New Year

I can hardly believe that it is already 2013....WOW!!   As a family we had a really nice holiday, we spent time together, shared some food and laughter and started a few new traditions!!   We even got a special Florida visitor for a week!! My kids were super surprised and excited that their cousin Shelby came to stay with us for a week!! (I have to add that I was too!!!!)   I feel this should be said as well. You know those things that happen when you get together as a family, the jokes, the laughter, the love...I am truly blessed to say my kids will have some GREAT memories of spending time with family. I LOVE how much my kids, although there is quite an age gap, are a part of their cousins lives. My kids talk about them all the time as well as aunts and uncles. I have some of those same memories and LOVE the fact that mine with have some if not many more of their own!   Starting our year out...I have gotten crafty already, tried some new recipes, and enjoyed my NEW CRAFT ROOM!!!!! So much to share...but to start the year, be thankful for those close to you, those not so close to you, and those who have passed. The memories you have and make are yours forever and no one can take those away...now go out and create some memories!

 

 

 

Ain't this the truth...

So far it has been a VERY merry Christmas and looking to add a few merry more!!

   

New Traditions

Every year is full of change...and change is good. Well sometimes....   This year I am having a really hard time with change. Usually on Christmas Eve we celebrate Christmas with the whole Bloemers side...this year it will be different. Which really is a good thing, since it will be easier for more people to make being the Saturday before. I was hoping we would do our small Bloemers family gathering that night instead, but not he case, which I too understand.   This leads me to my issue...we now have NOTHING on Christmas Eve, or really Christmas Day. Usually both night and day are filled with family and they will, but just the 4 of us.   This I am dreading...   Toby says we will come up with something special to call our own, but it really just makes me miss my mom all that much more...   We have some ideas...but I am slowly working myself up. I wish I could just push it back and think of all the special memories we will be making with our kids, but sometime less isn't more and in this case less people, especially one that will be missing is being missed an extra lot this year.

Holiday Rush

I don't know about any of you but the holiday hustle and bustle is in full swing at our house. We have already attended one Christmas party, we have another one this coming weekend and then 2 the following weekend.   In between there we are working hard to finish the playroom, craft room, have carpet installed, finish up our shopping, and for me...making gifts!!   I love to give people small tokens to let them know just how special they are to me, especially at this time of year! I also really enjoying adding some fun new crafts that have been on my "to do" list to my "done" list!!   Currently on my to make list is: *Initial cup *People blocks *Matching shirts (for my neices!) *Cookies *Ornaments with the kids *Holiday tags *Hot Chocolate mix/chocolate dipped spoons *Popcorn Seasoning Kit *Holiday shirt for kids   I think that is it for right now...but I'm sure I will think of many more things that I should make!!

 

And I finally got around to ordering my holiday cards, so at least that part of things is done! YEAH!

Sneaky Elf

With Christmas comes one of my favorite Holiday traditions...Chip our Elf!! He usually shows up sometime after Thanksgiving and then gets into all sorts of different adventures.   **If you haven't heard of Elf on a Shelf...you need to check it out, it really is A LOT of fun and the kids just LOVE it!!    Here is his arrival....I think he arrived in style!

 

Day 2:

 

Day 3:

 

 

 Day 6:

 

Day 7:

The kids are really loving all the adventures "Chip" is having this year!! I am too!!

 

Thankful Memories

Thanksgiving is always a great time to gather with family. I have some seriously great Thanksgiving memories. Although I have a few that aren't so great, most of my memories just leave a HUGE smile on my face!   First of all for years we used to drive to Wisconson to spend Thanksgiving with my uncle and cousins. My mom and I would load our stuff and ourselves into the car and drive the 8 hour drive to my uncles only to stay up even later prepping for the Thanksgiving meal! (I can't remember how many times I stayed up breaking bread for the stuffing!) My mom and my uncle would do some of the other prepping, there was wine, Mountain Dew, and many laughs! Their favorite thing to make was the stuffing and they really had a knack for it!! Countless wooden spoons were broken...because you don't have the right consistency if you don't break a wooden spoon!! And A LOT and by a lot I mean A LOT of sage was used!! Everyone knows that if you don't need a drink after eating a bite...you NEED more SAGE!!   Its these types of memories that make the not so happy ones...fade to the backgroud. (My mom's last Thanksgiving was spent in the hospital...I brought her dinner, but who wants to eat a Thanksgiving meal there??)   I hope my kids have wonderful memories of spending time with cousins, playing/watching football, eating A LOT of food, and most of all of breaking a few wooden spoons and add just the right amount of SAGE!!   I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, I know I did!!

Pot Roast

We are back at trying to really keep to a budget...so that means I actually have to cook...   I'll just let that sink in...       Me cooking...regularly!! No it's not a cruel joke either!   With that of course comes me being better with time management, and hunting on Pinterest!! Well, that also meant that I was going to start using some of the beef we had in our freezer and one thing we had a lot of was roasts...that's when I came to the conclusion that I didn't know how to cook a roast...   Now normally you wouldn't think this was much of a big deal, you would probably call your mom or grandma and say "Hey how do I make a pot roast??" I can't do that... It hit me like a TON of bricks and I just started to cry...at first Toby was unsure what to make of it, but once I explained he understood. Sometimes we take these little things for granted. I have learned to embrace these moments.   Teaching my kids how to bake and sew has now moved to the top of my list...I want my kids to share in the memories I have with my mom teaching me. Of course one thing they won't be learning... How to cook a Pot Roast!!