The Aftermath

I didn't yell and scream. I calmly told him what was expected and he agreed. Then he went to bed.
This morning he woke with a smile on his face and even told me he loved me when I dropped him off at school.
As soon as he came home he got to work. It took him all afternoon. But after a quick run to the store I came home to this.

Aaaahhhhh. I can rest for a moment- that battle is over.

But I won't hold my breath, I'm sure another is on it's way. I'll enjoy the calm while I have it! :o)

What would you do...

If your almost 8yr old son's room looked like this!?

Would you believe that just yesterday I walked into that room and sang praises to him because it was so clean and organized?

Tonight he got mad when I told him it was time to go to bed. He began screaming and yelling at me so I told him he could stay in his room and I shut the door. I heard some banging and an hour later opened the door to find this. Actually, this was after we moved the matress back on him bed. It was on top of the pile. Everything he has in his room and closet is in this pile.

Parenting advice- PLEASE!!!

Name Game

I recently designed a quilt and I need some name suggestions. It's going to be featured in an Australian magazine in December. I can't show a picture of it but it's mainly primary colors. The theme for that issue is a seaside/beach theme. I know there are certain people out there that happen to read this blog that have been to Australia. If you have any ideas- please send them my way. But ideas from anyone and everyone are welcome.

THANKS!

Just a spoonful of sugar!

Wednesday night is datenight. That's the night that most weeks Gilbert and I go out with our friends Mike and Jeanne (BFF). This week we decided to 'stay in' and watch recorded episodes of 'Border Wars' at their house. I told them I would bring some dessert. Gilbert suggested sugar cookies.

It's been a while since I made sugar cookies. So I pulled out my 'Joy of Cooking' cookbook and set to work. I even had a canister of pink frosting and valentine sprinkles to decorate the cookies and since the ONLY cookie cutter I could find was a heart, it was perfect!

I was paritally into my dough-making when I ran into a dilemma. Me, having talents only outside the kitchen, decided to call the best baker I know for advice- my Mom. "It calls for 1 large egg, and I only have medium eggs. What do I do?" We discussed for a bit and since she had company told me she would call me back. I just added another half and egg and called it good.

A pinch of this and a dash of that and my dough was almost done. Except it was dry- REALLY dry. The recipe called for 1 tbsp. milk. I added 3-4 more just trying to soften the dough.

Jeanne called in the meantime "So, what are you making?" she asked. I told her I was making sugar cookies. "Mmmm, my fave! I was thinking of making caramel popcorn...unless Mike wants something more salty." She replied. Then Mom beeped through on the other line.

"Mom, I fixed the egg problem, but this dough is so dry." At this point I decided to give the dough a taste.

FLASHBACK TO A FEW WEEKS EARLIER:

I was trying to organize my cupboards after all the holiday baking. While doing so I found a sandich sized ziploc full of sugar in my cupboard. Actually, I wasn't SURE it was sugar. But I remember opening the bag and smelling it and thinking I should taste it. At this point my memory gets a little fuzzy because I don't actually remember tasting it. But the logic in my head goes something like this:

It could be sugar, it could be salt. They look identical. However, salt comes in a cylindrical canister and stays there until it's gone. Why would I pour it into a baggie? Sugar, on the other hand, comes in a paper sack. If my trusty sugar-holding tupperware was running low, I would buy a 5lb. bag of sugar to fill it (I don't bake that often*). Maybe I poured as much sugar as I could into the tupperware and there was still a bit left. So I poured it into a ziploc to keep it fresh thinking I would add it to the tupperware when there was room. But I forgot about it until now. Anyway, I poured it unto the sugar container.

FAST FORWARD BACK TO WEDNESDAY:

So I tasted the dough and you can imagine what I found: PLAY DOUGH! My wonderful sugar-cookie dessert was actually playdough because the baggie of sugar was not sugar afterall. IT WAS SALT! But again I ask myself- Why did I have a baggie of salt (a LOT of salt) in my cabinet?

I contemplated baking a couple anyway because Jeanne had mentioned that Mike may want something salty. But instead I just dumped it in the garbage. If not for the eggs that were added to the recipe I would have kept it for the kids to play with.

The best part is I smiled throughout the whole disaster. I mean, it is quite comical, would'nt you say?

* Now you know why! :o)

Paris Lillian 4 3/4

She's mine and I love her!

Everytime I get my camera out to take a picture of a quilt this girl HAS to have her picture taken too. As soon as the button clicks she HAS to see it. Oh, she was so mad when she saw this one because there was a stack of quilts next to her and she wanted them in the pic too. But I didn't want those quilts to share the frame with her.

This picture says so many things.

This is how Paris looks most days. Hair all crazy and all. I'm lucky I got her to let me pull it back into a pony to keep it out of her face. If you saw the bright pink tu-tu she had on and the brown footless tights you would laugh at her sense of style. But she insists on dressing that way AND wearing it to Walmart. That smile. That smile that gets her anything she wants. Well, almost anything.

Most of all it says:

My baby is growing up! But she sure is beautiful. :o)

Last week the boys brought papers home from school confirming SEP (Parent/teacher conferences) times for Thurs.

I should've known.

It wasn't until wednesday when I realized that they would be out of school on Friday.

Why didn't I remember that?

Luckily a parent mentioned that they had Monday off, too.

What the heck am I going to do with all the kids home for 4 days in a row!? I just sent them back!

Enter: Grandma and Grandpa Herrick

I neglected to check the caller ID and almost missed having G&G Herrick come down for a visit.

The kids were so excited. I actually got them to help me clean the house! (MIRACLE!)

We've had a nice visit. G'ma took Paris to the mall. We had hamburgers, hotdogs, and potato salad. Dad brought home cookies from 'The Chocolate'. Bella's recieved lots of love.

G&G go home tomorrow (sunday) night.

What am I going to do about Monday!?

Oh, Hello 20-10

What can I say for the first week of the new year?


"Eh"


That's it.


What's so special about another year? Same ol' stuff- different day.


Oh, I have goals this year- the same ones I made last year, the year before that, and the year before that. You get what I'm saying, right?


Why am I so negative right now?

BECAUSE MY KIDS WON'T GO TO BED!!!

Change THAT 20-10!