In a Nutshell: Housiversary, Preschool, and Pears

2012

We have now had our 1 year Housiversary.

The year has been quite eventful. Most notably, the addition of a child.

We have had a wonderful year and have all adjusted well to our move. We have spent the year filling our new home with memories and making it our own. We are still in the process of hanging pictures up...not kidding folks, I still have many a bare wall. However, we have done redone four rooms...all while I was LARGE with child.

Our boys love our new home and have made many friends. Our neighborhood is just marvelous and the best if I do say so. I can't believe how much they have grown in this last year.

2011

Crazy right??? Did anyone notice that Little doesn't look like he has grown much...hahaha. We are still waiting for him to hit is growth spurt.

This week was also the first week of school. Not just for the older two, which I wrote about HERE, but also for Little.

We haven't done a legit preschool before. I was always on the fence about that fact that I was able to do it at home weighed with the cost that preschool can have. For many reasons, we decided preschool would be a good thing for Little.

He has been so excited and was quite disappointed that he didn't get to start school the same day as the older two.

On his first day he was super duper excited.

He got his very own first day of school photo shoot via Mom.

He wasn't very happy about it at first.

He was upset that I was cutting into his preschool time.

He perked up quickly when I told him just a few more and then we would head off to preschool.

I got to go with him for the first day, and let's just say I was amazed and astounded at the very lovely preschool he is able to go to.  I am happy to know the teacher, happy that it is so close, and happy that he has his very bestest friend in class with him.

I am so excited for him.

With 3 out of the 4 starting school, I was looking forward to some extra quite and peace this week. I even thought for a minute that I might get to sit on my fanny for a minute.

False.

I forgot that I had 40+ pounds of these lovelies.

When I canned peaches a couple of weeks ago with my mom and sister, my mom informed me that canning peaches was no big deal, it was pears she hated to can.

Really, I thought. Worse than the sticky mess that was canning peaches?

TRUE!

Who would have thought it. They were worse.

I may never want to peel another pear. Well at least until next summer. I think that will be enough time for me to have repressed the memory.

Over two days and with the help of my magnificent husband we turned all those pears into 80+ pints of canned goodness.

I can definitely say that the result was worth the trouble.

I love seeing my growing supply of canned goods. They taste better than store bought and they are cheaper. Plus there is something to be said for seeing all those jars and saying, "Dude! I totally did that!"

Have a marvelous Sunday!

A Pinteresting Wednesday: Gift for Teacher

School started this week. Yippee!

I haven't ever brought a present to the boys' teachers at the beginning of school before. I am not sure why, but probably it was mostly because I had never thought of it.

Sorry previous teachers!

Several weeks ago, I came across a cute idea on Skip to My Lou. I immediately pinned it to my Delightful Downloads pinboard.

pinned from HERE

I know I say this practically every week, but really what would we do without Pinterest? Well, besides fold the laundry...

Anywhoooo...

I knew this idea was simple enough that I could accomplish it even in the hustle and bustle of getting ready to go back to school.

I didn't find hand sanitizer as cute as she had, but I did find little bottles of hand sanitizer lotion.

After downloading her tag, I printed them off on a color cardstock.

I also decided that if I really wanted her to give me a call I might want to make an info sheet to go with the tags.

I made this cute info sheet in PicMonkey, my new favorite photo editing site.

I made a blank one to share with you. Simply save it to your computer as a photo. Then you can open it up in PicMonkey and fill in the info you want.

I printed the info sheet on white cardstock.

I tied a scrap of fabric around the lotion bottle. Then I used a painted clothespin to attach the tag and the info sheet.

An easy and simple back-to-school gift for Teacher.

I am excited to be in my boys' classrooms this year. Hopefully I will be able to really get to know their teachers and I will be able to experience this school year with my boys.

Back-to-School Lunch Ideas

Some of you have already sent your kids back to school. I have one more week. Then I wake up my kids early once again, put them in their first day of school outfits, pack their backpacks, and tearfully (and a little joyfully), and send them off for another year of learning.

For Middle this is his very first year. Kindergarten. The big time.

For Oldest, he will be going into 3rd. So for him, we start another year of packing lunches.

My goal for this year is to pack more creative and fun lunches.

I have been scouring the internet for fun lunch ideas. I have a whole pinboard dedicated to Lunch for Kiddos to keep track of my inspirations.

I have put together a collection of my favorite lunch ideas. I am sharing this today over at Somewhat Simple. I also wanted to share this list here today.

These lunches are awesome. They are definitely a source for lunch inspiration. These ladies are RIDICULOUSLY talented and super ingenious. I bow to their lunch box mastery.

In no particular order--

1. Lego Lunch by Another Lunch

 How cool is this Lego box. I also love the little Lego cheese!

2. Submarine Sub Lunch by Lisa Storms

I am in love with the little straw scope. 

3. Perry, Perry the Platypus by Susan Yuen

Uh, really need I say why this is awesome! 

4. Swimming with Dolphins by Lisa Storms

 That is a jello ocean...awesome.

5. Science Experiment Lunch by This Lunch Rox

An awesome lunch for an older elementary student. 

6. Ribbit Lunch by This Lunch Rox

I love that the frog is catching a "fly".

