Home Depot Kids Workshop

Home Depot Kids Workshop 8am - 12pm. First Saturday of every month. (I can't believe we didn't know about this before. We have missed out.)

I thought this would be a 4 hour workshop and these little kids would be building a #20 Home Depot Race Car from a block of wood (with a lot of help from the parents).

8am on a Saturday? Yuck. My weekend where I can sleep til 10am is sadly cancelled.

A 4 hour workshop for kids ages 5 - 12? There is no way these kids will have the attention span or ability to stick with this class. Except Madison of course, she is a mini genius :)

I was totally wrong.

The 8am - 12pm workshop actually started at 9am, and was just a 30min - 1hour project that Madison was able to complete all by herself. Literally by herself. I sat across from her and took pictures while she worked away. She had a blast. She loves using tools. She has had her own toolbox ... I think she was born with it. If J is fixing something she is right beside him with her toolbox ready to work.

This workshop was perfect for her. She got an apron with a pin that shows she completed the Race Car workshop. I can not wait to add many more pins to it. Next month, Window Bird Feeder.

Hunger Game series

Hunger games:
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.


Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister Primrose, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before — and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Catching Fire:
Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.


Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.


In Catching Fire, the second novel of the Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins continues the story of Katniss Everdeen, testing her more than ever before... and surprising readers at every turn.

Mockingjay:
Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.


It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plains - except Katniss.


The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay - no matter what the personal cost.

Book summaries are from goodreads.

Honestly - These books were really hard for me to read. I really don't like violence, esp torture, and there was plenty. I have a son that falls in the age range of the tributes and a daughter that is just 5 years away, I had to forget that I was a parent shortly into the first book. However, I thought the series was excellent. The last book, more specifically the very end of book 3 is what made me love this series.

From the authors website:
For eighteen years, Jude Farraday has put her children’s needs above her own, and it shows—her twins, Mia and Zach—are bright and happy teenagers. When Lexi Baill moves into their small, close knit community, no one is more welcoming than Jude. Lexi, a former foster child with a dark past, quickly becomes Mia’s best friend. Then Zach falls in love with Lexi and the three become inseparable.
Jude does everything to keep her kids on track for college and out of harm’s way. It has always been easy-- until senior year of high school. Suddenly she is at a loss. Nothing feels safe anymore; every time her kids leave the house, she worries about them.
On a hot summer’s night her worst fears come true. One decision will change the course of their lives. In the blink of an eye, the Farraday family will be torn apart and Lexi will lose everything. In the years that follow, each must face the consequences of that single night and find a way to forget…or the courage to forgive.
Vivid, universal, and emotionally complex, Night Road raises profound questions about motherhood, identity, love, and forgiveness. It is a luminous, heartbreaking novel that captures both the exquisite pain of loss and the stunning power of hope. This is Kristin Hannah at her very best, telling an unforgettable story about the longing for family, the resilience of the human heart, and the courage it takes to forgive the people we love.

I had read on a couple other blogs that this book is a major tear-jerker, so I was ready. I wasn't going to loose it - sob. Yeah right. I lost it a couple times reading the book. Lost it like, I had to put the book down for the night to recover. But don't get me wrong, it's a great book. It was an amazing story.

As a mom with a son and a step son that just started high school, and a daughter in 1st grade, it makes me think about how I am raising them. About the importance of really drilling in their heads that it is never ok to drink and drive. NEVER! Also to love the kids openly, whole heartedly. And to have an open and trusting relationship with them.

Well enough blabbing, if you like tear-jerkers this is a great book. I really recommend it.   

inside our snowglobe

OK, so the quality of this video is not great but hopefully you can see that it is snowing.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

From authors website:
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here—one of whom was his own grandfather—were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.


A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.     

I really liked this book. Silly as it is, I usually pick books with a girl for the main character. I didn't read anything about this book before I bought it so I didn't know that the main character was a boy. Honestly I might not have bought it if I had known. I'm glad I didn't know.  It was a pretty good book.

10 things on the 10th - February

In honor of Valentine's Day...
10 things I love
1. my husband, J (obviously)
2. my kids (again, obviously)
3. my family (sisters, parents, in-laws, nieces, nephews...)
4. reading
5. photography
6. chocolate
7. living in the quiet mountains
8. staying up late - sleeping in
9. my instax camera - I love every picture I have taken
10. being able to stay home with the kids

there are a million other things that could go on this list. I'm sure tomorrow, or a week from now I will think why didn't I put (insert that thought). these are 10 random thing I just thought of right now.

