Kid Rooms Continue

Guys, you haven't seen some cute updates to the kids rooms in a while.

 

In January, Lena made this model of the Solar System.  Also, her hibernating/dead (we're not yet sure) wooly bear caterpillar is living in the butterfly net house. 

The planets glow in the dark!

She is really loving the IKEA dishes she got for Christmas.  You can see the overhead projector on the shelf, too.

The boys' rooms have super great matching quilts which are this day loaded under other blankets.  But they LOVE their shelves for display.  PJ is itching for a lamp like Jack has.  I have it in the closet, but I think not yet.

I love their Pinterest inspired string art initials behind each bed. 

 

I did it on two panels of wood rather than on the wall.

I hung some photos of the boys and Paul along with the bow that Jack & Paul made at LWBC's father son weekend.  Also, PJ's alphabet poster from Christmas 2011.

 

Come & see for yourself!

Christmas, out

The Starbucks Christmas coffee is gone.  Where goes the coffee, there goes the season, too.  Boo!

this hurts me more than it hurts you

It has become normal around here to clean one time a week on Saturdays.

I used to get all the cleaning done by doing one job a day.  That worked for a good many years.

Since we moved into this house, though, I have had not just Jackson, but Lena has really stepped into her own as a solid household helper.  It's like after all these years, she's finally coming off the bench and into "the show".  (Yes, I'm watching the game as I write this.)

A usual Saturday morning includes cartoons, a bigger breakfast, and then an hour of regular chores and house cleaning.  Jack had basketball today, though, so we tackled it after dinner!  And we got it all done except the kitchen floor, which maybe I'll still tackle if I have playoff nerves working through my system.

So I post the house cleaning chart and everyone just chooses the jobs that seem the least tiresome.  Oh, and PJ took a bath, so he was content for a good 40 minutes!  It's not a deep clean, for sure, but if we do the minimum every week, at least, we keep on top of things.  I leave toilets and bathroom/kitchen floors for myself and I usually re-do the sinks, too.  While doing those tougher jobs I just try to keep the two kids moving and in less than an hour, we finish.

I think the kids realize that their help each day around the house frees me up to play games with them in the evening, like tonight.  I'm also able to fully devote myself to homeschooling and food prep during the week days.  I don't even do dishes throughout the day, because I know in the evening we'll all work together to get the place picked up.

In this case, and with the cozy size of our home (read: small, which I love BTW), it doesn't take a village, but having two extra pairs of hands to help really makes a difference!

HOME

Mainly I'm putting these photos up here so I can look at them myself.  

You probably know, but I REALLY LOVE CHRISTMAS.  Can't probably explain it all in a little blog post, but it is truly the reason for the season which creates extra goodwill in my heart especially during this time of year.

As our family sets to travel a bit in the next month, I thought that while it is so fun to be off and running, here and there, and even out and about, there is a reason to join back again soon.

HOME.

riddle me this...

:: GUESS ::

 

 

:: WHO ::

 

this crafts

Today I am taking you down, craft closet!!  Prepare to be organized!!

mello yellow

I am a woman of few words recently.  It's not for lack of thoughts in my head (unless I consider the paint fumes I'm pretty much inhailing on a weekly basis.)  Anyhow, enjoy the pictures while they last, I say.  Soon there will be no more of home and children and you'll be forced to endure more soap box ranting!!! 

welcome, friends

You are welcome here.

Christmas in Review :: Eight things I love about Advent.

As the reflections and memories of our Christmas season build, I'm thankful for the third year, now we've celebrated advent in our home.

It truly serves to lengthen and deepen our celebration of the anticipation of the birth of our Christ, much beyond the receiving of gifts.  It is almost anti-consumerist in the way we participate and provides our family with rich memories and traditions for which to return in coming years.

If you've never considered celebrating the season of advent, a quick google search would give you the whys and how's, or give me a buzz and I could give you my hour soap box speech.  But for this space, here are eight things I love about this year's advent season:

1. eating by candlelight :: Next year we're going to start the first day of advent with just one candle and grow from there!  I've got a special space in mind to build a spot for this in the kitchen.  A perfect reason to remodel the kitchen a bit!

 2. a short and sweet devotional book :: We've used a different "reading" every year we've done advent thus far.  I think depending on the ages of our kids, too, this is certainly appropriate as a family might require different themes to dwell on each year.  This year, the book we enjoyed pointed every reading directly to Jesus as the long awaited one.

3.  brainstorming activities to do with the kids :: Every year post Thanksgiving the kids and I make a huge list of fun activities to do during the advent season.  Funny that on this year's activity list, nearly half the ideas revolved around snow...of which we've seen an abnormally small amount!

4.  creating traditions :: If you've ever tried decorating a Christmas tree with kids, here is a sanity solution for you!  Start by decorating the tree together.  Then when it gets either too crazy or the kids lose interest, bring out the hot cocoa and put on the Polar Express.  It's a tradition we've used for 5 years, now!  The kids love decorating and I love rearranging while they merrily drink cocoa and watch a great family movie!

5.  suprise advent activity :: The activities we do each night for advent is likely family fun we would get to during the holiday season.  But the kids love the anticipation of our evening activities!

6.  advent calendars :: I've yet to use the same idea every year.  Eventually (note to self: check pinterest) I'd like to settle on using the same advent calendar every year.  Especially if it's something we make together.

