Derek & Sidsie Family

80's Night

2012-01-22T22:00:00.009-05:00

We had our annual glow in the dark dodge ball party this weekend. We had a most excellent time and costumes!

Siesa loved my clothing and wants some pink stirrup pants just like mine. 80's fashion is right up her alley.

Be excellent to each other, and party on dudes!

Christmas 2011

2012-01-22T21:37:00.005-05:00

Christmas eve Derek’s parents came over and we did our traditional crepe breakfast (normally that is Christmas breakfast but since we had church in the morning we didn’t think we would have time so we ate them the night before). We then acted out the nativity and read the scriptures, sang some songs and opened a few presents.

The kids all got their ornaments and they exchanged gifts they made for each other. Jensen made Elsie 2 skirts, Seisa made Jensen a Lego bag and Elsie made Siesa some scarves. Everyone was very excited about their gifts.

Christmas morning

Christmas was busy and started bright and early here. I put a clock in Jensen’s room and told him he could not get up until 6:00 at 5:00am he came up stairs and said he just couldn’t wait anymore. Of course we sent him back to bed. By 5:50 he just couldn’t stand it any more and he and Siesa came up. They climbed into bed with us and played with Derek’s phone until Elsie woke up. And the fun began.

Jensen’s favorite gift was his MP3 player. We have downloaded a lot of songs and books on to it that he has been listening to it all the time. I put a bunch of songs that I thought Jensen would like and he keeps coming up and telling me that I snuck a lot of songs on the MP3 player but that he likes them. Jensen also got a lot more legos.

Siesa’s favorite gift was her cheetos and her scarves that Elsie made. Both the girls got a play kitchen that they have played with a lot and Siesa got some stuffed animals that she likes as well.

Elsie’s favorite part was the candy. She caught on so fast that Santa was going to come and bring her new toys and candy. She was very excited when she got up to find stuff for her. She got a bike, a kitchen and books. In her stocking was some tic-tacs, cheetos, chocolate and an orange. When she saw those things nothing else mattered. It was cute she was sitting on the floor sampling everything at once.

Derek's wish came true and we got a BBQ grill. We love it and use it all the time rain or snow or shine. Yeah for Christmas!

Christmas Card

2011-12-19T00:14:00.003-05:00

Derek – “I love my bike and my commute” He loves the change in commuting time which was about an hour, one-way in Atlanta and is now about 15 minutes by bike! He has successfully adjusted to working in Salt Lake City. One thing is for certain though; public accounting is just plain busy, whether you are in a big city or a smaller one.

Sidsie- “Moving is a lot of work Where did all this stuff come from” We moved twice during 2011. The first move, in April, was from Atlanta, Georgia to Salt Lake City, Utah a distance of about 2,000 miles. This was because Derek transferred with PwC to the Salt Lake office. The second move, in December, was a distance of less than half a mile. This was because we found a home that fits our family’s needs better.

Jensen- “I go to school a LONG time. How much longer will I have to go when I am in 2^nd grade?” He was thankful to find out six hours was it. Jensen finished kindergarten and has successfully completed almost half of first grade. He enjoyed playing soccer again and has also found a new love - Karate.

Siesa- “I will not forget to draw on the paper only” Siesa is our budding little artist and author. She draws and writes letters everyday most of the time on paper but often the wall, couch, books, mail, clothes, herself, her sister… you get the idea. She has also enjoyed her preschool class and learning all about writing and letters.

Elsie- “Elsie not done screaming yet” Elsie is full of energy. She is our boisterous little two-year old. She is always right in the middle of the action and is so concerned about what everyone else is doing at all times.

Family photo 2011

2011-12-16T18:42:00.018-05:00

There were so many that I loved. I just had to include them all. Thank you Liybie!

All I want for Christmas in my two front teeth

2011-12-09T22:36:00.004-05:00

According to Jensen "you couldn't actually give me my teeth if you wanted to because you are not a dentist"

My adventure with out kids

2011-12-09T22:20:00.006-05:00

I went to Boston for a long weekend to visit my sister and her husband. I had a fabulous time!

I watched the sun set by the river and then Teppo took me on a tour of MIT. All I have to say is there are some pretty crazy buildings there.

Thursday Maria and I rented a car and drove to Concord and Lexington. We went to the Alcott home where Louisa May Alcott wrote “Little Women.” We also went to a museum about the area and all the people from there, visited the bridge where the revolutionary war started and the spot about the famous quote “the shot heard around the world” . We also visited Walden pond (much bigger than I envisioned, it really should be called Walden lake) and the sleepy hollow cemetery.
That night we went to the Union Oyster house which is the oldest restaurant in the United States. The building has been around since the seventeen hundreds and it became a restaurant in 1826. We feasted on sea food and Boston cream pie Yum.

Friday we walked the Freedom trail. It started at Boston common (a big park) and is a 2 ½ mile walk through Boston and ends at Bunker Hill. There were lots of things to see along the way like Paul Revere's house, the old north church (where the lanterns were hung to single if the British were coming by land or by sea and then started his famous ride) the USS constitution (one of the first battle ships built by the united states), and much more. It was very interesting to see all the historical places and understand the timing of everything that happened. I have a much better appreciation for our founding fathers and for our great country.

