tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84709847563880783732024-02-20T01:02:37.767-08:00Just Ask Supermom!~ Laughing, crying, and blogging my way through motherhood.Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-341988323598651372015-04-21T20:58:00.001-07:002015-04-21T20:58:40.498-07:004/21: Donation Station Instructions by 365 (Week 4)<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><b>Week 4: Create a Donation Station<span style="box-sizing: border-box;"> </span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Garage sale? <b>Yes or No.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Will you “sell” anything? <b>Yes or No.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Where will you store items to be donated or given away?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As we purge and organize, there are multiple piles you will make EVERY time. So, having a plan with where those piles will go will be immensely helpful for getting the job done and not feeling like you are living IN a garage sale. Speaking of garage sales, are you going to have one. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">This time, I am NOT having a garage sale. I don’t have enough stuff and what I do have is not “garage sale stuff.”</span><br />
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit;">SO, yes or no, and where will you store your “treasures” until you are done?</span></div>
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<img alt="donation staging area" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-6793" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/DSC_0188-300x262.jpg" height="262" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="300" /></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What about clothes? Do you like to resell your clothes?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I usually donate mine, but I have a good stash right now that I think will sell. I have put them right in my trunk to swing by the resale shop. BUT I have some off season clothes as well. Those I have in the front hall closet.</span><br />
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<span style="font-weight: 700;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">If you are going to “store” your off season clothes to sell – PUT IT IN YOUR CALENDAR.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Trust me. I have done this more than once, holding on to off season clothes year after year because every time I “find” the pile, it’s not the right time again! In the notes section of your calendar, mark down what closet you put those clothes in! I just listened to this<a href="http://clutterinterrupted.com/radio-show/111-to-donate-or-not-to-donate-that-is-the-question/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank"> podcast about Goodwill</a>. Makes me feel better that I have donated TONS of items there. The Goodwill in our area does an amazing job of supporting teens and adults with special needs!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Having a place to put donatable items right away lets me finish organizing my space and commit to getting rid of “stuff.” If you are going to take a tax deduction… check out this webpage from <a href="http://www.goodwill.org/get-involved/donate/taxes-and-your-donation/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;">Goodwill</a> and take pictures!</span></div>
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Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-13902441290812942222015-04-17T16:42:00.000-07:002015-04-21T20:58:22.946-07:004/17/15: Organizing your Weekly Lunches Instructions by 365 (Week 3)For the past several days I've been close to death (just being dramatic). I've had this horrible cough and cold and the cough has taken its toll on me. I almost asked my DH to take me to the ER to get some meds on Saturday but the albuterol inhaler seems to help calm my cough and open my airways a little. The Codeine last night kept me asleep too. However, it kept me on the verge of sleeping all day long.<br />
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Still groggy and feeling like BLEEP, I went to work. Then I realized I hadn't posted the topic for last week - so here it goes.<br />
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Organizing your Weekly Lunches</h2>
The subject and the subtitles are pretty good. However, the person doing the blog is telling us where has a 7th and 9th grader and they aren't too much into the little kids things. HOWEVER, looking at the photos, why on earth would she be buying Applesauce Squeeze Packs, teething crackers and character thermos'. Seems odd - or those aren't really her pictures.<br />
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<b><i>Step 1: Decide what constitutes a good lunch for your family.</i></b><br />
Ha! For me, it's a few pieces of salami, some fruit snacks and a Capri Sun. However, my kids have to pack their own lunches. Brayden does the pre-made "Uncrustables" sandwiches while the girls will make their own... salami, turkey, ham, heat left-overs.<br />
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<b><i>Step 2: Buy a good lunch box.</i></b><br />
I spent a bundle at 31 bags and got some lunch bags for each kids. Where they are right now? God only knows.<br />
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<a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/b9/03/4f/b9034f5afd65d1a8114d3de03cf11b87.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/b9/03/4f/b9034f5afd65d1a8114d3de03cf11b87.jpg" width="200" /></a> <a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/cf/b8/bf/cfb8bf30e1b291f9efb10eab7c57938a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/cf/b8/bf/cfb8bf30e1b291f9efb10eab7c57938a.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://thumbs1.ebaystatic.com/d/l225/m/m9N5r5CobrZAKBHhqA5TRtA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://thumbs1.ebaystatic.com/d/l225/m/m9N5r5CobrZAKBHhqA5TRtA.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a><a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/e2/44/76/e2447677c19eae4dd64b57b2a95dbb21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/e2/44/76/e2447677c19eae4dd64b57b2a95dbb21.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b><i>Step 3: Buy disposable containers and silverware.</i></b><br />
We bought disposable containers. That lasted a few weeks. It was the Rubbermaid and the sizes are all just odd. The organization of the container pull-out draw would be perfection if I were the only one to use it. However, my rug rats have completely torn it up and just toss things back when they are emptying the dish washer.<br />
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<a href="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Kitchen-Organization-05-332x500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Kitchen-Organization-05-332x500.jpg" height="200" width="132" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHGhCBpjtwWwibqIozhVjen2mQB2hmoY928u6Xt54nEhXJPzDta61ktW-MIKDIXgTYY3ZbY-5MW8KYQvbTd6oYP86b7bJV1SPd__GFCZMM0YFUzFvr8-6LdjLAvt9FhjZVxIAVYJTJzT4/s1600/0007169144759_500X500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHGhCBpjtwWwibqIozhVjen2mQB2hmoY928u6Xt54nEhXJPzDta61ktW-MIKDIXgTYY3ZbY-5MW8KYQvbTd6oYP86b7bJV1SPd__GFCZMM0YFUzFvr8-6LdjLAvt9FhjZVxIAVYJTJzT4/s1600/0007169144759_500X500.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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<b><i>Step 4: Pack lunches at night.</i></b><br />
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We do NOT pack lunches at night. The kids have a routine when they wake up and I'm so not changing it.<br />
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Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-49186006793278576332015-04-09T17:38:00.000-07:002015-04-09T17:38:21.430-07:004/9/15: Calendar Coding - My VersionSo I finished putting my calendar together. I love to write so I think I'll keep my calendar at work. However, we are using this "Family Calendar" on our i-devices and so we are all up to date since we are sharing calendars.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCLtoXfy7mbyDw40wykOI04Ay90m9wuby_vE0fQNzOqvMF_uzVB5u_VqGY_b-VLorHl6LX-XCTzmlOgE_Xba5Sm9dUxJTR6HGz1d8KpxqWHYyroAFzBQrqc2m7nBO6XVVj8hTcdK6fjRXa/s1600/calendar1.tiff" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCLtoXfy7mbyDw40wykOI04Ay90m9wuby_vE0fQNzOqvMF_uzVB5u_VqGY_b-VLorHl6LX-XCTzmlOgE_Xba5Sm9dUxJTR6HGz1d8KpxqWHYyroAFzBQrqc2m7nBO6XVVj8hTcdK6fjRXa/s1600/calendar1.tiff" height="306" width="320" /></a></div>
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I personally like to look at my schedule in a monthly view. It just is easier for me to find things. I do like the one below (weekly view) to help me see the times that I need to do things and see if there is anything that is conflicting that I may need help with.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH2sVnMvgIKiXywOW1D4qKXfe01Cs9xq-PBWsAACv5vINmUcTr7XGp82A_8zCoLGf20tKDt59ZILVxnQOlwbmQhwRR-LswyoUlL7AGgZFc19X4_Idss3Sz40Hq5cWmAkCJPQlUYXQ077S7/s1600/calendar2.tiff" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH2sVnMvgIKiXywOW1D4qKXfe01Cs9xq-PBWsAACv5vINmUcTr7XGp82A_8zCoLGf20tKDt59ZILVxnQOlwbmQhwRR-LswyoUlL7AGgZFc19X4_Idss3Sz40Hq5cWmAkCJPQlUYXQ077S7/s1600/calendar2.tiff" height="204" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-36116383387582625872015-04-07T17:11:00.000-07:002015-04-21T20:58:10.234-07:004/7/15: Planners & Calendars Instructions by 365 (Week 2)<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Week 2: Planners and Calendars</span></h3>
<span style="color: red; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">NOTE - THIS IS FROM "40 WEEKS 1 WHOLE HOUSE CHALLENGE" - I DID NOT WRITE THIS</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">Last week, we organized our </span><a href="http://organize365.com/40-weeks-1-whole-house-week-1-kitchen-paper/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank" title="40 Weeks 1 Whole House: WEEK 1: Kitchen Paper">kitchen paper</a><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">, made a </span><a href="http://organize365.com/using-post-it-tabs-to-organize-your-lists/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank" title="Using Post It Tabs To Organize Your Lists">master to-do list</a><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"> and </span><a href="http://organize365.com/sorting-vacation-mail/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank" title="Sorting Vacation Mail">sorted the mail</a><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">.</span></span><br />
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While you were sorting, I told you to make a BIG pile of anything that you needed to schedule or put on a calendar. This week is all about that pile.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">There are 3 tools that help me know where to be and what I need to have with me when I go</span><b style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit;">. I want you to really think about your schedule and your life.</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Take what is working and tweak it. If you are an electronic gal, don’t make a paper binder and vice versa.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Grab a cup of coffee and get ready to “THINK” about your calendar, items you need to access and how you plan your days.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Calendars</span></h3>
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<img alt="How do you get the most productivity out of your calendar? Use a planner! Planners provide structure, goal planning and accountability. | Organize 365" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-6608" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/Fullscreen-capture-8312013-61412-PM-300x186.jpg" height="186" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="300" /></div>
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<b style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Step 1: Find a Calendar…ONE Calendar</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Find that ONE calendar that works for you</span><b style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit;"> </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">and put ALL the school dates, flyers, doctor appointments, birthdays and holidays on that calendar TODAY.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I prefer a Google Calendar (or iCal). It is easy to add recurring events, color code events and share your calendar with other family members or teammates.</span></div>
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<img alt="Google calendar" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-9477" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Fullscreen-capture-262014-75827-AM.bmp.jpg" height="220" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="500" /></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Step 2: Color Code your Calendar</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I highly suggest </span><a href="http://organize365.com/color-coded-to-do-lists/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">color coding</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> your calendar. Each of my kids has a color, each of my businesses has a color and my hubby and I have colors.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here’s another post about </span><a href="http://organize365.com/color-coded-to-do-list/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">how I decided to color code my life</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Each day and week, I look at my calendar from my computer and can easily see by color if that week is heavy with work or family related activities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I do much better knowing that I don’t have work time and so focusing on my family – than thinking there is work time there, but I never get to it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Some of my weeks I don’t get any work done at all, and other weeks Greg feels like Mr. Mom.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Part of having a home based, flexible business is managing that flexibility . </span><img alt=":)" class="wp-smiley" src="http://organize365.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; height: auto; max-width: 100%;" /><span style="font-family: inherit;"> It is actually HARDER to manage a flexible job than one with set hours.</span></div>
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<img alt="I'm taking Wednesdays off! | Organize 365" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-13201" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Im-Taking-Wednesdays-Off.jpg" height="220" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="500" /></div>
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<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Step 3: Plan for the Unexpected</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have already shared how I am preemptively scheduling errands and “interruptions” into my weekly calendar by </span><a href="http://organize365.com/im-taking-wednesdays/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">blocking them all onto Wednesdays</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">If you are always running late, don’t seem to have enough time in the day or are stressed out about who needs to be where when, I suggest putting ALL of your driving hours on your calendar for 6 weeks. Physically seeing that time as busy will help you to stop “trying to squeeze one more thing” on your calendar.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In week 38 of the 40 weeks 1 WHOLE House challenge, I talked about </span><a href="http://organize365.com/organizing-schedules-to-do-lists/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank" title="40 Weeks 1 Whole House: Week 38 – Organizing Schedules & To-Do Lists">organizing schedules and to-do lists</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">. You can look at what </span><a href="http://organize365.com/sunday-basket-week-18/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank">my Sunday planning time looks like here</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">For good measure, add your Sunday Basket time to your weekly calendar. I finally realized it takes me ALL DAY Sunday to get ready for the week. I go through my Sunday Basket, pay bills, change the sheets, do 6 loads of laundry, clean the house, take care of the weekly medicine dispensers, plan carpool changes and make sure all the kids’ homework is done.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">On Saturday, we plan the weekly menu. I need to add cooking for the week on Sunday. More coming on that topic soon. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I was trying to add events on Sundays, I always ended up without getting the household ready for the week and my week was stressed. So I work Monday – Saturday, date night Saturday night, Sunday morning church and household duties from noon-8 pm on Sundays.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">You may have just read that and said YUCK! I would HATE that schedule. Great! What works for you? I would love to do more household tasks during the week, but I just don’t want to allocate the time then. I am super productive from 7 am- 2 pm. In the car from 2 pm – 4:30 ish and “done” after that. Seriously. I have NO brain power or energy left from 5-10 pm.</span></div>
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<img alt="planner list" class="aligncenter wp-image-13544 size-large" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/planner-list-e1410135144598-375x500.jpg" height="500" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="375" /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Step 4: Plan Your Day</span><br />
<b style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit;">My calendar, Sunday Basket and binder WORK because I have a PLAN to make them work. </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">I think we spend a lot of time trying to find the perfect calendar or make the perfect binder and then wonder why they don’t “work” for us.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is the routine ACT of planning that makes each of these items WORK.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The planner is the goal-focused attention and follow through FROM the calendar and Sunday Basket.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Calendars and Sunday Baskets hold INFORMATION. </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Planners hold ACTION and ACCOUNTABILITY</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">So how do you “plan” your life?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: 700;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-weight: 700;">Ready to be SHOCKED? I have gone to only planning ONE DAY AT A TIME.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My Google Calendar is my best intention on planning. And then </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-weight: 700;">I sit down Sunday night and LOOK at my week</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">. Can I add another job? Do I have time for a household project? How much will I be in the car?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Then, every night I look at tomorrow and write out a simple daily plan.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I put all of my calendar appointments by time on the list.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Then I look at my to-do list and see what I can squeeze in between appointments.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">At least ONE day each week, I have a 4-8 hour chunk of time to work on blog posts.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">On those days I make a SUPER BIG to-do list and prioritize which tasks have to happen first. I even give time deadlines and see how many I can get done in one day.</span></div>
