The Silk Road to Siena

Happy Belated Valentines Day!

2012-02-15T09:32:00.003-05:00

Late again to blog class. Oh well, this busy Mom is well.....busy. No other excuse. My "To Do" list keeps getting longer every week. Later, on all that.

The weekend before Valentine's Day, Mark & I actually had a date night. We got Siena's teacher's oldest daughter to babysit for us. Siena was thrilled to have her so it was a real delight. Since we aren't into the party or drinking scene, the only activity we tend to do is go out to eat so that was really all we came up with. Of yeah...we did run to the mall for a few minutes. But dinner was nice & peaceful since we didn't have the interruption of someone special every time we spoke to each other and dinner was really good at Bonefish Grill.

Mark's out of town this week so he gave Siena & I our little gifts before he left town & on Valentines Day I got a sweet bouquet of flowers delivered.

Like many events at school I help out in class. So yesterday I went to help the kids read their Valentines. This is what Siena wore for her special day. Sassiness & all.

On top of all the Valentine goodies from Daddy & school, Siena also got some wonderful goodies from Aunt Betty & Baba. Thank you both.

Everything else is going well. Siena is progressing well in piano class & still likes it. I hope she will continue so I can continue to live vicariously through her. Piano was always something I wanted to play but only took a few lessons as an adult but it just didn't click for me.
Girl scouts is fun too. We had our cookie drive & went around the neighborhood & got some orders but have yet to do a store front sale. Hoping to get a spot in front of a store soon.

A few weeks ago was report card time again & Siena made all high marks. The PALS testing was done before that & she scored the max in all areas on it. Her reading now is awesome. Beginner reading books are just too easy, so we've moved on to short story books.

As for me, I'm still selling well on Etsy. If you haven't checked out Etsy or my shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheVintageRoad2Retro , please take a look. Etsy has so many great shops with vintage & handmade items along with supplies to make anything you can think of. Another new venue for me selling, is our area has a few Yard Sale groups through Facebook. I've joined one that I've sold over $500.00 of stuff on in just one week. It's true! I've been selling just things around the house & some of the things that are piled in the garage. You just meet the buyer in a public location, like a store parking lot to get it to them. It works out so well since I make it somewhere close by or on my way to other places.

Happy Year of the Dragon- 2012

2012-01-23T23:03:00.004-05:00

Gong Hey Fat Choy

2012-01-22T23:27:00.000-05:00

It's Chinese New Year Again. The Year of the Dragon.This year we were invited to a party that our friends Ellen, Rick & Sarah had. It was also Rick's birthday. So here are a few pictures that I got while there last night. I'm actually writing this the night before Chinese New Year so Siena hasn't gotten her traditional Red Envelope yet. Anyway...Ellen made this beautiful Dragon Cake & ordered some yummy Chinese food. It was the perfect party, since the kids all played so well together downstairs in their basement & the adults had a nice break.

Like last year, I plan to read a book to Seina's class & explain a little about Chinese New Year to the kids. I know that she enjoys it each year. We filled red envelopes the other day with some play coins that look like ancient Chinese coins, for her to give out to her classmates.

The Great Out Doors

2012-01-10T10:44:00.001-05:00

On that last note of "Let's Start Fresh Again", Saturday we made such an attempt by getting outside & enjoying the weather. It was an unusually warm day for us in January. Around 70 degrees.
Before leaving the house I made a up a crock pot full of potato soup to have for dinner on our return home. Something that I've been wanting to try for a long time. I looked up a few recipes, but like most of my "this & that" cooking, I just checked to see what was necessary & then came up with my own version. No, I'll never remember it since I never write it down when I cook like that.

We headed out for lunch 1st. I didn't want anyone complaining of being hungry on our planned excursion. We like to try those Mom & Pop places sometimes to get something new, so we dropped in at a place called The Parthenon. I know it's been around as long as we've lived here at least & by the decor it appeared to look like a lot longer!
It was Greek & Italian cuisine. Our souvlaki wraps were pretty good so I think we'll have to go back next time to try their pizza.

