Lauren's 5!!!

Her beautiful cake!!!
Liam and Lauren are playing a game...they are singing a song together.

Lauren's mom (Eunice) and cousin

Happy Birthday!!

Happy times!

Eunice and Exavier

I let the boys pick her gift. I didn't want to get this microphone but they begged.

I'm glad I got it. She loved it.

Happy Birthday Lauren!!

We love you!!!

Sometimes

Today I took Liam to get his hair cut. Liam asked me if I would stand by him while she cut his hair. I stood there until Beau had to go potty. When we came back I listened to his conversation.
Great Clips lady – How old is your brother?
Liam – He is 3.
Great Clips lady – Are you guys buddies?
Liam – Sometimes.
Great Clips lady – Do you have another brother or sister?
Liam – yes, he is 15.
Great Clips lady – Are you buddies with him?
Liam – Sometimes.
Then Beau said Liam I love you.
To that Liam looks at the lady very seriously and says Sometimes Beau wants me and I don’t want him and sometimes I want Beau and he doesn’t want me. Sometimes we want to play with each other at the same time….that is when we have fun.
I turned around and laughed…I also noticed 2 other mom’s having a good laugh. One of the other moms said I can’t believe he is carrying on a conversation with her. Her son said about 2 words to the person cutting his hair.

Three Girls!

Austin invited April to come over and hang out today. She came and brought two friends. I tried to give them as much privacy as possible. Liam and Beau wanted to hang out with them so badly...so we made cookies.

Sadly it was very windy today and Austin opened the front door, the wind popped open the closet door so hard it broke the door stop right into the door. That is the second door that has happened to.

Cookie left overs

I made some cookies today with a little help. Beau came to help me clean up the bowls.
Beau got the sugar cookie bowl.

Liam helped me make chocolate chocolate chip cookies.

His reward for helping...the bowl!!!

Coupons!

So far this year we have saved $877.98 on groceries. I'm going to step up my coupon use this week. We get coupons from a neighbor who only uses a couple and our Sunday paper. I also get some from www.couponsuzy.com. A friend of ours is using another website to help her get more items for free. It cost $12 a year. She has been doing it for several months and feels like she saves almost twice what she was before. I wanted to make sure it was going to continue to be a great savings before I signed up for it. I'm going to sign up this week. I hope to report that we ar getting even more free things in the next couple weeks.

Life is Short..

Today I worked at a different Target. A local store lost an employee. The funeral was today at 3. I was reminded how short life is and how important it is to tell those you love how you feel. I try to tell my boys and Handsome I love them several times a day. Take a moment and tell your loved ones how much you love them.

Rain No Garden

We have gotten rain almost everyday this week. We are yet again putting off building the raised garden until next weekend. I’m thankful for the rain we are getting but I would like to get the garden started.

My strawberry plants in the pots up front already have some flowers on them!!! I’m looking forward to my first taste of our front porch strawberries!!

I would like to add some rain barrels to our house this year. I think that might have to wait until next year. I would like to at least get one next year but two would be even better!!

Dinner

I picked up a shift today at Target. I was so thrilled to get home after working a full day. To my surprise Handsome had dinner almost done. It was a very yummy dinner.

Thank you Handsome!

Broken Finger

Yesterday after Austin rode his bike he rode his scooter down the hill. A neighbor boy was riding next to him on a bike. The neighbor boy lost control of his bike. Austin tried to avoid crashing with him. In the process of avoiding a crash he crashed!!! I checked him out yesterday, everything looked ok. His pinky swelled up like crazy. So today I took him to the orthopaedic Dr. Austin had an xray and yep his pinky is broken. He only has to wear a cast for 3 weeks. Thankfully he will back to normal in no time and won't miss any pool time!!!

Austin likes this picture better than the one above.

Outside enjoying the warm weather

Beau loves his bike. He is so proud of it.
Austin and Beau on bikes...Beau is on the sidewalk by the house.
Beau didn't like that Austin could ride his bike in the road but he can't.

