today-

lucky charms?
check.
green milk?
check.
chocolate coins found under the pillows?
check. have a great day- and don't get pinched!

the big 6

wow. I can hardly believe my baby is 6 now.
she is such a fun kid.
here are 6 great things about her-

1. she still grabs her blanky and likes to cuddle with me on the couch when she wakes up in the morning.

2. she has her older siblings wrapped around her finger. they do almost everything at her bidding.

3. she loves to watch movies and eat popcorn. loves it.

4. many mornings when I go to wake the girls up I find her snuggled in Sadie's bed, where she has moved sometime in the night.

5. she loves going to school, playing with friends and learning new things.

6. she is so stinking cute.

big party to come on Saturday. good times. she can hardly wait!

the c monster

so- here it is. not even close to the cuteness of the one I boogled,
but hey- let's not judge. we're all friends here! and yes, he is eating a digestive cookie-
because that is what I had in my house.
and his eyes are just icing blobs with chocolate chips,
and yes, it was delicious.
and isn't that what really matters?
we will see what the kids in the kindergarten class thought of it when Maggie gets home.
hopefully no one will say- I don't care for this.
that would be a tragedy.

jump on the band wagon

so this morning Jack's junior high band played in the music festival.
they needed someone to take all the large instruments to the festival.
Jack vollunteered me.
so we went to the school and were packing in the instruments,
and one of the kids said-
put it in the band wagon.

pretty funny kids.

(maggie and the instruments in the band wagon)

they did pretty well.

the van- well, it made it.

everytime I had to stop and get going again something in the back would creak.

I was just glad it wasn't the door and that it didn't fly open and instruments didn't fall all over the road.

that would have been bad.

boogle it

so, it's Maggie's birthday on Sunday.

she gets to take treats to kindergarten on Friday for her birthday.

I asked her what she wanted to take,

and she said cookie monster cupcakes.

I told her I wasn't sure how to make those,

I would have to look it up on the computer

and she said- you can boogle it!

(love it!)

so I did- and found this-

adorable.

now, to see what I can come up with.

I don't think it will look this good.

sadly,

but I shall try!

troy and gabriella

after a day of the girls and a friend playing barbies in the toy room,

I went down to run on the treadmill- to find this-

our troy and gabriella barbies hanging out- a bit close,

by the edge of the toy shelf.

I thought it was so funny.

I wonder if it was my girls who put them like this-

or if it was the friend.

the latest

I am reading this book-it was recommended to me by my friend who is a librarian at our high school.

it is really good.

I think it is a book that Kami and Kayli would enjoy.

just saying.

watching-
on season 4. sometimes inappropriate. most times funny.

Cory came home early yesterday afternoon and I was watching it, and he came down, stood for a moment then walked away saying 'I can't even listen to this show.' hmm.

but he doesn't like a lot of tv shows, so we won't go by his word.

not sure I would recommend it to anyone, but now I this far in, I need to find out how he did meet their mother.

knitting- I bought the yarn for this project last year. I finally got a pattern for it a couple of months ago- I am starting them today! they are called thrummed mittens- you knit them up and every once in a while you add in some wool tufts, so the inside is super warm and fuzzy.- like this-
mine will be about that color for the outside, but my fuzzies are white and pink and blue. they will be so fun.

- because I have been wearing the mittens ben sewed in his sewing class last year out of polar fleece. and while they are warm and stylish, I think it is time for some new ones.

and the way the weather has been, I think I can finish them and still wear them for a few months.

nice.

my girls

aren't they radiant? (haha)

I was trying to get that cool sun flare effect that I have seen around, but not sure I did it right.

they are great girls- mostly get along with each other. I love that they play barbies and polly pockets together. so fun.

now, if only I could get them to keep their room clean.

(but I seem to recall my mom getting on me to clean up my room a lot as a kid. I guess what goes around comes around!)

happy family day

that's what day it is here in Alberta today.
yay.
but cory has to work, so it's just me and the kids.
and I have some boxes and garbage bags, and we are going through the house getting rid of stuff.
That's the goal anyways.
so far I have a bit of stuff on my kitchen floor.
good times.

a question for you

so- say I am thinking about taking my family on a trip down to Utah in the summer time.

(I have thought of this before, but I think this year is the year.)

what do we have to do,

what should we see,

where should we go?

on my for sure list is touring temple square,

and climbing mount timpanogos.

