Boyish Charm

On the prowl..

We have been on the prowl for fun and cheap activities for the boys this summer. Last week started up our local library systems annual reading program.  I absolutely adore this program. Once a week they provide fun skits, plays or musical entertainment that is based on a book. Some of the people that perform have been coming for years and are soooo much fun. I absolutely love the Lucky Penny Players. Besides all that goodness we will get the opportunity to go to the Science Museum and The Sam Noble museum for free.... after we complete our reading goals for the summer.... more fun freebies are awarded! And of course, the best part of all... it keeps my kids READING!!!

We also like to go play at the park, walk the nature trails and see what kind of leaves and bugs we can find, feed the squirrels, feed the ducks and go play at the free splash park that our city put in a couple of years ago.

We have a big birthday party coming up this weekend for 2 of the boys... A Dinosaur themed party. Perfect time to head to the zoo to see their Dinosaur exhibit.

In the next few weekends, provided Don has a day off, we'll be heading (OMG I CAN'T contain my excitement!!) to the Great Salt Plains in Northwest Oklahoma to dig for crystals! YAY. I did this when I wasin elementary school for a field trip and had the best time ever! I can't wait to take my boys. I have been dying to visit for a couple of years, but the digging portion of the park had been closed down and has FINALLY reopened the end of April! This will be a day trip with picnic lunch included! Have I mentioned yet that I can't wait???

Family Fun in the Sun... at the right price!

Times are tough these days, but even if they weren't, finding things for a family of 8 to do over the summer could get quite costly. It is my goal to find fun activities and great places to explore in Oklahoma County for my kiddos.... at a free or cheap price! Of course... I have a few day trips in mind that will only cost us a packed lunch and gasing up the car.

Memorial weekend is the start of summer for most folks and it's no different here. This weekend there are several things to do that are FREE. Can't complain about that. Edmond is putting on their annual Jazz & Blues & Getting Green Festival. We have been to this in the past and had a wonderful time. The music was fun. You could always pack a lunch or dinner and head out there with a blanket or lawn chairs for an entertaining picnic... and don't forget some of the art exhibitors that will be showcasing! Also going on this weekend.... for FREE as well is the Paseo Arts Festival which will run through Monday. You'll find lots of arts exhibits and music here, as well as a childrens area! The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum is putting on their annual Chuckwagon Gathering and Children's Cowboy Festival. This event is not free... unless you happen to have a museum family pass. 

Of course there are plenty of area lakes to spend a day at that are close by. Lots of fun swimming, fishing, and cooking out, but don't forget the sunscreen. If none of these things appeal to you for the holiday weekend... get together with your neighbors and throw a block party or invite some friends over for a barbecue. Pot luck barbecue's are the best!

Besides some much needed yard work at my house, my family will be participating in some of this FREE fun that is being offered this weekend. 

Be sure to check back with me this week. I plan on posting a lot more about activities to do with your kiddos in the upcoming weeks!

Have a Happy Memorial Day Weekend!!!

Summertime

Summertime is finally here and we are ready to have some fun and enjoy every moment of it!

The past month has been a crazy and busy one. Seems like it's never ending excitement in this house. Guess I can't expect much less with 6 boys.

We finished up the donation drive for the family that lost their home in the fires last month. We had an overwhelming amount of donations and the family was thankful beyond words! It felt so great to be able to help this family... it also felt so good to finally have all those piles and piles and piles of clothes and household goods out of my dining room and living room! PHEW

We also spent the past month doing fun end of school activities. The boys had their annual Super Kids day which they were starting to think would never come due to all the rain, but finally, we had a small break that was long enough to dry up the ground and they had a blast. Tyler's grade, being the head honchos of the school, ran all the different jobs for Super Kids day.

This past week was filled with awards assemblies, end of year parties and then a special celebration that some of the parents put together for our 5th graders heading to Middle School next year. I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that my oldest has come so far... wasn't it just yesterday that he was a chubby little baby? I'm sure I'll be thinking the same thing when he heads to High School and so on.

