The Martin Family

Loving Digital Project Life...

2012-02-13T11:36:00.000-08:00

I spent about an hour and was able to create this two page spread for my NEW digital version of Project Life... well, sort of digital. I downloading the digital graphics for the edition that I wanted. Then I go in to Microsoft Publisher {since I don't yet have one of those fancy graphic design programs} and edit photos. I crop them, add graphics to them, and create my own 4"x6" images. Each one fits perfect in the photo pockets pages designed by Becky Higgins for Project Life. Then I create the journaling cards that I want including my typed message for the day. I am still debating whether I want to type them or print blank cards and hand write it in, but for now it's being typed. The beauty of doing it digitally is that I can change it later if I want! ☺

Here is the first 2-page spread that I put together for the first week in 2012 ... ya I know I'm a little behind, but if I can work on a week at a time, I'll be caught up before I know it! Then I can go back and finish last years book!

page 1

page 2

If you haven't looked into Project Life... I am telling you it's the way to go about scrapbooking. So many possibilities. I am working on a book for Rebekah and Jonah about their first year... and starting one for the new baby!

I l♥ve it!!

Little Surprises....

2012-01-30T12:13:00.000-08:00

Isn't it fun to get a surprise now and then!? I remember when I was a kid, every once in a while, my mom would pick us up from school with hot McDonald's french fries and orange drinks in the car. That was SUCH a fun surprise as a kid!!

Sometimes I think our life can get a little boring. Following the same routine day in and day out! This morning Jonah and I dropped Rebekah off at school and headed to Wal-Mart {not a store I frequent} for some ink for the printer and to just walk around a bit. Well... we ended up there for about an hour or so - with a major stop in the toy section to push every toys' button and check out all the squirt guns!

I let Jonah pick out two fun to things.....

A pair of Toy Story shoes {which he needed anyway since his are getting a little snug... but these are TOY STORY!!!} and a pretty neat Buzz Lightyear hat! He carried his hat and shoes through most of the store.

While we were there I browsed the girls clothing section. Rebekah LOVES to wear leggings. She wears them with dresses, skirts, and occasionally under a pair of shorts...

So, when I saw these cute legging outfits I couldn't resist!!

I LOVE the one hanging on her chair. It's so stinkin' cute! We might have to save this one to take some photos in. I made her bed, and placed all of her new goodies in her room for her to find when she gets home from school.

Rebekah has been a HUGE help during the pregnancy so far. She will get things for me when I need them {especially picking things up off the floor when I drop them -- since it's becoming increasingly more difficult to do so myself}. She needs a fun little surprise. I can't wait to see her reaction when she gets home!!

Some BIG little news!!

2012-01-13T20:43:00.000-08:00

So, I realize it seems like for-ev-er since we have updated the blog, but we've had a pretty good excuse!

We are so thrilled to be welcoming another child to our family. We will find out in a couple weeks whether it will be another boy or girl.

I have been so terribly sick. For whatever reason this pregnancy so far has been much harder than the previous two. Maybe it's because I have a preschooler and a toddler to feed, bathe, dress, and take care of. Maybe it's because I am now {*gulp} 30. Whatever it is, it's been rough!

Now that I am entering the second trimester things are beginning to look up! FINALLY! I never thought 3 months could last so long. For any of you who haven't experienced morning sickness while being pregnant let me just say ... NOT FAIR!! Danior has been the BEST through it all so far. He's been having to take up the bulk of the cleaning, shopping, and laundry since I have been resigned to either the couch, the bed, or the bathroom floor {hugging the toilet}.

Our little bundle of joy will be debuting sometime in mid-July and we can't wait to meet him or her. The kids are super excited and Rebekah hopes it's a baby girl so she can sleep in her room -- little does she know what that would mean...

My little cowboy!

2011-11-06T15:28:00.000-08:00

I love hand-me-downs. A sister in our ward has a little boy that is a couple years older than Jonah. She graciously gave us a bag full of clothing the other week for Jonah, that her son has outgrown.

Sitting on top of the bag were a pair of boots.. that look like they were NEVER worn. I called Jonah in to see them and he hasn't taken them off since.

See... even at night, he puts on pj's then puts his boots back on. His new favorite accessory is this dollar store cowboy hat. It has taken quite the beating over the last few weeks.

He doesn't always wear it, but he carries it around talking like a rootin' tootin' rough 'n tough cowboy.

Trick or Treating

2011-11-03T08:14:00.000-07:00

Let me start by saying how totally weird it was on Halloween to walk around the neighborhood with my kids and trick or treat. Then to see all of the other trick or treaters.

Let me explain. Growing up we lived on a flag lot {our home sat off the street down a long, dark driveway}. Needless to say, we never got trick or treaters... like e-v-e-r. Our neighborhood was made up of old grouchy people who never really got into the holiday, so we didn't even trick or treat on our street. Sad, I know.

After we got married, we lived in an apartment for 5 years and got one trick or treater. There were no kids in our complex, and because it was gated entry, no one could get in.

