From Chaos Comes Happiness

Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! Oh, I'm so glad to be back . . . creating . . . sharing ideas . . . having fun! This weeks "Crafty Schmafty Fridays" idea is in honor of Earth Day , and something I am so very excited to be sharing with you.  Before we begin . . . a little background for you . . . For those of you who know my Ella, you probably know that she is rarely seen without some sort of pad of paper and pencil in her hands. This child has, since she first learned how to hold a crayon, been obsessed with doodling. We can't make it through a quick trip to Michaels or Target without stopping at the $1 section and picking up a little notebook for Miss Ella to use. And as the $1 section at Michaels is really now the $1.50 section . . . I wanted to come up with a little handmade goodie to substitute all those little $1's that have flown out of my wallet the past few years. I also wanted to try and use some materials in my home . . . with spending as little ...

What do you get when you add up a crazy week of doctors appointments, work, and furniture deliveries, with a few day of Internet problems and computer issues? You get a week of no blogging. sniff sniff. Forgive me. This weekend I am trying desperately to slow it all down. I felt like I was coming down with something yesterday - just my body's way of telling me to get a grip - focus - stop. The good news - all appointments are complete - all furniture has been received - the new computer is even up and running (with all necessary programs installed) and life is GOOD. So I can return to blogland!!! YIPPIEE!!! And I have about a million and one friends blogs to catch up on! Please give me a few days (little does the husband know - I'm spending the night in front of the computer!! YIPPIE!!!) But before I do that . . . this morning the girls asked if we could make a puppet show. I went into full force creative Leanne mode, and with the help of a few straws and some pa...

This is my friend, Kathleen . . . I adore her with all of my heart. She has been my friend forever (or at least, for as long as I can remember). And we both enjoy wine.   This is Kathleen, her daughter Mags, and me and my girls having dinner one night in December. Having dinner with Kath and Maggie is truly one of my favorite things to do.   I love nights like this. This week, I received an email from Kathleen that went something like this: "So tonight preparing for the blizzard Storm of 2011 I went to the store. When I got back I unloaded my groceries and started to roll up my grocery bags into a tie. I need a refresher course, because my bags kept falling apart. So next time we have a pizza night, you will have to give me a lesson again."  I really can't leave my friend out there, struggling with her plastic bags.   And since the snow has me unable to drive to her house and give her a lesson, I thought I'...

Have you seen the latest? No? Don't worry. I hadn't either. That is . . . until recently, when Katie came home from school and declared, "Mom, we need to go buy some duck tape!" "Duct tape," I corrected her, "and why do you want to buy some of it?" You see, I know  all about duct tape. Yes, I do. ALL about it. I happen to have been raised in a house with the KING of all things duct and taped. Oh, yes I was.  My father. When something broke, my Dad had just the thing to fix it ... duct tape. And it looked something like this . . . According to Wikipedia , duct tape was "originally developed during World War II in 1942 as a water resistant sealing tape for ammunition cases. Permacel, then a division of Johnson & Johnson, used a rubber-based adhesive to help the tape resist water and a fabric backing to add strength. It was also used to repair military equipment quickly, including jeeps, firearms, and aircraf...

Just a quick little post today, dear friends, with a simple gift-giving idea for the little girls in your life. Even more important (during these financially challenged days), is that the gift is COMPLETELY and TOTALLY inexpensive! (But the young girls in your life will LOVE it!) You may remember this past summer when Katie got her ears pierced (for her 7th Birthday). The whole "earring" thing has been quite an exciting addition to her life. I, on the other had, was going crazy trying to help her keep her earrings together in her little drawer jewelry box. After an unsuccessful search trying to find an easy little girl container for her to use (that's the key here), I knew I had to come up with some way to contain Katie's new jewels. My sister came up with an idea to put holes in some sort of box. I started with that thought . . . and went with it. A little field trip to my handy dandy Michaels Craft Store was all I needed. I found thes...