7. Two Ferbs are better than One Lunch by Susan Yuen

This site has TONS of Phinneas and Ferb lunch ideas.

8. Simple Meat, Cheese, and Cracker Lunch by Another Lunch

I like this simple yet fun take on cheese, meat, and crackers.

9. Dino Lunch by Lisa Storms 

Roaaarr! 

10. An Angry Little Lunch by Another Lunch

Do you see the kiwi pig? Seriously! 

Okay, so maybe I am throwing a BONUS 11th lunch in there.

I just couldn't help myself.

11. Muy Bueno Tacos Lunch by This Lunch Rox

Oldest love, love, loves tacos. 

Can you imagine the point I would win if he opened 

this for lunch?

Best Mom ever.

I hope you found some inspiration from this list of lunches. At the very least I hope you had super fun looking through them. Stop by these ladies' sites and prepare to spend a lot of time browsing and pinning.

Fingers crossed I attempt at least a few creative lunches this year. A girl can dream anyway.

Back to School Shopping

The time of year is here.

The time where displays of crayons, glue, markers, rulers, pencils, and paper meet you as soon as you walk in any store.

Clothing stores start teasing and tempting you with fabulous sales on the newest jeans, tees, hoodies, socks, and shoes.

Back to school shopping!

I have such fond memories of the end of every summer growing up. As summer came to a close, I could be found skipping through the store loading up with all the necessary school supplies...it paints quite the picture, huh?

Even when I got older and was an oh-so-mature college student, I LOVED buying school supplies.

College school supplies were made even more exciting by the need to purchase big ol' text books.

Yup, I even loved buying text books. Yup, I am weird.

For years after I was done with school, in a mild depression I would wonder the store at back to school time. I was a little blue that I had no reason to buy school supplies.

I was not so blue that I wanted to enroll in school again. Nah. I still have nightmares I am back in school. So I will pass.

However, I still missed buying school supplies.

Then a couple of years ago I got to rejoin the supply-buying masses. Oldest was in school. Yipee!

So I loaded up on all the regulars:

crayons
pencils
glue
markers
paper
kleenex
wipes

I now floated through the store in school supply bliss (my bliss may end every year when the total comes up on the register...but I try not to let it ruin my love affair with school shopping).

Fast forward some years and this year brings even more excitement.

I am now shopping for TWO students.

All the supplies you could dream of...plus it seems a little extra. Is it just me or does it seem like we are supplying enough items for 3 students? I am just saying, I don't think my Kindergartner is going to use FOUR 24 pks of crayons.

Now as much as I love school supply shopping, there is another back to school shopping I love more.

Back to school clothes shopping!

I heart it. I just love restocking the boys' closets. I love putting together a special first day of school outfit.

I love new jeans.

A pile of nicely folded new tees make my heart sing.

Then there are new shoes. Sigh. After a summer of wearing flip flops, it is lovely to bring out a sporty pair of lace-ups or a causal pair of slip-ons.

Shirts from Target 

Love it.

If I could, I would go back to school clothes shopping crazy. I love mixing and matching different items to make pretty much the most awesome boy outfit.

It takes some time. It take some skill (if I do say so myself). It takes some patience.

Shopping for boys is WAY harder than shopping for girls. The availability of to.die.for boys clothes is slim.
Oh you can find an awesome item here and there, but hardly ever can you find an entire outfit.

Especially if you are on a budget. I mean I love Target and all, but their selection for boy's clothes isn't even that great all the time.

I love to "window" shop for my boys online. You know when you peruse all your favorite sites, even the ones you can't afford, and put together what you would buy if you had a mountain of money. A Scrooge McDuck vault of money to swim in if you will.

Recently in a momentary hallucination that I was Scrooge McDuck, I kind of went crazy and put some outfits together for my boys. I even put them together story board style for my organization and viewing pleasure.

It was a little addicting to put together ultra awesome outfits. I had the giddy claps after several of the outfits.

I don't want to hog all the giddy blissness, so I am sharing my boy outfits with you.

Here are my favorite so far. I put the links to all of the clothing items underneath each outfit just in case you have a little man you need to dress for school and you have a vault of money that you occasionally swim in.

ENJOY!

This is my absolute favorite. Trying to figure out a way to 

justify buying this outfit.

Marvel Shirt: Zara

Stripped Shirt: GAP

Yellow Puff Vest: GAP

Skinny Jeans: Old Navy

Red Sneakers: Zara

This outfit is super cool and laid back. LOVE those shoes. All this

outfit needs is a knit beanie.

Gray V-neck Tee: GAP

Purple Plaid Button-up: Old Navy

Jeans: GAP

Black Hightops: Old Navy

This for sure is the most expensive and day-dreaming outfit.

I mean I did include TOMS after all.

Gray Stripped Shirt: GAP

Skull Sweater: GAP

Blue Puff Vest: GAP

Skinny Stretch Jeans: GAP

Black TOMS

For a little reminiscence of our good old Ohio, here is 

a Go Buckeyes outfit. Hubby will appreciate this one.

Ohio State Shirt: GAP

Red Plaid: GAP

Gray Pants: GAP

Gray Slip-Ons: GAP

Red Watch: GAP 

I already have some more outfits in the works. So excited. Almost enough to make up for the fact these will never see the boys' closet. Hahaha.

Happy back to school shopping friends!