I know there is so much more- what is the most fantastic stuff?

please, let me know what you think!

thanks.

some one loves me

at the grocery store that I shop at most often

they were giving away bunches of roses yesterday.

(I guess they ordered a few too many for valentines day.)

-but lets just say they love to have me shop there,

and wanted to show their appreciation!

yeah, lets go with that!

dotty

yesterday after I sent Maggie to get dressed for school, this is the outfit she came out with.

I said- wow- that is a lot of polka dots.

she said- I know, it's because I love them.

I guess so!

(I love them too!)

she did end up switching the leotards out for jeans, but kept the skirt and the shirt.

some things aren't worth the battle.

and some things you can get away with when you are 5. (almost 6!)

happy valentines day!

the day of love
(and candy)
I crocheted some hearts, and glued them to some hair clips for the girls to wear to school!


I bought a variety of heart candy, and filled up my candy jars- these will be pulled out at Family home evening- along with the cake balls I made. they aren't pretty, but they sure taste good.
( I had to make sure they were okay, right?)

the heart shaped pretzels covered with chocolate are from walmart- so very cute,

and the heart shaped jelly tots were from superstore. so cute (and really yummy too!)

I got this sweet valentine from a girl in my primary class. it says you are the bomb.

and it's like a bomb!(made up with 3 packs of rolos) so creative- and it involves chocolate. love it!

- super exciting news- this morning I put on a pair of my jeans, and they were way too big, I could pull them off without unbuttoning them. I was so excited.

-sad news- after today, I think those jeans might just fit me again. yikes!

substitution

(or how much is too much.)


so, you know how sometimes you really want to eat some homemade baked stuff, but you really don't want all the sugar and fat and calories?

well- that is how I was feeling this morning-
so I attempted to make some banana muffins- but a lot healthier.

I substituted whole wheat flour for all the white flour,
honey for all the sugar,
applesauce for the oil-
and added a bit of flax seed-
now sometimes I know when I try to make things healthy they just don't taste very good


but I have to say, I think these were pretty yummy.
but that might be because I put in chocolate chips-
no substitutions for those!
so- am I justified in eating a whole lot, since they are really healthy?
no- I didn't think so.
darn it.

time

high time to update the blog!

not too much exciting going on here.

-just trying not to freeze- but hear it is supposed to get warmer again this weekend.

-angry that my favorite radio station all of a sudden switched to number 1 hits. if I wanted to listen to those I would be listening to the other 3 or 4 radio stations in this city that play the top hits. sheesh.

-hanging out with Ben at the hospital this morning- his finger got jammed when he was playing soccer in gym class yesterday, so we had to make sure it wasn't broken. nope, just sprained.

- getting a hair cut and color-

way too long over due. my roots were awful.- but now-

not so bad. and of course my hair dresser straightened it.

and of course it will never look this way again.

- and last week I tried to cut Maggie's hair.

bad idea.

then I realized how uneven the sides were and tried to even them up.

that was not a good idea either.

then my sister called me- another sister had signed her kids up for a birthday club thing at the mall, and got a bunch of coupons for her daughter-

that they won't be using because they are now far far away-

and one was for a haircut at a real salon- so I jumped on that one- and Maggie got a cute 'do. (and it is even. yay!)

-then I left the computer to make some supper-

and this is what I found.

silly little girl!

while surfing the net the other day...

I came across this picture!

- to read the story, check out my etsy blog- bluejeanmamaetsy.

such a fun surprise!

a moment

this weekend the kids pulled out the monopoly game.
they played it on Saturday, Sunday and Monday (we had no school on Monday)

on Sunday night Cory played a game with some of the kids.
they were on the livingroom floor.
Ben was on the couch listening to his ipod
the girls were playing with some of their toys around the room
I was knitting on the chair.
we were all in the same room just hanging out.
that never happens!
I was sitting there thinking I should pull out my camera and put it on the table and set the timer.
I wanted to capture that moment forever.
but I didn't.
then the game was over, and the kids moved on.


next time I am going to try to remember this,
and actually grab the camera.
because my memory is not so good- I and I will probably forget this moment ever happened.
and it was a great moment.

on patrol

he's helping to keep the world safe- helping kids cross the street.

and although it looks like we might go to school in the night time,

it was morning, and the mornings are actually getting lighter.

thank goodness!

