Thanksgiving for our missionary

I am preparing a thanksgiving package with turkey (jerky), cornbread mix, bacon bits, pkg mashed potatoes, pkg raspberry jello, canned raspberries , pkg dream whip, stuffing mix, canned green beans, toasted onion rings, napkins, paper plates etc and of course a note of how thankful I am for her decision to serve and just for her in general. Any ideas what else I could put in.....all help would be most appreciated. I am trying to keep it light and have some fun while providing some thanksgiving trimmings for her to enjoy. You are welcome to send anything you think would be fun to her directly or to me to be included in the package. I will mail it sometime mid november when I am sure her address wont change again. She is awaiting changes next week and doesnt know whether she is leaving or staying so I am holding off until I get her next letter to send anything but letters or emails. Thanks for all the support you give her, she loves you all very much. Love you.

Who you callin' a pig???

OINK OINK OINK... I'm the little piggy with the curly tail! No really, there is a curly tail on the back of that beanie! So for Halloween this year, I decided to make my little piggy... well... a piggy. I couldn't think of anything more fitting for her at this time.

This is how Charlie rolls at the trunk or treat (the fine print says "Please don't feed the animals". A la la la la. Stephen even downloaded piggy noises to my ipod and put the doc station in the wagon (and covered it with the quilt) and blared pig noises as we strolled around the trunk or treat.

That's right folks, Stephen and I got into the holiday spirit as well and dressed up as PIG FARMERS! I even blacked out one of my front teeth (did you know they sell tooth paint specifically for that?). It was quite a conversation piece- some of the girls were very worried for me..."What if it doesn't come off and you show up like that to church tomorrow??"
Needless to say, we were a hit! We even decorated our car for the trunk or treat in the same theme, with scarecrows and hay bales and pumpkins. It was a great night... except for one tragedy... Charlie arrived home with only ONE piggy booty on her foot. The other is MIA. We searched the church parking lot and the baseball fields where the Chili Cook off was, but no luck. Here's hoping someone happened across it and will bring it to us at church tomorrow... sigh...

Update...

Don't mess with me. I'll wear you down until I get what I want...and that's what it took to get nursing school postponed. Success! Sort of, I mean. I would love to start nursing school in the winter but since that isn't an option, I'll take fall over summer any day. Who wants to spend all day in school during the summer time?

Me vs. the Director of Fresno City College Nursing School

That's right...tomorrow I go convince this lady that I should get to defer my summer enrollment in the nursing program...I'm nervous. I wish I knew whether or not I got in to the other nursing program but nonetheless...I have to try, right? I'm bringing some tobasco sauce and onions in my purse so if necessary I can put some in my eyes and create some tears. (I'm not much of a crier, you know). So, wish me luck...and if you care to, pray for me!

Embracing the inner craft mama

I have been crafty lately! Who knew? This is what I've been up to. The best part is that I had all of this fabric already. It cost me nothing. And that's about how much I like to pay.




These babies are for the girls. We learned to do this at our Not Super Saturday (not allowed to have those any more). They are the cutest rag bags ever and perfect for church bags.



I love love love headbands for the girls. I make them every which way and to match whatever outfit they're wearing the next day. It is so much fun! And, it is the only thing the girls will keep in their hair. Again...stuff I already had on hand except the headbands which I got 3 for $1 at the Dollar Store.


And finally...these cute twirly skirts for the girls. They are going to be "witches" or something like that...I'm not finished making their t-shirts cute. I'm thinking ruffles...rosettes...the possibilities are endless. The skirts are my first attempt at any clothing item for the girls. I just followed an online tutorial (free). You can't tell, but there are PLEATS people...PLEATS! THIS is definitely why I had girls! My poor boys are getting the shaft on the crafty cuteness but I don't think they mind too much...they wouldn't look good in headbands anyway.

Malia at her finest...

We were at a football game and Malia had brought old blankey and new blankey. After several minutes, she ran over to me and handed me her blankets and said, "Mom, pretend like these are Sierra's okay?" I said, "why?" She responded..."because my kindergarden friend is here."

SO...not only does she get that she is too old to be dragging blankies around, but she also found an innocent skape goat! Sierra is her little friend who is only 4...