wish you were here...

New and Noteworthy

2012-01-25T12:51:00.000-08:00

Historically, January is my least favorite month. (See here and here for previous January ~~whining~~ posts.) However, January of 2012 has been the exception.

Perhaps it's the mild winter Bozeman is enjoying.
Perhaps our schedule (preschool, BSF, babysitters, play-dates) offsets the slow pace of long winter days.
Perhaps my pregnant condition enjoys the slow pace of long winter days.
Perhaps I just like using the word "perhaps".

Anyway, wanted to share some new and noteworthy happenings around the Schuyler household.

We got an ipad! Actually, I got an ipad, for Christmas, from my sweetie. However, the little Schuylers don't seem to care that it is, in fact, mine. They play games but mostly, they like to use it to look at pictures/watch movies of Transformers. Sigh.
When not in the clutches of the littles, I use it for online recipe look-up, Facebook, Pinterest, e-mail, weather, and on and on. Love. it. Love it. Love love love it.

I'm officially nesting.
Actually, de-nesting. I've made a list of "nests" that I'd like to tackle and rid the house of before Baby arrives. Think of a mouse's nest - a mess of bits and pieces of this and that, all matted together. The list includes (but is not limited to) all of our closets, under my bed, and my pantry. I've already tackled my junk drawer. See above. Ahhh - so organized and lovely! I have about 6 more weeks to tackle the remaining nests. Wish me luck.

Not-so-little Mr. Saucy Pants is sleeping in a big boy bed!
We recently moved this cutie-pie into the same room as his brothers. Yes, all 3 monkeys in one (smallish) bedroom. Believe me, there was no small amount of fretting by this mama over the transition. The fiasco of moving M and S to big boy beds is still fresh in my memory. Read this if it's not-so-fresh in your memory.
Per his usual, Sawyer stepped-up to meet his new found freedom with awesomeness and a smile. He just lays down and falls asleep. And stays in bed all night long. Amazing. Granted, we're only 2 nights in. Things could change. So far so good. I'm giving it two weeks and if it's still going well, on to potty training!

I sewed up a dress. A sweet little girlie dress. I had planned on giving it to Lane and Baby Girl Perrine. But, I've grown quite attached to it. I really can't part with it...yet. It's just so lovely and little and pink.
On that note, please do not worry that I'll be crushed if the baby I deliver is a boy. Yes, I'd love to have a girl. I've prayed for a girl, dreamed about mothering a girl. But, I really do have peace that the little one I'm carrying, boy or girl, has been knit together by the One who always pursues and works out what is good and right for me.
Romans 8:28 says, " And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." I happened to look up The Message translation of this verse and it is so fitting: "He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good." Ha.

And lastly, here's a shout out to Lane as she labors her baby girl into the world today! Woohoo!

Happy Wednesday to you!

2012-01-03T13:53:00.000-08:00

Well, I've neglected this space for two whole months.
Time to get back in the saddle.
Because I'm almost 8 months pregnant and I have a serious case of preggo brain, I'm relying on the memory card from my camera to help me review the past few weeks. Handy isn't it?

Mason
We've had snow but not much of it. The afternoons have been sunny and warm (relatively) - perfect for the monkeys and their spray bottles full of water/food coloring. I love that they can play outside...even if it does take eons to get socks/boots/snow pants/mittens/hat JUST RIGHT. These guys are high maintenance when it comes to their clothing. (Something my mother-in-law tells me they get from Matt :).

Smith, ready for action.

We bought our Christmas tree again this year. The idea of cutting one down is quite romantic. The reality, at least for us right now, is really unpleasant. I'm sure that could change as the boys get older. Let it be known, I prefer the store bought trees...they are so pretty and uniformly full. We had a great time pulling out all our decorations, listening to Christmas tunes, and sipping hot chocolate.

Mason, Smith and I spent an afternoon making chocolate-covered pretzel sticks as gifts for their preschool teachers. I handled the chocolate dipping and my helpers were in charge of the sprinkles. Oh the sprinkles. Oh the mess. Anyway, it was fun to make the gifts together. I have been known to stay up into the wee hours of the night crafting teacher gifts by myself. Cursing all the while. :)

Mason and Smith sledding down the "mountain" in our backyard. Real thrill-seekers, these two of mine. Ha.

Ma and Pa Schuyler came up the weekend before Christmas. Aren't they cute? That Santa's pretty creepy...

We toured a local home all decked out in lights and inflatables. Look, there's me! A rare sighting.They even had horses and goats for the kids to feed. Of my three, only Sawyer was brave enough to offer his hand to the animals. Heck, he probably would have ridden the horse bare-back if he were allowed. Cut from a different mold than the other two, that one is.

The grandparents showered us with gifts and affection, as always.

"I dead. I dead, Mom."
They all got guns that load/eject shells and make a shooting noise when the trigger is pulled.

Candy Land was introduced into our lives. It's a great game for the 4 year-olds and since it takes about 10-15 minutes, one game before bed is just right.

As is our (recent) custom, we spent Christmas in Bozeman. Here is the aftermath. Thankfully, the monkeys didn't wake us up until 6:45a.m. Not too shabby.

We are in the superhero stage right now...more specifically, the Transformer craze. Optimus Prime (Mason) with his Optimus action figure. We've had numerous conversations that go something like this: "Mom, who would win the fight if Optimus fought ________(insert SpiderMan/Darth Vader/Batman/Megatron/etc)?" My favorite is when they asked about Optimus fighting God and we determined that since they're both "good guys", they wouldn't fight each other.

Love. this.
One Optimus Prime, one Bumble Bee, and one mix.

After a lazy morning at home, we joined Ma and Pa Myers at the Bedford's new home for a Christmas feast of surf and turf...and another round of Candy Land.

Two other wonderful happenings, although not recorded by my camera, occurred in the midst of the above. You can read about the Myers' Christmas celebration via the Perrine blog.

Taken on the Bedford's new front porch.
Such a great photo for so many reasons...great colors, great faces, everyone's looking and smiling, and such great people.

And that same weekend, I spent 4 glorious days in Colorado visiting my dear friends/cousins, Hannah and Joy. I have absolutely no pictures to prove this but many happy memories/stories. Ask me some time about leaving my purse, containing a wad of cash and my Blackberry, in the bathroom stall at a convenience store/McDonalds in some random Colorado town. Great story.

Phew! Two whole months in summary. I'll leave you with this clip of Smiggy showing me his fighting moves while wearing his "speed" helmet.

Right now...

2011-11-08T13:21:00.000-08:00

Right now I am...

Marveling ...at God's creative genius in making boys so characteristically boy. I am loving all the shooting, fighting, web-slinging, good guys/bad guys, superhero-mania that goes on around here. This stuff is just in them - they didn't get it from me.

"I kill your father!"

Thankful ...for the ingenuity of a four-year old. "This track isn't quite as long as I'd like it...I think I'll just use firewood to make it longer."

Daydreaming ... about the little person I am carrying and how he/she has always been a part of our family. I am also curious about which finger(s) he/she will suck :).

Baby #4
Finger savoring.

Enjoying ...the brighter mornings thanks to daylight savings. It is ever so much easier to get this heavy body out of bed when it's not pitch dark outside.

Light squiggles.

Embracing ...the advent of snow and the cold months to come. It's amazing how novel something can become when you haven't seen it for 5 or 6 months. These boys of mine are helping me to welcome the snow with a happy heart - they love to shovel, make footprints, wield icicle swords, go 'hunting' in the backyard and would wear their snow-pants all.day.long. if I let them.

Pondering ...how to tame the beast of boots, coats, hats, mittens, and stuff settling into my mud room. I am also pondering how we will squeeze one more set of everything (and one more Schuyler) into our cozy home come March. Ha!

Blessed.

Over-due Update

2011-10-26T13:39:00.000-07:00

Yes, this update is much over-due...

The Fellas.
Three of my very favorite faces - all smiling and looking at the camera - glory be!

Ma and Pa Schuyler joined us in Bozeman for a night.
They spoiled Matt and me by taking us out for a nice dinner to celebrate turning 30. They spoiled the monkeys with doting attention, a new movie, and spontaneous wrestling sessions.

Smiggle-D.
We've had a wonderfully mild Fall in Bozeman. Lots of sunshine and a bit of rain - but no snow. This mama is loving all the energy that can still be expended outside and the resulting rosy cheeks.

Preschool has been such a bonus to us all. M and S really enjoy it - they are learning about patterns, rhyming, and all sorts of other things. They love their teachers and have really bonded with their 'movement' teacher, Tyler. Super bonus to have a male preschool teacher.

I, of course, enjoy the simplicity of having only one child for a few hours. I've never really had that, you know. And, I'm just gonna say it, dealing with only one 2 yr-old at a time is cake. Cake. There, I said it :).

Sawyer enjoys having his mama to himself. We run errands, we stop for a snack and coffee at a coffee shop, we putz around at home, we visit friends. He really likes to paint with watercolors. Don't think I ever attempted painting with M and S at the age of 2, but all the rules relax a bit the 2nd time around.

Mason demonstrating his 'balancing-on-one-foot' skills. Almost November and my child is still sporting crocs (w/o socks).

20 weeks pregnant and I finally feel good...not just 'fine', but good.
(I really don't have a good setup for taking my own picture.) I've seen an acupuncturist a few times to address some pregnancy annoyances - like my constant stuffy nose and painful veins. I think it's helping but who knows. I have a routine ultrasound next week where we will not be finding out the baby's gender. My c-section is slated for March 6th-ish.

Sawyer E (Matt is calling him "Silver" or "Silvs" these days.) My children have an uncanny ability to make swords out of dang near anything.

Spider-man crawling into the hunting blind set up in my living room.
(There's a sentence I never thought I'd write.) Matt killed an elk with his bow this year - hallelujah - and is now gearing up for deer season. He plans to take M and S with him a few times and the blind will allow him to do that. Without the blind, the monkeys would have to be perfectly still and absolutely quiet. Ha.

A "concert" for your enjoyment.

2011-09-09T13:05:00.000-07:00

Many milestones around these parts and, finally, a moment to document them on the blog.

As many of you know, I'm pregnant (me and Beyonce) and haven't been feeling well for the past 8 weeks or so. During nap-time, when I would normally update the blog, I have been napping along with the monkeys. Many of my usual activities - cooking, cleaning, sewing, blogging, enjoying life - have been put on hold due to nausea, fatigue and general misery. :) Now, approaching 14 weeks gestation, I am starting to feel human again. Enough about me, on to my crew.

Oh, this reckless boy of mine.
He came charging out of the garage and stumbled down the stairs, taking a nose-dive on the concrete. This photo was taken days after the incident and he still had that awful lump on his forehead. He said, "I bleed. I bleed."

Sawyer Eames turned 2!!
We now have three of all the essential toys. This boy wants to be just like his brothers so he received: a rifle, a suitcase, and a dump truck. And the yellow sword in the picture has not left his grip for weeks. He sleeps with it. Honestly.

He also received his very own Rody horse. He loves Rody. He doesn't ride it as much as he throws it. Ahem.

Shortly after Sauce's birthday, a bunch of family converged at our house for a visit. Meg, Joy, Selah, Zeke, and Stef joined my mama, sisters and kids (and us) for a whirlwind weekend of being together.

(Addie and Joy)
We celebrated Sawyer. We celebrated the birth of Zeke. And we celebrated Wes and Stef's forthcoming baby.(Sawyer, Grammie, Meg, Baby Zeke, Stef)

We did a lot of celebrating. :)

There were 7 children and 7 mamas. It was loud...and lovely.
Spider Man made cameo appearances.

.......................................

The monkeys started preschool!
They attend preschool (Tues/Fri mornings) at a gymnastics school where they get to learn and play on trampolines. They also get to swim every day. As I hoped, they are quite tired when I pick them up from school. We are all loving it!

It surprises me that Spidey likes country music - he seems more like a heavy-metal kind of guy.

My little star.

2011-07-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

This space has been much neglected...but for the best of reasons. Who wants to be sitting inside, in front of the computer, when there are so many fun things to do outside? Anyhoo, I know you understand. Here's what we've been up to...

After dinner one night, we loaded up the monkeys, fishing poles, and m&ms and drove up to the Hyalite Resevoir...a mere 20 minutes from our driveway. Mason is casting away, I'm chasing Sawyer around, and suddenly he shouts, "I caught one!" And, by golly, he had caught a little lake trout and reeled him in. He's caught fish before, but only with help. It was a proud moment for all of us. :)

Smitty was heart-broken that he hadn't caught a single fish by the time we had to leave. I tried explaining the incredible odds of Mason catching his fish to no avail.

Sawyer kept begging, "Try? Try?" So, we let him dangle the line in the water for a spell.

These monkeys-o-mine are playing outside any chance they get. Their play generally involves the hose, their tools, and guns. Ice-cream sandwiches were in order on this hot day. However, they have since informed me that ice-cream sandwiches are too messy and they do not want them anymore. Oi.

Matt is faithfully plugging away on our home projects. Thank goodness he has so much "help" around here.

This isn't the most updated photo, but you can see the new siding, paint, and front porch/gable. I'm toying with a bright blue, green or red for the front door paint color. Here is a before photo if you need a reminder.

Independence Day was a big deal at our house. The big boys spent hours lighting off fireworks. Their dad even let them use punks to light them without help. Gulp.

Big-man-Mase.

The Perrines stopped by on their way to the coast so we enjoyed an afternoon of 'cousin' time. In a stroke of genius, I set this table up on the front porch for play. All 5 of the messy/loud/rambunctious boys ate their dinner outside, despite the rain. Glorious.

Twins much?
My boys love camping - and this photo was taken moments before they loaded up the camper and headed into the mountains with their mountain-loving-dad.

