My View of the Honeypot

Remailing Your Valentine's From the Sweetheart City

2012-02-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

I like to remail my Valentine's from Loveland, Colorado aka The Sweetheart City. It is a tradition for me. Your Envelope gets stamped with a special cachet (pictured above) which is different every year and postmarked from Loveland, Colorado. I have been known to send out more Valentine's than any Christmas Cards. Just follow these steps. (more details here)

Place addressed envelope with proper postage in larger envelope addressed to

Postmaster - Attention: Valentines
446 E 29th St
Loveland, CO 80538-9998

Make sure there is proper postage on the larger envelope. US destined mail must be received by Feb 9th. Treat your Sweetheart to an extra special Valentine!

Valentine Decorating

2012-02-01T08:29:00.000-08:00

OK, I like Valentine's Day A LOT! I can't help it. My parent's anniversary is on Valentine's in Loveland, CO and I lived my childhood in Loveland, the City of Love. It is ingrained. I actually send out more Valentine's then Christmas cards. On to my decor for Valentines. These are my shelves all dressed up.

The printable bird design is from the web. See previous post on embroidered tree. Hanging in the dining room is a valentine garland with dollar store heart dollies that I added construction hearts to. I think it turned out cute.

Below is a different heart garland I made. Directions can be found here.

Snowy Owls

2012-01-30T11:27:00.000-08:00

I saw this project via pinterest. This project is found at Kid Artists. The Snowy White Owl is making a rare appearance in our county. MSN had some more information. I haven't seen any Snowy White Owls yet despite being on the look out. There have been several articles about how they have been spotted out on Sandy Point. I believe there have been 3 spotted out there.

I thought it would be fun to make some snowy owls . The boys even gave this shot. They turned out interesting.

Big E

The Diva's

I made mine in trading card size to put in my project life.

Chuckles

Project Life - Weeks 2 & 3

2012-01-29T15:21:00.000-08:00

I am realized that I hadn't posted. These didn't scan too well so I ended up taking a picture. I am really enjoying documenting life this way. I seem to collect bits and pieces of stuff and now I have a place to put it all. I am using baseball card protectors because that is what I have on hand.

Week 2

WEEK 3

More details about project life can be found here.

Heart Tree Carving Embroidery

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

Last week during the snow, I found this Heart Tree carving Embroidery Pattern via Pinterest. I decided to give it a go. I just so happened to have some fabric and thread on hand. I am crafty like that. LOL The pattern is from the Modern Lady Blog. I did my stitching on the tree a little different. I think it turned out really cute.I think it will be a good addition to the LOVE wall grouping I plan on my upstairs hallway wall.

Longest Line Art

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

I saw this project on pinterest. The Diva gave it a go today. I think hers turned out really great. Something like this is what I decided to do for my Valentine's. (More on that to follow) The directions can be found at Splish Splash Splatter. Below is their sample via Pinterest.

Source: splishsplashsplatterart.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Jewlery Stand Display

2012-01-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

When I put away my Shiney Brites after Christmas, I discovered a box of pocket watches that belonged to Pappy. I wanted some way to display them. I had seen these neat jewelry stands at TJ Maxx and thought it would be perfect to diplay these watches. It seem a shame not to have them out.

Now that it is nearing Valentine's Day, I put these glass hearts that were in my Christmas stuff on the stand. I think it ties in neatly to my whole bird decor.

Whatcom Reads 2012

2012-01-22T20:54:00.000-08:00

Ever year the Whatcom County Library System picks a Washington Author's Book to read as a whole county- Whatcom Reads. Along with the book picked there are all kinds of activities as well. I have yet to make it to an actual author talk but maybe this is the year.

This year's pick is Elizabeth George's In the Presence of the Enemy.

Hailed as the "king of sleaze," tabloid editor Dennis Luxford is used to ferreting out the sins and scandals of people in exposed positions. But when he opens an innocuous-looking letter addressed to him at The Source, he discovers that someone else excels at ferreting out secrets as well.
Ten-year-old Charlotte Bowen has been abducted, and if Luxford does not admit publicly to having fathered her, she will die. But Charlotte's existence is Luxford's most fiercely guarded secret, and acknowledging her as his child will throw more than one life and career into chaos. Luxford knows that the story of Charlotte's paternity could make him a laughingstock and reveal to his beautiful wife and son the lie he's lived for a decade. Yet it's not only Luxford's reputation that's on the line: it's also the reputation—and career—of Charlotte Bowen's mother. For she is Undersecretary of State for the Home Office, one of the most high-profile Junior Ministers and quite possibly the next Margaret Thatcher. (Amazon)

I read this on my Kindle. I really enjoyed this mystery. I had forgotten how much I enjoy a good who done it. This one kept me guessing to the very end. I am looking forward to reading more Elizabeth George.

One activity I plan to do is the letterboxing activity similar to geocaching. They will be releasing clues to letterboxes located in the library. The letterboxes have image stickers you collect to form a rebus (a visual puzzle). So far, 2 clues have been released. There are 5 clues total. Once you collect all the stickers and solve the rebus. You can enter the drawing for Elizabeth George's next book Believing the Lie. So if you are local, give this a go.

I have read previous Whatcom Reads selections but so far this is my favorite. Previous Selections have included The Absolute True Diary of a Part Time Indian, Border Songs and Old School.

LEGO ALERT

2012-01-20T11:09:00.000-08:00

Army of Mini Figs clawing their way out of snow drift

For those Lego Nuts out there on Saturday on the National Geographic Channel's show Ultimate Factories the Lego Factory will be featured. Thanks for the alert from Lego a Day . It looks like it is on from 8 - 9 pm. Here is the show synopsis from National Geographic Channel
It's one of the most popular construction toys in the world. In the age of unprecedented competition for children's attention--from videogames to TVs to countless activities--they still spend over 5 billion hours a year playing with LEGO bricks. But building simple modular toys with interlocking bricks is a lot more complex than it seems. Their most popular set--the police station--is completely redesigned every few years to keep up with the times. From R&D and engineering to robotic assembly lines and the most fickle test market on the planet, Mega Factories: LEGO takes you behind the scenes as a real life police station turns into a playground for the imagination.

This Dino Mini Fig is showing how I feel about the SNOW!

Below is a neat video about some Lego Street Art
This was sent to me below and it is funny!

Last but not least this AMAZING lego office set up. Chuckles would never want to leave this room.

Source: nubcakes.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Surf Report or should I say Snow Report

2012-01-19T12:02:00.000-08:00

Looking down the Hill to Church
taken Jan 19
10:30 am

Snowed in here! I haven't left the house since Sunday. I have a little CABIN FEVER and to top that off I am also a single parent this week. YEAH ME! I have been spending entirely too much time on the Internet and Words with Friends. Thought I would do some linky love.

Here is some Internet stuff worth reading

I Can't Do It Like Extreme Couponing (Coupon Mom) - A very good perspective on how to coupon right and it doesn't have to look like Extreme Couponing. It is about saving money and time!

28 Ways to Stop Complicating Your Life - I found this link in Ali Edwards 52 Creative Lifts Newsletter. This was in week two and it was all about subtracting things from your life.

Valentine Design

2012-01-17T21:10:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I was trying to come up with a design for my Valentine. I have a lot of ideas floating around my head. Below is a technique I was using with a dollie and sharpie. My technique needs a little work. I was able to pick up some dollies in the Christmas Clearance.

The original idea came from Pinterest. See below.

Source: onepearlbutton.com via Heather on Pinterest

I also experiment with the heart below I colored in.

The heart coloring page is from Scribble Prints. Something like this has possibilities. Usually my valentines aren't about fancy materials but more about time put in.This coloring one would be pretty time consuming. The hunt continues for the perfect Valentine design.

Snow Fortress

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

We have SNOW! Lots and Lots of Snow! The kids in the neighborhood spent most of the day working on it. It is pretty amazing.

