whew

So we arrived home from our trip nicely. One little problem: the boys are sick. Eric is on the mend and I am beginning my way down that path.  

Then this week we have the kids that I watch on occasion. It's been a long time since I have had them and this time there is a new addition. A six month old baby girl.  The boys are wonderful with her.  They love playing with her and are a big help when I need it.  It has been interesting when all five are here. I really am enjoying myself.

I am also trying to get at least one group activity done a day.  Yesterday the boys wrote in their circle journals.  Today we made Advent countdown calendars. I got the idea from Family Fun magazine.

I took plastic bubble wrap and cut it out so there were 24 circles.  Then the kids picked out the colored stickers and put them on. I wrote the numbers for some. Will also decided to decorate the outside around the bubbles.  The directions had called for white stickers and then to decorate them in holiday colors. But sticking with the motto of "use what we have", we used a variety of whatever there was. I think it looks festive and the kids are excited to hear the "pop" every day as they countdown the days.

Thankful

*Thankful to be home safely after driving 23 hours straight.

*Thankful to be sleeping in our beds tonight.

*Thankful the house is safe after being away for 2 weeks.

*Thankful for the warm fire Eric built right when we walked in the door tonight.

*Thankful for two weeks in the warm sunshine, making some pretty silly memories.

*Thankful for a peaceful week of open ended playing and lots of reading.

*Thankful for two wonderful people (parents to us, grandparents to the boys), that open their home with such hospitality.

Thankful my boys still enjoy being with their Mama.

all the little mickeys

We saw Mickey in lots of different shapes and places.

  

the last 8 days

This is where we spent the last 8 days. The boys were so very  excited and have been anticipating this trip for several months.  My in-laws have been counting the days to this trip ever since William was born.  It is one of their favorite places to go.  It was one of the biggest trips I ever had to plan. Usually we just exchange our timeshare and take it from there.  There was so much more planning for this excursion.  

It was quite the experience.  I can't say that Eric and I were loving the whole trip.  A bit overwhelming and way too many people and we went during the off season. I can't even imagine the summer months.  The boys had fun but, they too were on sensory overload.  Many of the rides were frightening for them.  One of their favorite things was seeing the characters and taking pictures with them. The days were exhausting.  We would leave our cabin by 8:00 and not return again until 8:00 or even later some nights.  Mid week we took a break from the theme parks and went to the water park. This was a huge hit.  Water is all they needed and it was so much more relaxing.  

I am glad that we experienced it and hope that they remember going with their Grandparents.  We may visit again, but just for a day or two and probably not for several years.  

I am learning more every day how I like simple things. Slower pace. Quiet times. Peace. 

Today the boys and I stayed put. We read, rested, walked the dog, played with cars.  It was pure bliss. 

on the road

We have been traveling the past week. It's been a pretty "Magical" time. Will share all about this coming week, but right now we just need some relaxing time to rest.

time away

Hi I will be taking some time away this week to spend some crazy but fun time with the family. Hope everyone enjoys their week.

anticipating

We are getting ready to head out for a bit. Any guesses where???

moving slowly

This week we are preparing for an exciting adventure. I promised myself I wasn't going to get all flustered. Just taking one day at a time.  I am trying to prepare all my lovely food from the CSA and store it away so we have it for cold winter days. Making sure laundry is ready. Spending time outside enjoying the beautiful weather that we have been having(almost 70*). Trying to make things stay normal so everyone is relaxed and things can come together nicely.  

During these days I am finding what seems to me more time although there is certainly many preparations to be done.  The boys are finding things to do independently as well as being very helpful in the cooking , cleaning and general work around the house.  

I am taking time to breath- not rush against time-. Slow and steady. Finding comfort in our ordinary days.

stuff, stuff, stuff

Over the past year I have been trying so very hard to cut back on our intake of stuff. And to let go of things we no longer need. That was my goal for the year- to simplify. I'm doing a pretty good job. During the month of October I sold almost 50 items on eBay and made an easy 350.00. Just on things we had in the house. Mostly stuff from the boys when they were younger. I have finally accepted the fact that we are good with 2. Although if more were to bless this house that would be great and if that time ever came we could easily find the things we need, through friends and thrifting.  

But I digress.  

Anyways I recently was at a friends house and there was NO clutter. Nothing. The house looked so fresh and clean. The essentials were there. I loved the way it may me feel.  I know we have way too much stuff and am going to try even harder to clear out. The boys are swimming in toys that they only use once a week/month.  It won't be easy but I would like to try and cut our stuff in half.  I want to enjoy even more of my time with the boys and not be constantly picking up things or tripping up over them.  I would rather be experiencing life than worrying where things need to go. 

I'll keep on plugging away and hopefully we will get there someday soon.

wide open world

The boys were in their glory the other day as we played in friends big backyard. They explored and imagined. It was a beautiful day to be in the world.  I am grateful that we are able to enjoy it and share it with friends.  Happy Monday to everyone and hope you all enjoy the world this week.

Sunday Smiles

pretty little package

 I went to visit a friend the other day and had made my pear crumb cake as  little present.  I don't keep paper plates in the house and needed something to carry the cake on. I used what I had on hand.  A priority mail box wrapped in paper. The cake was wrapped with parchment and a bow was added. A quick idea that I thought was rather cute. 

a good living day

Today we had an outing to a wonderful show. The Shangri-la Chinese Acrobats.  It was absolutely amazing how the performers jump, bend and balance.  I would definitely recommend the show if it comes to a theatre near you. The boys thought it was great. And shortly afterwards while we were spending some time at an old favorite beach, they were practicing all the stunts they saw during the show.

We came home to bake granola, pear crumb cake and make soup.  Noodle, Tomato, and Turnip. No one but me was interested(in the soup). It seems that I am making a new soup or baking a new treat every day. We have all these fresh fruits and veggie from our CSA that need to be used up. My high hopes of canning and preserving didn't happen this year. Hopefully next. I still have much learning to do and still a canner to buy before I can actually do any of it.

Next there was some game playing and wood stacking. The two of them were so proud of themselves for bringing it in and stacking all by themselves. We are all learning that helping around the house is an important task to be done.

And of course reading - we are currently loving the Lyle Crocodile books.  A bit a time with Dad and off to bed.

A good day just living and learning along the way.

Circle Journals

This Fall we decided to start a little project with Grammy and Grampy.  We love writing letters to them and of course receiving them. However the ones we get seem to be all over the place- under beds, in books etc.  So in hopes of being able to look back on a period of time we created our Circle Journals.  The boys and the Grandparents anticipate their arrival each week. We spend at least an hour on ours as they carefully plan out what to write and how to decorate it. It is a mixture of art and writing. Something that has been so fun to do. Hopefully something they will treasure for years to come.

a simple notebook from staples

 our note explaining the idea

  a few pages that they did

collecting leaves::collecting stories

The simple act of collecting leaves. Walking around the field for 45 minutes with my little babe.  Holding hands. The same route over and over. Every time finding something new. The excitement. The joy. The pure innocence of being 5. Reminding this Mama that he is only 5.  That looking at leaves with a variety of colors is the neatest thing in the world. Each one has its own uniqueness. Each one different. Just like us. Listening to him describe them and compare them to things in our world.  Sharing this special time with him. Being in the now is exactly where I want to be. These moments are precious and few. These are the stories I want us to cherish.

The leaves sit on our dining room table as a reminder to simply enjoy living and loving together.