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A very full day and a little redecorating

Today I’ve accomplished a little cleaning a little schooling, decorating, ebaying, cooking, and spray painting.
I’ll have to tell you I’m worn out.
We’re all battling a nasty cold here and I’m trying to stay busy so I don’t think about how bad I feel. School was reading and phonics today. That’s all.
My good friend over at Miss A La Mode has been helping me with a little decorating and I’ve almost gotten the guest bath finished.
None of these photos are post processed because, well, I’m just too tired.
But here’s a preview, almost finished, photo gallery.

Anybody have any suggestions?

Here’s the room I painted blue. Love it. Most do or they hate it. Either is ok. I love it. It’s the only blue I have in my house.

My dad made those shelves for me eons ago. I spray painted them. The plate was one of a set of 7 at the thrift store (7 for 1.50). The little basket was .25 cents and the frame (Creative Memories) I already had. The paper in the frame was .35 cents and the pictures I already had. It needs something a little more but I’ll find that later. The basket of towels I already owned and the fringe on the two were samples I bought for .78 cents each. The tassel I splurged on for 1.99. Can you say DEAL??

Here’s the cabinet in that room to the left of everything you see above. The vase was 7.00 at Wallyworld and I had everything else except the el-cheapo candle inside the not-el-cheapo candle holder.

The room with the sinks or the vanity is brown. Here’s a piece I already had and spray painted white. The plate was part of that set for 1.50. The reeds I already had as well as the frames that need to be spray painted something besides gold. Everything else was from the thrift store for .75 or less. I love that bell. It was .25 cents.

Here’s the vanity. Across from the cute little shelf. I still have a few things I don’t quite like here either but will change them as I find things I love.

Here’s my favorite thing of all. This tassle. I paid 3.99 for it. I’ve got the lamp finished too. It has two blue ribbons around it now.

And I started on the master bath today….

See the Soft Scrub? I actually cleaned the tub today.
Whew!

What do you think?

8 Comments

Posted: March 13, 2009 by Julie |Category: Our Family, Our Lives | Tags:

Spring has Sprung

After a wonderful snow last Monday it’s 80 today, Monday, March 9th in sunny SC.
Can you believe it?
The kids are in bathing suits and the sprinkler has run almost all day. The front yard is littered with toys, naked barbies and dump trucks.

I splurged 4.95 at the grocery store the other day to cheer my heart with some buttercups as we call them in the south. They are one of my favorite flowers. I tried to catch them opening one day after they had found a home on my kitchen table.

Here’s in the morning…

A couple hours later….

Then at it’s peak that day….

As my youngest son was watching me tweak some of my photos he wanted to try his hand at post processing so here’s what we got.

Plastic Wrap with the highlight strength, detail and smoothness adjusted until he liked it…

And then we moved on to Glowing EDGES which ended up really cool. We adjusted the edge width, edge brightness and smoothness until we were both happy (although without mom it certainly would have been a lot funkier).

Fun, huh? Go ahead and get your kids involved in some wild post processing!

9 Comments

Posted: March 9, 2009 by Julie |Category: Photography and Tips | Tags:

Asking for help with you need it.

I’m amazed that firstborns are anywhere close to normal functioning adults.
Our sweet son has certainly broken us in where parenting is concerned.
Even though we had our second born 13 months after first born we still have a very big firstborn child.

And bless his heart, he’s been our homeschool experiment too. I’ve changed curriculum and plowed through things that didn’t work. And this year we’ve finally settled into ABEKA and are doing great.

But at the first of the year we struggled and I went looking for help. I found it at Sylvan Learning Center and we have loved our experience there. Our firstborn is now performing above grade level and is such a joy to to homeschool.

You know, sometimes as a homeschool mom I think I have to do it all. And sometimes that doesn’t serve my kids very well. I’m learning to ask for help when I need it. I’m so thankful for the Lord leading us to Sylvan for this time in our lives. It’s been a great experience for us.

So I encourage any of you moms out there who need help. It’s okay to ask!
Julie

4 Comments

Posted: March 6, 2009 by Julie |Category: Homeschooling | Tags:

Who ME?

Monday seemed like the day I couldn’t keep my kids from eating half of the snow that fell in SC. Whether they were licking it off of shovels or eating it off of pick up trucks, they were eating SNOW!

As hard as everyone (else) was working at making snowmen our youngest was working just as hard at eating them.

When I yelled his name this is the expression I got:

The oldest was enjoying his share of the white stuff too but at least he ate it with his hands and not right off the snowman.

Today it’s almost 60 and tomorrow’s forecast is 70.
Time to find the shorts.

2 Comments

Posted: March 5, 2009 by Julie |Category: Our Family, Our Lives | Photography and Tips | Tags:

Hanging Out – Raising Boys!

While we were busy in and out of the snow on Monday I, at some point, walked into the kitchen to find this site…..

I had my camera out anyway so I grabbed a few (horribly unfocused) pictures because I knew I had to show you. Don’t some of the things your kids do just make you wonder what they were thinking?

So I’m thinking something like, “Maybe he was just bored and wanted to try out hanging techniques for when he grows up.”

YIKES!

Or maybe he was thinking they are going to be best friends forever and wanted to tie them together with “cords that can not be easily broken.”

Either way I’m a tad bit concerned.
Maybe I should go talk to him. Because when I went to get his Valentine Bear the other night off my bed this little guy was attached to him.

Hmmmm…….

Maybe I SHOULD go ask him….
Just a minute.
To our #2 Son…..”Wanna tell mom what this is all about?”
From #2 Son……“Oh that.….. (without skipping a beat)……Mom, I just loose him all the time and this way I don’t.”

Whew!

I can sleep tonight.

Kids…..they are just so darn practical.

