It's February, right?

We get a kick out of the way Audrey says swimsuit!

Closets

Have I ever told you how much I love closets? I seriously do not know how we survived 2 1/2 years with a teeny (like 3 feet maybe) closet for all of us to share in Holland. Basically Andy's work clothes and my dresses were hung up. The rest of the stuff had to be folded up and put in drawers or on shelves. So, when we moved back to Texas it was so refreshing to have access to 5 fairly decent-sized closets. However, I have to admit that when we moved back I just stuffed the closets with boxes and didn't organize too well. Since we've been back for about 9 months now, I figured it was time to do some organizing. Plus finding clothes to fit Audrey was becoming a pain. So, last week Audrey helped me sort out her closet...

Much better! I got rid of several containers and used the nifty space saver bags that you vacuum to shrink up. Every size from newborn to 18 months has been vacuumed up. I also sorted through and threw away a lot of stained clothes. Why was I saving them??? I don't know... We have a ton of girl clothes for any season imaginable! I guess that's what happens when you have 2 girls in opposite seasons and different climates. Anyhow, maybe some day there will be another girl who will benefit...

Another exciting thing I discovered, I get to go summer clothes shopping for Audrey! We don't have very many outfits that will work for a Houston summer, since we moved to Holland when Rachel was 18 months old. So, Audrey is going to get some new clothes this summer. I've already got some shopping done. I love shopping for my girls! Everything I pick out for them looks even cuter on them than the hanger. :)

I've also organized my closet and last month I did the playroom closet. Now I just need to tackle Rachel's, which shouldn't be too bad. The only thing is the weather has been absolutely wonderful lately. So, the thought of staying indoors is quickly dismissed. Maybe in April/May (hoping for a long Spring) when it's hot and miserable, I'll get to Rachel's closet... Or I guess a rainy day. And Andy's, well that's all his... It sure does feel great to get a bit more organized.

Crazy Girls

I love how the girls play together, even when it gets a bit crazy:

Project Completed

The past couple of months I've turned semi-crafty. Nothing like other people I know... But a few little projects have gone successfully. Here's one that I got from Family Fun Magazine (I promise they aren't paying me money to advertise), which you can find the directions here. My mom actually helped me get this started over the Thanksgiving holiday. I then brought it home and wanted to change out the ribbon, which I bought in December, but I didn't change the ribbon and hang up the hair bow organizer until last week. The girls love it though! And I am grateful to not have to hunt through their messy hair bow drawer anymore. Word of advice though, you don't have to be a perfectionist with this project and make the braid and hair look perfect. It doesn't really matter because as you can see it gets covered in bows... Or maybe my girls just have too many bows... Also, I used twisty ties at the top and bottom of the braid before tying the bows on, which helped. Anyhow, it was a fun little project.

Our Dancing Queens

The other day I was at the library and noticed a friend checking out books on CD for her son. And I thought, what a great idea... I loved listening to books on tape when I was little. So, I grabbed a few for Rachel. When we got home I pulled out the boombox I used as a teacher and Rachel really got into listening to the books. Well, one morning the girls turned on the boombox and discovered the radio. Yeah, we don't really listen to the radio. Andy does in his car. But in the family van it's usually Wee Sing or Primary songs... Anyhow, the girls loved the radio and danced all morning long as I got ready. Silly girls! And just so you don't think I'm too horrible of a mother, the pencils were brand new and not sharpened... I wouldn't let me girls swing around sharpened pencils! :) Anyhow, here's a fun video:

"Normal"

A humorous conversation I had with Andy this morning:

Me: How's your week looking?
Andy: Fine...
Me: What kind of hours will you be working:
Andy: Normal...

Me: Okay, so I'm assuming normal is you coming home at 9:30???

Andy: Yeah...

It's kind of sad when working the hours Andy works right now is considered "normal". Some days it's still hard to accept it as normal. It's "late" hours, not "normal" hours. Anyhow, this too shall pass hopefully near the middle of May and then start up again in July. One day he may have a job that has what I would consider "normal" hours, although I think they are few and far between. Wishful thinking maybe...

