~Tons of candy~

I may have mentioned before that Jade and Abby

have a grandpa that lives

 in another state.

At Halloween time he likes to

send them not just a small treat

but a huge box of candy!

Here are some pictures of the girls opening the package!

Seriously we could open a candy store with it all.

There is everything from chocolate to rootbeer barrells

to picky sticks and even suckers.

~Time~

Were does the time go? It seems like just yesterday I brought home this tiny little baby girl to a very tiny little house.

 As the days went on she grew. She started in a sweet little bassinet that my mother tried to tell me not to buy (I bought it used and was so limited on space it was my only option). Then she moved to a porta crib very similar to a regular crib but not as large. Once we were in our new home she got a regular crib.

Maddi's crib turned into a toddler bed sometime last Spring.

But time went on and my little girl grew even more.

I felt it was time for Maddison, my sweet baby girl

to have a big girl bed.

We thankfully already had her bed.

The headboard matches her small dresser

and the bed frame and mattresses have

 been in the big girls' room

for guests (that we never have).

(Yes, Mason loves his big sister's rocking chair).

I wanted to go pink but someone wanted purple.

She wants everything purple.

Trying out the new bed!

Mason enjoyed it more then Maddi at first.

We are hoping for Maddi to get her own big girl room this spring. Plans are in order to turn the attic into a loft but the plans are not moving along as fast as I was hoping. Then all 3 girls will be upstairs with their own bathroom. Mason will stay in his current room and no longer have to share with a girl!

~New Floor~

 I replaced my kitchen floor!

I think I did a great job and

I bet I saved tons of money on labor!

This was the old floor.

It has some bad spots.

It never looked clean no matter

how many times it was mopped.

It just needed to go.

A whole new kitchen would be ideal.

However I want a bathroom downstairs first.

So to get by I just did the floor.

We have a small entry way off the

porch and it had different floor.

When we moved in the house we had to put

something here and new it would

be a quick temperary fix.

Jade helped take up the old  floor in the entry way.

Mason and I chillin on the new floor!

Mason upset I took the tape measure

away from him.

Wow, look at the floor!!!!

I love love love it!

The best part is I did it!

(can you see the door by the stove that Danny finally stained?

Its too orange so we did not do the others yet.

That was last winters project)

I am so happy with how it turned out.

The first tile we liked was like $4 per tile.

I did not want to spend that.

So we went with our second choice for $2.77 per tile!

I am so glad we did. I think the first tile

 would have been too orange for my liking.

Oh course the really really ugly tiles were 4 for $1.

Go figure.

Just some advise.... when doing a home project make sure you really look at the whole project and know what you need and are getting into. Someone told me I needed one box of tiles (15 tiles) and it ended up I needed 4.5 boxes! That also means my project wasn't as inexpensive as I was thinking it would first be. But all in all I am so glad to have a new floor! I can't wait to get the bathroom started downstairs and I already plan to do my own floor!

~What to do~

I got up this morning and turned on the computer. I read a few things on facebook and got alittle sad. For a few weeks now we have had reason to believe that Jade and Abby's birth mom, the mother who parented them for their first years of life is not as far away as she once was. Because of things I've read and a picture or two I have seen on facebook I think she is living with her mom (the girls' grandma that they still see).

This is a huge thing. As a parent right away my thought was if she is there we should have been told. We should know what her plan is. We are nearing 3 years of them not seeing their birth mom or their half sister who is 3.5years old now.

Danny and I have talked about what "our plan" is and we've come up with NOTHING.

What do we do? Do we wait until the phone rings and grandma wants to come visit? Do we wait until their mom calls and says she wants to see her girls?

Will she even want to see them?

Can an 8 and 6 year old really understand that she left them and now she might want to see them?

Who should get to decide all this? Is there a right and wrong thing to do here?

Why do I feel like no matter what we decide when we decide I am going to be the bad guy?

~ New Recipes~

I've been having fun making new things!

Thankfully my family is up for trying it all.

Danny wanted to go out for supper lastnight

and I was actually able to say NO!

I had a new recipe I wanted to try.

Here are a few things we tried.

Bubbly Pizza

8oz. lean ground beef

1 can ref. buttermilk biscuits

1 tsp. italian or pizza seasoning

1 tsp. Splenda

1 15oz. can chunky tomatoe sauce

1 cup low fat mozzarella cheese

Oven- 350*, Brown hamburger, cut biscuits in 1/4.

Place biscuits in 10 inch pie pan.

Mix together tomatoe sauce, splenda and seasoning.

Spoon over biscuits and top with hamburger and cheese.

Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Might seems like too much sauce but use it all as the biscuits will raise some.

Serves 6 at 4 weight watchers points per serving.

We really enjoyed this and Danny is already asking for it again.

Great healthy meal for the kids also.

I did use just regular tomatoe sauce as Danny is not big on the chunky kind.

This is something you could make with the kids.

Also could add things like olives, mushrooms, pepperoni.

Just have to adjust your points if you are counting then for WW.

We are making this today for our daycare lunch!

Chicken Bruschetta Bake

14 1/2 oz. can diced tomoatoes UNDRAINED

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 package stuffing- 6oz.

