Moving

Well after a couple of years, quite a few posts and much research and deliberation I've decided to move my blog. I've had a share site with Shutterfly for a couple of years to share pictures but haven't really done much with it. However after looking at it more while my mother-in-law was trying to find the right home for her blog I decided it would be a better fit for what I wanted to do so I will be moving my entire operation there. Not only will I be able to share more with you (pictures, projects, ect.) but it's a lot easier to compose posts and I won't have to spend as much time uploading pictures. I'm looking forward to doing some fun things with the blog so be sure to keep an eye on it. The new site url is:
todaywelove.shutterfly.com
so exactly the same as my Blogger address only instead of .blogspot.com it's .shutterfly.com.
If you are interested in being a member then set up a shutterfly account and let me know and I'll accept/invite you to be a member of my site. That way you will get an email when I post.
Thanks for your understanding and flexibility with this. Hope to 'see' you over there soon!

Thanksgiving Surprise

My parents came out for a visit in Thanksgiving. Quite aside from the joy of seeing and spending time with family was the added fun of seeing some great sites that we either didn't know about or hadn't gotten around to visiting yet. We didn't have a huge list as we mostly just planned on enjoying being together and most attractions where still pretty far away from where we were all staying (a condo not too far from our house) but one must see was the St. Louis Arch as my dad had been there before and really wanted the rest of us to experience it. While doing trip research they came across a site that they knew I would really enjoy and decided to surprise me by stopping there before we went to the Arch. I knew that they were planning something but didn't have a clue what it could be until we pulled into the parking lot and I saw this statue:

The Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House. I had no idea there was a butterfly house in St. Louis and was completely surprised and very delighted. I love butterflies. And I feel it important to note that I love butterflies but not in a unicorn and rainbow sort of way but more in a personality sort of way. It's really hard to explain but I will give it another two sentences to give you an idea of what I mean. I love butterflies for the same reasons that I love sloths, hedgehogs and platypuses it is more their general attitudes on life that I really like. That being said I have a varying degree of fondness for different butterflies based on my perception of their personality (yes I know I'm odd and that none of this is real per se but since you read my blog I'm assuming that me being quirky isn't exactly a revelation) so for example I'm not as crazy about some butterflies their personality comes across much more as the over dressed drama queen and there's another butterfly that I respect but don't really connect with because they always feel a bit too sensible and dismissive of flighty-ness in any degree. Most butterflies I feel are wonderfully somewhere between the two which could be why I love them because depending on the day I'm somewhere between the two.

*clearing throat as I realize everybody is staring at me* Moving on. Here are the kids and I in front of the butterfly statue. They were pretty excited about being there. We left really early so we could get there right when it opened which we managed to actually pull off. (Always a huge victory for me...I'm thinking having more adults than kids definitely helped in this endeavor...)

Inside the butterfly house was this glass tank full of cockroaches. Why? you may ask and I'd have to tell you I asked the same thing and yet still have no idea. I think the information went in one ear and right out the other because my brain was still boggled at the idea that anybody would possibly want a tank full of cockroaches in their building.

Of course the kids don't have sense enough to realize that cockroaches should make your skin crawl *shudder as I think about them* so the botanical garden people put a bubble inside the take so you can poke your head through and be surround by hundreds (thousands?) of cockroaches. Because who want that? *I'm raising my hand right now* However the kids really did want to go in and look and after I refused they looked to Auntie Bonnie who is much nicer and more brave than I and agreed to go look with them. As you can see Samuel was thrilled. Boys.

So I edged a little closer to take a picture of them in the bubble and better capture Samuel's apparent joy in the bugs and leaned over the top only to discover there was no top! Ahhh! I honestly screamed out loud when I realized I was hovering over an open pit of cockroaches. In above picture you can see the edge of the tank - which is generally a useless picture but I felt necessary to illustrate the mental anguish at having nothing between my face and a bunch of cockroaches. At this point I retreated, held my camera up to where I thought it might need to be to take a decent picture of my child's apparent delight with these hideous creatures and started clicking away.

I managed to get a decent shot or two like this one of Bonnie realizing what she had agreed to and wishing she weren't there anymore. On the other hand you have Emmuska completely fascinated. Sometimes I wonder how she can be my child.  

