Swimming lessons

Anthony began swimming lessons this week, he loves them. Yesterday I was able to watch for the first time..He is quite a fish, trusts the instructor completely and is jumping of the edge and putting his face in the water for her...He wouldn't do that for me of course. A little scary when she took them to the diving board, my heart almost stopped, he watched and watched but wasn't ready to venture up on the board at this time, it's ok not sure I could have handled him jumping yet.
Yahaira is still not feeling well... Not sure what is wrong since she won't or can't tell me...Wish I understood whine the language. :) Didn't take her to school which left an open night wow! I honestly didn't know what to do...Tried to watch a movie, nothing interesting, tried to watch TV...Again no interest. Thought about doing paperwork, got no further than thinking, cleaned up a bit...So settled in to read magazines, of course yahaira helped, it seemed the page I was on was not the one she wished to read.....I am learning to read fast......Another skill I can add to a job resume.
It's Friday, glad the weekend is upon us...Have fun enjoy your space and do something fun.
Debbie

Gracie's Birthday Gift

Is done! woohoo, join me in a happy dance now!
what began with a picture turned into this. I saw a tote just like this decorated on another blog,see the fist pic not sure what she used it for, no inside pics but loved the idea...Which stewed in my head for awhile (honestly it's amazing anything comes out of that recess I call a brain) the result a tote to hold art, papers, and report cards for each year of school, with a spot on the front of the folder for stats for that year....1st day of school, teacher, age, friends...Later years classes, activities. And of course a place for her signature...Don't you just love watching how their handwriting changes over the years. There is also a place for a 1st day of school pic. I had a blast creating this, I finally just had to put it away for fear of over embellishing it. the next two pics are of the inside and a close up of one of the folders. Next I plan to make one for Anthony. This tote has generated much interest I'm afraid with people wanting one of their own... At first the request was for me to make it...ummmm where to find the time? So I have convinced them they too can do this, translation....A (for lack of a better word) class here with me "helping" them achieve the same affect....Why do people doubt their skills truly this was a simple project. Why am I reluctant to term it a class? Who am I to teach...I'm usually just winging it and happen to get lucky sometimes with a pretty cool outcome....No one notices the mistakes and trust me there are many.
to switch directions we now have a date for the baby's trial and grandma's request for custody. It is in may..They will be doing it at the same time.this is a day we have been waiting for, on one hand it needs to be done...She will be 10 months by then, a decision should be made, but with the date set comes the realization that we will be getting a decision...Scary. They could go with grandma, in all likelihood they will, she is family, and that is a very awful feeling. So in as much as the decision needs to be made, I now find myself wishing for the vagueness of no trial date. Silly I know when I've been saying forever it needs to be decided...But now faced with the decision and possibility they may leave, leaves me frightened beyond words. I hold onto the fact that God brought them to us for a reason, and whatever decision is made, God will continue to protect them. I put my trust in prayer that the decision made is in the kids' best interest, not what is in my best interest. Staying with us is what "I" want and it may not be the "best" thing for them. I'm prepared for any outcome, as prepared as one can be to have your heart possibly broken...I find strength in knowing we haven't traveled this road alone, many have helped us, God has guided us and I know that no matter the outcome God will guide us thru that also. Please pray for these little people who have touched our lives and so many others, that the people who will be deciding their future do so keeping in mind what is best for the kids and that the issue doesn't get clouded by politics and race and all the other adult things that complicate life.
Debbie

Another Tuesday....

Another sick child. We started out the day just fine but by mid afternoon Yahaira was so not herself, clingy, whiny, nothing was making her happy... By late afternoon we knew why, she was sick, throwing up sick...So not fun with a 1 year old. Cleaned her up, settled her down and soon she is sleeping, I did briefly think whew, maybe this is a one time thing....Ok silly me. Left to go to curves, home 45 minutes later and I walk into Cassandra standing by the door looking at me in horror, "she just threw up on my hand" ok forgive me but there was a part of me that thought just your hand? But she is young I won't make it worse, she too will figure this out. I peek around the bathroom door to see Yahaira standing there with an equally horrified look on her face, as if to say "what *%$** just happened here?" so I clean up Yahaira and ask Cassandra did she throw up anywhere else? "in the living room" she says. Ok note to self remind all parties in home on the in's and out's of a sick toddler. Rule number 1. Do not let them be mobile when they are throwing up....A path, a huge path, from point A. Living room to point B bathroom. The carpets are going to need to be cleaned, (they really needed it before this, but now there is no excuses) so I look at Cassandra and say next time don't let her move keep her on the blanket... Very horrified look that I might even suggest there will be a next time. Lot's of muttering being done by my daughter, words I picked up were "never having kids" "ever!" "gross" am I awful for finding humor in this? So needless to say Anthony didn't make it to ECFE tonight. He didn't make it last week either, same reason, just a different child, Rose was throwing up last week...So what are his odds of making it next week? The way things are going he should be the one sick....I truly hope not...But time will tell.
on a cheerful note finished my nieces birthday gift....Loving how it turned out...Need to take pics to share.
have healthy, sick free day.
Debbie

