Country Acres Primitives

Quick and Easy Lamp Makeover!

2011-04-19T15:23:00.003-04:00

As much as I love my primitives and the warmth they give my home, I've changed gears a little in my decorating. The deep dark colors being a smile to my face, but unfortunately they show dust. Lots of dust. Within 30 minutes of dusting, it looks dusty again :( Soo, I've been changing gears with much of my inspiration coming from blogland. One of my most recent changes was to spray paint my black lamps silver! For the cost of a can of spray pain, I've completely changed the look of my lamps!

That's just a sneak peek of the changes being made over here in the Acres ;)

My name is Jennifer and I am a...

2011-03-07T08:07:00.003-05:00

Reese's Peanut Butter Eggaholic.

I seriously have a problem. And interestingly enough, my dryer seems to be shrinking my jeans...

Senior Night

2011-02-04T14:50:00.004-05:00

Don't worry. I will not make this a sappy, long post about how my oldest son is a senior in high school this year. How I can't believe he is going to graduate. How I have no idea where the time has gone. How I would give anything to go back, just for a bit, to see his sweet baby face in person. When hugs and kisses were a regular occurrence. When I got to tuck him in at night. When *I* was the great love in his life, not his girlfriend. No. I will not make this post about that.

Oh. I think I just did. Anyhoo. The purpose was to show you the boards that I made for the GS Lions Hockey Senior Night. Austin was the only senior this year, so I made 2 of them :)

I started with the thick foam poster board. To make the pictures "pop" off the background I cut a brown card stock matte around each one (the school's colors are brown and gold). Then I used a black ink pad along the edges to give it a little more definition.

I bought chipboard stars and letters. I wanted them to feel a little more manly and industrial so I painted the stars in a yellowish gold and used a dark umber around the edges and in streaks to make them look like a yellow tin star that had rusted.

For the letters I layered black, russet and terra cotta paint colors to give them a look of rust. Normally I wouldn't have spent that amount of time on them, but I figured they will do double duty and can be used at his graduation party :)

I do realize you can't see all this detail in the picture, but I think you get the idea.

Valentine Project

2011-02-02T18:45:00.001-05:00

I've made a promise to myself to start using some of my aquired odds and ends I have been accumulating over the years before I being any new ones in my house. I'm at risk of becoming a hoarder.

A scrap piece of pine. A "Cupid" print that I bought because it was in a gorgeous tin frame. A page from an old hymanl. Some red Scrabble tiles. Maybe not the best thing I have ever made, but I think it counts as decorating for Valentine's Day. Right?

Etsy Treasury

2010-09-17T22:16:00.001-04:00

Come check out this sweet treasury I was a part of!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-16T08:11:00.000-04:00

Okay, it's Thursday. I get that. And I have to add words. Which is blowing the wordless out of the water. Humor me please. Asa. "Just Say No to Crack" hahahahahahah

Thankful Thursday

2010-09-09T14:05:00.002-04:00

I am thankful that most of the bees that are getting into my house seem to be all DEAD now!

Somehow these little bugger have found away through the chimney (the have a nest near there) looking for warmth and have been in my house. We have probably killed close to a hundred in all.

I hate bees. And wasps. And anything that has the potential to hurt me. Or my kids. But I don't like pain. I REALLY don't like pain.

I am also thankful for Raid.

Thank you God for the people that make bug spray. Amen

I was starting to feel like Billy the Exterminator. I love that guy :)

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-08T07:51:00.000-04:00

Slip Covers!

2010-09-07T16:02:00.009-04:00

Now let me start by saying this little rocking chair is so precious to me. This was my dad's when he was a small boy and I am thrilled to have had it given to me when I had my oldest who is now 17. It is in great need of restoration. The more we use it the more in need of repair it gets.

Since restoring this guy is not in the budget right now, and since I hate to have just sitting and collecting dust, I thought I'd give slip covering it a whirl!

Now for the last couple of months I have been reading about the wonders of painter's cloth drop cloths. I did try them for curtains and for pillow shams on my bed and thought that this material would be PERFECT for this little project. So off I (and of course I drug my mother!) went to Lowe's.

I started at the top and just kind of taped a piece on and started stitching it together as I went! Now it is NOT perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but I didn't have straight pins and I am wayyyy too lazy to take it off and put it back on each time I wanted to take it to the machine, but overall I am really quite pleased with how it turned out in the end!

A Great New Blog!

2010-09-06T10:46:00.003-04:00

I was contacted by a lovely lady named Kate asking me if she could feature me on her blog Primitive Post and of course I said yes! It's always nice to be complimented by someone other than your mom ;)

Stop by and check her blog out and read her post she wrote on me and all the other great prim gals she has featured!

Happy Birthday Austin William!

2010-09-02T06:50:00.004-04:00

I am sadly a day late in wishing Austin a happy birthday! Now in my defense he is the firstborn, so he is usually the one that has all the pictures, all the memories saved in a nice neat little box, etc. And it's usually the 3 after him that have I have missed all the little things with. So, I think just this once, I will give my self a get-out-of-jail-free card!

This boy had his 17th birthday yesterday and just started his Senior Year. He is sweet and loving, but has always been kind of a "man" for lack of a better description. When he was 8 we were in Giant Eagle and I commented on how pretty some colored pussy willows were. He took a couple of dollars out of his pocket and said to buy myself some for Mother's Day. That kind of thing! He is smart and a gifted artist. He loves his hockey and I love to watch him on the ice!

Happy Birthday Austin. I'm so blessed to call you my son!

Happy Birthday Cheetah!

2010-07-17T08:01:00.002-04:00

Chase Edward, my 2nd born son, turns 15 today! I love this boy with all my heart. He is smart, funny, ridiculously quick-witted, handsome, talented, loving. Willing to stand up for what he believes is right, even if it goes against what the popular opinion is.

He is truly a blessing and a gift from God. Enough so that I came out of my, oh 8 month hiatus to post a birthday shout out!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-18T15:01:00.000-05:00

Artist Market/Craft Show..

2009-10-31T08:54:00.002-04:00

After several years selling on Ebay and now Etsy, I am finally doing my first craft show! If any of you are local, I'd love to have you come and see me. If anyone has any tips I'd love to hear those also!

Living Room

2009-10-16T14:15:00.005-04:00

Just in cast anyone still bothers to read my blog since I have been such a slacker, I decided to finally post pictures of my living room. I'd love to pretend that it looks this neat and tidy all the time, but in the interest of keepin' it real, it's usually quite messy! :)

So in random order, here is my new house!

As you come in the front door

Okay, not my living room, but I love this door! It was my girlfriend's in her basement and I have no where for it here, so I turned it into a gardening table. Superhero hubby just doens't get it and calls it my "door to nowhere"

Pictures drawn by my great-great grandfather Cy Loughner in 1930.

Beside my front door.

Going to the kitchen

Stairs up to the loft room. Aka Master bedroom, toy room, craft room.

Sorry about the randomness, I'm nto very good at uploading and editing into blogger for some reason.

In other news I have been getting ready for my first craft show coming in November. If anyone has any good advice. PLEASE leave me comments and comments. I'm very nervous about what I should be doing to prepare!

Help!

2009-10-06T14:32:00.002-04:00

Okay, really no one can help. I got my self involved in all this stuff and now I'm a little overwhelmed!

I just got a call from Gage's 1st grade teacher infoming me that no one offered to be the class parent. Well Gage toldher that I am home all day, so she asked me if I could step up and here I am! She was Austin and Chase's 1st grade teacher too and is really great. Now in theory it doesn't involve too too much. 3 parties a year to organize. The problem is I am so introverted at times and am going to hate making calls to parents. I know, I'm weird! lol The other problem is the first party is Halloween and frankly I am losing it already! Our Cash Bash for hockey is October 17th, so I am trying to sell tickets for that. Then the Ad Book for hockey is winding up this week so I have been busy getting ads for that. Then on top of it I ended up being the Varsity hockey manager, so I am busy trying to figure out what the heck I am doing for that!

Pam from BoyGirlBoyGirl Design suggested this shirt!

Cats!

