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!

Time to sit and write...

It seems like I don't have a lot of time to sit and write lately. Mostly because there isn't time for more than a two line update. (Better suited for Facebook than a blog!). Owen is always right behind me, usually pushing my butt. Which he says, "mama, I push your butt." Because all mamas need a push in the butt, right!?

But right now Morgan and Owen are both asleep in Owen's room. So I thought I'd just sit and write. We were going to watch a movie after Owen fell asleep but as is often the case Morgan fell asleep too. I'd like to go in and get a picture of the two of them sleeping on Owen's floor but I don't want to wake either of them up with the sound of the camera. And then there's the perfectionist in me that would want a good shot, so I'd need to set up the tripod and use the 50 mm lens so I could get a nice unblurred shot! Maybe another day.

I've had a somewhat quiet mind lately. I think I've mentioned before that when there isn't time to write here I often write in my mind. Which is just basically talking to myself in the third person. I guess that sounds a little schizophrenic. Or not. Since it's always my own voice. But like I'm talking to an audience. Only it's in my head. Anyway, I haven't had a lot of that going on lately. But when I don't have that going on I tend to be a little agitated with my creativity. Like it's stuck. It's there. I can feel it. It just isn't flowing. And I know this about myself and the creativity. It ebbs and flows. I just enjoy the flowing more than the ebbing. But I've got a couple novels to read and some how-to books on lighting for portraits to read and I'm hoping after a little reading I will feel renewed and back to a creativity flow.

There was an interesting post on the cricut message board yesterday. A woman asked if people thought they were creative. And lots of women posted that they weren't. They were good at copying, or lifting ideas, but they didn't feel they were themselves very creative. I thought this was a little bit sad. That there are all these women out there "creating" but they don't feel they are creative. Creativity is always something I've been interested in. Probably because I've been surrounded by it my whole life. And while I was in graduate school I did some research about creativity and had intended to do my research project and thesis about it. But I decided on something simpler. However, the research and ideas out there about creativity are interesting. Many people start out with all kinds of "creativity" but once they start going to school it often is lost. Not necessarily that they lose it but that it gets pushed aside because other things like math and reading and all those things we need to live our lives become more important. And often we think of creativity as an artistic endeavor. Which isn't necessarily true. The nature of a person's creativity can manifest in any area of expertise or interest. That's why our world is filled with so many fascinating and wonderful things. From art to technology to mathmatical ideas and theories and wonderful foods. Even child rearing can be a way to express ones creativity. There is a woman in our toddler class who admires my creativity with art but I admire her way of parenting. Her ideas on how to raise children are thoughtful and considerate and exactly what I like to surround myself with. And Owen too.

And speaking of Owen and creativity. He is really starting to use his imagination when he plays. It's fun to listen to the things he comes up with and the things he wants us to do. Yesterday we were playing soccer. Which is actually just us throwing a soccer ball around and running a lot. But it requires us to wear helmets. Not acutal helmets though. Pretend ones. And we all have them. And Owen makes sure we do. He will first put his helmet on, and he does the motion of putting on a helmet. And then he will put the helmet on our heads. And through out the game he will say, "do you have your helmet on?" and we check and make sure it's on. Then we can play. But we cannot kick the ball. There is no kicking the ball in a soccer game with Owen. There is a lot of roaring and yelling and growling, lots of boys playing games noises, but there is no kicking of the ball. He also likes to make birthday cake. Usually with his dee-dee. Then we eat it. And it's usually his birthday.

And now that Morgan is up from his evening nap, maybe we can watch a movie!

Friday fill-ins...

Today I'm giving the Friday Fill-In a try.

1. I'm happy, I'm short, I don't mind at all.

2. Why do I have big feet and not small?

3. How does this mommy thing work, anyway?

4. Every morning, I put a smile on my face.

5. I consider myself lucky because I am blessed in so many ways.

6. One day we’ll see peace in unexpected places.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to being with the boys, tomorrow my plans include crafting at Dawn's and Sunday, I want to go to the evening service at church!

Totally exciting answer huh!? It's my first try. I kept it simple!

I think it may still be snowing outside but I'm afraid to look! We played outside for a bit today. Owen enjoyed it until he slipped on the sidewalk while playing hockey with Morgan. Then they came in.

Oh, and I got a hair cut! Check me out! So far I love it! Super easy!