Teenage daughters and husbands

what a mix that is....
the first pic is what the teenage daughter did last night....No one hurt, just the garage door The next pic is of husband trying to move car from one stall to the next, so as to not leave us with one vehicle until before mentioned garage door can be repaired...At one point he had the front end of the car pointing towards the opposite garage door and was virtually jammed in that position..How he didn't remove the passenger side door I do not know....Actually I don't know how??? He got it in that position...My head hurts, yes 12 hours later and my head still hurts.
Crabby people in our home last night....Amazing how I get to hear all about it, but then when it comes time to say it to the one who caused the problem he becomes silent, not a word, oh you can tell her. Gee thanks. Door may be repaired as soon as today, one of my daycare dad's is a contractor and due to the rain he has room in his schedule.
Baby has a new tooth...Which explains why all the sleepless nights, and dirty diapers...I truly hope all her teeth are not so challenging when they come in.
Busy weekend, Saturday was mix-it-up day...New location same great people...I'm always energized after attending a workshop...I actually look forward to cooking.
I've been working on my nieces birthday gift...It is coming together better than I imagined...Will post pics once it's completely done.
no school here today, a busy/crazy day in store...Time to get to work..
enjoy your monday
Debbie

Things to do instead of sleep....

for the third night in a row baby has been up...Fortunately last night wasn't due to being sick, in as much as she was just "awake" these pics were taken at 12:30, they are blurry, but hey so was my mind... We played, watched TV, talked, played some more, fussed and played, (are you seeing a theme here) wondering what tonight will bring.....
Ali Edwards has a new concept in scrapping .....She says scrapbookers are "life artist" I like that...It really does encompass all that we try to do. Go here to see her work and ideas http://www.cafepress.com/aliedwards
not much to say today, mind is still a bit blurry :)
have a great day,
Debbie
qotd: what is your favorite day of the week? And why?

30 minute meals

Have you seen this show? It is on the food network, I love it! When I first discovered it I was fascinated to think you could actually complete a meal in 30 minutes. The host Rachael Ray makes it look so simple...Of course I was skeptical, this is me, remember so I tried out a recipe and guess what? It works 30 minutes start to finish and it tasted amazing. I admit I tend to be about convince so much of meals before were 1. Take out or 2. From a box (my microwave is my hero) So discovering this cook who is all about simple, easy, and fast, well I was hooked, I own a couple of her cookbooks, which I am proud to say are used often....Watch her show as often as life allows and on Saturday while shopping I discovered SHE HAS A MAGAZINE! How cool is that.
www.rachaelraymag.com Of course I subscribed I just love what she does.
Sick people her I guess winter needs to give us one last dose of those icky bugs and germs. I'm even feeling the affects of a cold, sore throat...yuck! So I will continue to chant "I will not get sick, I will not get sick" mind of matter...Hope it works.
stay healthy
Debbie
qotd: What is your easiest recipe?

Hello Spring!

