Here's to preteens, Easter, eczema, and the end...

 Easter 2011 was great and celebrated quietly (as I would prefer!) with everyone home and G'ma and G'pa Nelson joining us for dinner. The kids hunted for their Easter bags full of goodies in the morning and after a little church action, I got to work cooking up a storm. Lee spent the morning manicuring the yard for (my) Easter present. Honestly, just him being home with for the weekend and us getting to do our boring family things all together was more than present enough. ;0)

J. Lamb 2011

 My POTD (picture of the day) blog is still going strong (here). I have had a blast thinking of subjects and capturing them. Of course, my subjects are my kids 80% of the time though! It really shouldn't be any other way! Let me know if you want me to add anyone to the e-mail listing for it.

 As for the preteens...sigh, why is it that the older they get, the busier I get? Drake will be 12 on Thursday (can you believe it!?) and Adree became a teenager last year (I'm kidding of course...but, seriously she has!) and little Seth (Mr. Monkey) likes to stir the pot! He and Adree bicker constantly! A couple of weeks ago we had the opportunity to go hiking to the waterfalls (Red Cliffs Rec. Area) with a good friend of ours and the kids had a blast! They love to hike anyway and that coupled with water, they were in heaven! Both the boys came back soaking wet and Drake skinned his leg up good. Eh, good thing kids dry out eventually and they make Neosporin!

J. Lamb 2011

And speaking of Neosporin...poor Drake. It's not unusual for him to have eczema in the winter and when he developed it in the crook of his elbow, I treated it with heavy duty lotion and a little hydrocortisone creme. It got better, it got worse, it raged out of control finally and off to the doc we went. She looked it over and prescribed a steroid creme and prescription strength Neosporin. We used it for about 5 days and the eczema dried up nicely, until I noticed he was starting to get a rash up his arm now. I stopped using the steroid creme and kept an eye on it and by Sunday he was covered in a rash from his earlobes down his torso. Monday morning, back to the doc we went. She was concerned, concerned enough to send him to the Dermatologist the next day. Great. Thankfully (well, kind of) it turned out not to be anything other than an eczema rash gone viral (he had a cold at the time and that made the eczema go crazy when we treated it). So, yes he has been covered with head to torso eczema. Like I said, poor Drake. ;0( A couple of weeks later he just has break out on the backs of his arms still, but the rest of it has dried up for the most part.

The end? Ah, soccer season is coming to an end...tonight being the last game! They've won one game so far, but they learned how to function as a team and learned a little skill along the way. Adree has improved so much and we are so very proud of her! Last night was their last practice (they had a water party instead) and I think Adree is happy she was able to participate and make new friends (ah, who am I kidding this girl knows everyone!), good job Adee-girl! ;0)

What's the haps?

J. Lamb 2011

"Time just doesn't seem to stop...only speeds up as it passes"

                                                               (and boy is it true!)


As I look at my babies here I can't believe how much they've grown! I can't believe it's been five years now since they came back to me and all of the sadness and hurt from not having them here every day has simply melted away. Everything happens for a reason and rather than resent it, it's up to you to figure out what you need to learn from it. Learn and grow and be strong.

J. Lamb 2011

Adree is just as involved as ever and last week she had the opportunity to perform at Tuacahn with her choir group! (She is on the bottom row, 5th kid in from the right) Western themed show this year and 20 schools from the area were able to participate this year. That's up from 7 schools last year, they had use two nights! She loved it, but was seriously pooped at the end of the day from practicing in the sun all day at school and then a soccer game that night. Yep, we rushed all the way across town from Bloomington Hills to Ivins to make it too! (If you know Dixie, you know that is quite a ways...ick, especially with traffic!) She loved the opportunity and is looking forward to playing in band next year at Intermediate school, yikes!

J. Lamb 2011

Drake is loving school (as always) and is continually improving his violin skills. He has such a mathematical mind set that reading music is really fun for him! I was laughing as he set his music book in front of me at my keyboard and proceeded to coach me in the songs! I let him do it for a while until I confessed that I can indeed read music...;0) All this and he informed me recently that he intends to write a 4 part sci-fi novel! I love it!
Sethee is reading Harry Potter books and Garfield comics and made up and illustrated a Capt' Underpants comic this week. I get to bind it for him this evening, he's thrilled! He's still attending scouts regularly and he wants to play soccer himself this fall! I know he'll be great at it...such energy this boy has! I'm going to try and get him signed up for swimming lessons this summer as well.

J. Lamb 2011

This little social butterfly always has somewhere to be and something to do. She alternates between being super helpful and a pill...some days only the latter is the case. *sigh* I try to keep her busy which helps, but if she's busy then Mom is busy and Mom doesn't need any more help being busy! I can't believe both she and Drake will be Intermediate students next year! Wow, if they're that old then I must be ancient! ;0P

Can you believe that I haven't been with with the "M" word for a year now? Yeah, me either! I have spent the time developing a deep love for sewing. I mean I always enjoyed it, but I spend so much time thinking of fun projects to make now it's crazy! I actually am meaning to open an ETSY shop (a site for handmade goods) and I will just as soon as I get enough projects completed. I'll let everyone know when I get it open! ;0) Up above is a dress I made for Miss Adree for Easter. It was originally a thrift store dress that she and I picked out and I blogged all about here if you want to see!
Time flies when you're busy, but we wouldn't have it any other way!

