tuesday february 16, 2010.
Category Archives: family funeveryone was home on monday at our house.
we ate pizza and drove home. the rest of this week is busy! that movie was pee wee big adventure. :) Grumpa! 🙂 Very brave bowling shot. My bowling shots were cropped. Although today I have one posted in my bathing suit. From the shoulders up : ) Whenever someone told me “It just gets busier” I thought they were looney. Now it’s what I tell my sisters who have younger children. I’m sure they are rolling their eyes thinking I have it so easy… ah, little does the grumpy old man know that we all know who he is now. (well, sort of.) i did a great impression of grumpy old man from SNL back in the days. nowadays, i prefer criag ferguson’s impression of old men. 🙂 LOVE snow days 🙂 And I am CRACKING up….My hubby actually BOUGHT Pee Wee’s Big Adventure last week and we watched it the other night!!!!! “Can you say ADOBE??” heee heeee 🙂 Don’t you just love B & N? I could stay in there all day long. Did you ROYGB the bowling balls? Fun pics- as usual! Love your picrures! My kids love Barnes & Noble! They can hang out in there for such a long time, peacefully. I love your pictures! The one of the bowling balls lined up is so neat. Great post! i swear we’re twin-bo’s! or twinkies! I’m hoping we get school off tomorrow! I have a programming class at 8 in the morning. LETS PRAY! oooh, I hate grumpy old men…love the rainbow of bowling balls, and I LOVE Pee Wee 🙂 Sounds like a good day! Ugh! I hate grumpy people, they suck the fun out of the air. My hubby is oblivious to it too. I wish I could be, but I can’t. Did you really ROYGBIV the bowling balls? That’s fabulous. Why is it that old people are either super sweet or really grumpy and irritable? Strange! Love all your pics. You sure have an awesome grandma! An exercise ball and weights? Wow! Your G-ma has weights and a ball? Holy Moly. I had to re-read that sentence thrice, so sure that I was reading it wrong. 🙂 Seems like a great day! We hd a snow day today to, heck..it’s still a blizzard outside. Darn new england! I always end up saying something to people like, I just can’t help myself. I love that line from Pee Wee! I also love when Simone tells him, “merci beaucoup” and he says, “merci blah blah”. You and your blog are such an inspiration to me! 🙂 Great to hear that your Grandma came to Australia. I live in Brisbane so hope she got to visit our city! our kids have been out of school for more than a week due to snow! Glad yall got out and had fun! crabby old people, bleah… and geesh, bowling alleys are SUPPOSED to be loud mr. grump! nice balls! 🙂 great colors! Sounds like a fun day. I like to act like I don’t love to bowl…but secretly I want to kick everyone’s butt and rule the game. Don’t get me and my husband together….because we could rule the world;-) Game on!! 🙂 These pics are fabulous! You truly captured your day. My favorites are the B&N ones and Annie in her time-out…the colors are amazing! BTW- I love polka dots/pots too!!! Looks like you guys had a fun time!! BUMMER about the GRUMP! LOVE the pic & circling of him, though. 🙂 he even looks like he’s covering his ear. 🙂 i went bowling yesterday with my oldest 2. we had the NICEST group of 20-something year old guys next to us, too. i heard ONE curse word slip & the guy covered his mouth & looked over at us [and the other groups with kids]. sharing pitchers of beer, being guy’s guys & being 20-something – they were STILL conscientious of fellow groups & families. made me happy to see such good, well-mannered people. sorry you guys had the opposite. such a bummer to be around people who suck all the good mood out of the air. 😛 and i liked your comparison to grumpy kids w/ time-outs. 🙂 so true! One of my favorite movies! Best line from Pee-Wee’s big adventure is, “I’m a rebel Dottie, you don’t want to get hooked up with a guy like me.” Love that line and I use it from time to time when I’m bothered. Looks like you had a great time with all your kiddos, despite the minor irritant (grumpy man). Have a blessed day. What a fun day! Love days like this to kick back and enjoy. Now today it’s back to reality with the mounting piles of laundry and dirt to scrub while they are in school…oh well! Sounds like a packed weekend. BTW, love the Pigeon books! The author visited my daughter’s school a few years back. They got to submit names to name his new book. Isabel’s was chosen (I am sure a few matched) but she won an autographed copy of the new book she helped name and a congratulations letter – it came from Disney. I resealed it and will let her have it when she’s older! She named it Pigeon wants a Puppy. lol… 🙂 i just woke my napping dog up by laughing at your simone quote hahahahahha I was so excited to comment since I knew the quote from Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. We own that movie, I love it. I’m so impressed with your rainbow colored bowling ball pic! Happy Picture! LOVE IT! I LOVE the pigeon books! What a fun family time. I just had to laugh at a couple of things. 1) Love the Pee Wee Herman line “big butt”. 2) Teen daughter on the cell phone. Which as you know is not for making phone calls at all…..it’s for texting. 3) I love the scripture truck. Thanks for sharing. We love bowling….I think I have some bowling photos on my blog too. I wouldn’t allow any rear end shots of me. What a fun day. I hate grumpy old folks too. It’s really a shame for their grandkids. I love that movie! what a fun family weekend! there is nothing like an time spend in a bookstore with a cup of coffee! sure makes for a perfect day. and ha, i laughed at the “better behave” comment b/c we def. had some of those growing up. Looks like a fun time! As always, cute pix. ohh, I love a day off of school so much! Ours went way too fast. Wish we’d gone bowling. Last time, we were next to a high school bowling team and their coach was sort of a grumpy gramps. He was swearing at them the whole time! I was like, “Dude!! Six year old over here!” well….that was a good weekend. i am sending in for my visa in the morning. i was running/walking on the treadmill this morning and everything felt like it's soooo heavy.
Meg, you’re awesome! I just checked out your Whatever Shop and had to buy the typewriter print. I also featured it on my blog http://www.simple-e-design.com in hopes to drive more traffic to your blog and etsy shop. Hope it helps w/ funds for your Africa trip, but more likely you’ll be the one helping whoever is reading, like you do for me! Can’t wait for my print 🙂 It’s soooo cool. Thanks for keeping me sane everyday! xoxo, Lisa I am LOVING your blog! So freakin’ cute! :^D my 4 year old, Autumn Grace, and i were checking out your pictures this morning. she loves to look with me. anyways, she had a little something to say here and there… like things we have that are similar. when we got the the picture of your son she said “well i dont know who he is, but he’s REALLY cracking my out”… that means cracking me up around here ;). thanks for all your beautiful pictures, you totally inspire me!!! hoping one day to have a good camera and take beautiful pics like you 🙂 i always love your randomness…. fruit loops have never looked so good I love all the pictures. I wish I had your creative eye. Why is it when one woman speaks “mom” (my kids would rather have a frozen dinner than me cook, or the laundry pile is so high I can’t see over it) we all can give a collective, “UMMMMM, HUMMMM.” The human expereince is really more the same than we think I suspect… Love, Love the sock monkey tee! Monkey with a bow? Too cute!! my favorite picture was the one of your daughter and her ‘baby’sweetly sleeping under her blanket:) You wanna know why I love you? Why I so totally enjoy looking at pictures of fabric, and yogurt, and children I do not even know? Your laundry pile is about as big as mine. I just can’t keep up with it & I only have 2 kids. I can’t imagine how out of control it would be if I had 5 kids! did you make Annie’s sock monkey shirt? LOVE it! My Kate would LOVE that! You should list those in your shop! Thanks for showing your laundry pile. It makes me feel better. Is that your picture that just made it into the first group finalists on Pioneer Woman? The cheerios picture up above is awfully similar to one in today selection. Great photos, Lauren looks so grown up., That awesome that your shop sold out Congrats, hope you get the $ you need towards your trip! ooh and love the fabric shot Okay, so you wash my pile that high, and I’ll fold them! Laundry’s everywhere. what great photos, i could relate to the pile of laundry 🙂 and a few others. we have a basketball player too! have a great week! susan Meg – Your pictures are so pretty! The bowl of fruit loops look really good at 1 am. BTW I just awarded you the Sunshine Blog Award. You can check it out at http://www.smallburst.com. Just add it to your umpteen awards! LOVE your honesty.. LOVE your heart. Glad to know a few other gals space out every so often. haha two thoughts…that you don’t have to reply to. 