Inside the butterfly garden was absolutely amazing. I've been in a butterfly house or two but nothing like this one. There were a lot of butterflies everywhere. Our little group quickly dispersed to different parts of the butterfly house. Of course Liberty being the patient little soul she is (that and her personal preference for yours truly) stuck with me so I have the most pictures of her in the house. I absolutely love this one of her. It's actually one of a set where she sets her butterfly map down (she loved looking for each of the types printed in the pamphlet and wanted to identify each one she came across) climbs onto the bench, settles in and then notices a beautiful butterfly at which point she opens her mouth in wonder and joy. It's the perfect shot for what the butterfly house was like for both of us.

I did manage to get this one of Emmuska looking at this butterfly (look carefully there is one on the pink flower). Emmuska's wish for the day was to have a butterfly land on her but she also understood the instructions that she absolutely could not touch any of the butterflies so she would try to get herself as close to a butterfly as she could and hold out her shirt for them to land on her. Poor girl never got a butterfly to land on her but by the time we were done she was mostly okay with this.

Sam and Liberty looking at the butterfly nursery - I have no idea why Liberty has that expression. I'm going to guess that she is taking exception to something Emmuska just said. It happens a lot and this is usually the face that goes with it. Samuel was fascinated by the butterflies in these windows. There was one butterfly just out of it's cocoon waiting for it's wings to dry and stiffen. He just stood there and stared at it. Until he did this: 

This picture makes me want to snatch him up and hug him. It's the face he does when he's really excited about something. You think the face is good? You should here the sound that goes with it - a gaspy sort of intake of breath - yeah no good, you'd have to hear it.

And now he's explaining everything he just saw. The kid is a riot. 

Just before the exit there is this beautiful bench to sit on and when you do it just right you look like a butterfly. Emmuska loves this picture. It might have been the point when she began to be okay with not having a butterfly land on her - because she got to be a butterfly instead.

And butterfly Libster.

Throughout the entire house I'd been trying to get a good picture of the girls and a butterfly flying. It had proved to be difficult mainly because both little girls and butterflies are fast critters and somewhat resistant to my telepathic instructions as to where they should place themselves so I could get the perfect picture. So I was pretty thrilled when I was looking though pictures later and saw that not only did I have both girls and butterfly in the picture but the girls were looking at the butterfly in the picture. Super bonus it's an azure butterfly (read Fancy Nancy 'Bonjour Butterfly' and you'll know why that's awesome). 

The kids and I on the butterfly bench or as Emmuska calls it - the four-headed butterfly picture.

The whole thing was absolutely incredible and I couldn't have asked for a better surprise. I can't wait to go back but sadly probably won't until we have guests we can take there. If any body's interested I have an extra room and make some pretty good food. ;)

Princess Party

After having attended one Emmuska was pretty set on having a birthday party - complete with pinata. As I said before I was still sick for her birthday so we postponed it and turned it into a princess party instead. Since I hadn't planned on being sick (silly me) and had experienced store bought pinatas and just wasn't that impressed I decided that we would make the pinata for her party, which then turned into a five week project. We started off well enough:

Then I got sick and the pinatas were set aside then moved here and tossed over there. They suffered a fall or two and sadly Liberty's didn't survive to be decorated. Still we did eventually we did finish Emmuska's pinata and by the end of November I knew that I wanted to have the Princess Party before things really started to get busy. So we set the date for the first of December and went for it. Emmuska made gorgeous little crown invitations (she cut the crowns out on the Cricut and then decorated them) and delivered them to her friends. I made up some cupcakes and filled up the the pinata and we were ready to go.

We started the party off with a little craft - each girl got to decorate their own crown. This ended up being pretty fun and yielded this beautiful bunch of princesses:

Notice Emmuska's courtly curtsy - I can't get the girl to not pose for the camera - she is always pulling some inventive super model pose which results in oddly angled limbs and some quirky facial expressions. It's one of those things that I'm sure I'll enjoy even more in the future than I do now. (I can't wait to show her boyfriends these pictures.) :D

Princess Emmuska and her finished princess pinata - not half bad if I do say so myself. After the craft portion of the party we moved onto the pinata.

