The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Friday the 23rd started off early. Real early.Gentry and I had to be to the surgery center @ 6:30am for her second set of tubes and adenoid removal.Here she is before surgery looking quite chipper

The next morning on Christmas Eve Daddy went hunting so the older two girls got to make ginger bread houses....or uh...graham cracker houses

The kits are cute but a total rip off in my opinion. $10 each....really? And each kid always wants their own. So you do the math. Rip. Off.
I just bought a bunch of random candy from Family Dollar as well as a dollar box of graham crackers.
I actually used hot glue to build the graham cracker house.
We knew we wouldn't be eating it when it was finished so no biggie.

I was very impressed with their creativity. I used one of my cake piping bags to cover all the seems with frosting for the candies to stick to.

I unfortunately don't have any pics of the finished products. Yet. They turned out amazing though and are still sitting on our kitchen table.

Here is a little tast of our indoor Christmas decor

We have a big tree and a little tree. Kind of fun having more than one.

Hope you all had a very merry Christmas. Tonight we kick off the new year!
Hip Hip Hooray!
So ready for 2012
I hope it is a significant improvement from 2011

A Little Break

I got the chance to take a "girls trip"! It was a quick one. 27hrs to be exact! But every minute was enjoyable.
We headed to K.C.
Originally it was a plan formulated to get a friend out of town that is needing some stress free time right now.
However due to it being December and Christmas approaching at warp speed it only ended up being two of us.
We flaked on each other and said we weren't going to do it.
Too much money. Not enough time. Lots to get done at home. Kids will freak. Blah Blah Blah
But our husbands actually changed our minds and said we should go for it!

 I bid on a room on priceline.com....and we ended up getting one at the Crowne Plaze Hotel!!!

It was very nice. Not exactly the easiest thing to get to. Well not for two redneck country girls anyway. But very close to the Plaza. And everything that surrounded it was beautiful.

This was the view out of our window if you looked to the left

And this was the view out of our window if you looked to the right

we had to park in a parking garage at the hotel
this was actually our view from where we parked

church near the hotel
it was shiny and pretty :)

We did some shopping at the Legend's Mall, Cabelas, Plaza and Oak Park Mall
We ate a reeeeally late dinner last night at the Cheesecake Factory on the Plaza

We split a piece of Strawberry Cheesecake after we ate our meal.
And it was A-mazing. MMMmmmm smack smack dElicious!

We actually didn't have to park to far away

I snapped this picture while walking back to where we parked. 

It gives you just a small taste of the lights

I don't have any "fun" pictures.  I didn't want to lug my camera around from store to store.  But we did a lot of browsing, a little bit of buying, lots of talking and lots of laughing.

We really had a wonderful time.  It was such a treat for us Mommies. And much needed :)

Defective Genes

Yesterday this little lady had to have tubes put in her ears at 7am. I think this is how she felt about it....

These pictures actually weren't taken yesterday. But they were taken this week.
I don't even remember what she was having a little fit over.
All I know is I had my camera in hand.
And I do have to say I was chuckling a little bit.

The tube procedure went well. It was just her and I. Daddy got big sisters up and ready for the day. And then dropped off at daycare.

She had a lot of infection in her right ear that they had to suck out. And lots of fluid on the left ear.
That came as no surprise.  She was only happy if she was being held the last 3 days before her procedure so I knew she was probably suffering from another one.

She WAS NOT HAPPY coming out of the anesthesia. Which I knew would happen. She sacked out about half way home.  Then we got in some good snuggle time before Mommy had to head to work.

Next week will be Gentry's turn.  She goes in Friday for her second set of tubes. This time she is also having her adenoids removed.

So at least we won't have to pay two deductables!

Having 3 children is a blessing. Most days. Haha! And man oh man is it expensive.
It seems like insurance pays less and less every year and the cost gets higher and higher.
I just count my blessings that they are overall pretty healthy little girls.
And man are they ornery!