Sunday we went to church and then walked around Boston and looked at old churches and the Boston library. My flight home was very uneventful which is always nice. I came home to sleeping children and a very clean house. I am so blessed to have a husband that is such a good father and housekeeper.

Trick -or- Treat

2011-10-30T23:00:00.009-04:00

We have had a fun October! Friday we had a few parties so my kids finally got to dress up.

Jensen is Meriwether Lewis (the Lewis and Clark that explored the Louisiana purchase but according to him he will just go by Lewis because Meriwether is a funny name) He originally wanted to be a crazy star wars character but I wouldn’t let him. After a few weeks of debating, getting a few documentary movies and book all about mountain men and him finding out that mountain men carried a gun he was hooked. He is according to him “posing how they do in books”.

A few weeks ago Siesa wanted to be a ginger bread man but when we pulled out all my costumes and she saw the candy corn witch costume I had(last years closeout that I got for 4 dollars) she wanted to be the witch. A few hours before our first party she was asking me if I could take her shopping to get her witch shoes. What? I quickly made her some spats that topped off her costume.

Elsie is a puppy and will bark upon request. She loves her costume and wants to wear it all the time.

Happy Halloween!

Dark Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache Frosting

2011-10-22T16:15:00.002-04:00

This is my new favorite recipe. It is so yummy.

Did I mention that it is dairy fee, soy free, egg free, gluten free, nut free and sugar free.

Happy to be 2

2011-10-22T16:05:00.007-04:00

Elsie had her birthday last week. She kept saying all day “happy birthday Elsie, eat cake grandma and grandpa come.” She opened her gifts first thing in the morning and then we had her favorite breakfast, French toast.

She got a little play puppy that walks and barks, miss potato head doll, a shirt and socks and her favorite, a box of band-aids. She had used the whole box of band-aids by 7 in the morning.

The grandparents came by after dinner to sing and have some cake which Elsie didn’t eat because she said she was “too sick” she had just eaten a huge dinner including lots of jello.

I can’t believe she is already 2. She is a ball of energy and such a doll. We love you!

Tax Season Widow = projects

2011-09-23T11:23:00.009-04:00

Well it has been 6 weeks and we haven’t seen much of Derek, this week not at all since he has been out of town. I am glad to report that we have made it though another busy season and we all glad it will be over today. Here are a few of the project I work these last 6 weeks.

This was one of my Mom’s favorite quotes that she told us as children. I made the sign for her birthday.

I made my girls trick or treat bag for Halloween this year.

Seisa is modeling a new apron I made. I am still trying to decide if I should add some pockets.

My Mom’s birthday cake. I made marshmallow fondant. I was so fun to use and it tasted great too. Sorry I couldn't get the picture to turn.

I covered some metal containers for my kids to use as drums.

For years my jewelry has been a mess so I dug through my fabric and made a holder. Now I can actually see what I own.

I also switch out all the summer clothing, reorganized our storage closet, mended a lot of cloths, read some good books and watch a few chick flicks.

In 6 months busy season will start again and I will need to think of some new project to do. For now I am just glad to have my husdand and best friend back.

School

2011-09-23T10:09:00.004-04:00

Jensen started first grade (last month, I am a little behind). It has been a big adjustment for Jensen. He rides his bike to school with our neighbor which has been very convenient, he looks so cute on his bike riding off to school, when did he grow up? For the first day of school Derek took him. I can’t say he really likes school but he does like his teacher and of course recess, gong to the computer lab, playing with friends and PE. He looks forward to the weekend when he has no homework for 3 days and can just play. The other day he was comparing school to jail . . . hum . . I can't decide if I should laugh or cry.

Seisa started preschool and liked it. She didn’t want to come home. She likes all the crafts, writing her letters and snack.

Summer is . . .

2011-09-11T16:29:00.008-04:00

Making mud baths

Eating ice cream

Playing in the water

Picnics in the park

And visiting new places

What a wonderful summer we have had!

My week

2011-07-17T23:27:00.007-04:00

My week started off not to great, piles of laundry and very sick kids. Actually Elsie never got sick but she played along with the big kids. Really I think she just wanted to drink the juice.

By Thursday everyone was well so went out to and got some frozen yogurt to celebrate.

I love summer and I love healthy kids!

Vacation Time

2011-07-17T22:19:00.012-04:00

Vacation Time. Since we are living in Utah (so don’t need to come here to visit family) this year for our family vacation we decided take a road trip. Our first stop we went to Cedar City, UT to watch the Utah Shakespearean green show. Our kids loved it! Jensen liked all the men’s short skits and Siesa and Elsie liked the dancing. We all enjoyed the fruit tarts and chocolates we got. We then spent the night with my Aunt and Uncle.

Our second stop we went to Flagstaff, AZ to visit my Brother and his fam.

We celebrated the fourth of July with a hometown parade, hamburgers and homemade ice-cream for dinner.

We visited 3 nation parks. Walnut Canyon, Wupatki, free standing Indian ruins and Sunset Crater, a volcanic rock field.

