Musical Instrument Museum

Today I went on my very first field trip as a parent. I went with Amber's class to the Musical Instrument Museum! It was so cool. There was a LOT of displays and information. Our tour was pretty rushed so we only stopped at a couple country's displays with our guide. It was great spending time with Amber (something that doesn't get to happen very often) and seeing her interact with her friends.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Here's what we did this weekend:

The weather's been nice

This is at my cousin Amy's house where we had Thanksgiving dinner. Paisley was sharing with Grandpa Robertson. =)

On Friday, David wanted to take us to a pizza place he passes in downtown Glendale all the time. As we got closer, it became evident there was something going on. We had to park a couple blocks from the pizza place since the street was closed to all traffic. Well, right across the street from the resaurant, a whole carnival was set up in a park filled with lighted trees! So of course after dinner we went on some rides and bought fresh doughnuts and hot chocolate. What a fun impromtu family activity!

Paisley was quite excited to go on the "dapple ride"

Another Post

My brain is turned off at the moment and I'm not writing a better title, so there! =P

I finished Amber's Christmas coat. I really like it and hope she does, too

I finished the inside like Paisley's - not a single seam showing anywhere! Had to modify the pattern to make it this way. The way the instructions were, there would have been seams all over the place!

Jade and Paisley chillin after school. I love how they're both smiling, but not at me. And Paisley's controller isn't even plugged into the playstation. lol

Goofy kid handed me my camera and asked for a picture. Cute little ragamuffin!

Some More Family Pics

So when I got around to trying to post more family pictures, my stupid computer wouldn't even recognize there was a cd in the rom. Stupid computer. I ended up loading the cd on the girls' computer and saving them to a thumb-drive to get them back onto the laptop. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Anyways, here's some more of my favorites. =)

Christmas Dresses and a Coat

Hmm...not a very creative title, but to the point at least. I finally finished all three girls' Christmas dresses this morning. I love them! And the girls love them, too. Bonus! Amber and Jade are at school, so they obviously can't model their dresses for me. But Paisley had no choice. lol Here they are:

This is Amber's. It's more green than blue outside of cameraworld. The shrug is fully lined in the same green taffeta.

Jade's has a shrug, too, I just wanted to show the dress. Amber's and Jade's are exactly the same.

This year, the girls are all getting new coats for Christmas. I've only done Paisley's so far. Amber's is next up on my list. Here's Paisley's - and it is adorable on her!!

Zebra "fur" on the outside...

Hot pink satin on the inside! Even the sleeves are lined. Not one single seam is showing anywhere.

Family Pictures

Okay. Here's the promised pictures. Only a few of them though. Only my very, very favorites. Which was really hard to choose cause there's a lot of great ones! Allison did a GREAT job!

I've tried 5 different times to finish downloading a few more pics, but my dumb computer keeps quitting. So, this is all you get for now. Sorry!

Paisley's Newest Phrases

I always find it funny when my kids use phrases they've heard from their mother. Cracks me up. Mostly cause I don't swear so there's no danger in them letting something slip. Nothing worse than "crap" or "suck" anyways. I can handle that. Anyways, here's a couple gems Paisley has picked up:

"I need chocolate!!!" - this is usually yelled as a sippy cup is chucked at my head and is also very quickly followed by a very, very cheesy "Pleeeease??" lol

"What the?" - when she's surprised by something or confused why something is happening

"Don't talk to Daisy!" - haha this is when she's in trouble and doesn't want to hear it. She always has a major scowl on her face and her arms crossed. Btw - she calls herself "Daisy".

"Just go do it, *name of sibling*!" - when she's feeling bossy

"Noooo!!! Not Daisy's bottom!" - when someone's chasing her through the house pinching her bum. Or just threatening to. She's usually giggling and grabbing her bum with at least one hand to protect it.

She calls her nipples "bumps" and if anyone mentions anything about bumps in general, she lifts her shirt up as fast as she can and starts pinching them. So weird!

Also, if there's any lull in conversation in the car, she'll probably start yelling something about either duck poo or dragon poo. Amber started her on the duck poo....not sure where the dragon poo comes from though.

This kid cracks me up. =)

Early Christmas

David and I were wandering around Goodwill today and he found this totally complete and working sewing table - machine and chair included! I thought it was just a cute desk, but he opened it up and flipped the machine out. I started opening the drawers and was surprised to find one stocked with assorted thread, bobbins, and needles for the machine, another had the original owner's manual and accessory kit, and a third held some knitting needles, tracing paper, and a mallet. Not sure what the mallet is for.... Everything is in pristine condition - even the booklet. There's no fuzz or dust on the machine, no stains in the book. We plugged it in at Goodwill to see if it worked and sure enough, it turned right on and the needle went up and down when the pedal was pressed. So cool! And only $50! What a steal! The machine itself is a Sears Kenmore 158.17570 which means next to nothing to me other than I know Kenmore is a good brand in general. I trust their dishwashers and laundry appliances. lol The desk is solid and sturdy with minimal signs of wear, but Dave and I are still going to sand it down and refinish it. Upon furth investigation, I discovered it not only does basic straight/zig-zag/buttonhole/zipper stitching, but it also has several decorative embroidery design plates! And.....a button plate to machine-sew buttons on! Woohoo!!! Merry Christmas to me indeed! Thanks, Davey!

This is how it was in Goodwill. I thought it was a cute desk for one of the kids' rooms.

But then David unfolded it and popped the machine out of the middle! That bad boy is heavy, too!

The instruction manual is funny. The very first page starts with, "Dear Homemaker, You have just invested in a very fine zig zag sewing machine." Hahaha!! On another page, it says, "You will find that much of your sewing is in the mending category." Oh, how politically incorrect this little booklet is. I LOVE it! All those gray discs are the different embroidery designs. I just flip open the top of the machine, pop one in, and sew away! There's even a few that use an optional double-needle with 2 different thread colors! Can you tell I'm excited to play? =)

October Randoms

Obviously this post is for the random happenings (or non-happenings) from October. =) I know you think I'm funny.

She had so much fun playing with Amber and Jade's Petshops. Paisley has started collecting things in purses lately. It's pretty funny to see what she finds is worthy for her bag sometimes. I've found scraps of fabric, broken pencils, rocks, and lots of random toys.

One of the "big" rainstorms we had last month killed Raphael's home. We're in the process of building him a new one before it's too cold and he freezes.

Balloon volleyball! Believe it or not, all three girls had a blast playing together for over an hour before bedtime!

Paisley likes to "help" me sew. She sticks all my pins into fabric scraps after telling me what color they are. She always so proud of herself for "helping Mommy"

Today we are getting our family pictures taken by the fabulous Allison so I will post those once they are done being edited. =)