My Craigslist Rules

I love Craigslist! You can find some great deals if you have patience. The boys' furniture, our coffee table, the headboard in our room are some Craigslist treasures we found. (Pretty much all the other furniture my dad made). We've also gotten baby items, toys, clothes, etc. I got a baby swing for $15 and then sold it (she doesn't use it anymore) for $20.
Let me tell you about some of my Craigslist Rules:

1. check often-- especially the "free" catagory. I once got about 10 big garbage sacks of wood chips/mulch for the front flower beds for free. She said she got a ton of emails, but mine was the first!
2. For furniture, you can always reupholster, paint and change knobs and drawer pulls. Look at its potential.
3. Never Never Ever pay the price they are asking! Always Always Always ask for a lower price! 90% (or more) I have asked for a very significant lower price and got it! Even if I think it's a good price, I always ask if they are willing to go lower. It's only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

I wanted to get 2 things in particular right now- furniture for Katherine's room and an Ikea bookshelf for the playroom (see earlier post). I really liked this dresser in this room: so I was looking for something like it. I found this as an ad on Craigslist:

http://www.lindasfurniture.com/product/used646 (it wouldn't let me add the picture, sorry)

I'd paint it all white, add glass knobs, maybe a few finishing touches, and I think it's pretty good! Best part, They were asking $695 for the whole set (2 dressers and a mirror, a nightstand and the bed), then lowered it to $595, which means to me that they can't sell it, so I asked if they'd take $500, and they said yes. Since it's a shop, they have layaway and financing options as well.

And I did find the Ikea bookshelf, $90 at Ikea new, plus tax, and it is listed on Craigslist for $60 and it's 8 months old. I asked if he would go lower, so I'm hoping not to pay over $50 for it- half price!

I also saw this on Craigslist:
It would go perfect in my retro/vintage schoolroom/playroom (see earlier post)!
However, she's asking $150 (not likely). She probably got it for $10, repainted it and added the cool knobs. So, I could either offer a really low price, or just take her idea.

Here is another find:
Just add white paint, new knobs and it would be a great desk for Katherine's room; or add black paint and new knobs and it could go in me and Todd's room. They are asking $60, so I'd offer maybe $40.

The only problem with Craigslist, is that there are so many good deals but not enough money to get them ALL!

good stuff

http://lds.org/move/index.html?type=conference04-2009&event=april179&lang=english

Do I have brain damage?

I am in Conway, Arkansas right now visiting my parents. I was looking on the internet, and found this house I want in Greenbrier (population about 1,000? right outiside of Conway population 50,000). It has 4 bedrooms and is on 2 acres!!! It's listed at $235,000. I would love to live close to my parents and have so much land. I would have a big flower garden, a big vegetable garden and orchard, farm animals, and a kids area.
Even a fireplace!

I decided to blog about it because I was thinking that if I saw this post when I was a teenager--that I wrote that I wanted to live by my parents in Greenbrier, AR-- I would have thought I had brain damage. I wanted to live as far away from AR as possible. Kerry, my sister, wanted to live in San Francisco, and she ended up in Little Rock, AR, and Allison wanted to probably live in my mother's lap:), and she ended up in Tucson, Arizona. We'll see where Ryan ends up.

I forgot the camera cable at home in Utah, (to get the pictures from the camera to the computer) so I didn't want to blog until I had the pictures, sorry about the lag in posts.

playroom ideas

I have been thinking a lot lately how I am going to decorate and organize the loft/playroom/schoolroom. I want it to be well organized and the style to be retro/vintage with lots of bright colors. Here are some pictures that have given me ideas:

I found this blog of a lady who is a fabric designer (links to her fabric I want under her pics)

Here is her studio and other pics from her:



I thought it was cool how she put her fabric in frames on the wall like this:



http://annamariahorner.blogspot.com/
http://www.freespiritfabric.com/core-pages/gallery.php?gal_id=161&sw_id=1668
http://store.annamariahorner.com/fabric.html


I also found a lot of ideas at http://www.landofnod.com/
I'd like to get these suitcases to store the boys' crayons, markers, glue and scissors in. They're cute and they can carry them to church etc.:

I'd like to get these curtains for the loft/playroom/schoolroom from land of nod:

I like this idea for storage (also land of nod) but I'm going to take cereal boxes, mac-a-cheese boxes, etc., and cover them with paper to make my own:
I like this paper at Michaels (maybe to cover the creal boxes?):

Some more inspiration pictures from http://kellymccaleb.typepad.com/my_happy_little_life/:

Allison has this from IKEA and I want to get one as well for books and toys in baskets:

I'm going to paint this tree on the wall for us to decorate with the seasons:

I also got some canvas for each boy for them to paint and they turned out cute! Todd took them back to Utah, so no pics. Other ideas are to make a kite out of fabric or paper and a paper chain for the tail to put on the wall, wall art that says "create" (out of buttons, pom poms, etc. for each letter), and "dream" in vinyl lettering (just the dream and the bird) from http://uppercaseliving.com/

and one that says "just add imagination" that looks like this:

And I'll paint the kids table and chairs. What color should I do the walls? I'm thinking a yellow, and a blue on the wall that I paint the tree.

