Clutter

Clutter:
1.
to fill or litter with things in a disorderly manner: All kinds of papers cluttered the top of his desk. –verb (used without object)
2.
British Dialect. to run in disorder; move with bustle and confusion.
3.
British Dialect. to make a clatter.
4.
to speak so rapidly and inexactly that distortions of sound and phrasing result.

I hate clutter. I am talking about the #1 definition (thanks to dictionary.com). I notice that when the room I am in feels cluttered I tend to feel helpless or out of control myself. This is no mental spot for a Stay at home mom to be in. I have done very well with eliminating clutter since about Nov 05. I am able to part with things that are broken, never been used, unwanted, ugly, or most anything that cannot "find" a place in my home. My only real trouble spot is my bedroom "office". Its the place where my computer is, all my papers, books, printer, unfinished projects, etc..... Its a mess to say the least. It is my resolution this new year to get it cleaned up and organized to where its a place that I WANT to be in. Not HAVE to be in. I just want a usable space!

April Frank

My sister has a myspace blog, I read it today and it sparked some really good memories.
I always wanted to be a mom like April Frank (yes beth, your mom). One of the memories I have is that whenever we got home from school (meaning beth and I...at her house) we were always greeted. I never really got that at home because my mom always worked until after 5. I guess its just the little things that really meant alot. Having someone else fix you a snack(Popcorn, nachos, fresh bread and butter), or ask about your day and really care, or even cheer you on when your friend (ahem....) was kicking your butt at skip-bo. (Im still not very good at that game).
Anyway....here is some of my sisters blog
"I got a bread maker for Christmas. I was really excited about the whole thing. I remember being like nine and going over to Emily Franks house and her mom always made bread and I wished that my mom would make bread. I am glad that Jillian will never have to go through that kind of resentment. April Frank made really good pancakes too, shaped like Mickey Mouse. Mmmm pancakes!" (just for the record my sister is a pleasantly sarcastic blogger like myself)
I just thought that I would share. Its always nice to talk about someone who made such a positive impact on my life...and obviously my sisters too.

Merry Christmas!

Its been such a nice day and I look forward to doing it this way all the time from now on. We spend Christmas Eve with extended family and then we spend Christmas with just our little family. I love it. The kids made out like bandits! I'm still thawing the turkey that I forgot to take out of the freezer last night(Brilliant Alicia!). Tom bought me the Cricut Expression. (its a die cutting maching) and I love it. Ive used it a ton in just a few hours. Im not much of a scrapbooker, but I love making home decor stuff. I umm....I mean "santa" filled the stockings last night and loaded everyone down with candy and goodies. The worlds worst invention :The BABY BOTTLE POP! I hate that darn confection! Its all over my kitchen floor cause my kids dont understand step 1: Lick. step 2: Dip. step 3: Lick again...repeat as necessary. No more powdered candy at my house! DOWN WITH POWDERED CANDY MAKERS!
I bought Tom rock band for Wii. That should make for some good pictures. =) Even Tom decided that about 12 is still not to early for a christmas "nap".

Little Drummer Boy
Boston this shredding through presents
Natalie LOVED her new doll house.

If I didnt laugh, I would probably cry.

Sooooo another "somethings burning" smell emits itself in my house. I go hunting for it. (already been there done that with the house fire thing) Its coming from the Boys' wall heater in their room. I look at the grate at it looks like it had mud or something on it. I touch it, its wet. The kids have no access to water in a cup unless they are in the kitchen and ask for it. Soooo Where is this mysterious liquid coming from. Then it dawns on me. This heater is exactly at the height of my sons weiner. joy. I yell to Boston to come to me and he does. "Boston, did you pee in your heater?" "yes, mom" Why?" "cause my weiner wanted too". What is a mother to do?! I just tell him never to do that again and i had him help me clean it all out. I had to take the grate off and wash out what I could. I mean seriously! Please tell me that this happens elsewhere and not just in my home.
Oh, and thank you Beth for following and keeping my self-esteem up to par =) . I dont feel like such a blogging loser anymore =)

The things that you forget about......

