Scentsy Convention

I was very lucky to get to travel to Denver to Scentsy Convention. I had a blast with my team the Groovy Girls. Convention was AMAZING and I am super excited for the new products in the fall catalog. The one we are all impatient for is the Scentsy Buddies. The first picture is of me with Ollie the Elephant. Isn't he cute??
What continues to amaze me is what a great company Scentsy is. They truly care about the company and it's consultants. They practice giving more than you take.
Scentsy Spirit was alive in Denver, and Denver will never be the same! Can't wait for Fort Worth, TX next year!!

Summer Fun

Dan came home on Tuesday night and we have been running hard ever since. The weather is beautiful and we are taking advantage of it. We went bowling Tuesday night (I kicked butt!!). Wednesday we went to Lake Sammish and tried to throw Nate off the tube. I say tried, because that kid held on tight! We had a family dinner Thursday night. Dan watched 6 kids on Friday while Tiff and I got a much needed break. Yesterday we went to the lake again. Dan and I both knee boarded. I haven't knee boarded since high school, so lets just say I'm hobbling around today.

This is the summer we have been waiting for. The nice weather, the freedom to go to the lake when asked. We love having Dan home and are making the most of it! Not sure how much more my body can take, but I'll rest when the sun does!

Fabulous Photographer

I love these new pictures of Lily. My sister, Amy Parsons, is one fabulous photographer. She has a great way of catching people's personalities. She's super busy right now with weddings, but start thinking now of booking your family sessions for fall. Click on her link to see more amazing photos!

The House With All The Tractors

Yesterday our friend Gordon stopped by. He was telling Lily that this weekend he would be biking the STP, Seattle to Portland ride. (He's riding it now as I type, GO GORDON!!). He told Lily it was over 200 miles to Oregon. At the mention of Oregon, Lily's mind went straight to her Grandpa and Grandma that live in Oregon. She told Gordon, "When you pass a house with all the tractors in the yard, that's my Grandpa's house, so wave hi to him". We had a good laugh and told her that Gordon wouldn't be near Grandpa's house, but that was nice of her.

Speaking of Grandpa and Grandma, they are visiting this weekend. They brought with them the newest addition to the family, Maddie. She may be cute, but she has peed and pooped on my carpet, TWICE. Maddie is now in the backyard with our dogs, who are not happy to see her.

Grandpa also brought a water balloon launcher. Last summer when we visited them, Grandpa made a redneck balloon launcher that was the hit of the week (also took all week to tweak it so that it would actually launch a water balloon). Click HERE to see the one from last summer. Now you have to remember that my Dad is a big redneck. So lets just say he doesn't buy water balloon launchers at the store. He makes them from whatever he has laying around. Here's our new water balloon launcher. I'm surprised that the hydrangea's survived the water fight last night. Don't ask me how he made it, all I know is it's covered in duct tape. I have no idea how he comes up with these things!

Lego Cake

Mom and I were talking about what kind of cake to make for Nate's birthday. She said it would be fun to do a Lego cake. I thought about it and figured I could make it work. I took a 9x13 cake, frosted it, then topped it with cupcakes made in mini muffin tins. Now, I know it's ugly. My cake decorating skills need improvement. But the kids loved it and Nate thought it was cool. My mother in law asked what the heck it was supposed to be. I could have used a fun color, but yellow frosting on my couch and carpet didn't sound good.
As I was making the cake, friends of mine on facebook were telling me that they made this cake with marshmallows, and that the Lego store sells the cake pan. All great ideas, if I was told BEFORE I started.
We topped the cake with a Darth Vader candle and Nate had is Star Wars/Lego cake. The kids scarfed it down, so it tasted good. And seriously, 10 year old kids are impressed with any effort......they must be if they thought my cake was cool!

Pinata

How much candy does it take to fill a Darth Vader pinata?


The amount of candy that my two kids collected at our local parade.


Don't laugh, it's called recycling! (And seriously, they don't need THAT much candy!).

Birthday at the Lake

On Nate's birthday, we spent the day at Lake Sammish with my family. Nate shares his birthday with my Aunt Ruthi, so we had two birthday's to celebrate. The kids loved riding on the tubes and going fast on the jet ski's (Lily is a crazy driver!). The kids are water bugs and they played in the lake the whole day. Thanks again to Marv and Ruthi! We hope to do this many more times this summer!

Double Digits

Happy 10th Birthday to Nate the Great!

I still can't believe my "baby" boy is double digits.....sniff, sniff.

