If you read my blog, you must know I have small children and well.... poop happens. I'm not afraid to discuss it. Skip to another post if you don't want to read about it, but then again, you are taking your chances going that route because there are poop droppings in the middle of totally unrelated posts. (Did you catch that, heh heh, poop droppings! I crack myself up.)
I don't remember if I wrote about it or not, but my toddler has a preference for using the Ikea potty chair and no other. She will use the real one if we are out and about, but she would rather use one of her Ikea potties. She has three of them: pink one is downstairs, green one is upstairs, and red one is in the van. Her white Baby Bjorn potty has been rejected and sent out to the garage.
Since we've been potty training, Libby has decided she will no longer poop. She doesn't like to do it in the potty chair and she doesn't like it in her panties. She'd rather not, thank you very much. Retaining is her game. She just pooped on Sunday so I didn't expect another bowel movement from her until Thursday at least!
Ok, enough back-story; on with the post!
Yesterday, we went to Ikea for lunch. First, we dropped off my mom at the airport and then we picked up my oldest daughter who is 32 weeks pregnant. The kids were hungry and the 5 yr old was ready to play hard for a bit. I asked her if she wanted to go to Ikea and she jumped up and down squealing about the ball pit. Can't argue with enthusiasm like that!
After dropping Gracie off at Ikea's child center with the swimming pool sized ball pit and other fun toys, Katie and I took the little ones (Libby and Charlie) to the cafe for lunch. We sat in the "family friendly" corner where there are beads and twirly things mounted on the wall as well as a play kitchen and workbench. All Ikea products! Libby stood facing the wall and played with the beads. She was quiet and content, moving the big beads around on their peg-board path.
Just as we were finishing our leisurely lunch and our hour of of hyper-free 5 yr old time was nearing an end, another family came to the cafe's play area. One little boy came up behind Libby and she turned herself around, gave him the hand and said,
"No. I'm pooping".
Katie and I had to stifle hysterical laughter. Libby was so serious! Katie pointed me in the direction of the nearest restroom (pregnant woman always know where they are) and I took Libby and her poopy pants out of the play area.
Another reason for me to love Ikea! It's a great place to play and poop!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Naughty Leprechaun
A naughty leprechaun paid a visit to Gracie's preschool yesterday on St. Patrick's day. The little dude made a big mess in the classroom, knocking over toys and things. He moved the teacher's chair, left green pee-pee in the toilet (and didn't flush!), spilled his gold on the floor (corn pops cereal) and left a trail of green glitter everywhere. The kids did their teamwork and cleaned up the classroom.
Gracie is pretty sure she saw the leprechaun behind the clock in her classroom. He had one eye peeking and the other one shut. And, he was laughing at all the kids while they cleaned up his naughty mess!
Poor kid was freaked out all day long by this leprechaun business. All day long, she talked non-stop about the leprechaun. She barely took a breath, just talk talk talk talk... working it all out in her head I suppose.
At night, she had trouble falling asleep. I had to lay with her and as soon as I did, she was asleep in no time. She wanted to sleep in her "camping spot" next to my bed so that she would be safe. And she made sure to ask me several times if I locked all of the doors. She was afraid the leprechaun would come in our house and make a mess.
Sure enough, she whimpered and whined in her sleep all night long, like a little lost puppy. At one point, her dreams woke her up. She went downstairs with Daddy and they rocked for a while. But, she was having bad dreams all night even after she woke up. She was crying in her sleep too. It's awful when your kid is having bad dreams and you know you can't get in her dream to rescue her!
I just talk to her and tell her she is safe. The whimpering usually stops when I do that, but she starts crying again. Sure enough, this morning she was a big grouch! Miss Crabby pants has been rotten all day long. She wouldn't even snap out of her mood to go to gymnastics and she loves gymnastics! She stayed home with Dad while I took little sis to gymnastics; she wasn't gonna miss it for the world!
I don't understand why she has such frequent bad dreams, but I sure knew what set her off this time! It was that naughty leprechaun! If I catch that little green menace, I'm gonna make him clean up and say sorry. Gracie suggests we give him a time out too. So much for St Paddy's day around this house. This holiday went straight to the bottom of the list of fun holidays.