2009-10-02T14:41:00.009-04:00

So it's cold and rainy and just plain yucky here today. I thought now is a good time to once again take a break from painting and housework and tell you all the tale of 2 kitties. Actually it's more than 2, but it just sounded so good I couldn't resist!

We moved to our new home the last weekend in May. Shortly after we moved we discovered a white and orange cat that came into our yard quite frequently. We assumed that she was a stray because she was rather thin and just seemed like she didn't have a home. We also saw her in our neighbors yard (we had not yet met him) and started to put food out for her. A few weeks into June much to our delight we discovered there were KITTENS over there too! Cute, cute kittens. There were 4 of them. Then there were 3. Jeff finally met the man that lived next door and indeed they were his cats, but he had kicked Momma out and they were outdoor cats. We named them Prissy (fluffy fluffy looked prissy), Morris (looked like Morris the cat) and Scamper (nuff said) He said he didn't mind us feeding them and had already given one away and wanted to get rid of them all.

We couldn't really bring them in, but have been feeding and loving them ever since. Unfortunately someone took Scamper a month or so ago. Prissy has been discovered to be a boy and now Jeff makes us call him Pouncer. They are much bigger now, but have become sweet additions to our family.

The story doesn't end there. Turns out Momma is not spayed and got pregnant over the Summer. She had started being very mean to Pouncer and Morris and thanks to the internet we figured out she was pregnant and due sometime in the middle of September. Meanwhile I had been working on a house for Morris and Pouncer. I worked really hard on finding plans online, buying materials and insulation so that they would stay nice and warm this Winter. Well lo and behold one warm evening as we were cooking out, Momma was around and being sweet as pie. Google and I determined she was in labor and she had five new kittens in my unfinshed house!!!

*Sigh*, now we have 9 cats/kittens living in our yard. Yes, I realize the math doesn't add up, but I didn't tell you about Tom. A big old orange cat that needs and wants petted constantly.

Here he is guarding our yard against groundhogs.. NOT!

So here are some pictures of "our" many many cats! Each of the boys drew a description of each kitten and named one. There are 3 boys and 2 girls, Austin's is a girl. He was bummed out because he named her Thor! lol Anyone want a kitten??????

Pictures!

2009-10-01T16:34:00.008-04:00

Shameless family pictures. I realize it's going backwards into the begining of Summer, but editing takes too long and I'm already shirking my duties at home ;)

Chase

Austin

Asa looking for fish

Asa swinging

Asa

Gage

Gage first day of first grade

Chase (don't ask)

Austin (Am I the only one that has kids that take these pictures of themselves for MySpace, yet laugh at the "prims" in the background. lol)

Gage and his friend Noah running the bases at a Pirates game.

Gage and Noah under their free shirts playing DS games. Trust me it was more exciting than the game!

Asa and my superhero husband at the game.

Gage and Noah

Austin and prim shower curtain :)

Gage

Asa and spaghetti

Sparklers on the Fourth

Gage

Wow..

2009-09-29T14:37:00.002-04:00

As Austin would say when he is disgusted with me, "Wow Mom" In a sort of long drawn out fashion. Has it really been that long since I posted???? Summer with 4 boys can be hectic. More hectic I guess than I thought! I didn't even craft much over the summer.

So let's see. What's been going on since then? Austin turned 16. Wow. Can't get over that one. We haven't gone for his permit yet. I'm kinda extending that for a little bit longer. Not sure why. He's pretty responsible for the most part, but still. It's scary!

Austin turned 16, we went to Idlewild, Brian and Sarah came home for a visit, we went to the Fayette Fair, we met some Penguins and got some awesome pictures and autographs, I read "The Time Travelers Wife" and loved it, went to a Pirate's game, went to the pool, went to the park,enjoyed the central air on hot days, played in the sandbox, watched "our" kittys play, started school, started hockey, reconnected with come old friends on Facebook, became hockey manager (don't ask!) got back to crafting and listing and building (oh my!), watched the neighbor's cat give birth at our house (another don't ask, but now we have 5 brand-new kittens here!) and finally here I sit today, waiting to celebrate Gage and Asa'a birthday.

What's new with you?????

I Love New York City!

2009-08-03T13:48:00.002-04:00

Austin and Chase went to New York last week to visit my brother and his wife Sarah. Sarah put together an awesome little video of their week their. Feel free to turn up the volume and jam out! lol

Disclaimer: This song is addicting. You WILL sing it in your head for the next oh 5-6 hours.

Happy Birthday Chase!

2009-07-31T19:57:00.009-04:00

Okay, I'm a little late. Son number 2, Chase Edward, turned 14 years old on July 17. We had a small party at home with a couple of friends and some family. I'm not really sure why, but Austin doesn't really want a party this year too. Is this a boy thing?

Austin and Chase. I know, you love Austin's new lip piercings, huh?

This is a really great ice cream cake my sister-in-law Aleta gave me the recipe for. He asks for it every year!

A week or so ago he was at a friend's and they gave him a mohawk. I didn't get a picture because an hour or so later they shaved the rest off, so I thought I would include a picture of the new 'do!

Either way I think he is pretty darn cute!

Frank

2009-07-16T19:05:00.000-04:00

I know I have been promising some oh-so-exciting house pictures, but I needed to quickly share a picture of Asa with a brand-spanking-new haircut! If you remember he was probably my kiddo with the longest hair. He's never had a short haircut, so to me he doesn't even look like the same boy. So I have taken to calling him Frank. I'm not really sure why, he just looks like a Frank to me now. :) I am working on getting some pictures together of the new place. We are down to 2 kittens next door and I was not so good a sex detection so the 2 remaining are boys and we have the momma. lol SO don't forget about me while I work on updating soon! :)

I'm Back!

2009-06-23T17:13:00.002-04:00

Wow, that's sad how long it has been! In the midst of all the packing and gettting ready to move, my computer broke down. So not only was I busy with that, but I was without my computer. So that's my excuse! We are now moved and mostly settled so I will be taking pictures to share very soon! I have missed reading everyone's blogs and am looking forward to catching up on everyone's lives.

Oh yeah, we have some neighborhood kitties that we sort of adopted so I will share pictures of my "girls" soon too. :)

MY NEW HOUSE!!!

2009-05-06T11:09:00.003-04:00

Okay, it's not MY house, we are going to be renting it, but I'm sooooo excited! I just had to jump on and share that after months of searching and praying, we finally found a place! It's not too much bigger then what we have now, but the set-up will be a better fit for us and the most important thing is the location! I had no idea how many hours I would spend driving my teenagers around. For social things mind you, this isn't counting hockey. They can walk to their friends' houses, they can walk to the community pool everyday! I'm so exicted!! Can you tell???

It has central air and most exciting of all (to me anyway haha) A DISHWASHER!!!! 3 bedrooms a huge basement, 1.5 baths (another exciting point) and a nice size fenced in yard. We will be moving some time in the next month, probably the beginging of June. Somebody pinch me!!

Come Peek Inside My Bedroom...

2009-04-20T12:53:00.016-04:00

Now let me start by saying that I LOOOOOOOVE, LOVE, LOVE my bedroom. I was NOT with my husband when my bedroom started taking the turn to ultra-feminine shabby-chicdom. It is the smallest of the 3 bedrooms in the townhouse that we live in and I really needed a place to kind of call my own. Now that Jeff and I have reconciled he is not super thrilled with the look. Understandably so, but I am loathe to change. I really do love it! hee hee. Anyway. We will be moving in a couple of months when we finally locate a place, so I will try and "man" it up a bit. I also think I will start the process of packing things up and will probably start with this room, so I thought I would document and share it with you all before I do!

The headboard was a dumpster find. The three pictures in the frame above the dresser/nightstand are my 2 grandmother's as little girls and also my mother as a little girl.

This was my childhood dresser.

This is a close up of the picture on the dresser. It is one of my most loved possessions. My dad bought this Thomas Kincaide print when he was in Seattle, he said he just saw it and had to get it for me.

An old window that my friend gave me when the redid their windows in their home.

These are hard to see, but they are my dad's baby shoes that sit on the shelf.

Another garbage find. My in-laws were leaving our house and found this and brought it back for me!

A pillow my mom made that "disappeared" from her house haha

The TV corner.