Elsie wanted to talk down all 240 steps at Walnut Canyon. She was very determined and walked down at least half of them before I got tired of the pace and carried her.

Derek and I had a little afternoon date and went Lowell Observatory. We saw the telescope that was used to discover Pluto.

For stop number 3 we went camping at the Grand Canyon. Camping is always fun, cooking dutch oven, s’mores, and all the stars. Sad to report that the kids were not that impressed with the Grand Canyon. Jensen was so surprised that people come from all over the world just to see it.

At each national park (we went to four) Jensen earned his junior ranger badge. He had to learn about the park, pick up littler, and do different activities in a booklet to get it each one. He also had to make a promise that he would protect the parks, the environment and wildlife. He was very good at reminding all of us to stay on the path and respect the park. He was very proud when he earned his 4^th one.

Jensen has never liked getting his picture taken so I let him take a few shots.

Stop number 4 the emergency room. While camping Siesa got sick, really sick. She didn’t have a fun trip home. When I asked Siesa what her favorite part of the trip was she said “nothing” I asked again and reminded her of all the fun stuff we did before she got sick but she still said “nothing”. There is nothing like an emergency room visit to ruin a vacation.

Overall it was a GREAT vacation.

Photo Booth

2011-06-04T16:24:00.002-04:00

Too Fun!

Georgia vs. Utah

2011-05-01T00:28:00.001-04:00

The last of the boxes are unpacked, pictures are up on the walls and we are settling in. Here are some of the differences.

Derek’s commute – Atlanta, 1 hour sometimes more. Utah, 20 minute bike ride or train ride or ten minutes by car. Love it!

Bugs- I haven’t seen a single one yet I bet no one in Georgia can say that.

Weather- It is still a little cold for me (it snowed again today) but I keep telling myself that the summer will be great and try not to think about next winter.

Kitchen- Atlanta, beautifully renovated designed by me, plenty of storage, good lighting, lots of counter space I could go on but I will save you. Utah, it is tiny, really tiny, I call it my half a person kitchen. I will never get used to it.

Church- much closer here, we walked on Sunday. I will miss all the “Amen” and “Good mornings” and the good Southern feelin’ though. Church in Utah is not nearly as exciting.

Bathroom- We now have a bidet. I love it! My kids have been showing everyone our cool water fountain in the bathroom. Anyone is welcome anytime if you want to try it out.

Sidewalks- We can walk to a lot of places: parks, stores, restaurants, school and there are good sidewalks everywhere. I love our neighborhood

Traffic- I have been surprised how empty the roads feel. I drove Derek to work in the morning supposedly rush hour and I kept wondering where all the other cars were. People think Utah has traffic problems?

Trees- Derek enjoys the wide open feel, but I miss all the big beautiful trees and the forest in our backyard

Mountains- Utah, who doesn’t love the majestic Rocky Mountains towering over us? Atlanta, Stone Mountain? It should really be Stone Rock.

Derek’s Office- Atlanta, 300 people in tax with 25 specializing in international tax. Utah, 25 people in tax with 1 specializing in international tax (that would be Derek).

Family- We can drive to Grandparent’s houses. This is my kids favorite part about moving.

Temple

2011-05-01T00:12:00.008-04:00

Just before we left Atlanta we went to the Atlanta Temple open house. It had been closed for over a year for renovations. We had a wonderful time. It was such a wonderful experience for my children to be able to go inside and feel the spirit of that building. Jensen was touched, Siesa was impartial and Elsie was well . . . just how you would imagine a 18 month old to be . . . irreverent. I love the Temple.

Dear Atlanta Friends

2011-04-26T22:23:00.002-04:00

You are not going to believe it but it snowed and hailed in Utah today. We were very excited to play in it. Mommy said it wasn’t going to snow for a long time and she was definitely wrong. We want to unpack our winter coats but mommy said it was spring here but we still think it is winter because we have to wear jackets and long pants and it snowed.

Love Jensen and Siesa

When is it going to end? I thought April was supposed to be warm!

Utah or Bust

2011-04-07T22:23:00.002-04:00

√ Pack (ninety percent done, the last thing to pack the computer)

√ Plane tickets (I am so glad we are flying)

√ Truck (it wouldn’t fit in our driveway. I am going to apologies in advance to those that will have to move my 500 pound piano up the very long drive way)

√ Find place to live in Utah (Thank you Derek)

√ Find renters for our house (we feel so blessed that we found renters before we even put it on the rental market)

√ Get rid of couches (it was time to say goodbye to the cuddle couch. It did make me sad to see it compacted by the garbage truck. We did have 10 good years together)

√ Keep kids feed and happy (we even had fish sticks and baked potatoes tonight. Yeah for paper products and prepackaged food.)

Now I just need to clean, clean and clean. I still have 4 more days. I better get to work.

Birthday Weekend

2011-03-19T21:54:00.006-04:00

Jensen is 6!
Jensen’s birthday can be summed up in two words legos and golf. He got a few different star wars lego sets and golf clubs. For his birthday he chose to go golfing with Derek. (I veto birthday parties this year and instead he got to pick something fun to do.) They went to the driving range and hit two buckets of balls. They have gone before but Derek said Jensen did much better at hitting the balls having golf clubs his size. We actually have a few bigger ones for him to grow into because we couldn’t decide what size he needed but I got them at the thrift store for a dollar each so it is no great loss. I love finding a good deal.

