Pay It Forward

Be one of the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post and I will send you a handmade gift sometime in the next 3 months.
You get to pay it forward as well by doing the same thing for 3 people on your blog.
Once you leave a comment telling me that you want to participate, you need to make a pay it forward post on your blog within one day.
So, anyone game? You can be a friend, family member, or even a random visitor to this blog. Just as long as you’re willing to pay it forward, you are eligible to participate.
I can't garuntee that what I'll make will be what you want.....

Quizno's Giveaway

Hurry up! Quizno's is having their million sub giveaway~just give them your email address, and they'll send you a coupon for a free small signature sub. Then, you can sign up your husband, or friend up as well and have a free date! Hurry though~they'll stop once they hit one million. Just go to http://www.millionsubs.com/Reg.php?x=1

Nanny 911

Okay, I consider myself to be a pretty good mom. I LOVE being with my kids, playing with them, dancing with them, teaching and learning from them. I really make an effort not to "sweat the small stuff". However, today I was definitely prespiring...and I'm not not talking just glistening, I was drenched in sweat. It all started out with having to be on the phone for about an hour and a half trying to fix the never ending computer problems my parents have. When I came out the house was partly destroyed, Lukey was eating soil and Cooper was pushing pins into my mom's sewing machine. That's okay, we dealt with it. Then comes the dreaded...duh, duh, duh(insert dreaded music in your head)...LUNCH TIME! Okay, I will be the first to admit that feeding my children has become my least favorite time of day(yes, all 3 meals). Lukey refuses to eat pretty much everything except breakfast foods and treats. Cooper has actually been really good lately until last night. So...today Luke proceeds to throw all of his food on the ground which grates my nerves in that really bad, "no you didn't just do that" way. You'd think he'd learn the lesson, but he doesn't. Instead he smiles and thinks it's hilarious when I get mad at him which only makes me more mad. Then last night Cooper started the wonderful habit of shoving a ton of food in his mouth, chewing it up, and then not swallowing it. NO!! This is REALLY not going to work for me. Last night he chewed on the same food for no less than an hour and a half. Disgusting! I was trying to be really stern with him because this is not a habit that I will allow. Then for lunch, he did it again so I obviously didn't scare him enough! He kept the same food in his mouth from 12:45-1:45 when I finally made him spit it out and go straight to bed--accompanied by his screaming! This is his regurgitated food...about 4 big mouthfuls! I tried all kinds of manipulation. I told him he couldn't do his craft until he finished, I told him Lukey was going to do it for him (I was sure that was going to work!), I let Lukey do his craft right in front of Cooper, and then I told him he was going to go straight to bed if he didn't eat it, still didn't work. Finally, I had him spit it out and go straight to bed. I definitely went to one of those places in my head where most Mom's don't want to admit they go... you know...if he does one more thing, so help me! Then Lukey started screaming for no reason which made the baby cry and I felt 2 very thin threads away from loosing it all together. So, Lukey went off to bed and I spent a little time alone with Ethan, which was kind of nice.

Anyhow, there's my drama of the day, here's my questions that I would like some advice on:
1. Should I be worried about Luke not eating much because he's so picky? What should I do about him throwing all of his food on the floor--all of the time? I usually say no, slap his hand, and get him down. Seems to not be working.
2. What do I do about Cooper's lovely new habit that I abhor?

I would love advice from Mom's that have found something that works for them. Or if you think you just have a brilliant idea. For those of you who haven't had these problems, well, isn't your life just ideal?:)

Tuesday Letter

Today's letter was "C". Due to bad behavior Cooper watched the craft and Lukey learned and participated...haha! Okay, he more sat there like a pawn to make Cooper jealous--hopefully, he absorbed some knowledge too, though! If interested...I dipped a can in red paint to make the circles!

Monday Book Project

Today we did a project from the book "Are You My Mother?" Both of the boys LOVED the book and kept asking me to read it again and again. We read the book and then we made bird feeders. We collected pine cones from outside and then put string on them. We covered them in peanut butter and then rolled them in "bird seed" (I was too cheap to spend $3 on it so I just pulled stuff out of the pantry like rice, poppy seeds, and sunflower seeds). Then we hung them outside. Cooper keeps asking me if the birds are eathing it. I haven't seen any yet...maybe I should have sprung for the real food!