</div>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8470984756388078373" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8470984756388078373" style="background-color: transparent; background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-71631309322859829622015-04-04T21:00:00.000-07:002015-04-09T17:24:23.880-07:004/3/15: Sunday Basket Instructions by 365 (Week 1)<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>
Week 1: Creating a Sunday Basket</b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b> </b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Reminders and To-Do Lists</b></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="box-sizing: border-box;">Mail</span></b></span></h3>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 2.6rem; padding: 0px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: red; font-family: inherit;">NOTE - THIS IS FROM "40 WEEKS 1 WHOLE HOUSE CHALLENGE" - I DID NOT WRITE THIS</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">You can make a binder, a bag or a basket. It doesn’t matter. You just need a place for paper to land until you can “deal” with it. ONE place for all the mixed up paper.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Essentially, the Sunday Basket is EVERY piece of paper in your kitchen that you haven’t processed yet. It’s a BIG holding pile in a pretty basket. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Right now your laundry basket IS your Sunday basket. Now, we are going to pull out items and create systems for each kind of paper. But until you can get to creating the system – your papers are SAFE in these baskets. You can hunt and peck and find what you need.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Let’s talk about what’s in there. Paper is hard, but once you conquer your paper, you will feel SO much more in control of your life!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This</span><a href="http://organize365.com/sorting-vacation-mail/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank"> how to sort mail post</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> will walk you step by step through how to tackle the mail backlog. Going forward, put all your mail that needs your attention and can wait until Sunday into the</span><a href="http://organize365.com/the-sunday-basket/" style="-webkit-transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out; box-sizing: border-box; color: #d81e78; text-decoration: none; transition: all 0.1s ease-in-out;" target="_blank" title="The Sunday Basket">Sunday basket</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> right away.</span></div>
<div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 2.6rem; padding: 0px;">
<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 14px; height: auto; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 2.4rem; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; max-width: 100%;"><img alt="Weekly Paper Organization and Planning" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-8288" src="http://organize365.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Weekly-Sunday-Basket-pic.jpg" height="218" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; margin: 0px auto 2.4rem; max-width: 100%;" width="320" /><b style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Setting up your home office</span></b></span><br />
<ul style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">mailing supplies</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">homework / office supplies</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">greeting cards</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">a filing system for papers</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">addresses</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">a place to put kids’ school work</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">a place to store memorabilia and photos</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">coupons</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">a project area</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">storage for binders of information</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 22px;">Kids’ school papers</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">The kitchen is ground zero, home base.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">Consider having the following accessible:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">I have ONE binder for each child’s artwork and papers that come home from school. Then, at the end of the year pull out things you want to save - report cards, artwork, awards, etc..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">Have an office in the corner of the bedroom? That is too far away. </span><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 22px;">You MUST have a home office in your kitchen. </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"> Just the mental deep breath of accepting the kitchen as the hub of your home for food AND planning will be a relief.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">Embrace it and make it work for you.</span></div>
Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-35409806176237032272015-04-02T19:00:00.000-07:002015-04-05T09:33:56.222-07:004/2/15: Creating the Sunday BasketSummer break means Spring Cleaning. However, cleaning my house with the kids home is like shoveling snow in a blizzard. Once a room is clean and you tackle the next room, the first room gets dirty all over again. <br />
<br />
Our biggest problem: L A U N D R Y!!! I want to hire a housekeeper to come in and go through all the laundry in the house, wash it, dry it, fold it and most importantly PUT IT AWAY!!! Let me save that post for another time though.<br />
<br />
Today I had two things on the agenda. 1) Cleaning the floors. 2) Sunday Basket(s)<br />
<br />
Lexie and I got on our hands and knees and scrubs the kitchen floors, baseboards, under the stove & frig, under the table & chairs and part of the living room. Adding a little helper made it go fast and it was fun to do it together.<br />
<br />
I started the <a href="http://www.organize365.com/" target="_blank">40 Weeks Whole House Challenge</a> on Monday. My first thing to do was take every piece of paper in my kitchen and shove it in a basket. However, the kitchen isn't where I keep my papers. It's my bedroom. So I started there - however, I didn't use one basket, I used 3 baskets.<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Basket 1 - Girl Scout crap</li>
<li>Basket 2 - Family photos and awards</li>
<li>Basket 3 - Everything else</li>
</ul>
<br />
The goal of the Sunday Basket is to take every paper you collect and just dump it into the basket each week. On Sunday, I go through the basket and sort through the things that are important and the things that can wait. I altered that a little more and I went out to the store and purchased a file folder where I can put information in their files as I go (or sort it all out on Sunday).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqqZxV09B-y3P5By8vKCwh_NU34jmzc2bHD3nr45bzJ_yhyYoGhiJEwsgcS1DicrKQIY_xq8d95iCLGKZHAerW1cbIUHusZC9KpWhMjMwzYbhjFlXzpxQoLc_zdKGSOmVH6rB-8ngXc_N-/s1600/31aK97fXuaL._SL500_SS100_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqqZxV09B-y3P5By8vKCwh_NU34jmzc2bHD3nr45bzJ_yhyYoGhiJEwsgcS1DicrKQIY_xq8d95iCLGKZHAerW1cbIUHusZC9KpWhMjMwzYbhjFlXzpxQoLc_zdKGSOmVH6rB-8ngXc_N-/s1600/31aK97fXuaL._SL500_SS100_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42BJC5iXW81WwhQ8k8J_US7dSCv2svFVbs7KMReHKgrDRzpNkjobQmIl3aOkbzQK4MqqtTxVlmCWoIzilmf1rKV8JNF8ZJtvD2mfhABwZ-A6Msn16IJ8EZqizqhYtHlTJDDA8w7T7NXfh/s1600/51EZAqqInLL._SL500_SS100_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh42BJC5iXW81WwhQ8k8J_US7dSCv2svFVbs7KMReHKgrDRzpNkjobQmIl3aOkbzQK4MqqtTxVlmCWoIzilmf1rKV8JNF8ZJtvD2mfhABwZ-A6Msn16IJ8EZqizqhYtHlTJDDA8w7T7NXfh/s1600/51EZAqqInLL._SL500_SS100_.jpg" /></a></div>
I went out and purchased a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Iris-Clear-Open-File-Storage/dp/B002OFCA9S/ref=pd_sbs_op_5?ie=UTF8&refRID=19XW6HQ6KRDC0PQ2ZSCE" target="_blank">Open Top File Storage</a> container. I already have the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Smead-Hanging-Folders-Assorted-64059/dp/B00006IF4G/ref=pd_bxgy_hg_img_y" target="_blank">Hanging File Folders</a>.<br />
These will be where I store my actual files. Then I am planning to make the following <a href="http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/lime-green-metal-die-cut-oval-pail-704858/" target="_blank">Oval Metal Pail with Handles</a> into the "Sunday Basket" since it has a nice clean look.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7aeh5si0Po88cMpOBna-4HWLZrD8cr9dIDfT94jpRbaYQ-2KzGp9UC14UpRisG3nrcmVySH_tGDDAtkR_F89bp48aUzaB3gjAU1Tq7mwqhQ2l8EOLgO1d2Pl_O2AXxd0mY7KRFhmbvrtG/s1600/704858_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7aeh5si0Po88cMpOBna-4HWLZrD8cr9dIDfT94jpRbaYQ-2KzGp9UC14UpRisG3nrcmVySH_tGDDAtkR_F89bp48aUzaB3gjAU1Tq7mwqhQ2l8EOLgO1d2Pl_O2AXxd0mY7KRFhmbvrtG/s1600/704858_1.jpg" /></a></div>
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I also went out and purchased these <a href="http://www.dollartree.com/household/storage-organization/Oval-Carry-Totes/500c541c541p29118/index.pro" target="_blank">Oval Carry Totes</a> for storing the cleaning supplies - for those Work for Hire chores:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi24pe-mT6eumpe_s0aHhp-b7kFHCfs0Jdj9ky5XfgZWNjQ19QH7ffzQMx7GmPqsp8adbXfC4nNXV6iK3iTW8TTjWTCCpyRRmgTH6fuQcRmdm6M0xzAjJZ3utAHZTGx1kAnxkYp2UXHUL/s1600/842364.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqi24pe-mT6eumpe_s0aHhp-b7kFHCfs0Jdj9ky5XfgZWNjQ19QH7ffzQMx7GmPqsp8adbXfC4nNXV6iK3iTW8TTjWTCCpyRRmgTH6fuQcRmdm6M0xzAjJZ3utAHZTGx1kAnxkYp2UXHUL/s1600/842364.jpg" /></a></div>
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Time to get my butt up and off this computer so I can get this Activity Center done and post a photo of it!<br />
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background-image: url(data:image/png; border: none; cursor: pointer; display: none; height: 20px; left: 248px; opacity: 0.85; position: absolute; top: 841px; width: 40px; z-index: 8675309;"></a>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-58370189492134702382015-04-01T19:52:00.000-07:002015-04-09T16:42:26.997-07:004/1/15: Sunset State Beach for Spring Break<span style="font-family: inherit;">So Wednesday was a blast. I had to go out to Sunset State Beach and get out their camping facilities for our big trip in April with the Girl Scouts. It was such great weather on top of that. We have 6 sites that are next to each other. Technically, 4 are in a row and 2 are on the other side of the 1 lane road. It's pretty cool! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi__x4dWPtieQpCNos70qhVuI58bbQX_b_dNrQ3pCssB9ejq3dXDQy46Gc7HUQpjHm9hA1X6xk9GPwzrMMlm6UgYmw0aVCByZF18hy4WyY2rumCkQSa7EYSIumLN5ls9Cxq7IbUUBk9LLZ1/s1600/IMG_2170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi__x4dWPtieQpCNos70qhVuI58bbQX_b_dNrQ3pCssB9ejq3dXDQy46Gc7HUQpjHm9hA1X6xk9GPwzrMMlm6UgYmw0aVCByZF18hy4WyY2rumCkQSa7EYSIumLN5ls9Cxq7IbUUBk9LLZ1/s1600/IMG_2170.jpg" height="123" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXaSr3wOZDbHMJjzAYEAcSRYaDjs1Edur6ktAoxgYkG5iBmRFMrMEhfjiqVL97JCbg7k6WiBxH_y3qgWCrKcK5xpnhaDQFoEeDG2myVw2nOzi18LFe9OOu9c7DD7kGNSecQmAcf0AVnkmm/s1600/IMG_2171.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXaSr3wOZDbHMJjzAYEAcSRYaDjs1Edur6ktAoxgYkG5iBmRFMrMEhfjiqVL97JCbg7k6WiBxH_y3qgWCrKcK5xpnhaDQFoEeDG2myVw2nOzi18LFe9OOu9c7DD7kGNSecQmAcf0AVnkmm/s1600/IMG_2171.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">There are 4 sites on the left and 2 on the right.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">There is a restroom within a hop, skip, and jump and there is an amphitheater that has a large screen for showing movies if we are interested! :-) </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglheRmpwDQPlRh9_w9_2o7KAEVRPtR6lKirKXxdleMkDRm6KujcwPmSsNPnKELKWkY1AuxwGAhRMaUWrHtknulEiraoneMEepF-x1ogj93D5aF9g8c73bUHamQxcjp3AY2whAKJljViOWn/s1600/IMG_2168.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglheRmpwDQPlRh9_w9_2o7KAEVRPtR6lKirKXxdleMkDRm6KujcwPmSsNPnKELKWkY1AuxwGAhRMaUWrHtknulEiraoneMEepF-x1ogj93D5aF9g8c73bUHamQxcjp3AY2whAKJljViOWn/s1600/IMG_2168.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bathroom is on the right hand side - campsite is on the left of the photo</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The amphitheater also has 2 fire pits that we can use for our banana boats.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhc1_CNr9Y-cvfKT2Ji7nEIM7EvpGhaD4ijofBCkxowhyvNBGvDxkQu6XBX6ey-GpMHLYaQM9TR0u2RajwmNKKTSIuo_tPzzcQFBaqNBZSMzHXaAGgMAO6CQIPj6bQ3uSANKjxk_lCN8Tq/s1600/IMG_2167.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhc1_CNr9Y-cvfKT2Ji7nEIM7EvpGhaD4ijofBCkxowhyvNBGvDxkQu6XBX6ey-GpMHLYaQM9TR0u2RajwmNKKTSIuo_tPzzcQFBaqNBZSMzHXaAGgMAO6CQIPj6bQ3uSANKjxk_lCN8Tq/s1600/IMG_2167.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Fire pits are on the sides of the screen.</span></td></tr>
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Now.... on to the fun stuff - THE BEACH! This was the view from the top of the road. The trek down wasn't bad at all.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgLCToj87F81g-GRI2wa_FL0Lzhvf7f6Pfmn9wKUm0LDS7PwkGF-x3Ck1NrT9_1FkMC4JMJ346QuDBQ3C-pIoT4sid3hje6E5h731Ej1WrHW-gk52Yqqik9XWp300eIYq3cUFEOVr7wWIs/s1600/IMG_2214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgLCToj87F81g-GRI2wa_FL0Lzhvf7f6Pfmn9wKUm0LDS7PwkGF-x3Ck1NrT9_1FkMC4JMJ346QuDBQ3C-pIoT4sid3hje6E5h731Ej1WrHW-gk52Yqqik9XWp300eIYq3cUFEOVr7wWIs/s1600/IMG_2214.jpg" height="108" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Panoramic view from the top of the road</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHau_DQEhvXWnikNUjdiubf_BtJfVgOsnwI7CMn-Bu-1TsFs2280pVZRYWWwCBZ7VxZuUHFY4PyAWJ84gseiA8Q6_BZWD4Iwkh7xk9OJdTjBX_vU_pQ5TeP62_7yLBJMjSUDC8cHjRY_J/s1600/IMG_2175.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHau_DQEhvXWnikNUjdiubf_BtJfVgOsnwI7CMn-Bu-1TsFs2280pVZRYWWwCBZ7VxZuUHFY4PyAWJ84gseiA8Q6_BZWD4Iwkh7xk9OJdTjBX_vU_pQ5TeP62_7yLBJMjSUDC8cHjRY_J/s1600/IMG_2175.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The trail - Looking up from the bottom, not too bad of a trek up or down.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XOTR_Tgd_sPCW6M5sp-iUIgp5DOf2kgAsndtdaV_tPx-S-6j_4w7r5fVCEJ1Vs8GLEUkZi4KK8BambkXN4-YYmFRKS50FtFmegVU0sGRE1zDVCtASzTT2IIoDQ54Bbm06VuQVCl7cdYU/s1600/IMG_2178.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6XOTR_Tgd_sPCW6M5sp-iUIgp5DOf2kgAsndtdaV_tPx-S-6j_4w7r5fVCEJ1Vs8GLEUkZi4KK8BambkXN4-YYmFRKS50FtFmegVU0sGRE1zDVCtASzTT2IIoDQ54Bbm06VuQVCl7cdYU/s1600/IMG_2178.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On the beach - to right</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6FF_WeQfizB045SsVNtgIu0FoqLvJcCk_jdWc0-FYb2gXLIB3QqGl5SnX88HjoQCqD_Azb6lkY1qFhmrEoI1UVuPehQFKpplz7WXRGOPQ9TOJ_OaM5ED0ALCeveEFxIeXp_IKblqgrBM/s1600/IMG_2179.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC6FF_WeQfizB045SsVNtgIu0FoqLvJcCk_jdWc0-FYb2gXLIB3QqGl5SnX88HjoQCqD_Azb6lkY1qFhmrEoI1UVuPehQFKpplz7WXRGOPQ9TOJ_OaM5ED0ALCeveEFxIeXp_IKblqgrBM/s1600/IMG_2179.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">On the beach - to the right</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Another awesome part of the beach is the fact that the water goes so far out and there isn't a strong under-toe at all. The kids loved the water, the soft sand and shell searching. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyDubOKsB9NVVaD3P36UZHeMGT0J8w1vLRroT7U4fhR7BimFf5Ex-yz55QxCPVsZIChicFY5yPBmlOgIp0z9WVNpyHIca_QjPpe6V5jM70C59JUEJ2_dDNVEj5pXWFZq-tou9v_PVzKpTb/s1600/IMG_2198.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyDubOKsB9NVVaD3P36UZHeMGT0J8w1vLRroT7U4fhR7BimFf5Ex-yz55QxCPVsZIChicFY5yPBmlOgIp0z9WVNpyHIca_QjPpe6V5jM70C59JUEJ2_dDNVEj5pXWFZq-tou9v_PVzKpTb/s1600/IMG_2198.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">What an awesome way to spend Spring Break. (Bella sat in the car where it was warm and read her book....)</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAQp4Rbx_-ry7_50ScFXee0cfCNEwfREJl9kKoXYITOrE9G9V1GLs695au0a-qK7Ac-ypYtisnO_gpOoCgveXwaWcELEqarjqzvXrMJ9xoos81M8NirEIKNhjYTuZp65i-8aKojOA9e4Xh/s1600/IMG_2205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAQp4Rbx_-ry7_50ScFXee0cfCNEwfREJl9kKoXYITOrE9G9V1GLs695au0a-qK7Ac-ypYtisnO_gpOoCgveXwaWcELEqarjqzvXrMJ9xoos81M8NirEIKNhjYTuZp65i-8aKojOA9e4Xh/s1600/IMG_2205.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lex</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPAsJkadLBfY_cKXgnPIL0kNylw0idHMGWiD4w28ylawNNO8JZ8ODnXOZrmr4-5t8uxTyZJdoTKe5O7FpM0GOgNZhYx_i0TB9uZE01ZkTyMZhqpONAUp839uV_CHGlQDoU9tMLTaUtu-9/s1600/IMG_2209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGPAsJkadLBfY_cKXgnPIL0kNylw0idHMGWiD4w28ylawNNO8JZ8ODnXOZrmr4-5t8uxTyZJdoTKe5O7FpM0GOgNZhYx_i0TB9uZE01ZkTyMZhqpONAUp839uV_CHGlQDoU9tMLTaUtu-9/s1600/IMG_2209.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lolo</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdno6yiYUP-gpZvhuUhyvMYhbfyE0wNxFf54OsUN6KnK6C9qmZ_VVWg9cNq-Xj33gAgu282Geku9_LtKFShbRSd7wyENGo9Hu0ZA8yOaTwUUEg78CLGud3KzGMhOmAdDshCb8vPGl4Q6i/s1600/IMG_2210.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhdno6yiYUP-gpZvhuUhyvMYhbfyE0wNxFf54OsUN6KnK6C9qmZ_VVWg9cNq-Xj33gAgu282Geku9_LtKFShbRSd7wyENGo9Hu0ZA8yOaTwUUEg78CLGud3KzGMhOmAdDshCb8vPGl4Q6i/s1600/IMG_2210.jpg" height="320" width="232" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Bray</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Then we had to leave. You know I was dying to go home and clean the house and keep up with my cleaning and organization. However, I just felt I had to introduce the kids to the Old Spaghetti Factory! Mizithra is the best!!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5V2_dApTlGP1z4zLtGHEGbyagDMFGx8-ba9XxwOfiTE0XU9mDbbldVzlbgOzbe1SnV2Df3Bpij0qepgnTnN410iOfcAEHWCCxvd1OK2mWHLYzy3DsczLAd58lwfDuPmr9JYYgP3hOqM_l/s1600/IMG_2218.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5V2_dApTlGP1z4zLtGHEGbyagDMFGx8-ba9XxwOfiTE0XU9mDbbldVzlbgOzbe1SnV2Df3Bpij0qepgnTnN410iOfcAEHWCCxvd1OK2mWHLYzy3DsczLAd58lwfDuPmr9JYYgP3hOqM_l/s1600/IMG_2218.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcd6NY54uhUdMmeV8PQ-4sI_r5O_dTdRlyYvATTNE1YjojEHOWyevyobETSkZHr65OLvBDZgHqQyq5O1V3Jvqi8Ttz2n-snaNeqF1xnQV06ooSJ124nbYNzPzHWL3cv1rpGzooA_Wf7ZVL/s1600/IMG_2217.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcd6NY54uhUdMmeV8PQ-4sI_r5O_dTdRlyYvATTNE1YjojEHOWyevyobETSkZHr65OLvBDZgHqQyq5O1V3Jvqi8Ttz2n-snaNeqF1xnQV06ooSJ124nbYNzPzHWL3cv1rpGzooA_Wf7ZVL/s1600/IMG_2217.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0Sunset State Beach, Watsonville, CA 95076, USA36.8871619 -121.8306509999999936.8363539 -121.91133199999999 36.937969900000006 -121.74996999999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-16453402225650587612015-03-31T10:34:00.006-07:002015-04-05T09:34:43.483-07:003/31/15: In the Beginning<div style="text-align: justify;">
I just totally started giggling when I saw that the last time I even peeked at this blog was back in 2014. Where does my determination go? Do I really find that I'm so busy I can't keep up on task like blogging? Well, here's my effort to try and knock that out of the ball park and turn over the page and start fresh. <i>My husband will be truly amazed if I actually keep this up.</i> </div>
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Yesterday I spent the entire morning on Pinterest trying to figure out all the ideas of putting chore charts, allowance systems, organizing ideas and cleaning tips together so I can attack what I consider a tornado of a house. Now that I have all these fabulous ideas, it's time to put them together.
