Fall + Weekends = Football

Both of the older boys have decided to play flag football this fall. J is on the U6 Falcons team and M is on the U9 Bears team...N is upset that he doesn't get to play since he is a big boy and wears underwear. Yes you read that right, we have managed to have our youngest one out of diapers and into "big boy pants", even to leave the house, with only minor incident. Back to football...the boys have practice Tuesday's and Thursday's and most games on Saturday's...except for all the big holiday breaks we have this month...and so we also have games on some Tuesday's and some Thursday's...so it becomes quite easy to get confused...fingers crossed I keep it all straight!

J playing center at his first game.

J playing QB, and then handing it off. The U6 league is pretty fun to watch...lots of running around in all directions and pulling off the flags of even if the are on your team ;p

M played flag football last year and has developed a better arm over the year...along with being able to catch the football more consistently. However, staying upright and on his feet may be something we need to work on a little more since he likes to run and dive after the person with the ball.

M playing center.

Halftime listening to the coach (#7).

Playing QB.

So I have been doing some more organizing around here and got some inspiration from pinterest...it's a virtual pin board that you can organize all your "treasures" that you find on the internet.

My inspiration photo.

What I did:

Just a little project...but it made a HUGE difference in that cabinet. I couldn't hang my measuring cups since they don't have holes on the handles ( I guess I could make some, although I think that would bug me more). So I used the little 3M command hooks that I use to hang holiday decor/garland from the bookcases. I REALLY love those little removable hooks! So I thought it would be better not to screw into the cabinet door since this isn't our forever home and tomorrow, next week, or a year from now we could get orders to move...and return this house back to the original condition...which was brand new when we moved in!

Sometimes it's the little things that make me happy...like being able to grab my measuring spoons without sending a search party out for them!

Halloween 2011

So this year we ended up going the day before Halloween to Larry's Produce to pick out our carving pumpkins. It really didn't pay to carve the pumpkins too early since it was still in the mid 80's and there was no way the pumpkins would last in that heat. Larry's is a great place for picking up your fruit, veggies and seasonal "natural" decor...super cheap and great quality! Our total for 3 pumpkins and assorted veggies (a wheel barrel full) was around $25.

The boys wanted us to get the 1555 lb pumpkin....ummmm no.

Once home we set to work on our masterpieces. J wanted to use one of the potato head kits I picked up...ok too cute! Super easy too!

Next we broke out the big guns...pumpkins and tools! We carved out the bottom of the pumpkin. This allowed the pumpkins and candle sit flush on the ground...plus you don't have the saggy top falling into the pumpkin either!

M HATES pumpkin guts so he lets J do all the slim work...which he thinks is fun and gross.

M is now old enough to do about 90% of his pumpkin by himself and picked out a template of a skeleton this year.

Daddy had N pick out a template and got to work on carving it. N thought the pumpkins were stinky and gross and really didn't want anything to do with them.

The carvings finished!

My boys all decked out.

With their pumpkins...boy it is hard to get them to stand still and get a picture of them!

Woody and Buzz ready for Trick or Treating...N thought it was great that his best bud dressed up with him and is still talking about it!

Potty Training

So we have started down the road that most parents would consider one of the biggest milestones for turning their darling little "baby" into a big boy/girl. N will be three next month and we have been working with him this past month on "listening" to his body and doing the appropriate "big boy" action instead of relying on his diaper/pull-up. I would like to mention the the two older boys were complete opposites when it came to this stage in their life...M by 3 he was 100% good to go day and night, J not so much ;) J had the worse cases of diaper rash, but really didn't care if he sat in his diaper all day. He didn't completely get it until he went off to preschool in NJ--age 4, and then I think the only reason he finally decided it was worth it was that he wouldn't get to go to preschool with his friends unless he was a "big boy".
N has been a mix of the two older boys. He has a strong desire to be one of the "big boys" in the house and do everything they do, but really loses track and needs to be reminded to keep his big boy underwear dry and clean and that he isn't allowed to pee or poop on my floor! Bribery also seems to work with him, we are currently on his 7th potty chart that he gets to fill up with Thomas the Train stickers (1 sticker for pee, 2 for BM, 2 for staying dry all night, and 2 for using the potty when we are outside the house). When the chart is full we have a toy that he has picked out. So far it has been going great, there have only been a couple of days that he shows no interest at working towards the reward. Most of the time when we leave the house he is still wearing pull-ups, but we have taken the chance a couple of times with going to stores in underwear and have had no accidents. Overnight he has also had hardly any wet diapers and wakes up wanting to go sit on the potty, so hopefully we won't have to be changing a lot of sheets when he tries undies overnight...don't know when that jump will be made, but it probably isn't too far off.

