December images

Time for a little wrap-up of the old year as we celebrate the new year . . . December in pics.

Is there anything more exciting than the St. Dom's Rick Charette Christmas Festival and winning a prize in the cake walk?  I didn't think so.

Definitely more frosting went in the Snuggler's mouth than on her sugar cookies, which is as it should be when you are frosting with Grammie.  (Hmm, are we spelling that with an "ie" or "y?")

Jude needed a little clarification . . . decorating, buddy, not un-decorating.

Cutest little Joseph I have ever seen . . .

. . . with an extra arm?  Strange the things you don't notice until you post the picture in your blog.

Nothing like fabulous gingerbread cookies from wonderful neighbors!

That grin SLAYS me!

It's a stable . . . it's a cave . . . no, it's a house!

We found out this year that it is impossible to predict what your kid's favorite gift will be.  Fifteen dollar Eyore that heats up with a cozy beanie bottom?  Nope, three dollar Wolfie from his sister (love Mardens!).  And Sophia in her favorite gift we got her, a "dressing gown" mama made for her.

And my favorite gift from my amazing deal finding husband!

We have been eating a LOT of ice cream around our house since Christmas.

Taken from inside the house, barely zoomed.  Merry Christmas!

Ready to go outside and play with cousins . . . first year to really get to go out and play in the snow without lots of supervision needed!

Been running in a lot of snow lately . . . my own outside play!

Say what?

Every once in a while I listen to what I am saying to the kids, and start to wonder why I am saying what I am.

"You can't have dessert until you finish your hot dog."

Really?  Because I am pretty sure that brownies from scratch are probably more nutritionally sound than miscellaneous leftover animal bits that have been pureed into slop along with lots of preservatives and then mashed into casings.

Today's lunch for my sickie was jello and saltines.

"No, you can't have more crackers until you finish your jello."

Mmmm, pretty sure neither crackers nor jello is offering any nutrients whatsoever, so who cares if the kid would prefer the salty option?

In the case of the hot dog, it's the principle of the thing.  Dinner (such as it may be) before dessert.  No dinner, no dessert.  But I really can't come up with a reason for the cracker/jello answer except maybe I just felt like saying no.  For no good reason.  Or maybe my first impulse is to just say no.  Both of those options seem kind of "Mean Mommy" to me.  Oh well.

At any rate, I have also found myself saying what I swore I never would.

"BECAUSE I SAID SO."

In my defense, I usually try to answer a few times first.

"Don't touch that knife!"
"Why?"
"Because it's sharp."
"Why?"
"That's how it was made."
"Why?"
"So it can cut food."
"Why?"
"So we can eat it and get strong."
"Why?"
"BECAUSE I SAID SO!  Now go play so I can cook dinner."
"Why?"

GRRRRRR!!!

I suppose I assumed that I would be Supermom, never losing patience or not making sense.  But the reality of it is much messier than my imagination led me to believe.  Fortunately, both Snuggler and Cuddler are surviving my learning curve.  Also fortunately, the hot dog before dessert scenario seems to make sense to Sophia at least, as she then tucks into her meal with new vigor.  I guess I have a few more years before they figure out that I am making it up as I go along.

Happy New Year!

John is sick yet again with some sort of plague, so I headed out the door to our friend's New Year's Eve party on my own last night.  I stopped by my sister's house to drop off a knee brace (I know, most people loan eggs or sugar to their neighbor around the corner, we do knee braces.) and ever so briefly joked that I might as well stay over at said friend's house, as the kids don't get up until 8 a.m. anyway.  So then Kristin was funny and said "Then it would turn out to be the one night they got the flu," which I thought was a valid point and John is sick, so decided I wouldn't bother pursuing the possibility any further and would just come home after the ball dropped.

On to the party, which was oh-SO-fun . . . . 

. . . and then home to collapse into bed at 1 a.m.

Which is exactly when I heard the little voice calling "Mama" from the kid's room.

Groan.  

Short internal debate as to whether I should ignore, and then I decided that would be a yucky way to start the new year.  