Hiking....that's what we did. Nothing big time. Just a small park that's tucked away in town with a small hiking trail by a stream. The temp. was perfect for walking. It felt good with the fresh air. I've been indoors too long. Of course the day was complete when Siena got to play on the playground.

Back home we ate the soup I made. Yes...it turned out just fine. Everyone ate 2 bowl fulls. I think that says something. :)

Let's Start Fresh Again!!!

2011-12-31T21:58:00.001-05:00

A Schaller Family Christmas

2011-12-26T21:19:00.003-05:00

It's been a busy Christmas with it all coming to a close now. We had Siena's Baba come visit us & is here until Jan. 2. I just hope Siena doesn't wear her out. In the past week we've make several batches of cookies, gone out driving to look at Christmas lights in our PJ's, gone to church on Christmas Eve, cooked a big Christmas dinner & of course played with all the goodies Santa brought.

Siena didn't really ask for too much this year. The one big thing that she kept asking for was a Princess bike that she saw at Toy's R Us earlier this year so he did follow through & brought that. For the most part she also got lots of books & workbooks that I knew she would love. Family & friends have been more than generous with lots of nice goodies too. She's been very happy with having her Baba here to give her lots of attention so that was a gift in itself.

Our Christmas dinner was a nice dinner that Mark & I both completed with a big turkey that was Mark's 1st. He did a great job on it despite not basting it as much as I thought he should have but it turned out really good.

Our Christmas Angel

2011-12-20T22:19:00.004-05:00

I Love this Face!

This is what Christmas means to me!

Cheap Momma uses Faux Santa

2011-12-15T01:03:00.001-05:00

Call me "Cheap" this year. But I didn't even order the fancy photo Christmas cards this year & Siena sat in the lap of a faux Holiday Craft show Santa. I can't believe it's so close to Christmas. I've had a set back this year. I was sick for pretty much a whole week. Yeah...that's it. That's my excuse. I'm using it anyway.. No I was sick & I'm just getting back into the swing of things. At least I got our Christmas cards out with a nice shot of Siena in front of the tree. Good thing I bought most of my gifts either online or early in the season.

But really. Isn't it about just being with family & friends and sharing good times like baking cookies together? Yes, and that's what's on the list for our next project here at the Schaller Manor.

Santa Is Always Watching!

2011-12-07T23:10:00.000-05:00

Siena has gotten an email message from Santa again this year. You can view it by clicking on the link here:
http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/watch/mBan8Rk0_7nbusHb4okJYDA

I'm so happy that she still believes in Santa. I love just seeing her eyes light up to the things that seem so magical to her.

The Tourist Turkeys

2011-12-06T22:00:00.000-05:00

Sorry I missed saying...."Happy Thanksgiving" this year, but with all this Super Mom has to do these days other items take president at times. But for Thanksgiving this year we decided to take a little trip. We didn't want to go too far so we decided on D.C. for a few nights with our hotel points & take in the sights. I saw that Siena was learning a few things about history at school & thought it would be a little educational for her as well.

We got to most of the Smithsonian museums but Siena was more about moving on to the next thing. She was happy to see things that she already knew about, like Dorothy's Ruby Red slippers in the American History Museum, but I guess a 5 yr old in a museum can only look at so much. We did a lot of walking & I mean a lot of walking! We took the train up so we had no car & rode the Metro around town then it was off on foot. We also happened to drop into town just when the "Occupy D.C." Protests had started. As you will see in one of the photos Siena would have been too happy to camp out with them. She loved the tents. But at least it was education to say the least.

We decided on China Town for our actual Thanksgiving Dinner but wasn't that impressed with our food. I don't think D.C. is known for it's China Town as much as other large cities. Yet again, the experience is always worth the education.

Just want to point out to please bare with me on this post & probably more to come, as Blogger has changed a bit & I've also had to find new image hosting sites. I'm not one for change when it comes to computers so hang in there with me.

Extra....Extra....Read All About It!

