Looth Tooth

For days now, Sweet-Pea has been working on a loose tooth in her mouth. She does NOT like when her teeth fall out...it scares her. She struggled during dinner and even asked me to pull it twice, but it wouldn't budge! So, she went to bed that night a little bit anxious, but she did sleep. Look what I found beside my bed on the nightstand the next morning!!!


It says "Mom, I lost my tooth. That is what I look like. Do you see the missing tooth Mom?"

If that's not so sweet, I don't know what is!?!?! She woke up around 6:00 a.m. and noticed her tooth had fallen out!!! She didn't even realize it, so there was no bleeding, no pain and fortunately she didn't swallow it. =) I admit, I was a little bit sad that she didn't wake me, but she said that she was a big girl and handled it herself. She sure was!!!

Here's the spot where the tooth was...


One proud girl! The other front tooth is also loose, so maybe I'll get another note some morning real soon.


Way to go Sweet-Pea! I'm SO proud of you!!!!

Home update

I'm not holding my breath, but it seems as if we officially sold our home. Déjà vu...I feel like I've done this before....oh, I have! Here's a summary of all that's happened recently:

• Our original buyer sold, but their buyer backed out in the 11th hour, so we had to start over from the beginning. That was back in March!!
  
• Our original buyer still desperately wanted to buy our home from us and worked hard to sell their home. They had 27 showings in 2 weeks but no decent offers. Pretty sad.
• We still had a Hubbard (contingency) for those buyers, so as much as we wanted to dump our current Realtor and get a new one, we couldn't. Bummer!
• On Saturday, we sat our Realtor down and told her she wasn't doing ANYTHING to sell our home for us. She not once brought a client to look at our home, didn't advertise it well enough, had lousy photos of our home online and was not a go-getter. So, we decided to take matters into our own hands. I took brand new photos of the house (don't want to brag, but they are MUCH better than hers!!) and put them up on a new listing...new words, measurements of the rooms, and a new lower price. It looked great.
• On Monday morning (last week), Edward and the kids moved over 100 boxes from the in-law suite down to our basement so we could once again stage our home for showings. What a pain!! We were 2/3 packed and getting ready for the move when things fell through. The house was a disaster, so we had to set everything back up and remove boxes etc. The house looked wonderful and clean once again - ready for more showings.
  
• We had a call Monday afternoon that someone already wanted to come see the house on Tuesday. We had plans on Tuesday to take the kids to the aquarium, but we had to change those plans for the showing since we have Cody, the dog we rescued who can't be left in the house for showings. He gets extremely nervous if people show up without us around, so we have to take him with us. So, no aquarium trip. We decided to go Wednesday.
• On Tuesday mid-morning, we got a call saying those people couldn't make it for the showing, so they would come on Wednesday. UGH! Change plans again and miss out on the aquarium for the 2nd time. Poor kids...this is what their lives have been like lately.
• Wednesday comes and we get a call that morning...our original buyers sold their condo!!! We weren't sure how serious this was, but we knew that if they sold, then we did as well! Now what to do?!? It's too late for the aquarium, so that's still out. The people who wanted to come see our house were told it sold, so they obviously didn't come. The downside in this is that in order for our buyer to actually sell, they had to lower their price a lot more, so we too were put in a situation to lower ours. We all just want this done and over with, so we all compromised just to put an end to it. We're not thrilled about it, but at least we are selling our home now!
  
• Things progressed along quite well this time around. Our buyer now has their mortgage approved. Their buyer is almost approved - any day now...they had their inspection and appraisal, so it's moving right along. It's up to us now.
• We ended up purchasing a different home than originally planned. This house is 2 doors down from the original home we wanted. It was less expensive, yet it's still new. Funny thing though...it's got 8 rooms, where the other had 7, and this one is also a 'green' home...meaning that it's energy efficient so we should save money each month.
  
• Yesterday we ran around like chickens with our heads cut off! We had to get signed contracts to the bank by a certain time (since it's a holiday weekend) or we wouldn't get our mortgage on time to close. Since we're purchasing a different home, we had to start the whole process over. What a pain!
  

So, there you have it. It's been a crazy mess, this whole house thing, but we see a light at the end of the tunnel. If all goes well...we will be closing on June 30th! Only 38 days away!! Here's a photo of our new home. It's a beautiful home and we are excited that God led us here, even though it's been a long road. Things aren't 100% certain yet. I won't be comfortable saying we're moving until we sign our names at the closing! We are hopeful though, and are looking forward to things finally settling down in our lives. Pray with us that nothing will go wrong this time around!! Thanks!


P.S. If we ever get to that aquarium, I'll post photos. =)

Happy Anniversary 'Edward'!!

My dear sweet husband had these beautiful flowers delivered to me today while he was at work. How romantic to get them delivered!! Usually he brings them home, but for some reason, these brightened up my day so much more because they were delivered.



15 years ago I walked down the aisle and said 'I do' before God, our family and friends. It was a day I'll never forget! God blessed me with such an amazing and wonderful man. I am proud to be his wife! We still talk about that day as if it were yesterday, and we reminisce about our amazing honeymoon in Scotland ALL the time!!! One of these days we want to get back over there.


(Ahh, yes, these were the days of puffed sleeves and VERY long trains!! =) Gotta love it. Once Sweet-Pea is a teenager, I'll open up my packed dress and let her try it on just for fun. I'd love to see it again too.)

For all you Moms...

Happy Mother's Day!!!!


