8 surfire ideas to make life easier...

*I read this in a newsletter through work...made me giggle a time or two!!

1. Accept that some days you're the pigeon and some days your the statue.
2. Always keep your words soft and sweet in case you have to eat them.
3. Drive carefully. It's not only cars that can be recalled by their maker.
4. Remember that it's the second mouse that gets the cheese.
5. Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.
6. Accept that you may be only one person in the world - but you may also be the world to one person.
7. Realize that a truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.
8. Sleep late. It's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird.

Too cute...and it was ended by "laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you sleep alone."!!!!!!



"Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible" - Charles Caleb Colton

What a birthday!!

Charli had a great birthday! We had her party over the weekend with family which she thought was so much fun! On Sunday morning she wanted to do it again. How, exactly, do you explain to a 3-year old that they have to wait 365 days?!! :-)

Her birthday was Tuesday and she went to play with her friends at daycare, which she was very excited about sharing the day with! Which...left me time and freedom to create our favorite little clown family :-)

We had her party at daycare that afternoon, which she was so fun to watch at. She is so very independent and grown up there and very sure of herself. We sang, had our birthday cupcakes, played musical chairs (which Charli won the first round of), broke open a Dora pinata, and Charli gave out her treat bags! She was ready to go home by the end of the day, she was tired! For her birthday meal she picked hotdogs and applesauce!! After supper she opened her gifts from us. Between all the parties she ended up even more spoiled - if that is even possible...she got a lot of things -- basketball hoop, dora blanket, dora pj's, cleaning toys, outdoor sand, mini basketball hoop, dora lego treehouse, playdoh, books, barbie scooter, tent, toothbrush, fingernail polish, uno cards...and the list (believe it or not) goes on and on!!!

She is already talking about her next birthday and birthday party!! Thank you to everyone who made her day extra special with cards, phone calls, gifts, and visits!! She is so appreciative and expresses her excitement so well!!

tuckered out from all the parting!

watching "3 little pigs" in her new tent!

one happy daddy...and little girl :-)

this is what she ran back with after Dora's head was busted off of her body!!

watch out, your are a brave, brave man Lonnie!

"what color is my tongue mommy?"

slurp it up!!

my fingers are pink!!!!!

Charli and Lynn

her nice birthday picture!! She is fully attached to this carebear!! It isn't even "hers" I had it many years ago, and she buddies up to it for some reason!!

her silly face, which we have to do EVERY time we take pictures now!

and the sad face which always follows...

her excited face!

followed by her MONSTER face!!

Happy Birthday Charli - so hard to believe you have been here for 3 years already. You have done so much in those few short years, more than some of us in our lifetime! There was a day we didn't know what your 3rd birthday would be like - and now those feelings, memories, and (most of the time) worries are a distant memory. God blessed this world on July 28th, 2006 - and it will never be the same!! Thank you for choosing us on this earth, and thank you for telling me every day that you 'love me so much mommy' each morning...and end each day by telling me that I am 'your best friend'...we love you!!

for Courtney and Eric...

I love - love - love this song! It ALWAYS makes me cry, mainly because I see Chad and Charli in every word of this song!!!

I remember wishing away certain days in my life (too busy, too sick, too stressed, etc), and I realize that those long days for me are always too short for my kids. Every day I wish away for myself is a day I wish away for them too...

Courtney and Eric - I know that you are starting a journey that feels like hell. And, to be honest, there will be days that are - but you can do it, I know you can. Courtney, today I said something that I want to remind all of about...
We may not have the power to control EVERYTHING in our life, but we have something far better and much stronger...faith.

He didn't have to wake up
He'd been up all night
Layin’ there in bed listenin’
To his new born baby cry
He makes a pot of coffee
He splashes water on his face
His wife gives him a kiss and says
It gonna be OK

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon we'll look back laughin’
At the week we brought her home
This phase is gonna fly by
So baby just hold on
‘Cause it won't be like this for long

Four years later ‘bout 4:30
She's crawling in their bed
And when he drops her off at preschool
She's clinging to his leg
The teacher peels her off of him
He says what can I do
She says now don't you worry
This’ll only last a week or two

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon you'll drop her off
And she won’t even know you're gone
This phase is gonna fly by
If you can just hold on
It won’t be like this for long

Some day soon she'll be a teenager
And at times he'll think she hates him
Then he'll walk her down the aisle
And he'll raise her veil
But right now she's up and cryin’
And the truth is that he don't mind
As he kisses her good night
And she says her prayers