Siesa is 4! Almost every gift she got she said “I always wanted a _____” She got a lot of art supplies and a bag to carry it all in, clothing, princess puzzles, play make-up(she has been sparkly all week) a music box and some little princess dolls.

For her birthday She and Derek went to the Georgia aquarium for princess day. She was so excited when she came home because she got a jewel (aka a rock) from a real princess.

Creative Outlet

2011-03-19T21:33:00.005-04:00

One of my creative out lets is making cakes for my kids. I am by no means a professional but I do have a fun time trying to think of something my kids will enjoy.

For Siesa a Barbie cake. When she saw it she said “I always wanted a cake like that” she is sooo cute.

For Jensen I went with a Star Wars ship.

Art + Mess = Fun

2011-03-06T21:36:00.009-05:00

My younger bother has a sign on his door that says “A messy room is the sign of a creative mind”. I have decided two things 1. with kids there is never a mess to big that can’t be clean up. 2. as long as my kids are happy and busy creating something, I am fine with the mess. Here are a few of our messy project we have done this month

I gave my kids a 5 pound bag of corn meal, spoon, bowls, pans and eventually water to play with. They were entertained for over an hour and a half.

We decorated small little cakes for family home evening. Yum, Yum.

We made finger paints with sweet and condensed milk and food coloring. It was the stickiest, shiniest, and sweetest finger paint I have ever used.

I love a good art project!

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

2011-03-06T20:41:00.004-05:00

Last week we did a few fun Dr. Seuss activities in honor of his birthday.

Wacky Wednesday

Wacky Wednesday art project. For dinner we ate green eggs and ham and we ate dessert (brownies) first.

Silly socks day

Party on Dude

2011-02-03T13:17:00.005-05:00

Saturday we threw an 80’s glow in the dark dodge ball party. I found some great 80’s clothing at the thrift store for me and Derek to wear. I put on a lot of make-up and back combed my hair huge to complete the ensemble. I won the award for the best dressed girl although I said I couldn’t be voted the winner since I was the one throwing the party. There were some other great costumes.

The game got a little competitive which made for great dodge ball. We did have one little injury, oops.

We had 80’s rock music playing from the speakers at the church which added to the fun. How can you not have fun with Madonna, Michael Jackson and Depeche Mode?

Hair cut

2011-02-03T13:04:00.002-05:00

I finally chopped it off. It was getting so long and it was cute when I fixed it but the other day Seisa asked if I could cut it. I jumped at the chance for her to have a new hairdo. She likes it and she especially likes that I don’t make her fix it everyday.

Snowed in

2011-01-16T14:59:00.011-05:00

Well it snowed down here in the south and what a mess/good time. Derek didn't/couldn't go to work for 3 days and school was canceled all week. For those that live where it snows a lot you might think it is crazy for 3 inches of snow to shut down a city but on top of the snow was a layer of ice. It took us a few tries after 3 days to even be able to get out of our driveway because it was so icy. Derek and I have never seen anything like it before. It was fun to have a week off and the kids enjoyed the snow.

Happy New Years

2010-12-31T21:56:00.001-05:00

Important locations of 2010

Our kitchen – It was the largest home remodel project to date. We completely gutted our 1964 kitchen, moved some appliance locations, installed all new cabinets, built an island, and tiled the floor. With the help of some family, friends, Google and some very late nights, we are proud to say it is finished and looks great!

Decatur – Jensen started kindergarten at Decatur Presbyterian school. He has thrived in the small class environment and has enjoyed learning to read and so many other things.

Utah – Derek was offered an opportunity to transfer with PwC from the Atlanta office to the Salt Lake City office. We decided this was the best thing for our family and will be moving sometime in the spring. We are very sad to leave Atlanta, our home and our friends but are looking forward to all the good things that will come with living in Utah.

As we reflect on the last year we are truly grateful for all of our blessings, especially our three happy, healthy children. We are looking forward to the opportunities and adventures of 2011.

Walking

2010-12-25T13:33:00.003-05:00

She can walk but still prefers to crawl most of the time since it is much faster.

Happy 7 years

2010-12-21T14:04:00.003-05:00

1 car (OK, it is a little dirtier than it use to be but all these years and it still works great!)

2 promotions

3 kids

4 years in Public accounting

5 home remodel projects (two bathrooms, one kitchen, one family room and one living room)

6 different items from the menu to celebrate our anniversary ( pan seared duck breast, goat cheese and roasted beet napoleon, shrimp casino, pear salad, tofu mignon, and crème brulée. No to go box needed we ate it all. YUM!)

7 years and still in love!