Maybe I'll add one of these vintage posters.



So, that's what I've been thinking about lately.

cool European toy stores online

Allison has some cool toys she got in Germany and Kerry showed me this cool toy store online:
http://moolka.com/
Here is another one like it:
http://oompa.com/

updated post with pictures- my b-day and st. patrick's day

Here is one of the pictures we took of us at night:Here's another picture we took of us at night, laughing so hard we were about to pee our pants:

Still at night, Allison said this looks like a Reader's Digest pose:
My birthday dinner at a Mexican restaurant:
My beautiful birthday tea party:
The flowers hand picked by nana and allison's boys:
My great grandmother's tea cups:
the beautiful table in the AZ sunshine:











Me, Allison and Kerry at Sagauro National "Forest" by Allison's house:


I am on vacation at my sister's house in Tucson, AZ. I think everyone should have a break like this! I'm loving it! I am so relaxed! It's nice to get away from it all for a while. Todd drove the boys down but now Todd is back in Utah:(. I wish he could be here, too, but it's fun to have the boys back.

St. Patricks Day:
Last night leprechauns came to my sister's (Allison) house!(She has 3 boys ages 6, 4 and 2.) They opened the kitchen cupboards, turned over the kitchen chairs, turned the milk green, left glittery leprechaun dust everywhere, painted green on paper and the paper towels, left green footprints on all the kids' hands and faces and left a note next to the kids' leprechaun traps (that were knocked over) that said in tiny handwriting: "nice try! Better luck next year!" They also left fake gold all over the batckyard to trick us into thinking it was real gold. Oh yea, and a tiny gold pot with a clover on it, and left cookies but 2 were eaten:). The kids thought it was so cool. We had cereal with green milk for breakfast, and for lunch we had baby kiwis, clover shaped PB&J's, mini cans of sprite, green fruit roll ups and mini mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches. For dinner we had salad and spaghetti with green alfredo sauce. We all wore green except for Auntie allison, so the kids pinched her all day.

My birthday:
I wanted to wait to post about my birthday until I got the pictures from my other sister, Kerry, but I'll add them later. It was the best birthday ever! Todd had to work from home and watch the boys for me so I could go to AZ, and Kerry, my mom and Allison had to take time out of their busy lives to be with me for a few days while I turn from young to old-- overnight mind you. I hear 30th birthdays can do that to you. It was a surprise that my mom and other sister Kerry were there, too. On my birthday I took a long morning nap with the Baby (she came with me)-what a blessed thing naps are! When I woke up, they had prepared a beautiful tea party for me! My sisters and mom are really great cooks and cooked up some REALLY delicious food! I'll post it at the end for me to remember. Since it is gorgeous weather here in southern Arizona, they had the table set up outside with a pretty tablecloth and napkins, and flowers hand picked from the wild by Nana and allison's boys. While we ate, we smelled allison's orange blossoms which is heavenly. Back home in Utah Todd said it was snowing-- about 5 inches. Then Allison got a sitter for her kids and my sisters and mom and I went shopping the rest of the night. We went to an antique store, a nursery with tons of all sorts of plants and flowers, then we spent 3 hours at Joann's fabric and craft store. Then we went to eat at a Mexican restaurant. Driving home to Allison's house, you go through the lone and barren desert. We decided to stop and take pictures of the stars and bright moon. Then we decided to take pictures of ourselves, which made us laugh so hard we all about peed our pants! It was the best, most special birthday ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Birthday Tea Party Menu:
*tea: raspberry kiwi tea with sugar cubes, both Allison brought back from Germany
*drink: equal parts fresca, strawberry lemonade and margarita mix with cut limes and oranges floating in it
*toasted sliced baguette bread with fresh mozerella, sliced heirloom tomoatoes big and cherry- all mixed in olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh basil from alllison's garden
*not toasted sliced baguette with chive and onion cream cheese, topped with sliced cucumbers and sliced cherry tomatoes
*fruit kabobs- grapes, bananas, straberries and apples marinated in pina colada mix
*banana bread sliced, topped with cream cheese and sliced strawberries
*petite quiches- 8 eggs, 1/3 cup heavy cream, colby jack cheese, fresh basil, diced bacon and tomatoes, pie crust, topped with cheese, 350 degrees
*lemon blueberry scone mix from Trader Joes
*chocolate toffee covered in pistachios also from Trader Joes

