Ka-chow! A Lightning McQueen Birthday Cake

Our little Snuggles is five years old today!   He requested a "Cars" themed cake, which I was extremely tempted to just order from the store, but I ended up deciding to give it a shot using this cake as inspiration.   It is far from perfect, but I thought it turned out pretty good, especially considering that I was decorating it late last night (or should I say really early this morning) while juggling a cranky six month old.  The birthday boy was super excited and absolutely LOVED his cake when he discovered it as soon as he woke up this morning.   It was totally worth the extra effort, as usual!

His little best friend is here to celebrate with us, whose three older brothers will be coming over as well.  Hubby will pick them up at golf camp, along with our big kids, in about an hour, so I better get back into the kitchen to finish up the rest of the goodies I am making to go along with the cake.   I'm sure I will be back with a more pictures!  It's going to be another fun day!

 Happy 5th Birthday Snuggles!

My Daybook :: June 20, 2012

Outside my window...
the weather has been gorgeous!  It's been a perfect week for the kids to be spending at the golf course for this year's golf camp.  The camp is from 9-12 each morning, then they are welcome to golf 9 holes with a chaperone.



I am thankful...        
Hubby is using some of his annual leave and has all week off work!   He has been heading to the golf course each afternoon to chaperone the kids.  Today he actually golfed with them!   It has been so nice for them to spend some extra time with their Dad.



I am thinking... 
about my last two posts.  Even though I completely agree with my Hubby (and our children will stick to wearing these shirts at home, or around friends, if at all) I didn't mean to offend anyone.  You must understand that where we live tie-dye is a political and pagan spiritual statement.  My second "jab at hippies" was just an attempt to lighten the mood...  Who knew that sharing Hubby's little joke/tease would result in so many comments and opinions!



Oh, and yes, we did intend to add the Catholic Symbolism of a cross and a crown of thorns for the Sacred Heart (and/or roses for the Immaculate Heart) to the shirts...  We just ran out of time.  Maybe we will get back to them, maybe not.

Learning all the time... 
We are headed outside for lots of learning/activities this summer.  First the kids have two full weeks of golf camp, followed immediately by two weeks of swimming lessons!   They are also continuing Math and Spelling lessons each day, in addition (hopefully) to finishing up our science course from this past year. I've been including squares for Math, Spelling, and Science on their Summer Bingo cards which is the best way to make sure they get checked off the list each week.

Living the Liturgical Year at Home... 
Despite a serious lack of sleep, our Catholic Family Camp was just wonderful as usual.  In addition to all the fun that goes along with camping - cabins, swimming in the creek, bonfires, etc - we were blessed with Daily Mass, Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet, Conferences, Benediction, Confession, and so much more!



From the kitchen... 
A delicious chocolate cake just waiting to be decorated for Snuggles 5th birthday tomorrow!  He requested a "Cars/Race" theme.  I sure hope it turns out... Wish me luck!

I am creating... 
a few fun foods for the birthday boy.

I am working on... 
laundry... lots and lots of laundry.

I am going... 
to try and keep it simple tomorrow.  I'm not good at simple!  ;)

I am hoping... 
that Snuggles passes the hearing test next month.   He didn't pass it yesterday at his well-child check-up and we are going to re-test when I take the baby in again next month.   The doctor did see a little fluid behind his ears, and he has been fighting a little cold.

I am reading... 
I haven't been reading much lately, but we have been watching a few movies.  Last night Hubby and I watched Love's Everlasting Courage, tonight it's going to be Act of Valor.  If you have any suggestions/new favorites, I'd love to hear them in the comments!

I am praying... 
for patience, perseverance, and peace.  The baby still isn't sleeping much (I'm pretty sure he is teething)  but thank you all so much for your prayers and encouragement!

Pondering these words...
from St. Teresa of Avila:

"Let nothing disturb thee; Let nothing dismay thee; All thing pass; God never changes. Patience attains all that it strives for. He who has God finds he lacks nothing: God alone suffices."