The Candy Approach

2010-10-31T21:54:00.004-04:00

This year we decided to take a little different approach when it came to Halloween candy. This morning I declared it “Candy Day.” (Last night was our trunk-or-treat so the kids were going through their mountains of candy.) I told them that they could eat as much candy as they wanted today and then tomorrow the rest of the candy was all going to disappear (aka eaten by me or thrown in the garbage.) They thought that was a great idea. Their breakfast consisted of eggs and about 5 pieces of candy each. They have been eating candy like crazy all day and on a sugar high pretty much all day. We also conducted “science experiments" on our candy (mostly the candy they didn't like). Out of all the different types of candy, the only three that floated in water were marshmallows, kit-kat and whoppers. Also, did you know that if you put M&Ms in the microwave for a full minute nothing happens, they don’t even get hot, add a little water, completely different story. Taffy was the favorite, it gets nice and bubbly when nuked. I just finished cleaning up and threw out the leftover candy. There wasn’t much, it had all been opened, tasted, stepped on and experimented with. I’m not quite sure how tomorrow is going to go, (I have a feeling they are going to be . . . well . . . a little grumpy) but I am glad there is no more Halloween candy around my house. We are definitely making this a tradition.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T21:52:00.001-04:00

October Happenings

2010-10-31T21:31:00.012-04:00

We went to a pumpkin patch. They had a maze, a hay ride, blow up bouncy slides, farm animals etc all the usual stuff.
As you can tell from there faces Jensen and Siesa loved the fun house, they played in the fun house for 45 minutes. They would run out smiling and laugh and run back in. I couldn’t go in but I could hear them laughing inside having a great time.

Witches Party

Some friends threw a witches party at my house (my friend didn’t think everyone would fit in her house so I offered my house for the party) We decorated the night before by candle light because my power went out 20 minutes after starting, very random but very fitting for Halloween We had a good time.

Siesa and I made pumpkins to decorate morning, just for fun.

Derek celebrated his 31^st birthday. We didn’t do too much because he had to go out of town the next day but I did make a yummy salmon dinner and mint brownies.

Coach Derek

2010-10-31T21:23:00.004-04:00

The long awaited day has finally come. Derek was able to coach Jensen’s soccer team. It is pretty low key, it is only one hour a week on Saturday. They have a 30 minute practice and then a 30 minute game. There are 8 kids on his team and only four play at a time. One of Jensen’s best friends is on his team and his Dad is Derek’s assistant coach. Jensen has been very excited that Dad was going to be his coach but on the way to the game he said “Dad, how are you going to be the coach because you have never been one before? Are you even going to know what to do?” We assured him that Derek knew a lot about soccer and would be a good coach. He has not been disappointed, Derek has done great. Truth be told it is more crowd control than actually coaching since most of the kids have never played soccer before. Jensen has improved since last season and actually tries to kick the ball and he made his first goal and was very excited.

Elsie

2010-10-18T14:24:00.004-04:00

Height 28 inches

Weight 16lbs 4 oz

Teeth – 5 teeth 3 on top and 2 on bottom.

Words she can say. . . Dada, more, all done, Denden(Jensen) ba(ball) those are the only word we can decipher but she is constantly taking “baby talk”

Favorite foods-peas, eggs, applesauce, eggplant parmesan, yogurt, beans and avocado

She likes to dance to music, play in the sand box, swing and slide. She also loves to play in the toilet water (is of course we are trying to avoid that but with two other children using the bathroom . . . well . . . hopefully she will grow out if that obsession really soon) She can climb up and down the stairs with out any problems. She loves to point and talk about everything. She has the cutest laugh and is constantly on the move. We love you

Happy Birthday Elsie!

2010-10-05T12:52:00.011-04:00

I can’t believe that Elsie is already 1.

Elsie loved her cake. From the moment she saw it she wanted it. I gave her a piece of cake to eat but she didn’t want it she wanted the whole thing. We cut ourselves some and then let her have the rest.

Opening gifts- she had a lot of help. I don't know who was more excited about Elsie's birthday

Look what I got

take me out to the ball game

2010-09-15T20:19:00.007-04:00

Derek’s group at work planned a end of busy season activity and invited everyone in the group and their families to an Atlanta Braves game. We decided to take the whole day off and enjoy the day. We skipped school and work, didn’t get dressed until 10:00 and made crepes for breakfast. Yum!

Today’s game started at noon so it was perfect (a little hot but better than if we had gone in July). We didn’t know how long the kids would last but we actually watched (or should I stayed for) the whole game.

Jensen got a baseball from one of the pitchers in the bull pen because we were sitting right by it and Jensen was watching. As soon as we got home all Jensen wanted to do was play baseball with his “real” baseball.
Siesa enjoyed eating the peanuts and watching the players run.

We all had a great time.

Kindergarten(a month late)

2010-09-09T23:12:00.004-04:00

Jensen started kindergarten. He was so ready to go and couldn’t wait. He loves it. Derek took him his first day on the train.

Siesa loves it too. The first day Jensen was gone I found her in their bed room playing with all Jensen’s “special toys” she has also taken his clothing to wear, slept in his bed and played with a lot of his toy while he is gone. For the record she is always glad to have him home and they do have a good time playing together.

What to do with all that art?