Pete and Kale joined them on this particular adventure on the Gallatin River. Three boys and two dads sleep quite comfortably in the camper.

Pete and the monkeys. We live in a beautiful place, no?

Smitty.

Mase.

So, basically, we've been

fishing
fixing up our house
camping
eating ice cream
enjoying these glorious summer days/nights with friends and family

You?

The Whole Clan

2011-06-29T13:13:00.000-07:00

**Thank you for all your comments regarding the mud kitchen. Y'all are much too kind! **

A few weekends back, we had an impromptu family gathering in Bozeman. Ma and Pa Myers and the Perrines joined us and the Bedfords for some good times.

Grammie Monie brought basketball uniforms for all the boys and there was much hoop-shootin'. Papa was an expert rebounder.

Our little squad of ballers.

The weather mostly cooperated for us so a bonfire was definitely in order.
Our fire pit is rather large.

Lane and Maddox roasting to perfection.

Addie and Smith.

Grammie and Mason.

Smith contemplating whether or not he'd like to eat a burnt 'mallow.
He devoured it shortly after the photo...a burnt 'mallow is still better than no 'mallow.

Matt and Mason.
I have pictures of everyone (excepting Rob who joined us periodically when he wasn't working) but me! I was there, however.

Sunday morning we just hung out and enjoyed the mild weather. Mom helped me plant a bunch of flowers in various pots. Thanks, Mom!

Addie and the Jetty-meister.

It doesn't happen very often, but we have a lot of fun when we can all get together. It really is no small thing when you can truly enjoy and treasure time spent with your extended family.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On another note...

I found this pleather kid's tool belt while thrifting for $3.

It came with a mini tape measure, chalk line and level. I almost didn't buy it - since there was only one - but the price and novelty won me over. Have I regretted the purchase? Maybe...a few times. There have been a number of brawl's over whose turn it is to wear the belt. But my worker guys love it so much and they get so much work done around the house. Just the other day, they taped a dozen pieces of brown paper on my front door. And let me tell you, they can pound a nail into darn near anything. :) (I have, subsequently, searched online for something similar. I found an identical tool belt online...in Australia. With shipping, it would cost me more than 10 times the amount of the thrifted one. We'll just keep working on our sharing skills, thank you.)

Get a load of this little blondie.
He really doesn't care that one of the lenses is missing - what a champ. I don't know where my kids find these things, but they are always running about with sharp/dangerous/splintery/grimy/pointy things they brandish as weapons. Here Sawyer has a hollow metal pole of some sort and as he was pointing it at me, he said, "Gad guys! Gad guys!" (Bad guys).

Oh, my little love and his thumb.

(front)
Tired of laundering shirts with food stains on the sleeves, I sewed up a cloth napkin for each of my big boys. Couldn't resist the cute fabric with monkeys and polka dots, of course. I have a thing, I guess, for polka dots.

(back)
And we always know whose-is-whose with a simple embroidered initial.
These pictures are before the napkin had been used...obviously. I used material from a flour-sack dish towel so they wash up well with no stains. No more stained sleeves!...from food anyway. :)

Mud Kitchen

2011-06-22T13:40:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd day of Summer to you!

I had a different post queued up and ready to go but I just couldn't resist sharing this with y'all first. While mingling on some mama-blogs I often read, I came upon this brilliant mud kitchen idea. I fell in love with the idea and feeling confident that my monkeys would love it too, I headed to my favorite thrift stores for supplies.

Large spoons, pots, pans, measuring spoons and cups, tea kettle, and burners (I nearly peed my pants when I found these 4 burners that someone had removed from a play kitchen set for $2) all for under $20. The wood fish are for another project. :)

Oh the thrifting luck I had! I found this hutch/desk/shelf thingy at another thrift store for $20.

I assembled the kitchen while the boys were napping, placing it in the shade next to the hose bib, and let them find it on their own when they woke up.

No surprise - they took right to it and set about making hot cocoa, coffee, hot tea, and worm soup.

Little Sawyer wasted no time muddying himself. He would stir, stir, stir and then yell, "Dinnow-time! Dinnow-time!"

He doesn't quite understand the "pretend" concept. Hmmm, gritty.

Oh, the wonderful mess they made!

When we were done, I just hosed every thing, and every one, off. I plan to put up an oil-cloth curtain on the bottom so, when not in use, all the paraphernalia can be nicely hidden/protected underneath the hutch.

If you're hankerin' for some delicious home-cookin' of the dirt variety, stop on by!

Happenings

2011-06-06T13:44:00.000-07:00

Well, May has come and gone.
Just like that - the (many) rainy days of May have passed.
Let's review it, shall we?

The rains came after a few days of unusually strong winds. Gusty winds that made most outdoor activities unbearable...except kite flying of course. Mason had been 'working' in the garage, hence the tool-belt and tools, when I suggested flying his kite. He dropped what he was doing and having something new to focus on, a colorful whipping turtle, he didn't even notice the wind.

Turns out our backyard is perfect for flying a kite - not many trees and room to run. I took a turn with the flying turtle and quite enjoyed myself. This photo displays the freshly re-sided house and the desperately-needing-new-paint garage. We have recently painted both the house and garage and I can't wait to share the before and after photos...soon.

Snack time has become quite the thing at our house. Upon waking in the morning, the older two ~~demand~~ ask politely for their "wake-up snack". Mason came up with the name for the muffin/granola bar/quick-bread they consume before their actual breakfast. After waking from their nap, (yes, my 4 year-olds still nap and it's essential for my sanity) they ~~demand~~ ask politely for their "snack" - which they understand is quite different from a "treat". Keeping my kitchen stocked with acceptable (to me) snack material...fruit, granola bars, dry non-sugary cereal, yogurt, crackers...has become a whole other category on my shopping list.

Matt and I are ever on the hunt for ways to exhaust our boys. Activities that they really enjoy and that require a great amount of energy are the best! Enter the basketball hoop. Hours, yes, hours, of fun. Can you tell who did NOT want to pose for the picture?

I'm loving the fact that "air-ball" is not yet in their vocabulary and they say "Aww, close one," even when they've missed the hoop by miles. Mason asks, many times a day, if he can go outside to "shoot hoops". In the beginning of May, my boys would make 1 out of 10 shots. At its close, they are making 6 out of 10 shots. Not bad.

My monkeys and their muscles at swim lessons. Fierce, no? I was able to secure childcare for Sawyer for most of their once-weekly lessons so I could just sit and watch or read while sipping my iced latte. (Sawyer joined me a few times but he had a habit of grabbing a noodle and bopping the swim students on the head or dawdling dangerously close to the edge of the pool.)

I am so proud of my little swimmers! There were tears and resistance at the first few lessons, but now there are smiles and only a bit of resistance. Mason and Smith have made great progress and even though lessons are coming to a close, they will have ample opportunity to hone their skills at the city pool this summer.

Sawyer. Oh, my dear, dear Soybean.

Still wearing his rain-boots rain or shine
Calls Mason "Maysh" and Smith "Miff"
Surprises everyone by his accelerated vocabulary
Forming sentences already! "Dad home. Dad home."
Loves to dance
Protests strongly to certain songs played in the car by yelling, "Off! Off! Awwwwwwf!"
Plays well by himself
Figured out how to move his crib, while in it, close enough to the light switch to turn it on during nap-time
Super skilled at making a mess...with toys, food, dirt, water.
Dons a ski helmet when playing outside...usually upside down and askew.
Loves his Dad, Mama, and brothers

So dirty. This was the second t-shirt I put on him that day.

Progress! Siding is up, porch is framed, soffit is painted. My hard-working man, after 60+ hours of work during the week, has been working weekends to spiff up our house. I am so pleased with the progress. Can't wait to post pictures of the new paint job! Come back soon. :)

Four!

2011-05-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

The monkeys recently turned four years old. Four!

To this mama, four seems very big. There is not even a teeny-tiny remnant of anything "baby" about these two of mine - they are all boy. Mama-hood is funny in that I am ever eager for my children to grow and learn and progress and ever mourning the loss of my chubby-little-baby-boys. I am glad to have another chubby-little-baby-boy to momentarily fill that loss. :)

Anyhoo, we opted to party Billings-style with family this year.

In an effort to keep chaos at-bay, we partied with the Myers side the morning of their birthday and the Schuyler side the evening of their birthday. The four-year-olds prepare to blow out the candles on their pumpkin muffin 'cake'.

Tag team.

Party-goers enjoying pumpkin chocolate-chip muffins, camo utensils, coffee and chocolate milk...and stimulating conversation it seems.

It was time for our big boys to graduate from their tricycles so we gave M and S new bikes. I took them to 'try-on' different bikes at Toys R Us the day before and we almost came home with one of the bikes you see pictured above and one Diego bike. I really didn't want that Diego bike at my house BUT I didn't say anything and eventually M wanted the same bike as S anyway. Phew!

Soybean was a bit confused about all the attention/gifts/goodies his brothers were receiving but he lives by the "Keep Calm and Carry On" motto. While Mason and Smith pedaled gleefully around Papa's shop, Sawyer drilled (pretend) holes in every surface he could reach.

I bought an inflatable buck in keeping with the hunting theme of the party and our everyday life. Ha! Matt and the four-year-olds took turns hiding and hunting the buck.

The men with their kill. (Thank you, Lane, for helping me fill this monster with air. Thank you, also, for all the inappropriate posturing you did while blowing it up. Good times.)

After nap, we headed on over to Ma and Pa Schuyler's for some more fun. Matt, Sawyer and I were all pretty pooped by this point, but M and S were buzzing for more birthday attention/gifts/cake.

Grammie Laurie baked cupcakes with frosting and gummy bugs as requested by M and S. I have shamefully few pictures of the second party because, like I said, I was pooped. Trust me, it was a fabulous party...I just don't have the pictures to prove it. (I'm hoping someone else took some pictures? Jen? Janelle? Laurie?)

Mason sporting the helmet Grammie and Papa Schuyler gifted us. We still only have one helmet, so only one of our dear children is really safe whilst riding their bikes - we let the best-behaved boy wear it. :)

Live footage of the hunt.

Grammie and Papa Myers gifted the monkeys their very own cd player, along with some Bible-story cds and a VeggieTales praise cd. Blake taught them how to rock-out to Metallica in his room so they rock-out to VeggieTales praise in their room. Love it.

Usually, they turn the volume to max, close the door, and dance like monkeys - to the same song over and over again. They will not let me be in the room and are insistent that the door be closed all the way. On this particular occasion, Smitty left the door open and I caught a precious glimpse of what goes on behind closed doors.

Thank you to all our family for making all the parties fun and just-right for our fantastic four-year-olds. We love you! And someday, maybe, you might get a thank you note. :)

For fun, here are the links to the other birthdays:

Birth
One
Two
Three

Easter 2011

2011-05-04T13:56:00.000-07:00

Most of Easter weekend found us dealing with vomit and poop in some way or another. Everyone succumbed to the stomach bug, mentioned in the previous post, except me. Yes, I am Iron Mama. M and S were feeling better by the weekend so there were a few bright spots amidst the sickness and we enjoyed a sort of hodge-podge Easter celebration.

Journey Church hosts a city-wide egg hunt the Saturday before Easter. Mason, Smith, and I joined every man, woman, and child in Bozeman for the festivities. There was snow on the ground, of course, but the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day.

Easter Sunday we donned our Sunday best and attended church.
The monkeys are too big/old for nursery, and not quite big/old enough for Sunday school, which means they get/have to sit with the adults and listen to the sermon. Many times they do fine, color, read, sit quietly. Other times they act like monkeys. This particular Sunday, I braved the service with the monkeys and without Matt (he was home sick). It was a wrestling match...and I lost...miserably. :)
However, through the sermon, and at various quiet times during the week, God graciously, and tenderly, reminded me to stop focusing on myself and my (trivial) misery so persistently. And that, truly, is the message of Easter isn't it? Freedom from self and sin by Jesus' death and resurrection. I need to be reminded every.single.~~day. hour.~~ second.

After the wrestling match, er, church, we (Mason, Smith, and I) joined the Oberly's for brunch and another egg hunt. Mason, in the background, is very serious about finding eggs - he's a pro.

Mason in his church shirt - this is one of his favorites because it has two front pockets where he can keep "pens and notebooks just like Papa D".
We gave all the boys a mailbox stuffed with goodies. Smitty always gets blue, like his blankie, and Mason always gets green, like his blankie. Sawyer doesn't care what color he gets, he just wants to play with M's and S's stuff.

I sewed a fabric envelope for each of my dearies, from this tutorial, so they could play mailman over and over again without using up all my paper envelopes. I have plans to send them special mail every now and again.

Later that night, after all my chicks were asleep, I scrubbed every surface with Clorox solution for the third time in so many days. Then I collapsed into bed and genuinely thanked God for normally healthy kids and for the blessed advent of a new week.

**check back soon for the boys' birthday post!

Wah wah wah (Debbie Downer song)

2011-04-20T13:25:00.000-07:00

We've been sick around these parts. On the mend now, but there's been some puke and diarrhea amongst the monkeys, and this mama is battling a sinus infection complicated by a cluster of migraines. Fun!

We got a foot of snow Monday night, so we would've been stuck inside anyway, that's what I'm telling myself at least. :) We've done a lot of painting, watching of movies, reading of books, and much snuggling on the couch.

Taken during healthier times. Super-hero in glasses...laser glasses, that is.

This picture will not format correctly! Another super-hero with laser glasses.

This poor boy is healthy as a horse, but he is sick of being stuck inside with his ailing family members.

Happier times are on the way! :)

2011-04-07T15:24:00.000-07:00

Argh. Been gone too long from this space...the longer I'm away, the harder it is to return.

