oops!...we did it again!

The lovely flowered wallpaper you see here is what I have lived with in my kitchen for nearly ten years... and the "vintage paper" (I'm being kind) on the left is the nasty wallboard that I would have had to live with had I removed the floral! Don't be jealous. So you can hardly blame a girl for the shameless begging of her husband to at least remove the paneling and put up bead board paneling...it would be "a long-weekend project at the most, and it would make a big difference"! Well, my husband must have been in a good mood cuz he bit (thanks babe...love you!) and now our long-weekend project has become a full fledged mess (as our projects have a tendency to do)! We have once again encountered the hack jobs that have entertained us (again being kind) over the past several years as we have remodeled our little money pit. Take a gander...

before...

and during the demolition...

At least one of us is having fun... but even Colin grew tired of the initial excitement and asked "Now, why are we doing this again?" We really couldn't answer him... mostly due to the fact that we didn't want to eat the nasty, old insulation filling the room as we ripped into another wall...

keepin' it simple

End of the year teacher gift time! Last year I stressed and worried all about end of the year teacher gifts... I over-worried, over-spent... I loved Colin's preschool teachers and wanted them to know it! A little older, a little wiser, and much, much busier this year. I love Ms. Aquino...she, along with all teachers, deserve a BIG thank you for putting up with our little darlings all year. However, I'm no millionaire...as much as I'd love to give her thousands of dollars it's just not fiscally responsible...especially in this economy. A gift card to the bookstore and a few tall glasses of ice-cold, delicious lemonade will have to suffice!

day trip

Some pics from our daytrip to Pella, Iowa on Saturday. Chris was golfing, so the boys and I decided to go to Pella with Gigi and Dad-dad. Sadly the tulips were past their prime but the town is adorable and completely enjoyable regardless. The windmill you see in the distance is the tallest in the U.S. and we got to tour it which was so cool for the boys. I enjoyed all of it but the top! I'm suddenly terrified of heights especially when my boys are out there running around!

Colin at the Historical Villiage in front of the working mill...very cool!

The boys at the Scholte House Gardens. Beautiful garden, beautiful day, beautiful boys (if I do say so myself!)

Dad-dad and the well behaved children :). Gigi and I were there...I promise! Dad's camera has the pics on it of me and the boys and of them and the boys...wouldn't you know. Oh well. What a fun day...

down time

Colin and Ty got to enjoy some much needed down time this afternoon. We have been going like crazy people since T-ball started. Who knew that a six year old playing T-ball would be expected to endure 45 min. practices for 5 weeks and then 2 games a week for 10 weeks (OK...actually 5, but it feels like 10!). I know I didn't expect that! So, thank God for the spring thunderstorm this afternoon that allowed them to veg out in front of the TV - something they havn't been able to do in a while.

Did I just say I was thankful for TV time? :)

Mother's Day

This... this is what it's all about!

Nothing brings you out of a funk better than kids. I am so lucky to have two amazing little boys in my life who I'm so proud of. They make life worth living in a way that I cannot describe. They've made me a better person and there is no better day to celebrate them than Mother's Day! I am blessed!

My Mother's Day started out with breakfast in bed and then a sweet treat... chocolate dipped strawberries (hand-dipped by my three favorite boys). Could you ask for more?

Crab

This picture pretty much sums up my mood right about now! I really have nothing to say but I am still alive and I'll blog again later when I'm not feeling like this!

good advice

10 Ways to Beat Stress

1. Accept your imperfections and go ahead inspite of them.
2. Avoid fighting for anything that's not worth it.
Don't squander your energy on semi-important things.
3. Learn and follow organizing principals.
4. say "NO" more often.
5. Get rid of a lot. 6. Don't gather much. 7. Don't keep much.
8. Value simplicity in your life.
9. Don't sweat the little things.
( Everything -- well, almost everything -- is a little thing.)
10. Be grateful.
-- Adapted from Organizing for Life by Sandra Felton

This list is on my fridge reminding me daily to beat the stress right out of my life. Well, as you probably know, it's a little bit harder than it looks but I try my little heart out. Saying "No" is especially difficult for me being the pleaser that I am but... "practice makes perfect" and I do say "NO" a lot more than I used to...(to some more than others, right hon?).

Six

The beautiful boy who first made me a mom is 6. It is for sure a bittersweet feeling. I can still see his baby face when I look at him and at the same time I see the boy...the 6 year old boy...

He still climbs in my lap and wants to snuggle. He still cries for me when he is hurt. He still wants his Mom to tuck him in. But, he has refused to kiss me good-bye at school because friends were around. It is happening...and each time he snuggles, cries for me, wants me to tuck him in... I wonder if it's the last time.

hope that what I hear is true and that boys always love their Moms...it is what helps me manage the undeniable truth that he is, in fact, growing up!

the big idea

After dropping Colin off at school this morning, Ty and I continued our daily routine of driving to Des Moines listening to Michael Jackson's Greatest Hits (surprisingly his favorite CD right now...God help me). Barely hearing his small, sweet voice over Bad I gladly turned the music off and asked him what he said...

Ty: "I have a good idea."
Me: "What's that?"
Ty: " I can climb all day!"
Me: "Yes you can...that is a great idea!"

Oh to be three...

clarification

Just to clarify... I in no way, shape, or form believe myself to be a loser. I may be a Facebook loser, but then I've never aspired to be a Facebook super-star. :) Some people put a great value on being able to say they have 278 friends, but I am not that person. I'd much rather have 1 really great friend ( luv u BFF!) than 278 pictures of "friends" on my Facebook page. "Quality not quantity", right Mom? I am blessed with a lot of great friends whom I love and appreciate. I was poking fun at Facebook and at how addicting it can become (it truly sucks you in... I was addicted for weeks!). But, once the newness wears off, what you are left with are a bunch of thumbnail photos of people who you chat with briefly...I found it to be a waste of time. And, honestly, my ego was a bit bruised that I wasn't a popular as I thought I would be...for about one second...then I was over it :). So, don't worry (you know who you are) I'm a bit more well-adjusted than you give me credit for! In the future I'll make sure to preface the posts which are to be read in a sarcastic tone :)...

Swift, hard kick to the ego!

I should have gone with my gut on this one! Why I succumbed to temptation is beyond me. Truth be told it was my curiosity. I can hear my mother now... "Curiosity killed the cat!" I just couldn't stand not knowing what Chris' page looked like and now...well, now I'm hooked. Well, was hooked. I hate Facebook! It's like the fender bender you can't help but slow down to look at. And, honestly I'd probably love it if I wasn't such a loser :). I currently have 35 "friends" of which 22 are family and a handful of them are under the age of 18. Yep...loser! I've looked up 3 old friends and enjoyed the brief, practically, non-existent catch-up. I've always been under the illusion that I had a ton of friends from high school...especially Omaha...all wondering what happened to that "fabulous Rebecca Williams". (haha) Nope...loser! Well...on the bright side...perhaps my head was a bit too big and this was just the ego check I needed! :)