Bedtime...

What is it about the word "bedtime" that makes your children act like you've fed them 3 pounds of sugar? They were calm and relaxed after dinner, perfect little angels...suddenly mom says, "bedtime!" an they go into a franzy! Kaelyn will dig through every toy she owns, looking for the perfect bedtime companion. Then of course, she has to put them all away again. Haley will empty out the kitchen cabinet, insisting that she needs "just one more bedtime snack" and that she will absolutley starve to death if I don't prepare her a four course meal...okay, well maybe just pancakes. Skylar just can't go to sleep without going over here whole entire day with the rest of us in detail. If she is really on a roll, she will go back years! So, even though I have to be up at 4:30 a.m. to service one of my clients, it seems like I never get to bed before the crack of dawn. Well, maybe that is a little bit of an exaggeration...

Skylar Loves Horses

Horses are my favorite animals. It has always been my dream to own one. I am going to start taking horse back riding lessons soon. I like black horses and someday when I am a grown up, I am going to own one. I want to live in a house with a big yard where I can have horses and a nice little shed to put them in when it is time to sleep. Today, mom gave me a pad of note paper with pictures of horses on it. On the back of the pad, there is a little magnet, to hang iton the refigerator. I'm trying to decide what to write on it.

Christmas Crafts for the Kids

With Christmas just around the corner, our home school curriculum now includes a daily Christmas craft. Yesterday, we started with a very simple, traditional craft. Perhaps you remember it from grade school? I purchased a big bag of pipe cleaners in Christmas colors from Michaels. You can also get these at Wal-Mart. Each of the girls took two different colored pipe cleaners and matched up the ends. Next, they twisted each pipe cleaner around the other, all the way to the end. Once, this was done they curved the ends of their pipe cleaners, and voila! Pipe cleaner candy canes! This is a favorite craft in our family, simple enough for the youngest of our clan to complete on her own. I now have these decorations hanging off every door knob in our home.
The craft for today was an easy "Jingle Bell Bracelet." All we did was thread beads and bells on a wrist sized pipe cleaner. There are several variations on this bracelet. You can make it into an anklet, or use a "bumpy" pipe cleaner for a different look. Again, this craft is easy enough for my four year old to do on her own. My girls got very creative with their bracelets, and we have decided that a couple of them will go on the tree this year.
I've found the internet to be a great source of Christmas activities. We have found Christmas themed downloadables to color, mazes and word finds. Skylar and Haley particularly enjoy dot-to-dot activities, and we found several online with holiday themes.
Well, tis the season to keep busy!

Truama

I know it has been a while since I posted, but you see, I have suffered a traumatic experience. It has taken me some time to recover. Yes, I finally did it. I cleaned out my books, and got rid of several hundred! I didn't think I could do it...several times I nearly faltered! But the deed is done, and they are gone. What am I supposed to do with all that empty space in the garage, however? Watch out Barnes and Noble! Zuly's back!

The Invasion

It all started out innocently enough, a few toys here and there. You know the usual thing…but then, they slowly and ominously started to take over the house! First it was the kids’ room, then the back room. From there it progressed to the garage, until finally, there was no room left untouched! We decided that the invaders had to go. It was a tough job. Broken toys that were thrown into the trash mysteriously kept finding their way back into the house. Toys that were designated to the “donate” pile were found hidden behind sofas and under beds. But in the end, we were successful! However, all is not yet well. Next, we must tackle….mom’s books!

Thoughts on working from home

I am so very lucky that I am able to work from home. I work as a customer service representative, taking calls. This means I can’t have any background noise, or phone calls coming in while I am working. It is such a blessing. However, it does have its ups and downs.

When you tell people that you work from home, they don’t always hear the “work” part. Everyone seems to hear something different. Friends and family hear “I’m home, call me or drop by whenever you want.” When I tell the hubby and the kids I’m taking phone calls, what I am trying to say is, “Please keep the house quiet. I need to create a professional environment.” My sweet little girls hear, “Mom’s working, yell at the top of your lungs!” My son hears, “Mom wants to be serenaded with blaring rap music while she’s on the phone.” I my darling husband turns up the television volume all the way, so that the ringing of my phone doesn’t disturb him.

The only way to resolve this issue is to work in the wee hours of the morning, or what Ani poetically calls “the butt crack of dawn.” So I stumble out of bed anytime between 4:30 am 5:30 am to work. Well, I have to be up soon, so I’d better get ready to call it a night…

Haley Loses Her 1st Tooth

Yesterday I lost my first tooth, and I am very excited. I put it under my pillow in a little bear tooth fairy box. Then when I woke up this morning, I had a dollar! I love to get money from the tooth fairy. I have an empty medicine bottle, and I put my dollar and all of the rest of my money into it, but I want a better container. I made a notebook with a story about my first loose tooth. Bye! It was nice telling you about my tooth.