Coloring Easter Eggs yesterday

The girls colored Easter eggs for the first time last night. They had fun, but it was hard to get Morgan to stop banging them on the table. Hahahahaha!! She cracked a couple of them. Of course, they, also, got food coloring all over their hands.

A look back- 1978

This is me at 4 years old, and my brother Bryan is 2 years old. The picture has a strange tint to it because it's old, but at least you get the idea.

Easter Egg Hunt (Part 3 of 3 Posts)

Easter Pony Rides (Part 2 of 3 posts)

After the petting zoo, the girls went on the pony rides. Morgan wasn't so sure about the pony at first, but then, she was ok. After that, we took a break and ate crackers and drank Gatorade in the car, as we waited for the Easter egg hunt. The Easter egg hunt started at 12 noon. By that time, Uncle Bryan, Aunt Amy and baby James were there.

Easter Petting Zoo (Part 1 of 3 posts)

We had fun today!! I am making this into 3 posts because we did so much. We went to an Easter festival. We got there at 10:30 AM, even though it wasn't supposed to start until 11AM. It's a good thing that we got there early because they let everyone in anyway, and there were no lines!! At 11AM, it was packed! We went to the police station area first. They gave out police stuff (badge stickers, water bottles, bags, etc). Then, we went to another part where they gave the girls some bunny ears. After that, Jaden went into a bouce house, while I took Morgan to the petting zoo. When Jaden was done at the bounce house, she came into the petting zoo with us. Morgan wasn't even afraid of the animals. It was great! We stayed in with the animals for about 20 minutes or so.

I am so proud!!

Wow! Jaden has been doing so many things by leaps and bounds lately. Just a few minutes ago, I was unloading the dishwasher. She saw me and said, "Mommy, can I do that?" I almost said, "Huh?", but I didn't want her to think it was something I wasn't enjoying myself. Hahahahaha!! So, I said, "Sure you can!" She helped me unload everything, and then, I asked her if she would like to help me load it. She loaded the plates, cups, and silverware!! (I just had to make some minor adjustments to her work) Then, she put in the dish washing liquid, and started up the machine! Wow!!

Sugar cookies for Easter

They sell food coloring markers now, so it seemed like a good idea to make some sugar cookies and color them with the markers. However, we found out 3 things that we did thing of (I am speaking of Grandma Leslie and myself). First, these markers do not write well on sugar cookies, unless you put the what sugary coating on them first (which I did not have). Second, they marker gets on your skin, and it doesn't come off like washable markers do (so now everyone has colored fingers). Third, some of the kids didn't want to eat the cookies because they had marker on them. Well, it sounded like a good idea at the time.

Survey sites

Here are two of my favorite survey sites. There are other good ones, but these are my favorites. I will post more sites at a later date.
*This site is called Survey Spot. You can take several surveys a day. Some of them pay a few dollars, and some are just entries into the drawing. However, if you do these surveys regularly, you will see the money build up. After about a month or so, you can go to your account and see what money you can withdraw. You have to have at least $5 to get a payment, but you can let it build as much as you want. You have to request the payment, and you can choose a check or to give it to charity. Here is an example of earnings. On 2/15, I requested payment of $15, but by 3/4, I already had a nice balance. So, I requested a payment again on 3/4 for $26. Today, I noticed that I have another $25, so I requested a payment again. It's not grand theft money, but it is nice pocket change (and you only have to put it on your taxes if you exceed $599 for the year with one company).
https://www.surveyspot.com/join/Join.faces?VendorID=33&OptInSource=usgen&locale=en_US
*This site is called Zoom Panel. You earn points for the surveys that you take, and you redeem them for prizes. To give you an idea of what you can earn, I have earned 28,000 points (I have been doing it for awhile now, though). I usually choose my prizes around the point when I get to 2,000 points. However, if I were to wait until I had 10,000 points racked up, I could get a 5 mega pixel digital camera. For 2,500 points, I get a 1 GB SD card to go in my camera, so I haven't had to buy an SD card in a long time (even with all of the pictures I take). I have sent a referral to most of you. If I missed sending it to you, send me and e-mail, and I will send you the link. The referral gives me more chances to get points, too.

Wiggling the sillies out

Do you know the Wiggles? We went to the Wiggly Play Center today. The kids all had fun, as you can see!! A lot of my pictures did not turn out because I didn't put it on "action", so they came out blurry- They were just moving so fast!! Thank goodness Grandma Leslie came with me because there is no way that I could have kept up without here. There were so many different areas for them to play and so much to do. Morgan is the only one of them that likes the Wiggles, but the play area was fun for everyone. They even have a toddler area, and the big kids were not allowed, so it was a rare moment that Morgan was able to play without being plowed over. I brought their lunch with us, and actually, their breakfast, too. I gave them each a little baggie of cinnamon rolls (the bite size squares) and sippy cups of orange juice as soon as we got in the car. They ate their breakfast and watch the Bee Movie on our 30 mile car trip. When we got there, they played for almost 2 hours. Then, after we got them all back into their car seats, I handed them their lunches (peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and veggie chips). We got home just in time for a nap. Whew!

