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Get ready for a new and improved blog! Maybe I will actually give my results from "The Great Sugar Cookie" adventure!
COMING SOON!!!
Ok. So lately things have been a little hectic. Probably no more than usual and I know not really any busier than anyone else, but it has still been hectic. True, I have still been a slacker when it comes to blogging and I really do promise to do better; however the problem is that when we start a new project, or work on something new it always turns into something bigger than it probably should be. The kids joke that that is just the Draper way-- "GO BIG OR GO HOME". However, lately when we start talking about doing something like a poster for Jr. Miss, or decorations for the Accadian Auction or MORP, or remodeling the kitchen,
the question now is if the project is going to turn into a 'TACO'.....
Let me explain...
When Erin was in third grade she 'jokingly' said she wanted to be a taco for Halloween. "Wouldn't that be an awesome costume?" she says. "That would be kind of cool" I say in return. "Let me think about it and see what I can come up with".
So I thought about it.... I had learned to work with foam a couple of years earlier when we did a float for the 24th of July Parade so I figured I could put those skills to work on a costume.
Erin went to bed one night and when she woke up, she was a taco! Who would have thought?
Anyway, now when ever Suzie or I say there is some project or another coming up, the first thing that comes out of someones mouth is "TACO?"....
Dumb question... of course it is going to be a taco! I wouldn't have it any other way! And really, the family might complain a little but they wouldn't have it any other way either! GO BIG DRAPER'S OR GO HOME!
(I think that was the same year I made four foot round m&m costumes out of foam for Scott, Deni and several of Deni's friends... but that is another story!).
Neighborhood 'round the block' parade.
So I admit that I have been a slacker lately. I have had a lot of 'things an stuff' going on and have been a little distracted, but I have been having a lot of fun also! Fun things that I need to share, so I promise to get back on top of it and do a little posting.
We had a neighborhood parade and breakfast for the 4th of July and I decorated a ride for Erin and Samantha. It was cute and fun and patriot. One of my neighbors said to me "Well, we can always count on you to do something dramatic and bizarre". DRAMATIC AND BIZARRE? Seriously. I have been called a lot of things in life but never that...
I decorated a wheel barrow and pushed the 2nd Attendant to Miss Sandy around the block. What is so bizarre about that? It was fun.
Anyway, I promise to do better going forward! and HAPPY 4th of JULY!
Self portrait in Black and White.
So, I don't usually take my clothes to the laundry until I am desperate and have nothing to wear. Needless to say, when I finally go there is a LOT of laundry. I picked up my dry cleaning the other day and was putting it away when Erin came in to see what I was doing. She took a look at the bed and said "Umm... Dad, I think we need an intervention! You have a color problem". My first response was 'hello pot... this is kettle!' since Erin's closet looks very much like mine.
Personally, I don't see a problem here. I do have one light blue sweater and a gray one, there might even be a purple sweater in this stack, so I am not totally afraid of color.
And seriously, I am not afraid of pattern either. Really, I am not...
See, there is some pattern in my wardrobe... There is some plaid, some tattersall and a little organic floral. There are even some stripes. I am not afraid of pattern!
WHAT??? Honestly, I don't have a problem here. Just like I don't have a problem with holidays, or even a problem with sugar cookies for that matter. Really, I don't have a problem.
So I also have twenty pair of black shoes... doesn't everyone?
Still not Grandma and Grandpa but we are Mr. and Mrs. Easter Bunny for our nieces and nephews and it is so much fun! We filled almost 700 eggs with treats and money (like nickels, dimes and quarters) and had lots of other fun items hiding in the bushes. Bubbles, rubber duckies, pens and pencils...
IT WAS FREEZING! It was raining and cold! This was the latest Easter could be in the year and it still felt like an early March Easter.
New this year was the prize table. There was a metallic egg for each child with their name written on it hidden somewhere in the yard. When they found it they could turn in their egg for a prize at the table. It was just a lot of random spring toys for boys and girls. You know, like whiffle balls and bats, kites, sidewalk chalk, Frisbees, crowns, Slinky's, plastic gardening set. I think in the olden days everyone got gardening sets for Easter from the Easter Bunny. You know, a pail with a shovel, a hoe and a rake. We couldn't wait to get out and dig up the garden!
It was too cold to count out the loot outside so everyone piled into the family room to see what they found. Ryan, Abby, Chase, Emma and Morgan check it out.
Ethan with piles of eggs.
Minde saw our egg hunt on my blog last year and was jealous! She brought Riley and Chase from New York City for the egg-stravaganza!
Lisa,Addy, Hayes and Taylor sort it all out.
Scott helps Garret while Cyd helps Ethan. Probably more sugar than one kid should have in a year. However, I am the Easter Bunny. I can spoil them all I want and then just send them home with their parents to deal with the sugar high! Hop, hop, hop.
Any thing the kids did not want to take home went into the recycling bag. I think they know that if I take the eggs home I will augment them with more next year and fill them all up! I think that is why the egg count goes up so much each year! That, and the fact that I can never remember how many eggs I have so I always buy more just to be safe...
I think I hopped one too many times! I was tired and needed a little bunny nap before I could get back on my feet!
Thanks to Mark and Gainell for their hospitality and for sharing their grand kids with us. The 'things and stuff' that make life worthwhile are focused around traditions and the people who are important to us, that is what makes our Easter egg hunt such a fun tradition!
If you know us at all, you know that holidays are a big deal in our house and just because St. Patrick's day is a fairly small holiday that is often passed over doesn't mean you can't decorate! There are 'things and stuff' that can be done for even the most obscure holiday's!
We like to decorate our bannister for the holidays. It is easy to do, doesn't take a lot of time or energy, but it makes the entry fun and inviting. I just used stuff this year that I picked up at the grocery store.
A green glitter derby, a feather boa and mardi-gras beads combine with a variety of ribbon to create a St. Patrick's day garland.
When we remodeled our kitchen this year (I know... I haven't posted the new kitchen yet) I put in cabinets above the new wet bar that could display all of our fun holiday theme collections. Everything in the cupboard is not St. Patrick's day but it is amazing when you start looking around how many things you own that can be combined into a 'themed' collection.
Lighting the inside of the cabinets and using glass shelves allows you to showcase a collection.
Yes, these are really Christmas angels... I just missed them when I was cleaning up after the holiday. Now they are St. Patty's angels! After all, the medallion says "Kiss me, I'm Irish". Now you can kiss me under the mistletoe!
Shamrock's on the front porch welcome visitors! The large shamrock is cut from Masonite, the smaller shamrocks are from the dollar store. I painted the spots on them to make them look like they all go together.