living in the moment

yesterday early evening, i sat in allison's reclining chair, reclined, and the back door was open. the temp was perfect and the breeze was blowing on me and i was soaking up the moment and i was so relaxed. then allison and i went out front with the kids and the kids rode trikes and bikes, and then we all went on a bike ride around the neighborhood with the 2 littlest kids in the bike trailer (i gotta get one!). Right now it's 90 degrees and the kids are playing in the sprinklers. i decided that we are going to make this a tradition- spending the month of march in AZ hanging out with my sister!

On Vacation (ahhhh)

I am on vacation at my sister's house in Tucson, AZ. I think everyone should have a break like this! I'm loving it! I am so relaxed! It's nice to get away from it all for a while. Todd drove the boys down but now Todd is back in Utah:(. I wish he could be here, too, but it's fun to have the boys back.

St. Patricks Day:
Last night leprechauns came to my sister's (Allison) house!(She has 3 boys ages 6, 4 and 2.) They opened the kitchen cupboards, turned over the kitchen chairs, turned the milk green, left glittery leprechaun dust everywhere, painted green on paper and the paper towels, left green footprints on all the kids' hands and faces and left a note next to the kids' leprechaun traps (that were knocked over) that said in tiny handwriting: "nice try! Better luck next year!" They also left fake gold all over the batckyard to trick us into thinking it was real gold. Oh yea, and a tiny gold pot with a clover on it, and left cookies but 2 were eaten:). The kids thought it was so cool. We had cereal with green milk for breakfast, and for lunch we had baby kiwis, clover shaped PB&J's, mini cans of sprite, green fruit roll ups and mini mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches. For dinner we had salad and spaghetti with green alfredo sauce. We all wore green except for Auntie allison, so the kids pinched her all day.

My birthday:
I wanted to wait to post about my birthday until I got the pictures from my other sister, Kerry, but I'll add them later. It was the best birthday ever! Todd had to work from home and watch the boys for me so I could go to AZ, and Kerry, my mom and Allison had to take time out of their busy lives to be with me for a few days while I turn from young to old-- overnight mind you. I hear 30th birthdays can do that to you. It was a surprise that my mom and other sister Kerry were there, too. On my birthday I took a long morning nap with the Baby (she came with me)-what a blessed thing naps are! When I woke up, they had prepared a beautiful tea party for me! My sisters and mom are really great cooks and cooked up some REALLY delicious food! I'll post it at the end for me to remember. Since it is gorgeous weather here in southern Arizona, they had the table set up outside with a pretty tablecloth and napkins, and flowers hand picked from the wild by Nana and allison's boys. While we ate, we smelled allison's orange blossoms which is heavenly. Back home in Utah Todd said it was snowing-- about 5 inches. Then Allison got a sitter for her kids and my sisters and mom and I went shopping the rest of the night. We went to an antique store, a nursery with tons of all sorts of plants and flowers, then we spent 3 hours at Joann's fabric and craft store. Then we went to eat at a Mexican restaurant. Driving home to Allison's house, you go through the lone and barren desert. We decided to stop and take pictures of the stars and bright moon. Then we decided to take pictures of ourselves, which made us laugh so hard we all about peed our pants! It was the best, most special birthday ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Birthday Tea Party Menu:
*tea: raspberry kiwi tea with sugar cubes, both Allison brought back from Germany
*drink: equal parts fresca, strawberry lemonade and margarita mix with cut limes and oranges floating in it
*toasted sliced baguette bread with fresh mozerella, sliced heirloom tomoatoes big and cherry- all mixed in olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh basil from alllison's garden
*not toasted sliced baguette with chive and onion cream cheese, topped with sliced cucumbers and sliced cherry tomatoes
*fruit kabobs- grapes, bananas, straberries and apples marinated in pina colada mix
*banana bread sliced, topped with cream cheese and sliced strawberries
*petite quiches- 8 eggs, 1/3 cup heavy cream, colby jack cheese, fresh basil, diced bacon and tomatoes, pie crust, topped with cheese, 350 degrees
*lemon blueberry scone mix from Trader Joes
*chocolate toffee covered in pistachios also from Trader Joes

Happy Birthday Kristie!

