a humble glimpse of the life God has graciously widdled out in our little neck of the world
B is fighting his nap this afternoon…all I have heard for the past hour or so is giggles, talking and singing.
I just overheard ‘BLESED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD, BLESSED BE THE NAME…’!!!!!
Seriously…he has no idea how much he just blessed his momma’s day…praise God for little gifts from little not-napping boys!
Be blessed.
My elementary art teacher encouraged us to call our mistakes ‘happy accidents’, I think it was all in effort to save paper and other art supplies, but I bought into it and have coined the phrase in my own grown up life…thus the title of this post.
This weekend, I attempted my first official Pinterest project…and failed miserably! (this is what I tried). But the project, though a failure, meant a trip to the craft store where I found these little $3.00 gems…hence the ‘happy accident’…for displaying our kiddos artwork.
I’ve always wanted to have our kids’ work prominently displayed in whatever house we live…so having this little dream come to fruition, through my Pinterest misfortune, brought utter delight to my heart 
C was gracious as he very willingly hung all 9 pins…
Now the stage is set…I can’t help but imagine what ‘master pieces’ and ‘happy accidents’ might find their way to this little space and bring simple smiles to this proud momma’s heart!
Be blessed.
These three worked together to build a tower tonight before bed…
Ella supervised.
Be blessed.
No, little A isn’t on the move just yet…but our sink is finally back up and running which means this little nugget is finally able to enjoy baths in the kitchen once again!
Being without a kitchen sink for almost two weeks makes this momma beyond grateful for modern day conveniences!
Be blessed.
But hopefully our little guy is getting close!?!!
This is a little glimpse of the past couple of days…the game on the floor, lack of an area rug, the juice, pretzels & ‘encouragement’ treats on the stool, little A in the background, the little potty chair, the reading material, the big boy pants around the ankles…sums this fourth attempt of potty training up quite well!
Stay tuned as we hold our breath…and count our blessings for this healthy and capable little guy!
Be blessed.
Living up to its reputation!
This afternoon we played in the snow, in lieu of checking some errands of our perpetual to do list.
This little guy couldn’t have been more content with the chilly weather and falling snow flakes…he trudged and trudged under his clothing bundles as he looked for sticks and other backyard treasures.
After an invitation to come inside to warm up was politely declined, Little A and I decided to bundle up, make a memory and enjoy the snow.
B laughed as I tried to teach him how to make a snow angel…
Once all three sets of our cheeks turned red and noses started to run, I invited B inside to warm up and enjoy some hot chocolate…it wasn’t until I suggested adding marshmallows to the treat that he decided he might be interested in pealing his layers to warm up for a bit.
The miniature puddles from melting snow that had dripped off our boots and clothes left evidence of an afternoon well spent…
And the hot chocolate (and marshmallows) really hit the spot!
I could get used to days like this…at least for a little while longer…then I will gladly welcome spring and pack away the winter gear…and memories.
Happy Friday from our snowy and chilly neck of the wood to yours!
Be blessed.
In our neck of the wood.
Watching B try to ‘work’ with his gloves could make just about anyone’s heart melt…he works so hard despite his lack of dexterity and fine motor control…such a hard worker, love it!
Be blessed.
Apparently the kiddos thought C needed a little help with installing the garbage disposal!
C’s patience with his helpers never ceases to amaze me…they love being ‘workas’ alongside their dad!
Be blessed.
Due to a very unfortunate and unforeseen ‘issue’ with our kitchen counters…we don’t have have a working kitchen sink or cook top!
This means that our utility/laundry sink has been put to good use lately!
Let me paint a picture of meal times around our neck of the wood…
1. I conjecture up any meal that doesn’t require a cook top and has minimal mess implications
2. I serve the meal using as few dishes, utensils, etc. as possible
3. At the end of our meal, we bus our dishes to either the garbage can or a bucket next to the sink
4. I carry the dirty dishes downstairs to the utility room (the heater on the washer and dryer is there for added warmth…the room is ‘quite chilly otherwise)
5. I hand wash the dishes
6. Lay clean dishes on top of the washing machine
7. Dry the dishes and carry them back upstairs to put away
8. Repeat this process each time a meal comes around
The utility sink is proving to be multi-functional as it has tripled as a bathtub for our littlest nugget as well!
This entire ‘ordeal’ has left me so grateful for modern day conveniences like kitchen sinks, running water and dishwashers…we take so much for granted!