I'd post a picture but it would be too depressing...All you can see is snow...No new growth or flowers beginning to bloom alas that will be some time for us...But it is the first day of Spring and that is a good thing.
In celebration I bought Yahaira a pair of rain boots...She is so un-impressed in fact getting the picture was almost impossible she didn't want to wear them right now...Good thing she could talk to Kelly on the phone and be distracted while I snapped a few pics. (thanks Kelly) She didn't like her snow boots either and now wears them all the time. I looked for a pair for Anthony but nothing in his size.... Beckie wanted a pair and so I searched online last night, (having no luck finding them in stores) most of the online stores were sold out already...What? I needed to buy them in December? What is that????? One could wonder why I would buy rainboots and raincoats and umbrellas you really don't think I'm going to take them out to play in the rain now do you? This is me remember the only weather I like is sunny and warm. Well maybe I could take them out just to get some pics :)
accomplished a lot of scrapping this weekend...Even made these fun boxes (Basic Grey is the company) loving these new paper lines they have just released. I'm trying to figure out how to post layouts, working on that one but once I figure it out expect to see layouts.
Enjoy your first day of spring perhaps the weather is more spring like for you.
Debbie
qotd: what is your favorite season?

Curious

This is what we did last night....Went to see Curious George the movie. It was Yahaira's first time attending a movie in a theater...She did awesome! She was loving the popcorn and soda and yes she did actually watch the movie...It was a cute movie I found Linda and I were laughing more than the kids...Although I did hear Anthony's giggles every now and then...He is such a movie pro now...He always does so well.
I discovered some awesome new scrapbook paper last night on one of my favorite sites it's named after authors It is manufactured by American Crafts, it is their bookshelf line. click on the link to the right for ACOT to view the papers.
alas there was no Evanovich but maybe next time( would love to see a Stephanie plum paper or better yet a ranger)....Of course I ordered some, how could I not?
Today has been a productive day, I have finished several pages, woohoo. Now working with some of the new papers and stuff putting together some pages so all I have to do is add pictures.
have a great weekend...
Debbie
qotd: who is your favorite author

Happy St. Patty's Day

And what a beautiful day it is...The sun is shining, causing the snow to sparkle, beautiful, especially when enjoyed from the comfort of "inside" my home. It is 3 degrees right now, so happy I don't have to venture out to my "job".

The resident leprechaun has made his early morning visit...Milk that was once white is now a nice shade of green....The daycare kids love this....We will go back and forth me "no it's white, milk is always white" them: "no! It's green really look it's green" me: "it is not, white I tell you, milk is white" and so it goes back and forth until they finally show me the milk and say "see it is green" "well" I say "I guess it is, that silly leprechaun" today a new comment thrown in "Deb I think your going crazy" great these little people are so wonderful for my self esteem :) Now they are discussing what is going to happen at lunch, quite interesting don't you think that the leprechaun always appears at meal times and naptime. It's days like this that remind me why I love my job, only kids will buy fully into the magic and wonder that is a leprechaun....And spread it throughout the day.

another tradition of ours for St Patricks day is watching Lord of the Dance go here if you are not sure what that is http://www.lordofthedance.com/ My neighbor Dennis introduced us to this years and years ago, actually it was Riverdance but over time we have found we like Lord of the Dance better. It started with a phone call, Dennis "what are you doing" me "nothing, why?"
"turn your TV to channel 2 (our local PBS station) you have to see this show" so I turn it and ask what? Is it..."Well it is only the best Irish dancing you will ever see" "oh, I say what is Irish dancing?" "just watch" he says. So I watch and soon I'm calling the kids "hey, come see this, it's really cool" so there we sit my kids and I in our living room, Dennis next door in his living room, connected by the phone watching riverdance. In a word it was amazing, simply amazing. Our youngest had dreams of being an Irish dancer for many years after. When we had the opportunity to see Riverdance live, we naturally took Dennis with us, it is simply breathtaking to watch and listen to , and experience. I discovered Lord of the Dance by accident when I went to purchased a copy of Riverdance. This soon become our favorite and I and the daycare kids watch it every St. Patty's Day. We were able to see Lord of the Dance in Mankato at the Civic center...Another spectacular show....The kids were in awe.
Dennis' random phone call reminded me of other random calls over the years. Dennis has been known to call at 1 am, 3 am....Midnight real random. I learned that when he said "what are you doing" it was usually going to lead to an adventure. One night he called midnight, "what are you doing?" "sleeping" I said. "oh, go look out your front window" "why?" said in a whiny voice. "just do it" so I dragged my butt out of bed and go to the living room to peek out my window, still on the phone with Dennis . "This better be good" I grumble "just look" he says. So I do and then utter "holy crap Dennis what is going on???" what did I see? Police and sheriff cars blocking the entire road in front of our homes..."What is going on?" I ask, Dennis is the resident know it all he has a scanner. "they are looking for a man who stabbed his wife" he says "WHAT?" I say. "hey what is the officer in front of your house doing? I can't see him" "well Dennis it looks like he is pointing a gun at the house" did I just say gun???? "oh man" I say "this is better than TV" Dennis just laughs, and so for an hour we watch and comment, at one point I suggested he toodle out there to ask them what they were doing, but he commented that I was younger and could move faster in case there were bullets to dodge. What a guy.
Another late night call, 3 am brought the most spectacular show I have ever witnessed. Me answering the phone "lo" Dennis "what are you doing" me"oh I don't know Dennis scrubbing the toilets it is 3 am you know" he laughs and says come outside you have to see this. "Dennis it's 3 am I don't want to go outside" "It's the northern lights you have to come see them" he says...So out I go. Standing in his front yard watching the northern lights....Simply wow!
over the years I've learned that if Dennis calls and says "what are you doing" the answer will never be simple, and often the outcome will be something amazing.
Hoping you have the luck of the Irish today, and that you will be kissed by the magic of a leprechaun.
Debbie
qotd: how do you celebrate St. Patricks Day?