Today is Kristie's birthday - and not just any birthday, but her 30th birthday. And so, in honor of this momentous day, here are 30 reasons I love and appreciate her:

1. The way she cares for me

2. The way she cares for the kids

3. That she's so diligent about reading scriptures with the boys and even helping them memorize the scripture mastery verses.

4. That she doesn't enjoy cooking ... because then we don't have to fight over who gets to cook :)

5. Her go-getter attitude (The word "No" isn't in her vocabulary)

6. That, once she's committed to something, she goes at it with her whole self.

7. That she does home school with the boys - they're definitely learning far more than they would in the public schools. According to the public schools, Nathan isn't even ready to start Kindergarten 'till the fall but he's already doing double-digit math (like 68 minus 50) in his head - no kidding. Alex is doing the same. I don't think there are many parents that have what it takes to do home school (I know I don't) so this is a big one!

8. The way she always tries to get me to linger a bit longer in the mornings before work to spend more time with her.

9. That she always laughs at my jokes, even when they're really not funny.

10. That she absolutely loves with all of hear heart.

11. That she helps me to be a better person.

12. She's the official painter of the family and it always looks good. She'll always discuss her ideas with me beforehand and I always have a hard time imagining what it will look like - but it's always fantastic in the end.

13. That she sacrifices her personal desires to be a mother - and she's so good at it.

14. That she changes 90% of Katie's diapers and never complains about it (though that might change as Katie starts to eat more solid foods ... )

15. Her frequent posts on the blog - what a great family journal! I know that in 5 years, or 10, or 20, we'll have so much fun reading about what we were doing / thinking / etc.

16. Her spontaneity.

17. That she keeps the house (relatively) clean but that she worries more about spending time with the kids.

18. That she enjoys rather than resents motherhood - truly there is no greater mission in life! Of course, it's not always easy and she gets tired / frustrated / burnt out / etc. - but she keeps on going.

19. She loves holidays and always comes up with the best activities.

20. That she thinks Katie is her little baby doll that she needs to dress all pretty - and she does a fantastic job of it and even (mostly) stays in budget.

21. That she's older than I am so I can tease her about turning 30 (though I'm sure she'll return it full force on my birthday ... HA! Old Lady!)

22. She's a good example for me.

23. She's so extremely talented with so many things.

24. That she's always encouraging and finds ways to make me feel like I'm doing a good job at being a father and husband - even when I can do better.

25. That she listens to me no matter what - even if I'm talking about programming mumbo-jumbo that is meaningless to her.

26. She's really good about remembering to take pictures. 99% of the pictures we have of the kids doing cute / funny things were taken by her.

27. That she willingly submits to being my test-taster for even the craziest of culinary adventures - some of which have been less than edible (remember the shrimp ravioli?)

28. She's the best mom in the world!

29. She's the best wife in the world!

30. She's my best friend in the world!

Happy birthday Babe!


(Thanks, Jed, for the idea ...)

And so it begins ...

Today is Day #1 of Kristie's Super Trip.  This week, she's in Arizona with two of her sisters and her mom - having 'girl time' for her birthday.  So, I'm staying with the boys and we'll drive down on Thursday.  She's given me the task of guest blogging in her abscence which I think is mostly so she can keep tabs on what her three boys are doing!

Today at church, Alex had a lesson on mothers during the last hour and he was sad as were were leaving - missing Kristie and all.  So, we decided to make Krabby Patties for dinner.

(For those who don't watch Spongebob, he's a fry cook that works in a burger joint making Krabby Patties according to the secret formula).

One thing of foremost importance was to find the right spatula.  Several episodes of the show have focused on Spongebob's spatula so the boys couldn't use just any utinsel.  Fortunately, though, they found the perfect one (they said it looks just like Spongebob's):

The next element was to come up with our own 'Secret Formula'.  So, I put some ground beef in a bowl and got out about 15 - 20 different spices from the spice cabinet.  The boys got to smell each of them and decide which ones to include.  Then, they got to decide how much to put in and they added the spices to the meat.  We wrote down the secret formula as we went along so it's not lost, don't worry.  I'd tell you what was included but then it wouldn't be a Secret Formula, now would it?

Of course, the perfect Krabby Patty has to have lettuce, a patty, cheese, and a tomato - all on a soft bun.  I think we came pretty darned close:

Alex had to have his just like the original (and I know for a fact that he wouldn't have allowed lettuce on it otherwise), although Nathan opted for just the patty and cheese.