Tigger's First Snow

2012-01-16T06:16:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was Tigger's, our puppy's, first time being in snow. He didn't know what to do at first. We were throwing snowballs for him to catch and he kept missing them. Then he got confused because he couldn't find the ball. It was really funny. Snow makes puppies really tired too.

First to Find

2012-01-15T20:17:00.000-08:00

Chuckles holding the Geocache

On Saturday morning in spite of the snow, Chuckles and the Giant Man Child set off to be the first to find a geocache that just recently been placed. They were the first to find it! In Geocache talk it is called a FTF. They found it just as the tide was coming in. Our team has never had a first to find so that was really cool.

Reflection

2012-01-13T06:00:00.000-08:00

I was out and about with Mrs Epi and I saw this cool reflection of gas prices reflected in a nearby window in a building. The writing almost looks Chinese.

Book it 2012 - January

2012-01-12T09:57:00.000-08:00

I am joining Life as Mom's Book It 2012. Check out what everyone is reading.

The first book I finished in the New Year was The Reversal by Michael Connelly. Connelly is also the author of the book The Lincoln Lawyer that was made it to a movie. The Reversal is about a killer that is being retried for a crime that was committed 24 years ago. A child was abducted from her front yard and later found dead in a dumpster. As in the Lincoln Lawyer, Micky Haller is back but as a lawyer for the prosecution as a one time gig. I really liked the book. It kept me riveted. If you like mystery and crime Micheal Connelly doesn't disappoint.

My library is VERY big into merchandising their books. This book was in their display of books for, I guess, for the New Years. (You know health and fitness/New Year Resolutions) I am a sucker for these displays. I am an impulse checker outer. That seriously is a real term. Anyway, I picked up The Great Fitness Experiment - One year of Trying Everything by Charlotte Hilton Anderson. All kidding aside Charlotte spends a year testing diets and workouts with her gym buddies. She shares what her and her friends learned doing CrossFit, Kettlebells, Karate, and Jillian Micheals etc. She also reveals that she has a eating disorder in the form of an exercise addiction. It is a very real and approachable book and the next best thing to exercise. She writes at the Great Fitness Experiment.

Life as Mom booking it book was One Bite at a Time by Tsh Oxenreider. I downloaded this to my Kindle. Wow, this is a book that you read and let marinate. I think I will be revisiting this book a lot.There is a lot of good information. She had me at the first chapter with eating the frog. Doing your most undesirable task first. I have to tendency to put off the task I really dislike. So that is what I am really concentrating on. I also liked the chapter about Kaizen. Kaizen is the Japanese term for small continuous change. That really resonated with me. I have a child on the spectrum(HFA) and change of any kind is difficult but when implemented in small bits change is possible. Lastly, this quote also resonated with me in the book by Meagan Francis of TheHappiestMom. com
"I used to feel really weird about 'outsourcing' certain parts of my life to outside help. I had this idea that MY mother did it all, all the generations of women before HER did it all, and therefore I should be able to do it all, too. Then I started paying attention to the housewives in the 18th and 19th century women's fiction I love, and realized - wow, all classes, even the tough-as-nails(and not rich) pioneer women often had a girl in the kitchen or they sent out their ironing. I have come to realize that being an efficient homemaker isn't about doing everything yourself -it's about managing the home and all the tasks that go along with running it. That means knowing what makes sense to to do yourself, and what you either don't enjoy or don't have time for so you can delegate. "

I think that quote deserves an AMEN! As Mom's we get so much pressure to do it all and all by ourselves. That just isn't possible. That is an inaccurate stereotype. This good book whether you are a long time homemaker like myself or just starting on this journey.

Home Goals

2012-01-11T15:33:00.000-08:00

I thought I would join Nester's linky party to discuss some Home Improvement Goals. These are my top goals that I would like to accomplish this year.

On my list is to complete our little hot tub area. Our California Lilacs on one side are growing like crazy and make a nice screen to our dog pen. Now I would like to concentrate on the other side. I saw this inspiration picture.

Lowes Creative Ideas
July/August 2008

The homemade stepping stones and gravel path would be really great. I also like the slightly raised planter . This post is the original plan and here is better idea what it looks like currently. We started this project in 2009 and I really just want to complete the whole area.

2. I have an empty wall upstairs and I would like to make a Love Picture Gallery. I don't know if I am explaining that exactly right. I have these really neat Valentine's from Loveland, CO. They are more like art. I also have this cool photo of my son spelling out," I love you", plus some really neat heart photos

Eye love you

I can't decide on a wall grouping. I think I need a DIY statment piece. These pinterest things are inspiring me.

Source: snowybliss.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

I like the love part on the old shutter. Or should do more of a saying as the center piece?

Source: youngancrafty.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

Source: sunnysblog.typepad.com via Heather on Pinterest

Source: modernchichome.com via Heather on Pinterest

I have a lot of ideas just not a clear plan. I also like this photo collage - I love you

Source: landeeseelandeedo.com via Heather on Pinterest

3. TAKE CARE of our out of control MOLE problem in the front yard. So far smoking them out has not worked. Any suggestions? Can you tell we aren't yard people? I think this would improve our curb appeal. We are that place on the street with the MOLE problem.

4. Finish updating the office. It was part of my 31 days to a Better Nest series. A lot of progress has been made here but there is some more to go. I would like to add shelves, larger magnet board, end table for the chair, and change the rug out. I want A LOT - LOL

5. Fence the entire backyard so the puppy has more room to roam.

Felt Heart Garland

2012-01-10T12:10:00.000-08:00

Source: duitang.com via Heather on Pinterest

I saw this on pinterest. So, the Diva and I whipped some of these hearts up.

I am not sure I like the stringing of these. I need to think of a better way to do that. The hearts kept flipping over. Though it might not be an actual problem once it is up and the string is taunt. This is a great beginning sewing project. The Diva made most of this all by herself using the sewing machine.

Project Life Jan 1-7

2012-01-09T20:47:00.000-08:00

My scan of my page isn't the greatest. I decided to give this a try. I had a burst of creative energy and just used what I had on hand. I am using a baseball card protector. Becky Higgins sells a whole kit for Project Life. This is my very low budget version. Here are some more details. For more inspiration, Ali Edwards also shows off her project life pages. This is really neat. I don't know if I will do every week but this is very doable. This can be as much or as little as you make it.

Gyspy, Tramps, and Thieves

2012-01-06T19:52:00.000-08:00

Over on Facebook, some people are putting the top song the week they were born. Here is mine - Cher's "Gyspy, Tramps, and Thieves. It just cracks me for some reason.

No, I wasn't born in the back of a gypsy wagon. At least to my knowledge, I wasn't. Though growing up, I got a lot of the phrase, "were you born in a barn close the door."

All I need Today

2012-01-03T14:43:00.000-08:00

Found this little note on the counter from Chuckles. It made my day!

Caching in the NEW YEAR!

2012-01-02T07:21:00.000-08:00

3 musketeers
Big E, Chuckles, and #1 Son

Don't you know we went geocaching Jan 1, 2012. We have a geocaching addiction. LOL We took our little buddy Big E with us, too.

It's all about stealth in Caching
Big E and Chuckles

We were lucky to have him too as we needed his little hands to grab a cache for us. We found 5 geocaches.

The guys in pursuit of a cache

One Little Word 2012

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

I am once again doing One Little Word. The whole idea behind one little word is it suppose to be a guide to year to come. I like it better than a resolution. More details at Ali Edwards. I love to read what others have picked as their word. Last year, my word was ACT. However this year, I think I am going a little different direction. My word is MAVERICK.

Maverick - an unorthodox or independent-minded person.

I know this word can have some negative connotations. However, there are some situations in my life that need radical independent solutions. I think it is going take maverick solutions to tackle some of the issues this year brings. This is the quote that inspired it.

We can't solve

problems by

using the same

kind of thinking

we used to

create them.

