A CHEERful daughter

Blondie and her friend came in to her friend's mom and me to perform a cheer for us. Here's their cheer: Here's number one, but where's number two? Mitt's the only one that knows what to do. He got a lotta spirit, He got a lotta pride, Let's all hear it for Mitt Romney!!
It was hilarious, because we hadn't said a word about Mitt Romney, and I wasn't sure where they got that idea. Then I went outside and noticed a Mitt Romney sign in our yard and figured that was probably what did it. So if anyone needs a cheer, you can come to our house, although it may cost you. Blondie also wanted to raise money for a school field trip, so she made a sign and stood out on the sidewalk (in her outfit with pom poms, of course). The sign read "Put your name in my cheer for 5o cents". Pretty ambitious, but I'm not sure if it's the best way to raise the money. Good try, Blondie girl!

Valentine stamp 'n craft workshop!!

Valentine stamp ‘n craft workshop!

Ok friends, I decided I couldn’t let Valentine’s day pass without some cute craft ideas and projects. I am hosting a workshop to come make 3 cute Valentine’s. A wooden picture frame (you can use the saying or insert a photo), a candy bag, and a candy bar pull pouch.
These are gift worthy projects you will want to copy and give to all your sweethearts!

Details:
Prepaid fee of $12 due by Saturday, February 2.
*I can take credit cards, but add an extra dollar for the processing fee.
The workshop date is Saturday, February 9 from 10 am – 12 pm

I need at least 5 people to hold the workshop, and space is limited so contact me ASAP to hold your spot!

I'm trying to sell this...

If anyone who reads this is interested, or knows someone who is interested, I am selling this Making Memories Tag Curler. I won it as a prize, and need the money more right now. It looks like a fun little gadget, and comes with an extra pack of metal tags. They have all kinds of sentiments on them, and some have cut out images like flowers, hearts, moon, star and butterfly. Let me know if you want more info. or anything. I would like $20 or best offer for the set. It retails for $24.99 for the tag curler and $3.99 for the extra set of tags. They are new never opened. Is that enticing enough for ya? Anyone, anyone? Beuller? :)

Blessing number 3

This week I have to say I am very thankful for DH. He is just such a great man. He puts up with me like no one else could, I'm sure! Like yesterday, when I was in the worst mood EVER. I'm not sure what was wrong with me, call it hormones maybe, but I'm glad today was a new day and all my kids survived. :)
DH is handsome, understanding, a great communicator, fabulous with our kids - taking them on dates, talking to them about gospel topics, encouraging them to choose the right in ways that they actually listen to and want to do, and just being a fun and involved dad. He does as much with their school class as I do, and they all love him. He is literally the smartest person I know, including a pretty darn near photographic memory. He also tells me how much he loves me on a regular and frequent basis and even on my ugliest of days assures me I am beautiful.
No, he's not perfect, but we are a good match and I know without a doubt that he is the one and only man for me!

Boys love gunpowder

Maybe it's a boy thing, but in Mexico there were remnants of New Year's fireworks all over the yard and whenever Dr. Destructo came across one, he would sniff the bejeebers out of it. Like practically shove the thing in his nose kind of smelling it. If he is anything like his dad, a love of gunpowder is in his blood.

Menonite Cheese

We just got back from Mexico, where we had the BEST time at DH's parents house. It was fun, yet relaxing at the same time. One of the fun things we did this time was tour a Menonite cheese factory. The Menonites are Germans that live kind of like Amish, but in Mexico. They are actually slowly becoming more modernized. The colony we visited use cars and have rubber tires on their tractors.
Their cheese is pretty good. The factory smelled funny and kind of sour, but I didn't think it was too bad. (the kids didn't like the smell at all) It only takes about 2 days to complete the cheese, which is much faster than I thought. First they put fresh milk into a bin and add rennet to curdle the milk. It takes about 30 min. to curdle. The whey (watery liquid) then drains out and the curds settle together. They then slice this into chunks to put into the cutter. Then they cut the cheese. (hahahaha) Then they add salt and rake the chunks with a pitchfork thingy to distribute the salt. Then they put the salted cheese chunks into round containers that have been lined with cheesecloth. These containers then get stacked together sideways and pressed together. They remain pressed over night, and the excess liquid drains out. In the morning, they take the cheese rounds out of the containers and dip them into wax and then put them into the refrig. storage until they are shipped out and sold. Pretty cool!
I'll post more pictures and info about the trip later.

Another week, another birthday

OK, blessing week number 2. We have another birthday to report and celebrate!! My Teeny Bopper has turned the big 1-2!!!! So she is my blessing to mention this time. She is such a fun and witty girl. She is fun to shop with, hang with, talk to and play games with. And talk about baby-sitter... She is fab! She has a great head on her shoulders and has the good sense to choose good friends. I love that she loves to read and has her dad's memory (thank GOODNESS for that!). She is a budding artiste and has passed on her drawing skills to her sister Blondie. I hope she knows we appreciate and love her. I have been thanking Heavenly Father for her for the last 12 years and she is a huge blessing in my life. Love you, Teeny bopper dear! :)

We are going to pretend it is Sunday (yesterday)...

OK, I am jumping in a day late, but pretending I'm right on time for the 52 blessings challenge. This is a challenge to post something I am thankful for each week of 2008. So my first blessing is...MY AWESOME DAUGHTER SWEET G. She just turned 10 yesterday, and I can't imagine life without her! She is so sweet (hence the name "Sweet G") and gorgeous to boot! She was born colicky, but has since made up for it. :) Sweet G has always had a very smiley, happy disposition. Her great-grandpa calls her his "Smiley". She can brighten up my day with her attitude. Always wants to cuddle and make peace in any situation. She is good at sharing and is such a super helper. I can ask her to do something and have confidence that she will do her best. She likes order and loves to experiment with cooking and crafts. (where did she get THAT from??? haha) We love her to pieces and she is such a blessing in my life and a key to our family. Love ya, Sweet G!!

I'm a blonde at heart...

But not on my head!! I finally did it--I colored my hair and am now a brunette. It's very different, but I like it. It's a fun change for a while. Thank GOODNESS my friend Hotmama suggested not to buy a color any darker than light brown. It came out darker than I thought it would. I bought the kit that had a base color and then highlights to add. Again, thank GOODNESS for the highlights!! It makes it not quite so dark, especially around my face. Still a shock when I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. But fun! Anyway, here are some pics of in process and then the end result. It's a good laugh! :) Oh, here's a little guide to the photos.
Photo 1: With the base color on. Yes, I dyed the eyebrows so I wouldn't look so fake. My brows are super blonde so I think this was a good idea. During the processing I looked like a Groucho Marx child.
Photo 2: The base color is done and I'm a little scared!!
Photo 3: OK, the highlights are on and I HOPE this works!
Photo 4: Not so bad, and that's a good thing since I'm stuck like this for a while.