The next holiday is a rabbit who comes in our house at night while we are sleeping and leaves eggs and jelly beans? Oh no. There really isn't much of a difference is there?
Gracie is pretty sure she saw the leprechaun behind the clock in her classroom. He had one eye peeking and the other one shut. And, he was laughing at all the kids while they cleaned up his naughty mess!
Poor kid was freaked out all day long by this leprechaun business. All day long, she talked non-stop about the leprechaun. She barely took a breath, just talk talk talk talk... working it all out in her head I suppose.
At night, she had trouble falling asleep. I had to lay with her and as soon as I did, she was asleep in no time. She wanted to sleep in her "camping spot" next to my bed so that she would be safe. And she made sure to ask me several times if I locked all of the doors. She was afraid the leprechaun would come in our house and make a mess.
Sure enough, she whimpered and whined in her sleep all night long, like a little lost puppy. At one point, her dreams woke her up. She went downstairs with Daddy and they rocked for a while. But, she was having bad dreams all night even after she woke up. She was crying in her sleep too. It's awful when your kid is having bad dreams and you know you can't get in her dream to rescue her!
I just talk to her and tell her she is safe. The whimpering usually stops when I do that, but she starts crying again. Sure enough, this morning she was a big grouch! Miss Crabby pants has been rotten all day long. She wouldn't even snap out of her mood to go to gymnastics and she loves gymnastics! She stayed home with Dad while I took little sis to gymnastics; she wasn't gonna miss it for the world!
I don't understand why she has such frequent bad dreams, but I sure knew what set her off this time! It was that naughty leprechaun! If I catch that little green menace, I'm gonna make him clean up and say sorry. Gracie suggests we give him a time out too. So much for St Paddy's day around this house. This holiday went straight to the bottom of the list of fun holidays.
The next holiday is a rabbit who comes in our house at night while we are sleeping and leaves eggs and jelly beans? Oh no. There really isn't much of a difference is there?
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Happy 5th Birthday!
My cute chubby little baby suddenly turned 5 years old! Not sure how that happened so darn fast. She was just a ball of baby blubber not very long ago. Now she's a dancing, prancing, singing 5 year old. Amazing how time flies when you are having fun!
She really is fun. Always has been and I think she always will be. We sure have a good time together. Gracie loves to go places and we do a lot of that!
We didn't do much to celebrate her birthday, but that is exactly what she wanted. She wanted her sisters, Charlie and a cake. That's it. So, that's just what she got. We got her some gifts, but nothing extravagant or expensive.
She did say she wanted to go to Disneyland on her birthday. If that's what the kid wants, that's easy enough! No party, no extra fuss, just a fun day with mom and little sis. Awesome! I quickly finished sewing the Jessie costumes, hand sewing all of the sequin work. We planned to go and I took the day off from babysitting Charlie so that we could go on her birthday, but....
The first rule of going to Disneyland is that Mommy must get enough sleep to function. That didn't happen so we didn't go. Everyone took a long afternoon nap the day before, which messed up the whole night, which messed up the trip to Disneyland. And then of course, everyone was too tired to even make it through the day so we all napped again! Ugh, the domino effect on the sleep schedule wreaks havoc on our entire week!
On her birthday, we all laid around the living room and played with her new toys, colored in her new coloring book, and watched her new movie. We finished off the cake and put a dent in the pie. It was a nice lazy day with everyone home. Gracie loved her lazy day birthday! She said it was the best birthday ever!
I guess we'll go to Disneyland next week. She can still get her birthday button and have a fun day.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
The Sky is Falling
Last night my husband and I were enjoying some peace and quiet. The girls were sleeping upstairs and we were relaxing in front of the news in the living room when we heard a big CRASH in the kitchen. Neither one of us had been in there for a while.
Our first thought was of the dog. Nope, she wasn't in there, she was snoring on the couch.
Earthquake? No, that wasn't it.
Kids weren't up jumping around. Hmmm....
We actually decided to quit looking at each other for answers and get up to have a look.
