Our entertainment

We've had a lot of time at home lately between snow days and now Christmas vacation. One of our entertaining items is the beautiful amaryllis my husband bought me! We've had so much fun watching it grow from a simple bulb to a gorgeous flower that has opened up more than we expected! I guess that simple growth and beauty during the winter really lifts our spirits!  

Snow day fun!

Last week my kiddos had 3 snow days in a row. Day 1: I was excited... I had a craft planned, the groceries purchased, etc. Day 2: I was thinking I was running out of "tricks up my sleeve" but we stayed busy. Day 3: I was thinking "oh boy, think of something fun and do it quick!" We had literally stayed inside for 2 full days (day 1 was too wet to go sledding and day 2 was too frigid cold to sled) so by day 3 we really needed to get out. So without driving anywhere, I needed a plan. Thankfully, we live behind Target! It was still a VERY cold walk over but worth it! I challenged my kiddos to find the best "treasures" they could for $2.00. We had a lot of fun walking around, just taking our time since we had nowhere we had to be. My son, of course, had a plan to find a toy with his money. My daughter, on the other hand, wanted to be more creative. Here is what they came up with!  

Taylor with her "groovy" glasses!                  Austin with his matchbox cars!

Locks of LOVE!

Taylor had been growing her hair out for quite some time in order to donate it to Locks of Love. Well, the haircut date could not get scheduled soon enough for me! (her hair was looking so stringy) Taylor wanted to schedule her haircut during Christmas break so she could go back to school with her new look. I knew I couldn't handle looking at that hair that much longer. So I, thankfully, was able to convince her to get it cut during Thanksgiving break. Taylor was unsure about losing all that length, but it didn't take long for her to see how much fun she can have with her shorter look! And in all seriousness, I'm so proud of her for donating her hair to help someone in need! I keep picturing a young cancer patient who will get to use Taylor's hair as their wig!

                                                                    Before

                                                        After - YEAH!

Wow... its been awhile, hasn't it?

I have not blogged in so long! Shame on me! It's not because our family hasn't done anything exciting, just the opposite! We stay very busy! It is very difficult for me to take the time to blog! But a couple snow days and my new, fast computer and I'm ready to get back to blogging! So along with posting family updates and photos, I think I should do a Mary Kay giveaway www.marykay.com/msurrena in the near future! 
So, Happy Snow Day to you! It's good to be back! :-) 

Something I've looked forward to....

Our family has been VERY busy with camping, kid's b-days, getting ready to move, etc. However, that didn't stop me from anxiously awaiting the release of the new Daughtry cd this past Tuesday! I don't buy that many brand new cds but there are a few groups that I simply must get their cd as soon as it is released - Daughtry is one of those groups! I was in great need of some new music to enjoy! I have been listening to it for the past 2 days and LOVE IT!

5 years old already?

So I just celebrated my "baby" turning 10. Now my other "baby" is 5 today! I don't think I can think of either kiddo as my baby anymore, can I? I can't believe I have such big kiddos!

Happy Birthday to my big boy!

Austin has a difficult time just smiling for me so here he is being goofy!

One year since our engagement...

One year ago today, my handsome husband proposed to me!

We were camping at Grand Haven State Park. We went for a walk on the boardwalk to watch the sunset and take some pictures of the kiddos. We got to the boardwalk and my husband goes "Wow, there are a lot of people here!" And I'm thinking (and probably said out loud) "yeah, it's Saturday night in Grand Haven - that's to be expected." Well, later I realized why he made that comment. He was nervous about proposing with so many people around! Can't really blame him! It turned out to be a lot of fun to have people around because they started clapping for us after he asked me to marry him! This year for our "Engagement Anniversary" we will be in Grand Haven again! Can't wait!

Love you, babe!

Can my "little" girl really be 10 today???

10 years ago today, my life changed forever. My little girl was born and my life has not been the same! What a joy it is to be mom to such an amazing girl!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TAYLOR!!!!