I did purchase the items to make the Family Center. I went to Hobby Lobby and picked up some aluminum sheets, magnets, wood chips and a large cork board. Here's my idea of what I want to do:
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<a href="http://i0.wp.com/lh6.ggpht.com/-M8jkTfkaUoA/UCntbo6KphI/AAAAAAAAqA8/Ul8Jz3Wd9UY/chore%2520charts_thumb%255B1%255D.jpg?resize=548%2C750" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i0.wp.com/lh6.ggpht.com/-M8jkTfkaUoA/UCntbo6KphI/AAAAAAAAqA8/Ul8Jz3Wd9UY/chore%2520charts_thumb%255B1%255D.jpg?resize=548%2C750" height="400" width="292" /></a></div>
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Here's what the magnets and wood chips are for - mine will hopefully be a little more fancy:
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Here were just a few of the ideas that I want to put on those disks:<br />
<br />
- clean room, make bed<br />
- get dressed, brush teeth, comb hair<br />
- practice instrument<br />
- read 20 minutes<br />
- feed dog/cat<br />
- Doggie Duty<br />
- Kitty Clean-up<br />
- homework<br />
- empty garbage<br />
- help with laundry<br />
- take dirty clothes downstairs<br />
- vacuum front room<br />
- pick up trash in yard<br />
- sweep kitchen<br />
- set table for dinner<br />
- help clear table after dinner<br />
- do dishes/load dishwasher<br />
- empty dishwasher<br />
- vacuum couch<br />
- wipe down bathroom<br />
- clean out van<br />
- wash cupboards<br />
- wipe down microwave<br />
- take out/bring in garbage can<br />
- sport practice<br />
- load dishes<br />
<br />
For the top of the cork board, I thought it would be fun to add something that would allow the kids instant (monetary) gratitude. They won't be able to do these additional chores until all their daily chores are done. Here's the idea:
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Here are the Work for Hire ideas that I came up with:<br />
- Clean Refrigerator<br />
- Kitchen Appliances<br />
- Clean Kitchen Area<br />
- Downstairs Bathroom<br />
- Upstairs Bathroom<br />
- Basket of Laundry<br />
- Vacuum Hallway & Stairs<br />
- Clean Downstairs Windows & Glass<br />
- Clean Upstairs Windows & Glass<br />
- Dust Entire House<br />
- Wipe Down Kitchen Cabinets<br />
- Deep Sweeping<br />
- Sweep & Mop<br />
- Yardwork<br />
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Last but not least, I ran over to the dollar store and picked up some baskets for the Work for Hire jobs. This way the kids will just grab a basket, follow the instructions on the front of the basket and go to it:
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQR80d4qLJdjIFA3tnAAFIfK6rz5SiTaZ4exdtYIYGR7vJlYmVpqvCxxrw4GhZirZxLeRVXCKLXx9txkH3-BfIDzmYZ3fhuI8VTUJ7jKs9_-k2a0OnqXf0CwmUGawlSC1cdgJQcAP3mdJh/s1600/1920091_10153883882510228_689421981_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQR80d4qLJdjIFA3tnAAFIfK6rz5SiTaZ4exdtYIYGR7vJlYmVpqvCxxrw4GhZirZxLeRVXCKLXx9txkH3-BfIDzmYZ3fhuI8VTUJ7jKs9_-k2a0OnqXf0CwmUGawlSC1cdgJQcAP3mdJh/s320/1920091_10153883882510228_689421981_n.jpg" /></a></div>
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After the laundry, dishes, tidying up and general cleaning, hopefully I'll be able to post the photos of the completed Family Center tomorrow.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i> ~ Debbie</i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>You can't reach for anything new if your hands are full of yesterday's junk.</i></blockquote>
Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0Alameda County, CA, USA37.696860987441923 -121.9303894042968837.596341487441926 -122.09175090429687 37.79738048744192 -121.76902790429688tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-69664409068962341962012-01-24T08:02:00.000-08:002012-01-24T08:02:44.860-08:00HELP US BRING BEAMER HOME (31 Days Project on hold)<div style="text-align: justify;">On Friday night, 1/21/12, we had a pretty big wind and rain storm. Sometime during the night, the dog fence in the backyard blew over. This dog fence prevented our dogs from getting to the backyard gate where the PG&E people go to see the meter. During this storm the main backyard gate blew open. The only way that is could do this is if it wasn't locked. Since we ALWAYS lock this gate we did some investigation only to find that there is a new PG&E Smart Meter in the backyard. Putting two and two together, the PG&E people didn't lock our gate.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPYW5sRngMHNDHItZxWDumRf7K8SfvNXAozMw5J6R4ZaNopP81EZk8_MrcomtBOaVPEM3amMUZetwJR8Vu5CJEFaueA1psC4Iufb8GiUvZWz8oEiMS4znDQLgWoUpEEfQZYAUwiPDC9Tck/s1600/IMG_0286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPYW5sRngMHNDHItZxWDumRf7K8SfvNXAozMw5J6R4ZaNopP81EZk8_MrcomtBOaVPEM3amMUZetwJR8Vu5CJEFaueA1psC4Iufb8GiUvZWz8oEiMS4znDQLgWoUpEEfQZYAUwiPDC9Tck/s320/IMG_0286.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Beamer went out sometime late Friday night or early Saturday morning. All of our energy has been focused on finding our dog. We spent about 5 hours in the rain and crappy weather searching for Beamer on Saturday. We also contacted all the vet clinics and the Alameda and Contra Costa County shelters. Sunday we did the same thing and made flyers and put out the bulletin on Craiglist, the paper and anyplace else that people recommended. Monday was mostly rainy and so we hit the vets in the morning, checked in with the shelters and about 3:30, we went on another 1-1/2 search for Beamer.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">There's no sign of him yet but we haven't given up. Cede is pretty miserable without him. She loves being a house dog but she is now beginning to howl in her sleep. She's moping around the house and you can just tell that she's blue. :-(</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH1eljWL9a_zwqqje4AC6lrv2Bl2YxPnuYwi6Anr8e0eZkdMbbjFtcqIdAtAcx2B71LCx9935pN8Dg8t0dzD7J1FnsSjPhmJW4_bszvWbYhtQ8io0tnPcq_y21tCWIPgIULnf7oFUNGX8l/s1600/lost+beamer-business+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH1eljWL9a_zwqqje4AC6lrv2Bl2YxPnuYwi6Anr8e0eZkdMbbjFtcqIdAtAcx2B71LCx9935pN8Dg8t0dzD7J1FnsSjPhmJW4_bszvWbYhtQ8io0tnPcq_y21tCWIPgIULnf7oFUNGX8l/s400/lost+beamer-business+copy.jpg" width="310" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on photo to enlarge for reading easier!</td></tr>
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</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-15755631785251620172012-01-19T20:24:00.000-08:002012-01-19T20:26:12.204-08:00Day 13: 01/19/2012 - The Daily Grind<div style="text-align: justify;">It might not seem like the cleaning that the average person is doing around the house but for me it's part of the <i>31 Days to an Organized Home</i>. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In my iCal program I added a new calendar to the schedule - this one is all about the upcoming surgery. Since I'm having a hysterectomy and some other fun reconstruction in "that" area, I realized that I have to have something in place in order to survive the first two weeks.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The surgery is on the 31st of Jan and I will be in the hospital for 1-2 days. I have my mom coming and staying with us so she can help take care of the kids, the house, her favorite daughter and of course, her favorite son-in-law. (Personally, I think she's just coming to hang out with him - she loves him more anyway!) ;-) </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to the doctors and the other people who have given their input on Hyster-Sister.com, I will need two weeks of peace and quiet and lying down as much as possible. What the heck? I'm having a hard time even thinking I have to stay still. Ick! Anyway, I will need as much help as possible the 2nd week of February so I've called the National Guard and got them all taking my girls to school, pick up Lauren at noon and the other two after school, then take my son to school 3 days a week and pick him up, then watch him on the two days that he's not off school. Heck, the entire week is so packed with Mommy work that I have to put it all in a calendar of organization otherwise I'll go bonkers!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I spent my morning calling around, scheduling appointments, activities, pick-ups and drop-offs so that I could come up with a schedule to post on the refrigerator, the bathroom mirror in our room, my parent's computer, the front door and if I have to, I might as well give it to all the teachers at school so they know what to expect when the SuperMom is out of commission.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8u3I8jy5S0UtKbo6SKIzf-XDDbxSQVuK3hNGtKYJ0GY-Rv3x2fuOgh_m8lj6lRyy1fTQq9_9TXMjDsuqAbzVm7svNmbtil23ikHxYDnVQshS0W0-HxlvedGnSMmmC1TGvFhY5ZXvGg6v/s1600/Hysto-calendar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8u3I8jy5S0UtKbo6SKIzf-XDDbxSQVuK3hNGtKYJ0GY-Rv3x2fuOgh_m8lj6lRyy1fTQq9_9TXMjDsuqAbzVm7svNmbtil23ikHxYDnVQshS0W0-HxlvedGnSMmmC1TGvFhY5ZXvGg6v/s400/Hysto-calendar.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on any image to make it larger</td></tr>
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</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-18993825088156033432012-01-18T13:35:00.000-08:002012-01-19T20:26:56.423-08:00Day 12: 01/18/12 - The Activity Center<div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5okvX0f08L1RkYgfbBx6SQOkHKWhc-d8RFaxfPBgWXWIQX8-t5JhiS2KA7fpb3-V5rbgSTAaxHdNzynQA_R6ZCHPLEb0AwBW8CJJjznFodT1EqE0ZyZBLt4yoHSWTKc6QmbJDV7usHaEd/s1600/IMG_4937.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5okvX0f08L1RkYgfbBx6SQOkHKWhc-d8RFaxfPBgWXWIQX8-t5JhiS2KA7fpb3-V5rbgSTAaxHdNzynQA_R6ZCHPLEb0AwBW8CJJjznFodT1EqE0ZyZBLt4yoHSWTKc6QmbJDV7usHaEd/s320/IMG_4937.jpg" width="238" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on any image to make it larger</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Trying to get that bi-weekly laundry done leaves just a little time for the 31 Day Project - but darn it, I'm sticking with it. Today I thought it would be good to set up an Activity Center. I want a place to organize the chores for the month, add messages, keep babysitter information, include grocery lists and other details that we might need to remind ourselves about.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We have a dry-erase board that I used for keeping track of the kids chores. Unfortunately that was used for a few weeks and then it became useless. Adding a few lines here and putting important information in permanent pen, we ended up with our new Activity Center.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The bottom of the "Center" was the hardest - creating the chores. I needed to be able to create the chores that everyone can help with - especially since I have a hysterectomy coming up and will need to have all the family help as much as possible.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">I cut out pictures of a trash bag, doing dishes, laundry basket, dishwasher, dog food, bed, broom, dirty room, toys and vacuum. I put the pictures on the center and put the names of the kids under each one. There are only 2 weeks listed so far but each week we alternate to the next kid on the list (in birth order). There are 4 weeks on the calendar and this will make it easy to see who needs to do what and on which date.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9dR0x2W2P0sIR30JPRjearJ9gSYSXWobp97yWy406AkD7qoN6QB3aY-AsJVoPWVoDUoSCTNNhswpj7YhjgYWyr6hDg9rvfmooQDpx5gnkEDez32pmELXFXGAt5EgZIXOKhBUuB-P9Mte1/s1600/IMG_4942.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9dR0x2W2P0sIR30JPRjearJ9gSYSXWobp97yWy406AkD7qoN6QB3aY-AsJVoPWVoDUoSCTNNhswpj7YhjgYWyr6hDg9rvfmooQDpx5gnkEDez32pmELXFXGAt5EgZIXOKhBUuB-P9Mte1/s320/IMG_4942.JPG" width="320" /></a>At the top of the "Center" I included our names and birthdates - just in case of an emergency. Each of our doctors are listed, along with their phone numbers. I also included the non-emergency Police Department number.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The middle area is for Groceries and things from Target/Costco. Next to that are any things to do or messages that we have for each other.<br />
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Just need to get more dry erase pens and we will be set.</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-72960181451268789892012-01-17T18:21:00.001-08:002012-01-17T18:21:51.979-08:00Day 11: 01/17/12 - The Stove-Top Oven<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjikIhkRovciyWJnqWcp_qHFDyWWBF92X570KMzQ4MMxgpWa7WktNygYLR__1L02d4BVRZw8O2nHR0iQDXv-qo-hXFWHIfQeIW4L4ujg94HfmDn-v26XOns7bW4iT0dmQbStPDmvtXMIby7/s1600/jennairgas-s3-xl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjikIhkRovciyWJnqWcp_qHFDyWWBF92X570KMzQ4MMxgpWa7WktNygYLR__1L02d4BVRZw8O2nHR0iQDXv-qo-hXFWHIfQeIW4L4ujg94HfmDn-v26XOns7bW4iT0dmQbStPDmvtXMIby7/s200/jennairgas-s3-xl.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Today is by far the easiest day of cleaning. It's time to clean the stove top oven. We have a gas powered appliance so the stove top is pretty easy to clean. We just have to take the porcelain coated steel grates off the stove-top and I use a Lysol-to-water mixture to clean most all my appliances and surfaces. With the rough side of the sponge, I scrub any caked on crap that my DH leaves behind and once all the scraps are cleaned up, the Lysol mixture is sprayed everywhere to give it a shine and to disinfect the surface too. Making sure that the top of the oven ledge, the keypad display, front of the stove, front window, under the microwave hood and especially the knobs and underneath the knobs.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">With that out of the way, the hardest stuff is already done. There's a 30-40 minute deep cleaning and a sparkle to show for it. But wait.... there's still the oven. Oh yeah, the CLEAN button on the oven will take care of that. I just set the oven to clean, select the heavy (medium or light won't be enough for this oven) and the doors automatically lock and will open in 4 hours. From there, I will just need "dust" out the crumbs and voila! A clean oven once again!</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-66452815106906633622012-01-16T12:57:00.000-08:002012-01-16T12:58:48.164-08:00Day 10: 01/16/12 - The Garage<div style="text-align: justify;">I guess I really should be taking those before pictures so you can see what we are up against in most of these projects. However, I think I'm more embarrassed to even give the after pictures because you'll still see the rest of the disaster area. haha</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The week after Christmas was when I took down all the Christmas decorations. Of course that happened to be a day that the football game was on or DH was at work so I did it all by myself - as usual. The only thing I asked was if he would please take all the boxes and put them in the rafters so that I wouldn't hurt my back. Silly me! Football is on during the weekend. Not just one game, many games! Why on earth would I even imagine that help from DH would be on it's way?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEganjOLdb-uwKkhHj3flFYEZzhgqqOJnmQksbbVmBNtRRNGmrFPoaNaHlsK5prFDkRnppZ9bEFkZNNfT3oZYfa6wbf8YEdZi81-2oXJ4RAdHxgaQ51-r1EYn4Yf0nxLcBVQxvRn-1xACaEu/s1600/CleaningGirlBig-trans+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEganjOLdb-uwKkhHj3flFYEZzhgqqOJnmQksbbVmBNtRRNGmrFPoaNaHlsK5prFDkRnppZ9bEFkZNNfT3oZYfa6wbf8YEdZi81-2oXJ4RAdHxgaQ51-r1EYn4Yf0nxLcBVQxvRn-1xACaEu/s200/CleaningGirlBig-trans+copy.png" width="103" /></a>Today I tackled that garage in full spirt. I put on my crappiest clothes and headed out to put it all away. I took the heaviest things first and put them up above. I creatively made stacks so that I wouldn't have to bend down on a ladder to get the boxes lifted. With my bad back, I'm an absolute idiot to attempt this stuff - especially the way I did it. First the Christmas tree went up. That one was the toughest and I prepped myself with getting that as high as I could first. Within 10 minutes I had it up there and situated nicely so the rest of the decor could go up. The lights and outdoor decoration boxes went up, the Christmas plates, kitchenware, stocking and table runners went up next. Then the wreaths and faux fir tree railing decor and all the boxes we plan to reuse. The last thing was the wrapping paper station and a few coolers that were taken down the last time we were up there. With all this extra room, I have a big area to use now.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7k1nCkt0cePCguX_UHsIHxnaMRRjW0OYK8ysoOh3HmEW64fWjrlFtJAbu6XxsLqsnXlZop59LuXk6CXMzNBhV4Xus1iGctTqXbvf1rxi2WhAiCVB-vBeeqflGps_N-sSyaKkJePJbK-8o/s1600/Unknown.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7k1nCkt0cePCguX_UHsIHxnaMRRjW0OYK8ysoOh3HmEW64fWjrlFtJAbu6XxsLqsnXlZop59LuXk6CXMzNBhV4Xus1iGctTqXbvf1rxi2WhAiCVB-vBeeqflGps_N-sSyaKkJePJbK-8o/s200/Unknown.jpeg" width="200" /></a>I created the gap at the end of the garage so that I could put some of the bikes and play toys inside the garage. Since Santa was able to get scooters, bikes and things that rust, bringing them indoors this winter will make me a lot happier - especially when I realized how horrible the rust stains are on their old stuff.