Dining Room panels are DONE!

We finally got the dining room curtain panels finished and hung this past week! Hubby hung the rod, and I got them hemmed. Here's a shot:

Here's a run-down on where I found the fabrics:

red at top=Hobby Lobby (also used this fabric on the cornice boards by front door)

green stripe=bought 1 pre-made green panel for $9.99-20% off coupon at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I cut it to make the stripes on these panels (also used on cornice boards by front door)

trim (on green stripe)=Hob Lob

flowered fabric at bottom=JoAnn's

Here's one of the cornice boards that share the same fabrics as the panels:

On other note...I think I decided to try something else in the breakfast area. I like these pictured below that I just made, but I think I want something different--brighter!

The family-room curtains are on hold until I decide on the breakfast area curtains above!

Weigh-in Week 10 (I think ??)

Here's a report on the Weigh-in for Week 10 (I think ??) for The Biggest Loser at work...1 pound 2 ounces...that's how much I lost this week making it a total of 14 pounds!!!! HOW did I gain an extra 14+ pounds anyway??? Man...I'm by no means skinny, but my pants sure do fit better now than they did 10 weeks ago! Next Friday is supposed to be the Final Weigh-In for the competition, but I'm hoping we'll keep it up through the end on the school year!

Boys will be boys

Saturday night my son was running on the concrete and fell and ripped the knee of his jeans. He stood up and said something along the lines of..."I haven't done that before." WHAT????? Tonight when I was putting away clean clothes...I thought...let me just count the pants that he's done that in before. Well...I counted 8 pair of pants in the closet, and I know there's one more pair of athletic pants in the laundry--so that's a minimum of 9 pairs (in the past year I'm guessing). So...there you have it...boys will indeed be boys (and that selective memory goes along with it too I think)!

Whirlwind

OK--first off--I'm gonna report on the Friday weigh-in for The Biggest Loser at work. I lost 1 pound last week for a total of 12 pounds 14 ounces! Now...for the fun stuff...

This weekend has been a whirlwind of fun activities!

1. We started on Friday night with the 18 year olds' BD party.

2. Sat. am our son had baseball practice.

3. Sat. evening we had a friend's 40th BD party. Happy Birthday Kim!

Here's the birthday girl and her sweet husband who planned her a surprise party:
Hubby and the kids at the party:

4. Sat. mid-evening we visited with our friends-The Bryans having fun playing, talking, laughing, and even got in some shopping for $4 Crocs at the Croc store right before they closed for the night! Let me get a...Whoo-Hoo for Mrs. Bryans who's a deal-seeker like me!

5. Sat. late-night we arrived at the in-laws for a sleep-over (as the kids call it).

6. Sun. am--fun with Nana and Papa and Aunt T!

7. Sun afternoon-went by my sister's house for pizza and chores. Everyone had a job--I helped my son put together a new table/chairs set, hubby helped install a storm window and a few things, my mom organized and cleaned, my dad helped with the window and other stuff, my daughter got in her aunt's bed to watch a movie and have a snack, and I think my sister was the supervisor overseeing the job site or maybe the gopher too.

8. Sun night--met some friends for a girls' dinner...

Whew! All that fun makes me kinda tired recapping it now! Hope you had a fun weekend too!

Happy 18th Birthday

Tonight we went to Ms. Christy's babies' 18th birthday party. We were soooooo unsure about going, but we are glad we did! Friday night is usually the night that everyone crashes early at our house--everyone is past due for a good rest...so...I was anxious about taking the crew out to Jess' and John's 18th BD party tonight. But, the kids had the best time there! Ms. Christy is the best, and her family and friends are too!

Here are the kids right in the middle of the action. They helped put the 18 candles on the cake!

The birthday girl and guy:

Ms. Christy always has something fun and exciting! Look at the excitement in the kids' eyes with this dancing guy!

Every time our son leaves a birthday party...he decides that whatever happens at that party is how he wants to celebrate his next birthday. I'm sure this one will be no exception! I mean--how can you top a bon-fire with a weenie and marshmallow roast!

Look who else got a Snuggie for his birthday! Our son loved it that Johnny got one too!

Our daughter had her hair up earlier today, but she took it down right before we left because she wanted to look like the birthday girl-Jessica!

Happy 18th birthday ya'll!

The way to a girl's heart...

The way to a girl's heart is PINK cleats for t-ball of course!!!! Thanks to our coach's wife...our daughter now has some pink cleats! She was so happy that she had to put them on right away! Now she has a pink glove, a pink bat, a pink batting helmet, and now...pink cleats--Girls Rock!!!

There's a pink swoosh on the side of her new cleats:

Hubby and daughter watching for the ball (maybe!):

An action shot--get that ball girl!

We didn't catch that tricky guy!

