AAAHHHH!!!!

That's a nice long sigh by the way.....

Summer's warm temps are allowing us to enjoy the last bits of summer (not that we haven't lived life to the fullest this summer but you know what I mean).

How did my family survive 90+ degree days after such a cold summer? We suffered at a beach side campground for the week. Rough life I tell ya :)

What did we do in a secluded beach town for a week with three kids???

Searched the surf for sand dollars:: Found sea shells with holes just made for making necklaces:: Built sand castles:: Explored ancient forts:: surf casted for stripers:: boogie boarding... lots of boogie boarding:: walks along the beach:: sunsets on a hill with local made ice cream:: visits from good friends:: fireside chats:: Lots of reading... harry potter is almost finished as is war and peace:: listening to giggles and exclamations of "This is paradise, can we live here???"

Then as we were ending our trip Hurricane Bill sent the sea into a furry. It was really Awesome to watch... from afar. It was like God giving us a push back home.

What did my garden do for a week in the heat???

Flourished!!! Oh what a surprise!!! All of my vines are crawling and sprawling with big beautiful leaves!! I have cute baby melons, yellow squash, cucumbers, peppers and (though the plants have few leaves left) the blight seems to have fried in the sun and I have some tomatoes!!! No pumpkins yet but one of the flowers looks like it might have a roundish bulge growing under it.... only time will tell!!

What are my kids doing as I'm on the computer??
Are they enjoying the warm summer sun??
Nope, they are listening and dancing to the nutcracker ballet!!! Geesh are they really my kids??

Wimpyville campground

My Sister in law is a wimp! (This is coming from a person who's had her share of rainy weeks in a tent with three kids.) She made big plans to bring her family down for camping, sun, and relaxation on the shores of Sebago Lake. This was in February.

Now we get to the first of July, of the rainiest summer season on record. For some reason they have no interest in camping anymore... Like I said: WIMP!

The first half of their vacation she set up her tent then snuck off to Boston in a nice cozy hotel. The second half, she brought her crew to my house. They spent the night wherever they could fit... I say, more the merrier, just blow up an air mattress!! The next day when it was raining (*surprise*) they decided to crash here and pull up stakes at the campground. We are sitting around after dinner and they ask: "Hey, do you think we can put the tent up in your garage???"

Why not???

It's better than sleeping in one of the kids rooms!

So, here it is, the wimpyville campground:


As redneck as it comes but, it's dry and comes complete with TV and electricity. Not bad accommodations if I do say so myself.

Disclaimer: I love my sister in law and her family!! I've crashed at their place more than once. She thinks this is as funny as I do!! We have one strange sense of humor... it's what keeps us going :)

a quick update

I'm finding myself relaxing today. It's my only low key day of the week. I'm suppose to be doing inside chores, however I find myself at the computer, emptying the camera so I can take pictures of the upcoming holiday events, playing with the girls... anything but laundry and cleaning! I'll pay for this restful morning but it's a price I'm willing to pay.

My weekend in Mass was amazing! Buffett was great, I spent time with good friends, and took my monkeys to the zoo. I couldn't have asked for a better time. The weather even held out! It was one of those times that refreshes your soul, recharges your batteries, and makes you realize how truly blessed you really are. I felt totally relaxed and loved.

Back in Maine, I found my garden slug ridden and yellow. Darn this rain!!!

But I'm not dwelling on that today. Cause guess what!!!!

The twins turned 6 yesterday!!! It's hard to believe my little babies are 6. They went from being helpless little bundles of joy to independent, feisty, amazing girls. It's been wonderful watching them grow. I'm thankful for pictures and journals, It was such a ride I find myself wondering what happened :)

Enjoy your week; rain or not life is moving and we have to enjoy it while we can!!!

This week's favorite things....

In no particular order:

The dreams that take place when an airplane goes by in a bright blue sky

Dozens of irises in bloom

Children on field trips engrossed in nature and the moment


My oldest singing at The Portland Seadogs!!!!

