Happy Mother's Day

We're so thankful for the moms in our life! We love you. Have a great day!
XOXO

Ladies' Tea Pictures

Our ladies' tea went so well today. I wanted to post pictures of the tables before I headed off to bed tonight. That way you can see the creativity of our ladies! I'll fill you in on the details later.

Another Sighting

I'm going to quickly post something this morning. I am preparing for our ladies' main event of the year: a tea. I have a ton of things to do before I go in today and set up my tables. Each lady is "adopting" a table and decorating it. We are having a very large crowd this year. I'm thinking the total is up to 55. We are thrilled with the turnout, but because of the large turnout, we need more tables than ladies who signed up to adopt them and that's why I'm doing two (possibly three!). I'm raiding our house for things to decorate with. I'm just hoping they look halfway decent. I also made the party favors and I really like them. I'll take a picture of those too!

Last night as I was helping scoot Shaylen into the table, I noticed some movement outside the window. When I looked I noticed a gray bird! I've never seen him before. He didn't seem to paranoid that we were in the dining room so I quickly ran and grabbed the camera and hoped he wouldn't leave before I could take his picture. He's very elegant, don't you think?

I looked in my handy dandy bird book and I think I've figured out what he is. Inquiring minds want to know though if the infamous nephew in Alaska can figure it out too!

I will try and post something tomorrow night along with pictures from our tea. I cannot wait to see what our ladies have done. They are enjoying the challenge. A lot of us will be there tonight setting up so you know there's going to be a ton of laughter!

More on Our Mystery Bird and New Feathered Friends

I asked a friend from church (who also has a bird book) about the mystery bird in the previous post. She seems to think it is a Tufted Titmouse, but as she said, "Maybe he/she was having a bad hair day and his tuft was matted!"

He showed up again today and the pictures show a bit more of a tuft. They do look very similar! It's very puzzling!If you read my article from this morning, you know that I mentioned that I have seen blue jays on my morning walk. I had hoped that they would come to our yard soon. Well, not only did I get one today, I got six! There were at least six in our yard this afternoon eating the leftovers on the ground. I'm so excited!Just in case you think all I do is sit and watch birds, it is NOT true. I usually grab the camera when I hear a bunch of birds outside. You should hear them singing! They make quite the racket. It's obvious the birds love the woods behind our house and the seed in the feeder.

More Bird Watching

For the past week we haven't seen too many different varieties of birds at the feeder. It is in plain view from the kitchen window so I'm always peeking in on it. I think by far, the chipping sparrow and all of his friends love the feeder the most. After that, I think Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal are our next frequent visitors. The kids love watching them. We had the red-clad couple over yesterday for breakfast and they stopped by again for dinner.

I still have one bird in my "photo file" that has remained unnamed. I cannot seem to locate him/her in my bird book either. His photo is to the left. Do any of you know? Yesterday I got a clearer shot of the Eastern Towhee. He is a beautiful bird! His photo is on the right.

Yesterday was a good day for bird watching. The Towhee came by, my striped friend (pictured below), the pair of mourning doves, the cardinals and of course the chipping sparrows. There is one that is quite elusive. I can see him flying from tree to tree in the woods behind our house. He gets to one that is very close to the feeder, waits, and then quickly comes and grabs his food and flies off. Talk about fast food! I can never snap a good photo of him. On my morning walk, I have been seeing blue jays and robins, but never in our yard. I do hope they stop by for a snack and while they're at it, bring their hummingbird friends. Grandma Rutledge sent us some money for bird stuff and Taigen purchased a hummingbird feeder. We know the former owners had them, so now it's just a waiting game.

Yesterday I was able to find a couple of new feathered friends! I know what they are, but rather than spoil things for my Alaskan nephew, Jared, I'll let him name them for you. Be sure to check out the "comments" section for his response. He makes for a pretty good detective.

I just love how this first one looks as if she (hint, hint) is posing for the camera. Typical female, eh? Here's another hint: My striped friend was so much fun to watch as he worked his way around and around my trees from bottom to top. I hope he comes back. He was so cute!

Why Is It?

Why is it that kids are perfectly content playing by themselves and/or are perfectly healthy until you go to the bathroom? Once the door is shut and locked, the tragedies strike.

Living Room Makeover

Taigen's been busy again. Today he wanted to tackle the living room. Remember what happened when Taigen got busy last week? In case you forgot, here are some pictures. When we first moved in, the living room looked like this. Remember that leafy wallpaper? I've seen worse, but the design just didn't go with my tastes. It had to go!
Taigen got up and went to the paint store to get our "Shabby Chic" (ie: tan) paint right after breakfast. The kids and I had to run and get a few things at Target and when we came back, Taigen was already done with half of the room! He was a lean, mean paintin' machine today! It was a beautiful day here today. The windows were all open and a nice breeze kept all the paint fumes at bay. After he was done painting the second coat, we enjoyed dinner out on the deck.

