14 Days of Valentines

I started a tradition a few years ago that we really enjoy. From the first day of February until Valentines Day, I give the kids a small treat or gift. I just finished putting them together for tomorrow. I try to have all of them ready in advance so I am not scrambling every day. I still have 2 or 3 that I still need to get but the rest are ready! Even though they are almost the same every year, the kids don’t care and they get so excited. One year I even made a giant heart shaped puzzle with a message on it and gave a puzzle piece each day. The kids really had fun using sticky tack and putting it together on the wall. If I get a chance tomorrow before they get home from school, I may do that again this year.  This year I found a cut little mailbox at the Target Dollar Spot that I will put them in and raise the flag. I wish I had one for each child to have their own. I will allow them to open the mailbox as soon as everyone is home from school!  Here is a list of the fun treat and gift ideas that I use. I just print out the little message on colored paper and cut them into hearts to tape onto the item.

I love your little tootsies! (tootsie rolls)

You’ve always “mint” the world to me! (Andes or York mints)

You always help me out when I’m in a (Crunch bar)

You are the greatest - Bar None! (granola gar)

You Warm my heart! (hot chocolate mix)

Let it be posted, you’re the best! (Post-it pad & pencil)

“Soda” you know I love you? (small can of soda)

Kisses, just for you! or Smootches, just for you!(Hershey's Kisses)

You’re so cheesy, you cracker me up! (cheese & cracker pack)

I couldn’t bear to live without you! (cinnamon bears)

You are my sweetart! (Sweettarts)

I don’t mean to be “gushy” but, I love you! (Gushers fruit snacks)

You make me smile! (Walmart fruit snack smiles)

No TWIX, I love you! (Twix candy bar)

You're worth more to me than 100 GRAND (100 Grand candy bar)

You're EXTRA special to me (Extra gum)

Don't SNICKER, because I love you. (Snickers candy bar)

HUGS & KISSES, just for you. (Hershey Hugs and Kisses candies)

I love your BUBBLY personality (bubbles)

Just POPPED by to say Be Mine (bubbles)

Valentine you make my heart float (bubbles)

I’m BUBBLING over with love (bubbles)

The other tradition we have, is that Paul brings home a balloon for each of the kids. They sure love balloons and Paul loves to pick them out! What do you do to make Valentines Day special?

Projects made for Christmas

This past Christmas, I took on a couple of projects that I think turned out pretty cute.  The first is a tea party table.  It started out with a natural top with forest green legs that I founds at the DI.  I painted and painted to cover that green.  Then I got some old calendars with art from one of my favorite illustrators, Mary Engelbreit.  I cut out the pictures and used Mod Podge to glue and then seal them onto the table.  I chose as many girls that looked like sisters as I could find for my 2 sweet little girls.  They love it!

The second project was a Lego table for the boys.  I found this REALLY sturdy table with edges all around on KSL.com classifieds, and painted it black.  I also gave them the set of drawers underneath to organize their Lego sets.  As of yet, they haven't done too much organizing because they are busy playing.  The boys are loving the work space and I love that I can say, if it doesn't fit on the table, it has to be put away.  No more half broken Lego displays all over the house! 

Diversity in pain

Last night I found myself marveling at the diversity of pain in our household.  This epiphany was brought on by a sharp pain in my foot as I pattered around in the dark checking on the kids and closing down the house for the day.  I thought I had stepped on a Lego piece, yet again, but then I discovered it was Cinderella Barbie's glass slipper that she must have lost as she ran to beat the bedtime clock chimes.  It's positive proof that we are an equal opportunity household when it comes to pain inducing toys. 

Another example might be a comparison between the obnoxious princess cash register noises and the whine of the remote control monster truck.  Or maybe, the screams of children crashing off of the cool rip stick vs. the pink Barbie bike. 

Paul also added that it is difficult to determine whether the pain from an unexpected football thrown a little low, or a knee from an exuberant child leaping into his lap registers higher on his pain scale.

Not to be forgotten is the earsplitting pain of the equal and competing volume of four children running laps while playing chase on a Sunday afternoon.  (For those of you who thought we spend our Sundays reading scriptures and thinking of kind words to say to each other, you just keep right on thinking that, OK?)

So... it turns out it is not a competition between boys and girls or their toys.  The pain competition is between children and parents.  I'll let you guess who  is on the winning side.  However, when it comes to blessings, lessons learned, love received, and joy filled hearts, the parents sweep!

Rat update

Well... True to the Bruderer family curse.  We are unlucky with rats too!  We have successful gone through some of those decorative goldfish, a lizard and 2 frogs.  Now we have to return the rats and try another pair.  We have determined that Shadow is too aggressive, may never be trained and is possibly crazy.  Sparkle was making progress, I could hold her and feed her out of my hand.  But, she is sick with a respiratory infection, possibly pneumonia.  And no, I haven't been kissing the rat.  So, we will be returning the rats and then going on Sat. with my nephew Trenton to let Jordan choose some new ones.  Wish us better luck with this next batch.  It just doesn't seem like our house is a very healthy place for animals!