Wordless Wednesday...

Fun with Spuds!

For Valentine's Day my mom gave Owen these cute little Spud Buds. The moment I saw them I knew we would need to have a little photo shoot together.

Here's Jr. Potato Head

Corn Head

And Carrot Head. She's my favorite!

I decided since I had gotten my mini studio all set up I'd take pictures of other stuff too. So here's some stickles!

My mini studio consists of a roll of white paper hung from the ceiling in my craft room. I put hooks in the ceiling (it's a tiled ceiling and easy to put hooks into) then hung fish line from there that connects to two hooks on either end of dowel. The paper goes on the dowel. That creates the seamless look. Kind of like what you would find in a portrait studio but much smaller and less expensive and on top of a table! I ran three actions on the pictures of the spuds. All by Renee Oakenfull. Julie's Curse, a black vignette, and a black border. Oh, then I resized for the web using her action too. I also shot them in raw so I could adjust the exposure a bit and the saturation. The lighting isn't superb in my craftroom so I want to have as much control over things as possible.

Hi!!! Hello!!! It's me!!

I've not disappeared. I've only been surviving while dangling from the mommyhood rope. Today I am feeling a bit more rested. Although I'm not sure why, since I didn't get anymore sleep than the night before. And there isn't anything particularly difficult going on, it's just the same old stuff from one day to the next.

1. Owen doesn't think he should use the potty chair. "I'm fine", he says.
2. Owen doesn't sleep in a bed. "I'm fine," he says, while laying on his floor.
3. "I'm hung-ry", Owen says ALL DAY!
4. "No poops, just farts", Owen says, when I wonder what smells. Sometimes he's right. Sometimes not. And if there are poops, "I'm fine", Owen says while I check to see what's in his diaper.
5. When asked how he is, Owen replies, "I Owen." He doesn't get the subtle difference between "how" and "who".

So Owen is pretty much "fine" and "hung-ry". And not "hungry" with a hard "g" sound. It's a soft "g" sound. Like "hung" and "ry" put together. It's cute. Just like when he says "ober" there. Meaning "over" there.

Last night I went to Michael's by myself to get out of the house. Owen was running, and singing, and yelling and chasing the dog with his microphone. The dog wanted to come with me but I was pretty sure they wouldn't have appreciated him at Michael's once he began peeing on everything he got close to. Which is his way when he's out of the house. We don't take him to Petco either, even though pets are welcome, because he would pee on everything and Morgan would be too busy looking at whatever was in front of him to notice that Ludwig was peeing. They do this at the vet's office too. Which is why I try to take Ludwig to the vet rather than sending Morgan with him. 9 times out of 10 he comes home saying Ludwig peed on something. "Wow! I wonder how that happened!??" "Could it have happened while you were chatting with the pretty vet tech???" But anyway, while at Michael's I got some real pretty glitter pens. The Martha Stewart ones. My friend Lisa, the enabler, got some and said they were "awesome" so I had to go check them out. I did after all, have 2 50% coupons to use! I also got the Threading Water punch. Which I did not need until I used Lisa's. See what I mean by enabling!? She's been the impetus for other purchases too. And not just for me! Today we met for lunch and playtime (the kids play) at the mall. Afterward we went to JoAnn's where I found the new Fiskars Scallop punch. Sans the holes so it doesn't thread any water. It was only 40% off. But I had to have it. Because Lisa doesn't! Oh, and I was the last person in the crafting world to get the Threading Water one. And I was totally okay with that. Because as I mentioned, I didn't need it until I used Lisa's! Now Lisa says she doesn't need to Scallop Punch because I have one and Dawn has the Stampin' Up! one. We'll see about that. I did push her to get the Cricut Spatula. But she won't regret this. She's used mine and knows how useful it is. And when she discovers how useful it is outside the craftroom she will be even happier about spending the $2.50 on it!

Oh, and the glitter markers are AWESOME! I've mentioned before that I love sparkly things, right?? Well, these are beautiful! I've decided I need to create a collage of some sort that utilizes all of my glitterly supplies. ART glitter, Stickles, Glitter pens, and whatever else I have that glitters and sparkles! We'll see what I come up with.

