What's your favorite type of flower?

Lily any kind i love love love Lily's

Ask me something fun :)

What a 4 Year Old Should Know

I cannot take the credit for this, i found it this morning and i love it...

We are such a competitive culture that even our preschoolers have become trophies and bragging rights. Childhood shouldn’t be a race.

So here, I offer my list of what a 4 year old should know.

1. She should know that she is loved wholly and unconditionally, all of the time.
2. He should know that he is safe and he should know how to keep himself safe in public, with others, and in varied situations. He should know that he can trust his instincts about people and that he never has to do something that doesn’t feel right, no matter who is asking. He should know his personal rights and that his family will back them up.
3. She should know how to laugh, act silly, be goofy and use her imagination. She should know that it is always okay to paint the sky orange and give cats 6 legs.
4. He should know his own interests and be encouraged to follow them. If he could care less about learning his numbers, his parents should realize he’ll learn them accidentally soon enough and let him immerse himself instead in rocket ships, drawing, dinosaurs or playing in the mud.
5. She should know that the world is magical and that so is she. She should know that she’s wonderful, brilliant, creative, compassionate and marvelous. She should know that it’s just as worthy to spend the day outside making daisy chains, mud pies and fairy houses as it is to practice phonics. Scratch that– way more worthy.
But more important, here’s what parents need to know.
1. That every child learns to walk, talk, read and do algebra at his own pace and that it will have no bearing on how well he walks, talks, reads or does algebra.
2. That the single biggest predictor of high academic achievement and high ACT scores is reading to children. Not flash cards, not workbooks, not fancy preschools, not blinking toys or computers, but mom or dad taking the time every day or night (or both!) to sit and read them wonderful books.
3. That being the smartest or most accomplished kid in class has never had any bearing on being the happiest. We are so caught up in trying to give our children “advantages” that we’re giving them lives as multi-tasked and stressful as ours. One of the biggest advantages we can give our children is a simple, carefree childhood.
4. That our children deserve to be surrounded by books, nature, art supplies and the freedom to explore them. Most of us could get rid of 90% of our children’s toys and they wouldn’t be missed, but some things are important– building toys like legos and blocks, creative toys like all types of art materials (good stuff), musical instruments (real ones and multicultural ones), dress up clothes and books, books, books. (Incidentally, much of this can be picked up quite cheaply at thrift shops.) They need to have the freedom to explore with these things too– to play with scoops of dried beans in the high chair (supervised, of course), to knead bread and make messes, to use paint and play dough and glitter at the kitchen table while we make supper even though it gets everywhere, to have a spot in the yard where it’s absolutely fine to dig up all the grass and make a mud pit.
5. That our children need more of us. We have become so good at saying that we need to take care of ourselves that some of us have used it as an excuse to have the rest of the world take care of our kids. Yes, we all need undisturbed baths, time with friends, sanity breaks and an occasional life outside of parenthood. But we live in a time when parenting magazines recommend trying to commit to 10 minutes a day with each child and scheduling one Saturday a month as family day. That’s not okay! Our children don’t need Nintendos, computers, after school activities, ballet lessons, play groups and soccer practice nearly as much as they need US. They need fathers who sit and listen to their days, mothers who join in and make crafts with them, parents who take the time to read them stories and act like idiots with them. They need us to take walks with them and not mind the .1 MPH pace of a toddler on a spring night. They deserve to help us make supper even though it takes twice as long and makes it twice as much work. They deserve to know that they’re a priority for us and that we truly love to be with them.

Alice Bayer via http://magicalchildhood.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/what-should-a-4-year-old-know

I'd argue that older children and adults need to know these things too. An awesome post...

Hat tip to Tim Lauer: http://twitter.com/#!/timlauer/status/11484746932551681

Addicted to my sewing machine!

So Nick fixed my sewing machine for me (thank the lord!) and I have become obsessed the past couple of nights! I'm going to the store while the kids are at awana and grabbing some more fabric. I want to make my own burp cloths on top of the bows and headbands I'm making. I ordered 56 1.5 assorted colored crochet headbands, 200 alligator clips, silk dahlia, jewel centered flowers, and ribbon, lots of ribbon the other night.  I can NOT wait to see my UPS man next week haha. Grabbing a new hot glue gun tonight, Nicks sure we had one, but i cant find it any where! If you don't hear from me for a while, send help... I might become the fabric lady!

Sprinkle Bakes: Chocolate French Toast with Panera Bread

Sprinkle Bakes: Chocolate French Toast with Panera Bread

Bow making... should I even entertain the idea?

So I've gone out on another whim and decided i want to start making my own bows. I can barely sew. I once had this thought that i should make tutu's.. haha that ended quickly when i went to the craft store and was so confused by all the different material and bands and band widths. I guess as a mother of 3 girls i need to kinda step up my game. First and for most i think i should probably learn how to actually work my sewing machine other then just turning it on and staring at it. I tend to get jealous of all these people who can make such cute crafty things for there kids. I can barley color in the lines lol. But I've taken the dive, Ive ordered ribbons and clippies and flowers off of ebay ( I have an ebay addiction that I'm not proud of either) and im going to try it. Heck, what could go wrong? I burn myself with a hot glue gun, prick all 10 of my fingers with a needle, and get overwhelmed... sounds like an adventure to me :) Ideally i would like to make one of these....

but I'm no Martha Stewart, barely a Betty Homemaker.. so i'm going to ATTEMPT to make one of these chunky bows.....

cute right? maybe? 

How to Tame Tantrums (Without Losing Your Cool)

How to Tame Tantrums (Without Losing Your Cool)

The Good Wife's Guide
From Housekeeping Monthly, 13 May, 1955.


~Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.

~Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you'll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

~Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

~Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dustcloth over the tables.

~During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.

~Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.

~Be happy to see him.

~Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.

~Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.

~Don't greet him with complaints and problems.

~Don't complain if he's late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.

~Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom.

~Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.

~Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.

~Don't ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.

~A good wife always knows her place.

I stumbled upon this and had to laugh at how times have changed. If i did all these things for nick for when he got home, he would think i did something bad, or spent all the money in the house haha! Which actually makes me feel kinda bad :/ Does this define a good wife, not at all, but i feel like i don't even come close to these things! In fact,I usually do the exact opposite! He comes home and I instantly start barking orders for him to help, its a fiasco! Granted.. he is use to it, that first hour of when he gets home is a big transition for the kids,they get all hyped up and run around like bats outa hell! Its quite overwhelming. I feel kinda bad because here he is working his butt off all day long,( he is the school bus mechanic for our small little town) and i sit at home with kids, Desperate Housewives, Cleaning products and Facebook (mostly FB and Blog stalking)! I can say i bust my butt all day, but I'd be lying! He knows that too, when we argue, its usually for stupid reasons, i always resort to "ill work hard all day long in this house" HAHAHA thank God he is patient with me, thats all im going to say :)thanks for listening... if you are listening :/