It's amazing what changing several pillows, moving a piece of furniture, and hanging a couple of things on the wall can do to a room.  Over a year later, and this room is finally coming together! Before -- After -- Today, I'm thankful for the smile that appears on my face every time I walk in the living room :) Also, I'm thankful for the endless amount of fun this box the pillows came in has afforded my children all day long!

1.  We have been in the throes of potty training the last three or four days. I didn't set out to; it started out of necessity (he had a spot on his bottom that wasn't healing properly while in wet diapers all day).  It's not awesome, but every time he's successful at staying dry, we celebrate the victories.  You know you're talking to a kiddo whose potty training when the following come out of your mouth  ALL.  DAY.  LONG: " Don't tee-tee on the floor! Why did you tee-tee on your sister's toy?!"  " Are your underwear dry? Good job! Don't tee-tee in your underwear."  "Tell Mommy when you need to sit on the potty. Do you need to sit on the potty? Let's go sit on the potty."   "No, we're not putting on your diaper right now. No, you're not 'all done.' Please sit there until you tee-tee." "Stop touching the toilet paper. Stop grabbing the shower curtain. Stop touching the things on the back of...

I'm writing this in a blog post instead of posting directly to Facebook because I know there are some readers who aren't on FB and won't be able to comment there.  Our house has three bedrooms -- two downstairs and one upstairs. The Husband, Ella, and I have been sharing a room since she was born, and Jack has his own room. The upstairs room has been a guest bedroom, but it's not used often because we only have an A/C window unit up there, and it's either horridly hot or frigidly cold most of the time.  Because of many reasons, The Husband and I have kicked ourselves out of our room (namely, I want my child to sleep and her father is the loudest turning-over-in-his-sleep-person out there), and we've been sleeping on the pull-out couch.  It's not the most comfortable sleeping arrangement, and after about a month of this, The Husband said enough is enough. He moved our bed upstairs.  I have a big problem with my children sleeping downstairs and us being upstai...

You know the flowers I moved the other day?  Well, I fixed my hot chocolate and then headed outside to check on them this morning before I got Jack up for breakfast.  Here they are, alongside the amaryllis bulb I planted the next day. I'm aware amaryllis flowers usually bloom in December, but this one had already started growing out of the bulb. In the empty pot. In the garage. In the dark. So...I went ahead and planted it.  Each morning after breakfast, Jack has Art time (play-doh, coloring with crayons or markers, painting, stickers) for 30 minutes before playing in his room.  This morning, I pulled out the gallon bag of stickers his Nonny gave him, and he set to work pairing up stickers that matched. I guess technically today our Art time was Math time.  Also, he's 22 months old today! I can't believe he's almost two years old :(.  After running errands as a family, I popped some bacon in the oven (300* for 28 minutes...my reminder for next time!), and i...

My venture into gardening has finally begun... :)

Well another few busy days have passed, and I'm just now finding time to post about the latest craziness.  Monday night, after everyone had gone to bed except me, I noticed a funny smell. The heater had kicked on, and there was a definite, almost-chemical smell coming from the vents. I turned the heater off, prayed for God to protect us while we slept, and went to sleep. The next morning, The Husband, up early for a correctional officer course he's taking for three weeks, turned on the heat. I immediately noticed the smell, and asked him if he smelled it, too. He did, and he told me not to run the heater at all. He'd check it that evening when he got home. About 45 minutes before Jack's bedtime that night, The Husband was able to take a look. The wires were burning right through the electrical tape. Again. He called his dad and his grandpa, and they came up with a solution. But because he's in school and working full time, he had no time to fix it before the latest ...

1. This little dude is 20 months and 2 days old.  He keeps us on our toes and in stitches the majority of the time.  He voluntarily gives sweet Eskimo kisses to his sister and me.  He shrugs his shoulders and looks perplexed when he's done something he *knows* he shouldn't have done.  His imagination is developing, and it's an amazing thing to witness.  He signs 20+ words, says "momma," "dadda," "Ella," "papa" (for Grandpa), and has attempted "circle," "man," "banana," & "backpack." He still adores his baby sister and wants to hug and hold her often.  He enjoys room time and spends an hour to and hour and fifteen minutes in there.  He takes one 2 1/2 to 3 hour nap each afternoon; at night, he's in bed by 7:30 and wakes the next morning around 7:15.  He's shy, but friendly around strangers; he's wild, outgoing, and loving around his peeps. He LOVES riding in the car and asks to do...

Yep.   You saw it here first, People.  Today is, in fact, Wednesday. Weird.  It's been a few weeks since I last posted, not because I haven't had anything to say or show, but because (1) my phone is too full to take any more pictures, so all of the pictures and videos I have are old (at least a few weeks old anyway) and (2) I try to be conscious of the amount of data I'm using (instead, it mostly goes to playing Words with Friends (gotta keep my mind sharp, right?) and checking email and Facebook).  But, I wanted to put out an update (it's a long one) because (A) the kiddos are growing and changing so much and (B) I believe in the power of prayer.  So, the kiddos.  Our boy Jack: Jack is 17 months and one week old.  He is 31 inches tall (I measured him lying down on the rug before bed...so it might not be completely accurate.).  He is a great eater and will try new things without a fuss. I know that can easily change, so I'm appreciative for this. ...