🙂 the mountain of laundry made me sigh. now that it’s just the hubster and i, i STILL look at my paltry little pile and avoid it. Is that your “cool new phone with texting”? Ha! 😉 Okay, now I have to go get chalk paint and paint a wall. I love that!! I love your random photos. Now THAT is real life! Some of them are just plain ART. And your kids are adorable. what parallel lives we lead! Looking at pictures of your kids makes me want to drop out of college and have a BABY!… but then I realize I only have one semester left and though babies are SO cute… the responsible thing is to just wait a few months… ah! You’re kiddo’s are cute though… that was the main thought. 😉 Meg, Love the posts where you just ramble and show random pics. Feels like I’m a fly on your wall:) Those were great! That one with your oldest and your sweet dog…just beautiful. She should go into modeling…gasp:o Cute pics, cute post…ugh I hate those laundry piles and “skin goggles” totally made me smile 🙂 Your photos are great!! Your mountain of laundry made me laugh out loud. I’ve been right there. {grin} Love all the pics! Skin goggles! Baaaaaahahahahah! Love the pics. We live in Kansas now…so question: Why do they say Rock Chalk Jayhawk? Thanks, Heather R. Love that pic with the tucked-in stuffed animal in the foreground and Annie in the background. Precious! You certainly are a BUSY woman! And going to Africa, too…aMaZiNg!!!! I love that your everyday life pictures are worth sharing….we love them as much as you do! love this post…we could be friends in real life. Favorite pic….Annie in the background coloring and her little kitty cat (?) all tucked in nice and cozy 🙂 HOW sweet is that????? love the everything pictures. just life – so great : ) Just discovered your blog via TaDa Creations… Thankyou thankyou for showing your laundry. I have a huge mountain in my house. Yours looks prettier somehow. I have a dream of someday having every bit of wash put away every sock matched, every bin empty. A crazy dream, maybe unatainable but it gets me through the day! Laundry totally multipies doesn’t it!!! Lope the pics… those all the fun colors you always have going in your house. Annie is adorable… love how she tucks in Micha… my girls do that too 🙂 Lauren is VERY beautiful 🙂 I love her hair, she is a total cutie! i love the glimpses you give of your life…..it’s so real! Seeing a little “ROCK CHALK” helps too! 😉 lauren is absolutely gorgeous. & i love hearing the tidbits of annie’s conversation. ha, sounds and looks familiar – i think i washed 7 laods of laundry this weekend and i am avoiding folding the last three loads cause i am worn out. i checked out the shop on saturday afternoon and it was almost gone even by then – how awesome that it sold out! i went to honduras last year all by myself – left the kiddos and husband at home – and it was so amazing. crazy hard and life changing. i pray that your africa prep continues to go smoothly. I love that you shared a pic of your laundry pile!! Mine looks the same way after a day of washing! Oh to be a fly on the wall when Annie is engaged in conversation – how cute it would be! I could look at pictures of your kids all day long! (Is that creepy? I don’t mean for it to be!) The picture of your oldest daughter is beautiful – the one with the dog. Look at those eye lashes! All of your kids are just adorable. Loved this post! Thanks for sharing a bit of your lovely & colorful life!! I can’t believe how much Waffle looks like our sheered-back Old English Sheepdog Gideon. Makes my heart melt looking at these two fellas. and you dropped your hat in the parking lot, it’s hanging behind the desk at the WC. Love your pictures!! Where is sweet Talby at? I love Annie’s tie-dyed dress…very cute. If I ever have a daughter I will make her a tie-dye dress 🙂 Thanks for giving us a snapshot of your weekend – I love the chalkboard wall! what a precious family!! Such a beautiful family you have, Meg. Such great pictures. The random everyday ones are the best. rock chalk, jayhawk. Um, those red and white curtains??? Did you make them? I am in love. How about posting some of those lovelies in your shop? 🙂 If you bought them, please tell me where they are from. I love your blog send ticket = someone to fold your laundry Skin goggles – love it! I have to ask again, because I’m a stalker like that. What kind of camera is it you have? I sooo need a new camera. then saying yes to making a cake isn't the best idea. while it cooked she got out all the things she wanted to put on the cake. i think they must have done it at sunday school or preschool…because we haven't ever done that. That’s so cute and she did a really good job! I love her cake, great job! WOW that is such a sugary cake– hehe! It does look yummy though- Annie did a great job 🙂 it’s like a gingerbread house…on a cake! so cute! great job for saying YES! AND for resisting the sugar. you are doing better than me! Jesus certainly would love it…and Annie is so very adorable! Yea for Annie! Great job! Kelly annie did such a wonderful job on decorating the cake who knowns she just might be a cake decorator when she growns up!! blessings. I don’t have kids of my own, but you’ve inspiring me to let my students be creative with more than just paper, scissors, and glue. Oh my gosh – Annie is so totally adorable and you are the very best mommy ever! I wish was I was more willing to allow my kiddos to be free to create. I’m going to get with God on that one. This is so awesome! We love singing happy birthday to Jesus too! Great post! That is awesome. So wonderful that you caught it all on camera! What a sweet day. Thanks for sharing. Still giggling about the Charlotte comment. 🙂 You need a like button for things like this. Super cool of you and her! She is so cute and you are a great mom. Very good for you about the sugar! That last photo is perfection. What a beautiful blessing God has given you. What a darling cake.. You are just an angel to sit through that and not eat the whole thing.. Loved the sweet smiles on her face.. That was a load of sugar in its self. Whewwwwwww, I can FEEL that sugar all the way across town! LOL! We don’t do a lot of sugar ourselves… but we let the grandkids do that when they are here. I’ve never been one to take much to sugary things, and amazingly, my own boys didn’t want lots of candy or stuff like that when they were growing up. i absolutely love your blog, so i nominated it for an award (over on my blog) I’ll bet someone has already said this (sorry, didn’t have time to check), but I know of a few people who make birthday cakes for Jesus on Christmas Eve or Day. They use white cake and white frosting (purity)…but the same idea your daughter had. Sing ‘Happy Birthday’, read the story of His birth, remember why we celebrate Christmas. I’m actually crying. How precious is that face?! And what a cake! She didn’t hold anything back, did she? 🙂 LOVE!! That girl ROCKS! Plus, it looks like she’s helping you out by getting all the sugar out of the house! LOVE this! This post cracks me up because I did that one year ago, and only made it until my daughters birthday. I baked her a wicked delicious birthday cake and as she stared at me with adorable 3 year old eyes saying “Mommy want some cake?” I caved, hard. But the exercise in self control really did make a difference to the cravings, both physically and mentally. I understand the whole sugar thing…but for me I’ve gone vegan and must leave the room when the cheese is out! Yes, happy birthday Jesus, He would love it…sugar and all! Kim oh. my. Goodness. Love, love. love it. This year we started our own tradition and sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and ate cake for breakfast before we read some children’s books about the true meaning of Christmas and then we enjoyed our stockings and presents. Our eight month old simply played along, but our three year old truly enjoyed celebrating Jesus’ birthday…who can say no to blowing out candles and eating cake when you’re three. I also wanted to thank you for your link to Rachel’s beautiful speech. I immediately linked my friends and family to her speech via our family blog and have scheduled it for viewing at our women’s bible study this week. I am so excited to watch it for the second time and absorb everything she has to share all over again. I like you have her voice in my mind and keep saying “I am here to serve with joy” over and over again. God bless you Meg. We are on a sugar holiday of sorts at our house too and it is BRUTAL! I wanted to share a little something I found