Island Adventure

Mom had some business to do on Orcas Island on Monday. She asked if the kids and I would like to ride along on a an adventure. I thought it would be fun to ride the ferry and see the Island, and had no idea what kind of adventure we were in for. We left in the morning and it was raining. We made good time to the ferry and it was not even half full. The ride over to the island was cold, but the kids had fun.
When we got to Orcas Island, Mom stopped for business, then we got lunch from the grocery store and headed to the park. The sun was coming out and the kids played on the beach. We headed back to the ferry dock to catch the 2:30 ferry. We got about a mile away at 1:30 and were told to pull over on the side of the road, because we would be on standby for the 5:25 ferry. We couldn't leave the car, because we would need to move it once the 2:30 ferry left. So we sat there until 3:15, and were finally able to move to the ferry waiting area.
At least we had a nice view of the water. Mom bought a box of Popsicles and we shared with all the kids who were also waiting. We sat there and waited until 5pm when they told us to go to the cars and wait in line. As we were sitting, waiting for the ferry to load, two sheriff's officers came running up the car next to us yelling, "Get out of the car, get on the ground!". They arrested the guy right there. Mom and I looked at each other like, seriously? It was like watching a live episode of Cops.
So the ferry started loading and we moved up until we were the next car to get on. They had us pull up as if we were getting on the ferry, then told to go back in line. They told us we were about 2 feet too long to fit on the ferry. We missed getting on the ferry by 2 feet! So we were stuck on the island until the 8:30 ferry. Nate started crying saying,"I just wanna go home". So we had 3 more hours to kill, waiting for the next ferry. We can't drive off and leave our spot in line, and there is nothing to do. We pulled out our leftovers from lunch and ate some dinner. We bought coffee and drinks at the little store. And we waited.....7 hours from when we got in line until we finally boarded the ferry.
We were the first car on the 8:30 ferry, and Mom is showing the 2 feet that made us miss the last ferry. As we were getting on the ferry we saw the sheriff's officers take the guy away on the sheriff's boat. We laughed when they sped away into the sunset.
We had a beautiful ride home, but the kids were tired. We didn't get home until after 11pm. What a long day! While I love visiting Orcas Island, I don't think the kids will want to go back anytime soon.

Bring Back My Bar......Scentsy Bar

For the month of July only, Scentsy is bringing back my bar. We all voted on discontinued scents and the top 20 are brought back this month. Apples and Pears, Fried Ice Cream, Cheerful Day, and French Vanilla are just a few that I am excited about. Click on my Scentsy logo on the sidebar and check out all 20 of the scents. These are available this month only, in bar form only. If you find a favorite, stock up now!

Don't Panic!

Don't panic! Yes, I know there is smoke coming from my house. Don't call the fire department. It's July 2nd and I had to turn on my pellet stove because it was 66 degrees in my house. Yes, I put on extra clothes and socks (stupid socks should not be worn in the summer!), but I was still cold. Seriously, we are freezing over here. I'm not supposed to be needing to turn on the heat in July. Do I need to say it again? It's JULY!! It supposed to get really warm next week. I say bring it on. And if I hear anyone up here in the Pacific Northwest complain about the heat, I will not be nice. Bring on Summer!

Nobody likes a control freak, unless she bakes

One of my favorite quotes, that sums me up is; Nobody likes a control freak, unless she bakes. I'm a bit of a control freak, I like to know what's going on and what to expect. I'm the one that's over prepared. I have freezer meals in my freezer, a stockpile of groceries, and an emergency box in my car full of clothes, food, sunblock, band aids, ect. When I feel helpless, I bake and cook. When Grandma was in the hospital last fall, I cooked and baked and brought food to Grandpa a couple times a week. I canned all of Grandma's peaches and pears, because it was the only thing I could do to help.

Grandma was rushed to the hosptial again last night. I don't have updates or details, but I'm feeling helpless again. So what am I doing? Well, the cookies were made this morning, I have soup done, and next is dinner rolls. That's just what I do. It makes me feel like I'm helping.

Please keep Grandma in your prayers!

Sugar trail

The kids and I made a trip to Costco today. I have been busy making jam and was completely out of sugar. We picked up two bags of sugar (among other things) and kept shopping. What we didn't know was that one of the bags had a hole in it. Now, picture this. My 9 year old is pushing the cart. He's trying to keep up with me, who is trying to get in and out of Costco as fast as I can. Picture a very crowded store, where you must weave in and out of people. Now picture a very frustrated Costco employee (who had just swept the floor!!) who follows the trail of sugar to find us almost at the checkout. We look back to see our path throughout the whole store, left in sugar. The frustrated Costco employee takes the broken bag of sugar and just gives me this helpless look. I told him we would go get another bag, and quickly got out of his way. I wish I could have taken a picture of the trail of sugar. It was hilarious. Of course, it's only humorous if you are not the one cleaning up the sugar trail!

Mr. Sandman

Today was the Sandcastle contest at Birch Bay. It's an annual event and this was our first year attending, let alone making an entry. Mom had the idea of making a bed, and putting one of the kids in it. Nate was our first choice because he was the oldest, and more likely to hold still. Mom and Tiffani spent two hours making the bed, the last half hour Nate was in it. The people on the beach loved the idea, and the judges gave us first place for best use of sand materials. Not bad for our first attempt! We had a blast, even all the little kids who just ran around and played. The girls helped collect shells and decorate the quilt on the bed. Poor Nate got really cold and after an hour, we pulled him out. They fixed the bed to make a sand person in Nate's place. What a fun day, even though it was kinda cold. We are already planning our creations for next year!

You are a Mother of Preschoolers if.....

I read a blog today that gave a list of how you know when you have teenagers. It reminded me of my list I wrote a few years ago. While I may not have preschoolers anymore, it's still funny!

You Are A Mother of Preschoolers…..