2011-11-09T21:17:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official. Siena is now an official school girl with all the extra curricular activities that come with it. She's now a Daisy with the Girl Scouts & takes piano lessons one day a week. Both of which she loves.

Her 1st Daisy Meeting

Earning her 1st Pin

So far for the Daises, we had a few meetings at the Troop leaders house, a little party for Juliette Lowe at the park & gone to the Firehouse, which we were late to, but oh well. The troop is very small & makes it a great little group. Only 2 other girls from Siena's old Preschool. Although one other little girl has joined but we've only seen her once. The troop leader is one of the girl's moms & she is doing a great job at keeping fun events going. We have so many activities lined up. I just don't know if we can get to all of the them though.

Piano is something that Siena had told me a long time ago that she wanted to do. I asked her if she really wanted to take the lessons & explained the need for constant practice & she still wanted to give it a go. We love her teacher & she has a one on one with her once a week. After only a few lessons the teacher seems to be very impressed. So far Siena has been practicing everyday except for the few days that she was pretty sick awhile back.

Siena & her Piano Teacher

School is going really well. She loves school & hated missing it when she was sick. I'm still not too impressed with what she's learning since so much of it is remedial for her. So today I had a parent-teacher conference to see what we could do to move her along a little more. She had scored really high on her PALS testing. PALS by the way, stands for Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening. Her teacher informed me of some plans for moving her forward & possibly putting her in a group with another class that would be more advanced for her reading skills. I also told her teacher about her math skills so I hope this can be addressed too. Some of her teacher's plans are to get some of the parents involved & working in the class so that the she can work with different groups on their own levels. So with all that said, I guess I have my work cut out.

A school project- Create a favorite book character using a pumpkin. We used a different type of gourd & made Biscuit the dog. It was proudly displayed in the school library.

The Halloween Princess

2011-11-02T21:48:00.006-04:00

It was an easy costume this year. Siena had her dress that she had gotten from her Birthday & she of course didn't mind being Cinderella for Halloween. She had been sick most of last week & was still re-cooping from a bad cough so we didn't stay out too long trick or treating. Before we set out we cut a face in our biggest pumpkin & sat it out on the porch & took a few pictures. I think I regret putting the makeup on her. She looked a little scary rather than Princessy with it. Who needs makeup with a beautiful face like that anyway!

Kindergarten Pumpkins...Oh My!

2011-10-28T11:28:00.005-04:00

Well, I did ask for it.....It seemed like the longest ride of my life to the Pumpkin Patch with Siena's class on a school bus last week. I wanted to go & finally got my right, yes right, to ride on the bus as a chaperone to the Pumpkin Patch. I could have gone in my car but I wanted to help & lucky me, another mom had to drop out, so I got fun on. I've never been surrounded by so many kids at once. I shouldn't complain though, it was only noisy for the most part. I just can't understand why the school choose to drive 45 minutes away to a huge Pumpkin Patch when there were 2 just down the road from the school. Her teacher had been out on medical leave so it was her 1st whole day back & things were a little unorganized to say the least. But in the end it worked out & Siena along with all the others had a fun time. Isn't that what it's all about?

If it looks like the fair, sounds like the fair & smells like the fair....

2011-10-12T14:47:00.008-04:00

....then it must be the Fair! We could smell the Va. State Fair long before we even walked in the gates. We haven't been to a fair since before Siena came home from China so this was her 1st time going to one. We lucked up & got handed a free ticket when we were walking up to get in line for them. A man with the Farm Bureau offered one that he didn't need. By getting there after 5PM on the last day we also got a discount. Fairs can get pretty pricey with all the extras so we did all right for the night. We mostly just let Siena ride some kiddie rides & of course I had to have a corn dog. Just wouldn't be the fair without one!

Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-10-10T17:49:00.013-04:00

We had the most beautiful weather for a pumpkin patch day last Saturday. We went with some of our best friends, Maribel, Elmo & Kevin and Brian, Danielle & Sandi.

Miller Farm is one of my favorite farms around here. They have some of the best homemade & farm fresh items in their little country store.