Most fortunately there was a hook in the middle of this doorway - Mycal graciously offered to hold the pinata - notice his hand on the right side of the door frame.

Notice his hand 'slipping' and letting the pinata go. Now I know why he volunteered. ;) His 'inability' to keep hold of the string ended up being okay though as apparently we make a mean pinata - it wasn't giving up without a fight.

But eventually it did yield. And the mad dash for candy ensued.

And finally we had cupcakes - complete with princess pink frosting.

Emmuska with her friend - once again note Emmuska's quirky facial expression. Have to love the girl! Also notice the rings on the cupcakes. Best way to decorate cupcakes for a princess party - cheap, easy, sparkly. What's not to love?

That summed up the organized activities of the Princess Party after the cupcakes they went off to play. I thought it turned out quite nicely - especially for being the first time I've ever done a children's party. Now that it's over Emmuska is busy planning next year's.

Goody Gumdrops

As I sat making a card recently I realized that I hadn't stopped smiling the entire time I'd been working on it - it was just so much fun to see it come together. And of course I didn't want to keep that joy all to myself so I started putting together a little kit for my niece so she could also make the card. Then I wondered who else might want a quick and easy little craft that might lift their heart and spirit. That's when it struck me that it would be fun to put it here on my blog - my Current Card Project (because who knows exactly when I'll have a new one so it can't be 'Weekly Card'...). If you are interested in the card shown let me know and I'll send you a kit so you too can have the joy of making it.

The first card for this little project (or to be more honest the card that inspired this project) is this 'Goody Gumdrop' card. Yes I sat there smiling the entire time I made it - it was just so much fun and turned out so dang cute! If you are interested in making one either leave a comment, give me a call or send me an email. (In other words - in some way let me know you want one.) Don't be shy because I cut out way too much stuff for this particular card (I seriously miscounted...it happens...a lot) and as a crafter I love being able to share my craft with others. The only thing you will need is a glue stick to finish this project although having a glue pen as well would be a lot easier for the letters. They are pretty cheap and can be found at any craft stores and even superstores like Wal-mart.

Happy Fifth Muska!

Emmuska was very excited about her birthday and had been counting down the days until we got there on her calendar. Unfortunately I had gotten sick just a couple of days before her birthday so wasn't feeling up to what we had originally planned on doing. Thankfully Emmuska understood this and took things all in stride. She enjoyed helping make the day special but also understood keeping it a little low key.

Sick or not no birthday is okay without a cake. (I learned this last year when I was miserably sick on my birthday and unable to make my cake...) So Emmuska set to work helping me make her birthday cake. Even if I had been in tip top shape she would have wanted to help - she loves to cook.

Given how much of the process she took care of for me with regards to her cake I feel pretty certain that if I'm sick again this year I can just set her loose in the kitchen and know that I will still get a cake out of the deal. And that is a comforting thought.

And of course all that hard work must be rewarded with the chance to lick off anything that came in contact with the cake batter. (Excluding the cake pans of course.)

She had to wait all day for Mycal to get home so she could open presents. Whenever I think she isn't being patient enough about something I try to remember this (as well as the patience she exhibits regarding Christmas) and know that she's actually doing quite well.

What could this one be?

A tea set from Grandma and Grandpa!

Look how excited Liberty is about this. That pretty sums up all of our feelings about this tea set. We love it! It's a really nice hard plastic set that you can actually use. Emmuska had been throwing little tea parties for months with a really cheap dollar store set. Every time she got it out another piece was broken. This was the perfect replacement.

Grandma and Grandpa also set a cookbook and a couple of baking sets. One for doing cupcakes and and the other for cakes and pies. Emmuska was so excited about them. She keeps going over the recipes trying to figure out which one we can make with the ingredients we have in the house. The cookbook (not pictured sorry) is amazing. It's perfect for kids and a lot of fun. We've made a couple things out of it several times.