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">The garage is neat and tidy, I can get around the car, the boxes and the dog area just fine. Just a few loads of laundry and the garage is semi-presentable to my friends who actually don't care that it still looks like crap - just neat crap. :-)</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-47699399731758700342012-01-15T09:59:00.000-08:002012-01-16T12:14:29.834-08:00Day 6, 7, 8 and 9: AWOL UPDATE<div style="text-align: justify;">Sorry for not updating and getting everyone up-to-date on my cleaning fanatics. We have had a very challenging household this past week. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Just after my last blog on the 7th, our entire family came down with the bug. Actually, Brady had the bug on Friday and Saturday and was throwing up every 15 minutes throughout the night. Come Sunday at 6:30, the rest of us started feeling queazy and within the hour all 5 of us were throwing up. It really hit fast and it hit hard. We can laugh about it now but at one point in the evening, we were tag-teaming the toilet. One person would throw up, then the next, then the next.... Needless to say, our house smelled so wonderful! </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bella had it the worst. Obviously nobody went to work or school that Monday, but Bella was out on Tuesday and Wednesday too. The aching in the stomach and the sore throat from the violent vomiting took it's toll on all of us. Lexie was the most resilient and was ready for school on Tuesday morning. Lauren went to school but she didn't look well when I picked her up so we kept her in bed the rest of the day. Come Thursday, we were back to a regular family - and a very messy one at that. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Laundry was the worst. With the younger kids, making it to the bathroom or even to the bowl in front of them is a challenge. Lots of towels and sheets and comforters to wash. Yuck! The clothing was next and then the shampooing of the carpets and lastly was the bathrooms. Fun! Fun! Fun!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Lexie's birthday was on the 5th and we celebrated on Saturday with 28 of Lexie's friends. We rented a mongo-jumphouse and the kids played their hearts out. It was very low key as the kids spent the entire time in the jump house and then eating cupcakes. Not much work needed on the party, just on cleaning the house from top to bottom.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am now the owner of a fully cleaned house - all bedrooms are neat and tidy and hopefully they will stay that way. I still have to keep up with the once a day laundry that should keep that part of me in check. The kids are making their beds everyday and hopefully this will become a habit for them as well. There still is loads of stuff to do so I think that tomorrow is the start of cleaning once again and I'll be hitting that garage first. Wish me luck!</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-52560112288127133832012-01-08T15:27:00.000-08:002012-01-19T20:27:21.769-08:00DAY 5: 01/08/12 - The Bar<div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhceRMcYgMPPbBvSTypOkRUM1laaNvycStnP9yv2ce9aY4oQuu9uP3XqSrMJXzG4g7qJVQS6UB6wRPt7Qg5fTsePuWTr6vTwhL6fLzxAPN-B6YgiH3Wf_6u1qeOXY3nCkcRx2UDzi1O7S2m/s1600/IMG_4822.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhceRMcYgMPPbBvSTypOkRUM1laaNvycStnP9yv2ce9aY4oQuu9uP3XqSrMJXzG4g7qJVQS6UB6wRPt7Qg5fTsePuWTr6vTwhL6fLzxAPN-B6YgiH3Wf_6u1qeOXY3nCkcRx2UDzi1O7S2m/s200/IMG_4822.jpg" width="149" /></a>This is just an area that is a major "bachelor pad." I don't drink the hard stuff and it's just a huge mess. Going through the cabinets, I see mixers that we purchased on our honeymoon - that was in 2000. The 1/2 empty bottle of Mudslide was brought over around my bachelorette party and so that couldn't be good. The Bloody Mary bottle that has sediment has now changed to a darkish brown color is just saying "TRASH." The glasses and shelves need a major cleaning too.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIo4OXz73XzR1gm4y7AiPgtJfwZm95PROY7fIGo1g0HZQ9TGj4WUu9kQL3WMzB0_vXsb2ccyce1rchhdlLBlbLfaOlFyj364ICN-MraGSngzZ7VUZNuAiwVn8vtvmc9fWcOp5Jk6HbMxW/s1600/IMG_4825.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIo4OXz73XzR1gm4y7AiPgtJfwZm95PROY7fIGo1g0HZQ9TGj4WUu9kQL3WMzB0_vXsb2ccyce1rchhdlLBlbLfaOlFyj364ICN-MraGSngzZ7VUZNuAiwVn8vtvmc9fWcOp5Jk6HbMxW/s200/IMG_4825.jpg" width="149" /></a>Time to clean the booze out first. Toss anything that has lost the nice color that it usually had. Toss anything that is 1/2 used since we haven't any mixers since the summertime. Combine the 3 bottles of the same alcohol - same brand of course. Give any bottles that we know we will NEVER open to the neighbor. At least someone can benefit from it. Toss out all the paper <i>gift packaging</i> that is ripped, torn or just plain ugly. Now I can start to organize from the basics.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>All the brandies, rums, vodkas, tequilas, whiskeys and scotches can go in one area. Sorting them by the type of liquor, everything will have it's own place. Mixers can go back in the same type of arrangement. The margarita fixings on one side, the rest on the other. Last cabinet can have the other liquors that don't have a specific place.<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ3RNajVYktGsgYhqUNhaxPFlZyHmIK5RLfNod4HrLQoaUj4XRbEr1IhBg6uHN5QcrmbPe1qjK8u3rh1-rXcubUtJ2sLxapxHVgPP4povJ3yGe4YQUrBUIFzZ6albPVH-i98srwZ79h05e/s1600/IMG_4826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ3RNajVYktGsgYhqUNhaxPFlZyHmIK5RLfNod4HrLQoaUj4XRbEr1IhBg6uHN5QcrmbPe1qjK8u3rh1-rXcubUtJ2sLxapxHVgPP4povJ3yGe4YQUrBUIFzZ6albPVH-i98srwZ79h05e/s200/IMG_4826.jpg" width="149" /></a>Now for the shelves and the glasses. After a few broken glasses that I accidentally dropped (and that were really ugly), I soaped up and cleaned all the shelves. When putting the glasses back, I chose to put the glasses that were used the least at top. The large margarita glasses and carafe, the brandy glasses and the mimosa glasses. The bottom shelves are for the champagne, red wine, and white wine glasses. The large beer steins can also go up there. On the side wall we put the hard drink glasses and shot glasses. The fancy shot glasses from our honeymoon line the back ledge on the wall. Lastly, the small beer glasses can sit in their serving tray on the countertop. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5HbaaYTl0yUf-2SktJX-0zLqlA7ODcCP6Zd4vu6BJh_uspCSt_np4P4jKlSOeeEAdp2NXKNvdGtSsS5FwbrofGgjV2g289GJFbvBrE4f1Aom4oiaXAFqyBzAyjzQsiK4lnqRwtuR4dyt5/s1600/IMG_4827.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5HbaaYTl0yUf-2SktJX-0zLqlA7ODcCP6Zd4vu6BJh_uspCSt_np4P4jKlSOeeEAdp2NXKNvdGtSsS5FwbrofGgjV2g289GJFbvBrE4f1Aom4oiaXAFqyBzAyjzQsiK4lnqRwtuR4dyt5/s200/IMG_4827.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on any image to make it larger</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The last thing is the shakers, the blender, the wine chillers and the books. There is a large enough ledge on top of the counter to put each one of these in a nice and orderly fashion. It's not the ideal bar, but hey, it was a closet for the bedroom that was downstairs and turning it into a bar was a fantastic way to utilize the empty space.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-48840988781019275382012-01-07T13:46:00.000-08:002012-01-16T11:15:16.538-08:00Day 4: 01/07/12 - Children's Library Area<div style="text-align: justify;">Today is the big Girl Scout meeting and since there is a possibility of all 24 girls showing up, I need to do some extra big cleaning. This morning was full of cleaning the bathrooms, toy area, under the couches and entertainment area, mopping the floors, dusting everything, vacuuming the carpets and cleaning the big sliding glass doors. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3HfJXHvlypiGs8iU6bwgRBNzzd9_DAEB_LlxysWJTMMAPmq0n4wVqoth4BpAT5u8I_mSYJy9-Rc8ZeeoaN6qsRVRjOKhXQubI2WD-UZ0JZfYECkRagG2SKEifn_N4AZTvnmwsx9s8AVCQ/s1600/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3HfJXHvlypiGs8iU6bwgRBNzzd9_DAEB_LlxysWJTMMAPmq0n4wVqoth4BpAT5u8I_mSYJy9-Rc8ZeeoaN6qsRVRjOKhXQubI2WD-UZ0JZfYECkRagG2SKEifn_N4AZTvnmwsx9s8AVCQ/s200/images-2.jpeg" width="114" /></a>After all that looked spic and span, I headed over to the kid's library shelving. When I tell the kids to put their books back on the shelves, they don't put them standing up, they throw them on top of other books, toss them on top of the shelf, even shove them inside of each other. What a disaster! Here comes the inner Librarian in me ......</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I took all the books off the shelf and decided there was a place for each book. There are age levels to the books. Lauren and Brayden read the pre-school/Kindergarten books. The phonics are more at the 1st and 2nd grade levels. The rest are in Level 3 or Level 4 and chapter books. Oh, and don't forget the coloring books, the Educational workbooks, the dictionaries & thesaurus and writing tablets. There are only 9 cubicles to the shelf so I have to be tricky. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLecYgqalCzmGPjN5vWBun7TdZ-h4xTqcMoT2f2wSiSJ8FblBvrVVuUwtxJ2UM7TiSHXaoR-lwrMnl2NqsJI96Xw3BIP3lesDI3CwZTNJz9TDkCzia3niSGilk25N43PCPnwHMYYHQ1H8/s1600/images-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLecYgqalCzmGPjN5vWBun7TdZ-h4xTqcMoT2f2wSiSJ8FblBvrVVuUwtxJ2UM7TiSHXaoR-lwrMnl2NqsJI96Xw3BIP3lesDI3CwZTNJz9TDkCzia3niSGilk25N43PCPnwHMYYHQ1H8/s200/images-1.jpeg" width="146" /></a>The bottom will get the Educational books, the coloring books and the Pre-School/Kindergarten level books. The kids that read those will be eye level as they sit on the ground. The next thing was to sort the books by sizes. Yup, here's the OCD in me coming out again. The majority of the middle row of books was an all-around fun level to read. The kids that can't read the text can look at the pictures to read instead. The larger books that are full of multiple stories will also go on the middle row. The top row is full of the books that are on the 3rd and 4th grade levels. The chapter books are a big thing with Lexie and Bella and so I tried to organize them in their series (such as the "Fudge" books, the "Ramona" books, the "My Sister is a Vampire" books and the "Judy Moody" books.) The older girls are responsible enough to take care of these books since they usually only read one at a time. The last level (the top of the book shelf) I had to create for the older books. The books that are more on the "<i>mommy</i>" level or the ones that are just too advanced for the younger kids.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ta Da! A neat and tidy Children's Library Area. I think I'm going to invite the librarian over for coffee now! :-)</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-44028806258151520262012-01-06T20:34:00.000-08:002012-01-19T20:27:45.915-08:00Day 3: 01/06/12 - DVD Shelf<div style="text-align: justify;">Although we use our Apple TV to watch all our movies, we have tons of DVD's. I wanted to keep the Disney DVD's and fun movies that we watch all the time. I also wanted to have the advantage of taking them in the car to watch on trips or just to keep busy children occupied in the car. Our DVD shelf is cluttered with little bottles of lotion, a remote control helicopter, more unknown batteries, kids books, homework folders and DS games and rechargers for all the DS's in the house. Just another mass of clutter that needs to be dealt with.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is where my OCD kicked in. I got rid of all the clutter and then looked at how disorganized the dang shelf still looked. So what do I do? I put all the DVD's in alphabetical order. I've done it before but it just felt good to get them all in their right places so we know exactly where to go for a particular movie. With 200-300 movies, this type of organization is completely required.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hence, the new DVD collection on our shelf:</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1qA2ULpNCeqTAjf0fu6XZ0HyUq_XdyNf-X9iBP1XBGkPAPLeG8o9QOk28IXeqqhFXLMqz2x0cR9VPlL5BpoDxHOqMb6TwHztc5gRRKZqiTVa5B7fGjb3TrVsJagQiolSp2QdgAXw9DRaa/s1600/IMG_5039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1qA2ULpNCeqTAjf0fu6XZ0HyUq_XdyNf-X9iBP1XBGkPAPLeG8o9QOk28IXeqqhFXLMqz2x0cR9VPlL5BpoDxHOqMb6TwHztc5gRRKZqiTVa5B7fGjb3TrVsJagQiolSp2QdgAXw9DRaa/s320/IMG_5039.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Click on any image to make it larger</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-68874445077418276112012-01-05T19:00:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:42:38.585-08:00Day 2: 01/05/12 - Grab-n-Go Bins<div style="text-align: justify;">Remember that idea in the <a href="http://dearsupermom.blogspot.com/2012/01/grab-n-go-snack-stashes.html" target="_blank">GRAB-N-GO STASHES</a> post? Well, here's today's idea of putting this to the test.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUXTKnnoMz17UWPk7suu-Al0ofEVn-pmWDhyPjeXEsfmGLHdQH6m4s8_mS7rH-WKI-1pTY0ZLQOf7KdkgHCvgapNSy0tGOIY2QiqQSTt4YyZMeqItWyvSHDTvco5UNfvHo-3QZEgpyTS_/s1600/IMG_5032.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUXTKnnoMz17UWPk7suu-Al0ofEVn-pmWDhyPjeXEsfmGLHdQH6m4s8_mS7rH-WKI-1pTY0ZLQOf7KdkgHCvgapNSy0tGOIY2QiqQSTt4YyZMeqItWyvSHDTvco5UNfvHo-3QZEgpyTS_/s200/IMG_5032.jpg" width="133" /></a>4 kids and a Costco card means lots of snacks in the house. Some are going through puberty, some are going through growing pains and some are just growing and need all the food they can get. Instead of having Brayden pull a chair up to the cabinets and then put a stool on top of the chair so he can stand on the back of the chair to reach the snacks, I think it's time to move them to a different location - the lower pull-out drawers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSUyJz86CWoTF07HH1GfYHwZ9xVmrfuCLIvUE4tOs0OF7zuvhx9sWfxqergc9XsuHUgCm18mydDHYVk0_ptU1C_t2s9t1Bu0GTkzsqdiOrryjl7CM5DCOMuSkaD21GVyDFZHP4OCbbVA2x/s1600/IMG_5030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSUyJz86CWoTF07HH1GfYHwZ9xVmrfuCLIvUE4tOs0OF7zuvhx9sWfxqergc9XsuHUgCm18mydDHYVk0_ptU1C_t2s9t1Bu0GTkzsqdiOrryjl7CM5DCOMuSkaD21GVyDFZHP4OCbbVA2x/s200/IMG_5030.jpg" width="133" /></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">Because we have loads of snacks for the loads of kids, I needed to create more than just one pantry stash. </div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">In <b><u>Bin #1</u></b>, I have: Raisins, Fruit Roll-Ups, Crackers, Goldfish, Fruit "gummy" Snacks, Graham Crackers, and Granola bars. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Bin #2</u></b> contains: Trail Mix, Vanilla Wafers, Freeze dried apples, Ranch dressing, fruit leathers, and Rice Krispy Treats.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><u>Bin #3</u></b> (not pictured) contains: individual snack baggies of Oreos, Samoas, Circus Animal Cookies, Apple Sauces, Puddings, and Chocolate Dipped Granola Bars.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The one that I will probably spend the most time replenishing is the "Frig" stash. Those are al the items that need to be refrigerated and will go bad after the week is over. There is enough for the week. <br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvUYFWtdmKaprJWZPh2vU52bo9tKeJDeynIQOogJzkd6_pmB7Ss6A2h3PJzY5I37IYypYMu-AkfztoE8JSQRQJWw_9o35GER32bs2lJZyqg7X-6sI5RgBUljNNj5GvVrVY6B_DzvZOE1S/s1600/IMG_5029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvUYFWtdmKaprJWZPh2vU52bo9tKeJDeynIQOogJzkd6_pmB7Ss6A2h3PJzY5I37IYypYMu-AkfztoE8JSQRQJWw_9o35GER32bs2lJZyqg7X-6sI5RgBUljNNj5GvVrVY6B_DzvZOE1S/s200/IMG_5029.JPG" width="133" /></a>The <b><u>Frig Bin</u></b> contains: Apple slices, orange slices, blueberry muffins, cheese sticks, carrots, salami servings, ham roll-ups. I have some pre-made sandwiches to the left of the Frig Bin in case they want to use that as a snack or for their lunches. (My kids make their own lunches.)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The rule to the pantry stashes is that they make take one "treat" from the stash box after school and one from the Frig Bin. They are also allowed to take one from the pantry and one from the frig to put into their lunches. If they find a need to ask for additional treats after school, they may have some fruit from the fruit basket on the counter. Sounds a little mechanical but they love the new system so far. (Ha, it's only been one day!)</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-32840781795523617942012-01-04T20:59:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:41:57.191-08:00Day 1: 01/04/12 - Kitchen Junk Drawers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPhxznFcP7sCKSmLhBYca55jFzK7mTQYmPE7wB1JevRDoVw_U_S71TA7jnr9PgwcHuOFsarrcgoMZQdx1EODhi9GDciXSBAs47i8M_BC8zrvHpi6wIPc2s6M_Z__lxQSUwxzfVacLqJc7C/s1600/31daysbutton2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPhxznFcP7sCKSmLhBYca55jFzK7mTQYmPE7wB1JevRDoVw_U_S71TA7jnr9PgwcHuOFsarrcgoMZQdx1EODhi9GDciXSBAs47i8M_BC8zrvHpi6wIPc2s6M_Z__lxQSUwxzfVacLqJc7C/s200/31daysbutton2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I am so excited to start this new organization challenge. I was playing on Pinterest and found an article (posted below in <a href="http://dearsupermom.blogspot.com/2012/01/grab-n-go-snack-stashes.html" target="_blank">GRAB-N-GO STASHES</a>). It was about organizing snacks for the kids. My entire kitchen is a cluster of crap and crumbs and so I was originally starting out by seeing if I could organize the kitchen. Well, why not attempt to do one organizational thing a day? Sounds simple enough. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red; font-size: large;">Let's get started!