A nice springy thought!

I caught a glimpse of a warm sunny day (wooo hooo it was about 30 degrees today! Sounds pathetic doesn't it??) I noticed the sun was still kinda out at 5pm, and then henbogle's post about when to start seeds in Maine popped up. I had to link the great article she found... it's wonderful!

Think spring thoughts everyone... and buy your seeds!!!! 51 one days til calendar spring!!

Inspiration from others

When cabin fever sets in and I'm just bummed for no reason I check my blogs and find so much inspiration from all of you. There are some of you going through so much, yet so positive. It's infectious.
There are so many who make me smile but my two favorite inspirational blogs are:
NieNie
kadyhope
Life is so full, so blessed, so amazing... yet so short!
Take in every day and make it your own... make it special.

What I like best about winter....

With sub-zero temps lately, and another 12 inches plus snowstorm forecasted for tomorrow I really have to remind myself why I like winter!! My favorite things are (in no particular order):

1. Skiing!! Granted, I haven't gone yet this year... but I do love it! Did you watch the winter x-games? It's amazing what people can do on a pair of skis!

2. sledding... OK, not as much fun as skiing but it's free!

3. Ice skating. The girls received ice skates for Christmas. Next year we are going to build an ice rink in the back yard. I found good instructions here. I'm nervous but tempted to use soule papa's method... it's cold enough that it just might work, and I wouldn't have to wait a year....hummm???? Yes, this is last years picture, but cute none the less! We've had some problems finding a rink... I think we will finally succeed this weekend! cross your fingers!

4. Red cheeks. Oh how I love how my babies come in from playing. I just want to pinch those rosy red cheeks ;)

5. Basketball. No, not on TV!! 5 year olds playing basketball is so much more fun! They haven't shot baskets yet but I could still watch them all day long.

6. Ice Fishing!! We took the girls for the first time last year. If you've never been I recommend finding a kids derby near you. They are lots of fun and the one near us gives the kids a free trap. This is how we ended up ice fishing last year... so much more exciting than watching a trap ;) They are very excited to go again this year!!

7. Hot cocoa We go through a lot of hot cocoa in this house. Every day our after school snack includes a nice mug of hot cocoa. Really, is there anything better???

8. Sugar plum fairy tea. No, it's not better than hot cocoa... but when your trying to loose those extra holiday pounds you can't have cocoa every day! This celestial seasonings herbal tea is only sold during the Christmas season. Last year I couldn't find it and I was grumpy all year (yes, really). This year I bought 5 boxes!!! It's that good!!

9. Making snow men and snow forts.... and snowball fights! This year hasn't been the year for snow men. We've been getting really fluffy snow (that's what happens when it snows at -1*F). I'm still hoping for my annual snow family scene in the front yard.

We did buy a great snow fort / snow ball kit from LL Bean. (you'll have to look at Christmas, they are not listed on the website anymore) We've only made one fort so far... but today we realized we can make snowballs out of the fluffy snow!! They don't hurt as much either.

10. Thoughts of spring!!! Yes, it's the only thing that truly pulls me out of my cabin fever. Only 60 more days until the official first day of spring!!!! Daffodils, crocus, riding bikes, blowing bubbles.... I can't wait!!!!

Back from a wonderful vacation

Once a year my girlfriends and I take a long weekend and head off to the mountains for relaxation and skiing.

This year it was really too cold to ski. Yes, that's -18.6!! Just after this reading the thermometer went blank... we were told it was -33!!! It warmed up on Sunday however, it was a blizzard with lots of wind. The most perfect day to ski was the day we left... of course!! Oh well ;)

With a nice warm fire, a few puzzles....

Outstanding views....

Summer dreams, and yummy drinkies....

And great friends the vacation was a memory we will never forget!!

When words fail me...

Wow, I know that doesn't happen very often! Well, OK... it does! It's not that the words fail me so much as they don't come out in the right order or when I want them to. I can have a day where I think of a hundred blog ideas.... then a week where the simplest conversations get jumbled. Oh, I still talk (please, me not talk???) it just takes extra effort to get the darn words out correctly!!!

That's the kind of week I'm having. It's a good week. Nothing major going on (same 'ol same 'ol in the crazy busy life of a SAHM with three kids). I just can't seem to coordinate my thoughts.