that helps take the edge off. (I even sound like an addict. And don’t get me started on caffeine.) Have you tried “organic Raw Blue Agave”? It is low glyvemic and won’t spike your blood sugar like the good ol’ white stuff. Perfect in things that you need a little sweet…oatmeal, grape-nuts,tea, etc. My kids even eat it on pancakes. (My mom gave it to them and they didn’t know the difference.) fantastic. beautiful. Annie is so cute…cake was lovely…and I wish I had your will power…cutting back on all things bad for me…slowly but surely! Good Luck! What a sweet girl!! Love her fun cake, and singing to Jesus! That is truly the cutest thing ever! Annie is just about the cutest girl I have ever seen! And what a wonderfully creative cake…..I love it. We love to make cakes at our house, too. I need to learn to be a bit more hands-off, and I think I can do it after reading your post. I just can’t stand the sound of sprinkles crunching under my feet for the rest of the day 🙂 I love your blog!!! We sing happy birthday to Jesus every Christmas morning at breakfast. This year we sang 4 times in a row. It’s fun! I love Annie’s cake, and Jesus would love it too! :o) My girlies made a jesus cake for christmas, it is so much fun. I am amazed that you have all the lovely candy goodness in your cupboards, uneaten and waiting to be used on cakes. It would be gobbled up in my house. I have to do special runs to the supermarket when decorating calls. Loved the Rachel link. There should have been a kleenex alert before viewing. Great message. Great job staying away from the cake (& one finger lick is NOT a big deal)! I am new to commenting but definitely not new to reading. My sister in law is the one that made that cool scrapbook paper wall that you featured on your sidebar. Anyway, LOVE your blog! Oh yeah, and I made your crescent chicken yesterday and it turned out GREAT (and you’re right….no leftovers). I am a “mac n cheese” out of the box kind of gal so it was nice to find something so tasty that was super easy to make. Keep doin’ what you’re doin’! Laura’s comment is funny…”Jesus gave up sugar too”! Did she eat this cake after she made it? It looks way too sweet to actually eat! “But there was nothing else to do”???? She is just the cutest thing ever! Love the cake! A friend of mine did a “cake for Jesus” with her kids when they were little, so sweet. Love this post! She is an absolute doll. Seeing kids be imaginative & creative is the best! Good for you on the only licking your finger once… impressive!!! WOW!! She did an amazing job. I love your reference to that Sex in the City scene, so funny!!! I feel ya. I’m doing a no sugar thing too. I would have done the same thing. You are one strong chick to even stand that close to the cake, just the smell would do me in:) i absolutely love this…what an awesome memory for her… It’s perfect. 🙂 hi meg! quick and silly question for you. i think it was on your blog {in the sidebar} that you linked to this colorful canvas someone did that listed out their family goals. i can’t find that link in my bookmarks. do you know what i am talking about and if so, could you pass along the link to me again? thanks SO much!! Too sweet. 🙂 There is nothing like the precious heart of a child. Thank you for sharing! HOW AWESOME IS ANNIE!!!???? Well, we allll know that answer 🙂 Sweet Sweet Annie!!! I’m serious, I’ve said it before….my littlest guy will turn 5 in March….please let Annie marry him!!!! And then, I, too can have a Happy Birthday Jesus Cake made by Annie 🙂 (But we would make her go to OU football games!!! 😮 How cute! The way you are with your kids is so inspiring to new momma’s like me! The Charolette scene (and what followed) was great!! And the cake looks yummy! So sweet! You’ve inspired me to go on a sugar detox….I was getting so out of control. I haven’t had any in four days. Really, I can’t believe how much better I already feel. I do have to say, that is some real self control on your part! So sweet! That is the most darling cake I’ve ever seen. And your reference to Charlotte in the shower just made me laugh so hard I snorted. I showed this photo to my 4.5 year old. She said she wants to be Annie’s friend so she can make cakes with her. seriously? she is such a cute girl! that is one precious little girl. and one awesome mama. i love that you let her do it all. how special for her. and rewarding. and you didn’t go back for a second lick? impressive I don’t know hat was more beautiful her or the cake… Yes Jesus would love it it is fit for a KING! Happy Wednesday to you and yours. Beautiful! And the Charlotte comment had me cracking up – I’m pregnant and did that with raw cookie dough the other day – and I thought about the SAME exact thing! I hear that Jesus is off of sugar too Her bangs/haircut just kills me. She’s so freaking cute. And your sugar boycott is inspirational, although right now, I’m cutting sugar vicariously… I feel ya on the sugar thing. Attempting to cut back my ridiculous coffee consumption right now. It’s making me cranky with a capital CRANK! That is darling! So cute! I would eat it up though, good self control! Oh my goodness!!! You are the front runner for mom of the year! Not only did you agree to bake a cake while doing no sugar, but you let her frost and decorate it too!!! I really need to loosen up and just let the kids create! Love how loaded the cake was! Reminds me of our Christmas cookies with and inch of frosting and twice as high in sprinkles! (Serious kudos for only taking a lick…I thought letting the kids get schwan’s ice cream cones was hard!) I never had the nerve to let my children do something like that in the kitchen. You are such a great mom to do that. Sorry I missed out on such things. OMG…way too yummy!!! How cute! Better than I could do!! Very cute! Reminds me of yesterday…minus the cake. My six year old asked me during lunch if I knew how to find “the place for poor people to live.” I replied that I could find out, why did she need to know? She explained that she was hoping we could spend the afternoon shopping for clothes and shoes and toys….all for the poor people, then we could take them there. I agreed that it was a very thoughtful idea, but wondered what made her think of that. Her reply: “Because Christmas isn’t about getting gifts, it is about giving them. It is about love. It is about what Jesus would do.” Great post, Meg. I love to see Annie in all her glory. I thought of you yesterday while we made sugar cookies and let the kids go to town with cutters and sprinkles. Steve and I were both silently cursing the dough that wouldn’t cooperate. I said, “We’re making happy memories for them, remember?” He just laughed at me. It was good. It was a “Meg moment.” Cheers! xoxo this is the cutest thing I’ve seen and heard all day! So precious. such a beautiful cake!! That is the sweetest thing! And wow, is she creative! What a perfect kid cake. absolutely precious! well done annie! Gorgeous cake! Of course, once she added all that candy, I wouldn’t have been able to eat it. Well, okay, but just the bottom two layers. 😉 Annie – the cake is beautiful! Great job!!! HOW PRECIOUS and SO SWEET! She is such a cutie pie! P.S. I, too, am trying to give up the sugar habit – it is like crack to me! HA! Good luck and keep up the good work – you can do it my friend! Big hugs! :o) Every time I look at your pictures…I think I wish I had the “gusto” to be so patience…not concerned about the “mess” etc….your kids seem to be “kids”…. Gorgeous cake Annie! I could never give up sugar I’m just too weak! She’s precious! I love how kids come up with this stuff all on their own without any prompting from us. That’s awesome and it did make Jesus happy 🙂 Don’t you know that, that cake made her Father smile!!!!! How precious she is to you and Him! Thanks for sharing! these pictures are ridiculously cute. i need to squeeze that kid. I’ve done the “spit out” thing when I’ve been on sugar fasts in the past, too. It’s rather comical! Loved the photos, and the commentary. So sweet. I just love this post. Well done Meg with the sugar. You are to be commended! As for me I ate one and one-half cinnamon buns yesterday…before bed…it would have been two whole ones but someone caught me. It was a weak moment for me. Annie is so cute. Love the bangs. It is a beautiful cake! As for the sugar thing I am the same way with caffiene right now. Funny thing is that I have given up a lot of sugar by giving up the caffiene. I am starting to think I may survive it also,lol! oh He does! Go Annie! Good for you, I don’t think I would have been so strong to avoid sugar this long! You are inspiring 🙂 Jesus would love the cake! That is so sweet! OH MAN! That’s unreal. I really really love it. 🙂 She did such a great job just like her momma would do. Both are so creative!