(ignore the typo on the cake, the store decided they needed to go to 7th grade next year, although they are going to 6th!)

I have actually decided to do some simplifying of my life.... I think I've said this before. The past year has been INSANE. I had decided to go to school over a year ago and spent March of 08 to May of 09 taking classes non stop. I noticed a big difference in all aspects of my life and I've decided I need a break. I need to focus a little more on my home and my kids. When I'm ready to do some more classes (maybe the fall, maybe not) the school will be there and be waiting for me!

I haven't done much at all in the way of being artistic in the past year and that makes me feel so sad. I haven't baked nearly as much as I used to... I know, I bake all the time, but trust me it's less... I have spent less time with the kids doing fun stuff and I know that they miss it. So it's time for the old ME to come back! I look forward to it too....

We are going to be working on all kinds of cheap and free activities to do over the summer. I can't wait to get back in my scrapbook/craft room and create while I listen to my boys playing outdoors. AND I hope to work on creating some new recipes. I just got into this recently. I used to strictly bake off of a recipe, but now that I have gotten the gist of quite a few cookies and muffin recipes, I plan on altering and creating my own! I'm excited!!!

(Kind of like these totally simple muffins that I made for my boys this morning to celebrate the first day of summer!)

So... stay in touch. It should be fun. I know the past year my blog was really neglected, but a change is coming! Over the next week I plan on giving my home on the web a facelift... Maybe I can get the Utterly Talented Kristin to create a new banner for me! She rocks!

Oklahoma Burning

 

On April 9, Oklahoma experienced many wildfires throughout the state. Just a couple of miles down the road from me, they started in my own city, but lucky for me, were moving the other direction.

Lately I have been very preoccupied with helping a family of 9 gather clothing and household goods for a new home. They weren't as lucky as we were. I felt very led to reach out a helping hand and along with many other wonderful and giving people, that is what we are doing!

Please keep this family, as well as the other families of the more than 200 homes in the Midwest City and Choctaw area, in your prayers as they work on rebuilding their homes and memories.

This girl still has it!!

One of the sweet ladies at church had a new baby boy a couple of weeks ago. I had been meaning to alter a 4x6 album that I had, but ended up with a horrible case of cellulitis which had me down for a week. So... Tonight... Clean house, clean kids, no school work... Mama Created!

It was quick and easy and sooo much fun!

 

 I found this little saying on the back on two peas a while back, but unfortunately I don't remember who it was from.

 

Little bit of paint, little bit of charms, little bit of ribbon... just love it! 

Testing my Cake Decorating skills

Sunday was my nephews birthday and I offered to make his birthday cake. Of course... I offer during mid term crunch time, but it all worked. He wanted star wars stuff for his birthday... I did some digging and the easiest thing I could come up with was Darth Vader's mask. 

   

It's certainly not prefessional by any means, but he declared how much he liked it and that was good enough for me!

I did make a homemade yellow cake and of course homemade buttercream frosting... very good! I think the cake was a little bit too crumbly, so I'll do some experimenting next time.

I think I might need to go learn some tricks of the trade from one of those Wilton's classes now.

C.

Art

I found this video on one of the blogs that I follow. Make sure to have your song up so you can listen along to the video. Enjoy!

Time Management is not in my vocabulary

I have been struggling with time management for quite some time now, but even more so now that I have started school. After getting the kids off to school and watching the news with my first cup of coffee, I felt compelled to blog about it. Must have been meant to be, because when I opened up my Google Reader(which, btw, I must tell you about my love for this feature. I was never able to keep up with blogs before hand, check it out!), Meg over at Sew Liberated had posted a blog about finding balance which she had borrowed from Maya at maya*made. Let me share it with you as well...