1/2 cup water

1 lb. chicken breast cut into pieces

1 tsp. dried basil leaves

1 cup low-fat cheese Mozzarella

Mix together tomatoes, garlic, stuffing mix, water.

Place chicken in a 9x13 pan and sprinkle with basil and cheese.

Then top with stuff mixture. Bake at 400* for 30 minutes or until chicken is done.

I enjoyed this meal served with salad and sweet peas.

My husband did not like it but he is also not a fan of stuffing.

Guessing this is supposed to serve 4 people at 5.5 ww points per serving!

Apple Pie Crumble

5 ww points per serving

You can get the recipe here!



~HEAT~

Out with the old

 In with the new!

Itsn't it just cute! We had to get a new boiler which heats our house.

They came out Monday to put it in.

So we finally have heat.

The old one was giving off carbon dioxide.

Thankfully not enough that we were in harm but enough we were told not to turn the heat on.

The venting wasn't properly hooked up but it is now! 

I know kind of boring!

A nice vacation would have been better.

~Cuddles~

Grandma came to visit and Mason got to cuddle with grandma. This doesn't usually happen since Mason is such a mommy's boy.

~Sandbox and hair cuts~

Our little Mason has discovered the sandbox!

What a mess.

He had more on him than anywhere else.

About a week ago,

Mason got another hair cut!

His hair grows way too fast.



~Playing in the leaves~

We weren't planning on a yard full of leaves this year since our big trees were both cut down.

But the neighbors leaves decided to fall into our yard.

So the kids played in the leaves last week and we took a few pictures.

Mason tried to figure out what was going on.

Maddison liked raking!

Abby looked for bugs in the leaves.

Jade likes to pose when she is in front of the camera.

~Letter to the Editor~

As part of the local child care association I got elected to write a letter to the editor... ok whatever, I offered! I had 406 words. However the total allowed is 300.  Yikes. Too many. So after some careful editing and a quick email to my sister for a second opinion this is what I sent-

Quality Child Care
Hi, my name is Amy Wynn. I have been a licensed child care provider in the ------ area for 5 years. I am a wife, mother and also the Vice President for the ------ County Licensed Family Child Care Association. I’ve never had to look for child care for my children but if I ever have to I want to make sure I find quality care. We all want the best for our children!

There are some things a parent should know about finding quality care. I hope my letter will help someone in need!

When a provider wants to become licensed their home goes through an inspection with the County Licensor. The provider goes through trainings such as CPR, First Aid and Car Seat Training. Providers must do 8 hours of continuing training per year.

A few tips on finding quality care-

*Interview many providers. ------- County has over 100 licensed providers. We all offer different programs and have different personalities.

*Ask family, friends or co-workers who have child care providers if their provider has openings and if they would recommend their services?

*Know what you want for your child. Do you want a provider who does a preschool program? Do you want just part-time care? Do you need a provider open later hours?

*Ask questions at the interview. You can do searches on-line to find lists of questions.

Remember when looking for child care to get a tour of where your child will play and nap. Make sure the areas look safe and clean. Ask the provider to show you a copy of their license (a copy should be posted in the child care).

Best of luck in your search for quality child care.

~Sharing the dress~

A few weeks ago I was doing laundry and decided to look in some of the totes in the laundry room.

I came across a tote filled with size 3t things.

Yippie, that's Maddison's size.

It was all things that Abby had worn and just a few other things I picked up at a garage sale.

I found this dress that I absolutely LOVE!

I remember buying it at Target for Abby and spending a tad bit more on it at the time than I usually spent on clothes. Abby wore it for pictures the year it fit her.

At first I was excited Maddi could wear it now. But then I got sad because that means my Abby isn't so little anymore.

Abby was 3 years old in this picture!

This was back when she had naturally curly hair!

I miss those days.

(She will be 7 in January)

~Wordless Wednesday~

(Charlie the horse, my dad, Maddi and I)

~Blankets and things~

I love making fleece blankets.

When my friends from high school have a baby I make them a blanket.

I have also made many for own children.

Jade and Abby were the first two little ones to get blankets from me.

We still have them! They got them the first Christmas I knew them.

This year Mason is getting a HUGE one with red fleece.

There are cars on the red fleece.

The back is just plain blue.

Do you see this cute child on top of the blanket I am trying to make?

She is cute but she was in my way.

So when you ladies talk about having sewing rooms or need one I totally get it.

I might not sew but I tie knots! So I need a knot tieing room.

I am almost finished with this one.

Then I will be making Jade a new one as well.

She has requested a new one for Christmas.

I also have a high school friend expecting her first baby (a boy) around Christmas.

I found some cute fleece for her blanket and can't wait to make it. 

I use one yard of fleece for baby blankets and 2 yards for bigger blankets.

It takes me one hour to make a small blanket and 2 hours to make a big blanket! 

If I don't get too interupted.

I also decorated this for Mason to go in his room.

I think he will get this for Christmas.

The red pail came from Target $ bins for just $2.50!

Then I spent 99cents on the lettering (still have more letters).

I had a hard time finding the right stickers.

These finally came from Wal-Mart. I think they were around $2.00.

So for around $5.49 Mason will have a cute personalized pail!

This will be great for little toy cars.

Mason loves playing peek-a-boo.

He also loves sitting on his little couch!