Science Fun

Jared's favorite subject in school is science; he would spend all day in the science room, if allowed! I tried talking the science teacher into having an after school science club of some kind, but she said she didn't have time to deal with one (pout!). After researching the Internet and speaking to different people in the community, and still not coming up with any good leads on a science-based program to enroll Jared in, I finally just purchased him a thick book full of different science experiments.

He and Dan flipped through some of the pages and opted to try this one out the other day.


Have you ever boiled water in a paper cup over a candle? Well, neither had we! The end result was that we got really hot water, which steamed a LOT, but never fully boiled. The steam started collecting as condensation outside the cup (something along those lines), which would then drip and snuff out our candle, but it was a fun attempt and we ALMOST managed to boil water in a paper cup over a candle. The boys LOVED the attempt, and were so excited putting it all together and watching as the water heated.

Jared can't wait to go through the book and pick out his next experiment!

Breakfast in bed

I am blessed with two sweet little boys who surprised me with breakfast in bed a few weeks ago, without any prompting from anyone! I love my little gentlemen!!

Do Not Bend

I think it's time to head down and have a chat with the Post Office... For the entire 11.5 years we've lived in this house, we've had mail frequently end up at the neighbor's house (any variation of three different neighbors), we've had mail and packages turn up missing, we've had a package thrown into our driveway and into a mud puddle (which happened to contain the pictures of Emily and Dan from the Father/Daughter Ball that year), and most recently, we've had Connor's school pictures (which are clearly labled "DO NOT BEND") rolled and shoved into our mailbox. Needless to say, I'm a little disgusted!




Not only is the envelope visibly curved through the middle, but the edges are all crinkled up. THANKFULLY, the picture's edges are not crinkled, and I believe we'll be able to flatten out the curve, but that's beside the point!!

We haven't put in a formal complaint before (minus the time a $50 itunes gift card we'd been sent never arrived) because we've felt the mail person may decide to retaliate by causing more problems with our mail, but this is really getting ridiculous!! I shouldn't have to rely on the honesty and friendliness of neighbors to make sure I get all of my mail, and I shouldn't have to be flattening out my son's school pictures because the mail person apparently can't read. UGH!

Happy 11th Anniversary!

11 years ago, I woke up to pouring down rain, the fuse box kept tripping while I was trying to blow-dry my hair, my windshield wipers malfunctioned on the highway during a downpour while driving at 55mph, my make-up appointment ran long, my hair appointment ran long, the photographer was almost two hours late, our ceremony upstairs at the location started without my knowledge while I was downstairs making final preparations, our music to walk back down the aisle wouldn't play on the CD player, the limo never showed, and I didn't get to eat any of my own wedding cake.

11 years ago, I woke up knowing I was going to marry my best friend. I could only laugh at the mishaps, knowing they'd make for a great wedding day story later. I was surrounded by good family and friends, who were ready to help as needed, and who worked really hard to make sure our day was as special as possible.

11 years ago, we'd just purchased a house and had very limited funds with which to honeymoon with. We spent a week in Vegas, and the only money we gambled with was the $20 Dan got from my uncle for singing an Elvis song karaoke. We ate McD's and Krispy Kreme nearly the entire time (it was cheap!), and had to explain over and over again that yes, we were honeymooning in Vegas, but no, we did not get married there. *grin*

11 years ago, I welcomed the beginning of my new life, as a wife, with dreams of the family we would build together. I had no idea where the road would lead, but I was confident I had the best person possible at my side to travel it with.

11 years, 3 amazing kids, 2 dogs, 1 cat, and an aquatic turtle later, I'd say we've carved out a pretty decent path for ourselves! Thank you to those who were there 11 years ago, and thank you to those who have joined us along the way.

Happy 11th Anniversary to you, Danny! The road hasn't always been smooth, but we've always been a team and figured it out. I love you!

Rocket Balloons

The boys have been having tons of fun over the last couple of weeks playing with Rocket Balloons. They pump them up as full as they can, then let them go and giggle as the balloons zip every which way across the yard. Jared discovered that after he blows them up, if he adjusts them to not have any curve at all, they will go pretty much straight up into the air


This one ended up going so high my camera wouldn't even focus on it any longer because it looked too small (I also didn't have my zoom lense, but STILL!)