Sleep is a wonderful thing

I awakened this morning to the baby fussing in her crib, as I cracked open my eye I realized that I actually felt refreshed, so as the brain sensors are connecting I find myself thinking "good grief I have actually adjusted to no sleep" then I glanced at the clock and realized it was 5:45 wow! I slept for 6 hours...This has to be a record. Wow what energy I have today, (needing it school was two hours late..Thinking that it should have been called off) I thought that perhaps the baby had slept thru the night, alas no....She did a 1 am wakeup call I just missed it. Kevin took that round, today he is my hero, amazing what sleeping for 6 hours can do for your outlook.
As I mentioned school was two hours late today, twice this week, with another day of no school. Anthony has had 1 day of school so far this week, he goes to morning preschool 4 days a week.... He doesn't seem to mind one way or another, he loves school, but I think he also enjoys hanging out with the daycare kids. Snow days are a good thing, yes it means a busier day in daycare, but it also means that all those activities in the evening are canceled it is a good thing to be able to just stay home once in awhile, too bad it's the weather that makes us slow down.
Looking forward to my picture order coming today or tomorrow, more pictures mean a chance to scrapbook again, can't wait I have lot's of new papers and fun stuff to play with, hopefully the weekend will let me get stuff accomplished.
have a great day...Stay warm...Enjoy the snow (I will from the comfort of my nice warm home)
Debbie
qotd: what is your favorite snow day activities?

Good morning Minnesota

Woke up to this picture this morning, oh we new it was coming, but all the same it's quite the picture of uggghhhhh! Twice this weekend I awakened to snow, in two different places no less.
Linette and I went to visit Beckie at college in Moorhead, we awakened Saturday morning to 6 inches of snow, it was completely weird, by 10 am the snow had stopped by noon the roads were clear and by 4 pm you wouldn't have known it had snowed. Yesterday morning we began to receive calls from home saying you might want to head out it's suppose to get bad here, we left around 1:30 and had great driving until Fairfax where it started to rain/snow but still easy to drive thru...Just after SleepyEye we hit more slushy snow but driving was still good. When we came into town we could see why they were so concerned it was awful. It continued to snow all night, with winds picking up, and thus the picture this morning. I have no daycare kids, the roads are pretty impassable. So another day off, woohoo...No school, no work, how great is that?
Kevin came home from work by 7 this morning and barely made it to the driveway, had to snowblow just to get the van back into the garage. You just have to love Minnesota winters.
Had a great time with Beckie, it was fun to visit her and just hang out, we shopped and ate, and shopped and ate :) Fun to meet some of her friends and see where she spends all her days. She will be home in 7 weeks wow, time goes fast. Will post pictures later, I forgot my camera, and so did Linette, she said "you always have yours so I thought it would be overkill" I of course completely forgot in the flurry to get out the door on Friday..So will have to develop the film and then post pics. Since we are snowed in I'm going to pop in a movie and chill for the rest of the day.
Debbie

I am thankful for....

