From the class hike I didn't go on
(hubby took this photo)

Somebody turned Three AND A HALF
(and her brother read her card to her)

Other random photos

The Biker

Some things are growing in the Garden!

Uncle Justin brought back masks from New Orleans

1:something AM. Go to bed. Stayed up waay too late folding laundry and doing absolutely nothing important.

1:30-something AM. Little Girl wakes up, but miraculously is calling "Daddy!" Nudge husband...I go back to sleep

6:00 AM Husband's alarm goes off. I realize he must have fallen asleep with Little Girl. I don't know how to turn off his alarm, no worries, I am tired enough I can go back to sleep with it blaring.

6:13 AM Husband, the light sleeper in the other room, cannot and comes in to turn it off.

6:30 AM My alarm goes off. I snooze it for 10 minutes.

6:33 AM I realize I don't have an extra 10 minutes in the morning and have to get up, shower and get dressed.

6:55 AM Husband knocks on bathroom door to give me 5 minute warning before he has to be in a meeting, and to let me know that Little Girl just woke up (translation: she hasn't brushed her teeth or eaten breafkast yet)

7:00 AM Get breakfast ready, keep Bigger Boy on task to get dressed and ready for school. See that since Little Girl slept in, Husband had their lunches completely ready to go!

7:25 AM Get Little Girl dressed for school.

7:30-7:40 do the "We have to go NOW" rush around the house, losing all ability to not have to rush the children (okay the Son) in the mornings.  Yes he can bring magnetic rocks in my car (mental note: where did those go?)

7:42 Pull out of the driveway, only 2 minutes late! 20 Minute Drive to School.

8:00 Arrive at school to a sweet parking spot. That will make my day. Hike up a hill to get Son to class, carry Little 30 pound girl most of the way and lament how out of shape I am to be so winded!

8:04 AM Try not to look winded.

8:10 AM Back down the hill to take Little Girl to class.

8:20 AM Back UP the hill to help prepare a craft for Son's Class. Notice I'm not so winded when I do it on my own. I feel better about that!

9:00 AM Back down the hill and arrange to meet Hubby at a new Bank, 30 minutes away,  to open a new account b/c I'm too annoyed at the old Bank.

9:30 AM Stop for Coffee. Mmm. Coffee Bean just released their Seasonal Mint flavor. Mmm...

10:05 AM Meet hubby at bank. Proceed to ask them a bunch of questions they don't know the answer to, but open new account anyway. Apparently they now requre a Social Security Card which I finally stopped carrying around with me, after I lost it and numerous people told me not to carry it!

10:45 AM Back over towards school, stop at old bank to get bank checks to empty children's accounts to move to new bank.

11:20 AM Realize that a large coffee necessitates at least one bathroom break for the morning and stop at the mall to do so, where they just so happen to have a store where I just so happen to have a gift card that just so happened to have one pair of 50% off boots left in Little Girls' size. That was worth the stop. Note that cute little dog sweaters do not count as 'outerwear' and are still $16.50 (for stuffed animals of course!).

11:45 AM Rush off to pick up Little Girl at Noon from school.

12:00 PM Pick up Little Girl and take a short walk to appreciate the squirrels.

12:10 PM Remind Little Girl that the vines are not done with their leaves yet!!

12:15 PM Little Girl tells me she wants a cuddly puppy. I tell Little Girl to tell Daddy that!

12:20 PM Show Little Girl New Boots. We're both in Heaven. :)

12:45 PM Arrive home. Happy to see the hateful proposition signs are removed from the neighbors whom I now have unwanted mental notes about.  It's....NAP TIME!

The next hour and a half are a blur of mommy-time! Okay, let's see a flatbread and hummus lunch (who wants to spend nap time preparing food?), making phone calls/setting appointments, wasting time playing games online. Bliss. Oh yes, and though she didn't actually sleep, she was quiet for at least 45 minutes before the calls of bathroom/thirst/can I get up? started.

2:30 PM Talk Hubby into taking Little Girl to pick up Son so I can go back to bank with social security card and children's checks.