N with his newly filled chart and wearing the underwear he picked out to wear for the day.

Bookcase Kinda Complete Sneak Peak

So in this post I talked about cleaning and organizing for becoming a Family Child Care Provider on base (running a daycare from my house). A couple of people had mentioned that they liked my fall vignette and thought I would take some close ups of my elements...plus this will help me to put it back up come next fall :)

I love rustic fall colors, and our house looks kind of looks like fall year-round. I did add a few more elements that scream fall to get us in the mood...since we actually had higher temps in September/October then we did all summer it seems.

I also got those mini chalkboards, chalk markers and got to use the glue gun and labeled some of the toy baskets.

We made a trip to Ikea yesterday and picked up more baskets so there aren't so many toys staring back at me too. Now I need to make a trip back to JoAnn's for more chalkboards! And yes I have one open cubby...for now! J and N both have Birthday's next month so I am sure there will be something new to fill it in :)

Fall Cleaning and Organizing

As mentioned in the previous post I am getting my license to become a provider in the Family Child Care program. Some of the work has to do with prepping my house for inspections/walk through by the FCC Coordinator and also with the base fire agency. One of my goals in going through this process is to not lose my idea of what I would like my house to look like....homey, warm and inviting. My hope in getting prepared to open my doors is that my house looks more like Pottery Barn Kids(but without spending big bucks) then a school supply magazine.

So this is one area I will be working on. Love how my fall vignette is looking but the crazy round up of toys is not doing it for me. I plan on getting 4 more of those baskets from Ikea and some cute mini chalkboards with the name of the items made to attach to the front of them. Chalkboards and chalk??Won't it wipe right off?? Nope, not with chalk markers...only comes off if wet. So what I write on them should stay without too much fuss. I am looking forward to having this space:

looking much more organized and not so many toys staring me down! And oh yeah all those cords are disappearing too...they have been driving me nuts from day 1 and I think they have multiplied since then too! Stayed tuned on how this project turns out...already started parring down some of the toys!

Busy Starting a Business

It has been way to long since I have sat down and updated this blog. I have been pulled away for some training and busy working on opening my house up so I can start being a Family Child Care Provider on base. Lots of rules and regulations, meal planning, "classroom" set up (trying to not change my house decor too much), and just trying to adjust to the idea of having a set in stone schedule. I think it is going to be a new adventure once againn for our family.

Keep Chasing that Ball

So we are still in the middle of soccer season for the boys and I thought I would show you some more pictures of the boys chasing after that ball. M is a key component to the team and has really built up his endurance this year. He rarely leaves the field and usually shakes off any falls, hits, or shots he may take. Wish I could really show you all the moves M does on the field...I think he can outplay a couple of the coaches some days :) J is catching on and has been improving as well...he is about 2 years younger then most of the team so as long as we can keep him from sitting and playing in the grass we are happy! He knows what he is suppose to do for the most part, he just doesn't have the endurance and confidence, but he is a really great defender!

Day Two of Tahoe-Afternoon

After our "hike up the Mountain", that barely got past the foothills we came back to enjoy a wine tasting that was going on at The Village. While we enjoyed the wine the boys got to have fun doing some bungee jumping and playing mini golf.

It was N's first time getting to jump and he was so excited...just like the zipline the day before, he wasn't scared one bit and walked right up and was ready to go.

M has done this before and was super excited and wanted to master his flips.

The first jump he went right into a back flip.

He didn't stop until his five minutes were over.

J had a harder time, even though he had tried this before as well. We think they had to many bungee hooked up to him, he couldn't touch the trampoline to get the bounce started. I pulled him a couple of times and had fun just flying around a little.

After the boys got their jumping in we went and checked out the mini golf. This worked great for our wine tasting as well...every hole had a vendor close by to get a refill ;) N needed a little assistance getting started but got the hang of it pretty fast and had fun hitting the ball around.

J also needed a little help learning how to hang onto the club, and got a little lesson from daddy.

M took charge and managed to hit the bridges and obstacles correctly 90% of the time.

After the round of golf we headed back for some more bungee time. This time J was able to get going on his own and had a blast.

M worked on his front flips (much harder) this time.

Squaw has this giant char...of course we had to get a picture of it!

As we headed back to our room we finished the day with some ice cream for the boys. They were so good on the trip, as they are on most trips, it makes it hard to go back home and have it all end.