Kathryn's Korner

jonahs birth announcement

2011-02-22T17:45:00.001-08:00

Little Squirt Birth Announcement

Personalized cards for babies, Valentines, Easter and Mother's Day.

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Christmas 2010

2010-12-07T11:09:00.001-08:00

Bright Blue Snowflake Christmas Card

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Because when you have matching dresses, you have to take a picture.

2010-05-19T10:15:00.000-07:00

And you have to blog about it, whether the picture turned out decent or not.
Because everyone knows how hectic Sunday mornings are.
And trying to take a picture of three girls, and get them all to smile and look at the camera at the same time, is virtually impossible.
So you just post what you have, and expect people to say they're cute anyway.
;)

The bunny farm

2010-05-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

There is a man that lives right down the road from us that has a yard full of bunnies all the time.

He doesn't keep them in a fence.

He lives on a busy road.

But he feeds them, and they stay there.

He is affectionately known as "The Bunny Man"

Every time Hannah's kids come to visit, we take them up to see The Bunny Man

Cozy just has a way with animals, so she was the only one who caught one, but they all took turns petting it. Olivia was especially enthralled. She was shivering with the cold, but wouldn't give up and get in the car.

I still remember Brad's mom looking at Olivia when she was just hours old and saying, "She's going to be the one to climb trees and love animals."

She was right.

Thanks Mr. Bunny Man!

This is not diet food...

2010-05-06T08:01:00.000-07:00

...but if you haven't tried out The Pioneer Woman's Apple Fritters, you're really missing out.

Lucky for us, Brad didn't like the apples that I chose for him this week, and we just had to find someway to use them up. Yuuuummm. Try them. You'll love them too.

Cuteness

2010-05-04T07:15:00.000-07:00

We've having a low-key day today. Not because I have the time to do that, just because I'm going to take the time. I want to soak up all this sweetness and enjoy it to its full potential. I've been reminded too many times lately of how quickly these little ones grow up. I don't ever want to look back with regret for not spending enough time with them. So we're headed to a friend's house later this morning to swap babysitting while we vote, but other than that, it will be play time and enjoying and exploring the great outdoors together.

I just can't get enough of this little monster...

Fun in the sun

2010-04-21T07:46:00.000-07:00

We sure are enjoying these beautiful spring days. Most of our time is spent outdoors playing in the sand and water table, swinging on the playset, or making mud puddles. Welcome, spring!

Limiting God

2010-03-09T17:48:00.000-08:00

"And they began discussing with one another the fact that they had no bread."
Mark 8:16

I literally laughed out loud when I read this passage. I don't ever remember reading it before, and it caught me off guard. In the very same chapter in Mark, Jesus fed the 4,000 with seven loaves. Two chapters before that, He fed 5,000+ with 5 loaves and 2 fishes. I don't know how much time passes between these verses, but it seems like a relatively short time after the feeding of the 4,000 that they get in the boat with Jesus, and He is taking an opportunity to teach them about the leaven of the Pharisees. The apostles are listening closely soaking in every word of Jesus' teaching. Not quite. They are whispering among themselves about forgetting to bring bread on the boat with them.

I love Jesus' response starting in vs. 17:
Knowing what they were talking about, Jesus asked them, "Why are you talking about not having bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your minds closed? 18 You have eyes, but you don't really see. You have ears, but you don't really listen. Remember when 19 I divided five loaves of bread for the five thousand? How many baskets did you fill with leftover pieces of food?" They answered, "Twelve." 20 "And when I divided seven loaves of bread for the four thousand, how many baskets did you fill with leftover pieces of food?" They answered, "Seven." 21 Then Jesus said to them, "Don't you understand yet?"

How many times do I do this same thing? In so many areas of my life, I limit God. I see His wondrous works, I know He can do anything, but I get anxious - worried - about little things. I doubt that He has time, or cares enough to take care of the "little" things.

31Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 7:31-33

This mama's been sewing again!

2010-02-26T13:56:00.000-08:00

I "met" Ashley via her blog several months ago. Since then, I've adored the things she makes for her daughter using recycled t-shirts. I was so excited when she started selling her patterns, and I couldn't wait to try them out on my little girls. Does is seem like I'm partial to one little girl when making clothes?? Well, this dress was actually intended for Kathryn, but the size was a little off. Don't worry, though, Kate will not be left out. She is so excited about designing her own dress and can't wait until next Wednesday to go with Nana to the thrift store. We go with Nana on Wednesdays so we can get the senior citizen's discount ;). You can't beat $0.70 a shirt! I made this little dress for under $3.00!! And look how much fun she's having in it ;).

You can buy Ashley's patterns here
This is the Sienna dress with a few alterations. I like short sleeves better, and I liked the idea of them being cuffed, so I bought some ribbed knit for the neck and sleeves. There are a couple of changes I will make next time I make it, but overall the pattern was very easy to use and the dress was so fun to create. I've tried out another one of Ashley's patterns, and I can't wait to show you pictures, but you'll have to wait until a certain someone has a birthday :).

Only One Thing is Important

2010-02-25T07:20:00.000-08:00

"But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are getting worried and upset about too many things. Only one thing is important. Mary has chosen the right thing, and it will never be taken away from her.' " Luke 10:41-42, New International Children's Bible

I love reading out of different versions. It makes passages I've read over and over come to life in a whole new way. This was one of them for me. I was reading out loud to the girl's today, and their Bible was closest to me when I sat down, so I read them Luke 10, and the story of Mary and Martha jumped out at me in a way it never had before. I know I've probably read it a thousand times, and yes, I got the main jest of it, but today, I really saw myself.

I have had so much going on the last two weeks, and between sickness, taking care of kids, sick husband, laundry, house cleaning, sewing business, dishes, meals, etc, etc, etc, I had forgotten "the one thing that is important". When I read this passage today, this is what I heard, "Micah, Micah, you are getting worried and upset about too many things."

Today is a new day.
This is the day I will start fresh, and will not worry or be upset about all the things that I think have to be done.
This is the day I will put all my trust in the LORD.

Pigtails

2010-02-10T11:50:00.000-08:00

A big loss, and a BIG birthday

2010-02-08T06:40:00.000-08:00

It started good, then it took a turn for the worse... I'm tired of reliving the loss over and over again. That's part of living in the city of the losing Superbowl team. It's everywhere you turn. At least we had a good party...

Somebody had to take care of the kids, while the rest of us sat on the edge of our seats. Thanks, Trent, for not caring who won the game, and wiping the icing off my little girl's face :)

Click on the picture to enlarge, then check out who our "pizza experience" was managed by. No wonder it was so good!

Happy 70th, PawPaw!!! It was a great way to celebrate!

The whole gang. Can you tell this was before the game was over?? ;)

Cut and paste, cut and paste

2010-02-03T11:22:00.000-08:00

Livie is my little crafter. She loves to help me with my sewing projects. Whenever I say, "Okay girls, I need to get some orders done!" She is quick to say, "I'll help!" Usually that means she wants to hand me the pins, or put them away after I'm done, or "push the green go button" on my sewing machine. But her very favorite thing to do is cut and paste. She gets in a zone and will do this for an hour without coming up for air.

Sweetness...

2010-01-30T09:24:00.000-08:00

Go Colts!!!

2010-01-25T11:20:00.000-08:00

We had a super fun night last night watching the game with friends and family, and celebrating our huge victory over the Jets. Superbowl, and Saints, here we come!!
Go Colts!!!!
For those not interested in football, or even worse, those who don't like the Colts (haters! ;), here's a picture of my cutie patootie. Happy Monday!

Be sure to head on over to Jamie's blog, and check out her hairbow giveaway. You can enter, just don't win, because I'm going to ;).

Christmas at Opryland

2010-01-21T10:36:00.000-08:00

This is one of our very favorite Christmas traditions. Every year we head to Opryland to see the lights and eat at a fabulous dinner buffet. This year we went on Christmas Eve and expected it to be crazy busy. Thankfully, it was just about right. There were still lots of people there, but not as many as we expected. Dinner was sooo good, and the sights were amazing.

Christmas with our second family

2010-01-21T10:32:00.000-08:00

After the stocking stuffer we went to have another Christmas with friends who are just like family. Can you believe all these girls?? And another on the way! Poor Michael... (I would have slept through this picture too!)

Yes, I know the picture is fuzzy, but it was too sweet. They must be telling secrets. That's something that little girls do best.

Vince taking the afternoon off after a big win...

These girls are just like sisters to me. We have been through so much together.

Christmas

2010-01-21T10:28:00.000-08:00

Just a *little* late ;). We had such a wonderful Christmas this year. We were able to fit in so many visits with friends and family - some that we hadn't seen in way too long. We are so blessed.