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So I know everyone has a junk drawer. It's the one place that you get to throw whatever you want into one drawer and not worry about it for a few months. Today I had to worry about two junk drawers. One has pens, pencils, rulers, mini light bulbs, coins, post-its, ticket stubs from the show in 2006, candles and lots of screws. I knew that if I put them safely in that drawer that I wouldn't lose them - however, I haven't a clue what all those screws go to anymore. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">DRAWER 1 - Goodbye</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwhrSJyaZqJOTA3S5PT8a-DW8NSPQh49tYmvd4DJ48wiTaupoRnCTP9u9iGaRYBGKfTfQqQUeCQ3uAIOxsda1d1OVV97N66gdlVd2w3h1TnlaLXho-HgPSIN8t33_2eA3Lc2aEFtCoWIYU/s1600/IMG_5034.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwhrSJyaZqJOTA3S5PT8a-DW8NSPQh49tYmvd4DJ48wiTaupoRnCTP9u9iGaRYBGKfTfQqQUeCQ3uAIOxsda1d1OVV97N66gdlVd2w3h1TnlaLXho-HgPSIN8t33_2eA3Lc2aEFtCoWIYU/s200/IMG_5034.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello organization!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Time to empty the entire drawer out. Put the pens and pencils in a cup or caddy that is easily reached by the kids. Put the coins in the piggy bank, toss the batteries that may or may not be good, realize that I'm not going to scrapbook a movie ticket stub and the #4 candles can now be thrown out; it's melted 1/2 way down and looks like an upside down "h." The post-it's, tape, rulers, and protractor can all go together in the OFFICE compartment, the screwdriver, chair pads, light fixtures, and flashlight can go in the TOOLS compartment. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">DRAWER 2 - Ugh!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8eR2XueTNslaHI1DWrwLRL92XT1EkTI7cGAsRA2zduKRk86FM0mZyeNERuDSuSgOd6zwBKV_vVtx8Zt2pcRz0yTc-_RO9F-WWfCb3vCtRwhkLuhbhteiuGvyGE8liQ4kF1QiNGwTn7wRM/s1600/IMG_5035.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8eR2XueTNslaHI1DWrwLRL92XT1EkTI7cGAsRA2zduKRk86FM0mZyeNERuDSuSgOd6zwBKV_vVtx8Zt2pcRz0yTc-_RO9F-WWfCb3vCtRwhkLuhbhteiuGvyGE8liQ4kF1QiNGwTn7wRM/s200/IMG_5035.jpg" width="200" /></a>I'm purging this drawer. It's the cooking utensil drawer. 9 spoons, 8 spatulas, 12 wooden spoons & things, 10 pair of tongs (??), 4 rolling pins, 3 cheese graters, 4 peelers, ahhh... it's never ending. Dump the drawer out pick out what we need. We probably only need a large & small spatula (rubber), a long metal one, and 2 of the little pampered chef ones (those are ideal for everything). We could probably use all the serving spoons but I only need one spaghetti server. For tongs, a good wooden pair, a nice fork/spoon silver pair, a OXO pair and a mini pair for just the small things. Put them all in order and I have a neat drawer once again.</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-60343880880780375522012-01-03T18:51:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:42:17.907-08:00O-R-G-A-N-I-Z-A-T-I-O-N.... not possible in this house<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqNk7tnwviwlA0zmfdOnoWju9ojYf2EPiLSrIB1JcnWv540OXTCPtv7HHsFk1nKdkmd8_M9crZp9kLZlDRJ38kzQeP3i-iAYc4uBvC9dFPLw_0QS-IRdxlSvgfDdse5mSrEjUZQkSQQxoG/s1600/stock-vector-little-schoolgirl-in-a-messy-room-77830264.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqNk7tnwviwlA0zmfdOnoWju9ojYf2EPiLSrIB1JcnWv540OXTCPtv7HHsFk1nKdkmd8_M9crZp9kLZlDRJ38kzQeP3i-iAYc4uBvC9dFPLw_0QS-IRdxlSvgfDdse5mSrEjUZQkSQQxoG/s200/stock-vector-little-schoolgirl-in-a-messy-room-77830264.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">01/05/12 - Don't you just feel better when you can sit down in your house and everything is neat and tidy? As I sit on the couch and type this I'm looking throughout my house and noticing the 500 pieces of legos on the floor, a Thomas The Train set in 3 different pieces, an empty water bottle on the couch, 2 jackets, 5 socks (not pairs, just random socks), sneakers on the rocking chair and somebody's papers that they used to draw on left on the floor. That's not even including the 1/2 inch of dust on everything and the clutter of CRAP on every shelf that is meant to hold pictures. YUCK! </div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><div style="text-align: justify;">O-R-G-A-N-I-Z-A-T-I-O-N, </div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7WXe55HYVo4p7wq-Txg3hmzOAnKwVdjSDkE390fSVqz4UuueaJXSaKqNaQ6tbSFRrf2wQJSn6woktl6NWBXpkQYHrVZLGFaeTY99w0MTgOZ87K-0Zby-HtL1XOtik1wR9FqiQfN-JLyEo/s1600/aw3939.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7WXe55HYVo4p7wq-Txg3hmzOAnKwVdjSDkE390fSVqz4UuueaJXSaKqNaQ6tbSFRrf2wQJSn6woktl6NWBXpkQYHrVZLGFaeTY99w0MTgOZ87K-0Zby-HtL1XOtik1wR9FqiQfN-JLyEo/s200/aw3939.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bella makes her bed everyday now</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">something my family doesn't know how to spell or do. Growing up, I never had a messy room (or house for that matter). To this day I still make my bed every morning. It's the first thing that I do. So how do I get my kids to participate in cleaning up the house? I've tried the chore list, I've tried the allowance, I've tried the bribery for a sleepover, I've taken the toys out of their rooms, and I've even taken all of the toys out of the house until they've earned them back. Some sat there for over a year and then got donated because they forgot about them. It's not working. Since the two oldest girls share a room ad the two younger kids share a room, everything is "the other person's fault."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7JVt4CUlSelba1FbuGxrcfvdLWVJh7hL3fiV8D4o7HzkYYLVo6KraThiWxPi7scu70hIZMCAeFRAAQEIHT3cJZwwy1fVtam3lwFDxfba46QIHL6tWbIYmT6Qtj7IQm6AUDNHUZtLRnhw/s1600/sweeping.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI7JVt4CUlSelba1FbuGxrcfvdLWVJh7hL3fiV8D4o7HzkYYLVo6KraThiWxPi7scu70hIZMCAeFRAAQEIHT3cJZwwy1fVtam3lwFDxfba46QIHL6tWbIYmT6Qtj7IQm6AUDNHUZtLRnhw/s200/sweeping.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brayden & Lolo: in my dreams</td></tr>
</tbody></table>So this was the article I found that was interesting:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><h1 style="color: #57310d; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #e0708d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Excuse Busters: Tips for Getting Your Kids to Clean Their Rooms</span></h1><div align="justify" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have kids you know how difficult it is to get them to clean their rooms. Kids have all kinds of strategies for getting out of cleaning. Cleaning is not something most adults enjoy so why should children feel differently? We won’t lie to you and tell you that we have some magical tips to make your kids like cleaning, but we will give you some ideas on handling the excuses, whining and tantrums that go along with getting your kids to clean their rooms. When it comes to excuses, we’ve heard them all and we have tips to deal with them.</span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><br />
</strong></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFUzkiQMk6mDdx3riCrgccwHDttyHufUseuqyqiredqbVj8cRBk2Xqpe6LX5k3KxRHql2F1KZjp9wyLkfk9ZByu6w7DoXW_45kngRl6w5ap5O_j_lBdDXxnICNKE8U3sOTZgTK6Lp_BF2/s1600/images-1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJFUzkiQMk6mDdx3riCrgccwHDttyHufUseuqyqiredqbVj8cRBk2Xqpe6LX5k3KxRHql2F1KZjp9wyLkfk9ZByu6w7DoXW_45kngRl6w5ap5O_j_lBdDXxnICNKE8U3sOTZgTK6Lp_BF2/s200/images-1.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>‘Why, Whines, and What’s in for me'</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> The quickest way to deal with the “why do I have to clean my room” question is to ask them what they think. “Suzie, why do you think that you need to clean your room?” That usually solves the problem. Let your kids figure this one out for themselves. Most of the time kids know why they need to clean their room and turning the tables on this question is a good approach to stopping the "whys" in their tracks.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If your kids are whining, that is to be expected. One thing you can do is ask your kids to repeat what they say without whining. And when they say “I don’t want to clean my room” without whining say “thank you for not whining but we still need to get your room clean”.</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It’s okay for your kids to want something in return for cleaning. A reward system is a great way to get them to clean. Sticker charts are great but immediate rewards are better. Some really cheap and easy rewards are playing outside, reading a book together, or make cookies after you clean.</span></div></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>The Tom Sawyer Approach: “Can you help me mom?”</strong></span></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A lot of kids want help cleaning their rooms. This is okay but make sure your kids understand that helping doesn’t mean doing it for them. A great approach to cleaning when you have more than one kid is to tag team clean each room. Most kids need someone supervising, at least when they are little. Go through each room together and give kids simple assignments such as put the toys in the toy box, put the books away, or put your clothes in your dresser. Working together is quick and easy. You can get several kids room clean really fast if you work together.</span></div></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDm9_KOk-0OWvide2qQnpcrVlflA2DJvLL2NV3zjT-8OzzIsLr5sQvnPNJ-SJO9fc1RSxZLtxweKpuSthSB5PP1vD11KYgYI04_EnH-WrVb03oLuNgwc4TbKgCY6255uFTqbpAp0JOjabb/s1600/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDm9_KOk-0OWvide2qQnpcrVlflA2DJvLL2NV3zjT-8OzzIsLr5sQvnPNJ-SJO9fc1RSxZLtxweKpuSthSB5PP1vD11KYgYI04_EnH-WrVb03oLuNgwc4TbKgCY6255uFTqbpAp0JOjabb/s200/images-2.jpeg" width="149" /></a></div><div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Stall tactics, Slow pokes, and Sneak-offers</strong></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the biggest things we moms see is starting off with a bang and fizzling out in two minutes flat. If your child needs to make constant trips to the bathroom, likes to dawdle, or sneaks out of the room the second you walk away, you might want to try the tag team approach mentioned earlier. Another way to deal with kids like this is to stay in the room and give them step by step directions. Yes, this is a lot of work for mom, but unless you like being your child’s personal maid, it’s better to stick around the room and supervise. Eventually they will need less supervision but it probably won’t be any time soon.</span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Getting Their Rooms Clean and Keeping Them Clean</strong></span></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The key to keeping kids room clean is consistency and routines. If your children make their beds every morning and make it a habit, there will be less fights. Have your children clean their rooms throughout the day and before they go to bed. Its easier if it’s cleaned regularly instead of letting things pile up. Kids get overwhelmed easily so the smaller the tasks they have to do at one time the better.</span></div></div></div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-41085358674024321782012-01-03T09:30:00.000-08:002012-01-16T09:43:22.766-08:00Grab-n-Go Snack Stashes01/04/12 - I couldn't help but LOVE this idea. Much better than the kids using the drawers to climb up to the top of the counter to get some sugary snack that's not all that great. Here were just a few ideas that I saw:<br />
<br />
<h1 style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font: normal normal normal 11px/normal Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 4px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 1px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 4px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #f1c232; font-size: large;">Grab-and-Go Snack Stashes </span></h1><div class="author" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-style: italic; margin-bottom: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 19px; font-style: normal;">Set up these self-serve stations so kids never again have to plead, "Mom...?" when a snack attack hits.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNUhiBx2YCrApXHi32jHCBDdSat_iQKIbkwUcuoHzrGvFfLLm0GLE0ubjvTma7yroR1Nhn5M90854KLF-SR0vDT5XenLXeNt7cAR5CYkgc8GmdSN-8ZLvR4WSIL3ypYhciC1t5LNuHS3Kc/s1600/pantry1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNUhiBx2YCrApXHi32jHCBDdSat_iQKIbkwUcuoHzrGvFfLLm0GLE0ubjvTma7yroR1Nhn5M90854KLF-SR0vDT5XenLXeNt7cAR5CYkgc8GmdSN-8ZLvR4WSIL3ypYhciC1t5LNuHS3Kc/s200/pantry1.jpg" width="167" /></a></div><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">Pantry Snack Station</span></li>
</ul><ul style="list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Fish-shaped crackers</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Kids' mix: Cheerios, raisins, almonds, pretzels, and chocolate chips</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Fruit leathers</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Graham crackers</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Pretzels</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Cheerios</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Almonds/Peanuts</li>
<li style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Raisins or other dried fruits</li>
</ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold;">Refrigerator Snack Station</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><b><br />
</b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"></span><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLqSIpVfPq1ykm6X0xnvuBK9CIwoeK9opmfUw2oiAJfCUT7eQXW-7S-9VqDeT06pyazJ1Ojl8RpVna2xKtFNsQVeGp9c1SmspeYnO2aU9JtQaXyqBvaj9UgQUd_LkohVDDBKhNCDLGPLIM/s1600/refrigerator1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLqSIpVfPq1ykm6X0xnvuBK9CIwoeK9opmfUw2oiAJfCUT7eQXW-7S-9VqDeT06pyazJ1Ojl8RpVna2xKtFNsQVeGp9c1SmspeYnO2aU9JtQaXyqBvaj9UgQUd_LkohVDDBKhNCDLGPLIM/s1600/refrigerator1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLqSIpVfPq1ykm6X0xnvuBK9CIwoeK9opmfUw2oiAJfCUT7eQXW-7S-9VqDeT06pyazJ1Ojl8RpVna2xKtFNsQVeGp9c1SmspeYnO2aU9JtQaXyqBvaj9UgQUd_LkohVDDBKhNCDLGPLIM/s200/refrigerator1.jpg" width="167" /></a>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Jar of peanut butter </li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">String cheese</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Yogurt</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Grapes</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Assorted veggies—baby-cut carrots, celery sticks, pepper slices—in plastic bags</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Orange segments</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Lunch-meat roll-ups (like turkey-and-Swiss or ham-and-Cheddar)</li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://img4.realsimple.com/static/i/bullet_hdr.gif); margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Tub of hummus/ranch (for dipping)</li>
</span></ul></div><ul style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><li></li>
</ul>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-31092921922558122252012-01-02T12:13:00.000-08:002012-01-02T12:13:25.254-08:00Weekly Resolution #1: Back to Business01-02-12 - Today starts the new year and all those resolutions. Sure, my intensions to go to the gym are there but I just don't want to go the first week when everyone else is gung-ho about their New Year's resolutions that will fade within a few weeks. If we made weekly resolutions, we might actually complete more of them! Hey, good idea. So I think that's what I'm going to do. <br />
<u><br />
</u><br />
<u>Weekly Resolution #1: Back to Business</u><br />