This is YOUR day Moms. A day to feel appreciated for all you do, for all you sacrifice and for all you are to your children! You love them unconditionally, you sacrifice daily without complaining, and you see past their faults to point out every strength they have, simply to encourage them.

Keep it up...you're doing a great job and you will be blessed by our Heavenly Father for it!

I will miss my Mom dearly today as I have for the past 7 years! The Lord took her home after a long battle with cancer, but I know I'll see her again. She is in my thoughts constantly, and as I am raising my children, I am reminded of all she sacrificed and did for me. She was a wonderful Mom and I'm so thankful to the Lord for allowing me to be her daughter!!

Take some time to hug your children extra tight tonight...we only have them for a short time before they grow up!!

Have a blessed Mother's Day!!

Homeschool Science Fair!!!

Since I'm the president of our homeschool group, I get to plan a big fair each year. Two years ago we did a Geography Fair, and last year an Art Fair, so this year I decided on the old standby...a Science Fair. I do like to keep it different though, so next year we're going to do a History Fair - I can't wait!!

Anyhow, as I previously mentioned, Lionel did his project on Jet Propulsion, and Sweet-Pea did hers on Horses. They both did a FANTASTIC job!!

Here's Sweet-Pea standing beside her display...complete in her new attire from the Tack shop!! See those yarn things hanging? Those are her homemade horse tails!! She researched the various ways horses tails are braided, cut and combed, and decided to create her own. It was a lot of hard work, but it paid off in the end. They looked awesome. It's hard to appreciate them in detail from the photo though...sorry. On the wall beside her (to her right) are cut-outs of her hands...so people could measure how many hands tall they are, like they do for horses.


Closer look of her display...


Lionel's display involved a lot more research and reading. He too did a fantastic job! The right side of his display showed a time line of jet propulsion, and the left side showed various planes and the different typed of engines used in each one - with descriptions. The whole middle was filled with details on how jet propulsion actually works. It was fascinating, but out of my league. = ) I'm glad Daddy worked with him on this one!!! On the table stand 2 jet plane models, a homemade Lego jet and a Lego engine replica. He's very creative!


At the fair, there were 6 different categories with several entrants for each. The parents voted, and chose 1 winner from each category to win a 1st place trophy. I was so excited to see that Sweet-Pea was the winner for the Zoology category! Here she is with her trophy.


Each child who entered work in the fair got an award medal. We have given these out each year and they're great because it encourages the kids...even if they don't win 'the big trophy'. The kids love it! On the back it says our homeschool group name, "Science Fair" and "2009".


More photos from the fair...lots of moms and dads...


...lots of kids....


...and lots of food! =)


Now that it's over, we can rest a bit and get some of our 'normal' school work done. Of course we are still waiting on news about the house situation, but in the mean time, we'll plug along in hopes of finishing this year off well in school if nothing else!

Let the Pictures Tell All

Ahh...finally, spring has sprung!!! Can you tell Sweet-Pea is excited?!?



It's been a while since I've blogged...there's no excuse except for busyness, laziness and an overwhelming feeling of "How in the world do I catch up with my blog after ignoring it for over a week!?!" I guess the answer to that is simple...."You don't!"

I'll try though...but it will mostly be with photos!

Sweet-Pea had a bit of fun last weekend. Lionel was away at his Quiz Meet, so Daddy, her and I were outside enjoying the beautiful weather. Bubbles are a favorite in our home. We are constantly stockpiling bottles of them when they go on sale. I have yet to make our own bubbles...even though I've got a great recipe for them. (I'll post it below)










As you can tell, she had a wonderful time running around making bubbles!! Once she finally pooped out, I was able to capture a sweet photo of her sitting under our favorite tree...a Weeping Cherry. I will definitely miss this tree when we move. I gave it to 'Edward' for an anniversary gift a few years ago. It's grown so big, and every spring (around the time of our anniversary) we look forward to it's pink blossoms!




As I mentioned above, Lionel was away on his Bible Quiz Meet. He had a wonderful time! His team came in 2nd place. Lionel is in the middle on the bottom. His best friend 'N' is the star on this team and will be sorely missed when his family moves away!!

(Thanks for the photo M...hope you don't mind I used it here!!)

Another photo of Lionel while on the Quiz Meet. Hmmm, I wonder if he caught that ball?!? I've never seen him play football a day in his life. He loves basketball, but I'm sure that no matter the sport, if the guys are playing...he's there! Great Shot M!!!


Our homeschool group was having it's big fair of the year...a science fair, so the kids had to prepare for it. Since Lionel's project was on Jet Propulsion, he and Daddy took a trip to the local Air Museum to see what sort of information and photos they could get.

Photos from their visit:





They had a wonderful time, and Lionel came home all excited and ready to start his project. It took him a while to complete it, but he finally got it done...the day of the fair! = )

Sweet-Pea did her project on Horses, so while Daddy and Lionel were up at the museum, we stopped in at our local horse Tack Shop and bought a few things. I actually think we had more fun than the boys did!!! I'll post about the fair tomorrow. In the mean time, here's the bubble recipe. Let me know if you make it and how your bubbles come out!

Bubble 'Recipe':

• Get a large bucket and pour in 1 gallon of Distilled Water.
  
• Add 12 oz. of Non-Ultra/Classic Dawn Original Scent dish detergent - be sure to stir it SLOWLY!!
• Stir in 3 Tablespoons (1 oz) of Glycerin - again, stir slowly.
• If you want better bubbles, add Mr. Bubbles from Tootsie Toy (not the bath soap)