Once upon a time...long, long ago...

Or, when I was a kid! I thought it would be fun to post some of my favorite toys from my childhood. Did you know they are now VINTAGE toys!? Which I guess makes me vintage! I'm not sure how I feel about that. And if I'm vintage that makes my sister "retro" and my mom "classic". Oh, and this all got started because Fisher Price is celebrating their 50th anniversary this year with the re-release of some of these toys. It was the family farm that sparked this little trip down memory lane. We saw it at Target yesterday. It's not nearly as great as the one I had. (Which Owen plays with at my mom's house!) The farm building is tin and the people are huge! Which I guess is not unlike what has happened to people in the US. All the Fisher Price people used to be small and now they are huge! I guess to be safer. Because all those kids kept cramming those little people down their throats and chocking.

So here are some of my favorite toys from my childhood!

We have the little snoopy pull toy here at our house. He's lost the string and the shoe and a little bit of his paper.

I think this record player is still around somewhere. Morgan's parents have one at their house too.

The farm is at my mom's house. The door moos. That was my favorite part. Oh, the silo is gone. My mom said it fell apart.

This is/was my favorite!! I LOVE this castle! And I'm happy to say Owen plays with this at my mom's house too! The new FP pales in comparison to this castle. The trap door, the dungeon, the secret room behind the stairs. It was the best!

This train is at my mom's house too. And I think there are about 5 of them in Owen's classroom at ECFE.

I loved this too. My mom didn't keep it. But some of the little people are still around. Morgan's parents have one at their house.

Morgan's parents still have this one too. We don't. I loved all the moving parts!

This little music box, as you can see, plays singing in the rain. It may be around somewhere at my mom's house. We have this toy box that is still as big as it was when I was a kid. And there is a ton of stuff in it! I loved this music box and the song. I still love this song!

I don't know if this is still around. I haven't seen it so it may have been sold at a garage sale. But this was a ton of fun to play with too!

And who didn't have a corn popper!?

And last, but not least, the A Frame House. Sadly this is no longer with us. My mom sold it or gave it away. I loved this one too. I wish we still had it. It was a great house. My grandparents had an A frame house too. Maybe that's why it was so endearing. It also had clear plastic doors that for some reason I thought were so neat!

Fisher Price just doesn't make toys like they used to! Oh, and some of these toys are worth a mint if you have them or can find them and they are in good condition. Which I think is why they are worth so much! Mine were all well enjoyed! (I found most of the pictures at www.thisoldtoy.com)

Now I'm off to check on the potty trainer who is sitting on the potty chair watching The Incredibles. He had on Incredibles underpants today. They unfortunately, didn't make it past breakfast.

Better images...

I scanned my 8 1/2 x 11 layouts and am re-posting them so you can see that they actually are nice! I have to re-photograph the big ones and I am not up for that tonight!

The silver strips on this layout are aluminum tape. Supposed to look like a mirror.

We have started potty training again today. It's not going to bad. Owen has had a few accidents but I suppose that's to be expected. By this evening I was starting to feel like I am not ready for this! Hopefully with persistence he will get the hang of it.

A fun time was had by all...

These are the layouts I completed at the retreat this past weekend. I have one left to finish up that isn't pictured here. I was really pleased with the amount of work I got done and the quality of the work. They really look much better in person! The pictures I took of the layouts themselves are terrible! Which I didn't realize until I was resizing to post them! So please look past the terrible images. I also blurred the photos on the Toddler class layout as there are other people and children in the pictures whose privacy I want to protect.

I had a great time. Got lots done. Relaxed. Slept in. Took a nap on Saturday. Went for a walk on Saturday. It was great. Now we're back to Monday. It's rainy and dreary outside. I will have to keep pulling up the little bits of sunshine from last week and the weekend I stored just for such an occassion!

A weekend away!

Happy Friday! I'm leaving shortly for a scrapping retreat with my friends Lisa and Dawn and a bunch of other women! I'm almost packed. Morgan took the day off so I could go. I've got about 15 layouts planned and few cards to finish up for a swap. I didn't over plan but did bring enough supplies so I won't feel like I need anything from home. And with 16 other scrappers there someone should have whatever I am missing!

This is my first retreat. I've been looking forward to it for weeks! Creating, hanging out with friends and relaxing!

The boys will have a great weekend together too!

Photo Mojo...

What better way to get your photo mojo back then to go somewhere beautiful and bring your camera? Yesterday afternoon I met Lisa at the Como Conservatory, one of my favorite places, to wander about and take pictures and just hang out for some girl time! We had a great time. It was super busy because yesterday was one of the first really nice days here this year. But we got some good pictures and had a nice time chatting. A great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Oh, and I did I mention we didn't have any kids with!?

Here is a selection of what I shot.

And I couldn't resist snapping a picture of these! A young girl walked in wearing these with dark wash jeans and a hoodie. I don't think they really matched her outfit but they were funky! And if I had the legs I'd wear a pair in red!

The weather here this week is supposed to be beautiful! Lots of sun. Warm temps. Spring may just be arriving! Although it's still March so anything could happen! But for this week we will enjoy it. Today it's supposed to get to 60˚! Bye-bye coat! Hello sandals! In a little bit Owen and I are going to go for a walk. I will get some exercise and Owen can watch birds with his binoculars!

Tagged!