I blame my absence on the weather - actually, I'm blaming everything on the weather lately...my bad attitude, my boys' restless behavior, the coffee stain on my shirt, the war in Iraq, and the looming Fed shutdown. Yes, the weather is to blame. (I know, I know, I live in Bozeman, and springtime in the mountains is wet, snowy, and muddy...blah, blah, blah. See? I have a bad attitude. Bear with me. :)

My Big-Brown-Eyed-Baby-Boy.
Not much 'baby' left in him. Based on his advanced verbal skills and his desire to be like his brothers, this kid will be potty trained by the time he's 2. No matter how firmly I tell him to "Stop growing up!", he continues to grow. You should see him talk on his cell phone.

SawDog loves his rain boots.
He pulls them on, over his footed jammies, first thing in the morning. He wears them to breakfast. (Never mind we have a strict no-shoes-in-the-house policy - wink wink.) Fun to pull these particular boots out again for another Spring with another Schuyler boy.

Mason shooting an imaginary elk in the distance. Fierce.

Smith shooting another imaginary elk in the distance. Where do these boys get their obsession with hunting? Ahem.

Hunter Guy with Shovel, aka Mase. (This reminds me of Chandler/Friends' "Shovelly-Joe".)
The camo bandage on his head is protecting a puncture wound inflicted by a certain someone of the same height/build/age/household. That certain someone shut the closet door on Mason's face and he was terribly sorry about it.

Fort!

Boys in fort!

Lately, the monkeys have taken to playing with my binders. They tell me they are doing "Bible study". I'm cool with that.

This hat, knit by Joy, has seen a few heads in its day.

Aunt Addie is a celebrity to my boys.
She's awesome, obviously, but she also lets them play with her iTouch and gives them gum/tic-tacs.

Other than a snowy forecast, April brings swim lessons (more on that to come), the beginning of bow season (turkey), Easter, and my firstborns turning 4! With so much happening, I hope to be in this space more often.

Peace out.

(They are singing: "O the Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord for giving me the things I need, the sun and the rain and the apple-seed. O the Lord is good to me. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Aaaaaamen!"

Makeover Monday

2011-03-14T13:43:00.000-07:00

Good Monday to you! Happy 'Ides of March' Eve!

I have been on the lookout for some sort of book storage for our den (the room off the kitchen with the piano). It's a small room and a bookcase wouldn't fit well. Besides, we have a large, built-in bookcase in the living room. I needed something to hold the 5-10 books we read the most/borrowed from the library. Up to this point, they would lie haphazardly about the room, on the arm of the loveseat, and under the rocking chair.

On a recent thrift store outing, in the midst of carrying a large chair to the cash register, I spotted this little gem:

Only $3! I bought it, of course.

It has good bones, is not too ornate, and is somewhat portable. However, me-no-likey-the-brass.

That very day, I wiped it down, took it outside and spray-painted it eggshell blue.

Aaaaah. So much better.

Saw-dog likes it too...that is, he likes to push it all around the house.

It completes the cozy reading nook nicely.

Oma Becky, Kale's grammie, made superhero capes for all the boys. The monkeys don't call them capes...they call them "superhero". "Mom, can you please help me put on my superhero?"

Hope you have a 'super' day!

Daily Grind

2011-02-24T13:23:00.000-08:00

Well, nothing really revolutionary going on around here (unlike Egypt and Libya). Just truckin' along with the day-to-day.

Little boys find it necessary to dump out all the legos out at once...even if they only play with the airplane and 6 legos. This is how my living room looks 99% of the time. Watch your step. (Joel Moore and Sawyer in picture.)

Kale Moore and Mason piecing a dinosaur puzzle together. If only I had a dollar for each time this puzzle was dumped out, put together, and put away. It'd be like $20...a day!

Oh, my little Soy-man. Let's see, he is

wanting to do whatever M and S are doing
acquiring many new words each day
hitting his head less often (thank goodness!)
outgrowing all his clothes - he is a chunk
finally loving his blankie

I sewed him this blankie back when he was still a wee little one.
However, he would have nothing to do with it - I placed it in his crib every nap/night and it would be thrown out on the floor within minutes. About a month ago, he realized M and S both had beloved blankies and suddenly his became quite dear. He drags it about the house, snuggles underneath it to sleep, and covers his lap with it when being read a story. It is no small thing to this mama that he loves something she has made.

Chocolate chip cookie face.
After devouring one cookie, he asked for another and I said 'no more'. A few moments later, Sawyer finds me putting away laundry in the bedroom. Holding another cookie in his chocolatey mitts, he smiles and proudly says, "Hi!" Cheeky little bugger managed to grab another cookie off the counter and couldn't resist showing his mama. I guess I'm thankful he hasn't learned how to be sneaky like the other two yet. :)

It is common, around these parts, to find miniature monuments set up in unlikely places. I like to think of them as household cairns. :)

Mase and Smithy call these paper/scissors/sticker/crayon activities their "signments", pretending to be like our neighbor gal, Alana, who comes over for help with her math assignments.

These two still enjoy most of the same activities, and they play well together a good portion of the day. But as they grow, their individuality grows too. Mason will only wear 'work' pants (jeans) that snap. Smith feels jeans are too tight and will only wear elastic waste cargo pants. Chocolate milk is M's pick for lunch; S insists on orange juice. I know these are small, ordinary differences but, up until recently, they have always wanted the same of everything so it is a significant shift in the way of things around here. Keeps me on my toes.

The Bozeman Symphony held a free family concert a few weekends back.
I took the older two to a coffee shop and then to the morning concert for a date. Smith is enjoying a cinnamon-sugar muffin.

Mason opted for a scotch-a-roo at 9 in the morning (gag). The concert was short and Harry Potter themed so the monkeys enjoyed it. Smith whispered several times during the concert, "Mom, I like to take a date with you." Sweet boys. I know this won't always be the case, so I am dreaming up many more dates.

Playing shirtless is a thrill no matter the temperature.

I painted the room off the kitchen a lovely shade of gray/blue. However, it's more blue than I wanted so I'll be re-painting it this weekend. Sigh. The previous picture of M without a shirt shows the color we've lived with since moving in. I painted all the bedrooms before we moved in, but haven't touched the living room/dining room/kitchen/hallway. They are all still 'Builder Beige', which is not bad...it's just not me. So, I'm finally getting around to changing that. I hope to have before/after shots on the blog in the next few weeks...or months.

It's been so stinkin' cold lately that we haven't been able to get outside as much as is necessary. I've been inspired by this Winter Manifesto to keep a positive attitude toward the evil that is winter. :)

I believe they're singing, "We will! We will!" I love how they pause their playing while Smith turns the page...as if they're actually reading the music. Oh, monkeys.

Makeover Monday

2011-02-14T13:50:00.000-08:00

Hello, Monday. I have a quick little makeover for you today as a Valentine's Day treat for your eyes. :)

This is the scene at our back door.

We use the back door as our primary entrance...for ourselves and guests. Yikes. Not a welcoming site. And truth be told, I forgot to take a real 'before' shot, and this one was taken after I'd cleaned up the coats/mittens/hats/misc. We have so. many. coats: raincoats, sherpa coats, vests, puffy coats, wind-jackets. There are five people under this roof and a hundred coats.

And then there are the shoes: snow boots, rain boots, sneakers, sandals, running shoes, flats, dress boots...all piled up at the back door, regardless of the season.

Lastly, let me address the coat hook/shelf. Look closely and you will see a curtain rod resting atop 3 of the hooks. Why? Who knows! On top of the shelf is a BB gun. Why? Who knows! This strange arrangement of coats, curtain rod, and gun have been a mainstay at our home for years. Years. There is also a neon green utility knife and some blue tissue paper. Oi. A change-is-a-comin'...

After.
I put the curtain rod, gun, knife and tissue paper in their proper places. I sorted the hundred coats and shoes and put away the many that are not needed this season. I corralled the mittens/hats/scarves in the camo backpack. The basket and canvas bag hold M's and S's coats and snow gear - easily accessible for monkey hands. And, the best part, I placed two newly framed prints in the gun's stead.

Here's a closer look at the prints. You can find them here, along with the artist's other cool stuff.
I feel so much better about the entrance to my home. Stop by some time, please, and check it out. We'd love to have you!

Lately

2011-01-31T14:07:00.000-08:00

Hello, February! February is better than January. Why? It's shorter, plain and simple. So, with that said, let's wrap up January...

Mason, his vest and his map.

It's far too cold to go on a walk with just a vest...try telling that to an almost-four-year-old who pretty much knows everything. No matter how much he shivers or huddles, he will not admit to being cold/wrong. Oi. On this particular day, he was using his map to direct us where to go on our walk. Like I told you, he knows everything.

My little sherpas.

Trooper.
He wants to walk, pull a sled, or push a dump truck like the big boys but he is frequently foiled by his clumsy toddler feet, exacerbated by the bulky winter garb. It seems he always has a purple/green bruise on his forehead.

Occasionally, one of Sawster's brothers will share his dump truck. Pure joy.
Mittens and toddlers do not work well together. Argh. Mini-down jackets, on the other hand, do work well with toddlers. I need not mention how adorable Saw looks in his puffy jacket - too obvious. :)

Smigg-a-doo.
This was taken on a particularly warm and sunny day. Hence, no coat.
This boy no longer has a baby face - he's my dude.

Amex (Mason).
Same sunny day as above and M is overdressed. He's into extremes - underdressed (vest) or overdressed (sherpa coat).

Fresh flowers are medicating my disgruntled attitude toward winter.
Highly recommended.

Amidst the clutter of the kitchen corner, if you look closely, you will see a sneaky little tot hiding from his mama.

Rough shape.
What did I tell you about his forehead bruising? He's in the habit of toddling about with his thumb in his mouth. Incredibly, he chooses to "catch" his fall with his forehead rather than remove his hand from his mouth to stop a fall with his hands. Let's hope he grows out of this. :)

Smitty, suddenly, no longer likes knit pj pants. He says they are too tight. Don't bother explaining "flame retardant" or "fire safe" to an almost-four-year-old. Save your breath. Anyhoo, rather than fight him on it, I just whipped up a pair of lounge pants. He really looks like a dude now.

Mom and Pop Myers came up to Bozeman for a weekend to watch the monkeys while Matt and I escaped for a mini-vacation. We rented this house in Paradise Valley, wined and dined in Livingston, cross-country skied in Yellowstone Natl Park, soaked at Chico Hot Springs, and generally just enjoyed one another's undivided attention. This is the only picture we took, taken during our ski tour. It was a glorious weekend!

I do so enjoy watching my husband chop wood.
My man, swinging an ax, displaying his strength, providing fuel for the fire (pun intended :).

Hot Chocolate!

Who can resist a chubby-rosy-cheeked monkey in snow-pants?
This mama cannot.

Smith reading "Danny and the Dinosaur" to Mase.

2011-01-14T13:40:00.000-08:00

Oh, January.

I've come to realize that I really don't like January. January is the month of my mid-year crisis (not fiscal year, obviously, school year). Christmas is over, the New Year celebrating has come and gone, and there's nothing but dull, gray, cold winter for another 3 months (at the very least in Bozeman). Wah-wah (Debbie Downer music). The boys and I are mostly stuck inside and I am desperate for any activity/outing that will 1) keep their attention for 20 minutes, 2) exhaust them and 3) get us out of the house and/or out of our daily rut. The January doldrums.

In a very concentrated effort to keep spirits up, I am focusing on the many many wonderful everyday moments occurring in our realm. Ahem. Here goes...

Last night, Mason grabbed the blankets off his bed, dragged them into the living room and spread them out over one of the couches. He told me it was his jobsite and that they were concrete blankets keeping concrete warm to cure. He was, obviously, very upset when his brother tried to disturb the blankets. He knows how terribly fussy wet concrete can be. I love how fiercely my boys love and want to be like their father. It's great having 4 "worker guys" under my roof.

Waiting in our car at the coffee kiosk (we do this daily), I prompted the boys to look at the mountains and then expressed that God made such glorious mountains for us, His people, to enjoy. Smith thought about this for minute and then said, "Yep, God made them just for our dad to love them. Right, Mom?" I am amazed by my children and their perfect insight into concepts/ideas/truths that I think are beyond them.

This week, we enjoyed many seasonally-appropriate meals from my two go-to websites: Mel's Kitchen Cafe and The Pioneer Woman . My favorites were Mel's chicken and dumpling soup and Italian roast beef sandwiches, found here and here, and PW's whiskey glazed carrots and caramelized onion and prosciutto pizza, found here and here. If you only try one of these recipes, you've got to try the whiskey glazed carrots - super yum. If there's one good thing about January, it's the food...hearty, satisfying, comfort food. And wine, of course.

My lovely sister-in-law, Janelle, gifted me the soundtrack to the first season of Glee. The monkeys and I have been listening to the CD in the car as we run our various errands. The very second we get into the car and get buckled, Mason requests his favorite song/Smith requests his favorite song. Mason's favorite? The lively rendition of Kanye West's "Gold Digger". Ahem. Smith's favorite? The melodic rendition of REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling", which he calls the "Horton Song" because the characters on the movie "Horton Hears a Who" sing it at the end. It is just purely awesome.

On the way to gymnastics, seemingly out of nowhere, Smith started to recount a day this summer when Matt taught he and Mason how to shoot a BB gun. This memory led to another memory regarding the ice cream truck that stopped at our house (this past summer) and provided a delicious ice cream treat. This led to a very serious question: "Why doesn't the ice cream truck drive by our house in the winter?" After a back and forth discussion between the 3.5 year-olds, Smith finally concluded that, "We don't eat ice cream from the ice cream truck in the winter, 'cause snow will get on our ice cream and make us cry. Right, Mom?" Exactly. Almost-four-year-olds have incredible reasoning skills.