Christmas started with Brad's extended family annual Christmas Stocking Stuffer. Maggie was a ham all night. I have about 100 pictures of her looking just like this. She would stare someone down until they would look at her and smile, then she would try to charm them with her ways. She's crazy....

Opening her stocking...

Trust me when I say *I tried* to find a family photo with Brad's eyes opened. There were 3 total, and his eyes were completely closed in the other two. Not sure where Kate is here - probably eating candy ;)

One of Brad's cousin's little girl was cracking me up with her "makeup". She couldn't get enough on. She was putting lipstick everywhere!

44th Street Fabric

2009-12-14T11:21:00.001-08:00

I just found this a-mazing fabric blog with the CUTEST fabric ever. I can't WAIT to get my hands on some new Moda fabrics and make some cute, cute skirts for my shop just in time for Valentine's Day!

I'm blogging about it, in hopes of winning their drawing this week, and getting my prize DOUBLED! Yeah!! So if you're into fabrics, head over and check out 44th Street Fabric and enter to win!!

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas

2009-12-07T06:54:00.000-08:00

We finally put up our Christmas tree and got down a few of our decorations after Kate's constant nagging. I pulled out last year's stack of Christmas cards and the girls went through them one by one, especially stopping to look at the Sleeping Beauty card from Shelby, and all the photos. They have their own little tree in their room that they have decorated, redecorated, and drug around from one room to the other. This is what Christmas is all about.

Livie found this Santa hat and fell in love with it. "Mom, I just love this hat like Santa. Can I please sleep in it tonight?"

We had our first snow last night! Kate could not think of anything else except getting her coat on and going outside. When she had asked me one too many times, I said, "Kate, it's not time yet. When it is, I will tell you. Don't ask again." So she found herself a little chair and set it up in front of the window so she could "watch it" :). I finally scrounged around and found some warm things, and like any good mother, I am watching them play from the warmth of my office window :).

Making Cider

2009-11-13T03:44:00.000-08:00

1 Little, 2 Little, 3 Little Indians

2009-11-05T04:38:00.000-08:00

The whole tribe...

"How"

Potato Creek State Park

2009-11-03T04:35:00.000-08:00

The girls and I got to take a spur of the moment vacation with my friend Alaina and her three sweet little boys. We had such a great time. The playground was visible from our cabin, so the kiddos spent quite of bit of time there. We also managed to squeeze in a trip to the local orchard to pick some apples.

The tire swing was their favorite, and we had to intervene once they started looking green.

This kid has the greatest eyes ever. What a cutie!

Getting all six of them to pose proved impossible. Maggie and Ty were not wanting their siblings to hold them :).

The view was breathtaking! Hasn't this been the most beautiful fall?

Thank you, Alaina, for a wonderful time!

Ever wonder what 70 would look like?

2009-10-16T07:16:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Joy! 70 looks GREAT on you!

Kate helping Miss Joy blow out the candles, then blow out the candles again, and again, and again... Paw Paw had to throw in his "trick candles" ;). After pumpkin cake, we enjoyed a fun and relaxing game of Quiddler in which I *almost* won. (no need to say who actually won - that's all water under the bridge ;)

Not my favorite day

2009-10-01T12:55:00.000-07:00

I overheard the girls talking among themselves this morning:

Olivia - "I wish we didn't have a mom and dad and it was just us kids. You know, just us, and Taylor and Ella and Ali and Caleb."

Kate - "Yeah, that would be fun! I wish our mom went to work and our dad stayed home!"

Olivia - (laughing) "Our mom can't go to work! She's not very strong!!"

Kate - "Yeah, but some moms go to work. The ones that are taller than the dads."

Definitely not the heart warming conversation every mom dreams of overhearing, but really I couldn't help but laugh. How do they think of these things?

In their defense, it has been a rough day. We've been slowly sliiiiding down the path of talking back and not obeying with a happy heart, and I was determined that today would be different. I haven't seen the difference yet, but I'm sure it will come with time :-P. I am very tired of answering to "Mooooooommmmm!" and hearing crying. Oh the crying. I know I am blessed beyond belief, but this has just been one of "those days".

This afternoon we ran out on an emergency run to get my sewing machine fixed. It works well enough to use, but it wasn't feeding my material through properly, and I needed to get it back to perfection before a big sewing day tomorrow. I have been looking for a place up here to replace the sewing center I went to in Murfreesboro. Unfortunately I haven't found one yet. The people I met today treated me like I was stupid. Every question I asked they answered in a demeaning way. I asked the lady what kind of needles she liked best for embroidery and her answer was: "embroidery needles". Wow. Thanks. When I asked the man what was causing my feed dogs to not work properly, his response was "user error". When I asked him what the user error was his answer was "various things". No expounding at all. I had to prompt every reply. When I got packed up to leave, he very snidely commented that if I was so dependant on my machine I should have a backup - as if this idea had never crossed my mind before, and I could pick up a spare for a measly $5.

The day ended with a successful trip to the library. I just love our library. It has a huge children's section that is it's own room entirely. I can set the kids free in there while I shop around. They also have a huge selection of audiobooks - I go through about 2 a week, listening while I sew or do housework. Speaking of housework, that's what I really need to be doing right now. I'll end with a few photos of the girls that we took a couple weeks ago at Olivia's birthday party. I'm sure most of you have already seen them on Facebook, but here they are for those of you who haven't ;).

They're all smiling!!!

2009-09-02T06:24:00.000-07:00

Wonder what daddy was doing behind the camera ;)

Trip to MI

2009-08-19T20:15:00.000-07:00

Brad's boss lent us his guest house in Michigan for the weekend of our anniversary. It was the first time we had really gotten away since kids, and it was marvelous. Really, marvelous. We loved just being free to do what we wanted when we wanted without worrying about naps or bedtime, and being able to eat junk food for breakfast or lunch if we wanted ;). We had landed with several gift cards to various places, so our first stop was to a super nice outdoor mall on our way up. We went to all of the stores we had gift cards to, and ended up with $200 worth of merchandise for $15 out of pocket - and all kinds of new clothes for our trip :). It was a blast!

Then we headed to Shipshewanna, IN for the day on Friday. It is Amish/Mennonite country, with lots of delightful shops and wonderful eating places. The people were so friendly, and the kids were so cute with their bowl cuts and "plain" attire. We stumbled upon one of the greatest fabric stores, that Brad basically had to drag me out of. We also did the Menno-Hof museum which was most informative, and a buggy ride.

Then we headed up to Diamond Lake that evening to sleep in our cottage. The view was amazing, and so many of the houses surrounding the lake were multi-million dollar homes. It was just like something out of a magazine. Saturday morning it rained, so we took the opportunity to go and see a movie - something we both love, but don't get the chance to do very often with the kiddos. By Saturday afternoon it had cleared off, so we headed back to the lake to do a little jet-skiing. Wow. Neither of us had done that since the we went with Adam and Rosie 5 years ago. It was even better than we remembered - even if I couldn't sit directly down on my rear end the next morning in worship (do I need to say that Brad was driving??)

That evening we drove to South Haven to eat at a nice restaurant and watch the sun set on Lake Michigan. It was the perfect anniversary weekend. I can't believe how fast 7 years has gone!

(This wasn't from our trip ;). Brad took this picture yesterday after I watered the flowers and I thought it turned out so cool I just needed to post it :)

The cousins came to visit

2009-08-19T19:56:00.000-07:00

Austin and Zeb came for a visit and brought their guitar and mandolin. They joined with Brad for a little "pick 'n grin" session. They sounded great together playing good 'ol "Rocky Top". Wish we lived closer so they could practice up a little. Believe it or not, bluegrass is one of my favorites.

Livie dancing with PawPaw...

Once Josh got there they broke out Guitar Hero

Things went downhill from there...

Kathryn's Birthday

2009-08-19T19:51:00.000-07:00

Was almost 2 months ago, yes, but I couldn't resist posting these photos of some really fun times spent with some really great friends.

Uncle Adam reminding us that yes indeed, Kate is turning 4. But let's not forget, "I'll be 5 on my next birthday. Mom, is it time for my next birthday yet? Because I already know what I want."

The rainbow cake was so.much.fun. If you've ever thought about doing one before, just do it! It was easier and cuter than I ever dreamed it would be. And what a surprise to cut into!

How sad that I did not get one photo of Gramma and Grampa - our gracious hosts for the week. We always have the best time ever, and can't wait to be back!

This is how much fun we had with our company

2009-07-18T10:22:00.000-07:00

And now our house is so, so sad and lonely...

Take Me Out to the Ballgame Part II

2009-06-30T12:27:00.000-07:00

Kate's party was a huge success. So many of her friends came to celebrate with us (well, and watch the game ;). As soon as we walked into the gate, I ran into my best friend in high school, and finally got to meet her two adorable children. We have lived in the same city for over a year now, and I am very ashamed to say, still have not gotten our kiddos together to play. It was so fun getting to see her family again.
As I'm sure you already know, Kate love, love, loved being the center of attention all night. We've been to several birthday parties lately, so when Kate woke up the morning of her birthday, she said, "Mom, is this going to be my special day, so all the presents will be for me this time?" What can I say, she had to get something from Brad ;).