On Tuesday for St. Patty's Day, all of the Kindergarten students brought leprechaun traps to school. We tried to catch that tricky guy, but he escaped after making a mess of the Kindergarten classrooms! Here's our son with his Lego trap that he built. The whole family had a part in helping add to some part (except for his sister--she wrote a sign for it, but brother told her it was too messy and made her cry-oh me!).

Numb

I went to get two cavities filled today--yuck! I haven't had any cavities in years...except for 1 about 2 years ago when I changed to a new dentist. Well...that one I had filled 2 years ago has been 'worrying the starch' out of me! I'm not even kidding...I KNOW Christy is sooooooooooooo tired of hearing about my tooth at work, but today while I was getting the other 2 teeth filled (which the dentist said were small--so I'm thinking--what am I doing here?)--I also had the dentist fix the tooth that was filled "incorrectly" (opinion as my non-dental-school-attending-self). I'm not numb anymore, but I'm a little sore...but already---that "worrying tooth" feels sooooooooooooooo much better! Wishing you healthy teeth!

More on the curtains

Today I finished the cornice boards for the two windows in our front entrance. Hubby built me the cornice boards, and I sewed the fabric for them. We added batting under the fabric too. I'm happy with them! Here are some pics:

I used 2 of the fabrics that are also on the dining room panels, and I used some extra red trim from the breakfast area curtains (that I posted about yesterday). Doesn't hubby look happy to help???? He really is the BEST (he did it with a smile)!!

I'm almost done with the panels for the dining room. They are done except for the bottom hem. I want to hang them on the rod before I do that final hem at the bottom to make sure they're the correct length. I bought 4 different rods to try for the dining room. I hope I can find the receipts for the ones that I don't need so I can return them! I've had a bad habit lately of misplacing receipts that I might need again!
I still need some trim for the curtains in the family room. It won't take but a minute to complete them as soon as I have that trim. However, we don't have a fabric store anywhere close to our house. The closest place to buy fabric is about 30 miles away! We're supposed to be getting a Hobby Lobby, but I haven't seen any construction started yet...please hurry Hob Lob...I need you!

Lots to say today

I have lots to post about today! I was trying to decide--separate posts or all on one. All-on-one won....so here we go:

1. Week 8 Weigh-in for The Biggest Loser was Friday at work. I lost 2 oz. (with my pants on this time!!). My total weight loss is now 11 lbs. 14 oz. The top losers have lost about 22-23 pounds (one of them is Shelley--whoo-hooo!!). Maybe if I don't eat between now and the final weigh-in I can still win the money!!?? No...really...I'm happy that I've taken off 11 pounds....and hope to make it a minimum of 5 more off for the final goal. I think the contest ends in 4 weeks...so I'm thinking 5 more off is do-able...then hopefully...I can continue on after the contest ends too!

2. Donuts for Dads was at our daughter's preschool on Friday. Hubby said it went great! I even had him take my camera so I could see too! Here she is with a gift for her daddy--a photo of her dressed up like a daddy---really cute idea!!!

They also asked the kids to complete statements about their daddies. Here are our girl's responses:

My Dad is special because..."he wants me to give him a kiss."

I like it when my Dad..."makes silly faces."

My Dad can do many things! I think he's best at..."making the best dish to eat."

My Dad is as handsome as a..."Prince."

My Dad is smart! He even knows..."what the weather is outside."

Melt-'yo-heart stuff right there!! She is a Daddy's girl!!

3. I FINALLY got one set of curtains finished and hung today (with hubby's great help)!!! My sister said it's nice to have a carpenter and seamstress in the family to get stuff done, but who has time to be constructing and sewing??? This pic was taken tonight of our breakfast area. I'm still thinking our kitchen paint color will change, but that may take another few months/year for us to make a decision!

4. We also bought 2 stain colors to test for our wooden floors that hubby installed. The raw-wood floors are all down-2 halls, family room, kitchen/breakfast area. I think hubby has decided to stain/sand/finish them himself now(areas listed above plus re-doing foyer and dining room too). He was thinking about hiring someone, but when you think about the money you can save--you start thinking do-it-yourself again! Hubby put the test stains on some scrap pieces today for us to think about.

Tomorrow will bring church, lunch with family, (and hopefully) more completed curtains and a stain color choice!!

The Grass Isn't...

Two things led me to this green grass image this weekend.
#1 I got to talk to a dear friend of mine on the phone on Saturday. We don't talk much...life keeps us both busy, but it's always right-where-we-left-off when we do get a chance for a call. Part of our convo led me to the grass image. The just of it was...You may think that the grass is greener...but behind that fence...there's just as much uncertainty with ups/downs as you have on your side of the fence.
#2 Part of the sermon at church on Sunday was about how Jesus only briefly discusses His resurrection, but the majority of his focus is on His suffering.
Now...you can see where I'm coming from for this post. There is no perfect life, but that's what makes it...well...life. It's not about how happy you are all the time...rather...it's about how you get through the tough times that make you who you are.
I'm usually not thinking this hard, but seems like those 2 experiences made me stop and think. Wishing you happy times and green grass on the other side of tough times!