By Holly Snow



• If you are sleep deprived
• If you have stickers and cheerios stuck to your socks
• If you have spit up, snot, or drool on your clothes
• If your shoes are older than your children
• If the idea of heaven on earth is a full night of uninterrupted sleep
• If you can cook dinner, do laundry, pick up toys, feed the dog, talk on the phone, with a child on your hip, all at the same time
• If your TV has been taken over by Disney channel, Nick Jr and Noggin.
• If you can’t sing a single Top 40 hit, but know all the words to Blues Clues
• If you can’t remember a single thing from Chemistry, but have Dr. Seuss’ ABC’s memorized
• If you can’t remember the last time you ate out without French fries
• If you have ever called everyone you know when your child did something new
• If you are missing a bottle or juice cup and are scared to find it
• If you go through a bottle a month of spray-n-wash
• If you ever bought a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, ran around the house cleaning walls, and truly believe it’s magic
• If you can’t remember the last time you bought yourself something pretty and not practical
• If your floor is booby trapped with legos, hot wheels, train tracks, barbies, or polly pockets
• If more people call you Mommy than your real name on most days
• If your cookie cutters, rolling pin and spatula are used more for play dough than cookies
• If you have ever driven aimlessly just so your child will sleep longer
• If your backseat has car seats full of cracker crumbs
• If you have more crayons on your floor than in the crayon box
• If you have to point out every farm animal, tractor or train while you are traveling
• If you feel like you deserve a gold metal for getting out of the house this morning with your hair done and makeup on
• If you are scared to look under your couch
• If you have ever locked yourself in the closet to talk on the phone
• If you have ever played hide and seek with your kids just to get a moment of silence
• If you stick your nose in your child’s bottom to tell if they are poopy
• If poopy and potty are in your everyday vocabulary
• If you go through the McDonalds drive thru more than you shave your legs
• If you speak of yourself in third person, ”Mommy got a boo boo.”
• If you have ever let your child talk to a telemarketer
• If your first response to any invitation is “Let me see if I can get a babysitter.”
• If you can’t remember the last time you went to Walmart without buying diapers
• If you are pregnant or have a potty training child, and must know where the restroom is everywhere you go
• If you just need a break, a friend, a snack, a cup of coffee, or just some time without screaming, squirming, slobbery children
• If you all the bandages in your house have cartoon characters on them

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day! This picture is my Dad and I on his first Father's Day.

My Dad has had a rough week this week, and I want to say I love you Dad! You have taught me so many great things, and have always been there for me. You love me enough to tell me what I don't want to hear. You've always trusted me to make the right decision. You laughed at me when I got my first speeding ticket (and my only one!). You showed affection by embarrassing me and my friends. You took me on dates to show me how a real man should treat a woman. Thank you for everything Dad!

Questioning my sanity

We have had yucky weather lately. I have been letting the kids watch far too much TV, but it's just been too wet and cold to play outside much. The few days we have had sun, I force us all outside. Mother's Day weekend was beautiful, and we hit 6 parks in 3 days.

Today I was watching my two nephews, and the sun was out. I decided that it was a no TV and computer day. The kids were going to (shocker!!) have to entertain themselves. The first hour was glorious. They played in the sandbox, no fighting, no complaints......I was giving myself a pat on the back. I should have know it was too good to be true. Right after I gave them permission to fill the water guns, the phone rang. (I apologize to my friend who had to hear this conversation!). This is what she hears as she's trying to ask me Scentsy questions.

"Don't squirt each other, you don't have extra clothes!".
"No, you may not have water balloons".
"Leave him alone".
"Stop, I said STOP".
"No, you may not have water balloons".
"Don't throw the Frisbee on the......well, it's gone now, find something else to play with".
"No, you may not have water balloons".
"I don't think so, don't even try".
"That's not a good idea".
"NO, for the 4th time, you may not have water balloons".

After that, I got off the phone, and realized that it was going to be a LONG day. The best quote of the day came later when they were shooting Nerf guns. They had been told not to shoot at others, but maybe I should have been more specific....."Do not shoot your brother in the privates".

I did hold true to the no TV and computer today. The kids had a fun day, but I'm ready for bed!

Life Skills, part 2

So the other day I was in the front yard with Nate. He was using the push mower to cut the grass under the apple trees. I like to stay with him while he does this, just until I know he's got the hang of it. As he's doing this, a nice couple is walking their dogs and stop to ask what carrot I am dangling in front of my son to get him to mow the lawn. This question dumbfounded me. They told me that they can't get their teenage son to mow the lawn. All I told them was that I told Nate that I was mowing the lawn at his age, and it was time he learned. No carrot, no threats, no bribes. It's just part of his chores.

That conversation made me think of my responsibilities as a 10 year old. The day after 4th grade ended, I was getting up at 6am to get myself ready, pack up my lunch (that Mom had ready, I just had to assemble) and catch the berry bus. I would pick strawberries (rain or shine) until late afternoon. I did this for 3 weeks, and was paid something like $104. I then spent that money on school clothes. It wasn't always fun, but I learned about hard work. I learned about being responsible to get my butt out of bed and catch the bus, without my Mom telling me to. I learned the value of the dollar, and had to budget that money to get as many clothes as I could. All great lessons.