The recessed light fixture fell out of the ceiling! Not the bulb though, just the metal can. Yes, the metal can that cannot come out of the ceiling without a good solid tug and the light bulb would have to be removed for that to happen. There is was on the floor along with some chipped pieces of joint compound. How on earth?
We are both still scratching our heads over this one. Keith has to get on a ladder, remove the bulb and shove the can back in the recessed light hole. It has two metal prongs that he has to pinch together to fit in slots then release to provide a type of tension that prevents the thing from ever falling out of the ceiling. We are very perplexed.
Our first thought was of the dog. Nope, she wasn't in there, she was snoring on the couch.
Earthquake? No, that wasn't it.
Kids weren't up jumping around. Hmmm....
We actually decided to quit looking at each other for answers and get up to have a look.
The recessed light fixture fell out of the ceiling! Not the bulb though, just the metal can. Yes, the metal can that cannot come out of the ceiling without a good solid tug and the light bulb would have to be removed for that to happen. There is was on the floor along with some chipped pieces of joint compound. How on earth?
We are both still scratching our heads over this one. Keith has to get on a ladder, remove the bulb and shove the can back in the recessed light hole. It has two metal prongs that he has to pinch together to fit in slots then release to provide a type of tension that prevents the thing from ever falling out of the ceiling. We are very perplexed.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Mary vs Pit Bull
I was driving all alone in my mini-van the other day, absent mindedly singing along to the Disney princess song collection that always plays in the cd player, when I saw a great big pit bull standing in the road. He was just standing there holding his ground, right there in the lane. He didn't look like he was on the warpath, but he didn't look like he was going to move just because cars were honking at him. Let's face it, this breed isn't exactly known for being warm and fuzzy.
I kind of looked around and didn't see anyone that looked as if they were looking for a dog. He was near the dog park, so who knows. He wasn't wearing a collar which is odd, especially at the dog park. I saw him wander out of the road and head toward a neighborhood of houses. It was a long red light so I had time to do all of this wondering.
The light turned green and I went on my way thinking, "someone should call the dog catcher". I quickly decided that someone had to be me because a lady with a stroller was walking in the direction of the stray unleashed pit bull! I happen to have the Police Non-Emergency phone number in my cell phone so I hit that number and reported the dog. The dispatcher said she would send Animal Control to the area and see if they could find him. Ok, good enough. I kept going.
On my way home again, about a half an hour later, I made sure to go the same way just to see if I could spot that dog or a police car or something. Sure enough, the Animal Control van was parked right where I had seen the dog earlier and the dog catcher was holding out one hand, maybe offering a treat, and had a looped leash in his other hand. Luckily, I hit the light on red so I could watch the action!
The dog catcher must be a pro. He bribed, treated and lassoed the dog all in one swoop. Then he walked him to the van and put him in. Stray Pit Bull off the streets! Yes! I felt so good watching the dog get caught. And of course, right up the street walking toward the spot where the dog had just been was a family with a little dog, a stroller and a small child. I am so very glad I called and reported that dog!
I kind of looked around and didn't see anyone that looked as if they were looking for a dog. He was near the dog park, so who knows. He wasn't wearing a collar which is odd, especially at the dog park. I saw him wander out of the road and head toward a neighborhood of houses. It was a long red light so I had time to do all of this wondering.
The light turned green and I went on my way thinking, "someone should call the dog catcher". I quickly decided that someone had to be me because a lady with a stroller was walking in the direction of the stray unleashed pit bull! I happen to have the Police Non-Emergency phone number in my cell phone so I hit that number and reported the dog. The dispatcher said she would send Animal Control to the area and see if they could find him. Ok, good enough. I kept going.
On my way home again, about a half an hour later, I made sure to go the same way just to see if I could spot that dog or a police car or something. Sure enough, the Animal Control van was parked right where I had seen the dog earlier and the dog catcher was holding out one hand, maybe offering a treat, and had a looped leash in his other hand. Luckily, I hit the light on red so I could watch the action!
The dog catcher must be a pro. He bribed, treated and lassoed the dog all in one swoop. Then he walked him to the van and put him in. Stray Pit Bull off the streets! Yes! I felt so good watching the dog get caught. And of course, right up the street walking toward the spot where the dog had just been was a family with a little dog, a stroller and a small child. I am so very glad I called and reported that dog!
