Upstairs Organization-Step 1

Found this armoire on craigslist while I was looking for console tables a few weeks ago.  When I saw it, I instantly knew it was what I needed to get our upstairs organized and the boys room completed, and it was a great deal.  The seller wasn't the best at communication, but we finally connected and we were able to pick it up yesterday in Lodi. 

The 'BEFORE.' We had to remove the doors and drawers to be able to get it upstairs.  A shelf also had to come out so that we can fit our TV in there

After a great color match from Lowe's (thanks to paint guy, Jerry!), I spent today touching it up and loading it.  Looks like new and it fits our needs perfectly!  The "AFTER"...

Ahhhh... organization!!!  Love it!

Next step... moving the dresser (where the TV currently is) back into the boys room so I can have Ethan's clothes upstairs in his room instead of mine, moving the bookshelf that's currently in that spot before we can bring that in, and moving my craft stuff currently in the new spot for the bookshelf into my room's armoire where Ethan's clothes currently are.  I think my house is going to be a disaster for a while... but can't wait for the end result!!!



Cloudy the Kitty

Emmy, Ethan and I took a walk down to the Farmer's Market on Saturday morning (Zeke & Brian were in SF with the church) and when we saw the Sonora Cat Rescue table, we just had to stop.  We've been talking to them about fostering kittens for a few months but hadn't gotten a call yet, and I mentioned that to the people at the table.  Lo and behold, one of the ladies had just received a call the night before about a 6/7 week old kitten that needed a place to be until it could be adopted out (which happens after they are 2 lbs and can be vaccinated and spayed/neutered).  I gave them our number if they wanted us to take it. 

We got a call about 4:30pm and had the cat at home by 6pm. 

To say Emmy was beside herself (and still is) would be an understatement.  It's as if she has found her purpose in life.  She absolutely loves it and keeps saying, "I can't believe this is actually a real kitten!"  All the kids love it, of course, but Emmy pretty much holds this cute little thing as much as possible.  She named it Cloudy because it's gray and we got it on a cloudy day.  It's a fun and curious kitty, and has done great being handled constantly as well as finding hiding spaces for when it wants a break.

Don't worry, Auntie Rachel, our house will be kitten free long before you visit again!  We keep reminding Emmy that we are caring for this kitty until it can find a permanent home to adopt it.  She seems okay with it for now... we'll see how it goes when it actually means we hand it over.

Kids Bathroom Decor

The kids bathroom is finally decorated (well, almost)! 

It's only been over 2 years since the remodel...geez!

A few months ago, I gathered our random unused picture frames and painted them all a glossy white.  I then hung up the empty frames for placement, with intention of filling them... well, with all the time we've had to spend at home with little Ethan recovering I finally got a chance to be creative and get it done!

The paper and stickers are from the Creative Memories Zoo packet, the animals were printed from free on-line clipart and colored by Zeke and Emmy, and the little woodchip animals were purchased at Michaels.  The panda was drawn by one of Brian's students last year and the giraffe was drawn by Emmy on Thursday.

Changes!

With time to think about things other than teaching/work and running around, I've been able to be productive around the house and getting some things in order.  I'm so excited about the new furniture I found for our entryway!  A couple more baskets for under the bench and some decorative touches are needed, but I already love how it warms up the room and gives us a place to create a home for those things we drop off at the door!

Found this at Motherlode Christian School Thrift Store II.  Great find!  I was a little nervous about the bold color not being one of my 'colors' in my living room, but it adds a life of color that I didn't even know was missing until it was there!  We LOVE it!  We're going to add a couple of baskets for underneath to hold our shoes.

Console table and baskets from Cost Plus World Market.  Just what we were looking for!  Baskets will hold our backpacks, camera bag and the like.  We are going to make the drawer into a 'smart' charging station for our cell phones as well as a place to put those things you need a spot for when you come in the front door!

This is what it looks like today... hopefully more 'cute-si-fying' happening soon!

