down the aisles

Today as the rained poured down we headed to the grocery store.  When the boys were young it was easy to go with them.  Landon would be on my back and Will in the cart.  The past year it has always been a challenge.  Can we get this??  They get tired of walking.  They start yelling at one another. They fight over who is going to push the cart, etc. etc...

I started going at night or we would all go as a family on the weekends, but those times are precious.  I have my creative outlets I would like to pursue at night and the weekend, well it's family time.

My solution. I block off one  morning  a week. They each put things into the cart. They search for things. If I have coupons they have to try and find the matching item.  William reads the words and Landon has started looking for letters.  It takes a bit longer, but as I said to a neighbor who I ran into "It's school for today".

Then we have started using the self checkouts.  Their favorite part. William bags all the groceries while Landon scans each and every item.  I am basically just an observer. 

Since I order many dry goods in bulk online, (plus hope to join a CSA this summer), our cart is not extremely full.  It works well.

I could  go alone, but then the boys would miss out on a wonderful learning experience.

Sunday Smiles

Always fun spending time scrapbooking!

winter hike

We still are having wintry days here, but with a little more sunshine.  So we headed out today for a family hike in the woods.  The snow was pretty deep. The boys had no problem walking on the snow, however Eric and I kept falling in every few feet.  I thought it was kinda fun but it wore on Eric's legs and knees, so we ended the hike earlier than planned.  I am thinking snow shoes may be in our future.  

It was a pleasant time being outside and enjoying the gifts of this world.

off the needles

A little something I finished recently.  A cotton shawl.  A very soft cotton, almost feels like silk.  Hopefully the recipient will be nice and comfy on cool nights.

journal writing

Ever since I could write I have kept  a journal.  There in a tub stored in my attic.  I have read through them time and again and laughed at what I used to think was oh so important to record.  But I am glad that I have them.  I love reading about my past and I hope one day it will give my children a glimpse of what my childhood was like.  Maybe they will be able to see their mother through different eyes.  

I still write in journals.  I have three , well four if you include this blog.  I keep a journal for myself and one for each of the boys.  I try every night to record their days.  Things they said or did that made me smile, laugh or even cry.  

One of my new years goals was for the boys and I to write together every night in a journal.  So after dinner when we are in our pajamas, we sit together with our favorite drawing tools and record our day.  We draw and write how we feel, what has happened or what will happen.  Sometimes we even create a story. 

This is one of my favorite times of the day.  A time to pause upon what is going on in our lives.  

The boys have gotten so used to this daily activity that there have been nights when  I have been sick in bed and they have written on their own. I hope it will be something that they hold onto throughout their lives.  I think it is a wonderful way to record memories, develop writing skills, and relieve worries. 

They also love hearing what I write about in "their" journals by mommy.  These will be a gift to them one day when they are older, when they can read about their childhood days the way mommy saw it.


And we do take our journals with us wherever we may go.  There is always time to write, especially about our wonderful adventures while away.

the creative juices

Today Landon had specific ideas..........

and so there is triangle monster!

a thought on books

We love books.  We have a ton.  They love going to the library and choosing new ones.  

Currently they are loving graphic novels.  I used to cringe at this idea.  Saying they were too young for some of them.  But that is what gets them reading.  William will sit for hours to looking through them and is reading as much as he can while looking at them, plus he loves sharing them with Landon....

There are so many choices these days with graphic novels. Right now they are enjoying the historical stories, all the while learning about our history.

Although graphic novels are not the only thing we read I am no longer so concerned about them.  It is all creating a love for reading.  You read what you are interested in and of course will remember it so much the better.

And when they get so excited to spend an hour together reading their new books, well it makes a mama sigh and say all is right.

Sunday Smiles

My little chocolate hound....takes after his mother.

new game

We discovered a new game this week.  It was one of our thrifting buys.  I love when I find great things.

The game: Labyrinth.  A game of strategic thinking and mazes. Searching for treasures without your opponents knowing.  Whoever finds all their treasures first is the winner.  The game can change at any moment.  Which is exactly what it did. I had found all but one treasure and Landon was pretty upset by it. He still had five or six to go.. but then it turned around and he ended up winning.  His huge smile was so wonderful.  He was so excited he beat mommy and William.  

We all really enjoyed playing it.  A great way to spend an afternoon.

shining

I peek my head out from the covers and the light is filtering in from beyond the shades.  It's the encouragement I need to roll out of bed and head out the door for my morning walk alone.  Well not really alone, I have my sweet puppy girl with me.  

This morning time out fills me with energy for the day. I feel good.  When I feel good it makes the day good.