Now I won't be putting Nate on a berry bus (I think there are new child labor laws against those) but I will be teaching him responsibility. He will have chores, and when he's old enough, he will have a job to earn money. As a teenager, there will not be fighting over him mowing the lawn. It will be part of his contribution to the household. On that same note, there will not be gender specific roles in this house. Lily will learn to mow the lawn, and Nate will learn to cook and do laundry. These are all life skills that they need to know.

The Love Lights Rock

My brother Rob's band, The Love Lights, played a concert at a park last weekend. I try to take the kids to these kind of concerts, since it's the only time they can see Rob play. The band put on a great show, and Lily danced her heart out. Click HERE to see a video. You can also check out more music by The Love Lights on itunes.

Tears and a little freak out

I don't tend to get emotional about my kids growing up. I enjoy every stage and am excited for them as they move on to new things. Today was the exception. Today was the last day of school for my 4th grader and my 1st grader. They are now officially a 5th grader and a 2nd grader. Somehow I am not ready for that. How is it that Nate has just one year left of Elementary school? And I swear that Lily just started kindergarten yesterday!

Lily received an Excellent attendance award today at the school assembly. They also had the 5th grade moving up ceremony. I had never sat through that assembly before, and the whole time all I could think about was how next year Nate would be up there. BIG YIKES! There were tears at the assembly for the fabulous teacher who is not returning next year, and the Para Educator (known as Grandma to all of the kids) who is retiring. I was wishing I had brought the tissue!

I remembered this morning that the kids wear a white tee shirt to school and have everyone sign their shirts. Thankfully, this year all the ink stayed on the shirts! ( I won't mention which one came home with ink on his sandals last year). I picked them up at the end of the day and they got to wave goodbye to the buses as they pulled away.

The kids had a great year of school, and I loved being able to sub there this year. Ok, I'm done with the tears......bring on Summer!

Life Skills

We decided that Nate is old enough to learn how to mow the lawn. We have both a push mower and a rider, and he's learning both. I learned how to mow the lawn when I was his age. I was talking to my Dad about that and we were remembering when he had to put bricks on the seat of the lawn mower, because I barely weighed enough to keep the safety feature on (if your weight came off of the seat, it would kill the mower). Every time I took a bump, the mower would die. So Dad put bricks on the seat to help me out.

I have been talking to friends lately about how Nate is learning how to mow the lawn. Others have questioned when to teach their kids also. I think as parents we know when kids are ready to learn, and are responsible enough.

I think it's very important for kids to have chores, and learn responsibility. On top of that, things like laundry and dishes are life skills that kids need to learn and practice (for years!) before they leave the house. They need to be confident in these skills, which takes time and practice.

So if you pass my house and the mowing job looks a bit shabby, know that Nate is learning, and practice makes perfect!

Another Field Trip

This week it was Nate's turn for a field trip. We headed out to Semiahmoo for a beach walk, boat ride and tour of the cannery museum. We were lucky that they weather stayed dry and the sun even came out by lunch time. The kids had a blast on the boat (I stayed on shore, the max limit on the boat was 17 people). It was a fun trip, and I'm so blessed to get to tag along!

Soggy Camping Trip

Our 4th annual camping trip on the river for Memorial Day Weekend was anything but dry. It rained almost constantly, and we were all wet and cold. We still had a ton of fun though! We managed to have campfires and smores every night. We had our 2nd annual family softball game, which were were all looking forward to. The kids had fun and slept in the tent with Uncle Marty (brave soul!). Sunday night we had our deep fry night. Everyone brings different things to throw in the deep fryer. It is always fun to try new things, like deep fried tuna. In the picture above you can see Wayne as the fry master, with Tiffani holding an umbrella to keep him dry. While it was soggy, memories were made, and we wouldn't trade it for anything (well....... sunshine would help next year!).

Starfish, Crabs and More Fun Sea Creatures

Lily's class went on a field trip today to Larabee State Park. We had a great time. The weather was overcast, not warm or cold. When I went on this field trip with Nate's class, it poured down rain the whole time, and we were soaked. We still got wet stomping through tide pools, but at least it wasn't cold. We found a million starfish, and crabs of all sizes. There were multiple times when kids would pick up a big crab, thinking it was dead. When the crab moved, or tried to pinch them, they would drop it and scream.

Lily's not smiling in the picture, because she's giving the "quick take the picture because I don't like holding sea creatures" look.

This is my favorite of the kid's field trips, and I'm kinda sad that I won't get to go again. They really are growing up too fast!!

Need a Fundraiser?

Does your group or organization need a fundraiser? I can help you out by doing a Scentsy fundraiser. I can tailor make the fundraiser to fit your organization's needs. Click on the Scentsy link to learn more about the products, then contact me for more details!

Things to remember before the next surgery...

I'm writing this post to myself. I will have surgery on my right ear this summer, and I need to remember some of these important things.

• Stock up on yogurt and gummy bears. They will be the only things that taste good for the first 3 days post op.
  
• Hide the big blue ball. Otherwise, the kids will bounce on it right in front of you, sending your head spinning.
• Don't plan on driving for at least 10 days. Shop for groceries accordingly.
  
• If you sleep on your good ear, you will NOT hear the alarm, phone, kids, hubby.......this can be good and bad!
  