Friday, March 4, 2011
Magical Day at Disneyland
After a couple of hours of morning laziness on one of the last days of February, I loaded up the kids and our coats and off we went for a cool day at Disneyland. The high was supposed to be 62, brrr! But it wasn't supposed to rain, so I figured it would be a great day as long as we are dry. Plus, two of my friends were texting me saying they were going and I should too.
I decided to be brave, very brave - I took the single stroller! And I didn't haul around a potty chair! I managed to pack everything we'd need into one bag too. I was really traveling light today! I stopped for some cash at the magic money machine (ATM) to cover whatever I've forgotten to bring along. I also stopped to get gas. Holy Gas Pumps! The price of gas shot up like a weed in summer! I'm gonna have to start staying home.
Since we were meeting up with friends, we ended up spending more time on Main Street than we ever have before. Usually, we shoot right up Main Street to the best part of Disneyland: Sleeping Beauty's Castle. We barely notice Main Street, we just dodge the horse drawn buggies and the wild motorized wheelchairs and go right up to the castle.
Today, we visited with characters and then went into the Fire House. That was nice! After climbing around in there for a bit, we wandered up and got a treat in the bakery. Yummy!
We made our way up to the Hub where Walt is holding Mickey's hand. That's where my friends all decided to feed their babies, rest and relax on the benches. But my girls were going crazy wanting to get inside that castle! So I took them and ended up with one extra to the castle. Gracie and Jillian were holding hands and walking - as always both of them were talking a mile a minute at the same time. They managed to trip over each other and they both did a belly flop to the bricks! Now I had two crying kids laying face down in front of the castle. Oh, no.
Luckily, the magic of Disneyland cured them both pretty fast. We checked to see if their knees still bent and their arms still wiggled and their toes could still dance around. All was well! Whew!
I took the three of them through the arches of the castle and straight to our favorite stroller parking spot - right by the exit of the Sleeping Beauty story. We we walked up and over and through the castle in Sleeping Beauty's story. We always run past Maleficent and hang on tight together so she won't scare us! And we always stop at the end and watch Aurora's dress turn pink and blue and pink and blue. We never leave till it's pink.
Once we exited, we went right to the stroller and we were nearly run over by a herd of Alice in Wonderland characters! It was great! They ran right past us and they even patted Gracie and Jillian on their heads as they rushed by.
How NOT to navigate your way around Disneyland: Ask a 2, 3, and 4 yr old what they all want to do next. You'll get 50 different answers in a split second. Luckily, most of the answers led in the same direction so we went that-a-way. And wouldn't you know it, nobody was in the teacup for once! How do you like your tea? Three lumps of sugar for me!
Jillian had never been on the Storybook Canal ride and we hadn't been on it in ages, so we got in line for that. The line really didn't look very long until we figured out it was really very thin lines so the people were que'ed up pretty tightly: a small space, a mile of people. The canal boats are constantly loading and unloading passengers so the line moved along. The girls were wound up and excited, so even a moving line was pretty hard for them. My apologies to everyone in line with us.
Once we got in the boat, Jillian wondered if it was like the Pirate ride and she got really nervous really fast! She buried her head in her mom and feared for her life as we entered the mouth of the whale. She just knew there would be a big drop and a splash! It was smooth sailing right on through that whale and out the other side. We had some very happy girls!
My other friend was busy holding down a bench. She is pregnant and in that super-exhausted stage of the game, the first trimester. She sent her husband to hold a place for us in line at Small World. Awesome!
We all gathered and got in line with Mr. Placeholder, and that is when we realized we were a pretty big group! Nine of us all together! My apologies to all the people in line behind us as we hopped over the rope and didn't wait anywhere near as long as we should have. Really, you didn't want us to. Just ask the people in the Storybook Land line!
We boarded a boat and I handed my camera to my friend in the front. She held it way out over the water without using the precautionary wrist strap and snapped a picture of all of us. Don't we look excited? We don't know the people in the back row of our boat, they just got lucky and rode with us.