And now that I've forgotten all the other things I was going to ramble on about I think I will leave you with one last quote. (I've almost worn out the quotation mark button today!). As we were checking out in the lingerie dept at Penny's today Owen yells, "I found my boobs!" I bought a couple bras. Oh, and right now he's talking to me. The me on his little John Deere phone. I recorded a message for him. He watched me do it. It says "hi Snuggybug, it's your mama, I love you!" And he keeps pushing the button over and over and over saying "I love you too!" "I love you too!"

I think it's time to go play outside!

Thoughtful Friday...

It's you I like,
It's not the things you wear.
It's not the way you do your hair,
But it's you I like.
The way you are right now
The way down deep inside you
Not the things that hide you
Not your diplomas...
They're just beside you.
But it's you I like,
Every part of you,
Your skin, your eyes, your feelings,
Whether old or new.
I hope that you'll remember
Even when you're feeling blue,
That it's you I like,
It's you yourself, it's you
It's you I like!

--Mr Rogers

A quick, quick post...

because I'm sure my minutes are numbered. Owen is still asleep. AND he slept through the night. But what kid wouldn't who got to stay up until 11pm having loads of fun with friends, and mommy and daddy and thier friends! And it's mostly daddy's fault.

Last night Morgan had a happy hour to go to after work. But Lisa and I planned a little mommy happy hour too. So we decided to go after the daddy's were done with their happy hours. (Her husband had one too.) Fortunately Lisa's house is about 2 miles from Morgan's work so Owen and I went down to Lisa's to play until the daddy's were all happied out. By 7pm we decided it was time for Owen's daddy to be happied out so we went to look for him. Yeah, "I lost my husband. I don't know where he's at. I'm going to drink my money, I'm not going to pay his rent...." sorry.... But it wasn't too hard since we knew what restaurant he was at. We found Morgan and since Owen was hungry I left him with Morgan to eat and finish the happy houring. Owen stayed in the car with Lisa while I went in to find Morgan. He told Lisa "Mama go find daddy through those doors. I go in and eat!" And he did.

So Lisa and I were free to go be happy unencumbered by husbands or kids. Hooray! So we got our happy on (in a loud sports bar on KIDS night! Buffalo Wild Wings). Around about 10ish I got my phone out of my pocket just to check the time and it was ringing and said "Morgan" on it. So I answered. He wanted to know where we were. So I told him. Which was about a tenth of a mile from where he was. He was at the grocery store. Using the potty. Then he asked if he and Owen could come join us for a bit so he could sober up a bit and eat more!!! Yes, the man had my kid with him! And to be clear, he was not drunk. What happened is, Morgan gave blood yesterday and I guess had one too many margaritas for his depleted blood supply to support! So he and Owen joined us (yes, at 1opm!) in a loud sports bar for chocolate milk and chicken. Owen was having a fabulous time!! We got home at 11pm (O had fallen asleep in the car but he held out for quite sometime!) I put O in his room and he's been asleep ever since. Now I know what it takes to wear the kid out!

However, today we are going to Liz's house for a scrapping/play date. Mommies scrap, kids play. And 3 of the 5 the kids are still asleep! But I got my workout in and I'm going to take a bath and get my stuff ready to go for scrapping so when he does wake up, I'll be ready!

Oh the adventures in mommyhood!

And I quote...

While changing Owen's diaper this morning I suggested that he start wearing underpants and using the potty chair. Then I said, "What do you think about that?" He looked at me and didn't say anything. Then he got up and said, "That'd be crazy!"

And that is how potty training goes!

More completed work...

The crop went well. We had a little glitch in transportation. Morgan's car died at the grocery store on Friday night. We jumped it and got it home but we were not able to get it going again in the morning to take it to the shop. Fortunately our neighbor across the street was home and towed Morgan and his car to the shop. It turned out he only needed a new battery, so that was a relief. But since Morgan had to work Saturday and I was going to scrapping we were in a jam. But Dawn came to my rescue and picked me up and we made it to the crop at 10am! We did not last until midnight though and came home about 10. We had a great time and although I did not get a layout done an hour I was pleased with the ones I did get done. I tend to set my expectations a bit high sometimes!

Here is what I got done.

The little robots on the cards are digi elements I made in PSE using a robot font I found at Scrap-n-Fonts. They are the same ones I used for the pictures in Owen room.

I will be scrapping again this week on Thursday for a scrapping and playdate day so I'm all ready for that too!