Happy Halloween

Okay I am a day early posting this but this week is so extremely crazy I am afraid if I don't do this morning it won't get done! Here you go my Hannah Montana and Tony Stewart!

Poor dog....

Poor Nipper, Britt wanted to dress him up and take him to Petco. So off we went with our Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz. He didn't win (there were some ELABORATE costumes) but he got a treat and a certificate and Britt was thrilled beyond! Of course they gave out a flyer for a Fall Fashion show that Britt thinks he HAS TO attend. Good thing Nip is such a good sport.

sleeping in

It was 3:45 this morning when I woke up, wow for my insomnia that is like sleeping in.

We were out and about all day yesterday. Didn't plan on it but just happened. The kids had a field trip with their homeschool group to the police station. Since hubby had taken Friday off he took them and I went to the mall for awhile. The kids loved the police station, hubby said it was interesting, and Brae loved the weapons room. I tried on clothes for ever at the mall and found nothin. But later did find some at another store. Then we had a girl scout function to attend so we ended up being gone from noon to eight without really meaning too.

We had to find Nipper (Britt's dog) a costume...oh yes we are officially dressing our dogs now. Britt was all about taking him to a contest at the pet store Saturday. So we will be doing that. I am hoping to talk hubby into taking Brae to get a haircut so I can mark it off the ever growing list I have to get done this week before we leave for Texas. Time again for Brae's nuero recheck and there have been some issues cropping up that we are having to try to see what is going on. So this week will be busy prep work.

Well I am up at 4am I might as well get things done.

A new "real life" friend

It has been awhile back I got an email from a lady with a blog. She lived in rural Arkansas and was wondering what part of Oklahoma I lived in. We started emailing back and forth and she does legal work as well from her home as a registered nurse. I just instantly liked her. She started doing photography business and I just knew I wanted her to take our pics. I kept telling hubby you just have to see her pics. So we emailed back and forth and last night was the appointment. Of course it was sunny and beautiful until 3:30 (We were headed there at 4:00) but I was so worried about us getting another time we went for it. I am so glad I did. I considered her a friend already, already liked her, but now that I have met her I just adore her. She was so wonderful. I could have just stood in her drive way and talked, she has a presence and faith about her that makes you just want to be her friend.
Anyway she put up a sneak peak of our photos. I can't wait to see the rest. She took so many and some really good close ups of the kids, and them doing different things when I say she took so many I mean hundreds! Finally insomnia had a benefit I got to see the pics earlier than hubby or the kids. Now the bad thing is I am going to have to pick certain ones. That is the hard part and I haven't even seen a portion of them yet she took so many, but she made it so fun. The kids talked about it on the way home I will never get them back to a Sears or somewhere like that again. Especially Brae who just ran like a wild boy...but it was so good to see him feeling good and then she just captured his personality. Okay I will go now. Just had to blog before trying to go to sleep again...ugh...insomnia.

Night and Day

Once again a showing of how my kids are so different.

Brittney got her first ever C today in Math. Math is a subject she struggles with anyway. But oh you would have thought the world had ended. She was crying so hard and couldn't believe she got a C. She was crying asking for me to make extra worksheets for her to practice.

Braden on the other hand shrugs says "better than an F" and off he goes.

Yep my two are night and day.

Fun Halloween Food

Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer is doing another Works for Me Wednesday.

I did this plate of food 2 years ago but it is still fun for Halloween and easy too.



"MUMMY"
A hotdog, wrapped with a breadstick baked in the oven, then mustard eyes.
"SPIDER"
Ritz cracker add peanut butter place another cracker on top, ramen noodle legs and raisin eyes (use peanut butter to stick on the eyes)
"WITCH FINGER"
I used the refrigerated sugar cookie dough made a long rolled dough form, cooked it as directed when it was out of the oven used a fork to make indentions for knuckles, and red gel icing on the fingertips and covered with an almond.
"BROOM STICK"
Pretzel stick, wrapped with a section of fruit by the foot, cut little sliced with scissors in the foot by the foot.
"BUG"
Used a pretzel stick to put the tater tots on, thin sliced carrots for the legs, black olives for the eyes, parsley for antennas (you can come up with all kinds of ideas and just have fun).

