today I'll be hauling our laundry to my parents (just like I used to do back in college - but x5).

This is my word wall in my kitchen.  A couple of new things were just added - that "Do Small Things with Great Love" was a gift from a student.  Hubby also added a hook to hold up the aprons - yes, plural.  The boys have camouflage ones for those messy spaghetti dinners and when they help me cook,  and then I have my apple and sunflower ones.  The aprons have just been hung on a pushpin before now - I love how it took me 10 years to think of something so simple.

All 3 boys had their first official brother sleepover last night.  My youngest was so excited that he was finally big enough to join them.  I didn't wake them up when I took the picture.  :)  These past days have been so busy keeping them occupied and trying to clean.

This was us on Christmas morning.  The kids rushed downstairs (after I made them wait until 7… 5:15 was just too early!)

For Christmas I was blessed with a lot of Massage Envy gift cards.  It was the only thing that I really had on my wish list (if you don't count a flat iron).  A while back they were having a special - buy 2 gift cards get a free one, and my dear husband and parents picked up the deal.  So I had a "free" one yesterday, and will have another "free" one in January - (the free ones expire in January).

The days have been filled with Legos…

Here's our official Christmas picture.  Little bits did NOT want to get in the picture.

We also had fun painting the extra glass ornaments.

… and my oldest has been cooking us dinner.  

I'm loving this family time!  Hope you have a great day!  

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I Am Thankful

It's November!  

Time to remember all the things I'm thankful for... I started writing up a Five for Friday and realized my 5 things were all complaints and downers - October was once again a very busy month... so I scratched it and decided an intervention was in order.... for myself!  

So here are five things I'm thankful for.  Linking up with Doodle Bugs to share!

ONE

I'm thankful for my family.

I love my crazy boys with their never-ending amounts of energy.  

TWO

I'm thankful for my friends.  I'm blessed!

THREE

I'm thankful for my students and the opportunity to do what I love.  

It's always nice to feel appreciated too.  :)  

  

FOUR

I'm thankful for my home, even when it's messy.

{Yeah - not going to show you a picture of it at the moment...}

FIVE

I'm thankful for my boys' buckets of candy.  

Sometimes you just need a little chocolate fix.  :)  

Have a wonderful weekend!  We get that extra hour!!  :)    

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Day Trip to Monterey

Linking up my pictures with Run Miss Nelson's got the Camera.  :)

Yesterday we packed up the boys and drove a supposed 2 hours to our favorite summer destination - Monterey, CA.  It actually turned into 3 hours between the traffic, 2 potty stops, a stop for tums, and the need to turn back to get our children's discovery museum card (we left it on the table at home).  My dear sweet school friend picked up our dog for a doggy play date, and we had the entire day to just be together as a family.  I was excited about being able to wear a sweatshirt and jeans in July - we were so sick of the triple digit temps of the past couple of weeks, it was a cool 64 degrees.  :)  

Here is my day:     

Lunch at Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey -
My middle son tried Clam Chowder and decided he only likes the chowder part.

At My Museum in Monterey (Children's Discovery Museum) - I followed our little one around to most of the exhibits while the older ones played with their dad.  

Then we went to Dennis the Menace Playground.  It's a gigantic area with tons for the kids to do.
It's free (therefore totally crowded).  

We went driving to see the ocean afterward (instead of our usual go downtown and shop), and ended up at a park.  The boys saw a beach in a distance and we decided to walk.  Little one didn't make it super far before he wanted to be carried.  

When the older boys were exploring with dad or playing on the beach, little one and myself decided to play around with the camera.  He took these pictures.  :)  

I love Monterey and I love when we are able to have fun as a family.  This peaceful time at the beach was the best moment of the day though.  Just sitting and collecting my thoughts.  It's amazing how the water brings down my blood pressure and all becomes right with the world.


I hope you had a great day!  

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Bon Voyage! Alaska Bound & SALE

Hi Everyone.

You might be thinking - yesterday, she said no more internet... well this is brought to you from the "schedule" feature of blogging.  :)  

So - yeah - I'm heading out to sea this morning.

