Pesky Pigtails

Getting in the way of Gracie's fashion.
Or maybe this is the new fashion.

Bow and Arrow

Getting out his arrowaiming All these steps go very fast, he is very efficient. Notice he makes the same face every time he shoots. Also notice that his hair blowing in the wind.

I think I have a really cool kid.

Night time water play

One night I was leaving to go hand out flyer's for this cool fundraising project that I am volunteering for, and my kids came outside to say good bye to me. When we were out there they discovered the irrigation. I had to watch and take a few pictures of the fun. I can't believe they were not cold. They were having the time of their lives.

Soon we had to lose Gracie's diaper.

I loved playing in the irrigation when I was young and as I have said before - I love watching them enjoying things that I enjoyed too.

Forgot to mention

Right before we left my moms that long St. Patrick's day William decided to do his own dragon "face painting".Looks pretty awesome if you ask me. You can see remnants of this in the last post.

Sneaky Leprechauns

Those sneaky leprechauns even turned our bagels green.

The night of St. Patrick's day I had to go to the store to pick up some more corned beef (I stalk up when it is on sale) and saw some green bagels and I couldn't resist. We eat corned beef and cabbage once a month at Russ' request and then use the left overs for Reuben sandwiches. This time they were on Green bagels. My kids love to eat bagels.

While I was mopping William wanted to help, but he wanted to do it Cinderella style. I even had to come in later pretending to be Lucifer the cat and mess it all up for him. By the time he was done it took a full size towel to dry up the mess, but it was fun.

As William gets older it is so fun to watch him doing things I remember doing as a child. I remember washing the floor like Cinderella, I also used to love to get baskets, put them over my arm and walk around the yard singing like I was Aurora from sleeping beauty. I have seen William do the same thing. I don't know if he is thinking Sleeping Beauty, but he makes up songs as he sings outside and I love watching him - but I can't let him know I am watching him. I had a wonderful childhood and I love reliving moments of that with my children.

St. Patties Day

We had a fun filled St. Patties day last week. Russ didn't have to go to work until 1:00 so we went out to my moms where they other cousins were and rode the golf cart out it the dessert,
Got great static hair on the trampolineAte green mac n' cheese (those sneaky leprechauns)

went to the park and played in the sprinklersThen cooled off even more in the freezing pool.

Like I said - freezing.

I am so glad when Daddy comes home

...and I am not the only one.

Baguette anyone?

While we were at the store today, William insisted on buying a baguette - a very long baguette. So I thought, "okay I will make soup tonight to eat it with." Little did I know he had other plans. He wanted it when we got in the car. He broke a peice off for Gracie and started to eat.

By the time we got home from running earands this was all that was left. A little bit for the soup:)

messy and happy

I am starting to sense a pattern here. Like many children there are times when this girl is very messy. During these times she is usually very happy.

Here she is spooning ketchup into her mouth with a french fry. McDonald's was Williams choice reward on Saturday for being good and Gracie was not too upset about it either.

The art of documenting the Dragon Face

William and I went to a carnival themed potluck at our church. Someone was painting faces and William wanted his whole face to be a dragon. When we got home I said, "okay lets take a picture of your dragon face.""okay now let's take on where you are making a dragon face." "Let's try again cause you kinda look confused in that one.""Perfect"Then William wanted to take a picture of himself. Tongue out = heavy concentration.

sometimes...

...this is what it looks like to watch a video with dad.
Russ is asleep.

Not feeling well

Gracie has just not been feeling well. She has been on medication for an ear infection, but also started having a really runny nose and congested cough. Her fever was pretty bad too.

Grandma and Grandpa Christensen came over to watch the kids so Russ and I could go to the temple, but decided not to go since she seemed to be feeling worse instead of better. So instead we all visited together and Dad went and got us some food and they helped us snuggle the little bug.
The doctor sent us home with some breathing treatments yesterday and said that it looks like the ear infection is clearing up. Lets hope. And I hope you are all having a wonderful St. Patrick's day.

Mi Armoire

So before we moved to Flagstaff almost three years ago I bought this armoire from a place that sells used hotel furniture - you know those places? Anyway it was a great price for a very large and very solid piece of furniture (so large and solid that anyone who has helped move it, hates it) I like the lines and such and planned on doing something to it someday. I new I wanted some kind of texture inside the molding on the doors.When I saw this armoire at anthropologie my heart skipped a beat. So I copied it.I really love my new armoire. I changed a few things, obviously. It is just the way I wanted it. How we did it:
we did not paint it, we sanded it and stained it with blue stain. This was a lot harder that it would have been to paint it, but the look we got was great and much more lasting than paint. What I thought would take a few days took over a week of sanding here and there. If we had a belt sander it might not have been so long, but oh well. Russ' brother made a stencil for us (not exactly sure how) and then I cut the stencil out if freezer paper. Ironed the freezer paper to the doors and then spray painted it cream, then we spray painted the molding cream also. I love it and I am 100% okay with the fact that I am a born copier. Like Laurie from Little Women said - everything we create is "just mediocre copies of another mans genius." Well said.

Thank you thank you thank you thank you Russ for helping me do this.