This post is brought to you by a little (umm 8 year old) guest blogger

This morning I rushed to the desk in search of the church envelope as we were heading out the door and noticed a bright green piece of paper laying on the chair.  I couldn't help but begin reading it.

It said "Blog Ideas"  at the top and continued into a few sentences. 

It seems Sassy wants to hijack my blog.

So here is today's post ~ brought to you by Sassy

(pictures and all)

DISCLAIMER: Keep in mind she wrote this from my point of view and nothing has been

change. I typed it as she wrote it. 

Well since action and sassy were gone oh my husband too

Well they went to the Twins fest and me I stayed home with smiley.

Sassy got a aughograph of Bob feller and sassy and action joined the team.

Ok, back to the real me :)

For those of you wondering, Twins Fest is a celebration of all things Minnesota Twins baseball.

My darling Husband and some friends loaded up the kids and hit the road to spend the day immersed in baseball.  They all had a good time (I do think the dads were a bit worn out by the end of the day ~ ha). My hubby was given quite a few Thank You Dad's by both kids thus rendering the day a success!

Smiley and I stayed home and worked on cleaning and organizing the house ~ fun times I tell you, fun times!

Hope you had a great weekend!  And thank you Sassy for helping me out with a blog post for today!

Friday Funny ~ not my child....

Smile....

It's FRIDAY!

When the dog bites....

When the bee stings,
When I'm feeling sad...

I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel soooooo bad....... (wow, I kind of got into the song a little bit)

Or maybe it's just when winter seems to drag on, the high temperature for the day is suppose to be 7 degrees. I woke up to this:

 and the wind might just blow you down the street ~ that's when I remember some of my favorite things. And I thought I would share them with you.

Mmmm, a nice hot cup of coffee

My warm and cozy slippers

Running shoes ~ nothing like getting out (to go into the health club) and getting some natural endorphins going

Aquaphor ~ perfect for my nails and lips on these

cold, dry days

Nail Polish ~ I never paint my fingernails, but I love to have my toes beach ready. You know, just in case we win the lottery (that we don't play) and are forced to go on a trip to a tropical island.

This rug ~ no really, it is perfect for the kid's wet boots and prevents me from accidentally stepping in wet, snow spots.

and yes, this mud room is in desperate need of a change and my head is full of ideas, but one of our favorite things is the"art wall" where we hang all of the kids pictures ~ we see them every time we come in and out of the house ~ it makes us all smile :)

These lounge pants from NY and Company ~ so comfy, they have long sizes, and they were only $13.00 ~ so I also have a pair in charcoal gray and brown.

Candles

Reading materials ~ pleasure and inspiration

Music ~ lots of variety

Oh, and lets not forget this brilliant ball

Ok, so my items are a little random. I would also like to point out that these are just a few of the simple daily things I am thankful for and enjoy (lets not forget remote car starters on days like today either). However, nothing could make me smile more than my family! I mean really who could resist a face like this (breakfast and all)?

What are your simple, everyday favorite things?

Hair Clip and Headband Holder ~ and a tour of Smiley's bedroom

I was tired of finding little clips and headbands throughout my house and recalled seeing an empty frame with ribbons attached to it used to hold little hair clip.

So the search began for an inexpensive frame.

I know there are lots of versions of these floating around the internet, but I had to show you my version.

I started with a frame.  Chipped, cracked and inexpensive.

Then, I found my handy dandy spray paint and primed and painted (dover white to be exact). Once that was dry I did a little sanding.

Added some cup hooks ~ for the headbands.

Measured out my layout for my ribbon and hot glued it on.

Once the ribbon was glued on it looked like this:

Hung it up,  clipped on some of Smiley's pretties, hung up her headbands and VOILA:

And since we are already in Smiley's room, here is a little tour:

(ah, the diaper genie ~ a design must)

(designed and hand painted by Jen from Hope Studios)

(personally, I think the crib model is pretty cute)

Well, that's it for today ~ have a great one!

and don't forget to go here for a little inspiration:

Strongly Dislike

These are the words my husband and I have chosen to teach our children to use instead of the word hate.

However, I don't just strongly dislike it when my husband is out of town overnight.

I HATE it!

I hate sitting down to a family dinner when our family is incomplete.

I hate how at night after I put the kids to bed I hear strange noises that I'm sure I hear ever other night, but are amplified when he is not home.

I hate when I lie in bed on these nights by myself and our dog jumps up and starts barking out of the blue.

But really, I have lying in bed.... by myself.... when he should be there to keep me warm. You know one of those ordinary miracles!

SO....

Last night, I FINALLY got a good night sleep.

Welcome back honey!

Something to Think about Sunday ~ children

Recently I posted this quote (you can read the full post by clicking here):

Make a memory with your children,
Spend some time to show you care;
Toys and trinkets can't replace those
Precious moments that you share.

I thought this summarized my thoughts perfectly that day.

However, a few days later I was contacted by the author and was informed that this was not a quote at all, but the first part of a poem she wrote. She sent me the full poem and I have to admit I love it. It is a perfect reminder of what our children need from us.

They need US and our TIME.

Here is the poem in it's entirety:

Make a Memory

Make a memory with your children,
Spend some time to show you care;
Toys and trinkets can't replace those
Precious moments that you share.

Money doesn't buy real pleasure,
It doesn't matter where you live;
Children need your own attention,
Something only you can give.

Childhood's days pass all too quickly,
Happy memories all too few;
Plan to do that special something,
Take the time to go or do.

Make a memory with your children,
Take the time in busy days;.
Have some fun while they are growing,
Show your love in gentle ways.

by Elaine Hardt ©1977

Hardt Ministries International, Inc. 4700 Scout Way, Prescott Valley AZ 86314. Permission granted to copy and freely give out, providing my name and copyright notice appear. http://www.encouragingu.blogspot.com/

How'd she do that?

Maybe you've seen this.  Its kind of old.

Check it out:



Can somebody please explain to me how she does this?

6. Really?

I don't know how it's possible.

Because it doesn't feel like it's been 2,190 days since I first held this little guy.

Although he is not so little anymore.

But today I celebrate my little Action.

My sometime snuggler.

Lover of boats and the trailers that go with them, garbage trucks, street sweepers, semi trucks, and race cars.

(keep in mind that quite a few of these were the very one's that Daddy played with as a little boy)

(Yes, that is Action with his bike hitched up to our boat ~ he was ready to go to the lake)

Little picky eater. Oh, if only I would let him eat chicken and french fries, poptarts, donuts and cookies every day for the rest of his life ~ pure heaven ~ unfortunately (fortunately actually!) for him I will not.

(Yep, he's digging for the marshmallows)

Lover of all sports ~ and really he likes to play them all, but all of them within a 20 minute time frame ~ thankfully our attention span is getting a bit longer.

Sensitive guy.

Stubborn little stinker.

AMAZING little boy.

Happy birthday to you (you little goofball)!

Unfortunately, this is not my little guy today.  Because today, he is snuggled up in the chair holding onto a bucket;

 not feeling so hot)