Pay no attention...

 Despite my reassurances that I have every intent to keep my family blog here updated, I seem to not be doing so good. It's not that things have been overly busy (just run-of-the-mill normal busy) or anything. I am, however, thoroughly enjoying the format of my 2011 and Points Forward blog I started January 1st. It's a picture a day blog, where the goal is to post a picture from life daily and keep the captions brief. I can do it simply and I love the challenge of improving my picture taking prowess and documenting daily life as well. Many of the pictures below are from my P.O.T.D. blog and I'll give you a sample:

J. Lamb 2011

 This is a shot I took of the front of Lee's historical building while I was taking pictures for him for his business proposal for the city. He is preparing to open a music/events/computer cafe of sorts called "Rock on Main Medley" basically it will incorporate all of the businesses he own/operates now, as well as, an internet cafe and convenience cafe/hangout. It'll be available for events and karaoke/music nights as well. It'll be great and a well-needed asset for the struggling downtown area. Lee's super excited too! ;0)

J. Lamb 2011

 Lee just recently recovered from a bulging disc in his back, ouch! (No sissy, he didn't hurt it doing this!) He spent a great deal of time going to the chiropractor as well as the spinal surgeon (ouch!) and they seem to have gotten it back into place. He's been super, super busy trying to ready his building to prepare for opening and has neglected visiting the chiropractor the last few weeks...tsk, tsk. When I saw him this evening he informed me that he went today and that the chiropractor cracked one of his ribs. If it's not one thing, it's a ton. *Sigh.*

J. Lamb 2011

 In January, one of my classmates lost his little girl to cancer. She was only 3. I was deeply moved by her story and of her family and their acceptance of death. A dear friend and fellow PHS class of 96er was able to travel here to show support for our classmate and it was bittersweet to see him (I've been in contact with him for a couple of years now via FB). I not only had someone to sit next to during the funeral, I was able to thank him in person for listening to me (and not judging) as I have done for him.

J. Lamb 2011

 The big "V" day has passed for another year and left me with 33 birthdays under my belt. I came, I saw, I am mother and I need a nap! ;0)

J. Lamb 2011

 We have had more warm days than cold ones recently and neither I or the kids are complaining about that! I am rather fond of sunshine and the ability to send the kids outside in it too! ;0)

J. Lamb 2011

 Mr. Monkey the Cub Scout has been to his first Blue and Gold banquet and earned his first award already! We are gearing up for The Pinewood Derby now and Sethee is about the cutest little scout ever!

J. Lamb 2011

 Oh yes, a picture is worth a thousand words and these two imps are constantly bickering! "Adwee!!! Stop that!!!" and "Mom, Sethee won't stop breathing on me!" See what I mean?

J. Lamb 2011

 The Spring soccer season is well under way and Adree is enjoying playing for the local Rec Center on a girl's soccer team. Mom gets to play taxi even more, but Adree gets to learn how to play on a team and gain some skill (she's quite the athlete). She's really enjoying it!

J. Lamb 2011

The warmth of Spring and longer days have made an impact in our yard. Not only do we have knee high weeds in the backyard, but our front grass is greening up and the plum tree has very pretty blossoms.
Below: In a bit of nostalgia we are just a couple of blocks away form the local Elementary school and the kids and I walk (or bike or scooter) over so they can play. Growing up, we too were just a couple of blocks away from the Elementary school and spent hours on the grounds playing and hanging out all throughout childhood and even our teen years....;0)

J. Lamb 2011

J. Lamb 2011

Over the weekend we spent some time at my sister's home with her family and even had the chance to visit The Living Planet Aquarium. The kids had a blast (obviously!). I know my kids absolutely love to go to Auntie Cara's house and spend time with their cousins, especially Adree. She can do all the girlie things her heart desires!

Sheesh!

I have been terrible at keeping up with the ol' family blog here! Bad blogger, bad, bad! It's not that I haven't been blogging... see, I blog here 5days a week and I post a picture here daily. It's just that everything here has been busy or boring and none of it has screamed at me to be blog-worthy. My attitude sucks, things have been tough, I just wish I could snap my fingers and all would be well....sigh. See what I mean? No one wants to hear that!
Lee is working so very hard to get his business ready ( I will blog about that soon) and what little time we have him is very precious. It makes me not want to waste what time I have him here blogging....so, I haven't. No worries though, the kids are well! Adree is as busy as ever and Seth has been participating in scouts and Drake just got all A's and a B+ on his report card! They all went up for the weekend (with G'ma and G'pa Nelson) to their cousin's house for his birthday last weekend and had a wonderful time. I'll be better. I promise! ;0)

Update on the uneventful...