5 Comments

Posted: March 4, 2009 by Julie |Category: Parenting | Tags:

The joys of homeschooling in the snow!

March 1st and SC is finally getting it’s first snow of the year. What a blast we’ve had. The snow was thick and beautiful as it fell Sunday night. Here’s some pictures from our excursions.

As it began to snow Sunday night….

About an hour after the rain turned to snow….

It didn’t take long for the snow to begin to stick…..

Poor southern kids, licking snow off shovels! We eat it any way we can!

Sometimes we just eat it off our pickup trucks….
After 30 minutes of snow baby girl decided she was ready for some hot chocolate and warm dry clothes…

You know the saying in the south….”If you don’t like the weather, stick around. It’ll change.”
As you can see by my blooming bush with snow on top!

The next morning was exciting as we had endured a night without power, snow, rain, sleet and freezing rain. This is what we found when we opened the door.

Soon we were all bundled up for some snow play, snowman building and a little sledding.

As the boys were in a full fledged snow ball fight baby girl was having a fight of her very own with a snow ball. This was the bottom of her snow baby. No doubt she has three brothers. If you can not get it to move, you kick it!!!

After lots of hard work the snow family was done.

Then it was off to sledding and swinging.

Sorry, no pictures of sledding but I was snapping with a friend’s camera and they are all on that camera.

Then it was back to the house for some MORE snow cream…

And that was our wonderful, wild and wet day in the only snow we’ve had this year. I did a million and a half loads of wet laundry. How do you guys who live up North do it?

We don’t get much snow in these parts.
Three inches was a BIG DEAL!
This weekend it’s supposed to be 70!
Gotta love it.

5 Comments

Posted: March 3, 2009 by Julie |Category: Homeschooling | Tags:

Let's Get Dressed…..or not!

One of my favorite parts of homeschooling is the flexibility it allows our family. Some days are scheduled and busy and then other days are relaxed and we take our time with school. Like today, for example. I didn’t sleep that well last night so we got going a little later than usual.

Guitar got rescheduled from 4:30 this afternoon to noon so we were able to run by the local hamburger joint for a few burgers and head out to guitar. A good friend of ours teaches our oldest son so while they were having fun learning new songs I got to hold a 4 week old and play with their 1 year old.

We had a blast. The kids all brought toys and we sat on their tree swing and screamed at the top of our lungs and listened to our voices echo. The baby slept right through all the screaming and we had so much fun being amazed at one of God’s really cool inventions….the echo.

Some days are just that way.
And I love them.
Some days we dress.
Some days we don’t.
Some days we play basketball in our PJ’s at the neighbor’s house.
Yep, the neighbors.

I know one day my kids will have to adhere to life’s schedules and demands but I hope that the relaxed nature of homeschooling transfers into their lives and their family’s lives after they are married with kids of their own.

Life can be very demanding and it’s nice to stop every once and a while to enjoy the sunshine, our PJ’s and a little baby smell!

Have a great weekend!

4 Comments

Posted: February 26, 2009 by Julie |Category: Homeschooling | Tags:

A Full Recovery

Since loosing half my foot meat to the dermatologist (see previous post) on Friday I’ve made a full recovery and have been shooting a little hoops…..

Not really.
Did I get ‘cha?

I’m still hobbling around but without crutches now or crunches as my boys call them or walking sticks as my daughter calls them.

My buddy The Scooper has a wonderful post today on grace. Go check out her wonderful photography.

We watched 24 last night. Boy was it good.
And next week is the last episode of The Bachelor.
Yes, I shamelessly admit I watch it, TVOed, and FF’ed through some parts.
But I watch it.

Have a great Tuesday.
My kids are having trouble concentrating on school today.

1 Comment

Posted: February 24, 2009 by Julie |Category: Other Happenings | Tags:

My view on Saturday

Well, this is how I’ve spent Saturday.

Nice, huh???

Here’s the view without the sock. Just in the event you are interested.

Even nicer, huh??

I had a small (like the size of a speck of dust) mole removed from my foot. It was one of those "not okay" moles. I’m always amazed how they pop up in places that have never seen the light of day. I mean, the bottom of my foot???

The surgery to remove it and all surrounding flesh ended up being about quarter size. And honestly, it wouldn’t be that bad if it wasn’t in the arch of my foot where the skin CAN NOT stretch or I’ll pop the stitches. Therefore, the crutches you see in the background of the first photo.

And baby girl woke up at 1am throwing up. She was sick all night and finally quit throwing up around 7am this morning. She’s slowly taken liquids since then and kept them down. I think she has a low grade fever but nothing too bad!

So I spent the day on the bed with my foot propped up and she spent the day here…beside my bed, beside the trashcan, on the floor.

Thankfully everyone else in the family is okay. Just the girls are down and out.

On a brighter note a very good friend of mine is visiting this weekend. I haven’t seen her in FOREVER and am trying to bribe her back here on my birthday which is next month.

I’ll be 24.

Smile.

I wish.

Oh and I got to babysit a precious 5 week old yesterday. Oh, that baby smell!!!

I miss it.

Going to stir the soup.
Have a good weekend.

4 Comments

Posted: February 21, 2009 by Julie |Category: Other Happenings | Tags:

Doing myself a favor…

Today I did myself a favor. I slept in.
It was sweet! I had planned to go to bible study but when I got out of bed it was rainy and cold. And I thought “Oh, what a good day to crawl back in bed”. So as soon as the sitter arrived I did just that. From 9am until 12pm I slept like a bear.
A friend told me that women are nurturers. I knew that. But she also told me that we forget to nurture ourselves. So this morning I did just that.
Hmmm…..wonder what time they’ll let me get in bed tonight?

And just because posts are better with pictures….

“Learning to shoot one handed”