A Survey...AKA a fun waste of time...

A survey.

Because I don't have anything better to do like: take a shower, make lunch for my kids, lengthen my daughter's dress for the wedding, pack for 5 people for a week-long trip, highlight my hair, clean my bathroom, go to Costco, do laundry...

Have we all noticed that when I have a big deadline coming up, I tend to spend MORE time blogging than usual? It's my own personal coping mechanism. I like to call it......denial.

1. WHAT COLOR ARE YOUR KITCHEN PLATES? White with a black design. BO-RING! Got them as a wedding gift 10 yrs ago and they STILL haven’t broken – grr. *glares at indestructible dishes*

2. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? “Good and Angry  - Exchanging Frustration for Character…in You and Your Kids!” (I'll be reading this on our 10 hour drive - I'll let you know if it works!)

3. WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Tragically…Darth Vader  Boba Fett – it’s a hubby thing.
4. FAVORITE BOARD GAME? Taboo *tip of the day – the buzzer is NOT, I repeat – NOT a razor and it does NOT amuse me when you pretend it is!*

5. FAVORITE MAGAZINES? Woman’s Day, Family Fun, Scrapbooking mags.

6. FAVORITE SMELL? “Buttercream Frosting” scented candles.

7. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE UP? *I think you mean when I’m WOKEN UP!* What I think is, “WHY CAN’T THAT CHILD EVER SLEEP IN?!”

8. FAVORITE COLOR? Lime green.

9. LEAST FAVORITE COLOR? Grey. *Too depressing for me. The clouds in Seattle are plenty enough grey for me thanks!*
10. HOW MANY RINGS DOES IT TAKE BEFORE YOU ANSWER THE PHONE? As many rings as it takes to find where the children have put the phone!

11. FUTURE CHILD'S NAME? Sadie Grace. But a goldfish will be more likely than a child - unless God miraculously reverses some surgery.

12. WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT IN LIFE? A relationship with Jesus.
13. CHOCOLATE OR VANILLA? Chocolate.

14. DO YOU LIKE TO DRIVE FAST? No, I feel guilty if I go more than 5 mph over the speed limit.
15. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL? No, I LOATHE stuffed animals. I'd set fire to all 50 space-wasting stuffed animals that we have in this house if it wouldn't cause permanent emotional scars for my children!

16. STORMS - COOL OR SCARY? Scary, but I play it cool for the kids.

17. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR? An iridescent steel blue Volkswagon 412 Wagon. 

18. IF YOU COULD MEET ONE PERSON DEAD OR ALIVE? Jesus
19. FAVORITE ALCOHOLIC DRINK? I HATE the taste of alcohol, but I LOVE virgin strawberry daquiris.
20. WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN &YOUR BIRTHDAY?  I don’t like zodiac stuff but my birthday is October 18.
21. DO YOU EAT THE STEMS OF BROCCOLI? I’m an anti-vegetarian.

22. IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB WHAT WOULD IT BE? Any of the following: Portrait Photographer; own a children’s consignment store; party planner; or simply just get paid to do crafts all day.

23. YOUR HAIR COLOR? Medium brown. But with any luck – it’ll have blond highlights by either tonight or tomorrow.

24. EVER BEEN IN LOVE? Yes, for 11 years now.

25. FAVORITE MOVIE? “Singin’ in the Rain” (just singin’ in the rain, what a glorious feeling – I’m happy again…)

26. DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS? Yes, but only if I’m partially looking at the keys. *I opted NOT to take typing in school because I figured since I wasn’t planning on being a secretary, there was no need for typing skills! Brilliant – eh? HEL-LO…age of technology!*
27. WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED? Stuff I don’t want to deal with. *Sadly, the kids don’t fit under there!*

29. FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH? Gymnastics and Ice Skating. *I like to watch people fall down!*

30. WHAT IS YOUR SINGLE BIGGEST FEAR? That I would fall down in front of people.


31. FAVORITE CD? “100% Funk” *Except for the song “BRICK HOUSE” which I personally happened to like before my kids started singing “…she’s stacked,  she’s letting it all hang out…”*

32. FAVORITE TV SHOW? 1. Alias 2. Lost  3. Extreme Makeover – Home Edition.  And of course 4. America’s Funniest Home Videos *I like to watch people fall down!*

33. KETCHUP OR MUSTARD? Ketchup.
34. HAMBURGERS OR HOT-DOGS? A big juicy flame-broiled hamburger (cooked medium well) with mozzarella cheese, sautéed mushrooms and “Sweet Baby Ray’s" bbq sauce.
35. FAVORITE SOFT DRINK? Henry Weinhart’s Bottled Root Beer. *I particularily like to drink it during bible studies with the label turned toward me. Gotta keep 'em guessing, "Is that chick drinking a BEER during bible study?!" Heh-heh wouldn't you like to know...*

37. PJS OR NIGHTGOWN? Silk pajamas.

38. FAVORITE COMIC STRIP? “Baby Blues” and “The Duplex” are consistently the most amusing to me.

36. BEST PLACE YOU HAVE EVER BEEN? Holland

Natalie the builder…YES I CAN!!