Fast forward to present. We live on a quiet street with LOTS of kids. They spend their afternoons riding bikes, playing street ball, and just hanging out around the neighborhood. It feels like some weird little town where everyone knows everyone.. and I dunno, maybe it is!

My parents came over to man the door and the candy handing out while Danior and I took the kids around our street. They had so much fun. My camera battery died (boo!) as I was walking out the door. So, I had to use the other camera {to say I despise that camera would be an understatement}. I don't have too many pictures, but I wanted to post the few that I took. Enjoy!

I hope you had a safe and fun Halloween!!!

Halloween Party - Take One

2011-10-29T09:25:00.000-07:00

Last night our ward threw a Harvest Festival including a chili cook-off. I entered, for fun, and submitted my first ever batch of chili {totally regretting not taking a picture of it}. I didn't win, but my crock pot was practically licked clean by the end of the night... so that should mean something, right?

Rebekah won a part of the costume contest for "best hair"... you'll see why when you look at the pictures. Other than having to corral Jonah from the food tables, and trying to entertain them before the trunk or treating, we all had a fabulous time. The kids ended up with lots of candy. The super nice people in our ward even brought special toys and treats to hand out that Jonah could eat.

Here are some pictures from our festivities and getting dressed for the party.

He started off talking like a pirate, but by the end of the night he didn't want anything to do with his hat or eye patch... and he put his hook in his trick or treat bag.

I think she's escaping from the tower..

She is just the sweetest thing in the world! She didn't want to wear the shirt under, but her dress was a little too revealing to be princess worthy... so, alas the shirt was put on.

A true pirate can improvise when he can't find his sword!

Inspecting her hair...

We, of course, had a costume parade for the kids. Here is my cutie enjoying walking in the parade.

Walking in the parade. Yes, that's me behind.. they marched around all 3 food tables.. just my luck.. so I followed to redirect Jonah to the task at hand rather than touching all the food - didn't want to have to break out the epi-pen at the party.

It was so fun! We really love our ward and the friends we are making. We shared a table with the same family that we shared our first ward party table with.. oh, the memories... (ahem). We still have people asking us if we are new in the ward, and I suppose technically we still are (it'll be a year in December). We still don't know half the people in our ward, and they don't know us... it's even harder to find the few we do know on Halloween!

Pumpkin Patch Field Trip with Preschool

2011-10-18T18:02:00.000-07:00

This year Rebekah started preschool at the YMCA. She goes 3 days a week for 6 hours a day! Gotta get her ready for Kindergarten!!

Last Friday {Oct. 14, 2011} her class took a field trip to Underwood Family Farms in Moorpark. My mother-in-law came down and stayed home with Jonah so I could go too!

Here are some of the high lights!

Waiting for the rest of the class to arrive {mommy's had to drive their own kids to the farm because of limited van seating}

Waiting for our turn to ride the tractor hay ride.

My sweet little girl and I {there are very few pics of me with my kiddos!}

Getting ready to go through the "gourd tunnels". We got front row seats!

We all got to pick a pumpkin to bring home. Rebekah wanted to find the BIGGEST one!

I think she did pretty well!

After all the kids found their pumpkins we headed to the tables for lunch!

She was so cute with all of her little friends! I got to meet a couple of them.

After lunch her class headed back to school. She and I hung around at the farm for another hour or so ... until we couldn't stand the heat and the sun anymore!

We decided we want to get chickens some day {hopefully once Jonah isn't allergic to eggs anymore!}

They had a huge hay bale pyramid that she climbed... twice!

Then... best of all... we waited in line for close to 30 minutes so this little cutie could ride a pony!

She loved these ponies.

Just a fun picture.

They had a really neat "house" made out of stacked pumpkins and lumber. It was really neat.... and shady!

Then... just because there is a lot of Rebekah here's one of Jonah goofing around with Gina's glasses while she was visiting!

Bedtime Guest

2011-10-12T11:53:00.000-07:00

Last week Brenda and Landon came over for a little while. Bren was helping me to make some final craft show decisions about fabrics and products.

It just so happened that they were here at bedtime. Our nightly ritual/schedule consists of the following:

5pm (ish): dinner

6pm: play outside - depending on weather

6:30 pm: bathtime

7:00pm: cup of milk and stories/scripture reading

7:30pm: prayers and good night!

Lucky Landon got to join in on the storytime fun!

Thanks Danior for being such a good sport, and for taking care of the kids while Brenda and I "worked".

Today's Festivities - 10.8.2011

2011-10-08T21:43:00.000-07:00

I know, it's been a looooooong time since this poor blog was updated. I would love to go back and fill you all in, but frankly, I don't have time.... so, I am starting new from NOW!

Here's what we were up to today...

My cousins were in town to celebrate their grandpa's 90th birthday. We all got together at Warner Center Park for some lunch and play time!

Becka and J-bug doing what they do best.... climbing!

Jonah and Noah (his cousin once removed or something) who are a few months apart had so much fun running around, climbing, and being BOYS!

