Aunt Mildred's Sofa

...First off, let me apologize if you have an Aunt Mildred...it was the first "grandmotherly" type name that popped in my head and is in no way a reflection on my feelings of the name Mildred.

So, I can remember in my younger years driving around some of the fancier neighborhoods in town and longing to live in one of those big houses. There was one neighborhood in particular that several of my friends lived in and I always told my mom that I wanted to live there. I can remember one day she looked at me and said, "Ashley, those big fancy houses may be nice, but those people probably don't have any furniture in there. They spent all their money on their house and they can't furnish it."
Now, I am pretty certain that wasn't the case in most of those houses, in fact, most that I went in had nice fancy big furniture in them too.
Now, fast forward almost 25 years later. Here the hubs and I reside in a pretty nice house. And you know what?
We have an empty room.
And it drives me crazy.
I keep going over in my head that conversation mom and I had long ago. And then I tell myself that all the mom's of the 10 year-olds that drive by are telling their kids the same thing my mom told me. Only they are right.
Don't get me wrong, it is no big deal really. But we have lived here 4 years.
And this is a main living area.
That you see when you first walk in the house.
There are some pro's to this though:
-The kids really can ride their bikes in the house.
-There is a lot less to dust.
-It provides a great echo which entertains the kids for hours...er, minutes.
-There is nothing to child proof in there, great when you have a 14 month old.

This poor room even housed a Christmas tree...for 8 months.
Yes.
8 months.
It was sort of a year-round type tree. You see, really the tree helped. Instead of people talking about the empty living room they talked about the fact we had a Christmas tree up in May. It was like we were Hobby Lobby.

Well, I am here to tell ya. That room is empty no more. We are on our way to having an (almost) furnished room. Last week I spotted a friend's couch on Facebook that she was selling. It was a steal and practically brand new! I gingerly approached the hub and luckily he took the bait. Look out 10 year-olds...don't let your Momma fool ya...this house has PLENTY of furniture...

Now. The couch is perfect. But the 3 dogs we have....not so perfect. So the brand new pretty couch? Yeah, it looks like Aunt Mildred's sofa.
It has sheets on it.
Star Wars sheets.
They're blue.
Bright Blue.
With Jedis on them.

Wonder what the neighborhood Moms are telling their kids now....

***Doesn't the suit jacket over the back make a nice throw...the other problem with having furniture is that the hubs likes to turn everything into a place to throw his junk...

Randomness...because I can't come up with a better title.

Ok, so in true blogger failure fashion...I am already behind on my posting AND I have not taken any decent pics to post. And we all know that the key to a successful blog is great pictures.
And why do I say "we ALL" like I have this huge following... I mean I know of one faithful reader. One. That may be it. And I know she likes pictures. So consider me a failure.
But one day...one day I tell ya, I am going to have a whole lotta followers. Like 10 maybe, or maybe even 15. But until that day comes, it's just you and me my faithful reader.

Soooo, in lieu of fabulous pics from my fancy camera I will share with you a few random cell phone shots.
And to make it even more boring I am going to present the following to you in numerical fashion. Because that my friends...er, friend, is how I roll.

1. So you should know, I am a HUGE weather nerd. Which makes the last week and weekend super exciting for me! I followed Jim Cantore of the weather channel on TV, on Twitter, on Facebook... I was glued to the madness that was Hurricane Irene. In addition, I also LOVE reality TV, especially Bethenny Frankel, originally of the Real Housewives on NYC. Well, my two LOVES collided this weekend when Bethenny decided to venture out in NYC and photograph storm damage and send it out via the Twitter universe. It was great!
And one reason I LOVE Bethenny even more is because she sent this pic of herself out in the mess... No hair and makeup necessary like most "celebrities"...just being real.
LOVE her.


2. I live on a country road...winding roads, blind hills, critters at every turn. It ain't no picnic driving this road and is especially nerve wracking when you add this:

I mean, really people!?!?! This is not the Tour De France or anything...we have roads with bike lanes around here. This is just asking to get taken out by a mad momma in a minivan...
So what usually takes me 10 minutes took me about 20 since I had to ride slowly behind all 25 of them! I may or may not have laid on the horn once I was FINALLY able to pass.

3. IKEA. Have you all (or you, my one reader) been there? Well, let me tell ya, if you haven't you should go! It is a cool store with so may organizational things, storage ideas, gadgets, and more. The best thing is, it's cheap! You can even design your own kitchen, bath, or closet with them! So cool! I loved this kitchen...the glass lighted cabinets on the island and the multi-levels of the island especially!
I'll be filing this little pic away for one rainy day when we decide to build again...


4. Have ya'll (again, with the thinking I have many followers) ever had the random guy holler at you as you are driving down the road?? I mean who are these guys?! I wanna be like, hey buddy, what do you want me to do? Jump out of my mini-van while careening down this road at 55mph while I leave my three children in the car?? And #2, do you really think a four tone rusty pick-up without a muffler is more tempting than this mini-van full of kids (ok, don't answer that).
I didn't snap a pic, but here is a similar visual.


5. I really don't have a number 5...
However, the children have gone quiet in the basement. Never a good sign. It's a toss up whether I go down or whether I should check in on Pinterest. Have ya'll discovered that? That's a whole other post.

Free At Last...Free At Last...