i was happy that scott joined in. they turned out to be a very cute little gingerbread neighborhood. We too do our gingerbread houses after Christmas. It started a few years ago when I forgot that we bought the stuff, ran of time and then decided to make them on the 26th…we have been doing the same thing every year since. Love it! We never made ours this year at all – so now I am buying Valentine’s day candy and going to make a cupid cottage instead. I had thought about using hot glue – glad to see it worked. Will do that for sure. Also, since it won’t be edible – I like the glitter idea! Hey… I whipped out the hot glue gun for our gingerbread houses this year too! Then I decided that since we already ruined the houses with glue, we might as well sprinkle glitter all over them too, you know, for sparkly snow? It was lovely and non-edible. Buddy, our chocolate lab, ate them anyway. There is glittery poop in my backyard now. The joys of the holidays! :o) hot glue IS genius! frosting not holding is exactly why i cringe at gingerbread houses. NO MORE! winter 2010 will be my year! Lovely gingerbread houses. Yummy 🙂 Cute! And that dude of yours is gonna be a high-payin’ engineer someday ;o) I LOVE that you used hot glue! We too made ours after Christmas and got so frustrated that the house wouldn’t stay together! Guess we will have to use hot glue net year! Thanks for the tip! 🙂 Love your gingerbread village! My mom hosted a huge gingerbread house- decorating party last Christmas & we used the trusty hot glue gun, as well. Worked like a charm! Okay, I was able to vote for you over at the homies. You probably don’t care, but I wanted to make sure you knew. You know, just in case you picked me! Okay, what do I know? But…I know that if you add a GENEROUS helping of cream of tartar to your store-bought icing it makes it very thick and sticky (but NOT tasty). Also, if you think in advance, you can snag some of those empty kiddie milk cartons from school. If you “glue” your graham crackers to that base, they hold up really well. You pick good candy–those look so good. Like as in tasty good. (And decorated nicely 🙂 ) Mmmmmm, hot glue… now that’s a genious idea! uh, i’m the girl who once hot glued something to dirt . . . yeah. hot glue on gingerbread, Sean is a genius! hot glued 25 for my son’s 2nd grade christmas party at school, also glued them to the chinaette(spelling?) plate – the kids loved them and no slipping, etc…love your blog! Glue gun was a great idea… who’da thunk it? Nothing wrong with hot glue! It is a miracle epoxy! ROFL…yet another reason I could not live without my glue gun! Kim hi meg! i so love your blog!! thanks for all the beautiful photos and great stories. you are an inspiration to me. LOL! We always hot glued ours too!!! Love the gingerbread neighborhood – too cute! Love it! Whatever works, right? Upon a recommendation we made some with whipped frosting from a can – it actually worked really well. We did use a piece of yarn around the perimeter for stability, but other than that it was 100% edible! Pics are here: http://sarasdailydetails.blogspot.com/2009/12/ive-been-looking-for-something-fun-and.html Glue gun=genius idea… mmmmm… looks like deliciously good fun! okay…A. having 5 kids makes hauling all that stuff out so much more worth it, and 2. i made your rainbow cake today for my son’s 2nd bday!! it tastes even better than it looks (if possible)! i think i see lemonheads. my favorite!! We made these and just used canned frosting that I had put in the fridge over night- it makes it very thick!. We also braced the roof with little stacks of candy instead of another piece of “gingerbread”. haha totally used hot glue on my gingerbread house this year too!! I have never made one of these…but the problems it that I am a total candy junkie!! I would’ve eaten all those Mike and Ikes long before they were glued down! We didn’t do gingerbread houses this year ;( Looking at the fun you guys had….I’m sad I didn’t just suck it up and do it!! LOVE the idea of hot glue!!!!!! I think My Jake stayed in his pajamas the ENTIRE Christmas Break 🙂 LOVE IT!!! And now…it’s back to reality today! Happy New Year! Hot glue or not, your photos make them look deliciously edible! my kids would have eaten them I am with you…. that icing is a pain in the butt…..and loved that you used graham crackers.. brilliant! My family always uses hot glue to hold the houses together. It helps them withstand the holiday season. 🙂 We also use pampered chef gingerbread house molds… which turn out super heavy chunks of cookie so the only thing that can hold them together is hot glue. ^^ Tuns of fun. I can’t believe you let your kids make crafts on such a pretty tablecloth. We bought a prefabricated house and it still fell apart! I did everything they said, yet still, within about 20 minutes everything slid and the house became condemned. Thank God my husband is handy. He came home and drilled their house together-not sure how exactly, but it worked and Christmas was saved. You have to do what works, I agree. Your family looks so fun! We loved doing your pompom ornament craft. 🙂 Brilliant! Loved it! Those are some seriously awesome gingerbread houses!! Love all the color – they just make me happy looking at them! I LOVE the hot glue on the gingerbread houses… makes it a much more enjoyable experience for everyone involved!! We never eat them, so it’s no big deal. GREAT houses! I wish we had done them this year but we ran out of time. DEFINITELY next year!!! They look perfect. We made ours after Christmas too. 😉 I’m going to have to remember hot glue for next year!! We never eat them either! This is always an after-Christmas project we do with my inlaws. They aren’t coming until this weekend 🙂 Your houses are adorable! we always made graham cracker houses growing up and I think most of the time they were hot glued. I am looking forward to starting this tradition with my little ones. Those are great photos! Too cute! Kids are so creative! The icing never works – even though it seems like glue. You’ll be surprised to know I actually just bought a glue gun. Now I’ve got the power in me to glue anything that comes my way. Happy glue-ing! Looks very similar to our gingerbread neighborhood 🙂 And my kids never got dressed the whole two weeks, so don’t feel bad! So fun! With only one child we sure didn’t have a whole block of houses!! And this is after the fact…but I melted sugar in a pan and then used that to connect the crackers…but it prob would have just been easier to use hot glue…not like you eat them!!! :0) wait….is there something wrong with glue guns? because that’s how we roll….. So cute! It’s so neat how they are all so different. Love the idea of hot glue! We never end up eating those things anyway…great job! awesome idea! and no one would have known about the glue hidden under the frosting anyway. 😉 They do look yummy! We use hot glue too! I did read somewhere last year that if you add a little bit of cream of tartar to your icing, it dries really hard and holds well. But, I like the glue better… the kids are kind of rough as they decorate. It’s one of their favorite things to do. In fact, we made haunted houses for Halloween and gingerbread for Christmas! I think we need to start a mom of the year award. You would rock that category I think with all the fun stuff you do with your kids. Adorable house:) I should have used hot glue – we used icing instead and my waistline does NOT thank me!!! We (OK, a lot of it was just ME) ate the whole house – thank goodness I have “only” three children and wasn’t tempted to eat a whole block’s-worth!!! That tree is fabulous! So creative! We have never made houses…it’s on the list for next year! we had major structural problems with our gingerbread house. it only lasted 24 hours before the roof caved in. i should have called the insurance company and blamed it on a hurricane and collected money to fix the roof and then turn around and use the money to buy a new gingerbread car. it’s a florida thing. He is a genius…wish I had thought of that one! well, you aren’t the first mom to use hot glue on gingerbread houses. seriously, i think our culture should do away with houses and go to gingerbread piramids. the egyptians had it right. just lean everything into on nice little point on the top. why are we trying to fight gravity? I starting doing the “real deal” gingerbread house about 3 years ago. I checked out a book called Gingerbread Houses:building and making memories by Nonnie Cargas. Recipes You bet, I used my glue gun,too … best secret in town! It will keep us sane and that is a good thing. We used the caramelized sugar for the first time and thought it was revolutionary! But, since everyone only picks off the candy and never eats the graham cracker part, hot glue is brilliant! hahahahaha. hot glue! we should have done that. our gingerbread house looked like a smeary mess! But my daughter’s hands were covered in goodies and she sure like that. 😉 ok I love that you hot glued them! How funny! You gotta do what works,lol! Great houses! I love how she is standing on the chair. I remember being that into a project when I was little. i tried to use caramelized sugar on my gingerbread house, only to realize that 20 minutes of whisking and burnt fingers produced something that looked EXACTLY like hot glue. so i busted out the glue gun and finished up and boy was i WAY happier. my husband claims it’s cheating, but it’s not like anyone was going to eat month-old gingerbread anyway, right? Those are just so cool!!! Never made a gingerbread house but you have inspired me (and also made me open to the idea of a hot glue gun and trying to make one well after Dec 25th!) HAHAHA love this post – the kids have made a lovely job and who wouldn”t want to live in a block like that 😀 If you look closely at the pics of our gingerbread houses, you’ll see I totally used my glue gun, too! we enjoyed january 1, 2010 by sharing a candle lit dinner with our kids. (ps: lauren wanted NOTHING to do with us. she took a plate of food & ate alone in her room by choice) ************************************************************************************************************************* that is HYSTERICAL. 