Bonnie Rose tagged me to do a little challenge. It is as follows:

Take a picture of your self right now, no primping or preparing. Just snap a picture. Load onto your blog. Tag 3 people to play...remember if you are tagged on another blog we will all be heading to yours to see if you played along.

Grrr! So I decided to do it despite not having had a shower or make-up or any of those special things that I would do were I to leave the house. Or let someone in the house. Well, actually the appraiser was here and I didn't do those things. And when I say special I mean wash-up, brush my teeth and put on some powder and mascara. Oh, and chapstick. And maybe do something with my hair. Maybe.

So here's the picture.
And here is me looking presentable.It's not as much work as it looks! And I could really use some lip color!

Something I love...

1. Bowl of clouds, 2. Funky Cloud Shadows and Rays, 3. Every cloud should have a silver lining, 4. Layers of Clouds, 5. Clouds on the lake 7-15-06, 6. Lonely Tree with Cloud and Dandelions, 7. refraction of clouds over my garden, 8. 31 days in May 30 , 9. Clouds and Tracks, 10. Blue Sky and Clouds, 11. Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining, 12. Clouds

Clouds are something I have always loved to watch. My favorite are the big puffy ones that roll through the sky on days when the sky is bright blue and the sun is almost blinding. In MN those days frequently happen when it's really cold out! But they happen in the warm months sometimes too. At my grandparents house I used to lay outside and watch the clouds. At home too, but we had a lot of really big trees so they were sometimes hard to see. The clouds are something I look forward to in the spring. Tomorrow it's supposed to get up to 35˚. The 10 day forecast is looking good right now with warmer temps and sunshine! I can't wait! I'm tired of wearing a coat. I'm tired of gray and brown in the sky and landscape. I'm tired of being cooped up in the house. I know we can play outside in the winter too but it's just not the same. I'm a spring and fall kind of girl.

Owen has been a character lately. Here are a few of the things he's been saying:

Today after work my sister was telling me of how he was hauling toys out but wouldn't let her play with any of them. I told Owen he needed to share with Naunee, she likes to play too. He responded, "I try to share, but I not".

When I got home from book club tonight I could hear him in his room asking Morgan where I was. I peeked in and he said, " I was wanting you! I losed you for a little while."

He was looking for something that my sister had put away and of course it wasn't jumping out at him. She told him it was in his room. So he said to her, "I use my eyebrows to look."

He's also getting better as using his manners. Especially "thank you" and "no thank you". Please is a little trickier but he's getting there. I asked him today if he wanted his blanket while he was lying on the floor pretending to sleep. He said, "no thank you. Thanks! I not need it."

I'm glad tomorrow is Friday. It's been a slow/busy week all at the same time. There has been snow and really cold weather. I'm ready for spring (you probably got that already!) and some sun and warm weather.

A list of wishes and gratitudes...

Wishes:

• I'd like to use the bathroom ALONE more often. Boys, regardless of age, have no sense of privacy.
  
• No more snow. I want spring to come. I'm tired of the blahness that can be seen outside everywhere.
• I wish Owen would get interested in using the potty chair. I made him a chart to earn stars. We'll see how that goes.
  
• Morgan's boss to get a different job or an attitude adjustment. The man's an absolute jerk. And that's one of the nicest things being said about him.
  
• Did I mention spring already??
• More sunshine!
• Creative inspiration.
  
• Continued weight loss and ambition to eat well and exercise.

Gratitudes:

• My boys. I love them. Even when they don't value privacy and modesty.
  
• Morgan having a job. Even if his boss is a jerk.
  
• My job. My boss is great!
• Good friends. Great friends. I have great friends.
  
• Disposable diapers. I'm glad I'm not washing diapers out in the toilet.
  
• My own treadmill so I can run inside when it's cold out or Owen won't get in the chariot.
  
• My MAC.
  
• A craftroom where I can spread out and leave stuff. Where there is enough room for me and Owen to work.
  
• Mimi and Naunee who take care of Owen so we can have a date night or I can go to work. Or just have a break!
• A home. Food. A car.Insurance. All those things that I take for granted that so many other people don't have.

And now I think I need to change a diaper (I heard the familiar noises of Owen doing something in his diaper) and call the insurance company about a claim! Hope you all have a great Monday!

Hello March!

Last week I decided to give up sweets for Lent. It's an ambitious goal for me. Since I'm a junkie. And I went cold turkey. But after day 3 I started to feel okay. And now it's been 6 days! Sunday I decided to start Weight Watchers online again. I had done it last year for a few months but was very unsuccessful mostly do to my lack of commitment to it. But a good friend went back too so I'm hoping we will both be successful and supportive to each other. Today is day 3 so it should start getting easier after this (if my 3 day theory proves correct!) and it definitely helps to be off sugar. I've also begun a running program to get in shape for a 5K in April. It's called the couch to 5K in like 10 weeks. Or something like that. If that goes well I want to train for the Twin Cities 10 miler which is in October.

Not much else going on around here. I'm working on cards for a swap. Planning layouts to work on during my first group scrapping retreat in a couple weeks. Training Owen to stop doing things that annoy me. Hopefully his future wife will thank me! Today he wrote on the table in my craftroom while I was getting something ready for dinner upstairs. He looked at me, guiltily, when I came back in and I said, "are you supposed to write on the table?" and he said, "no" and I asked him why he did it and he said, "I was just trying something out". I'm glad he's a smart and clever kid. Really, I am. But somedays it would be easier if he weren't so smart and clever!

And now, because it's almost 11pm, I'm off to bed!