Albert Einstein

I also like this saying as well and maybe it sums it up better than Maverick. It is two words though- GO LEFT

Source: riazzoli.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

2011 In Review

2011-12-31T13:02:00.000-08:00

picture by Giant Man Child
Blaine, WA
sunrise Dec 31, 2011

Here is what this year looked according to the numbers.

Number of Posts -260 including this post
Number of Books Read - 34 books
# of Geocaches Found - 162 caches and 3 challenges

one of my favorite photos of the year
There is nothing that this cat is going to start.

Top 10 Posts of 2011(according to my stat counter)

Skateboard Swing
Christmas Tour 2010

Ruler Wreath and Challenge
31 days to a Better Desk/Office Space
Risk in Progress
December Daily - Day 2
Christmas Tour 2011
Line design Art
Christmas Tour (2009)
December daily - Day 3

One Little Word of 2011 - ACT

This is the new addition to our family. Tigger the puppy though not much a puppy now as he is 7 months old. His name should of been Orick, Hoover, or Dyson. We had to say goodbye to our beloved Buzz early in 2011. He is missed.

Buzz

Last Beach Day of the YEAR!

2011-12-31T08:35:00.000-08:00

Yesterday with a rare glimpse of sunshine, Mrs Epi and I took the kids to the beach. I think cabin fever had set in.

This past week there had been a King Tide. A King Tide is simply the highest tides of the year. We were hoping to find some treasure from Japan. It was cold and windy. We stuck it out for a whole hour. Long story short, we found nothing really. Well, I found a tile surely it is from Japan (maybe from a bathroom). The kids had a good time until their faces became frozen.

December Daily - Day 22 and Day 24

2011-12-28T09:13:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily. Just doing a little catch up here. Grandma, #1 Son, and myself cut out sugar cookies on Dec 22 but we didn't get around to decorating them until the 24th. Everyone got in the act Grandpa, Grandma, Giant Man Child, Kids, and myself. We even listened to Christmas Music at the suggestion of #1 Son. The Giant Man Child even made a frosted sunburned snowman in a thong. That is a little wrong.

My Top 10 Books of 2011

2011-12-27T08:37:00.000-08:00

Yes, I am the dork that keeps a typed list of books read.

****Update, I am joining the impromptu linky at Nester too
I am joining Oh Amanda's Top 10. I read 34 books in 2011 that is the exact same number I read in 2010. Here is the list of my Top 10 reads in 2011 in no particular order. I found myself drawn to biographies and real life stories this year. A lot of the stories involved travel.

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X Stork
The Help by K Stockett
Water for Elephants
French By Heart by Rebecca Ramsey
My Year with Eleanor by Noelle Hancock
Finding Nouf by Zoe Ferraris
City of Veils by Zoe Ferraris
The Lost Girls by J Baggett, H Corbett, A Pressner
The Good Girls's Guide to Getting Lost by Rachel Friedman
Mao's Last Dancer by Li Cunxin

I plan on joining Life as Mom's Booking it 2012. It was really fun joining a online book club and seeing what everyone else was reading as well.

December Daily - Day 23

2011-12-24T14:02:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

I am so lucky to have my parents visiting for Christmas. We have done so many different things. My kids are loving spending time with them. One of the things we did was go to Museum of Flight Restoration Center at Paine Field in Everett, WA. My Dad is really interested in older aircraft. It was really neat to see all the work being done to these old planes by the really really dedicated volunteers.

December Daily - day 21

2011-12-22T21:34:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

It seems like this season just whizzes by. I am trying to remind myself to SLOW DOWN and enjoy this time of year.

December Daily - Day 20

2011-12-21T09:23:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily Project.

My kids have been enjoying having their Grandparents here. I love that they get to spend time with them. You know you have really arrived when they make you a Mii on the Wii. Chuckles has been teaching them how to bowl on the Wii.

December Daily - Day 17

2011-12-18T16:55:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 17

We went on a little adventure last night. I had read an article in the Seattle Times about the Ladder Creek Falls in Newhalem, WA.

My parents are here visiting so we took them on a rather long mountain drive. IT was an adventure.We went to Ladder Creek Falls in Newhalem, WA. Seattle City Light just recently re- illuminated the falls in rainbow of light. It was quite stunning. The falls are lit every night from dusk until midnight. You cross the Skagit River on a pedestrian only suspension bridge. This was a little eerie at night. However it was worth it as the falls were really beautiful all lit up. The falls look quite magical bathed in the light.We had the whole place to ourselves.

JD Ross started the tradition in the 1920's and is considered the "Father of City Light". It was considered quite extravagant at the time to be using electricity to light the falls . The whole light project fell into disrepair over the years and in 2004 the lights were shut off. Recently, Seattle City Light brought the light show back. The current lighting is LED and very energy-efficient.

December Daily - Day 14

2011-12-15T19:07:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 14
My morning kids and I played a little Christmas Game. You had to put a plate on your head and draw these 6 things

1. Draw a line for a floor
2. Draw a Christmas Tree
3. Draw a star on top of the tree
4. Draw a fireplace
5. Draw a stocking
6. Draw a present

The idea is from Happy Home Fairy. It was hilarious. Later we played the game with my Hubby and he cheated!

Christmas Tour 2011

2011-12-14T18:37:00.000-08:00

I am joining the Nester's Annual Christmas Tour. It is so great to see how everyone else decorates.

I have a small Shiney Brite collection that I like to display on thrifted glass candle holders. It is arranged a little different every year. The arrangement is on top of my Curio Cabinet safe from children and cats. This year I added these jingle trees from all places - Walgreen's. I know it is a lot of bling but I like it.

My tribute to the movie ELF - Elf garland. It has become a tradition to make a snowflake garland. We made coffee filter snowflakes and hung them on a tinsel garland wrapped in twinkle lights. There are some excellent directions at Mega Crafty on how to stiffen the coffee filter snowflakes. There are also beaded snowflakes and Popsicle snowflakes plus some dollar store snowflakes thrown in for good measure.

THE TREE (need I say MORE)

I am loving this snowman display by my sink. They were made by a friend. They are simply painted 2x4's that have been dressed as snowmen. There is a paper chain across the entire sink window.

Previous Christmas Tours

2010

2009

Booking it 2011 - December

2011-12-14T06:56:00.000-08:00

I surprised myself and did quite a bit of reading this past month. Please check out what everyone is reading at Life As Mom. As well as the plans for 2012!

I read the Girl's Guide to Homelessness by Brianna Karp. The basic gist of the story is girl loses house and loses job. Girl moves into late father's travel trailer and parks it in a Walmart parking lot. Girl starts a blog about homelessness. Deeper than that the book explores the definition of Homeless. Intertwined is the story of her past with the Jehovah Witnesses and deep abuse she suffered at the hands of her mother. Parts of this book are deeply disturbing and raw. I am going to say this read is not for the faint of heart. Brianna will challenge your definition of homelessness. I think in our current economy there are SO MANY working poor that are just one bad situation from living in their cars or being on the street. Brianna was lucky to have a travel trailer to move into but I still consider that homeless.

I also read two books by Zoe Ferraris - City of Veils and Finding Nouf. They are both mysteries/thrillers set in the Middle East and give one a rare look into a woman's life in the Middle East. Find Nouf is the first in the series but I read them out of order. I really enjoyed both of them and can't wait to read more by Zoe Ferraris.

December Daily - Day 11

2011-12-12T09:10:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

Dec 11

We spent the weekend at Nonna's. We had fun decorating her place.

December Daily - Day 10

2011-12-12T09:08:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

Dec 10
We spent the entire weekend at Nonna's and Pappy. We really enjoyed decorating and spending time with them. On Saturday, there was a lunar eclipse. Nonna, Kevin, and Charlie got up and watched most of it from the deck. As luck would have it, it was clear for the eclipse. I watched from the bedroom window. Later we decorated Nonna's tree. Nonna treated us all to the musical production of Peter Pan at the Tacoma Musical Theatre. It was really fabulous. The boys got a light up hook and light up pirates hat. They had a chance to join in the audience participation in the 2nd half.