Impromptu pool parties:: kids brave enough to jump off the diving board

Snickerdoodles and my brand new pampered chef bowl!!

My number one most favorite thing of the moment:: 30 minute microwave whole chicken and this awesome stoneware deep dish baker!!!! Let me know if you want the recipe

I love these posts!!!! So much to love in my life!!! Enjoy yours!!!!

A wonderful Saturday...

Ah, the sun finally came out for a bit to say hello! It's amazing how that changes my attitude.

After a nice banana whole wheat pancake breakfast Thing 1 and I snuck off to the farmer's market.

Smiling faces, large green seedlings, knowledgeable farmers, lots of questions!!!

Fresh goat cheese, samples... lots of samples!!!

Boxes and bags filled with seedlings, feta cheese, and goat cheese fudge (YUM!), hearts and minds filled with a glorious moment in time.

A few garage sales later, we head home to plant our garden. Hubby and the other girls were busy weeding and putting down weed barriers. The garden looks so full and beautiful!! I was so engrossed in the moment I failed to take pictures, but the memories are precious.

A great lunch made with fresh herb cuttings and feta cheese, a little rest while watching the Red Sox, then off to the drive-in for the first time this year.

Why am I so tired???

So What did you do this week???

I think I had a busy week! Here are the highlights:

~~~

Home Depot! On the first Saturday of the month the home depot has

free workshops for the kids. On Saturday, we built a wheelbarrow plant holder for Mother's day.

Earlier that morning, our daisy troop gathered in the garden center where they taught us how to plant tomatoes and gave us each a tomato plant to grow... pot and all! Thank you Home Depot!!!!

~~~

Boston trip! My older girls scouts and I went on an overnight to the Boston museum of science.

It was an amazing experience...

even if we did sleep in a room with peeping chicks and a skeleton riding a bicycle!

~~~

Soccer anyone?? First game of the season!

~~~

Spring Concert... like my artistic take?? pics from the nosebleed section don't come out very well ;)

~~~

Special programs with daisies! Among many other things this night, they made this

great tic tac toe board. Very easy! Plywood, nails and balsa wood shapes. The girls sanded, pounded nails, and painted the pieces. They had a great time!

~~~
Cooking!!! This dreay week just called for snickerdoodles! We didn't stop there though!

This picture is of us making dog bones for the animal shelter.

~~~

A visit to the horses at the Maine sspca. What an amazing place!

~~~

An art lesson in good and bad behavior: Make 2 "feelings masks" out of paper plates. One mad and one happy. On the "happy plate" help the child write all the things they do well, things that make them happy. On outside of the "mad plate" help them write the things they do when they are mad, and what makes them mad. Discuss the items. Notice that there are a ton of good things that the child does!!! On the back of the "mad plate" write down things the child can do when they are mad. This is the stuff they can think about (inside themselves, thus the inside of the mask) to calm themselves down so they can think of a good way to change the situation. We even made them for mommy!!!! Paper plates are cheaper than therapy and easier than getting super nanny to come to my house!

Since this is only a fraction of what we did this week I guess I'm justified in being exhausted???
The sun is out today, finally!!! I'm going to eat lunch outside, put my feet up for a minute then take a nice walk. After that I'll get back to work... everyone needs a break right???

Have a great weekend and Happy Mother's day!!!!!

Tales from TV turn off week

I'm back!!!! It was a great week. Pretty much anyway. I kept my little darlings very busy all week long. Every day it was something new and exciting... needless to say I'm exhausted!!!!