Beau wrote his name with the calk.

Lauren wrote her name perfectly backwards.

We always have so much fun with the calk. Today we are going to do more calk art and word writing.

Saturday Fun

My in-laws live about 15 minutes away. We had them over yesterday. Austin set up the Wii for us to play. Grandma Gigi and Grandpa Mick are pretty good at bowling. Liam and Beau wanted to play tennis with them. It took a little bit but they got the hang of that too. Max doesn't understand why we don't want him at our feet when we are playing!

Check out Austin's face...he really wants to whack the ball. I love the faces people make when they are playing. Yes that is Handsome sitting on the couch with Corp!

They were playing tennis here.

Be careful when you are playing!!

Lots of fun!! I look forward to more Wii matches! I love to see how much everyone gets into it!

Front porch

I love our front porch. Before this house I wasn't really a front porch person but Handsome has said he wanted a nice big porch for years. So when we picked what we wanted on this house that was on the top of the list. I got 2 pots last year with our 2% back BJ's check. I love getting things for free!!! Last year I filled them with red, white and blue/purple flowers. We enjoyed those greatly. Now that it's warmer and I can plant in those pots again I took Beau to pick out flowers. We walked around Lowe's for a good while. I was placing things - in my mind - together. I wanted to do something different that just flowers and grasses. It seems like everyone does that. We went up and down the isles a couple times. I noticed an area we hadn't looked at. It was full of berry bushes and fruit trees. I saw some strawberry plants. So we got 3 strawberry plants for each pot and one flower to go in the middle. I love strawberries. So do the kids. I can't plant them yet. We are going to have a frost tonight. But I'm looking forward to watching them grow and as they multiply I'm going to put some in the flower beds. Maybe next year we will get more to line the back bed too. Because of the frost we are putting off the raised bed until next weekend.

I'll add a picture this week after I get them in the pots!

The City was taken over...

Liam and Max....Max won't move. The boys loved that he was there with them and didn't want him to move.

Beau drove all over the track and Max didn't move!

Sweepstakes - Win free Kotex for one YEAR!!

I just got an email from Kotex with this offer! Below is what I copied from their site. I would love to not have to spend money on this for a year. I also love that they support Box Tops for Education. I'm going to enter monthly!

O.K., so getting your period isn't exactly like winning the lottery. But you can still win big with Kotex®. Every 28 days you have a chance at winning a year's supply of your favorite Kotex® products. That means you can spend your cash on other important stuff like MP3s, shoes or maybe a year's supply of chocolate.

http://www.kotex.com/na/Sweepstakes.aspx

Grape Vines

I got some grape vines today to grow up the fence on the side of the backyard. We have blackberry vines for the back of the yard. I thought about buying Wisteria to grow on that side but I think that is too aggressive and might take over the rest of the yard and the neighbor’s yard. I also love having fresh food right in my own backyard. In our current yard we have blueberries, blackberries and now grapes. The salad garden and peach tree will be added this weekend. I know we probably won’t get grapes this year but I’m looking forward to it. I know the kids are going to love being able to go right outside for a snack! I also plan to add more blueberry bushes to the landscaping around the house. Blueberries are so healthy for you and cost way too much at the store. I plan to add some more evergreen bushes to the side of the house this spring along with at least 2 more blueberry bushes. They do die back during the winter but when they come back they are beautiful and full of yummy berries.

I walked the rental house backyard. The peach trees over there are blooming. The flowering pears are both in full bloom too. They will have about 10 peaches this year per tree and a handful of apples from each tree too. I have thought about adding blueberry bushes over there too but I’m not sure that is in the budget right now and I don’t know that the renters will take of them.

I will post pictures when we get everything planted and built. I’m so excite to see all the changes this year! I know it is going to take a couple years for everything to fill in.

I also got a couple flowering bulbs to plant outside the sunroom. We are going to have flowers this year!!! I miss having flowers. I love spring! I hope we have something blooming by Easter.