( I thought this would be a fun photo of the day-so I ran out and took some pictures of him.

I think he was a bit embarrassed, but that's what mom's are for, right?)

good cold fun

yep, we had quite a bit of snow.
and it was mighty cold.
but now, it is warming up.
and the snow is melting a bit.
and then it is freezing at night.
making the roads very icy.

some good times were had last week building a quincy.

then it got a hole in the roof.

not good. a certain boy was not happy, but he handled it well, and didn't get angry.

the snow was kind of nice-it is so pretty when everything is clean and white.

but now, the roads are brown from the sand,

and the snow plowed up from the roads and shoveled from the driveways is all brown too, and it's not so pretty any more.

kind of like in the fall- after the pretty colored leaves all fall, and everything is just dead and brown. not so nice.

good thing spring will come.

someday.

but not soon enough for me!

some people's kids!

on Thursday it was Maggie's turn to take snack to kindergarten.
and I vollunteer in her classroom once a month, so I signed up for her snack day!
when thinking about what to take- we decided on popcorn.
delicious.
and Maggie loves it with extra flavors added, but I didn't have any,
but earlier on when we were at my sister's house she had made popcorn and added some candy cane sprinkles especially for popcorn.
it was yummy.
and I had a pack of candycanes left over, so we blended them up small,
and sprinkled it on the popcorn.
and we taste tested it.
alot.
and it was good. then, when the kids were sitting eating,
I was shocked when over half the kids said "I don't care for this"-
(that is what they are supposed to say instead of - I don't like this)
and threw it away.
silly kids.
I think there were only 5 or so who actually ate it all.
some ate some of it,
and the rest threw it away.
the gall.
sheesh.
silly kids. don't know a good snack when they see it.

(I am trying to change my header, but can't remember how to do it right. I will figure it out soon. I hope!)

finally

I bought a crochet hat pattern on etsy a long time ago.
finally the other night I sat down and made it.
it was so fast, and so cute-
I don't know what I was waiting for!


I see many of these in my etsy shop in the future.
love it!

deal...or no deal?

during the christmas break, the kids and I headed out east to visit some fun family members.

while there- I always need to check out their Salvation Army store.

and I always find something fun .

this time I found this fun red chair- (this picture was from the site where you can buy them- that isn't my kid. just fyi.)

Maggie has one or two in her kindergarten class room, so I had seen them before, and thought they were pretty fun.

I found them online- $70. yikes.

I paid $5.

what a great deal. - that is what I told Cory.

then he said- it's not a deal if you don't need it.

hmmm. so very true.

but I think every one needs an awesome red rocker chair.

right?

deal. I say.

true north

living up here, in the north, in Canada-
is silly.
it is cold.
and we had tons of snow.
and now it is cold, and the roads are bad,
and it is supposed to snow some more tomorrow!
yikes.


but- one of the good things- we have a really long driveway, so we pile it all up in the yard,
so if the kids want to do some sledding, they can just head out the back door!
(it's not too big of a hill, but good for little kids. and when they get bored back there, they head out to our front yard which is on a bit of a slope!)
great for this lazy mom, who doesn't want to go out in the cold any more than she has to!

I buy hot chocolate in bulk,
and we drink it by the gallon when the weather is like this!
p.s.- if you are close to a bulk barn, try their peppermint hot chocolate. yummm!

lately...

watching:borrowed season 1 from my fantastic sis. in law. wishing I had convinced her to let me take 2 and 3 as well, as I will be finishing 1 shortly.

knitting these-wraps. seem to be big this month. I have a bit of yarn for them. bought a huge batch of yarn online, but sadly it is coming from Turkey, and will take about 2 months to get here. yikes.

reading:
I picked up the first 2 and the 4th of the series at a thrift store- read the first two really fast, but don't want to read the 4th until I read the 3rd- but it is never in at our library.

great reads. It is now in Jed's pile of books to read. I think he will really like them.

eating- tons of junk.

diet- or more appropriately - eating changes start on Monday- so I am trying to get rid of all the sugar and crap. eating it is probably not the best idea. but oh, so delish.

and that is what I have been doing lately.

tuesday night

Tuesday-
right after school, we head out
to take Sadie to Showbiz kids.
she sings, and she loves it.
back in November the group did a show at an old folks home.
such a great idea.
this is Sadie doing her solo-
jeepers, creepers, where'd you get those peepers...



so great that she is gaining confidence in herself-
singing in front of a group is a big deal!

definitely worth the drive!
(thanks miss Dixie!)

hello 2011

Cory and I spent last night chaperoning at the youth dance. our ward was in charge of the whole dealio, and I must say, it was pretty fun.

my goal for the night was to embarrass ben, and I think I accomplished that quite nicely!

they had a fun photo booth there- with props and stuff. such a fun idea!

so, new year, new resolutions right?