2010-09-09T23:01:00.003-04:00

It all started 2 years ago when Jensen started preschool. Now with two kids in school/preschool it has gotten out of control . . .art , art and more art. Don’t get me wrong I love doing art projects with my kids but what to do with them has always been the question. I was tired of random pictures stuck all over the walls so I decide it was time to come up with a better solution to display my kids art projects. I stretched fabric on wooden frames and with the help of a staple gun created this.

and with the art

With the help of push pins we can switch the pictures anytime we what. It has been fun for my kids to be able to have there art work on display instead of all over the house.

Next problem -how to keep books on the book self with a 3 year old and a 11 months old. any thought?

Summer is. . .

2010-08-15T15:14:00.000-04:00

eating fresh, ripe, juicy peaches. yum

Finshed!

2010-08-15T15:07:00.004-04:00

We finally finished our tile yesterday! We are getting so close to being done. Yeah!

I think I am working Derek a little to hard. . . or maybe he just really likes the tile choice?

The Grand Tour

2010-07-25T23:09:00.008-04:00

There are so many things about our kitchen that I love but I’m just going to point out a few of my favorite things.

Double Oven - I am in love with my oven, it’s true. I can now cook 2 different things at the same time with different temperatures, ingenious.

I painted the kitchen Myth Gray( it really should be called Myth Blue) and I love it! (thanks Allison for the paint color)

One Big Sink - I could probably fit all of the kids in it for a bath. It makes cleaning pots and pan so much easier. I also enjoy the garbage disposal (It took Derek and I 4 hours and 2 trips to home depot to get it the sink and garbage disposal working. After 2 weeks I still feel proud every time I turn it on.)

Ikea Varde handles

Canyon Slate tile- this is the tile we are going to put in next weekend.

Drawers – I put as many drawers in my kitchen as I could and it is so wonderful to have space to put things in.

The Chandler

New Caledonia granite counter tops

Garbage can – I have a cabinet that you open which our garbage can sits inside of hidden and convenient to access.

Refrigerator with a water dispenser(the kids love that now they can get their own ice and water anytime they want, that means less work for me),

Island – I love having so much counter space.

I hope you enjoyed your tour

Before and After

2010-07-25T22:29:00.014-04:00

So, we’ve had another exhausting, and fun week working on our kitchen. This week, we painted (not only the walls but the tedious windows), put the backsplash up, put the handles on the cabinets, cut all the crown molding and baseboards, and painted the doors. Of course, when it came to painting the door, I had to pick the hottest day of the whole year to take the doors apart and to paint them. I started first thing in the morning, but by 9:00 am our whole house was sweltering hot and we were all dripping with sweat, literally! But the doors look great and we are so thankful for our air conditioner.

We are not done with our kitchen yet but we are making progress. Here are some before and after pictures.

We still have so much to do like tile, finish the baseboards and crown molding, toe kick, make curtains, paint the chairs and bar stools, put cover plate on the outlets . . . it makes me tired just thinking about it all . . . but it has been fun and someday it will all get done . . . right? I hope so.

I took this picture a few weeks ago the day Danny left. They did such a great job and go so much done in just one week.

What we’ve been up too

2010-07-12T22:54:00.006-04:00

We have taken on a BIG project of remodeling out kitchen. The whole process began a few months ago (really it started a few years ago when we started dreaming and saving) We did an Ikea kitchen so I was able to design the floor plan and pick out all my cabinets. Then a month ago we bought all our cabinets and appliances. For a few weeks I put all the cabinets together and then 2 weeks ago we ripped out our old cabinets and appliances and started the wiring and floor. Danny (Derek’s brother) came out last week and Derek took the week off work They put the new cabinets in and install all the appliances. I don’t think we have been to bed before midnight for the last few weeks so we are tired but very excited about our progress. It seems like we had to do a lot of the work twice like hanging the cabinets. They had put most of the base cabinets in and then discovered that they had to be lowered an inch, bummer, Derek and Danny also had to build a case for the dishwasher, and build the base for our island and secure it to the floor. I wanted it to be very secure since I know my kids will climb up on it and there are outlets in it. Well they did a great job, the island is not going anywhere. Even the counter top guy commented at how well it was build. I am so proud of Derek and Danny and how well the kitchen is coming together. I was worried if we were really going to be able to do it since we have no experience but with the help of google, some how-to books and family we really did it. Danny was a great help and couldn’t have done it with out him.

Siesa is working really hard

My kids have been helping every step of the way. Siesa’s favorite part was going into the crawl space (seems gross but it is actually pretty clean) and painting (unfortunately I have banned her from painting since last time she was “helping” she painted her whole head. Jensen loves to drill and hammer and especially enjoyed ripping out the old kitchen.

I was without a kitchen for only 2 weeks. We still have a lot left to do like mudding and sanding sheet rock, tile, paint, make curtains, etc. but over the next few weeks we hope to get everything done and I post pictures of the before and after.

9 months already

2010-07-11T22:11:00.011-04:00

I can’t believe that Elsie is already 9 months old. She is full of so much personality. She love to babble and always has a lot to say. Elsie is almost 16lbs and growing by the day. We love you!