On the bright side, Audrey has finally gotten over screaming at the top of her lungs the minute she opens her little eyes. However, even though we are thrilled with this accomplishment (yes, she's over 2 years old and could fill a toy box with the amount of stuff she sleeps with), it's kind of sad as well... You see, she wakes up and with her sweet voice calls, "Daddy, come get me, Daddy, come get me..." And who usually gets her - me. So, then she's disappointed. Although I don't think there's any job out there that would enable Andy to be home in the morning and after nap time. So, I guess wishful thinking on Audrey's part as well...

P.S. So, I guess the "normal" for this week is 11 PM...

Halfway Through...

This post is for the grandparents. Rachel is loving her reading lessons! We are about halfway through the book. Rachel is anxious for Audrey to be put down for a nap each day so that we can start her reading lessons. Anyhow, here's a somewhat long video that I took today, but one the grandparents should enjoy. This was the first time Rachel read through this passage and it was the longest passage she has read yet...

As we have been going through these reading lessons I have been reminded of what a messed up language English is. We all get over the little rules and words that are different, because we've been reading them for years. And we don't remember what it was like to learn to read. But it's kind of odd that we don't spell is "iz" or was "wuz". Because really that would make more sense. This book I'm going through with Rachel is very scripted and quite often I'm having her sound out a word and then telling her how to really say it, followed by the sentence, "It's a silly word." Anyhow, we certainly have a lot of silly words in English and it really makes one wonder who it was long ago that decided we would spell and say things the way we do...

Our Valentine's Day

Overall we had a pretty good Valentine's day. I actually got myself together and continued a Michaelson tradition by making pink, heart-shaped pancakes. And after a few bites Rachel asked for Cheerios and Audrey did her usual few bites (she's not much of a breakfast eater). At least Andy humored me and ate a few.... :) No wonder I don't bother making breakfast very often. But it was still fun and I enjoyed the pancakes!

We then went about our normal Monday morning routine - cycle and abs class for me while the girls have fun in the Kidzone. We did some chores once we got home and then for lunch I made hot dog hearts. Super simple and an idea from Family Fun Magazine. I used toothpicks instead of linguini. The girls gobbled them up. After naps we enjoyed decorating some cookies at a friends' house. We checked the mail on our way home and our mailbox was full of cards and packages from family and friends. The girls had fun opening the valentines that were sent to them! Dinner was just the girls and I, since Andy is crazy, busy at work. After the bedtime routine I enjoyed an episode of Castle, the one and only show I follow regularly. Definitely a good day!

I wanted to share the valentines that Rachel (and then Audrey joined in as well) made this year. I can't claim this idea as my own. My friend shared the idea with me from someone's blog. I took the pictures and then logged into picnik and spiffed them up a bit:

Can you tell who's a lefty and who's a righty??? :)

And then I made these cute suckers for Rachel's classmates, which turned out to be super easy. and luckily I had enough leftover candy canes from Christmas. Instead of using chocolate chips though I used candy wafers from Hobby Lobby, which are much easier to deal with and work great!

Even though the pink wallpaper in the girl's bathroom proved to be a great background for the pictures, I'm hoping next Valentine's the pink wallpaper won't exist. We've enjoyed it for several years and hopefully this is the last... :)

Friends

I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful friends. Whenever I have the opportunity to be around my friends I am always uplifted. I've had the opportunity in the past week to spend time with various friends and it has just hit me how much I depend on my friends. I depend on them for many things: watching my kids, picking up my kids, venting, laughing, crying, encouraging, listening, supporting, easing heartaches, helping me with projects, sharing ideas with, getting feedback from, strengthening me, etc... The list could go on. I am so grateful for the friends I have, near and far. I appreciate those who have kept in touch through the years. It means so much to me. It's my hope that I am able to be the type of friend my friends need as well. Life is good with friends...

I Am a Child of God

I was able to catch Audrey singing this morning. I love the message of this song. I'm so grateful for the knowledge that I am a child of God. I wish everyone had a knowledge of this simple and yet amazing belief. Audrey sings the words and probably doesn't quite comprehend what she is saying. It's my hope and prayer that one day she will realize and understand that she is a child of God and what a blessing that is...