Dana and I both had ear trouble as kids. We both had tubes. I also had my adenoids out. And as my p.c.p. pointed out the other day.....a lot of scarring on my ear drums.

So our poor girlies were doomed with the defective ear genes from the get go.

Tis the Season

Hope you are having a warm and cozy "Christmasy" Sunday.....

Gentry's Room: Before & After

This project has been done for close to two months.
It took about 3 weeks.
Gentry slept with her big sis while the project was under way
And most of the work on it was done when the girls were sleeping..which means night..which means dark... so I apologize for the poor picture quality

So here we go with the "before's".....brace yourself
I guess I didn't realize how hideous it looked until we were done

BEFORE:

It wasn't toooooo awful. but A LOT of pepto pink
Her closet has never had a door. There wasn't one there when we bought the house. So I have always just hung a curtain. And then of course the doorway playhouse made it quite the cool play place.

Here is where the process starts.......
Everything to the center of the room
and the beadboard starts to go up

the trim around the window starts to get painted as well as the doorways
and i chose to put up some cool paintable wallpaper on the upper half of the room
some may ask why.....my answer is.....because i like it

c.r.a.p. E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E!!!!

projects for her walls

 

and then it all comes together!!!

her bed i bought from a good friend for $50

she had bought it with a bedroom set off of craigslist for her daughter

her daughter has a full bed not a twin, therefore I scored it. YEAH!!!

i painted it. or um...ahemmm...i should say..the hubs did <3

i had pics of his professional painting skills at work with his spray gun

But they accidentally got deleted. 

the bed is actually a chocolate brown even though it looks much darker in the pictures

the mosquito net or "princess net" I dyed in the washer with RIT fabric dye

there is her wall canvas! all the portraits on her walls are ones that i have taken and blown up through walmart.com (hint: blow your bigger pics up as posters and they are super cheap)

the letter "G" came from Hobby Lobby and was gold....and of course I spray painted it! The flag banner I made out of scrap book paper and pom pom trim. It is all sewed together. Yes, you can sew paper!

And she has new doors! courtesy of Menard's on sale. they came primered and we painted to match all the trim.

Well I hoped you have enjoyed the tour!!!

And Now She's 6!

I know.......it has been "FOREVA" since his Mama has made a post.
No...I have not quit my blog. Lets just say I just took a little "intermission".
I needed a break from it.  But now I am Baaaaack!!!!
and boy do I have a lot to share with you

Yes, it is true. We are now parents of a six year old. Totally Insane. Awesome. And unfathomable all at the same time.

Well Miss Kennedy had quite the "friend" party this year.
We let her choose between having an inflatable for her party or face painting. And my smart girl chose wisely!!! She must have known that the wind would be blowing "Gale force" that day.

So here is a peek at her awesome day

I was very proud of myself. I did not have to spend money on anything for her party other than the face painter. Everything else I already had!

Kennedy and Reese

Our very own Miss "G" or as her Dad calls her sometimes......"G-Wizz"

one of her little bff's Jill

 Here are the stages of Maddison getting her face all done up! She picked the perfect one!

This is little sweet Lauren.  She got to come with her big sister Monica. Lauren and Gentry are good friends and go to preschool together. She is such a doll.

 

Here is the whole group...minus Gentry.  She was having a...uh.."rough spell" at this moment and wanted nothing to do with being in the picture.

Jill and Maddison

Kody and Kenisyn

Kennedy, Kody, Kenisyn and Mariah were all Twinkies and picked the same face design <3

Here she is opening gifts. The gift giver got to sit in the chair beside her. Lauren and Monica are watching her open their present!

Then the next day on her actual birthday...November 20th she got to celebrate with family and neighbors

Blowing out all six flames!!!!!!!

Kennedy and Lane on their 6th birthday that they will forever share!

I made a new chocolate buttercream frosting recipe for her bday and cake and OH MY LAWD.......it was totally awwwwesome! Well I thought so anyway. And Kennedy did too so I guess that's all that matters! HA!

Well that wraps it up!

My next post will be all about Gentry's new room!

Before and After Pics!