This morning, Matt took the older boys up to Bridger for their first ski adventure of the season. This time around they donned boots/skis and learned how to walk and maneuver. Matt held them between his legs and skied down the kiddie slope with each one alternately. They loved it. Positive experience = success! With M and S gone, it was just me and the Soybean. He played with a fork and the cheese grater for a long time. Then we went to the library where he said "hi" to most everyone, toddled about the kid's room inspecting the other children and their respective activities, and generally just reveled in his mama's undivided attention. This second-born, third boy of mine is full of personality and charm and it's a pleasure getting to know him. Did I mention he played with a fork and cheese grater? :)

These are just a few of the week's wonderful moments. It does me good to pause, remember, and savor these simple, extraordinary moments.

January Schmanuary.

Getting ready to go.

Hugs from Sawyer.

Modeling his ski pass.

Mason and his pass.

Headed out.Cheap, dangerous toys.

This, that and the other thing

2010-12-29T14:38:00.000-08:00

Snow Day!

Monkeys CAN paint!
This 25-minute paint session was quite possibly the only 25-minutes M and S weren't fighting/antagonizing one another all day. Lucky me!

The Sawster enjoying/ingesting the (non-toxic) finger paints.

Greetings! Today, we are stuck at home due to heavy snow-fall and below-zero temperatures. Wahoo! Good excuse to blog, I suppose.

The weekend before Christmas, we found ourselves at Chico (local hot-springs/resort) in the company of a certain Grammie Laurie and Papa D. We booked a cozy 2 bedroom cabin and enjoyed the pool, the poolside grill for dinner, and the fancy-schmancy dining room for breakfast. We all enjoyed ourselves very much!

The grandparents had an early Christmas with the monkeys and spoiled them royally. (What are grandparents for, right?) We played many rousing games of "Memory". In fact, I think we've played at least one round of Memory every day since it was received. Mason is getting to be quite the opponent!

We celebrated Christmas Eve with the Bedfords. After a satisfying meal of bbq pork ribs, cheesy grits, and salad, the boys opened one gift each. My two opened the rifles that Grammie Monie and Papa Scott gifted (Sawyer was already in bed, of course). And Blake had the misfortune of opening a pair of pajamas...they were awesome Spider Man jammies but compared to the rifles...not so awesome. Next time, Addie and I agreed to discuss the type of gift to be opened :).

Soybean tasting the first spoils of the morning...a chocolate/marshmallow Santa.
We stayed in Bozeman, at our house, just the five of us, for Christmas!
While we certainly miss being with our extended family, it is oh-so-nice to wake up Christmas morning at our own cozy house. As you might imagine, our morning was not quiet or peaceful but loud, exciting, and lots of fun.

The loot!

Sawyer got an inside scoot bike from his mom and dad.

Again, the rifles are a BIG hit.
They insist on having the rifles in their room at night while they sleep so that they are available first thing the next morning. Did I mention they are cap guns? Smith prefers not to have "bullets" but Mason won't shoot without them. Normally, shooting guns is an outside activity...outside isn't an option right now so I'm asking the Good Lord for patience and inner peace during these looooooooooong winter months :).

"Santa" delivered a wooden train set. Thank-you, Santa, for a quiet toy.

After our Christmas nap, we headed to the duck pond on campus to feed the ducks. The many ducks were eager to greet us. However, due to the melt down in the car as we prepared to leave our house, this frazzled mama forgot to bring bread for the ducks. Those poor hungry ducks!

This looks says, "I'm not so sure about this, Mama."

Cute boys with beanies.

The boy of many words.

Hope your Christmas was lovely, your New Year is fantastic and that you are warm and cozy on this Winter day!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2010-12-16T12:36:00.000-08:00

I don't know if it's the most wonderful time of the year, (I'm thinking the most wonderful time is some time in July, when it's 80 degrees and I'm sipping a margarita, but hey, that's just me.) but it's pretty darn good. There's something very satisfying about sitting in front of the fire after playing in the cold, sipping wine, and admiring the soft glow of the Christmas tree...even if it's only for 2 seconds. (Have you noticed that my favorite moments always include sipping an alcoholic beverage? Have two 3 year-old boys and a toddler and then you can judge me - or join me :))

Our beautiful tree.
We purchased a tree this year, rather than cutting one down, and I must say, (and have said over and again to my husband) it is the most beautiful tree we've ever put up. He's in denial, but you just can't find this kind of tree in the wild. Anyway, the picture makes the decorations look sparse, but the silver/white/snowflake/star theme I have going on is so lovely.

The mantle.
I finally got around to making Sawyer a stocking this year...poor kid. The spray-paint is still drying on his "S" so it's not yet hanging with his stocking. I made the stockings out of linen using a free pattern from Amy Butler's website (see sidebar). I love how simple and non-fussy they look.

I found this small artificial tree at Salvation Army for $5. The boys decorated it with their ornaments (boyish ornaments I picked up at a dept store after Christmas for cheap-o) and we placed it in their room atop their dresser. Initially, I put mini-LED lights on the tree as a festive night-light, but it was too terribly bright and not at all conducive to sleep.
Side-note: Mason is wearing his snowpants inside, over his clothes. He likes to do this, even when he is sweaty and needing to pee. He quickly dismisses my suggestion to just wear them outside...this suggestion is unreasonable/intolerable to him. Ahem.

I made these delicious cookies for a cookie swap party. I will be making them again and again. They're that good.

Matt and his guys had some time to kill in between jobs, so they spent a few days re-siding my little house! Yahoo! They also tore off the awful front porch. The makeover is not yet complete, but worry not, I will post before/after photos when everything is done. The siding is all up but we still need to paint and build a new porch. That handsome, strapping young man in the picture is my sweetie. :)

Mason and Smith couldn't be happier that their house is dad's (occasional) job-site. They spend most of their waking hours outside "working". This made me very happy, too. :)

The older two monkeys have learned the Pledge of Allegiance at play-dough church (BSF). If your day was lacking some cuteness, I'm happy to share mine.

Today

2010-12-01T17:45:00.000-08:00

Today...

...Began with a new routine: three-year-old boys were instructed to stay in their beds, reading quietly by the light of a lamp, until retrieved at 7am by their sleepy-eyed mother or father. We practiced a bit last night, and what-do-you-know it worked!

...We participated in worship, discussion, and study of Isaiah 15-23 at BSF.

...My little ones enjoyed their friends in the lobby after BSF, playing a boisterous game of "Dinosaur". If you've been in our company in the last month, you are familiar with this game as M and S coerce any and every one into playing it with them.

...During intermission (i.e. nap-time), this mama exercised in the warmth of her home. When it's cold, and you have three (3!) little ones, you do what-you-gotta-do...and I did. :)

...We bundled up for an invigorating walk down the street, dragging sleds (and sometimes Soybean) behind us.

Sawyer enjoyed the sled-ride...the other two did NOT want to ride. Oh boy. However, they still talk enthusiastically about skiing...we shall see.

...Matt and I devoured this for dinner. It was the first time I've made it and it won't be the last. Yum.
...In our home, with a warm, crackling fire, we gathered and snuggled and felt full and satisfied as it came to a close.

Today...was good.

2010-11-22T13:52:00.000-08:00

Makeover Mishap

Due to my procrastination and poor-quality spray paint...today's makeover project is canceled. I thought I could pull this whole bird-themed makeover together within a few hours (it was going to be titled "For the Birds") but, alas, twas not to be.

I bought two cute birdies from Jo-Ann's and thought I could transform them into bright yellow birds for my mantel. Things I learned:

There is a reason Valspar spray paint is cheaper than Krylon.
If, after spray-painting an object, you are not liking the way it's looking, DO NOT put said object under running water to rinse off wet paint. You will have a sticky mess on your hands...literally. (I spent 10 minutes scrubbing my hands with Goo Gone.)
Some crafts can still be successful under a time-crunch...some cannot.
Spray painting in the house is a decidedly BAD idea...fumes!

So, anyway, no makeover today but hopefully a non-makeover post sometime this week. And, while I have many makeovers still to complete, I will not be posting them every Monday any longer. You saw this coming didn't you? We had a good run anyway. :)

2010-11-15T12:44:00.000-08:00

Makeover Monday:: Beauty and the Beast

Hello, friends! We find ourselves enjoying/enduring another Monday. I've got a doozie for you today.

Before.

I bought this beastly chair at a garage sale (back in April) for $2. It's not much to look at, but it is sturdy, it's made of real wood, it is surprisingly comfortable, and the upholstery is easily covered. And, the seat lifts on a hinge to provide storage underneath. Pretty nifty.

Much to my husband's chagrin, I brought it home and placed it in the office/sewing room...where it has remained, hidden from view, for months. (To be fair, I've adopted many ugly chairs over the years with lofty aspirations of reupholstering/painting/slip-covering and very few have been beautified. I usually end up re-selling them at a garage sale or donating them to a thrift store. Matt's reservations were warranted.) Until now...

After!
I've charmed the beast with some fabulous upholstery-weight Joel Dewberry fabric. Armed with a staple gun, (Addie's staple gun...thanks, sister. I'll return it to you someday. :) I pulled, stretched, folded and stapled the new fabric right over the old fabric.

Another angle for your viewing pleasure. I used paste wax to spiff up the wood work, which worked quite nicely. I am so pleased with this beautiful chair. I'm not sure I can keep it hidden in the office anymore!

Happy Monday to you!

Quickie

2010-11-08T14:00:00.000-08:00

Makeover Monday: Let There Be (Attractive) Light!

Today's makeovers are quick and easy. Like 15 minutes, spray paint, and masking tape easy.

Before.

I purchased this lamp from KMart. I liked the look of it much better at the store than when I brought it home. Kinda blah. Yellow spray paint to the rescue!

After!
I'm really into yellow these days. So sunny and bright. When thrifting, I am always on the lookout for lamps with a nice shape. Brass, glass, wood, whatever - it can all be spray-painted. Shades are another matter. I've yet to find an easy makeover for shades.

Before.
Ahh, yes, another silver floor lamp with a white shade. Who doesn't have one of these? This one's from Target. It's boring and slightly wonky. No matter how many times I adjust it, it always appears to be leaning one way or another. Anyhoo...

After!
I used brown double-fold bias tape (binding) to add some interest to the shade. Ribbon would also work very nicely. The best part about this project? I used masking tape to secure the ends of the binding. Awesome.

Happy Monday to you!

Yellow & Gray...

2010-11-01T13:32:00.001-07:00

Happy Monday to you! Before I get into the makeover of the week, I'd like to share some cuteness with you.

I was unable to get all 3 boys in one picture - no surprise there. Two "huntin' guys" and a giraffe, along with a ninja (Blake), a dinosaur (Kale), and a monkey (Joel), hit the sidewalks of Bozeman to trick-or-treat. The cuteness factor was like 20 on a scale of 1 to 10. After every house, my guys would run up to me and ask, "Do we get to go to another house?" I would respond that yes, indeed, we would be hitting another house and they would squeal with delight. This exchange occurred after every. single. house. Fun was had by all.

Makeover Monday: Yellow and Gray (parts 1, 2, and 3)

Part 1)

Before.

I have a (large) stash of knit t-shirts that I no longer wear but keep around anyway. Recently, I've found a number of online tutorials with projects for knit fabric. I knew there was a good reason for keeping all those shirts.

So, I cut this yellow shirt into strips, grabbed a bottle of Fabri-Tac, and sat down in front of my computer to follow this tutorial.

After!

A sweet yellow rosette. This is a great project to do while watching TV - easy and pretty mindless. Fabri-Tac is essential and wonderfully awesome if you don't want to use a needle and thread. I'm thinking these could adorn headbands, bracelets, pillows, cards, purses, etc. Or..

...you could use them to adorn your pajamas like I did. :) I used a safety pin to temporarily attach the rosette to my jammies.

Part 2)
We have lived in this house no less than 2 years and I have yet to hang anything on the walls in my bedroom. There's already a lot going on with just doors and window - the small room has 4 doors and 2 windows (one door is the entrance, one is to the bathroom, and two are closet doors). I finally got over my reservations and adorned two of the walls.

Before.

After!

I nabbed this shiny metal mirror at a garage sale (thanks, Becca!), and it had been sitting on the floor in the guest room for months. Using a Hercules Hook, this project took 5 min. I highly recommend Hercules Hooks - they have eliminated the conflict Matt and I would have whenever I wanted to hang something on the wall. They hold an absurd amount of weight, do not require a stud or a hammer, and leave just a small hole when removed. Also, I have found baskets to be a great accessory for the top of dressers. My dresser top looks neat and tidy because all the miscellany is contained/hidden within the baskets.

Part 3)
My bedside table is a catch-all for everything - books, clothes, phone charger, loose change - and, therefore, not pleasing to the eye. Rather than address this problem, I decided to hang a cool print above the table to distract the eye. Sneaky, huh?

Before.

After!

I found this cool quail print here. I thought it was fitting...a mama quail with three baby quails scuttling along behind her. AND, it fits nicely with the color scheme I have going in the room. Here's a close-up of the print. Picked up the Ribba frame from Ikea for a steal. I had some glare issues in my attempts to photograph it - you can see the reflection of me still in my pajamas. Nice.

Happy Monday to you!

I'd like to conclude this post with more cuteness.

October and such

2010-10-28T12:51:00.000-07:00

October! Yes, it's come and almost gone. We've had a marvelous October here in Bozeman, sunny skies, highs in the 60s and 70s (!), and virtually no snow. (This time last year, we had already experienced frigid temperatures and much snow.) So many days spent enjoying our backyard and nearby parks with friends...we felt our summer extended a bit.

