Politics as usual

So, I have been trying to keep my blog reader friendly and not bombard you 5 people with my views on politics. The other day I was talking with a new neighbor of mine. Politics came up (I don't know why that always seems to happen to me ;) Anyway, she made the comment that no matter how much you talk and try and convince someone to believe the way you do, at the end of the day, they will believe what they want. I thought about that for a while and was convinced she was right and I was probably wasting my time discussing these things with people. Which was a little disheartening because keeping up with current events is important to me. I think it's important for the sake of my children. I am afraid we are turning into a socialist country and I don't want that. Then all of this bail out stuff started coming up. I decided that I needed to educate myself on the issue so I would have an understanding of just where my $2000+ that the government was going to take from was going to go. A few days later I turned on the news and saw the FAMOUS, Harry Reid. I listened to him speak about the meeting that had just gone on the night before and how McCain had come and messed everything up. I instantly got on-line and started finding whatever I could on the subject because I knew there were two sides of the story and I don't really trust Mr. Reid. After researching and asking questions, it dawned on me that there are people out in this country who aren't that interested and don't know or even don't care. They aren't trying to get the correct story, they are just waiting for those soundbites on the nightly news or hear what clever thing, that Joy on The View is going to say about all of it. I then realized why I feel so passionate sometimes - I just want people to understand and care what is going on in our country. Too many people waste their time and intelligence listening to the media. They hear the little short soundbites and think they know all. I am not saying that I know all but I do research things and listen to people that I know are way smarter than me and then I make my decision and every now and then, I come up with my own conclusions.

I didn't mean to make this so lengthy. I have a feeling that my parents, and their parents had something to do with me being this way. I can't remember a dinner that politics didn't come up in the conversation and we ate together EVERY NIGHT. I am not the only one in my family who is passionate about all this. Although, my brother, David's blog says, Lifes too short to care about politics, believe me, he knows ALOT about politics. He's not one of those, soundbiters that I was talking about, far from it. He (we), I think are all just feeling like the Dems are taking over and the GOP isn't being so Grand these days. My sister Maren and I spend alot of our conversations on the phone discussing these things (I have to admit, it's easy to when you agree on pretty much everything.) My brother Bart has just written a few comments, ok a LOT of comments on these recent political issues. He is a great writer, funny, and he is one of those people that I listen to because he is WAY smarter than me. The guy remembers everything he reads and hears. So go here and here to read what he has written about these issues. It's lengthy but worth your time.

Also, if you'd like to watch a video on the subject go to our friend, Marque's Blog. He's very good about trying not to be political but I'm glad he passed this on. It's really informative. Enjoy.

Tip of the Day!

Don't ever plan on finishing a quilt for your baby AFTER you have had the baby. I can say it's finally done now. McKenna is 15 months old now and I just finished her baby quilt 2 weeks ago. But it's finally done and I couldn't be happier because 1. it's done and 2. I think it turned out pretty ok for me not being a quilter. (This post is really for my mom to see since she was trying to help me figure out a design for the squares.) Thanks mom, even if I didn't stick with the first plan. And thanks for the idea of tying it with embroidery floss - MUCH faster than quilting it.

Here's the complete set - bumpers and all.

OH! Tip #2 If you ever decide to make a dust ruffle longer than the crib length to give it sort of an elegant look because you saw it in a magazine, DON'T. All that happens is your kids kick it and step on it and mess it all up. Not worth it.

If you'd like to see it when the bedding was first done (before a baby stepped all over the bumpers and the dust ruffle hadn't reached the floor yet) go here.

New Web Site

As I was blog hopping the other day, I came across someones blog that posted this cute web site. It is from the Precious Moments co. It's called Precious Girls Club. Since I have girls, I thought I'd check it out. It is very similar to Webkinz except instead of having an animal it's just a little girl. They have a room and they can decorate it and change their clothes and earn points by playing the games. The difference is that this is based on virtues. They talk about kindness, caring, loving, responsibility, etc. The part I liked was that they get charms for these virtues and if I see them acting and holding these virtues I can e-mail them on the Precious Girls Club site and tell them what I noticed them doing and they can earn a charm. I just thought that was a cute idea. This may just be a small tool that can enhance what I am trying to teach my children. If you are interested the web site is : http://www.preciousgirlsclub.com/pgcmicrosite/register.htm. It's not up and running yet but you can register your child and they will let you know when it will start. Let me know what you think. My kids thought it was "Awesome". Even Alexa who doesn't really like the "girly" stuff.

The MANY faces of McKenna

Poor McKenna, since she is the youngest sometimes she misses out on being documented on the blog. Being the fourth girl, I don't want her to think she is in anyway loved less than her sisters. I know first hand from hearing my own sister (being the fourth child) express how she was not captured on film as much as the rest of us. Sorry, Maren.

So here we go:

This is McKenna's favorite thing to do in the kitchen, pull out all the tupperware and climb in the cupboard. Look at how happy she is. This poor girl was trying to get a ball from behind the speaker and got herself stuck. Her parents didn't come to her rescue until after they took the opportunity for this photo op.
Here's a close up. (Note: In no way was the child harmed or injured in the making of these photos. Just a little annoyed.)