We headed out to the farm after having lunch together at Chili's. On the farm we took the hayride out to the pumpkins & got our pick. Walking around, as you can see were some great photo ops.

Princess Sandi turns 1

2011-10-05T11:59:00.019-04:00

Happy 1st Birthday Princess Sandi!

Our newest friend on the block just celebrated her 1st Birthday! What a fun day it was. Her Mom did a great job on decorating it with a Butterfly theme. Siena of course had fun running around with all the other kids.

Guess Who Lost Her 1st Tooth Today?

2011-09-25T10:57:00.003-04:00

Sept. 25, 2011

China March 2007

They were the 1st ones to come & now the 1st to go.

She had her 2 bottom front teeth loose for about 2 weeks now. So this morning one finally came out all on it's own.

She was sad that it didn't come out at school. If that's the case the school nurse said that they get a tooth necklace. Maybe she can hang on to the next one for that. Now my question is, what's the going rate for the Tooth Fairy these days?

Mad Dash to the Consignment Sale

2011-09-24T22:30:00.006-04:00

Like I do every Spring & Fall, I put Siena's grown out clothes & toys in a kids Consignment sale. The biggest one that I usually deal with is at a big church here. The consignors get to go on the 1st night before everyone else so the picking is usually pretty good. Although this time the items didn't seem as nice as last Spring. Since I'm so picky with her clothes as far as the styles, I didn't find too much other than a few basics. But as always I think I still did pretty good for getting all that I got for only 20.00. Yes, everything in all of the pictures was only 20.00.

After getting home & some closer inspections, the only issues were with the blue snow jacket & the toy tractor. The jacket had a few teeth missing on the zipper but it still zips up fine. I knew of the 2 tiny ink spots but you can hardly see them. But ya know...for only 25 cents, yes 25 cents for a kids snow coat, who cares? The toy tractor was missing it's steering wheel but that's okay...I was going to sell it anyway. Maybe I can get back the 1.50.

The Monkey game was perfect, so she'll get that for Christmas along with some of the books. Almost all of the books were in perfect condition too. I hardly ever pay full price for a book these days. I'm always picking them up at yard sales & thrift shops. The burgundy thick top was Land's End & looks like new. Nothing fancy but it'll be nice & warm this winter. What she'll probably love the most is the Disney Princess makeup box. I think it was only 50 cents.

This afternoon we had to pickup our items that didn't sale unless we just wanted to donate them. But I choose to get back what didn't sale. I got back 2 grocery bags of clothes and a few toys. So it looked like I had sold a good bit of her clothes. I had put a lot in. I didn't have too many toys to sale this time. It will be a week or two then I'll know how much I made when I get the check in the mail.

Tub Fun

2011-09-22T14:01:00.006-04:00

Just a few pictures of some tub fun. Although, you can see by her eyes that she's pretty tired. They're always a tell tell sign for her. With the longer hours of school now, at least it usually means that she's getting to sleep a little quicker these days.

September Flowers

2011-09-21T20:56:00.011-04:00

Our Flower among the flowers.

In the small field behind our house we get a gorgeous show of yellow flowers every September. But luckily we get to see our Flower every day of the year.

In other news, Siena is loving school. She can't wait to get out of the house every morning to go. She even loves riding the bus. The other day she told us that, she wish she could go on the weekends. She loves the social aspect of it for sure. She's always telling me about all the kids at school & what they are doing too. As far as the educational aspect....well she loves learning of course but Kindergarten is turning out to be just a review of her past 2 years of preschool. At times I feel I could have home schooled her to get more out of it. In fact we actually are doing a lot of that anyway. I've always done workbooks with her & still do & now we're working on time & money. She's been doing 1st grade math for sometime. I'm not sure what grade is doing multiplication & division but she's done a little of that too. The reading is coming along & the school has a reading program to get the kids to read more. We have to make a list of at least 24 books to read each month.

In October, there will be a testing of the Kindergarteners to see where they are, so I'm hoping this will put her in a more advanced group so that she doesn't get bored with the school work.

