kids at play

these girls are growing quick. zula is saying hilarious things like, "it's reeeely important!" and "i have a plan!"
they are playing so well together. and we are enjoying them both. effi is soooo close to crawling and her favorite thing to do right now is empty bags, buckets and picnic baskets :)

honesty hour

oh piles. they end up everywhere don't they? things to take to goodwill, things to deal with later, things to put away, things to wash. it seems never ending, because it is, never ending. honestly, this pile has been here way too long......

EZ's tiny tour

i finally got Effi and Zula's room all set up. it's mostly zula's room right now, Effi is in the "closet" (the strange middle room in our house) since she is not 100% sleeping through the night.
it's very similar to their room in the yellow house. but i've added z's big kid bed and a couple special finds from some recent hunting trips.  most things in her room have been thrifted or are gifts. i really like the look and history in second hand items, so why pay full price when i can get a bargain?

how we wednesday

it's been hot! we are avoiding using an air conditioner (we'll see how that goes) cuz you know old houses=big electric bills. we got the pool set up and we've been outside a lot. i don't really mind the heat, i do mind cranky kids (and husbands) because of the heat. it's nice to go sit in the shade and watch zula swim and not feel like i should be doing something else cuz its "too hot to do anything."
here's how we've been doing things lately:

how we spread cream cheese on a bagel:

how we enjoy chocolate covered strawberries (thanks grandpa terry!):

how we wish to swim:

how we cut a bagel:

how we torture play with the cat:

how we eat yogurt, everyday, all day:

thankful tuesdays

we got bikes! FINALLY i can't wait to take this baby out for a ride! mine's yellow. isn't it pretty? (she? him? i'm not sure yet, but i'll let you know once i know) we are only a couple of tubes and wheels away from an adventure.

lookie what i made!!

i'm pretty proud of this. i'm also pretty proud that all i spent was 12 dollars! well maybe 20 :)

i found the wood on the street, the wheels were 12 and the crates i've picked up here and there (i know i didn't pay more than 3 dollars each for them).

what do ya think? i love it.

i copied rachel denbow over at smile and wave. have you been there? she's so fun and her blog is sweet.

here's the diy for it :)

kitchen tour

oh yes finally! as promised! a full kitchen tour:)
this kitchen is wonderful. thanks to jeremy and aleina hanson who remodeled it for the previous dwellers/current owners. it is beautiful, has a great color palette and is spacious. we didn't do anything to it when we moved in. just unpacked all our stuff and said "we could fit 5 people in here!"
we were definitely outgrowing our other space. there were days when i was baking, zula was playing in a cupboard, libby was chatting and effi was in her highchair and i almost lost it but then kicked everyone out. in this kitchen we are not all elbow to elbow with one another. AND the countertops! they are made from old doors, jeremy really is genius.

here is our kitchen:

honesty hour

well it's only been one night and the big kid bed has been a big pain in the you-know-what. we were all excited, zula was so excited. but she is also smart and does not want to sleep. she is busy and does not want to be still. she is wild and cannot be contained!
she knew we were outside working on the chicken coop, i caught her little eye peeking through the front door. do you blame her? we're out there sawing and hammering and she's inside "sleeping."

i was hoping when she woke up, this morning she'd play in her room for a bit. nope. i should have known she would be a hit the ground running kinda kid. i opened my eyes, heard her little running feet and, "good morning chickens!"

time to get up.

on a positive note. little miss effianna slept ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!! i should be a whole new women getting so many hours of sleep IN.A.ROW. but something is in the air, or the water maybe, or my brain. it is a crabby day. a put the kids in front of PBS so i can blog day. an i'm-gonna-pull-my-hair-out-at-730-am day. a we-ran-out-of-coffee-AND-milk day.

can i keep my peace even in days like this? can i relax while the sink is full of dishes, the rooms are turned upside down and we're eating an easy meal again.

challenge accepted.

my resolution to "no coffee in the house"

z and i did puzzles in bed when i wasn't feeling well (oh yeah i'm getting over being sick too)

her big kid bed. it looked this nice for about .5 seconds

ps i hope you all are able to read my humor in this. writing it out is helpful for me. therapeutic even. i'm more able to laugh it off and continue my day. so join the laugh with me. and i hope it helps you know that it's ok to have bummer days and it's ok to wanna just go back to bed but it's our response that matters. i also know that when i feel this way God can help me have extra patience and peace and turn my terrible morning into a great day.

chicken update

these girls are loud! i am ready for them to be outside and in their coop. i'm sure they are ready for it as well because they are getting huge!
we have to be careful when we change their food or water because they are always trying to jump out of their little tote. these chicks are smart. i wouldn't doubt they purposefully dump their water dish for a chance to escape. i can see it now, as soon as the lights are out they are plotting escape routes to the wild!
unfortunately aaron is still building and scheming and planning. can't we just throw them in a big crate or something out there?