 

It's hard to believe that it's already the 23rd of January and it's not as though life has been overly busy, just the mundane things that happen with everyday. There really isn't anything that has been going on either...Lee is busy preparing to open a business in his downtown building and this is taking up all of his free time. The kids have been going full force at school. Drake still loves school and playing the violin and doing algebra in math. Adree still insists upon being involved with as many things as possible, Choir, Orffestra, Violin and she will be playing spring soccer this year as well. All this along with activity days activities and she is busy all the time! Seth loves school and playing with his best buddy Teaghan (who is gluten-free as well) and he pals around at our house and Seth at their house at least once every week. Seth is also reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone and spends a good deal of his extra time during the week with his nose in the book. I have been on a couple more interviews, I have another to go to this week too. Something will happen and the snag I am aware of is in the process of getting taken care of, so be it. I'm going to help Lee out with his business and provide some gluten-free goodies to sell, maybe do a little mural work as well. 

This weekend we've all been home and haven't been anyplace else. Adree has been ill with the croup and has also been contagious until today, guess what? I'm perfectly happy to send her to school tomorrow, she's well enough to be bored and has been irritating everyone today....*sigh*, her poor brothers!

It was nice and warm last weekend and the pictures above are from the warm weather walk we enjoyed. I love how the picture of Lee makes him look tall, yep we were at the Elementary School with the baskets a whole 7 feet off the ground! Too funny!

and we slid into the New Year at full force!

The kids on Christmas morning

and Seth turned 8 too!

The cake was a little less ugly then usual

and he's making a wish!

Seth was baptized on New Year's day

and Grandma Jan with all of her grandkids in her new house!

and the kids even got a chance to play in the snow!

As you can see, we have been extremely busy for the last couple of weeks. Christmas came and went, Seth turned 8 too and as luck would have it, got to be baptized on New Year's day! We got to spend a little time with all of our family and the kids even got to play in the snow yesterday (yes, it's all gone now!) as well.
We had a good, quiet Christmas and we opened presents and ate breakfast with my (ex)in-laws. We even went and watched a movie in the evening. It was nice.
The next day we loaded up and had dinner at my folk's new house in Cedar with Mom and Dad and Sterling and even my Grandma came over for a little bit. We are all very busy and getting together more often will be easier with them living closer.
Two days after Christmas, Seth turned 8! I can't believe my baby boy has grown up so much, sniff. All of the kids are growing like weeds and try as I might to stop them, they just don't slow down! ;0) He was very excited and had a great birthday too.
On January 1st, Seth had the opportunity to get baptized. Seth asked Grandpa Dick (paternal) to baptize him and he did and Cara and her family came down and Uncle Nathan confirmed him. My Aunt and Uncle and their kids, as well as, our dear friend Miss (Anne) Rogers were able to come and show their support for Seth. It was a wonderful service and my heart was very full. My little nieces Ainsley and Aftyn came and stayed with us overnight  (Adree was in heaven!). The next morning we all gathered up to go back to Cedar to eat together and so Cara and Nathan could travel home.
Yesterday we woke up to a surprise of snow in the yard (about 3 inches) and the kids bundled up and went out in it. Mom had to go out too, you know, because my warm weather kids needed snowman help and all! Other than having to push Drake out the door, they had a good time! Mr. Snowman is in pieces in the front yard now after most of the snow has melted away.
I started a photo blog for the new year as well, if you would like to check it out 2011 and points forward. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Years and I hope 2011 is all you wish it to be!

tHiS iS wHaT i LiKe (post 169)

...and now a very special tHiS iS wHaT i LiKe post because apparently what "I like" is to drive myself insane!! ;0)

                            *What I Made for Christmas*

I painted 3 pictures in all (I just mailed two of them away neglecting to snap pictures of them, oops!)

I sewed fleece travel pillow covers for my sons, and appliqued their names on them as well

I appliqued and sewed 3 pillows with my the hand prints of my children

My daughter and I made our own wrapping paper with brown parcel wrap and potato stamps

I made 5 pretty skirts in all, my daughter LOVED hers!

Including the stockings and the tree ornaments and many different kinds of goodies, I was one very busy Mommy this Christmas season! See the rest of the madness here and here. It was so much fun though, having Christmas on the cheap. We felt bad that the kids weren't as spoiled as usual, but honestly everything they got, was something they really wanted! They had a great time! As for the Christmas goodies here's one of the recipes I used:
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies (gluten-free)
Ingredients
1 cup shortening
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (not imitation)
1 15 ounce can pumpkin puree
4 cups Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Gluten-free flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 bag semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets.
In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and the sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in the vanilla and the pumpkin until well blended.
Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves; stir into the pumpkin mixture. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until edges begin to brown. Allow to cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheets before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

I know what you're thinking, aren't your recipes dairy-free as well? I know that chocolate chips generally aren't, but I found some great gluten-free, dairy-free chocolate chips from Enjoy Life, that are both safe for my allergy-ridden eater and taste identical to the real thing, SCORE!
I hope that all of my readers had a wonderful Christmas with their families as I know I did, especially now that it's done! Now if I could only get my house back in order we'll be all set! ;0)