First Fail.....

Ok so the apple pie over night oatmeal was very yummy!  I do think that it could use some vanilla, however my boys did not like it.  As in enough that one threatened to throw up....yep and thanks.  He did not though.  The other 2 it was like pulling teeth to get them to eat it.  The 3 year old and I ate it for breakfast and lunch....and I'll eat it tomorrow morning too.

In the morning I am making baked oatmeal we'll see.  Before the end of the weekend I will add pancake cupcakes (pancakes made in cupcake tins) and some breakfast burritos that one of my sons loves!

I did get the coat closet cleaned out today and the rest of the Christmas decorations put in the back.  It is a closet under the stairs so it is pretty deep.  I also put in the Pack and play and portable swing...the only baby gear I still have, though there is part of me that wants to purge that too.

Tomorrow is one of the last responsibilities for Call Committee at church (looking for a new pastor) and then laundry.  Oh the exciting things that are my weekends!  I just am really looking forward to spending some time with the kids and no birthday parties (4 already this month) even if it involves work on third grade science reports.....wow seriously my weekend sound AMAZING!!

Have a great MLK weekend...

Baking soda and vinegar

I started the day with pizza cinnamon rolls...big hit and they will come back for breakfast soon.  

After packing 4 lunches and dropping 3 boys at 2 schools I was home to start trying some cleaning pins.  I also created a new board that includes the things that I have tried.  So feel free to check there, again I will someday figure out how to link what I am working on....not today.  

I started with the dishwasher, unload add a cupful of vinegar in a Pyrex measuring cup in the top rack....power scrub and walk away.  Next I made a mistake (logistically) in starting with the windows in the ovens I made a paste of baking soda and water and put them in the windows, which meant the doors were open (mistake) they had to sit for 15 minutes...onto the microwave another pyrex measuring cup this one with one cup of vinegar and a cup of hot water turn it on for 10 minutes.  While the paste is working on the windows and the microwave is steaming I cover the cooktop with baking soda and then wash clothes that have been soaked in hot soapy water....sit for 15 minutes.  At this point the windows are almost done and so is the microwave....I scrub the first window and realize that it will take more....so I restart.  This was the true mistake, now I can't reach the microwave as well as I should.  But trust me the microwave cleaning was amazing!!  

I have pictures but my memory card and computer are not cooperating today....I'll post and some are befores!

All I had to do was wipe out the microwave, no elbow grease or anything just an easy wipe....except that I was moving around the oven doors still open (I have a double oven in a free standing model)

Once the microwave was wiped out I moved onto the cook top.  I used the wash clothes to scrub the paste off the top and it worked great!  All but one small part of one ring that has been burned on for like 5 years came off, and I have one more thing to try before I am going to move to a razor blade.  (For the cook top not any part of me!)

Then back to the windows, and full disclosure here I have never cleaned my ovens....I know shocking, but the true truth is I have never lived one place with the same oven for this long so I never cleaned them.  So this is kind of a big challenge.  I scrubbed the second round of paste and more gunk came off...but not nearly all of it.  So tomorrow I have a second paste to try....we'll see.  It is really nice to be cleaning things and not worried about the fumes or that Gretchen is right next to me.  Though the vinegar did give me a slight head ache when I had it going so many places!

The dishwasher was done so next I took a cup of baking soda and spread it around the bottom and back to power wash (which is my hottest cycle) It was great!!  I don't think that it even got this clean when I used the dishwasher cleaner...which is way more expensive anyway!!

So that is what I cleaned today...I will concur the ovens and I know that the washer needs done too.  On to the food for the day...

I already told you about breakfast.  Dinner we had what is called "hamburger mess" kind of a homemade hamburger helper I guess.  It did make enough for 2 9x18 pans so we will be eating it again the beginning of the week.  It was hamburger with onion, garlic, s&p, chili powder and a bit of Tabasco with crushed tomatoes and macaroni all mixed up then baked for 45 minutes and then cheese on the top for a few more minutes.  Everyone seemed to like it, next time I might add some cheese to the meat as well.  

