Moms

FiSH in my braces!  Oh golly, I've started eating "better", but now I can see problems forecast ahead...I am really having to use that little purse toothbrush to keep my teeth clean.  Anything bread- or potato-related really gets lodged.  Then there are the cucumbers (ack-with peels!) that feel like they are going to break a wire!  I can feel the pressure.  I'm easing back into breads, but still having oatmeal for breakfast and yogurts or soup for lunch.  (and yes, I've lost 4 pounds!)  Not bad for a three weeks with braces (ya'll just wait, it'll catch up with me!)

I had a wonderful lunch today with one of my old students and her (*gasp!*) husband and son!  Am I old enough to have a second grade student married and with child??  Yes, apparently I really am.  She is beautiful-and I mean on the outside and inside.  She has a precious spirit which doesn't give up easily, and she is an awesome mom doing her very best.  I'm so proud of her!  (I have to tell you, this is why Mary Claire's middle name is Elizabeth-that girl would make you want to name your child Elizabeth too!)  I was so thankful to get to see her (and her family!), share a meal, and catch up!  Ethan was a little crazy, but it'd already been a long morning, and he'd been so good.  He was wearing thin!

Next we went by Mom's for a visit (an hour to kill-woohoo!), we played dominoes till Ethan got bored, then he played outside and visited my dad in his shop-and got to have a snack down there.  Dad has a refrigerator stocked with drinks (for his friends), and snacks to keep his blood sugar up.  The kids all love stopping in and having a "break" with Papa!  They feel so sneaky having soda (usually with sugar, but not today-but Ethan didn't know!).  It's a "secret"!

Then we came home to recharge, and after Ches got home, we all went to a matinee: Mars Needs Moms!  It was a sweet movie, and I was getting really stressed for the mom at one point!!  I thought it'd be all about moms, but it wasn't!  It was more or less about the son that hitched a ride on the spaceship back to Mars, and him rescuing his mom, who was "asleep" in a seat-belted pod-thing (totally unaware!).  It was still good--the son, Milo, met one other human who'd followed his mom there in the 1980's, was now an adult, and they became friends on the rescue mission.  It was good, and the boy really was touched and loved his mom.  Good movie.

We had dinner (late!) at Red Lobster in honor of Spring Break (that almost started today) (and a Lenten Friday!)!  By this point, Ethan was plum silly and goofy.  He was getting argumentative, he was hungry and sleepy, and almost without reason...But.  I had Play-Doh!  It always pulls him back from orbit.  He was starving (I had five coconut M&M's left that I gave him, and a piece of Extra's new mint chocolate ice cream gum-yum, by the way!), and we made orange play-doh cars and colored (I always buy about 20 packs of Crayola crayons at back-to-school time when they are 19 cents! and then dish them out s-l-o-w-l-y! I love new crayons!).  Totally did the trick!  We made it through a long dinner-from lobster dip (gag!) to salad to crab legs..Can you tell seafood is not my thing?  It's always a long Lent...

Anyway, when we got home (because I was in the mood!), we all got out our beautiful rosaries (Mary Claire's is delicate pink Swarovski crystals) (well..Ethan's is chunky wood beads!), and started a rosary (we got through the second decade).  I was super-impressed that Ethan kept his little fingers on the right beads the entire time, prayed the prayer he knew (the Our Father), and didn't fall asleep or go nuts!  The Holy Spirit was definitely with us!

I'm praying that you decided on something to give up (or something good to add?), and that you are successful, with God's help!  Only five weeks and two days...can't wait for Easter!