After doing presents Emmuska and Liberty had a little tea party while I finished making dinner. This picture makes me laugh because it pretty much sums up the relationship between these two. Emmuska can frequently be found doing something for Liberty that Liberty can (and sometimes would rather) do for herself. Many times Liberty graciously accepts the 'help' as she is doing in this picture. Other times she pitches a royal fit and disallows even Emmuska's shadow to enter her personal bubble. The dynamics of their relationship are so often changing that I'm often baffled and sometimes even frustrated by it but then I'm sure that is very similar to how my relationship was with my sisters growing up.

Back to the tea party. Tea parties around here pretty much go the same way. I make up a thing or two of hot chocolate and put it into the teapot. Then I put milk into the creamer holder (is better word for that dish? I obviously need to study up on my parts of the tea set terminology).

Emmuska serves the tea (hot chocolate) and tops each cup off with a little cream (milk).

We all gently stir the cream into our tea and then delicately sip our tea.

Until Samuel discovers what we are up to and figures out a way to crash the party. Not that he's trying to crash it just that cup mastery is a skill he's still working on.

'Can I scoop the hot chocolate back into the cup?'

'Mmmmm, that's a nice cup 'o tea'

After dinner we did the cake - which of course had to be a piggy cake. The funny thing about the piggy cake this year was that she batted around the idea of doing something else but when it came down to is she still wanted the pig which was very relieving for me as I'm not really sure how I would have done some of the other things (mostly cartoon characters of one sort or another) now I have a year to contemplate any other design I might be able to do if asked. Hey I did make a Dora doll...maybe I could pull something awesome off for next years cake...maybe.

Christmas 2010

I'm apologizing in advance because this post has a lot of pictures. Sorry about that - but it's Christmas so it's hard to narrow it down anymore than this. (Sad truth is there would have been a lot more if I'd actually thought about keeping my camera out...) Anyhow enjoy!

So when I started making toys for the kids I had this grand dream of how cute it would be if they were all peeking out of their respective stockings. Of course when it came down to it Emmuska and Liberty's stockings were too full for their animals to fit so Bonnie's was the only one that ended poking out like I'd envisioned. Still the overall effect was pretty fun.

The obligatory shot of the Christmas haul - T-minus 6 hours and counting...

 I love this shot of Samuel reaching into his stocking. He enjoyed finding each treasure. 

 Mind you this was the scene five minutes before that when Bonnie tried to stop him from getting into his stocking so I could take the picture. At this moment what he really wanted was his giraffe - he didn't know that the stocking could harbor anything else.

 Mycal opening the Navy shirt Kim sent him (he sent her an Army one for her birthday last year). This could quite possibly be the best picture I've taken of Mycal on Christmas. Yes he's quite handsome.

 Bonnie helping Samuel navigate his stocking - it's harder to get everything out when your arms are shorter than the length of the sock...

Here's our earliest riser. No surprise about that - she'd been looking forward to Christmas morning for weeks. I'd informed her that on penalty of losing it all she had to wake me up before digging into her stocking so I could watch her. To her this meant that I apparently wanted a picture of holding up everything she pulled out of her stocking. After the third piece of candy I had to break it to her that I wasn't actually going to take a picture of each new item she pulled out. 

A few days before Christmas we took the girls to the Dollar General and gave them each a little bit of money so they could do their Christmas shopping. They each had a friend or two that they wanted to buy something for as well as for each other. So Emmuska went with Mycal to get a thing or two for Liberty, Samuel and her friends while I went with Liberty to do the same. Liberty found a ladybug ball that she simply loved so I passed the information along. Emmuska wanted to make sure it was a surprise so she told the lady at the checkout that it was for her sister but she didn't want her to know. The cashier being a wonderful patron of Christmas spirit double bagged it to help keep it a surprise. Of course in Liberty's mind since that was the only thing she wanted it's was what Emmuska had naturally gotten for her. The days leading up to Christmas were full of Emmuska trying to convince Liberty otherwise and Liberty clinging to the idea that it was her ladybug ball. Somehow or other we finally made it Christmas morning (yes there was a melt down or two). Emmuska was so excited for Liberty to wake up so she could give her her present.

And of course Liberty was very excited when she opened exactly what her heart desired. 