Now for the morning....I need bananas to make the baked oatmeal, and to mix up pancake batter for the individual pancake cupcakes, plus I did not want to deal with the breakfast burritos tonight....so since I jumped into this with both feet and have no plan B other then may be toast there is apple pie oatmeal in the crockpot.  We'll see on this one.  I seriously doubt the kids will like it, and I am not even sure that it will turn out as once I had it in the crock pot I read that you should stir it every hour.....come on now it is a breakfast food that takes 6-7 hours in a crock pot and you are to stir it every hour!!  Come on now...so it may be an epic fail!

And now it is Project Runway night so enjoy reading of my adventures of the day...hopefully pictures are coming.  I do have a new camera but this was a computer crabbiness.  We'll try again.

Update

Pizza cinnamon rolls were a hit.....

On to bigger and better for the day!

So tonight is sort of a cheat.  I made pizza cinnamon rolls for the kids for breakfast in the morning.  Making them was so fast and easy that if the kids like them (that will be the judge) then I am sure I will be making them often.  Just some pizza crust, sauce and toppings rolled up like cinnamon rolls.  In the morning I will slice and bake.  Fingers crossed....I'll let you all know.

Tomorrow I am trying a dinner, though I am not sure which one so I can not give you a preview.  I also think that it will be a heavy duty cleaning day.  As in the dishwasher, microwave oven and stove top....unless I run out of vinegar or baking soda.  I may even get brave and photo before and after.....that is almost as scary as posting weight or measures of me!  Yikes!

I spent too much time today drinking cinnamon tea and snuggling under a quilt in progress (soon the top will be done and then I'll post new pictures) with my 3 year old watching Johnny and the Sprites.  All in all a pretty good day....even if I really want to spend the next 4 hours cleaning my downstairs while everyone else sleeps upstairs.  I enjoy these 4 hours (a discovery I made over Christmas break) however then the 6 am hour (and a few more after that) kind of stink.  So not a great idea. So all of you that visited today...come back tomorrow and I will have some pictures to share along with some more fun.

Oh and I have a pirate eye patch to make for a pirate princess this weekend, so that will come as well.

New Adventures in Pinning!

So here is the new adventure.....TA-DAH, every day I am going to try something new that I have pinned on Pinterest on one of my boards.  I will learn better how to link what I am trying, Pinterest and this blog, but not tonight.

This is a Pinterest project, not from today.  These took almost 3 days to make (probably not a great money maker for Etsy either) They were a gift for my niece Keirra.

Todays adventures were Taco Seasoning (instead of the stuff from the pouch) pinned on my Dinner board.  It was pretty good, though I am pretty sure I will need to tweak that amount of cumin.  This one used chili powder, onion powder, cumin, garlic powder, paprika and sea salt.  

The other thing we tried tonight (we being me and my 3 year old) we made yummy for milk (or creamer for coffee if you are not 3) this one is on my breakfast board.  I really want to find a good replacement for regular creamer.  Something about partially hydrogenated oil in creamer makes me kind of sad. Plus I really like it in either black, chai or cinnamon tea.  Anyway this is sweetened condensed milk, regular milk (we have skim in our house) and vanilla.  The 3 year old liked it in her milk, (like a splash in a cup of milk as a treat) we'll see how the SU likes it (thanks RA for sharing Spousal Unit instead of Hubs)  

Tomorrow will be pizza rolls, like cinnamon rolls.  May be, just may be I'll even add some pictures.  Yes that is in the plan.  Mostly this will be random thoughts on the recipes I try and the projects I continue to play in.  Still working on the hexagon quilt for my new niece, the top is nearly together...pictures to come.soon.I.hope...

Enjoy the new adventure....come see the success, or failure tomorrow!

Making a List

This is the time of year that I make lists like a crazy person!  Lists of what I have bought, lists of things I need to buy, list of who gets holiday cards, project lists, cookie lists, menu lists......I could be Santa!!

The project list needs to be organized because it needs to also be in priority order of who I see and when.  Good thing I have been told I may see my nieces on Christmas Eve....other wise the project for one of them might not have been done by then!  

