I love being a guest!

Did you know that I'm also blogging over @ Bunchland?  Check out my latest post on DIY shadow puppets.  We spend a lot of time making and playing with these puppets in our house.

Give them a try...I would love to see your creations!

what i'm dreaming of RIGHT NOW!

I WANT THIS MACHINE! It takes scrap paper and turns them INSTANTLY into pencils.








'nuf said

Source: ecofriend.org via Christine on Pinterest

{this moment}

It has been a VERY good week!

Joining amanda and friends in "this moment"...capturing a moment from the week that I want to cherish and hold onto.   Have a great weekend!

Adorbs for a worthy cause

Happy Movember everyone!  I'm going to try and convince Sri to shave off his moustache today and start fresh for the month of November....I'm guessing it is going to take a lot of convincing.  If I were a betting woman though, I would bet that my little Anthony is going to be able to grow a moustache like this one in grade 8!

If you can grow a moustache or know someone who can, sign up HERE to help raise money and awareness for men's health issues.

what I loved about today

:: taking the kids on a hike to the trail that I used to hike on when I was their ages

:: siblings co-existing happily (for moments at a time of course...let's not spoil mom too much)

:: discovering "dinosaur eggs" and then smacking them with sticks

:: letting birds eat out of my very wrinkly hand

:: watching my children exhaust themselves thoroughly....YAY!!!

I am so thankful that I found so many moments to love today.

cave dwellers

I have never really been interested in decorating the house for halloween but this year I thought I would give it a try.  I must say that I am pretty impressed with myself.  I remembered this paper bat post from Dana of MADE fame from last year and new that I wanted to give it a try in our family room.  I downloaded this template from Country LIving and got cutting.  

If you are going to give this project a try I found that I had to shrink the template a bit in order to get it to fit on a standard 8.5"x11 piece of paper. 

 I have some bats left over so if anyone is interested in them just leave me a comment and we can figure out how to get them to you.  

The kids love these bats and the shadows they cast on the walls....with all the lights off except a little table lamp it really feels like you are in a bat cave.

celebray-ate!!!

Yesterday we celebrated the 7th birthday of our dear dog Ruby .  It is so hard to believe that she is already 7....my oldest baby.  I can remember the day we got her, and how she used to terrorize me by nipping at my pants and socks whenever my feet touched the floor.  She has been so wonderful each time we brought a new baby into the house and protects them as if they were her own.  Last night we threw her quite a birthday bash, complete with peanut butter delight dog cupcakes (recipe here), party hats, birthday cards, chicken mixed in with her dinner and a nice long walk.   Since Ava is now a birthday party expert (she attended her first party without me on the weekend) she is planning Ruby's next party....expect invitations, snacks, a pinata  and perhaps bowling.

Also, check out my post over here about  DIY watercolours using everyday pantry items and bottle caps....super easy and a money saver!

Thanks again Laura Ingalls Wilder

Last week the kids and I (and some friends) drove out to Meyers farm to pick some apples.  We love this farm because there are farm animals to bother and I can let the kids run and run without worrying.

We picked a 20lb bag of macintosh apples (what was I thinking????) I have made applesauce and applecrisp and still haven't made a dent in the bag.  Then, thanks to the genius of Laura Ingalls Wilder (we are reading Little House in the Big Woods) we discovered that if we spike the apples with cloves we end up with a natural room freshener ....believe me....we really need it!!  

We created a tutorial for these apple pomanders over here @ bunchland....it is adorable if I do say so myself.  These two are mine and Ava's....Anthony's was not such a success.

He started off innocently enough

Then started getting a little aggressive

This is Anthony's completed pomander....delightful! 

mmmmm...bonbons

Yes, i haven’t posted in a while and NO, I haven’t been laying on the couch eating bonbons (although that sounds so delightful).  I have been busily preparing this basket of bibs, skirts and fall bonnets to be sold in Little Bird for the Ottawa Giant Street Sale.  Music, food, fresh market produce and bargains.....it is an event not to be missed!

Hope to see everyone there.

this is totally what dreams are made of

Am I the last person on earth to find out about double dream hands?  THe kids are working on perfecting the routine.

be brave

YAY!!!! we all survived the first day of school for Ava....in a new school and french immersion to top it all off.  I was so proud of Ava today.  She was brave (and actually was heard saying quietly to herself as she got out of the car "be brave ava, be brave ava)....much braver than I ever expected and is willing to return back to school without a fuss.  What more can you ask for.

She has spent the evening speaking "french", which really consists of mispronouncing english words and rolling her r's. 

I need help from all of you lunch takers out there.....what kind of containers do you suggest for a litterless lunch?  THe ones I have are too heavy for ava.... I asked her to spy on her classmates to see what they had but she was unwilling to accept that mission.  

farwell dear friend

Goodbye summer vacation.....you have left us too soon....but thoroughly exhausted.  We have loved the long summer days, the evenings we have played outside well into the dark, the snack plate meals, the impromptu road trips, the time spent with family, the wrinkly skin of spending HOURS in the pool, the park playing, the making of random friends and oh so much more.  Here are some highlight pics from our summer vacation romance 

outdoor movies at city hall

searching for tadpoles

being given (not winning) a HUGE jar of jelly bellys

Lake Nippissing sunsets

LOTS of roasted marshmallows

our first wedding party debut

pipe cleaner crafts with SUPIE

making mustaches

often feeling like I was free falling over the falls

practicing for next season of Survivor

contemplating feeding the horses

LICORICE!!!!

Fall is right around the corner and tomorrow is the first day of school for Ava.  Check the blog tomorrow to see how the day went (Ava is predicting HORRIBLE!)....also look for pictures where I am standing in the background wiping the tears from my eyes (why are my kids growing so quickly???)

winner winner wear your apron at dinner!

shuffle...shuffle....shuffle

Thanks to everyone who participated and all of your kind words about the aprons.  I loved having this contest so watch for more to come!!!!

Winners.....you will be hearing from me very soon!

guest post!!!!

It's official, I can't throw anything away!
Check out my guest post on recycling crayons over here.

go ahead, get dirty!

I have been holding onto these adorable handmade aprons since the spring.....

made from map of Italy dishcloth

pocket side to map of Italy

horses racing

pocket side of horses racing

Lucky Charms

pocket side of lucky charms

.....wanting to hoard them for my own little ones, but knowing that they have WAYYY too many aprons already.

 I have decided to set them free FOR FREE!

They are made from dishtowels and are fully lined in a co-ordinating fabric.  I have put a divided pocket on one side...the perfect size for little hands.  These aprons fit ages 2-6 depending on the size of your little one.

TO win one of the aprons just leave a comment at the end of this post letting me know you are interested (make sure you leave an email address so I can contact you).  I will be randomly choosing 3 lucky winners on September 1st 2011..... GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!

working on our skillz

We have been working hard on our hula hoop skills using this youtube video by hoopsmiles .....we have spent way too much time watching this and many of their other videos!

Guest post!!!!

Check out my guest post over here @ bunchland.  Make your own hula hoops and feel like you are stickin it to the man!