Saturday, July 7, 2012

Callie's 6th. Birthday!!!

For Callie's birthday breakfast cake it was 3 types of donuts on a platter.  Samuel suggested we make it fancy by putting the doll dress I made as one of her gifts in the middle.  Great idea, Sam!!!! :)
The kids helped me 'hide' all of her gifts around the house.  She had a scavenger hunt finding them first thing in the morning.  I have requests from the other kids for a scavenger gift hunt for their birthday!!!

Pretty dresses from Grandpa and Grandma were found in the music studio with one of her clues.
All of her gifts found and being opened.  My parents had sent a box for her birthday.  I opened up the box and put them into different gift bags so she would have more gifts to 'find'.  :)  
Water balloons from her grandpa and grandma.  The kids had fun filling and throwing all the green ones on her birthday.  The blue ones are waiting on another day.....
Callie's birthday breakfast......donuts!!!  She was beside herself that I let her have one of each kind!!!  Of course, she couldn't eat all three!  :)

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That afternoon, Callie had requested to have her cousins and grandpa over for pizza.  I made fast and easy biscuit pizzas that were a hit with all the kids.  The kids ate and then got soaked outside!!

A gift from her aunt and cousins!!!
A cool dyed shirt and headband made by Aunt Tina!!!
An oreo ice cream cake for her party with her cousins.
Blowing out her candle!


June 18" Doll Clothes Swap

In June, I participated in an 18" doll clothes swap online.  You sew outfits, send them in, and get a box back that someone else has made.  It's fun getting clothes that someone else has made!

Here are 2 tops and reversible wrap skirts for 2 of the outfits.
The other side of the reversible skirts....a modeled shot.
Callie had fun posing her dolls in the outfits before we had to pack them up and send them away.  Here she has Jenny and Kanani all ready to go 'shopping'!!
In the car....ready to go.....
A dress and beret for another outfit.
All three outfits....Callie and I LOVED how these turned out and were a bit a sad to see them go.  I hope the girls that get these will love them.  We can't wait to see what's in our swap box!!!!







I LOVE sewing DOLL clothes!!!!

Just a bit of my sewing this weekend.....

2 nurses outfits....one for Callie's doll, Jenny and one to give away to a friend.  :)
Nurse Jenny and her patient, Kanani
After making the nurse outfit, I decided a hospital gown was needed....
......and because a doll can't just have one hospital gown, a reversible gown to add to her collection of clothes.  
the other side of the reversible hospital gown....
A close-up of the nurse outfits without flash...they have real working buttons and buttonholes.  No velcro on this doll outfit!!  The white twill belt ties in the back.  These were fun to make!
I have more doll outfits to share, but must take a blogging break and fix supper!  Thanks for looking! :)






The Big Storm - June 29th., 2012

On Callie's 6th. birthday, we had a terrible storm blow through our city.  Here's an excerpt from an e-mail I sent a friend hours after it happened.....

"I write this from the bed of my dark and powerless house.  I'm listening to the roar of the generator in the back yard that duane is running to 'hopefully' save the food in our fridge and freezer from melting/thawing/spoiling.  It was a sad day for our city as a ferocious storm blew through.  My afternoon....

2:40--family left from callies birthday lunch party.  

3:30---we leave for family video to get the kiddos free movies for their report card a's.  I dash back inside to print out the forms for the flirt with dirt 5K that I HAVE to get sent in.  Today was the deadline and the mail has already ran.  To save a trip to the post office, I hurriedly fill out the forms and go to the medical office that is collecting them and have Seth run them inside.  Finally, go get movies.  Super excited about two of the movies that will be family movies for the next two nights.  As we are checking out, I notice the dark storm clouds roll in and excitedly exclaim their must be a storm coming!  (little did I know). We head home....

I don't know exactly WHAT TIME we got home, but I chased everyone inside and told Seth we were going to get some cross training in because it was becoming cooler with the storm rolling in.  We biked hard and fast.  I was aiming for 20 minutes, but at 15 minutes I looked at the sky that was turning green and told Seth we'd better head home.  We had no sooner walked inside when the tornado sirens went off!  That terrified me!!!!!  WHERE do we go!!!!!  We have no inner bathroom.  No basement!  I couldn't get through to duane.  Couldn't eat through to dad.  Phones were already down!!!!!! Power was flickering off and on and off and on again.  First, we all sat in the hallway huddled in fear and trembling.  Next, I herded everyone in the bathroom.  I sat on the toilet.  Seat DOWN, course.  (the very, teeny, tiny corner that our toilet is in is all inside walls so i was trying to cram EVERYONE into that one small place)  Clutched Callie tightly in my lap.  Seth wedged in on the floor in front of the toilet.  Samuel and Simon tucked close on the other side of the toilet.  We were a sight!!  We were all scared.  Callie was crying.  My boys were trying to be tough.  I was trying not to lose it as I prayed out loud.  I was trying to calm both myself AND the kids down.  I finally decided Samuel and Simon weren't safe enough where they were at.  I told them to jump in the bathtub and put some towels over their heads!!!!!  I figured grabbing a mattress off the bed was going to take too much time....Just as soon as they 'jumped in', I decided the new hall closet duane is in the processing of building might be safer.  I sent them off to that.  We were hearing all kinds of terrifying sounds outside the house.  The wind was howling.  The rain was pouring.  It sounded like hail was beating down all over.  I just knew Duane's car was going to get totaled AGAIN!!!! (it didn't....no hail). I finally started singing to calm down Callie and myself.  She didn't want me to stop.  She got cold and wanted a towel wrapped around her!!!!  I thought it was rather HOT crowded together around that toilet, but I think she wanted the comfort.  I get seth play a game on my iPad and she got interested in that.  Meanwhile, Simon hears the game going and calls out from the hall closet, "Mom, do you think it's safe enough to be playing a game?". When I ventured outside, I was shocked at the debris everywhere!  We were very fortunate that we had no damage!  All around us, trees down, shingles off roofs, siding ripped off houses, HUGE trees literally UPROOTED!!!!  It was surreal walking down main street with Callie seeing the destruction to house after house!  People were everywhere.  Walking.  Biking.  Looking.  Standing.  Staring.  Traffic lights out.  Trees blocking entire roads.  Power lines down.  I'm so very thankful God kept us safe and spared us from any damage.  He does hear and answer the prayers from 4  terrified kids and a 'trying to be brave' mommy huddled together around the 'throne' of our home!  :)"