October is the (glorious) month of my birth. I turned 29 and am now on the cusp 30. Weird. To the monkeys, birthdays = cake. Not wanting to make my own cake, and not wanting to eat a cake made by sweet husband, I bought two tasty cupcakes from a local bakery. Very tasty.

Birthdays are infinitely more fun with children. All holidays, really. Matt treated me to sushi for my birthday dinner and then I met up with my friends at a local wine bar for cocktails. It was a good day.

Sawyer enjoyed a piece of toast with Nutella for breakfast. He liked it. A lot.

The weekend following my birthday, Rebecca, Naomi, and I stole away for a long weekend in Salt Lake City. Did I mention we left our children (8 children between the 3 of us!) in the care of our husbands? Yes, four fantastic days where we only had to care for ourselves. We talked, read, shopped, ate well, shopped, exercised, talked some more, and shopped again. We had a grand time...and so did our husbands, which means we can do it again! :)

While I was in SLC, Matt took the boys to get ski passes. Ski passes at 3.5 years old. Crazy, I know, but at $5 a piece, it's a no-brainer. Ski equipment is another story.

Makeover Fail. :)
Sawyer was able to reach the leafy branch I adhered to his wall. You can see the remains dangling over the side of the crib. I was relieved to find that he hadn't eaten any of the vinyl leaves. After a good hearty laugh, I put the tangled mess in the garbage and started thinking about something else to adorn that half of the wall.

I hope to have at least one picture of my crew in their Halloween costumes. The older two will be going as bow-hunters, of course, and Soybean will be a giraffe. Here's hoping I can get all of them in one picture, eyes open, and smiling. Ha! Look for it Monday, along with another project for Makeover Monday!

Happy Halloween!

Makeovers Inspired by S

2010-10-18T08:56:00.001-07:00

Phew! When I promised to provide a new makeover project every Monday, I didn't realize how quickly each Monday would arrive. It's an ambitious endeavor, no doubt, helping me to accomplish projects I have been thinking about and planning for months (years, for some).

Today's makeovers (yes, there are two!) were inspired by and completed for my little man Sawyer. Being the third boy in the Schuyler clan, Sawyer's wardrobe is 99% hand-me-down clothes. He doesn't mind a bit - but his mama thought he needed some britches that were 100% new and his very own.

Before.

I used mostly fabric I had on hand - a wonderfully soft pillowcase, a bit of linen, and miscellaneous scraps. I borrowed this book from Naomi and used the "Quick Change Trousers" pattern to make these pants for my SoyBoy!

After.

These trousers are not only super cute, they are also reversible. I cannot, in fact, show you the other side of the pants because they are smeared with jelly, hummus, and whatever else he ate that day. No problem, just turn 'em inside out and he has a clean pair of pants. Beautiful.

Sawyer-Eames-Smarty-Pants!

*********

We have 3 bedrooms in our cozy little home...we also have 3 children. Matt and I sleep in the master bedroom, of course, Mason and Smith share a room, and the baby's room is also the guest room. Basically, Sawyer gets a small corner of the small room for his crib and clothes/diapers/misc. He doesn't mind a bit - but his mama thought he needed a little something to spiff up his corner.

Before.

Pretty 'blah' as is. I wanted to put something up on the wall but I was reluctant to hang anything that could come crashing down on my baby's head whilst he slept or, more likely, while he was pounding on the walls with his chubby little fists, protesting sleep. TJ Maxx provided the best solution...vinyl wall adhesives!

In progress.

After!

This makes me so happy! It was surprisingly easy - I completed it in about an hour. Each leaf and branch is a separate re-positionable adhesive. If I wasn't happy with how it was looking I could just move something or start over. I found similar products here but not the same design.

Now Sawyer has his own cozy 'nest' and his mama can rest easy knowing his decor won't fall on him.

Happy Monday to you!

It's Monday again!

2010-10-11T09:09:00.000-07:00

Makeover Monday: Tangled Mess to TV Bliss

Before.

This is an all too common scene at our house: toys strewn about, monkeys in jammies, Sesame Street on tv. But I know that, all too soon, lounging in our jammies most of the morning will be a bygone luxury. In not-so-many years, we will all be rushing off to school, work, meetings, etc., and these days will be a sweet memory. So, for now, we are reveling in our slow, easy mornings. I am not, however, reveling in the media setup shown in the picture above and this cute video I couldn't resist sharing.

Our tv rests upon an end table we acquired with the purchase of our house. Our blu-ray player balances precariously on top of our stereo system. Wires dangle haphazardly underneath it all. Not only unsightly, but also impractical. Being a naturally curious little guy, Sawyer could not keep his chubby little hands off the player and pushed it off the stereo many times a day. We had to replace our HDMI cable (thanks, Rob) because it literally broke off the back of the blu-ray player. Something had to be done!

I purchased this little number at Target, online. It met our criteria:

cheap (Have you met my husband?)
designed to fit in a corner
sturdy
not an enormous entertainment center
compartments for speakers, stereo, blu-ray player

The one major drawback to the piece? Assembly required. Argh. On one of her visits, my dear mother-in-law sat with me, on the floor, gluing, attaching, ungluing, re-attaching, securing with screws, cursing, sweating, for many hours as we assembled this piece of furniture. She clearly loves me very much. As much as I hate assembling my own furniture, I can't imagine assembling it for someone else.

Fast forward a few months, and I finally got around to painting it the perfect shade of antique blue/green. Sherwin Williams has this great adhesion primer that sticks to anything - glass, plastic, fake wood - it was the key to my success in painting over the wood veneer. Blah, blah, blah, here is the finished product!

After.

Aaaah. So much better...even zen-like. I am so very pleased with the result. (Not so pleased with how close my children are to the tv...oh well, makes for a good picture.)

Happy Monday to you!

Weekending

2010-10-09T08:41:00.000-07:00

Last night, we bundled the monkeys up, put Sawyer to bed at the Kavanagh's, and made our way to a very crowded football stadium to watch the Bozeman Hawks play the Helena Bengals.

The cool Fall air, the bright stadium lights, the band playing, staying out way past bedtime - it was all so exciting for our little buddies who have never been to a live football game. I think all of Bozeman came out to watch the game - and half of Helena. Both teams came into the game with a 6-0 record and it was a point-for-point game until the fourth quarter. In the end, the Hawks won 35 to 28. More importantly, Matt and I had the pleasure of being in the company of Mason and Smith (it's not always a pleasure, you know), engaging in an activity we all thoroughly enjoyed.

Me and Smitty.

All night, he kept asking, "Where are the drums? Can we go see the drums?" I have long felt that the marching band is the highlight of a good football game experience. I was glad to be in the company of a cutie-pie who felt the same.

Matt and Mason.
Mason was all business, of course. He watched and talked, and watched and talked. He was a bit distressed at having to leave his gun, hunting knife (a stick), and hunting drill (his own invention) in the car. "What if I see an elk?" he asked. Not to worry, no elk were sited.

Good times.

This morning, after not-sleeping-in, Matt set out to kill the elusive elk, the boys and I enjoyed a cinnamon roll and Sawyer honed his walking skills. Hope your weekend is full of fun, too.

New

2010-10-01T13:40:00.000-07:00

In an effort to spice things up a bit for my readers (all 10 of you, wink, wink,) and for myself, I will be adding a new feature to this here blog: Makeover Mondays!

Not the lipstick and mascara type makeovers - I'm really no good at those - but the sandpaper and spray paint makeovers. Starting today and every Monday henceforth, you, my dear readers, can look forward to a "before" and "after" photo and brief narrative on some object I've transformed to use or give away.

I am really looking forward to Makeover Mondays - it will serve as a reminder that while Mama is a very significant role I play, it is not my only role. I am Wife, Sister, Friend, Daughter, of course, but also, Seamstress, Spray-Painter, Krazy-Gluer and Re-Purposer, to name a few.

Okay, you get the idea. So, without further ado...

Makeover Monday:: Humble Hooter to Ornate Owl

This little guy was gifted to me by Lane. I believe she picked it up at a garage sale in Astoria to adorn our Hoot Inn. He contained a wood spoon and some remnants of potting soil. Not sure what his intended purpose was/is. In his original state, he is kinda shabby-chic and earthy-cute. However, after seeing this and this, I grabbed a can of pearly white spray paint (that I had under my kitchen sink, of all places) and gave him a makeover. Drum-roll, please...

Ta-da!

I really love how he turned out...so much so, that he'll be staying in the house and not in the camper. In his current perch, he is within the reach of little hands and unlike my owl, that is not wise (I should add Pun-er to my list of roles...tee hee).

If you are curious (I was), go here to see why owls are considered wise. Happy Makeover Monday to you!

So, you think you can dance?

2010-09-23T19:24:00.000-07:00

September marks the opening of bowhunting season (elk). Camouflage paraphernalia, elk bugling, peanut butter/honey/bacon sandwiches, dousing oneself in elk urine, waking at 3:45am to hike many miles, Sitka gear...

Unfamiliar with such things? I envy you.

I joke. Matt loves to bowhunt and when he loves something, he pursues and enjoys it whole-heartedly. (Have you heard how long and arduously he pursued me to marry him? :) It's a characteristic I've always loved about him. Of the 23 days we've had of September, he's hunted 12 of them. And he will hunt 3 more days in September; and then there's October...

Anyway, all that to say that I am one tired mama of three active boys and blogging is pretty low on the list of priorities. During bow season, my biggest priority is SURVIVAL. So far so good. :) I look forward to not-so-many years from now when my boys can accompany their father on his hunting adventures. Down the road, September will likely be my favorite time of year, too.

My Mason. He directed the styling of this photo - he wanted to be sucking his beloved thumb and holding his beloved blankie...no smiles, no saying "cheese". He spends many minutes throughout the day in this position.

After a few different poses, Smiggy opted for the eyes-closed-while-sucking-his-fingers-and-holding-his-'baby' pose. What goofy boys!

Smiling Smithy.

Fresh from the tub in his shark towel.

A few weeks ago, while Matt was somewhere in the mountains tracking elk, I sent M and S off to Billings to enjoy some time with both sets of grandparents. One of the nights, I put my baby to bed and invited my friends over for a late home-cooked meal. The wine, conversation, and laughter flowed freely and we even dined by candlelight. Fancy, I know.

Also during that glorious weekend, Addie and I tried our hand at canning. I volunteered to chop the peppers...hence the gloves and sunglasses. Spicy! We thought we were making pepper jelly but we really made pepper relish. Darn.
In the end, we (and when I say 'we', I really mean 'Addie') canned pepper jelly, pepper relish, corn relish, tomato basil simmer sauce, and strawberry jam.

M and S started gymnastics this fall. They are learning how to jump on an enormous trampoline, scoot across the balance beam, balance on the balance ball, forward roll (somersault), and other gymnastic-y things. More importantly, they are learning to wait their turn, to listen to and follow directions from an adult other than me, to interact with other unfamiliar kiddos, to practice self-control (they would jump on the trampoline non-stop without teacher intervention), and how to be a decent human being even when I am not present to remind them how. Ahem.

This picture was taken shortly before M freaked out because he couldn't find me in the parent-viewing area. I had moved to a more picture-friendly area. A smile and a wave from me and he was back to business.

Soyster pushing his cart. This guy is so close to walking. It won't be long before he is running after the other two...or running from the other two.

Enjoy the videos. They were my inspiration for the post title.

2010-09-01T13:39:00.000-07:00

Our littlest monkey turned one!
Sawyer E. has one whole year under his belt and he wears it well, of course. We celebrated with lots-o family, Mexican-Fiesta style, at Papa and Grammie Myers' house.

The birthday boy taking a swing at the sombrero pinata. He could hold the bat but had trouble swinging.

Blakester had no problem swinging the bat! Sawyer's brothers were quite timid about bashing the pinata and I think it was Aunt Addie who actually broke the sombrero open.

Amidst the spoils.

This was the best of the oh-so-many pictures I took trying to capture all three monkeys together. Although timid about breaking the candy out of the pinata, they were quite eager to enjoy the candy once it was out...go figure. :)
(You'll notice the large white bandage on Smith's index finger...he stuck it in a metal fan from a machine in my dad's shop. It. was. disgusting. Good thing Grammie Monie was around to nurse his bloody, chopped-up finger...I couldn't even look at it. No stitches were needed (or possible) and 3 weeks later it's looking pretty good.)

Although not walking, the One-year-old is quite mobile and grabby...but oh-so-cute.

Uncle Bing playing in the hot-tub with the boys. Smith couldn't get in due to his finger wound. Bing is the best at the cheesy-goofy picture face.

Matt's sister, Kayla, 'got married' the day before the birthday party. She married Jody Powell, a wonderful partner-in-crime, in a lovely ceremony followed by a fabulous reception. We had such a great time...and I have no pictures of the blessed event!

We've graduated from "the lion movie" (Madagascar) and are on to "Finding Nemo". It was about time, too, because I think we watched Madagascar a hundred times. At the very least. Here Mason is impersonating the "man with glasses" (the scuba diver who captures Nemo) from the movie.

Smiggle...looking an awful lot like Mason. I know this is a funny thing to say about twins...really, I get it, but 99% of the time they look so very different to me that I find it odd when I mistake one for the other.

Bike tune-up courtesy of M and S. No matter that they're using the tire pump on the seat.

Worker guy Smith.

Worker guy Mason.

Mason and his bundles watering Grammie's garden.

Aubyn and Hans were married!
I, of course, have only 3 pictures of the delightful event. Turns out it's difficult to wield a camera and wrangle 3 monkeys...who knew. Above, Grandma Claire, Joy, Meg, Lane, and Aubyn.

Grammie Linda, Addie, Smith and Sawyer.
(I found toddler neck-ties for M and S on etsy.) Thanks to many helping hands, I was able to enjoy the affair without having to chase children the whole time. My family and Matt's family are an essential component in maintaining my sanity, honestly.

