One More

I had to add this just for you Katie! See, it's not just Lyndon! I have decided that boys who have older sisters are just doomed to wear a few fairy princess costumes in their life. I mean hey, remember the pretty outfits that we dressed Byron up in?! I think that we only need to worry if they keep doing it when they are like 19 or 20!! =)

My Bag Obsession

So I have bit of an obsession....BAGS!  I just love em! I can't help but stop and look wherever I am.  I do have a sweet husband who although he loves to make fun of me because of my obsession he would get me any bag I want. So that leaves me in a dilemma...if I were to get every bag I want we would have to devote a couple of rooms in our house to the storage of them.  So that leaves me to my own restraint. I feel I do pretty well, I only buy the ones I really, really, really love and I am pretty much a cheap skate and if the bag is over a certain price range it's out for me. So that leaves out Gucci, Prada, Coach, etc. It's ok though those brands aren't really up my alley. My most favorite brand is Roxy. I could go to a Quiksilver store or PacSun and just go wild! As we were traveling from LA to Idaho this summer we stopped at 3 Quiksilver Outlets. Boy was that awesome! I did restrain myself to only 2 bags though.  The bag now pictured is my most recent one. I found it at TJ Maxx for 20.00. Yay! It was a happy day! So I was wondering if I am really shallow or if there are some other addicts out there that are keeping the economy going like me!?

Dressing Up Fun

Mason has been having a great time dressing up lately. I thought I would put a few of his ensembles on the blog.

He calls that green stick his "broom" when he is wearing the witch hat!

I thought I would get in on the action..The kids started singing "Spider-mommy".

He even needs to eat in them. (*Note-Kelly is the only one who can tie the blue blanket cape properly, I am sadly deficient at it although I have really tried!)

And this has to be my very favorite! Harry Potter in "tidy-whitey's".

Kids are so awesome! Hours of entertainment!

The Angry Crafter

I like to refer to myself as an "angry crafter". You have to understand that I come from a family of creative people. I grew up with parents that would make different Christmas decorations each year, my Dad did ceramics (even has his own kiln), my Mom is an awesome seamstress, my sister Katie can decorate like Martha Stewart, and my sister Lindsey can make the cutest cards and projects just like out of a magazine, And my brother Byron can tie flies! These are just one each of their talents, they all have many more to prove that the creative juices flow free through our family. Then there is me....I like to think that I am an admirer of talents (Is that a talent?).

I see all those awesome projects and ideas and think to myself, I want to do that...then I try and I am reminded again why I am the "angry crafter" and why I try to steer away from such things. (Sometimes it's more for my families benefit than mine!) Let my give you a couple of examples.

This is a project I did on our craft day at church...

I know looks pretty normal, but the pain and mental anguish to get it to this point was pretty much a draw at whether it was worth the end product. To name only a few of my "mishaps with the thing...I had to sand the whole thing and got sawdust all over my pants!, I got paint all over my hands (I know horrible right?!), I had to wait an inordinate amount of time for the paint to dry!, When I put the glue on IT got all over my hands, More sanding and stuff on my pants, more glue on my hands, I have to wait even longer (I think) for the glue to dry, AND now here is the kicker...........I go back to check if the glue has dried and there are bubbles all over underneath the paper!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!! I, of course cannot leave it like that (I am a bit of a perfectionist, could that be part of my problem?) So, I proceed to tear off all the paper, I must now sand all the excess glue off and you guessed it it got all over my pants! Then reglueing, more glue on the hands, this time I take extra precautions for now bubbles underneath the paper, more sanding again than waiting for the glue to dry!!! So there it is finished, no bubbles, and it now needs holes drilled in it for the ribbon. I made the safe choice and found someone to drill the holes, I didn't think I was in the right state of mind to operate power tools! At least its done right?

This project I did last month at church. It was a bit better since it only involved tying and a bit of hot glue, although I did burn my finger.

And last of all, this is the project I like the most...The one I bought!!!!

So all in all, I think it is better for all those who live with me and are affected by my mood if I stick to the kind of crafts that I buy OR are given to me! (Hint, hint, Mom, Dad, Katie, Lindsey, and Byron!) Love you guys!

Cup full of LOVE

Ashley came in from roller blading on a cold, windy day and just needed a cup of hot chocolate. I was doing the dishes and I hear, "Mom! You have to come here!!!" I came on over and she points to her cup. She had popped a bubble and it made a perfect heart! I had to document it. 

For the love of overalls!

No matter how hard I try I cannot figure out the reason that kids love overalls so much!

-Is it the little hooks at the top that clink together when they walk? (and make a very loud noise when they are in the dryer)

-Is it that they feel like a farmer?

-Is it that they are warm?

-Is it all the cool pockets to put stuff in, like rocks, flowers, and bugs?

-Is it that they make Mommy's life a little more difficult when she has assist the bathroom going process? (It's a bugger trying to keep those straps out of the toilet bowl!)

OR, could it be...

-All the room you have to hang free without the burden of a waistband?

I just don't know, but I know that Mason LOVES his overalls! Every day when he wakes up he asks me where they are. When I reply that they are in the laundry his face falls, yet he does accept the disappointment. I do have to admit that some days I do tell a "Mommy lie" and either say that they are in the laundry or I don't know where they are when in fact they are clean and I have hid them in his drawer. I know it sounds mean, but I don't want everyone thinking that my poor kid doesn't have any other clothes besides those overalls! :)

It's not just Mason who loves them though. The ones that Mason are wearing were Britton's, and Quincy also had a pair that Mason will happily get the wear when he grows out of these ones. Both of the bigger boys loved their overalls too! I secretly think that they wish that they could have a pair to wear now. I also think that Kelly wants some!..I wonder if he could wear them to work? :) Actually, for those of you who know what the guys wear underway on the submarine understand that he pretty much does get to wear them to work!

(Please refer to following photo!) - See...pretty much the same, just sleeves instead of straps!

Halloween Fun

So, my sister Katie, who I refer to as my blogmaster, informed me that I was long overdue for a new post. So here we are...my children in their Halloween costumes, and might I add that it hasn't even been 2 whole weeks since Halloween so I was thinking I was doing good! 

They all chose what they wanted to be although Mason might have had a bit of urging from me. I did give him options-Quincy's old Peter Pan costume or Britton's old Captian Hook one.  In the end he thought that a pirate was way cooler than a boy who wears tights (It was a proud moment for Kelly!) Mason thought that Ashley should have been Christine from Phantom of the Opera since Quincy was the Phantom, but Tinker Bell won out. And we can't forget our cool Indiana Jones! The poor guy wan't up to his heroic self the night of Halloween and didn't make it out to trick-or-treat. Luckily he has a sister who dearly loves him and gave him half of her Halloween candy.

I must say that I have some pretty generous kids. After they got done counting their loot they gave my handfuls of good stuff and I didn't even ask! (Well I might of asked for the Milk Duds). I was not that generous with my parents...My Dad was lucky if he got a few tootsie rolls and the candy with the coconut I didn't like!

I was a fun Halloween with crisp fall air and beautiful fall colors (we haven't had real Fall Halloween for a few years!) We definetely need to thank Grandma Perkes though. We couldn't have been so fashionable without her hard work. My kids think it's the best that they can tell their Grandma what they want to be every year and she delivers! Thank-you Lindsey and Dustin also, for the loan of Indiana's hat and coat!