A few years back I had a very successful eBay business. However, it took a lot of time and the kid's were a lot to handle back then. Since I closed the Scrapbook Store, I have a lot of extra products laying around. I think now's the time to put those up on eBay. So my resolution for the week is to photograph, write and post all the eBay auctions to start this baby back up! Come Saturday, I'll list all my auctions under cropmommy1.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFhBG-E84BwXFzT6fQvpeDN1ZvYCa77PcAzCy1By9VlDKdc3y7u9Z_SuBx04FdUdqpREA_eu44SuDHyGAQ6CmLYH242iQk8bc35CDR4QH42jdVvpxvaZ9ovaz26W5cxBKcHRHdNbd8QEgP/s1600/Laughing_300x_N00030606.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFhBG-E84BwXFzT6fQvpeDN1ZvYCa77PcAzCy1By9VlDKdc3y7u9Z_SuBx04FdUdqpREA_eu44SuDHyGAQ6CmLYH242iQk8bc35CDR4QH42jdVvpxvaZ9ovaz26W5cxBKcHRHdNbd8QEgP/s200/Laughing_300x_N00030606.jpg" width="174" /></a>I've also decided to add a little fun to each blog with stuff the kids say. I always have fun listening to friends stuff too. It's hysterical. My friend Laura always keeps me in stitches with her kids: "Grandma's not fat, she's puffy."- "That's not a fart, it's my butt waking up." Even funnier are those made up words our kids use: "I don't <i>renumber</i> his name.", "Can I have a <i>hangaberg</i> for dinner?", "I'm going to put on my <i>bajamas</i> before bed." So without further ado, here's my version of "<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">STUFF MY KIDS SAY</span></b>"<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #274e13;"><i>Lexie: Mom, my leg is really hurting.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #274e13;"><i>Mom: Don't touch it then.</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #274e13;"><i>Lexie: Really, Mom. It's hurting right here (she points to her shin)</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #274e13;"><i>Mom: Did you fall down or bump it?</i></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #274e13;"><i>Lexie: No, I think I'm going through a growing SPIRIT.</i></span>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-32787202042167607152011-12-31T17:05:00.000-08:002011-12-31T17:05:48.074-08:00Welcome 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAdkFP6wMifbuEqMR7yGoJYRqeQIiHLvaUr3WfWkLWV23Agk5ijwhWuSYBjOLuUEJchvoyaFlXDl403b_0pP5PbknDs1wL2afNvrvsgXA5owg9xpF5ZaphI_05Drml_JPJJrLF6mnlJ8VR/s1600/New+Year+2012+Images+and+Wallpapers-05.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAdkFP6wMifbuEqMR7yGoJYRqeQIiHLvaUr3WfWkLWV23Agk5ijwhWuSYBjOLuUEJchvoyaFlXDl403b_0pP5PbknDs1wL2afNvrvsgXA5owg9xpF5ZaphI_05Drml_JPJJrLF6mnlJ8VR/s400/New+Year+2012+Images+and+Wallpapers-05.png" width="400" /></a></div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-77706257900935730972011-12-31T16:56:00.000-08:002011-12-31T16:56:09.656-08:00Ending The Year on a High Note<div style="text-align: justify;">12/31/11 - Today is the last day of the year. The last day of 2011. The last day that I get to sit on my butt and enjoy this wonderful "time-off." Tomorrow will be another day of cleaning and the start of a new venture - THE GYM! Ugh! I've had the membership for 4 months but no motivation. Now that things are clean and tidy (at least in the common areas of the house), I'm ready to hit some exercise equipment. I also kick off my eBay business again. I found it to be so successful a few years ago that I've decided to go back into the game. Heaven knows that I can actually make some money instead of donating the tons of things I'm going through. The scrapbooking stock on hand alone is going to give us back our garage!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">So let's review a little of the year so we can catch up-to-date:</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmivCNc9qW0krPM4sZ5d-8wA4z_eTJjJtVPhINKYB8Zxf6bMjFSzelSl9OYlue19jLsewDvd-I6wzfvjFQMYOuGX5GPdyT5rjp5nz-4TZQ93oBnqZecnkR3a4iOjq14KR02Eal4yLVCrPB/s1600/IMG_8481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmivCNc9qW0krPM4sZ5d-8wA4z_eTJjJtVPhINKYB8Zxf6bMjFSzelSl9OYlue19jLsewDvd-I6wzfvjFQMYOuGX5GPdyT5rjp5nz-4TZQ93oBnqZecnkR3a4iOjq14KR02Eal4yLVCrPB/s200/IMG_8481.jpg" width="133" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Camp Butano Campers</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b>JANUARY</b></span></u></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We started out the year with my BFF & family. The kids actually stayed awake! Lexie turned 7 and we threw her a party at The Golden Skate. The place hasn't changed since I was Lexie's age. Bella, Lexie and I went to Mother/Daughter Camp in Pescadero. It was a Girl Scout training for me and the girls went to have fun. It rained most of the time but that didn't stop us from enjoying camping. It was awesome.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Our troop hosted a Girl Scout Safety event that included a couple other troops. The girls had the police and the CHP come out to the school and do an presentation. During the Girl Scout meeting the girls created posters and we were out all week long holding up "Safety First" signs in the school drop-off area. It was a complete success. I even put on my old Traffic Officer, yellow, neon coat and directed the cars through.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhl8q1Z_ctP52TsO-x_pk050rZbP9hJSUz61hkf4FK97kU0GIPY3_QxNhQc6MbjO8kjTXEh9qECioB2yoamcoWn0FRQtlqFwqirg5NckqOiImFrxtkTczOCpoCpRoTLfmAPfAWqpT6RPIQ/s1600/IMG_3370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhl8q1Z_ctP52TsO-x_pk050rZbP9hJSUz61hkf4FK97kU0GIPY3_QxNhQc6MbjO8kjTXEh9qECioB2yoamcoWn0FRQtlqFwqirg5NckqOiImFrxtkTczOCpoCpRoTLfmAPfAWqpT6RPIQ/s200/IMG_3370.JPG" width="200" /></span></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5JU-O4wuSMzBiH-5Kb3IrLW-LRCBQozH0Zzg4ZH66QxgR7d8mTxETZ-WpHlZRQa-ySwrae4I3kn_t2USE_CLPfJ5Fre_f51_sZe5YdNo8-sjW4tIprWucHdLgNMmoS6GhR6xOASNPFqD-/s1600/IMG_3331.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5JU-O4wuSMzBiH-5Kb3IrLW-LRCBQozH0Zzg4ZH66QxgR7d8mTxETZ-WpHlZRQa-ySwrae4I3kn_t2USE_CLPfJ5Fre_f51_sZe5YdNo8-sjW4tIprWucHdLgNMmoS6GhR6xOASNPFqD-/s200/IMG_3331.JPG" width="200" /></span></a><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b>FEBRUARY</b></span></u></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNunvRqmAYcwg9cslR9yYTG1lEmn6Lf9blkGK5FygLiPbE5Z4FQw958ZVZso7G2B1HjN5m3vGvsvfz2AneUXTO7q5tvuGdNeSadCQ7hZ4VIoEAwbxYm6dEnR_l22cFjDe3F7KzLNgxe-a5/s1600/disneyonice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNunvRqmAYcwg9cslR9yYTG1lEmn6Lf9blkGK5FygLiPbE5Z4FQw958ZVZso7G2B1HjN5m3vGvsvfz2AneUXTO7q5tvuGdNeSadCQ7hZ4VIoEAwbxYm6dEnR_l22cFjDe3F7KzLNgxe-a5/s200/disneyonice.jpg" width="200" /></span></a>Little Lauren turned 5 on Valentine's Day. We decided not to do a birthday party - just because she doesn't have that many friends in Preschool, only her BFF, Penelope. Instead, we had Penelope over for a playmate and the big event for Lauren was to take her and the family to Disney on Ice. Unfortunately, when the day came, Lexie and Brayden were throwing up and Milenko had to stay home with the kids. Instead of making it a family event, only Bella & I went with Lauren. We still had fun with all our other friends that went too.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKte5DUhVPHCoOg9Y6-eY3WzOHuxQ1cNpcC8EFT5NU43sLuALHANa99N8mtNPoLzgJtE44OcAbsGMieQM8MDbbH4JIjthT06pwyC67R29QtURgr8_82YPvlNXsuTH4-NJ-htWj9pbDRu1q/s1600/0606147-R1-002-00A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKte5DUhVPHCoOg9Y6-eY3WzOHuxQ1cNpcC8EFT5NU43sLuALHANa99N8mtNPoLzgJtE44OcAbsGMieQM8MDbbH4JIjthT06pwyC67R29QtURgr8_82YPvlNXsuTH4-NJ-htWj9pbDRu1q/s200/0606147-R1-002-00A.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;">GIRL SCOUT COOKIES ARRIVED! This was the first time I got to experience the whole thing. My garage was a cookie cupboard and it pretty much consumed my life for the month. At least now I know how to do it so that next year it will all come back to me and be much easier. The girls did a lot of sales walking around the neighborhood with the wagon but did the most sales by participating in cookie booths. We had about 8 of them this year and they were a lot of work. The girls had a blast though - especially when they got to dress up like the cookies!</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfEBE-qQCQksd_UOiXQd-D2fPhbGAsmqQop9iKO95vMB2H_RPD6MCtYPoRzpKNAdREtA4lq5yt4qnSqAnwbkM-S082OunLGMYq3oyf3ikjjkfuFvGOpOUznkAohvZ8cGFJt6FLOVVA78ge/s1600/IMG_1802.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfEBE-qQCQksd_UOiXQd-D2fPhbGAsmqQop9iKO95vMB2H_RPD6MCtYPoRzpKNAdREtA4lq5yt4qnSqAnwbkM-S082OunLGMYq3oyf3ikjjkfuFvGOpOUznkAohvZ8cGFJt6FLOVVA78ge/s200/IMG_1802.JPG" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">TeeTee (Michelle) came out for a short visit too. She actually had a funeral service to attend, but we got to have her for a day. Having TeeTee out was great. I truly think that Bella warmed up to her the most. She adored Shell.<br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; clear: right; color: #38761d; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><u><b>MARCH</b></u></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Cookie season was still in full swing. The girl got to participate in the St. Patrick's Day parade. We walked the entire parade and the parents pulled the wagons full of cookies while they sold to the people on the sides watching the parade. They made a killing.... and they all had so much fun.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDMMhB6wLMM_gbZbC3vNT0LCc722TkMI3oq77GkfRx-tDcztlAycE41CwGhYTRhlqkgQ7XqE-OE8iZfUf-DQJj4ahRt85_vY048qTJT1Izpa3VFMmXqSUn_fB5ut3t5xQcKgj6JUdY32Ez/s1600/IMG_8955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDMMhB6wLMM_gbZbC3vNT0LCc722TkMI3oq77GkfRx-tDcztlAycE41CwGhYTRhlqkgQ7XqE-OE8iZfUf-DQJj4ahRt85_vY048qTJT1Izpa3VFMmXqSUn_fB5ut3t5xQcKgj6JUdY32Ez/s200/IMG_8955.JPG" width="200" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Milenko turned 41 this year. I'm now officially married to an old man! haha The kids dressed up and gave him presents. Then we headed out to our new Sushi restaurant that has a hibachi grill. It's like Benny Hana's, only less expensive. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bella went on a field trip with her 3rd grade class. They all dressed in their very best and went to see The San Francisco Symphony. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZCf-SCGmmjkXn0S34ICy-VopSFVKF7UYDAVJZeysit5H1HbH_qmLN6I0ueheAjwqX499m5AWfDVBot3Oe8xnd0jijNllLVibqpaD7tSVIWKg249gFK_AHnUZm9I3WdZYI0MRwDpA2QmZE/s1600/IMG_2380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZCf-SCGmmjkXn0S34ICy-VopSFVKF7UYDAVJZeysit5H1HbH_qmLN6I0ueheAjwqX499m5AWfDVBot3Oe8xnd0jijNllLVibqpaD7tSVIWKg249gFK_AHnUZm9I3WdZYI0MRwDpA2QmZE/s200/IMG_2380.JPG" width="200" /></span></a><u style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b>APRIL</b></span></u><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">We didn't have too much rain. Milenko and I went out together with Matt & Donna to celebrate both of our birthdays. We went to this great restaurant called Barone's and then my friend gave us some tickets to a comedy show to see Bobby Slaten. Just having a night without kids was perfect but the fun and the quality time with our friends was the topper.<br />
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<br />
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We did lose a very important member of our family though. Biscuit passed away this year. She didn't survive a pit bull attack from the neighbors dog. Neither did the dog after we got the city involved but we will forever miss that kitty. She was just over 13 years old. RIP BISCUIT</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO2pvWhRwabNVrhuMykL2dUmhQL4p6V1WIdNPhyphenhyphenVV_AQujYXtvfdOZbY_Gwi5za9P9mwW-JMoIgdMBfE_olG9tTgw5p4rvRGpkAl6dIm5NvozHnvhyphenhyphenKmqYl0Nq2vmUNpTVjcx6ycteBCZi/s1600/IMG_2452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGaiyXEynFj6a4IgqKXLdFJFmOlzEo_cJASDfLssp9C0eFnML9NsB1foreMdtEdjPDyN7eIFAmPr36IzjTr5wYySiMjpu9C0PKWQYeKToUSU45g4ObgItybCtiup4U3eidVKBhEMtcEM1/s1600/IMG_3106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGaiyXEynFj6a4IgqKXLdFJFmOlzEo_cJASDfLssp9C0eFnML9NsB1foreMdtEdjPDyN7eIFAmPr36IzjTr5wYySiMjpu9C0PKWQYeKToUSU45g4ObgItybCtiup4U3eidVKBhEMtcEM1/s320/IMG_3106.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO2pvWhRwabNVrhuMykL2dUmhQL4p6V1WIdNPhyphenhyphenVV_AQujYXtvfdOZbY_Gwi5za9P9mwW-JMoIgdMBfE_olG9tTgw5p4rvRGpkAl6dIm5NvozHnvhyphenhyphenKmqYl0Nq2vmUNpTVjcx6ycteBCZi/s1600/IMG_2452.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO2pvWhRwabNVrhuMykL2dUmhQL4p6V1WIdNPhyphenhyphenVV_AQujYXtvfdOZbY_Gwi5za9P9mwW-JMoIgdMBfE_olG9tTgw5p4rvRGpkAl6dIm5NvozHnvhyphenhyphenKmqYl0Nq2vmUNpTVjcx6ycteBCZi/s200/IMG_2452.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
Just as we do on all the birthdays, we dressed up and went to Yanagi's for dinner. The Teppan chef got a nice fire going with some oil on the grill and then put marshmallows on a stick for each of the kids. They thought that was the best part. Brayden ducked under the seat when he made the big fire poof that sends off a plumb of heat.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAa0OypeTL8iW2ozXRV8BTXIxSSNrlDBLCLaSKisWtHFel2uZX6ZAL-h8gMMdwYNNFyoduREcLxYrwVKEj4kRDJbNXabwAVpuR4zqg1JDZkrvM90Rh2OQvGSsO30-VeZbCJT-W5dUjOj7M/s1600/IMG_9132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAa0OypeTL8iW2ozXRV8BTXIxSSNrlDBLCLaSKisWtHFel2uZX6ZAL-h8gMMdwYNNFyoduREcLxYrwVKEj4kRDJbNXabwAVpuR4zqg1JDZkrvM90Rh2OQvGSsO30-VeZbCJT-W5dUjOj7M/s200/IMG_9132.JPG" width="200" /></span></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">At the very end of the month, my Girl Scout troop voted on spending their hard earned money on a Campout. We got together at Donna's house and set-up a tent in the backyard. My friend Ron at Dr. Beans gave us a thermos of Hot Cocoa and we lit up the Fire Pit for roasting marshmallows. The girls surprised me and my co-leader with a Happy Birthday Cake (our birthdays are 2 days apart). Some of the girls slept inside while others did the tent. It was such a fun evening. There were activities going all night long. We even had stories and songs in the tent and an award presentation in the dark. Gotta' appreciate all the fun things that the Girl Scouts give to not only me, but the camaraderie and fun that it gives the girls!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWGQsY8m1-3bXUivAbGuuxhJPfJxiyyHVOQf_AVdU2Y0TO_vgE5AVF-oMPXL26Wre_qf7-ggAaL96ubm1V0IqmgvKjtbDppKPquUtl432e-PKcjsIZ36suXyUpY_mQp9bgP2_neJiJZP-t/s1600/IMG_2537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWGQsY8m1-3bXUivAbGuuxhJPfJxiyyHVOQf_AVdU2Y0TO_vgE5AVF-oMPXL26Wre_qf7-ggAaL96ubm1V0IqmgvKjtbDppKPquUtl432e-PKcjsIZ36suXyUpY_mQp9bgP2_neJiJZP-t/s200/IMG_2537.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_onO4oUYzxBj0k7JAeT7lnOuTKrnCn0tQI6KByxw1nJ38t2THvVWOouXz9Uuniw33eO10yWD3JLehDPsjKfFGGmD6jSBIoZRLwxfS02830LeAv3hjs01WEaxB5ZEssdTvw_cTZyFNci_/s1600/IMG_2513.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_onO4oUYzxBj0k7JAeT7lnOuTKrnCn0tQI6KByxw1nJ38t2THvVWOouXz9Uuniw33eO10yWD3JLehDPsjKfFGGmD6jSBIoZRLwxfS02830LeAv3hjs01WEaxB5ZEssdTvw_cTZyFNci_/s200/IMG_2513.jpg" width="150" /></span></a><u><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">MAY</span></b></u><br />
Mother's Day was special. Bella's class did a wonderful presentation for all the moms. The kids decorated their classroom and presented each of us with a handmade flower, some artwork and served up muffins with coffee/tea/water. In Brayden's preschool class they each made us a decoupage jar and inside was a pencil made into a flower. Then the kids got up and sang a few Mother's Day songs. Brayden was the one who topped it off though. He found it important to pick his nose and dispose of the booger. I won't describe it, but I'm sure you can guess where it went.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3qutdMLS-LwWxaudtEmxVB7sDkJc7kPnP5EPWHZcyxcvGpYqZy8b_CXSc54OWnyBt2FUwgXVB1-aNs3GwROfYTj7yRIfKroOV1vD6yk9THYmkfxTrGGGorHJs8-4S3irnxnFAPFWrbigP/s1600/IMG_9240.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3qutdMLS-LwWxaudtEmxVB7sDkJc7kPnP5EPWHZcyxcvGpYqZy8b_CXSc54OWnyBt2FUwgXVB1-aNs3GwROfYTj7yRIfKroOV1vD6yk9THYmkfxTrGGGorHJs8-4S3irnxnFAPFWrbigP/s200/IMG_9240.JPG" width="200" /></span></a>Bella and Lexie went to a Me & My Guy Luau event with the Girl Scouts. Lexie went with her Deda (Milenko's Dad) and Bella went with her Daddy. They went out for some sushi and then went to the dance. I got to be one of the lucky mom's who was taking photographs of the kids and so I got to see most of the dance.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRNrhVA-MAeqltbVbjwXDgKhU-ZsUgeOb5opDChCdnfZ92HGS99ryLVk8BKojRl1pDg3yqGeNsY8lZsfmXUi9Is72d6Td5sEqVOOnK4NP3Ro_Mr3Wa_GldezosTbR-IN1XK4Q1Le1RGlp/s1600/IMG_9645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRNrhVA-MAeqltbVbjwXDgKhU-ZsUgeOb5opDChCdnfZ92HGS99ryLVk8BKojRl1pDg3yqGeNsY8lZsfmXUi9Is72d6Td5sEqVOOnK4NP3Ro_Mr3Wa_GldezosTbR-IN1XK4Q1Le1RGlp/s200/IMG_9645.JPG" width="200" /></span></a></div>Camporee was the highlight of the month. I was able to take my troop up to Cazadero to Camp Royaneh. I have been to Girl's Camp through my church, but this was just the same - without the religion. The girls were so close to each other, nobody singled anyone out, the entire trip was filled with activities for the girls. We made up our own songs, learned to do the flag ceremony and experienced a BIFFY. (Bathroom in the forest for you) The girls can't wait to do it again and the bonds that they developed and the respect they learned on their own was amazing.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYU29nOlow4YsSShZkz1kFFOMqJ8MnS31BCOyIahhb5Qc77RB_X5xlmALuXiYOrHD30nYBdSpWv-Ufti5-7XaxC9GZAjDfbpgo3srVFF91UjbtFEMLWtfQaNlHGWbZu_abWOalIivmHfjA/s1600/IMG_9996.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYU29nOlow4YsSShZkz1kFFOMqJ8MnS31BCOyIahhb5Qc77RB_X5xlmALuXiYOrHD30nYBdSpWv-Ufti5-7XaxC9GZAjDfbpgo3srVFF91UjbtFEMLWtfQaNlHGWbZu_abWOalIivmHfjA/s200/IMG_9996.JPG" width="200" /></a><u><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><b>JUNE</b></span></u><br />