• Go over the rules with the kids about NOT opening the door for anyone that shows up at the door.
  
• Don't try to bake until you have regained hearing. Otherwise you will burn the cookies because you can't hear the timer go off!
• Sometimes the ringing is in your ear, sometimes it's the phone. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference.
  
• Don't take the applesauce the nurse offers you post op. You WILL puke it up immediately.
• Ask for more anti-nausea meds before leaving the surgery center. Otherwise the ride home will not be fun.
• Schedule surgery in the early morning. Fasting sucks!
• Shave your legs before surgery. Don't expect to do so again for at least a week.
  
• Don't try to watch TV with closed captioning. The words go by to fast and they make you dizzy.
  
• Try not to be too bossy to the hubby......and just don't go into the kitchen. It's just better to not know!
  

Can you hear me now?

So I am 8 days post op. I'm feeling much better, besides being tired and dizzy. I still can't hear from the ear that had surgery, and my other ear is at 50%. I got a phone call from my Grandpa the other night and the first words out of his mouth were, "Can you hear me now?". No, Grandpa, I can't hear you now. I'm getting very impatient, only because I don't like to sit and wait. I would rather be up and around doing everything, and right now I can't. I don't trust myself to drive yet, because of the dizziness.

Dan has been a good sport since surgery. When he puts the drops in my ears, he gets out his headlamp flashlight to see better. I give him a thumbs up when I can hear what he said to me. He cooked and took care of the kids the whole first week, letting me rest as much as I could. Most of the first week, food didn't smell, taste, or sound good. Dan would bring me a plate of food, then stand there and wait for me to spit it out, or refuse it from just the smell.

My family has been great. A big thank you to Katie, who brought dinner one night. Also thanks to my Mother in Law who "babysat" me last Saturday when Dan brought the kids to a church BBQ. My Mom and sister keep checking in and making sure I'm taking it easy.

So thank you everyone for the prayers. I'm still praying that my hearing will be fully restored. I was told that it takes about 10 days to fully hear again, so I just need patience for a few more days!

Thank you for the prayers!

Praise the Lord, and thank you everyone for praying for Grant. He was diagnosed with a serious soft tissue infection, and if antibiotics didn't work, they were going to have to do surgery to remove the infection. After just two days of antibiotics, Grant improved remarkably, and was discharged last night. He's home now, and able to walk around. He will still be on strong aniboitics, but at least he is home with family.

So while Grant was down at Children's Hospital, I went in for surgery on my ear. To be specific, a left stapedectomy. Surgery went well, and the doctor was happy with how things went. I was very dizzy and nauseous Wed night, and had a rough ride home. I am still very dizzy and not getting around yet. I am super tired, and am not eating much either. My right ear is feeling sympathetic to the left, and is plugged up. So now I really can't hear a thing. Dan put the closed captioning on the TV for me, but reading it just made me dizzy. Even looking at the computer right now has me spinning. It will take about 10 days for me to be able to hear clearly. I'm ready to get my family cards to hold up to me, because I can't hear them talking to me! I'm hoping that this all passes soon, or I may not be so excited to get the other ear done in a couple months!

Please keep both Grant and I in your prayers. Thanks!

Urgent Prayer Request

Please pray for my 3 year old nephew Grant. He had leg pain the last few days and after two days at the Dr., they sent him to Children's Hospital in Seattle. Right now they are waiting on test results. If the infection is bacterial, he goes into surgery tonight. If it's viral, then they do an MRI in the morning. Please, please pray that God will heal him and that the Dr.'s will find the answers. Thank you.

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope all of you Moms had a great Mother's Day. Here's the gift to my Step-Mom Marsha. The bottom pictures is all 6 of us kids and families. The top is all four of us kids for my Mom. What a crew!

Beautiful Saturday

We had such a beautiful Saturday! The kids and I went to two local parks today, then came home to play in the yard. I did some yard work, and the kids played in the sprinkler and slip n slide. I forgot how good a sunny day feels!

Lily's Pierced Ears

Lily has to plan and think everything through (I have NO idea where she gets that from). A couple weeks ago she came to me and asked how much it hurt to get your ears pierced. She has to know what she is getting into before she commits to anything. I told her it would pinch and hurt, but then be fine. She thought about it for a day, and came back and said she wanted to get her ears pierced. I was a little surprised, and not sure I was ready for that. But since her birthday was soon, I told her we could do it on her birthday. I figured this would give her time to change her mind. She held true and told everyone she was going to get her ears pierced on her birthday.

So yesterday after school I took her to the mall. She picked out cute pink daisy earrings. I wanted two people available so that they could do both ears at once. The store only had one person working, so I just prayed Lily would not freak out after the first ear!

Lily got a little nervous as she was sitting in the chair waiting for the poke. They had a teddy bear available to squeeze, so she held on tight to that bear. The gal gave a one, two, and pierced on three. Lily said, "Ow", and that was it. She said it hurt, but gave a big smile when we gave her the mirror to see the earring. She held still, and didn't even say a thing after the second ear was done. I am so proud of how brave she was, and how well she took it. We even had strangers that were watching comment on how well Lily did.

She loves her earrings, and knows they have to be cleaned three times a day. She bugged me first thing this morning to clean her ears.