Motherhood is... finding balance
~ when to hold your child's hand and when to let it go
~ when to listen to others' advice and how to hear your own wisdom
~ how to give to yourself, while you provide so much to everyone else
~ learning how to play and still get work done
~ learning how to get work done and still play
~ figuring out what is too much and what is just enough
~ flexibility vs. structure
~ spontaneity vs. routine

Motherhood is a bit like walking on a tightrope and balance is what keeps us putting one foot in front of the other.

I am definitely on that tight rope, but boy am I walking it wobbly! I need help. I need to find a way to make everything fit and make myself happy again. Maybe happy isn't the right word. I'm not miserable and not really unhappy so much, more like disappointed when I can't accomplish all that needs to be done or that I want to do. My days consist of... chasing kids, doing homework (ok... trying), keeping house (and even that isn't up to par), feeding family, helping kids accomplish homework, showers for kids, and bedtime. Just all that seems to be a full time job, let alone the other things I want and need to do.

The school work is a big thing for me right now. I struggled last week with trying to get work for my classes done. The babies (although they aren't so much babies anymore... almost 4 and 2 1/2 sniffle) absolutely refused to give me time to work. Nap time was a no go, they just refused. I would send them out back to play, they spent every 2 minutes coming to the door or window yelling for mommy. I tried to get work done at night, they woke up, refused to sleep, was extremely cranky and I didn't get the work done and ended up exhausted the next day. Something has to give there!

I walk into what could and should be my most favorite room of the house, the room that we dedicated to my crafting/sewing/scrapbooking/crocheting or whatever other creativity I can conjure up. It is jammed pack with fabrics to be sewn, scrapbook supplies galore to be turned into beautiful layouts and albums for my family, fibers to be crocheted, piles of items that need mending and then the desk that houses the desktop which tends to be the catchall for everything that doesn't have a place or that we don't have time to file away.

I used to spend hours working on my photography, layouts, making clothes... and now NOTHING! That makes me sad. I like being creative. It is quiet time, time for me, time to relax, time to make things for others. I need to find that time again.

Baking is another one. I love to bake.. I love to cook. I find myself doing less and less and making what is the quickest way out. I love being in my kitchen and creating food that makes the people I love happy.

Family time needs to be a bit more creative as well. We usually spend family time together in the living room watching television. Not the best bonding time for us.

Finding time to pick up my Bible and read scripture is another one that I feel very convicted on.

And also, finding time to blog. Obviously by my blog history, anyone can see how much I have slacked on that.

So.... what do I do to find a way to manage my time more efficiently and find time for a little bit of everything? I am on a mission to find ways to make this possible.

What are your time management tips?

C.

3.3.09 Picture share

  Been really busy with school lately... and the matter of being sick for 3 weeks straighty.. ick! But that is all over now. Just thought I would share some pictures from recently!

Took the babies... I still call them that, but Jonathan is almost 4... to the park last week for a picnic and playtime. They had so much fun and were SO worn out!

 

   

Sunday afternoon we went to my sister's house to celebrate my niece's 1st birthday!

 

Not sure which one was the birthday girl.......

   

Jonathan found a fireman costume that we almost couldn't get off of him!

 

Off to read more textbooks! :)

C. 

February Daring Bakers: Chocolate Valentino

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

 

I was so excited to post this month. This was my first time being a part of the Daring Baker's group. An amazing group of bakers who come together each month to create the same dare!

This month was a flourless cake (never in my life made one of these), the chocolate valentino!

 

You will have to forgive my picture quality.... the big camera is in the shop.

I was really quite amazing at how light and fluffy the texture of this was. Anyone that knows me, knows I am not a big chocolate eater, but this was very good.

 

I added an easy strawberry glaze to it. I had strawberries on hand, didn't just want to cut them up, so thought a glaze would be great... it definitely was!

   

This was a lot of fun and definitely something I would not have made had I not been dared!

Can't wait for next month's dare!

C.