Cherub Choir

A couple Sundays ago, we had the final Cherub Choir of the school year. Princess loves to sing in this choir. The kids range in age from 3 to First Grade. They did a fantastic job and as always, were fun to watch. Especially the little boy in the front. He was a riot. He complained that the girls were crowding him. I say wait a few years, then he'll love it.

One last birthday post

Princess and I celebrated our birthday together, the day after the sleepover, with one somewhat tired and eventually cranky Wolfgang and a slightly sleepy Hubster. Princess was excited about her big day and picked going to the zoo. She just loves the flamingos there. I don't know why but she has always liked this critters. I, of course, love to watch the monkeys. Especially the gorillas. And of course we took the obligatory picture by the statue of the baby gorilla. It's just such a perfect spot.

Then, it was off to home to enjoy the cake made by the Hubster. It was a nice treat not to have to make my own cake this year. All in all, a very nice day.

Hogwarts Mania

What do you get when you add 4 little boys, 4 wands, and lots of imagination? According to Wolfgang, the best birthday sleepover he's ever had (course it's the only one he's had so far,but hey, we have a great record so far!).
The boys played outside on the swingset and with various toys until we were ready to go to Castle Park and play. Because, it's fun and a castle like Hogwarts (remember, imagination). They played for almost 2 hours and got hot and sweaty.
Then off to the Three Broomsticks (aka Ruffalos) for some dinner. After soda, pizza, spaghetti and french fries, we were back off to home and more spell casting. Jammies were put on (including one set delivered by his personal owl...aka mom), and presents were opened. All were loved. Cake was consumed. It was well loved.
Then, as everyone prepared their bunks for bed, Harry Potter and friends appeared (in the form of the first movie). It was great or so I was told. I went to bed at 9:00. The boys, though, didn't get to sleep until after midnight. I'm not sure what time exactly, but I came down at midnight (the witching hour) because I was awakened by lots of talking and laughing. They quieted down soon after.
Next morning, there the little Gryffendors were, at 6:30 watching Harry Potter 2. Then we feasted on strawberries, cantalope, and practically perfect pancakes all whipped up by yours truly. It was all tasty. They ditched the movie and played outside some more. With wands (black chopsticks from Dollar Store with brown duct tape wrapped around for a handle. They were a big hit!) The boys left around 10:00.
I'm having problems with blogger so I'll add pics when I can.

Happy Birthday to me!

As I wind up my birthday, I feel the need to reveal the following:
I do not feel 41.
I feel much younger.
A brandy old fashioned sweet and one glass of wine with dinner and my legs are numb.
Sharing your birthday with a 5 year old is interesting.
I love my new Pandora bracelet.
Hubster makes a kick-ass homemade devil's food cake.
Happy Birthday to Carissa and me!!

Today's the Big Day

This is it. We have Potter paraphenalia all over the house. Wands are ready for young wizard hands. Wolfgang is giddy with anticipation. We're awaiting the arrival of our fellow three Hogwartians at 2:00, dressed in appropriate muggle attire, of course, so as to not disturb the unsuspecting muggle neighbors. Fun and magic to ensue this afternoon and evening, ending tomorrow morning with Practically perfect pancakes. Today is the day to celebrate my Best Boy's big birthday #8!

Eating Out

When I ask what the kiddos want for dinner, by far the most popular response is "let's go out". I'm hoping it's not a reaction to my cooking but a desire to check out the restaurants in town (and according to Princess, the bathrooms..because I don't think we've ever been anywhere that did not involve a potty break).
Tonight, I obliged. We had dinner courtesy of Papa John's (did you know that on Tuesday, you can get a large pizza for $5.99 plus tax?) But, we did eat it at home. Outside. On the deck. With soda! Boy, oh boy, you would have thought I was the best mom ever. And to top it off, we ended with homemade chocolate chip cookies for dessert. You know what? Sometimes, I really do rock!

New Note

Today, after school, Wolfgang hands me a note he's just written.
On the front is my first and last name (very official looking). When I open it up, this is what the inside says:
"Dear Mommy,
Thank you so much for what you have done thewr (translation: through) my whole life."
Oh, how I love that boy!

Mother's Day Recap-2009

It started out so nicely. I woke up to the sounds of someone cooking in my kitchen. Dear Hubster was making a cheesecake for later in the day. Yummy!
I went downstairs and was greeted by Wolfgang and Princess. Lovely hugs and kisses to start off the day. I received my presents from them. Princess had made a cute sign with her handprint and a card with her picture. Cute.
Wolfgang made me a card with redeemable coupons. It went something like this:
M-my mom is nice
O-obnashest (some)
M-my mom is fun
Love, Wolfgang.
"Ah, Wolfie, what is the word by the O? I can't quite figure it out."
"Oh mom, it's obnoxious!"
"Wha...huh?"
"Well, at first I thought obnoxious meant really, really smart but then I found out that it's when you speak meanly to someone. So, I put some after it, because, I mean, you don't even speak meanly to us well, even a quarter of the time. Not even that much, so that's pretty good, huh?!"
"Well, thank you Wolfgang. I love the card and I'll try not to be so obnoxious from now on."
What can I say??? It was one of the funniest moments of the day.

Target Deals

Headed off to Target today after swimming with the Princess and some friends. Got some incredible deals.
8 boxes of Kashi waffles-Target sale $1.79 (had 8 $1.50 off a box coupons)= $2.32
2 bottles of Kraft mayo-Target sale $1.99 (used Target coupon $1 off 2 bottles plus 2 manufacturer coupons for $1 off one bottle)=$1.00
8 bags of Quaker granola bites-Target price $1.00 (had 8 $1 coupons)=free
1 box 100 calorie Oreo crisps-Target price $1.99 (had $1 target coupon + $1 manufacturer coupon) = free
Total = $3.32
Oh, I almost forgot. I needed a box of Rice Krispies-Target sale $1.99 ($1 manufacturer coupon) = $0.99
Total = $4.41
I love a good bargain, cha-ching!!

Famous Family

Two Illinois college students did a video on alternative farming for one of their classes. My sister and brother-in-law's farm was one of the places featured and my brother-in-law is interviewed in the piece. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHzK6bnCA88

Spring, yeah!

I am sitting here with the windows open, the ceiling fan twirling and the sounds of spring outside. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining. Ah, I love the sounds and smells of spring! What a great time! And to top it off, I got a pretty pink miniature rose from my secret sister at MOPS on Weds. Lovely!!

Wii, Wii, Monsieur

Wolfgang's favorite game is Wii. Specifically, Mario & Sonic at the Olympics for the Wii.
It's hilarious to watch him play it. Princess loves to watch him and cheer for him, sometimes even jeer at him, but mostly cheer. Ah, sibling love.
Here's Wolfgang running a race. When he jumps up & down, he's just very excited and when his leg goes up, he's going over a hurdle. Princess is simply watching and grooming her feet and toes. Her favorite activity. But, she does make the comment "Wolfgang, did you know that you're NOT in last place?!!" She was excited by this.
I don't know how to get this turned the right way so just tilt your head 90 degrees to watch it.
Hey, I never claimed to be a blogging wiz!

Alleluia!

The princess at Easter:

We're just different

I found this post lurking in my drafts folder but wanted to post it anyway. I wrote it around the beginning of Lent.

I talked before about the mailboxes we have for each of us. The kids BEGGED Hubster to leave them a note in their mailbox. He obliged and left them each a note within a few days.

Now, my notes run something along the lines of "Good job at practice today! Keep up the good work." or "I'm so proud of you being nice to your little sister today. I know that was really hard but you were very nice to share your m&ms with her".

Here's Hubster's version to Wolfgang (you need to know that recently Wolfgang made a model of community complete with houses, school, store, etc):

"Dear Wolfgang,

I hope you liked church better tonight than Ash Wednesday. I have a poem for you.

Roses are red
Violets are blue
Wolfie made a city
from cardboard and glue.

Love,
Daddy"



What?!!! This was NOT what I had in mind when I asked him to leave a note.

Different, poles apart, world's away, we are so VERY different.

p.s. Wolfgang loved the note and has kept it in pristine condition since then.

Easter pics

Easter was much fun at Grandma & Grandpa's house. The kids were cute and the company was lovely. We don't have a great picture with the grandparents and all of us, guess we'll try for that next time.

I've posted them...finally!

My bathroom was an ode to early 90's living. Gold, brassy lights and fixtures, pink and blue flowered wallpaper. I don't have a before picture of it in all it's glory but I do have this:

Eeeuuuu! I never liked it but because it was finished and I had little ones and no ambition to work on my house, I left it like this. For 7 years.

Then, I started taking off the wallpaper. Oh, what a glorious day! Then, priming. And, by the way, from now on, I will be wearing a bandana on my head when I prime. Why? Because I lost my balance when painting around the toilet and fell towards the wall. Luckily, my hair broke my fall.

And, I did it again when I painted with the blue paint. No picture this time, but lots of words were escaping from me. Best not to print any of them here. I had a hair appointment the next morning and went in with blue hair. My hair stylist laughed and fixed it. Gotta love her! (I definitely did not want blue hair before my time!)

But, I digress. Back to the bathroom.

Ah, it was so nice when it was finished. I need a better picture now that I have the towel racks up and once I get the wall pretties up. But, anyway, it's better.

As I'm waving goodbye in the mirror, I'll leave you with this. I should have painted long ago. I love the color of the room now and am having much fun accessorizing. The bathroom is probably the nicest one in the house. Especially now that I've cleaned off the counter.