nic's first t-ball practice

Nic had his first T-Ball practice this past Wednesday.
It was an adventure. =)

It was weird... Nic was really the only kid who went after the ball. No matter where the ball ended up, Nic went running after it - from 3rd base. It was super cute.

There were times when Nic was more interested in the rocks on the outskirts of the field then with actually playing ball - but I kinda expected that. Also, there was one play where Nic was running from 1st to 2nd - and instead of sliding in - HE SERIOUSLY did a SOMERSAULT into 2nd base. It happened sooo fast, I couldn't get a picture of it. He had all of the parents laughing so hard.

Next practice is Wednesday - and then they have a game on Saturday. Can't wait! ;)

Isabel starts practice on Monday - and has it 3x a week. Alex's first game at the H.S. is Thursday - and he's been practicing 6x a week.

I am still in bed due to my back. I went to the ER yesterday and was given a medicine cabinet full of drugs; nothing seems to be working though.

The husband as me hooked up though - the laptop and this:

42" Panasonic.  We were planning on getting a flat screen for the bedroom, he just expedited it.  He worked hard this weekend to run all of the cables and lines in the wall. Eventually, the power cord will be in the wall as well, he just didn't get a chance to move the electrical box. He's also been feeding me really well and doing a bunch of other really sweet things. I am the luckiest gal, really.

I have so much to do - and I am so behind on everything... I cannot wait to get out of this bed and back to my normal, chaotic life.

oooh my aching...

back.

i am typing this from flat on my back.
so if there are any mistakes it's cuz i can't see the keyboard really.

not sure what i did wednesday, but my back is not happy.
i had a major issue back in 2004... and it's come back to haunt me 3 or 4 times since then.

since i've now been out of commission for almost three days, i am giving in and going to the doctor. especially since my feet are white and super numb.

i think that's a good enough reason.

right?

Drapes Update

My formal dining room has a table and chairs in it.
And now some drapes.

My formal living room has a sofa sleeper [in a lovely southwestern motif that I cannot wait to slipcover] and a dog crate.
And now some drapes.

And that's about it.

Oh how I love these drapes. You may remember that they started out as clearanced tablecloths from Target.  Now they have a home on my windows, not on my table.

Before I start posting pictures, PLEASE remember that I am a LONG WAY from done. But I wanted to get them up so that I will be motivated to keep working on the space.

Front living room window.

Dining Room

I cannot decide if I am going to add a trim piece to the top or the bottom of the drapes, or if I am going to just lower the rod. We plan on putting in crown molding and definitely some built in book cases [on the living room side of the room].  Heck, we have a whole lotta plans for the space..



Maybe by the time the room is finished, I will have learned to take better in-door pictures.

Let us hope.

Change of Plans

We've decided on MAUI! [Why does Hawaii have to have so many islands??]
And... we've decided on JUNE!
Based on everyone's schedules... we will be leaving on June 22 and will be staying 6 or 7 nights in beautiful Maui. Now, that the decisions have been made, we just need to go in a book everything!

So very excited.

Random: Thursday

  

Evidently, Nic was mad at Alex because Alex wouldn't play X-Box with him.

So Nic went up to the window in Alex's room and pushed the screen.

It fell to the ground a good 10-15 feet below.

[scary thoughts raced through my head as Nic told us this story]

Ellis used the screen as a chew toy.

Outside of my office window.

Which is how I found out about it.

I wonder why Alex didn't say anything last night.

Or go get the blasted thing.

/sigh.

Anyone know how much a new window screen cost?

Dollar Dollar Bills, Ya'll.

1) Got our Hawaii cash all ready to go - now we just need to actually book the trip. Still indecisive about which island to visit. May take a few more days.

2) Got our financial budget laid out for the year - and we are back on track! Buying the house set us back a bit; so many added expenses. We have a good plan and as long as we stick to it, there will be plenty of money to save, take care of the house (including decor) and pay down the bills. We are following Dave Ramsey's plan again - I am ready to be debt free, once and for all (although, now with the house - it may take a while!).

I decided to start using this new invention called (wait for ittttt.......) CHECK REGISTERS! Evidently your balance online isn't always accurate because of (wait for itttt....) OUTSTANDING CHECKS!

Ima jus' kiddin'.
I knew that. I am a banker, after all. And I did get us out of debt ($25K in 2 years) before we bought the house. I know we can do it again! Especially since I have 873 checking and savings accounts to help keep me organized. I don't like to keep our money all in one place. No, I am not paranoid. I just have a bad habit of robbing Peter to pay Paul. especially when Paul is really the super secret codename for Target or Ross. There, I said it. Gave away my weakness.

3) I am working hard to get our Tax documents together for our accountant. Since we bought the house just this past September, this will be the first year we REALLY get to itemize. That means a lot of leg work (which really means a lot of ARM work - digging and digging and digging through piles of paper. Oh joy).

