Claremont Take 8

Isn't this a cool tree? I don't think I've ever seen green branches, before!

I mistakenly thought today was our last cooking class. It turns out we signed-up for 10 weeks, not 8. Woohoo!! Of course, Natalie and I went to Some Crust thinking it would be our last time for a while. We returned to pick-up Allison only to find out they made this in class today:

Oh, well... never can have too many pastries! I am SO excited to try the recipe. Yum, yum! I also brought our old point and shoot camera so Natalie could play, again. Here are 4 snapshots from Natalie:

It was a beautiful day, so we stuck around and played a bit afterwards...

Puff Snowmen

Back to school... back to crafting... but, Christmas crafting! I have been wanting to do this for so long, that I just couldn't wait any longer. This project was so easy, and pretty cute. Have you guessed what these snowmen are made out of, yet?

Puffs containers! Yes, I saved Sierra's Puffs containers with this exact idea in mind. One of them is even a store-brand Puffs container. After all, the plastic peels right off them with no glue. Not to mention, they are three-tiered. Who wouldn't see a snowman? :)

For the hats, we cut a tp roll in half, and cut out 2 cardboard circles. We painted them black, then glued them onto the lid. The scarf is just ribbon, and the buttons and candy canes are foamies. Add some googly eyes, and draw on a smile and you're done! (You can also add hair with the marker like my girls did, but I say ditch the hair!)

The fun part is, you could even fill them with goodies to give to the neighbors!

Simple Fun

Is it just my husband, or do all men get sent to the store for one item and come home with several unneccesary items? This afternoon, Daniel went to get a present for our nephew and pick-up some dinner, and came home with this, too:

He's a bargain shopper like me -- it was only 99 cents! After dinner, he played with the girls on the floor of their room. What a special daddy! Once they were down, he challenged me to a match! It was a lot of fun; probably too much fun! Lots to do tonight, but I enjoyed the break!

Tomorrow school starts back up again. I'll have to get my mind back in school mode! Sierra has been SO clingy because of her sickness, that I am a little worried about teaching... but, I am excited to get back into a routine, too. The girls have been asking for the last 4 days, "When do we get to do school, again?" I'm sure they won't always be this enthusiastic, but it was sure nice to hear!

One of Those Days

Don't they look so sweet? Playing with the Christmas "Little People" as I snap away... oh, if only!

• Allison was exhausted; (could cry on a dime!),
  
• Natalie was beat; (also easily drawn to tears, and whiny), and
  
• Sierra was still recovering; (clingy to the point of being glued to my hip, and fussy).

Yes, this morning was rough. I won't go into details; I'd rather forget it, to be honest!

But, this afternoon things were looking up. We went to the park and Trader Joe's. Mama needed to get out of the house! On more than one occasion, the girls and I prayed for a "start-over." And, our gracious God gave us one each time! (To be honest, these are for me more than the girls!)

This evening, as I tucked them to bed, my heart just melted at their sweet hugs and kisses. Nobody fussed. The house became quiet, again. I am now ready for bed, and feel ready to take on another day, tomorrow! Thanksgiving is over, but this mom is feeling grateful for my 3 lifesavers today:

1. Start-over prayers
2. Nice weather making park trips doable
3. worship music, which always puts me back in the right mind!

And, for my 3 bessings...

1. Allison
2. Natalie
3. Sierra
   

Thanksgiving and a Leftover Pie Filling Recipe!

So, now I am a day behind on my blogging... all because I couldn't resist posting about poop. Good thing we didn't finish our Christmas decorating today! I can post all the Christmas decorating tomorrow and be all caught-up!

Thanksgiving... was it really just yesterday? Oh, wait... just loosened my belt buckle! Yes, it must have been yesterday! We started the day making more pies; fresh blueberry! This was per Allison's request. Oh, friends. I have fallen in love! Both pies were absolutely incredible! We also made mini-pies for the girls to try at lunch. The girls loved them so much, they decided to make their own... out of play doh!


We also did a little coloring page and maze from Family Fun at lunch time...

For our mashed potatoes, we used a recipe from Allison's cooking class for roasted garlic mashed potatoes. She was SO proud that we used one of her recipes! At this point, we hadn't even put the turkey in the oven, yet, but with pies and roasted garlic already baked, you can just imagine how yummy this house smelled!

Allison also wanted to help by peeling potatoes. By all means! (Unfortunately, she was 'done' after just one potato!)

Family arrived around 4:00pm. The big girls were so excited! They just love having people over... and they love their family! (Sierra was at day 4 of her fever, and not very fun. We ended up putting her to bed at 5:00pm, and she slept until 5:45am this morning... with no more fever!)



Everything was wonderful, and we had a lovely Thanksgiving! We even headed to bed early, and enjoyed a full night's rest!

And now... what do you do with leftover pumpkin pie filling? I debated that, myself! I couldn't bring myself to throw it away, so instead...

We used it to make french toast this morning! I figured it has lots of cream and eggs: why not?? It turned out pretty yummy! Not as 'pumpkinny' as one might think, but very good!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have been debating posting this all day...


.... SO worried that you will lose all respect for me!