I can't believe how fast she grew up overnight! My baby girl isn't a little anymore!

Lily Turns 7

Lily had a busy birthday weekend. Saturday we celebrated her birthday with the family. Sunday she invited her friends over for a party. Yesterday she brought brownies to class. Three days of birthdays. I let her pick out her pinata and she choose Sponge Bob. I'm not a fan of Sponge Bob, but the idea of them beating him up appealed to me. I was nervous about her party on Sunday, she had invited her whole class, plus a few other friends. We ended up with 14 kids, and they all did great. The all took turns swinging at the pinata, and even stayed back until the whole thing broke (I am always so scared that someone will get hit with the bat!). Lily had a great birthday and knows she's a "lucky ducky" to have three days of birthdays!

Mission Impossible

My Step-Mom called last week and asked for one, and only one thing for Mother's Day. She knew I was the organizer for the family (comes with being the oldest) and set me to the task. The mission was to get a family picture. Now you would think this would be easy, considering we have two fabulous photographers in the family. The first problem is those photographers have to be IN the picture. The second issue is that with my step-brothers, there are 6 of us sibling, and our families. That means wrangling 20 people together for a family picture. Being Dan is out of town, we had figured that we would have to photo shop him in somehow. Then on Sunday Dan called and said he was flying home Monday night, and home for that night only. I quick called all the siblings and by some miracle, got everyone together last night. Dan's flight was delayed, but we still got there before dark. We even got lucky enough to not get rained on! I'm very curious to see how the pictures turned out! I will post them after Mother's Day.....they are a present after all!

Thankful

Today I am thankful that I was able to go on my daughter's field trip. She insisted that someone go with her, and plans were made for my Mom to go with, until my surgery got postponed (my surgeon is stuck in Europe because of the volcanic ash!). First graders are fun, and I love tagging along with her class. I am very blessed that my two jobs allow me the flexibility to do things like field trips. I had to laugh when I noticed that there were three Scentsy consultants on our bus today. But that just goes to show that all three of us were able to have a flexible schedule that allows us to be there for our kids. So when I have a bad day and get frustrated with a volcano in Iceland, I need to remember that I am blessed to have this life and I wouldn't trade this for anything!

Baditude

The kids and I were walking to school this morning and they were fighting. Nate finally told Lily to be quiet. Lily in return said, "I don't have to be quiet, I don't like to be quiet. Why should I have to be quiet. Nate you can't tell me what to do, you are not the boss of me. You have a baditude.......". At that point, I told Lily she needed to be quiet. As she was walking away, her mouth was still moving. I really don't know where she gets it from!!

Scentsy World Tour

I had an amazing time this weekend at Scentsy World Tour, Tri-Cities. Here I am with fellow consultant Val and my Director Nicole. Aren't we cute in our matching t-shirts?

Dear Metta

Dear Metta,

You are one spoiled cat. You have the run of Mom and Wayne's house, you come and go as you please and are the center of attention. I am happy to help Mom out and come feed you while she is gone, but you and I need to come to an agreement. I will continue to come feed you, but you may not bring me any more dead creatures. I forgave you the first day when I found a little dead mouse next to your food dish. But the second day, and second mouse was too much. I don't like mice. Strike that, I hate mice. I won't go anywhere near them. See here's the thing. If you leave a dead mouse near your food dish, I won't go anywhere near it, meaning you will not get more food. Get my point kitty? Good. As long as we can have this mutual agreement, we will get along just fine.

Your caretaker,

Holly

Silly Lily

I had an adventure today. I took my kids to town with me and made 9 stops. Yes, 9. I had a big to do list, a Scentsy delivery, and some things to buy. The kids have been fighting, and it was not always fun to haul them in and out of one store after another.

So we got to Costco and they were fighting over who would get the cart. Really, cuz that's such a big deal! Anyways, Lily finally got into the cart, and we pushed her around with her in the basket part. As we walked out of Costco, the nice lady at the door checks our receipt, and Lily says, "I'm not a Costco item". Like we would confuse her with the celery! Silly girl!

So then on the way home the kids were fighting, again, and Lily looks at Nate and says, "You are not my wife!". Seriously? Last time I checked, I was the only wife in this house. What will she come up with next?

Spring Break, On A Budget

We are in the middle of Spring break right now. It's been yucky, rainy weather all week. The kids have gotten creative in their play. Nate built a fort out of blankets, and then slept in it last night. This morning they turned all the lights off and ran around with flashlights (wasn't exactly dark, but it wasn't bright either).
We have a big roll of paper that the kids like to roll out on the floor. They tape it down, color, then use it as a little city for legos and hot wheels.
The kids love to play with boxes, and I get many of them via Scentsy. This morning the kids took empty boxes, cut them into pieces, and made little characters. They also like to take the boxes and sit in them while watching TV. Maybe they think they are sitting in cars like a drive in?

I am hoping for a break in the weather soon, so we can go play at a park, and go for bike rides. Until then, we will have blanket forts and paper cities to keep us busy!

Easter Photos

What a great Easter we had with family!

Happy Easter!

He is Risen!

We went to Easter services at church last night, to skip the big crowds. I laughed because when I walked in the door I told the greeter, "good morning". I'm sure he got that a lot, since when we went to greet the people around us during the service, the man in front of me told me, "good morning". It's hard to break those habits!