And, now that we have a Secret Formula, we need a way to keep it safe.  So, we found the perfect bottle (including a cork).

On the show, a character named Plankton is perpetually trying to steal the secret formula for his own failing restaurant.  Alex said that someone had to try to steal the formula - so I said maybe Mommy would when she comes back.  I guess we'll just have to find a good hiding place ...

Two

Two funny things Alex said today:
1. Allison and I were on the phone talking about fresh limes in Arizona. Todd said, "That's one thing about Arizona, they've got fresh citrus." Alex blurted out, "Fancy Living Digest!" (in a funny accent of course). I guess fresh citrus is fancy living!

2. We were talking about what the boys were going to take to AZ, and I told them they should bring their stuffed animals. Alex has "Beary," and on Valentines Day he got a pink bear to be Beary's wife (and a wedding dress for her and a tux for Beary so they could get married). He said he wouldn't bring Mrs. Bear because "they might think something funny about me has happened."

And now, I'm off to AZ! I'll leave you with two links to blog posts with some great St. Patrick's Day ideas:

1. http://seeleys.blogspot.com/2008/03/st-pattys-seeley-style.html

2. http://tipjunkie.blogspot.com/2009/03/st-patricks-day-party.html

I have great friends!

Today when I went outside, I saw some of this:
Balloons all over, a nice card and a happy birthday sign on the garage and on my car! Thank you for making my birthday special and thinking of me!!!
Then, a friend went with me to Discovery Gateway and I had a lot of fun. Thanks!!
A Great Day because of Great Friends!
P.S. I never did organize that party I wanted to on Saturday, but I'll definitely do it when I come back. I even found the perfect invitations. I can't wait!

If you live in Spanish Fork

Even if you don't homeschool and think homeschoolers should have equal access to extra curricular activities:

A bill is hanging by a vote, and we have the power to do something. If you live in Spanish Fork or Mapleton, please do what you can to support the bill to give homeschoolers equal access to extra curricular activities. This bill has been worked on for 4 years and will die without your help!
Just send an email to Senator Hinkins and tell him to support the senate bill SB61. Put in the subject line whatever applies: I live in Spanish Fork, Resident of Mapleton, or I am a constituent.
Here is his email address: dhinkins@utahsenate.org

Thank you in advance!!

Blushing Buttercream Pettiskirt GIVEAWAY!!!!

Blushing Buttercream Pettiskirt GIVEAWAY!!!!

Surprise!

I was in charge of dinner tonight. I messed it up, so we decided to go out to eat for my birthday dinner (but my birthday- the big 30- is really not until Tues.). We went to Tsing Tao in Payson, our favorite restaurant. In my fortune cookie, my fortune said: "A pleasant surprise is in store for you soon."

Out of nowhere Todd pulled out a gift bag. I knew he had been scheming something for a while, because every time I ask him about his allowance, he starts giggling uncontrollably. Inside the gift bag was a little toy airplane. The boys thought I hit the jackpot. I was confused.

Then Todd said that I am going to fly to AZ on Sunday morning to spend some "girl time" with my sister! We were planning on all driving to AZ next weekend, so Todd is flying me out a week early with Katherine, and then he and the boys (and the dog) are still driving out next week. I'll get an extra week with my sister without the boys! Todd asked if he could work from home this next week so he can watch the boys. How sweet is that? On the itinerary for the boys (according to Todd): going to the Dollar Store every day, going to the Dino Museum from when they open until they close, eating dino nuggets, having movie nights watching Star Wars and other boy movies, etc.

So, I'll be gone for a whole month!

lots of pictures

We made a St. Patrick's Day collage. I save magazines and catalogs for crafts. Alex's:

Nathan's:

Mine:

We also made Spongebobs. The kids love Spongebob.

Here are some pictures from Boys' Club. Katherine learned to crawl there!!! She is yawning:

Now she's talking:



At Boys' Club they had an art lesson:

We went to get a treat at McFattness and the kids played for about 2 hours on the "play place":

Here's Katherine's springy Sunday outfit:

Katherine and her friend Heidi:

Yesterday Todd picked up Katherine and she laid her head on his shoulder and smiled the hugest smile! Every morning Todd gets Katherine out of her crib when he hears her talking. He goes in there and she is playing with her doll. Then he picks her up and she gives him a hug by laying her head on his shoulder. Then she looks out the door and he takes her to me and we snuggle in bed and I feed her. Todd said that is the routine every morning. So adorable.