waking up this morning
my husband (yes he does drive me batty but underneath it all I'm glad he's around)
my kids (they continue to amaze me)
deciding to be a foster parent
the sun
owning my home
living in this country, being free to make "my" choices
having the best! job
butterflies
a childs laughter
an organized space
sleeping for 5 hours at a time
my family
my friends
M&M's
scrapbooking
holding a sleeping baby
finding time to read a book
completing a layout that just works
the seasons
the smell of cinnamon
my strength
5 minutes peace
vacations
kind people
starlight nights
knowing that without my faith I would have nothing to be thankful for

My life these days

is potty training.... 4 little people in daycare are in the midst of this wonderful (insert sarcasm) adventure. We have been at this for a couple weeks now, results so far...Actually quite well. A couple are doing remarkably well, with very few accidents, I have two who will go on demand, of course they are after the treat they get for doing this, yes I use bribery...(fruit snacks and cookies are doing the trick, in the past money has worked) of course the one who can pee on demand also wets on demand so it hasn't quite clicked yet but we are getting there. I have one who in her world "she" is the center of attention, so when this journey began she was quite eager to be included, I was a bit hesitant she is only 21 months after all, a little early I thought to begin but not one to squish excitement we included her... She is quite skilled at stripping her clothes off, faster than some of the older ones, (not sure if this is a good life skill or not) and she sat so proudly on the pink potty chair, picture big grins. But she never actually went, so the day progresses and each of the others do go and of course we clap and cheer for their success, meanwhile she is watching all this and looking pretty grumpy, (remember "she" is suppose to be the center of attention) so at the end of the first day she begins to pull off her clothes and I get her in the bathroom where she quite proudly does her business... And then waits patiently for us to cheer and clap. Ok so she can pee and poop on command...Simply because she isn't going to be left out of the applause and cheering section, good grief...potty training has become competitive. Well whatever works I guess. I have managed to keep up with laundry, and my bathroom is unbelievably clean...Guess that is what happens when you spend hours in one room... Now do you suppose the 8 month old is ready?? I could be diaper free in the daycare...Yeah I'm dreaming.
qotd: what worked for you when your little ones were potty training? Any all suggestions welcomed.
have a great day,
Debbie
on a sad note, Minnesota lost one of it's baseball legends yesterday...We will miss Kirby Pucket and all that he brought to the game and to life.

Shopping for a prom dress

That is what we did yesterday, I was in a word dreading it. Not because of the cost, that is just a given, although I have discovered a son going to prom is far cheaper than a daughter. No my dread was for different reasons, 1. This is my baby what are we doing buying prom dresses???? She was just in diapers right??? 2. I hate shopping. Good reasons, right? Perhaps so, but it didn't get me out of looking for "the" perfect dress. Ok a note, they may be sisters but their shopping styles are like night and day. Cassandra visited two stores tried on a total of 4 dresses and said I like this one, simple, done, complete, finished, I was in shock. That's it? "you don't want to look around some more?" "No, this is the one I want" well can you say silenced by shock? I found myself remembering when we shopped with Beckie for her first prom dress...That required a trip to the Mall of America and a day of shopping, I remember nearing the end of the day and finally just saying you have an hour... Pick a dress, "I don't want to shop any longer" (insert whiny two year old voice here) even my sister who is an amazing shopper was ready to be done. Shopping at the MOA is an experience unto itself, you just never know what you will find or encounter. That day I think we encountered a lot. Of course the dresses were beautiful, the crowds were not. The choices and selections were immense, my feet can attest to the walking we did. The prices ranged from breathable to staggering...Why did she keep leaning towards staggering? And why did they have to look so darn beautiful on her? We even managed to find ourselves in the middle of a mini riot (ok to this small town girl it was big) as I sat in the center of this scuffle between youth and security guards (don't ever doubt there isn't security at the MOA I don't know where they all came from but in a blink there were far more than I could count) I found myself thinking great! We are going to be on the news tonight "small town shoppers die in clash at the MOA, full story to follow at 10" So move ahead 3 years and here we are again shopping for a dress, perhaps now you understand some of my dread? And once again I am reminded of how different and yet the same they are, this time our destination Mankato...(not sure but thinking Cassandra too vividly recalls the MOA shopping experience and quite simply didn't want to go there) and as I said earlier, two stores, four dresses, done. Decision made....And the price well that was breathable. And the similarities? They both have amazing taste, both chose black as their color and they both looked beautiful.

