Artwork

Melodye loves to draw. She is always drawing animals and mythical creatures. This summer she is taking art classes (drawing) on Thursday and loving it. Her classes have been focusing on shading and lighting. She has had 2 classes so far and has 8 more to go.

Melodye made a request that I include one of her drawings on my blog. Here she is holding the drawing.


This is her drawing. It has a dog, pegasus, mermaid, unicorn, rainbow, butterflies, and fairies.

Well, Brooke had to be included so she asked for a picture with a Webkinz and Donald Duck.

What Princess Are You?

Took a quiz and surprised myself by what princess I cam out as. I honestly thought I would come out as Belle, but lo and behold I was not.



You Are Pocahantas!

Free-spirited and wise. You have a strong passionate spirit that touches and changes all who know you. The wisdom and common sense that you have is really what guides you through life. Even so, you also have a very playful side that loves adventure and excitement.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

Playroom Organization

The playroom is downstairs in the basement. They do have a few toy in their rooms, but most of it is in the playroom. I do want to say that this was an unfinished room when we moved in the house. My lovely husband did all of the electric, drywall, etc. He really did a wonderful job.

Now onto the organiation. I have not put the labels on the baskets, but that is coming.

This first picture is the view to the left of the door. That is where we have three sets of shelves and all of the toys in baskets where possible.

• In the baskets we have things broken down into cateogries like Mr. Potato Head, Animals, People, Small Vehicles, Large Vehicles, and Doctor Things.
• Then we have the TV for V-Smile and Plug and Play Games. The video games are located in the brown shelving system with the baskets.
• Then we have the kitchen area. We took Dora off of the stove so it would take up less space and at 3 1/2 Brooke says she is too old to have Dora on her stove. The drawers on either side of the stove are in the following categories: Pots, Plates, Bowls and Silverware, Cups, and two drawers for Play Food.

Now this is the view to the right of the door. This is where the easel and train table are located. We are planning on using Easy-Tac to keep the train set built. We are tired of putting it back together. We just have to remember how it all goes together.

This is in the closet. The gray rubbermaid container holds dress-up clothes. The drawers below are from Costco. There are drawers for crowns, shoes, purses, bracelets, necklaces, and rings. We have room to grow with this set-up.

The shelves are also in the closet. This is where the games are located. Games for older children and adults are located on the upper shelves. While the younger children games are located on the lower shelves.

This is not in the toyroom, but in the kitchen and dining room. This is the craft area for the girls. The cart is from Costco (of course). On top we have decorative edge scissors (from Costco), coloring books, and cardstock. In the drawers (which I still need to label) are crayons, markers, colored pencils, paint and paintbrushes, scissors, glue, and paint aprons.
We started using this cart about three months ago and it has worked wonderfully. The girls can sit at the dining room table or spread out on the kitchen floor. The drawers can be taken to where they are working. There has been a considerable less amount of fighting than there used to be during craft time. Plus it can be wheeled out to be swept underneath. And of course, it just looks cute as can be.

An Accomplishment

This is Melodye's third year doing swim lessons. Now I never learned how to swim. I felt a little bit like a hypocrite making her learn and I hadn't, but I knew that she absolutely needed to learn.

So I started watching her and learning somethings, but I still could not put my face in the water without holding my nose.

Well the high school had enough interest for an adult class. I am enrolled and have already attended two classes.

And I am happy to say that I have been swimming the length of the pool with my face in the water and my hands have not been anywhere near my face!!!! I feel I have already learned so much in this first week of classes and there are still three more weeks to go.

Worth Knowing

I found this on youtube. It made me cry when I watched it. I know my girls would not wake up to the smoke alarm. They never have before when it has gone off due to the low battery. I really do need to find these and right away.

Eight Already!!!!

My oldest baby girl, Melodye has turned 8 as of 3:17pm today. It is hard to believe that she is eight and going into third grade. For some reason third graders always seem so old to me. Well you know they are not in the primary grades anymore, which means they are old to a kindergarten teacher. :)


For some reason this school year, Melodye has started with this disgusting habit of licking her hands. If she is not licking her hands then she is chewing on her hair or clothes. I do not know why this habit started or even when it started exactly. All I know is that it is disgusting and I hope she stops soon. I keep mentioning it to her and nothing. A friend from soccer, Kayla, said something joking and still nothing. I don't know what we are going to do, but I really do not want to have to nag constantly about this habit.