Boston eating breakfast...I think he was just a little over a year old
Yes, that would be Luke wearing a Bikini bottom out in our backyard (this last July)

Natalie had gotten into the Desitin and I had to use dish soap to get it out of her hair.

(2 1/2)

She was quite the artist. This is sour cream on her bedroom wall (2 1/2)

But the peanut butter was my most favorite. (again 2 1/2)

You know. Luke is 2 1/2 now and hasnt done half of the kind of stuff Natalie did. (knock on wood). Boys in my opinion are harder to keep a constant eye on, but my girl takes the cake on just toddler mishaps!

Funnel Cakes

I saw this recipe on another blog and I decided to give it a try...I mean, Who dosent like funnel cakes?

Heat 3 C of oil to 350-375 degrees ( I used peanut oil. Its perfect for fried sweets!)

Whisk together 4C flour, 1/3C sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt.
Make a well in the center and add 2 1/2 C milk and 3 large eggs. Whisk until smooth. Add batter to a ziploc bag and squeeze out excess air. Snip off the corner and drizzle batter into the oil. Turn after about 1 min or until lightly browned. Drain on paper towels and then coat with powdered sugar and devour!

These were EXCELLENT! I couldnt tell the difference between these and the ones at the Fair. I will never again pay 6.00 for something I can make just as good if not better at home! Enjoy!

Cheese Please?

Ummmmm No.

I go to check on my "being all to quiet" boys today and I find them in Tom's office. They have my bag of Costco shredded cheese cut open and all over the place. I send them to time out and then brilliant Alicia decides to vacuum it all up. Well, my wonderful Dyson vacuum gets to hot and melts all the cheese once it is all sucked up. So now I have a dirt/cheesy scent when i turn it on. Lovely. What could smell more like a home with preschoolers than dirt and cheese? I know...Maybe someone could fart?! Ha! and I wonder why I have no blog followers.....I think its because I'm nuts and nobody wants a piece of that pie =)

A Winter Wonderland!

We got our 1st real snow!

We have about 10 inches on the ground and the kids have been making use of it! Luke spent probably the 1st 20 min outside eating the snow.

We all built a snowman which I hadnt done in years and it turned out really cute! The kids played outside for probably an hour or so before they got too cold and decided to come inside.

We helped Adam and Karalee pack on Saturday and that went well. I hope all goes will with the final move and stuff. The kids loved playing in the packing boxes and that kept them entertained long enough for us adults so play a few games of hand and foot.

So Natalie performed in the Nutcracker this last weekend and she did wonderful. She was a snowflake. Too cute. The boys did not care very much for sitting through and almost 2 hour long show. But Kaylee, their cousin was there with her mom and that seemed to appease them that they had someone to play with (errr....i mean argue over who got to sit by her).

The Joys of Boys

Yep. So Natalie comes running upstairs and announces "Mommy, Luke put something in something!" I went running downstairs and this is what I saw. Yes that is 2 different bottles of windex in my toaster oven, and he had turned it on! They melted just enough to melt the nozzles but i got there in time before the bottle part melted so there was no "liquid mess" and thank goodness nothing caught on fire! ( Praise God!)

Yuck

The tree 2008

The kids being creative in how to get ornaments on the top of the tree

The Advent Calendar...AKA the Candy House

My 3 Blessings decorating their little hearts out!

Luke has had nasty explosive diarrea all day, everywhere. Including on me, the furniture, the carpet, his clothing, his bed, my bed...Its a little overwhelming. He looks as if he is starting to feel better and the cleanups are slowing down. I sure hope that he sleeps tonight.
I love wednesdays. I look forward to my date with Tom and the kids always look forward to AWANA. They ask about it all week. So this gives me hope for tomorrow (wed) that I can get a bit of a break if luke feels better and we can all just relax.
We put up the christmas tree yesterday and I think that it looks beautiful. The kids cant seem to keep their hands off of it or the advent calendar (ours has doors for candy).

Cheesy Tuna Pea Doodle

Natalie approved and everything! (and she is one picky eater!)