Movie addictions

The kids go thru times when they will watch the same movie for days in a row. We buy DVD's when I find them on a good price and we get every penny's worth with how often we watch them. Right now Beau's wants to watch The Pirates that Don't Do Anything everyday and if I would let him several times a day. I like this movie a lot so I don't mind putting it in daily. I hope they are getting more out of this movie than just the songs and silly sayings. It's got a great message. The little boys love pirates. I'm glad Veggie Tale picked up on the love boys have for pirates. I've been looking for Pipi Long Stockings DVD's for a while now. I have been able to get them a cartoon Pipi DVD.

I'm looking forward to what great DVD finds I'll find this summer at yard sales!!

Sad toe

Beau came to me and told me he was going to get something to cheer up his toe - it's sad. I told him socks will cheer it up. But he went and got a drink of milk and said it's better now.

I still think socks would have been a better choice!

Irish Blessing!

Irish Blessings and Sayings

May you always have

Walls for the winds,

A roof for the rain,

Tea beside the fire,

Laughter to cheer you,

Those you love near you,

And all your heart might desire!

May you be in

Heaven a half hour before the

Devil knows you're dead!

When Irish eyes are smiling,

Tis like a morn in spring.

With a lilt of Irish laughter

You can hear the angels sing

When Irish hearts are happy

All the world is bright and gay

When Irish eyes are smiling

Sure, they steal your heart away.

May your blessings outnumber

The shamrocks that grow,

And may trouble avoid you

Wherever you go.

May the best day of your past

Be the worst day of your future.

I'm looking over a four leaf clover

That I overlooked before

One leaf is sunshine, the second is rain,

Third is the roses that grow in the lane.

No need explaining the one remaining

Is somebody I adore.I'm looking over a four leaf clover

That I overlooked before.

May you live to be a hundred years

With one extra year to repent.

May those who love us, love us

And those who don't love us,

May God turn their hearts

And if he can't turn their hearts,

May he turn their ankles

So we will know them by their limping!

As you slide down the banister of life,

May the splinters never point in the wrong direction!

May luck be our companion

May friends stand by our side

May history remind us all

Of Ireland's faith and pride.

May God bless us with happiness

May love and faith abide.

Leprechauns, castles, good luck and laughter

Lullabies, dreams, and love ever after.

Poems and songs with pipes and drums

A thousand welcomes when anyone comes.

That's the Irish for you!

There's a dear little plant that grows in our isle,'

Twas St. Patrick himself, sure, that sets it;

And the sun of his labor with pleasure did smile,

And with dew from his eye often wet it.

It grows through the bog, through the brake, through the mireland,

And they call it the dear little Shamrock of Ireland.

May your neighbors respect you,

Troubles neglect you,

The angels protect you,

And Heaven accept you.

May you have:

A world of wishes at your command

God and his angels close at hand

Friends and family their love impart,

And Irish blessings in you heart.

May God grant
you many years to live,

For sure he must be knowing

The earth has angels all to few

And Heaven is overflowing.

These things I warmly wish to you-

Someone to love

Some work to do

A bit o' sun

A bit o' cheer

And a guardian angel always near

Here's to a long life and a merry one

A quick death and an easy one

A pretty girl and an honest one

A cold beer and another one!

May your pockets be heavy and your heart be light,

May good luck pursue you each morning and night,

O Ireland isn't it grand you look

like a bride in her rich adornin?

And with all the pent up love of my heart

I bid you the top o' the mornin!

May the lilt of lush laughter lighten ever road,

May the midst of Irish magic shorten every road.

May you taste the sweetest pleasures

that fortune ever bestowed,

And may all your friends remember

all the favors you are owed.

Go mbeannai Dia duit

(May God Bless You)

May your home always be too small to hold all your friends.

God is good, but never dance in a small boat.

May you live as long as you want,

And never want as long as you live.

If you're enough lucky to be Irish...