Turns out, there was still a yucky start.  As in, I got to Sophia's bedside just in time for the retching to start, with no buckety type thing nearby.  Snatched her up and made a little pool of space between us to catch the gallon of undigested mac'n'cheese, and none of it even hit the floor.  I am SUPER grateful that the puke stayed contained, and not all over bed/floor, etc.  

Sicky John got up to help out, Sophia and I dove in the shower cheddar covered clothes and all, and then Sophia proceeded to vomit every half hour the rest of the night.

Happy New Year!

Cozy blanket, check.  DVD player, check.  Puke bucket, check.

I am thinking that this year is going to be a little bit of "In like a lion, out like a lamb," and am praying that we are starting with the worst.  I know, the saying really applies to the month of March, but it seemed apropos here.  

So here is where our New Year ended up today. . . who knows what else 2013 will bring?  Thank God for His grace, and humor in times of puke.  Cheers!

Pumpkin spice yumminess

Well, I can't talk about my yummy homemade latte on facebook and then not share the recipe, that would just be mean!  I found the recipe on yahoo and then tweaked it a little bit, here goes . . . 

• 1/2 cup milk (I used 1%)


• ½ cup coffee (brew it strong) 


• 3 tablespoons pumpkin purée 


• 2-3 tablespoons agave nectar (more to sweeten, here are your calories!) 


• 1 teaspoon vanilla 


• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 


• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 


• 1/4 teaspoon cloves

Whisk together milk, pumpkin puree, and agave (or whatever alternate sweetener you want to use) over medium heat until almost boiling.  Add spices and vanilla, continuing to whisk briskly.  If you want, you can run it thru your blender or food processor for froth . . . I didn't and found it to be yummy anyway.  Pour milk mix into your mug and add coffee.  Enjoy!  

Keep in mind that you may need to tweak the spices to get your perfect mix.  If you have pumpkin pie spice, you can use that instead of individual spices.  And of course, a little whipped cream on top would not be amiss!   Sorry there is no picture of my latte, but it is long gone.  Let me know how yours turns out!




Living room reboot

Finally time for another installment of Libby home improvements, the living room reveal!  Well, sort of.  You will notice that my photos (all two of them) are taken from a very strategic angle.  It's the I'm-avoiding-getting-any-pics-of-the-two-sick-kid's-crap-all-over-the-floor angle.

Just re-read that.  Let me be clear: there is no poop on my living room floor, just giant piles of uncleaned up toys, John's bedding from the couch because Sophia has been sleeping with me in our bed, and general dishevelment of the entire house.

But because there is no better time than when one child can't breathe and the other has hand-foot-mouth disease for a little home decorating (though I could be wrong on that one), I finally whipped up the final pillows for the living room couch and shot a couple pics.  I was going to wait for the "reveal" until I had made the burlap curtains I have been planning on, but as it seems that it might be 2014 before I get to them, I decided to go ahead.

Remember the purple living room?

Well, three coats of Benjamin Moore's North Shore Green (456) later, a $125 craigslist sofa and $150 8x11 rug from overstock.com, a little rearranging and pillow sewing (thank you, Fabric Warehouse, I love you!), and voila!











So, just goes to show, you really can get a whole room makeover for just about $300.  The art and sea shells on the bookshelf were up in a bedroom, and the bookshelf itself was just moved from one side of the room to the other.  The big splurges were the couch and rug, while other costs were a gallon of paint and fabric from Fabric Warehouse.

All the fabric for the pillows?  Five dollars.  I covered the (hideous) big pillows that came with the couch in the yellow geometric fabric, and the red pillows I had in the blue and yellow floral-ish one.  The fabric choices aren't super practical, so I put in invisible zippers and can throw the covers in the wash.







And if any of you are wondering about my big photo wall?  I have plans for those pictures, plans that include even getting a few of Jude up there!  It'll be in a new location, but that is a post for another day . . . lots of painting to do first!


Want to see what potential your space has?  Give Inspired Interiors a call!  We excel at maximizing what you already have in your home to make your space the haven you have always wanted.  Check us out at www.getinspiredinteriors.com or give us a call at 207-632-7619.