Camping? Yes, Camping

2010-04-21T20:50:00.012-04:00

Last weekend is honor of busy season being over we went camping. Apparently I don’t seem like a camper or maybe having three children was the reason but almost everyone we told we were going camping gave me the are you insane look. I really do love to go camping, I love to be in nature, I love the food and that Derek cooks and cleans it all up, I love that I can smell and be dirty and no ones notices because everyone smells, I love taking a hot shower when we get home, I love taking a nap with my kids in the hammock, I could go on but I will stop. This time we went to Fort Mountain state park it was 2 hours away. It couldn’t have been a better trip. The weather was perfect, Elsie and Siesa slept most of both car rides, and we ate like kings.

We got a new tent for Christmas so it was fun to use them for the first time. The tent was wonderful. We had out grown our old tent and now we have a huge tent we were able to fit mats for the kids, Elsie’s pack and play, a blow up mattress, all our stuff and still have more room. Having a bigger tent made camping so much more enjoyable for all.

Eating apple crisp made in a dutch oven. It was sooo good. Jensen was trying to hide because he didn't want his picture taken.

We went on a mile and a half hike to an old watch tower that was built in the 1700 hundreds or so they think. They are not exactly sure who built the tower but it supposedly is really old.

Playing on the lake beach. It was a warm day so the kids went swimming. They were having so much fun in the water. The water was much to cold for me. A few times Siesa would gasp when she went running in but she didn’t seam to mind the temperature.

Packing up, What a cutie!

Soccer

2010-04-21T20:39:00.004-04:00

Jensen had his first soccer game a few weeks ago. The league we joined has a 30 minute practice first and then a 30 minute game. It was fun to watch all the kids play. Jensen loves playing soccer and is excited all week wanting Saturday to come so he can play. He is not very aggressive so he doesn’t actually kick the ball much but is just happy running around. The first game I think he only kicked the ball twice. I think it will take some time before he feels uncomfortable playing with so many kids in such close proximity.

Jensen's number is 4

Easter

2010-04-21T20:27:00.009-04:00

I made my girls matching Easter dresses this year. I think they turned out cute and the best part is, Siesa actually likes the dress so she will wear it(Siesa is a typical girl and has a very strong opinion about what she will wear and what she will not).

Elsie and her Easter basket.
Saturday we also dyed eggs. The eggs started out being beautiful bright colors but by the end they were interesting darker shades. A lot of them were not very pretty because the kids were having so much fun they kept putting them in different colors to see how they would change. They still tasted great.

On the Hunt, He was very focused.

not a fan

2010-04-19T23:18:00.002-04:00

Since Elsie is six months old, we decided to start introducing some solid foods. She does not like to eat at all. We have tried to feed her food 10 or so times now and she has yet swallowed anything. She will hold the food on her tongue with her mouth open and squawk at me and then spit it out. If she does actually taste it she does a complete whole body shutter. After 2 or 3 bites she will not let me give her any more and hollers at me. OK so maybe she just doesn’t like vegetables, we tried to give her fruit just to see if something sweet she would at least swallow but she hated it just the same.

Growing so fast

2010-04-11T20:14:00.006-04:00

I finally took my kids birthday pictures. I wasn’t an easy task since Jensen hates taking pictures but with the help of a brownie reward they turned out OK.

Elsie 6 months

Siesa 3 years old

Jensen 5 years old

Birthday Party

2010-03-08T22:29:00.023-05:00

Since me kids birthdays are a day apart we had one big birthday party for them both. Our theme was knights and princesses. When the boys came we knighted them and gave them a tunic and a sword and for the girls we gave them a princess hat and a ring. We played pin the fire on the dragon, dragon lancing, and chocolate gold coin hunt.

Princess Siesa and Knight Jensen

All the royal princesses and knights

Playing pin the fire on the dragon.

. For the dragon lancing we put a basket in the middle of the yard with a stuffed dragon on the top. Using swimming noodles two kids stood on either ends of the yard and when I said go both kids charged the dragon and tried to be the first one to hit it off the basket. It was a lot of fun.

Blowing out the candles

All the other kids went and played but Siesa was still just enjoying her cake and ice cream.

It took

2010-03-08T22:27:00.005-05:00

1 chocolate cake

2 bags of marshmallows

3 hours

5 ice creams cones

6 fruit rolls ups

10 cups of rice krispies

12 cups of powder sugar

The end result . . . a castle.

Happy birthday Jensen and Siesa Birthday party pictures coming soon.

Olympics

2010-02-14T21:47:00.012-05:00

Yesterday, in honor of the Olympics and the snow (We had a “big” snow storm Friday afternoon. It snowed 3 inches there was a chance of snow Saturday night so church was canceled today.) We held the first Drysdale winter Olympics.

We started off our events with some bobsledding. We didn’t have any sleds, so we got Tupperware lids and pushed the kids down the hill in our front yard. Siesa took gold in that event.

Next we had a snowball rolling contest. I took gold that event. We each had one minute to see who could roll the biggest snowball.

Next we went inside for speedskating. We took the chairs out of our dining room and sprinkled baby powder on the floor and raced around the table in our socks. Jensen took gold in that event and was quite excited. For our fourth event we did figure skating. We took the table out of the room and each did a routine on the baby powder floor and then each gave each other a rating. Jensen again took the gold.