I am listening...  
to a couple CD's I was given at camp: To Hell and Back: Divine Love and the Cross and My Brother, The Pope.

Around the house... 
empty suitcases, sleeping bags, and piles of laundry.  Traveling, even for just a few days, is tons of work with a family this size!

One of my favorite things...  
family pictures, even if it is impossible, with this many kids, to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time!  This one was taken on Father's Day, following Sunday Mass at camp.

A few plans for the week...

• Unpack and tackle the mountain of laundry
• Golf Camp everyday for the four oldest
• Sign up for Summer Reading at the Library
• Well-chid check up for Snuggles
• Grocery Shopping
• Bake and Decorate a Birthday Cake
• Celebrate Snuggles 5th Birthday
• Golf Tournament on Friday

A little peek at my (yester)day...

6 MONTHS OLD...
and not quite sure what to think of his first ride in a shopping cart!

Six Months Old Today...

... and just as cute as can be!

* I'll be back soon with some pictures from our camp/retreat - the girls even wore their new hippie Sacred Heart T-shirts one day, and looked super cute - but first I need to finish unpacking, catch up on the mountain of laundry, and try to fit in some sleep and exercise.   I've been drinking way too much coffee the last few days which (I am pretty sure) was the cause of a full blown panic attack at the grocery store late last night...  If you could offer a little prayer for me, and that Bud sleeps for at least a couple hours tonight, I'd be very thankful!

For My Husband {On Father's Day 2012}

With our busy lives and schedules

and our day-to-day routines, 

Sometimes I may forget to say 

how very much it means

To be married to a man like you, 

to have the family we share, 

To know no matter what life brings 

your love is always there -- 

And though I'm not the best, it seems, 

at saying "I love you,"

I hope you know within your heart

how very much I do.

Happy Father's Day!

Sacred Heart Tie Dyed T-Shirts

I have been wanting to try tie dying Sacred Heart T-shirts for years, ever since the kids made Sacred Heart "Flags" one summer, and seeing the original ideas in this post over at the Little Flowers blog.  With the feast of the Sacred Heart coming up this Friday, and since we'll be camping, I thought this was the perfect time.

Remembering the cute shirts also made by Charlotte's family, we also used a Tulip One-Step Tye Dye Kit, some white t-shirts, this video tutorial on creating a heart design, and the directions that  came with the kit. 

The girls were a little more excited about the project than the boys, but I bribed them said they could earn a sticker for the "Complete a Science Experiment" square on this week's Summer Bingo Cards, and that they could all choose their own colors from the kit.  

The kids all drew the hearts on their shirts and I helped with all the folding.  We were all very skeptical that the hearts would actually turn out, but Charlotte reassured me that we would be surprised! 

I made a huge mess trying to dump the color into each of the little bottles, and ended up tie-dying my hands along with the shirts despite the gloves! Still it was a fun experiment, right?! ;)

After dying the heart red, followed by yellow, the kids all picked different colors to complete their shirts. The older boys choose dark brown and green, Twinkle Toes choose fushia, Chiquita choose violet, and we went with Turquoise for Snuggles and Bud, and lime for Rose. Yes, I had to let go of my perfectionist tendencies when the boys decided they wanted to go with a "camouflaged" look...

We wrapped up the shirts in plastic wrap. The directions recommended waiting 6-8 hours, or longer for more vibrant colors, but since we got started so late in the day, we only waited about 4 1/2 hours.

  

We were surprised that the hearts turned, at least for the most part!   My favorite shirts were the fushia, turquoise, and lime.  I really liked the violet too, but I did a poor job folding the heart on Chiquita's shirt.   I didn't really care for the "camo" shirts, and the boys refuse to wear them anyways, but it was a neat idea!   