SCHOOL'S OUT! Brayden moved out of the 3's program and will start Pre-K in September. Lauren graduated from Preschool and will head to Kindergarten. Lexie is now a 2nd grader and was top of her class. The teacher said that 1st grade came extremely easy for her. Bella is now a 4th grader. She did so well on her Star Testing that she made the Honor Roll.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD5xRk91enkG3FW7MunnLfiNgkhBEhte5GVMFbcjiuI-65Dj3o4QFdWiyrAxC0ZI7b-UNzzm2gCof1APxO23pIWZs8phzNWgiSvXCf6h72GHDIcz2VaDlZxs0GD7hZW57XYaxHWjCijOtx/s1600/IMG_3093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="148" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD5xRk91enkG3FW7MunnLfiNgkhBEhte5GVMFbcjiuI-65Dj3o4QFdWiyrAxC0ZI7b-UNzzm2gCof1APxO23pIWZs8phzNWgiSvXCf6h72GHDIcz2VaDlZxs0GD7hZW57XYaxHWjCijOtx/s200/IMG_3093.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bNzChmpDx0bpAOTK9H6aZ2AhTvSD6QvJmjAL-K67az5b-dNzRn9D0cMSv438d3FLOtmjejHdDzFHlaWiKIlsL50zaL3vBfTuiwZglztfRUZjFVmLlzqOXmaQALGl5DxUS1MiFVpgiHF4/s1600/IMG_3150.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bNzChmpDx0bpAOTK9H6aZ2AhTvSD6QvJmjAL-K67az5b-dNzRn9D0cMSv438d3FLOtmjejHdDzFHlaWiKIlsL50zaL3vBfTuiwZglztfRUZjFVmLlzqOXmaQALGl5DxUS1MiFVpgiHF4/s200/IMG_3150.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD5xRk91enkG3FW7MunnLfiNgkhBEhte5GVMFbcjiuI-65Dj3o4QFdWiyrAxC0ZI7b-UNzzm2gCof1APxO23pIWZs8phzNWgiSvXCf6h72GHDIcz2VaDlZxs0GD7hZW57XYaxHWjCijOtx/s1600/IMG_3093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a>In Girl Scouts, Bella and Lexie both advanced to the next level in Girl Scouts at a Bridging Ceremony. Lexie went from a Daisy Girl Scout to a Brownie Girl Scout. Bella went from a Brownie Girl Scout to a Junior Girl Scout. Their uniforms are completely covered with badges - and this is only their first year. Imagine what it would look like after 2 years in their respective level.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS4XjGxK08BaumuW561zNNezBghhao3H_zvOjxZd6NLltj0J-rV_63tllvuNueApg3NZzPUSDt9k_jNSgRgg_lMLwmGCpfPmfHeJH4zNyd28N4PYT8hEFsryQqjmg56t9cL3O-5Get-OZT/s1600/IMG_3244.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS4XjGxK08BaumuW561zNNezBghhao3H_zvOjxZd6NLltj0J-rV_63tllvuNueApg3NZzPUSDt9k_jNSgRgg_lMLwmGCpfPmfHeJH4zNyd28N4PYT8hEFsryQqjmg56t9cL3O-5Get-OZT/s200/IMG_3244.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2araQgF-9bHpdGZmDDOjVVrrPsZplXsmY6rfNbRp01rIUiZ7dLf13uByAG8Q9-2JxoxcRWJeKKzAOT5Q0WSG7TWXRJXWGWIYkQz0c2ogSFCqOCczVz_ctbNVTP7p3Nq8LE_nH3ObBSgIY/s1600/IMG_3164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2araQgF-9bHpdGZmDDOjVVrrPsZplXsmY6rfNbRp01rIUiZ7dLf13uByAG8Q9-2JxoxcRWJeKKzAOT5Q0WSG7TWXRJXWGWIYkQz0c2ogSFCqOCczVz_ctbNVTP7p3Nq8LE_nH3ObBSgIY/s200/IMG_3164.jpg" width="149" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; color: black;">The pool </span>was ready and waiting for the kids. We had a pretty hot June too. The temperatures were in the high 90's and low 100's most of the summer. Then again, it's perfect for Northern California.<br />
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My God-daughter, Kaitlyn, came up for a few weeks. This was the first chance that the kids really got to know Kaitlyn. We stared off by surprising Kaitlyn with a trip to Marine World. We met up with Donna's family and spent the who day and evening there. Brayden became an appendage to Kaitlyn. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3cw2_8MFuXbAE21p_W-Ow5Z27MQYstG6LLNa8g54xj5YTkNcUvByHZLUIHz1p4vJwv4tbLP1LSJZTjRu-XCfYciRxsBthGr0ix-zyW6FavHEambR7yzrb_V3wHxCmmbwLfhRKdyrph_wL/s1600/IMG_3219.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3cw2_8MFuXbAE21p_W-Ow5Z27MQYstG6LLNa8g54xj5YTkNcUvByHZLUIHz1p4vJwv4tbLP1LSJZTjRu-XCfYciRxsBthGr0ix-zyW6FavHEambR7yzrb_V3wHxCmmbwLfhRKdyrph_wL/s200/IMG_3219.JPG" width="200" /></a>We also took a few trips to the beach, we went to the County Fair and went to San Francisco to do some sight seeing. We mostly vegged out in the backyard by the pool. Not much excitement, but a lot of one-on-one time with Kaitlyn.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirg9VUANJv8TpehANn_NZq0kxRbfoxs_Ej9lkCKDSJbxVXfrq4XUdXgO-4CG8nYqDgDa5qJbKl7Qug3iqqd4NBN8vYJYYC9o6jk3Tug-KMFs89zHWa8UqDyQfI1Jssm7hgF387Ms2PVBe6/s1600/IMG_3869.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirg9VUANJv8TpehANn_NZq0kxRbfoxs_Ej9lkCKDSJbxVXfrq4XUdXgO-4CG8nYqDgDa5qJbKl7Qug3iqqd4NBN8vYJYYC9o6jk3Tug-KMFs89zHWa8UqDyQfI1Jssm7hgF387Ms2PVBe6/s200/IMG_3869.JPG" width="200" /></a><u><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">JULY</span></b></u><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbpF1OX2qpv-kjsqwVzVc6R_PO-9f8AFeRlx0l8spNDJGxEaSwv2oSvln2E3p30-fIGki4i1p8BgfT8L5od9-mSZuN7tjW0nGe4FZDc09eAFuujAaQOai0KT7C9A8Q-zWKtc27zPMEd9sr/s1600/IMG_3294.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbpF1OX2qpv-kjsqwVzVc6R_PO-9f8AFeRlx0l8spNDJGxEaSwv2oSvln2E3p30-fIGki4i1p8BgfT8L5od9-mSZuN7tjW0nGe4FZDc09eAFuujAaQOai0KT7C9A8Q-zWKtc27zPMEd9sr/s200/IMG_3294.JPG" width="200" /></a>Fourth of July was an absolute blast. The weather was extremely hot and we spent the entire day by or in the pool. For the evening hours we had Donna's family, Terrie's family and Kaitlyn join us. We probably set off fireworks for close to 2 hours. The kids had their favorites with the sparklers and when they ran out, found it more amusing to run in circles around the fireworks. Too bad my camera was broken. Most of my photos didn't turn out. :(<br />
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Shadow Cliffs also became a fun hangout for the kids. We went a few times with Donna and the kids and also with the Bidstrup family. As long as they took a shower after they came home to get that dirty, grimy water off, I was okay. Have a slight green coating on your body when you get out of the water was a little gross. They kids spent most of the day collecting shells and snorkeling to see the little fishies.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWNWA7MN55XV2gQBVKSFN5ypgfgg0GefKD912b49nxW_7DEcivuwOlP6d3WDZZeEnx1XQRTcCCI9RelbGIUn-7ifopC7iwIijOOg7mkvpVByTR-tP38Q3jg0HZg9zan7sfmgwq-ixewfD/s1600/IMG_3792.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWNWA7MN55XV2gQBVKSFN5ypgfgg0GefKD912b49nxW_7DEcivuwOlP6d3WDZZeEnx1XQRTcCCI9RelbGIUn-7ifopC7iwIijOOg7mkvpVByTR-tP38Q3jg0HZg9zan7sfmgwq-ixewfD/s200/IMG_3792.JPG" width="200" /></a>Can you believe that it's already been 11 years since Milenko and I got married? Wow! That makes 13 years of sticking it out with each other. I honestly couldn't be happier though. Funny how you think you love someone so much when you get married - only to find out that after a decade has passed, you love that person more than ever. I'm just curious if at 20 years of marriage I will love him even more than I do now. 10 years ago I would have said it was impossible to do that. I was wrong then. We celebrated this year at Piatti's Restaurant with the Burdusis, Bidstrup and Constantinides couples. Perfect anniversary!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghix12rE3nK7_RsXYKS3WRdh1Wx1eF9uYYoEooMbUzfXcpRcMg9-LCE8-sr2rGj2BIk_7SQDNE6SU0hMh7dQ7xa5C-mjanNYES0Khlg3GJf2pxkaJmqadORQbLAyYQ4zTwuMt_DhoRzKrA/s1600/IMG_0718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghix12rE3nK7_RsXYKS3WRdh1Wx1eF9uYYoEooMbUzfXcpRcMg9-LCE8-sr2rGj2BIk_7SQDNE6SU0hMh7dQ7xa5C-mjanNYES0Khlg3GJf2pxkaJmqadORQbLAyYQ4zTwuMt_DhoRzKrA/s200/IMG_0718.JPG" width="200" /></a><u><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">AUGUST</span></b></u><br />
This is the month that you realize that Summer Vacation is almost over and you try to cram in all the fun stuff. This was a very warm summer in general and so I can say that my kids turned into water babies over the season. I had a nice golden tan going as well.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3rXyDjMfKBj4Wm733UoQ4Mg4pnEaz-ZhXNNuAPu596Yz1RazH5UyRn6PxkrrTasqKFGVHf8vvhZZIsphu3sFfvWBFQlkFeGNqfUKMxG-aJJW7eM0uH5AWV3m57NLKeVE68YVaw9egdeP/s1600/IMG_0949.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3rXyDjMfKBj4Wm733UoQ4Mg4pnEaz-ZhXNNuAPu596Yz1RazH5UyRn6PxkrrTasqKFGVHf8vvhZZIsphu3sFfvWBFQlkFeGNqfUKMxG-aJJW7eM0uH5AWV3m57NLKeVE68YVaw9egdeP/s200/IMG_0949.JPG" width="200" /></a>We spent a lot of time either in our pool or Donna's pool. This was definitely a summer that the Dugorepec & Burdusis kids were able to get a close bond with each other. Bella and Alyssa are BFF's and Brayden and Ryan are BFF's. With the friends only being weeks apart in age, it really makes their friendship blend nicely.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY7GQdfWui5J8zdHa-VNBuMPSMIKueJcnRKfOwgmLekPXUQZgTgsGBwg2DWpy8WUf8Muv2WO-zftaHpeGYo102khDX_H6Khg-qVo5rFkd80wljwFhUdsIu6ApHY-ZUIoc5UGHLD_0oE1dK/s1600/IMG_1001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY7GQdfWui5J8zdHa-VNBuMPSMIKueJcnRKfOwgmLekPXUQZgTgsGBwg2DWpy8WUf8Muv2WO-zftaHpeGYo102khDX_H6Khg-qVo5rFkd80wljwFhUdsIu6ApHY-ZUIoc5UGHLD_0oE1dK/s200/IMG_1001.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0EVsCGrRwLCHASNkhguW1P7s0dOnZEcye_b8-Q7yVvqrlBjEb6f5koNdb5lW4XppKYNVNqjnvTzLqPPUZuVFGPupH6itR2CyYf0zBUIB2ibwWF6-sLGHbZmYCS7xJ3A9-aG2jJ7xJxlWG/s1600/IMG_0992.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0EVsCGrRwLCHASNkhguW1P7s0dOnZEcye_b8-Q7yVvqrlBjEb6f5koNdb5lW4XppKYNVNqjnvTzLqPPUZuVFGPupH6itR2CyYf0zBUIB2ibwWF6-sLGHbZmYCS7xJ3A9-aG2jJ7xJxlWG/s200/IMG_0992.JPG" width="200" /></a>We ended our fabulous summer by taking a trip out to Stinson Beach. We were expecting it to be completely crowded but we ended up getting a nice spot near the water and having a fabulous time. All the kids got out there in the water and it was hilarious to watch Brayden try to stand up when the water went out. After the entire day at the beach, we headed up to a Muir Beach lookout and froze our butts off while we set the camera up for a quick remote shot. The kids spent some time playing the the WWII bunker that they used as a lookout for enemy submarines. Great shot for a picture but we quickly headed back to the WARM car.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEkW1GAV6jGtPmb3J64calw90LxNa7zweAE4WRhYKiTFamAwJ4HjBEnATMUGhWYnOMhjK3SUvJuPJKqtWA6pIEcPIWptm9_ANhZlAP7bk6SW8xCwbGEvgRC5SbOqfD-oVRGcZkIUWyknqE/s1600/IMG_1850.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEkW1GAV6jGtPmb3J64calw90LxNa7zweAE4WRhYKiTFamAwJ4HjBEnATMUGhWYnOMhjK3SUvJuPJKqtWA6pIEcPIWptm9_ANhZlAP7bk6SW8xCwbGEvgRC5SbOqfD-oVRGcZkIUWyknqE/s200/IMG_1850.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
Soccer practice began in August and so did shuffling the kids back and forth to the fields. Milenko coaches the Under 10 Girls while I did all the busy work of being the Team Mom. Lexie was on the Under 8 Girls team and she played for Team Brasil. Her uniform was quite bright.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1G546TSsRxhMV_cQ18fEnSIfJziMh8htAzlf2jqmrh_KN7jUhdoLAaW4x3TBpMdmufcjadMnbsbYwgHuqNXAL1bB0Q8IzTgA372q59R5Is0V9nR8jTl_qbrjw9HaanOPgiG8nglfH4WS/s1600/IMG_1380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1G546TSsRxhMV_cQ18fEnSIfJziMh8htAzlf2jqmrh_KN7jUhdoLAaW4x3TBpMdmufcjadMnbsbYwgHuqNXAL1bB0Q8IzTgA372q59R5Is0V9nR8jTl_qbrjw9HaanOPgiG8nglfH4WS/s200/IMG_1380.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj5pk3d0D9J5y2jWoWgExiP6TMjOKtrxWQ_EnzK1BrNiizpLm874dVlXMPS8ISBc9CaI2kae8Ts3aWx8IUQOSnW_kM0vPbcpJuskmoTsle2oglkq0g0EPAQyqxD1HvO6By4TrC0MhPrzAD/s1600/IMG_1016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj5pk3d0D9J5y2jWoWgExiP6TMjOKtrxWQ_EnzK1BrNiizpLm874dVlXMPS8ISBc9CaI2kae8Ts3aWx8IUQOSnW_kM0vPbcpJuskmoTsle2oglkq0g0EPAQyqxD1HvO6By4TrC0MhPrzAD/s200/IMG_1016.jpg" width="150" /></a>At the end of the month, school started again. The kids were more than jazzed to get back to school. So was I. With Brayden in Preschool, this would mean that I would get 3 mornings a week to myself. (NOT!) Lauren had Mrs. Moirao for Kindergarten just like Bella and Lexie. (Funny that her husband was my Principal back in 1980.) Lexie got Mrs. Suminski for her teacher. Suminski normally teaches 5th grade so I was excited to get someone who would present Lexie with some educational challenges. Bella got Mr. Gomez for a teacher. I was so happy about that. I worked with him a lot last year when I was tutoring Nicolai. He's an excellent teacher and I know Bella will do well with him.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-XdK8cAwzvm46weWtA-tLZngjVW9vym-X2B9ZLte8fGHpVKFXwrePCdYFkj-CsXm3n1LnZb2jUnwSMG2uLsISdz4yNiet2WQy9u6eAlU2sbf5qhFnLqRwFsolCh81CrXe-juXOOtgsnt/s1600/IMG_2129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-XdK8cAwzvm46weWtA-tLZngjVW9vym-X2B9ZLte8fGHpVKFXwrePCdYFkj-CsXm3n1LnZb2jUnwSMG2uLsISdz4yNiet2WQy9u6eAlU2sbf5qhFnLqRwFsolCh81CrXe-juXOOtgsnt/s200/IMG_2129.JPG" width="200" /></a><u><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">SEPTEMBER</span></b></u><br />
Brayden turned 4 years old! We threw him a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's with the Burdusis family. Brayden only chooses to have one friend: RYAN. That's okay, they make the best of friends anyway.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYZFMfsSMt2WqaHv8LbizD4KiGYX8ex8IYbaaKamJZvZlbxxO16YKlfhzC_Tf8oDMQ6kmJto_Nk0uejP9NiNwACfGRhiM7Z1H_r8CDdVeqphym4QwJJ2DGNx8usR6blGcbT1aCWtJZp8dL/s1600/IMG_2394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYZFMfsSMt2WqaHv8LbizD4KiGYX8ex8IYbaaKamJZvZlbxxO16YKlfhzC_Tf8oDMQ6kmJto_Nk0uejP9NiNwACfGRhiM7Z1H_r8CDdVeqphym4QwJJ2DGNx8usR6blGcbT1aCWtJZp8dL/s200/IMG_2394.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNQMZ4FELumXRXQd0t0oLN-0JZiRuDR3k3YnY-VXybsc_G2aasKQley4NOiAFs6k7TCviN7fEvYB1c4f2hZ2Y5wV8L30hooVYEf4vlxye0jnb_ISh1BbrC3x5aLOvi-69o-7V8BiArfptF/s1600/IMG_1225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNQMZ4FELumXRXQd0t0oLN-0JZiRuDR3k3YnY-VXybsc_G2aasKQley4NOiAFs6k7TCviN7fEvYB1c4f2hZ2Y5wV8L30hooVYEf4vlxye0jnb_ISh1BbrC3x5aLOvi-69o-7V8BiArfptF/s200/IMG_1225.JPG" width="200" /></a>Soccer still went on throughout the entire month. Milenko's team did very well. Bella didn't like soccer to much but after a visit to the doctor (a few months later), we found out that her pain is associated with her feet. She is "toed in" (similar to pigeon toed) and it's painful to run as she distributes her weight oddly on her foot.<br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_CfPSFO5b22qNfIwohq0GaIszOFzqDKR5nVNjAggmFTYn24m_XwLUMhOaK8krLMkstR1BYw28h7U2ohu7HBGEiIhdB6FFOqmqQRDpdJWWczpyIdYD_bu2WmiBgbY0NMK5v8z2zP0kjHF2/s1600/Dugo+Soccer+2011.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_CfPSFO5b22qNfIwohq0GaIszOFzqDKR5nVNjAggmFTYn24m_XwLUMhOaK8krLMkstR1BYw28h7U2ohu7HBGEiIhdB6FFOqmqQRDpdJWWczpyIdYD_bu2WmiBgbY0NMK5v8z2zP0kjHF2/s200/Dugo+Soccer+2011.jpeg" width="143" /></a>Soccer was 2 days a week so this was a grueling time. School work, Girl Scouts, babysitting and projects didn't leave much time to do anything. Taxi driver was a little hard. Lexie practiced with Milenko's team and she developed stronger skills that helped her dominate the games that her team played. Lexie's favorite sport is soccer. Unlike Bella, she will continue on with this for the next few years - maybe even longer. Too bad Bella didn't want to do it. When she concentrated, she was awesome. She's interested in Volleyball so we'll try to get her hooked up with that soon.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmXyUk3JyroKdutvO5mojASNelRXqrdFlYw6hCJpUQr35fzGaI78AoVrPuc-4KX7pSb4fmtk_G4A2ecFDiDTrbImEH9N87w0aIj_VeXjmbFY1e9ProA4B-Mv9LCww08RF2ef48GK993-xx/s1600/IMG_1623.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmXyUk3JyroKdutvO5mojASNelRXqrdFlYw6hCJpUQr35fzGaI78AoVrPuc-4KX7pSb4fmtk_G4A2ecFDiDTrbImEH9N87w0aIj_VeXjmbFY1e9ProA4B-Mv9LCww08RF2ef48GK993-xx/s200/IMG_1623.JPG" width="200" /></a>We started off the Girl Scout season with a pool party at my house and a Girl Scout Meeting afterwards. The parents came with their kids for the pool party and then we did our meeting outside on the lawn in patio chairs. What a fun way to kick off the new year. This year I have a troop of 9 Brownies, 8 Juniors and 3 guests from other troops that will join us each month.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">School Pictures </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"> Fall 2011</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31r9gJf3m41n0iHnUC_nsYmRSG1Jj06mXRbWB7wLxR1luXUJmV4XNFwGMTKw8CtVPNTRJOjAakQ0yRI2kkTiRogY4ZuBEwPJ5_wlmqFhM3VtyL-nA_R1wIVb_h0KeYk2xCdQP5W_mwGTw/s1600/Brayden+1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh31r9gJf3m41n0iHnUC_nsYmRSG1Jj06mXRbWB7wLxR1luXUJmV4XNFwGMTKw8CtVPNTRJOjAakQ0yRI2kkTiRogY4ZuBEwPJ5_wlmqFhM3VtyL-nA_R1wIVb_h0KeYk2xCdQP5W_mwGTw/s200/Brayden+1.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmxW0I_hecfkLCIyKt7dNWG_5RGaHbvMZj_rVBj_YpXnF0A85rgkJsbZ6Sik1Czbv_ZJ0z3nTHx6Xsy2HfpVVbWmbyA3PcM9fh-BgHc5lLyvQF9IG238gyIkvkonrLkuVuGPz1wJb3YbZ/s1600/Lauren1+1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxmxW0I_hecfkLCIyKt7dNWG_5RGaHbvMZj_rVBj_YpXnF0A85rgkJsbZ6Sik1Czbv_ZJ0z3nTHx6Xsy2HfpVVbWmbyA3PcM9fh-BgHc5lLyvQF9IG238gyIkvkonrLkuVuGPz1wJb3YbZ/s200/Lauren1+1.jpeg" width="139" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrugrKkkM-VGiExGNardWpO-INozL6vxgRtnDchi73uaDIBcYiyZzDvSiAzpVlGFhRsrduNwoQXthnIm5R_Fb1pGzwctb757JTOKJROn57bVbYwTzehJz32EVi0UD0zNu3Tl30G58t6MGm/s1600/IMG_3862.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrugrKkkM-VGiExGNardWpO-INozL6vxgRtnDchi73uaDIBcYiyZzDvSiAzpVlGFhRsrduNwoQXthnIm5R_Fb1pGzwctb757JTOKJROn57bVbYwTzehJz32EVi0UD0zNu3Tl30G58t6MGm/s200/IMG_3862.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG2Ogx7QPrmwKw8kjIRc-yNGjgpAA-Z-30r2nHuPPESmqf-oVf_6vVbJGpJyqaiS1J4nbqwwJWHYIEVJoOJisop4f-LBxANBrQxvXXP_W1VT9PLjuTJEKJEXw7x8Pm-QOBN2cOqM_0YVYe/s1600/IMG_4361.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG2Ogx7QPrmwKw8kjIRc-yNGjgpAA-Z-30r2nHuPPESmqf-oVf_6vVbJGpJyqaiS1J4nbqwwJWHYIEVJoOJisop4f-LBxANBrQxvXXP_W1VT9PLjuTJEKJEXw7x8Pm-QOBN2cOqM_0YVYe/s200/IMG_4361.jpg" width="149" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">October is the annual Croptoberfest Retreat that I do with Cindy Bryson. This was our 6th year and even though we always say its our last year, I think this might be. Oh wait, it will change again come October 2012. We can't stay away. I did things a little different this year. I brought Bella with me. She needed some one-on-one with Mommy and she got a chance to crop. Bella definitely finds her element with adults rather than people her own age. For someone who is always shy and quiet at school, she was a chatterbox the entire weekend. Everyone loved her and the help she gave them. I was so proud of her. We went on a hike while we were there and we found a banana slug. I showed Bella how to kiss it but she wouldn't go within a few inches of even touching it. </div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTog6n7LCV5tc7IVsnsjgwJnQw404FMaVaBrI2upRxN9usDa0ho7L3gEaDHJ1mxvD7I-QGXakNWbjxFl558a9gvtHOzh_NiBZenaHdsZnvq63zCuzbkuLOlluxHiYgOuncJQ2nqpcIpiqi/s1600/IMG_4356.