Just a few pictures.....

2011-09-12T22:21:00.009-04:00

Happy Birthday Kevin!

Our little friend, Kevin turned the big "2" this week. His party was held at The Little Gym. I used to take Siena there for gymnastics & dance but she hasn't been in about 2 years now. Seems like yesterday & now look at her.

Siena at The Little Gym- July '08

Lookin' Sassy! ....and still is.

Etsy

2011-09-03T23:28:00.004-04:00

I've been here most of the night trying to network my Etsy shop. Business seems a little slow this week so here I am posting it to my blog in order to drum up some business.
For those of you who don't know what Etsy is, then you really need to check it out. It's not like Ebay but then it sort of is. No bidding, just straight out buying. I think that bidding thing on Ebay is getting to everyone & most people list "Buy It Now" with Ebay anyway.
Etsy is a nicer group too. Since they only allow certain products to be sold, I think it eliminates a lot of riffraff. Their categories are Handmade, which includes anything from baked goods to jewelry, Vintage items & Supplies for making handmade items.

So without further ado...I invite you to join my Facebook page for my Etsy shop-http://www.facebook.com/thevintageroad2retro & of course browse my Etsy Shop-http://www.etsy.com/shop/thevintageroad2retro
You can actually get to my shop through the FB page.

As far as what I have, well it's mostly vintage items but I sometimes list a few supply items that I have on hand & need to destash. And I love to create new things from vintage items. In the Etsy world that's called Upcycling. I guess that's the politically correct term now. It used to be called Trash to Treasure. Maybe it still is. I don't know...it's just fun for me.
But even if you don't purchase anything from me, I hope you enjoy Etsy. It's full of lots of great artisans, bakers & crafters.

......aaaaand the fun continues.

2011-09-03T12:51:00.009-04:00

Well I guess Siena won't get a "Perfect Attendance" award at school this year. Yes, she's been sick with a stomach bug already. Or at least I hope that's all it is. I never got an answer from the doctor as to what it really was. She threw up in the middle of the night on Wed. & continued off & on until the morning. Never a fever & never acting too sickly other than the vomiting. She's doing okay now & of course just as sassy as ever.

Last week proved to be another strike when we had to take Mark to the ER for his severe neck pain. We were at the doctors office for it 1st but they thought the cyst in his neck was causing his pain & could have spread inflammation to his brain so they sent him over to the hospital.
After spending 5 hours in the ER it turned out that it still seems to only be the cyst but it's just so inflamed that it's causing pressure on his nerves. He's now set for day surgery next week to have it removed. Okay....let's back up a little here for some history...He's had this cyst for like, what, a year or longer? Who do you think has told him to get it taken out (months ago) because it would never really go away. That's right...yours truly. A sebaceous cyst won't go away until it's completely removed. It's just like a balloon. You can take the air out but the balloon is still there. Have I grossed anyone out yet? Sorry...being in the medical field for over 20 something years, it just doesn't phase me. But men.....ugh! Don't they know that women know best?

Dr. Siena taking care of Daddy just before she got sick herself.

Mother Nature Strikes Again

2011-08-28T21:51:00.005-04:00

I have to add this post today since we were just hit last night with another wrath of Mother Nature.

Yes...we were in Hurricane Irene but luckily no damage around our house. I think our town was pretty much spared too. But, come on...I think it's time she leaves us alone for a while.

1st Day of Kindergarten

2011-08-26T21:21:00.013-04:00

Siena was so excited to start school yesterday. She acted very proud to be going as a matter of fact. She's such a big girl & so smart. I know...I say that all the time but she really is smart. She told me again last night, just out of the blue, that she really really loves books more than anything. She was also excited to ride the bus & has been wanting to for a long time. All went well with riding the bus to school but then when she was to come home, she didn't get off. We were in a little panic mode but at least she was safe & it all worked out.

I wasn't standing right in front of the bus when the bus pulled up but was just down from it & saw all of the kids but her come off. I couldn't see if she was still on it or not. A neighbor that was down the street from me ran after the bus & jumped on to look for her but said she didn't see her.