We got Kate this little t-ball set for her birthday, and Brad took all the kids over to a play area in the ballpark where they took turns hitting. A couple of people not with our party wandered over and offered to pay $1 to hit :).

Miss Lea Anne, Mr. Jon, and Chelsea gave Kate a bag full of dress up clothes. Two of her favorite things in the bag were this veil and some clip on earrings. She only takes them off to sleep.

She didn't really like any of her presents...

And Livie didn't much care for her cake...
Friends at a ballpark with a Costco cake makes for a really great 4th birthday.

Happy Birthday, Kathryn!

2009-06-30T12:24:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that our "big girl" is FOUR!
We've been borrowing Aunt Heidi's copy of Sleeping Beauty for a while now, and without mentioning anything to the girls (because I really didn't think they would care), I bought a copy for us, and gave Aunt Heidi's back. Kathryn has been telling me for a while now that she would really like to have the Sleeping Beauty movie for her birthday - one she could keep, and that she didn't have to give back to Aunt Heidi. Being the good (aka cheap) mother that I am, instead of telling her that I had already done just that, I kept it a secret, then as she was sleeping last night, wrapped up her copy of Sleeping Beauty and put it in front of her door, so that she would have a package to open first thing on her birthday.

It worked! When she woke up, she came running in with the present:
K: "For me?!?"
M: "Yes! It's your birthday, remember?"
K: "TODAY??? It's June 30th today?!?!"
M: "That's right!"
K: "So, I'm not 3 anymore?!?! I'm 4 now???"
M: "That's right!"
Once she finally settled down from being four, she opened her present and was ecstatic. Really, no one would have known that was the very movie that had been sitting in our entertainment center for the last two months. But she was so curious as to when I got it, and how I had kept it a secret from her:
K: "Did you get it at the store the other day? At Target? Or Wal-Mart?"
M: "No, I ordered it a long time ago. On the computer."
K: "Oh. Then did you pick it up at the store?"
M: "No, when you buy stuff on the computer, they mail it to you."
K: "Ohhhhh! So actually, the mailman gave me this movie for my birthday!"

Tonight we'll be celebrating at the ballgame - assuming it doesn't rain - with family and a few close friends. I'm so thankful for the little "big girl" that God chose to be part of our family. Happy Birthday, Kate! We love you!!

Looking back

2009-06-27T19:22:00.000-07:00

I just happened to be flipping through some June photos, and accidentally landed in the June '08 file. I was just in shock at how much these little girls had grown, so quickly. I feel like I should literally be able to watch them sprout if they grow this much in one year.

Speaking of growing up, it has definitely been on Kathryn's mind a lot lately. I must have said, "Kathryn, you are growing up too fast" one too many times, because now she is obsessed with it. It started one day when she was telling me about what she was going to do when she grew up:

K: "... and I'll get married, and we'll live here with you and Dad!"
M: "When you get married, you won't live with Mom and Dad anymore. You'll get a house with your husband, and you'll live there with him, just like Mom and Dad live in their own house."
K (almost in tears): "But I can't live here with you anymore? Will you miss me? Will you be so sad???"
M: "I will be a little sad, but that's what God says to do, and so I'll be happy, too, that you are doing what God says."
K: "Mom? I don't want to grow up. I just want to live here with you."

Ever since then, she will just come over to me at random times throughout the day, give me a big bear hug, and say, "Mom, I don't want to grow up too fast, because I want to live with you. I just love you so much." I have to push back the tears as I tell her that when it's time, she'll be ready. I am so thankful to God for the three little girls He has given us to raise, and I pray we will bring them up to be invaluable servants of His.

A cookie kind of day

2009-06-22T09:06:00.000-07:00

It's kind of a sad and lonely day around here today. Our good friend Chelsea called last night saying that she was going to Aunt Hannah's house, and wanted to know if Kathryn would like to tag along. Our little girl? On a trip all by herself?? She was such a big girl packing up her things and putting them in her backpack. Of course, she was ready 3 hours early, but still carried her backpack around with her all morning. When Chelsea got to the house, she went around giving her hugs, and all I could think was, "she'll be a teenager before I can blink". I love my little girls so much, and it's so hard to see them growing up so fast... and remember to let go a little as they do.

Sad doesn't begin to describe what Livie was feeling as Kate pulled away. She was downright depressed. Thankfully, this Mama had something up her sleeve! I had whipped up a batch of sugar cookies and had them chilling in the fridge this morning, ready to be cut into shapes and decorated when we walked back in from waving goodbye.

Success!

A special skirt

2009-06-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

Being a crafter myself, there is not much that I appreciate more than a home-made gift. I know how much time and effort goes into thinking of something to make, then actually bringing that project to fruition. My good friend Jessica made this sweet little skirt for Maggie for her birthday this year. She did such a great job on it, and I just love it. (We won't talk about how it shows off Maggie's pot belly ;) I tried to get it up and over, but that was much, much worse...)

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

2009-06-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

This year we signed Kate up to be a "Knot Hole Member" of the Indianapolis Indians. Basically, that meant we could pay $14 for her to get in to every game this season for free. For all the home games, Arby's sponsors "Two for Tuesday" buy one get one tickets, so on Tuesdays, our whole family can get into the game for $9. We have been two times so far this season, and have thoroughly enjoyed it. The girls live for it. Every morning when they wake up they ask if we'll be going to a baseball game. Right now, they are pretending that they are there. They even got "the blanket" out of the closet and have it spread out on the floor of their room.

This past Friday night we talked our good friends Dave and LeeAnn into going with us. We weren't sure if they would say yes, since it would cost their family over $30 to get in, but they were sports and said they would come anyway. They were next in line to get their tickets when a guy grabbed Dave and told him he had 5 extra tickets that he couldn't use, so the lucky ducks ended up getting in for free! They were especially glad they came then :). Of course, I won't tell on Dave and what a cheap wad he was when he wouldn't even pay $1 for Caleb to throw the ball in the inflatable pit. His story is once he was reminded they got in for free he was totally fine with it ;).

Dave is such a kid-magnet. I felt so sorry for him because all 5 of the big kids were hanging on him all night. We got stared at quite a bit with our apparently large families (LeeAnn was babysitting one little girl, but since when is a family of five super-sized??) Brad was standing off from the blanket and overheard a couple of guys talking amongst themselves: "Did you see those people over there? They have like 10 kids under 3!"

Maggie found the bag of M&M's all by herself, and was totally content.

Brad's parents are coming next week, and we'll all be going together! We're all super pumped about that! Kate has already been praying about it :).

Has it really been a month?

2009-06-04T09:05:00.000-07:00

Our baby turns 1!

Backtracking...

2009-05-08T10:51:00.000-07:00

When I get behind, my first instinct is just to pretend like I was never behind and skip whatever events happened after the last time I updated. This time, though, I'm going to pick up where I left off and do a little backtracking. All the way back to April 16th - one of my very favorite days of the year :). The girls and I cooked Brad his favorite breakfast - chocolate chip pancakes - while he slept in. Kathryn was absolutely ecstatic when she found out Daddy didn't have to go to work. She could hardly contain herself - those of you who know her are having a hard time picturing this, I know :).

Then it was off to the Children's Museum! We jumped the gun by a week and moved Maggie into her big girl car seat so she could watch Tinkerbell with the big girls on the way there - she was in awe.It was such a fun day. We've been several times, but this was the first time we had gone as a family. Since it was a Thursday, It wasn't very crowded. There were some buses there, but mostly big kids, and not ones that wanted to play at the sand or water tables in PlayScape :).

So many people thought Kate and Olivia were twins. Lots of big kids came up to me and asked me, but I also heard several adults whispering among themselves, "Oh! Look at the twins!" I had dressed them alike on purpose - so that they would be easy to find - and it worked! In fact, one time they had both climbed up on top of something, and I could only see Kate, so I asked her where her sister was, and a man (taller than I :) responded, "There are two of them up there." (then he asked if they were twins :).
Maggie was so good and seemed to really enjoy herself, although she is not the outgoing little stinker that her sisters are. She's pretty reserved in new surroundings. Brad finally got a smile when he tickled her face with the flowers - no telling the germs she got from that ;-O.

Livie rock climbing...

Kathryn's favorite part: the carousel

Then finally, the perfect end to a perfect day: we ate at the "chips and cheese rest-er-aunt" for a late lunch (aka: Mexican :). We are so glad to have the man of our house back!

one year ago today...

2009-04-23T09:24:00.000-07:00

this...

to get this...

who is now this...