Proof of my existence, with my dear friends and cousins, Joy and Hannah.
It truly was an "Awesome Wedding", from the whole table devoted to candy, to the hilarious photo booth with mustache props, right down to the homemade cloth napkins. The food was insanely delicious. The ceremony was short and sweet. The party-goers were fun and family. Hans and Aubyn know how to throw a fabulous party.

And now, it seems, summer is over...abruptly. It was a strange summer, weather-wise, but memorable and loved in all other ways. Fall will find us back in BSF and the boys are starting gymnastics, all of which will keep us just busy enough.

2010-08-06T13:04:00.000-07:00

Summer has been so good to us! It's hard to believe how much 'life' you can cram in to 3 months of the year. Summer in Bozeman is so. so. good. In March (and April and May...and sometimes June), we forget why we love it here. In July, August, and September, we remember why we love it here so much.

It's been pretty mild around here, weather wise. Perfect weather for running around our backyard, enjoying our inflatable pool, meeting friends at the park, and learning how to use the pedals on the tricycles...quite an accomplishment.

While peeing in the yard, Mason dripped enough pee on his underwear to not be able to wear them anymore. So, he took them off behind the garage, of course. Somehow, Mason talked Smith in to bringing the dirty undies inside. Smith is no dummy...he wasn't about to touch the pee-soaked undies either. Brilliant.

The ice cream truck! Yes, this truck meanders through the neighborhood, blaring a happy tune, calling all the children to come running for frozen treats. On this particular occasion, Matt indulged the monkeys with ice cream sandwiches...and Mason hadn't even finished his dinner! Sometimes even Dad is a push-over. :)

Delicious.

Saucy (as Aunt Kayla calls him), has discovered the wonder that is his tongue.

My sweetie and I recently celebrated our 6th anniversary and we had the pleasure of dining with Mom and Pop Myers as they celebrated their 34th anniversary. There was laughter, free-flowing wine, a few deer, a beautiful sunset, and homemade mud pie. Perfect.

Smitty in the aftermath of a fudgesicle.

My Mama and Aunt Meg met in Bozeman for a quick and delightful visit. The monkeys were fast friends with Aunt 'Magg' and enjoyed her as much as I did. We braved the Costco food court for lunch.

Redo:::

Before...

After!
Rather than fixing the hail damage on the van, we bought a (much needed) new washer and dryer. Love, love, love them. Bigger, quieter, more efficient, and more bells and whistles. Having a brother-in-law employed at Vann's is working out really well for us. :)

Before...

After!
I found this mirror at a garage sale for cheap-o, spray painted it a nice chocolate color and hung it in the bathroom. Voila.

After! (I don't have a before picture of the bookshelf.)
I got an organization itch one afternoon and organized the books by color. I'd seen it done in a Crate and Barrel catalog and thought I'd give it a try. I'm very pleased with the result - the yellow stack is my favorite.

**The banner picture is our centerpiece right now...hunting season is coming!

2010-07-12T14:05:00.000-07:00

Well, we find ourselves in July already. Oh, Summer...you are so wondrous and so wondrously short. Not too much to report around here...we're doing our best to enjoy these long summer days...playing outside, enjoying our inflatable pool, grilling 90% of our meals, dining outside on the picnic table, staying up late, sleeping in (is it wrong/sad that 7:30am is considered 'sleeping in' at our house?), scouring garage sales, perusing farmer's market, savoring the abundance of fresh produce, and generally just hanging out. Life is good.

I know I am slightly partial, but this is one good-looking kid, no? He's graduated from his Bumbo seat to a more stable booster seat. (He managed to rock himself off the picnic table in his Bumbo and I was sitting right next to him. Horrible.)

Classic snack-time chocolate milk. (These pints were on sale 3 for a $1. I normally just make my own chocolate milk, but presentation counts much more than it should to these 3 year olds.)

Independence Day

We headed up the road, camper in tow, to Canyon Ferry for the 4th. My parents and my sisters and their families and my family all congregated at a nicely-appointed cabin just a few yards from the lake. All together there are 14 of us counting Baby Perrine! Above, Grammie Monie satisfies SawDog's insatiable desire to walk. (Look, Mom! You made it on the blog :)

The men enjoying a hearty breakfast. The wine is still on the table from the previous night's dinner...we have a strict "no-alcohol-till-noon" policy while on vacation.

What do my monkeys like to do on vacation? Work, of course! Mr. Steve loaned them some tools so they could get some work done. (Mase)

Smith

Thrifty Finds

I love a good bargain and summer is the perfect time to find them. My sewing machine has been idle for weeks (months?) now but it's no matter...it's garage sale season! The above are a few examples of garage sale/thrift store finds. (The polka dot pillowcase was not thrifted but was on major clearance.) I will sew in the fall when it's not as necessary to be outside.

Itsa Hoot

2010-06-24T13:16:00.000-07:00

I am happy to report that these Schuylers enjoyed another weekend camping in the "Hoot Inn". We journeyed to Paradise Valley and parked at Carbella's Campground on the Yellowstone River. Papa and Grammie Myers and Blake joined us (although, mysteriously, we have no pictures to prove they were there...trust me, they DID join us) and it was a hootin' good time!

Our campsite. Mason, in orange, could not be convinced that campers should reserve thumb-sucking and blankie snuggling for inside the camper. We pick our battles.
You'll also notice that my monkeys insist on wearing sweaty, rubber rain boots rain or shine. When the boots are removed, I have stinky, wet toddler feet patting about. We are in need of comfy, easy-to-slip-on summer footwear. I found $13 Crocs (new) on ebay from a Japanese seller and ordered them promptly. They sell for $24 retail. My fingers are crossed that I will actually receive them...the seller's description contained questionable English :).

Ahhh, the elusive Mama. You all knew she existed, despite the few sightings of her.

Smith-gee in my shades.

Saw Dog crawling about the camper. Don't worry, Grammie Laurie, he's in no danger of falling out :).
Another successful camping trip under our belt! This was Sawyer's first trip, as he and I didn't join the boys the previous weekend on the Boulder. As expected, he was a trooper - he slept reasonably well and only fussed when he couldn't tromp around camp with the big boys. It rained on us briefly and we had the luxury of waiting it out in the camper. Having grown up in a strictly tent-camping family, I have to admit I used to snub my nose at the weenies who needed a camper to go camping. Not anymore! Having a camper is delightful and I don't feel like a weenie at all...I feel dry and comfy and safe!

***Here is a picture of the owl clock that adorns the camper's wall.

Sawyer E turned 10 months old this month! His top two teeth are coming in and he likes to rub them against his bottom two teeth...hence the clenched grin in the picture.

Memory Maker

2010-06-12T13:59:00.000-07:00

Introducing the newest addition to our household...

"The Hoot Inn"!

We recently acquired a 1973 camper/trailer. Named by its previous owners, the Inn boasts lovely 70's decor and original fixtures.

The kitchen is complete with stove/oven, sink and fridge.
Most of the interior is original and in great working condition. Loving the lime green and lemon yellow!

Closet door on left, potty door on right.

Comfy couch that pulls out to make a bed.Potty. Nice wainscoting, huh?

Dinette that pulls out to a bed. There is also a fold-up bunk bed over the dinette.
Matt and the older boys took "The Hoot Inn" up the Boulder River last night for their first camper adventure with Aunt Kayla and Papa D. It was a huge success!

Breakfast by Papa D...eggs, bacon, and pancakes.

Mason, keeping warm in his beloved blankie.

As we expected, the monkeys LOVE. TO. CAMP. Finally! (They haven't always loved it, as many of you know :)

Hooray for new adventures and new acquisitions! We are looking forward to enjoying many weekends at the Inn.

Potty Talk

2010-05-31T13:08:00.000-07:00

Well, my friends, I am so, so, SO proud and happy to report that the three-olds have said 'bye-bye' to diapers and 'howdy' to big-boy underwear!

Using the method described in this book, I spent Friday morning training Smith and Sunday morning training Mason. Phewf-ta! Both boys picked it up quickly and I have not put a diaper or pull-up on either of them since their training day...even at night!! We've had accidents, of course (only one at night), but the accidents have provided the best learning experience and have really helped the monkeys get what it's all about. This is the method, in a nutshell:

Teach them the process with a doll/monkey/teddy bear.
Have them teach the teddy bear.
Provide lots of salty snacks, drinks, and candy for motivation and ample opportunity for practice using the potty.
When an accident occurs, the child must practice walking quickly to the potty from various locations in the house with the wet britches still on, then remove the wet underwear and put them in the laundry before pulling on clean britches.
Praise the child excessively, disapprove strongly at wet britches.

The book/method was developed in the 70's, so there are some funny illustrations, mildly offensive terminology, and a few irrelevant tangents, but I highly recommend it to anyone trying to potty train. It gave us a good solid start to our new adventure in pottying. :)

Smith's tummy bear practicing. We moved the potty chair into the kitchen for easy access.We squirted water into the potty for pee and a brown m&m for poo. Classy, I know.

Smiggle and his bear modeling big-boy underwear.

Celebrating the milestone by calling all the Grammies and Papas.

Amos-Moses in boots and britches. After all the candy he earned from pottying, he was quite energetic (i.e. hopped up on sugar) and ran outside in this get-up to chase birds around the yard.

Yikes! Stripes! M and his tummy bear in big-boy underwear.

Matt took the big boys morel hunting on Monday. True to their gender, they LOVE to pee outside and do so whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Like most things worth doing, there have been some challenges. With their new skills, they have also figured out that needing to pee is an excellent excuse to get out of bed at night...five, six, ten times. After three full days of intense training, I was mentally and physically exhausted. My dear husband can attest to this and the emotional breakdown that ensued...hence the morel hunting trip on Monday. He got the boys out of the house and gave me a much-needed break from all the potty talk. Ha.

I am so very pleased with my big-boys and this monumental accomplishment. With this under our belt, we're on to bigger and better things!

Third Birthday and other stuff

2010-05-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

Mason and Smith turned three! For their party, we celebrated with 100 of our closest friends and family...okay, not 100, but A LOT of friends/kids/babies/loved ones squeezed into our cozy home for a BBQ and bonfire. I had planned on hosting it in our huge, awesome backyard, but April/May in Bozeman is still pretty much winter. No matter, it was still fun to celebrate, eat, and roast marshmallows with so many dear people.

Papa D and Smiggy. It's either no smile or an over-smile with these guys.

Mason, left, Smith, right, posing with their dump-trucks from Papa and Grammie Schuyler.

Birthday morn, Smithy trying to hold up three fingers for his age. Trucks, trailers, back-hos, excavators, dump trucks, garbage trucks...you name it, they love it.

"Three" seems very big to me. They're mostly 'boy' now and not much 'baby'. (However, they are still in diapers - something I'm hoping to remedy in the next few weeks. More on that later.) Mason and Smith have requested to watch the movies from their first and second birthday every day. We have had much fun watching, laughing, and explaining to them that they are watching themselves...a strange and unattainable concept for a three year old. :) Here is a link to their first birthday and a few posts and thoughts on their second birthday here , here and here .

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

MayMo sportin' the tool belt.

This is the "garbage truck" that the monkeys built on Mason's bed using couch pillows. M is driving, Saw-Dog is a passenger, and S is a "worker guy". Equipped with a saw, jackhammer, and pistol, they are fully prepared for any garbage dilemmas.

My little Black-Eyed-Pea. While sitting on my lap, he lunged forward and hit the bridge of his nose on the coffee table. There was blood and tears and I felt terrible. This photo was taken a few days after the fact so his eye is looking much better than it did originally...no permanent damage.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas...the pajamas being the only similarity to the movie. (I haven't seen the movie, but I'm told it's very good) Saw-Dog is still smiling, despite the injury.

In order to get my boys to eat green veggies, I sneak them into smoothies. Lately, we've been enjoying blueberry/blackberry/strawberry/spinach smoothies mixed with yogurt and silken tofu.

The key to my success has been the use of plastic straws...smoothies are meant to be enjoyed through a straw! The novelty of it cajoles my three-year-olds into slurping away.

Smoothies are not only nutritious and delicious, but they are also just the right consistency for a sweet little 9 month-old to enjoy too. This Mama is glad to have found one lunch that feeds all of the monkeys in her care. (Those cheeks! Also delicious.)

Loving...

2010-04-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

Loving right now...

Mase-Mose, shovel-totin', hat-sportin', camo-short dude.

"Mom, can I go outside?" It's music to my ears. I love that they would rather play outside than watch TV; I love that we have an abundance of outdoor space and that they have an abundance of energy to enjoy it; I love that they can safely be 'out' while I am 'in' (watching and listening, of course); I love that all the dirt, rocks, sticks, yelling, crashing, throwing, bouncing, sawing, and hammering is totally appropriate outside; and I love that it is finally Spring in our lovely town and that we can be outside.

Affogato Coffee Frappuccino at Barnes and Noble. It has a shot of espresso drizzled on top rather than blended into the rest of the drink. Normally, I think a frappucino is too sweet but with the extra shot (or two) of espresso...it's tasty and delicious.

Blogs and Etsy. As a SAHM extraordinaire, I have become dependent on the internet for, let's see...everything. Per some of your requests, I am sharing some of the blogs I read regularly and some of the Etsy stores I shop.

Young House Love - how to do most anything to fix up your casa
mmmcrafts - check out her free printables and free patterns and tutorials.
How About Orange - I've had this one on the side bar of the blog for awhile. But, check out her "Free Downloads" and "Time-Wasters" bullets on the home page. I use these all the time.

