Monday, May 31, 2010

On this Memorial Day

I hope everyone had a nice Memorial Day weekend. We didn't make it to any festivities since it was rainy here, but we are thankful for those who have served, are serving and will serve our country. The freedom we have is so easily taken for granted and those who fight for it are so easily forgotten. I love that we celebrate Memorial Day and Veteran's Day. They should come more than once a year. These people deserve recognition.

Several weeks ago, Bill Madden, a WWII vet and survivor of the Iwo Jima invasion who now lives in South Bend, was speaking and reciting a poem he had written about the front lines on Iwo Jima. We decided to take the girls and listen to what he has to say.

Here is a link to an article by Ray Elliott from Memorial Day 2005 that discusses Mr. Madden and includes the full text of his poem, "Iwo Jima."

Men and women like Mr. Madden are a piece of living history and their generation will soon be gone. I'm glad we went and took this photo with him. Maybe one day the girls will think this picture is pretty neat. I hope they at least appreciate the historical significance of those who risked their lives to ensure our safety and freedom!

Sunday, May 30, 2010

A good devotional

I have been reading this devotional for parents nightly and am really enjoying. It is a 26 week daily devotional and I am in the 8th week. It is set up for both parents to read and talk about together, but I haven't been able to get Dan on board yet. I'm guessing that may happen during week 25 or so. It would be very beneficial to do as a couple. It's so important when you have children for both parents to be on the same page when it comes to rules and limits, faith and morals, and plans for the future. Doing a nightly devotional together in order to talk about and figure out these things is a great idea.
Read more about this book at Family Talk.

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Our first trip to the pool

A week ago the pool opened so the whole family spent a couple hours last Sunday cooling down. The toddler pool was literally ice cold, but no one really minded on such a hot day (except Dan, he's kind of a weenie).I take that back, Boothe wasn't thrilled about sitting in that cold water either, so she decided to start standing up on her own for the very first time.Then she found this table that she pushed all over the pool. She is ready to walk soon.Jump....and Splash!I don't know what this look is all about. Daddy's probably eating her snack or something. She's planning her payback...she's thinking 'hmmm, maybe I'll stay up.....all. night. long.' I didn't tell her to pose like this at all! HA!They are both obsessed with the big pool. I'm so glad both the girls love water as much as I do.

We went to swim at a friend's house on Tuesday morning and that afternoon we were in the kiddie pool at home. Magnolia says to me "let's make this pool bigger.....like River and Jasmin's"!

I said "let's do that!"

Then daddy said "no."

He never lets us do anything fun...

Friday, May 28, 2010

Wrestling

Yes, not just little boys like to wrestle. These two love to roll on the ground and wrestle. Boothe is beginning to hold her own too. I love the squeals and giggles and screams when they are playing together and having a ball!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Garage sale finds {round 2}

So over the past few weeks I have been to several more garage sales. I have found some great stuff. Some things I needed, some things I wanted and some things I never knew I needed until I found them. I'm drawn to the things that you can't find at a store. Maybe a thrift store or antique mall, but those are basically glorified garage sales.

I got all of "this" for $1 and I love it. Not sure what "this" is, but I'm excited to find a fun use for it all. The spools really get me excited to find the perfect spot for them.Why this was ever stopped being made is beyond me. It is a bouncy chair for a baby from 19??. Very vintage, but in excellent shape. Boothe loves to bounce in it and the tray is perfect for her snacks. I paid $2 for it!!! I have only found one other online that was exactly the same, but with ripped fabric and completely rusted out frame and tray. That one was listed on ebay for $50. Perhaps this chair from 60 years ago has become the this of today. And we wonder why our kids now need constant stimulation...1960 or 2010?We always find the BEST kids books at garage sales. Lots of them for only 10-25 cents. The most I have ever paid for one is $2 and it was for a couple of these large hard back ones.So far we have bought 5 games and spent a total of $5. Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, The Cat in the Hat, Pizza Party and Elefun.Oh how we love Little People at our house. We couldn't pass this set up for $5.More books and Little People. Playground was $3, tractor 10 cents and the books were .25 each.













A brand new North Face coat. Tags still on it. $40.
Last year our outdoor umbrella flew away and the bar broke. We have been wanting to get one, but not wanting to pay the $100 we knew a new one would cost. Ok, we'll take this one for $3.We have had the same bedspread since we have been married. 5 years really isn't that long, but I have been dreaming of updating our bedroom and finding a white duvet. Got this one and both shams for $3. I'm not done with the bed. I would like to find a quilt, another set of shams and some throw pillow to add some color. I'm not going to count on finding all that at a yard sale. Oh and the lighting in this picture makes our walls look a horrible gold color. They really aren't that yucky color, just a khaki color.I can't ever pass up unused yarn. I can always find something to make with 10 cent yarn.I love these. Handmade slips for little girls sizes 1 and 3. They were in a .25 bin at a church rummage sale. I think someone thought they were just old hankies. The material is so fine. I searched for the tag description online and the found some that are vintage and were being sold for $40-$60. I didn't come up with anything new. So I'm guessing they are old.And this size 3 dress. Also for a quarter.Hand stiched embroidery.Tag reads: HAND MADE cherubs philippineThese I fell in love with. They were only 30 cents each. Sears undershirts. Size 2. And so familiar to me. Like I had some as a child.Extra swimsuits for little kids are hard to pass up. They are always wanting to change into and out of wet suits. Back ups are always a good idea. These should fit Magnolia either this summer or next, maybe both. $1 each.

I have also found a handful of girl's clothing, a lot more kids books than were photographed and a couple of books for me. And the last thing that I'm so so excited about but didn't get the chance to photograph because I have already taken them over to my mom's house is 7 dozen canning jars for $1.50/dozen. That is 84 jars for $10.50. They retail for $10/dozen. Buying them retail I would have paid $70. We have been canning for a couple of years now, but add more and more canned goods each year. If we have the jars we will fill them with something yummy!

Welcome home, Daddy

Dan and the welcoming committee... And he brought pizza! I planned on making meatballs which are really hands on. I found out Boothe was very needy after her nap and that meatballs weren't going to happen. Dan came to the rescue. And the bonus of eating out is no kitchen clean up. So what did I do with all my free time? After the girls were asleep...I made meatballs!

I will post again later today. I have some more great garage sale finds to share!

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Look what I found in the pantry

A baby sneaking cookies!

I don't even know how she knew which box of food to open. I have only given her one of these maple teething biscuits ONCE when she was about 4 months old and she kept choking on it. I haven't brought them out again because of the choking thing.

These cookies were in a plastic tray covered in a plastic wrapper inside a box and she obviously had no trouble getting to them. Boothe is definitely my get-into-everything, put-everything-into-her-mouth baby. Always gotta watch this one!