34

Today I turned 34. It was a great day. My youngest was home sick, but not really sick, just a bad cough that kept her up last night. Good excuse to keep her home and spend the day with her. My oldest, I did send to school. I would have loved to have him home too, but it's hard for him to miss a day of school.
I love the instax mini that J got me. I am almost thru one of the things of film and I love each and every picture. I will so easily become my new obsession. I love it! I love it!

Discovery of Witches

I finished reading A Discovery of Witches today. This is the book I was excited to read. I thought is was very similar to the Twilight series, but still really good. I can not wait for the next book to come out. July 10 2012. (I should put a count down on my sidebar:)

here's a good book review I found online:
A richly inventive novel about a centuries-old vampire, a spellbound witch, and the mysterious manuscript that draws them together.
Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell.
Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as their alliance deepens into an intimacy that violates age-old taboos. This smart, sophisticated story harks back to the novels of Anne Rice, but it is as contemporary and sensual as the "Twilight" series-with an extra serving of historical realism.

Just finished...

It was pretty good. Again not a favorite, but it was a good story.

I'm super excited about my next book. I've heard it's really good. Hopefully it will make my good books list.

10 things on the 10th

10 favorite TV shows:
(no particular order)

1. American Horror Story
2. The Walking Dead
3. Mad Men
4. Sons of Anarchy
5. The Killing
6. Grey's Anatomy
7. Weeds
8. Breaking Bad
9. Army Wives
10. Days of Our Lives

Old-Fashion Soft Pumpkin Cookies

My sister Jennifer made these cookies while me and the kids were visiting my family in December. This is the second time I've made them, they are so good.

The recipe:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup butter (one stick), softened
1 cup LIBBY'S 100% pure pumpkin
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350

Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto greased (or I use parchment paper) baking sheet.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes; remove to wire rack to cool completely. Optional - Drizzle glaze over cookies.

Glaze:
Combine 2 cups of sifted powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons of milk, 1 tablespoon of melted butter, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract in a small bowl until smooth.

I double this recipe and make half with walnuts and the other half with chocolate chips (to make J and the kids happy).

Enjoy!

Scrapbooking

my best girl
one of our (mine and madison's) saying
i ask her if she is my girl, my best girl
of course she always says yes

the pictures are from november 5
our first snow
i guess i should say real snow,
we had a dusting before but this was our first snow that the kids could play in
about an hour into the kids playing we had to take a trip to target
to get snow gear for the kids
they spent most of the rest of the day outside
having snowball fights and building a snowman

Back in Session

Madison is back in guitar lessons, with her new guitar. Her guitar instructor was impressed that after a month of missing lessons she remembered her strings. But really, Eddy Ate Dynamite Good Bye Eddy (E.A.D.G.B.E.) is really hard to forget. The kids think that is super funny. Practice for this week is to learn E minor. Good thing Austin is also taking guitar. I have no clue what E minor is.

Bedtime Story

When did the rolls of book reader and listener get reversed? I'm sure before I know it she won't even want to read to me anymore. I guess I will enjoy this new bed time routine while I have it.

3 minutes

Madison went to the ENT today. She has had a rotting smell coming from her mouth/nose. We have been to the dentist, and had her MRI and everything there was great. However her MRI was of her spine and did not cover her head, so we were not able to see her sinus or anything in the head. Her neurosurgeon suggested we take Madison to an ENT. ENT - Dr A checked Madison out, and took a complete medical history, and said that he would feel better having a CT (glad he didn't say "to rule some things out" - those words, over 5 years later, still sting). It took insurance about an hour to approve the CT because Madison just had a scan and they felt another round of antibotics would do. With a little (or a lot) of convincing from Dr A's staff, her CT was approved and was done there in the office. Madison did great. And the results... 3 minute pause, 3 minutes of silence while Dr A scrolled thru her scans, 3 minutes is a really long time. Try it, watch your computer clock tick away 3 minutes. That is what I did. I couldn't bring my self to look at scans I know nothing about. So I watch the clock tick away 3 minutes. It felt like a lifetime. Then Dr A said NED - no evidence of disease, no tumors, no cancer. I cried happy tears. I wasn't prepared, going into this appointment, for the threat of cancer to be so prominent. I hate that this is our, wait that is selfish, this is her life. I'm so happy that the CT today and her MRI on December 8th were NED, but over 5 years later I still worry about everything. It's really hard. I want to not have to worry about one day hearing the words your daughter has cancer again. I don't want to ever worry about Madison not being a part of our life. If this is her last (fill in the blank - birthday, christmas...). She is amazing, beautiful, smart... I could go on and on, little girl. I love her so much. I want her to have a normal, beautiful, long life.