Etsy - oh how I love thee. Etsy is an online marketplace to buy and sell all things handmade. I have purchased from Etsy: jewelry, a purse, fabric, books, sewing supplies, and home decor. My advice to anyone shopping on the site is to come with a pretty good idea of what you are looking for...it has thousands and thousands of items and can be quite overwhelming if you're just browsing. Here are some of the sellers I heart...

Creative Thursday - lions, owls, monkeys, oh my! Great art for kid's rooms.
Nora Jane - mini rubber stamps are so cute! My favorite are the birds and frog.
Elsita - I have three of her papercut prints...Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, and Peter Pan...hanging in my living room.
Arian - cool art by a lover-of-Jesus who incorporates that love into her art. I purchased the "Good Night" print for Sawyer's room and the "New Mercies" print for Lane's housewarming gift.
Green Chair Press - letterpress paraphernalia that I have almost purchased many times :).
Retrofied - I bought my reversible hobo purse from here and LOVE. IT.
Dazeychic - my favorite print is the 'happier than a bird with a french fry'.

(Let me know what you think of my favorites and share some of your own in the comments.)

Eight Months

My little Sunshine is 8 months old already and he wears it well. Eating three meals a day, taking 2-3 naps, sleeping 13 hours at night, smiling and laughing at his beloved older brothers, cutting two teeth with nary a fuss, sitting up on his own, loving bath time, enjoying the swing at the park, scooting around in his walker, sucking his little thumb - I am loving eight months!

Rain boots on the wrong feet. Rain boots are awesome because almost-three-year-olds can put them on with no assistance from me. No ties, no velcro, no frustration - just step into them and head outside. I love this. There is a 50/50 chance of an almost-three-year-old boy getting the boots on the right feet...this would lead one to conclude that half the time the boots are actually on the right feet. WRONG. At our house, the odds are 100 to 1 that the boots will be on the wrong feet. Oh well. This doesn't seem to bother the monkeys one iota so it doesn't bother me. Rain boots are also awesome because they are not snow boots.

Smith, Wrong-Foot-Rainboot-McGee, riding the bike I scored for free from the curb.

My husband (now and always). I love his work ethic and integrity; I love how passionate he is about building well-built, well-thought-out, amazing homes; I love his sense of humor; I love his ability to nick-name (Right now he's calling me "Muhgatmoh", Sawyer "Dalgas" and the other two "Smoke-us"); I love the unique way he loves and follows Jesus; I love that he works hard, plays hard, and sleeps hard :); I love how well he loves me and his sons. Check out his latest completed home here.

And you? What are you loving right now?

Me and mine

2010-04-03T15:28:00.000-07:00

My little Soyster after a much-needed bath. He's an expressive one.

And so deliciously chubby and delicious. I have to resist the temptation to just gobble him up quite often.

Bozeman enjoyed a nice spell of warm weather here lately. It found us outside as much as possible - drilling, shoveling, and just generally working. Mason, above.

Smitty and his infamous eyebrows.

One warm Saturday ago, the Perrines and Bedfords joined us in our backyard revelry.

Matt and Bing shooting the bow.

My two monkeys not-riding the tricycle. Pedaling is still a yet-to-be-mastered skill. Smith is in stripes.

Mama Lane and Baby Perrine enjoying the sun. Soon we will know if it's a boy or girl! I'm playing the odds and saying it's probably a boy ;).

Blake, our resident bike-riding pirate extraordinaire.

Family photo retakes. This is probably the one I'll be sending out to y'all...probably. What serious little monkeys I have.

Due to the crummy weather that hit us Easter weekend, we moved our egg hunt from our backyard to Miss Sara Kavanagh's classroom. It was perfect; the kids played in the gym while the mamas hid the eggs and then we let them loose to fill their baskets. As you can see from the photo, it's nearly impossible to get eight little ones to look and smile at the camera all at once. Impossible.

After the hunt, everyone headed back to our house for lunch and fellowship. Addie and the little ones built an angry snowman and lots of little snow people.

The men took turns trying to hit the chimney on our garage with snowballs.

I made an effort to keep Holy Week and Jesus' resurrection at the forefront of our celebrating, honest, I did. However, we enjoyed lots of chocolate and candy and these Loaders were a big hit with the monkeys. They are "working" all the time now...even more than before. :)

2010-03-15T12:55:00.000-07:00

My apologies for the blog silence lately...I'm trying to squeeze 10 lbs of stuff into a 5 lb day. Here's what's been going on lately:

:::Recently, Dave and Laurie, Matt's folks, came up for the weekend for a visit. Matt and Dave (Papa D) boldly took the almost-three-year-olds up to Bridger for their first skiing adventure.

Matt futilely trying to reason with a toddler. Here's how the morning went:

M and S: I'm goin' kee-in (skiing) with you, Dad. I'm gonna be really bwave.
M and S: (2 minutes later) I don't wanna go kee-in. I will cry.
M and S: (2 minutes later) I'm goin' kee-in (skiing) with you, Dad. I'm gonna be really bwave.
M and S: (2 minutes later) I don't wanna go kee-in. I will cry.

After much prodding, encouragement, frustration, and fruit snacks, they donned their gear and headed up the mountain.

Mason and Papa D on the bunny slope.

Though they didn't actually put on skis, Mason rode the Snowflake lift once with Papa D and walked down. Smitty rode the lift multiple times with Matt and rode down the hill in his arms.

Proud Dad and Smiggle.

After seeing Smith ride down with Matt, Mason agreed to ride down in Papa D's arms.

By the time we were ready to go home, Smith was ready to ride the lift over and over again.

By this point, my very patient hubby was ready to pass the kids off and do some real skiing.

Baby steps. Mason and Smith's first encounter with skiing was pressure-free, short, and accompanied with hot cocoa and gummy worms...and minimal tears. Success! My wonderful kiddos are cautious when it comes to new things...remember our first camping trip? Or how about the transition to big boy beds? The kind teachers at BSF tell me, weekly, that my boys "have trouble with transitions". Ahem. Matt and I have learned to have high hopes and low expectations when it comes to introducing something new and it has served us well :).

************************************************
::We've had some great sunny weather here in Winterland. Our backyard is south-facing and really heats up in the sun so we've been enjoying play-time outside as much as we can.

However, there's still snow covering our yard. Smith's shirt was "bodderin" (bothering) him so we took it off. Brrr!

Of the two boys, Smith really loves the outdoors. He has learned to put his rain boots on all by himself so he doesn't have to wait for me when he wants to go outside. He usually puts them on the right feet. The photo above shows his outside get-up: boots, tool belt and no coat. I love this look :).

My mama was in town for a visit and snapped a (rare) photo of me and my boys. I feel like my whole day revolves around feeding my family! It's always time to eat at my house.

We had our good friends over for dinner and fired up the chiminea. "Warm" is relative and since it was almost 30 degrees outside, we played outside and made s'mores over the fire.

A very talented friend took our family portrait before Christmas...but I still didn't manage to send out a Christmas card. We had another photo session with her recently, to capture a less-formal portrait, and I will be sending these out! Let me know in the comments if you'd like one. Sawyer's expression cracks me up.

Who doesn't love a laughing baby?

Weekending

2010-02-22T14:12:00.000-08:00

My goodness, another week and weekend have passed (past?)! I am thankful that February is a short month - March is ever so much closer to Spring than February, don't you think?

Since I stay at home, our daily routine is pretty much the same be it Saturday or Wednesday, so I try to make weekend days a little bit different - a little bit special - for all of us. I have been working on getting the things that must be done - laundry, chores, paying bills, etc - completed during the week so that weekends can be more relaxing and reserved for things that get to be done - sewing, reading, sleeping-in, etc.

Like I said, I am working on it, and still haven't managed to enjoy a weekend without laundry. And grocery shopping - imagine wrangling two almost-three-year-olds and an infant into a grocery cart and then trying to fill it with groceries - it doesn't work. So, Sunday afternoons find me at the grocery store with a latte and a list and actually quite happy to be by myself buying groceries. Sigh.

Anyhow, this last weekend found us at home, for the most part, enjoying the warmth of our wood burning stove, playing with play-doh, following the Olympics, visiting with friends, sewing, watching "the lion movie" (Madagascar) multiple times, and Matt even got to shoot his bow.

All the boys, except Baby Soy, were in need of haircuts. Matt let the little ones buzz his hair before they had their heads buzzed. Smith told us he was going to be "rear-ee bwave, guys" (really brave, guys) and proved so.

I sewed a pillow cover to match my new lamp. None of my pillow covers match each other, but it makes me very happy to have this particular pillow cover go so nicely with my awesome lamp.

I finally hung these bird prints that I've had, framed and waiting to be hung, for two months...at least. They are Charley Harper images that I found, for free, here. Loving that they are hung in a highly visible corner of my living room and that I can see them while I sit on my couch nursing my babe multiple times a day.

Speaking of the babe, this little butterball is now six months old! Handsome and happy as ever. If you haven't met this kid, you gotta - he's awesome.

My little Maser playing the piano. And not just banging and smashing the keys, but playing thoughtfully, swaying to his music. His song is called "A Different One". Bestill my little heart, I love this kid.

Play doh, Prince and Pears

2010-02-13T10:32:00.000-08:00

Weekends are wonderful, aren't they?

After a leisurely morning, (Matt got all the boys up and let me sleep until 7:30am) the older boys played in the garage for an hour while I showered and Sawyer napped. Once they were back inside, I gave them one of their Valentine's Day gifts a little early...play doh! It kept them occupied and happy for almost an hour. I resisted the uncontrollable urge to keep all the colors separate and ignored the many pieces of doh that fell under the table and were ground into the rug. As they played, I fed Sawyer his first taste of pear and played Prince on my ipod...we both enjoyed it very much!

Hope your Saturday is pleasant and warm...and that Prince finds his way onto your ipod :)

Of late...

2010-02-04T13:27:00.000-08:00

It's February...which means we only have 6 more months of winter here in Bozeman. I wish I were joking :). During the winter doldrums, I must remind myself, as I constantly remind my children, to be grateful for what is given...a warm home, yummy food, my family, wonderful friends, etc. I really have no (good) reason to bemoan a long winter.

To keep the boredom/whining/insanity at bay, we have been out-and-about our lovely Bozeman town:

at the public library...it's bright, clean, free and a change of scenery...and there are books there, too :).
jumping our little hearts out at the bounce house...$10 always very well spent.
playing at our friends' houses...different toys, different environment, good company.
wandering around Costco...the carts are huge and can carry all my children plus a few grocery items, and there are samples, of course!
taking a walk down our street...we have set a goal to walk all the way to the end by Spring (it's 1/2 mile long). We walk backwards, we hop, we kick, we stomp on ice chunks until they're "dead", we listen to the ice crunching under our boots, we look for our neighbors' American flags, we listen for airplanes overhead. It sounds very rosy, I know. However, the monkeys' favorite thing to do on our little walks is look for dog poop/pee. Boys.

When the weather or circumstances keep us at home, we have been getting creative about our daily activities:

learning how to use scissors...oh how they love to wield scissors. They each have their own pair of blunt-tipped scissors and ask many times a day if they can "cut". I have been very diligent about keeping the scissors out of their reach unless I am present - so far no cutting of hair, clothing, or anything of value.

Mason deconstructing a magazine with his scissors...I call it "recycling" :)

playing in tubs full of rice/water...got this idea from Addie. I bought 2 plastic tubs, a 20 lb bag of rice from Costco, small toys, rakes, and spray bottles. We rotate between the tubs, taking turns burying the toys in the rice and trying to find them and spraying water into the water. They love this. The mess these activities make is totally worth it.

Smithy spraying.

Mason digging.

PBS has great TV programs for toddlers. We usually start the morning off with Sid the Science Kid and Super Why...and then Dinosaur Train and Sesame Street. It's educational, right? :) (The theme songs from these shows have a sneaky way of getting into your head and NEVER LEAVING).
all the usuals...legos, puzzles, coloring, building a "garbage truck" out of pillows on my bed, going to "work", pestering one another...you get the picture.

New Things

A number of new things have entered our routine lately.

Sawyer has started eating solids. I use the term "eat" loosely. He has tried whole-grain rice cereal and bananas.

What a handsome boy!

Wednesday mornings finds me and my boys at Bible Study Fellowship or BSF. The friends I know that attend this bible study have nothing but good things to say about it and the accompanying children's program. So, we enrolled in January and have attended 4 out of the last 6 weekly meetings. It is a real feat to get us all fed, dressed, and out the door by 8:45am. I am really enjoying the current study of the book of John and am looking forward to the Fall when we will study the book of Isaiah. The boys are warming up to their teacher and their class - their blankies must always accompany them. They call it "play-dough church" to distinguish it from our regular Sunday morning church, where there is no play-dough. BSF has been a very good addition to our schedule.
Big boy beds! This particular "new thing" has been a very big adjustment at our house.

We bought a bunk bed set from some friends for a steal and set them up on Christmas day.

Testing out the new digs.

Mason pretending to sleep in Smiggy's bed.

Mase.

At first they were a bit fearful of the new beds, but they quickly became accustomed to their new-found freedom. There has been much bedtime discipline as the monkeys can't help but get out of their beds, play with their toys, giggle, jump, and generally not sleep. Night by night, Matt and I have fine-tuned their bedtime environment and routine to avoid/lessen the many battles. We have finally reached a bedtime zen that includes removing all toys/tools/stuff that screams "play with me", disabling the light switch using the pull cord on the light/fan combo, and a gentle reminder that it's time to sleep. These things seem obvious now but it's been a long road paved with discipline, tears, more discipline, and more tears (some of them mine) to get here.