A Day at the Races

The kids went to the truck race this weekend with hubby and my dad. This trip was the kids' first time to the racetrack. Hubby used to help my dad sell merchandise at the track for a Kiwanis's fundraiser, and he's been saying that he wanted to take the kids to the track for "an experience." It was perfect weather for it (last weekend snow; this weekend sun and 70+ degrees), and the kids had fun checking things out. Our son liked the actual racing; our daughter--not so much! Here are some pics:

This pic was on the shuttle from the car to the track. As you can tell...the kids were NOT sure about this ride--look...they're holding hands--RARE!!!!!!

Outside the racetrack

Our son helping the drivers know which way to go!!!

Our daughter modeling her ear protection headphones.

My dad with the kids dorkin' around in the program booth. Hubby said that several people tried to buy programs from them!

Well-the best part of the race was that I had time to do some final curtain-making shopping. I worked on the new curtains today--slowly, but surely--they're coming along!

Week 7 Weigh-In

Yesterday was our Week 7 weigh-in for Biggest Loser at work. I got on the scale, and thought I was ok. However, the "Weight-Keeper Nurse" informed me that I was up a few ounces from last week. So...instead of paying for gaining...I said wait a minute...I went back in the Scale Room and weighed without my pants! Viola--instant weight loss on the scale. So...this week all I really lost was my pants!!! I'll have to work harder for the next weigh-in!

Christy--this one's for you!

Me with Christy--ready for the show! Pre-show we went out for dinner surprising Christy's son in costume. We were going to the grocery store too, but remembered we needed some items for our costume at the store before we could get dressed (bobby pins, hair net, knee highs, and men's briefs (what???-you'll have to ask Christy about that one)! So...that's why Christy gets this dedicated posting-she's always up for a fun time! She's the BEST!

So...what was the occasion for the costumes? Tonight was our Talent Show at school benefiting Relay for Life. Well...if there's a talent show...you know there will be some "Retired" Kindergarten Teachers there. My friend, Megan, brought this act with her from her college days...and we've been doing the same skit ever since--probably about 10 years (with a year or two off here and there). Just change the song/dance routine and add some lines to your skit...and there you have it...a "fresh" skit that gets a good laugh every time! Tonight our premise was that we were in choir practice about to sing when our choir leader finally gives up on us yelling "Hit it Gertrude" causing us to break into The Cupid Shuffle. Not to boast...but we did get a "standing O" as Christy said! It's always a fun time! The fun begins when we all get ready together. Here's Lisa getting her hair powdered to make it white! Nice dust cloud, huh?????

Here's the whole crew ready to "break a hip"!

This is why I'm a Kindergarten teacher!

Seriously--where else can you go to work and have this much fun?

Today was Book Character day at school. The Kindergarten team was Snow White and her Seven (no...make that Six) Dwarfs. Two of our team members were out today...so we recruited one more Dwarf to join us, but the other dwarf hat was MIA...so Snow had to represent with the 6 of us!

Our son was a dog from Go, Dog, Go. Here's how that choice came about with side note commentary from mom in red: son said he wanted to be a dog (ok...I can handle that--we have a set of dog ears and a tail); son said he wanted to be Bolt (we have the storybook of the new Disney movie) (Bolt?? The ears/tail set we have is brown not all white like Bolt); son said he wanted to be Hairy Dog (from our UGA storybook) (Hairy??? WHY didn't I buy those silver pants at Old Navy the other day? Wonder if I can get a Hairy Dog hat at the collegiate store?).

Well...the night before we had NO costume ready when I remembered that we had a stuffed animal dog for Go Dog Go...so I thought...I'll get son all excited about Go, Dog, Go again with this guy, we'll call my dad for his "old man hat" again, and I'll get my scarf out of the closet. Let's just say...WHEW...he loved the dog and was all on board for that plan--hence...Go, Dog, Go was at school today!!

o
Doc and Dog wish you a happy Book Character Day!!

Snow in the South!!!!

Woo-Hoo!!! It's snowing down south!!!!!!
It's our daughter's first time playing in the snow!
Here's our son after he slid down the slide full of snow on our playset. His nose went straight into a landscape timber. He was just healing from another injury in the same spot, and now it's bloody again!

Hubby was prepared in his weather gear!

Me with the kids

What about 3?

What about 3 fabrics for the dining room panels? Kinda formal with a little whimsy? Red, green, print or green, red, print? What do you think?

I think I'm leaning toward the red on top?