Blubber is Cute on Momma and Pup

Mine Got Talent

OK, we are not signing up anyone for a reality show or Martha Stewart Living. But I slowed down enough recently to be really impressed with the skills in this household.
Of course my skills, I still struggle to ignore ;)

First up is oldest son, otherwise known as The Experimentator. We have a standard Don't Ask, Don't Tell Policy. If we do have to go into his bathroom for something, we do it quick. Or else we may see the crusted counter and mirror. You will thank me for not photographing the crusted floor. He does "clean" his own bathroom for allowance. I am proud he has the ingenuity to try new things.

But I am not sure what his Calamine, Benadryl concoction was made for. I don't even see said concoction. It is probably in his sock drawer........Not to self: turn to the manual Don't Ask, Don't Tell. I am slightly worried, however, as it is the start of poison oak season and we may now be low on supplies............

Second up is younger son, the artist. He has good three-dimensional spacial awareness. Even when he eats. It ain't pretty (the eating) but it is interesting. We caught him "after hours drawing". Funny how he chose to draw on his futon, on his homemade Sponge Bob box, next to the recently purchased "Boss Toss." You load up a plastic boss (notice tiny little plastic bosses) in the gun and shoot him/her out. Somehow he lawyered me into getting it because Boss Toss doesn't have bullets, so it is not a toy gun. He doesn't understand that to really enjoy the Boss Toss, you need an actual boss. He still thinks it is fun.

Oh and he has a big desk with a lamp that is perfect for drawing. But I must say his volcano looks pretty good- so who am I to criticize his method? He is also sky jump boy from previous post below. He was doing double back flips. He was 3 stories up! I was too tired and cold to be fretful. No I take that back, I am a cool mom!


And here is dear daughter. AKA Squirrel. More on that later. She is practicing to "be a mommy." She loves to "take care" of her baby. Notice she tattooed her name on babies head, added a few stickers for good measure and then put her in a giant pull up. If I was that baby- I wouldn't be making a peep! She is also helping her dance teacher pick out the recital costumes. At 4 already a fashion consultant.


And I recently discovered my other boys are fabulous broiler pan cleaners. No more soaking in the sink for 2 days. Now I can just put it out on the back porch and it is all clean within 30 minutes. Just a little rinse and I'm done. Thanks guys!


Now, DH is very talented too. He has in the last 12 months: coached 1 soccer team, one football team, head coached 2 basketball teams, taught 4 kids how to ski, took on head football coach for next year's team, played on a men's basketball team, played on a coed volleyball team and worked full-time. And he takes the kids to school every morning. Saint Husband requires prior approval for posted pictures- so I will get back to you on that one.

That is all for now. Everyone have a great weekend!

if you love him, set him free

Jan Porterfield Watercolors

I just love the colors and intricate, yet bold floral designs. Aren't they fabulous? And who could not love this circus chicken?

Jan died from colorectal cancer last year. Her husband Jeff has lovingly set up a store featuring some of her work: Jan Porterfield Watercolors

He is generously donating all proceeds from sales to charity.

I marvel the beauty of Jan's work, the love and devotion of her husband, and the ability for us all to use the world-wide web to make world-wide connections. I don't think I would have been able to witness Jan's legacy without it.

And I am so buying that circus chicken print soon! What joy it will bring our family. I hope you all have the opportunity of art in your life!

Forget the Prince

Just did my first-spend-all-day-drawing art. It is a design of a fairy and I think she looks pretty good. I put her in a few designs in my shops. This is my favorite:




I never was the wait for the prince to sweep me off my feet girl. Of course, I was lucky enough to meet and marry a prince eventually ;) I am now working on a garden fairy design. If anyone has any other fairy ideas you want to donate to my cause- I am all ears! You can check out what I have so far in my cancer and smart girls shops. One fairy design is hidden in the smart girls' mother earth section.

Anyway, we are heading out for our for a last-of-the-season ski trip and I will be blogless (boohoo) until later next week.

I will miss you all, my bloggy friends.

Free

Photo credit: Hayley Townley

I Love Spring

It is a time for change and new beginnings.

Around here- this is the evidence of spring:
Dogs get frisky and wrestle more. Can you spot all three? Old Lady even gets off her bed when the sun is shining.

The mud kitchen and bath is open. No wonder I can't find any of my utensils.





The boat and the model 2000 Cozy Coupe have come out of storage. Of all the made in China crap we have gotten the kids- this little car has been the most used and loved. She is on kid#3 and other than a missing gas cap- she is looking pretty good.



The hummingbird feeder is still up and running. Waiting for hummingbirds to arrive. Dear son may still be poaching. Major has his tongue out for some reason. He may be poaching too.



Since the winter wind storms took care of our canopy and umbrella, dear husband is hoping this camping canopy is going to fly. It ain't gonna.
Update: we just had a little wind and blue canopy is down. I said canopy down. I stand corrected- it is going to fly. Looks like we will be shopping. Poor dear husband just dragged the remains off. What is the deal? Need wind-proof canopy.

The "Shacuzzi" is open. Pool still polar bear cold.



But the hills are green...


I put away all the winter coats and now we just have the spring coats in the appropriately named mud room. Aren't you happy for me? A completely organized less cluttered usable mud room.