Maggie, we never would have guessed what a blessing you would be to us, or how much we could love you. We thank God every single day for you. Your Mom and Dad think you're the greatest, and your sisters absolutely adore you. You are a great "little sis" and are so loved by all who know you. Happy 1st, my sweet baby. May there be many, many more.

A sight for sore eyes

2009-04-13T19:47:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure I slept a wink from the time Rosie sent me the email that she was coming to see me, until the time that they left. Really. I was ecstatic! She wanted to help me "pass the time" while Brad was working so hard. It worked! We had the greatest time making hair bows, watching movies, eating chocolate cake, talking - you know, all those things that girls do. I was way too busy to remember to take pictures. Brad took these the night they got there, and I really think they are two of my very favorite pictures - not for quality, but for content :). I just rolled on the floor laughing when I saw this one of Claire trying out Michael's birthday present. Like father, like daughter...

The girls spent so much time snuggled into this couch. Claire kept trying to get Kate and Olivia to close their eyes :)

We tried to talk Jessica into coming with her two sweet little girls. It would have been a crazy time with 7 kids 3 and under, but it would have been just like a big 'ol slumber party. Here's hoping they'll do it again soon!!!

Welcome back, Spring!

2009-04-13T11:17:00.000-07:00

We've really missed you. We love your fresh smelling air, beautiful flowers, & fun dresses. We're so excited for sidewalk chalk, picnics on the back patio, and swings and slides. Please don't let us down this time. Please be here to stay.

Some monkey shots for your weekend enjoyment

2009-04-03T14:03:00.000-07:00

Two of my favorite things

2009-03-30T07:51:00.000-07:00

1.) Getting sweet kisses from my baby, sometimes because I ask for them, and sometimes just because she is in a good mood and wants to give them.

2.) Hearing my two "big" girls talk on the phone to each other (Kathryn bragging to Olivia about how she didn't have to take a nap, then Olivia bragging back about how she got to watch Snow White, then literally shivering when she told her about the "bad tween" (queen ;) )

11 Months

2009-03-24T14:08:00.000-07:00

As cliche as it sounds, I have to ask: Where did the time go?!?!? I was at my cousin's house last night, talking to a friend and she asked, "Wasn't she just born yesterday?" Really, in so many ways it seems like yesterday. She took her first two little baby steps just two days before her 11 month birthday - it won't be long now!

She definitely has her own ideas about how things should be done, and is really starting to show it. Some days I wonder why my sweet little baby has to turn into an independent little girl, but of course, it's all part of the growing up process, and I wouldn't change it for the world.

When she's not playing with her sisters, she is clinging to Mommy, and is very much a "Mama's girl". Her new favorite word is "Uh-uh!" for uh-oh - she drops things just so she can say it (and I drop things so I can hear it =). I never could have guessed what a joy she would be. I guess the Lord knows best ;)!

"Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward."
Psalm 127:3

Fingerprint Friday

2009-03-20T13:11:00.000-07:00

There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that says:

I can see the fingerprints of God

When I look at you

I can see the fingerprints of God

And I know its true

You're a masterpiece

That all creation quietly applauds

And you're covered with the fingerprints of God

The heavens declare the glory of God;

And the firmament shows His handiwork.

Psalm 19:1 (NKJV)

As I was waiting the long hours for Brad to get home from work last night, I put in Miss Potter - One of my favorite movies (right now, at least :) . Brad came home about half-way into it, and neither of us could stop talking about how beautiful the country is where the movie was filmed. God's country. God's creation. His Fingerprints are all over it! It wasn't Photoshopped, it isn't 'just in the movie', it is real country. Today is the first day of Spring, and it is a gorgeous day outside. The trees are just starting to bud, the tulips are about 6" out of the ground, and the buttercups have just opened their blossoms. This is a day to rejoice in God's creation. Give Him thanks for every good thing.

Where do you see God's fingerprints? Here's how to join in.

Blog with your interpretation of God's fingerprints. Be sure to link back to PamperingBeki so others can find the entire list of participants!

Thanks, Beki, for helping me remember to look for God's fingerprints!

Silo Fife

2009-03-20T07:33:00.000-07:00

This is my nephew, Silas Parker. He is more affectionately known as "Silo". He is a year and a half, and just a ball of fun. Being the youngest of four he has to work pretty hard to not be left out of anything. As soon as you get the words, "Does anybody want..." out of your mouth, Silas already has his hand high up in the air and is saying "I do. I do. I do. I do." I think he makes just about the cutest policeman I've ever seen.

One of those winters

2009-03-19T07:23:00.000-07:00

In case we hadn't fulfilled the number of requirements for sicknesses this winter, we decided to pick up one last stomach bug before spring hit. Livie got it worst of all. She was s-i-c-k for 10 whole days. I won't go into details, but let's just say she was one step away from the emergency room.

At the first spark of improvement I cloroxed the house, bathed the girls and had everyone ready to go when Brad got home from work - I was determined to get out of the house and get some fresh air. We may have jumped the gun just a little... we got to the restaurant and Livie said her tummy hurt. Yikes. Brad says she's just hungry. Our food comes, we all start eating, and Livie loses it - all over herself. Poor thing. I've had it the last couple of days, but thankfully had a milder version than the girls.

Livie quarantined (from Maggie, who loves her sister, and just couldn't stay away :)

Maggie's first (and probably last ;) bottle... how sweet is this?!?

Just one more month until busy season is over! Well, for another year, at least ;). We're so ready for things to get back to normal around here. The weather has been so beautiful lately that it has made the girls and me so eager for spring. They've been out riding their tricycles, and playing in the yard and on the swing set every chance they get.

I'm off to catch up on housework. I took a sick day yesterday and the house is really showing it!

It always ends in tears

2009-03-16T13:23:00.000-07:00

Good thing half the fun is in getting there...

"Tweet Me Nice"

2009-03-08T18:49:00.000-07:00

... and don't laugh at me because I only have one front tooth!

Here's what we've been up to

2009-02-24T08:01:00.000-08:00

This past week was a whirlwind of fun with friends and family (and lots of travel). Brad's parents headed our way to pick up the girls and me, since we are down to one car. My parents came over and the six of us (and the kiddos) had a Mexican feast for Valentine's Day. Brad's mom made some cupcakes that resembled a box of chocolates in a heart shaped box that were absolutely adorable. That is what you see #1 munching on and #2 drooling over (yes, she had one too, but I'm sure hers was gone and she was wishing she had eaten it slower ;).

Since Monday was President's Day, Brad's dad had the day off work, so we all piled in the car Monday morning (minus Brad) and took off for the week in Tennessee. Pheobe traveled with us.

I left my big girls at Gramma and Grampa's house on Tuesday and headed to see my bestest friend in Murfreesboro - just Maggie and me. We met up with the Wi ls on's for supper and basically just had a really great time. It was so good to get to see them again.

Maggie: "What are you doing? Get your finger away from my mouth! It stinks!"

Michael: "Oh, come on! Let me just see how many teeth you have now!"

Maggie: "Okay, but just for a second or I'll bite your finger off."

We took Wednesday off and enjoyed relaxing at Gramma's. Well, I enjoyed relaxing while Gramma babysat ;). On Thursday we headed to Chattanooga. Brad's mom has a friend there that she has been wanting to go see, so the girls and I dropped her off to meet her friend then we drove on another 30 minutes to see some of our best friends!

While there, our presence was graced with the fairest princesses in the land. (Notice how especially lovely my girls are - Kate gracefully holding her dress up to her knees, and Livie pulling hers down to show off her wife beater.)

The room was FILLED with sweet little girls... (and Michael ;). Here is Sadie sporting two new teeth.There was even time for cupcake decorating.

And a little time for rest - but no naps.

Then it was time to say goodbye. Too soon. But it was a really, really fun trip. Jessica, Rosie, and I had the greatest time catching up and wishing and dreaming we lived closer to each other.

Somehow I got home without a single picture of the girls with Gramma and Grampa. Brad's mom works so hard when we are there, cooking and taking care of the kids, that I know she is absolutely worn out by the time we leave, but these girls are absolutely crazy about her. They are always pretending they are going to Gramma and Grampa and Pheobe's house and diligently pray every night for them. Every time we get on the "big road" or see cows they want to know if we're headed back out to the country ;).

Here's the big girl I brought home with me. She sprouted two new teeth while we were gone, and learned a couple new words. She is clearly obsessed with dogs and when she sees one she points and says, "Dodo!" It's pretty cute, if I can say so ;). She has also started saying her version of "thank you". If you don't believe me, I have some witnesses. She is standing alone and acts like she's going to take a step, then drops to her knees and starts crawling. She'll take off before too long!

It's hard for me to see pictures of my own girls without thinking of this sweet family who lost their beautiful baby girl to cancer just a couple of weeks ago. I've been following their story and have just been beyond heart broken for them. Say a prayer for them today that God would give them an extra measure of strength and courage and the ability to make it through this extremely difficult situation.

