Migrating

Our family went to see the migrating snow geese a few weeks ago. We went to the local wetland bird reserve and were rewarded with a sight that we will not soon forget. "They" study the birds and can predict within minutes when they will land on this particular pond.

We got there a few minutes early and listened to the birds in the surrounding reeds.

Then, just as we had been told, lines of geese started flying overhead. If you looked in the sky it seemed that out of nowhere geese would appear in neat vee-formations. . .and then they were gone. Then they came back with more geese.

. . .and more geese.

They circled around the pond and then slowly, one after the other, flocks of geese were landing on this small pond. Thousands of geese.

It was an amazing thing to see.

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they.
Matthew 6:26

The Historical Museum

We had a very exciting week while Grandma was here visiting. We have lots of pictures to share to get you caught up with all we have been up to. Grandma got here on a Monday afternoon and first thing Tuesday morning we went on a field trip to the local historical museum. The kids had a great time with all the items they could touch and try. They all keyed their names in Morse code, typed on a real typewriter, dialed a rotary phone, listened to a phonograph and saw a large collection of mustache cups. They also were having an apron exhibit and the girls got to dress up and try a few of them on. Then we went outside and they got to go in a caboose and saw a crane car just like the one in their model train layout. It was a fun and educational morning for us all.

Walgreen's: My New Favorite Store

I have never been a big Walgreen's fan. They occasionally have some good deals on photo processing, but for the most part I was never really impressed. . . until this month. My total for all this stuff was about $68.00. After coupons I spent a little over $10 and am awaiting a rebate for $14. I was recently reading over at http://www.moneysavingmom.com/ and I have been inspired to spend less even though everything seems to be going up in price. I think I have mentioned her site here before. It wasn't until I tried a few of the deals she had put together that I realized what fun it is to have the cashier tell you what a deal you got. I got 2 boxes of cereal, 2 rolls of paper towels, 2 razors, a refill pack of blades, 2 oust candles, 4 bags of M&M's, 14 chocolate eggs and 6 Easter basket toys for $10.34 out of pocket and another $14.00 coming to me by way of rebates. I have always been a coupon collector, and I have always been pretty price conscience, but let me tell you, we saw a major difference in our budget this month and it is partly because I didn't buy anything that wasn't at least half off, except for milk and gas.

As an example, there was a razor on sale for $5.99 plus a package of $6.99 refills free with purchase. I had two coupons for $2 off the razor or refills. I bought the two items, used two coupons and spent $1.99.

At her site, she has the best deals for the week all laid out for you, including links to print out coupons. It has taken a little extra time in planning, but the results have been amazing. I bought a lot of stuff I normally would not have even tried, but after the sales, coupons and rebates a lot of it has been free or nearly free. The plan is to stock up on items when they are on sale and then you should not have to buy them at full price. And if you have a CVS in your area, the deals there are even better.

Go checkout her site and let me know how your savings go.

Happy Easter

We had a wonderful morning celebrating the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ and the days that proceeded. Yesterday, as we sang a hymn that was new to me, I was overcome with the sacrifice that was made for me. As I sang the words, tears filled my eyes. Then I stood quietly and listened the our congregation sing of how Christ defeated death and how the debt for my sins has been paid. This is not news to me. I have known for 25 years that my debt of sins have been paid for. Yet, something about the way the tempo sped up and the assurity of those singing it grew in their voices, just took me in and I again felt the true gift that has been given to me.

I Peter 2:24

And He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to

righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.

Puppy Love

Anyone who has talked to Digging Badger in the last year and a half knows that he wants a dog. A bird dog. A black lab puppy. The one he has saved every cent of birthday money and chore money and quarters he found in the parking lots for. This is all he talks about. "When I get my dog we are going to . . ." or "Can my dog sleep with me?" or "My dog is going to be the best bird dog ever. I am going to train him really good." Well, he has been saving and we have been doing research and realized that a papered, pure-bred, grade A dog would be around $700. He has about $300. He has been a bit discouraged lately about how long it is taking to save the money he will need.