I'm so excited.  I have always wanted to visit Alaska.  We've been looking at the excursion options and trying to decide how and where to splurge.  Don't know when we will be able to visit again.  :)

So here's what we ended up with as for luggage (at least as of Saturday night):

Yep - 3 gigantic suitcases, a smaller carry on, our toiletries bag, the boys backpacks for toys, our backpack with all the electronic gadgets, our stroller, the potty chair is tucked inside the carry on, with the smaller collapsable one inside his backpack, the diaper bag/backpack (not shown), and my purse.

... and my husband's back is still sore.  :)  Fun for me!  

Here are the stops for our trip - Pictures are from Princess Cruises Lines.

Juneau

Ketchikan

We are planning on seeing a lumberjack show.

Skagway

Tracy Arm Fjord

I'm excited to see the icebergs up close. 

Victoria, B.C.

I've been to Victoria before after I graduated college.  My mom and I had a special weekend just the 2 of us.  We stayed at the Empress, had tea, went to the gardens, etc... this trip my boys really want to do the Pirate excursion.  I'm positive that it's going to be so different... and the day that we land will be my husband's 40th birthday - so I really doubt he will want to have high tea with me.  :)

Over the next 10 days I have a bunch of "revisits" to share with you.  Things that I posted last summer that have been a big hit over on Pinterest.  Basically a reminder of what I did or made, and what actually happened over the last school year with those items.

Also wanted to give you a heads up that I'm throwing a sale over at TPT to celebrate this happy day with my family.  It'll be going today and tomorrow.  Happy Day!  

I'm sure I'm going to have internet withdrawals, but we aren't splurging on it that often... my Kindle is loaded and books have been downloaded, my nano and phone are charged, and we're heading out!

Take care people!  

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Wordless Wednesday :)

Who am I kidding, I'm not one to be wordless. I am trying to post this from blogger on my phone, and there are just somethings I don't have access to - like uploading buttons, linking to websites, etc... At least I haven't figured that out yet. I also haven't figured out how to move pictures from the bottom of the page... :(

I will link up late - like tomorrow or Friday - to Jivey's math workshop linky and you might see some of the same random pictures for Doodlebugs Five for Friday. So many resources to share, many I have already talked about.

One more reminder about the giveaway going on. Of course there isn't a link to just click to go to the specific post. If you look at any of the past posts (since last Friday), there will be a link that you can click. Welcome to so many of you!

Want to see what we've done the past 3 days on vacation? Here are pictures of myself and my family.

On Monday there was a sea otter dancing in the waves next to the pier. It's that brown dot above the text Monday. Surfers were nearby, but the otter wasn't scared... Neither was that bird that parked itself near me.

We took the boys to the drive in that night and watched that caveman movie. I can't even remember the name of it.. I was busy sitting in my son's flipped around car seat with the trunk of the van wide open, freezing under 2 blankets, holding my little one, and then changing a dirty diaper in the dark. Overall, a great experience. I'm not being sarcastic.

On Tuesday we spent a lot of time on the beach. We also went to the 3 story Children's Discovery Museum. Yes, 3 stories... It look forever to visit every exhibit. So worth it though. Do you have a discovery museum near you? I always try to think of how I can take the exhibits and put them in the classroom.

Today we have already walked downtown for crepes, and headed to the dinosaur park. We flew a kite and I had Mary Poppins singing in my head. After that we went shopping, and hit Farmer's Market for roasted corn and kettlecorn. Later on we went to Jockos for dinner (gigantic steaks).

Basically our time here is over. Tomorrow we pack the car and head back to reality until next time. I love this place...

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Say a Little Prayer Please...