Just a few short moments after typing this email God answered prayer and our power was restored.  We were VERY blessed!!!  The rest of our neighbors didn't get power restored until YESTERDAY!!!!

I took Callie outside after the storm and took a few pictures for her to remember what happened on her birthday.  This is one she will NEVER forget!!!
)
The road at the top of our street had a tree blocking all but one lane.....
the view from the north......
We had to carefully step around fallen trees and even electrical lines to walk down the sidewalk!!!
I will be updating this post with more pictures later.  Duane has a bunch on his camera that I need to upload.  




Spring Music Recital 2012

Seth played If I Were a Rich Man for the processional.  The only problem, the music students didn't 'process' up the aisle til the very last couple of measures!!!  I was getting a tad worried.  :)
Callie played 2 songs on her violin.  Poor girl was a nervous wreck this time and totally forgot one of her songs.  She looked at me before playing every single note.  It was funny!  She survived and we were proud of her.  :)
Samuel playing the piano.  He played a duet with me.  I'm playing on another digital piano that we  hauled in for the recital for 2 piano duets.  I loved having all the 2 piano duets, but WOW was that a BIG job to haul in a piano!!!
Some of my adult students and I played 2 songs together.  They have fun playing ensemble music!
My niece and nephew both played piano in the recital.  
So glad that the Spring Recital is over until next year!!  :)










Summer Fun!

It's been FOREVER since I've taken the time to blog!!!  I think I've forgotten how.....  It's been a CRAZY, BUSY summer!!!! :)  Here are a few pictures of the kids for the few of you that still check my blog!!!

Simon caught a bird he thought was sick or injured.  He loved that little bird and put him in a box and was going to find food.  The kids brought the bird INSIDE the house!!!  Turned out to be a baby bird that was trying to learn how to fly.  Simon let him go outside to 'grow-up'.
Bird in the box.....
It's been HOT here....for the 4th. of July we bought a small pool for the kids and set it up on the back porch.  It has been a wonderful investment for them to keep cool, but still get outside each day this week!  
another shot.....havin' fun!!!
Callie couldn't stay awake after swimming this afternoon.  She's sleeping away on the couch.  The boys are watching Netflix and I'm trying to catch up on blogging.  :)
Thanks for looking.....:)







Saturday, April 14, 2012

Simon's Prayer Answered

On Friday evening, Simon rode his bike to Kroger. It was less than a mile away. I was busily fixing dinner. We were having turkey burgers and fries. We needed some sliced cheese, ketchup and buns. Simon had agreed to pick up those items for me. He found the items we needed, paid and left the stor bike home. His bike was GONE!!! STOLEN!! He had a cell phone with him, but didn't call his earthly parents. The first thing he did was call to his Heavenly Father. He prayed that just somehow he would find his bike on the walk home. Now there were many, MANY different directions the bike thief could have gone. My son always walks home the SAME WAY! As he was walking home, praying, God answered his prayer. He found his bike laying in the grass just two blocks away from the store! I'm so thankful God answered his prayer. it's times like these that strengthen a child's faith and this mommy's as well. :).
I guess my teacher was right, praying does help. You can pray for anything.
-Simon

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Easter happenings and I'm having a birthday!!!!

Celebrating my 34th. birthday a few days early. I received some gift cards to one of my favorite stores....JoAnn Fabrics! Also, some money to spend....can't wait to go shopping! Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App
After dinner, the younger kiddos had a small egg hunt outside.  It was beautiful outside!
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App The guys hid the eggs for the kiddos... Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Grandma pulled out the Easter Bunny costume and visited the grandkids.
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Being silly....instead of the guys sitting on the Easter Bunny's lap....the Easter Bunny sat on THEIR lap!!!
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Dad and the Easter Bunny! Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Callie wanted a picture of her with her candy. Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App The younger grandkids. Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad AppOn Saturday, our church had their annual truth hunt.  Duane took the kids to the hunt, while I did our weekly grocery shopping.  Here are some pictures he took..... Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Our Easter Memorial cross in the church lobby.
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Samuel hunts for eggs. Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App
Callie.....she chose to have one WILD hair-do this day.  We give her hairstyles names.  This was called the Easter egg nest!!!  Creative child!!!! Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Easter Sunday morning pictures of the younger two kids. Our older two kids were with their grandparents so I have no pictures of them on Easter Sunday...:(Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Callie with an Easter bunny the neighbor gave her. Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App Another fancy hairstyle for Callie... Uploaded from the Photobucket iPad App