So I then drove up to the school. (No more than a mile away) The Principal & staff jumped into action right away trying to get the bus driver on the radio. He then pulled up to the school & told me that she was talking & didn't get off. So when he saw her, he took her back to her stop. I let him know right away that I wasn't too happy. Besides, she's only 5 & this was her 1st time ever on a bus. Right?Well, when he brought her back, the same neighbor, saw her then & brought her home to Mark. Yeah...what a day! But we had a long talk about getting off when you're supposed after that.

Regardless of all that ordeal, Siena seems to love school. From what she tells me so far it doesn't sound like much is going on right now in class. She's brought home a colored page & her hand stamped on a page with a poem. I just hope they get going with something more challenging soon.

And the East Coast Shook

2011-08-24T17:08:00.011-04:00

Well, I can add one more item to my "Been There, Done That" list. But I don't want to relive it ever again! We sit pretty close to the epicenter of the Earthquake that shook here yesterday.

Siena & I were at the Mall playground inside when it all happened. Even though I've never been in an Earthquake other than feeling a slight "Jolt" of one when I was in Richmond about 7 or 8 years ago, I knew this one was an Earthquake right away. The one in Richmond back then was nothing like yesterday. Sitting in such an open space like I was, I could see everything shake & I just knew it was a big enough one to get the heck out of there. There were so many people that just stood around not knowing what it was & not getting out, I guess because they had never been in one before. Once in the parking lot a woman drove by telling everyone outside that she had just heard that it was a quake of 5.8 with the epicenter in Mineral, Va. Siena wanted to go back in to play but I had to explain what had just happened. She said that she really didn't feel it since she was running around playing. Besides, I had seen a piece of some part of what looked like a lighting fixture fall from the skylight area that we were under. Thank goodness no one was right under it when it happened. Once outside, I was trying to call Mark but couldn't get through because the lines were all jammed but he finally called me & he was okay. They had felt it a good bit in DC too. Everyone in DC was evacuated from their buildings so it was a bit crazy up there. The trains to get out were shut down but finally opened back up & he later managed to get on the 1st train out. Even though he was on his way home, the trains were only allowed to move at about 15 mph to avoid coming off the tracks in the event of another quake or after shock. It took him 4 hrs. to get home. It usually takes only 2.

Siena & I were also going to go to the Library on our way home from the Mall. We went on over but found that they had just closed. They had to have an inspector check it out for structural damage. So we went on home to find a little mess of our own here. I had a decorative bottle of oil on the top of the kitchen cabinets to fall & burst all over the kitchen (a huge mess to clean up by the way) , 2 glasses in my wine rack to fall & break & one empty perfume bottle on my dresser to fall & break. Siena's portrait from earlier this year that I had gotten framed & mated was leaning on the mantel, had fallen, but thank goodness it did not break. So all in all I guess we were very fortunate. Actually everyone around here was, since I haven't heard of any fatalities out of the whole ordeal. There's been some structural damage in several buildings especially in a small town just west of us & the Washington Monument has a crack in the very top.

The kitchen mess!!! With oil every where in the 1st pic.

Ending Summer with a Count Down to Kindergarten

2011-08-22T21:11:00.012-04:00

We finally made it to the beach this year. Not too far though. Only Virginia Beach, but a beach just the same. This time with my new metal detector in hand. Yes, I bought a metal detector a few weeks ago & had yet to really try it out. Siena & I tried it in the yard once but no treasures there so the beach was the next stop. It was the 1st thing we did when we hit the beach but no treasure there either. We only found a pull top & a hair clip.
We stayed for only 2 nights so the next day I went out by myself & tried again but still nothing.
We also went for a bike ride on the beach. We rented a family bike & rode down the boardwalk on our second morning. Sure glad we only rented it for one hour. That was enough for us 2 out of shape folks.

