I couldn't resist.

Amos, I'm so proud of you and so so sorry to the 14 year old you, but I just couldn't resist.

Compliments of the Lazy (and inappropriate) Blogger.

Put on your Pintrest Pants.

This idea might be my favorite Pintrest find yet. And so easy! Here's the original source. 

Here's another great idea I saw on Pintrest but somebody beat me to it! Eli's class made these the other day. Now if he can just talk Amos out of it.

That brings my "Saw it on Pintrest and Made it" Board up to 12 pins. Yes!

Spring is in the air. Beathe Deep.

Can you smell it?

Yes there's still snow on the ground, and yes...
darn it, yes...
it will snow again.

But it's getting closer.

Spring. Will. Come.

So, as is our tradition, we crafted up a peachy spring wreath. We started with hand and footprints of the two babies who were home at the time (Eli was in N.C. with the fella). 

 Look at bitty Hazel back there eating her puffs. Precious kitten.

A little cardboard circle and some tissue paper...

 and one bath to occupy the 2 year old. Just crumple and glue.

What? You don't craft while your kiddo bathes? Just watch that your hotglue gun doesn't fall in the tub!

The kicker is the chalk cloth backdrop. You'll never guess where I found the idea. Yup. Pintrest.

See:

 Donchya love it? Here's the source.

Aside - if we ever buy our house I'm getting a pretty front door 1st thing. This door is fugly.

 

So, take note weatherman. Our door is ready. Bring on the spring. 

It's Twins!

That's right.
Remember my baby, the Flash Mob?

Well, as of this morning, my baby, is twins.

You see, when I told our church's choir director, Frank, about the Valentine's Day Flash Mob, and played him the song, he made an astute observation. He noticed how nicely the words of the song "I've got everything that I need, right in front of me," coincided with our Lenten theme, Simple Living, Abundant Life -  a study on simplicity, community, and cutting down on waste and over consumption.

Genius.

So a few weeks back, Frank spoke cryptically to George, our minister who would be preaching this morning, the first Sunday in Lent. He wondered if George would be open to an interruption during his sermon, one that would highlight the theme of having everything we need. George, was totally game. He didn't want to know any more details. He wanted to be surprised. Bless him.

This morning, going only on that cryptic chat from a few weeks ago, for his sermon George told the story of young Yosef, child of a poor family, who wondered why he and his family couldn't have the fancy clothes and houses and stuff, that other people had. Repeatedly Yosef's parents reminded him that they had their home, plenty of food, plenty of clothing, and each other. They had everything that they needed.

Enter...the flash mobbers.




Pretty. Darn. Cool.

We rocked the house. Of God. 

First Plymouth folk, you are awesome. Frank, well done. George, nice work.
I was so happy to be part of this. Just brilliant.

Of, and Eli, you're the coolest 4 year old I know.  

Embrace the E.R.

Lemme walk you through it.
Sunday evening...
The Fella, Yaya, and Eli turned in early to rest up for their 4:00 a.m. departure for the airport.
I stay up watching the Downton Abbey finale.
Nary a symptom to warn me.
Amos wakes up scary wheezing, barking, short of breath.

If I didn't have Nurse Yaya downstairs to whip out the stethoscope and tell me he's breathing enough, there would have been an ambulance in my driveway. 

So I called the Kaiser line and they had me scurry him to the closest E.R., which thankfully is just a stones throw away.

As soon as I carried Amos through those double sliding doors they got him in a bed and no fewer than 8 docs, nurses, respiratory specialists, and the like descended upon him. Thank my lucky stars.

Diagnosis: Croup. Sever Croup. That wiley minx. 

He was scared to bits, but with a quick epinephrine nebulizer treatment and a dose of steroids, he was on the up and up within minutes.

They kept us for 4 hours to make sure things didn't flare back up again.

That put us right at the 4:00 a.m. mark, so the fella had to wake Hazel up and bring her to me in the hospital. The fact that I had both our sets of keys threw a wrench into things. Yaya came to fetch them. Eric brought me Hazel. And then off they went to the airport.   