10-3/4oz can cream of mushroom soup
1-1/4C milk
3 T. butter, diced
12 to 16 oz pkg egg noodles, cooked
1 C frozen peas, cooked
2 6oz cans of tuna, drained
celery salt and pepper to taste
1C shredded cheese ( I used colby jack)

Mix together soup, milk, and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Gently stir in noodles, peas, and tuna. Simmer until heated through, about 10 min. Stir in celery salt and pepper and then top with cheese. Remove from heat and let stand just until the cheese melts. Serve and enjoy!

Thanksgiving Weekend....just a little late.

April and jillian in matching aprons. Luke being a guitar hero.

Natalie showing a little native american pride =)

Tom in traditional holiday pose.

Cherry pie....Yum!

We had a really great time at my sister April's house for thanksgiving. We had a wonderful dinner minus some really ugly "deviled" eggs. I even made a really yummy cherry pie. We just had fun and really enjoyed the relaxation that came from not hosting it at our house. We had Ashlynn for the entire weekend and I missed her alot, it was nice to have her around again even if it was just for a few days. The best part was that all my kids slept in to about 9 am every day! It was heaven!

Black Friday

I went out again this year at 5:30ish in the morning to head to Shopko just to get something as simple as sheets. I got a really nice set of flannel sheets for natalie's bed for $13.00, a elmo potty training video for luke for $8.99, and a lasso golf game for Tom ( not a christmas present but i got it for 14.99 when they are regularly 40.00). I next headed to target and got 3 sleeping bag sets with the sleeping bag, flashlight, waterbottle, and backpack included for $8.00 each. The kids are going to love them! I also got Natalie barbie in the "nutcracker" DVD. The only other thing that I "had" to get while in town was the free snowglobe that they give away every year at Jcpenney. Natalie just loves them. So I ran in there to get one and ran right out. No money spent in there! Woot!

I need to be taught.

I was taught a lesson today. From God speaking through my 3 year old. I sent the boys to their room and told them to clean it. I was mean about it. I shouldnt have been but i was. They had been in there for an hour when i went to check. It was worse than when i had sent them in, way worse. Writing on the wall in red marker, Clean and previously folded clothes all over the floor, a whole package of wipes open and everywhere. I was just about to open my mouth and yell like no mother ever should at her child, but Boston beat me to words. "Mommy, I can't do it myself" he said sobbing. And my heart broke right then. I felt it. I feel the way that my boy did, alot. But Boston was not afraid to tell me that he couldnt do it and not afraid to ask for help. "Mommy, can you help me?" I dropped to my knees and scooped up my boy into my lap. I held him there apologizing as I cried. I expected him to do something well that he had never really been taught and then I had gotten angry with him over it. We cleaned their room together and did it in record time as I explained what I was doing as I went and gave them tasks that they could handle. God wont provide me with anything that I cant handle but I have to be willing to ask for help when I need it and know that he will provide. God teaches me through his word. I just need to pick it up and read it. Its that simple really, just be willing to do it and know what God says is right.

Library time

I took the kids to the leavenworth library last night to give Tom a little time to himself to just be at home. They love it there and they have an excellent childrens section and computer area for the kids. They picked out several books and went to play reader rabbit on the computer. I went and scoured the shelves for something for myself to read and a red book caught my eye. It was called "The Christmas Cross" by Max Lucado. Its just a short story but published in a book form, hardbound with glossy pages. I checked it out and brought it home. After the kids were in bed I snuggled up in my chair and started reading. What a beautiful story, sentimental and touching. I cried through the last part of the book. Its only about 25 pages or so long. I definately think that everyone should read this little story, take a little time out of their lives and curl up in someone elses for a few minutes.

Wife to Tom.

That is what I am. I love it. He is the greatest man ever. He has always been so loving and sweet to me and it hasn't changed one bit since we were 16. I wish i had some of the pictures from about 10 years ago to put on here, but i cant find them.
We had my brother-in-law, his girlfriend, and his 2 kids over this weekend. It was alot of fun. I took Alicyn (my niece), Natalie and Sarah downtown leavenworth and we got alicyn an ornament at Kris Kringl with her name on it. Those are not so easy to come by. =) The kids played outside with their cousins and had the best time climbing trees and running a muck in the yard. I totally forgot to take pictures of it though. Craziness, Oh well.