Well - first and foremost...we leave for Montana in just 5 days! "Will she get it all done and ready in time?!?!" *bites nails in suspense* Here is my latest creation that I am quite proud of. I was going to suprise my SIL with it when I got there but I just had to post it, so she'll see it early - oh well. Ready?! A photo candle of the bride and groom:



I got this idea from a scrapbooking magazine. It looks small in this picture but it's really a 6" round pillar candle. All I did was print a photo out of the computer on regular computer paper and just stuck it on with a little adhesive. I heated it up with a hairdryer until the candle melted enough to adhere itself to the paper.*bows* (Wouldn't this candle idea be cute for Mother's Day for Grandma with all of the grandkids on it...?) I DO believe idea this would be the Christmas gift to all family members this year if they hadn't all moved 500 miles away. "Let's mail a 10 pound candle shall we?!" I hate that you have to consider the mailing weight into the whole gift-giving spectrum.

Now - on to my entry...

As we all know - my hubby rocks because he gave me an espresso machine for my birthday last month.

[Aside]
I got an espresso machine as a birthday present from my dad 14 years ago. One month after I had it - I dropped the glass carafe and smashed it, and never found a replacement. So this time I was SUPER careful with the carafe. I launched into my "carafe breaking story" daily if any child stepped within 5 feet of it. I handled it ever so gingerly...until 9 days ago. It was 11:30pm and I was exhausted. I was moving it from the shelf to the counter to set it up for the next morning when ---CRASH!!!!--- It fell on the floor and smashed. Apparently I am still hexed with the "curse of the glass carafe"! *does that sound like a Nancy Drew title or what?!*
[end aside]

AN-EE-WAY (boy - I'd make a good soap opera writer, since I feel the need to tell 3 stories at once!) I now have all of this espresso stuff: machine, steaming pitcher, disposable cups, dome lids, straws, syrups... and it has started clogging up my minimal-counter-space kitchen. So...I said to myself, "Self, you need a shelf!" *heh - I made a rhyme...you owe me a dime!*

So, last night when hubby had 3 out of 4 kids at bible study with him. I pulled out all of my wood to see what I could conjure up.... I decided a needed a somewhat long but narrow shelf that was high enough up that people wouldn't bump the corner when walking by. It also needed a lip on it so that stuff wouldn't fall off the edge. Making it was farily simple but hanging it by myself was a gigantic pain. It was so long that it was hard to keep it straight while mounting it. But after 45 minutes to an hour - I got it up on the wall.

Behold, I give you...the espresso center:


Sigh with me over my clean kitchen. (It's now after 5:30pm and I haven't started cooking dinner because I don't want to mess up my clean kitchen.) And here's a closer look at the shelf (let's all pretend that I already painted the ends):


Me like-y!! Did you notice my 24 ounce plastic cups and dome lids that provide ample room for loads of whip cream? Wanna see my secret stash?


80 seconds in the microwave at full power equals perfection!! I even went so far as to figure out my cost per frapp. With all of the ingredients/cup/lid, the price is somewhere beween .55 cents - .70 cents. Not too bad considering they are $4 at Starbucks! Ahhh, a freezer full of love...

Today I stood 300 feet from Ty Pennington...

Well, sort of. I didn't actually see him, but I hear he was in the house! I DID see Paige in her pink construction hat. But only briefly and from REALLY far away. As I waited to get a closer and better angle - she disappeared into the house.

What in the world am I talking about?

Why, "EXTREME MAKEOVER - HOME EDITION" of course!

We read in the paper a few days ago that they had picked a family in our area and were in the process of building the house. (Apparently it was a single mom (widow) with 3 kids and there house burned down last March. They had been living in their shed because because they couldn't afford to rebuild their home.)