The downside of using Rocket Balloons outside is that our trees and tall shrubs are now decorated with deflated balloons that got stuck on their way back down. *grin*

BBQ salmon

Proud moment for ME, using the outdoor grill all by myself for the first time! INCLUDING starting the "coals"! I don't do well with outdoor grilling because there's less of an exact temp and cooking time-frame, and I find it difficult to predict when cook time will be over in order to plan out having side-dishes ready at the same time as the main course.

That said, my mom and dad caught a salmon and offered to let us have some of it. Dan wasn't going to be home in any reasonable time-frame to help grill it up for dinner, and I was REALLY in the mood for it to be on the BBQ, so I did it. YAY ME!

Add some grilled beans from Jared's garden, and it was quite a tasty meal!

A visitor

We discovered a tiny little frog shading himself on a leaf on Jared's bean plant!


The boys thought he was the greatest thing ever! Connor tried to catch him, but the little frog was too smart and too fast for Connor... Little frogs tend to get a tad over-loved by Connor!

Pelicans

One of the days we were at the ocean, we were AMAZED at how many pelicans and seagulls were swarming the shallow depths of the water's edge. HUNDREDS of birds were floating around in the water, flying overhead, diving down for food, wandering the beach, etc. It was an extremely misty morning, so it was hard to get a good picture, but I did my best! It was soooo neat to see the pelicans RIGHT in front of us like that, diving for food and flying all around. They're really quite large!

Look close at how many were in the water, and that was just one small portion!








They hover for the tiniest of time when they've spotted something in the water, then start to aim their heads downwards


Then they DIVE!

The wild outdoors

There was a deer in the alley that separates my backyard from one of our neighbor's backyards. It was happily munching away, and somehow, my black lab, Heidi, was totally oblivious (or totally uncaring) about it's presence.


Oh no! I've been spotted!

It wasn't meant to be

Saturday morning, I made myself a cup of coffee with the Keurig. Right about the time it was done, the phone rang. Based on the phone call, I realized I needed to do our grocery shopping that day, instead of waiting until Sunday (as we normally would). I rushed off to Costco.

I forgot about my coffee.

I got home from Costco, called the kids home from the neigbor's house where they'd gone to play for the morning, noticed my coffee, so put it in the microwave to reheat it while the kids were signing the birthday card for the party we were about to leave for. We loaded into the car and headed out for the party.

I forgot about my coffee.

After the party, we needed to make a quick stop at home to gather up swim trunks and towels so we could go spend some time at my aunt's house (she has a pool and invited us to come hang out since her grandson was down for the weekend and wanted to play with the kids). I remembered about my coffee long enough to reheat it yet again, while I headed back to help Connor find his swim trunks. We loaded back into the car and took off for my aunt's house.

I forgot about my coffee.

We got back home at 8pm and I was cleaning up the kitchen a bit, when I remembered about my coffee. STILL sitting in the microwave...


I dumped it down the drain and called it a loss. It wasn't meant to be!

PS Yes, I know the microwave is dirty! It's listed somewhere on a long "to do" list!

Water Lilies

Emily picked some water lilies at the lake over the weekend. We put them in the cooler for the drive home, promptly forgot about them until the next morning, at which point I put them in a bowl of water (they were all closed up at this point) not expecting much to come of it, but mid-way through the next day, when the sun was shining down on them through the skylight, three of four opened up! They looked so pretty!

Rainbow!

I walked into the room the other afternoon, and found a gorgeous rainbow spread across the ceiling in my diningroom, with "fingers" that stretches all the way into the playroom! I had a sheet of holographic paper (which I bought make little disco ball on some invites I'm helping a friend make for her daughter's Hollywood themed birthday party) sitting on the dining table, and the sun was shining through the window and hitting the paper, forming rainbows all over the ceiling. I wish I could have shown it better in pictures; it was amazing! (this picture is just a small portion of what was on the ceiling!)