Thank goodness Monday was a holiday. We spent most of it just like this.

Happily Amos made a grand recovery after we rested up on Monday. He and Hazel and I are enjoying our little week as just the three of us. He likes being the big man around here.

Sending this over to Embrace the Camera:

Yum.

I am 100% ready for spring. I'm ready for the park. I'm ready for bike rides. I'm ready to toss these hooligans out into the yard. Let's do this.

But, since we live in Colorado and it's gonna snow like 6 more times...I am perfecting the art of snow cream. Last blizzard was like a 2 footer and I made delicious minty green snow cream snowballs dusted with green sanding sugar.

And here's a first (and probably last). I offer you...the recipe:
Mix (til it seems right, tasting often) the following:
snow,
milk,
sugar,
vanilla extract,
and a skosh of mint extract
The sanding sugar was green so that's what changed the color. I scooped them with my tablespoon measuring spoon and put them in my sweet little majolica bowls purchased on the Amalfi Coast in Italy.

Take that winter.

Ooops, I did it again.

I found a super cute idea on Pintrest and made one for myself.

This time it's a headband holder made from an oatmeal container. Genius!

Mine:

Theirs:

(original source)

Theirs is made with pretty papers but I used fabric since I have SO MUCH FABRIC. A little modpodge and the little pedestal I found at target and viola! Headband storage ago go. 

Pretty sweet right? I never had need for one of these before but now we have all manner of girlie baubles to keep somewhere. And you can stash the hair clips and bows inside. So smart.

Thanks for the idea internet!

There's Still Time...

Tomorrow's Fat Tuesday.

Just in time we have another installment from guest blogger and resident wreath expert, Sarah - my college friend and super crafter!

Mardi Gras is this Tuesday, Feb. 21st. 

This wreath was created on a wood wreath form using cut-up beaded necklaces and favors gathered at parades, and plastic babies (which are hidden within one of the traditional foods of the season, the King Cake). You should probably do a better job than I did cleaning off the loose strands of hot glue after your project is finished.  

I no longer live where school is closed for Fat Tuesday and local krewes throw bashes and parades in the weeks leading up to the biggest day and last hurrah before the start of Lent, as signaled by Ash Wednesday.    

So, if you are like me, and not one of those Divinely Blessed individuals who actually resides within the Mardi Gras region, you can still send up a virtual toast to the holiday, have a fun reason to throw a themed party, and try to create for yourself a little pitiful (I-wish-I-was-at) Mardi Gras. You can festoon your residence with beads, mix up some Hurricanes and Sazeracs or any of the many other cocktails of Big Easy origins, and order a king cake from, say: www.randazzokingcake.com  or  http://paulspastry.com. 

Also, for festive attire and gifts go here: http://www.fleurtygirl.net/ 

And here: www.mardisgraspot.com

Laissez les bon temps rouler, y'all

Thank you so much Sarah! Let those good times roll!

Flash! Mob!

It came in a dream...

A month in the making...

Self doubt was tossed out and my inner choreographer was tapped into...

And now it is finished!

I present to you, the Official Video of the Valentine's Day Flash Mob organized by moi!

Just as I thought, Flash Mobbing is SO MUCH FUN! It went by incredibly fast. So fast that having worried about forgetting the moves was silly because there was no time to forget! And if you did, you had only a second to laugh at yourself and jump back in when you could. IT WAS AWESOME!

We had a bit of technical trouble and it was tricky getting good footage in such a crowded, compact, and angle-y space! But I love having a record of this very fun experience! And I love all the peeks of my little Eli mobbing right along beside.

Thanks to everyone who played a part! You litchrilly (channeling Chris Traeger, Parks and Recreation), made my dream come true.



Embracing the Video Camera today:

Do We Ever...

The sentiment is universal around here. We love Dad. 

Happy V-Day fella.

Under the Big Blue Blanket

Ok. It's a lot. I know.

But there was just so much love under the big blue blanket that morning...

 

The devolution of the photoshoot...

 

This lovefest was 100% voluntary. No jellybean bribes were even offered.

So Eli got hungry:

I mean come on.