Melodye really does love he sister and other young children. When Melodye is talking to kids younger than her, she completely uses what I think of as her teacher voice. She is calm, speaks slowly, and explains things at their level. I never have to worry about her with younger children, I know that she will take care of them as if they were her own. Don't get me wrong. Melodye fights with her sister and it is happening more and more as she gets older and "annoyed with Brooke" as she calls it. For example, Mel does not want Brooke in her room for any reason, so she has been locking the door when she is reading. Which means that I unlock the door when I have not heard from her in awhile and she is usually sound asleep.

Some facts about my dear Melodye. She loves to draw. She loves soccer and swimming. She loves to read about animals. Pink is her favorite color. Melodye likes to wear her hair down. She loves to listen to Guitar Hero music on her Ipod as she falls asleep. Webkinz are her favorite game online and collection. The Webkinz are also her favorite thing to play with. Melodye takes after me with her oganization and labels. She has her Webkinz organized into groups. Books are labeled be shelves as eary or medium readers. Melodye gets her dark, thick eyelashes from Daddy, along with her beautiful coloring and ultra thick hair. From me she gets her eye shape, looks, personality, love of reading, love of crafts, hairiness, and big feet (sorry honey).

I love this girl more than anything and I would not trade her for anything. I can live without the moodiness ("this is the worst day of my life") that is already starting, but I can deal with it because she is my baby girl.

Restless

I am feeling restless this eavening. Earlier I was in the yard knitting while the kids played. All of a sudden I just couldn't knit. I then picked up my book. I just could not find what I needed to be doing. I am not sure why I feel this way. I am just going back and forth between things and not knowing what I really want to do. I don't know, but this might be connected . . . I have forgotten to take my medicine for Restless Leg Syndrome the last few nights.

Tomorrow Melodye will be 8. She is so excited that is all she can talk about. For her birthday, we have show off day for swimming lessons, we are going with the cousins to pick strawberries, we may go to Open Swim, and eating out. I plan on making her blueberry muffins for breakfast, her favorite. We will give her a couple of presents tomorrow, but the rest will wait for her party on Sunday.

Books Times 4

I have been reading this summer, more than what I can do during the school year. Since June 6, I have read the following books.

Where Are You Now? by Mary Higgins Clark - Good Book, a fast read, 4 out of 5 stars

Obedience by Will Lavender - Really intrguing, kept you second guessing, the ending was a shock, 4 out of 5 stars

Kill Me Twice by Roxanne St. Claire - one of her Bullet Catcher Series, I enjoy this series and this one is no different, mystery and romance, 4 out of 5 stars


Blue Smoke and Murder by Elizabeth Lowell - mystery and romance, I enjoyed this up to the end, I liked learning about the art scene, but the ending was a little abrupt for me, 3 out of 5 stars

I think I may have read something else in there, but I cannot think of it. I love that I am able to access the public library online and request books. Using this system, I am able to request books and be one of the first to get new books and I always have something waiting for me. If I had to actually request at the branch or buy the books, I know I would not read all the books that I do read.

The girls had their check ups today. They are healthy and growing like weeds. Melodye is in the 95th percentile for her height and 75th percentile for her weight (no wonder her mii on WiiFit looks like a matchstick with a ball on top for her head). Brooke is well over the 100th percentile for height and in the 95th percentile for height. I am just glad that they are healthy and growing the way they should be even if I do have to keep buying them clothes and shoes because they are growing so fast!!

Monday, Monday

Why are bedtimes always the same way. "I don't want to go to bed." "Can I sleep in your bed?" "I want to cuddle with you." Even though the answers are the same every single night, the phrases are still heard.

One thing that drives me crazy is when a person complains that they are not treated the same as everyone else, but yet when I try to talk to that person I am blown off as if I was not making any kind of effort. Sorry, I just needed a quick vent.

Tomorrow I start my four half day trainings for work. I am dreading putting the time in, but I know I will appreciate it come time for school to begin again and I have to begin on the school plan.

I tried to register for a training the state of Indiana was offering to Indiana teachers, but it was filled up. I wish it was being offered more than twice. I really wanted to attend, but that is life.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all of the father's out there.