I have so much catch up work to do - not so much with the house as with the girls and discipline ;) - and a stamping class to teach later this week, so I decided to take the week off of the computer and focus my efforts on more important things. I'll hopefully be back to reading and commenting by the beginning of next week.

(this break may or may not have anything to do with the fact that I finally got my hands on a copy of Twilight last week thanks to you and in a roundabout way you too ;)

So thankful for friends

2009-02-12T04:14:00.000-08:00

Playdates are so much fun - especially when they include cute kids like this...

Isn't he precious? He is so happy and contented.

Alaina and I have been friends since high school, we were in each other's weddings, and now she has three boys almost exactly the ages of my three girls. They are such handsome boys and the girls loved having them over, and the four "big kids" played together so well. Alaina and I finally got to catch up a little bit, and return a couple of each other's things that we've been holding on to for - oh, a year or so ;). It was a great start to our week!

Rice Krispies on steroids

2009-02-11T04:04:00.000-08:00

Resist the urge to buy Jumbo Multi-Grain Krispies even if they are only $0.66 a box after sale and coupons. I haven't tried them as a cereal, but as a Jumbo Multi-Grain Krispie Treat, they're downright scary. I can't speak for the kids, however, who were fighting over who got to lick the spoon, until #1 ended it with: "Mom, tell Livie I get to lick the spoon 'cause I'm the oldest."

Rejoice with me

2009-02-10T10:57:00.000-08:00

After two months of very tedious searching, I found it. Where?

Well, in here, of course! Why did I randomly decide to clean out this terribly unorganized box of ribbon today? It was on my to-do list, and it seemed like a pretty harmless task, so I did it. And what do you know? I found a treasure!

I called Kathryn in right away to show her what I had found, since she knew what I had lost and how special it was to me. She was so excited at first, then furrowed her brow and said, "Mom, I'm so sorry. If I had said, 'Did you look in the ribbon box?' a long time ago, you would have found it." Bless her heart!

To answer the obvious questions, we're calling to get it insured today, and going to have it sized as soon as we find a jeweler. If anyone in the Indy area knows a jeweler that you trust - really trust, let us know!

All my ducks in a row

2009-02-06T04:55:00.000-08:00

You've probably been wondering "why pictures of sandwiches and grills? where are the babies???" Well, we've been sort of out of commission lately with all three kiddos sick with bad fevers and coughs (then throwing up from coughing so hard). Did I post about this before? Ah yes! Two weeks ago - and yes, it's just now over (that is, if Brad and I are lucky enough to escape it). After three trips to the doctor, and a chorus of coughs, I think it's safe to say we're all on the mend. So we're slowly transitioning from watching movies, being rocked, eating snacks in the living room, and drinking Sprite for breakfast, back to the "norm". I was pretty sure Olivia was better when she came running to me yesterday holding her stomach saying, "Mom, my stomach hurts. I think I need to watch a movie." ;)

2009-02-05T07:47:00.000-08:00

Because life is too short to only grill in the Good 'Ol Summertime...

No time for sandwiches

2009-02-04T13:17:00.000-08:00

I must have gotten distracted. I can't imagine how. Maybe it was when the phone rang, or thing #2 needed to potty, or they all three were crying for a drink. Either way, Three hours later, I came upon my lunch. Yes, I forgot all about it. I think I'll give up - skip the main course, and head straight for dessert.

Let it stop, let it stop, let it stop

2009-01-28T16:20:00.000-08:00

Well, I should probably start with Saturday night, when the girls and Brad were in the Whitsitt's yearly talent show. They asked us last week if the girls would be up for doing the pledge of allegiance. We weren't exactly sure how they would feel about standing up on a big stage in front of 150+ people, but we said we'd give it a try. Kathryn was so pumped about it - I think I have a performer on my hands. After all, she is her daddy's daughter. She practiced putting her hand on her heart and saying "I pledge allegiance to the flag" over and over and over. (We figured the audience would carry her after that). When she first stepped on stage, I thought she might throw up, but then she spotted Brad and remembered to put her hand on her heart and knew exactly what to say. Definitely more reserved than she was at home, but not as bad as it could have been, and I have to admit, better than I expected. Brad's singing quartet did great, of course, and he's pretty angry that I didn't get a picture of their group up on stage :-P. Thanks to Ted who bailed me out. He took all the pictures for the talent show, so I grabbed one off the Whitsitt's website ;). The whole show was full of talent and very much a success.

Livie had been sick on Friday, but was feeling better by Saturday and we thought she was over it. We ended up leaving the talent show early because she started running fever again. She was pretty much out of commission all day on Sunday and Monday. Doesn't she look pathetic?Waiting very impatiently for "puptates" (cupcakes) on Monday night to celebrate Olivia feeling better =)

So then yesterday it started to snow. And snow. And snow. Spring, where are you? Did you not get the memo that you are supposed to come right after Christmas every year? It stopped snowing around noon today and we ended up with almost a foot. Brad was more excited than all the rest of us put together. They closed his office, so he got a "free" day off. Plus, he had never seen this much snow before. He even pulled me out of bed at 7:45 to "come and see, it's crazy!!!" So here are the boring, this is what a foot of snow looks like, pictures...

When Kathryn looked out our back door and saw the patio table she said, "Look, Mom, it looks like a big cake!"

Maggie was less than enthused about being pushed into a snowsuit that was too small and going to sit out in some wet and very cold, bright stuff. So that lasted two minutes.

But as soon as we came in and pulled her suit off, she crawled as fast as she could over to the window so she could watch what was going on. Then proceeded to squeal with delight and look at me like, "MOM! Why do I have to stay in here?!?" (sigh)

And finally, I'll leave you with some shots of the girls playing in the snow. You can't tell how deep it was by looking at them because they couldn't reach the bottom of it ;)

New clothes, and the need for chocolate

2009-01-24T06:23:00.000-08:00

Gramma sent a package to the girls this week with new clothes for each of them. They were ecstatic, and she couldn't have picked better for them. When Kathryn spotted hers she said, "Oh, Mom, I hope these are mine! It has a belt!!!" When Livie saw hers she said, "Look, Mom, pockets and a zipper!" It's the little things...

Here is Kate modeling her belt:

Maggie got new clothes too, but she wouldn't even smile about them:

Sad, but true:

Sundays are really full days for us, especially now while Brad is teaching a class at a friend's house Sunday night after church for the high school kids. I was so proud of Livie because she had made it through all of the days activities without one single accident: Bible class, church, nap, church again, then during the class at our friend's house. So in the middle of the class when she said she had to go potty, I hurried to take her, and sure enough she had held it, and had to go! I praised her up one side and down the other. Of course, she wanted to know if she would be getting a treat, and I explained to her that we were in the middle of the Bible class and my purse was downstairs, but as soon as I could get to it, she would get a treat. She blinked a hard, long blink and said, "Well. But I need chot-late." She may look like Brad, but trust me, she is 100% female.

A New Look, and a BIG Thank You!

2009-01-23T14:04:00.000-08:00

Wow! Many, many thanks to Jamie for my fresh, new look! Didn't she do a great job?!? Jamie and I went to college together, and have recently reconnected via the blogging world. Her blog was so super cute that when she volunteered her services, I jumped at the chance for a fun and cute look. Thanks a million, Jamie!

Now we're back to the original problem. This blog is not exclusively "Kathryn's Korner" anymore, so I'd really love to think of a brand new name. I will be keeping the url as it is (that wasn't smart of me, but oh well), but would love to have a cute, girly phrase for my title. Can you help? I know I don't have the very most popular blog on the planet, but I know I have several readers, and I want to hear from you! Throw them out there, then when I get enough suggestions together, we'll vote on a favorite. Of course, I reserve the right to make the final decision ;)

Best Friends

2009-01-22T08:53:00.000-08:00

Don't they look like such big girls going off to school? We were really just headed to the ladie's class at church, but I packed each of them some paper, crayons, books, and a water bottle in their new backpacks from Gramma and Grampa and they thought I had handed them the moon. It was just about all I could do to get the backpacks off of them to get them in their carseats!

"What should I do with these kids?!?"

2009-01-15T12:13:00.001-08:00

I wish I was creative enough in my kitchen that I had something interesting to post in Alaina's Keeping Creative Kitchens every single week. Unfortunately, "dinner time" has got to be one of the most stressful times. Honestly. The kids are getting up from their naps (if they've actually fallen asleep), their either cranky or hyper, the phone is inevitably ringing, Brad's on his way home, and I'm trying to think of something that I can make for supper that can be ready when he walks through the door. I've been off and on (but mostly on) for the past year or so with my menu planning, and that has been a true lifesaver. Really. It's great to not have to sit and think about what I'm going to make, and if I have all the ingredients to make it, at the last minute. While that has taken *most* of the guesswork out of dinner planning, my next biggest battle was how to keep the kids out from under my feet while I'm cooking.

