I'll admit it....I'm a reader.

Ladies and Gentlemen...

I like books.  I think that is an understatement.  I really like books.  I will read most fiction genres and a few non-fiction as well.  If there is an occasion to get me a gift you can go one of few ways, a gift card to Staples or Chipotle  (both of which require their own post) or a gift card to a book store.  My face will light up and then my eyes will glaze over as I start to ponder which of the many books I will purchase from my every growing wish list.

(This is the book shelf in the computer room.)

My sister feeds my addiction.  She sends me links to book blogs, emails me titles of books I "have got to read", and even brings me books she has finished reading so I may read them without tracking them down or having a due date stamped on the inside.

My husband has learned how my yearning for stories influences where we live.  During our moves (there have been three so far in our 12 year marriage) while house hunting, I also look at the local library.  I have mapped them out and made him drive by and if they are open, I go inside to check things out.

 (Books from one of the libraries we visit...often)

My parents lived with and understood my need for reading.  My sisters were allowed to check out five books at a time from the library growing up.  I was allowed ten.  Mom knew I would still finish them before our next trip to the wonderful building filled with shelves and shelves of books.

I have a tote bag that is used for nothing but toting books while we are on vacation.  I take no fewer than six but usually more like 8 or 10 books on long trips.  If I am sitting still for more than 60 seconds, I pull out my book and pick up where I left off.  Yes my wonderful husband has asked me to take books out of my purse and leave them at the hotel so we can talk in the car instead of me reading the whole time.  I oblige him most of the time.

I am known by a few ladies in my neighborhood as the book lady.  I have loaned books to friends and neighbors and have recommended series of stories to mothers for their children for summer reading (I mean well kids, I really do).

(Book shelf in bedroom.)

Well, it has come full circle.  My oldest little m has discovered the joy of reading on his own.  He is devouring chapter books this summer like they are candy.  He reads in bed, in the car, in the five minutes before supper he even squeezes in a few pages.  What is a mom to do?

Get him a tote bag and take him to the library the day before we leave for vacation.

Happy reading all!!

Summer in Full Swing

Summer is here in full swing.

We are fielding all of our options: swimming, the library, the park, the water park...just to name a few.

A lot of activities are done on the fly.

We catch what we can...

Sometimes running from one place to another.

But at the end of each busy day, we make it home safe.

Enjoy your summer everyone! 

Arts and Crafts

I will be the first to admit while I can be creative, I am not a craft person.  I appreciate those who love to sit down with glue sticks, construction paper, and Popsicle sticks and create with their children.  They relish the glitter, scissor scraps, and blobs of glue as evidence of fun that was had.  I see a mess to be cleaned up.  Needless to say, we don't do a lot of crafts at our house.

Over Mother's Day weekend (see the three previous posts), my mom came up with an idea for the grandkids to do a little craft.  We ran out of time at her house, but I kept the idea tucked away.

A few days ago (I don't keep ideas tucked for very long) I got the supplies:

A

 A stack of clear plastic plate with no flowers in the middle (found in the superstore paperplate aisle, not the party section).  

 

A bunch of permanent markers, assorted colors.  Not that I am a brand person, but Sharpie worked better than the off brand for this project.

That's it for supplies.  Unless you count the kids.  Bring on M-1 and M-2.

They flipped the plates over so they colored the bottoms, not the eating surface.  And they were off!

They started slow.

Oh, I forgot, put an old placemat or paper towel under the plate, so when they color on the edge it doesn't get on your table.

Soon they picked up speed.

Another thing to remember, if words are being used, write them backwards so they come out frontward when the plate is flipped back over.

The result is a work of art that holds food!

Fun with purpose!

PS Mr. Clean Magic Eraser takes permanent marker off wooden kitchen tables!

Mother's Day Weekend - Family Edition

Once we reached Mom and Dad's house, and got the car unloaded, we settled in.  The cousins were so excited to see...

Y

Yes, that would be right.  The southern cousins had not met our little pooch yet.  They loved her (although one of the nieces insisted Jedi was a "he").

They each had to have a turn driving the leash.

Once Jedi was plum tuckered out, the oldest of the eight kids had a wonderful time playing outside in the slightly chilly weather. 

Adventures were undertaken and trees were climbed.  Imaginary treasures were found and the younger contingent...

longed to be part of the action!

The food, which is a part of any good family gathering, was amazing.  Mom saw a centerpiece in a magazine that she wanted to try.  So she assembled the base for a topiary.  My younger sister and I decorated it with cupcakes.  Let me put it this way, I baked the cupcakes.  Sudeana placed the cupcakes on the tree, and we both iced them into the blossoms on the tree.