Taigen mounted the pictures and curtain rods after dinner and I ironed the tab curtains and hung them up. The room looks so drastically different tonight. It is warm and welcoming and just beautiful. Didn't he do a great job?

Come and Dine

A great, big, hearty "thank-you" goes to Grandma Rutledge who helped us get this lovely patio furniture. It arrived today and I was able to put it together during the kids' quiet time. We were able to have dinner outside tonight. It was a bit on the cool side, but the kids didn't complain of the food being too hot for a change!

What a wonderful and thoughtful gift, and one that we will enjoy for years to come. Love you Grandma!

Multi-Family Zoning Please

While I was drawing a plane on the driveway with chalk this afternoon I heard the distinct "chick-a-dee-dee-dee" call. I kept hearing it from the front of the lawn so I decided to walk over with my camera and see if I could spot him/her. There were was one on a small shrub in the "bench garden" (the garden at the front of the lawn with the bench that Shaylen says is just like Cinderella's) and he was flitting back and forth to a narrow, old tree stump. After observing him do this for a while, I realized that it was building a nest! How exciting! The Chickadee then flew up to a tree where another Chickadee was waiting (possibly her mate?).

After watching her for quite some time, she flew away and so Marshall, Shaylen and I went up to the stump and looked inside without touching. There is such a small hole there, but big enough for a small Chickadee family. We'll keep checking back & keep you posted.

Future Golfing Buddy for Taigen

Today was finally dry again and so we were outside enjoying the sunshine. Marshall and Shaylen asked if they could play golf on the front lawn. I went and got out their clubs from Mr. Bowman and continued with what I was doing.

I was walking around examining the shrubs and flowers when I heard Marshall's "whack" of the golf club hitting the golf ball and an instantaneous "ping" off the tall table by the horseshoe pit. He had hit the ball, hit it well and hit it hard! I quickly changed my position to behind my son and encouraged him to hit it again. He never did hit the ball that hard again, but this shot was somewhat similar.

The Love of My Life

Look at who I got to make a guest appearance on the blog today! It's my boyfriend. Can you believe that in 16 days we will have been married for ten years? Time flies when you're having the time of your life! I said it back on May 16th of 1998, "I married my best friend" and I'll say it again. He's the best and I'm so proud of him.

Four Year Old Peer Pressure

This afternoon the kids and I made ginger snap cookies. It was a great indoor activity for them since it has been raining all day.

After dinner was ready, and the table was set, I put a few cookies on a salad plate and then placed them on the table. (Sometimes the sight of them motivates our little ones to eat faster!)

After our dinner, the cookies were enjoyed. Marshall said, "There are two left on the plate."

Shaylen added her two cents. "You can eat them, Daddy!"

Taigen said, "No thank you, I am full!"

Shaylen was convinced he should. "Come on, Daddy, you can eat them. I'm sure you want to!"

She's got him pegged.

Crazy Antics - Attempt II

It was beautiful outside this past weekend. Perfect spring weather. While I cleaned up the kitchen from dinner, Taigen took the twins outside to play. When I was finally finished, I went outside and caught a brief video for you to enjoy! They make me laugh.

Sorry for the 3 second video. I tried minimizing the file size and for some unknown reason, it only would play a 3 second blurb. Let's see if this one is better!

A Living Room Face-Lift

On Taigen's "To-Do List" for today, he wrote, "Strip Wallpaper". We both thought it would be an all day job. Surprisingly, it only took about an hour and a half. While the kids listened to White Fangs in a Black Hole and the Snow White soundtrack, we were able to completely finish stripping the wallpaper. It looks so much better. Yes, it is bare, but paint can fix that easily!

One New Friend

We've not had a ton of activity lately at the bird feeder. Maybe someone else put out their bird feeder and so I am now competing with them for my feathered friends' attention. If we have had visitors, it has been birds that I've recognized from the past. Until today.

This morning, I was blow drying my hair and noticed a bird hopping around on the ground hunting for food under all the leaves. I quickly grabbed my camera and snapped a few pictures.

Normally, I wouldn't have a clue what this bird was, but thanks to our friend, Danette Rogers, down in SC, we can now hunt for the information on our own. She sent Marshall and Shaylen a book on birds by Roger Tory Peterson. We received it this afternoon and I've already been looking through it. Thank you Danette!

After looking through the book, I think I'm fairly confident that the bird from this morning is an Eastern Towhee. You ornithologists out there correct me if I'm wrong.