December Daily - Day 9

2011-12-11T18:26:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

Just doing a little catch-up on my project. Above is story about the photo I chose for my Christmas Card. The picture was taken in Pt Whitehorn Preserve near Birch Bay, WA. It was just one of many adventures we have had geocaching. We are turning into avid geocachers when the weather allows us here in the Pacific Northwest. We use a kids GPS and a smartphone. We are hooked on Geocaching.

December Daily - Day 7

2011-12-08T07:01:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 7

A lot of boy energy around here. It was an early out for both from school today. It was also Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day which I was reminded a couple of times by #1 Son. He also coined the phrase above. Obviously, hot chocolate is better with your Santa Hat on. :)

December Daily Day 5

2011-12-06T06:50:00.000-08:00

I am linking up with Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 5

I had my morning crew this morning. After we dropped off my #1 Son, we headed for a donut. The kids were trying to embarrass me. It was cute.

I worked a little at drawing or zentangle while I waited for my oldest to get out of school. The little tree on the layout is a doodle. It was part of the extremely talented Princess Lasertron's Readvent Party. I am doing some of the prompts. This one had to do with drawing.

My hubby emailed me a picture of the sunset. It just so happened that I took a picture of the sunrise.

Readvent Day 5 - Drawing

2011-12-05T16:27:00.000-08:00

I am joining Princess Lasertron's Readvent Party. See prompt above. I am not an artist. I do occassionally lick to experiment with zentangle which is basically doodling. I made some little doodle trees.

The doodle inside the top tree is hopscotch. I just colored it in. I practiced and experimented while waiting for school to get out for #1Son. The second tree zentangle used as garland is echo. It was relaxing and slightly addicting.

December Daily - Day 4

2011-12-05T09:28:00.000-08:00

I am participating Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 4

My husband participated in a Charity Pistol Match all day. The rest of us spent the day pulling out the rest of the Christmas Decorations and playing Wii.

I am doing my layouts in PhotoShop Elements 8.0 on a 5x7 background. I haven't played around with my digital scrapbooking stuff in a long time.

December Daily- Day 3

2011-12-04T08:41:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edwards December Daily.

DEC 3

It was a busy day of catch-up. My youngest went with the Giant Man Child to help set up at the range for a charity pistol meet. That left me with #1 Son. We dropped some stuff at Goodwill and went grocery shopping. I managed to come home to make a Mexican Lasagna for the freezer. Later in the afternoon, the boys and I decorated the tree. The day ended with me reading "Are You Grumpy Santa Claus?" to Chuckles.

December Daily - Day 2

2011-12-03T08:30:00.000-08:00

I am joining Ali Edward's December Daily.

Day 2
Started off the morning by showing Chuckles the Christmas tree I made out of Lego's. In about 2 minutes, he came back and showed me his better Christmas tree. It took me about 2 hours the night before to come up with an acceptable tree. Kids these days.

It was also Chuckles turn to open the Lego Star Wars Advent Calendar. It was a mutant alien thing, totally not Christmasy.

I had my extra kids this morning and we worked on Coffee Filter Snowflakes. I stiffened them with liquid starch. It worked OK. It did make them stiffer. Directions found here. I just re-read the directions and definitely follow the directions for stiffer flakes. By the way, I love coffee filter snowflakes so much easier for little guys to be successful at.

This evening Chuckles and I worked on the hanging up the snowflakes we made and the snowflake ornaments that we had. Chuckles, The Giant Man Child, and Me watched ELF. That movie cracks me up. #1 Son isn't into movies so he hung out up in his room.

We also had a senseless shoe killing by Tigger this morning. He ate part of Big E's shoe. Something isn't quite right with that dog. Honestly, I am feeding him. He just prefers shoes, Lego's, and socks.

I ended the day reading to Chuckles. I know he is completely able to do this by himself but he still likes when I read to him. Sometimes, he gets a little lost in the shuffle. He actually fell asleep with the Santa hat on, too funny.

ReAdvent Day 2 - Balancing

2011-12-02T20:10:00.000-08:00

Check out the prompt at Princess Lasertron ReAdvent Linky Party.

The Top 3 Things I NEED to do TODAY

1. That Puppy really really needs a walk. The trainer was SO right when he said the more exercise they get the better they behave. I guess that goes for people too. LOL Done -plus the dogs got some play time, too

Tigger and Niki

2. Get those Christmas Boxes down. I had the kids make some snowflakes and I want to hang them up. DONE

3. Watch a movie and snuggle with some kids. Maybe watch ELF and put up our snowflake garland. DONE

Start of Elf Garland

December Daily Day 1

2011-12-02T19:52:00.000-08:00

Ali Edwards is hosting the December Daily. I thought I would give this a shot, too.

DEC 1

This morning was all about the Star Wars Lego Advent Calendar. #1 Son got to choose first. We flipped a coin for the privledge, yesterday. This was a surprise for them. My kids had been asking and asking for this. I was very relucant but my Hubby, who is a much of a Lego nut as them, encourage me to buy the Lego Advent Calendar.

A really awesome sunrise. I can't resist a good sunrise.

On the way to school, #1 Son handed me a stack of prints he made in art class - very cool. He was so proud of his prints. It is really cool.

We broke out our Christmas collection of books. I read Merry Christmas, Splat.

After the kids were in bed, I experimented with coffee filter snowflakes. It is my project for my morning kids. I was trying to make them stiffer. I sealed them. That didn't work. I painted with liquid starch. That did work. They do get a little wrinkly but a bit stiffer.

ReAdvent Day 1 - Challenging

2011-12-01T17:54:00.000-08:00

Sunrise this Morning

I am going to attempt to do the Princess Lasertron's ReAdvent Series. I did some of these last year. The first day is Challenging.

Challenging could be my middle name. It has been a difficult challenging year. My mother in law's breast cancer returned but she beat it. My son was officially diagnosed with High Functioning Autism. Our dog of 12 years passed away. I gained a lot of weight despite my vow to lose 40 by 40.

As I was looking back through my blog archives, I realized I am pretty good at highlighting the positives in my life. I always say I can't go down the rabbit hole of rumination. I have enough people in my life that do that. It is not to say that occasionally I don't go there.

My weight is challenging to me and at the beginning of the year I really worked on that but life got in the way. I know intellectually what I need to do but it is challenging mentally to say myself, " By eating that, it isn't going to change my emotions." It is OK to feel mad, angry, lonely. I give myself permission to feel. I AM GOING TO BE HEALTHIER. Maybe if I put that out in the universe, I will remember that and strive for healthier.

Superhero Tuesday

2011-11-29T12:47:00.000-08:00

We made superhero's this morning. Great Scott! (Superman) They turned out cute. Nothing moves the blob (blob), like a really good craft.

The Diva, Chuckles, Me, and Big E

The details can be found here at The Brooding Hen.

Mammoth Plant Relocation

2011-11-28T07:06:00.000-08:00

With the help of the Giant Man Child and Nonna, we repotted the prehistoric ruffled leaf philodendorn (at least that is what I think it might be).

Plant in original container

It has needed to be re-potted since I received it. The challenge was finding something that it would fit in. Then I had an idea why not re-potted it in a shiny metal garbage can. It works but the sad part is it is barely bigger than the pot it was in.

New shiny garbage can planter

Bookfair Coloring Contest

2011-11-26T06:00:00.000-08:00

The school had a coloring contest for their book fair. Chuckles was one of the winners. He got a free book. He was over the moon. LOL

Black Friday Geocaching

2011-11-25T15:46:00.000-08:00

Some people shop on Black Friday but we geocache. It was especially nice in the morning when the sun was out. We headed to Lynden and picked up a few more caches including one at this cute wayside Chapel.

Nonna, Chuckles, and #1 Son

` Another cache was found in this caterpillar. Those were just a few we found today.