I think the swim lessons came in handy for Siena this time even if it was just to get her more relaxed with getting wet & playing around the water. She actually had a fun time in the ocean water. She laid down in the surf & walked out a ways trying to jump the waves. On our last morning I took her out early to try to get some good pictures of her on the beach. I don't claim to be a great photographer but at least I have a great subject to capture.

I have mixed emotions of Siena going off to school. I still think of her as my little baby girl that I just brought home from China. So tiny & frail. But I know that was 1623 days ago today. Hard to believe, right? But she's excited & I know that's a good sign. She loves learning! I actually heard her the other day talking with one of her friends- "Kyla, what kind of things do you like? Kyla replied with her list, then Siena rolled off her list & the 1st thing was "Books". That sure made me feel good.

Today was Orientation which was a little more paper work for me & meet the Teacher. Her teacher seems really nice. It was hard for me to say what I had to say so I had to let the teacher know in a nice way that I just didn't want her to get bored with school because she probably already knew what they might be going over. I told her that, just recently Siena has been introduced to multiplication & seems to understand the concept of it. Their SOL testing will be given in October to see where it puts them so I hope we can get in a lot more skills before then. But in the meantime she'll be getting on that bus this Wednesday for the 1st time & I'll try to stay composed. Wish me luck. ;)

Swim Lessons- Round 3

2011-08-21T16:51:00.005-04:00

Well we were back at it again this year with swim lessons. It's actually getting better. I really liked the teacher this time & I can tell Siena did too. I liked the one last year but not the 1st one we had with Swim Kids. Last year was with the "Y" & this time we were back with Swim Kids.

Siena seems a lot more relaxed with the water. It looked like the teacher played more games with them too. A small class of only Siena & 2 other little girls. As usual, she was the oldest but the tiniest. She still wouldn't go under water with her head. In order to advice to the next class she had to go all the way under & open her eyes.

The Talk

2011-07-31T17:21:00.007-04:00

Well yesterday we had "The Talk" with Siena. We've always told her that she was from China. I've always told her bits & pieces about adoption because I felt that only explaining things slowly & not over loading her was best. Besides, she really hasn't asked too much about it anyway.We would always answer her questions with honesty & try to explain things in a manner that she could understand. She's heard the word "Adopted" but wasn't totally aware of what it meant other than being from China or parents go somewhere to get a child. With Kindergarten fast approaching I thought it was best to explain things a little more. So yesterday when she asked Mark & I how long our parents had to stay in the hotel when they came to get us, I knew it was time to go into detail a little more.

We all sat down & explained that she had a birth mother & that babies grew inside them. Not phased by it much, I think for the time being it's just not sinking in but of course that's ok. We explained that we loved her very much, wanted a baby & asked the Chinese people to please let us have a baby. She was very interested in knowing that the Chinese Government were the ones to match us up together. We were very honest in telling her that we didn't know who her birth mother was but that she must of loved her very much. We reinforced that we are her real parents & that if anyone ever said that we weren't, then they were wrong. I even explained more today what it meant to be a real parent.

But like I said, all in all she's taken it very well & I'm probably the one that's more relieved than anyone. ;)

Kindergarten Kick Off

2011-07-26T19:41:00.011-04:00

It's hard to believe that Siena is going to start Kindergarten in just a few weeks. I can still remember the feelings I had when I 1st held her in China. That tiny little girl is now so big & bright! I held up fine today at the orientation but the 1st day of school may prove to be a different story & even now I'm a little teary eyed just thinking about it all. The fact that she's so excited...("I'm so cited." as she says) is what makes me so happy.

Orientation was a brief run down of what the kid's day will be like, the lunch program, the bus, & a few other matters. The parents listened to the spill while the kids got to go to a class room with the teachers to play & talk. We still have Open House next month when we will find out who her teacher will be.