Double Digits

"I finally made it to double digits". Those are her words. Mine are "Oh wow this is going way too fast".

It's official she is in the double digits....10!

I have to say that while I do miss the cuddly toddler days and the days where whatever I said was never argued and she thought Mom knew everything. I also really like this young lady that I can take out to lunch and we can have chats and while she isn't disrespectful she does want to know why that decision is being made.

Brittney we love you and you are the best daughter and big sister!

So now we start a new chapter one in which we are in the double digits! She thinks it has come so slow and I think it is flying so fast and I want to capture each moment so I can look back fondly.

Celebrating has begun....

Britt's birthday is not actually until Monday, but around here we seem to celebrate for a week!

The kick off was her party with her friends last night. It was a highschool musical/karaoke party.

She chose to get her big present from us last night...which was a cell phone. I had swore I wasn't going to do that till she was 12, but there have been several instances lately where it would have been handy, dropping off for choir, basketball, and sleepovers so we went ahead and got one...with lots of parent control! She got lots of things and was spoiled rotten...of course.

Some of the kids didn't want to sing so of course I had to get up there! Fortunately there are no pics, unfortunately there is video...of well the kids all had fun I think.

Here are some pics and I am putting more in flickr.

Vision Forum-Contest

Kim at In A Show is hosting a drawing for $150.00 of Vision Forum Merchandise great way to jump start Christmas Shopping. There stuff has a deep biblical message. Also check out Kim's new site and congratulate her on pregnancy #9!

This is my wish list:
Teach them to your Children 17820 $17.00
Lion & Cross Set 26550 $35.00
Jonathon Park Set 33590 $85.00
How to Think Like a Christian 21533 $10.00
$147.00

A sweet brother

Yesterday morning right before we were to start school Britt was coming in from getting some out of the garage and somehow caught her toe in the door. There was blood, there was screaming, it hurt. We got her settled down, and I fully acknowledge it hurt, I also fully acknowledge that I have a drama queen daughter. So there was lots of hopping around all morning. After school was completed Britt asked Brae to play. He said no I need some time by myself. Which is fine so he went to his room and Britt went on to do something else. He comes out asking if he can get some water and snack. Sure and back into the room he went.

I didn't think anything about it and about 5 minutes later he comes out and says "Senna (which is what he has always called Britt) come in my room." I hear Britt saying thank you brother. So I go in to see what he has done. He has hung a sign up that says "Get well party" and colored it. He has set up her favorite toys that she likes to play with of his, had snacks. It was his get better party for his sister since she hurt her toe. It was so sweet.

at least i am a whiz at something

Kids commenting that they had beat a video game (they had just got it two days ago).

Me: "Wow you two are videogame whizes"

Brae: "I am a math whiz too"

Britt: "and I am a reading whiz, and dad is a computer whiz, and mom you are phone whiz"

Me: "Phone whiz"

Britt: "Yep Mom you can answer your cell phone the best and you can talk on it a long time so your a phone whiz"

He didn't need me

Friday I was getting ready to do Math with Brae. That is his all time favorite subject and he is very good. I was introducing a new concept of large number addition with carrying. I prepared ahead of time the white board, was all ready to divide show how you divide it into ones, tens, hundreds, thoursands and ten thousands place and so on so that he could visualize it. I get the board out and start to explain it. He says oh Mom I can do this takes the marker and completes it without any instruction and asks for his paper. I have to say I was impressed. He did his paper turned it in and said "Mom I didn't even need you". I pouted and saud "You don't need me?" he hugged and said "I need you mom just not for Math, that I can do good". I am glad that it comes easy for him as with his speech and issues some of his other subjects are very difficult. He loves it too that he is so good.

Of course the one subject he is best at is the one that Britt is not the best at and so she gets mad...LOL...those two are night and day in about everyway.

Mystery Solver

Busy busy busy...same as usual around here. Figured I should at least throw up a quick update. Things are fine just busy. Britt turns 10 soon, I think I have heard the term "double digits" 15 times a day for the last month!...she is a little excited.

