Strep throat sucks.

Enough said.

-dana

The snowy day

Finally, a snow day. Finally, a trip to "our" sledding hill.






























Which reminds me of one of my favorite books of all time . . .

Mainly for my staunchingly republican father

Before you hit the play button, go to my music player over on the left and pause it.

-dana

P.S. I'm nearing my 200th post. Oughta get there next week. I'm planning a give-away. A give-away of something that I worked really, really hard on. A give-away of something that I really, really love. I'm hoping blogland loves it as much as I do.

Cinnamon roll 101

The girls like to cook in their Easy Bake oven. This weekend they made cinnamon rolls in the little pink-and-purple-cook-em-with-a-light-bulb-thingy.



They thought they were great. However, it was time for a little cinnamon roll 101.

So we measured. And poured. And melted. And scooped. And stirred. And mixed. And watched. And waited.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock . . .

Then we kneaded and rolled. And spread. And sprinkled. And rolled. And cut. And placed.





Then waited some more.

Tick. Tock. Tick . . . oh you get the idea.









And they thought winter break meant no schooling. Ha! I showed them.

-dana

Seriously.

-dana

Quilts & Such

Just finished this one.



Sick kiddos + Tons of Girl Scout cookie delivery trips = less blogging

-dana

And, so it begins

I'm horrible at before-and-after pictures. I should have had the camera out taking before shots long before I did on Saturday.



In the above picture many things have already been moved, changed, destroyed or altered from how we have used them since moving into this house 4 years ago. Let's see if I can name them:

1) The cabinet door on the upper cabinet that you see on the upper right-ish has already been removed.

2) The large open space to the right of the dishwasher was previously a closed and useless space. It had been covered with bead board. Why? Probably because it was inaccessible anyway with the stove pushed within 12 inches of it. But, we are opening it up and putting cabinets there since the stove is sliding down under where that current upper cabinet is.

3) We had an antique enamel topped table as a center island of sorts. Already out. Sorry. See, I told you I suck at before-and-after shots.






Gotta love the wonky ceiling shot. Mainly taken just to illustrate just how exactly my kitchen is floor-to-ceiling old, orangey, pine. Pine ceiling. Pine walls. Pine floors. Hard wood cabinets . . . hence why we are saving as many as we can.



The above shot was taken as if I was standing with my back to the kitchen sink looking at the remainder of the kitchen.



And, of course my little lovelies. ::sigh:: Razor desperately needed help. He needed help to measure and other important stuff. That is why he brought in some scrap lumber and had the girls practice hammering and screwing a bazillion different times. Such good helpers.




Ah-ha. So now you see what the weekend's project was. Moving the stove to the new location and installing an over the range microwave. Technology has come a long way since this house was built in the early 1950s.




Now I know what your thinking. But, don't worry. All that icky black dried-up adhesive behind the stove and along the wall will be covered with new backsplash that will go behind all of the counters. Yep, new cabinets will be installed there to the left of the stove. All new countertops and backsplash throughout. New light fixtures. Oh, and that incredibly ugly window that you see there will be replaced with a larger window to match the others above the sink. Um, what else. Paint!! Lots and lots of paint. The ceiling will be painted. All of the walls will be painted. And, the cabinets will be painted.

I love my house. And, will love it even more when this remodel is complete.

-dana

Now what?

I made dozens of chocolate covered strawberries last week for class Valentine parties.

Our puppy, Tsali, was hit by a car on Friday. This is the second dog in six months that has passed away. I am very sad.



Razor started the first project in our kitchen remodel over the weekend. (photos to share soon) Exciting for sure!! But, disruptive. I'm not always good with disruptive. However, it is not a huge remodel. Some minor construction, new countertops, and lots and lots of paint. Our very orangey, pine (from floor to ceiling) room will be fresh, clean and arranged so much better by the end of April. I'm going to post photos of the progression.

Today Girl Scout cookies arrived and my arms ache from all of the cookie loading and unloading.

Now what?

-dana

Sweethearts

My sweethearts at the Valentine Ball.




Licious and her cutie pie classmate were chosen by the kindergarten class to be on the Sweetheart Court. She loved every minute of it.





I see a future on Dancing With the Stars.




Nana and Papa came to share in the excitement. Having them here made it even more special.



