A Very Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone had a Thanksgiving feast full of friends, family and fun! We enjoyed a wonderful holiday with our best friends, the Mattone's. We couldn't have had a better day!

Joel loves Aunt Shell!!!

(p.s., he needs a MAJOR haircut)


Where are the chocolate chip cookies?!

Hey, corn does taste good!

The kids table ROCKS!!!

Yesterday our dear friends Julie & Darrell and their 2 little guys visited for the afternoon. Jay and Darrell were in the police academy together and we were in each other's weddings. They moved about 4 years ago, so our visits are few and far between now. Seeing them yesterday made us realize just how special they are to us and how much we miss them. What a Thanksgiving treat to have shared some time with them....we love you guys!!!!

Halloween Germ Fighters

Need a quick, cute, inexpensive Halloween treat?! I made these last night for the kid's preschool teachers and director, but they would be cute for anyone. The new Target Up&Up brand of hand sanitizer has an orange pump...perfect for Halloween! I pulled off the front label, added a monogram and tied the top with lots of cutesy ribbon. Voila...fast & reasonable (a necessity when you need to do 7 gifts).
I packaged them in these little Dollar Tree favor boxes I had from forever ago and added a silly label made with, you guessed it, printable name badge labels from the Dollar Tree.
Gotta love the Dollar Tree!

Hey JTP...

The binder and paper clips are from Walmart of all places. They have really cute black and white ones, too. Sad when binder clips get you through the day...I feel the same way about ribbon!

What We've Been Up To...

HAPPY FALL Y'ALL!!!! Sorry I've been missing for a while. Since we've started back at preschool it feels like we're running all week long. Here's what's been keeping us so busy...
We had a double b-day party last weekend for some good friends. I made both the girls (4 & 2) Halloween pillowcase dresses and hairbows but my camera battery died right after taking this picture of the baking kit I made for Logan, the 4-year-old. I wish you could see the goodies in this basket, but we were running late (what's new). She had such a good time at Gabriel's cookie decorating party that I knew this was just the gift for her. I included a double sided spatula, topping spoon, cooling rack, measuring cups and spoons, cookie cutters, a squeeze bottle, and cookie sprinkles. I also included sugar cookie mix and powdered sugar with instrcutions how to make icing to put in her squeeze bottle. I made a cute "sweet treats" bag to hold these items. Oh, and I can't forget my favorite...a tub of store bought icing covered with scrapbook paper and a "Logan's Yummy Cookie Icing" label. We got a "thank you" yesterday and her mom said it was by far her favorite gift and that she insisted on using it the very next day!!! I love the way it turned out and I love that most of the items came from the Dollar store or the grocery store...how easy, right?!

Some new nap mats for a boy & girl cousin...

see how the pillow is attached to the mat now. The pillow and mat inserts are still removable, but it makes it much easier for traveling. I've sold about 9 nap mats so far and have 2 more special orders. Let me know if you need one!

Some little goodie bags for the teachers the second week of school. The boys were feeling quite sad when I dropped them off in their classrooms (you would think I was leaving them for the day, seriously, Gabe and I can see each other from my classroom door to his!), so I thought these little bags of fun binder clips and paper clips would be a nice "thank you" for the extra hugs and kisses. I clipped on a little tag with a fun play on words. The teachers really like them!

Jenna's Pre-K field trip to the park and pumpkin patch. I love this photo Jay took. Where did 5 years go? I can't believe how much she's grown!!!!

Proud owner of a precious little pumpkin!

The little (big) guy is standing up and taking over the household. I think his easy-going disposition was just a cover...he likes to get in every drawer, touch every outlet, play in every vent...you know, anything forbidden or dangerous. I have a feeling my life is about to get even more exhausting!

And here's my other little guy helping his daddy clean the hot tub. He loves to do everything himself right now...it's been quite a power struggle with him lately. One of the joys of having a 2 1/2 year old!

Well, I promise to stay a little more up-to-date. Remind me of this next month when I apologize for slacking again! Have a great weekend and enjoy this beautiful fall weather!!!

My Big Boy

Joel had his 9 month well visit this morning. He's doing great and still off the chart for weight and almost off for height. Here's his current stats (and Jenna & Gabriel's @ 9 months...I love to see how they all differ):

Weight: 27 lbs. (Jenna: 21lbs. 15oz. / Gabriel: 24 lbs. 3 oz.)
Height: 30 1/2 in. (Jenna: 29 in. / Gabriel: 30 1/2 in.)
Head Cir.: 18 1/4 in. (Jenna: 17 3/4 in. / Gabriel: 19 in.)

He got 2 shots and a finger prick but never made a fuss...his thighs are soooo big that I'm not even sure he felt the needles. He LOVED having the bandaid on his finger...kept him very, very occupied! He's resting right now from his busy morning.

Oh, and we found out today that we'll be doing flu shots in October. Most likely 3 to 4 for each kid...regular flu (plus booster for Joel) and swine flu plus booster. Those should be fun Dr.'s appointments!!!

Well, we have a busy weekend and upcoming week...wrap up the kids bedroom projects (ambitious), sew 11 nap mat covers (very ambitious), finish setting up my classroom at preschool, first day back at PRE (parish religious education) on Sunday after a long summer break, and the start of our new school year on Tuesday.

Hope you all have a great weekend!!! If you live in TN, enjoy this beautiful weather!!!

Hired Help

So Jenna's laying on the floor this morning entertaining Joel. I hear her say, "One little piggie went to the market, the other piggie carried the groceries."

Hmmmm...I think to myself, "I wonder how much these pigs charge for their services?"

Nap Time!

Currently taking Nap Mat orders. Comfy, cozy flannel...$12.00 for mat cover, $8.00 for travel pillow sham. I love the way this one matches Jenna's quilt so well...too bad it's not for Jenna!
Speaking of naptime, this is how I found the little guy after I placed him in here to play after breakfast one morning. It wasn't like he had Thanksgiving dinner, just a baby yogurt and some cereal. Must have been a good breakfast!

Notice the Barbie in the background....definite playard no-no. One guess for who placed it in here...Gabriel, where are you?!