Disappointment

Ever have a day where you feel as tho you have disappointed everyone you come in contact with...Been there, lately maybe too frequently. It started out as a great day, but with some disappointing news it spiraled downward in a hurry. Funny how one disappointment leads to another and soon, you are just one big bundle of misery. Was the news life ending or a similar catastrophe? No, but it meant I in turn had to disappoint others. Not a place I like to be, willingly anyways. I had to cancel plans with my sister, which I had been looking forward to like you can't believe, getting away is almost impossible, now let's add in guilt. I will disappoint my daughter, by not being able to visit her next weekend, more guilt, and sadness, haven't seen her in awhile, was looking forward to time with her too. Of course I was crabby because of the decision made which meant I was perhaps a bit crabby with kids...Way fair to them...More guilt...Getting good at this guilt thing. So it continues to spin and spiral, not a fun place to be....Trying to find the positive...Perhaps not trying hard enough, since I'm not seeing too much positive just now... And maybe I will just stay crabby with the person who's decision began this road of disappointment...Something to smile about...
qotd: who have you disappointed, how did you correct it?
until next time,
Debbie

Quotes...

I love inspirational quotes, I tack them up all over the place as reminders to myself. The one I see every morning is "Nothing is as far away as a minute ago" by Jim Bishop, it is tacked to my medicine cabinet door. First time I read it, I was like wow, it just touched something in me. Now I am often reminded to appreciate the moment. I'm reading some great books by Kobi Yamada... found his books after seeing an amazing page layout based on one of his books (Be Happy) scraplifted that page with plans to do it, soon! but, I was intrigued in what kind of book would inspire a page so naturally I went to Barnes and Noble online (shopping in public is so challenging these days, I love online shopping) and sure enough they had many books by this author so I ordered the "Be Happy" one and a few more. Discovered that all that inspired the page was the title nothing else in the book suggests that page layout, but it is a good book, full of quotes...one that sticks out from my reading last night is "We don't stop laughing because we grow old--we grow old because we stop laughing" michael pritchard. love it! The book that really struck me by this author was "ever wonder" simple premise, a question on each page, but the questions...wow! Now these have me thinking here are a few: "Is it true that you have to see it to believe it, or rather, do you have to believe it before you can see it?" "Do you let yesterday use up too much of today?" I have read and re-read this book....I love that the questions require searching and thought. Some days I feel as tho my mind doesn't have to think it is just on autopilot...it's nice to challenge myself.
Today is Dr Suess's birthday, woohoo.....we will be celebrating of course, reading some classics, and naturally eating green eggs and ham for lunch, (no some of the kids won't touch the eggs, but hey the ones who do, remember the experience)
question for the day: what quote inspires you?
have a great day,
Debbie

have you tried Ebay?

I have been an Ebayer since March of 2002. Now at first I didn't have a clue....some might say I still don't :) but, I like to think I have become Ebay wiser. I have been burned a couple of times...that is where the wiser comes in, but for the most part I have received amazing items at great prices. Example: wanted to buy some swim toys for the kids, did a search online at the major stores, (target, walmart, shopko, stores that are local enough for me to purchase them at the store) no one had the brand I wanted. Next did an online search, found a few, not exactly in the price range I was looking for. Then remembered ebay, found the brand and the two pieces I wanted as part of a set, for a really great price. The swim toys were from Pool School, and I had wanted the ring, and float board, I ended up getting the baby ring, life vest and arm rings along with the other two items for 26.99, shipping was a bit high, 27.00 but the combined total was still a better deal than the one item I had looked at, at Target which was 49.99 the package is on it's way...cant wait to see it. I have found ebay is a great place to find those hard to find items. I also love it for scrapbooking supplies, some of the paper piecings I have purchased are absolutely beautiful....such talent. I also love the thrill of "winning" the auction...Kevin says I am way too competitive and taking me to a "live" auction would not be healthy...it's that need to win. Of course when I mention I "won" this on Ebay, Kevin is always quick to say "you didn't win, you have to pay for it" well that is a dismal comment if I ever heard one...so now I just tell him "I won the right to pay for it :)" Well now that I have finished my ebay commercial, I did not by the way receive any endorsement for above comments :) i best sign off, time to go to work. Hope your Wednesday is full of surprises... take care,
Debbie