They'll come back. They always do. Usually in the middle of the night or when I first wake up. Those moments when I've had enough quiet to actually hear myself think. Ideas on how to better phrase conversations I had in the day, lists of things I didn't quite finish... oh yeah, they know it's the only time I can hear them so they wake me up to be heard! (not unlike one of my 5 year olds)

Today, Sunshine is having a sick day and all my little angels are sleeping in. A little mommy time in the morning is rare. I'm using it to blog rather than work on that list that woke me up this morning. I'm sure somewhere inside my brain that little list maker is having a fit! Let it whine, I'm drinking my coffee!!! Really, for my defense, I've written the pesky list down and finished my morning routine. How much do I expect from myself before 8 am??? Don't answer that... that little list maker is a perfectionist... I try to keep it at bay as much as possible but, it expects a lot!!!!

Back to school

Vacation is officially over! Yeah I'm pretty much tap dancing... I sent the twinnies on the bus 10 minutes ago! I can't complain though, We had the most relaxing two weeks we've had in years. For the most part we stayed home and in our cozy clothes the whole time. This is rare for our on the go family! I planned NOTHING for vacation on purpose. I'll be starting school in a few weeks and I wanted quality family time before the chaos begins!

I think we can all say we've had plenty of "Family time" now! We were all very excited to get back into routine this morning!!!! I have errands to do after I'm finished blogging. I'm actually excited to do them! I think I have a little cabin fever and the thought of being able to go out alone, do errands my own way, at my own speed, without interruption is making me giddy.

Here's to routine, school and the extra curricular schedule!

Candy Land... Lessons learned

The girls received Candy land as a Christmas present this year. When I saw it I thought "Ummm... they are 5 and 9 and we have at least 3 of them. Do you even know my kids??" but said "Thank you!" because really, it's the thought that counts. The girls however have proved me wrong. They Love it. Frankly, I'm floored since at present time they are into uno, sorry, sorry slider, and Othello. I don't mean to be a game snob, I played it through my whole life and I still love it! They just don't pick it out to play anymore. I'm assuming the excitement is generated because it's a present (of course that makes it cool!) and the new version is very colorful and has a new story and quite a few changes.



This got me to thinking about how much the original candy land (not all the character ones...) has changed over the years. I pulled out all the versions I could find. I'm mad I do not have the one I had when my niece was a little girl (she's 13 now) or when I was a little girl (much older than that) but these three give a good idea of how much it has changed with the times. I remember mine didn't have queen frostine or any characters rather it had ice cream floats and a peanut brittle house etc... shhhh... I really didn't just date myself did I????


We had a wonderfully peaceful morning so I laid the boards on the floor and we discussed the boards. The girls loved finding the differences and taking pictures of the different characters.


Right from the beginning you notice the change! The gingerbread men markers have changed and the girls think the characters look more lifelike now. They also like that there are 4 kids now since there are 4 markers.

Our saddest realization was that they fired our good friend plumpy!! Yes, we were upset. See the card above? They have replaced him with a "mumma tree" and her babies are scattered all over the new board. We guess she has a hard time making them mind. We will miss you plumpy!

Another interesting change... Queen frostine has turned into "princess frostine" and she's ice skating! We like the queen frostine pictured on the top card (leftover from my nieces game) the best since she seems soft and loving.

I cannot believe the changes in Princess lolly either! At least they got rid of that slightly crazy one pictured on the game board ;) The new "lolly" is no longer a princess. She has sprouted wings and a lollipop wand... go figure???

Now is a good time to mention the biggest change. You no longer are trying to find king candy (the early 90's version had you looking for the king because the evil lord licorice hid him) The new king looks so happy and has a ton of candy so the girls like him a lot better. I am OK with it too. I mean really... you could see the king up there the whole time. And his castle wasn't really candy it was icecream!!!

This difference is a sign of our times. This generation just can't wait for anything or they get "bored"!!! We used to have to wait until a yellow card was drawn... sometimes 3 or more turns. Now that lord licorice isn't in hiding from kidnapping the king he has nothing better to do than throw licorice in your path, which make you lose 1 turn. There is also a rainbow spot (this has been there a few versions now) instead of the purple spot at the very end of the lane. It takes the fun out of it for me. I liked the challenge of the win. Yeah, it was deflating when you waited forever for a purple card and they you got a face card and had to go back... but that was the game!!!


The girls came up with more differences too (all the characters look different, etc...) This lesson kept us busy for over an hour. My husband thinks I'm a bit crazy but it really has me intrigued. I love the history behind something as simple as a child's board game. If you haven't guessed I'm no longer upset that they received candyland. I'm actually thinking about going on E-bay to find one from my childhood! I now understand how toy collectors feel.

I hope you have enjoyed your Sunday as much as I have! Candy land, coloring, the kids helping in the kitchen, sledding... what a great way to renew your spirit and count your blessings!!!!