Trying to Recover

Ethan is still in recovery mode.  This is how he's spent much of yesterday and this morning so far, poor guy.  We had a scare last night about 7pm when he spiked a fever of 103.8... called the dr. and he said it is a result of dehydration and that we need to force more fluids on him.  Got it down to 100.8 by 11:30pm and went to bed.  This morning at 5:30, he was at 102.8 again, but finally was willing to take in some pedilite himself, and then downed 4 popsicles.  By 7:30am, he was down to normal temp and fell back asleep.  I'm praying, keeping tabs on his temp and plan to be much more diligent today in forcing him to drink/eat... we do NOT want to end up in the ER!

7

Zeke turns 7 today!  Happy Birthday!!!

I love this kid with all my heart and I am so proud of the young man he is becoming.  It is awesome to watch him learn and grow, and not just physically and mentally, but spiritually as well.  I have learned so much about God's love since becoming his mom, and I thank God everyday for his incredible blessing of having Zeke in our lives.

Zeke's breakfast of choice this year--made by dad because I was at the surgery center with little bubba--was waffles with strawberries and whipped cream.  He wants spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, with watermelon, of course.  We get to have Nana & Papa with us this year since they came up to help us with managing everyone while I was with Ethan, so they'll help us celebrate by picking Zeke up from school and staying to enjoy some ice cream cake after dinner!

My Tough Little Guy

Ethan has been showing signs of developing sleep apnea, as well as major snoring issues (which have been since birth!), so after a visit to the Ear, Nose & Throat doctor a couple of weeks ago, it was decided that he would get his tonsils and adenoids taken out.  Well, today was the day (also Zeke's birthday and a ton of other stuff!)!

We had to be there by 6:30a.m. and the surgery started right on time at 7:30am.  At first, he loved the nurses but anytime the anesthesiologist came in, Ethan would freak out.  They gave him a little drowsy juice to relax him before the surgery and relax he did!  He thought it was funny that we all had to dress up in the hats and face masks.

Dr. Dubose (same dr who did Zeke's ear tube and adenoids) did a great job and was done by 8:15am.  Post-op recovery wasn't as bad as I was expecting, so that was a blessing.  Ethan just really wanted me with him and would wake up anytime I moved... didn't mind that one until I had to go to the bathroom!  They discharged us at about 10:30, and we were home by 10:45am!

Now we are at home and doing surprisingly well... with the exception that he wants to eat waffles and I won't let him.  He's downed 5 mini popsicles and a yogurt, a couple sips of water, and some pain medicine.  This is awesome--not that he's had all this sugar... but that he's having no problem keeping hydrated so far.  We'll definitely be on the watch as the days go... they said 10 days are all about the soft foods on the sore throat.  You can pray with us that he keeps drinking and eating well, and that we know what he needs and how to best help him, and to keep the other kids from being too jealous of all the treats and attention he'll be getting.  We got an ice cream cake for Zeke tonight--hopefully he'll be able to enjoy it!

Emmy's Done!

Officially, Emmy is done with preschool!

Her last day was Wednesday, and the whole class celebrated the end of the year with a fun potluck picnic.  Emmy wanted desperately to contribute rainbow popsicles to the party, and all the kids loved them!

Emmy and her friend Liah

The Tiny Tots program does an awesome thing in that they use the high school auditorium for their preschool graduation ceremony--which is ubber cute!!!  They get to walk out on stage, sing songs and then walk up to the microphone to introduce themselves and tell everyone where they are going to school next year.  Emmy still remembered this from when Zeke was a Tiny Tot and couldn't wait for her turn!  She was super cute and had a great time!

Singing her heart out!

 

Emmy 'Tooty-Tot-ing'--it was sooo funny!

At home on the mic!

Teachers Jennifer, Tina and Kellie--we love you!

Kindergarten, here we come!

Zeke is a Yellow Belt!

Zeke has been doing Jujitsu since January at a place up here called Mountain Storm and last week he earned his first promotion.  He is really enjoying it and likes the opportunity to 'move up' the ranks--he really does well when he has something to work toward that is tangible.  It's really helping with gross motor control also--last month he fell down in our backyard and immediately tucked in like he's been taught in jujitsu.  He popped up and said, "Mom, I didn't get hurt cause I rolled like I'm supposed to!"  There is still a lot to learn, of course... but I think this is something we'll keep in the mix.  Even Emmy has asked to do this next year instead of gymnastics!