You're lucky enough! My wild Irish rose

The sweetest flower that grows

You may search everywhere

But none can compare to my wild Irish rose

My wild Irish rose

The sweetest flower that grows

Someday for my sake she may let me take

A bloom from my wild Irish rose

'Tis better to buy a small bouquet

And give to your friend this very day,

Than a bushel of roses white and red

To lay on his coffin after he's dead.

For each petal on the shamrock

This brings a wish your way-

Good health, good luck, and happiness

For today and every day.

Dance as if no one were watching,

Sing as if no one were listening,

And live every day as if it were your last.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

Beau, Liam & Lauren

Yes Beau's shirt is on backwards...he likes it that way.

I love Liam's shirt!!

Austin & Corp

Can you see how much bigger Corps face is getting?
Corp was trying to get to me. Can you see how is chin is starting to stick out.

Backyard...

I've had a compost tumbler for about 3 years now. I'm not as good about turning it as often as I should. I should turn it daily but I only remeber to do it about twice a month. I turned it today. I'm going to try to do it more often. We plan to build a raised bed this weekend for a small garden. I know I won't be able to plant anything yet but we will be ready. I plan to pull out as much compost as possible to add to the garden. The compost tumbler we have collects the drippings. I'm going to use that to water the bushes in the back. I hope to see a difference in those bushes with all the rain and compost water they will be getting. I noticed the blackberry bushes are coming back now. This weekend I'm also going to put grass seed down. With all the rain we have had we should have some new grass popping up quickly. I'm looking forward to putting the patio funiture in the backyard and the rabbit back out. I also want to put a peach tree in the backyard. I would like to add some bulbs and flowers but one step at a time. I know in a couple years the backyard will be a beautiful play land. We got our BJ's 2% back this last weekend. I'm going to get some bulbs with that. That's a start!!!
Pictures to come!! For anyone who is thinking about getting a compost tumbler I love mine. The compost helps so much with the awful clay soil here. I would love to get a second one, but for now I'm so thankful for the one we have!

Applewiches

I'm trying to get the kids to eat more healthy things daily. They eat most veggies and fruit well most of the time. Last week I tried a recipe from Paula Deen's my first cookbook. I made Applewiches. They loved them!! I loved no white bread!!! Lauren won't eat any type of "brown bread" better known as wheat bread. This week we are going to try another recipe from this fun cook book.

The kids have been on a yogurt kick for about two weeks now. This week I found soy yogurt on sale at my local grocery store. I got 3 different flavors. I wasn't sure how they would like them but I gave it a try. Soy is so good for us I wanted to find a way to get them to eat it. They loved them!!! So when it's on sale I hope to have several coupons to get as many as possible for them.

Here is the recipe for Applewiches.
slice the apple into 4 circles
spread the tops of the apple slices with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter each
put a slice of cheese on top of the peanut butter
top with another slice of apple for the top of the sandwich. Put each sandwich on the plate and serve right away.

All 3 of the little ones loved this!!!

Because I'm BIG now....

Last night before we made dinner Matt called me to the living room. He pulled backed curtains and showed me the windows were open. I think he was going to fuss at me for not closing those days ago or Austin for opening them when the heat was on. I said I had no idea they were open. I asked Liam if he knew who opened them. Liam said "Beau did it". Beau?!?!? My thin 3 year old open the windows? Liam says that at times when he does something and doesn't want to get into trouble. But I asked Beau if he opened the windows. Beau said "Yes, because I'm BIG now. I can open them when I need to" What?!?!? I explained it's too cold to have the windows open now and that he can help me open windows when I want them open. He was happy with the thought of helping me and agreed not to open them without Mommy. This week I'm going to get some type of window safety item for the windows in the playroom.

Pictures please

Today everyone wanted their picture taken.

All month long it's Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

They love those hats.
Beau, Liam & Lauren...what silly billies

Liam age 4Beau age 3

Lauren age 4

What did you say?

Corp makes the funniest faces.

Huh?

Are you talking to me?

What did you say?

Pictures

Beau loves to have his picture taken. Slowly his hair is growing back.