So we were trying to get ready to go to church last night, and Lily didn't want to put on her Easter dress. She was trying to convince me that she only was going to wear it one day, and that would be Sunday. She was whining and I finally told her that I would put a note on the door telling the Easter bunny that Lily was being bad, and he should skip our house. She finally put her dress on, then gave me a hug and whispered, "Don't put a note on the door".

Today we will be going to my Aunt Ruthi's house for Easter. There will be yummy food (I'm making rolls!) and then an egg hunt for the kids and a raw egg toss for the "big" kids. We will be praying that the sun stays out and all this nasty weather we have been having will stay away for the day!

New Bikes

Dan has been really getting into bicycling when he is home. Last year he bought an inexpensive road bike, but was having a hard time keeping up with his friend Gordon on their 30-50 mile bike rides. So he ordered a new bike, and was like a little kid on Christmas waiting for the package to arrive. (He was as happy to see the UPS guy as I am when I get Scentsy packages!).
Nate had outgrown his bike and we were lucky that Dan's cousins were getting rid of their old mountain bikes. They offered one to us for Nate, and we didn't pass it up! Nate loves his new bike, and jumps on it when he gets home from school. And it's red, Nate's favorite color!
Now if we can only get Lily to ride without training wheels, we could do longer family bike rides!

Basket Party

I have my Scentsy basket ready to go out for a Basket Party. What is a Basket Party you ask? It's a cute basket full of testers of all of the wonderful Scentsy scents. When you take the basket, the idea is to take it with you and have everyone smell all the scents that are available. You collect orders, and when the week is done, you get the hostess benefits of a party. This is a fun and easy way to earn free Scentsy products! Want to know more about Scentsy and the products? Click on the link on the side of the blog and it will take you to my personal website. Want to have a Basket Party? Also click on the link, and find my contact information. Thanks!

Water Leak

So last week Dan found a puddle in the back yard. He dug down and found a leak in the water line. Problem is, he had no idea where this water line was going. He called the city and had someone come out to look. They told him they had no idea where the water lines go, and that the one with the leak is left over from when our water used to go back to the neighbors house. So Dan needed to dig up the water line and find where it took a Y, so he could cap it off. He started at the street, and started digging. Now common sense would tell you that the water line would make a straight path from the street to the house, right? Wrong! The line did little zig zag pattern to the house. He had to dig a huge trench all the way through the yard, making a big mess. He finally found the Y, it was 6 feet from the leak. After a trip to the hardware store and $1.25 later, the problem was fixed. But then he had to fill in the big trench. We have been wanting to reseed our yard, but we sit on essentially a gravel pit. Now, we really don't have a choice, we will have to redo the whole yard. This will include the removal of many rocks. I'm thinking we may have enough for a rock wall along the driveway. I have to say I am thankful for a cheap fix, and now maybe our water bill will go down. Of course, only after we are done watering the new yard we have to seed.

New Camera

I just love this picture from my new camera!

Being that my sister is a fabulous photographer (check out her website by clicking on her link), I have a high expectation for my photos. I know I am not nearly as talented as her, but I do want nice pictures. I had a great Kodak camera that I loved. It took beautiful pictures, and I loved the brillant colors. Last May, while camping, I dropped and broke my favorite camera. Dan searched high and low for a new one for me, and found a similar one that was referbished. It works ok, but nothing compared to my broken one. So I have been on a search for a new camera for months. I started researching by price, functions, mega pixels, and everything else. I really liked Costco's return policy of 90 days. I wanted to be absolutely happy with the camera. Everyone and everything led me to a Panasonic camera. I lucked out that the camera was on sale on my birthday and Dan gave me the go ahead to buy it for my birthday present. I really wanted to like the camera. It was user friendly, and a great small size. I played with it for a month, and even developed pictures to get a good idea of picture quality. I just couldn't get over the colors.They seemed blue/gray to me. I am so used to the brilliant colors of Kodak's that I was never happy.

So, because of Costco's return policy, I was able to return the camera. The guy at the return counter was shocked. He had the same opinion as everyone else, that it was a perfect camera. He told me I would be disappointed in any other camera, and to come back next time and make sure to find him so he could say I told you so.

I tried explaining to him how it was the colors I didn't like, and he agreed that Kodak cameras have different colors, but he thought I was crazy.
Just my luck (again) Costco.com had a new Kodak on sale last week. Same features, same everything, just a Kodak. I bought the camera and it arrived on Friday. I am in love! The colors are great, it's easy to use, and I am so happy I stuck to my guns and held out for a camera that I would be completely happy with.

I really want to go back to the guy at Costco and tell him I told you so!!! I won't though. I will smile every time I get photo's developed at Costco, knowing I was right and he was wrong.

Disclaimer:
This is just my personal preference of cameras. I LOVE Costco and their return policies. While I may run into some opinionated people there once in awhile, I will continue to shop there.

Dan the Man!

My hubby Dan is amazing. He is a great handy man, who can fix most things. He can drive a tractor and pull a trailer. He knows how to fix electrical things and computer problems. On top of that, he has a feminine side that makes flower arrangements! Lately he's been called Dan the Scentsy man, making deliveries and taking calls for me.