Monday we went to Maine Wildlife Park. We love it there!!!!!
Tuesday was home day. Lots of science experiments and kid led activities. Our favorites were the smelling game, and cup stacking races. It was a rainy day so we also put on our rain gear, opened our umbrellas and danced in the rain!!
Wednesday we had a playdate at a local Gymnastics academy. They had a ton of equipment and a great staff. We then went out to eat and found a great playground.
Thursday was our day in Freeport!!!! We hung out with my favorite cousin and her daycare kids, went Beach Combing, and had hot dogs by LLBean.
Friday was spent outside. We played in the hose, flew kites, and got ready for friends to come for dinner.
Saturday we had a field trip at Build a bear and a Birthday party. We then watched the Redsox spank the Yankees (WOOO HOOO!!!!) and had a back yard camp out in the camper.
Sunday... yard work!!!! Then the twins had another Birthday party.
Today... The kids are gone so I'm suppose to be at the gym right now.... LOL! How about a nap instead???

The hardest part for me was after the fun and games were done. The kids were just exhausted at about 3:00 each day. This is when I'd normally turn on the telly and have relaxing time. We had a few temper tantrums but they found books, old toys they hadn't played with in a while, and lots of imaginative play!!

The funniest part is that time still flew by. I had a lot of ideas I wanted to accomplish and only finished 1/2 of them. Oh well!!! I decided this was just a prep period for the rest of the spring and summer. No TV during the day. I'll only be on the computer when they are not around. They can watch 1 hour of TV before bed if everything is finished for the day.

I know, this sound so obvious to many of you!!! We did live like this for years, however, things change and before you know it your kids are TV junkies!!!! I'll admit a good 3 hours a day was spent zoned out, some days more. No more though!!!! Lucky kiddos ;)

Fab Fridays

TV Turn-off Week:

You will not hear from me next week. We are participating in National TV turn off week.

My kids have slipped into a TV coma more often than I like this winter. I have also logged a lot of hours of screen time. Mine is obviously on the computer! Spring is here and we are unplugging!

The girls have signed pledges at school saying they will not watch TV this week. I have also had a pledge given to me by my lovely Sunshine. She had a huge grin on her face. She's thrilled that I have to turn off the computer for a week. I haven't signed it yet. I see myself sneaking screen time when they are in bed. Who has the real problem here??? Oh yeah, that would be me. I need unplugging more than the kiddos.

This will be a fun week! We are going to have "Vacation Camp" all week. This is something we did this summer with the help of my beloved "Fly Lady". The girls act like they are at camp. They make camp vests, earn badges (stickers) for good behavior, have fun chores. Each day there are exciting activites such as:

Play Dates

Craft time

Nature hikes

Tour the playgrounds in the area

First bon fire and marshmallow roast of the season

Clean the house relays: Wash the floors iceskating competetions, who can pick up the most clutter races, dust a thons... etc...

At the end of the night we have an awards ceremony for the badges earned during the day.

How are you unplugging your kids next week?? Are you as nervous as I am?? LOL!!

Maine Maple Sunday

We participated in our first Maine Maple Sunday. It was a crisp beautiful day. The small sugar operation was quite busy, we even saw friends of ours! Here's a glimpse of our day:I loved that they had some old fashion buckets near the shack for us to see.

I think they are beautiful.

The girls loved the new way of collecting sap. All those blues hoses looked like a maze.

They couldn't believe how much sap was collected in the big bucket.

We waited a long time but finished the day with a horse drawn hay ride then a little shopping!

As we were leaving the wind picked up and it started snowing! Very pretty, but oh what a reminder that we live in Maine!!

This week....

Has been filled with the ying and yang of life.

Happy moments when your so proud you could bust. Bike riding, making play dough, an afternoon hanging with my favorite cousin, girl scouts, giving of items to someone in need, everyone working in the kitchen prepping a meal, good conversation... "Life can't get much better than this" moments that make it all worth while.

Hard moments when you want to pull out your hair. Bus warnings and bus slips, stubborn independent 5 year olds, temper tantrums, Too many bad X's to win a prize, shoveling snow in a rainstorm because the puddle at the bottom of the driveway is bigger than the kids, mean people, having to stand up and say what's on your mind because it's right (SOOO HARD)... those lift your head up and shout "SCREW IT" moments.

I'm trying to love the good, learn from the hard, and just carry on. How was your week???