And I have opened my bathing suit drawer. Slowly.....Looked in. Do any of them still fit? No pictures. You all are safe. Besides, my legs are currently a science-fiction shade of pale.

Wishing everyone a Happy Spring and beyond!

WoooHooo I am a Winner

I want to thank Popsicles and Lollipops for having a bloggy give-away and drawing my name. I won a vintage trio. I must, I must get my sewing machine in action. Oh, the update on the machine is I need to get it serviced :(

Fame and fortune, vintage fabric pillows and possibly my pride will have to wait until I cross this off my "Honey-Do-It-Yourself list".

Honey-Do-It-Yourself List:

* find place to service sewing machine, bring it in (new addition)

* get dear sons to send thank Q's to the people that donated to their school fundraiser (good luck with that one)

* plan dear daughter's 5th birthday party with child-chosen theme: karaoke and swimming (maybe decorate with a fish and microphone?)

* put together a Breast Cancer Surgery binder for the cancer resource center (doesn't this bring up fond memories?)

* call a local printing shop and beg them to let me get a better price on 12 shirts, because I can't afford to print 48

* make a No Hair Day design for a baseball cap and donate some to the cancer center

* fix ipod or laptop or whichever is screwing up- can't charge up the ipod now (why oh why must these things be so hard??!!)

* check out the stuff on the boat that has been under wraps all winter: moldy granola bars, dried-out wipes, rusted utensils, congealed sunscreen, soggy toilet paper. (Actually if these are the only things I find- I will consider myself lucky.)

Oh the fun, the glamour... Wait- that is Hayley!

Anyway, a couple of recent funnies...... My daughter walks in the kitchen this morning and asks me "Mom, remember yesterday when we had that peace?"
(She was referring to the 15 minutes we had to put together a puzzle in her room while her brothers were doing something sneaky and naughty being quiet. And no I didn't remember!)

I was making dinner last night, while talking to dear hubby and supervising dear son browning the ground turkey. I pushed the trash can in. It is on sliders in the cabinet. It kind of bounced back, tried again, finally on the third try it goes all the way back and I close the cabinet. About 5 minutes later I hear "Mmmeeoooowww? " from the trash can cabinet.

Poor Melissa (AKA wet butt fir in my kitchen sink) kitty.

new kittie, bird watching, AKA Wet Butt Fur in my Sink

Mystery Solved

I like birds. I like birds. Did I say I like birds? I feel guilty that we cut down some trees to build our home. To make up for it, I have been feeding the wild birds, including the turkeys, relentlessly. This last summer, I added a hummingbird feeder to my circuit. Loved watching those hummers. They were bossy and sneaky. The feeding politics reminded me of the corporate world: one top bird, the rest scurrying around the feeder whenever they could, looking like they were doing something else if the boss flew in.




Anyway, I expected the nectar to go unused at some point this past winter when the hummers left or hibernated or whatever. Note to self: read up on all those bird books. But the nectar kept getting slurped up, and I never saw any hummingbirds. I figured they were just shy in the winter, so I mindlessly kept refilling the feeder. You know where this is going right????



Today Dear Son walks around the corner outside the house kind of licking his face and hands. I asked what he was tasting and he told me "that great hummingbird juice."

So there you have it. And I was blaming dear husband for the sugar highs. And this boy has two dentists for parents. They will probably write me up at the ADA.


On a different note, I overheard my dear daughter's bedtime banter with her dad. She said " Dad, I know you stole mom and you are not my real dad!" (He made her clean up her room.) I piped in asking "Where was I when he stole me?" She replied "MOM!! This is a CONVERSATION, so don't listen!"

Thanks Hillary

My 4 yo asked me what sniper fire was today. I guess I shouldn't listen to the news so much in the car. I was her age during Vietnam- but don't even remember hearing ANYTHING about that war. And my dad was in the Navy. But he was not in the war, thank goodness.

Today, something wonderful happened. I went to help out our local Cancer Resource Center. They are having their grand opening on Saturday. I would have loved to have a place like this when I was diagnosed. You kind of expect them to hand you your "To Do List" when you get your diagnosis. What to do, who to see, how to tell your family, etc. Uh uh, nuh uh. You (in the height of emotional turmoil) have to figure out everything yourself. Dr. Google didn't help either. Anyway, this new place for people with cancer is AWESOME. So much information in a soothing, beautiful place.

I met a man there, whose daughter died of cancer several years ago. He set up a foundation in her name. The foundation has many fundraisers. They help cancer centers all over the state of CA by buying them computers and libraries. He was there setting up the brand-new Macs. What love, dedication and generosity.

OK to lighten the mood, here is one of my breast cancer cartoons. I don't know if it is universally funny, but it really did ALMOST happen to me:




And finally, tonight my hubby decided to take the kids out to dinner unsupervised. He let them order some volcano/ice cream/hot fudge monster after dinner. Kids were on a sugar high at 8pm. They were upstairs giggling for an hour and then they clomp down the hardwood stairs (at 9:30!) looking like this:



It is now almost 10 and the sugar crash tears have begun!

My Chemo Roses- we planted this rosebush two years ago the day I finished chemo