...from my kids that is.
Don't get me wrong...I love them. But it has been a LOOOONG summer! Momma had reached the end of her rope. The bickering, the constant eating, the cries of boredom, and everything else had momma doing cartwheels when the school doors opened!
Jack actually started first. And it true third child fashion I have no pictures. Poor kid, he's likely to look back and wonder if he was even a part of the family. And in all honesty that may not be a bad thing.
Here's a grainy cell phone pic of Jack on a recent boat trip we took... Ya know, I need to at least include him in the post. Don't want him thinking he was adopted...


Next up was my big kindergartner, Will. He started last week and was of course a breeze to get out the door. He is the one who jumps out of bed at 6:45 am with no problems...unlike his momma. He had a great few days last week and really loves his new class.


Finally, sis started today. We laid out the outfit last night. This is where I am SO GLAD that we are at a private school where picking out your outfit consists of khaki or navy bottoms and a red, white, navy, blue, or light blue shirt. Sis picked out a white shirt with a navy skirt...and I even managed to get her to pick out a coordinating navy and white polka dot bow (no small feat considering the girl has a 100+ bow collection that seems to be growing dust these days). The hardest part, believe or not, is the SOCKS! I mean seriously, you can only wear white socks...how hard is it?!?
Welllll, if you're Carter it is your least favorite piece of the school uniform. Luckily we had some very snazzy silver sparkly shoes that I used to distract her from the daunting task of picking out the exact perfect pair of white socks out of the 10 identical pair we have.

I awoke this morning with a pit of dread in my stomach... Will she cooperate? Will she wake up (this is the kid who like to sleep in...much like her momma)? Will she wear the white socks that we picked out? Will I really get her to wear the bow? (I know....we are talking life changing things here...)

Sure enough the "get ready for school gods" were in our favor and the morning went great.
(Note I totally had to pretend I was texting on my phone in order to get this picture of her. She really knows how to push my buttons. All I wanted was photo documentation that she indeed let me put a ponytail in and she did indeed wear white socks)

Now we only have to repeat it 100+ more times this year... Something tells me there will be battles ahead...

Our favorite Uncle...

We have been blessed with a fabulous Uncle... He married my beautiful sister, Tyler, last September. They are the cutest couple...if I must say so myself. Aren't they cute???


My children, (especially my oldest, Will) absolutely LOVE Uncle Slade. And poor Uncle Slade lets Will jump, bounce, tackle, wrestle, and everything else all over him every time we see him!
Sadly....it is going to be 6 more months before we see him again... You see, Uncle Slade is a marine. He is in Afghanistan, serving our country. This makes him an even bigger hero in our eyes! We miss him so much, and cannot wait until he comes home!



Earlier this week we decided to make a birthday package for him (his birthday is August 22nd). My sister Tyler, (his wife) told me the one thing he REALLY wanted was a pillow. Yes, a pillow. He has NO pillow! He is sleeping in 110 degree heat, risking his life, sleeping on his backpack! Seriously?!?!?!
Welllll, when I heard that, I had to help! There is this fabulous pillow at Brookstone that sort of feels like what I'd imagine the pillows in heaven feel like. Uncle Slade MUST have this pillow. Done deal. See pillow below. I tell ya...HEAVENLY. (By the way...this isn't me...but I am pretty sure I'd have that same dreamy look on my face if I were laying on this pillow)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my pillow...I take it everywhere. I cannot imagine not having a pillow. So glad our favorite soldier will soon be resting his head on a little slice of heaven!

We also had to include a few homemade goodies!
Homemade PB cookies...


Homemade granola crunch bars...


And then a few other odds and ends... And my personal favorite, a little Happy Birthday message from us!


We can't wait to see you soon Uncle Slade...hope you enjoy your package!

Crisco. It's for more than just making icing.

So, what does one do when their child decides to place their arm down the hole of a small toy???
Case in point: Yesterday Carter, my 3 year-old decided to see if she could fit her arm down the hole of the "Busy Ball Popper". You may ask yourself, what is this toy, I do not know what she speaks of. See Exhibit A.



After many failed attempts at simply pulling it out, I realized we had a dilema. I either saw off her arm (probably not the best idea) or we head to the local emergency room (or wherever one might go when their child places their arm inside a small toy). I played the ER scenario in my head and thought these people are going to think I am nuts...

Alas, I had an idea...what sort of greasy substance might I have laying around???

I had recently made the kids birthday cakes and remembered that I had Crisco in the cabinet. You know, good 'ol fashioned lard. See exhibit B.



Sure enough...after a few slabs of crisco she was free... Free at last, free at last.... Thank the Lord she was free at last. This momma was not looking forward to truckin' three kids to the ER, with one screaming because her hand was wedged inside a small toy.

So, as "Heloise" would say. I have now discovered another handy use of Crisco...besides it just adding inches to your waistline.
("Helpful Hints from Heloise"....for those of you not following along. Google it.)

Happy Friday!

The beginning of an era...

I am entering the world of blogging.
Bear with me.
I am a long time reader, first time poster.
This may be short lived.
Hopefully it's not.

School is starting soon, therefore I am telling myself I may finally have time to do this blogging thing. However, don't be disappointed if Thanksgiving rolls around and I haven't posted.
I make no promises.

I really do want to make it work though. So I promise to do my very best. If you promise to stick with me. Come on now, it will be fun... I promise!