I was blessed with a wonderful father who did everything in his power to make us have the best childhood. Was it perfect, no. Did I want perfection, no. I would not change any part of it. I was blessed with a father who did everything to keep his children together. But mostly I was blessed with a father that knew he was making the wrong decisions and did something about it. My dad has now had 20 years alcohol free. I am so proud of that decision that he made 20 years ago and every day since then. That decision has led him to be an even more wonderful father and grandfather. Thank you Dad!

My girls are blessed with a wonderful father. He loves to just spend time with them. I don't know how he does it, but he works full time, goes to school full time during the week, takes more classes on the weekend, helps out around the house, and still spends quality time with his family. What a wonderful man!!! The girls love to spend time with their daddy and he is more than willing to give them that time. I am thankful that he is the wonderful man, husband, and father that he is and will always be.

Summertime Part 2

Looks like I figured out how to add a video. Enjoy! It's not as clear as the link I gave in the previous post, but it works.

Summertime

The video for Summertime by NKOTB has been released. I am enjoying the video and song. I really need to figure out how to post the actual video on my blog.

Melodye went to the doctor. Her nose is looking just fine. She may continue to have the bloody noses or she may not. She does not have to go back in unless she has another bloody nose. Here's hoping for no more bloody noses!

I went to th doctor for the results of my throid uptake and scan. My thryroid is functioning. There are definitely multiple nodules. It doesn't look like they are worrisome, but it is not 100% definite. So I will be making an appointment to see an endicronologist and then we will go from there. But I am not going to worry since the nodules are not classic "cold" nodules.

This Week

I may not be working, but I used more gas this week than usual. : (
Here is why:

• Melodye's swim lessons every morning Monday through Friday.
• Art Lessons 30 minutes away on Thursday
• Thyroid Uptake and Scan for me which means three visits to the hospital 30 minutes away.
• Melodye's follow-up doctor's appointment for her bloody noses
• My doctor's appointment to find out the results for my Thyroid Uptake and Scan. (The results better be ready. I would hate to drive 30 minutes and then find out that a different appointment needs to be scheduled due to the results not being available.)

Tonight I had to order a new power cord for the laptop. There goes $100. The AC power cord is not always registering that it is plugged into the computer so the battery dies on us and the computer is forced into hibernation while we are using it. Highly annoying!!! I think it is the cord. Tommy thinks it is something internally wrong with where the cord plugs into. Let's hope I am right, since it is the cheaper of the two.

I am honestly going to try to post more often since I am on summer break, but as you can see from my list above here, I am still just as busy just without work. Next week I will be going for training on School Plans Tuesday through Friday half days. I am able to go because Tommy is on vacation from school, but not work.

Finale

Brooke played her last soccer game. She actually got the ball two different times!!! Although she did kick it the wrong way both times. LOL No more soccer until the fall. Hopefully there will be a U4 team so that Brooke will be playing with kids her age instead of older kids.

Change

I changed the template for the good old blog, but I am not sure if I like it or not. It looks nice, but I am not sure if it wows me. I think I am going to leave it for now. Come back with new fresh eyes and decide then.

Hit or Miss

I missed posting yesterday (went to bed at 7:30) but I am posting today. So not a perfect week posting, but it is more often than previous weeks.

I never did get a purse from Elisa Lou for my birthday. Then I never could decide which fabric I wanted to use after I narrowed my choices down (that is why I wanted my husband to choose). Well I found out that there was a sale on some purses posted at Etsy. I found two of the purses that I wanted on sale!!! The first one is here and the second one is here. Now I just have to wait for them to arrive and decide which one to use.

Semi-Finals

Melodye played her first championship game Saturday in the Quarter Finals. Hobart played against Crown Point who we had tied and lost to previously. The girls were awesome. They finally came together as a team and THEY WON!! It was amazing watching them as they gained their confidence during that game. Today was the semi-finals against Highland. Hobart started off winning, but after the half Highland went on to win the game. The girls never did give up. They were amazing and gave it their all. At one point, I asked what had gotten into Mel because she ran all the way across the field and beat every other player to the ball. She had never done that before. It was heartbreaking afterwards when the girls started crying.

Brooke has two games left. Monday evening and Saturday. Then we are done with soccer until fall. By then we will be ready to do all of this again.

I did not take any pictures today because I was a bad mom and forgot the camera. Along with being a bad mom, I have not taken any pictures off of the camera in quite awhile. Hence, no pictures on the blog.

I think I am going to try to post something every day this week. We'll see how it goes.