Most of the time they're begging to help me, which is okay some nights, but other nights, I really just need to get to work with no interruptions. So, I started blanket time. They each grab a blanket and three books and bring them in to the kitchen floor. I help them spread out their blankets (not touching each other's, obviously ;), and they have to sit quietly and look through their books until Daddy gets home. Sometimes that is 15 minutes, sometimes it's 30 (If I know it's going to be longer, I usually let them grab a coloring book and crayons too), either way I'm getting peace and quiet while I cook, and they are getting the structure that they're begging for! At first they were a little unsure about what was going on, but now they love it! They beg to do "blanket time" all day long! While it would be tempting, I limit it to dinner time so it can be a "special time" that they look forward to while they're waiting for Daddy to get home.

Many thanks to Alaina for hosting Keeping Creative Kitchens every Thursday! Please, join in! More details on her site.

Sweet little girls and Livie's first "shiner"

2009-01-12T09:18:00.000-08:00

Just because...

2009-01-09T10:20:00.000-08:00

I just stumbled across this picture as I was cleaning out hundreds of shots in Picasa. It's too sweet not to share. Of course, that is only one biased mother's opinion ;)

Oh, and Maggie's started shaking her head no and saying "nananana" all the time. I can't imagine why (?!?) but it's too cute to watch - again, one biased mother's opinion ;)

A Happy New Year

2009-01-08T13:26:00.000-08:00

We opted to host "the New Year's Party" at our house this year - mostly so we wouldn't have to leave the party early so our kids could go to bed =). It was such a fun time. We invited the whole congregation, knowing several wouldn't be able to come, and thinking we could probably squeeze all who did in. We ended up with about 40. Everyone broke off into groups and snacked and played games until the ball dropped, then went back to finish up their games before heading out.

Of course, my favorite and most memorable New Year of all was 7 years ago, when Brad proposed to me. Unfortunately, I don't have the ring to prove it =(. I lost it somewhere between here and Pittsboro the week before Christmas. Oh well. At least I have the memories - and a wonderful husband. (and no, it was not insured, and yes, I'm sure about that, so don't ask :-P)

Thanks to all who came! We plan to make this a new tradition!!!

A Holly Jolly Christmas

2009-01-07T07:26:00.000-08:00

We had such a wonderful (and busy) Christmas this year down in Tennessee. We started off the festivities at the Petty family annual stocking stuffer. Kathryn really got into Christmas this year, and it didn't take her long to figure out that just about every stop we made meant more presents to open.

Visions of sugar plums?

More proof that it is impossible to get a decent picture of all three kids... Dressed and ready for Santa!

Brad's mom has made each of the girls stockings their first Christmases. I couldn't wait to see what Maggie's would look like this year. She is so creative!

The first gift of Christmas - I guess you can hardly see it in this picture, but it's a baby doll bed. The cutest one ever. And they absolutely love it.

Of course, their favorite thing was to put their real baby in it. And she didn't mind the attention too much, either!

Maggie pretty much slept through all of Christmas morning, but she was able to have some fun when she woke up. She was just starting to pull up while we were there, and by the time we got home she was pulling up on everything, and walking back and forth along the couch. Last week she started clapping! We just love watching this little girl grow up and see her personality really start to take shape. Santa brought her a Leap Frog table and she stands and plays at it all throughout the day.

We had a big fancy meal on Christmas night, then on Friday we went to Opryland Hotel, which was a "new tradition" that we started last year. The lights and decorations are absolutely incredible. This Christmas tree was 40' tall. In all their indoor decorations they use almost 200,000 lights, and 15,000 poinsettias. If you've never been to Opryland at Christmas time, it is a must see.

Of course, Maggie got the best seat in the house.
The whole Pettes family

We've been trying to get back to "normal" since we got home. January is a big cleaning out month for me. Even though I tried to get a head start before Christmas, there are still plenty of cabinets that are so jammed full they will hardly close. Yesterday I took the day to potty train Livie - finally! It went really well, but today we've had some set backs. After going through this once before, I pretty much expected that, but it doesn't mean it's not discouraging. Kathryn seems to have grown up overnight. She has turned into quite the little thinker and problem solver. It's so hard to believe she will be four this year. I don't know where the time goes, but it goes fast. This year I want to take the time to sit back and enjoy every moment of childhood that passes our way. We are so thankful for the three blessings the Lord has given us to shape and mold into His children. We're looking forward to a great 2009.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-20T05:38:00.000-08:00

Maggie grows

2008-12-11T13:44:00.000-08:00

Maggie is getting so big, so quickly. Okay, I'll be honest, it's really too quick for me. With your first child, generally speaking, you're so anxious for them to move to the next step, and you're so anxious to watch them grow. By the second, and especially for me, the third (and I'm sure even more so with subsequent children), you realize how quickly the time goes by, and you just want them to slow down! Where has 7 months gone? She is crawling all over the place, saying "dadadada", and her favorite food is sweet potatoes (but she'll eat anything you put in front of her - including beads, thank you Livie.) Even more than being a "Mama's girl" she is her sisters' girl. She is crazy about those two! The other day I had her in the office with me and the girls were in their room playing. I turned around and she was gone! I found her right in the middle of the girl's room, just taking in all the action. They love and adore her just as much. Kathryn is constantly asking to hold her - even though she is almost as big as Kathryn :-O, and Olivia's favorite way to "help" is to feed her. She is so blessed to be so loved, and we are so blessed to have her to love.

In case you were wondering

2008-12-10T08:31:00.000-08:00

I ended up with a decent picture for our holiday cards this year (which will not be revealed at this time), but just so you will appreciate it more when you do see it, this is what I was working with...

(The most wonderful time of the year also happens to be the busiest, so there may not be as many posts over the next few weeks.)

Get the camera, Mom!

2008-12-05T07:04:00.000-08:00

About an hour after I posted this post about the girls not playing well together, someone sprinkled some magic "get-along" dust over them, and they played great, for a couple of hours actually, without a single peep. I knew they were playing in their room, so I wasn't worried that anything was being "harmed", and I just took advantage of the free sewing time. Olivia ran into the office with a huge smile on her face and said, "Mom, we're putting ev-y-thing in the pat-n-pay (pack-n-play)". (me)"That sounds like fun!" (no worries). Kate comes in a few minutes later with the same grin on her face and says, "Mom, you've got to come see. We put everything in the pack-n-play." (I start to follow) "Wait, Mom. You're going to want to get your camera, then come and see." Ha! She was right! I got my camera and went in to see. They had completely unloaded their bookcase, taken all the blankets off their beds, and were started in on the toy chest by the time I made it in. The pack-n-play was literally bulging from all four sides. At least the "room was clean" =)

2008-12-03T06:19:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure no one family should own this many clothes. Guess what I'm doing today?

The expected after Thanksgiving post

2008-12-01T06:42:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving ended up being a really fun time. Heidi and I surprised ourselves by fixing a really, really good meal (she fixed most of it =) - in spite of Mom not being there. We ate several meals at Josh & Heidi's, and scored some really great deals on Black Friday. Since Heidi and I didn't have babysitters, we didn't get to go out early this year, so the guys split up the list and trekked out around 3:45am. I ended up hitting JoAnn's and Old Navy, but waited until 10am, which I thought would help with crowd lines, but boy was I wrong...

That evening Brad and I hosted the annual "hometeached" gathering. I guess this makes about the 8th or something like that. I seriously can't remember not getting together the day after Thanksgiving with this crew. Kathryn met her match. She and Meredith (or Mary, as she likes to call her) hit it off. So well, in fact, that Amy and I decided to let the girls just stay up and play instead of trying to get them to sleep through all the excitement. We hardly even saw them. I had to pull Kathryn out of her room to get her to eat her supper. When everyone left at 12:30am, they were still going strong. Every single day since Kathryn has said, "Mom, it would be a really fun day if Mary could come and play again" =)

This was the room after they were done playing. They pretended and pretended and pretended. Too much fun...

Our crew was ~~having lots of fun too~~ playing Trivial Pursuit. Seriously, guys, next year - we're voting NO Trivial Pursuit. Who cares if it's tradition?!?!? I didn't have one thing to add, and we even put one of our newest members to sleep (she said she had a headache, but I'm not believing that ;)

We got to meet some newbies that will ~~be forced to~~ get to join us year after year, Jason's fiance Courtney, and Jon's girlfriend Janna. They were so sweet, and great matches for those guys. I finally got to meet sweet little Ty for the first time. He was so good, and just snoozed in his Mommy and Daddy's arms all night. Brad made Starbuck's Espressos while the night was still young, and I'm thinking that will be a new tradition. We missed some of the old folks who had to go to the in-laws this year, but it was a great time, and we're looking forward to next year.