Raising twins is not the same as raising two children...it's just not. I was surprised to find that I am still learning this. Just when I think we have a handle on things, we reach a new stage with new challenges (and joys) and we are befuddled once again. I know this is true of all parenting, not just twins, and my dear mother-in-law reminds me it's a process that never stops being challenging - even when the children are adults. So, I will take my own advice and just ride the wave...ride the wave.

My children really are wonderful little people...it's just hard to see this at 2 a.m. when they have woken up, turned their bedroom light on and are playing loudly and require discipline...FOR THE SECOND TIME THAT NIGHT. Ahem. Thankfully, they hadn't learned how to lock the door...YET. Oh the stories I could tell...:)

2010-01-20T12:34:00.000-08:00

Who is this adorable, chubby baby you ask? Why, it's lil ole me...well, not lil. I borrowed these photos from my mama to show you all how much Sawyer looks like me when I was a precious babe.

When I showed my sweet husband these pictures, he said, "Reese, I didn't know you were a boy when you were a baby." Awwww - how sweet. :)

Big eyes, munch-able cheeks, and a bubble-nose. (And thin little lips.) My eyes were decidedly blue by this age. Sawyer's are a blue-ish, brown-ish, green-gray color...we're not really sure what color they will settle on.

He may not look like my other two, but methinks he resembles his mama!

SoySoy

2010-01-14T19:37:00.000-08:00

Sawyer Eames Schuyler

Sawyer E
Soy Soy
Soy Boy
Soybean
Stagic ("stag" - "ick")
Chubba
Chubby McFatty
Sunshine

Sawyer :::

is 5 months old!
measures in the 95th percentile for height and weight
weighed 15 lbs 15 oz at his 4 month appointment
started sleeping from 6pm to 7am (without waking) at 3 months old
loves his two older brothers
sucks his left thumb (Mason sucks his right)
smiles, kicks, and wriggles with delight when I wrap him up to go to sleep at night
smiles, kicks, and wriggles with delight when I go to get him in the morning
looks most like his mama when she was a babe
has neither brown nor blue eyes...so far
is finding his voice
goes with the flow
is showing his mama how fun and delightful the baby stage can be (I barely survived the baby stage with M and S...)

Christmas and other stuff

2010-01-03T19:41:00.000-08:00

Greetings and Happy 2010!

We had a lovely, white Christmas here in Bozeman. Both the Myers and Schuyler families graciously gave us their blessing to stay at our own house for the holiday and we seized the opportunity to start new traditions and make Christmas memorable in our own way.

Christmas Eve found us at the Oberly's house with the Bedfords and all 7 of our combined children. We wined, dined, laughed, and indulged our children with sweets and one present to open.

Blakester and Lizabeth are great little chums.

SoyBoy - in good spirits, as usual.

Rebecca had a great little nativity activity the children enjoyed.

Smith, Rob, and Mase. The monkeys love their Uncle Rob - especially wrestling and climbing all over him like...well, like monkeys.

Ad, Smiggs, and me, taken by yours truly. I like that half of my face best anyway.

M and M.

Smigg-a-don and Me.

The beautiful Oberly family.

Christmas morning was warm, cozy, and easy paced for the most part. The monkeys slept until 8am or so, giving Matt and I time to enjoy a cup of coffee, stuff the stockings, and lounge by the fire.

"Santa" gave the boys kid-sized carry-on suitcases. These were a very big hit. The suitcases are wheeled to and fro, carrying all sorts of tools, toys, and guns, all day long.

Our very first Christmas as husband and wife, M and I decided to make homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast. This delicious tradition has stuck. I do love me a gooey cinnamon roll with coffee in the morning.

New camo hats from Dad.

Elk figurines.

Shooting elk figurines with pistol. M got them caps for their pistols. They are loud, they spark and smoke, they are somewhat dangerous...M and S love them, of course.

Hope your Christmas and New Year was full of laughter, family/friends, and the joyous remembrance of our Lord's birth!

**Check back shortly for a post on the transition we've made (are still making) from cribs to big-boy beds and I will finish the posting on my boys individually - we can't forget little Soy!

Smigg-ee-licious

2009-12-20T19:44:00.000-08:00

2009-12-15T16:04:00.000-08:00

Smith David Schuyler

Smith:::

Smiggy, Smigg-a-don, Smitty, Misth (Mason's pronunciation)
acquired his dad's penchant for nicknames
calls his kiki "keek"
calls Mason "Mase"
loves his lion
is designated blue...blue kiki, blue sippy, blue spoon
likes to be right in the middle of things
will insert himself, sometimes forcefully, into whatever is going on...especially whatever Mason is doing
has a wonderful sense of humor
enjoys wrestling with his dad
wears his socks on his hands as gloves
asks me to sing Jingle Bells multiple times a day

From his mouth lately:

"Stop talkin', Mase! Stop talkin'!"

Me: Who pooped?
Smith: I did, Mom. Just a tiny one.

"We did it, Mase!"

Me: It's naptime.
Smith: No, priddy soon, priddy soon.

Me: Did you toot?
Smith: No...I fahted (farted).

Translation: Baby Sawyer, yeah, yeah, Baby Sawyer. Yeah. You love him? Ohhhhh! You broke my chair? Broke this rockin' chair, of mom's, at work, at my house, broke mom's house? No, talkin'! No, don't take my picture! No, talkin'!

Segue

2009-12-10T19:48:00.000-08:00

This is my segue from highlighting little MayMo to highlighting little Smiggy. They have the same birthday and look very similar, but these two little monkeys are very different...

2009-11-30T15:14:00.000-08:00

More MayMo

There's just so much to my wonderful little man, Mason. Through these bits and pieces, I hope that his sweet spirit, unique humor, and curious mannerisms convey.

Patterns::

M likes to line things up...toys, tools, what-nots...he has a compulsion for order, I think. (He gets this from me, of course.)

They're not in a line, but he wanted them all upright and on the tile.

Miscellany in a line by Mason. (Why is it that certain pictures just won't load properly!!?? Arrgh.)

He calls this little number "Fire". He rounds up as many trucks/cars/vehicles as he can and lines them up along the floor at Grammie Monnie's. Smith has a compulsion to mess with Mason's order...but we'll save that for Smiggy's post. :)

Here he has lined up all the characters from the Nativity.

When he has amassed more items than he cares to line up, Mason hoards.

Back in the Spring, M piled all the play dishes he could on a chair at Grammie's.

A few days ago, he crammed as many dishes, play food, and various thing-a-ma-jigs as he could into the play kitchen at Grammie's. When asked about this curious compilation, he said he was "cookin' my dinner".

This is his "work". He pushes his cart all about the house, never playing with the animals or taking them out, just pushing them to and fro. Occasionally, he will park the cart and dabble in some random activity unrelated to his "work" and then resume his "work" shortly thereafter.

Loving right now::

Mason is loving...

His kiki (always) and his tummy bear.

Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You?
Bed time reading...EVERY night. And if he had his way, many times over and over again.

Pockets...perfect for holding his cell phone.

Chocolate milk. No explanation necessary...it's delicious.

Fruit snacks. I'm thankful that I can buy them in bulk at Costco.

Grammie Monnie...

Papa 'Cott...

Papa "D" and Grammie Worie.

Elmo. I haven't yet met a toddler who didn't love Elmo...what is it about him?

Live, in action::

He can express himself quite well. He is able to say "I love you, Mama" and "Mama, you're pretty", but he knows that it is funny to say silly nonsensical words when I ask him to say it. So funny.

2009-11-24T13:56:00.000-08:00

As promised, I will spend the next few posts exclusively on my little man, Mason.

Mason Scott Schuyler

Mason :::

is technically the second born, but really the first born
sucks his thumb
looks like his Dada
thinks like his Mama
loves his "kiki", aka blankie
plays with said kiki as if it were a person
is designated green - green kiki, green sippy, green spoon
doesn't like ice cream !!?!
recently switched from sleeping with a stuffed monkey to a teddy bear
calls his teddy bear "tummy bear" (cross between teddy and gummi)
hoards toys, tools, stuff...more on this later
calls Addie on his play cell phone many times daily
is reluctant to venture into new activities
cautiously approaches unknown territory
prefers to wear his snow boots every day...regardless of snow
bugles like an elk very well
makes up his own silly words
is MayMo, Mase, and Amos-Moses
says "ope-meal" and "yo-gup" for oatmeal and yogurt
has trouble saying words that begin with "s"
calls Sawyer "Hee-yer"
likes spiders, ladybugs and bees...apparently (see video below)

***Banner picture is MayMo...not Sawyer

2009-11-13T13:16:00.000-08:00

I have just a bit of randomness to share...some thoughts, some comic relief, some pictures, a clip, and a hint of what is forthcoming on Wish You Were Here.

Thoughts
I recently heard the Pink Floyd song, "Wish You Were Here", and since I chose this as the title of our blog, I asked Matt what the song was about. I thought there might be some parallels between the song and our family. Turns out the song is lamenting the loss of the group's lead, Syd Barret, to a mental breakdown. And according to Wikipedia, the song also explores the concept of alienation...yeah. Not too many parallels to draw...thank goodness!

ANYWAY, it got me thinking about why I chose "Wish You Were Here" as the title of our blog and why I am so very glad I did.

Some times, I wish you were here because I would appreciate your perspective on the problem/issue/dilemma I am facing.

Some times, I wish you were here because my kids are so stinkin' cute that I want someone else to witness their cuteness.

Other times, I wish you were here because I have no idea how to address the situation at hand and know that you would know what to do and would do it with strength, courage, and grace.

At times, I wish you were here because I know that you know me in a historical way, knowing me from my beginning and understanding why I do the things I do...even when I don't understand.

Some times, I wish you were here because I know you would laugh heartily with me at Smitty's jokes, Mason's antics, Matt's humor, Sawyer's many faces.

Many times, I wish you were here because I need help - physically, emotionally, spiritually - whatever, I need your help.

Most often, I wish you were here because I love you and so very much love your company.

I love our blog title and love that it is still relevant, appropriate, and perfect for what goes on here.

Now, after those thoughts, some comic relief is in order...

Matt, in a surprisingly/hilariously appropriate camo suit for deer hunting in Bozeman tomorrow. We have SNOW here in a very big way. Still, we never thought this hand-me-down would come in handy (excuse the pun).

You might think this picture would embarrass me...on the contrary, my friend, I think this picture demonstrates that I know how to have a good time. I titled this picture "She Lion" for obvious reasons. (This was taken on Halloween at the Oberly's - and I was modeling Jack's costume.) Thank you, Rebecca, for taking and sharing this picture :).

Pictures

We went for a family walk down our street...all five of us...and it was wonderful and fun and exercise and when we got home I was still smiling.

SoyBoy. He is such a delight.

Sawyer E has started to really enjoy his older "brudders" and smiles when they are near. Melts my heart.

The numbers don't lie...we got 23 inches of snow in less than 24 hours. This picture was taken before we got all 23.

Since we were snowed in, literally, the monkeys and I made cookies...Martha's pumpkin cookies with brown butter icing to be precise. (Smithy)

Mason is serious about cookies.

Winter Wonderland...except that it's not technically winter. It's almost always winter in Bozeman.

The much-trodden path from our house to the garage. We keep the beer in the refrigerator in the garage. :)

Clip

The monkeys are expanding their vocabulary by leaps and bounds every day, it seems. In this clip, Mason is explaining what he is having for dinner - raspberries, avocado, beans, and quesadilla. Smith, however, is interrupting him and joking that he is having candy and pie for dinner. Oh my.

Forthcoming

In the next few days or whenever I get around to it (tee hee), I will dedicate a few days/posts to each one of my delightful children individually. My goal is to really focus the post on one of them at a time, to highlight their "ness", as Owen Wilson would say from the movie "You, Me, and Dupree"...Mason-ness, Smithy-ness, and Sawyer-ness. Should be fun.

Ta-ta-for now!

2009-11-01T18:47:00.000-08:00

So we find ourselves in November already. Goodness. I feel like my internal clock is three weeks behind and I am sweatin' to catch up...I owe it to Sawyer being three weeks early :).

I have no pictures to prove it, but Sawyer and I had a delightful visit with the Freese family in Denver. Sawyer was a champ on the short flight - sleeping the whole way, and was generally easy and happy all weekend long. We enjoyed many of my favorite things...

Hannah, Jarred and Noah
Good coffee
Delicious meals prepared for me (not by me)
A bit of frivolous $pending
A much needed break from my daily routine and two noisy boys :)

Thank you, Freese family!

My little Sunshine. At his 2 month appointment, he was 13 lbs 10 oz...90% for height and weight and 50% for his head circumference. He's a big boy! Becca's little guy, Hank, is a big boy, too, and we joke that we are raising up Bozeman High's future defensive line :).

Both Grammie's sent Halloween goodies and the monkeys have had days of fun playing with their "pesents" (presents).

MayMo.

Chubba-Chubba.

A monkey in disguise. Mase.

Another monkey in disguise. Smiggy.

Guess who!

Smitty and his "baby bwudda".

Not much else to report...just living life, loving my boys, and trying to keep my head above water!

2009-10-22T19:59:00.000-07:00

Sawyer and I are off to Denver for a long-weekend visit with Hannah, Jarred, and Noah Freese. Matt and the monkeys will be enjoying a "guy's weekend" at home. Have a great weekend!

Bubble wrap dance.

2009-10-16T13:58:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the lack of pictures of my little SoyBoy...you know what they say about the second born...that they're sweet, easy going, pleasant, and extremely good looking?...yes, and that they aren't given as much fuss as the firstborn. Forgive me, and please enjoy these pictures of my little PunkyPie.

Two months old - Oh me oh my!

Enjoying his swing with a full belly.

Sawyer's killer smile. Trust me, those cheeks are as scrumptious as they look.

I cannot, for the life of me, get this picture to load correctly. Just tilt your head :).