With temps in the high 50's and the sun shining we needed to spend time outside.  Long periods of time. 

We went to the playground.   It seems like forever ago we were there last.  We met some friends and had the place to ourselves. 

It was a sunshiny day!

what one can do

Tonight I had a headache.  We had eaten a big bowl of popcorn about an hour before dinnertime. I wasn't hungry. Eric was eating dinner at a meeting.  We were just going to eat whatever was in the fridge. 

William felt it was his responsibility to cook.   He made eggs and toast.   I sat in the living room knitting. Landon waited anxiously for his meal. "William makes the best toast", he says with  a knowing smile.  "Lots of jelly."  They enjoyed their food together with laughs. 

I smiled at the thought that my babes are growing. Getting to the point where they don't always need me right there.   

Trusting your children gives them the knowledge to do.  The confidence in themselves that they are capable.  William is learning everyday that he can instead of can't.

one of my favorite kitchen tools

My Kitchen-Aid.

It takes a block of cheese

 and turns it into this in 30 seconds.

With this wonderful attachment piece.

We love freshly shredded cheese around here and I use it at least once a week.  Food taste all the better with cheese.

putting the fire out

We have been taking it easy today as my sweet little boy has a pretty bad cold and cough.  Just trying to stay warm, rest and drink lots of fluids so we may "put the fire out" so to speak.

William has been very patient as mommy rests with Lan and made him the sweetest little card to make him feel better. A heart that said "I Love you, Love Me".  Although there are many days where they argue constantly, they truly love and care for each other like no other.   

Makes me extremely glad that they have these days at home to create  such a special bond!

Our Valentine's Day

We spent the day at home busy making cards and cakes. And ended with dinner with daddy.  A just right day!

Sunday Smiles

Vermont Dreamin'

How I Clear My Head

The days I wake up with so many things on my mind.  
I'm  racing from one thought to another. 
There is no real direction that I am going in..... 
I start to clean.  Yes, I said clean.  

I go from room to room organizing, dusting or vacuuming. 
My thoughts start to become more organized.  
I dust off the thought I had awhile back and really see it coming to fruition.  
I suck up all the distractions and see a clean path ahead of me.  

When I finish, my mind is free of clutter. 
I am rejuvenated.

Strange, I know........

Just What We Needed

I know we just returned from a week of skiing and we have been skiing on the weekends pretty regularly but we needed another day.  This time it was with friends we haven't seen in 7 weeks.  We used to see these little ladies every week during pottery class and the boys have surly missed them.  January was really a time for us and was a terrific month of home bound days.  But we missed our friends.  So we headed to a local ski area and had the most amazing day.  The kids basically had the mountain to themselves and decided to conquer the entire place.  They did all 25 trails and it was a race to the finish line.  We made the last trail just as the last run of the day was going. 

I love the fact that at lunch William was studying the trail map and could tell you all the names of the trails that were on the mountain and he knew just where to go. He had it all pictured in his head. 

This mountain gave the boys a little more independence.  It is a quaint little place and basically they can't get lost.  Although I was always behind them - it was at a much farther space than usual.  The mommies were catching up.

We are hoping for more snow so we can take advantage of this weekly homeschool group meet-up.  At least until mid- March.  I am even willing to say early April!

I Have A Goal

I have a goal this month  to post every day.  The shortest month of the year so why not start there??  

I started blogging  because I wanted to share our happenings with relatives that are far away.  I wanted Grammy and Grampy to be a part of our lives as much as possible.   As time has gone by I have found a little network of bloggers that I enjoy reading and get inspiration from.  It's neat to see what other crafters and learners are doing.  

There are many days that are filled to the brim and by nightfall I just want to sit and do nothing.  I am trying to reclaim who I am. What my interest are.  I am trying to make time for my knitting, crafting, physical health, photography and now blogging.  I like to share what we do but also want to just write.  About what I am not entirely sure, but that is what is great about this blog. There is no particular topic that I need to stick to.  I can just write.  

That is my goal. To be open to all thoughts and to post every day.  Some days it might just be pictures, but a picture is worth a thousand words.  Right?

my racers

The boys each participated in a race while we were away in the mountains.

home again

We had a wonderful vacation but it is nice to be home.   We've been spending the past two days taking it easy and getting reacquainted with our toys.

 Learning new games and playing every day since Saturday!  Trivial Pursuit for Kids- we've already gone through the deck twice, the boys think its great when they get a question someone already had.  They can get the answer correct!  Daddy has even joined in a few times.

 And stocking up on library books!

the sheer beauty of it all