Boxes I made using OLD wrapping paper that we discovered when my grandmother died. She saved EVERYTHING! I also made a HUGE covered round box for my brother and his wife for their wedding with the paper. I put small wedding photos of all of their parents and grandparents and thought they could use it for mementos from their wedding. I wish I had a picture of it :(

The hats were my father's and the slip and dress he was baptised in. I was baptised in them as well and love having this. It means so much to have the history to it. My brother and my sons were baptised/dedicated in another outfit similar to this, but it was blue and white.

Baby blanket of my dad's.

Whew that took longer than I thought it would for such a small room! Thanks for taking a peek at my sanctuary!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T16:44:00.004-04:00

Well, happy day AFTER Easter! I read a little bit this morning, but didn't see many updates, so I look forward to reading about everyone's Easter over the next few days. We had a nice day. I think little Asa won the award for most chocolate eaten. Honestly, I am surprised he didn't get ill with the amount he consumed. He even ate more than his teenaged brothers!

I spent most of the day playing catch-up with cleaning and laundry. I am on my 6th load. A little behind don't ya think? And as far as the house goes I'm in a pretty big funk because I know we will be moving in the next few months, so I am loathe to put effort into it. Now I have no idea WHERE we are going, just that we are GOING! I'm also in a funk because I am having a really tough time creating. I love to paint on my pillows and do some woddworking here and there and I just can't seem to get the time in and it depresses me a little bit. I really is my therapy. There are so many of you ladies out there that I really admire because I just don't know how you do it? So please, if you have any advice, or hints on how to do it all, please, please, PLEASE TELL ME!! Did I say please?

And just for more my own personal amusement I'm attatching some pictures of Asa. He just makes me laugh. He's definitely a blessing, it's hard to be in a bad mood with this little face!

Easter Break Day 1

2009-04-09T10:53:00.004-04:00

Well, it's day one of the kids' Easter vacation. I have to admit, it's been pretty calm here so far. Granted it's only 11 am, but still that's pretty good! I changed the look of my blog a little and added some new graphics to the side. I love the one about reading Twilight in the closet! I am reading it again. It's sad how much I LOVED these books! MUCH better than the movie was in my opinion, but I'll still watch it again!

Not much going on here. Austin and Chase have a dentist appointment at noon. The snow seems to be gone FINALLY! It's supposed to be around 60 here today and I'm thankful for that. Still house hunting and working on some projects. My brother and I are having some fun back and forth on Facebook, trying to claim to be mom's favorite. It's all on fun of course! He KNOWS I'm her favorite! LOL Just kidding Brian :) Although a few years ago I got this picture in an email and I altered it a bit and sent it to him.

Hee hee, I'm bad, but trust me, I have had to deal with my share from him. Ahem, like the time I give him my Run DMC cassette to not tell on me for having friends over while our parents were at work. Yeah, he told anyway. Little brothers!

FINALLY! Some Goodwill Finds!

2009-04-06T09:48:00.002-04:00

Okay after seeing all of those awesome finds that everyone had been finding, I decided it's time to take this show on the road and get outta town! The Greensburg Goodwill had been pretty disappointing lately in both what they had and the prices. I guess they have figured out that it is very "in" right now to shop thrift stores and they were going to capatialize on it! So I packed up my mom and we headed down Route 30 to Irwin. Okay, she actually drove and Irwin is only about 15 minutes down the road, but it sounds more EXCITING that way!

We hit the Irwin Goodwill and headed down past there to Salvation Army. Goodwill had a TON of things, but Salvation Army was much better priced. Here are my goodies! At Goodwill I found 2 large wood spools for a dollar each. Salvation Army I found this wooden silverware caddy for $1.99, it was missing an oval insert in the front, but I will just cover that up with something. A mini cutting board for 29 cents and a bag of mini wood eggs for 29 cents. Then for a quarter I got a Teddy's Restaurant coffee mug that I am giving my brother for Christmas or something. Of course he is probably reading this which is a bit of a jam up! It's a GREAT restaurant in Irwin that we have some history with. Our whole family worked their over the years. My dad, stepmom, me, Austin and Chase's dad Clay (that's where we met) and Brian all worked there. Teddy was a great guy and he passed away a few years ago. One of the cooks Tommy bought it and he is literally one of the sweetest people you could ever meet. When Clay died he had no life insurance. We were tight on money, but wanted to do things "right". We had the after-funeral at Rodney's restaurant because that's where Clay and his girlfriend Pam worked. Well, Tommy paid for EVERYTHING. He and Clay grew up together. Meanwhile his boss Rodney didn't even help and it was at his restaurant. But I digress as I usually do!!

Then at Salvation Army I found this prim "curtain panel" for $4.99. It turns out it's a shower curtain. I LOVE it! Not sure if I will cut it in half and maybe use as curtains or cut it up as a runner. Since we are going to be moving at some point I'm holding onto it until we know what we are going to need.

Goodwill bowls, 50cents each. I'm going to paint and prim some up for my mom.