He lays down there beside her
‘Til her eyes are finally closed
And just watchin’ her it breaks his heart
Cause he already knows

It won’t be like this for long
One day soon that little girl is gonna be
All grown up and gone
Yeah, this phase is gonna fly by
So, he's tryin’ to hold on

‘Cause it won’t be like this for long

It won’t be like this for long

treats

So, those who know me...know I am not known for my cooking skills. But, today is Charli's birthday and birthday party at daycare and I wanted to make fun treats for her to take. I was at a loss for what to do. And my dear-dear husband, who probably knows I lack any real skill to do these things, told me it was okay to just run to hy-vee and grab a cake...I didn't need to MAKE anything! Well, I wanted too!

So...here is my journey!

while walking the aisles and racking my brain getting groceries this weekend I walked by a magazine with this on the cover...it was my new mission!!

three stores and two days later I found the supplies I needed to make it work! (minus the super FUN colored wrappers, I was so sad!!!)

In order to TRY to make green "bodies" I put yellow inside of the blue - it made green!! Yeah...when they baked the outside layer didn't stick around!

baking time!!

not so bad...so far so good!! The pink and blue "bodies" you can see - the yellow looks ill!

off to the decorating!! I used coloring paste, which stains let me tell you! But, doesn't it make such pretty colors!! I loved the colors - I think I will use this for decorating cookies from now on and not drops...it makes such a rich color!! But remember, it stains!! (it stains fingers, counters, tongues, sinks, and towels!!)

the clown hats! I came to discover I put the bottom "button" on too low - note to self! Also - the green ones look like Christmas trees...note to self for ginger bread houses :-)

so far so good....but not I need to assemble!!

and TA-DA!!! This is my first little clown man, or women! The first button is covered by frosting and Chad will probably die when he sees how "straight" the buttons on the hat are, that is his department!!

my little happy clown family!! Some are better than others, but eventually they are all going to get chewed up - so how perfect should they really be, right?!!

and look...I even cleaned up after myself!!! (my LEAST favorite part about baking!!)

and even better...I did NOT eat the leftover candy!! PLEASE don't ask me why I felt it necessary to purchase such large bags of candy when I only planned on making 12 clowns!! One small bag of m's and skittles would have been sufficient. I am the queen of excess.

And wa-la...I made clown-cakes for birthday treats!! I am sure the other moms will appreciate their children's stained tongues and possibly clothes after today - sorry!!!

It isn't until right NOW that I realize...where will I put the birthday candles... :(

a lot to report :-)

So much has gone on around our place since I posted last I don't even know where to start and what to say! So I will let the pictures do the talking!!

this is one proud little girl of her daddy...to know why see the video below!

even Harper likes Dora!! size for size...Charli is like Dora and Harper is like boots!!!

riding a pony at he platte co fair...trust me that there is a pony under there - not a great picture!!!! I was too busy looking at her beaming smile! About half way through she was ready to get off and as she went around I said "Charli do you love riding the horse" and she said - plain and simple "NO!" :-) (but she really did!)

book time with grandma and grandpa...both kids got to read "Lama Lama, Mad at Mama"! Charli's new favorite!

a sweet moment caught for once!!

Charli got to go swimming with Aunt Amanda at the indoor waterpark in town!

she loves him!

ahhh, she is ready to be his little mommy

dad took this picture - not sure what they were doing, but it made her smile!

swimming in the water with grandma and grandpa on our camping adventure

enjoying her first ear of corn this summer!

silly face!

oh my gosh...so little!

aunt amanda, uncle brad, and braxton topped off Charli's sandbox with PURPLE sand for her birthday this year (on the 28th) - she though it was pretty cool!! For those of you who know what moon sand is, it is more like moon sand than regular sand...and you probably know what that means!!!!

Charli got this for her birthday too (along with a hand-vac) and she was showing me how to use it! You laugh...but she really was :-)

three little girls and a boy make this!!

Charli got this basketball hoop for her big day too!!!

ahhh!

a very mad little girl because I wouldn't let her take both bags of books to Lynn's house!

happy birthday to you, Charli!

I promise that the parts of the cake Charli licked did not get served!!

she was SO excited, as you can see by the smile!!

she picked out her ice-cream cake!

the four little girls at the party!!

ohhh, she was SO happy to get this video of the Three Little Pigs, she loved it!!

the "3" musketeers!

Video of Chad at our camping "Adventure" last weekend!! I didn't get it all on video but I think you get the idea!! Charli was so proud of him, and I was nervous for him!!