#1 Son with Caterpillar

Happiness Within

2011-11-23T08:42:00.000-08:00

I finally completed my Alcan Highway book. I had done one for Pappy and a mini for Chuckles. It had been on my to do since July 2010 (YIKES)

It arrived in this box with this on the inside.

It made me pause for a moment. Maybe it was a little bit of a squirrel moment or just deep thought. If it was only as easy as opening a box to find happiness All happiness has to come within ourselves, at least, that is what I think. It can't be based on things or people. If we seek in those things, we will be truly unhappy. So as I head into the Holiday season, I am going to seek happiness within.

Cinnamon Roll Turkey's

2011-11-22T08:55:00.000-08:00

Picture of the Turkey's coming out of the oven

It is tradition. It is requested by the morning kids. So we made Cinnamon Roll and Biscuit Turkey's. The Diva's of course is beautiful. What I love about her is all the thought she puts into her creations.

Diva's Turkey

The boys were intent on putting as much chocolate chips as possible. I love how they just go for it. Oh well, it is all good fun.

Chuck's Turkey

Big E's Turkey

Here are our verisions from 2009 and 2010

Happy Birthday BONES!

2011-11-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday BONES!

Welcome to the Double Digits

the Big 1-0!

cold caching

2011-11-20T07:39:00.000-08:00

When it gets cold and clear, the tough go geocaching. Well, maybe not so tough. We headed out yesterday morning. Despite the zipper dying on my jacket. My hubby wore mine and gave me his to wear - sweet isn't it. We found 10 caches and 1 was a puzzle cache. A puzzle cache is a geocache were you must complete a clue to find the final coordinates for the cache. Needless to say we have only a couple of those we have completed. Our first stop after eating breakfast was Monfort Park in Blaine. The view was awesome.

We drove around Drayton Harbor and did a roadside cache. That is Kevin in cache retrieval mode. It was literally a drop off . He is our guy for those kind of caches.

We made it to Semiahmoo and realized it was the middle of high tide and we needed two caches on the beach so we went to plan "B". There were also quite a few people out and about - bird watchers and walkers. WE ended up driving up down the spit a couple of times. I can only imagine what people were thinking. The wind was a little brutal. We did a puzzle cache that ended in this piece of driftwood that looks like a dragon.

Chuckles on Dragon

We left Semiahmoo and headed to the heavily wooded Halverson Park in Birch Bay. None of us had ever been here before. #1 Son ended up making the grab for us. It was a bloody hand, nice.

We headed back to Skallman Park in Blaine to find a cache that we missed before. It ended up being in a fake rock. It is the first rock one we have ever found.

Giant Man Child in my jacket

Our last stop of the day was Lincoln Park in Blaine. We found 2 caches here. One was called "Forgotten Giant"

Me and #1 Son

The boys found this other "Forgotten Giant'.

#1 Son, Giant Man Child, Chuckles

All in all a great day to spend as a family caching.

Home for Wayward Mothers

2011-11-18T17:07:00.000-08:00

It is a little sad when you wondered out loud if there is a Home for Wayward Mothers and your child suggests you google that. AND behold something actually comes up. Of course, it is an imaginary place.

In my imaginary place there would be no school conferences or if there were it would to be to congratulate you on the brilliant job you are doing.

There would be no appointments with "SPECIALIST" believe me they're not that special

Only Happy Phone Calls similar to Happy Meals

People are actually excited to see you and want to know what you think

You can eat donuts every day without guilt

Welcome to my

"Home for Wayward Mothers"

pinterest quote of the day

2011-11-18T09:12:00.000-08:00

Source: etsy.com via Lynette on Pinterest

I am in the midst of Thanksgiving planning and pre Christmas Planning. I am hosting both this year. Somehow this quote from pinterest seems to fit my current mental state.

Fabric Embellished Owls

2011-11-16T08:53:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, we made these Fabric Embellished Owls. The pattern is from here featured on Design Sponge . I wish I had enlarged the pattern. This was no problem for the Diva to cut out as she is older but the 2 little guys not so easy. You can't go wrong with a project that includes brads.

Marker Crayon Resist Turkey's

2011-11-14T15:56:00.000-08:00

Pink and Green Mama had these lovely slightly cartoony turkey's on her blog. We gave it our best shot. This was a lot of coloring. The boys were a little overwhelmed by the project .

Big E's Turkey photo by the DIVA

Chuck's Turkey photo by DIVA

I probably should of broke this project into 2 parts. All in all I was impressed by their efforts. Of course the Diva was all over this. She was less than thrilled that we were going to color over her turkey with marker so we didn't.

The Diva's Turkey photo by The Diva

Even my fine motor challenged #1 Son did a really good job with this project though it took him twice as long as everyone else. He really stuck with it.

#1 Son

It's MY Birthday

2011-11-13T06:54:00.000-08:00

Today is the BIG 40 for me. I don't have any fancy plans. I have simply have arrived here. "Make your story worth telling." Oh, I have so lived that motto sometimes to my benefit and sometime to my detriment.

Morning Sunrise

2011-11-12T07:33:00.000-08:00

I was really enjoying the sunrise this morning. I seem to take a lot of these pictures and never share. The colors never come out as bright as I want. There is probably some photography trick to fix this. This will probably be the only bright spot in a rather dreary day.

Book It November 2011

2011-11-11T12:58:00.000-08:00

I skipped last months booking it but I am back in the saddle. I am still on that Biography/autobiography kick. I am linking to Life as Mom for her Book It 2011. Please check out what the other ladies have been reading.

I read Dirty Life: A Memoir of Farming, Food, and and Love by Kristin Kimball .
This book is the story of the two love affairs that interrupted the trajectory of my life: one with farming—that dirty, concupiscent art—and the other with a complicated and exasperating farmer."

Single, thirty something, working as a writer in New York City, Kristin Kimball was living life as an adventure. But she was beginning to feel a sense of longing for a family and for home. When she interviewed a dynamic young farmer, her world changed. Kristin knew nothing about growing vegetables, let alone raising pigs and cattle and driving horses. But on an impulse, smitten, if not yet in love, she shed her city self and moved to five hundred acres near Lake Champlain to start a new farm with him. The Dirty Life is the captivating chronicle of their first year on Essex Farm, from the cold North Country winter through the following harvest season—complete with their wedding in the loft of the barn. - excerpt from Amazon.com

It is about a CSA farm. CSA is community supported agriculture. It was about experience about the farm life going back to the basics. At this farm, they provide not only produce but protein as well. It was refreshing.

I also read My Year with Eleanor by Noelle Hancock. Noelle spends a year conquering her fears using experiences Eleanor Roosevelt had for inspiration and motivation. Some of her adventures included Trapeze, Diving with Sharks, Going to the Morgue, Volunteering, and Climbing Kilimanjaro

"Do one thing every day that scares you." - Eleanor Roosevelt.
Noelle tried to conquer a fear everyday. I am also a big Eleanor Roosevelt fan. I remember writing a paper in 6th grade about her. I also have some fears or limitations I put on myself. I found this book enjoyable and moving.

"We are constantly advancing, like explorers, into the unknown, which makes life an adventure all the way. How interminable and dull that journey would be if it were on a straight road over a flat plain, if we could see ahead the whole distance, without surprises, without the salt of the unexpected, without challenge."
Eleanor Roosevelt.

Last, I read the novel, Lincoln Lawyer by Micheal Connelly. I thought it was excellent and a real page turner. I happen to like lawyer novels so I really enjoyed this. No, I haven't watched the movie but I just got it from Redbox. So that is what I will be watching tonight.

Happy Veteran's Day

2011-11-11T08:11:00.000-08:00

Pappy WW2 Alcan Highway Canada

To those who have served and all those who are serving. Thank you for your service!

Birthday Thrift

2011-11-06T07:35:00.000-08:00

Mrs Epi took me on a Birthday Thrift trip in on honor of my upcoming Birthday. We hit the road and visited a lot Goodwill, Value Villages, and few others too. I of course had on my lucky squirrel socks and necklace courtesy of Mrs Epi. I seem to have a lot of squirrel moments defined here.