It was a lot of fun.  We even brought in an engineer to help keep the topiary from falling over because the center of gravity was a little off.  He did some deep thinking over the matter...

Seriously, my wonderful honey supervised the outside crew the majority of the time they spent in the breezy, chilly yard.

They best thing about our Mother's Day super busy weekend...

fun with the family!

I hope everyone had a super Mother's Day as well.

Mother's Day Weekend (Cont.)

Picking up where I left off yesterday, Saturday morning began in a blur.  

8:30 AM found us breakfasted, dressed in layers, sitting field-side at Matthew's T-ball game.  It was cold and windy, but we toughed it out, Mikey and I on the sidelines and Mike and Matt on the field (Mike is assistant coach).

Usually they play three innings, but on this chilly morning, the coaches decided to play an extra inning.  Well, that shot my carefully planned timeline right out of the water.  

Mikey and I had to head off to karate and miss the last inning of my baby's (don't tell him I called him that) game.  We made it to karate just in time to change into our gui's (that the white pj looking outfit they make you wear) and hit the mat.  I got to take a class with Mikey in honor of Mother's Day.  It was fun.  

Then Mike and Matt came to pick up Mikey for lunch and to pack the car. I stayed to take my own class. Two karate classes back to back, not a good idea, by the way.


When I finished class, I went home showered, pack a few last minute items, loaded Jedi into her travel cage, and Matt and I drove to my parents' home to enjoy a family filled weekend.  We were on the road by 2:15 with a brief stop for a little caffeine. Mike and Mikey would follow in the green car after Mikey's game at 4:45 PM.


About an hour and a half into the trip, Mike calls.  Mikey's game had been canceled due to high winds.  He just happened to check e-mail before they left for the game.  The email had been sent at 2:17!!!  I could have ridden in the passenger seat and had a wonderful nap while my husband drove all of us in one car!  Bummer!


But shortly after that call, my littlest M and I reached our destination.  We unloaded Jedi (and the rest of the stuff) and went in the house to celebrate Mother's Day with the rest of my family.


Tomorrow, (if our ailing computer holds out) I will have pictures to illustrate the third and final day of our wonderful weekend!


Until then...

Mother's Day

This year, the Three M's and I celebrated Mother's Day on Friday.  Our plans for the rest of the weekend included baseball, karate, traveling, and extended family.  So we all got ready this past Friday evening and headed to The Roadhouse to honor all that I do as "Mom" of this crew.

Before we left for dinner, the gifts were presented. Matt had already presented me with a beautiful beaded bracelet he had made at school. 

He couldn't wait for me to unwrap it.  So I received his gift on Wednesday, "so you would have it to wear for Sunday." I enjoyed hearing the process of making the bracelet and how he chose each bead just for me.


Mikey made a beautiful card with construction paper roses on the front.  Then both boys presented me with a wonderful travel mug for my hot tea that I drink each morning to drive Matt to school and run errands.  

I have always said I couldn't travel next door without a drink in my hand.  This makes it a lot easier.

My wonderful honey also got me a gift for being the mother of his boys.

I love PJ's. They're just fun.


On our way to dinner, I noticed something hanging from our front pourch.

 From all my guys.  I love getting hanging baskets for Mother's Day.

After our meal at the Texas Roadhouse, we went home and prepared for the whirlwind day to follow.  But that is another post for tomorrow.

Pancakes in a rush.

Every once in a while, the Three M's and Me like to have breakfast for dinner.  I am not a morning person, but I love breakfast food, so I cook it when I will enjoy it - in the evening. 

A few days ago, I had scheduled to have pancakes for supper, but did not have the time to stand at the griddle and flip the double batch of batter I had stirred up. I had a meeting at the school (my baby is headed to kindergarten, but that's another post) and the three M's were headed to a ball game (Mikey's team won, by the way).  So I came up with an alternative method for cooking my flapjacks, minus the flap.

Be sure you use the cookie sheet with the edge around it (also known as a jelly-roll or sheet cake pan).  Otherwise you will have a large mess to clean up.

I cooked this for twenty minutes in a 365* oven.  And Voila...

Now remember this was a double batch of pancake batter.  The "pancake" came out to be about an inch thick.  I cut it into large squares and served like a "normal" pancake.  If you want to have a little more fun, let the kids go to town on the whole thing with some cookie cutters.  The three M's prefer the "old fashioned" pancakes, but this is acceptable when time is short, and they have not experienced the cookie cutter version yet.  Maybe next time.