It is raining and I am baking, not a bad gig for a December afternoon.  Now if I just had Mrs. Weasely (sorry to offend those anti-Harry Potter readers) to get my house cleaner.  I'd say tomorrow, but I have a doctor's appointment mid day so that is not very likely!  

Once I am organized I will post the lists of the projects....this week I did get the Cub Scout awards put on their shirts, and the supplies for all of the holiday projects so checking a few things off the lists.....now if I can just find some paper to print the holiday letter on I will be somewhere!

For now it is more cookies and unloading the dishwasher to run a cleaner load through oh the excitement of my Tuesday afternoon!

Stacking up....

The projects are stacking up!  Quilts to quilt, tops to piece, projects to organize, felt to cut, jeans to patch, holiday letter to write, holiday cards to address, tree to put up, lights to be bought, ornaments to hang, and to make......

I am pretty sure I could keep going....yep teacher's gifts (dinners) to make, cookies and more cookies.....

Somewhere in all of this crazy I need to remember first that the season is all about family being together....it is fun to have kids to enjoy it with....there are times when I think that my husband and I get more excited then the kids.  

For now it is to work on cutting and folding for a book report project and working on one more quilt top for the afternoon.  ALong with the list making and lift making to keep things organized and me sane, slightly neurotic but mostly sane.

And yes, I think I am back.......

I'm BACK.............maybe

Not making any promises, though right now I am enjoying the idea of blogging again.  This is a photo of all the yo-yos I did last school year.  This fall I have done far fewer, for several reasons.  The biggest being I am not waiting as much because buses run slightly differently.  Which actually means I am driving more to make the buses work.  Also the school that the bus stop is at changed things where we wait.  Last year we had a short fence made out of wide pipe that moms sat on, now play grounds need to be completely gated (read able to be locked) so down came our "bench" and up went tall chain link fence.  Also, and in reality the biggest reason....I have been working on a paper pieced hexagon quilt for my future niece.  She should be arriving in the next couple of weeks, it will not be ready....but soon.

This is it just laid out.  Today I will finish the last of the rows....tomorrow I will lay it out and start putting the whole thing together.  I did paint the Cindy Lou (she's due Christmas week) I am also doing some tiny photo transfer for the other Dr. Seuss characters.  It has been a really fun project.  I am still trying to completely decide how to quilt it.  It will not have any writing on it as most of mine do, unless I change my mind that it.  

In case you are questioning my decorating..the edge of a love seat you see is going to be another project.  I am planning to paint the fabric of it, may be the wood too.....but I will get to that.

Enjoy and now that I have begun my holiday crafting I'll have more to talk about....no promises, but I will try.

5/89

3 yoyos (to catch up with one a day)

dishes both  by hand and washer

3 item trip to Aldi

change slightly in the plan of millenium quilt

Now I just feel like I did not accomplish anything....though I did also make and serve 4 breakfasts, 5 lunches and 5 dinners.  That has to count for something right?!

4/89

Today on day 4 of summer vacation we made lists....of projects that the boys want to do.  I pulled my kids craft project books and said dog ear what projects you want to do....and Ta-Da we have lists.  Now I did not have them look through an entire bin of magazine pages and ideas plus the multiple boards on Pinterest of projects....but here is the beginning of the list according to 2 8 year olds and a 6 year old!

From The Dangerous Book for Boys

Making a Bow and Arrow

Table Football

Codes & Ciphers

Make a Go-Kart

Making Paper Water Bombs

Study the 50 states

Study Star Maps

Study The Ten Commandments

Learn the Game of Chess (better)

Study The Seven Wonders of the World

From the Star Wars Craft Book

Tooka Doll

Yoda doll

Rotta the Hut Pet toy

Marble Magnets

Han Solo in Carbonite (soap)