My mom found an old wood ironing board for $10. I took the quilted padding that was on it to cut up for something. No idea what yet.

~~~~~~~

And to leave you with one last thing for the day. Chase's Language Arts class had been studying The Diary of Anne Frank. They were asked to write a limerick about her. They were told it could be silly, so here it is..

The Diary of Anne Frank ~ Limerick

There was a funky girl named Anne

Poor Anne could have used a large fan

Her last name was Frank

She pulled a few pranks

Anne often ate beans from a can.

Yeah, I know, but it the fan line cracked me up.

We Lost :(

2009-04-01T20:13:00.003-04:00

APRIL FOOL'S!!!! WE WON! Sorry, I didn't really got to pull an April Fool's joke on anyone, so the blog was the best I could do! It was an awesome game. I was a wreck all day I was so excited. The ride down went quickly and we didn't hit much traffic. We got there in time for some junk food and for Chase to pace until some of the other team got there. The PIHL had someone there videotaping the game and doing commentary, so we were given the opportunity to buy the DVD. It was a really close game. We scored in the first period, they tied it 1-1 in the second period then we scored in the third. Woo Hoo!

These boys worked so hard this year and it was a great experience for Chase. This season started about 2 weeks after Austin and Chase's father passed away and even though Varisty didn't go as far as the Freshman, this really kept their minds busy and gave them a second "family" to have and support them through it all. So it was just a great way to end the season. :) It was so cute at the end they all piled on top of our goalie Andy.

Now we just have the banquet at the end of the month and Spring League, which is pretty low key. And I get to get back to doing what I love to do. Creating Prims!

Twas the Night Before.....

2009-03-30T20:26:00.006-04:00

I probably sound a little like a freak here, but I don't care! I am so fling flanging excited for TOMORROW!! We won our last game with a score of 6-2 and tomorrow night is the Freshman PIHL Division Championship!! Now I am not much a sports girl. I have blogged about my father's great love for me, but crushing disappointment in my lack of fervor for the Steelers. I'm kidding of course, it wasn't crushing disappointment, more like a light pressuring disappointment ;) I painted the van windows last week, they lasted all week and just needed a bit of a touch up.

I made a poster for one of the hockey grandma's to have up in the enclosed balcony area to watch the game. The rink is FREEZING and she said no one could see her "terrible towel" from up there so I made this to tape against the glass up there.

So the prims have been kind of taking a back seat to the hockey thing this week. I've noticed in my abscence on EBay one of the people that loves to copy my work is just going to town listing a bunch of things. I won't go there though because I get so upset about it. It just infuriates me. Especially when it's obvious even in her photos that the quality of her work is terrible. *sigh*

Hope everyone is having a good week and don't forget, "Go Lions!!"

Weekend Catch Up... On Tuesday!

2009-03-24T17:04:00.007-04:00

Well, we made it through surgery. Minimal pain. A good bit of swelling though. His face kind lof looked like a square. I asked him if I could pretty please take a picture and blog about him,but he vetoed that rather quickly! Go figure :)

In other exciting news the day I had been waiting for finally arrived on Saturday! The DVD release of Twilight, yea!!! Boy, what a let down. I loved the books, but the movie was very choppy and my Edward was rather meanish in the move, not at all like the one in the book. We watched it at Amy house with her daughter Abby and her friend Shelby and then Amy's other friend Tiffany came too. After the movie and snacks we made up our own version of Terrible Towels for tomorrow nights Semi-final hockey game that Chase is in. I found these bright yellow "utility" cloths in a 2 pack for 50cents at Goodwill! I bought all the had which came out to 10 towels total. Made a paw print stamp and we all made different towels. I think they turned out pretty cool. More colorful in Brown and Yellow then the picture shows.

Hopefully they will cheer our guys on to another victory and we'll make it to the finals. Unfortunaly the game is still an hour and 15 minutes away and it's not until 10 o'clock at night so I will be consuming a bit of coffee!

And last, but not least was yesterday was our anniversary! Happy Anniversary Jeff! I love you :)

DISCLAIMER: This is not my favorite picture, but it's the only one I have handy on the computer!

Round One Won and Dental Surgery.....

2009-03-18T09:47:00.005-04:00

Well, we won the first round of playoffs last night! And when I say WE I mean Chase's team! lol But I was a great cheerleader as were Gage and Asa and my fabulous husband Jeff. That is when Asa wasn't busy flirting with 2 little blondie girls that were there. The funny thing was both times he intereacted with them he was sort of bouncing up and downwith his mouth W-I-D-E open like some sort of primitive moneky mating ritual. Weird. Like, "Hey, check me out, I have MOLARS!" Maybe in the 3-year-old circles that's impressive? Anyway, I digress, we won the game against Peters Township 5-1. Chase got an assist and the guys did really well. The next game will be next week sometime, not sure who they are playing yet.

Now the the dental surgery part. Austin is having his bottom 2 wisdom teeth out in about an hour (he had the top 2 out in December of of 07) and they are doing whatever it is they do with 2 traumatic bone cysts that he has. They won't put his bottom braces on until this is done because they say it could affect the teeth shifting back? Personally, I see this skateboarding, hockey playing, brother beating (Chase only lol) kid of mine getting MORE traumatic bone cysts in his future, but, what do I know! So say a little prayer. I have great confidence that all will be well, but even at 15 he is still my baby and I HATE to see my kiddos in pain. *Sigh* I am guessing there is no end to worrying about your kids!

My Own Personal Super Hero!

2009-03-16T10:48:00.002-04:00

I know you are all very jealous, but lil ole me has her own personal super hero! Well, he's technically a Radio super hero, but I'll take what I can get!

Confused yet?

I'm sure most of you don't know that my hubby is a DJ at a radio station based out of Conellsville, PA. He has a show, aka The Jeff Gerard Show, on Music Power 104. His webmaster (that sounds interesting doesn't it!) has been on him for years to start a blog and I finally helped him get one together. SO I thought I would share with you all my honey's new blog! Stop by and visit him HERE and let him see that there are other crazy prim lovers out there, I am pretty sure he thinks I'm the only one ;)

Is it Spring Yet????

2009-03-12T16:08:00.002-04:00

Just checking. We've been having some back and forth days, some nicer than others. Gage's kindergarten class has been marking their days as "lion" or "lamb". I remember doing that in school too. It's funny the things that your mind remembers from years and years ago and how it forgets more recent things. You know like your kids' names when yelling them. :)

We've been busy here with day to day things. Hockey is officially over. The varisty team made it to the first round of playoffs, but were promptly out of it after a game with Ford City. The freshman team are starting playoffs next week. Their final game they played Norwin for the first time and beat them, which was exciting as they were ranked number one. I'm really looking forward to playoffs. I know winning isn't everything, but DANG it sure is fun when it's YOUR team that's winning! My friend Amy (yes my Twilight pusher lol) and I just keep saying it's OUR year! I'll keep you updated, even if you don't care ha ha!

The other thing we are in the process of doing is looking to move. We are wayyyy out of space in the townhouse now that Jeff and I are back together it's just way to tight. We are just going to rent right now. We have some possibilities. I have a favorite that he really kind of dislikes, but the location is beyond perfect. The big boys' friends are all within walking distance and the pool is too. They go EVERYDAY in the summer and the back and forth running them places kinda makes me crazy, so the walking sounds GREAT to me!

Unfortunately this has been keeping me from crafting a whole lot. I am looking to set up a booth here and there at the local Farmer's Market. I met a gal online who has invited me to a couple of shows she has organized and she also sets up at the market every weekend, so I'd really like to try it. Her name is Pam and she has the cutest things in her Etsy Shop. The sad thing is she is literally 5 minutes from me and I have yet to meet her in person!

On a side note Twilight comes out in 8 days.....

Confessions.....

2009-02-26T16:36:00.008-05:00

Okay so the first reason I have been missing lately is, like everyone else, sickness! Oh the amount of tissues and whining that have been around here is pitiful. Okay, that was probably mostly totally me. But still. The kids had it, but I think I have had it the longest. So there is excuse one.

Now the other part is a confession. *sigh* I realize that I am 38 years old. But, well, I had a problem. An addiction if you will. And like most addictions, I was "turned on" to it by a friend. Who shall remain nameless (ahem AMY). She introduced me to the Twilight series.

Yes, I KNOW this is a teenage romance novel. I KNOW it's about vampires and all that good non-Christian stuff. But I got sucked in *sigh* Are you all embarrassed to know me? Hee hee. I can't help it. Also I apparently am not alone in my middle-aged love for a fictional teen vampire boy. I missed the boat when the movie was out as I had no interest at the time, but Amy and I are planning a screening party the night that it comes out. Well us and her teenaged daughter and her teenage friends. My husband and sons are so proud let me tell you. On that note, I will leave you with a picture of the oh-so-dreamy Edward Cullen....

Oh yea, PS, I did finish all the books, so I have rejoined the living and have cleaned my house, went through closets, got rid of clothes and toys and even listed somethings on Etsy and Ebay! Woo hoo!