Below is the pictures of my loot. The purse however is new birthday gift from Mrs Epi. I ended up with a pair of jeans for Chuckles, Plant Stand, and Glass Vase. It was great to get away from our responsibilities and just hit the road. Thanks again, Mrs Epi.

100th Find

2011-11-04T08:53:00.000-07:00

We reached a milestone in our geocaching. We found our 100th geocache last night. We had several bolos before we found the 100th. That seems to be our norm. In a neighborhood in our town, there are two LARGE JUMBO boulders. This is where we found our 100th.

Fall Geo Caching

2011-11-03T06:00:00.000-07:00

We have the geocaching fever. Just had to get a few more caches before the weather goes south last Saturday. I was feeling under the weather on Saturday but just couldn't bear to waste a decent day to get out and enjoy the fall scenery. Our travels took us to Sandy Point, Cherry Beach and Point Whitehorn.

Chuckles, Giant Man Child, and #1 Son

some of us can't resist

There were lots and lots of leaves on the trail at Point Whitehorn Marine Reserve. They were huge maple leaves. In some parts, the trail was completely covered. It was a gorgeous fall day. We now have 99 caches found. Here are some of our previous adventures at Point Whitehorn (2009, 2011)

Halloween Costumes

2011-11-02T07:53:00.000-07:00

This year Chuckles decided to be a devil, again. I did replace his light up horns.

Completely out the blue, #1 Son decided to be a monkey trainer. He came up with the whole ensemble by himself.

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-31T16:30:00.000-07:00

Last night, we carved pumpkins. I grew 2 pumpkins. One was really really small. The other was just small. The Giant Man Child turned it into an eye.

The boys really got into the carving. The pampered chef training knives actually work really well for this.

We ended up with a scary face - #1 Son, Moon - Chuckles, and Eye - Hubby and Me.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 31

2011-10-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

I think I just completed Nester's Challenge to write about 31 days of change. I think I have learned quite a lot from this series. It is seriously hard to write every day about a subject and complete the project. The sorry truth is that I didn't manage to write every day. I did a total of 26 posts. (I have a truth in blogging policy.) I am going to show you my progress and it isn't show house worthy. However, it is a lot better. The first post is here. Thanks to all of you who stuck around for this journey and it was a journey!

BEFORE

AFTER

I am most proud that the floor is cleared. There is one bookcase/desk that needs work but everything looks a lot better. Maybe there is hope for me.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

2011-10-30T19:47:00.000-07:00

If you are like me, you always have to look this up every year. Here is the recipe I use.

Heat oven to 250 degrees. Remove stringy fibers from seeds. Wash seeds under cold water. Blot seeds dry with paper toweling.

Spread seeds evenly in single layer on cookie sheet. Sprinkle with salt and roast in preheated oven for 30-60 minutes. Stir seeds frequently to aid in drying. Seeds are done when dry and light brown. Cool.

Getting my Halloween ON!

2011-10-30T09:37:00.000-07:00

The kids made spooky houses the other day. I decided to make a big one for my front window. I used Dollar Store poster board and some Dollar Store tissue paper too. I love the Dollar Store. I thought for the first time it came out decent. The Diva help me put up some bat clings. It is a nice graphic image.

The Rat came out. He is my hubby's and he resides in the garage. The shelves are accessorized. I think the mini rats add something. When I am ready for Thanksgiving decor I turn around my Boo Pumpkins and lose the rats.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 27

2011-10-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

Are you tired of my office yet? I am tired of it. I found the quote on my desk when I was clearing it off. Thought I would share.

Not to spoil the ending for you, but everything is going to be alright.

Today I was once again working on functionality. I got the Hubby to move the phone from out behind the monitor. Wahoo! Now, I can compute and talk on the phone again. I know you all are relieved about that!

He also installed these metal paper holders I picked up at the end of September at JoAnn's on clearance for $2.99 a piece regularly $12.99. I thought I could put my current ads and coupons to be clipped in one of these. I am not positive what I am going to put in the other quite yet. It might just hold school papers.

On the to do list or dream list is a bigger magnet board. I saw this drip pan magnet board.

Source: ohdeedoh.com via Heather on Pinterest

I think two of these would look great in this location. Below is the photoshop mock up. What do you think?

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 25

2011-10-25T13:23:00.000-07:00

Today, I worked on filing and creating files for this year. You know 2011! I had let this go. It ended up in this box.

That wasn't really working for me.I sorted everything into some different categories. I had so much stuff I needed the cats help, NOT!

Credit Card
Medical
Home (mortgage, taxes, and misc home stuff)
Misc (this included life insurance, warranties, some financial statements that are received quarterly)
Shred (all old utilities, phone, trash, cable bills and general misc stuff that I don't need to keep for tax purposes)
Last Year Stuff

These files now reside in my file sorter for easy access and filing. I put some tabs on the folders to help with labeling them.

There is still a little left in the box but I made a big dent. The main items left are from last year.

Q-Tip Skelton

2011-10-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

We did this quick craft on Monday. The original idea is from pinterest. The actual skeleton head is from Bee in Our Bonnet. They turned out pretty cute.

Geo Monster Ball 2011

2011-10-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

We had a blast at the Geo Monster Ball 2011 held in Lynden, WA. It was a geo caching event.

Geocaching is a real-world outdoor treasure hunting game. Players try to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, using GPS-enabled devices and then share their experiences online. (from geocaching.com )

We met lots and lots of people from all over. It was the first time for us to do an event like this. It was really neat to meet others at all the different caches. We all had to swap stories. It also good for us novice cachers to get more info.

This was Nonna and Pappy's first time caching.They were such good sports. They spent the whole day helping us geocache.

The first cache of the day for us was Lettuce Go Caching. The clue was in a plastic lettuce. The title of this one just cracked me up.

A lot of the caches were in plastic food. There were also a few in plastic hands.

Pappy even discovered a cache in a giant spider.

The end of day, we all met up at the Lynden Pioneer Museum which no one in our group had ever been to. It really is a gem. I would like to go back when it isn't packed as they have a replica of Main Street.One of the best parts was it had a honeypot. Of course, I had to get my picture by it.

We ate dinner there and explored the museum. Many were there in costume both adults and kids. It was a lot of fun. We completed a scavenger hunt for clues to coordinates where there was one last cache. Unfortunately it had a few us stumped for quite a few minutes. But alas someone had better geo sense than us.

The Elephant in the Room

2011-10-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

I am Poem

Happy,bright, funny, silly.

Related to Charlie, who is silly and a really funny klutz;

Mom who gives me good meals and great hugs; Dad, who really cares for me.

Who enjoys Teddy bears, swinging and playing games on the computer.

Who feels happy with stuffed animals, silly at home, and great when hugging.

Who needs Teddy bears, lots of love, and many warm hugs.

Who gives happiness to people playing games with him, gives frustration to his little brother, and gives happiness to most of the other people around him.

Who fears getting lost, getting beat up, and having his underwear hoisted up a flagpole.

Who wants to write an adventure novel, to see Rascal Flatts, and to travel around the world.

Who dislikes bullies, cheesy movies, and mean dogs.

Who sees other people as smart, silly and serious.

Who lived in California and Washington.

by #1 Son

My son finally completed his evaluation with Children's in late August for Aspergers. I struggled about whether to post this. I want to protect my son and I now realize that Asperger's makes him more than less. So, I want to share this part. (What's in a label?)

It took us a FULL year to jump through all the hoops and receive a diagnosis . That is entirely to long to ruminate on things. The verdict is HFA - High Functioning Autism. In most circles I believe HFA and Asperger's are used interchangeably. It was not surprising to us the parents this ended up being the diagnosis. IT is disheartening that it took so long for us to get to the experts. I really want to say I am totally fine with the diagnosis. I am not but that is my problem not my child's. I find myself dwelling on all the missed opportunities or all the times I have been judged as a bad parent. (there have been so many times) We have Experts where were they when my child was struggling? Why didn't they see this earlier? Hey, my Kid is 13 years old where was his early intervention? Maybe I just need a moment to feel bad about this specifically how my son was treated by the school system and the judgement and hopelessness I felt.