I joked with Dan that to really jazz up our outdated, glittered "popcorn" ceilings, we should tie-dye/rainbow effect them as well. He didn't think it was funny. (maybe I wasn't even joking... LOL!!!)

Baby Madisen

My friend Stephanie had her third baby a little over a week ago, and when Madisen was only three days old, they came to visit us!

Emily and Connor and I were all "fighting" over who would get to hold her (Jared was too involved in his Legos...LOL), and I grudgingly SHARED the baby with them:






She doesn't look as tiny in these pictures as I swear she seemed in real life!! It was so wonderful to have a snuggly little lump in my arms again. LOL Connor, especially, could NOT get enough of her. He oohed and awwhed over her tiny hands and feet, gently stroked her hair, stared down at her face with the most loving expression you ever saw... It was adorable!

I get to visit with her again at some point this week, and I'm so excited!! Stephanie's oldest is the same age as Connor, my youngest, so it's been fun to get to spend time with littler kids again (her middle child, Kaitlyn, will be three in June, and Madisen was just born). Sure makes me miss when MY kids were all little like that! Seems like just yesterday...

iPhone

I ♥ my iPhone!!!!! People said it would change my life, and it totally has! It's easier to use than I expected, and the variety of apps is endless (entertainment, education, etc). I've seen recipe apps, work-out apps, game apps... You name it! I love being able to connect to the Internet while I'm out and about (to look up info, check into Facebook, check my email, etc), I love that I can let the kids play games here and there (extremely helpful in getting through errands, or long waits in waiting rooms!), and that they can actually be LEARNING while they play (one of Connor's favorite games has him learning letter sounds and blending them into words). I sat in the car knitting while Connor was at preschool the other day, and listened to songs stored in my phone from my iTunes account. When my hands got tired of knitting, I played several levels of "Angry Birds Rio" and "Cut the Rope". Then I checked into my Facebook account, and also checked the 10 day weather forecast and emailed my husband. All rolled neatly into one amazing little phone! It also takes photos and videos (not super great quality, but nice to have if something photo and/or video worthy comes up and I'm not prepared with my good camera or video camera!!). What more could you ask for?

(okay, so I wouldn't mind a bit if it would clean my house and prepare all our meals as well, but even the iPhone has it's limitations!! hahaha!)

True Story

Once upon a time, there was a silly mommy who was in too big of a hurry and didn't check all the pockets before washing a load of jeans. When the jeans came out of the dryer, the mommy noticed there was red crayon smeared all over EVERY pair of jeans that was being pulled out. Lots of work later, most of the jeans were salvaged (due in part to the fact most of them were turned inside out so the red crayon stains were on the INSIDE of the jeans), and the ones that were still messed up were getting too small or had minor knee damage and needed to be replaced anyway. But in case the silly mommy ever forgets to check pockets again, and finds herself in the position of needing to get melted crayon out of clothing, she's bookmarked the following information, straight from the Crayola website:

How to remove Crayons (Regular) from fabrics-fresh stains/heat-set stains(melted): Cleaning Materials Laundry detergent Bleach for colored clothing (Clorox 2® or OxiClean powder) Paper towels Amodex® ink & stain remover (optional) WD-40® (car part lubricant) Liquid dish soap Stain Removal Tips Place the stained surface down on pad of paper towels, spray with WD-40, let stand a few minutes, turn fabric over and spray the other side. Apply liquid dish soap and work into the stained area, replacing toweling as it absorbs the stain. Wash in hot water with laundry detergent and Clorox 2 or OxiClean powder for about 12 minutes (use heavy soiled setting if there is no minute timer on your machine) and rinse in warm water. SPECIAL NOTE: Heat-Set Stains-Clean the drum of your dryer to remove any remaining wax residue. Spray a soft cloth with WD-40, and wipe the drum. Clean the WD-40 residue from the drum by washing with liquid dish soap and water. Run a load of dry rags through a drying cycle to ensure that your drum is clean. (Optional)-Amodex® ink & stain remover PROCEDURE: Use on fabric according to directions on container. Purchase Amodex by calling 800-624-7367 or visit www.fahrneyspens.com.