Jabba the Hut Body Pillow

Snow Globes

Dagobah Carnivorous Plant Habitat

Wookie Bird House

Character Rings

T- Shirt totes

From BH&Gs Big Book of Kids' Crafts

Color mixing cards

Magnetic puzzle

Watercolor techniques

Rainbow bookworm

Spoon Family Puppets

Rainbow-fish clings

Sparkly Snowflakes

Pinwheels

treasure Boxes

Magic Garlands

Paper book covers

Good Manners Napkins

Pilgrim cap place cards

Fingerprint Gift Tags

Happy New Year Crackers

Bloomin' Egg Family

 Stars and Stripes Eggs

Stick Easel

Outdoor Tic-tac-toe

Creepy Crawly Bug Box

Firefly Lights

Beach in a Jar

Nature frame

Bead Worms

Switch plate covers

Crown Jewelry Holder(3 year old's choice)

Sunglass cases

Clay Bead necklaces

Rubber stamping

Cross-Stitch Trinket Box

Rubber Band BAnd

Disney's Family Fun Crafts

Rainbow Crayons

Water Scooper

Cardboard Castle

Paper Bag village

Book Jackets

Storage Boxes

Box Building

Pop-up Paper Collage

Family Collage

Gum Wrapper chains

Paper Boxes

Accordian Books

Paper hats

Craft Dough

Paper Mache

Balloon Pinata

30D frame

Beach footprints

Beeswax Totem pole

Beeswax Castle

Wooden Raft

Stick Figures

Paper Tepee

Sunflower House

Snow Zoo

Sugar Cube Igloo

Life Size doll

Yarn dolls

Corn Dolls

Ice Boats

Puddle Boats

Paper birds

Pasta Planes

Bean bags

Portable Playhouse

Lap top desk

Cup coasters

Tin Can Chimes

Bookplates

Brick bookends

Gift Baskets

Sponge printed eggs

Pencil holder

Reward Jar

Egg Carton Pumpkins

There are still 2 more books.....we'll see where we get in the next 85 days!

Have a great night

1/89

Day one of 89 days of summer vacation for my 3 boys.  This was the sky on our adventure last Friday.  

My living room ceiling on Sunday evening.  My house is over 130 years and the plaster in this ceiling is starting to separate.  It would have nothing to do with 3 little boys who have rooms above there and would never jump on or around beds!  It has dry wall covering it now....but all too soon it will all come down an be a huge mess!

For those following the Yoyo progress here is what I have completed.  See the line of light purple ones sort of in the middle....well everything above that I did waiting for buses this last 180 school days.  254 first semester, 215 second....I will still take about another year and a half of waiting to finish all that I will need.  Oh and I plan to make one, and just one everyday of the summer so that will be another 89.  And it is a good thing I will be in some fashion waiting for regular school buses for the next 6 years anyway!  I think next will come a hand done Cathedral window quilt...but I am getting ahead of myself!!

The beginning of summer art projects.  This was just using primary colors and a spin art machine.  I love this and am looking for lots of fun things to do with it!  Including tee shirts and plain fabric, plus I have the plans to make a big one that could spin whole canvases!

I am also trying to weave more, most days I get 5 shots in.  Today I did, but all too soon it will be too hot and sticky to work with temperamental mohair that is what 2/3 of this piece is.  So I do what I can while I can.

I managed to make the clothes that I will be adding solution to that will become then reusable dryer sheets, also a bin full that can be used for dusting, bathrooms or faces.  All I need to do now is partner the solutions to the finished clothes.  I still have a bunch to stitch but I know I will be happy once they are done!  

Have a great Friday night!  I have much to accomplish once my 3 year old goes to sleep!

Another tee

I made this tee for my cousin's son for his 6th birthday.  He loves Nightmare Before Christmas, and well it is nearly impossible to find stuff from that  movie for a 6 year old.  I think it turned out pretty good.  

I am starting to work on a new project that I will do bit by bit, though this one needs done faster.  It is a hexagon quilt.  I am still just planing it right now, and it will require just over 1300 hexagons.  So I will start working on it in about another month or so.  I have continued to work on the yoyos....it will probably take another year of waiting for the bus to actually get them all done.  For now I have 4 quilt tops that just need quilted and another that just needs the embroidery (Billy Joel) before quilting.  Plus all of the other stuff I want to accomplish and all of the other things that I must do.  