After a while, Rebekah and Mia (who is about a year older than RL) finally got over their shyness and played together for a bit!

Jonah and Gillian are a little more than 6 months apart (Jonah is older). They didn't really play together much though.. just kind of stared at each other!

• • • • •

Just before we all decided to call it quits at the park, we tried to round up all 8 kids to take a picture of them. Here's how it looked....

I am sure we got at least ONE picture where they were all looking... or at least most of them!

It was so much fun visiting with my cousins. When we were little they moved to Northern California and we would only see them once a year at Christmas. As we got older it was Christmas and weddings. Now that some of us have families, it is MUCH harder to get everyone together. It was nice to reunite!

Our Garden : To date

2011-06-12T15:39:00.000-07:00

So, with a new house and a nice big backyard {YAY!!} we decided this year that we wanted a garden. At least wanted to attempt a garden anyway. We bought supplies from Lowe's {possibly one of my new favorite stores} and loaded up the car, inside and out!

Then we started work on building our raised garden boxes. We decided to build raised boxes and put them on our little cement slab instead of on our grass.

We doubled the height and secured all the wood pieces with metal brackets.

Then we filled it with 3 or 4 different kinds of dirt/potting soils/manure.

Good thing we had two little helpers, eager to get their hands dirty. We even bought some $1 shovels at Target so they could "help".

After week 1, here is what our garden looked like. If you look close {really, REALLY close} you can see little green sprouts!

After week 2 more sproutlets are showing {and so are the water staines on our slab from the raised boxes}.

Week 3 - finally everything has sprouted!

Week 4 {currently} We tried to thin out our corn - the big ones on the bottom right of the large garden box - and I am experimenting with transplanting them to the other side of the box - left. So far they seem to be hanging in there... but we will see how they end up!

The original corn stalks are growing nicely. The largest is about a foot tall! We love corn and are hoping that we actually get to harvest some!

So, what all did we plant??

• corn

• sweet peas

• onions {the big bulb ones}

• carrots

• green onions

• tomatoes {in the pots}

I take a picture every week and this week we are going put together a big posterboard so we can add our picture each week to watch the progess! We will keep you posted!!

Like Mommy... Like Daughter

2011-05-20T16:01:00.000-07:00

Rebekah got all dressed up in her Rapunzel costume and decided she wanted to wash her dishes. All on her own! If only I could harness this "play" desire to clean and put it to some good use!!

The best part is... she was singing to herself the entire time! Like a true {Disney} princess!!!

New Outfit: 5.17.2011

2011-05-17T15:51:00.000-07:00

It took Jonah a long time to finally fall asleep for his nap today. When I went in to check on him... I found out what he had been up to. Thankfully he was so tired at this point that the little beeps from my camera didn't bother him one bit!

Here's a closer look. His pants are on backwards. So, this little guy not only took off his pants, but then tried to put them back on!

BTW... I am loving these new Winnie the Pooh diapers. They are cute... and I bought them on clearance with 3 coupons!!! Yep.. cute, cheap, and functional!

Mommy Lesson #1

2011-05-16T09:11:00.001-07:00

Never leave a 2 year-old alone. Even if it's just to get dressed. Why not? This could happen....

Good thing I was planning on cleaning bathrooms today anyway! Plus... my little guy now smells minty fresh!

{P.S. Yes, we've been in our house almost 6 months and this bathroom still isn't finished yet! It's driving me nuts... but for what I want to do, I need to save up for! I can't wait to reveal it once it's done!! }

A visitor....

2011-05-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

So, we were all ready to go to Costco. We had dinner, the kids were in pj's, we just needed to get gas and some soy milk. Danior takes the kids out to the car, I walk out... and as I open the car door to get in... a dog jumps in the car with us! It was a cute dog... but it had a collar. So, I walk the dog down the street trying to find the address listed on the tag... ummm... that address didn't exist! GREAT!

So, I knock on the door of the closest address to the one listed. She actually knew the dog - Copper. She said it belonged to someone 2 doors down - her son! BUT... she wouldn't take the dog. Sheesh! It was a super sweet dog {a puppy really}. Danior called the number on the tag and they were on their way home from Ventura and would be home in about 30 minutes.

If this was my dog, I would hope someone would be nice enough to keep him until I could get home. So, that's what we did. We ARE NOT dog people... and this just reassured that to me!

We got a chance to meet our neighbor across the street. They though we got a dog and were talking to us about it. When we explained the situation, he offered us his dogs leash so that we could at least take him for a walk or something. He is one powerful puppy!!

30 minutes turned into almost an hour. The kids lost interest in about 15 minutes. We missed going to Costco because they were closed by the time the owners came. The owners?! Didn't really even say thank you.

Oh well, I decided at least I had taught my kids a valuable life-long lesson... we will probably never get a dog!

Easter: 4.24.2011

2011-04-24T15:49:00.000-07:00

After going to church, we headed over to the Shisley's for an Easter Egg Hunt and dinner festivities!!