Her new phase is Nancy Drew. Oh boy she is devouring the books. This morning she came in with her white headband, green tshirt, khaki capris, white socks and keds....if you haven't seen the movie that is a standard Nancy outfit. So now we are even dressing like her. The movie doesn't come to video until December I think. But it will definetly be one we have to get for her. Tonight her friend Brinn is coming to spend the night and hubby and I setting up a mystery for them to solve. We downloaded the ideas off the web. Should be fun. I am glad she has found something that so captures her interest and there are so many of the books, and then with the movie there are other things as well. So there will be sluething going on at our house tonight.

I tried to find the one of Nancy from the movie in which she wore the capris, green shirt etc but couldn't. We even had to buy a plaid short skirt like Nancy wore...but hey I am not going to complain at least it is conservative dress.

Here is britt ready for a mystery to solve. She doesn't have her "bag" with her but let me tell you it has everything that Nancy has (tweezers for picking up clues, etc.)

Dimples

Last night both kids were in my bedroom talking to me. Brae was trying to talk me into letting him sleep in the living room. I was acting like I was really thinking about it. He smiles, and Britt who is also sitting there sees Brae smiling she says:
"Mom look away from the dimples". She knows how cute Brae's dimples are and that smile is too hard to resist. It was cute.

Speaking of cute things. Don't know where Brae picked this up at. But if you are talking to him about something that he doesn't really want to talk about or if you are about to get onto him he looks at his wrist and says "Oh look at the time I must go" and off he runs.

Flashback

I saw this on Kim's blog I liked the idea. Basically you go through your archives and pick out your favorite articles from this month in the years past.

It doesn't feel like I have been doing this blog for years, but I have. So we will start in October of 2004, I was just starting to get into blogging so there aren't too many posts.

October is Britt's birthday so 2004 found me running around like crazy for her 7th birthday party There was also a post about insomnia that's a shocker I know especially since it is 3:00 am when I am writing this post. I must not have known how to put pictures on my blog in 2004 because I notice there are none.

October 2005
I had by this point learned to put pics on my blog. We redid Britt's room out of the baby pink little girl room into a brighter room
October found me with an 8 year old
I find it humourous that hubby used to gripe about me not blogging enough I don't think he complains about my lack of computer time now...LOL
Also Halloween found me with a Rock Star and Knight

October 2006
I must have been in a writing mood this month I had tons of posts to choose from.
I looked back at one of my favorite older Halloween photos of my prince and her frog of My little skunk of Jessie from Toy Story and a very happy pooh and unhappy Bob the Builder
Brae crashed his car at the pizza place
I made a bathtub birthday cake for Britt
The costumes for 2006 were Lilo and Stitch
Braden told me he was moving out
We ended October 2006 with Brae's spider bite

It was fun looking through the previous October archives. Memories....ahh.

Cooking ahead

I had meant to take lots of pictures of my cooking marathon...but the cooking proved to be quite a lot and I forgot to document it all. I recently bought a book "Cook For A Day Eat For A Month". All about cooking for the freezer. I did do a lot of things out of this book, but I didn't follow it completely. However this month I did do complete meal planning and wow what a difference it is making.

First off breakfast foods, I prepared 48 cooked breakfast burritos wrapped accordingly and all they need is a minute in the microwave and breakfast is served, same with egg muffin sandwiches there are 20 of them in the freezer ready to go. These are great especially on mornings when we are running a bit behind.

I did cook some stew, chilli, italian beef, meatloafs and taco meat froze them as well as two lasagnas. A lot of what I also did was prep work, my steaks are frozen in their marinade so as they defrost that is already done and then I just have to grill. My roast is frozen in beef broth and seasoning ready to be put in the crock pot. Onions have been diced and chopped, herbs frozen with butter ready to be thrown into vegetables. I also made an inventory list of my freezer which I think helps.

Instead of sitting down and figuring out what I want for the whole month I made a list of all things I had for what meals for example I know in the freezer I have stuff for roast dinner, lasagna, tacos, grilled steaks, etc. So I made a list ended up with about 40 meals on it that I know I have the ingredients on hand. Then on Sundays I sit down and decide which of those 40 I am going to make for the week. So much easier. I really plan to do this again next month. I also think it is already saving on the grocery bill even though you almost had to revive me when I went and did all of that at once, but even next month wont be as much to stock up because I know I will have carry over.