Our History in Houses

I was waxing a bit nostalgic this morning and I started thinking about all the places we've lived, all the people we've met along the way, and how each of them has influenced our lives. I started looking for old pictures and I found some of each of the houses that Ryan & I have owned. These old houses make me so happy to look at. Instantly they make me think of all the friends we made along the way and all the crazy memories we have together.

It makes me want to look at these pictures every day. I started working on them in photoshop and ended up photoshopping the heck out of them and this is what I came up with. Do they look enough alike? I had a hard time making them look like they were something that the same artist would have drawn. Should I change anything? I was thinking I might print them up 5x7 and hang them on my wall. Maybe I can even find a frame that holds three 5x7 pictures. What do you think? Is this mount-on-the-wall worthy?

Rain, Rain Go Away!!!

These are the words I've been chanting for the past couple of weeks as the completion of our backyard gets pushed back further and further. Every day it rained, and every day I waited as patiently as I could. Oh how I longed for some grass to walk on. Oh how I ached for a place for the kids to play. Well... the wait is no more!

OUR BACKYARD IS COMPLETE!!!

What do you think? Looks pretty great, huh? (just ignore the fence panel that needs to be put back in)

The Big 3-0!

When my friend Audrey and I found our that our husbands were going to be celebrating their 30th birthdays just 2 days apart, we knew we had to throw them a big fancy birthday bash. And since it's going to be such a looooong time until we're 30, we decided to be a little bit mean and go with an "Over-the-Hill" theme.

Saturday was the big day. We had planned a big BBQ at the park with all of our friends from the neighborhood, but when we woke up it was cold and rainy. We debated and debated whether or not to move our party inside due to the freezing rain, but we finally decided to chance it. (Which later turned out not to be the best idea. Sorry Audrey, you were right)

Here we are setting everything up. We put the birthday boys to work too. They were such great sports and such willing participants.



Notice all of the winter coats and hats? Yup... it was pretty cold.

Here's my cute birthday boy! It seems so weird to me that he's 30!
Despite the freezing temps, our friends still showed up to celebrate with us. You are true friends, I must say.

After we got all the kids crying about the cold weather and the 32nd plate blew away, we decided to move the adventure inside. Everyone came back to our house for cake & ice cream. We fit 14 adults and 18 kids in our house. It was tight, but we sure had fun.


Here are the boys blowing out their birthday candles. Can you tell just how awesome they felt posing for this picture? Thanks again for being great sports.

Thanks for all of our friends who were able to come. I'm so happy we moved into this neighborhood and have had a chance to make so many great friends.

Free Car Wash Anyone?

When the weather hits 80 degrees, it's time for water! With our backyard still not finished, there are limited options for water play. Nicole suggested they wash my car. It was the best free car wash I'd ever had!

My Attempt at Good Parenting

Lately we have been having a few problems with behavior at our house. My sister suggested an idea for us. I have since introduced it. It's been a couple of weeks and it's working pretty darn well. (Once I got over the fact that it was sooooo much work on my end) I'm posting this so I can look back years from now and say to myself, "Oh good for you for trying."
I made up a bunch of fake money for the girls. Now each rule and chore has a dollar amount associated with it. At the end of the night they get paid for the things they did. It's not an all or nothing thing. If they only got in trouble once, they will receive partial payment.

RULES
1. Don’t disrespect your family members or their stuff ($5.00)
2. Do not destroy our house and use things they way they’re meant to be used. ($5.00)
3. Keep things where they belong ($5.00)
4. Don’t waste food / Eat all your meals ($5.00)
5. No lying ($5.00)
6. No sneaking things ($5.00)
7. No bad attitudes ($5.00)
8. No gross behavior ($5.00)
9. Outside behavior stays outside ($5.00)
10. No whining or arguing ($5.00)

CHORES
1. Keep rooms clean ($15.00)
2. Make beds every morning ($15.00)
3. Don’t leave dirty clothes in bathroom or towels on the floor ($10.00)
4. Keep toys picked up in toy-room ($10.00)
5. Hang up coats & backpacks ($5.00)
6. Rinse off dishes and put them on the counter or in the dishwasher ($10.00)
Khursten
Empty garbages Bathroom, Loft, & Bedroom ($50.00 on the day you do it)
Keep loft straightened ($15.00)
Do Homework without complaint ($15.00)
Nicole
Straighten book shelves ($15.00)
Take care of stuff in stair basket ($15.00)
Do nightly reading ($15.00)
Audrey
Pick up bathtub toys ($15.00)
Put couch pillows back on couch ($15.00)

EXTRA MILE
1. Help mom with cleaning ($25.00)
2. Take kitchen garbage out ($25.00)
3. Good behavior when we have visitors ($25.00)
4. Put away clean clothes ($25.00)
5. Clean up toys from backyard ($25.00)
6. Help Audrey with things ($25.00)
7. Clean up a mess that’s not yours ($25.00)
8. Get 100% on your spelling test ($25.00)
9. No Pee Pee Accidents ($25.00)


Then the girls can buy things. Most of them are things that I was already letting them do for free. This way it encourages them to earn the things they want to do. It is already teaching them one of life's most difficult lessons, "You can have anything you want, but you can't have everything you want." If one girl pays for a family bike-ride and the other doesn't have enough money to go, Ryan or I will stay home with the one who can't afford it. They are forced to prioritize and really think carefully about how they'd like to spend their money. Plus, it's created a lot less nagging on my part. They're slowly learning that if they don't do the work, they don't get paid and if they don't get paid, it makes for one boring day. And best of all, it helps me have a better attitude about breaking out the scissors and glue and all the messy stuff because I know they have worked hard to earn it.
Here are the rewards that they can use their money for.

REWARDS
$10
1. Choose a treat from the treat bucket (3 per day)

$20
1. Draw / Color
2. 15 minutes of computer time (4 per day)
3. 1 hour of TV

$25
1. Play with friends after school
2. Stay up 15 minutes late (2 per day)

$50
1. Do crafts with scissors & glue
2. Popcorn with movie
3. Bedtime story from Dad
4. Go to the park
5. Family Bike Ride

$75
1. Mom makes your bed for you
2. 15 minutes of 1-on-1 time with mom or dad (2 per day)
3. Family walk or scooter ride

$100
1. Get out of dinner free if you don't like we're having (1 per week)
2. Painting

$150
1. Rent a family movie (1 per week)
2. Mom does full maid service for a day
3. Get a treat when mom goes shopping

$200
1. Do beads
2. Help mom make a treat for dessert (1 per week per kid)

$250
1. Trip to Dollar Store to spend allowance (1 per month)
2. Family game or puzzle

$300
1. Go swimming

$500
1. Trip to McDonalds (1 per month)
2. Yogi Berry (1 per month)
3. Special family activity (1 per month) some ideas:
Go see a movie
Go to the Zoo
Clark Planetarium
Kangaroo Zoo
Bowling
Picnic in Mountains, etc.
5. Trade in for one real dollar! (2 per week)