For now tonight I am looking at embroidering Stupefied, Velvet and Stupendous....possibly Verse.  Have a great night!

More then a few

This is a tee shirt that I made for my niece who will be starting kindergarten in the fall.  It was for her birthday which was mid March.

I have continued Yoyos every day as I sit for the bus both in the morning and afternoon.  I have not counted them since the semester...I still have 4 1/2 more weeks before school is over for the summer.  I'll let you know.

Over the summer we will be doing color theory in this house as none of my boys could tell me what colors to mix with paint to get brown!  This is basic elementary color theory and paint lessons!

So get ready for a summer of crazy posts about insanity in my home while I do projects and go on day trips with my children!!  Before that starts though I have 2 rooms to finish painting so that I can get the toys out of the basement and front room!  Much to do!  Much to do!!

first time for zero

First time to see a zero on the gauge that tells me how many miles until I run out of gas....and where was I?  In the school parking lot where I wait for buses to take my sons in opposite directions to their schools.  What did I do?  Threw it into drive and headed the 1/2 mile to the nearest gas station....we made it but that then meant I had to drive my kindergartener to school.  Had I stayed in the drop off lane he would have been late....so I parked to walk him into the building, uneventful and he made it fine.....however....I almost got hit THREE times while getting out of the parking lot as in 3 other cars almost hit me backing out!!  

Yep, I will sit in my small lot waiting for the buses and making yoyos for the rest of the semester thank you!  Well over 300 at this point!

Yesterday was Leap Day, this is the cake I made for my sister's boyfriend's birthday.  The frogs for Leap Day, yes frogs not aliens.  And I learned that I think Wilton Candy Melts are a nasty, nasty invention!  Just my opinion.

My View and Words

 I am starting a photo a day challenge.  I started yesterday since it was the first of the month.  But I did not get them posted.  Yesterday was "My View" it started with my thermometer reading 48 degrees at just after 7 am.

Waiting for the bus with the crossing guard, it has been a very long while since the boys got to hang out with him.  So long in fact that he forgot that he had Tootsie Rolls in his pocket until after the first bus had left.

I decided to take my walk since it seemed so, well warm.  Though by the end of the 5 miles my 2 year old's hands were pretty cold since she refused to wear her gloves for most of the walk.

There is my view for 5 miles....it really does not get much better then that!  Oh and yes that is Clawdette the werewolf and also a small cat/dog animal that belongs to Deuce (Medusa's son from the same Monster High collection) They came with us.

This is the beginning of my soon to me 6 year old's birthday shirt.  I'll post the 2 I did last week for the now 8 year olds. How are my tiny ones 8!  It is a blink!

Todays photo was words by the way...this is what I am working on with another of the quilt tops pieced by my great-grandmother and found at my grandmother's after she had died.  Given to me to finish for my sons.  This one has spells from Harry Potter on it.  It is for my tallest 8 year old.

I continue yoyos, I am pretty sure I am already into multiple dozen since the semester started.  The next bedroom color has been chosen, Orange Marmalade....it is even bought and in my kitchen.  I just need to get some more work done to get the room cleaned out before I can start to paint.  Hopefully next week, after I have a birthday party for 3 of my children!

Enjoy some thoughts, what have you done since last I posted?

254/90

 Tutus in progress...they are finished, I need to take a picture of the one that lives at my house.

 Tees to go with the tutus.  I think they are pretty cute actually.  The Bossy R belongs to Gretchen and is from the Electric Company.  The other ones are from Midsummer's Night's Dream.  They are gifts as well.

This is the total of the yo yos I have made this fall.  The square (almost) is the 90 that if I had made one each day of school so far is where I would be.  The rest are just well...more.  Total....yep 254!  So I guess I am well past my goal of 180 by the end of the school year and getting close to the 2 a day goal of 360.  But this is what you can do in a semester of waiting for school buses.....kind of makes me a bit crazy that I have spent 2 years waiting for the bell to ring when it was raining or too cold to walk....what could I have done then?!  But that is over now what can I accomplish just in those short times between now and the time that Gretchen is a 4th grader?!  The yo yo quilt, obviously, maybe a cathedral window and a grandma's flower garden.  We'll see for now it is one yo yo at a time.....