Over the weekend we went to a kid's fair at Sportsman's Warehouse. (I'll post on that later). As we were leaving, as is quite common in the Sportsman's parking lot, there were puppies for sale. . . black lab puppies. So, as is quite common, we were persuaded by Digging Badger to "just go look at them". We did. We talked to the very nice couple that was selling them for quite a while and then made the call to the Zookeeper, who was at work. He is the one who is the hunter, the researcher and the final say in the purchasing of dogs. He talked to the sellers and asked them questions and agreed that we would drive out to their place and see the dogs for himself.

After a long, drawn-out, tearful goodbye to those pups we came home and dyed our eggs. And yesterday evening, we drove out to see those pups with the Zookeeper and guess what happened?

Two of them came home with us.

Digging Badger and his un-named pup.

Crazy Fox with his un-named pup.

Little Lady, being the good host that she is, showed the puppies all the toys in the backyard.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Barney did not want anyone sneaking up behind him pinching him on the rear end.

So this is the solution he came up.

Hope you all enjoyed searching for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. We happened to have a beautiful view of the full arch of this rainbow the other day, but we didn't find any pots or any gold.

We have had a busy and exciting week with Grandma here visiting. I'll try to get some pictures up in the next few days.

Speedy Saturday

Today went by like a blur. We started out our day with the boy's first basketball game. They are having fun playing and learning about the game. Luckily, the league they are playing in doesn't keep score or they may have been saddened by today's outcome.

I have a whole week to figure out how to get my camera on inside-florescent lighting-dark gym-mode. There has to be one for that. I'll just look for IFLGD. Maybe next week I can post some pictures that aren't grainy and green.

After the game, we ran home for a quick change of clothes and a quicker bite to eat. We were off to the Awana Sparks-a-rama, again in a fluorescent lit gym.

This is one of the best pictures I got today. Pretty sad, I know.

This was the boy's favorite Awana game. It is called balloon battle. The point is to get the balloon to hit the ground in your opponent's area. They did a great job on this one.

At the end of the games, our team came in first place. See how excited they are.

And after a day like today I am ready to climb into my cozy bed.

I'm sure going to miss that hour of sleep tonight.

Hand Ankles

We were driving in the car the other day, and Little Lady started whining. This has been a high-whine week in our household.

She said, "Crazy Fox hurt me! He hurt my hand ankle."

Both boys started giggling and correcting her saying, "That is not called a hand ankle. It is a wrist. That's your WRIST."

But Little Lady was not convinced. She sat quietly for a short moment pondering what she should do and then said, "Mom, Crazy Fox hurt my hand ankle."

I am convinced that she has been staying up at night thinking of ways to talk about her hand ankles. There have been long, thought out stories with strange plots, just so she could say hand ankle. And other less dramatic ways, such as, "My hand ankle sure is itchy." Or "The cat scratched my hand ankle." There has never been so much dialogue about wrist's in this household. I hope nothing happens to her elbows, or things could get really confusing around here.

Here's a hand ankle tutorial by Little Lady. It takes a while for the buffering, but it will load eventually.

Another Beautiful Day in Idaho

The last week or so, our wintry skies have traded their dismal grays in for some beautiful blue hues. We have been having some deep blue skies filled with the kind of clouds that make you want to lay on your back in a grassy meadow and watch them blow by while imagining all kinds of shapes in them. Yesterday, we did just that . . . except that we don't have a grassy meadow filled with wild flowers and there is a icy cold breeze blowing. So we just bundled up and layed on our trampoline and let our imaginations run wild.

And while we were looking up, we noticed that our tree is changing. Those tight buds from a few weeks ago have started to burst into action. Any day now they should be sprouting fresh new green leaves, getting ready to provide shade for us in those soon to come hot summer days.

And the scent of lilac's blowing in on a cool afternoon breeze is right around the corner too.

Yesterday the twig was brown and bare;

To-day the glint of green is there;

Tomorrow will be leaflets spare;

I know no thing so wondrous fair,

No miracle so strangely rare.

I wonder what will next be there!

~L.H. Bailey

Spring is Coming

We have been enjoying spring-like weather around here the last few days.
We had an appointment downtown and had a few hours to spend before AWANA so we went to the park. The boys had a great time practicing on their roller blades and then they went back to the familiarity of their bikes.

Little Lady did a few laps on her bike.