See that? 5 little girls! We were outnumbered as parents, and somehow, we still managed to dodge the next attraction: Princess Fantasy Faire. This one is hard to dodge, but it's another long line. It is rarely under an hour long wait and the line is long and boring. We tootled on over to Toon Town to visit everyone's favorite mouse. Minnie!
We all decided that we were all hungry and wanted to go home, and by "we" I mean the grown-ups. The kids were fine and had hours and hours of energy left in them! My favorite place to eat is the Test Pilot Burger Grill in California Adventure. What is that from Toon Town, a three mile hike? Jillian and her mom and baby decided to head home and the other family wanted to head over to Critter Country to see if they could find Winnie the Pooh before he was done for the day. It was great to be with friends at Disneyland, but we all went our separate ways.
Libby fell asleep, but we decided to try to visit Rapunzel and Flynn Rider before we went to eat. She wasn't at all excited about getting close to the characters today anyway. We got to the Tangled que and guess what, the line was closed so that Rapunzel and Flynn could take a short break. They would open the line back up at 4:45 and the characters would return at 5pm. Ok, we had 45 minutes so we went to the Mexican restaurant around the bend.
We decided to just walk and wander while Libby slept. We found a "stage" in Frontierland where Gracie could put on a show, and she did. She danced but didn't sing. I applauded enthusiastically when she finished and then I asked her why she didn't sing. She said "because a man was on his phone". Oh. Nothing like learning manners from your own kid. I am so proud of her! And I feel like Grover at the end of his Monster book. You know the one.
Then we strolled into the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. I don't like to tempt and tease my child, but my inner child wanted to go in there so very badly! In we went! What a gift shop! We saw all the beautiful princess wear and accessories, took mental notes of the prices. Ouch. And then we peeked in the back to watch little girls getting their hair and makeup done princess style. Oh how wonderful! I asked for a price list to satisfy my curiosity and shock myself back into reality. It worked. One of the best things in this store was a stained glass window. I think it would be a beautiful quilt pattern!
We left the shop and Gracie cried and gave me the biggest sad face she could make. Ok, we can mark that stop off of our list of Disneyland experiences. Done. No need to return, it's just too wonderful and expensive.
Ignoring my daughters sobs and pleas for over priced princess gear, I noticed a door on the back of the castle that I don't remember ever seeing before. Another gift shop? No signs. Hmmm. We peeked inside. Maybe it is a secret "Cast Members Only" room! Nope, it's even better! It is a room where you can view a video of the Sleeping Beauty castle tour (which is mostly stairs). It is a nice small room, beautifully decorated with a big bench that can only be described with a gasp and a WOW!
Libby woke up from her nap in here. I was thinking this would be a great place to nurse a baby, except for the camera in the ceiling. Otherwise it was a perfect little resting spot away from the crowds. Even though it was a small space it was a magical transition into the old days of royal princesses. The bench and the items in the display case looked like museum pieces. What a treasure!
We went out through the front of the castle and headed toward Main Street. I was worn out and ready to go home. Of course, the girls were not. Since Libby just woke up, we headed to the baby center so that she could go potty on the tiny toddler toilets. Gracie didn't have to go, so we were safe to use the tiny toilets just for Libby. Only children under 42" are allowed to use the itty bitty potties. Gracie is 43" tall. They have two toddler toilets and no regular sized toilets. The toddler toilets aren't out in the open, but they aren't all that private either. Oh well, so we went in and Gracie suddenly had to go too. Ok, go.
The girls were each sitting on a pot and I told Gracie, "ok, get up now". She says "No, I'm pooping". Oh no! Not here! I don't wanna stink up the whole baby center! Yuck! Libby is done and putting herself back together and I say to Gracie, "Honey, get up, let's go" and she says "I'm still pooping". OMG! The stink! And she's STILL pooping! Finally, she got up and the turd that was in the bowl was ENORMOUS! Not kidding, that turd must have been 14" long. Not even sure how it all fit in the potty! So we flush and the water spun around and the turd just sat there, wedged in the top part of the bowl! NO!!! Go down! Bend! Break in half! Go Away!! It finally gave and went down, but geez, I thought for sure my kid who was just over the height max for using those toddler toilets just clogged it up. How on earth can anyone poop a turd that big? I'm afraid to ever go in there again.