*this year I want to attempt the photo a day thing again. I did pretty well with it in 2009, but our computer died, and I never did get my pictures off of it to get them printed and into a book. this year I will do it monthly, so I won't get so behind.

*this year I want to make a real budget, stick with it, and get out of some debt.

such a grown up thing to do, I think. It is time.

*go down a size or two- or maybe three in my clothing! which means eating less sugar and chocolate, and exercising more. but that is okay. I can do this! maybe.

*you know when you shop, and you get that little thing at the bottom of your receipt that if you do a little survey, you could win some money? I want to do all of those that I can, see if I win anything!

*and of course do some cleaning and organizing. get rid of junk. buy less junk- which will work nicely with the whole budgeting thing. win win right?

it's going to be good. this 2011 year. lets do it!

Merry Christmas!

seasons greetings

last week we had some nasty weather,

snowing and blowing-

it was pretty yucky out,

but it sure made my candy cane decoration look neat!

christmas dresses

every year I make the girls Christmas dresses.
so far they have been the same, and I will continue making them matching dresses until they complain!
this is Maggie's dress this year-
front-


and back-

sadie's is the same idea, but she asked for long sleeves,

and silly me- I measured her arm from the shoulder where sleeves usually start,

and cut out the pieces, sewed them on, and once she tried on her dress I realized that I should have measured from her neck instead- so she ended up with 3/4 inch sleeves. but she said that's okay.

I meant to take a picture of them in their dresses on Sunday, but they changed out of them too quickly.

if I didn't tell you, you would never know that they were made out of a bed sheet, right?

shh. it will be our little secret!

they're home!

and we are so happy!

(and from their stories, I think they are happy to be back where there are normal toilets, and roads with no hills, and not so many crazy drivers!)

-they were gone for 18 months serving a mission for our church in the Phillipines!

this is it

the last 2 wedding pictures I will share. I just finally learned how to install actions, so I was having some fun playing! there is no end to the fun I can have with pictures now!

for joanne and kayli and amy

working a bit more on the wedding pictures- from almost a month ago-
it is about time!
Kayli- here they are, looking forward! and this one is for Joanne- you silly picture wrecker!
(those are her fingers!)

still a bunch to be done.

hopefully soon!

making a list..

how come the days till christmas are getting shorter,

but my to do list is getting longer?

-finish sadie's christmas dress

- make Cory a wise man costume for tomorrows ward party

-wrap presents

- buy presents

-find out what one kid really wants so I can figure out what to get him

and on and on!

must get busy!

tis the season

for birthdays!

my twins (born 4 years apart) had their birthday on Saturday.

last week we had a little party for Sadie.
w

we had mini oreos, mini ritz crackers with cheese, made mini clay cupcakes,

and I had to make a little banner for the cake!

Maggie was right there during it all,

and sweet Sadie let her help-

even help blow out the candles.

what a great sister and a great girl.

love you Sadie!

happy mail

so, one of my most favorite things about christmas,

besides the lights,

the treats, the presents,

is getting christmas cards in the mail- but especially christmas cards with pictures.

over the past few years I have tried to be creative with my picture cards,

but I have found shutterfly- and they have such fantastic christmas cards!

here are a few that I really like-

this one would be great with a certain picture I have in mind- this one- so cute, and I could write a personal message on the inside! love.
stinking adorable-
so simple, and so very cute.
these are just a few of the fantastic christmas photo cards they have! check out some more here.
picking my favorite one will not be easy, that's for sure!
but they don't just have christmas cards-
they have super cute baby announcements too!

and after christmas, when the presents are open, and you need to send out some thank you cards- well, wowsa- they have those too! so fantastic!

they must have a great team of graphic artistsworking for them. the ideas, the cuteness. so super!
I need to get on the ball, get some super cute cards made, and get them out in the mail!
christmas cards are such a fun part of christmas,
and these- well, way fun!