Wine and Canvas- Couples Style

In January, I posted pictures from the Wine and Canvas event I went to with my friend Cindi. I had so much fun, we decided we MUST do it again (and again) and this time we brought our husbands for a double date.

The way all good dates start...with a giant platter of sushi to share.

Cindi says- is it time YET
Greg say- this is going to be fun!
Jeremy says- I'm pretending that my wife dragged me here even
though I'm going to have a really good time



Jeremy's approach was a little more....crude...than what the teacher was instructing. He also kept working ahead of the class and trying to do it himself. Are we surprised?
Jeremy, the teacher said 'knife edge'...not giant glops.
And yet somehow his trees turned out pretty good


53 artists making the same scene. All great and all different.



From L-R...Mine, Jeremy's, Greg's and Cindi's


If you've been to our house you may be in on this inside joke. If not...ask me next time you visit.


The artists with our finished products

An awesome double date. We WILL be doing it again!

Indy locals should check out wine and canvas. It's a great thing to go out and do with friends, and not very expensive. www.wineandcanvas.com

Tessa's Feel-good Shirt

About at month ago we were visited Erin and baby Avi, and Tessa had an accident. I'm going to blame the excitement of a new environment. She so rarely has accidents that I never carry extra clothes with me.

Since Erin is tiny she lent Tessa a t-shirt of hers which basically fits Tessa like a dress. (Had she worn one of my shirts, it would be more like a tent city)

She wore it home and we still have it just because we haven't see Erin since then. And now Tessa has adopted it as her special pajama shirt for if she is feeling sick or dumpy. Like today....




For whatever reason our household has been running on very little sleep. Tessa has been waking up alot in the night and Charley's still adjusting to his new bed. And me?...well I've never slept well in my life, why start now?

So after a bad night we decided to cancel our museum plans and call it a pj day. It happens. And Tessa knew exactly what she wanted to wear..."Erin's special comfy shirt".

Don't worry, Erin. Every time Tessa wears it I remind her that we have to take good care of it and return it next time we see you. It's a lesson on borrowing I think. For now just know it is well loved.

Preschool Pictures

Look what we got this week... Tessa's school picture, 2010-11

Doesn't she look grown up? The only other time she has ever had a professional picture taken was last year's school and dance recital pictures. It just amazes me how the professional pics make her look so official and grown up. She looks like she's 13 years old!

Can I just say that the reasons we haven't had professional pics done are a) Mom and Jerry both have fancy expensive cameras that are able to capture great shots like this b) They are expensive! c) we also have a photo printer and 4) they are expensive!

But I did splurge on the cheapest thing I could which was a sheet of wallets for $15. So don't worry, grandparents...they'll be making their way to you in the mail very soon!

Should this Worry Me?

This is the wine that Jeremy chose to toast our 8th anniversary last night. Note the name...

Worse yet, it was completely unintentional. When I mentioned it, he said he hadn't even realized. He was just looking for a chard. Freudian slip?

And on that note, Happy Anniversary Jeremy!

Product Endorsement- Crushers

I bought these at Trader Joe' on a whim. I'm always looking for portable mess-free snacks for Tessa's preschool lunch bag.

Little did I know how quickly she would become addicted, and that I would need to go back to TJ's just to buy stock in these apple carrot "crushers". Really I don't mind anything that FORCES me to shop at Trader Joe's....twist my arm already.

They are a little on the pricey side at about $0.50 each, but I saw another brand at Target that were over a dollar. I guess that's what you pay for the fancy squeezable packaging.

Unlike the squeezable yogurts, they require no refrigeration which makes them even extra cool for the lunch box. There's also regular applesauce for the kiddos out there who might not love carrots.

Because of the pricey-ness I cut a deal with Tessa that she could have ONE a day only. Speaking of snack food addictions.....I think it's time that Charley enter a 12 step program for both soft cereal bars and string cheese.

Big Boy Bed

Just a minute ago I told Jeremy I was going to go upstairs and take a picture of Charley sleeping, using the night setting on our camera. He looked at me like I had two heads.

Luckily, he didn't wake. Whew, I can exhale now.

Notice anything exciting? That's Charley in a toddler bed! We moved it in last week after having our carpet replaced (note the new carpet too....ooh, pretty) . He did really well. It took a couple of nights worth convincing, but at this point I think he knows it's his bed and it's pretty comfy.

Sadly, he's waking up a little earlier than normal and getting out of bed, but we'll live.

Also notice the monkey quilt in the picture? That's another beautiful creation from Jeremy's mom, a Christmas present for Charley. It's perfectly sized for his new bed.

After he's fully adjusted to the bed we're moving on to the next frontier...potty training! Actually he's been going in the potty every night after bathtime but I guess I mean REAL potty training. Pray for me!

Thanks to Kelly and Bill by the way for giving us the toddler bed! They handed it over before they got pregnant, and now that Kevin is here, we will just plan to hand it back in about two years and move Char into a twin bed. Works out perfectly.