If anything was reinforced for me in talking to the experts,we have been doing a fine job with very very limited resources and support. All in all, the label doesn't change the behaviors we have to work on though it does go a long way to explaining some of them.. This is probably not going to get my child or us parents any additional support. This isn't the golden ticket. It is really hard seeing it written down. The reality is overwhelming. I fight against the urge to label behaviors anxiety, asperger, ADHD. The behavior is what it is. I can't get caught in the web of the labels.

This is the kind of stuff that keeps you up at night. So welcome to the elephant in the room. Since you are here to stay, we will embrace you and your reality. My son has found his tribe and won't be voted off the island.

Source: weheartit.com via Heather on Pinterest

Here are a couple of articles/ blog post that are really resonating with me.
Austism : Putting Ezra First
Drinking the Skool Aid
Beyond the Broom Closet

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 22 and Day 23

2011-10-23T19:28:00.000-07:00

Failing, I am doing a little bit of that. I had company this weekend and I have fallen behind. On the plus side, we have a new shredder and my hubby convinced my 9 year old this is a great job for him. Just a little TV and shredding on the agenda. I have a whole Costco bag of papers that need to be shred. Shred baby, Shred Baby! Hey Jillian Michaels, this is the only kind of 30 day shredding I want to do.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 21

2011-10-21T16:06:00.000-07:00

junk headed to Goodwill

My junk pile is getting smaller. All of this headed to Goodwill this morning. There will probably be some more but boy did feel good to see some stuff leave.

All I Want for Christmas

2011-10-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

I saw this in Lowes with Mrs Epi. I need my own inflatable Honeypot complete with Santa. Do you think my neighbors would think I was redneck? It even has a roll of toilet paper on the outside and Santa opens and closes the door. I loved the occupied written on the door. We got a giggle from a Lowes Employee for taking these pictures. Maybe I should start a collection so I could add this lawn blowup to my lawn.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 20

2011-10-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

I was at GW, Goodwill, and ran across this file sorter.

I thought I could use this on my desk for files, ads,bill clipboard, handy dandy notebook, current projects. The price was right: 1.99. I had to rearrange a little to get this to fit. I want the space in front of my desk to be clear to layout projects and to have a better work area. I was just piling everything and I think that led to this to just being a dumping spot. Now, I need to see if this works in real life. The phone that was hanging on the hutch has to be moved because now it is behind the computer monitor.

Refrigerator Wisdom

2011-10-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

ALWAYS DRINK COFFEE UNDER A TREE SO A LION WILL EAT YOU!

I found part of this saying on my frig. The Diva helped make it longer. It just made me chuckle.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - day 19

2011-10-19T16:53:00.000-07:00

Bookcase 2 bottom shelves - before

Bookcase 2 Bottom Shelves After

Hitting the books again. I worked again on bookcase number 2 on 2 shelves. It was mainly rearranging and dusting. I just changed things up a little. Hopefully it works better. I am also noticing that cleaning my office is having a trickle down effect in other rooms. Such as , "Hey, that belongs in here' and "Put that where it belongs." Things have a home. I need to revisit the list I made for paper clutter in day 11. I am finding this invaluable.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 18

2011-10-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

A little of this and a little of that sums up today's clean-up. I cleaned the shelf under my desk. There were actually two digital camera boxes (empty) under there for cameras that no longer work. The accordion files are actual financial records that need to be gone through. I didn't attempt that today as I killed the shredder. I just weeded out the stuff that was clearly trash.

shelf under the desk - before

shelf under the desk - after

I cleaned up another shelf on the bookcase. I don't have a picture of that. I also was working a little on my memory keeping box/scrapbooking . I will share that soon.

Frankenstein

2011-10-18T10:29:00.000-07:00

We worked on Frankenstein's this morning. Just a basic glue and cut project. I was inspired by these Frankensteins found on Pinterest.

by THE DIVA
photo by MD

By Big E
photo by ED

by Chuckles

Mine (couldn't resist)
photo by ED

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 17

2011-10-17T21:30:00.000-07:00

Better late than never, post for this edition of Better Desk/Office. My desk is functioning. My son was able to use it to lay out his project and do some editing. That felt good. We are making progress.

I need my office not just for blogging or general office activities. I need to be a homework space for my kids. I need to be able to do crafty projects in here too. We are working toward that.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 16

2011-10-16T17:05:00.000-07:00

Aren't you tired of my office, yet? I worked on the 2nd Bookcase. I was looking for a small project. It seems most of my to do list are some big project.

My Hubby aka The Giant Man child has some more collections here too. I worked on the top and the top shelf. There was so much dust. I am going to have to stay on top of that. That was disgusting.

Bookcase 2 Top Before

Bookcase 2 Top After

I had a few left over items such as the mustang stuff. I am not sure what I am going to do with those. In doing the other bookcase, I remove all the books from this shelf which left room for a better display. I think it looks better. I am not sure if it will stay this way as things get moved around.

Exploring Birch Bay and Blaine Geocaching

2011-10-16T09:25:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, we spent another day geocaching. We started in Birch Bay. We even went to a part of Birch Bay State Park I have never been. There is a trail called Terrell Creek Marsh Trail .

We had several caches we couldn't find. That is frustrating. But we did find 2 geo coins that are trackable similiar to travel bugs. We had never found any of those before.

We did a virtual cache at Peace Arch State Park. The first time that our puppy Tigger had been to the border.

We also stopped off at Blaine Marine Park. Yours truly managed to get her hair wet trying to get this geocache.

Blaine is lucky to have a dog park called Skallman Park. Which was also a location of a geocache. So, it was also the first time our dogs had been to an actual dog park. It was nicely set-up. They loved it.

We also went to the Blaine Cemetary.

Chuckles was a little creeped out by that one. All total we found 11 caches in one day even one right on the border.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 15

2011-10-15T18:31:00.000-07:00

Before Chair

I tackled the comfy chair that had become a piling ground for unwanted stuff. It only took about 10 minutes. There is a box of the Giant Man Child's that still needs to be dealt with. There is also a collection of man gear that could use a new home. The light got plugged in. The kids can do their reading time in the comfy chair. Even a little progress is progress.

Chair After

This room has come a long way. Check out Day 1. Below is a picture of Day 1 Comfy Chair.

Day 1 Chair

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 14

2011-10-14T11:13:00.000-07:00

Source: google.com via Heather on Pinterest

We are almost half way through this 31 days. I want to break down what still needs to be done in the office. I think if I get to all of these this project will be a success.

Bookcase 2 - I think I will need to devote at least 2 days to this one

Boxes - This is what I have been sorting my stuff into. I now need to get those financial records in order. I would like to devote a couple days to this. There is also a memory box. I would like to make a system so I can get back to memory keeping/scrapbooking.

A trip to Goodwill. I need to drop off my donations from this room. This will be one of my last tasks.

Comfy Chair- This has become a piling place

Functionality - I would like to address so of the things are functioning in this room by changing a few things.

Desk drawers/File cabinet/Under Desk Area - This still needs to be purged.

Source: weheartit.com via Heather on Pinterest

Linky Love and picture catch up

2011-10-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

Sunrise last week

These are some of the 31 Day series that I am enjoying. Here is my whole series on 31 Days to a Better Desk/office.
31 days of Reading to Your Kids
31 days of Thrifting - You knew I would be checking this out.
31 days of Emerging from Chaos

Geo Monster Ball - This is a geocaching event held in Lynden,WA. We are registered and going. It is being held next Saturday.

I have gotten behind on the true purpose of this blog to journal our day to day life. So this is my little catch up post.

Earlier this month I got to see the Princess of Quite A lot as a Eaglette Cheerleader. Oh my gosh, she was cute. Actually all of them were. The High School Cheerleaders teach the kids some cheers then they cheer during half time. Seriously, it was so cute.