Caught up in the moment

We had such a wonderful day today, and I have no pictures to show for it! Grandma Leslie came by about 9:45 AM. I thought Rebekah and Josh would be here by then, but Rebekah was still at home asleep. Her daddy called me and said that they would be coming by later... So, we packed up the girls and headed to Target. We picked up some Easter cookie cutters to make Easter cookies this week, and a few other necessary items. Then, we came back to the neighborhood and stopped by Josh and Rebekah's house to pick them up. Then, about 30 minutes later, Aunt Janet arrived. The kids had non-stop attention. They loved it, and all of the adults got to visit!! It was a wonderful respite for me. I was able to cook up some chicken for several meals. I put some of it in the freezer and some in the refridgerator. Aunt Janet left at 4PM to beat traffic, but Grandma was here until almost 6PM. Tomorrow, we won't have any company, just the kids (Rebekah and Josh). They will only be here for a few hours, though, so we will get some errands done in the morning. We are planning an outing on Wednesday, so I promise photos by then (if not sooner).

Pushed out of a plane

Why do I feel like I have been pushed out of a plane? I was thinking tonight, while we were on our way home from Uncle Ray's house. When we got laid off, it was like we were pushed out of a plane. It took a month to get our unemployment, so it was like waiting for our parachute to open. When it finally opened, we were sailing downward at a slower pace. Now, someone has cut the strings on our parachute (no more unemployment & no job)- Now, we are falling to the ground with nothing to hold us up. It is overwhelming, really, so I try not to think of the bills stacked up waiting to be paid... Or wondering when LeCount will find a full-time job, or me find a part-time job... Anything. So now we are falling without a parachute. I hope that the ground is soft when we land!! There is still so much to be grateful for. That is what I have to focus on. Good night!

Coloring Pages

I have found some great web-sites that have pictures you can print out and color. They have been very helpful when I need a picture to go with a theme. The latest one I found has printables for Fisher Price "Little People". They are cute, and can be used for a theme, too. Here are some web addresses. Have fun!
http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=30&e=coloring
http://www.first-school.ws/
http://www.homeeducationresources.com/Membership.htm
http://coloringbookfun.com/
http://www.letteroftheweek.com/Preparatory.html (courtesy of Anne)
http://www.dltk-kids.com/world/index.htm
http://www.nickjr.com/
http://www.teacherquicksource.com/preschool/default.aspx

Let's try this again...

Here is my attempt to upload the 3 minute video again.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

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Movie Friday

Fridays are short. Right now, the kids are only staying from 2:00 PM until 4:30 PM. Since it is such a short period of time, I have made it an "off" day in terms of learning. Fridays are movie days. They won't watch a movie, but they love shows like Dora, Kai-Lan, Little Bear, and Oswald. I let them watch 3 shows in a row (about a little over an hour), and they eat popcorn. Afterward, we went out to play (until I saw 15 wasps flying over head). We still had fun. The video took A LONG time to upload (hours) because it is about 3 minutes long. About 2 minutes into the video, you will see Morgan and Josh start fighting... It is funny to see Morgan get so mad. This is how they are with each other all of the time. As you can see, Jaden and Rebekah are really into the show, but Morgan and Josh are more into the popcorn (and terrorizing each other)!!!- I will put the video in a different post.

Baby Nathan visits

We had a busy day today. Baby Nathan came to play. I don't think he wanted to play with the other 4 kids, but they ALL wanted to play with him (and poke him and tickle him, etc). I had to seperate everyone to give the baby some peace. They all took different naps (Morgan and Joshua around 11:30 until 12 noon- yes, just 30 minutes). Jaden and Rebekah started their nap at 3PM- so, while they were sleeping, Morgan and Josh played in the backyard. They have gone home now, and I think I will kick back and read a book for about 15 minutes to wind down :0)

A woman's worth

I got this as part of an e-mail and wanted to share it with you:
Women have strengths that amaze men.
They bear hardships and they carry burdens,but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream.
They sing when they want to cry.
They cry when they are happy and laugh when they are nervous.
They fight for what they believe in.
They stand up to injustice.
They don't take "no" for an answer when they believe there is a better solution
They go without so their family can have.
They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy when they hear about a birth or a wedding.
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member, yet they are strong when they think there is no strength left.
They know that a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart.
Women come in all shapes, sizes and colours.
They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you to show how much they care about you.
The heart of a woman is what makes the world keep turning.
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideals.
They give moral support to their family and friends.
Women have vital things to say and everything to give.
HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.