So.........we decided to have a family adventure day today and go see what was happening over there. We had 2 options:

1. A 20 minute drive to the ferry boat and then a 30 minutes ferry ride to the tune of $25.

OR

2. A 2 hour drive around the Olympic Penninsula for free (well, gas $).

We chose the latter. Let's just call it a "test run" for our trip to Montana next week. *note to self - buy economy size container of Nyquil* We made maps for all the kids and had them check off things like bridges and landmarks as we passed them. They actually did fairly well. After 2 hours of driving, we got within about a mile of the home and then hit a total stand still. We sat (unmoving) in traffic for about 15 minutes till I jumped out of the van to talk to one of the workers. He said "No personal vehicles. You'll have to catch the shuttle bus at the local Albertsons." We turned around and headed for Albertsons. After 2 hours invested- I wasn't about to give up now!

We waited in line behind 83 other anxious people for about 20 minutes and then squished ourselves onto a small shuttle bus with 16 seats. Total number of people on bus: 36. Slightly cozy.


[Here's the family waiting for the shuttle.]

Dach decided to throw a fit on the shuttle bus which was quite enjoyable for everyone present. Thankfully this time we didn't have to wait in line for long - the shuttle bus was waved through the security checkpoint within about 15 minutes and we were headed for the house. It was pretty exciting going up there although it didn't really look much different than any other construction site - except that everyone had the blue Extreme Makeover shirts on:
 
[Our first look at the house.]

It was very interesting talking to different people - a lot were locals that knew bits and pieces about what was going on. The rumor has it that this will be a 2 hour episode and that it will air January 2nd. They are apparently making the house into a bed-n-breakfast because that has always been the mom's dream! They put either 6 or 7 bedrooms in it. The application process is really interesting too. Apparently they pick 5 finalist families and tell them all to be home on a certain day then they show up at one of the houses! All I can think of is much it would suck to be one of the 4 families that don't get picked!

Anyway there were probably 300 fans there - plus all of the workers. Here's what it looked like trying to get a closer glimpse of the house:


We looked around & took a bunch of photos, then had the great idea to sneak around to the foot of the driveway and take a family photo. Unfortunately, this is what stood at the foot of the driveway:


It was strictly enforced by the Kitsap County police officer standing next to it! We settled for a "far-away shot with trees, other onlookers and worker bees" in the shot. Oh well - you take what you can get.

[Notice how the redhead child 5 feet away is smiling nicer than any of MY children? "Care to become a member of my family & smile for my camera?"]

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?! This picture of our family with the Extreme Makeover logo on it changed to the words: Extreme Christmas 2004!

We ended our day by taking the ferry boat home since all passengers were free heading that direction and the van was only $10. The kids were more excited about the boat than anything else the whole day - figures!

Here's a pic of them freezing their booties off on the deck:


And since all 4 children had a COMBINED nap of 28 minutes today I shall head off to dump them in their beds now! Think I can get them to sleep 13 hours? Tommorow I get my haircut!! YIPEE! It's been since early June. Then I am going to take all 4 children to the library to fight with them over a book I returned that they say I DIDN'T return. Then I'm going to take all 4 kids into a beauty supply store where there are many things at their level they aren't allowed to touch so that I can get supplies to highlight my hair. Why? Because - what would I do for blog entries if I didn't have a stockpile of humiliating true stories to draw from...

Wedding on my mind...

11 days until we leave for Montana.

We are going over not only Thanksgiving but an even more exciting event... a wedding! Not just any wedding either. It's a "renewal of vows after 16 years of marriage" kind of wedding. My brother and sister in law got married 16 years ago in front of a justice of the peace 3,000 miles from home (he was in the military) without family present. So now they are doing a full-blown wedding with 150-200 people coming. This is especially near and dear to my heart because I've been begging/hounding /badgering them to "re-do" their wedding for something like 6 or 7 years now. *thanks sis!*

I have offered to help with a lot of the creative end of the wedding like: the cake, the reception décor and the photography. Here’s what we talked about for the cake:  A 2 or 3 tier cake covered in white fondant with fall colored fondant leaves cascading down the sides of it. Doesn’t that sound pretty? I even picked up some different edible colored dusting powder to “paint” the color onto the leaves. The gal at the cake store said that it will look a lot more realistic than just dying the fondant different colors. *good to know* The goal was to make all of these leaves at home and then transport them - but the clock is ticking and I may be doing them at her house when we get there. But we arrive Monday - and the wedding isn't till Saturday. *no pressure* If the darn Thanksgiving militants would just give it up for one year (family traditionalists) - we could spend EVERY moment of our visit on wedding stuff! Prioritize PEE-O-PLE!! Oh well. *waves hand*

As for decorating, want to see some of the ideas I’ve come up with for the reception? I knew you couldn’t resist…

Ideas for table decorations:

 




Cost per table -
Tulle -  2 yards @ .60 cents/yard = $1.20
Leaf-shaped Candle Holders - 4 @ $1/each = $4.00
Tealight Candles - 4 @ .02 cents each = .08 cents
Leaves - free
Total per table = $5.30

 
[Here are a couple of different shots of it - I took these at night, so the digital camera wasn't cooperating in the lighting dept. The leaves are sort of a mix of mossy green and light burgandy.]