We fled out of the baby center and went down Main Street. I asked the girls if they would like to see the cartoon movies. Cartoon movies? They were thrilled. Yes! Another Disneyland first! I thought the movie theater was a sit-down place with old cartoons looping one after another. I was wrong. It has six screens in one room, all old cartoons that I was hoping to see looping continuously. But there was no seating. There was an elevated platform in the middle of the room, not sure why. Hmm. I thought this would be one of those nice little resting places at Disneyland, but it isn't. It is pretty nice, but without seats I was a wee bit disappointed. The girls liked the cartoons but they weren't thrilled. I bet they'll like it better if I take them on a hundred degree day and it's air conditioned inside. I probably will too.
Next stop, another place I've heard about but never stopped in. The Magic Shop. This place was amazing! Disney magic at its best! It was a lot smaller than I imagined, the three of us fit in the store and that's just about all the room there was. There is a vast array of magic trick merchandise on the wall and a big counter with magicians running the store. I told Gracie to ask one if he knew any magic tricks. She did.
He was very enthusiastic and he came out from behind the counter, put on a black jacket and top hat and did a magic show just for Gracie! He took one playing card and spun it around in the air, making it float and twirl around. It was amazing! It disappeared for a minute and he found it in Gracie's ear! The look on her face was Disneyland Magic Amplified! He made that card dance in mid-air again and then he gave it to her! Ever see a child with eyes as big as the moon? She was so amazed and mystified! She just loved it! And she got to keep the magic card, which she carried as if it was the most valuable treasure in the land.
She carried her treasured magic card around for three days, including giving it a space on her pillow at night. She couldn't get it to spin or float, but she stared at it and you could see the wheels turning in her head. She thought long and hard about those few minutes in the Magic Shop. It was by far our best stop of the day!
Considering we didn't see a parade, any shows, and rode only two rides, we somehow managed to have a fabulous full day at Disneyland once again! We did lots of new things, ate well, rested well, and had a lot of fun! Libby wore her Minnie Mouse coat after the sun went down, so cute! We left at 6:20 and got home at 7:30. The kids slept from 6:25 til 7:30. That was my biggest mistake! We left too early. Those carseats are way too comfortable and they were recharged for the evening! I couldn't get them settled down before 11pm which made for a pretty short night for this exhausted mommy. I think one more hour would have been all we needed to put them out for the night. Can't wait to go to Disneyland again! I think I can squeeze in one more trip before I need to renew my pass.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
My House isn't Photogenic
We are taking in a foreign exchange student next school year and our host family application asks for photos of our house. Well, darn, my house just isn't photogenic! I have lots of photos, but they all look chaotic and messy. Funny how I think my house is nice and neat and then I take a picture and immediately think the room looks chaotic in the photo.
Since the photos I need to submit are for an application, it feels like I need to submit showroom type pictures of my house. I'm being judged. We've already been approved and we already have open communication with the student and her family, but still... this is stressing me out.
Photos I need to submit are:
1. Front of the house. We have no grass. Our little bitty patch of front yard is complete dirt, it has a few weeds growing in it. We had a big giant tree ripped out of the front and for some reason, my husband is not too quick about getting the grass growing again. I would plant some grass seeds, but he said something about wanting to till it up some more to get out more of the tree roots. I don't know; it's his project and I believe he's forgotten all about it. The hedges need to be trimmed too. They aren't overgrown, they are just not neat. The house looks like an abandoned foreclosure the way it is. Luckily, I found an old photo of the front of the house, it looks very nice and really, the house hasn't changed, just the grass.
2. The family. Oh, Good one! I have a great photo of the four of us taken less than a year ago by a professional! We all look great too!
3. Living room or Family Room: Oh boy. The living room looks cluttered because we have the tv and movies and all of that electronic junk exposed. Toys on the floor, or in the little basket I keep in the living room for stray toys. When it gets full, I take it to the toy room and dump it into a toy box; next thing you know, it's full again. Toys are always migrating to the living room. Blankets, pillows, coffee cups, remotes, box of kleenex, books, etc. We like to be comfy when we watch TV. When I get my living room all clean, then you can see the saggy furniture. We were going to buy a new couch, but decided to wait until the littlest one is completely potty trained. Why risk it with new furniture?