7. slowing down ::  I'm sure as the kids age, we'll change what and how we do it.  But I think doing advent has really slowed us down and helped us to truly appreciate the season and the meaning behind it for more than just Christmas Day/Eve.

8. planning ahead :: I've heard a lot of great things about the Jesse Tree and I believe you can hunt that down from simplemom.net or a holyexperience.com.  I'd like to look into it more for next year, too.

what color do we love boys and girls

that's right!

It's the color that says "Christmas is over and the New Year is here" like no other!

W :: H :: I :: T :: E

Doesn't this below sink cabinet cry..."Use these products to clean," or "Make some more homemade soap" or "Put the dog gone cabinet doors back on us...and paint them a color!"

I guess the paint fumes are getting to me!  Here I am baring my cupboards for all!

on the way

Dear 2011,

 

Something funny happened on the way to here. 

We grew closer, and better, and challenged ourselves.  We have cried here and loved here and made it home.

What a year! 

When I think back to the same time last year when we were just wondering, wondering, where we would be in a year.

And then we had a plan, and we prayed our ways through it.  We were sure it would turn out like we thought.  We had the Lord preparing the way and spurring us on. 

All the time, we see now, that we were preparing ourselves for this time. 

So here we are.  And we are happy.  All five, plus Scout, together.  And all thanks be to His great glory!

Love, Jenny

the results show

There was some do-it-yourself around here this last season of preparation.

From the kids; hand written letters, decoupage treasure boxes and embellished notebooks.

From this Santa elf: bath salts, scrubbies, pinterest love.

  

With all that hand made going on in my hands and head, I took the "good enough" route in other areas.  What kid doesn't love the brown loveliness of an amazon.com box?  No wrapping required!!!

And inside the stockings, presents needn't be wrapped...they're covered in green and red crochet, for goodness sakes! 

I know you're thinking...what kid doesn't love a gift from Bed Bath & Beyond!!!  Well, okay, the bag doesn't necessarily match the present inside, but the packaging sure saved...the earth.  Oh yes, and saved me time and sanity...and the kids cared not!

 Now to unwrap the living room floor.  It's currently covered in all the new games, books, legos and laffy taffy.

and on it goes!

I think I could start every blog post I write with "Man, life does keep marching on, doesn't it!"

So, while hoping to keep it real and regular during the hustle and bustle, here is what occupied a mid- November weekend at our place!

If you can't tell by the photo...it's a CLOSET REMODEL!!!  One of our most frequent home improvement projects to date.  I think that makes 5 closet updates for us so far!

True to previous experiences, this is our recommended method for updating a closet:

1. invite family members to visit for a weekend of well, kid sitting, to free up construction time (thanks guys!)

2.  scour pinterest for "pinspiration"

3. draw a design and hang it by intended closet (more for the purpose of not losing it!)

 

4. allow the builder (aka hubby) to pop in on the paper and make measurements and notes as needed

 

5.  try to complete the project without a trip to the hardware store using recycled material and tools already owned

It's not beautiful *yet* but it is *functional* and that is the goal for this season!  I keep reminding myself..."someday i'll have the mud room of my dreams, and there will be no wee ones here to mud it up"!

Future Home

I've been working on this in my brain for a while.  Finally I got the colored pencils out and put it down on paper and made the list of what needs to be accomplished.  I hung this on the door and when I passed by later I found Jack had written "Future Home" on the paper.  Funny.  You don't think the colors are too "bad newsy" rivals from the south, do you? 

Anyway, Jack is mostly excited about painting a green score box (ala Pottery Barn Kids on pinterest) on the closet doors before the Pack wins another Superbowl this season.  Why on the closet you ask?  If I hadn't mentioned it before, this house is really textured...as in textured walls and ceilings.  I thought the scoreboard would work better to actually use it on the smooth closet surface. 

It's the plan to work on it over the long four day weekend upcoming. 

Do you hear that boys?  I've put a completion date on it!!

So Blue

"Back door friends are the best!"

Good 4 Now

Oh!  The dreaming, and magazine clipping and pinterest looking...it's all been fun. 

Sadly, as the school year wound into full gear around here, the home improvement/decorating/organizing has slowed to a near halt.  Sure there is the occassional weekend project that actually gets started AND completed.  For the most part, however, Paul and I are back to the planning and saving mode. 

Though not the most dramatic, it's a good stage to be found.  A fun time to actually LIVE in this house without thinking something needs to be fixed immediately.  Sure enough, you stop noticing that awkardly hung towel rack, or peeling kitchen paper border and just live your life!

In the meantime, the list changes (and invariably grows)! 

And at the end of a very full day: the school room (above) IS picked up, the children ARE loved, cared for, and sweetly sleeping, the puppy WILL sleep in the kennel without trouble and the two homeowners crawling into bed...well, they ARE the most satisfied with their lives they have ever been.  Praise be to God!

Purple Palace

No, I haven't created a room in our new home as an homage to Liberace. 

 Lena chose purple for her very own (regularly sized...thinking back to our old place) room.

 It was a bit of a struggle finding just the right blend of purples to fit (ahem) both of our tastes.  

  

She's a little more Electric Purple and I'm a little more Lovely Lavender.  

  

Just trying to keep her a little girl as long as possible (insert "good luck" here). 

 Somehow, we find a way to keep everyone happy!