(This is Taylor all done up for her b-day last year)

Yum! Berry Bliss Cake

Here is another dessert I made with the strawberries the kids and I picked last week. This recipe can be found at http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/berry-bliss-cake-106367.aspx

My latest craft project!

I recently found this Message Board project in my Sept 2008 Family Fun magazine http://jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts?page=CraftDisplay&craftid=12011 and thought it looked simple (which is great for me :-) and fun! I set out to make one that would match the colors I want for my new kitchen. I figured I better make this craft now before we are deep into home improvement projects and moving. I had a difficult time finding the right color contact paper/shelf liner so I ended up using several fun sheets of scrapbook paper! I think it turned out cute and I'm excited to hang it up in our new house!

Highly Recommended!

I read a lot of books worthy of raving about... but this book was especially inspirational! I recently read "Inside My Heart" by Robin McGraw. (Yes, Robin is Dr. Phil's wife) This isn't a new book. In fact, it has been sitting on my bookshelf (unread) for a while. I can't believe it took me so long to pick this book up and read it! Robin is very positive and encouraging. She talks a lot about CHOOSING how our lives will go - mainly by choosing how we look at life and situations. She talks about doing each thing in life with passion! She encourages women to live with confidence and courage. I felt very encouraged and inspired by what she had to say!

Picking Strawberries!

My kiddos and I went to pick strawberries this week! We went early to beat the heat but it was still very warm! I'm not complaining, though, since summer will be gone too quickly! We searched for the best strawberries and came home successful! I got to work making freezer jam using my Tupperware Quick Chef to chop up the strawberries! I used my Tupperware Freezer Mates for the finished product! I put the rest of my fresh strawberries in my Tupperware FridgeSmart http://my.tupperware.com/gapmlm to use later with desserts, smoothies, etc. I had so much fun preparing and storing my strawberries because I had the right tools!

My (future) soccer champ!

My son was able to be a part of his first summer sports camp this week! He was very excited and so was I! My son constantly needs opportunities to burn energy and I thought this would be a great fit for him! And it sure was! He had a GREAT time! He has watched his big sister play soccer for a while now so he was ready and anxious to get out on that field! It was a super hot week but that didn't stop the coaches from teaching these little ones some great skills! I felt very proud of my little athlete and was reminded once again, that yes, I am a soccer mom.

Our strange Father's Day....

Our Father's Day was different because my husband needed to work on Rob's car (they started working on it the Friday before so it was torn apart) Anyway, we had breakfast together (breakfast burritos since that is what my husband likes) and went to church. After church, the guys were going to work fast, get the car done and then we would still have the rest of the day to play. Well, things don't always go as fast as we would like and it ended up taking the rest of the day. So I pulled together some lunch (grilled hot dogs and hamburgers) and took the kiddos (without any fathers) to the pool to keep them entertained. A highlight of the day ended up being the ice cream treat after the car was fixed!

Canoe ride!

Last Saturday we met my in-laws at Cabela's. While we were there, we took advantage of Cabela's "try it before you buy it" special and our family went out in a canoe! It was super windy that day but we had a great time! We almost looked like we knew what we were doing! Cabela's plan worked - we were almost convinced to buy a canoe - almost!

We've had a busy summer already!

Since school got out, we've already had a busy summer! My daughter has completed 3 summer camps: cheer camp, theater camp and tennis camp. It has kept her (and the entire family) busy and she has really enjoyed herself! Maybe the rest of the summer will slow down!? (not likely since my kiddos still have other summer camps, we have family vacations planned and our family is in the process of buying a home and moving) This is what summer is all about, right?

My Graduate!

Tonight I got to enjoy watching my daughter graduate from 4th grade. This is a big deal since the 4th graders leave the elementary school and move to the intermediate building. Wow - I can't believe my daughter is done with the elementary school that she spent 5 years attending. With bittersweet emotions, we celebrated her accomplishments tonight!