crayons

a very innocent subject, wouldn't you say? crayons. colorful, non-threatening, even therapeutic. all of that changed for me this evening.
i was in the midst of making an awesome crafty project for my favorite niece, ellen. it consisted of melting crayons, pouring them into a silicone ice cube tray that was in the shape of the alphabet and then letting them dry.
(i can't find the link for the directions...it really is a great one. if i find it i'll make sure to post it!)
simple enough.
and cute.
so i started the project.
the peeling of the paper off the crayons was not nearly as easy as i had thought it was going to be, but with the help of a good knife, i was well on my way.
i got them all peeled, and put them in a cake pan and into the oven to melt. i dutifully checked on my project, often, to make sure it wasn't burning.
perfect. it was a beautiful swirly display.
i couldn't wait to pour them into the trays. ellen would be sooo excited. i just knew it. what 3 year old wouldn't be?
so i carefully took them out of the oven, and all of the sudden something went awry. i don't know if i blinked, or got bumped, or sneezed or what, but i would say oh...a good 1/2 of the pan of crayon juice was ALL OVER THE FLOOR AND THE WALL OF THE KITCHEN/BAR AREA!
NIIIIIICCCCCCEEEEEEE!
anne immediately thought it was her fault, apologizing all over herself. she was soon banished to the family room to watch some t.v. as to not have a heart attack...
what a disaster.
i have been hunched over the kitchen floor and hallway floor scraping crayon-y wax. i almost have it complete.
adam, a.k.a. adam the saint, just smiled simply and said 'can i help you at all?' i think i sneered back, because he just smiled and walked away, checking on me every now and again.
so, if by chance, you are interested in the directions. let me know. i will be happy to share. just make sure your crayon goo is in a deeper dish! :)
i'm positive that some day, some day real soon, i'll get a total kick out of this. right now, i'm just getting a neck ache!
oh, and suz, not sure ellen is going to have a.b.c. crayons anytime soon!

~chat soon!

Random acts...

Who doesn't just flip over mail?
I do. I can honestly say, I do.
I am not in charge of bills at our residence, so mail really excites me.
I don't get much of it either.
Thursday was a snow day. I had my eyes peeled for the mailman. I never saw him. (just the trip to the mailbox is exciting for me...)
Adam must have intercepted it before I could.
I saw a bright, cheery, green envelope on the counter late in the day.
I was sleepy and kind of in a ho-hum mood.
I'm really ready for spring.
The return address was from a dear friend from high school that lives in the state of Washington. (and has enlightened me on all of the 'secrets of Grey's Anatomy-if you watch it....)
I opened it up, and it was a note. From Lindsay. It made my day.
Kind words.
Uplifting words.
Things you like to see on a frigid day....when it seems like flowers and sun are never going to come.
It was great.
I'm not sure exactly why she sent me the sweet note, but it made me realize two things.
1) letters are a lost art
2) good mail is a great thing.
Because of Lindsay's sweet note, I am challenging myself to try to write a note every now and again to an unexpected recipient. It could be a coworker, a long lost friend, or a sister who is far away (SUSAN!) .
I hope that I can help brighten a day, like Lindsay brightened mine.
~chat soon!

"Mom, this was SUPER FUN"

Those words spoken from Anne as we left the Scott Trade Center this afternoon.
We had just finished watching Sesame Street Live.
It was a great show. Anne was beside herself. She was a little nervous at first, but by the end of the show, she was digging for her pretend camera and taking 'shots' of all the dance moves. (to show her brother, you remember, the one that teaches her bad words.)

Our seats were in the second row from the front on the side of the stage. All the characters were running past us. Even Cookie Monster stopped to shake her hand.
I really thought she may just keel over from sheer 4 year old excitement.
It was the best. We are so glad we took her. Now, we are suffering from parent guilt as we came home to Kate, who is pretending she saw Elmo too...

Me, being a sap, even got a little teary-eyed. I really don't know why...having the opportunity to go, or just sitting there, watching her almost sweat with anticipation...who knows.
It was a great time had by all. Even Adam, who is NOT the biggest fan of seeing Sesame Street Live, said "that was a lot of fun."
There is just something about watching your kids have the time of their life, isn't there?
Note to self, next time we have FLOOR SEATS at the HOCKEY ARENA and are having a subzero stretch of temps outside...wear warmer socks. eeks!

~Chat soon!

honored...

A few months back, my dear friend Julie sent me an email. She asked if I would take pictures of her kids. She wanted good, natural pictures. Ones she could give as gifts to the grandparents for Christmas. *gulp-room gets fuzzy.*

That's my guy!

Who really likes to shovel snow?

No one that I know of.

Adam went out to shovel the snow, so he could run some errands. After a little while, I heard what sounded like a snowblower. I figured one of the neighbors must have come over and lent a hand, because we don't own a snow blower.

I looked out and CRACKED UP! He was clearing the driveway with the LEAF BLOWER.

The snow was like dust, so it was perfect.

WHO-DA THOUGHT?!
~Chat soon!

Good Morning...

They said it would come. Maybe it wasn't QUITE as big as they thought...but it works.
~Chat soon!

nothing worse...

there truly is nothing worse then an impending snow storm. especially if you are a teacher. don't get me wrong, i am not sitting here wringing my hands, worried about traffic, or if i have enough food to get us through a day or two, or even wondering how i'm going to get my lessons in that we may miss, or how i'm going to get the papers graded that i left on my desk.

I WANT TO KNOW IF I CAN SLEEP IN! :)

the weather man says, we are under a 'winter weather warning'. muttering words like 5-6 inches, large drifts, blinding winds.

sounds favorable for a day without an alarm clock, don't you think?

here is hoping to hear from the snow fairy tomorrow morning.

~chat soon.