January First

Playroom almost halfway painted, so

moving will begin...

All of the leaves on Vega's quilt have been, well quilted

have begun the Dogwood blossoms.

Nope she has not arrived

Yoyos only worked on one afternoon at BK while watching our kids play in the play structure....at the semester I'll let you know how far ahead of 90 I am.

too many Christmas cookies still at my house

too much cleaning to be done this week since kids have been home for nearly 2 weeks...

and where did those 13 days go?  My goodness they flew!

More blogging this year and 

Banish the Beige!

Just a few

The stockings are hung...yes I made them, yes to match each child's quilt....yes I am that big of a quilt nerd.

Paper plate angels the top one I made when I was like 4...she lives at the top.  Now 3 of my 4 children have made a version of the same thing, they all go near the top.

Gifts to wrap for my children & husband...yep that is the whole stack.  Add a new pair of pjs and stocking stuffers and that's it!

Gifts to wrap for each set of parents (except for my dad's which well is not even started let alone finished yet!), all the nieces, and both godbabies and their siblings!  Still need to wrap this pile, and no the wand is not part of the gifts it was just on the floor as well.

Bag of goodies from JoAnns that includes miles of tulle for 4 tutus I will be making.  Ok miles is a bit of a stretch, but literally it is like 25 years so it seems like miles!  

Today I finished a tee shirt for my 2 year old to match her brothers'.  They have their initial and a Santa hat perched on it.  I also made her a really cute little ruffle skirt to go with it.  This they can all wear for Santa pictures and for Christmas day at my husband's parents'.  That way they look nice in pictures but I don't really have to worry too much about it and they are still in something comfortable.  

I still have tutus and tee shirts, cookies and teacher dinners and a whole rag quilt to make....plus Christmas cards to send and kids are only at school 2 days next week.  

I have continued to work on yoyos, while I make my own personal hole in the ozone layer as I go through 10 miles worth of gas sitting in a parking lot waiting for busses to arrive picking up or dropping off for school.  Yes I am a bit bitter about it, but it is what it is...and part of that is a BIG waste for me!  Have a great one, I will do m best to post a bit more in the next week and much more as of the 26th!

First art project

This is the first art project Andrew brought home from art class....and I am deflated!  I know he can do better work, that is not the point.  Point being using white crayon on manilla paper...seriously!  and to encourage the kids to just trace leaf outlines and then fill in to make snowflakes!  There is so much here that could have been....A dark paper, snowflakes that are individual!  This is why I am jealous when I see what some of my art teacher friends do with kindergarteners.  This is also why I try to do more at home.  

I am working on Vega's quilt.  I made 3 yoyos today.  Next is the rush to finish Christmas projects....cards, ornaments, baking and finalizing gifts.  Tomorrow I am helping to teach second graders to add double digits....time to break out my teacher voice!  Have a great night!

That's SO tinsel!

SOme new yoyo pictures....one week over 3/4 of the way through the first half of the year.  Soon you will get the number of how close we are to the 90 half way mark.  I am sure that I am well past that, but we will see where we are at the semester.

The middle picture is my holiday decorations, mostly ornaments that need to be put up this week.  That is what I have spent most of the day doing today.  $300 in OnLine shopping, 2 hours worth of fluffing the tree, stockings hung, Santa letters written by children and just a bit of quilting done.  

Now I am watching Prep and Landing....which the first one is my all time favorite kids Christmas show!  I have much to do, and it will all get done before I manage to go to sleep on Christmas Eve....and it will all be worth it! 

I am thinking about making an ornament for each kid...it is something I have wanted to start, but when would there be a better time?  Actually I think I will figure out how to do that for my kids this year and then add nieces and friends' kids next year!  Way to go, lay it out there now so I really have to do it!  I still have to make the 3 projects that I promised to have done this year on New Year's DAy!  Oh well....have a great night all. I will try to manage to post a bit more as we get closer.