All in all, the girls did exceptionally well this weekend. They had lots of really late nights and several days with no naps, and still trucked right along, and were congenial and sweet. Unfortunately, today is a different story. They have been at each other all morning. Breakfast went like this:

Livie (singing Little Bunny Foo Foo): Little bunny poo poo I'll turn you into a boon!
Kate: No, Livie, it's supposed to be a goon not a boon!!!
Livie: I know, but I say boon!! (singing louder) I'll turn you into a boon!!!
Kate: NO, Livie, that's not RIGHT!!! MOM, can you help her, she's singing it all wrong!!!

This may not seem like that big of a deal, but it's scenarios like this constantly, one right after the other. I haven't heard them agree on one thing this morning. And the tattling, oh the tattling...

Yesterday afternoon, I was laying on the couch (sick with a cold), and Maggie was on the floor in front of me. She spotted a toy she was determined to have, and took off crawling to get to it! She had "started" crawling a couple of weeks ago, but it was just once every now and then. Now I'd say it's official. She's slow, but steady. Quickness will come (I fear =)

Hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving. Now it's officially time to decorate for Christmas!! Did I mention that it has been snowing off and on for the past two days? Not much accumulation, but a little ground covering, and enough to get me in the Christmas spirit =)

Cheerio from the Cherrypop gals!

2008-11-30T17:50:00.000-08:00

These little ladies have been in waiting for quite a while now. Finally, I got the spark I needed to get them off my desk. They are each doing some of my very favorite things. From eating birthday cake, to shopping, to baking, to getting ready for the Holidays, each little Cherrypop Doll is as busy as she can be.

Haircuts...

2008-11-29T10:03:00.000-08:00

While we were in Tennessee Gramma and I ventured out to get the girl's hair cut. I couldn't believe what big girls they were. They weren't the least bit apprehensive, just jumped up in the chair and sat as still as an adult. Livie had a hard time figuring out which way to tilt her head =)

An attempt at getting a good "after haircuts" picture:

A so-bad-it's-funny attempt at getting an "after haircuts" picture:

Since I'm posting...

2008-11-27T09:59:00.000-08:00

I know I said I wasn't going to, but since I did, I'm kinda on a roll now =). Here are some shots from our visit to Tennessee last week. The girls and I had a blast getting away for a little while. The only thing missing was Daddy =(. The girls got to spend some good time with Gramma and Grampa, and Claire and Michael, and I got to spend some good time with my girlfriends, Rosie and Jessica. Here are three really sweet girls. Just wish Shelby could have been in the mix...

This is one precious little boy right here!!!

Gramma took the girls for a ride in the "Doodle-Bug"

Happy Thanksgiving to all! (and Happy Birthday to my favorite fatherin-law =)

Black Friday on Wednesday =)

2008-11-26T21:50:00.000-08:00

My sister and I decided to beat the CVS crowd and hit the Black Friday deals a little early. We got there around 11 pm on Wednesday night and shopped around until midnight, when all the deals were loaded on the computers. Yes, of course we're crazy, but neither one of us has to get up early in the morning, and there were other "normal" people there doing exactly the same thing - that made us feel a little less dorky. All in all, I made $29 - as in, they paid me $29 in CVS bucks to take all this stuff out of their store - so I'd say the trip was worth it. Probably the best I'll do in all of Black Friday =)

In case you're not interested in my great CVS deals, here's a picture of my great baby. Isn't she sweet?

Three kids asleep...

2008-11-26T10:59:00.000-08:00

...busy weekend... better clean house. Update with pictures to come, but maybe not until after the holidays. Try to survive =)

Kathryn on Getting Big

2008-11-15T10:20:00.000-08:00

I wish you could be at our house sometime at lunch when it's just me and the girls, but then it wouldn't just be "me and the girls" and so the conversation would not be the same. Most days I sit down, we start talking, and I think "where is the video camera so I could record this?!?" This was one of those days. We sat down to eat, and the conversation went like this:

K: "Mom, I'm getting SO big, that I'm almost bigger than Daddy, right?"
M: "Well, Daddy is pretty big, and he's a boy, so you probably won't ever be that big, but you are getting bigger every day."
K: "Yeah, and soon I'll be so much bigger that I can driiiiive (pretend stearing a car with her hands and arms flailing), and go to the grocery, and get all the food, then come in and make lunch, and do the dishes. Then you and Dad will be the little girls and YOU can take a nap!"
(me thinking "Boy, does that sound like a good plan!")
K: "No, that's not right is it, Mom?"
M: "What?"
K: "That you'll get little again? You'll just always be big, and we'll get big, and then we'll all be big, right?"
M: "Right."
K: "And then, Maggie will not be the baby anymore, but that's okay because I'll be big and I'll get a baby in my belly! Then I'll have to go the hospital and they'll take the baby out for me. Mom, does that hurt?"
M: "Yes, it hurts very, very much."
K: "Did it hurt when you had Maggie?"
M: "Yes, very much!"K: "Oh, did you cry?"
M: "No, because I was big and strong and brave, and you will be too."
K: "Well, maybe I just won't have a baby, because I'll just have Titus." (a 5 month old at church, who apparently isn't going to get bigger as everyone else does.)

Give Cookies...

2008-11-13T09:31:00.000-08:00

...in pottery bowls, wrapped in a kitchen towel and tied with a bow. The bowls came from the Wal-Mart clearance rack after Christmas last year. This one cost me just over $1. I found a new dishtowel stashed away, and embroidered a little something special on it, then dug around in my ribbon and bow box for something to tie around it! This makes a nice, inexpensive hostess gift, or a thank you for someone watching your kiddos free of charge (can you guess what this one is for? ;)

Cookies also taste just as good in a brown paper bag tied with Christmas ribbon and a cute hang tag.

Thanks to Alaina for hosting Keeping Creative Kitchens every Thursday. Now it's your turn - join in!!!

Funnies from the day

2008-11-10T11:48:00.000-08:00

Kathryn and Olivia were playing church, and Kathryn was standing up facing the audience (aka: Olivia) "After the sermon we'll stand and sing #68, If You're Happy and You Know It"
That must be one of the most recently added songs to our hymn books.

We were eating lunch and I asked Livie if she wanted something to eat that I knew she didn't care for. She answered in a laughing voice: "Nooooo!!! I can't eat that, Mom! I'm too little!!"

Mom and Dad just got back from vacation this afternoon. They have been gone all week, and we've been checking their mail. That's pretty much torture for two and three year olds. (driving to Nana's) "Mom!!!!! We're going to NANA and PAWPAW's!!!" "No, honey, we're just getting the mail. Nana and Pawpaw are on vacation." You get the picture. When we drove by last night we told them "Nana and Pawpaw will be home TOMORROW!" so all day today they've been driving me crazy about when they will get to see them. Here is a snippet of Kate's prayer at lunch: "...and Lord, help Nana and Pawpaw to come home today and never do vacation again."

In Kate's prayer she had also thanked God that her friends got to come over and eat with us. Not to be outdone, Livie wanted to pray for the same thing. Here's what came out instead: "Thank you, God, for all our friends we have to eat." Careful when we invite you over for supper!

Super Savings Saturday

2008-11-08T07:23:00.000-08:00

All this for just $10, folks! Thank you, Meijer, for your great online coupons that allow me to make money on my groceries. I'm not sure we could afford to live otherwise. (I did use $15 worth of Meijer coupons that I had earned free from a previous purchase, so my actual total was $25, out of pocket $10...)

Little Nashville

2008-11-04T19:29:00.000-08:00

Brad picked up his Mom in Louisville last night and she'll be with us for the week. We decided to take the day and head to Brown County, since the weather was supposed to be nice. It was beyond nice. It was absolutely perfect, and the trees were gorgeous. All around, it was just a wonderful day.

We made it there around lunch time and ate at the Hob Nob cafe, then walked around the little shops until we were hungry again - then we got ice cream =)

Maggie's impression of a french fry - That's a pediatric approved first food, right?

The girls (especially Livie) were obsessed with this big dog. If the thing had been real, they would have been completely freaked out.

Then off to the park for a little play time. This might be my new favorite picture.

The country side was breathtaking. We took the "scenic route" through the park and this was one of the pullover spots.

Maggie is so in love with her sisters, and she loves that she sits between them in the car. She was well entertained the whole way home...

"And the Grand Prize winner is..."

2008-11-04T06:39:00.000-08:00

Well, it's Stephanie, of course, for coming over to watch all of our kids while we went out on the town with Hannah and Brad. I would have been extremely thankful, no matter what, but as it turned out, I actually feel extremely indebted to her since half-way through their meal of pizza my middle child threw up all over the table. Yeah. Stomach flu. I felt so horrible, and it was pretty hard to put that behind me and have an enjoyable, lighthearted evening. But it was still pretty fun.