 Bonnie was staying with us for Christmas and SuZan - being the incredibly thoughtful person she is wanted to make sure that Bonnie had something to open along with the rest of us. Since everything I tried to do failed to be kept a surprise until Christmas (with the exception of the monkey I made for her - although even that didn't quite make it to Christmas morning - more like Dec. 25 at 3:AM...but hey still Christmas right?) Anyhow she was opening her presents when she came across this little card from the Browns.

With an iTunes gift card inside. I think the picture adequately shows the surprise and excitement. 

Kimberly sent the kids each a present -she couldn't have picked a better present for Emmuska. A decorate your own piggy bank - a perfect combination of all the things Emmuska likes best. (Pigs and crafts.)

 And for Liberty a couple My Little Ponies - always popular around here. She also got Samuel some blocks. As did I - what can we say great minds think a like. Thankfully when it comes to blocks you can never have enough.

 Opening their dresses from Mycal's grandma. The 'ladybug' dresses are still very popular. I love that they have long sleeves - something shocking number of Christmas dresses seem to be missing for reasons unknown.

 A cookie food set from Grandma and Grandpa - these have been quite the hit - we've 'eaten' a lot of cookies lately.

 Liberty got a fruit and knife set from Grandpa and Grandma. They too have been greatly enjoyed - she loves matching them up then cutting them in half (each half has a piece of Velcro so they stick together to create the whole fruit the can be cut into halves and slices - the cookies do similar things with frosting attaching to the cookie and the cookie attaching to a cookie sheet).

 Samuel scored this awesome bath toy from Grandma and Grandpa - and by Samuel I mean everyone because we all enjoy playing with it in the bathtub. (Yes me too...though I do it from outside the bath tub.) My only complaint is how everybody wants to be in the bath at the same time now - we've almost had riots over who gets to take a bath at a given time.)

 Grandpa and Grandma also sent this table and chair set which has been immensely popular - it's used at least three times a day...the kids love it because it's just the right height. I think the person most excited about it is Samuel. Every time I get his food ready he runs to the table and sits down. He loves being able to eat like a big person (not in the high chair because nobody else eats there and he's pretty determined to do what the rest of us are doing...) but also being able to sit while eating.

Also evident in this picture is the chess set Mycal got Emmuska. Emmuska has really been interested in chess lately so Mycal got her a chess set where the pieces (nice and big) show how they move on the board. Emmuska loves it. She is forever begging me to play (sorry kiddo, chances are slim that that will happen while your daddy is still in the country...) and is apparently quite good. Not too long after Christmas she asked Mycal if they could play and he told her to set it up while he finished the assignment he was working on. I'm not sure what he was expecting - probably having the pieces close to right but there would be a few (or more) that would need to be fixed. What we didn't expect was for her to set the entire game up perfectly. Of course Liberty is usually right there wanting to play too and Emmuska graciously lets her be on her team. There has been a time or two when Mycal is at work or out of town that they will get the game down and 'play' against each other. (I'm quite certain the rules are more nebulous in these little matches.)

 I love this picture of Autumn snoozing on my sled. Mycal got me a red sled in memory of my much loved stolen red wagon. Then he wrapped it up in this blanket. Apparently it was a comfy alternative to the floor...

 Emmuska decorating her piggy bank...she couldn't do it soon enough. She waited for a few hours while I did breakfast and took a nap but could only contain her excitement to create something for so long. So she donned a paint shirt and got to work.

 And after she was done decorating her bank she turned her attention to Tiki-Pighty (her old piggy bank) and gave her a face lift as well.

 On to the fun random pictures from the day. I don't know what it is about empty boxes that hold so much allure for children but I'm fairly certain I have a picture of each of my children in a box just like this. Of course once Samuel climbed into the box the girls had to find boxes of their own. The only problem was I'd used said boxes earlier to hold wrapping paper trash...let's just say we picked up the living room a few times that day.

 Bonnie wanted a picture with her monkey but my kids are camera crashers - they see a camera and they just need to be in the shot. Samuel was hamming it up just for us. He's sweet like that.

Bonnie with Liberty, Samuel, Emmuska and respective stuffed animals. Because when it comes down to it some of the best things about Christmas are kids and how excited they get about everything and spending time with family.