Tri Cities Weekend

We had the best time in the tri cities this weekend. We went and saw Jeff Dunham the ventriliquist at the toyota center. It was a really good show. Definately worth the money. I even took some pictures of Tom and myself together. He dosent really enjoy getting his picture taken so this was a major accomplishment for me =). We went to the casino afterward and even though it was kind of a skeezy place i still managed to win 250 bucks in about 3 hours. I had such a great time! Thanks Zobels!

Creamsicle Scones....Yum-O!

I did a lovely variation of the chocolate chip scone recipe, I just swapped orange extract for the vanilla and white chocolate chips for the chocolate ones. I also brushed orange zest onto the tops with the sugar. I really like how yummy they turned out. Even though I am extremely partial to the chocolate chip ones. =)

A few more pictures

The View of the garage from the street
The house =)
The Garage/eventually Tom's office
The Creek about 15 feet from the back door.
Ok so I am a little bit excited! We are hopefully going to be moved in on August 1st. I am having a hard time getting my mind elsewhere =)

It Finally Happened.....

We got our house in Leavenworth! We are set to move in about 3 weeks from now. I do not remember the last time that I was this excited about something. I went and got the paperwork to register Natalie for Kindergarten at Peshastin-Dryden elementary and filled it out, Now i just have to take it there on Monday.
We put our current house up for rent and already have renters ready to move in as soon as we move out. We have been so blessed and I am so grateful!
Tom is going to Costa Rica next summer for a missions trip and so he is at a fund raiser most of the day today. I had to bake a couple dozen cookies for it last night.

I am sooooooo tired!

I just want to crash on the couch about every 10 min or so. I hope i can shake it soon, i have alot of stuff to get done.

We went to chelan on tuesday with tom so that he didnt have to be by himself on his birthday and my kids picked me a bunch of "flowers". Boston told me it was because i am "Berry Special". I love children, especially mine.

We are having a yard sale tomorrow over at our rental houses to get rid of all the junk that we cleaned out of the barn there. It was just alot of nastiness, Im happy its cleaned out. Now we are going to rip it down in a few weekends to be able to subdivide the property into more than one parcel. Yay for projects!

I made some oatmeal raisin cookies today for my husband, they are his favorite. I really enjoy baking for him, It makes me feel like im pulling my weight compared to how hard he works i know its miniscule, but at least its something sweet. =)

I took a picture of luke today when he climbed up on the exercise bike. Its pretty cute. I am not sure how he got up there. in the 1st place. Silly boy.

My best friends birthday....

Happy birthday Tom! The love of my life turned 27 today. I went with him up to chelan and while he worked the kids and i went to the super Wal-mart and shopped for some goodies. I left with some not so great snickerdoodles and a loaf of cherry cobbler bread that was pretty good. I took the kids to Blueberry hills in manson to eat lunch and i was not impressed. Natalie even refered to her fries as "sparkly" because there was so much grease on them. Tom and I went out to dinner at the wild huckleberry and I made him a birthday cake. It was a good night. The end. =)

the laziness that is me....

Wow! I am behind!

Ive actually been trying to avoid being on the computer so much. Ive really noticed how much time that i actually spend on it and its too much!

Im really glad that i didnt plant mt plants outside! I cannot believe that it snowed again! Spring! Where is Spring? The kids even helped me do yardwork before we went on vacation, and we come back to snow?!

Well its back to gym on monday at 5am. Crazy? Yes. But its some of the only time that i can actually have to myself kid and husband free.

We had a wonderful trip to California and the kids had the best time ever. It is now Ashlynn's spring break .I didnt make any really fun plans for spring break so now ive got to think of some fun stuff to do with my kiddos. Maybe we might hit the Smallwoods harvest. They love that place. If anyone would like to join us we would love to have the company!

