sunscreen saved my life

you heard me correctly... sunscreen! 

today my darling claire got out the black sharpies and went to town on my new red leather couch and ottoman!  No, I don't have a picture because at the time I had 1 child to kill and a couch to save!!!

i first tried leather cleaner while claire was hugging my leg... nothing--

i ran to the computer and googled it... the suggestion,   toothpaste and baking soda
in the meantime, while i was searching claire got a wipe and was trying to wipe down the couch... back to time out for her and i started scrubbing.
it did lighten, but still very visable-- back to the computer and i found

this article on permanent marker removal

and low and behold IT WORKED!!!! YEA!

notice all the supplies all over the floor

seriously look at this... and there was marker everywhere on this cushion!!

AND THAT IS THE STORY OF HOW SUNSCREEN SAVED MY LIFE and PROBABLY CLAIRE'S :)

THE SUNSCREEN=  my new favorite, never go without, equate 50 sunscreen for kids

and everyone got to live :)

inherited pool

so yes, we inherited a pool... how do you do that?  you may ask... well have a very pregnant sister-in-law, a brother-in-law who enjoys swimming, living in a new house with no fence
all of that = inherited pool
long story short, in our town you must have a fence around your pool, or get fined $100 per day!  Yikes
+ my sister-in-law was about to have a baby and couldn't enjoy it anyway...
= they brought the pool to our house... YEA

setting it up

Livie had just won her t-shirt from the library reading program and was wearing it proudly!

Claire enjoyed the hose!

It miraculously works great!

 Claire has also worked on jumping rope...

what's your name?

Claire said her name for the 1st time yesterday.  She has said many words, but for some reason has never repeated or said her name... or my sisters, whom she loves?!

Anyway, in order to enter the pool you had to tell Livie, the guard, your name.  She asked Claire, "What's your name?"  and low and behold Claire said... Cair?

Yep... Cair like Care only I figured I would spell it like her name?!

dino museum aka oklahoma natural history museum

so fun...

we got to go to my sister's for the weekend.  she lives a life i can only dream about at this point in my life.  it's like a movie.  she's single, has a great job, lives in an adorable apartment downtown above a flower shop with her best friend, and is constantly doing fun things... concerts, games, travel, etc.  her apartment is so ecclectic and adorable.  i absolutely love it.

we had a fabulous time.  shopped, ate, went to the museum, ate, hung out, ate

sorry no pictures of sara and i eating! :)

the natural history museum was very fun... especially for our dinosaur fanatic, Livie!

this guy was huge!  you got to ride a glass elevator up to his head!  super cool!!!

i loved this one, his head was ENORMOUS!!

sara and i live vicariously through each other... i think it gives both of us the fix we need! :)

1st day of School NOT

So, this would have been my first day of school IF I hadn't decided to stay home with my girls.  I thought this was going to be very hard for me.  You see, I LOVE my job, LOVE the kids, LOVE the people... but this is what I did instead of teaching.  I couldn't be happier with my decision!

Toilet Paper Bracelets, Swimming, and Obviously Blogging during naps... which I love (naps and blogging)

My Inspiration

So...
1.  we cute the empty toilet paper roll into sections.
It obviously fit Claire without any altering.

For larger bracelets, we then cut the rings and hot glued two or 1 and a piece together.

2.  Then we painted.

This is what happened last time Claire painted!

We painted both sides on Livie's.

Ta-Da

Other things you can make with toilet paper rolls...
* binoculars: made these before we went to the zoo with Kindergarteners. too cute

*glasses:  used these to act out, Hey Little Ant

*butterflies:  made these when studying butterfly metamorphosis

Livie finds a Dime

Livie:  Can I buy a toy?!!
Me:  Don't you want to save it for something?
Livie:  No
Me:  What about a car?  Do you think you might want a car someday when you are older?
Livie:  Do they cost money?
Me:  Yes, lots of money.  You'll have to save a lot.
Livie:  No, I'll just share your car.  Is that okay mom... sharing is nice!

I drive a mini van.... we'll see how long this attitude lasts.

Love this guy

I love watching Jed play with our girls.

Had to add "macaroni face"

Yes, Livie was playing too, you just couldn't ever see her face!