Ideas for a backdrop behind where they will say their vows:


[A close-up of the leaves.]

Cost for backdrop -
Muslin Fabric - 9 yards @ .50 cents/yard = $4.50
Silk Garlands - 4 @ $1.00 each = $4.00
Leaves - free
White Lights - free (already own)
Total for backdrop = $8.50

[Although I might end up buying some ¾ inch PVC piping to build a portable free standing frame to drape the backdrop on. Probably no more than $10.]


And for pew decorations, I’m thinking of 20 - 30 foot long garlands of white tulle (with silk leaves inside of it) wrapped in white lights - loosely tied to about every 5^th row. At the end (front) of the rows there would be giant vases (beehive style) on the floor (1 on each side) filled 2/3 full with water and white floating candles and small leaves floating in them.

Cost for pew decorations -

White Tulle - 20 yards (10 for each side) @ .60 cents/yard = $12
Leaves - free

White Lights - free (already own)

Beehive Vases - free (already own)

Floating Candles - 6 @.12 cents each = .72 cents

Total for pew decorations = $12.72

So, it looks like it's coming together. It's all relatively simple and inexpensive. I'm excited - I think it is going to be fabulous!

And in related news:

I spent a couple of hours pounding the leaves onto the muslin fabric today and sadly I completely missed a leaf with the hammer and slammed my finger instead! Mama mia!!!! And it wasn't just any whack. The leaves weren't imprinting very well so I was swinging that hammer as hard as I could to get them to imprint when my left index finger got in the way. Just picture a cartoon character's throbbing goose egg after getting an anvil dropped on them *thwonk, thwonk, thwonk, thwonk" yeah, that'd be me! It's swollen and bruised and in a makeshift split. It's not broken - just painful...and it's been 8 hours. Yikes - time for Advil!

Just call me "Woman who types with 9 fingers...

The winning photo...

And in response to popular demand...the winning photo:

"Leis, limbo and lava rocks put the "L" in LUAU for these LUAU LOVERS!!"

 

That was the caption I had with it. The theme of the contest was "Life of the Party". You were supposed to submit a photo that conveyed that you are the life of the party. This photo was taken just over 2 years ago when I threw hubby a 30th birthday Luau. (I was 9 months pregnant with the Colonel.) The pic is of hubby and I dancing. *Boy - those highlights look good in my hair. I seriously need to re-highlight my hair!*

As you can tell - I wasn't the one who took the photo! I'm not even sure who did, obviously it was someone who was at the party! I find it somewhat ironic that as photo obsessed as I am - the photo that I win a contest with is one that I didn't even take! *ego somewhat deflated*

So I guess you don't actually have to "bow" to me, perhaps a nod would be fine...

Bow to the Mighty Photo Goddess...

LOOKY SEE WHAT I WON FROM HP...
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A BRAND NEW PHOTO PRINTER!!!


No kidding! I entered a photo contest last month and then forgot all about it. Then last Thursday I got a call from them saying that I was one of the winners!! I won this printer! The cool thing is that it came with a rechargable battery that makes it completely portable!! Aaaaaaand...my media card from my camera just pops right into the front of the thing so I can print directly from it! No really - let's consider the possiblities...

I take my kids to the park and get some great shots. Then I print the photos out instantly. That's right. Right there. Under the tree. Or perhaps while swinging on a swingset. Or maybe while hanging upside down from the monkey bars.

Because I can.

OR...

I'm on a 10 hour roadtrip to Montana and bored out of my gourd. I whip out my printer, slap it on the dash - insert media card and voila! A traveling photo lab.

OR...

It's Thanksgiving day. I take a fabulous family photo of the whole gang. "What's that you said? You'd like copies? Well, funny you should ask..." I whip out my printer, print off a copy for everyone present and am instantly proclaimed "Mighty Photo Goddess"!!

That's right, my life rocks...

Who is the fairest of them all...?

Again with a photo entry. Maisie has now told me for the past 67 days that "I'm going to have a Snow White birthday!!" Never mind that her birthday isn't until February. So we went out yesterday and scooped up a costume at 50% off. Hopefully it will still be in one piece by February. I think her real driving force is that she gets to wear bright lipstick with the costume. Here she is in all her princess glory...