My Dining Room...

2009-02-09T11:58:00.016-05:00

I thought I would share some quick pictures of my dining room today to give you a little peek into my world. Actually it's a very little peek because my world is much messier and chaotic, but this is a slightly "read" up version!

A shelf someone gave my mom that I redid. It was shiny green oak. More old country than prim!

My hutch, it used to be white, but I recently redid all my furniture in there to black because I got a new black table and chairs and just could not find non-modern black furniture anywhere, well not in my price range anyway! So I took it all out in my townhouse sized yard and spray painted it all because it's not real wood so it can't be sanded!

The top of my hutch. The tin breadboxes were my grandparents. I think they are just the cutest things!

My dad's old cowboys. They are really heavy I'm guessing they are a cast iron? I'm sure painted with some nice lead based paint too! They are on my hutch beside the mustard box.

Most of the items on this shelf belonged to my grandparents. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the picture in the middle. I scanned it and use it as my banner for my blog and my Etsy shop.

Close up.

Close up of the frames corner.

Command centeral! There's a little table and chairs underneath that Asa loves to sit and draw at.

Close up. This pretty much sums up my life! :) But I wouldn't have it any other way!

2009-02-03T11:06:00.006-05:00

I have to start by saying WOOOOOO HOOOOOO!! What a game that was! I was sure sure sure that it was over and we wouldn't come back. My husband kept texting me saying, "No this is Steeler football, this is how Big Ben works". Well guess what, HE WAS RIGHT! (Jeff are you happy, save this post for the future, you may never hear those words from me again lol) He works for a radio station and was stuck high atop "magic mountain" running the board to broadcast the game.

Either way, it had me and Chase on the edge of our seats! It was bittersweet in that I wish my dad was here to see it. He would have been THRILLED! 3 years ago when they won my brother immediately hopped on the bus from NY after the game and came home. My dad, brother and the big boys all went downtown to the parade. I'm so thankful that I let them miss school to go. Little did we know that my dad would be gone a year later.

In other news, it's snowing. Again. I'm trying to make Spring and Easter ornies. It's hard to get motivated when all you see is snow!

These are pictures from last week when we had the white-out I just never got around to posting them. And yes, I know, this is Western Pennyslvania. But hey, what's a blog for if you can't complain every now and then! :)

I did manage to get a few things listed on Ebay, if you get a chance stop by and take a peek...

Hope yinz guys have a great day n'at. If yer in da area stop dahntahn n see da parade, the Stillers are back in da Burgh!

My Life...

2009-01-30T18:29:00.002-05:00

I have been slightly missing in action lately and even posted about it, but thought that I needed to rewrite what I wrote so I deleted it. In doing that I lost your comments, but I appreciate all your prayers!

The reason I was asking for prayers was for my marriage. I have been seperated from my husband Jeff for sometime, but we have been together for 11 years. He is the father to my 2 youngest boys and been a huge part in my older 2 boys' life also. We haven't had it easy over these last years, but we are making a commitment to reconcile and I am asking for prayer for both of us and for our marriage. I know that only God could have changed his heart in the way that it has changed and I know He can help us through the rest if we let Him.

In other news, it's a very white snowy Friday before Super Bowl. lol The energy around town is just electric. You can see evidence all around why they say that Pittsburgh has the best (craziest???) fans. My brother is totally gone. I mean you can't even have much of a conversation without him relating it to the Steelers (or Lost lol) It's freezing and snowy. We actually had some pretty big white-outs today. I didn't even know we were getting snow. See, it's not just my blog, I've been clueless about life lately! But don't tell anyone. I'm trying not to let the kids know they really ARE smarter than me :)

Here We Go Steelers!!!!

2009-01-18T09:24:00.006-05:00

Now admittedly I am not a big fan of football. Don't get me wrong, I want the Steelers to do well and like finding out that the score and all that, but I don't actually sit and watch a game until we get to the playoffs.

My father on the other hand, truly did bleed Black and Gold. I think he questioned my DNA many a times due to the fact that we differed a bit in this area (thank goodness Lost came along for bonding!) and after he passed away I swore I would watch them faithfully!

Luckily my brother is just as pyschotic about our Stillers to carry on the Smith football traditions (yes I was a Smith before!) and live and die by the Steelers.

My dad and the Westinghouse crew back in the 70s. He's the clean shaven one on the bottom row on last one on the left.

So this post is in honor of the AFC Championship and the fact that we are gonna kick some butt, this is Steelers weather that we are having after all!

Junie B., Lost and Freezer Bags...

2009-01-15T11:18:00.011-05:00

These are a few of my faaaavorite thiiiiings......

I have a lovely voice I know :) So somehow my non-enjoying-reading 2 older boys skipped past the Junie B. Jones phase when they were little, but Gage and I have discovered her and her books and let me tell you we are HOOKED! This is seriously some of the funniest, have-to-laugh-out-loud while you are reading kids books! If you haven't discovered her I give this serious a 2 thumbs up!

The first books in the series cover life in Kindergarten and then she moves up to First grade, so if you have kiddos in this age group, let me know what you think!

Then my heart is beating a little bit faster lately knowing that LOST is coming back on next week! Wooooo hoooo!

Any Losties out there in the blogging world? What also makes me enjoy the show even more is that my father got me started on it. It was something that we had in common and use to recap and analyze every week. Remember I am not a total football nut like my dad and brother, so we needed this! lol Then my brother got hooked, then Chase and it was something that we could all share. So everytime the season starts and ends I got a little sad missing him.

Then there is my unnatural obsession with Freezer Bags. Please tell me I am not the only one?! I keep everything in them! Well, not food so much, but everything else! Puzzles with broken boxes, Star Wars figures, anything with small parts that just get lost through out the toy box, reciepts, everything! I even have moved on to those giant Ziplock bags they sell. I make a huge batch of my little pillows at one time then I can just take it out when I'm ready to paint! Which sadly hasn't been recently, but that's another post. I'm working on it honest!

Hope you all are having a blessed day! :)

I May Wring His Neck...

2009-01-12T12:20:00.002-05:00

This is so NOT what I was planning on blogging about to start off the new week. I will make it brief, as frankly, there is not much to say, but AUSTIN LOST HIS SKATES AGAIN!!!!!

The sad thing is he is a mature and responsible kid for the most part. I mean he really really is. He isn't perfect, but this just stuns me. He went ice skating Saturday night with friends. He stayed over Jake's house, when I picked him up for practice on Sunday his skates weren't with him. He thinks he brought them to Jake's, but they aren't there. No one turned them in at skating. Surprise surprise. If they were left there, someone took them and I didn't mark them so there would be no way of finding them.

At first I was going to have him just be done with hockey and suffer the consequences, but I really really think that he needs this and it's good for him. In general as well as since he just lost his dad a few months ago. Soooo, I'm back to figuring it out. I guess I will probably just get him a cheap used pair from Play It Again Sports and have him just deal with skating on not so great skates.

Please, feel free to jump and offer advice, I'm at a loss as to what to do with this! So those of you that have survived the teenage years, by all means, HELP! :)

My First Award!

2009-01-07T09:29:00.005-05:00

I'm so excited that Sharon from Prim Thyme chose me to be a recipient of The Lemonade Award! The Lemonade Award is for blogs that show great attitude and gratitude.

Upon receiving The Lemonade Award, you also pass it on to other bloggers who you think show great attitude and gratitude.
Here are the rules:
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude!
3. Link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.
Here are a few blogs that I think show great attitude and gratitude.

Now the hard part is I have no idea how to do links in Blogger. If anyone would like to tell me that would be great! lol

* Janene from Primitive Lifestyle
* Mandy from Life in the Craft Lane with Mandie
* Lauren from Simple Blessings
* Sandy from For the LOVE of Prims
* Rondell from Tomatoe Creek Prims
* Linda from Behind My Red Door
* Kelli from There's No Place Like Home
* Julie from Country Girl at Heart
* Kindra from 3 Guys, a Girl and a Prim Place

If you already recieved this award, sorry, lol, I'm still new to a lot of blogs and if you aren't wanting to pass them on that's fine too, I just don't have a lot of blogs that I read yet!

In other news, it's been a pretty low key week here. Austin did have a game on Monday and let me tell you it was CRAZY!!! I am fairly new to understanding hockey, but even I knew it was a wild game. We won, I *think* it was 9-1. We got some unfair penalties and at one point had 5 guys in the penalty box. It was pretty close quarters let me tell you! Our head coach got a 10 minute penalty and one of the guys had to serve it for him and one of our assistant coaches actually got thrown out and suspended for the next game.