When I was hanging them all up along the front deck to take a picture, I laughed at the thought of what my husband was going to think when he arrived home (at any minute) and saw all the tie-dye...  I was pretty sure there was no way that our children would be wearing these in pubic!   

Late last night I asked if he really hated them... He replied with a grin, "Hate is a strong word... We hippies don't use that word."   I'm still laughing!  (And we are leaving the shirts home.) 

A Simple Celebration on the Feast of St. Anthony

An Outdoor Scavenger Hunt... 

... and "A Multitude of Fish" Trail Mix! 

Happy Feast of St. Anthony!

My Daybook :: June 11, 2012 {It's Summertime!}

Outside my window...
Is it really summer?  The forecast was finally promising a warm,  sunny day today, but it's already 3:30 and we're still waiting...

Oh!  And speaking about outside, I am so mad at the deer!  Yesterday we discovered our very first Pea Pod in the garden.  I went out there this morning, to take a picture, and found that someone had a yummy dinner last night - eating the pod, along with all the tops to the rest of our Sweet Peas - through the fence!  I guess we need to build a fence around the fence?  Or maybe just build some trellises and plant them away from the fence... next year.  This is a learning experience... At least that is what I keep reminding myself!



I am thankful...        
that the deer will not be able to get to the tomato plants!  I am really looking forward to some homegrown tomatoes this summer!



I am thinking... 
about whether or not to host another Online Curriculum Sale Blog Hop. Is anyone interested in participating again this year, and when would be the best time?

Learning all the time... 
Look what we found hanging out (and hardly noticeable) on our burgundy colored front door this morning, when Hubby was heading to work.   He was huge and thankfully he stayed outside and didn't fly down the hallway, when the door opened!

Before he flew off, and while he was resting on the deck, I snapped this picture for the kids to try and identify.   We are pretty sure that he is a Hyalophora euryalus (Ceanothus silkmoth), maybe?

Living the Liturgical Year at Home... 
I'm really enjoying ordinary time this year!  I was ready for a break from all the daily readings and weekly parties during the Easter season.   Looking at the calendar though, the feast of St. Anthony is coming up in a couple days and I might try to make a special treat for the kids.  They really loved the "Multitude of Fish" Cupcakes we made last year for our Saintly Summer Fun in honor of St. Anthony. And I'm sure I'll print out the St. Anthony Outdoor Scavenger Hunt too!  I'm also thinking about trying to pack a special treat for the Solemnity Feast of the Sacred Heart on Friday to share at camp.   I'm just not sure what... Maybe Barbara's cupcakes?

From the kitchen... 
lots of fresh berries, veggies and lean proteins. Oh, and a very tempting bag of s'more supplies that is for our upcoming camping trip!

I am creating... 
End-of-Year Folders, new Summer Bingo Cards, and a Summer Bucket List!  

I am working on... 
packing for this year's Catholic Family Camp.  I'd say we've made pretty good progress so far!

I am going... 
to be listening to the But, but, but… WHAT about GRAMMAR?? webinar this evening, hosted by The Institute for Excellence in Writing.

I am hoping... 
that after listening to the webinar I'll finally be able to just place my order already!  We've already pretty much decided that we will be using the IEW curriculum for most (if not all) of our Language Arts next year.   I just wasn't impressed with the later levels of Writing With Ease and First Language Lessons that we used this past year, and apparently the boys agree...  Spelling (The Phonetic Zoo from IEW) on the other hand made the "favorite subject" list - for the first time ever - and it really is awesome!   I just wish it wasn't all so expensive, or that I didn't want to order practically the whole catalog...

I am reading... 
I haven't had much time for reading lately, but I have been looking through a beautiful new Catholic Planner, based on the traditional calendar, which I was sent to review.   I'm hoping to share more about it soon!

I am praying... 
for patience and perseverance.

Pondering these words...
from St.Therese of Lisieux:

"The goal of all our undertakings should not be so much a task perfectly completed as the accomplishment of the will of God ."