1st photo & text, i thought this was indeed a big fancy, formal event. then as the menu played out my smile just got bigger. hilarious. your kids will remember that forever. 🙂 so fun to let kids be kids and run the show once in awhile. I would have helped Talby with those mashed taters! They look scrumptious! {I don’t like cheese melted on anything but pizza either… well, maybe on cheeseburgers, too.} Raising my glass of chocolate rice milk in your direction…cheers! Have a happy, healthy, and blessed new year, Kim You are a fun mom. I know it isn’t perfection all the time, but you are creating wonderful memories for your kids and I love reading about your adventures and seeing the pictures. Thanks for sharing your life with us! we got a hamster and a case of beer on New Years Day. Your family is too cute. I always enjoy reading your blog. Happy New Year! What a great idea! So cute! 🙂 How wonderful to live in a house where the hum in the background is filled with laughter, happy busy chatter (okay, maybe a fight or two now and then, and memory making. You gotta feel the love, just gots too. Even if your not sitting at the table but up in your room, you still feel it. That’s the stuff that you take with you when you leave home and go out into the world on your own. When you start a family of your own and some how automatically know what it means to be a family. It’s cause your mom did stuff like this. i can’t wait till my three boys are big enough to try this idea out. what a fun mom you are. this looks fun! Oops! Typo. You make my day with “your posts”…..not no posts. You are the best! Thanks for inspiration and smiles!! Can’t stand it anymore. Had to comment! I have been a long-time blog stalker. I just love it!!! You made my day with no posts and always make me smile. After reading this post I had to tell you…..you are seriously the best mommy on the planet. I cannot believe you balance five kiddos so well, and you are just a spring chicken yourself. Kuddos to you, your beautiful family, and all of your fabulous ideas. Cheers and Happy New Year!!! I tried family dinner on my birthday. The results was sad or hilarious, depends on if you are a cup half full or half empty kinda person. From reading this post I’m guessing you fall into the former category. Great share. Loved this peek into your family life. You have such a lot of really good ideas and I really like this one. When my kid are big enough to do their own cooking, I think I’ll try this one. Maybe by then we’ll have a dining room too. 😉 How fun! Meg, what are your christmas dishes. They look so fun!! I am looking for holiday/winter tableware . . . That fruit salad looks SO good…the other stuff looks good because for once a mother knows it will ALL be eaten! Everyone’s happy, yeah!!!! now, THIS is why i love your blog. Incredible family. incredible inspiration. happy new year! Love it! Carbs rule!!!! Looks like a great tradition to start! My 15 yo calls most things we do, that she joins “Triple F”. >sigh< What a seriously fun dinner!!! Thanks for linking to my Pineapple Vodka post! Not only did it lead me to your site (LOVE it) but it’s been fun to meet some of your readers as well! Can’t wait to see how your Pineapple Vodka turned out and to see if it was a hit. XOXO in a few years Lauren will say “why aren’t I in any of the pictures???” This is so great! I LOVE your fancy dinner. What a fantastic idea…everyone looks like they had such a good time. Looks like a perfect evening! Fun pics as usual. 🙂 Such fun! I love y’all’s definition of a fancy dinner! I am excited to have fancy dinners with my kids one day! Right now I can tell the baby likes to eat because he/she usually kicks during dinner. 🙂 Kelly What a great Mom you are! My two cents says ‘make’ her participate. We had the same troubles w/ our oldest. At one point I mustered everything I had not to push him out of the car on a vacation, but to hear him tell it now, it was THE BEST vacation! Unreal! (Was he on the same vacation with us??? He made it MISERABLE from beginning to end!) Kids. Go figure. What a great night… Don’t worry bout Lauren, kids do the funniest things…. Mine are all grown now and they want to hang out with us and go on vacations with us… strange… its all good. I just love your blog…Have a happpy 2010 Sorry about Lauren. My oldest is 12 and I am really, REALLY having a hard time LIKING her. I can’t believe that we shared the same food, air and blood for 9 months. She seems so disconnected from me. I imagine soon she will want to eat alone like Lauren as well. *sigh!* How fun to cook together. I usually cook alone! Sometimes my sweety will help, but the boys run and hide! I’m not sure where I went wrong! What a great idea! I love the fun stuff you come up with to do with your kids! Aw man…I wondered about Lauren. Thought for sure her dish would be something really cool – like sushi or something olivey. “…there was no cheese on top…because she doesn’t like melted cheese. Great family time idea. And aren’t teenagers just the best?! If it’s any consolation, our teen daughter was exactly the same. But as she turned 18 and nears the time to go to college, she seems to enjoy some of our family times more than she used to. What a fun tradition! Great to get everyone working together. This is SO much better than black eyed peas and ham hocks and greens ha! Sounds like a great, fun, and yummy tradition!! HaPpY NeW yEaR!1! Wow. What a great tradition! I love it…gonna copy this one for sure! So Im wondering, who helped with the cleanup?? That is the worst part by far for me 😛 Is that a Jenn Air gas cooktop in the island? We have one and it looks very similiar – LOVE it! 🙂 Looks like a geat meal!!! I love all the sweet things that your family does together!!! I truly believe that someday your “children will rise up and call you blessed”. You are a great mom, Meg! You are the fun mom and your kids will remember these things that you do for them. Sorry about Lauren:( I just don’t know what to say about that. I have a 15 yr. old son and I haven’t had the ‘teen’ thing happen. I know that I am lucky and I wish that for you. How fun!!! Everything you guys made sounds so yummy (especially the Velveeta mac ‘n cheese – my “yucky” treat!) We had a fancy dinner too, and even drank sparkling cider out of champagne glasses : ) That all looks lovely! Adorable! Great first post of the year! I don’t comment often, but read ALWAYS. What a FUN tradition. Can we borrow and copy it? This was really sweet. What a fun idea & a great way to include each kiddo. I might have to steal this idea… : ) you’re such a fun mom. 😉 This is so much fun! I am stealing it for our fam! My kids are little though so it might be hard for them to help a lot but at least they could each choose. Don’t worry about Lauren, I was the same way when I was her age and I turned out okay … just takes a while sometimes. You are a great mom! the chocolate milk part made me LOL. My kids would love fancy dinners at your place 🙂 awesome! Sounds perfect. Lovely tradition – Oh keep it up!!! How fun is this! You guys do some really cool things… thanks for sharing ideas with all of us! I am just like Talby! I love cheese but not when its melted! Unless of course on Pizza!!! Happy New Year! I love how you celebrate! So fun! 🙂 What a wonderful idea!!! Happy New Year! What fun! And too bad Lauren missed out! It looks like a great time! I love traditions like this! We have a similar one on New Year’s Eve 🙂 Seriously agree about the chocolate milk from the store in the fridge section. What is it about that stuff? It’s like dessert. Yum. Great fun 🙂 Sorry Lauren was a stinker. Happy new year! Happy New Year, Meg!!! What a beautiful meal with your beautiful family! Thanks for the categories. I’m not new, but I like to go back from time to time to find things, so that will be very helpful! So fun!! I love that everyone made a dish, and the chocolate milk in pretty christmas glasses. What a great New Year tradition! My kids are 5, 3, and 1 and always WANT to help cook … but really I must draw the line:-) … I guess I need to step back and just enjoy the fact that they WANT to take part in meal preparation:-) love the idea of the kids each making a dish. good idea . i also bawled at your xmas gift from your dad . . . what a neat gift and so much meaning!!! Happy New Year! I love this idea! That sounds like fun! We actually started off 2010 by having cresent chicken and the kids LOVED it! i love it! we have got to get on the kids making a dish thing… seen yall do that before too… i just love that! LOVE IT! What a wonderful way to bring in the New Year. I love everyone in the kitchen making their favorite dish. Great pics of all of you. Just warms my heart:) so fun Meg! what a great idea and a wonderful memory created. we might have to try it. i think it would be interesting just to see what it would be that my kids would chose as their dish. hmmmm? too bad about Lauren. sadly, i would have probably been just like her. always bucking the system i was. she’ll come around. What a FUN night!!!!!!! I am soooo glad there was no fighting!!! I wish your dear sweet family the Happiest of New Years!!!!!!!!!!!! after the wedding we made it to my parents. my sister and her family came in the morning. new toy for lorel.
i love that R. after gifts we had a yummy lunch of ham, turkey and potatoes…mmmmm.
it ended in screaming tears from sean and tons of wet clothing. we made it home around 10 PM and our christmas celebrations were over for 2009. happy new year. Just found your blog today through Flea Market Style magazine. Soooo, I’ve been reading your older posts and totally enjoying every one of them! I keep wanting to comment but don’t want to stop reading long enough to do so. However….THIS one really got me. I burst into tears too when I read about the sweet gift from your Dad. God is so good to give us “the desires of our heart”. I too have been blessed to live out my dream — all I ever wanetd to “be” was a wife and mother. Now, here I am, just turned 58 on Weds. and I still am having a blast, living my dreams. God is so Good! Just found your blog today. I must say the gift your mom and dad gave you is the coolest thing ever. I can totally see why you burst into tears, just reading it made me! Meg, I have not been by in forever. I’ve been immersed in setting up my photo biz. I missed it here. Oh, Meg, you dear, sweet girl…. Tears on this end – so special! My mother in law gave me a Santa drawing my husband did when he was 8 – especially touching since my oldest son turned 8 in December. I think I had the same reaction you did. I love your blog. Hang on while I get a tissue…that gift from your parents is so touching! You just can’t make that stuff up…just beautiful…thanks for sharing! Incredible gift! Your parents are something special for keeping that all these years for you! That was such a wonderful post!! It’s always the simple things that make Christmas such a special day. amazing gift from your dad. i, too, cried. the “R” is sweet. i collect “Y”s and this gives me an idea for a homemade one. loved it! also… those peppermint sticks are THE BEST. wal-mart special? bobs peppermints… made in mexico… hmmm…. but yum! It made me cry too. Thanks for sharing your holidays with us. I also love the candle lit dinner that the kids helped with. I wish my kids were young again so I could steal some of your ideas, but my oldest is 20 and my youngest is Lauren’s age…enough said. 🙂 I love the colored pencil “R”! -oh, and the framed letter was also sweet 🙂 thanks for making ME burst into tears over the gift from your parents! Last year for Christmas I gave our 3 kids framed letters. They were written to them from their paternal grandpa. Originally they got them in 1991 in response to get-well letters they had written to him. He died in Jan. 1992 from cancer. When I re-discovered them tucked away in my desk..I knew I wanted them to have them now, but how to keep them safe? (our kids are in their 20’s and still fairly mobile in life style). So along w/a photo of them w/grandpa Dave, they got their own letter in a frame large enough to not get lost in various moves. 1. my mom made me a scrapbook for my 30th birthday and included some of my writing from my youth. i wrote in an essay similar to yours that i wanted to have a boy and a girl and name them either Dennis and Denise or Tiffany and Toby. and i wanted to be a teacher so i could boss kids around. anytime someone needs a good laugh we recall some of those embarassing notes. my my… Your present just made ME cry. I love the gift from your dad! Those are the best gifts!!! oh meg. that gift from your dad is just precious. how thoughful. looks like you guys had a great christmas. love all the photos. happy new year!! What a fantastic gift from your father! That letter from when you were a kid totally made me bawl! Even before I read you cried (which is another sure sign I will cry – when someone else does). *lol* That was so touching! I think in a matter of speaking you have accomplished everyone one of those things in your role as a Mother & I definitely think you are an Artist! Love that it is a part of your parent’s tradition to give you gifts like that. that’s such a special gift from your mom and dad…very sweet. You’re an awesome person! You made me cry too. A very special Christmas gift indeed. Best wishes for joy, peace, and prosperity in 2010! What a thoughtful gift from your dad! It made me cry too. : ) I am laughing from Kana’s comment!!! So funny. I love what your dad gave you and your reaction. On days that are hard I really try to remind myself…stop…remember….you have everything you EVER dreamed of. Doesn’t perspective change everything?? I love who you are! Happy New Year!! I love what your dad gave you! Your reaction is priceless. Thanks for sharing that. hehe Best wishes to your family this year & thanks for your fun blog!! I am just LOVING that crying photo of you….doesn’t that tender heart make you mad!!! Happy New YR to you and congrats on the blog finals! You made ME cry with that one! Isn’t that SO cool? You hang that right on your kitchen wall where you can see it everyday…all the days of total chaos when you need to remind yourself that you are doing your life’s work. you have such a good heart meg. What an amazing gift. My aunt gave me my grandmother’s recipe box this year and I can’t even describe (well, you know how I felt…:-) …) that special special feeling to be so blessed as to not only receive such a special gift but the fact that my aunt gave that little box to me…ME. It truly is the thought that counts. The fact that your dad saved that paper all these years and seemed to know the perfect year to give it to you:-) Makes a heart happy. Happy New Year Meg! What an awesome gift! You are such an accomplished person! You inspire me through your blog. I can only imagine how blessed your family and friends feel you have you! I don’t have kids, but if I did, I would want to be a mother like you. i cried with you! so sweet that he kept that all these years and knew when to give it back to you. it is an amazing accomplishment! must be… has to be… is the best gift i’ve seen! Aw Meg…you made me cry. Imagine how proud your Dad must have been finding that note, framing it for you and so excited in wanting to acknowledge and honour the woman you’ve grown into. I love your dads gift!!! you ARE an accomplished woman, in the most important, incredible, awesome way! Happy New Year~ I started to cry when I read the last line, too! Such a thoughtful gift. You are *such* an accomplished woman. What an amazing gift from your mom & dad!!! I teared up as I was reading it… almost sounds ust like me when I was that age – except the artist part… I’m not good at any of that stuff. Being a good mommy is a HUGE accomplishment – from reading your blog it looks as though you are great! Copying what the others have said…What an amazing gift from your mom and dad! I love sentimental gifts like that. Loved the R too. This is the first time for me to visit your blog. I immediately cried after reading the gift from your Dad…how wonderful! what a wonderful gift from your dad!!! and that “R” . . . how fun!!! love the gift from your dad. it made me cry too. That present your dad got you is so, so sweet! I would have been bawling too! You are such an accomplished woman, and I thank you for letting us read about your fun life!! Oh your dad got me with that present – totally teared up! You know the reason I read every one of your posts?? You let us in and share your sweet life. I have so loved getting to know you this year. It sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas. How fun! You HAVE to teach me how to make those colored pencil letters. I love it! I have lots of colored pencils left over from teaching. :o) Oh my word! That was so sweet of your dad! I teared up reading it! What’s weird is your’s is the third blog to talk about lifelong dreams and motherhood today. such a wonderfully fun and creative family you have!! love that! What a lovely gift from your dad. So precious that they’d kept it all these years! Oh Meg, you are just like me. My mom gave me Caden’s handprints that she had copied on the copy machine at work when he was two yrs. old. and I cried like a baby. I love things like that that don’t cost a dime but really mean something. Thank you for sharing that with us. It was beautiful. You had great penmanship (sp?) back in the second grade! I love that your dad does that for you guys each year – and I’m glad I’ve heard about it now so that I can be mindful of it so that I can give that special gift to my kids someday – you know when they’ll appreciate it lol. seriously super cute!!!! I would cry too. the only think I have of when I was little was a christmas card someone wrote me in Kindergarten. We still have it…its says ” I lick you” instead of I like you. We laugh every year hahah Oh my! I started tearing up when I read what your dad gave you, just before you said that you had cried too. What a beautiful gift! What a great gift from you daddy!!! I also have an awesome relationship w/my dad….it was rocky growing up, but God has done a good work for us. You packed so much family time into this Christmas. Your dad’s gift made me cry too. That made ME cry!! What an awesome, awesome gift! You just made me smile…and cry. What a wonderful gift from your dad! He sounds like such a thoughtful man. (I love that he’s given you and your sister framed pictures from when you were little – what a great idea! I want to remember that when my kids are grown.) I’m sure you’ll give it a place of honor in your home. Best wishes to you and yours for a new year filled with peace and promise. What a magical Christmas. I love the gift from your Dad. How amazing. Happy New Year! Oh my goodness. I can’t even believe that I’m sitting here crying over what you wrote when you were 9. It is precious. And even more special that your dad saved it all these years and gave it back to you. What a nifty idea for my own children! (I guess i need to stop throwing all these papers away – sigh) i cried when i read this. that is SO sweet. beyond. Oh, I started crying when I read your post about the gift your dad gave you. What a precious memory. Thank you for sharing. That is one of the most amazing gifts I’ve ever seen. Kudos to your mom and dad for that. Love all the pics, what amazing memories you’ll have. Why haven’t I been following your blog all year? I’ve visited more than a handful of times, several weeks pass and then I type “Meg Duerksen” in the google search bar to find you again and catch up on your posts. No more. I’m here, you’re in my blog’s sidebar, and I’m reading every little post from now on 🙂 I love that. I cried through the rest of your post! I love that you cried. Keepin’ it real!! Thank you for allowing me to follow your life this year! That is such a great present. Wow. And, could you adopt me into your family? My family is filled with hurt feelings and judgment. I’m available!! That is the sweetest gift ever! I almost cried when I read it! I’d definitely say you have accomplished a lot. My dream is also to be a mother, so I hope one day I will feel accomplished even when my house is a mess and all my children have attitudes. What a wonderful present you got! So sweet. I love the “R” your sister made. Hope you & your family have a Happy New Year! Oh my goodness! I cried too! And then I saw you crying and really broke down! I am so emotional. YOU ARE an accomplished woman! You are everything you wanted to be on that list. You are an amazing artist, a teacher, a nurse and a mother. What a wonderful blessing! Such a great gift to receive something like that!!! happy new year meg!! the page you wrote as a little girl is just priceless! I burst into tears myself, when I read that last line (I’m a total sap), so I can just imagine the feelings you felt. What a special gift. Wow. Love the striped sweater, the polka dot hat, the kid blowing snow but most the love and family that comes from your shots…so very sweet! Kim Thanks for the first cry of the day. I guess that it’s better than the first spill (or puke)!! What a wonderful way to end the new year. Love the gift from your dad. I bet your parents were dying to see all of you, but in the end it just made Christmas last longer, no harm in that! i have just loved reading all about your Christmas. what a wonderful father you have. Ok, I just fell apart when I read that. My son said “Mom stop reading those, they always make you cry”. I told them they are good tears. You finally made me realize that just being a mother is a wonderful thing, thank you! The gift totally made me tear up too!!!! AT WORK!!! 🙂 It does mean a lot, it’s so sweet. Thanks for sharing that gift made ME cry!! So sweet! Beautiful Christmas posts, Megan. Thanks for sharing! geez meg, I got all teary eyed along with you. You are definitely an accomplished woman in my book! is it weird that I burst into tears when i read your framed piece of art? so precious. i love that your family is so intentional. It is good to put the true value we have as mothers into perspective sometimes, isn’t it! What an awesome gift! Somewhere deep inside of you, there is a 2nd grade version of yourself saying, “See….you are as great as I thought you could be!” Precious! Crying with you…what an AWESOME gift!!! and b.t.w.- I feel you are quite accomplished in LOTS of ways!!! 🙂 You are very accomplished and blessed! Awww Meg! Thats an amazing present from your parents, i felt choked when i read it too. 🙂 I have tears too! The amazing thing about being a mother is that you are also a nurse, artist and teacher! I enjoy your blog so much. Have a happy new year Meg! oh you silly, silly girl! i feel like a dork, but i burst into tears when i read your gift too. everytime i read your blog i think to myself how you are everyday doing the things i would love to be filling my days with. i am envious that you knew you wanted to be doing these things in 2nd grade… i am 29 and just figuring this out. if only i would have realized this in 2nd grade, it would have saved me three years of law school and loads of student loan debt! 🙂 you are a very accomplished woman! don’t question that for a second! 🙂 xoxo What a wonderful Christmas! Such a sweet gift from your dad too. It’s so fun to look back on stuff like that! OMG! What a great present!! I teared up too when I read it. |
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Morning T - This post is incredible- I love it! Just stalking your blog thanks to “between you and me’s” post on you today. Your family is precious as is your home and your blog. I’ll be back…
T
karol - love this post. it is simply beautiful. can’t believe no one asked where those super cute sunglasses were purchased. you have fabulous style. always enjoy your blog.
Katie4Life - I just started checking out your blog. I have to say I love your randomness. (Hence your title, right!?)
Love your old quilts! Strawberries in our neck of the woods have been great too – fairly cheap – and I live in the middle of coldness prairie land!
Nan - (((sigh))) I live this post.
That was an accidental but true typo. So I kept it.
rebecca - dear lauren:
you’re pretty, and that locket is fantastic.
🙂
(thanks for sharing your day with us, meg!)
Pat - This is real, this is typical, this is fun, laughter and treasured memories.
Thank you for sharing!
xoxo
Pat
melissa - i’m tired just looking at all of these!!!! it looks like you had a fabulous day!
melissa
stef - this was a fun post! you’ve given me a great idea 🙂
Vera - Love your family!
Gemma - What recipe do you use for your cookies? They look so lovely!!!
melissa @ the inspired room - Seems like only yesterday you were just MY friend. 🙂
Now I have to wait in line for Miss Popular here to say I love your day in the life. Happy happy moments. My son and I laughed our head off over the photo with your dog and his foot by your daughters. Precious.
xoxo
Melanie - This was a great post. You see everything so creatively. Looking at the pictures (which I loved by the way) made me tired. Was that all in just ONE day? No wonder why you are tired.
jen - I love this.
tara pollard pakosta - I just absolutely LOVE “day in the life” type pix! my fave kind! these are awesome!!!!!!!!!!
these would be fun to scrap in a mini albuM!
I am going to be doing A PHOTO A DAY for the month of March and probably a day next week, I will be doing A DAY IN THE LIFE again! I do this every so often and they are my fave pix ever!
thanks for sharing!
tara
pambuller - it’s like a story book. 🙂
your family is awesome, meggie. but my favorite is still you know who.
Rachel / cREaTe - so so so cool. love it! great idea. 🙂 reminds me of this awesome artwork i saw on etsy the other day: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=38579404 i just love “the basics” of the every day. 🙂 it’s what makes life OURS. it’s what is cozy & familiar NOW. but it’ll look different all too soon. thanks for sharing!
Newborn Clothing - What a sweet family. Love how you posted pictures of your family!!! The dinner option list is just to cute!
elma - I just LOVE your blog!! What wonderful pictures. I love the butterfly quilt on your couch. You know have you tried the market place pantry cereal at target?? My kids love it and it saves a lot of money:)
Love all the cookies how long did they last??:)
Laundry never ending isn’t it?? I do at least four to five loads a day and with nine beds I try to do a couple extra loads every couple of days for bed sheets:) Busy but so worth it. Thanks for the wonderful pictures. I never get tiried of looking at your family:)
jennifer - Looks like a busy, fun, perfect day!
gina - and what a life!
is that your husband tickling the kids? i did a double take- it looked like Matt Damon – you lucky girl. 🙂
Melissa - looks life fun! You will miss all this when you go to Africa.
Mirjam - Loved looking at the pictures! Do you have a recipe for these cookies!? 😀
donna good - loved how you share your family life!
Christina - Your Talby reminds me of my Michaela. She even has that same fleece, and wore hers today (the 18th). 🙂 I love that you captured all the moments…sweet family.
Tanya - I LOVE this! And what a neat idea!!
Erin - This is a fabulous idea for a post! What a busy, but joyful day! Inspiring without saying a word!
Have you read Crazy Love or are you working on it? I have heard it was good – just curious!
kindred spirit - Hi, will you adopt me? 🙂
what great photos of your family! thanks for sharing….
Kelly - I like the butterfly quilt! And I’d like to eat the straweberries please. Kelly
DreamGirlLisa - Great day!
candace - an absolutely beautiful day in a beautiful life
Amy R. - This is an awesome post! I don’t know how you do it with 5 kids! Looks like you enjoy your action packed life with your family! The dinner idea is great!
Amy
Julie - a sweet life!
The Bookworm - I absolutely love doing ADITL’s! We try to do one at least once a year.
Here is our last one:
http://ourimperfectlife.blogspot.com/2009/09/day-in-life.html
Kirsten - You are golden. And I want my son to marry your daughter. She wants to move to Seattle, right? Then we’d be related 🙂
Jen Christians - I love this..I really really LOVE this… It has taken a little time, but I must say that I am REALLY enjoying my ordinary days so much! I am so happy to know that you are too!
the inadvertent farmer - We play on the bed before bedtime too…well daddy and kids do while I watch! Great snapshot of your life, Kim
Juli Jones - my four year old was watching me scroll through your pictures and as I pasted the close-up of talby he said,’whoa, stop. go back up. that girl is cute,no…she is bootiful!’ too funny, i had to share. love the photos btw. what a crazy blessed life you lead:)
Genevieve - A lovely day, a lovely life! Great post!!
Marie Tere - Really….it resembles a day in the CK house.
Marisa@make*happy - I love this! I’m definitely going to do this soon.
Dina - Can I come live with you? …. 🙂
Miranda - This is such a beautiful post! You have such a gift for mothering + documenting. And Talby’s handwriting? My goodness it should be a font!
Laura - I am reading Crazy Love with our small group and I am really loving it. The author has video clips that really bring the book to life.
Amber - the photos of the back of annie’s head could so be my daughter’s. in fact, my husband caught a glimpse and said “is that abigail?” um, no! wrong blog. 🙂 though i’m sure her and annie would hit it off!
love the photos…inspires me to take more of our daily happenings. and love the “old” blankets on the couch! so cozy!
Rach - I totally have to do this! Mind if I nap the idea? I’ll let you know if I post it.
julie - Lauren’s bangs are adorable.
I love them!
Random question… didn’t you used to have a blue washer and dryer? Or is that just me imagining that I have them?