Remember how I said Sam likes to ham it up for the camera? Emmuska might be his mentor. She sees a camera and she wants to be right there - first as the model who needs her picture taken 'like this and that' then as the artist taking the shots.

Samuel with his giraffe. I wanted to share this picture because it's been so much fun to see him love this little animal. Mind you it's not like he drags it everywhere. I do that much more for him because I kind of want to reinforce the special-ness of it. But he's always liked it and because I try to keep it around (making sure he has it at bedtime and for naps, that it doesn't get left downstairs ect.) he's starting to carry it around a lot more.

Apparently camera crashing is an inherited trait and I know where the kids get it. 

Bonnie and I with her monkey Chatter.

Me in Mycal's Christmas hat. For those of you not familiar with the Christmas hat the first Christmas Mycal and I were married he informed me it was pretty good but the Christmas hat was a bit of a let down because it didn't fit his head. Eventually I figured out that he was talking about his stocking. So for the next Christmas I got my mom to help me sew a stocking that had an opening big enough to fit on his head. Every Christmas since then the Christmas hat has been worn at some point on Christmas day. For fun I tried it on this year. I think it's a good look for me.

Sneeking 'some' pumpkin pie. I'm using the word 'some' loosely because obviously it's quite a bit-o-pie. Don't judge me. It was absolutely fabulous pie and anybody else who was around and managed to get some was pretty lucky.

The thing was I was given a few cans of pumpkin this year so I thought I would try making a pumpkin pie from scratch. Then I ate said pumpkin pie and my life hasn't been the same since. It is without a doubt the best pumpkin pie I've ever had (and I've had some great pumpkin pies). Now I'm hopelessly addicted and keep thinking about the next time I can make some.

Of course there were many other wonderful and thoughtful gifts that I failed to photograph. Nana made the girls wonderful little bags decorated personally for them (anything personalized helps because then I can easily and clearly solve the dispute as to what is whose) that have been used pretty much daily since we got them. They are perfect for the church and the library. And I love not having to carry their books and stuff. Nana also made Sam a car mat that is a replica of our town - complete with our house and the stores, gas stations, parks and what not that are in our town. It's really amazing.

SuZan and Forrest sent us digital photo frame with pictures from both our childhoods. Apparently SuZan went down to my parents house and found a bunch of pictures of me and my family. It's incredible. There have been a time or two that I've almost started crying because an extra special memory will just suddenly pop up in the frame.

Bonnie managed to surprise me with quite a few little treasures including an embroidery project that I'm really excited about. It's a scene that my mom has done a couple of times and given to my older brother and sister. It's kind of a family tradition. Anyhow Bonnie found it somewhere and gave it to me. I'm so excited to work on it. Mycal also surprised me with a bucket of tools and some organizing containers. The thing about the tools is that I'm forever complaining that all the tools are his and telling him that if he would just give me some tools I'd leave his alone and then he wouldn't have to look for them. Since then I've used my tools a lot - and am utterly in love with the tweezers set he got me I've been using it on a project lately and it's made it so much easier.  The tools and organizers where a filler present because the what he had ordered for me hadn't shown up yet and he wanted to make sure there was something for me under the tree from him. See in the beginning of December he ordered a portable dishwasher and a red KitchenAid mixer for me. The KitchenAid is still struggling to find it's way here (apparently red is a really difficult color to get...) but the dishwasher got here shortly after Christmas and it has been wonderful. Never did I think I would be so excited about something so useful. In my mind gifts are supposed to be fluffy and fun. I was obviously quite wrong as I absolutely love having my dishwasher. It helps so much! Cleaning the kitchen is so much faster and I'm able to maintain the quality of clean I felt slipping over the last year. It's been very exciting.

There were many other great presents that I haven't listed here and it's not because they were less important or less appreciated I just don't want to make this post any longer that it already is because right now I'm fairly certain I'm closing in on 'War and Peace' in the length department. It was a wonderful, relaxed Christmas. We enjoyed time together and the chance to not worry about much of anything at all. I hope that you all had an equally enjoyable and loving Christmas.