Happy Valentine's Day.
-dana

The formative years

After 5th grade we moved alot. It was on from Colorado to Pennsylvania. Then to Louisiana. Then Missouri. I then stayed in Missouri for college and law school. I don't really know when this photo was taken. It could have been Colorado but I'm not certain. I think it is funny that I have a rainbow striped shirt on because one of my favorite things to buy for my girls is . . . yep . . . you guessed it! . . . rainbow striped shirts.

I have often considered myself lucky for having lived in so many places. If you count the fact that many of my summers were spent with my Dad, who has lived in the Southwest and the Pacific coast, I have lived in (or spent whole summers in) nearly every region of this country. I've always thought that moving from place to place has made me adaptable and resilient. I was often the "new girl" at school and that has it's advantages. If I screwed up friendships in one place . . . poof! . . . just start over in another place and be the new, adaptable likeable girl. It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized the pitfalls of that mentality. It wasn't until I was an adult that I realized that that had been the cycle of my life either.

It was always my desire to put down roots. Live in one place. Become part of a community. Have children and know that they would stay in the same school system from kindergarten through high school graduation. This is how Razor was raised and it was no brainer for him. Thinking about it now, marriage is really what taught me about long lasting, sustainable, no-turning-back, can't leave and start over, shut-up and say your sorry kind of relationships. And, shutting-up and saying your sorry kind of relationships are hard work. Really hard work. And, really, really, incredibly worth every bit of work.

So, now, here we are in a community where we have definitely put down roots. My children are in a school that we love. The area affords the outdoorsy lifestyle that we all enjoy. Life is good. Now if I could only find one of these . . .




For me, Boo and Licious. ::hehehe::

-dana

Cause ya asked for it

The girls clogging to Cluck Old Hen. Before you hit play, go to the music player on the left of your screen and push the pause button. That way that music will not interfere with the music on the video.

-dana

Dinner musings

Boo has a project for school about careers. She is reporting about librarians. We were discussing this over dinner.

After sitting quietly listening for a few minutes, Licious chimes in to say, "I think when I grow up I'm going to play soccer on T.V."

Keep reaching for the stars girl. Oh, and remind me to sign you up to play soccer . .. you'll need to practice.

-Mom

Indie-pendence

Mary over at Indie-pendence wrote the greatest little feature of Old Red Barn Co. Not only it is sweet but it is rather funny too! Be sure to check out the Indie-pendence blog regularly because she features some of the greatest eye candy in blog land and has monthly give-aways of fabulous handmade items.

Mary also recently referred to me as "Mama Hen". Lovin' that!

Thanks for the kind mention new friend.

-dana

Clucking

Boo and Licious love clogging. And, they love it even more when they have an audience. Last night they brought down the house!

-dana

This whole motherhood thing

We love the things we love for what they are. --Robert Frost


A few weeks ago I spent everyday at the girls' school being the PE teacher. It was long and it was exhausting. It was fun too. But mostly exhausting.

I'm there every Friday teaching art but being there each day for a week was a whole new ballgame. Obviously I got to be around the students more consistently, but I also got to observe some child and parent relationships that I don't normally see.

I saw some parents really push their children. Academically. Athletically. Socially. Their pushing comes from a place of love I'm sure. I know that it does. As a mother, I want the absolute best for my children. I will encourage and "push" them all that I can. But, I hope to push them to be themselves. I hope to push them to achieve their dreams instead of my own. I hope to push them to be comfortable in their own skin. I hope to push them to be secure in knowing what it is they want. What they need. What they dream.

So as exhausting as it was to be the PE teacher for a week, I'm glad that I was reminded of this. I'm glad that I was reminded to let my children be who they are. I'm glad that I remembered Robert Frost's wise words. Afterall, I love the things I love for what they are.

-dana

Ticket to ride

Ah. My family. They truly adore me. For, you see, I am the wife, the mother, the bathroom cleaner, the laundry washer and folder, the grocery shopper. I am also the one that makes them dance for their ticket to ride.



If your stupid . . . er . . uh . . . I mean forgetful enough to get out of the car with me still in the drivers seat then I'm going to lock you out. The only way to gain entry is to dance. Like you mean it!





I spare no one. Ask the small group of 7th and 8th graders I drove on a field trip recently. It doesn't get any better than 7th and 8th graders. They were mortified!

-dana