So where have I been?

Well, I'll tell you.  Right here.  Same ol', same ol'.  Except we went without an internet connection for a while.  Which isn't actually a bad thing.  With smart phones, you rarely need a laptop for anything... unless you absolutely MUST print something... or write a blog post.  And since that isn't really a need, nothing really lost, right?

We started another school year last Monday.  We had a three week break this summer, which I totally wish could have been WAY longer, but the down-time seems to make the kids' forget anything I've drilled into their poor little heads, so three weeks is probably about the max time I'll ever be scheduling for a break again!

Here they are looking all cute and shiny on our first day!

They all made their own signs. 

 

 

 

 

 

(I absolutely love/hate that my little guy was able to write his own name for his sign this year.  *sniffle*)

 



We don't actually do any school "work" per se on the first day.  Just make our signs, take pictures, get all our new stuff in our school boxes, and fill out the "About Me" booklets - those are my fav thing about the first day of school!  We started them last year, and it's fun to see what's changed in a year!

Here's our little room the night before we started school!  I still have some stuff that needs laminating, so it will go up when that gets done, but I was pretty excited to get the Sock Monkeys this year.  They're really cute!

As if starting school wasn't enough excitement, we decided to delve back into the world of pet ownership last week.  We've gone back and forth on this for a while, but we've spent the last two years in this apartment.  Life goes on, and our kids are getting older no matter what we hope to do "when we get out of here".  And then this irresistible little darling popped up on Craigslist, so this is another small step toward living the life we hope for someday.

Meet Abby! 

She's an 8 month old miniature boxer with more energy than Little Stinky on sugar.  She's smart and strong-willed, but small enough to be man-handled by myself when necessary, so I'm hoping that things work out better with her that it did with our short-term stint as kitten owners.  We hope to try that again in the near future, too, but one pet at a time.  So far Fuzzy has been the main one in charge of walking her and feeding her, and we think that responsibility will be a really great thing for him.

The Hombre is slamming out playhouses right now, which is always exciting.  He'll have three brand new ones installed by the end of this month, but the most amazing thing he's done maybe EVER is actually sitting in our boys' bedroom right now. 

We still stand in their doorway and gape at it.  The kids think it's the greatest thing ever (and I tend to agree!).

We got it installed the weekend that the kids started their break, so they've had some time to adjust to the novelty, but the girls still like to sleep in the boys' room on the weekends.  You don't have to be loaded to have neat stuff for your kids, just have an incredibly talented playhouse designer/builder for a husband!  When the Hombre tells/shows people what he does in addition to building houses, they often say, "Oh, I bet your kids have something absolutely amazing in your backyard!"  Well, this isn't in the backyard, but at least they do have something amazing now!  We figure we'll get to the girls' in another year or two.

In the three weeks we had off I actually had some time to be all crafty and do some painting.  The kids needed dressers, and IKEA has those great little unfinished wood TROFAST chests.  We bought four, and in two days, I had them all painted. 

 

 

Now the kids each have one and there's a lot less confusion over where clothing is supposed to go, what belongs to who, or where a particular item went.  WIN for everyone!  Including myself, because those three things I just mentioned were enough to make me lose my mind some days!

I'll share my latest paint and crafting adventures later!

A Day Off

My Hombre had Friday off last week, so we went to Chattanooga.  Yes, Friday.  The day that brought crazy storms and tornadoes to so many areas in the South.  For the record, we knew there was rain in the forecast, but we weren't aware of the threat of tornadoes, and since it was incredibly warm, we thought we'd take advantage of the weather and my husband's free time and get out of the house!  The clouds were dark and angry, but we didn't see so much as a drop of rain, and we had a lovely time.

Our family has lived in the Chattanooga area for almost 5 years now.  My husband and I both were living here when we met, and while we've lived farther South for several years, I consider this "home".  If you've never been, Chattanooga is a fantastic little city, especially if you have a family.  Our kids' favorite destinations are the Tennessee Aquarium, The Warner Park Zoo, and The Creative Discovery Museum, all of which we usually maintain yearly memberships to.  (With a family of SIX, one time admission is just a couple dollars short of a membership anyway!)  We also enjoy Coolidge Park, The Chattanooga Choo Choo, and just walking around downtown.

ANYWAY, we hung out at the Aquarium (which I've taken so many pictures of that I really won't bother sharing any more!  You can check out these from back when I was still preggo with Little Stinky...), and I tried to get a decent pic of the kids.  If you have kids, you know what I'm talking about.  Hombre was doing something behind me to try to get the kids to smile/laugh.  I don't even want to know...

There were probably a dozen of these.  You get the idea.  Wow.

Then we went to a play area on the river that is usually CRAWLING with kids.  It was completely empty, but I guess those clouds are a good indicator of why.  Our van was just a block or two down the street, so we didn't figure it was too big of gamble.

The kids played on the swings.

They got chased and snatched around the playground by a ferocious beast.

Here's the beast laying in wait...

Little Stinky's hair looked like one of those static electricity balls without the unnatural glow.

Fuzzy's hair is too think to stand up like that anymore.  *sigh*

Princess Fluffy on the swing.  Silly girl.

Fairy Fluffy on the swing.  Downright scary.

And it's not over until someone cries.  Oh boy.

***Pinterest Tip!***

White Vinegar has a lot of uses, but I use it as a rinse aid in my dishwasher.  I actually didn't get this idea from Pinterest, but since I've seen it on there, I figured it qualifies.  Instead of buying a little bottle of rinse aid, I just buy a huge jug of the generic brand of white vinegar and it's close to the same price.  My dishes come out of the dishwasher sparkeling, and no, they don't smell like vinegar.  :)