Ms. Misc

Got some picture of the hair clips I've made up on my other blog.
Check it out. If you've got time, drop me a line and let me know what you think.

http://msmiscaccessories.blogspot.com/2010/08/hair-clips-for-sale.html

New Fave Product

I've been searching for a toothpaste that was healthy meaning no toxic ingredients and no sugars but still tastes good. My dentist recommended using baking soda since it balances the ph in your mouth. I couldn't keep it up though because it tastes salty - not very refreshing.
Boy am I'm so glad I found this.


It's 99.2% natural (that is really what is says on the box)
It has NO sulfates and it uses Stevia as a sweetener instead of sugars. (what a concept)
Oh and NO Propylene Glycol

All of that makes it worth the price. (close to $4.00 at walmart.)
But there is a $1.00 off coupon right now at there website

From Chaos to Beauty and Order, Courtisy of Kathy

You all probably don't have the same problem of chaos and lack of beauty and decor that is intentional but if you do I've got an answer for you.

Kathy Kent

After Kathy was done staging my living room I just wanted to sit and take in all the beauty. The most wonderful thing is how much she did with things I already had. She took the things I've always wanted to use in my decor and somethings I hadn't thought of using and knew just how to arrange them to make the room look intentional decorated.

She is nothing short of a miracle worker, though she would deny it.

Here is the proof.

BEFORE
(These aren't great before pictures because I never took pictures of my house {why would I, I didn't like how it looked} These pictures will have to do to give you an idea of how poorly my house was put together.)

for a long time that wall only had a clock and a couch on it. this picture was taken about 18 mths ago.

That poor desk; it was a black hole of chaos. See my poor attempt at decor with that candle holder?

AFTER

Here is the view of the east and west walls.

Notice, he counter is cleared off and decorated. (that in it's self is miraculous.)

Family Pictures.
Family is the heart of a home and Kathy did a great job arranging these pictures of our family. She even thought to include frames for pictures of family that might be joining us in the future.

West Wall. I'm so happy with the flowers in the corner. I've had that pedestal for 8 years at least. And it finally has something useful to do! The book shelf here is the only new thing we purchased. In case you were wondering, those documents on the wall will soon have frames.

now the desk has some order and the decor looks intentional not accidental.

This statue of Don Quixote is probably my most favorite possession.
Now it has a place where it can be admired.

I never would have thought to put a lamp near the kitchen let alone stack it on books. But
I LOVE IT!!

She found a great place for my clock and that mirror. I love that mirror. It was given to us as a wedding present. I hadn't been able to find a place for it in our new house so it was hiding behind a shelf not wanting to get given away. Thankfully it has a place now.


Kathy is now offering her services as a stager at a VERY reasonable rate.
Contact her for details http://kentfamdays.blogspot.com or kentfam6@gmail.com

First Day of School

Here she is eating her breakfast. I was so concerned that she might get hungry before snack time. I made her a big breakfast and kept telling her to eat, eat, eat.










She was so excited for that backpack. It is ridiculously huge on her and more then enough to carry her folder and lunch, but what can ya do?

(In case you're wondering, that's Madi, who I babysit. She just loves being in pictures.)

Off she goes. I'm not going to lie, I closed the door and cried.
I cant believe she's going to school. I love having her home.

She really is enjoying herself. And learning so much. She always has fun songs to sing and interesting facts to tell me.

I am grateful we chose the school we did. She has a small class (18 students) and a really great teacher.

Grandma Tu-Tu

Lately I've been thinking about my Grandma. She's an amazing woman. She's always been my friend. She's always kind and playful and wise. She was really good with children. She always had some activity for them to do - painting, or sewing on plastic canvas. Below is a picture of her teaching and RaRa how to color. I'm so grateful my two oldest girls had a chance to know her in this life.
They always talk about her. They usually say something like, "I love Grandma TuTu. And she died." I wonder if it ever takes anyone off guard when they say that so casually.... It doesn't bother me, not that I don't miss her. I do. But I know that she is happy in the spirit world and is spending time with her family there who missed her for several years while we got to enjoy her here.
Every time a child does something to test their limits (and my patience) I here her voice in my mind "Testing, Testing, 1,2,3,4." She always said that when kids were deliberately being naughty.
She was a very resourceful woman. She loved to paint (it helped her when she was worried or stressed, or couldn't sleep in the middle of the night) but she didn't always have frames for her pictures. She made do with what she had. Which was usually plastic canvas, or cardboard.

I could write more and more about this wonderful woman but for now I'll just have to leave you with this and a few pictures of her.

Car Pool

The thing about sending you kids to a charter school is you have to drive them there. Which is a bit of a chore. Gratefully we have some friends in the neighborhood that are sending their children to the same school, so we get to spread the chore of driving among three families.

One of the great things about carpooling is getting to hear the kids conversations in the car.

I'll give you a glimps:
"One time we went to Sedona and stayed in a cabin."
"What is 'Se-Donut'?"
which lead to a barrage of "Se-whatever word I can think of" i.e. Se-hotdog, se-pickle, se-palmtree.

I couldn't keep from laughing.
These kids are great!!

First Day of School

So... tomorrow is the big day! My little girl is off to school. She is so proud and excited. I wish I had a video to record her while she made her lunch this evening. She wanted to do it herself, and she wanted to make sure she'd have extra graham crackers to share with her friends {because of course she'd have friends on her first day of school}
I'm doing much better about it today then I was yesterday. Which means I can think about it with out crying. I'm so grateful for friends who've listened to me and have assured me it will all be OK.
I'll let you know how it goes. (for both of us)