Now that sounds terrible as if our team is full of insane people, but that truly is not the case. Coach DeFazio is very fair and really seems to play all the kids pretty equally as he realizes that is not the NHL and his purpose is truly the kids. The asst. coach I don't know very well, but he seems like a really sweet guy. I guess he told the ref that he was "only seeing white" meaning us as we were the home team in our white uniform! I have to agree as MY BABY got cross-checked in the throat/jaw and they didn't do ANYTHING! Conveniently it was right in front of too. Yeah, does wonders for a mother's heart. I was good though and acted calmly in front of everyone as opposed to running over to the bench screaming and crying. He would have loved that I can tell ya! I really don't know how some of the parents do it when their kids get hurt. I guess they are just used to the roughness of the sport and maybe I will be calmer too someday, we'll see!

So if anyone has a minute and feels like explaining the link thing, please do! I tried, but doesn't seem to be working. Hope you all are having a wonderful day! :)

3 Down 1 to Go!

2009-01-05T09:15:00.008-05:00

Okay that sounds bad, but after a couple of weeks of holiday hecticness (I'm pretty sure that's not a real word lol) it's nice to have the kiddos back at school. Hence that title that 3 are in school and I'm down to Mr. Asa!

The holidays were actually much nicer than I expected. My brother came the day after Christmas so we had our celebrations extend for a few days. Santa was good to everyone and everyone seemed happy with their gifts. I had such a hard time this year not just thinking of what to get the boys, but also family! Some years I'm on it and this year I was so not! Here are some random pics from Christmas day!

One of the other highlights of the Christmas break was going out for an evening with my brother and stepmom! We met up with Jan's sister and her husband and also her husbands mother. There were lots of Jan's friends that also met up with us and they are really a blast to hang out with! I honestly can't remember that last time I hung out with my brother like that and I really can't remember that last time I went dancing! We saw the Blu River Band. I love country music. My brother, not so much, but he has fun no matter what, so it was all good. Here are some more random pictures of our night out!

Me, Brian and Jan I am pretty cure Jan needs to change the date on her camera!

Brian being goofy. That hat actually wiggled it was pretty funny!

And last but not least a particularly cute picture of Asa I wanted to share.

He really need a haircut, but it's so cute, so I hesitate.

I have been enjoying reading everyone's blogs and seeing what the holidays held in store for all of you. It's great to see everyone enjoying Christmas and New Years. I'm thrilled that it's 2009. I love thinking about all the possibilities that this new year holds. Even though I fear so much about change, even if it's good change, I have my mind set on embracing it.

As one of my most favorite people in the whole world said to me I am going to face this future "with passion and joy, not fearful of what may happen tomorrow, but fearless in spite of it." That's my hope for not just myself this new year, but you and your families as well!

Latest Video

2008-12-21T15:59:00.005-05:00

I honestly can't remember if I had a mentioned in any of my previous posts about my Grandmother's passing back in July. She was an amazingly strong person overcoming many adveristies and hardships in her life. My Aunt Kim asked me to put together a video similar to the one I made for my Dad. Kim had some issues with the narrowing down of photos though, so we had to choose a second song. I have spent the past 2 days having long conversations (one sided) with my Windows Movie Maker. Anyway, here is the finished product. There are a few things I wish I could figure out how to change, but can't, such as the starting volume of the second song. If anyone has any tips I'd love to hear them. I'd like to attempt to do this again for Clay this time, so please help a prim sista out! lol

Random Happenings

2008-12-19T09:35:00.013-05:00

First off I have to say Happy Birthday!!! Today is my brother Brian's 33rd birthday. Funny thing was I remembered all morning and decided to wait to call until the boys were all home from school, but I called him about Christmas and totally forgot it was his birthday. Luckily he realizes that I have totally lost my mind and isn't holding it against me.

There have been lots of other fun things happening here lately too. Austin want to the semi-formal Christmas dance this past Sunday. He really hates to have his picture taken so this is all I have at the moment. I'm waiting to see the other ones that were taken there. I'm sure he smiled for them!

He looks so handsome. Somehow he has just changed into looking so grown up it's scary at times! We ordered flowers for his date to carry and they really turned out beautiful. Especially when we ordered them the day before. For some reason it just didn't hit me that he needed flowers! Asa was more than happy to pose with them!

In other Austin news, he had a game that was about an hour away in Johnstown on Monday. It was at the War Memorial where the Johnstown Chiefs play. It was really awesome to see him play in a really arena with actual seats like a professional!
Their team did really well, winning 14-1 and Austin scored 3 goals! Woo Hoo! I was so proud!

The bad news was that at the same time Chase had a game against arch nemesis, Hempfield. Now I went to Hempfield, but my heart is a Greensburg Salem Lion now! The freshman team was undefeated with 2 ties. Not only that, but all the games that they won were shutouts, so I felt fairly confident that this would be a win also. Clays' girlfriend took him since I can't be in 2 places at the same time. Sadly they lost 5-4 in the last 2 minutes of the game. I know in the grand scheme of things, this is not a big deal, but darn it, it was sad! Their team has really worked so well together this year and it was just kind of a bummer that it was to Hempfield.

Gage had a Christmas program with the Kindergarten classes on Wednesday and it was adorable. They all did so great and he was so proud. The pictures during the performance just didn't turn out at all because it was too dark, but here he is and a picture of him with Mrs. Claus and a picture of Asa with Mrs. Claus. Very nice of her to take time away to visit don't you think?

It's hard to believe that it's Friday already and Christmas is only 6 days away. I have finished shopping for the most part. Now if a little elf would come wrap for me I would be oh so thankful! :)

Dear God.....

2008-12-14T19:57:00.000-05:00

Thank you for pizza.
Love,
Asa

I swear he fell asleep like this. No pants, one sock with his hands clasped, half eaten pizza at his feet. This little monkey sure puts a smile on my face! :)

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

2008-12-12T14:07:00.002-05:00

Well now that the tree is finally decorated I thought I would share a few of my favorite ornaments. It was hard to pick just a couple, but these were the ones that touch my heart and put a smile on my face!

This first one my Grandma and Pap Smith bought for me when I was a little girl. I had a big thing for horses and wanted to be a cowgirl!

My stepmom got us this one last year in memory of my dad. I just love the verse on it. It also engraved on the back with Pap Pap Smith 1949-2007

Ah the King, what more is there to say!

This is a classic Chase back in preschool. Too cute, I just love his face!

Another classic, this is Austin in kindergarten. So sweet! I look forward to the ones that Gage and Asa will make over the years!

There are several others that I bought over the years that represented where we were at the time. I love seeing how far we've come and how the boys have grown and changed.

No Skates...

2008-12-10T13:55:00.003-05:00

Well despite several calls and follow ups, the skates are MIA. We did manage to get a new pair in time for the game. Good news, all of Play It Again Sports' Nike Bauer Vapor skates were on sale. The ones he had were $99.00. The bad news is they didn't have his size. But oh this kid lucked out and had to get the next one up on the greatness scale of Naike Bauer Vapor skates. Now he is the proud owner of the XXII

I'm sure you can see the difference. Yeah. Me neither. Anyway, the best part of the story is that we got to the game. The team does the traditional run around the building before suiting up and he comes in from said run and says he feels like he is going to throw up. *sigh* I wasn't sure what he was going to do, but he must have informed his coach and he sat the 1st period and got off the ice after that. He changed and he watched the 2nd period and we left after that. So he never even really wore his new skates.

At least he gives me something to blog about!

You Win Some You Lose Some

2008-12-08T07:51:00.006-05:00

And oh please, please, please let me post a happy follow-up to this story later. My dear son Austin, you know the great artist, sweet, loving boy from the last post, has lost his ice skates. His pretty darn new skates. And in MY opinion pretty darn expensive skates. Now in the world of hockey $150.00 is really not expensive at all, but that's a ton of money right before Christmas.

I'll try and make a long story short. Austin went skating Saturday night. Had skates in backpack. Stayed at friends house overnight. Sunday they went to the mall. Had to take skates with him. At some point mind went into spacey teenage mode (probably saw a cute girl) and set down $60.00 backpack containing $150.00 skates. Realize loss go to CS. Nothing turned in will call when they are. Here we are. No call. Mother ready to cry. Hockey game tonight at 9.

I'm really hoping some kind sweet honest person turns them in, but we'll see.

Come home skates, we miss you.......

Art Projects...

2008-12-04T16:59:00.000-05:00

