Ever heard of "Pulling Money"?

 Anna Jane has lost another tooth! After the two bottoms were lost a year ago--she has finally lost a front tooth...and with a little help, too! During one of our Friday night gatherings, Mary Hunter took one gander at that dangling digit and made it her mission to prevent Anna Jane from choking on that tooth in her sleep. I've heard a lot about that in the news lately, haven't you? Children dying in their sleep having choked on a tooth that somehow comes out during their slumber? Hmmm...me neither...Before I knew it, there was a conversation about "Pulling Money". Yup, Anna Jane realized the potential for making some cash and agreed to let Mary Hunter take a closer look. I was totally queasy about the whole business...exposed roots, twisting, blood, gaping holes....argh! Wigged me out, totally! Anna Jane laid down with her head in Mary Hunter's lap while MH "inspected" the targeted tooth. With Kleenex in hand, MH gripped the tooth and distracted Anna Jane by telling her to look at something on the TV. Anna Jane turned her head, the Kleenex and tooth stayed in their coordinate plane and VIOLA! No more perfect smile...I am now the Mom to a Snaggler! Just in time for our beach portraits...oh well. We can immortalize the child of six with a gapped up smile.



She's cute, huh?




Anna Jane earned $1 as "Pulling Money"

During this visit, the Tooth Fairy brought 2 GOLD DOLLAR COINS! Wow! Anna Jane is saving every penny for her Disney visit later this month.
and yes...I've spied her checking her mouth for loose teeth!

Birthday Weekend Get-Away!

The most thoughtful gift...ever. Our friends, Mary Hunter and Amanda, gave Otis a weekend of childcare but they gave Anna Jane lots of memories to treasure!

When Otis's birthday, March 18, was approaching, the girls didn't know what to get him. They came up with idea of allowing the two of us to scamper off on a weekend away while they babysat Anna Jane. Mary Hunter picked up Anna Jane at school on Friday afternoon. Otis and I had delivered Anna Jane safely to school that morning and then we headed for the hills! I rented a cute little cabin, just 10 minutes from downtown Asheville.It could definitely accommodate 6. Great movie collection, comfortable furniture, good linens, fully equipped kitchen (I cooked every night, but we did splurge on brunch downtown on Sunday), a fabulous shower room and a perfect hot tub. We soaked, gazed at stars and planned for the future. Sorry, no pictures from that!

Alexander's Cabin was our "home away from home" for the weekend. It was secluded enough to feel private, but very convenient to shopping, restaurants, etc. This is a pet-friendly rental. Carly enjoyed the entire experience! A pot of happy, yellow tulips greeted us when we arrived. A personalized dog biscuit was a nice treat for Carly Jean! They also had a collection of leashes, doggie waste bags, towels and bedding material.

We were able to just chill. We knew that Anna Jane was having lots of adventures and much pampering! The weekend was fun-filled for that little girl, for sure! Amanda and Mary Hunter took Anna Jane out to dinner on Friday night to a kid's favorite: Pizza Inn! During the weekend, they shopped, they enjoyed "Farm Life", they crashed Hunter and Janie's house for dinner! Most importantly, Anna Jane got to spend some time away from The Parental Units.

 and relax, we did. Otis still needs a little more practice at the "chillin'" lifestyle! Note his tightly tied shoes compared to my relaxed, sockey feet!

I'll drink to that!

Special thanks to our friends. They probably have no idea how much Otis appreciated their gift (he has YET to write his thank-you note! GRRR). It's very meaningful to us, as parents, when others take an interest in our child and enjoy her company. Time invested in a kid is probably the greatest gift that one could give. Although this weekend scheme was a gift TO Otis, the person who benefited the most was surely Anna Jane.

Thank you again, girls. Hope you read this. Hope you know how much you are loved and appreciated.

Read Across America Week



Some of our favorites!



Read Across America Poem

~Courtesy of the NEA

You're never too old, too wacky, too wild,

To pick up a book and read with a child.

You're never too busy, too cool, or too hot,

To pick up a book and share what you've got.

In schools and communities,

Let's gather around,

Let's pick up a book,

Let's pass it around.

There are kids all around you,

Kids who will need

Someone to hug,

Someone to read.

Come join us March 2nd

Your own special way

And make this America's

Read to Kids Day.

365 Project

I am going to be participating in the 365 Project. I've committed to posting one picture a day for the next year. Check out the site by clicking here or at other times, you can access the project from the link on the right. I figured that I could kill two birds with one stone by posting the project pictures and then blogging about any events/pictures that didn't quite make the cut for that day--not that I'm going to be blogging every day--come on now, don't be crazy!
My button, "Comment make me happy" is really true. Those who know me, understand that I need to be stroked, encouraged and validated. High maintenance indeed!

Look what I found today.

Guess my hopes for another snow day have been dashed!

I knew this would happen if I bought snow pants!

(and I look really cute in them!)

Does this constitute animal cruelty?

He is so handsome.

He was trying on my shoes this morning...

and I'm talking about Yoohoo.

I know you can't read this, but it is measuring 78 degrees!

Love it.

Cat in the Sink

Get more Myspace layouts and MySpace Graphics at pYzam.

 Our cat-he likes the sink.

"That's weird.", I hear you think.