Craziness at home

It sure gets busy around here. The kids just go go go all the time. I am really looking forward to vacation where we can hopefully all just relax.
I really hope that we dont spend too much money while we are in CA. Its going to be really expensive for tom and I with 5 kids in tow.
Oh well.
My kids have just been loving the backyard today. They have been trampoline crazy!
Tom is outside fertilizing the yard. Like all good husbands should =). I love him so much. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful man.

My poor baby boy.

I am so tired. I was up with Luke early this morning at 4 until about 6. Coughing, coughing and more coughing! I gave him his albuterol and everything and it still didnt help. I hate that my baby cannot breathe at night. I didnt want to have to try and take his nebulizer on the airplane but it looks like im not really going to have a choice.
Big R gets all the baby animals in on tuesday and I am so excited to take the kids, they LOVE baby chicks, ducks and bunnies. Its going to make their day. I know that its probably not legal, but i am thinking about getting a backyard chicken coop anyway. Who's going to know? =). I am going to buy natalie a bunny as soon as it warms up a bit more. Ive always wanted one and she has been wanting one anyway. Its just going to kill two birds with one stone =) .

So far so good i guess....

My house is very much on its way to super-cleandom. But sheesh it sure takes alot of work. I am trying very hard not to burnout from it.
I cleaned my room top to bottom and did all the other "catch up" work that had to be done daily. I swept, mopped, and dusted everything and then vaccumed the entire upstairs. It took about 4 hours of work. And i am exhausted! I had to vaccum lucas and boston's room twice. But it is nice to have a really clean house. I dont have to worry about cleaning for company if its already been done.
I filled out the paperwork for natalie to play T-ball this spring. Im excited about it. Im sure that she will have tons of fun.
Ashlynn is going to be on the Clovis Point Drill Team. I cant wait to see her in her uniform. Im sure that she'll be beautiful. I was never a girl for that sort of thing. Once an band geek always a band geek i suppose.

Back from the DR.

Lucas has pneumonia (sp) and has to take steroids and albuterol through his nebulizer. Dr. Kolde also mentioned that 95% of the times that i have brought him in it has been for breathing issues and he wants me to do an anti-dust trial for 3 months to figure out if that is the problem, basically, he wants me to keep my house spotless and dust free for 3 months, um well see if that can happen. I have to vacuum EVERYDAY and dust all the furniture EVERYDAY and but antimicrobial bedding for luke and boston because they share a room. Im not looking forward to it but i will try most anything for the health of my baby boy.
On a lighter note.....Karalee and I made doughnuts tonight and it was really fun. I love to make sweets and having company just makes it so much nicer.

My husband is awesome.

I love that guy so much! He is God's greatest gift to me. He was being really really sweet last night. He just misses me when he is at work. =)
The Boys are still sick. I cannot figure out what is wrong. I'm taking them to the Dr. at 3:10 today to get this figured out. The are either up screaming all night or coughing. They are 100% fine during the day, but last night just about killed me. I got approx. 1 1/2 hours of sleep all night.
Quote of the day: "Mommy, Daddy has hair on his bottom." ~Natalie E. Sauvageau

Bathroom Lockout!

Lucas got into the bathroom today and closed the door. He then opened up my drawer (right next to the door) and so i could not get in. I could get the bathroom door open about 1/2 an inch, not even enough to try and slide the drawer shut. He climbed up on the counter and could not get down. I was SO scared. I freaked out and had to pry the window open from outside and put my very unwilling daughter through the window. She was not happy about that. But i got my baby boy back safe. I hate being scared for my kids. Its the worst feeling ever.

So I'm going to give this a try......

Karalee talked me into this. I think that its a much nicer space for a Blog if you ask me.
So we ended up not being able to find financing on the chumstick house. Im ok with it now, I wasnt at first. We are looking into building in a year. That is the new "Plan". But we have to subdivide and sell the other properties first. Joy.
Tom's business has REALLY picked up lately and he works ALOT. We are definately in dire need of this vacation to california that we have coming up in a month.
Our church honors Lent. I gave up baking anything sweet until easter. This has been sooooo hard for me. I didnt think that i loved it that much but i really do. I miss cookies and candies and all the other good stuff that comes out of my oven on an almost daily basis. Especially those super simple cake mix cookies. Im just about dying for one right now!