Rebekah was shocked to learn that not only did the Easter Bunny leave a basket for her at grandma and grandpa's house, but he also knew that she loved Rapunzel!

Let the egg hunt begin!

Gigi gave Rebekah two new puzzles. What a cute picture!

We had a fun afternoon with family, great food, and lots of memories!

POTD 4.18.2011

2011-04-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

This one I am showing to his wife someday!

POTD 4.16.2011

2011-04-16T11:28:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I swear this little girls life is a musical! On the way to a Young Women camp fundraiser tonight, she was singing and dancing in the car. I had to take a picture!

Disneyland Vacation!!!!!! {4.13.2011 - 4.15.2011}

2011-04-13T17:07:00.000-07:00

For the most part, I think these photos tell the whole story themselves!

{in the car - finally - on our way!}

{Rebekah and I walked across the street in the afternoon to enjoy ice cream sundaes while Jonah napped and Danior did some work at the hotel!}

• • • • •

{ 4.14.2011 }

We decided since we aren't renewing our passes, and this IS our family vacation, that we would treat ourselves to a special treat. We had lunch at Ariel's Grotto.

Jonah loves Ariel!

Rebekah tried the tire swing ride. LOVED it!!!

She also tried the rock wall. It was hard, but she had a blast!

We had such a fun vacation. What a wonderful time to spend together!

POTD 4.12.2011

2011-04-12T17:05:00.000-07:00

Danior mowed the lawn in preparation for our vacation tomorrow.

POTD 4.10.2011

2011-04-10T17:04:00.000-07:00

Rebekah took this picture. Kind of fun to see what her view of things looks like!

POTD 4.9.2011

2011-04-09T16:59:00.000-07:00

Today was my craft fair in Simi Valley. I was kind of sad because none of my friends showed up and I made hardly any sales. The event wasn't well advertised, nor was the weather all that great... so it made for a poor turn out! I won't be doing it again next year.

Here is a pic of some of my biggest fans! They came by at the end of the day to play at the park while Danior helped me load everything in the car.

I spent countless hours and days preparing for the fair, but oh well. Devon and I had a blast despite the poor turn out!

POTD 4.8.2011

2011-04-08T16:57:00.000-07:00

...because there aren't enough pics of me with my kids! {notice the Tigger hat... he wears it ALL the time!}

POTD 4.7.2011

2011-04-07T16:56:00.000-07:00

Finally found a place for my FHE sign!

POTD 4.6.2011

2011-04-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

Both kids have successfully learned how to navigate NETFLIX.

They know how to find Netflix on the Wii menu, and how to find their shows and start them. Every once in a while they miss and end up starting something weird... but they always ask for help when that happens. I love that they are becoming more independent, but at the same time... it is making them more stubborn!

POTD 4.4.2011

2011-04-04T16:47:00.000-07:00

Today my mom, the kids, and I drove out to IKEA. I just l♥ve that store!! I got this coffee table in their clearance section for only $13!! I plan to put 2 baskets on the shelf to hold books or magazines.

Thanks mom for a fun trip!

POTD 4.3.2011

2011-04-03T16:42:00.000-07:00

Today was General Conference. We went to my parent's to watch both sessions. While there I helped my mom clean out and organize her storage room. While going through storage bins with some of my things I found this!

This was my "yellow blankie". I got it from my grandpa and, as you can tell, it had been well loved... but.... it was time to say goodbye. So, it got tossed... but not until after one last pic!

Jonah loves playing outstide at grandma and grandpa's house.

I photoshopped some of my pics... here's what I did:

POTD 4.1.2011

2011-04-01T16:39:00.000-07:00

Rebekah decided today to make a card. She drew a princess with a crown on! She is such the artist!

POTD 3.31.2011

2011-03-31T16:37:00.000-07:00

{no caption needed}

POTD 3.30.2011

2011-03-30T16:29:00.000-07:00

Today was a BIG day! Rebekah went to the dentist for the very first time! We went thinking that he was just going to take a quick peek at her teeth, but instead.... she had the whole thing done!

This is how she looked waiting in the seat at the hygenist got the tools ready!

... as the hygenist checked and cleaned her teeth...

... during the floride treatment...

.. and choosing a treasure from the treasure chest. {I think it might even be the same one from when I was a kid!}

She did GREAT! No cavities and her teeth are clean and healthy!

POTD 3.29.2011

2011-03-29T16:22:00.000-07:00

Today I made a FHE sign for us. I have had the letters to do it for sometime, and finally decided to just do it! I love having a backyard to do projects. Rebekah took this picture... turned out pretty good!

Here's what the finished product looks like! Each part of FHE has a cabinet knob under it. I am going to make {at some point} little hanging tags with our names on them to rotate each week!

POTD 3.28.2011

2011-03-28T16:20:00.000-07:00

...yes, those are Jonah's feet.

POTD 3.27.2011

2011-03-27T16:16:00.000-07:00

You may notice that I skipped 3.26..... well, to be honest, we don't really do exciting things everyday. So, instead of posting boring pics, I am going to be sharing pics of exciting things that happen, more than one picture even!