Here we are after supper having caramel macchiatos at a little coffee shop on the square. We pulled out the 'ol Scrabble game, but soon decided to relieve Stephanie and headed home. There we started up a game of Cranium with Trent that ended up in a very heated debate over how to pronounce "larynx". Fun times.

2008-11-02T06:26:00.000-08:00

Starla was so sweet to come over to watch the kiddos - all 7 of them - while I took Hannah out to show her the ropes of CVS shopping. We decided 7 kids, 7 and under, in the CVS store while looking for ECB deals might be a little much.

More sweet kitten pictures (and sweet kitten holders)

Trick or Treat!!!

2008-10-31T19:03:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun Halloween this year with the girls. I grew up in a house where you threw a sheet over your head and went as a ghost, if at all, so getting the girls "ready" for such a big night was a little bit of a challenge for me (thanks to Heidi for the costumes!). We had some crazy events earlier in the day, so by the time we were supposed to leave, I was completely stressed out. BUT, we made it, and had a super fun time. Some good friends of ours from church invited several families over for a little cookout, then to trick-or-treat in their neighborhood. Our first stop was to Nana and PawPaws, then on to the party...

Kate went as Belle, Livie as a ladybug (although she bucked the black face paint that I drove like a madwoman to get from Wal-Mart at the last minute), and Maggie was a kitty cat. She was the cutest little critter I've ever seen.

They brought home way more loot than any two and three year olds should have, and stuffed their faces on chocolate, of all things, right before bedtime. Fun times. Glad this holiday is only once a year.

(click on the photo collage to see it big)

The Wedding

2008-10-31T06:19:00.000-07:00

Well, I told you Kate wanted to marry Corbin. Dreams really do come true. Here are pictures of the wedding...

Livie was the flower girl. She carried a baby down the aisle in her basket (???). We didn't ask.

Saying their vows with Cozy officiating (is she legal?!?) The happy couple

Keeping Creative Kitchens

2008-10-30T06:52:00.000-07:00

While we were at Hannah's last week she taught us about this super easy, caramel oatmeal. It's kinda like caramel corn, only with oats instead. It makes a really nice fall treat, and is super easy to make.

Caramel oatmeal:
3/4 cups brown sugar
1 stick butter
pinch of soda

Bring to a boil and add 2 cups old fashioned oats. Spread on baking sheet and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

It is wonderful as an ice cream topping:
Then last night I stewed some cinnamon apples then put this on the top and baked it for apple crisp. Yum!

Thanks, Alaina, for hosting this! I hope you keep it up! Check out her blog for other creative ideas, and for guidelines on how to participate. We hope you join in!!

What is it about sleeping babies???

2008-10-24T09:19:00.000-07:00

I just love to watch my babies sleep...

And then they're pretty sweet when they wake up, too =)

Growing up, sweet smiles, and big boots

2008-10-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

Maggie has finally figured out how to get to just about anything she wants. She gets up on all fours, rocks, then sort of lunges forward. She repeats as necessary until she has reached the desired item.
Olivia is always wanting to hold Maggie. The problem now is that Maggie is almost as big as Livie. I'm not sure who is holding who...
Kathryn worked so hard to get these boots on, then she finally figured out how to stand up with them on. When I came back with the camera, she was crying! I asked her what was wrong and she said, "Mom! I can't walk in these!!!" We know how she feels, don't we Aunt Rosie?

2008-10-20T09:12:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Jon, for rescuing these from the dumpsters at work. They were a great boredom buster on a very rainy day. Actually, they have been great on sunny days too....

The classic three year old cheesy grinOver time, Kathryn has gotten pretty good! Okay, okay, the girls are not the only ones enjoying them. Kathryn doesn't have to twist Dad's arm very hard =)

Exclusive Interview with Kathryn: a trip to Aunt Hannah's

2008-10-18T08:59:00.000-07:00

Me: Do you remember that time we went to Aunt Hannah's? Tell me about that trip
Kate: Umm... we went on the big road and everybody was sleeping. And then we got there and we saw Cozy and Truman! And Torbin (Corbin)!
Me: Do you love Corbin?
Kate: Yes. I'm going to marry him.

Me: What are you doing here?
Kate: WATCHING CINDERELLA!!! That's my favorite movie. I picked it out and everyone watched it with me.

Me: Whoa! This looks like negligence! What is happening here?
Kate: (laughing) Maggie!!! She falled under there!!!
Me: Hmmm... is that kittens? What's the story here?
Kate: Of kittens. I love that story. We were playing house and Cozy was the mommy.

Me: That sounded like such a fun trip. Do you ever plan to go back?
Kate: Mom, can we go on Sunday? I just love Cozy and Truman and Corban and Silas. Can we, Mom? Can we go in the morning? Mom? Mom? Can we? Yes or no.

Livie's favorite spot

2008-10-16T10:26:00.000-07:00

On a cell phone in a baby doll swing. That normal, right?

2008-10-14T10:14:00.000-07:00

Here's my most recent attempt at a picture of all three girls. Honestly, I believe it would be impossible to get them all looking at the camera and smiling at the same time. I should have Brad figure up the probability of that...

Of course, it figures that just as I get two girls looking and smiling, the other one would fall over.

Maggie growing up...

Kathryn-In-A-Box

2008-10-12T10:12:00.000-07:00

Look what I can do!

2008-10-10T10:09:00.000-07:00

My little big girl started sitting alone last week. Where does the time go? Wasn't she just born yesterday? She is just the best little thing with the sweetest disposition. Polly Pockets are one of her very favorite things to chew on.

Zzzz...

2008-10-07T08:37:00.000-07:00

What's a mom to do? I try to get her out of these messes, but as soon as I do, she rolls and scoots and squirms until her face is all tangled up in it again, then she drifts off to sleep...

For those of you cringing right now, don't worry - I don't ever let her sleep like this, but she hates me for it...

One is Kate, one is Maggie... hmmm...

2008-10-05T08:49:00.000-07:00

It must be fall

2008-10-04T08:29:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love this time of year. I love the crisp, clean air, I love the changing leaves, I love the cloudy skies, I love the smell of bon fires, roasted marshmallows, and baked cinnamon apples... So I sent Brad and Kathryn over to our good friend's house to pick some fresh apples. Nothing says fall like Grandma Ople's Apple Pie...

The bears are in hibernation

2008-10-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

I knew those old Beanie Babies would be worth something one day...

When I asked Kathryn what she was doing, she said, "Mom, I'm putting them in bed!" Like, what else would they be doing in shoes?!? Is that not obvious?

Somebody turned 2

2008-09-30T08:56:00.000-07:00

Mom says now that I'm 2, I'm grumpier than I used to be.

Gramma and Grandpa sent me this really cool package. Mom made me wait until my birthday to open it. She thought Gramma would want it that way. Actually, I was easier to convince than Dad. She got me these really great pots and pans. They are my favorite. Kate and I fought over them all morning, until Mom and Dad finally said, "Okay, let's go get donuts!"

On Saturday, even though it wasn't really my birthday anymore, Taylor, Ella, and Jack, Aunt Heidi and Uncle Josh, and Nana and PawPaw came to celebrate. I got to wear my new dress from Gramma and Grandpa, go to the store with Mommy all by myself, and help her make my special cupcakes with Smarties on top. Those are my favorites.
Nana and PawPaw got me a farm with all kinds of animals in it. I got to pick it out all by myself. It was so hard to chose between the Mr. Potato Head and the Little People farm, but I finally decided on the farm. I really would have liked to play with it, but I really didn't get a chance until everyone else left and Kate went to bed.
Turning 2 was really great. Maybe I'll do it again tomorrow.

2008-09-12T10:29:00.000-07:00

I put on my mascara before my eyeshadow today. I've felt "backward" ever since.

I had decided I would start some "fun" pre-school days with Kathryn this year, just to get her used to the idea of "school". I had this brilliant idea that we would have "themed weeks" where we would focus on something new every week, like one week would be butterflies. We would wear things with butterflies, make butterflies, observe butterflies, get library books about butterflies, you get the idea. I was so proud of myself for thinking so creatively and just knew this would be a wonderful learning experience for both of us. My bubble was completely burst when I read on her blog, that this was a completely unoriginal idea. In fact, not only is it not just my idea, there has apparently been a book already published with a whole curriculum like this. So much for originality.

Its been raining all morning. I love rainy days, especially when I can just sit curled up on the couch and read a good book. I can't do that today. I have to clean my house, then I have to go over and clean my mom's house. So much for a rainy day.

I had this great plan to get all my laundry caught up first thing this morning (I think I even promised Brad last night that I would :-O), but when I went to put a load in, I realized I was out of laundry detergant. So much for doing the laundry.

I wish I could start this day over.