Tessa' Birthday Wishlist

I hesitate whether or not to put this out there but I know there are many grandparents and aunties who read this blog, and I thought a little gift direction might be okay. That being said, be sure that we have PLENTY of toys around our house and birthday gifts are absolutely not necessary. Really...I'm not just saying that.

If you are planning to buy the upcoming 4-year-old a present, here would be my suggestions:
--Outside toys or games
--Leapster Explorer games...she has only the princess one. The simpler the better, some games seem too hard at her age
--Spring and summer clothes size 5T or 4-5 (xs) in girl's

Thank You Aunties!

I have forgot to mention that for Christmas, Tessa got subscriptions to two different preschooler magazine...thanks to Aunt Carrie and Aunt Amy.

They are really cool. Kinda like good ol' Highlights but a junior version. One is called High 5 and one is called Ladybug.

She feels like SUCH a big girl when she gets her magazine in the mail. A perfect present for an almost 4 year old. Thank you Aunties!

Let's Get Responsible

I've had this thing for a long time, but didn't quite think Tessa was old enough to 'get' it. When we had to empty out every closet for our new carpet I found it again, so we're giving it a try. Meet Tessa's responsibility chart!

If she gets a smiley for every responsibility on a given day, she gets a hershey kiss (or some other appropriately sized delicious treat). She was waaaay into it today. Her favorite part was picking out the smiley color.

The board is magnetic and came with about 25 different responsibilities to choose from (and some blanks to make your own...food for thought). Anyway, here are the ones I chose. So this is what is expected of her every day. Not too heavy a load I think!

Call Dr. Dyer

...The Chiropractor that is.

The kids all know that with my back problems, I can't handle stuff like this. So they store it up for when Jeremy's around.

In the word of Uncle Jessie....have mercy!

Ready for Spring

Tessa had been begging me for her own umbrella. As the snow has (hopefully) subsided and first rains of springs arrived, I picked up an umbrella and matching slicker at Target. And of course, Charley had to have one of his own.

Perhaps the purchase of rain gear will ensure the official end of winter? I certainly hope so.

My Cookie Project- Simple Goodness

We needed to refresh the cookie jar but I didn't want an extra trip to the store or extra fuss...so we went for the old standby, the peanut butter cookie. Mamaw's recipe was the first cookie at the start of my baking project last fall.

Simple and delicious and only like 6 ingredients.

I scooped little bits into the hands of my helpers and they rolled them into balls for me. Charley didn't actually lick any. He just kept pretending to, then he'd give me a devilish grin. Boys.

Fork flattened and sprinkled with sugar.

And it got the household vote of approval.


Also perfect for a mid afternoon tea party.

Sunday at the Farm- a Baby Welcoming

We were due for a family visit down south anyway...but especially since Kelly had a baby boy last week. We had to go meet him! On Sunday Mamaw made a big meal and everyone came to welcome him.

Nothing brings family together like a new baby. Here's Charley's first farm visit, and Tessa's too!

Mother hens

Doing what we do best at the farm...eating


Somebody was a little jealous

It was also a nice day to get outside. We went for a little walk and got some fresh air.

The boys also did some target practice while Tessa got to watch

More baby cuddles

More goofiness

And of course, more cake.

A great day was had by all, and a warm welcome to the newest cousin.

Cousin Pictures

Mom sent me the pictures from this past weekend at the farm, and I simply couldn't pic just one picture from this bunch. So for your viewing pleasure, the 8 cousins together (including new addition Kevin!)







When I look at these pictures I just has to laugh, cause there's an equally amusing scene happening on the other side of the camera...a bunch of adults hollering and jumping too!

I also laugh to think of what Papaw would say about this. His old orange couch full of hyper little people. He would have loved every minute of it.

My Cookie Project Week #15- Blue for a Baby Boy!

Last week my cousin Kelly had a baby boy, Kevin Alexander. He joins the brood of cousins as Mamaw's 8th great-grandchild. We were excited to travel down on Sunday to meet him so I wanted to whip up something blue.

I thought about simply adding blue food coloring to a sugar cookie but my ever-wise husband reminded me that they would actually turn out kinda green. Then I ran across these bad boys in the store...

York peppermint patty piece. Basically like an M&M but minty...and BLUE!

I used a simple M&M cookie recipe and subbed these in.

Everyone seemed to really enjoy them.


And that was my evil plan all along...get everyone busy eating cookies so that I could steal the baby. Mwah-hahaha!

Hand-Rocks

I was hoping we could go to the park this morning but with chilly morning temps and both kids having an ear infection, I had to search for more forms of entertainment.

I'm not going to lie, we watched alot of movies today. But we also made hand shamrocks!

(In the above sentence I first typed "I ain't gonna lie"...but deleted it for fear that my Mom would officially disown me. Few things get under her skin like the word ain't)

First trace four hands on white paper, then paint green and cover with sparkles!

The 3 year old arteeests at work
We love sparkles and yet somehow I act surprised everytime they get all over the floor and I have to vacuum afterward. When will I ever learn?

After they were dry I cut them out, glued them to yellow paper and painted a little stem. Voila, a hand shamrock. A handrock!