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTog6n7LCV5tc7IVsnsjgwJnQw404FMaVaBrI2upRxN9usDa0ho7L3gEaDHJ1mxvD7I-QGXakNWbjxFl558a9gvtHOzh_NiBZenaHdsZnvq63zCuzbkuLOlluxHiYgOuncJQ2nqpcIpiqi/s200/IMG_4356.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEw-jl1_FP0tEYZQz-zD1na5fWrHeXhsJFP29A0XYn6eNYPLW2CJlbyTBlJrJ163Cp9j1lSG-h-S2IlQa0OV24FqJnfIbAFfn30PQVm1HMNMYYH8FSd58-K9WScB7soM4iDhf6br9kXM0S/s1600/IMG_4364.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEw-jl1_FP0tEYZQz-zD1na5fWrHeXhsJFP29A0XYn6eNYPLW2CJlbyTBlJrJ163Cp9j1lSG-h-S2IlQa0OV24FqJnfIbAFfn30PQVm1HMNMYYH8FSd58-K9WScB7soM4iDhf6br9kXM0S/s200/IMG_4364.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">October always ends with a lot of fun. The kids got together with the Ryan & Alyssa and carved pumpkins. Besides the Halloween parades at the schools, the kids did Halloween with the Bidstrup boys and they came back with more candy that I think we could eat in an entire year. Can we say CAVITY? Geesh. The best part was Michele and I got to stay at home while the Dads took the kids Trick-or-Treating. This is absolutely a new tradition!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDsIjXB5HyoK7DdokvDHjU_J2z2RL0k08pq4HGLhOuFZtmS4SzgH6V7eEa3JJwfNsXIZKz9VvTD9APOXfwE1ylkjnutJIN4rWYp9refZMz-3F6X3GE5yFMTbUocviBmqp93RQaQIy5Hwi6/s1600/IMG_3210.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDsIjXB5HyoK7DdokvDHjU_J2z2RL0k08pq4HGLhOuFZtmS4SzgH6V7eEa3JJwfNsXIZKz9VvTD9APOXfwE1ylkjnutJIN4rWYp9refZMz-3F6X3GE5yFMTbUocviBmqp93RQaQIy5Hwi6/s200/IMG_3210.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the end of the month the Girl Scouts went to a special performance of Hair Spray. All of us dressed up like we were in the 60's or with hair-do's that were "outta sight." We were definitely a fine group of cool cats. Grammy and Auntie Stacie (Matt's sister) went with us.</div><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJWCYqbojOKNFDM4KcBSyrV8BN006p89g57vufDNLlbiOfYLW1FGPJXHnvnoeYKRHMlTxhtwrjMf4wBq850H6LhXY6_ld1JDzJwJp9KohS7kyY6jqtgTpuJi2kpG9d7mPOH9z47rk3FYlY/s1600/IMG_4466.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJWCYqbojOKNFDM4KcBSyrV8BN006p89g57vufDNLlbiOfYLW1FGPJXHnvnoeYKRHMlTxhtwrjMf4wBq850H6LhXY6_ld1JDzJwJp9KohS7kyY6jqtgTpuJi2kpG9d7mPOH9z47rk3FYlY/s200/IMG_4466.JPG" width="200" /></a><u><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">NOVEMBER</span></b></u></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;">You would think that as the year starts coming to a close that things would settle down! Yea, not true. At least not in my chaotic life that I pack full of busy work. November started off with Bella turning 9 years old! YIKES! 9 years old! We had a Girl Scout party and meeting the day after her birthday and brought in cake to celebrate. After the Girl Scout meeting, a few kids spent the night and we had a nice pancake breakfast. After that we all headed out to Rockin' Jump (an indoor trampoline park) and they burnt off all their energy!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSN7wTsBH30OJzSlU6gbU8QSvOuhr9edj56dVLvtYeZ63su4ug_ZzmRWPgqumIbWK7vBcW5rWzBpTDrLtETrWxB6Dr7-JY6i35rDqnY1V1NPaEnkpqxshOb0Ngy55LSinUcNpwQGgwWb8l/s1600/IMG_4486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSN7wTsBH30OJzSlU6gbU8QSvOuhr9edj56dVLvtYeZ63su4ug_ZzmRWPgqumIbWK7vBcW5rWzBpTDrLtETrWxB6Dr7-JY6i35rDqnY1V1NPaEnkpqxshOb0Ngy55LSinUcNpwQGgwWb8l/s200/IMG_4486.JPG" width="200" /></a>Following up Bella's Birthday, I had to plan my first Daisy Meeting. Yes, besides being a leader for the Brownies and Juniors, I have a group of 8 Kindergarteners that I also get to work with. You would think that would be difficult but in fact, it's easier than the older girls. These sweethearts absolutely melted my heart the first time I got them all together. If I didn't enjoy Scouts before, this was the one moment to remind me of how much I love to do this. Lauren's now a Girl Scout!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9d9fGn_xVTtPXokXtmws2E47aqFSAmceEUqjmaThjzt0c0yPl1-ZuEoVGk1mNYRJQIfi4OhY2_CRZUCB9OjaAAbfMXmc4X7J5v2NIiyTIjwoofVIxnL2NwLlRWLPLOoObCEmtsiDxlUP/s1600/IMG_4340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9d9fGn_xVTtPXokXtmws2E47aqFSAmceEUqjmaThjzt0c0yPl1-ZuEoVGk1mNYRJQIfi4OhY2_CRZUCB9OjaAAbfMXmc4X7J5v2NIiyTIjwoofVIxnL2NwLlRWLPLOoObCEmtsiDxlUP/s200/IMG_4340.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvKizuO7eu6WPSZkAO8Qa6clbMffMlmcQkTJsV7reEWq3qT4TjVtxrREygazk2gWzTxWtxs-FTTxu-mvxqzbj5TETGqiLkhLi7PWXlzVQXTllmb1KJb2zjltTEjxbLTm8NyKG68oH6Skt/s1600/IMG_3638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="147" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVvKizuO7eu6WPSZkAO8Qa6clbMffMlmcQkTJsV7reEWq3qT4TjVtxrREygazk2gWzTxWtxs-FTTxu-mvxqzbj5TETGqiLkhLi7PWXlzVQXTllmb1KJb2zjltTEjxbLTm8NyKG68oH6Skt/s200/IMG_3638.JPG" width="200" /></a>The next big things we did for November was take both Lexie and Bella to their play-off championships. Bella's team got defeated in the first game. However, that was pretty good. They came in 2nd place overall. They did a terrific job all year but kinda' didn't play well that last game. Lexie played 3 games that day and her team took the entire World Cup! They were awesome. We also had both girl's team parties. Although I'm very proud, Milenko is jubilant over the way the girls performed this season.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazvUi9xoKprQpZE2wKUHFnI_meYDZPGfvrJ_9Gek7SI-0bIRU4Hag84cR9gsQg81UvhLa7cDxQr6f8Xb9B0e82m1fHpDWzqybP5bm2YtNgH1Js0yG5rrmAgsLRrbXU5BcpV0r-MKj8XMq/s1600/IMG_4555.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgazvUi9xoKprQpZE2wKUHFnI_meYDZPGfvrJ_9Gek7SI-0bIRU4Hag84cR9gsQg81UvhLa7cDxQr6f8Xb9B0e82m1fHpDWzqybP5bm2YtNgH1Js0yG5rrmAgsLRrbXU5BcpV0r-MKj8XMq/s200/IMG_4555.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9WjK4R9IRWIeS8iIQBoGeOnMWHHHgfeqxWsTTIzZvdfDedsQdIyuKScSdPjrl_c2_EwTg5KTG87mf0kWPCbbnmfiVMK7GEYuzPzqpCf0zgGA8ZogMoqSfh2ZtT_sRD7mdUus7LraQpgIF/s1600/IMG_4624.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9WjK4R9IRWIeS8iIQBoGeOnMWHHHgfeqxWsTTIzZvdfDedsQdIyuKScSdPjrl_c2_EwTg5KTG87mf0kWPCbbnmfiVMK7GEYuzPzqpCf0zgGA8ZogMoqSfh2ZtT_sRD7mdUus7LraQpgIF/s200/IMG_4624.JPG" width="200" /></a><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;"><u>DECEMBER</u></span></b><br />
Talk about Holiday Cheer. I think it was coming out of our ears this year. We even got the dogs involved with the Holidays this year. haha The kids went to the mall with us and we happen to see that there was no line for Santa. We let the kids go and visit him and we took a few pictures. This was the first time Lauren and Brayden have ever seen Santa.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFTcSZEQNj0RHeG3zeEL8yFSu8j3Mx1YA_NMTVqMcOgYOLd4abqIAvLtoTKwVvDHmOWRBRyrjgPuyfnC6dVnV8oizeXQLupIpnjrtsDqhBcbzhL3xfvysJ2AAnB-ckJg-shvivxuNh7Y3U/s1600/IMG_4590.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFTcSZEQNj0RHeG3zeEL8yFSu8j3Mx1YA_NMTVqMcOgYOLd4abqIAvLtoTKwVvDHmOWRBRyrjgPuyfnC6dVnV8oizeXQLupIpnjrtsDqhBcbzhL3xfvysJ2AAnB-ckJg-shvivxuNh7Y3U/s200/IMG_4590.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbERz66tJpnR1vwUzbrNoO86cP6jFGP45amCZxoC2olf9LVuIZBTZuBBgZu_BxJw21dh0xb5fDYrfuwrT45GphHkoh7IXKbO8-Diw0-hc7ZcLQKOovHxOQ2LuynbqzNEtQiZUPnWpHxbwc/s1600/IMG_4479.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="159" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbERz66tJpnR1vwUzbrNoO86cP6jFGP45amCZxoC2olf9LVuIZBTZuBBgZu_BxJw21dh0xb5fDYrfuwrT45GphHkoh7IXKbO8-Diw0-hc7ZcLQKOovHxOQ2LuynbqzNEtQiZUPnWpHxbwc/s200/IMG_4479.JPG" width="200" /></a>We had our annual christmas cookie decorating with Donna & the kids. They opened their presents and got a really nice sugar high on that one. The girls also had a Girl Scout skating event and almost the entire troop showed up. Scouts on Skates is something we do each year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEV5iuCTNROiAHl8r9t65yE2SJDsa_gDceA49HS0MDqbUCQlSCOWNxcOJZhFuEKz2eYvJf4AMxMMdiL3UIL_qR15hT5rD2DgSMVzKl6DVUoLWGYanQbFuiVfhGpp0DDjdkgY_DEnpBkLl/s1600/IMG_4486.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEV5iuCTNROiAHl8r9t65yE2SJDsa_gDceA49HS0MDqbUCQlSCOWNxcOJZhFuEKz2eYvJf4AMxMMdiL3UIL_qR15hT5rD2DgSMVzKl6DVUoLWGYanQbFuiVfhGpp0DDjdkgY_DEnpBkLl/s200/IMG_4486.JPG" width="200" /></a>The grandkids wanted to do something special for the grandparents (ok, Michelle and I wanted to do something with the grandkids for the grandparents), so we got together one night and took pictures of the kids out at the Library, Police Station and City Services Buildings. The pictures really turned out good and even ended up on our Christmas cards this year.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwIJ7v6AOYgYavkDzgXK1e7Be3XRxN8DHhUuuoaqm9u0EZabhDOeqChCRnuRwYDiluuOe6uYV3JS6JK4YiMlYFzxuD1b5OKCZc_zNQhG3eFJOMuCsUG7n9nIp9WiJvyrKgdeGefC0j86bl/s1600/IMG_4795.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwIJ7v6AOYgYavkDzgXK1e7Be3XRxN8DHhUuuoaqm9u0EZabhDOeqChCRnuRwYDiluuOe6uYV3JS6JK4YiMlYFzxuD1b5OKCZc_zNQhG3eFJOMuCsUG7n9nIp9WiJvyrKgdeGefC0j86bl/s200/IMG_4795.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsEEB5V_jgHRtxFFgYOValAYtc15RdO3ua7DV2z98s6QG9DqP4a_o0Wn1cE1r5mXinM-tZr5j-e9LL3jEqLbjKJbvUESc2HnaDK7XNdFcdnpDhsRVN-FmpqgLwl0s9LDcFQ2SZzRDduke0/s1600/IMG_4763.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsEEB5V_jgHRtxFFgYOValAYtc15RdO3ua7DV2z98s6QG9DqP4a_o0Wn1cE1r5mXinM-tZr5j-e9LL3jEqLbjKJbvUESc2HnaDK7XNdFcdnpDhsRVN-FmpqgLwl0s9LDcFQ2SZzRDduke0/s200/IMG_4763.jpg" width="133" /></a>My Dad did something really special for the family this Christmas. Instead of going shopping and spending a ton of money on gifts that the finicky kids may or may not want, my Dad took the entire "Gardner" side of the family on the Niles Canyon "Christmas Train." There were over 12,000 on each car of the train and I think it had something like 15 or 20 cars to it. We had hot cocoa and chocolate chip cookies on the train and the kids loved to explore back and forth on the train. The best part was when Santa showed up on the train. What an absolute great present and the entire family had a nice time together.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcoZI3hT-DDBtd2_wBkAsyFkypW_SVaaxB3cVn8gwL6JXXBG2phnM1R_g3tm59MIFDPD63nsPqVr8hP2HjJVGD2u3SiLsRniLzpbHLuOxMIt4xeK9gJmSRmFiSMC5iGskEtx3A8fYvgQHE/s1600/IMG_4773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcoZI3hT-DDBtd2_wBkAsyFkypW_SVaaxB3cVn8gwL6JXXBG2phnM1R_g3tm59MIFDPD63nsPqVr8hP2HjJVGD2u3SiLsRniLzpbHLuOxMIt4xeK9gJmSRmFiSMC5iGskEtx3A8fYvgQHE/s200/IMG_4773.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRbYeQjrfAtkaKmw0BqOfWFsEmLqcXlaVEUasv2xW-jmERaxydtvrnfM5iyCYxEuNNStTcVoeP6Y2FleT4MdSqtIWsBc6W4zw3O0V4QpUmt00P9I92ZgFk_WbeiyQRvzrHeZn65sLLYb-I/s1600/IMG_4771.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRbYeQjrfAtkaKmw0BqOfWFsEmLqcXlaVEUasv2xW-jmERaxydtvrnfM5iyCYxEuNNStTcVoeP6Y2FleT4MdSqtIWsBc6W4zw3O0V4QpUmt00P9I92ZgFk_WbeiyQRvzrHeZn65sLLYb-I/s200/IMG_4771.JPG" width="200" /></a>The last time we were able to get the "original" Gardner family in a picture together was back before Brayden was born (over 4 years ago). This trip we got the "original" kids together and even a shot with our parents too. I love the fact that our family is still so close.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9tYGdQJC0hBlHCXRYc4CitLlheZFqDZ7pK2CJdEDSfsXtsIDJ-5MqixASMggBfTPjLAubKOXp6L7XdfmhJUBxzgn2077EWJ7bNwIDnciltBGvyA1ZZt23_t2sUEHKbL0Sym082DYDWjd/s1600/IMG_4823.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9tYGdQJC0hBlHCXRYc4CitLlheZFqDZ7pK2CJdEDSfsXtsIDJ-5MqixASMggBfTPjLAubKOXp6L7XdfmhJUBxzgn2077EWJ7bNwIDnciltBGvyA1ZZt23_t2sUEHKbL0Sym082DYDWjd/s200/IMG_4823.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4Qv78x-H_-sbqLKEIzcxHcjrhHCNtOu5gSSZzNAxcpbvFdX5PY3IxJxMrBGTYIumVCYc3WxHG1SvpT2DJc13aPa0omRIJhE6P8o7I8DJs7ZQy3J9sTz4CvSy-l2tWea3BJxeMxa-BzzL/s1600/IMG_4820.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP4Qv78x-H_-sbqLKEIzcxHcjrhHCNtOu5gSSZzNAxcpbvFdX5PY3IxJxMrBGTYIumVCYc3WxHG1SvpT2DJc13aPa0omRIJhE6P8o7I8DJs7ZQy3J9sTz4CvSy-l2tWea3BJxeMxa-BzzL/s200/IMG_4820.JPG" width="200" /></a>We switched things up this year for Christmas though. We have traditionally kept Christmas Eve at our house for the Gardner Family. This year we did it at our house on Christmas Eve but asked the Dugorepec family to join us here. It was a very quiet and simple Christmas dinner and opening gifts. The best gift of the evening was Brayden's Doggy Doo gift. Yes, it's a dog that eats food and craps it out! It left everyone in stitches for hours! I think everyone had a nice time and by 7:30 we were done cleaning up our house and just our family was alone and watching some Christmas movies on TV.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeSJ0JfqVNlSmJ5fx6Lc4S9wwhL5hre2wGU4wRr3qNOHs-yWJMx84QjSDlQY8sMkAgcT16ptIAbbLBJJ1-gV6wZ7r_L82IjDsyexLfA98cocyJeMYR2BT31PZQN19AEUeUr23Sc8f4mAI/s1600/IMG_4833.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWeSJ0JfqVNlSmJ5fx6Lc4S9wwhL5hre2wGU4wRr3qNOHs-yWJMx84QjSDlQY8sMkAgcT16ptIAbbLBJJ1-gV6wZ7r_L82IjDsyexLfA98cocyJeMYR2BT31PZQN19AEUeUr23Sc8f4mAI/s200/IMG_4833.jpg" width="133" /></a>The kids were up somewhere around 6:45 or 7am for Christmas checking out all the Christmas presents that Santa brought. Around 7:30 we came downstairs and they had already gone through their stockings and were opening the things that were out from Santa. Lexie ended up with a bike, Lauren, Brayden & Bella got scooters. Lexie, Lauren & Brayden got Happy Nappers and Bella got a new bike seat, grips and flares for her bike. Santa even brought Mommy a new laptop. :-)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1kQ_qzi0WAnHbJwPieRo4idIk4-aZoshBFNnDYCwXTCi8XtyFHz87HF_XxUzTpBY6vTNH1-RSVddPHdkH4mfAegFQmNBF9IhMjgG8PrECgkOjlakV2DA-00j0S5NDh8u-cxwP2ft0qNHn/s1600/IMG_4900.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1kQ_qzi0WAnHbJwPieRo4idIk4-aZoshBFNnDYCwXTCi8XtyFHz87HF_XxUzTpBY6vTNH1-RSVddPHdkH4mfAegFQmNBF9IhMjgG8PrECgkOjlakV2DA-00j0S5NDh8u-cxwP2ft0qNHn/s200/IMG_4900.JPG" width="200" /></a>On Christmas Day we headed out to Dave & Michelle's house. They prepared a nice dinner and the adults sat at one table while the kids sat in a completely different room at another table. It was nice and comfortable to have adult conversation and laughter without the kids around. However, it sounded like they were doing a great job of celebrating at their table too. We opened presents after dinner and stayed a little longer. Unfortunately, we all were feeling a little run down. Found out the next day that a few of us were sick and that's why our energy levels were gone. At least we made it through Christmas without any problems.<br />
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Today is New Years' Eve and although I've spent almost the entire day writing this, we are going to spend tonight with our friends, the Bidstrups. Maybe I'll add some pictures to this post tomorrow.</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8470984756388078373.post-64985977000246170262011-12-30T23:04:00.000-08:002011-12-31T09:54:22.215-08:00Lazy Days<div style="text-align: justify;">12/30/11 - Do you ever feel like just sleeping in, never getting out of your jammies, and having someone serve you your meals in bed? I honestly believe that this is what the Mom's should be doing during the Winter break. If our kids are over 6 years old, what's wrong with having them bring you up a glass of OJ? In fact, this morning my my 9 year old served breakfast up to everyone in the house. That certainly gave me another 1/2 hour in bed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Today we put away the Christmas decor and took out the tree. I should really say *I* put everything away while my husband sat on the couch and played the very, violent "Halo" with my girls. Instead of painting her nails, Bella bugs Milenko to shoot Zombies and Aliens. Nah, nothing's wrong with that picture.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">By the time I finished washing all the windows downstairs, putting away the 2 loads of dishes, moving the furniture back into it's original position, putting away the last of the Christmas presents, taking down the Christmas lights outside, emptying all the garbages in the house and scrubbing the floors to remove whatever unknown sticky stuff my 4 year old son has ground into the carpet, I sat down with a largest headache in quite a while. As the kids argue over what movie they want to watch on TV and fight about who's leg is touching the other's foot, my headache gets worse. Especially after I hear "Mom, I'm hungry! Can you make dinner now?"</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkwaczsPxj1a29DJBt_YRptKIOlz_jG10hT-iJ0z-nET8bvEGisGbnq9U8mu83EThqIjKzCrVy0FAZu3tPY_tKl6wo2o397z6nicpZQycgcQfZH4hUhLWLCvooEXuwoLyrewrG6BHgITWV/s1600/IMG_4941.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkwaczsPxj1a29DJBt_YRptKIOlz_jG10hT-iJ0z-nET8bvEGisGbnq9U8mu83EThqIjKzCrVy0FAZu3tPY_tKl6wo2o397z6nicpZQycgcQfZH4hUhLWLCvooEXuwoLyrewrG6BHgITWV/s320/IMG_4941.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">At least the man I married is helpful when it comes to those moments when he knows I won't be moving one muscle. He makes the kids dinner, brings me a few Advil to take away this horrible headache and just as the kids tidy up the downstairs and head to bed, Brayden comes running over to me and throws his arms around me and whispers "Mommy, I love you. To infinity and beyond!" My day is over and I have a biggest smile on my face.</div>Debbie Dugorepechttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02057453908466268002noreply@blogger.com0