A place that's cold and hard and wet

Where you go to get a drink.

But no--it's like a cave

It's warm and smooth and safe.
The kid can't see him, the dog can't reach him.
As far as hideways, it's his fave!

Watch "Hoarders: Buried Alive" and then strangely...get motivated!!

November 2006--that is the last time that the pantry shelves were bare! When we moved in, our friend, Mary Hunter, took on the daunting task of organizing the pantry. She did a wonderful job...but over time...it was getting crazy in there! I took time this week to cull, organize and clean the pantry. There were some very awesome things that I found that I will be looking for a use for, such as:
saffron threads
nori seaweed sheets for sushi
anise extract
lots of really cute cookie cutters

Now I will not be using those ingredients/tools for one dish. I just don't want you waiting for an update on the seaweed saffron anise cookies!


 I know that it is a bit OCD to take pictures of one's pantry! I know, I know. I was just very pleased with myself!

Our friend, John, once said the if he got locked in our pantry and had to survive--he'd starve! He said that all we had in there was ingredients--not any food! That made me chuckle. But it did make a point: we are such an immediate gratification society PLUS we are all over-scheduled, over-worked, and over-tired.Too many families have found themselves getting trapped in that dangerous and unhealthy cycle of prepared foods. Do you realize how much easier it would be to pop some chicken nuggets in the microwave or to use "Hamburger, chicken, tuna, whatever Helper"? Hey, we all resort to fast and easy at times. It just bothers me that so many kids don't have a clue what goes into making a dinner. Just sayin'...
** By the way, do you see my neat little stash of Skyline chili stacked on the bottom shelf next to the tuna??? Mmmmm...can't wait for cold weather! Been saving it since a little fairy put it in my trunk during our Cincinnati visit this summer!

Oh yeah, my spice rack...you may not be able to tell from this picture, but yes...all the herbs and spices are alphabetized. I will never forget a couple of girls sneaking into my pantry during a Drunko, I mean Bunco, get together. They were in there for only a few seconds, but they totally screwed up my whole system! Julie! Cindy! You know who you are! All you could hear from behind the door was squealing and giggling! They knew that they had pushed my button!! During today's job, I threw out lots of outdated spices. I really wish that the manufacturer would put an "use by" date on the label. I did find a few that did have that. (the chili powder that said use by 9/00---I'm assuming that it was Sept. 2000. I tossed it!)

This is obviously my baking section. Do you see the huge collection of colored sugars, sprinkles and decorations that is on the second shelf, far right? It will be cookie time before we know it! Can't wait to do this with Anna Jane and my Mom.

And what pantry or closet is complete without a bit of wall art? The plaque, from our friend, Amanda, says,

"We will drink no wine before it's time. It's time."

Hope you enjoyed the tour! It satisfied my need to show my work!

Stay tuned for next week: cleaning out the sock and underwear drawer

just kidding!

Good Morning, Sunshine!

In order to rise and shine, one must have the means to rise on time! To prepare Anna Jane for kindergarten, we had been "practicing" getting up early. After years of 9am preschool 3 days a week and PJ Thursdays, it's safe to say that this household was a bit slack on morning wake-up time!
Luckily, Anna Jane's school schedule is not too brutal. Check-in time is 8:30-8:50am.  After searching on-line and one unsuccessful attempt--the coveted "Hello, Kitty!" alarm clock was procured! It is not ordinary alarm clock--it has: am/fm, CD, wake to music or buzzer (more on that in a minute) and the mandatory snooze function.
Anna Jane quickly programmed it for a lovely classical station, which would ultimately be her downfall...

The first few days of school, I think Anna Jane popped out of bed and into her clothes in record time. As the days and weeks have progressed...the newness of kindergarten has worn off. I would get up, shower and dress and listen for her footsteps upstairs. It became clear that she takes after her Mama in many ways; including having the ability to sleep through her alarm. This alarm is LOUD. When she goes to bed at night, she likes the "sleep to music" feature. Otis and I can hear her music downstairs. This is the same volume that is used to wake her, well that is supposed to wake her. After several mornings of having to rouse her from under the covers, we finally had to have a "heart to heart" talk. I told her that if she didn't wake to the music, perhaps the BUZZER function would have to be set instead. She became very upset by this idea. I couldn't figure out why she was so hysterical about losing the music. Finally, after letting her calm down, we delved into why she was crying. She said, "Mama, no one told me that the music was my alarm. I hear it and wake up, but I just add it to my dream and go back to sleep." Gosh. No one told her. We assumed that she would know. Our prior knowledge and her lack of experience set us all up for failure. We would never give her a game without explaining the rules. We wouldn't give her a toy without giving her the guidelines, like: only use this outside or when the light comes on--it's ready. We wouldn't ask her to help us cook without teaching her the techniques as we went along.
This episode has taught us a lesson. It's easy for forget that she is only 5 years old. I have shoes that are waaaaaaay older than her. She's only a little person even though she can talk and reason. Once the diapers and sippy cups are gone it's too easy to make our kids grow up too fast. I'm stopping to smell the roses along the way from now on...and the dandelions, which Anna Jane thinks are the prettiest flowers by far.
Again, knowledge will soon enough change that.

PS-she hopped out of bed with enthusiasm this morning and danced to her music! what a way to start your day!