3:00 PM Arrive back at bank. I don't have my social security card, just their's.  The strange part is I CHECKED in the envelope to see that I had all three cards.  I had two for Bigger Boy and one for Little Girl. And None for Me. Bank is closed tomorrow. Luckily they will give me an extra 24 hours to bring it in.

4:00 PM Back Home!

4:00 PM - 5:15 PM Hubby actually goes back to work (home office) and children play reasonably nicely together while I put away laundry and participate in a roudy game of "All House Hide & Seek/Tag." Apparently All House now includes the garage. hmm...bad idea. Son & I finger crochet new handles and loops for Little Girls' lunch basket. That was fun. He loves handwork.

5:15 PM Hubby makes dinner. Ahh... I hate to cook. Truly. I try to look at it differently, nourishing the family, etc.  I TRY.  I keep Trying. I am relieved tonight I do not have to try. For some twisted reason the man actually enjoys cooking.  Who Am I to take that away from him?

6:00 PM Dinner. When Hubby Cooks, time is not of the essence. But it always tastes good.

6:30 PM Time for a family board game of "Brown Bear Brown Bear what do you see?" Kids are tired and floppy. We probably should have skipped the game but we don't always have an extra 15 minutes in the evening. Oh wait, it wasn't extra. We forgot son's eye exercises. Again.

6:45 PM Early Bedtime! Yawns are all around.  I get a sometimes cooperative, sometimes not, sometimes teary Little Girl Ready for bed. At one point she sobs "I want DAAAAADDY!" Last night, it was the reverse. There's just no pleasing some people.

7:00 PM They are in bed!

8:00 PM Phone Rings. Shoot. I accidentally left it in son's room. It woke him. More Mommy Guilt. Babysitter tells us she cannot babysit when we need her next week for a parent meeting.  Darn. Continue watching sappy movie about a man with a horrible childhood who turns his life around, while folding laundry and mending buttons. We are so lucky.

10:30 PM Realize movie is over, laundry is folded. I COULD go to bed at a reasonable hour. Remember I wanted to blog.

11:11 PM Still blogging. Remember one more button to mend, and The Daily Show. Okay, I will go to bed by midnight tonight, for sure!!

So, what did you do all day? Haha. Someday this will give me a big chuckle, I've never written it all (or most) down before.

SERVES 8 (change servings and units)

Ingredients

                3 lbs apples

                1 teaspoon cinnamon

                1 pinch nutmeg

                1 1/2 cups water

                2 thin lemon slices

                1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

                1
Peel and core apples (I prefer to leave the skin on a few of them because I like the taste and texture). Cut apples into approximately 1 inch cubes.

                2
Add all ingredients to pot, and turn heat on high. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes or until the apples have softened significantly.

                3
Stir frequently, making sure that the apples are not sticking to the bottom of the pot. Add more water if necessary. Remove lemon slices.

4
Mash with a potato masher or use a food mill for a smoother consistency. Serve warm or at room temperature.

My first summer project was to finally finish the Tooth Fairy Pillow. Just in case!

The blurry part is actually his name embroidered on it.

Somebody is determined to Finger Crochet.

Though we were sad to not get to visit the troller on our last trip, this poem was cute. Can you read it? Maybe not. It said

The Trolley's Big Makeover

The Trolley at the Grove truly loves it's job'
But one day it looke din the mirror and gave a loud sob

"My brass isn't shiney and my paint is wearing out!
I need a makeover quickly, without any doubt."

So it journeyed farway to a special trolley retreat
For a fresh new look that will be really neat

The beloved Trolley will return home to the Grove in November
Just in time for a holiday season you will always remember!

I love that they took the time to make a cute poem for the children.

 As a child, I always hated that assignment.  Even though I just went to your regular run-of-the-mill public school, it always seemed like everyone else had something more exciting to report.  Now, as the mother, I think our best days were the days of Nowhere and Nothing.  The days of playing at home, wading in the backyard, chalk drawings on the patio or maybe even a trip to Jamba Juice!  In any case, here are some of the more "exciting" highlights, part one:

We did some redecorating (He is so NEAT when he paints, hardly getting a drop on him. He takes after Daddy):

Visited with Friends:

Played at home:

Not to mention several Beach Days:

Went to a Hot Air Balloon Festival:

Took Swim Lessons:

Visited a Park:

And more!