Suh-weeet!

Yesterday was a sweet day. Nic and I ran around like CRAZY people trying to get our day in order.
First, we went to Wally-World to grab some V-Day cards for the fam.  My shopping cart MADE ME go into Lawn & Garden.

Bad cart. Bad cart.

I wanted to buy EVERYTHING. Instead I settled on a few things:

Green pillows. Which I love. A lot.

Just a shot of the yard - cuz I am lovin' it. Well, except for the almost dead plants and bushes.

We are working on those, though.

I got this plant because it looks easy to take care of - it's a cactus. And it matches the house!!

And the pillows.

Someone pa-leeeze call HGTV.

And this is a gardenia bush/plant/thing. I thought it looked nice.
And it cost me all of $5.00.

After that shopping trip, I came home and made dinner (Chicken, Spinach & Mushroom lasagna!) and a cake. Then I got the call that the man who stole my heart was going to be later than usual coming home from work. No worries, we waited for him. Everyone was wonderful and suh-weeet and polite - and then everyone opened up their V-Day cards. There were tears and fist-pumps. I did good. =)

Okay, let's go back. I DID do good. But that's about it. I really tried to make it a special occasion. But leading up to it there was whining, crying, yelling, stomping, threatening, and epic fails. Seriously, I went to remove the cake from the pan and it FELL APART on me.  I iced it anyway and served it to my peeps. Nic sure as heck didn't care.

Oh well. I tried, that's all that matters.

Speaking of signs (okay, we weren't even on the topic)... I had an old frame-thingy that I got at Goodwill a few months back - it was a picture of Raggedy Anne and a wooden rocking horse. I spray painted the sucker to match the green/blue/spearmint/aloe color in my kitchen. For a while it's just been sitting on top of my cabinets. NOT N-E MORE.

 

Wait a minute - forgot to put the flowers in (and take a pic with my camera). Here's a shot from my droid.

I found that dragonfly paper in one of my craft boxes - No idea where it came from, but it works.
Until Isabel said that it was kinda gross  -  as if we were eating the dragonflies.

As serious as a heart attack...

That's how serious I am about the front my home.
Even though I have piles of laundry to sort through today, and a kitchen full of dishes that need my attention - I will  be darned if the front of my house doesn't look spiffy at all times. ♥ ♥ ♥

Which is why I've been working on a new wreath for my humongo door. It's either 8 or 9 feet tall... and needs something to make it pretty. I made that huge Christmas wreath (which I loved). So, I decided to try making a new wreath - one that would last me until the fall, at least!

I got my supplies from Hobby Lobby. They didn't have an foam circle thingies, so I settled for hay-stuff wrapped in plastic. It worked just fine. I picked up a cream yarn, and got to work. I found this to be the most tedious part of the job - but I knew I would love the end result, so I just kept wrapping. And wrapping.
And wrapping. I finished it Saturday night while Marcos and I sat down to watch "You Again."

I got up early yesterday to put the final pieces on.

And here is the final product:

Before I actually attached the flowers, I decided to use a clear poly spray on the fabric to see if I could weather proof it a little. Hopefully it will work.

Besides the wreath, I've also been working on some frames for the kids' hallway to go with that beach cruiser pic I found. Very excited about that.

And then finally, we heart attacked the front windows of the house.

Hope you all are having a LOVE-FILLED day!!

P.S. Linking up to SNS.

To: Our Garage Love: Us

I have to be crazy about our new shelves - considering I am dedicating a WHOLE post to them.
The husband and I went to Costco yesterday and dropped a cool one thousand clams (well, just under) on groceries and 3 heavy duty, super cool storage shelves.

They were $150 a piece. And they are going to make our garage THAT much more organized. My old ball and chain is letting me have one shelf for my cartons of craft stuff. Isn't he sa-weeet?!

While my main squeeze took Alex back to Costco to get the shelves, I took Isa and Nic with me to Target to pick up curtain rods for my tablecloth curtains. I really want to hang them today, but I am not so good with a drill (unless you like Swiss Cheese). And since these are going in the first two rooms you see when you enter my house - I will wait for my handy man to assist. 

After Target, we stopped in on Ross. Lots of ladies there... not much good stuff (in my price plan and in home decor). As I turned to leave, on a top shelf, tucked in the back I saw this beauty:

It's a 16x16 canvas painting. And I LOVE IT.  By the way, the picture of the canvas is courtesy of Alex. I told him to get an up close one, but didn't realize he would take that as - show nothing by the bike. That's really all there is - but still.

I would love to just put it anywhere, where I can see it at all times, but as my mom says - it doesn't really go with my decor. Although I wish.  So instead, I am going to put it in the hallway of the kids' rooms. I was planning on doing a bunch of pictures in there, anyway. I will take picture's when it is up! I've got a couple of things to hang today!