Today, grandma and grandpa came over for dinner with the missionaries. We had a full house! Danior barbequed hot dogs and hamburgers. It was delicious! Grandma helped Rebekah put together a puzzle.

POTD 3.25.2011

2011-03-25T16:13:00.000-07:00

Rebekah tried desperately to save her poor marigold. Her primary teacher gave them each a potted flower a couple weeks ago. She diligently watered it... but alas, I think it succumbed to the terrible heat wave. Poor guy!

POTD 3.24.2011

2011-03-24T16:09:00.000-07:00

The job hunt continues. This morning Danior took a phone interview in the car in our driveway. You can see the lines from our blinds {yes... we finally got blinds for the living room windows!!}

{ Can a 4 year-old really be this smart?? }

2011-03-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

Last night at dinner I told Rebekah she had to eat 4 bites of her chicken pot pie {which she refused to eat} in order to get her desert. She asked "why 4?" I said, because 4 is your favorite number {which it has been ever since she turned 4!}. She paused for a minute, then said, "Mom, my favorite number now is 5... {thought for another minute - I swear Danior and I could see the wheels in her head turning!} no, it's 3!".

This smart cookie reasoned that if she changed her favorite number to 3 she would only have to eat 3 bites. BUT, thankfullly I know how to outsmart a 4 year old! I said, "Okay, you can eat 3 bites, then 1 more!" After saying that she asked, "and that would make 4 bites?" I said yes, then she said, "okay!"

So there!

☺

POTD 3.23.2011

2011-03-23T16:05:00.000-07:00

Today the kids made their own mini pizzas! They loved it... and they even ate some of their pizzas! AND... yes, Jonah still uses his pacifier. We totally lucked out that Rebekah was not a paci-baby... but Jonah totally is.

I make my own pizza dough. Then they put sauce (dairy-free) on it. Then added some dairy-free cheese. {I don't like the stuff but Rebekah hasn't noticed the difference.}

We also drew a mural! I taped a long piece of paper {from the Target one-spot a while back} to a table and let them do whatever they wanted! It was so much fun!

POTD 3.22.2011

2011-03-22T16:04:00.000-07:00

I made this twirl skirt for Rebekah today using a skirt from a thrift store that I bought for about $3. Not bad. She loves that she can twirl in it! I also love that she lets me take her picture!

POTD 3.21.2011

2011-03-21T16:01:00.000-07:00

Rebekah got a TAG book reader for her birthday from Aunt Brenda, Uncle Mike, and Landon. She hasn't put it down since! It is so great! She can "read" a book all by herself. She has also mastered all of the games on each page.

{ Dairy-Free, Egg-Free Chocolate Cake - Delicious!! }

2011-03-20T19:09:00.000-07:00

I found this delicious recipe here on the Organizing Junkie website! I substituted regular flour for the gluten-free flour combo in her recipe since we don't have to eat Gluten-free!

• • • • •

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour

• 2 cups granulated sugar

• 2 cups cold water

• 2/3 cup vegetable oil

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder

• 2 tsp baking soda

• 2 tsp white vinegar

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350F

• Combine all ingredients and mix on high until well combined. {I let mine keep mixing in my kitchen-aid until it's light and fluffy!}

• Pour into a greased 9"x13"x2" pan.

• Bake for 30 mins. {or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean!}

I have also made these as mini-cupcakes. I lowered the temperature to 300F {so the bottoms don't burn} and cooked them for about 10-12 minutes!}

The cake is moist, light, chocolately... and oh so delicious!! You won't be able to have just 1 slice!

Laura, from the Organizing Junkie, also give a recipe in that post for gluten-free, dairy-free frosting. I have found a brand of chocolate frosting {Pillsbury - Fun-fetti} that is dairy-free so that is what I use on my cakes! It is super delicious on cupcakes if you put it in your kitchen-aid {or use your beaters} and set it at a med-high whipping setting. It adds some air to the frosting mix making it super light and fluffy!

POTD 3.20.2011

2011-03-20T18:20:00.000-07:00

It has been raining just about non-stop since last night! Thank you mother nature for not raining yesterday on Rebekah's party! We had left some soda's outside last night after the party.... and today, you can see how much water there is outside. At least an inch by now {early evening}. Rebekah keeps wishing - and praying - that the rain will stop. Unfortunately, the weather report is for rain the next couple of days!

So, far we only have one drip inside! Let's hope it doesn't get worse! {knock on wood!}

POTD 3.19.2011

2011-03-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

I snapped this picture of Rebekah last night as she was walking out the door for a birthday dinner with her Aunt Brenda, Uncle Mike, and cousin Landon!

Today, was the BIG day! Party time!! We only had family over, but it was by far the most # of people in our house to date! We had a blast!!! It was fun giving the tour to everyone and sharing our wonderful home!

Oh, and Rebekah got some great presents too! Thanks everyone for making her birthday this year so special!!

3.18.2011

2011-03-18T18:07:00.000-07:00

Since my kitchen is clean today, I thought I would take a picture and share it with you! I love this kitchen... although I do wish it were a little bit bigger with more counter space. BUT.... still definitely bigger than the kitchen in our apartment! We have a ton of storage space, a dishwasher, a wall oven, a new fridge {that we bought} beautiful tile flooring, a new kitchen faucet, and an awesome window that allows me to see the backyard, the mountains in the distance, and into the sliding glass door of the playroom! { A great way to catch the kids in the act of something they think they are getting away with! }

POTD 3.17.2011

2011-03-17T18:05:00.000-07:00

Rebekah really loves to be creative and artistic! She can already write the whole alphabet almost entirely on her own {she seems to forget "n" a lot!}. Today she was begging to paint! I put Jonah down for his nap and set her up outside to paint while I weed-whacked to get the backyard ready for her birthday party!

It was a little breezy, so we used some canned fruit to hold her pages down. She had a blast! I guess she takes after her mom who loves to be crafty and creative!

POTD 3.16.2011

2011-03-16T18:03:00.000-07:00

The downside to the office/playroom seperation.... this face!

POTD 3.15.2011

2011-03-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

Today Jonah disappeared for a while and I found this little pile on the bathroom floor! It's a good thing we buy our toilet paper at Costco and we have a lot of it in the closet... otherwise, I think I would have been upset! But really, I find it hard to get mad at this little guy... especially when I ask him about it and he very sweetly points and says, "mess".

POTD 3.14.2011

2011-03-14T17:57:00.000-07:00

Today begins project organization {a more than month long project... I know}. This is my 'before' picture of my office and playroom! I reorganized furniture and de-cluttered a bit.

Here is my after picture!

I now have my own "office and workshop" space! I need to figure out a more permanent and sturdy barrier method, but the idea works fine for now!

POTD 3.13.2011

2011-03-13T17:54:00.000-07:00

One of our kids favorite things to do is to watch the older kids on our street play outside! Sometimes Jonah and Rebekah stand inside our screen door watching them outside and shouting, "Hi, friends!!!" at the top of their lungs while waving at the kids playing! Thankfully the nice kids on our street just smile and wave back. Sometimes they say, "hi!".

Rebekah got this cute little purse from her Sunbeam teacher, Sister Hambly. Today she and I headed over to Grandma and Granpa's house to make some cookies, while Daddy and Jonah drove to the Martin's in Palmdale to pick up tables and chairs in preparation for Rebekah's birthday party next weekend!

POTD 3.12.2011

2011-03-12T17:43:00.000-08:00

Today is my sweet little girls birthday! Rebekah is 4 years old! When I told her she would never be 3 again... she had a really shocked expression on her face which turned into a very smug grin!

She started off her birthday by spending the night before at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Before she got home the next day { on her birthday } Jonah helped me make her a cake! I l♥ve that I am able to find some delicious recipes that Jonah can enjoy too. He thoroughly enjoyed licking the spatula while the cake was in the oven!

Grandma and Grandpa took Rebekah to Toy's R Us last night and bought her a super adorable big girl's bike! So, after she got home today, Daddy put her bike together and she took her for a spin!

After about 30 mins of riding up and down the sidewalk in front of our house, we headed in for some cake and ice cream {soy ice cream for Rebekah and Jonah!}

After cake and ice cream Danior took Rebekah to go see Tangled again! It finally showed up at the discount theatre in Simi Valley! Rebekah loves Rapunzel! They had a great Daddy-daughter date!

Happy Birthday Rebekah! We love you soooo much!!

POTD 3.11.2011

2011-03-11T17:43:00.000-08:00

Today I made an executive decision! We have too many movies. While I am not really willing to get rid of any of our movies... I am willing to downsize our storage of them. I bought 3 cd cases { you know, the ones where you just slip your cd's in the little sleeves inside the book? } and I got rid of all the cases for our dvd's. Ok... so I didn't really get rid of them... but I put them in a storage bin in the garage... just in case!

POTD 3.10.2011

2011-03-10T09:33:00.000-08:00

While I organized Rebekah's dresser, she took a couple pictures. This one turned out really well, so I am using it as my POTD today. She may be a budding photographer!!

POTD 3.9.2011

2011-03-09T09:27:00.000-08:00

This is what happened this morning while I did some work. Thankfully his big sister was around to help him clean it up!

So, my project today was this:

But while I worked on putting cabinet latches on several cabinets... this happened:

So, today I am thankful for 2 things:

1. Laminate floors. If we had carpet this would have been a nightmare!

2. A washer and dryer: I can wash his clothes and not have to go digging for quarters!

I have realized that while taking a POTD and documenting this year {so far} has given me a chance to scrapbook with a lot less stress... it has also helped me to take time to enjoy my family and to keep cool at times like this. While normally this would have made me upset to have to clean up such a huge mess.. instead, I took several pictures and had time to cool off so that I didn't get upset at all! Instead I enjoyed Jonah in all his cuteness!!

POTD 3.8.2011

2011-03-08T09:23:00.000-08:00

This little guy loves to play!!

POTD 3.7.2011

2011-03-07T09:22:00.000-08:00

I love when Rebekah helps her brother do things. Today she helped him wash his hands to get ready for dinner! Times like this make me so proud!

POTD 3.6.2011

2011-03-06T09:20:00.000-08:00

We had a "tea party" today complete with water, pretzels and graham crackers! Rebekah invited Sleeping Beauty {sitting in the chair next to her} and got all dressed up for the party! She insists on using every dish she has for her parties even when it's just the 3 {or in this case 4} of us!

POTD 3.5.2011

2011-03-05T09:16:00.000-08:00

We have become HUGE fans of having cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

P.S. Poor Rebekah fell earlier today while playing outside in the backyard. I watched her go down and kept thinking {"Don't hit your face, don't hit your face. Ouch!!"}. Oh well... she says it doesn't hurt, so that's good!

POTD 3.4.2011

2011-03-04T09:10:00.000-08:00

Danior got the afternoon off work so we went down to Disneyland! I love being able to go whenever we get a chance. It looks like we won't be renewing our passes {so sad} so we are taking advantage of them as long as we still have them!!

We have had lots of fun memories there... and by far one of the most favorite things is the carousel!!

POTD 3.3.11

2011-03-03T09:08:00.000-08:00

My sweet little girl sporting a new dress! We just discovered the Kohl's out here in Simi. They have some great deals!! Rebekah and I had a mommy - daughter shopping date last night and she picked out this dress. I think she made a good choice!

POTD 3.2.2011

2011-03-02T09:06:00.000-08:00

I l♥ve being able to watch Jonan enjoy some real food! This morning I made some blueberry muffins. {You can read my recipe here.} Then we had a 'picnic' on the floor to eat them. How fun!!!

POTD 3.1.2011

2011-03-01T09:02:00.000-08:00

They play so well together {some of the time}. It's nice to document these times! Don't judge me that I am letting them watch tv... sometimes it's the only way to cook dinner! ☺

POTD 2.28.2011

2011-02-28T08:44:00.000-08:00

I wanted to take a before picture! We are getting blinds for these windows... yay!!! Our temporary privacy curtains {whatever we had on hand before the move} will be coming down!

POTD 2.27.2011

2011-02-27T19:20:00.000-08:00

Today was "chores" day! Danior had to work all day yesterday, so today we took advantage of the nicer weather and him being home and did some yard work as well as some ~~house~~ garage cleaning! {I don't usually do yardwork with such nice earrings on. I hadn't taken them off from church this morning!}

POTD 2.26.2011

2011-02-26T19:12:00.000-08:00

Grandma Joyce and Bob gave us this BBQ that they had for a while. It works pretty well! Good enough for us to grill up some burgers and hot dogs when the weather agrees!!

POTD 2.25.2011

2011-02-25T20:49:00.000-08:00

Grandma and Grandpa got the kids these piggy banks shortly before we moved last year. They LOVE them!! While I was unpacking a box yesterday I found my coin stash. So, this morning they got to put it all in their piggy banks!

I love that Jonah's tongue is sticking out! It takes a lot of concentration to get that big coin in such a little slot!!

POTD 2.24.2011

2011-02-24T08:15:00.000-08:00

Caught on film {at least digital film} coloring on her slide. When asked later if she was the one who did it of course she denied doing it. Gotta love my little girl!

POTD 2.23.2011

2011-02-23T08:13:00.000-08:00

Dinner tonight! Rebekah in her cape, and Jonah under the table! I didn't know I was getting dinner and a show! ☺

POTD 2.22.2011

2011-02-22T08:12:00.000-08:00

Always a climber!

POTD 2.21.2011

2011-02-21T08:11:00.000-08:00

I am so, so happy that naptime is back in our schedule!! This little guy needs his nap!!

POTD 2.20.2011

2011-02-20T08:09:00.000-08:00

Rebekah loves to pair things up! She did this while Danior and I tried to put together a bookshelf that turned out terrible because the predrilled holes were wrong. We have now sworn off Target furniture!!

POTD 2.19.2011

2011-02-19T08:07:00.000-08:00

POTD 2.18.2011

2011-02-18T08:06:00.000-08:00

Wrestling is their favorite pastime!!

POTD 2.17.2011

2011-02-17T08:04:00.000-08:00

They cleaned my kitchen window today using rain water that puddled on the ground outside. So thoughtful!!

POTD 2.16.2011

2011-02-16T08:03:00.000-08:00

The kids played A LOT today! {P.S. I LOVE this room!!}

POTD 2.15.2011

2011-02-15T08:01:00.000-08:00

Our mail fairy!

POTD 2.14.2011 - Happy Valentine's Day!!

2011-02-14T07:59:00.000-08:00

My 3 valentine's and the YUMMY dinner I prepared!!! It was soooo good!

POTD 2.13.2011

2011-02-13T07:58:00.000-08:00

Our family handyman and his little helper! {too excited to help to change out of his PJ's}

POTD 2.12.2011

2011-02-12T07:44:00.000-08:00

POTD 2.11.2011

2011-02-11T07:55:00.000-08:00

We went to Disneyland today. Rebekah road Big Thunder Mountain for the first time! She said "I don't think I want to do that again... it was really fast!"

POTD 2.10.2011

2011-02-10T07:54:00.000-08:00

This little guy LOVES to sit on the potty!

POTD 2.9.2011

2011-02-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

Last night the Young Women from our new ward heart attacked our house!

POTD 2.8.2011

2011-02-08T07:52:00.000-08:00

Lunch anyone?!?

POTD 2.7.2011

2011-02-07T07:42:00.000-08:00

Kids built a choo-choo train out of their stuffed animals tower. Then welcomed all their animals aboard!

POTD 2.6.2011

2011-02-06T07:41:00.000-08:00

Spent some time today making this cute blanket!

POTD 2.5.2011

2011-02-05T07:39:00.000-08:00

Today we went to the zoo!

POTD 2.4.2011

2011-02-04T11:04:00.000-08:00

Rebekah's princess stash at grandma and grandpa's house!

POTD 2.3.2011

2011-02-03T11:03:00.000-08:00

Jonah has taken an interest in the potty! He can pull down his pants on his own and loves to go sit. Let's hope this is a good sign for the future!!

POTD 2.2.2011

2011-02-02T16:21:00.000-08:00

Made this dress for RL today. Her church dresses are getting too small! JM wanted in on the picture-taking action!

POTD 2.1.2011

2011-02-02T16:16:00.000-08:00

Today we took some time to color and "do homework" as RL calls practicing writing.

We also took a chance in the afternoon and ate popsicles! Ya... it was almost 80 outside today!

POTD 1.31.2011

2011-02-02T16:14:00.000-08:00

While I worked they played!

POTD 1.30.2011

2011-01-30T20:21:00.001-08:00

This is how most meals end!

POTD 1.29.2011

2011-01-30T20:20:00.000-08:00

So, here is how I choose my POTD's. We go about our day in a normal way. I try and have my little point and shoot camera accessible at all times. Then, when the kids do something different, or when I see a photo opp, I grab my camera and take the pic.

Today, Danior was playing outside with the kids while I was working in the office. I hear them squealing and look over to see them taking turns holding a rolly polly (pill bug). I run to the other room, grab my camera and run to the back door to take the picture before they lose interest.

Now... put on your cartoon hat for a minute and picture this: I am running in my pj's to the back door, camera in hand. I am almost to the door when my right foot plants itself on a paper back kids book laying on the floor. I slip. My feet go completely out from under me fly up in the air, and I land on the laminate floor on my left hip and shoulder. IT HURT! I start crying... and Danior asks what's wrong. Now, Danior, Rebekah and Jonah are all seated outside the back door no more than 2 feet from where I slipped and landed... yet... none of them saw it. HOW SAD!!! I had a really great fall, I am super sore today... and no one witnessed it!

Oh well... at least I got my picture!

POTD 1.28.2011

2011-01-30T20:14:00.000-08:00

We went to visit with Grandma and Granpa Shisley today! These sit and spins are a h-u-g-e hit.... I think now we should call then stand and spins! ☺

POTD 1.27.2011

2011-01-28T09:12:00.000-08:00

This is how I worked today!

Rebekah said they were going to the bottom of the sea to look for whales. This was their "boat".

POTD 1.26.2011

2011-01-28T09:06:00.000-08:00

Today was laundry day! I think I did 6 loads of laundry. Most is put away... but there was still a load in the dryer when I took the pic of my pile!

POTD 1.25.2011

2011-01-25T19:47:00.001-08:00

Blowing bubbles!

POTD 1.24.2011

2011-01-25T07:52:00.000-08:00

We went for a walk tonight around the neighborhood. Jonah fell and bit his lip. The inclines were a little tough for Rebekah. Jonah switched between riding his bus and pushing it and ultimately ended up being carried most of the way.

It was a great walk! We are so thankful to have such a wonderful house in a nice safe neighborhood that we can get out and do this once in a while!

POTD 1.23.2011

2011-01-24T12:08:00.000-08:00

POTD 1.22.2011

2011-01-24T12:07:00.000-08:00

On the way to The Martin's in Palmdale to return moving totes! Both kids fell asleep. Looks comfy... doesn't it? I am planning to make them both neck pillows the for car!

POTD 1.21.2011

2011-01-24T12:05:00.000-08:00

Today's activity: making robots!

POTD 1.20.2011

2011-01-20T20:19:00.000-08:00

~~Snow White~~ Rebekah helped me make some Heart Tarts. They were delicious! Click here to view the recipe.

POTD 1.19.2011

2011-01-20T20:12:00.000-08:00

Lunch (minus the ketchup and mustard).