I hope we are able to find the humor in this a few weeks from now, as we don’t foresee the ‘issue’ being fixed anytime soon.
Be blessed.
Last week, We enjoyed a visit from three special people…Gigi, Papa and Auntie B!
We had grand plans of playing outside in what should have been a wintry snowy visit…but made the best of our atypical snow-less winter and enjoyed some inside fun!
We parlayed their visit with a belated Christmas celebration. We left our decorations up and little A enjoyed every prolonged minute of play time with the nativity set.
B was elated to discover that Gigi and Papa had come to his house…they arrived after he had gone to bed and he was surprised by them waking him up their first morning in town.
The first day of their visit was laid back, B enjoyed taking Gigi and Papa to the ‘tree house’ play gym to play and then showed them how to play with his cars and train set later at home.
The next day, we bundled up and headed to the Mall of America to explore and play (I will have to someday post on our ‘adventure on getting to the mall and the lesson I learned while driving there, but that’ll be for another post).
The mall provided lots to look at…
And kept this little nugget quite content in the stroller.
Gigi and Papa helped B pick out and make a special Christmas gift.
This was our first endeavor with Build-a-Bear…our little guy was hesitant at first, but as always, warmed up to the idea of pushing buttons and watching machines work.
After stuffing the little pup and enjoying lunch, we walked through Lego Land. B’s little finger raced through the store as he pointed to all the things that he liked.
Later, we ventured into Nickelodeon Universe to explore the various rides. A didn’t know what to think of all the sights and sounds!
B found this truck ride which suited his fancy quite well…he rode with Gigi & Papa!
After riding the trucks, B and C took a ride on a miniature school bus. The little bus went round and round in circles up in the air, to our disbelief, B loved the ride!
Little A seemed to enjoy keeping her feet safely planted on the ground (sort of).
After rides, Gigi, Auntie B and I snuck in a little shopping…B kept the rest of our crowd entertained by making laps around the mall itself.
After calling it a day at the mall, we headed home to make Grandma’s Famous Enchiladas before celebrating our family Christmas.
In lieu of a cake, we lit brownies and sang Happy Birthday to Jesus. B was on a role when it came to consuming the brownies and ripping through the wrapping paper!
The next day, we enjoyed taking everyone to the church that we have been attending. After church we enjoyed a quite complicated lunch…we tried three places before actually choosing where we wanted to eat 
The next day we enjoyed breakfast at home (one of our favorite things in our neck of the wood)…
After breakfast, we headed back to the tree house to play…but found a batting cage and basketball court that caught our attention instead. C enjoyed hitting some balls, while B enjoyed being just like his daddy!
After working up quite a sweat, we headed for lunch which consisted of one of my absolute favorite treats…popovers… from a local hole in the wall.
After lunch, B turned in for naptime…of course not before hearing a story in his nook with Auntie B.
Auntie B headed home later that night to get back for work…to B’s utter delight, Gigi and Papa stayed a bit longer which meant even more quality play time.
The next day, we ventured out (despite frigid wind chills) to explore the Minnesota Children’s Museum. It was a hit! We spent more than three hours just exploring one floor!
B drove a city bus…
Maneuvered a conveyor belt…
Drove a crane…
Raced boats…
Built with blocks…
All while little A enjoyed quality time with Gigi…
Papa…
And her beloved bottle!
Later, the kiddos (and some of us adults) enjoyed a nap in effort to gain enough energy to do a little more playing…
And in typical Our Neck of the Wood Fashion, work around the house! Gigi and Papa were gracious to enter into our world to help us remove counter tops and re-wire a cooktop outlet.
After the kitchen had been tackled, our little foreman headed to bed after some special story time with Gigi and Papa.
The next morning, we enjoyed breakfast together before sending C off to work.
We played some more, packed up, met C for lunch and then wished Gigi and Papa a safe trip back to Texas.
All in all it was a simple and delightful trip…nothing fancy, but a whole lot of good family time. We treasure days like this and are so grateful to have family who is willing to enter into our ‘craziness’ and experience life as it is in our neck of the wood.
We promised more snow that next time they come (at least next winter that is) and look forward to getting out of our neck of the wood to try sledding, skating, tubing and maybe even skiing!
Be blessed.
Gigi, Papa and Auntie B…thank you thank you thank you!
