Survived another V-Day

Good morning all my lovely friends. Did we all survive the chocolate onslaught that is Valentine's Day? While I do love the sentiment of V-Day, I feel like the pressure has gotten out of control. My hubs and I have resorted to celebrating the weekend following V-Day. We can go out to dinner without a reservation, the inundation of red and pink is gone from all the venues, and we can buy V-Day specific items at half price in the days after the official celebration. 

Sounds like a win for us!

Now, we are not doing this simply for the economic savings. I still got together a V-Day care package for our daughter at KU (Rock Chalk!) and had it delivered a few days before. I also put together a gift bag for our cutie-patootie high school junior daughter and gave it to her last night. We're not animals, after all...

Anyhoo - One of my favorite things I gave to the girlies was one of those felt letter boards... you know, the kind where it is rows of rolled felt and you push in the plastic letters to create messages? Like this:

That would be my motto. 

For the ladies, they each received one of these boards courtesy of the Target Dollar Section (best part of the store). My college daughter got the pink and my high school daughter got the teal. I was eagerly awaiting what thought provoking messages they would create -- they are both smart as all get-out, so I had high hopes. 

My KU gal delivered... 

My HS junior, let's say she delivered the laughs...

I love these gals. They are so much fun.

Of course, after receiving the pix from my KU girlie, she then texts "...on weekends we're gonna change it to funny alcohol puns." Yep, that sounds about right. 

It was a good V-Day. All fun, no broken hearts. What more could I ask for? 
Talk to you again soon! 

Updated blog...

Yep, changed the blog. Again. Oh, and I updated my 'about me' tab. I'll save you the time on clicking over... here's the scoop.

--------------------------------

Welcome to my little 'ol slice of blogtopia, The Lovely Home.


Initially, I created this blog to highlight my creative projects. Huh...yeah, that did not work out so well. I found that while I have unending artistic drive, I do not have unending available time. A hubs, 4 kids, and 3 dogs will do that to you -- not that I mind. I love all the crazy this life sends me on a daily basis.

So where was I going? Ah yes, my blog content....Anyhoo, I found that as I shared my seemingly boring everyday observations aloud with friends, they were cracking up. See, I thought our life was boring and sane; you know, NORMAL. How silly of me. That's why I decided to include the insanity along with the creative -- less pressure to deliver on the artsy, more postings which highlight our (apparently) collective crazy. It's a win-win for everyone! Who knew?

But I promise, there will still be craftasticness, because I run on inspiration (seriously people, I can see the potential in an empty jar). And just so you know, some days it may be a small project, other days I may be found elbow-deep in paint and sawdust. Nothing is safe in our house...if supplies are available, the room will be changed when the hubs gets home. And yes, this has happened more than once. And involved plumbing. Or electrical. And perhaps a staple gun. Pffft....as if I'm the only one who does this...

In closing (it does seem like a speech, doesn't it?), I hope that you get a good laugh or an astounding inspiration from something you read on my blog. There's always something going on over here and I intend to share it all with a smile. Enjoy!

-----------------

Better? I thought so too.

blah, blah, blah...

Ever feel like...Meh.? That's me today. I am at home with two sick pre-teens and well... I'm bored, ergo, Meh.

I cannot find the energy to get out of my sweats even though it is a lovely day. Part of the problem is that while I can go outside, I can't actually go anywhere. Remember? Sick kids? I could work on one of my long-awaiting projects, I could clean (yeah, that won't be happening), I could make cookies... but I'm not in a Martha Stewart mood. I'm just ...meh.  Dammit.

How is it that days like this can just remove all of my mojo? I had better find something to do soon or I just may take a nap.

Ooh, nap.

Gotta go. Meh.

Dog teeth brushing...

So I have these 3 lovely dogs...Gus, Angus & Bailey.

The big guy, Gus, never ever has funky dog breath...

Gus

Our two weenie dogs....ugh. It's bad. And we regularly get their teeth cleaned! The problem is that they inhale their food instead of chewing it. Does not matter what size the kibbles are, they still forget to chew.



Angus



I decided I could not take it any longer.

Last night, I whipped out our spare electric toothbrush, put on a new bristly toothbrush head and went to town with a dollop of kids' sensitive toothpaste. They were not happy. But minty fresh? Oh yeah baby.



Bailey



Then I did it again this morning. Good thing they are only 9 lbs or so!



They really don't want to be by me now, seriously. They keep skittering away when I see them. That's okay. They'll be back here cuddling up as soon as it is nighttime.

So what did you do this weekend? Did you have as much adventure as I did?

Hee.

Am I the only mom who says this?

A slice of my day...

So this morning, my lovely daughter comes in to talk to me. I notice that she is wearing the exact same cami that she wore yesterday. She does have a different long-sleeved shirt on, but that shirt closest to her -- yep, it is one and the same.

Let me preface the following by saying I really should filter my comments. I am sure my 'nuggets of wisdom' that I fling about sometimes are a bit much...but hey, that is just me. Anyhoo, as I notice that her shirt is indeedy the same, I say "Is that the same cami from yesterday?" (insert horrified looking-like-I-just-smelled-something-stinky-face here). She replies -- "yeah, I suppose I should change it..." to which I burst out with "Yeah, you better or you are going to spend the day smelling like pits (you know, armpits)".