I think each of my children have gotten a special blog post. All except for Austin, my oldest. Now I am not sure why I have never posted about him. He gives me PLENTY of things to blog about. I think the problem is that mostly they would become the rantings of a mad woman, so I have refrained from posting. You see Austin is the product of the "parents curse". In case you are not familiar with said curse, it is the curse that one of your parents put upon you, usually when YOU are in your teen years. It goes something to the effect of..."I hope you have a child JUST LIKE YOU SOMEDAY!!". Anyone have one of those? We are very much alike in so many ways, although he would outwardly cringe if that was ever mentioned to him. In fact people even say we look alike, which is not a good thing for a 15 year-old boy. He is mouthy and brooding alot of times. Wears skinny jeans and is trying to gauge out his ears without me noticing.

BUT he is also sweet and sensitive. Adorable with his littlest brothers when he wants to be. And when this child smiles his whole face lights up and he looks like a sweet little boy! But the point of this post is he is very talented. He brought this home the other night to work on for art class. Now I'm not sure what comic book person this is, as this is not my area of expertise lies, but I know that I think this is awesome. Maybe I'm biased. Either way I think he is pretty awesome. (Austin I mean lol)

2008-12-03T22:59:00.000-05:00

Love this! I even sent an edited version to my brother. With him as the poor little squashed birdie and me as the other one. I was the favorite of course. I think it's because I was cuter.

Just kidding, love ya brother! :)

Why I Don't Believe in Child Labor By Jennifer Redinger

2008-12-02T20:09:00.002-05:00

Because they don't do it right.

Gage is sick again. I won't go into the fact that I myself am sick, because frankly, no one here cares. This time it is the stomach flu. Anyone know the odds of everyone else in the house bypassing it? Just checkin'

Anyway, after a day full of bathroom trips, some more successful then others, I told Austin and Chase that if they wanted clean jeans for tomorrow to collect them from every nook, cranny and hamper and bring 'em down. Well, I just took them out of the washer to place in the dryer and was greeted with fuzz and lots and lots of gel pieces. I not only washed jeans, but a pull-up. They don't wash very well.

I shouldn't complain. At least they were motivated to do something by the sheer thought of wearing dirty jeans. Hey, it's something, right?

Christmas Cards....

2008-11-28T13:01:00.000-05:00

I trust everyone is still nice and full from Thanksgiving yesterday. We ate a lot and the day seemed to go pretty well overall. The losses of the past year, especially Austin and Chase's dad, Clay, were very much in our minds and hearts, but knowing our loved ones are together in Heaven and we will see them again someday helped somewhat.

On a lighter note I accomplished the much loved/dreaded Christmas card photo! Woo hoo! Maybe it's just me, but trying to get a good picture of 4 boys is impossible. Not to mention the big boys loathe the matching clothes thing so I decided to work around them! lol Anyway, I thought it turned out pretty good. I did this on a program I got with one of my cameras which is kind of a pain, but today I noticed I could have done this all with the new updated Picasa. It's AWESOME!! Not to mention you can MAKE MOVIES NOW!! Easily too! I want to kiss the guy/girl who did all the changes I love it so much! I will restrain though. Self-control is a beautiful thing. So I'm told.......

This Week I Am Thankful For.....

2008-11-24T14:58:00.003-05:00

I know this may sound terrible, but honestly I am thankful that there are no hockey games this week. I really needed a break after 3 games last week. I love to watch my boys play, but this is a really welcome break. Honestly, I think my mother is more thankful than I am! She so kindly watches the little boys so they can still get to bed on time and so I can pay attention to the game. Remember this is only year 2 for us, so I need all the focus I can get!

I am also so thankful that my "funk" seems to be over. Do you think it's a coincidence that I have more "free" time without games this week that I am motivated to get creating! Hmmmmmmmm.

Lots of stuff listed on Etsy and Ebay today. Stop by and check it out!

We Interrupt This Life Because Your Kid Forgot.....

2008-11-19T08:59:00.002-05:00

Truly, this has been the story of my week this week. It started Monday morning with a text from my dear Chase at 8ish. Never mind the fact that he is not allowed to text at school. "U might need 2 bring my jersey" Well that didn't tell me a whole lot. So he preceeds to text that he needs his hockey jersey as they are taking pictures for the yearbook. So after I take Gage to school I drive to the middle school park a mile away (okay, more like the end of the parking lot, BUT it was snowing) and walk to the side door, buzz the buzzer, gain admittance and head for the office. The secretary was very sweet as she questioned "Didn't he do this last year too?"

Fast forward to Monday night. Austin has a game I ever so kindly and gently (or nag I forget which) remind him to double check his hockey bag before we leave for the game. Austin and Chase both are pretty terrible when it comes to dumping their bags to let all that equpiment dry, so I usually am stuck doing it on the following day and things really get mixed up and spread out everywhere. He gets his usual teen attitude "wow mom, I know it's good, I did" Okie Doke! Game starts 7:15. My handsome hockey player son comes strolling out to see me in the lobby at 7:00, dressed and ready to go! "Mom, I only have 1 glove" Nice, allow me to drive at break-neck speeds to go home and be back at 7:15. (I did make it btw)

Tuesday evening. Chase has a game we are getting ready to leave for. He comes down the stairs a little upset after packing his bag. "Mom, my jerseys are still at school". *sigh* "Chase you'll have to call Coach and see is he has any jerseys". "Can you call Mom?" "Nooo way buddy, this is ALL YOU!". Crisis averted, Coach has one he can wear.

Here we are Wednesday morning. Chase has a field trip today. Needs to bring a lunch. I'm sure you're thinking he forgot to tell me. Nope! He remembered. Unfortunately it's sitting all packed on the counter. He called shortly after he left while on the bus to school. "Mommy I don't know if you'll be mad or not, but I forgot my lunch, can you hurry and run it to school" I should have known with the "Mommy" comment. No 13-year-old calls his mother "Mommy" in front of a large group of kids. Asa is still sleeping and I have Gage to get ready for school yet. Well, I decided that he can learn his lesson today! Yea Me! I'm not totally heartless though. I made a quick call to my dear friend who teaches at the middle school and asked if Chase could have her lunch and would she mind buying hers today. Sweet friend that she is says no problem. It's ham salad though. Blech. Maybe 1 child will learn his lesson this week. Do you think it's possible???

Things That Make You Go Hmmmm....

2008-11-16T10:14:00.002-05:00

A conversation that I had with someone last night got me thinking about some things. Now when I think about things it usually branches off into many different directions, usually ending somewhere far, far away from where the thought began. Kind of like when you go to the store for milk and come out with shoes for your kid, a candle and a new paint brush. WalMart is terrible for that. Of course I would never run to WalMart for just milk, but I digress. (See how easily it happens!)

Anyway, my point is that I have several things that other people find odd about me.

I have a GREAT aversion to growths of any sort on food or plant life, espcially if it is perfectly symmetrical. Case in point. Eyes on potatoes. Can't deal with it. Really, really, really creeps me out. Also the fern like plant that will accompany boquets of flowers can sometimes get this fungus type thing on the back. They are perfectly round, perfectly spaced "things" that make me want to run away screaming. Weird huh? Grass growing in either rain gutters or on a roof. Another weird thing that it makes my heart go into arrythmias looking at.

I can't touch chalk. ESPECIALLY sidewalk chalk. Just can't do it. It feels weird.

I hate when people can't put there buggy back. Really it's not that hard. Now the weirdness is that not only do I put my buggy back, but if I have time I will also push all the buggies together so they don't stick out into the parking lot.

I don't like onions. I don't like them in salsas, sauces, salads, sandwiches or burgers. But I like onion rings.

I hate to take medicine.

I worry about stupid things.

I analyze things too much.

I can be emotional.

The last ones I think are traits of women in general, but I had to list them. And on that note I will leave you with this thought for the day......

Thankful...

2008-11-13T08:10:00.002-05:00

With Thanksgiving right around the corner it seems only appropraite to post about things I am thankful for...

Family ~ I know this is obvious and everyone says it, but I am so truly blessed with 4 wonderfully adorable kids that are healthy and funny and loving and sweet. My mom who is always willing to help us out with watching the little boys for hockey games and other random things.

Friends ~ I have so many wonderful friends that are there to listen to me vent, bounce off ideas on and randomly help out with the boys too! It takes a village right? lol

Prims ~ I'm thankful that I am able to do what I love to do and that people like it enough to even buy it! It really is my therapy!! lol

Other Random Things ~ Coffee, music, photographs, chocolate, fresh from the bath babies, candles, the change of seasons, the color red, the konwledge that I will see again loved ones that have gone before me to heaven.

I reserve the right to add to this post as my coffee kicks in more ;)

Is It Really November Already?????

2008-11-12T10:07:00.005-05:00

You know I really thought I would be much better at this blogging thing! Being a girl and all and I love to talk. And Heaven knows my kids give me enough material!

I think part of it is due to the fact it's not only been a really busy year, but it has been an exceptionally rough year at times. I thought it was all good after getting through a year of "firsts" since my father died. I thought the holidays would be great this year having gone through last year as a first without him. My mom's mom died a few months back. I wasn't exceptionally close to her, but she was a wonderfully strong woman with the strongest hug in the whole world! lol