Not only did we get pretties and shelves... we also went to Home Depot on Thursday night and bought a GARAGE DOOR OPENER!!! We haven't even really used the garage much since we had to open it manually. I am looking forward to being able to pull right in and entering through the laundry room door. Soon.

Well, just as soon as the garage door opener installer calls me to set up the appointment.

You're welcome, garage!

I have the Bieber Fever

No, really... I do. My nose is running (gushing might be more accurate). My head is stuffy. My throat is sore. It started yesterday morning, and I know I got it from Isabel. Besides all that, Isa and I were invited to go see Never Say Never. I'm kinda old and uncool, and too lazy to Google, should that read NeverSayNever? Or am I okay with the spaces in there?

Anyhoo. My friend from High School (whom I haven't even seen since High School) and her daughter invited us. We've been "friends" on Facebook for a while now and she and her family actually live just a few miles up the road from us. Her oldest goes to Alex's school and is only a few months older than Alex.

Even though I wasn't feeling so hot, I didn't want Isa to miss out on the "premier" (as she told all of her friends that's where she was going after school. The premier? I had to explain that while it was the first day - it wasn't the official Hollywood premier. She was cool with that). 

We had a great time. The movie was really, really good. If you are a mom, you will like it. Heck, if you are warm-blooded, you will find parts of this movie that you like or that you can relate to.   There was one part in particular where JB's dad - who hadn't been to one of his son's concerts yet - was watching from the front row area. And his was crying. It overwhelmed him so much to see Justin on that humongo stage. He actually had to move back stage - and they showed JB's mom consoling his dad. There's where my heart strings were tugged a little. The PRIDE. Again, if you have kids, you can relate.

One of the best parts was catching up with Summer before the movie actually started! I think Isabel and Mariah hit it off! Actually, I know they did. They actually slipped into Claire's Boutique before the movie started (we got there way early - had to fight off the 5 year olds) and bought a heart shaped key chain that said Justin's Girls - they each got half of the heart. Sooo cute. Glad we could make their day.

While Isa and I were out and about, Alex finished baseball practice @ about 5, came home & got ready - the school was hosting a bonfire last night. He stayed until just before 9 and then Marcos took him out to a movie afterwards. They've been wanting to see the Mechanic. No idea what it's about. It was supposed to be MY date night with the hubby, but instead I was in bed feeling yucky. The movie didn't start until 10:20... so I know they got home super late. Which sucks for Alex since he has to be at practice this morning at 8am.

The plans for today?! Grocery shopping, our monthly Costco shopping and some do-dad shopping. I want to fill in my striped nook. Especially since baseball & softball season are upon us for all three kids. I need to keep my schedule straight!

Oh - I also need to go get some medicine. Hopefully they sell something over-the-counter which will help me with this case of Bieber Fever. I don't want to be sick.

Finished Product ♥

An update to my earlier post...
We got all of Isabel's V-Day cards done.
Her class is celebrating today...

Here is the finished product:

The 35 photos cost me $6 at Walgreen's.
The foam (two packages) were $2 (a dollar apiece from Dollar Tree).
The ribbons (4 packages) were $4 (a dollar a piece from Dollar Tree).
The mini-snickers were 2/$5. I only needed one bag.

I used tacky glue to adhere the picture to the foam and then the mini snickers to the photo.

I used regular staples to attach the ribbon to the foam - kind of a scrapbook look.


Total spent: $14.50. Not bad for homemade Valentine's Cards.
I wish Alex would let me make him some. Who says it's not cool for High School?!?

P.S. Alex did ask me to buy a V-Day monkey for his [girl] friend. And a card.
And so it begins.

Easy Peasy V-Day Cards

Isa needs 30 valentine's by tomorrow. Of course I knew in advance, but I sure didn't act on this knowledge. In advance.

The poor girl has been sick the last few days and hasn't even been in school.  But we are trying our hardest to get her healthy so she can join in the LOVE celebration going on at her school tomorrow.

We needed something more grown-up (uhemm) and something super, easy peasy!

The idea was to get a good picture of her - but that didn't work out since she wasn't feeling so hot. So I went through Picasa and tried to find some pictures I could use. I found a few:

We finally settled on this one:

They are at Walgreen's right now getting printed off. I already purchased the foam they will be attached to, in addition to the ribbon and the mini-snicker's bars (bites, really!).  Where outstretched arm/hand is, we will attach a mini-snickers! 

I will take a picture of the final product as soon as I get them put together this evening! We also got some treats for the class party and V-Day pencils for the entire class.

I know Valentine's Day isn't until Monday, but it sure is fun getting started early on the celebrations. You know, like forcing your #1 man to take you out for a romantic date?! He's taking me to the movies tomorrow night. Where we may or may not make-out in the dark theater.