I am listening...  
to the country station on Pandora playing in the kitchen, the sound of the washing machine in the laundry room, the baby's swing swaying back and forth, and Chiquita reading a picture book to Snuggles and Rose on the porch so she can earn another sticker for this week's Summer Bingo card!  I love summertime!

Around the house... 
I worked on sorting through the big girls clothing this past weekend, packing up all the size 6 clothes that are now too small for Chiquita and passing down the size 7's and some of the 8's from Twinkle Toes.  No wonder they were having such a hard time finding outfits and cleaning their room, with clothes ranging from size 6-10 jammed in their few drawers.   It feels so nice to have that done!

One of my favorite things...  
seeing the scale go down as I try and lose all this post-partum pregnancy weight, and moving gemstones from one jar to the other!  (I've seen this idea all over online.) Each little gem represents a 1/2 pound that I have lost, and the gold ones are for every five pounds.  Yes, I still have a long ways to go, but I've already lost 14 1/2 pounds since the end of April!   It's a start!!

A few plans for the week...

• Try and find the time to walk on the treadmill, or outside, each day
• Visit the Library
• Try and respond to some more emails - I'm behind again! 
• Drop off Donations at St. Vincent de Paul's
• Celebrate the Feast of St. Anthony on June 13th
• Start planning Snuggles birthday which is next week, already! 
• Attend Catholic Family Camp - a local camp with a wonderful priest and brother from the Father's of Mercy! 
• Celebrate the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart
• Celebrate Father's Day

A little peek at my day...

Assembling a Puzzle for her Summer Bingo Card 

End-of-School Interviews

Whether I am ready of not, the end of our school year has arrived!  Next week our summer plans will begin with a bang.  First we are headed to a Catholic Family Camp, followed immediately by Golf Camp, Birthdays, and then Swimming Lessons.  It's going to be a crazy fun summer!

Other than a couple End-of-the-Year parties we attended, and the Teacher Appreciation Gifts, I didn't really have any special plans for the end of the year.   However, I was completely inspired by Sarah's End-of-Year Folders when I logged into my Google Reader this morning!

I didn't waste anytime "Making it Count" and the very first thing I did after breakfast was call each of the children into the school-room one at a time for their "interviews" and then spent nearly every free moment I had throughout the day today over at Pic Monkey creating the cover pages.  I had so much fun choosing photos and playing with the various fonts and colors.

Looking back at the beginning of the school year photos has made me realize just how much the children have all grown, and just how much we have accomplished this year, despite a difficult pregnancy and adjusting to another new little one in our home.  These interviews were such a fun way to document this special milestone and record the children's favorite memories from the year!

Hopefully I can spend a little time tonight brainstorming ideas on what to include in the actual folders for my kiddos...  I wasn't as awesomely organized as Sarah, keeping booklists for each child (next year for sure!), but I can probably come up with some sort of summary, a list of field trips, and a few work samples to include.   The big kids all have their completed Lap Books for History, and I'm sure I have plenty of pictures to choose from as well.   I'm taking notes on Sarah's tips to make this easier next year!

Anyhow, here are our covers:

Happy Summer!

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. ~

{pretty}

Our little Bud and his pretty amazing blue eyes 
taken by Lily at our End-of-the-Year Homeschool Party

{happy}

The kids were all very happy to spot another hummingbird that was alive and well, after seeing one drop dead on our driveway a couple days before, shortly after the cat killed a "cute little gopher with big black eyes."  It had been a rather traumatic day... 

{funny}

Someone found his toes...  I'm sure he will eventually out grow this phase, just like his sister.

Don't you just love the grip he has on his leg, as he shoves that foot in his little mouth?!  

Ahhh!  A big smile for "Mom... Momma" after catching me with the camera.  

I sure love this sweet little guy of mine. 

{real}

Rose loves her early morning stories and snuggles from her big sister.  

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment