Need Your Opinion...Please!

This tray is a recent find of mine...it would look great as a side table on one of those tray stands (except I don't have one of those and I don't have room to put it anywhere as a table- did that stop me from buying it...? no!)

So I propped it up in front of the fireplace to act as a "fireplace screen" so to speak. Oh, I have been coveting a gorgeous screen in a catalog for at least 6 months - slight problem is that it is $400 plus additional $100 for shipping & handling. Now my hubby doesn't think spending that kind of money on something that will be purely decorative (he doesn't have the "vision" that I have but thank goodness he keeps me grounded...sigh...) being that our fireplace is gas and has a glass door on the front.

But my eye always go to the black hole that is there and this is Summer! - it needs some brightening up. So until I can "squirrel away" enough money (I am thinking of raiding the loose change jar! anyone feel like rolling pennies with me..? anyone...?) to buy the fireplace screen of my dreams - does this LOOK STUPID...?

Please feel free to offer suggestions!

What was I thinking...?

Did I really say I would have more time to "Blog" when my kids were home for the summer..? What was I thinking...? Must have had a momentary lapse of REALITY WITH MY KIDS!



I have been chained to my kitchen! When did they start acting like cavemen that haven't seen food in months..? I have become a short order cook. Oh and a referee too. Sheesh! Remind me again why I was so anxious for school to end?



Oh that's right - it was the loads of homework that I was complaining about...well, which is the lesser of the two evils now...a little homework or having 3 screaming, fighting, hungry, bored kids home ALL DAY with you..? and this is in between the dozen or so summer birthday parties since school has ended that they have attended, the many "can't miss Blockbuster" movies they've seen, the visits with Grandma and summer art classes...and they still have time to fight! and make messes!


Well, guess what I did..? I ran out and signed the older two kids up for CAMP! Yep, sleepaway camp for one week..hee-hee! I know, I felt so brave signing them up, now I am a little unsure. My 11 year old daughter is completely ecstatic! All her little friends are going. BUT, my now 9 year old son, is a bit more apprehensive. He's got two buddies from school signed up to be in his cabin but still...he is a mama's boy. I hope I don't cry when they get on the bus....what was I thinking!?



We've got the in laws flying in on Monday to spend the summer with us. I have been in Ultra Panic Cleaning Mode. And you all know that's really impossible with 3 kids home...you clean one room... dusting, vacuuming, artfully arranging your knick knacks. You leave the room to perhaps answer the phone, use the bathroom, refill your coffee cup and come back to complete and utter chaos...seriously. I don't know how they do it but they do.


So I am cleaning out closets, drawers, tackling my mound-o-laundry. You know, the stuff that you can "disguise" when someone comes to visit for an afternoon... but when you've got one staying a few months.....welllll, that's just a teeny bit different. You know eventually your houseguest will make their way to that closet that is jammed packed with everything from holiday decorations, abandoned sewing projects and extra toilet paper rolls that are strewn everywhere (oh? you don't have a closet like that...? I do!) and your cover is blown. Too risky for me...we aren't talking your best girlfriend from college - we are talking MOTHER IN LAW! (screams of horror follow!)


No, I do have great in laws - I would just prefer that they NOT see the messy side of me. No dirty laundry - literally. And I will have to IRON. my husband will be so happy! :)


So my dear blogger friends, I am still here - just buried under laundry and family obligations. I bid you Adieu!

Slumber Party Review

Holy Moly! And I thought I was prepared!...... I was totally unaware of the emotional turmoil 10 little eleven year old girls dish out! We had lots of ups & downs this weekend but I am pretty sure all enjoyed themselves (once the pouting in the corner was over!)

We did the spa treatment which only took 45 minutes! I was anticipating a good hour and a half.... (only 8 girls at the salon - 2 were arriving later)



Decisions, decisions....

On to the pizza parlor...with me trying to S T R E T C H out the activities by dishing out quarters for the arcade games...

We got home and they played on the trampoline for a while, did a bit of dress up ("she got the good belt!.... How come she gets to wear the black high heels?!..... I want to wear the veil!")

Then me dashing out to KFC for some Popcorn Chicken to feed a small army.

That's my 3 year old (who dressed himself!) vacuuming up after those messy girls! :)

Cake, presents, crafts(remember my carefully thought out plan of constructing a simple tie fringe pillow? haaaaa! Well let's just say I think there was more pillow stuffing ALL OVER the room than in the pillows themselves!), popcorn, pillow fights, 1:30 am frantic call on walkie talkie because there was a spider in the bathtub (who was taking a shower at 1:30 in the morning?!), 6:15 am wake up call from outside our bedroom window - they were jumping on the trampoline!!.... only to fall back asleep until 9 am (for some this was the ONLY time they slept).

Then Breakfast with these Good Morning Merry Sunshine Girls.. (Not!).

With me glancing at the clock every 10 minutes - (tick, tick, tick...) the countdown until the parents arrival and claiming of their darlings... ..

We had a group of parents hanging out with us having coffee and chuckling over the details of the party.......Last child left at 1 p.m.....sigh...time to relax!...then my husband looks at me and says ...those dreaded words..."I'm hungry...." ....Can I kill him...? This is the man who slept in until 10:00 am while I was downstairs feeding a small army! But he never does that - he is the early riser, let's go to church type of guy so I guess I can allow him that one day to sleep in.

We had to gather up our middle child (8 year old son) from his cousin's house (remember he had been "banned" from the house?) so we decided to stop for lunch. But at the restaurant, I must have looked so haggard for the waitress asked me if I wanted a cocktail... Ding, ding ding!! Oh yes, you betcha!... I thoroughly enjoyed the largest Margarita I had ever seen!

So with a nice margarita & a thousand calorie meal consumed, I was nearly comatose (& drooling!) on the way home. Just what I needed!

Sorry - I meant to post this earlier this week but last minute school activities have kept me otherwise engaged, some family arrived from out of state unexpectedly and in the small snippets of time I was trying to post -I have been having a bit of trouble loading pictures..? Anyone else having that problem? Anyway Thanks so much for all the concerned comments on my welfare! Some had me saying "awww!" and others had me chuckling! But it was nice knowing my blogger friends were concerned! Only four more school days and then I will be free to visit with all of you! :)