These next few photos are definitely blog worthy. We had to document this moment. This is my darling nephew, Brenden. He is so sweet. In fact, I don't think I have ever met any nicer, kinder, more polite young men than my nephews. I'm sure people are tired of me gushing over these boys and how great they are to my girls. I love it. They are the big brothers my girls never had. My girls love them. There is one exception: McKenna and Brenden. Anytime Brenden even comes NEAR her she starts to cry and clings to whoever is holding her or reaches for the nearest person to her. She is not one to be afraid of strangers. In fact, she smiles at pretty much whoever looks at her, except for dear Brenden. We don't know why. Well, one night the Aunt, Uncle, and cousins were over for dinner and Brenden went to sit next to McKenna. We were so surprised that she didn't just burst out crying. After a while, she actually let him hold her. It was pretty much a miracle. I tried to capture it all.

Here he is sitting next to her with a pretty safe distance.

He braved it by putting his arm over her chair. Look at the fear in her eyes. But she kept it together.

Then Brenden decided it would be a good idea to put this scarf on. (Don't ask me why) Doesn't he look pretty?Here he is reaching for McKenna.
Look how happy Brenden is to be holding her. Too bad McKenna doesn't feel the same way. Actually he took her in the other room and played with her and she finally calmed down for a while. I was dying to go in and take a picture but I didn't want her to see me and ruin the whole experience for Brenden. He worked so hard. I'm glad it paid off. I'm sure years from now she won't even believe this story because she will adore him like her sisters do. I'm just glad I've got it documented so we can show her.

BIG GIVEAWAY!

Some of you may know my dear friend, Jeannie or have at least heard me brag about all her great talents. She makes the best jewelry. I can actually say I knew her when she was just trying to get her big break in Jewelry making. I think I am her biggest fan and pretty much every piece of jewelry I wear is something that she's made.

She is doing a fun giveaway if you'd like to try and get in on it. So go HERE to see about the giveaway. You can also go HERE to see her goods on etsy.com. You will LOVE them.

New Hair!

I have always cut the girls hair because I am way too cheap to pay for cuts plus it's not to difficult to cut a straight line. So I decided to branch out and try a more "stylish" hair cut on Maya. Here's how it turned out. It only took me about 2 hours. (Yikes.) After this picture I tried to fix some mistakes and now it's even a little shorter. But, I think it's not so bad considering I've never had a hair cut lesson in my life. I just found a website that someone posted some videos of them cutting hair and tried to get some tips from that. She was a good sport waiting all that time. It's a good thing she's so cute - no matter what kind of hair cut her mom gives her.

HELP!!!! Do you know about Salt Scrubs?

I am in desperate need for some really crafty or do it yourself kind of people here. I was asked to do one of the classes for Enrichment this month. I am not on the committee or anything, they just called and asked if I would do a part and someone would give me the information. Our Enrichment is on Tuesday and because of some miscommunication I have just found out that I have to do a 10 minute class on homemade salt scrubs for your skin. I also have to talk about what's good for your skin and have them try out a scrub on their hands. So I am BEGGING anyone who might read this if you have a recipe that you like or if you have even made a scrub, let me know what you did. I only have 2 days to put this together. I don't think it will be too difficult but after googling salt scrubs I have found there are WAY too many options and I don't know where to start. Some use sugar, brown sugar, kosher salt, and even epsom salt. What works best?

I Can't Resist

So, I have been trying to stay away from talking about politics on my blog but I have noticed many of my fellow bloggers have been posting their thoughts and feelings. I've decided to join them. I figure this is my blog and if you don't want to read it you don't have to.

First, my brother, Bart sent me this GREAT LINK that is full of quotes and information on how other candidates have voted on issues. I have spent the past while reading through it. The link goes straight to Sarah Palin but as you look at the issues you can read about where the other candidates stand on these same issues. I think it's very "fair and balanced".

As I read about what Sarah Palin has accomplished and her views on issues I then compared Barak Obama's accomplishments and views. This is what I found:

1. When Sarah Palin was quoted her answers were short and too the point. When Barak was quoted it was a long drawn out paragraph to explain why he does what he does and says what he says.
My conclusion: I truly believe the saying about there are talkers and there are doers. I think Sarah is a doer and Barak's a talker. I think I want a doer in the White House not a talker.

2. Barak's history was a lot of increasing and expanding more programs. He thinks that they should have "age appropriate" sex ed in kindergartens. (Who decides what is age appropriate.) Sarah Palin's history showed that decisions she made had to do with keeping the government out. She supports home schooling and home child care where she feels children will thrive and grow in such an environment.
My conclusion: With Barak's plan for more programs all I see are $$$$. Where will that come from? Taxes, Taxes, Taxes. That's right, you and me. Sarah set a goal in Jan. 2007 to reduce spending of the general fund by $150 million. By March of 2007 they had reduced spending to $124 million.