The Family room looks good. Except for the Christmas decorations that I just realized are still sitting at the very top of the bookcase. What? How did I not see that before? And we have a big piece of styrofoam stuck in our fireplace to block out the cold air that shoots down the chimney every night. Gee, that looks lovely in a photo.
Student's bedroom: Oh, easy, it's clean and pretty! Oh wait, no it isn't. I recently decided to clean out the stuffed closet in that room and pulled everything out. Of course I was interrupted a million times; this project is still in progress. Currently, it looks like the closet exploded. I shoved everything to the side and managed to take a picture of the good half of the bedroom. They want the picture to include the bedroom window, so it worked out. I need to buy a bed frame for this bed, we had one but when we rearranged the bedrooms, the frame went under a different bed and we ended up with a bed and frame that do not match. Ooops.
Student's Bathroom: Heehee, this should be funny. The student will be sharing a bathroom with the little girls. I tidied up the bathroom, which was nothing more than picking up the Dora panties and making sure the toilet was flushed. Otherwise, it looked pretty good. I left the toys in the tub and the Princess potty seat attached to toilet. I tried to show the floor, sink and countertop and the pretty light fixture, but couldn't get all of it in one picture. The room is small, it's not like you can back up and get a good shot of the whole thing.
Kitchen: Oh my stars! Really? My kitchen is in constant chaos! There are always dishes in the sink, dishes in the drainboard, stuff on the counter, toys on the floor, the mess is in constant motion. Pick up one thing and another thing is set out. I don't have enough cupboard space for all of the food and all of the dishes, which leads to a continuous rotation of what's out and what's behind closed cupboard doors. This is going to take some work to get a nice photo of my kitchen.
Other 1 & 2: Hmm, I suppose I can submit a photo of the back yard, and then what? The man room would be good because it is full of guitars and drums and computers and such. Teenagers like that. How about my clutter filled garage? The toy room? oh, I know! The Stairs! I think I'll take a pic of the dining room, that should take care of it. If I do that, I need to clean the wall of mirrors. Who puts up a wall that is completely a mirror anyway? That does it, an old picture of the back yard (because it never looks good in the winter when we don't water very much), and the dining room taken at an angle where you can't see into the living room at the saggy old couch in the mirror. No, wait, a picture of Sandy and a picture of the big sisters! That'll be better. Yeah, that's it.
It wasn't this picture, but now I can't find the one I sent in. Hmmm. Or maybe I can't remember what I sent in, that might be it.
My house is being lived in. The application doesn't specify that the photos are supposed to be showroomific, but I assume they should look like magazine pictures. I would love to live in a perfectly neat and tidy home all the time, but it just doesn't work like that.
This is really putting me in the mood to declutter and get rid of stuff! Maybe I'll start with my forgotten Christmas decorations on top of the bookcase. Most of them are gifts given to my husband from his students, dollar store knick-knacks.
I'm off to clean another room and take a photo worthy of the application! Which doesn't even matter because our student has already seen a bunch of photos of our family and our house, just not empty rooms like this. Can you tell I'm sort of stressing about these pictures? I'm just rambling!
Oh well, only 3 more months in this house anyway. And then we'll have a bigger house with more room for the kids and furniture and dishes and things. So why am I submitting pictures?
Since the photos I need to submit are for an application, it feels like I need to submit showroom type pictures of my house. I'm being judged. We've already been approved and we already have open communication with the student and her family, but still... this is stressing me out.
Photos I need to submit are:
1. Front of the house. We have no grass. Our little bitty patch of front yard is complete dirt, it has a few weeds growing in it. We had a big giant tree ripped out of the front and for some reason, my husband is not too quick about getting the grass growing again. I would plant some grass seeds, but he said something about wanting to till it up some more to get out more of the tree roots. I don't know; it's his project and I believe he's forgotten all about it. The hedges need to be trimmed too. They aren't overgrown, they are just not neat. The house looks like an abandoned foreclosure the way it is. Luckily, I found an old photo of the front of the house, it looks very nice and really, the house hasn't changed, just the grass.