Mother's Day

So... I'm a little behind on my posts... what's new? 
At least it's only a week this time!!! =)

We went to celebrate Mother's Day with my mother-in-law and sis-in-law (and families) in Fresno last Sat.  The kids had a great time as always with their cousins, and we enjoyed visiting with the family as well.  I was blessed with a Starbucks gift card from Jen and a great pair of shoes from Peggy!

On Sunday, Brian let me sleep in =).  After I woke up and got out of the shower (at the late hour of 7:15am-I know, pathetic that 7am is sleeping in, right?), Zeke was crying because he had just swallowed a metal magetix ball.  Well... off to the ER we went, and got X-Rays to verify that the ball was in his stomach and not blocking an airway or something.  The ER at 7:45am with your almost 7-yr old who swallowed a ball is a perfect way to start Mother's Day, don't you think?  Anyway, he is fine, and the dr didn't even make me check to see if it came out--just told me to call if we saw any stomach pains or problems.  That was a gift!!!

After we got home, I got my gifts and cards from the family, including a cricut cartrigde with the font choices I want to do my vinal lettering around my house (is it bad that I picked out and bought my own gift?)!  I'm so excited to get that project going!  My original plan for the day was to spend time one-on-one with each kid doing something fun.  Well, Zeke got the ER (but we also did bowling together 2 days before, so I didn't feel bad about that).  It was Emmy's turn--we decided to go shopping for some summer sandals for her (unsuccessful) and get pedicures.  It was super fun to do that with her for the first time.  A week later, our toes still look perfect!  Ethan got snuggle time, and we all even got a nap in. 
Overall, it was a great day being a mom!!!

Kayla brings a kitty to visit!

Kayla called me after watching the kids today to ask if she could come back down to bring a special visitor--her brother was 'kitty-watching' this cute little 5-week old kitten for a friend. Of course!!!  First of all, we LOVE Kayla, and this is one of the thousands reasons why.  Second of all, all 3 kids were totally enthralled with this adorable little thing!

(you can click on this picture to see it bigger)

Mother's Day Brunch

At Sonora Elementary, it's been a long standing tradition that the 1st graders put on a Mother's Day Brunch.  Mother's Day weekend around our area is a big ta-do as our Motherlode Rodeo and Parade happens this weekend as well.  So, the first graders incorporate the 2 things and put on a western themed brunch for us, complete with 'cactus juice' and bisquits and beans. 

Zeke has been sooooo excited about this and done a really good job keeping everything secret from me.  The main event was not the food however... it was the 3 songs all the first graders sang for all of us moms, and the line dance they did and then taught us how to do.  It was so cute and fun!  Each kid in Zeke's class got to make potholders and a flower in a pot that they painted for us.  So sweet!  I have to say that I'm pretty proud of my little cowboy... and I had a great time with him today!  (also, since we were allowed to take them home with us, Zeke and I took advantage of Kayla being home with the other 2 kiddos and we did the bowling date I've been owing him for his jewel rewards!) 

What a great way to start Mother's Day Weekend!!!

Emmy the Fashionista, part II

So, yesterday I heard Emmy talking to herself in our bathroom and was cracking up, so I tried to capture it on video.  It's kind of hard to hear because I was trying to be sneaky, but oh, so Emmy!!!

Then about an hour later, I go upstairs to see what she is up to and this is what I found!  She was so proud of herself and just thought her bow-do was so beautiful.  And yes, she did get to sport her do to the outside world as had to go to the dr's office as well as the post office yesterday afternoon.  She definitely got many comments!!!  It was really cute to see her so confident and loving the attention. =)

Graduation Photo

This is me and my student, Donovan, at the Columbia College graduation last week.  This is the only picture I have of me in my get-up... maybe next year we can get one that shows off the hood that I worked so hard for! =)