We had the park mostly to ourselves. The boys were racing around the playground. Here's Crazy Fox coming around the turn.

And Digging Badger right on his tail.

One GREAT Great Aunt

Little Lady happens to have a Great Aunt who is a fantastic seamstress. She has always amazed me with the things she can create with her sewing machine. She is very talented in so many ways, but today we'll just focus on her sewing abilities. She is the one I call when I have a question about a pattern. Everything she makes looks like it comes from a pricey boutique.So when there was talk of making Little Lady a dress a few weeks ago I was very excited. I measured Little Lady and sent the measurements to Great Aunt D. One week later I heard it was done and in the mail. Yesterday there was a box delivered to our door.

Little Lady opened it and said, "Can I wear it?"

Me: "Of course, let's try it on".

L L: "I am never going to take this off. I am going to wear it forever!"

I think Little Lady was feeling like a little princess with her head tilted just so and her hands on her lap.

There is just something about a tulle lined full skirt that makes a little girl feel good. I think it is similar to the way little boys feel when they see a puddle of mud.

Thank you Great Aunt D. for thinking of Little Lady and making her a dress she will love for a long time to come.

I had a dress like this when I was about her age. It was a gold floral print (hey it was the 70's) and it was long and it had lace around all the edges. I think it was a hand made hand-me-down but I didn't care where it had come from. I called it my Hundred Dollar Dress. I felt so fancy in that dress that I was sure it must have cost $100. And way back then that was a lot of money. Now that I think about it, that would still be a lot of money to spend on a little girl's dress. Anyway, I just loved that dress. I loved to twirl around in the kitchen while my mom was getting dinner ready. I wore it to my Great Grandma's birthday party and when she commented on how pretty it was I'm sure I told her it was my $100 dress. She must have thought my parents had gone off the deep end. I'm sure they cleared that up in a hurry. This of course is all how it seemed to a 4 year old girl in a long full dress that was dizzy from twirling through her life while wearing golden floral.

I'm sure Little Lady will have wonderful memories in this dress too!

Through the Eye of a Child

Through the eye of my child the new layer of powdery white snow is exciting.

It means a few more days of winter fun, sledding and snowball fights.

And the promise of more mud.

Oh Shoot

We went out to the hills this afternoon to shoot some clays with some friends.

Nothing says redneck like taking the kids out for target practice.

Here's Crazy Fox taking aim.

Digging Badger taking his shot.

Little Lady and her friend G enjoying some snacks.

The boys went sledding down this hill last week. When they were telling me all about it and how fast they were going I thought they were exaggerating. It is really steep. Today, the snow was mostly melted, so they just pushed their big cars down it with their friend C while they waited to shoot.

My Scrap Book Nook

When we moved into this house, we were so happy to have an extra bedroom. We still are, but it's not as extra as we thought it would be. It has turned out to be our home school room, office, computer room, craft room, scrapbook room, library, and movie room. It has one small oddly shaped closet, that happens to perfectly fit a card table. So a while back, I decided to make it a scrap book nook, thinking to myself, I will just keep everything in there and then I can close the door until the next time I get a chance to work on it. But it turns out that I have been more of a collector of scrapbooking things than an actual scrapbooker as of late. I have been making an occasional card or small project here and there, but I get discouraged when I open the door to my scrapbook nook and can't even find a pair of scissors or glue. So I took everything off the table and under the table and off the shelf and then I remembered all my blogging friends. So here is the sort of before picture.

See why I was discouraged?
I'm embarrassed to say that I actually had done some sorting before I took this picture.
In my defense, I was a Creative Memories consultant for 7 years and accumulated a lot of tools and extra stuff during that time that is really very useful.

A while back, I bought this over the door shoe organizer to hang over the door so I could easily access all my smaller tools and punches and embellishments. It works really good, except for one minor thing . . . the door won't close. But, I have decided that until the Zookeeper gets a chance to screw it to the door, I will live with the door being slightly ajar.

See how cool it is. I can find all the things I have been looking for in my pile of stuff.