2. The family. Oh, Good one! I have a great photo of the four of us taken less than a year ago by a professional! We all look great too!
3. Living room or Family Room: Oh boy. The living room looks cluttered because we have the tv and movies and all of that electronic junk exposed. Toys on the floor, or in the little basket I keep in the living room for stray toys. When it gets full, I take it to the toy room and dump it into a toy box; next thing you know, it's full again. Toys are always migrating to the living room. Blankets, pillows, coffee cups, remotes, box of kleenex, books, etc. We like to be comfy when we watch TV. When I get my living room all clean, then you can see the saggy furniture. We were going to buy a new couch, but decided to wait until the littlest one is completely potty trained. Why risk it with new furniture?
The Family room looks good. Except for the Christmas decorations that I just realized are still sitting at the very top of the bookcase. What? How did I not see that before? And we have a big piece of styrofoam stuck in our fireplace to block out the cold air that shoots down the chimney every night. Gee, that looks lovely in a photo.
Student's bedroom: Oh, easy, it's clean and pretty! Oh wait, no it isn't. I recently decided to clean out the stuffed closet in that room and pulled everything out. Of course I was interrupted a million times; this project is still in progress. Currently, it looks like the closet exploded. I shoved everything to the side and managed to take a picture of the good half of the bedroom. They want the picture to include the bedroom window, so it worked out. I need to buy a bed frame for this bed, we had one but when we rearranged the bedrooms, the frame went under a different bed and we ended up with a bed and frame that do not match. Ooops.
Student's Bathroom: Heehee, this should be funny. The student will be sharing a bathroom with the little girls. I tidied up the bathroom, which was nothing more than picking up the Dora panties and making sure the toilet was flushed. Otherwise, it looked pretty good. I left the toys in the tub and the Princess potty seat attached to toilet. I tried to show the floor, sink and countertop and the pretty light fixture, but couldn't get all of it in one picture. The room is small, it's not like you can back up and get a good shot of the whole thing.
Kitchen: Oh my stars! Really? My kitchen is in constant chaos! There are always dishes in the sink, dishes in the drainboard, stuff on the counter, toys on the floor, the mess is in constant motion. Pick up one thing and another thing is set out. I don't have enough cupboard space for all of the food and all of the dishes, which leads to a continuous rotation of what's out and what's behind closed cupboard doors. This is going to take some work to get a nice photo of my kitchen.
Other 1 & 2: Hmm, I suppose I can submit a photo of the back yard, and then what? The man room would be good because it is full of guitars and drums and computers and such. Teenagers like that. How about my clutter filled garage? The toy room? oh, I know! The Stairs! I think I'll take a pic of the dining room, that should take care of it. If I do that, I need to clean the wall of mirrors. Who puts up a wall that is completely a mirror anyway? That does it, an old picture of the back yard (because it never looks good in the winter when we don't water very much), and the dining room taken at an angle where you can't see into the living room at the saggy old couch in the mirror. No, wait, a picture of Sandy and a picture of the big sisters! That'll be better. Yeah, that's it.
It wasn't this picture, but now I can't find the one I sent in. Hmmm. Or maybe I can't remember what I sent in, that might be it.
My house is being lived in. The application doesn't specify that the photos are supposed to be showroomific, but I assume they should look like magazine pictures. I would love to live in a perfectly neat and tidy home all the time, but it just doesn't work like that.
This is really putting me in the mood to declutter and get rid of stuff! Maybe I'll start with my forgotten Christmas decorations on top of the bookcase. Most of them are gifts given to my husband from his students, dollar store knick-knacks.
I'm off to clean another room and take a photo worthy of the application! Which doesn't even matter because our student has already seen a bunch of photos of our family and our house, just not empty rooms like this. Can you tell I'm sort of stressing about these pictures? I'm just rambling!
Oh well, only 3 more months in this house anyway. And then we'll have a bigger house with more room for the kids and furniture and dishes and things. So why am I submitting pictures?
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