Marshall's Room Makeover

As promised, here are before and after pictures of Marshall's room. We were a bit hesitant of the blue that we got once we got it on. It seemed a bit too "Baby Blue" rather than "Sky Blue", but once we got the wallpaper border on and the furniture back in, we thought it was perfect! Marshall wanted a blue room but didn't want it as dark as what we had in Saco.

The white on the top isn't all that different from what was there before, but just like Shaylen's, it cleaned up the nine years of scuff and dirt marks and we were able to get rid of the three million nail holes that were in the wall. And Marshall absolutely loves the airplanes (I know, I know...shocking)! I found the border online but didn't like the price. After a bit of hunting around on the internet, I found it for less than half the price I originally saw it at. I love a good deal! Makes the makeover even more desirable. Taigen did a fabulous job with the project. All we have left to do now is find a valance that coordinates with it all.

Be Ye Kind

The kids sang again tonight in church with their Pee Wee Club and we brought along the camera so that we could capture it so that you might enjoy it too! They have been looking forward to singing this for quite some time. Unfortunately, you can't see Marshall all that well. Taigen was videotaping and I was at the piano, so he had to take the vantage point that was given him. They both look cute and that's all you need to know, right?


The song they sang is Be Ye Kind based off of Ephesians 4:32. Here are the words:

When I was just a little child,
I went to Sunday school;
I learned about the Savior,
And I learned the Golden Rule.
My teacher had a fav'rite verse
She always loved to tell.
I said it ev'ry Sunday,
So I learned it very well!

Chorus
"Be ye kind to one another,"
Be tenderhearted, too;
Be kind to one another
In ev'rything you do.
Just follow Christ's example--
Be loving, kind, and true,
Forgiving one another
As God hath forgiven you.

And so today I'm thankful
That my teacher was so smart:
She took the living Word of God
And hid it in my heart.
Still ev'ry week in Sunday school
I think back to that day:
Before I know what's happening
My lips begin to say:

Repeat Chorus

Marshall and Shaylen have really started singing a LOT. They have always enjoyed singing, but they are singing more and more in the car, more and more at the piano and they seem to be always making up songs as they play with their stuffed animals. It is so cute to hear. We love the fact that they have a song in their hearts.

A Few More Feathered Friends

Yesterday we had a few more friends come to the bird feeder. We had a pair of cardinals (one male and female). The female is not as brightly colored. But as they were together, it made the identification process a whole lot easier for me! (I'm sorry the picture is so fuzzy, but it was the best one I got of her.)

This second one reminds me a lot of the chipping sparrow, but he had yellow around his beak instead of the rust colored feathers. So, as of right now, I have no clue what kind of bird he is. Any guesses?

As I was making dinner I looked out the kitchen window and spotted a pair of mourning doves. If they had held still, I would have never guessed they were there they blended in with their surroundings so well! They walked around and around and pecked to their heart's content.

Shortly after dinner Taigen said, "Look at the pigeons sitting on the rock."

"Pigeons?" I asked. I hadn't seen ANY pigeons yet.
I looked. It took me a while to spot them, but there sitting on the rock were the mourning doves. They were obviously full and very content. They were so still.

I told Taigen that they were not pigeons. He made some joke about them not being able to be "morning" doves because it was evening and they were out and about. I rolled my eyes. [He cracks me up. Well...let's be technical. I didn't crack up...I groaned. If I were faster on my comebacks, I would have said, "No, they are surely mourning doves, because they are sad your jokes are so terrible!" Oh well...live and learn.]

Dreadful!

In New England, there is usually an influx of lady bugs at given points of the year. I don't know how they get in, but they do. I know that they were invading some people's homes this fall and were everywhere! I was surprised to see them in our home this spring.

It seems like the lady bugs have a preference for the guest suite because when I went up there for the first time in about a week, there were quite a few dead on the floor. Ewww! I was starting to straighten things up when Shaylen came up and saw them there as well. I explained to her that they came in and died. She was fascinated. I would have immediately vacuumed them up, but I'm needing a new bag for the vacuum. They would have to wait until Saturday (double ewwwww!).

When we went back down she was eager to take Marshall up there and show him all the dead ladybugs. I heard her telling him the whole story. When they came downstairs, I asked them, "Where are you going?"

"To Grammie's room to show Marshall the ladybugs."
"Okay, but come right back." (They aren't allowed to play up there.)
"Okay, Mama!"

On their way, I heard Shaylen say to Marshall, "Marshall! We will go to Grammie's room and then come back after we see a dreadful sight!"

More New Friends

We kept an eye on the bird feeder today to see if we could spot any new friends. I spotted a robin this morning and a few of the others that for now, remain unnamed. This afternoon I noticed one in the feeder that I hadn't seen before. He sat there for the longest time and munched and munched. He seemed quite content to eat his fill with no care in the world! It gave me a wonderful opportunity to snap a few pictures of him. Anyone know what kind of bird he is?