Please Note... The suggestions for removing stains have been compiled as a service to our consumers. We are unable to guarantee or be responsible for the results obtained by these procedures. You may also wish to consult your local cleaner for further recommendations. Before attempting the stain removal method, test each procedure on an inconspicuous area of the material or surface to be cleaned. Please be advised these stain removal methods involve hazardous products and are intended only for adult use. Crayola does not recommend children attempt these procedures. In many procedures, specific brands of products are recommended. These are brands that performed most effectively in our laboratory. Always check individual containers for recommended procedures and warnings. Competitive brand products may work equally well.

MS Walk

This past weekend was the MS Walk. Emily Grace joined us this year (first time since she was about three years old and got too heavy to be pushed along the route in a stroller, but was too small to walk the whole distance!!). It was really fun having her along.

My mom took a picture of Emily signing the large poster that was set out


We saw these girls ahead of us during the walk at one point, and liked their shirts!


A man dressed as a Klingon from Star Trek took our picture for us as we got to the finish line (my mom's friend Mary, Emily, myself, and my mom)




We'd heard leading into Saturday that it was going to be mostly rainy, so we came prepared with umbrellas, changes of clothes, and towels to help dry ourselves off with, but it ended up being mostly sunny for us (some white clouds scattered around, and some DARK clouds off to the side, but the dark clouds STAYED off to the side the entire day!!). It WAS pretty windy here and there, but all-in-all, we couldn't have asked for much better!

Between the actual route, plus the walking we did to and from the parking lot, and signing in, getting our "freebies", etc, we did about 4.33 miles of walking. Em did fantastic keeping up with us the whole time! It's always neat to see so many people gathered together for the cause, and to know I'm making a bit of a difference!

You know it's time to vacuum when...

...your floor is frowning at you:

New Camera

We've been wanting to have another pocket-sized camera, but haven't really gotten around to researching and purchasing one until recently. I posted on Facebook asking what other people have and what they like/dislike, and the overwhelming response was Nikon Coolpix.

We hit up Costco and I played around with the different versions they had on display. While I did really want the 14.2 megapixel option, I was willing to go lower in favor of the higher optical zoom. We decided on the S8100 version because it had 10X optical zoom, and was still a decent megapixel (12). I tested out taking pictures across the store on the highest zoom capacity and was quite impressed with how it looked on the screen.

At the point that I'm writing this blog post, the camera is newly purchased and currently charging, so I haven't had a chance to play with it around my own house yet, but I'm certain we're going to be very pleased with it. I chose the red one for no other reason than that it's FUN!

I do love my Nikon D90 DSLR camera, but there are just some instances it isn't handy or reasonable to have that large camera, and I'll be happy to be able to grab up the little Coolpix instead.

I'm cursed!

You've all heard my woes about how many broken house-hold appliances/items we had last year. I'd really hoped that 2011 would be a new year, but it's shaping up to be 2010 all over again. Except this time around, I'm already burnt out and frustrated from the first time around. LOL

2011 so far:

*half the house without power.
*fixed the power, but now the light switch doesn't connect to the outlets for the floor lamps any longer.
*Internet connection still sucks, despite new computer AND expensive virus protection.
*washing machine #2 konks out. Possible cheap-ish fix, with the generous help of my amazing daddy.
*dog's Invisible Fence collar not working; dog escapes twice and is rescued by friendly and helpful neighbors. Must drive far away to replace collar on a day that's already extremely booked.
*oven timer button almost totally broken.
*Refrigerator freezes large majority of items placed inside... Nothing like trying to make a sandwich with frozen meat and lettuce!

Still waving my white flag of surrender... Maybe I need one for the other hand. I really feel I'm getting dumped on here! And yes, I know it could be worse, but it's extremely stressful dealing with one thing after another!!!! aughhh!!!!!!!!!

Well, if it's in the newspaper...

I suppose I need to head out and buy my kids skateboards! LOL

That didn't come from a big name newspaper, but a free Seattle-based Newspaper with articles about upcoming concerts, and random stories, etc. Dan thought it was pretty funny, and shared with me. I couldn't resist snapping a photo and sharing with you!