We are now at Day #8 of PG's 25 day business trip . . . and all is going well. It seems like my family meeting last week (you know the one, right? When I called for MANDATORY PEACE and HAPPINESS from my 7 and 3 year olds?) was really a great start to some happy days here. Yep, it's all been good. But, you know me. We don't stop at good . (I know, I have to chill!) So, let me tell you my latest hair-brained idea . . . Actually, I can't take full credit for this one. This is all the genius work of a blog I stumbled upon last week called  Zippy Chix . The idea? Well, taken directly from Zippy Chix's blog, the basic idea is to  use tickets to reward positive behaviors and to inspire motivation in your little ones. Then, whenever they want, they are able to "cash in" their tickets for a special reward. You can read about it further in Zippy Chix's post titled; " Kid Currency ".   So, since we have ...

One of the little things I had to do for Katie, when we first put up a "park" for her in the backyard, was a make a sign declaring it what it was . . . "Katie's Park". While the little swing and slide play yard might not have been the biggest or best on the block, it was SO special to her because it clearly WAS hers. All hers. Here's a little photo of "Katie's Park", circa 2006: Today, the park is still the same, only the baby swing has been replaced with rings, and there are a few coats of stain on the wood. It is one of the best investments we've made in our backyard, and the kids still play on it daily. While it has taken me a few years to re-do the sign, this weekend we proudly changed it to "Katie & Ella's Park". Here are a few photos from the project before, during and after. . . It starts with a simple piece of wood . . . and some paint . . . add a couple of beautiful names, and a flower or two . . .  d...

So, let me tell you why this whole Leprechaun thing kind of caught me off guard. I guess, since Katie is now 6 1/2 and we have never done the whole Leprechaun contraption, that I never really thought (or prepared) for St. Patrick's Day. I mean, I've written about my wishes to BE Irish here , and I've shared our celebrations with you here , but the whole Leprechaun thing just kind of got lost in our house. Until THIS year. As I've told you - on Tuesday evening at around 8:00PM, Katie announced that we HAD to put together a trap for the Leprechaun. Well, I jumped into action . . . because, why not? It sounded like a great idea. With an old box, some markers, a couple of gold dollars, and a wish . . . we had a pretty great trap. A short while later . . . the girls were in bed and I was sitting quietly on the couch looking at our design. Truly, a well thought-out approach to catching the Little Green Guy (aka the Leprechaun), I thought. Then . . .it hit me. Uh - oh. Shouldn...

Today I had a GOOD MOM Day! and I want to share it with you. It started around 9am when my dear friend brought her daughter over for the day . . . . and from there on . . . . it was all GOOD! We hand made cards and craft projects. We made a card for a beloved aunt's birthday, and a get well sign for mu-mu. We made HOMEMADE Oatmeal Clay and played and played (thanks, Lill, for the recipe and support! And, no - I have NO IDEA what is on these plates. But, it's what our little artists created - and they're perfect!) We had a yummy chicken/pasta/peas/carrots salad for lunch. And a yummy cookie for dessert. We played a game of "I am a . . . " (which I made up about 5 minutes earlier). I wrote down the name of about 30 different animals/persons/things and put them in a bag, then picked them out one at a time and had the girls act out what it was. This occupied at least 45 minutes (yea!) Above they are a plate of spaghetti and meatballs, can't you tell? (I think Kat...

I still haven't really figured out my concept for this blog . . . is it a "Mom" blog talking about Mom issues? a "Womens" blog dealing with the trials of being a girl? Is it an "Inspirational" blog, a "Funny Story" blog, a "Perimenopausal" blog? I just don't know (maybe you can tell me what it is to YOU, and I'll go from there!) Anyway, once in a very long while (during the course of being a Mom) I come up with what I call a "Good Mom Idea" . You know those - one of those things that you come up with and afterwards think, "Now, THAT was good idea! I'm a GOOD MOM for coming up with that one!" I don't have them often (they usual require a good night sleep and some originality, which I am often lacking in this chaotic life of mine). But I LOVE when they surface. Today I was cleaning up the girls toys and I came across a " Good Mom Idea" I had a couple of years ago. I immediately though...