Hem Your Day in Prayer

Another Crafty Day! : )
I started this morning, making more thank you cards.  I stamped, and punched, and made tags with ribbons:

Next, I mounted them on the cards:

Then, I had to fill a couple in-we are so blessed that our friends are giving to our team, Mary Claire's Friends Who Care-even online! : )  They get super-expensive, and I'd much rather make them-so cute!
This morning, I made copies at the school, didn't even get to see my kiddos : ( then went by the church to get started on the books/envelopes.  And what to my wondering eyes did appear...but my long-lost friends!  They were up front getting ready to say the rosary together.  Sweet Becky came back to invite me to pray with them-I couldn't even tell who they were up there.  The church is dark in the afternoons, but I don't need much light-there's plenty coming through the stained glass.  ..Anyway!  I went up, and they had already gone through their prayer intentions, and they made me laugh (if that's not wrong?)!  They had prayed for everything-so they said I was covered!  Then (since there were five of us), we gave thanks between each decade-and they pray FAST!  Whew-I thought I was fast, but they were tongue-twisting me!  It was good to pray together-there is always strength in numbers. : )


So, then I finished the books, got some lunch, and went back to Hobby Lobby today after seeing how amazingly sewing occupied my kids-they LoVeD it!  I got a few more colors of embroidery thread, more needles (with bigger eyes!), and a sewing kit for Mary Claire-I was planning to buy the little things, but it was just easier (and cheaper!) to get a little sewing kit (and it came in PiNk!).  So..we used it all again today!  I was most surprised how Clay got into it.  We just all sat in my bedroom floor, listened to music, and sewed.  Even Ethan sewed stitches!

Here is Ethan and his "pillow".  He did the green stitches on the white felt, then asked me to sew on pom-poms: The green is him, the orange is Clay, and Mary Claire is blue (so sweet!), then he wanted me to make a pillow so he could stuff it!  He plans to use it for his beanie baby Elephant to sleep on (yes, he decided this on his own!):

(This was later, he was over in the corner, cutting up fabric with Mary Claire's new scissors)

This is Clay's pillow he made for Mary Claire's Polly Pockets-so sweet of him, and he made the pillow, stuffed it, closed it, made the blue lines, then wove the green in-so detailed!  I only helped him thread his needle once, and helped him tie a couple knots.  (This tells me Mary Claire will be so advanced in a year!):

(Don't you love how you get all these close-up looks at my carpet??) heehee
So, then we had dinner, Ches took Clay to baseball practice (first game tomorrow!), and I watched Ethan swim, while I closed up Mary Claire's next cupcake.  She's decided to give the Practice Cupcake to her teacher, so she wanted to get hers done. She did everything else, but asked me to close up the brown cakey top to the cupcake wrapper:

I forgot to tell you that Clay lost a tooth today-a Big Boy tooth!  He told me it was loose last night, but since he's my oldest, I wasn't sure it was a tooth that was supposed to come out.  I told him to leave it alone!  Well, he pulled it at school.  He learned at GT yesterday all about stock, and told me he wants to save his money and buy Wal-Mart stock!  That is an expense I can get behind. : )  So, all this evening was about the Tooth Fairy. (!)  We've totally covered this, but he figures he'll get more this way (I think).  He made her a new wand, magnets to carry metal teeth (!), a string with handle (to slide down from lamps), and wrote her a letter:

Then, he stayed up (since it was Friday), and made her a pillow, bed, and blanket, and sewed them all together:

Can you see the tiny bed?  He said she's only the size of a nickel, and Mary Claire argued she's Polly Pocket size, then they argued over how she carries money. Clay says she uses her magic wand to shrink things down.  He had this pile of stuff to put under his pillow (what a job for me!), so I had him put the "kit" in a Ziploc, just so she doesn't "forget" anything!  And since our tooth fairy is Super Forgetful, I have a huge document on my computer that *hopefully* will remind me!


So, then the kids went to bed, and I continued my next project: the matching hairbows!  I think I told you I ordered the ribbon last week, and now it's time to get down to business.  The JDRF Walk to Cure is next Saturday, so Chop-Chop!  We picked turquoise with zebra, so here's our bow:

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I usually make them bigger, but I've had a few girls register to walk since I ordered ribbon, so I've had to shorten them each a tiny bit so there's enough matching ribbon!  My goal is 20 bows, so let's see where I am in a week..  I think I've made three turquoise, and one zebra = that's a lot left to do!