Deanna - LOVE it! My little boys favorite thing to do is wrestly onour bed too…with me or my husband! My husband usually ends up getting hurt! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
http://www.deannablogs.blogspot.com
princess lasertron - aww this made me so happy.
getting the mail was MY favorite.
Julie Wriston - Love this! What a beautiful family!
Ruth - love this!
particularly the shot of annie’s feet with waffle’s paw!
fabulous sunglasses too.
mel - love seeing your “a day in the life”.
what a fun filled house you have!
your polka dot sunglasses are too cute!
Elisa - Love 🙂
Bec - Ugh- I’ve spent the past two days with a stomach bug. But, it has given me the time to finally get this up and running:
http://www.theiheartblog.com
You are in the inspiration list!
meaghan - awesome post! i think i’ll do it and link up to you ; ) what a great day, what a great life ; )
Erika - Oh my goodness, I so LOVE that quilt and quilt-top pillow on your beige couch!! Handmade? Antique? New?
tasha roe - these pictures make me want to move it! 🙂
i need to do this once a month!! great idea! oh and the bottom cabinet knobs on your kitchen cabinets are super rad!! and the spindly-legged buffet/server with the TV on it – to die for!!
Tara - love this! It’s inspired me to do one of a typical day at our house. …might be scary!
Tiffany - I have one of these planned for next week…don’t think I’m copying if you would ever check out my blog!! Sometimes we bloggers are on the same wave length.
Love your blog!!
Julianne - Awesome post! I love it. I feel like that’s my life (without the extra 4 kids…just one over here), and I push “Replay” every.single.day. But that’s (usually) a good thing.
Tricia - Ah, it looks so much like my days. Including the very same coffee jar (would not make it w/o that coffee ;), the Dora on TV (far too often for us), and the wrestling. Yeah, except my kids aren’t so good with the dishes getting into (much less out of) the dishwasher. 😉
Looks like a great way to spend a day to me!
Tegan and Tage - I love “day in the life” posts. I do one each month on my little guy’s birthday day. So important to capture the “day to day” life. Mel from the Larson Lingo turned me on to 10-on-10 and it’s the same idea. If you haven’t checked out her posts on the 10th of each month I highly recommend them. 🙂
sara's art house - I LOVE your day in the life pics! Every single time you post I think- “now why didn’t I do a post like that? Such a good idea!”
Gina - great post! I love love love the picture of annie and waffles’ feet!!!!
Sarah @ For the Love of Naps - Love this post. I might copy it and do something similar…if I can think to pull ou tmy camera and capture the little moments. The things you captured are things that your children will love remembering because they are the everyday little things that make your family life unique.
Katie - That was sweet to see. I love seeing other people’s “real life”.
Julie - Love these shots! Great job of capturing the every day at the real levels too!
Julie
Michelle Whitlow - how funny, we had spaghetti for dinner yesterday too 🙂 Minus the meatballs…Lent 🙂
Tammy R - Love it!! Especially the feet and dog paw!
Shari Barnes - LOVE this… just PERFECT! I think I am going to challenge myself to capture a day in our life real soon!
MaryAZ - Awesome post! I am trying so hard to remember to value the everyday things & not just let the day get away from me…this a great reminder! (my favorite picture is your daughter & the dog “holding hands”!)
Toni :O) - You have a beautiful home and a beautiful family. Such blessings and this post made me so happy. I LOVE Waffle…wanna squeeze him he’s so cute!
Elise - “plain macaroni and with cheese” That’s my favorite too. 🙂
lucy - loved your pictures and was inspired to do it at my house and scrapbook it someday…..when all my 4 girls still at home are grown and gone……:)
AmyB - I seriously want to clone Waffle!! So cute!
Courtney Walsh - I am totally going to do this one day… more for myself than anything, to see all that I actually do! (I’ll make sure to plan it on a day when I’m not lounging around drinking coffee and reading magazines like I am today!)
ha
keely - This was great. I love seeing daddies and their kids. Just when my boys have had ENOUGH of their mommma (and vice versa), daddy walks through the door and everyone gets a second wind.
Lovely post.
Micah - You got a package in the mail!! Was it something fun???
Wendi - That was fun 🙂
purejoy - what a great memory to have. enjoyed hanging out with you today. love the pillows. love waffles. LOVE a long way gone. love that talby has good taste (mmmm ramen noodles!) love little girl and doggie toes. love that boys like to read. love me some daddy time. and audience participation after a meal?? i LOVE that!!
basically, love you, your blog, your photos, your joie de vivre. thanks for inviting me in for the day!
april walker - can i come live with you? i love all this family & fun! what awesome pictures of true home life 🙂 …and i would LOVE to hang out on the couch with waffle. he is just the cutest thing ever! lucky annie 🙂
Becky @ Farmgirl Paints - Great peek into your daily life. Looks like a life full of love:) Cute sunglasses!! I can’t believe you have the will power to make chocolate chip cookies and not eat any…you my dear are super woman:)
kbonikowsky - Is that a moth quilt on your couch? It is beautiful! If someone made it for you (or you did) I’d love to learn more!
a thorn among roses - love this…and now i dont feel so crazy!!
Sandy - Love it. Your days seem so peaceful and happy. You are creating wonderful childhood memories for your children. God bless you and your husband….and your children. 🙂
Dianne Avery - I loved this! Thanks for sharing your day with us. 🙂
CarrieBeth James - love love LOVE this. so beautiful 🙂
kelli - love it megan! thanks for the inspiration to catch an ordinary day around here in pictures too. i just saw a great video this week about this very thing… watch this with a couple of kleenex and then bookmark it for those rough days of mommy hood! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olSyCLJU3O0
jamie - REAL! Love it..No Words needed..
hattie - What a beautiful, loving family you have! You’re such a lucky lady!!!
amy jupin - one of my most favorite posts of all time.
Barb - What a perfectly wonderful snapshot of your life. Someday your kids will look back on this and thank you for recording it. Because they will forget what it was like in February 2010.
And now I want a cookie…
Tara @ the cinnamon post - FAB-U-LOUS. But missed your pretty face which is clearly behind the camera! Love this so much.
~Tara
katy - Love it! Have a colorful day Meg, I’m off to make myself do LOTS of housework. *smiles*
Dani - You and your family amaze me. Y’all seem so together. I love seeing the smiles on your kids face.
Krista - I enjoyed experiencing a “day in your life” through pictures. Thanks for putting a smile on my face today, I love love love your blog!
jeanne - Love this!!! Sweet day with all your gorgeous children!!!
Amber Zimmerman - I love this!! What happy memories. =)
Rebekah - Ah, those precious “everydays.” 🙂
paige - i love how you have the gift of making the simple ordinary moments of the day seem even more magical & grand!!
i know there are days when we all have to deal with stress & yuckies, but i love seeing all the smiles, hugs, messy heads of hair & sweet puppies in your day
xo
rhonda - It’s amazing how many times we load the disherwasher at our house. I glad we’re not alone. Thanks for sharing. Loved it.
Lisa - Wow that’s one day? I got tired just looking at the photos. How do you do it all?
Take care,
Lisa
Debra - That’s great post! What a happy, joyful, family!
Danielle @ Transforming Home - Beautiful photos, as always. Love this post.
Danielle
chelsea - I loved this! What a great idea. Your family seems like such a fun loving classic american crew! and don’t even get me started on your beautiful teenage daughter… yikes for you.
Kimberly - Ok you have crossed the line… you have polka dot sunglasses too! You didn’t even put those in your post about polka dots… but that’s ok I still loved seeing them this morning. There is just something about polka dots; I even love saying polka dots…. I tried on a pair of prescription glasses that had polka dots on them and I thought does Meg own a pair of these too?
Danielle - Love this post! What a great idea – it’s the simple things that make up a great life! Thanks!
Holly - so my kids are not the only ones that dont put the cap back on the toothpaste! Love it!
Nancy - it shows it all. lots of love and fun. what a great life. what a blessing.
Dana D@BoysMyJoys - Talby’s list made me want to reach right thru the screen and squeeze her. Especially the part about mashed “potadoes”- like you can hear her saying it or sounding it out. Sweetest thing ever! 🙂
Tonya - a day in a beautiful life…i need to do this…:)
Staci - Whew Girl 🙂 I’m tired just LOOKING at these pictures 😉 Loved this post 😉 and of course I loved Annie with her big smile bringing in the mail 🙂
Jules - That’s it right there! Those pictures shout happiness and love…something to be thankful for! I LOVE your blog! Have a fantabulous day!