3. Barak says that he doesn't think that TV or the internet should be sensored and that the parents should take responsibility to keep that out of there homes.
My question: How come he thinks parents are responsible enough to control what their kids watch on TV or look at on the internet but aren't responsible enough to feed them and provide health care for them.

4. Last point: I noticed that as I read about Sarah Palin's accomplishments and decisions she has made as governor I couldn't help but notice that most of the comments by Barak were answers to questions about what he would do for this or that situation.
My Conclusion: Barak Obama does not have the experience that Sarah Palin has.

I'll spare you any more political thoughts. I also plan on going back and reading McCain's information. Look at the sight and let me know what conclusions you have drawn. I'm always interested to know how others view things.

School Days, School Days. . .

School has started and we are studying and homeworking at full force. The girls love school (except for getting up in the morning) and enjoy having some sort of structure again. In an attempt to be creative I made choc. chip pancakes the first day of school (Alexa's request - she informed me that it's a tradition and I make them every year.) So I decided to document what grade they were in by shaping their pancakes into their grade. Here they are looking excited, nervous and a little tired.

"What's all the fuss about? Can I go back to bed?"All ready to go and early enough to take pictures. Way to go girls.
Alexa - always a little nervous on the first day of school. She is in 5th grade now. How did that happen? She told me she didn't want to go back to school because she didn't like it. I asked why and she said that the work keeps getting harder and the teachers keep getting meaner.
Olivia - 2nd grade and ready to go. She is always so easy going with out a care in the world. She has been so good these first frew weeks of coming home, eating a snack and without being told, runs right up to her room and does her homework. I am loving it. Today after I checked her homework which was adding 3 numbers together she told me that she really likes doing that math. Who knows, maybe she'll take after her Aunt Maren.Maya - First day of kindergarten. She was so excited and couldn't wait to get to class. She's been ready for about a year now but the school wasn't ready for her. After school before I could even ask how her day was she ran in kicked off her shoes and yelled, "I don't have any homework."

We've Got New Neighbors!

(Picture courtesy of the Gibb Gang blog.)

I can't believe that I didn't document this yet and I also can't believe that I didn't take any pictures of the BIG event. My brother Dave, his wife, Roberta and their kids, Brenden, Landon, Carson and Hayden all moved to North Carolina about a month ago. They moved here to our neighborhood. It has been so much fun having them here. The boys are so kind to our girls even when they are little pests to these sweet boys. My kids love their aunt and uncle and can't get enough of the whole family. They want to go over to their house ever day. Tim and I have been enjoying having family nearby (even when there is no buffer.) I have to admit that I was the most hesitant because we have never lived this close to family since we've been married but I have been proven wrong and really have seen and have been experiencing the advantages of having family around. We just hope they won't get sick of us too soon and want to move back across the country. Welcome to NC, Gibb's.

AAAAHHHH! Summer Fun

I'm trying to play catch up here. After posting about our vacation, I think I was blogged out. I did however continue to "spy" on everyone's blog. When I thought I could get back to blogging, the Olympics started and I just didn't have time for anything. Those people are absolutely amazing. I mostly enjoyed that my girls loved it also. They watched endless hours also. Thank goodness for DVR. Well, after the Olympics I had to catch up on politics because I was out of the loop so that took up my computer time. Trying to fit those things into everyday life left no room for blogging. Sorry. But hopefully I'll do better this time.

So, here goes some pictures from our summer. After our vacation pretty much I didn't want to go anywhere or spend any money. I tried to come up with some fun things for the girls to do but my lack of creativity left them bored on a few occasions. But they survived.

I saw these cute flip flops at a little boutique here in our town one day and was shocked at the price. They wanted something like $15-18. I thought, no way would I ever buy those, especially 3pairs. A few weeks later I was at Joann's and saw these flip flops for $2. I then found some ribbon in the dollar spot at Target. And so not only did I save a boat load of money, it entertained my kids on a hot summer afternoon. I think they turned out pretty cute.

Since my sister, Maren is such a genious, I have to copy her every chance I get. She decided that she would spend an hour each day one on one with one of her kids doing something that they picked. She kept telling me how great it was and a fun experience for all. I decided to give it a try. Although, I am not as flexible as her, I sort of convinced my kids that we could do a fun project together. I have this old doll house that my dad made for me when I was probably 6 years old or so. I still have the furniture (definite 70's style). It's pretty run down so we thought we'd try and "flip this house". Although, it won't be fore sale when we are done. Here's the sad house.

Here's the cute girls scraping off the wallpaper. Each girl picked a floor that they wanted to work on. Working on it one on one was perfect. It was great spending that time with each of them. I really saw how different they are as we worked and talked. Hopefully we'll get it done soon and we can post some before and after shots. We are re-roofing it right now.

Alexa
Olivia
Maya

One night the girls wanted to play some games so I told them to go pick out what they wanted to play. Here they are playing twister. Poor dad didn't last very long. We found that this game was alot easier when we were younger.

"Here's a story, of a man named Brady"

Tim finished the last section of shelves for the office. We found the girls trying to fit themselves into the cubes. Here is the finished product. I'm so glad I have a nice husband who does all these projects around the house that I ask him to - now if I could just get him to hang up his pants.