But, alas I could not resist. I figure you are all done with your meals now. If you're at all squeamish, do NOT look at the following picture. Ok, so here's the story... (as told to me!)

As I slept-in yesterday, apparently Natalie ran into Daniel saying, "Papa, papa... come see... I made a turkey!" This is what he found:





... eeeeow... I KNOW! I'm so sorry. Of course, my hubby had to take a picture to show me... and I had to show you. Ok, forgive me! (It does resemble a turkey, though, doesn't it?) I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Prep

I have SO much to be thankful for. We all do, don't we?? It's especially good for me to remember this when I'm not feeling well. It's amazing how fast you can feel bummed when you're fatigued. And, on the flipside, amazing how fast you can feel good when you are thankful!

So, today is day 3 of a high fever for little Sierra, and week 3 of this yucky bug we both have. Today I am thankful that my other girls and Daniel aren't feeling sick. I am thankful that we are a generally healthy family.

I am thankful for my sweet husband who let me sleep-in and took on Costco and the grocery stores with the little munchkins in tow. I am thankful for the smell of the pumpkin pie in the oven right now, and once again for my husband who let the girls stay up late to help make the pies!

I am thankful for the joy and laughter of little ones; especially right now during the Holidays! I am thankful for their creativity, innocence, and appreciation of simple pleasures. Natalie just LOVED waving her arms with the steam of the pumpkin!

I am thankful for a low-key Thanksgiving. I honestly don't feel stressed at all! It will just be our family, Daniel's parents, and his aunt and cousins. It will be pretty simple. Yet, I am very excited about it!

I am thankful for the cool, crisp weather and the smell of the outdoors this time of year. I am thankful for the snow on the mountains, which always reminds me of Psalm 121.

I was hoping to do a homeschool lesson about the pilgrims this week... and perhaps some Thanksgiving crafts. But, they will have to wait until next year. Instead, we will enjoy a wonderful meal, probably play some games, and turn-on the Christmas music by the cozy fire in the evening. I am thankful for our home, our family, our job, our life... the Yeh life... and our Jesus!

Have a BLESSED and wonderful Thanksgiving!

Top Seven...

... Reasons why I LOVE Tuesdays

7. Cooking class in Claremont
6. Kids eat free at Lucille’s
5. Dollar corn dogs at Hot Dog on a Stick. (normally $2.75)
4. Pajama story time at the library
3. Kid’s night at Chick-Fil-A (free kids meals and a fun activity!)
2. Tuesday tea day at Boba Planet ($1.99 boba tea!)
1. It's not Monday!

Although we didn't have cooking class today due to Thanksgiving week, I was able to enjoy another Tuesday special. I spent most of the day at the doctor office for Sierra and myself and therefore didn't have time to make dinner. Chick-fil-A to the rescue! They know me there since I go so often, but were probably surprised to see me with my husband, as I usually go on nights he has to work. (Yes, I am married! :) ) The girls did a fun hand turkey craft, Daniel and I enjoyed some sweet tea, and a lovely evening was had by all! I found this picture of Allison at a Chick-fil-A night taken over 3 years ago! My how time flies!

New Way to Hang Clothes

This picture was taken a few weeks ago, but we're all feeling a little under the weather here and enjoying a week off school for Thanksgiving break, so I actually have nothing else to post! I walked into their usual messy room, and look what I found:

I totally started laughing! (First mistake: now that they know it is amusing, they have tried it again!) But, it really was funny! It's always better to laugh, I suppose!

Anyway, my girls are in bed. Sierra had a 102 fever this afternoon. I am still fighting this yucky cold, too, and I have a Starbucks date with 3 of my favorite ladies tomorrow... So, I better get to bed, too! Besides, my bed heater has been on warming up the sheets, and my new issue of Sunset magazine arrived today... I hope to be posting more fun stuff, soon. Good night, all!

Rainy Day Fun

Awww... a cozy, rainy day! It started WAY too early, (5:00am, again!), but other than that it was a great day!

We often do window markers when it rains, but it hasn't rained in a while, so our window markers were all dried out. Then it occurred to me... what about dry erase markers? PERFECT! You can see Allison made a sign for our next event: "moovee!" (Got to love phonetic spellers!)



Who is who??
Of course, Seesers had to join in on the fun!

When the markers were done, it was movie time. I had not yet seen Toy Story 3, and so wanted to! Yes, I cried... ok, almost blubbered at the end!

You can't have a movie afternoon without popcorn and hot chocolate! We also pulled out the hide-a-bed and every animal in the house! :)


Sierra knew where she was going after the picture... off to her nap! And, she actually slept the whole time, so I was able to cuddle with my big girls for the entire movie.

It was especially sweet when this one conked out on me. Sweet dreams, my Naties!

Studio Claremont

No, it's not Tuesday... but, today we got to head back to Claremont for a special field trip to Studio Claremont where the older kids worked on making a polar bear, and the younger kids had free reign with the clay!

It was amazing to watch the big kids at work. They got no help from mommy, but did an amazing job. I can't wait to see how it turns out!

Guess what my middle daughter created... yup, ice cream! (Not without peaking at what the others were doing, first!)



This girl made it a little tricky! But, isn't she cute?


I don't know what's more fun... doing the clay, or playing in the store afterward!