So today he found a water leak. (Because things always break when your tax return is coming!). After some digging, he found that the water line is a random old line, and is not connected to the house. Right now he is digging up our yard, trying to find where the line goes, so he can cap it off. (My new camera showed up today, so pictures will come later!). I am very thankful for my handy hubby!

Nate's New Glasses

Poor Nate got his eye sight from me. He went in for his yearly eye appointment, and his prescription almost doubled. We were going to change just his lenses, and not the frames, but he had outgrown his frames. The kids is really just growing up too fast! Here's Nate the Great with his new glasses!

Busy!

Sorry I haven't been blogging much. We have been really busy around here. My Scentsy booth at the Home and Garden Show went well. We had a lot of fun, and meet a ton of people. We laughed at some of the things people said to us. My favorite was when a husband tried to bribe me NOT to talk to his wife. She walked right into the booth, then proceeded to ask him for his wallet to buy some Scentsy. We talked to an 80 year old lady who said she had heard of Scentsy on Facebook. That one cracked me up! Or the man who said his wife needed Scentsy so that she wouldn't burn the house down. This weekend I will be at the Skagit Valley Home Show on Friday and Sunday. If you live in that area, stop by and say hi to me at the Scentsy booth!

The kids came home with report cards yesterday. They both are doing great and even improved some. We are very proud of them and what great students they are.

Another update is that I am scheduled for surgery on my left ear next month. They want to do one ear at a time, and the surgeon chose my left ear. I am fine with that, it's the ear that I put the phone to! Please pray that the surgery goes well and that my hearing will be completely restored. They will do surgery on my right ear sometime in May.

I'll try to be better about updates. Hope you all have a great week!

How much does Law School cost?

I'm convinced that Lily is going to be a lawyer. She is obsessed with controlling everything. She is attentive to details, and has every date and time on the calender memorized. She has been planning her birthday party for months. I talked to a mother of one of her classmates, who asked when Lily's party was, because she has been inviting friends for months now. I explained Lily's OCD about her birthday and told the mom that invites will be sent out. I was told by Lily's teacher that Lily watches the clock all day and keeps her on schedule. Lily likes to plan her wardrobe out days in advance. And she thinks it through. Tomorrow she is student of the day. She wants to wear a dress, but knows she has PE, so she needs to wear her tennis shoes. (I wouldn't put it past her to wear both).
It makes me happy that she is so smart and willing to learn. She is not very athletic, or graceful, so her brains will have to make up for it. So, how much does law school cost? I think I better start saving now!

Why you should always call ahead.....

I'm constantly doing Scentsy deliveries. Most of the time, if it's a friend or family, I stop by and hope to catch them at home. The other day I had a delivery to a friend, and was in her neck of the woods, and just stopped by to drop off her order. Her van was in the driveway, the TV was on and I figured she was home. I knocked on the door and her 6 year old opened it. I expected to see his Mom pop her head around the corner, but instead, I got a bit of a surprise. I guess the 6 year old said, "Mommy's home!" when he opened the door, prompting the Dad of the house to peek out from the bathroom door....... naked. Granted, I did not see anything improper, but I did get enough to know he was completely naked behind that door. I quickly handed off the Scentsy, and ran for the car. Then I almost put my car it the ditch on the way home because I was laughing so hard. Of course I then had to call my friend, who had just gotten off the phone with her very embarrassed hubby. She had the giggles, I had the giggles, and when she got home, she had a very long chat with her 6 year old about not opening the door. So next time, I will call ahead......and make sure everyone is fully clothed!

Whatcom County Home and Garden Show

I just got home from setting up the Scentsy booth at the Whatcom County Home and Garden Show. It's at the Northwest Washington Fairgrounds in Lynden. We have a great selection of Scentsy warmers on display, and a huge selection of clearance bars. I'll have samples to hand out, and our new Spring/Summer catalogs. You can smell the new scents, and get great deals on your old favorites. I hope to see you there!

Tasty Tuesdays!

Yikes, I almost forgot about Tasty Tuesdays! Here's a new recipe that I tried tonight. I love a good skillet meal that only takes one dish! I don't know if I was really hungry, or if this turned out really good. Either way, I ate a whole bowl of it. This one comes from Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking Magazine. I changed a few things (because I always do!), so here is the way I made it. Enjoy!

Chicken Orzo Skillet

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
2 tsp Mrs. Dash
1 small onion, diced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup uncooked orzo pasta
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup shredded Italian blend cheese

Sprinkle chicken with Mrs. Dash, add to large skillet with olive oil and onion. Brown chicken, until no longer pink, add garlic, cook 1 minute longer. Add remaining ingredients (except cheese), cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until orzo is tender. Sprinkle with cheese.

Dear Tagalongs

Dear Tagalongs,

Once a year you come into my life. I feel like I am doing a service to my community by supporting the Girl Scouts, and buying a box or two of you. But why must you taunt me? Why do you call my name from the cupboard until I can't ignore you anymore? Why can I not eat just one cookie at a time? Why are you so addicting? Why do I feel so guilty after finishing a whole box? Really, I just supported a good cause, right? While you have been a dear friend, I am glad you will be gone soon. See you next year.

Holly