My husband can be heard snickering in the other room. My daughter, she is a bit offended, but she does go and change. Stinkiness averted.

So, my question is, Am I the only mom who says things like this? Gosh, I hope not because I like to think that if I am not honest with my teen daughter about the possibility of B.O., then I am not being a good mother. Better to hear it from me than from a snarky teen frenemy, right?

That's what I thought...  : )
Enjoy your day --

Chicago weather....seriously?

Happy Sunday everyone...
It has been a doozy here in Chicago. Sit back, relax, and let me fill you in...

So this past week, our temps have ranged from 45ish, gloomy and rainy, to 60ish with spotty sunlight. I have been hoping for a nice warm, breezy day where I could open the windows. Did I get that? No. Because today it jumped to -- wait for it -- 85 & HUMID!!

Seriously?
It is waaaaayy-ay-ay too soon to be hoping (praying) that I fit in my warm weather clothes. And for the record, I didn't. Yeah, yeah....yuck it up. You know you are in the same place I am.

Now, don't get me wrong. I totally enjoyed the sunny day and all, but it is just too soon. Really. It sets the bar far too high for the coming weeks. For the record, we here in the Midwest know that it will be cold, stormy, and chock full o' tornado warnings right up until the end of May. And it will smell like worms most of the time, just so you know. Generally in Chi-town, we do not schedule our kids summer swim lessons until at least the end of June. Preferably after the 4th of July. But even then we wind up with blue-lipped children whining about how cold the pool is each and every day.

Hey, just saw the weather update -- we are apparently in for some thunder-tastic storms tonight too, so that is going to make for a fun evening for kids and dogs alike. Thunder? Check. Lightning? Check. Dogs in the closets & kids in our bed? Checkity check. No electricity? Planning on it like clockwork.

Gosh I love Chicago.

Gotta go. I need to make sure I have my flashlights ready.
Hope your evening is just as much fun as mine will be!

Spring fever...

Spring Fever has hit this household. Unfortunately, we live in the Chicago area, so it is only 40ish. The tulips and crocuses are starting to grow, but I want warm days and open windows. I know, stop whining....It's time to put on my big girl pants and deal with it.

Here is a recap of my weekend dealing with Spring Fever. I know you feel my pain.

My children -- they all are a bit squirrelly and NEED to spend some time running around outside. Arguing? Check. Screaming at your sister for *GASP* playing the guitar? Check. Retaliating by playing the coronet -- which by the way this sister DOES NOT know how to play? Check. Blaming each other and trying to pick fights all day? Check, double check, and would someone please get these parents a drink ?!

No, not bothering me at all (and yes, I am lying through my teeth...they are totally making me nuts).

As for my hubs, unfortunately his Spring Fever truly is a fever -- in the form of a lovely flu virus... poor guy! As for me, I can't clean this house fast enough. Today I kicked my flu-ish hubby out of bed so I could vacuum our room. I know, not nice. But I had to get it done before the mojo left my system.

So, anyhoo, I need it to be warmer so I can shove the kids outside for the whole day. I love them, but they need fresh air in their systems. I need Spring to REALLY arrive so I can open the windows because seriously -- another round of flu virus in here? Not good. And my hubby, sweetie, I need you to feel better so I have a help dealing with all this whack-a doo around here.

Jealous? I knew it.

Happy New Year!

Wow...has it really been a few weeks since I posted? Yikes. I really need to be more punctual in 2011. Ah, there is a resolution for the new year. So what have you been up to? I am currently lying in bed like a blob due to what appears to be the Flu. And yes, I did get a flu shot this year. So much for that $25.

Anyhoo, while sitting here, I was reviewing my photos from the last couple of months and thought I would share some with you. Here they are in no particular order...

Our pup, Gus. Did you notice he is laying on a pillow, TUCKED IN? Spoiled....um, yes indeed.

My girlie-q's. I cannot believe how much they look like their dad. I am starting to wonder if I had anything to do with their birth....nope, I remember the physical pain. And did I mention that my blondie was almost 10 lbs?? Gaah.

This is my daughter's dog holiday vignette. She set it up and she took the pix. Great, huh?



My lovely kidlings. My oldest is 23!
How is that possible if I am only 29? Heh.

So there you have it. A slice of my December. I hope you and your families had a wonderful New Year's celebration. I will be back at the craftiness once I feel better. Hopefully soon!



Laughing at myself...

So I have this iPod app that is called Period Tracker. Yeah, too much info if you are a guy.

Anyhoo, ladies, I have this freebie app because, you know, my mind is essentially Swiss cheese after having 4 kids. It is really nice for me to just be able to check the app and know when Aunt Flo will be here and for how long. Is that too much to ask of a simple app? I thought not.

Well, I may need to stop putting my faith in technology and go back to the good old days of a red dot on the family calendar (I know you did this too). So imagine my shock when I check today and see that I have THIS MANY days left in my cycle!!! WHAAAT???

 

Clearly the application is not working correctly. Or I am about to experience some serious PMS.

Thought you would enjoy my horror. Heh.