I Just Can't Get Enough

Ethan is getting so big! I think he is entering a terribly cute stage...you agree?

Look at that Trap!

Because you simply won't believe it unless you see it:
Enough said.

WE LOVE YOU DADDY!

This is our "We Love You Daddy Tree". I've been feeling really guilty about the lack of Valentine's thought that I put into Jake. We had a lot of fun, but I didn't do anything personal for him and that is just sad! So, here is my sad and pathetic offering:

Cooper loves you because:
-you give him big hugs and loves every time you come home
-you let him ride on your back
-you'll crawl around the house with him
-you make mundane tasks so much fun (yeah, that sentence came straight out of Coop's mouth)
-you'll play movies all day long for him :)

Luke loves you because:
-you chase him around the house on your knees
-you'll play with him in the netting of the pack n' play
-you hold him a lot more than mommy does when you're home
-you throw him on the couch over and over (in a fun way)
-you do the impossible task of making him laugh when he's getting changed

Ethan loves you because:
-you made him cute, just like you!
-you'll snuggle him from 8-10pm
-you always make him smile when you put his jammies on
-you feed him
-you love him

Emily loves you because:
-you're my "sexy blue eyed wonder":)
-you always ask how you can help me
-you think this bulldozer's sexy :)
-you come home after a long day and have tons of energy for me and the kids
-you never complain about a 2 hr commute (each way), working a full day, and then going to school
-many more private reasons!!:)

Really Late Happy Valentine's!

Friday's Twistin' Fun

Okay, the day opened with bathing these cute bums:Love it! I hope Claire doesn't mind this PG pic of Linkdoodle.

Okay--We made homemade pretzels with a super easy and kid friendly recipe:

1 packet of yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

4 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 beaten egg

Here's how to make pretzels:

Mix the water and yeast together in a bowl until the yeast is completely dissolved. Add salt, sugar, and flour. Mix and knead until the dough is smooth. Roll and shape the dough into any shape you desire. Place pretzels on a greased cookie sheet and brush them with the beaten egg. Sprinkle lightly with salt ( I used cinnamon and butter and they were yummy!). Bake in a 425 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes.
They had a blast mixing and then I ended up having to shape the pretzels for them. Check it out! Totally would recommend this project with warning: the dough about doubles in shape and ends up being too big for their little mouths--caution: make small pretzels!

I'm No Rachael Ray, But...

Okay, seriously, I love to cook and now that the blogging world has opened my eyes up I'm cooking something new almost every time. Isn't this a beauty? Just imagine it on a platter covered in parsley or something instead of just sitting on an old ugly aluminum pan. The best part--this Chicken Pesto Strombolli was so easy and super yummy! Anyhow, I just wanted to show off my work of art.

Tuesday Letter

Today's letter was "B" for "Birds". I have been wondering how to teach Cooper about the letters so I decided to do a mystery bag and try to come up with a few things that start with that letter. It went really well so I think I'll do it that way. Then we cut out the letter "B" and dipped his thumb in brown paint. Then I added wings, legs, and a beak. He loved it! You should have seen how proud he was when he showed it off to Grandma--yes, thank heavens, Grandma's back!!

Lukey had fun just taking it all in--and he got to eat the Banana.

Monday Silhouettes

Today's craft was silhouettes. Please pardon my terrible, terrible, terrible art work. I traced the monkies bodies and then they colored them. It was really fun to do with both the kids--Lukey hated it at first and then he warmed up. Plus, Ethan could watch from the sidelines. Fun, Fun!

Valentine's: Naughty and Nice

We had such a fun Valentine's party--thanks to my sister-in-law Shalie's wonderful games!! We started the night out making calzones and then enjoying them and individual cookies cakes. We quizzed each other over candlelight about their courtships and funny marriage things. Then Claire put on a game with guessing love songs. Then we played a balloon game where you had to pop balloons in various compromising positions. It's better to see than to have it explained:

Then we played a game involving snipping a weiner. Jake won, of course--but Jason was a close second. What can I say? My man has the FULL package!

Then we played a game involving a plunger and toilet paper. If you need a verbal explanation, then I'm sorry, just use your imagination.

It was all really, really fun thanks to uninhibited friends and great ideas! My throat was killing me from laughing so much! Thanks to all who participated. Who's gonna plan the next fun party??