The other day was Geek Day at school. Here is the dynamic duo of Big E and The Diva. They crack me up.

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 13

2011-10-13T12:35:00.000-07:00

I decide to tackle one of the bookcases today. It took a lot longer than I planned. I think I broke my shredder. Yes, there were more papers. I did manage to weed some books down. Uggh! I spent about 2 hours and this is what I ended up with. (2nd picture)

BEFORE

AFTER

I am struggling to deal with several of my hubby's collections. He has these challenge coins from various organizations.

These are extremely popular within the military and law enforcement community. I am not sure how to display these. There are some really interesting ones. I ended up putting most of these in this decorative wooden box that I found in another room. It is on top of the bookcase. You can't really see it. He also has a small collection of Zippo lighters. Not sure what to do with that either. Basically these are just dust magnets. There is still a lot of work to do here but it looks a lot better.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 12

2011-10-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

I am working on the last corner of my desktop.

There a a few things on there that make me go, HMM! Here is a little I-Spy. (Hey, we have to keep this fun.)

Could you identify all 14 things?
2 chapsticks, fire starter, skull amulet, sanitizer, firework, Sponge Bob Key Chain, Pop it Key Chain, Turtle key chain, ghost necklace, allen wrench, rock, dammit, stress toy.

The Firework and Fire Starter are a little scary. Don't know why thy are on my desk. Maybe my desk is trying to tell me it wants to be blown up or set on fire.

Brush with Reality

2011-10-12T08:41:00.000-07:00

Last night, we got to go see Mike Hughes a competitor on Top Shot. Top Shot is a reality show that features 14 marksmen and 2 markswomen who compete in competitive shooting competition to determine who is the Top Shot. They have to demonstrate mastery weapons from rocks to firearms.

Mike has been hosting a viewing of the current Top Shot at a local sports bar. He gives commentary during the commercials. Mike is from the local area so there were a lot of supporters there. My guys areBIG fans of the show so this was a lot of fun for them. The crowds energy was really great. There was lots of clapping for Mike and the competitors.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - paper, paper everywhere (Day 11)

2011-10-11T21:42:00.000-07:00

I came across this blog entry at the wonderful Centsational Girl on how she deals with paper clutter. She actually wrote what she would do with each paper. It is really brilliant. It is a straight forward plan of what to do with each piece of paper and where it belongs. I thought I would do my own list. It still needs some refinement as my oldest son would say but it is a start.

bills to pay - clipboard
junk mail - shred
paid bills- file or as of right now box
photos/artwork, memories etc - memory box
magazines - tear and then scan
school important papers to sign - clip on refrigerator
medical bills to submit HSA - clip on refrigerator
IEP's /conference summaries - each child's notebook
notes - handy dandy notebook
daily schedule -handy dandy notebook
grocery list - handy dandy notebook
blog ideas - pinterest or handy dandy notebook
calendar -personal one in purse and family one on the refrigerator

I have posted here about my handy dandy notebook. I use to write notes on little slips of paper. If you have seen the before of my desk that wasn't really working for me. I now empty my brain or write all my thoughts big and small in a cheap spiral notebook.

Paper Plate Skulls

2011-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

top row - Chuckles, Big E
bottom row - Me, Diva, Giant Man child

Totally unrelated to Columbus Day yesterday in the morning, we made Paper Plate Skulls. The original idea is found at Scrumdilly - Do. Scrumdilly-Do has some really great step by step directions there. Even the Giant Man child got in the act with the Skull with the Mohawk. This project is based on the holiday Day of the Dead, Dia de los Muertos, celebrated in Mexico.

Happy Columbus Day

2011-10-10T16:16:00.000-07:00

In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

In honor of Columbus Day, we had a special snack today. Inspired of course by Pinterest. The original idea is from here. This was easy and self explanatory - blue jello, skewer, orange slice, paper sail. I think the kids enjoyed it. Unfortunately, they had to go to school today.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 10

2011-10-10T15:53:00.000-07:00

The reality is I cannot devote 30 minutes to clean up of this room every day. I just don't have the time. So today is all about what can I do in 10 minutes. I do have 10 minutes most days.

before 10 minute tidy

I want to finish up my desk this week. So I am concentrating on the desk top. Below is a picture of what I was able to clear AND put away. Well, the coupons made it back to my desk. But this is the general gist of what is left on my desk.

what left the desk

Below is the after. Progress is progress, right? I even found an umbrella which I needed desperately today. The sad part is that I didn't even know I owned an umbrella.

After 10 minute tidy

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office -Inspiration (Day 9)

2011-10-09T19:58:00.000-07:00

Source: smilelikeyoumeanit.net via Katie on Pinterest

My ideal home office would look a lot more the like these. I found this desk setup on Pinterest. I love the shelves above. I would like a large table top as well. Sometimes you got to dream. Cleaning didn't happen today but dreaming did. I really dislike the hutch part on my desk. It makes me feel boxed in.

This one above is from Do it Yourself Magazine Spring 2011. I think I might be in love with this one. I LUV the shelves. I have a rather tall wall on which my desk sits against so I could add some tall shelves to this wall..

This desk setup is somewhat similar to the one above. I love the legs on the desk and of course the shelves. The picture is from Do It Yourself Fall 2011

31 days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 8

2011-10-08T15:58:00.000-07:00

Da FLOOR

Before Office Floor

The floor is driving me crazy in here. I just wanted to be able to vacuum. I am tried of my puppy aka Hoover grabbing something and running away with it.

Before Office Floor

Sometimes creative moving solutions are called for. I used a skateboard to get this very heavy laser printer out of the house. Sometimes you got to do what you have to do.

It isn't cleaned well. Some of the stuff just ended up being put in the office chair or the comfy chair BUT it is off the floor and that is one less stress.

Office Floor After

EVEN HOUSEWORK DONE POORLY IS STILL DONE!

31 Days to a Better Desk/Office - Day 7

2011-10-07T13:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Piles!

No, not those kind of piles literally. You know the homeless piles of stuff. As I moved stuff from the hutch on my desk, I wanted to find it a home immediately but unfortunately that wasn't possible for some of the stuff. This decluttering process is messy. I also didn't want it to become another home for the piles.

Pictured above are some of the piles I created a few months ago. See what I mean about clutter relocation. I have been ready to launch on this project for a while. 31 days just gave me the push I needed. They are contained in boxes and one kitchen chair.

Pictured above is the miscellaneous software that I am not sure what needs to be done with. There are a lot music Cd's too.

I reclaimed my kitchen chair, hooray. I ended up with these boxes left. (1)Goodwill, (2)Memories aka Scrapbook, T(3)o File, and (4) Bill Box and the MISC software pile that I need my hubby to make a decision on are what is left. The cat is just bonus.

Missed the beginning of the series DAY 1. Please check out what the other 31 Dayers are doing as well.

31 days to a Better Desk/Office -Day 6

2011-10-06T19:10:00.000-07:00

Why is this office this way? I keep finding myself asking myself this. I came across the article by Heather Cabot that really resonated with me.

"But as I plowed through the discarded receipts, old columns, lost business cards and books, I discovered that my trouble with organizing my desk and files was more about letting go and less about apathy. I realized that for me, somehow, allowing the clutter pile up was my own way of holding onto the past, creating an easy and physical barrier to moving forward and to accepting that I really am moving ahead with so many of my goals - both personal and professional. The problem with disorder is that while you may feel momentum in your life, you have trouble figuring out the benchmarks - namely because you can't remember where anything is (even though you tell your family you do). " Heather Cabot - 3 Ways to Have a Clean Desk

The first part of 2011 was difficult. I just didn't deal with things well. It was a whole litany of things and difficult situations. Things weren't exactly in control in this room but all those things added to my stress and feelings of being stuck.I just gave up in here. Now I have a milestone coming up, I need to make this right so I can launch to bigger and better things.