I'm a Christian and I believe in miracles.  My mom needs one please... so if you are so inclined, could you say a little prayer for her?
9 years ago my mom had her first heart attack, and it was a humdinger of a one... ended up with a quadruple bypass as a parting gift from the cardiologist.  Since then she has had 2 pace makers, numerous stints, and other health issues that sometimes relates to her heart, other times relates to her sodium (or lack of sodium) levels.  
I'm not at the point of completely understanding how one's life can revolve around doctor's appointments, or medications, or sodium levels... other than what I hear from her during our daily talks. Yes, daily... I love my mom and she's basically the only one in my family that allows me to vent about school (since she taught for 37 years herself).  
Well, last week she wasn't feeling good.  My parents had gone on vacation - since that's what retired people do - and she developed a pinched nerve due to having to sit in an uncomfortable wheelchair for hours and hours visiting Hearst Castle... so she wasn't able to get around and move... and the muscle relaxers afterward made her tired, so she didn't eat... and somehow her already low sodium dropped to an even lower/dangerous level.
There is a reason I didn't go into medicine like my sister - I don't like hospitals or blood or dealing with medication or seeing people in pain.  Yet, I have now learned that my mom's 122 sodium level is very close to the 120 coma & stroke level... so yes, it's been a little scary. 
I have also learned that dangerously low sodium causes people to become very confused and forgetful. Like not knowing the day, year, birthdate, president... it was 1944 there for a while.  
Yesterday morning my parents had an eventful day starting with a fall (due to a dizzy spell), a call to 911, a ride in an ambulance, and then a bunch of tests.  Over 36 hours later and her levels remain the same.  They need to go up or tomorrow there will be more tests regarding her kidney functions. 
So, if you have a moment - you could you please say a prayer for her?  
Thank you so much!

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Monday Made It - Camping Party

Monday Made It is here, so I'm linking up with Tara.  :)
This month has already proved to be crazy.  I've been decorating the classroom for Easter & Spring, making new products, and this past weekend we celebrated my son's birthday with a camping themed party.  Just an FYI - party stores do not carry camping party supplies around here...  Bring on the craftiness!!
We had his party last Friday night beginning at 5pm, so it was a matter of running around crazy like in the hour between leaving school and until the kids showed up - picking up balloons and then setting up the party scene.  I even came home for lunch to get as much cleaned as possible (since we all know you can't really clean with kids in the house).  I made his cake the night before.  I'm pretty proud of how it came out.  Of course this is plan B since plan A fell apart - literally crumbling trying to create a smores cake.  We did make up smores bags as part of the party favors to take home.We set up our family sized tent in the backyard and found these glow in the dark lanterns to use... in addition to our regular camping lanterns.  The boys each received a clip on flashlight when they showed up and wore them during the evening - they came in handy during a game of backyard flashlight tag.  The boys ate dinner in the tent after making it themselves - make your own pizza.    I like to have a craft at the boys' parties... so our craft was decorating small birdhouses with birdseed.  We thought it went with the nature/camping theme.  :)

We also had a fishing game - just like those carnival fishing games - with the prizes being small sacks of colored gummy fish.  Gotta love Winco's bulk area.
All in all it was a success. Hope you had a great day!  

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12 Family Christmas Traditions

Let me start this post telling you that I am not blogging on Christmas Eve.  I am going to use the scheduler feature so it will "seem" like I am on the computer, but in actuality I will be in the midst of our family celebrations - yes, plural... 

Why do something once if you can do it again and again...

This was taken during Winter Wonderland at school.
Yes, my youngest was the one screaming to get away from Santa - he calls Santa "Ho, Ho, Ho" -
So his words were, "No Ho, Ho, Ho!!" 

I wanted to share my 12 absolute favorite family Christmas traditions.  This year, maybe because for once I'm so organized (ha ha)... or maybe because I've had an entire week of vacation before the holiday even hits, I'm so at peace at the moment.  I'm actually HAPPY going into Christmas - not stressed, not upset, not wanting to go hide... I'm really content with life.

Now this list of traditions are things we tackle over the couple of weeks leading up to the big day - it's not like we are doing them back to back in a "we need to do this or else my Christmas will be ruined" type of way.  I'm sure after I hit the publish button I'm going to think of more stuff that we do every year... oh well...I'm limiting it to 12.  Get ready for a long post... 

Tradition #1: Decorating on the day after Thanksgiving.  We decorate, we get the Christmas music going, then we sit and relax.  We then do it all again at my parents house either the next day or the next weekend to help out.  

Tradition #2: Bake, bake, bake.  This year I got smart.  Instead of baking up 6 batches of cookies (which equals 18 dozen) that we need for all the gifts, I made up the cookie dough in my mixer, and stuck the dough in the fridge.  Every night I just stuck 2 dozen on a cookie tray when I was cooking up dinner and had "fresh" ones for the next day's gifts.  I just did the last of the cookie dough yesterday and now we have cookies for Santa.

Tradition #3:  Becoming elves... I love the tradition of delivering lemons to our neighbors.  I know I've mentioned it before.  I also love that my boys are getting into it.  This year we also took 2 night drives and delivered lemons and cookies to friends and family.  We didn't call first, we just showed up and knocked on the door.  There wasn't time for them to rush around trying to give us something in return - it was just a gift for them to accept.

The second part of this is the RACK's in our community.  I cannot stress enough how fun it was to watch the look on the faces of the firemen, CHP, and the dentist when we delivered thank you goodies.  They don't get enough thank yous and to see grown men get emotional - it was worth it.  The CHP was also collecting toys for the kiddos in our community.  It's a good thing to have my own boys get in a habit of helping others.  

Tradition #4: Date night and wrapping party.  Once or twice during the month my parents take the boys and we are able to have a date to finish up the shopping and then we spend the rest of the time wrapping everything.  Yeah, I'm thankful for family.

Tradition #5:  I love when we do PJ drives.  We are the type of family that the kids usually go to bed at 8 pm, they read for a bit (or listen for a bit), and then it's lights out.  It's a fun night when we load up the car in our PJ's, blankets, and swing by the drive thru for Hot Chocolate.  Then we just drive around our town and look at the Christmas lights.  My boys are so silly.  It started a couple of years ago but they bring cameras with them.  When they see a house that has "stuff" in front of it - not just lights, but reindeer, Santa, penguins, nativity - we will pull over and they take pictures of it.

Tradition #6:  Movie nights!  There are so many wonderful kid's Christmas movies.  We have had quite a few family movie nights lately.  We always get PJ's on first, then pop popcorn with a touch of sprinkles on top (they think it makes it extra special), and then we settle down with the classics.

Tradition #7: Decorating Gingerbread Houses.  Enough said about that.

Tradition  #8:  Christmas Eve with my parents.  I know when I get older I'm supposed to make new traditions, and we have... but it's also nice to revert back to the same traditions that I've grown up with.  I love going over to my parents, knowing that Dad to have set the dining room table with all the fancy "Christmas only" tablecloth and plates.  My oldest son reads the Christmas story from Luke 2 out of his own Bible, we have a delicious meal, then we gather in the family room around the Christmas tree to open presents.  The youngest always goes first, then we take turns opening gifts.  The kids "deliver" the gifts to each person.  My sister is there too... we laugh - we joke - it's family time.

Tradition #9:  Christmas Eve service with the family.  It's so important to me when I can snuggle with my kids in church, singing carols, hold a little candle, and know we are worshipping as a family.

Tradition #10: Christmas morning.  We have a gate on the landing at the top of the stairs.  Standing behind the gate the kids can't see over the banister.  Every year my husband goes downstairs where the tree is and gets the camera ready to capture the kids expression with seeing what Santa has brought.  I help the youngest walk down the stairs since with all the gawking there is always a chance that some child will trip and fall...  Santa never wraps anything when he comes to our house, and he always sets up whatever big thing he brings.  He told me that he is bringing them a big play tent for them this year.  I'm sure that their stockings will be right outside the tent along with whatever else he brings.  I kind of think it's funny how many pictures we take since we are all in our PJ's and I'm not exactly the kind of person to broadcast PJ pictures to random visitors to our house - or put them into any photo albums...  

Tradition #11:  Christmas Breakfast.  We are having my husband's family over for a late breakfast - right now the menu will include Eggs Benedict's like normal, but I'm also thinking of Popovers and Sausage... We will have our 3rd celebration at that time with them - more presents, and then our 4th will be at my cousin's... This year we aren't hosting Christmas.  We were supposed to, but it meant more to my cousin - so she gets the big double side of my family at her house - my in laws are coming too.   

Tradition #12: Jesus' Birthday Party - Yes after we come home from all the extended family celebrations (a little earlier this year to let the dog out) we will have a birthday party for Jesus.  I make up our traditional birthday cake - it happens to be Angel Food Cake, we sing Happy Birthday to Jesus, we blow up balloons, and then the kids start playing with all their goodies from the day.

Fun times ahead!

What are your favorite traditions?

Hope you have a great day!  

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