But by far the hardest thing I have ever endured in my life is when my exhusband and father of my 2 older boys died. He has endured a life filled with struggles. Mostly all inside of him, but I believe he did the very best he was capable of doing in his life. His parents both died in 2006 and he was so close to his mother. She really was the 1 constant in his life, always there to help him and pick him up no matter what. I know my boys adored this man and miss him terribly. Unfortunately they are at an age where they are pulling away in general and of course they don't want to talk about it. Any prayers for my boys would be much appreciated.

In Loving Memory Clay Thomas Ellis 11-14-70 ~ 9-17-08

You know you're a hockey mom........

2008-08-12T22:35:00.001-04:00

When you laugh your butt off at this commercial!

It's a GREAT day for hockey!

Shoo Fly Don't Bother Me....

2008-07-12T09:10:00.004-04:00

In the middle of taking pictures for a new ornie I'm listing on Ebay, I thought something was wrong with my camera. There was clearly 2 dark marks on the last picture I had just taken. The next one was fine though, so I figured I would investigate when I uploaded the photos.

This is what it was...

Lovely. I love summer when kids are in and out and in and out and in and out. Not to mention air conditioning the yard by leaving the door open!

2008-07-10T20:32:00.001-04:00

If I have to pick ONE movie to see, with a rating over "G", for the rest of my natural born life, based on this preview, THIS IS THE MOVIE I CHOOSE!!!!!!

Who are you?????

2008-06-28T21:05:00.000-04:00

Well, I am a total slacker at blogging, it's pretty official. So much has changed since April. Most importantly, we are not going to NY. My SIL that I love dearly has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer. And while the C word it self is terribly scary, supposedly if you're gonna get cancer, this is THE cancer to get! So her surgery is scheduled for July 10th with a follow up of radioactive iodine. So any prayers you can spare would be greatly appreciated.

The other excitement is that the boys are out of school! I did the year end clean out of backpacks and binders and looked through all the papers that somehow I never saw through the year. Some were good, some I'm glad they didn't show me, they would have been grounded. One particular paper stood out to me though. My sweet, sweet Chase, had to write a paper about ME! I found a list of questions that the teacher provided for the children to ask their moms. Suprisingly Chase's was blank. Did he know me so well, he didn't need to ask? Yeah. Right. This boy apparently knows NOTHING about me. And he has quite a way with words. Now I realize some may not know how far off he is with these answers, but let me tell you. He pulled this stuff totally out of his skinny little preteen butt!

FWIW...

Birthday 9/24/70
Food Anything BUT diet food
Favorite Possesion My dad would have LOVED that answer :)
Band hmmm Rascal Flatts maybe?
Movie Star George Clooney
Sports Star Evgeni Malkin
Favorite Day The day ALL my boys were born!

My Chase, he makes my world a more enjoyable place for sure!

Not feelin' the love.......

2008-04-02T10:04:00.000-04:00

Well, here I am the mother of 4 boys. I admit at times it can be difficult, to say the least, to try and plan outings and fun activities, due to the fact that their ages are all over the place. From July to October they will have their birthdays and will turn 15, 13, 6 and 3, sooooo it gets complicated.

Of course what kid doesn't love the beach? My dad and step-mom have a timeshare at Nags Head, NC. and my brother and I spent our summers there and from what I remember it was awesome! Well, this particular timeshare no longer allows pets, thus my stepmom is unable to use it this year, so she has generously offered it to us! Woo hoo, right? WRONG! Now don't get me wrong, the older boys were excited at first. Yea, the beach. Sun, sand, maybe some cute babes. Well, for some reason they were under the impression that Brian (previously mentioned brother of mine, affectionately known as simply "Uncle") and Sarah (not previously mentioned, but nonetheless wonderful, sister-in-law) were going to be accompanying us. When they found out that this was NOT the case, their tune changed. Quite a bit. I think the words used were. Uh. It's just going to be us??? That's dumb. That's not going to be any fun. I don't even want to go. :S

Now in their defense my husband had refused to go. LOL Given the fact I can be very high strung and difficult when faced with things out of my comfort zone. And we fight. A lot. So I can see that this has the potential for being a disaster, but wanted to do it for the kids. Who now don't want to go. So while a bit bummed out, I have to admit there was just a titch of relief in there, a big WHEW if you will.

So in closing you would think this means no vacation this year. Noooooooo! Start spreadin' the news.... We're leavin' today... (August really) And our "little" family of 6 will be heading to the Big Apple into a typical NY city apartment to ruin a long weekend for said Uncle and Aunt. We're going to NY baby!!!

Snow Day

2008-02-12T18:50:00.001-05:00

Wow has it really been since September that I wrote something? I guess I really am a busy person!

Well, I got what I was hoping for and we got a snow day today! Chase was to be driven to and from school for 2 days due to an incident involving him being kicked where it counts and his follow-up of "I'm going to kill you" to said kicker. Well, the injust part of this was the kicker did the kicking the evening before while Chase did the threatening at the bus stop. Hence, he was kicked off the bus. Apparently you can't say things like this in the society that we live in. And while I do understand the prinicpals point, I find God has a sense of humor and gave us a delay yesterday and no school today. Thanks God!

So, what did we do with this lovely day? Well, Chase and Gage thought it would be a great idea to work on the Erector Set that the family got for Christmas. Yea! Excitment. Anticipation. Happiness. Until it got hard. Mom? Mom? Can you help? We need you again Mom. Okay, Flash forward an hour. Gage is gone. Chase is gone. Even Asa is gone. Austin? He never showed up. There is am spending the better part of today obsessed with finishing it now. I like to think I am pretty darn handy, but these directions suck! SUCK! I screwed it all up. SO we have a sort of car with a running motor that doesn't really move because, well, I screwed it up. *sigh*

On a side not the boys enjoyed their day off. Got some sledding in. And God answered my day off prayer with a yes.

Life is Good. :)

Asa Unsupervised.

2007-09-21T12:25:00.000-04:00

I swear it was a 5 minute conversation with my brother. I think everyone has had a child or maybe it was a sibling, or maybe a friend's child. You know the type. You turn your back for 30 seconds and they find something, ANYTHING to get into. Asa is that child.

One of his favorite things to do is to give himself "tattoos". He gets a marker, pen, whatever, and draws all over himself. Ya gotta love that. Praise God, it has never been a permanent marker. Then there is the chalk he will get and write all over things in his room. Finds pennies and puts them into the sweeper slot vents. Then there is the peanut butter. You can't see in this picture, but he has it all in the back of his hair too.

Honestly, I really do pay attention to the boy, but he waits until the opportunity is right and goes for it! I've said it before and I'll say it again... this is why God made these little ones so darn cute!!!!

That Face!

2007-08-13T15:25:00.000-04:00

There are so many things that I get great enjoyment out of in this world, but these boys, by far, are what give me reason to smile everyday! (Of course they are also the reason I have pain and frustration, but that's another blog and the joy outweighs the pain!) Anyway, there are those rare moments that you capture something that just snags your heart and this photo is one of them. I think that Gage jsut has the face of an angel. Pure, innocent and dripping with sweetness! I won't comment on the fact that there are times where his personality is so far from that I just wonder if someone switched him at birth, because everyone knows what a ray of sunshine ~I~ am at all times ;) These are those frozen moments in time that I will look back on when I am an old (okay old-er) woman and miss terribly, when they don't call. They don't write. They don't visit. When I'm alone........

And enjoying every minute of it!!! LOL

Over Halfway Through Summer!

2007-07-23T09:05:00.000-04:00

Well, here we are again. The Fourth hits and Summer seems to just be over. And naturally I haven't accomplished very many of the things that I wanted to do with the boys this Summer!

We did get the family pool pass. Of course Austin never wants to go. I had minor surgery and couldn't go. Obviously the little boys can't go with out me. Thank goodness Chase's entire class from school goes and he is there everyday! At least someone is getting my money's worth! lol

I wanted to go to the zoo, no one else really does. I wanted to go to Twin Lakes yesterday, of course no one was sold on that either. I even suggested brining a bucket of KFC (I have all boys who live their lives according to food!), but that didn't even work! I have mentioned Idlewild and Kennywood, but we need back-up adults for that since we have the big age differemce in kids. *sigh*

I did get everyone's bedrooms redone. I should be happy about that I suppose! The little boys each graduated to bigger beds, BUNK BEDS! I must say it is bittersweet. My "babies" are growing up! The big boys get a futon in their room, so at 12 and almost 14 they look like they are in a college dorm room! LOL

Today is another day. Maybe we'll hit the road and see if they notice if we end up at the zoo ;)

My dad's memorial

2007-05-14T13:15:00.000-04:00

While normally I like to stick to painting and a little bit of sewing, after my father died I decided to make a memorial video. It really does no justice to his life and the kind of happy-go-lucky fun-loving person he was, but it does give a brief glimpse into him. He is missed dearly by everyone who knew him. Thanks for looking :)