I also had a paper problem. I had all the paper from my Creative Memories days, which is 10x10 and my older Creative Memories days which is 8 1/2x11. Most of my scrapbooks are 12x12 and I have collected a lot of that size too. So I had to decide if I wanted to keep all the sizes separated, or put them together? What about the scraps? I decided to put it all together grouped nicely by colors, solid and patterned. I even put some of my bigger scraps in with the full sheets, so I will know what I have to work with when I sit down to scrapbook again. This was really hard for me to do. I don't know why. I had to consult my very organized cousin. (Thanks for the help Michelle.) This is how she has her paper organized and she is all up to date with her scrapbooks, so it must be working. I should be all caught up with the last 5 years by the end of the week now that I have my paper organized.

Once I realized how much paper I actually have, I decided to put it in one big file box and then I set it on it’s side so I can thumb through it easily. I kept the smaller scraps in another file, also separated by color.

So here is my newly organized desktop. I ran an extesion cord for my lamp. I have all my trimmers together. All the pages that are currently in the works are in the vertical storage. All my pens and scissors and whatever else I could possibly need are all within arms reach. I have all my stamps and ribbons and Quickutz right outside the closet in a set of plastic drawers, so everything is together.

Now I just need two more things.

1. 
   
   To stay away from the scrapbook store and use what I have.


2. 
   
   Time. If you have any extra would you send it my way?

Spring Fever

They can feel it in their bones. . . spring is coming.

Crazy Fox and Digging Badger could not control themselves anymore.

They had to go outside . . . barefoot.

It was a beautiful day, but still cold.

The snow is melting, revealing again, a thick muddy mess, were one day soon grass will be planted. But they could not be stopped. Boys can sense warmer days coming. They went out back and emptied out the toy chest, one by one, reliving all the fun they had with each toy last summer. Then came out the golf clubs and the golf balls. There was a different course than last time they played golf. Instead of weed divots flying, yesterday there were small chunks of slushy ice. Where they once had to dig a small pond and fill it with a hose there were natural water hazards waiting in the form of melted snow puddles.

This one is blurry, because the poor boy could not stand still long enough for me to snap a picture.

Little Lady decided to watch from what she thought was a safe distance. But even from the doorway, she got mud splattered on her dress up princess dress.

Valentine's Day

This was intended for yesterday, but I ran out of day before I got a chance to post it.

Here is a fun fact for the day. This information was passed on to me by a friend.
Valentine was a third century pastor who was imprisoned for his faith. He wrote small pastoral notes to members of his congregation on leaves he was able to pluck from a maple tree just outside his cell. These little "Valentine's cards" expressed his love for his flock, and his desire that they demonstrate like love toward one another. Gradually this tradition grew up for Christians to exchange notes of love and encouragement to one another on this, his birthday. (The Christian Almanac)

I thought that was very interesting. I checked around briefly and there are differing opinions concerning February 14th. Was it his birthday or the day he died? I also read that he was in love with his jailer's daughter and left her a note signed "from your Valentine". But either way, did I really go through 13 years of Christian school and never once hear this? Or was I just not paying attention?

We joined a home school co-op and it started yesterday. The boys chose German and games. Little Lady's only choice was pre-school, so she was in there for both hours. I stayed with her the first hour and she did great. When I went to pick her up, she cried because she didn't want to leave. She loves to be around other kids. The boys learned a few words and phrases in German and then learned a few new games. They are looking forward to being able to talk in "code" to each other. (I'll have to keep up with them or I could be in trouble.)

Happy Valentine's Day

Spend the day doing little extra things to make your husband and kids feel special and loved.

Here are a few fun and frugal ways to do just that.

Cut everything in heart shapes with cookie cutters. Sandwiches, brownies, toast, eggs, whatever.

Use your brightest red lipstick and kiss the edge of white plates for a fun border, or use two thumb prints to make a heart border.

I put these up last Valentine’s Day and it is the last thing the Zoo Keeper sees before he closes his eyes at the end of the day. This would be great for the kids too.

Ah yes . . . the message in a bottle.
This obviously would work in the bath tub or spa, but who wouldn’t love to find this amidst a sink of dirty dishes? The way our snow has been melting, I could find a small pond in the yard to float a message in.

1 pack of glow in the dark stars . . . $1.59
1 glass bottle with a cork . . . . . . . . $.99
Making someone feel special . . . . . Priceless