Off To Camp

2011-07-22T19:50:00.008-04:00

Well like I've said, we are keeping busy this summer. I got Siena signed up practically at the last minute, at a camp here in town with the Parks & Rec. Unfortunately it's been our hottest week of the year too. But luckily there was a creek that the kids got to cool off in so it wasn't too bad. Or I should say...I didn't hear any complaints when I would go each day to pick her up. Camp was held at a local park that has a cold spring creek that runs through it with some hiking trails. She wore her tennis shoes on the 1st day & I didn't realize that they couldn't take their shoes off in the water because of the rocks so she had to wear them in the water. So the next day we ran to Target to get some water shoes. After only 4 days, they look like they need to take a hike themselves.
They got to make several crafts with the things that they found in the park. Like the picture frame for the picture that the teachers took of them with their Camp Shirts on. They also made a birdnest & hobo stick. Apparently she made lots of new girlfriends with the young teens that helped out with the kids. They were all so in love with her & were eager to put their name & numbers down when I asked if any of them did any baby sitting.

Our Hobo Camper

Camp Hideaway- $90.00
Bug Spray- $ 5.89
Water Shoes from Target - $8.97
Happy Camper -Priceless!

Back to the Farm

2011-07-19T10:49:00.010-04:00

Well this is one time I just didn't take a camera & wish I had. Siena & I picked Blackberries last week at Miller Farm. It was not too bad starting out but we finished up right when it was really heating up. I like that Farm. It's just the right size & they have a great little shop there. You just park your car & go across the road to pick. I didn't think we had that many berries until I was going to make cobbler. We had so many that I made 3 cobblers (1 large one & 2 smaller ones) & still had some berries to freeze. I actually made the cobblers up the next day after going downtown to the farmers market to get fresh peaches to mix with the berries. So they were true fresh fruit cobblers.

While picking Siena didn't get to pick too many since most of the nice big juicy ones were way inside the vines. She got scratched up as it was & we didn't put on the bug spray either. Here are the pictures that I did capture once home & cooking up the cobblers. We shared them with our friends Maribel, Elmo & Kevin.
The large one was cooking when I took this picture of the 2 smaller ones. Everyone loved them & they were gone in no time!

Suddenly.....A Vacation Appears

2011-07-15T22:30:00.007-04:00

Well we didn't know if we could fit in a summer vacation this year or not. I really wanted to get to the beach but Mark's not a big beach fan so we decided on Wisconsin Dells. I know...you probably have never heard of it. Mark has been there on business a once or twice & has always thought that it would be a great place for us all to visit so we finally did just that.
It's just north of Madison on the Wisconsin Dells River. We managed to use Freq. Flyer Miles but had to pay for one ticket & of course we usually don't ever have to pay for a hotel either because of points so we got that free too. We left very early on July 4th & came back on Fri. July 8th.
It turned out to be a really great place. There was a lot of retro places. Which Mark & I like. Like a lot of old mom & pop drive up hotels that are still in business & are very well kept. It was a perfect area for families. The place is full of things to do & with a lot of it being water parks. Huge ones that are indoor & outdoor. And everything is pretty much in one small area. I'll just give the run down of what all we did-
Watched a free fireworks display in town.
Went shopping at the Outlet Mall.
Went to a Magic Show.
Went walking around the town & in gift shops.
Went on a Boat Tour of the Upper Wisc. Dells River.
Played Mini Golf.
Spent most of a Day at the Kalahari Water Park.
Spent an evening at the Kalahari Resort indoor Amusement Park.
On the way back to the Milwaukee Airport we stopped in to tour the Jelly Belly Candy Facility & Store which was having their 10th Anniversary.

We packed all that into 5 days. But it wasn't an exhausting vacation since there were no lines for anything like there would have been at most amusement parks. It was very pleasant. Nothing was that crowded for a holiday at all.

Now...I still just need to squeeze in a weekend at the beach!

Siena's Big 5 Cinderella Birthday Party Ball

2011-06-25T21:22:00.019-04:00

Wow! Where do I begin? I know that I will have to get this post done in several days. There is so much to tell about here. But 1st we have had to get Baba & Aunt Betty here which we did all on the same day. Baba came in on the plane to Richmond then we ran over to the train station to pick up Aunt Betty. Timing was perfect.
Aunt Betty & