fancy girl

claire has been wearing these shoes to school every morning, since we started homeschooling. they were her 'fancy shoes' from aunt keri's wedding in december! kinda reminds me of a certain dress that i wore practically every day w hen i was little, and mom was my teacher .... remember, mom?? like mother, like daughter! haha.
this was our view out the front window today - we had sleet all night long, and by noon today, the snow came whooshing in. everything closed and canceled today - we're snowed in!

random

ohh, homeschooling! so now i realize how much free time i enjoyed before the kids came home! not to be a martyr, but i am really feeling overwhelmed. it's definitely the right thing to do with the kids' schooling, but seriously! the minute i step away from the table, there is instant scatter. i turn around - they're gone. blink. they're gone. one's halfway up the stairs to play with polly pockets, the other is wrestling caloway off the computer, to get on webkinz and feed their pets. we need discipline in this house! so i am thinking that we'll bring back the color charts from their school in ohio. if they misbehave, or don't follow directions, they pull a card. it's training time! these kids need to be whipped into shape! no more mrs. nice guy!
ok, so something like that. i went to williams-sonoma last night, tim was gracious enough to allow me to browse in there kid-free - and i was so inspired by all that pricey cookware! haha. they have these beautiful cast-iron pans that are glazed in a lovely shade of green called lemongrass - i totally need those pretty little pots!
so i settled for some of their olive coriander soap and countertop cleaner that was 50 % off. it smells fabulous. and i also bought a meyer lemon poundcake mix - i hope it tastes like starbucks lemon poundcake! if you haven't tried a slice of theirs yet, you absolutely have to, next time you are there. i mean, really - not everything has to be homemade! :)
caloway and i were at the dr. again (his leg still isn't better!!), and he was telling me about class on sunday. . .

me - cal, did you have fun in class last night? did you have pizza?
cal - yes, but the boy wasn't nice to me!
me - oh? why wasn't he nice?
cal - when we got pizza, he told me, "good for me - not for you!"
me - well, that wasn't nice.
cal - yeah, and that boy had mad lips!

we definitely don't want to have 'mad lips'! who knows what might come out of those!

burnt popcorn

there's a first time for everything.

I have Beka's phone and I thought I would show her that her phone does take beautiful pictures!

the joys of homeschooling

claire had a little project in her science book, to draw a few pictures of herself as she is growing. this is what happens when you take your daughter with you to victoria's secret to shop for bras! (which, as we were leaving, she says, "Mom, does this store have inappropriate things?) haha!

and then there's cameron:


perhaps we should take breaks at the same time?? :)

my hubby

ok, so i know i usually have all the funny things the kids say here on the blog, but i'll give props to my better half, because his blog is really funny and thought-provoking all at the same time. so i'll admit it - sometimes i steal his stories off his blog to put on mine! haha. but this time i won't - if you want to see what clairely said yesterday that caused us all to die laughing (ok, maybe just me and tim!) then go check out tim's blog - it's listed to the right - just scroll down a bit until you see 'my hubby'. it's entitled niagarathals. the other ones are pretty good too ... ;) and i'm not just saying that because i love him to pieces!
yeah, you really want to go read it now, don't you???

the wetter?

claire came to me, all ready to head back in the snow this afternoon, and was upset because her snowsuit was "in the wetter!" so there's officially a new name for the washing machine!
whar's my shirt? in the wetter! go getter! haha.

winter fun

we got about 8 inches of snow today! it finally stopped snowing around noon, so tim and the kids trooped outside into the snow to do a little sledding. now, since sledding really hasn't been my thing for the past 15 years, i grabbed my new camera, armed with some new knowledge from the manual, and headed out after them to capture this. and yes, milo did go down the hill too! he totally freaked out! haha.
we are so blessed with our yard!! we absolutely love the woods and the privacy out here! enjoy!

YUCK!

I have to get groceries in this mess.. hmph

diving headfirst!

so we've started homeschooling here in holmanland! :) most of our books have arrived, but we're still waiting on a few more, along with claire's teacher guides. i have to say, i'm pretty excited about starting homeschooling - i'm feeling a little overwhelmed today, trying to put lesson plans together, and at least some type of a grid for what our schedules will look like! i'm hoping once we're going full-steam, it's going to get a little easier. i just want to make sure that i'm doing it right!
cameron and claire are excited about starting - i am feeling really good about having them home - knowing what they're being taught, having our family being the main influences in their life. it has brought so much peace of mind, especially being in a new area! i will try to keep you updated on our progress, and sanity haha!

delicious treats

ok, you know you want some now! i've discovered a secret little trick to making the most divine rice krispie treats! should i share it with you? oh, all right - don't say i never gave you anything! the secret is ..... (drum roll) .....
brown your butter.
yup! that is all. well, mostly all - make sure you add a tbsp. extra of REAL (like we'd use anything else!) butter, and a cup more of the fluffy white stuff. the result is scrumptious, and you might find yourself consuming more than originally planned. yum.

haircut

i went into the playroom tonight, to pick up a few things, and saw scissors next to clumps of blonde hair laying all over the floor! panicking, i picked up a few wads, dreading what might be awaiting me in claire's room, and realized it was plastic hair ... from a doll. from an AMERICAN DOLL.
claire decided to give her bitty twin, madelyn, a scalping .. er, haircut. there are 1/4 in. strips of hair on what was once a lovely head of loose, blonde curls.
i suppose it was bound to happen one of these days - either her own hair or a doll. thankfully (?) it was a doll. so madelyn is off tomorrow to the doll hospital where she will have her head replaced. nice. i am feeling the pain!