For our last event we did curling. We made tape circles on our kitchen floor and pushed plastic blocks with a stick to put them in the circles. Derek very easily took the gold in that event.

I think we can say that the first Drysdale Olympics was a big success. We do need to dust the whole house because of the baby powder but it was worth the mess.

4 months

2010-02-14T21:20:00.006-05:00

This one has a great view of her hair. I did not try to make her hair stick up, I am just to lazy to try to get her hair to stay down. Actually truth be told, I like her little Mohawk.

Elsie is already 4 months. She has been a great baby. She is now sleeping through the night 11-12 hours. Yeah!

Elsie is a very vocal baby. She makes lots of noises but they are happy and it’s like she’s saying pay attention to me. I love to talk to her because she will respond back with cooing and squealing.

Elsie wakes up so happy, she almost never cries for me to get her but just makes happy cooing and squealing sounds. When I go into the room to get her from bed she gives me the biggest smile and is so happy to see me. I love it! It is so fun to wake up to such a happy baby.

Gymnastics

2010-02-11T14:55:00.009-05:00

When I asked the kids if they wanted to take gymnastics Siesa was very excited and immediately said, yes. Jensen said, “That’s not really my thing mom.” I said, “What is your thing?” and he said, “sports!” After some encouragement and finding out that one of his friends was going to be in his class he agreed to try it. Both of the kids LOVE it. The classes take place at an actual gym so they have all the real equipment and smaller versions of the real equipment that the kids can play on. They can balance on beams, swing on bars, jump on trampolines and there are pads everywhere.

Jensen and Siesa in the “pit”. It’s a huge whole about five feet down with trampolines on the bottom and then about three or four feet of spongy square balls. They can slide or jump into the pit and the kids have tons of fun.

Skating

2010-02-03T16:46:00.008-05:00

Monday night was one dollar night at a local skating rink so we decided it would be a good FHE activity. We had a great time. Jensen was so excited to skate but didn’t really like actually skating on the rink but rather enjoyed skating on the carpet. Derek and I have never been skating together so it had been a while since we have gone so we were a little rusty but our kids were impressed by our speed.
Siesa enjoyed it if we held her hand but even she was a little intimated by the whole thing.

I love this picture of Jensen, sheer joy.

Elsie was busy watching all the happenings, the loud music, lights and people whizzing by her kept her very occupied.
Jensen has been practicing skating in our kitchen with socks on and can't wait until we can go again.

We love our kids

2010-01-31T20:59:00.004-05:00

Elsie is a cutie. I love her hair, it always stands straight up in the back.

Jensen actually asked me to take his picture. We were eating breakfast.

We were making valentines and Siesa decided to finger paint the table and her arms. She said she was putting on makeup, thank goodness she didn’t paint her face.

Mission impossible?

2010-01-20T20:55:00.014-05:00

With the first few weeks of life Siesa found her thumb. It was love at first suck. There were many benefits of her sucking her thumb like, she was a dream sleeper by two weeks old she was sleeping 9 hours at night, she has also been pretty happy and content since her comfort object was always at hand(ha ha) We decided that it was time to tackle the issue before she got too much older

A week and a half ago we explained to Siesa the reasons to stop sucking her thumb like that she is a big girl now and that it can cause problems with her teeth. I took her on a special trip to the toy store and let her pick out any toy she wanted. We put up a sticker chart and told her that if she went without sucking her thumb she could put a sticker on her chart and once the chart is full she can get her toy. I also made her a little “Thumbelina” puppet which was to help her remember to not suck her thumb. She only wore the Thumbelina for about a day and a half and then sort-of lost interest in that, but we have been putting bandaids on her thumb at night so she won’t suck it in her sleep. The first couple of days were pretty rough. Siesa walked around a lot and whimpered and didn’t know what to do with her hands. I felt like a terrible parent and almost wanted to call the whole thing off because she was so sad and miserable. On day number three we were driving in the car and she said, “Mommy, I don’t want to be a big girl anymore.” I said, “Why not, Siesa?” She said, “Because I want to be a baby so I can suck my thumb.” (Usually the only thing Siesa did while driving in the car was suck her thumb). I explained to her that she is not a baby and she doesn’t need to suck her thumb anymore. It has been over a week since I have had to say anything to her about sucking her thumb.

Yesterday she finished filling her sticker chart and got her toy a bus and another Polly Pocket doll. It’s actually been very humbling to witness her sheer willpower and how she just stopped. How many things in my life do I need to change, but just can’t and yet in just a matter of days a child who is not yet three can stop a habit she has had since birth just because of sheer willpower. The toy was a big factor everyday she would push the horn on the bus to hear the music play and dream about actually taking the toys out of the package.

Since Siesa has stopped sucking her thumb she is definitely a little more whiny and grumpy at times because she has lost her comfort object. On the other hand she has become much more vocal, playful, and involved in everything going on around her because she used to just stand and go into her own world and watch what was going on while sucking her thumb, but now she is right in the middle of everything. I thought it was going to be impossible but we have conquered the thumb! Yeah Siesa!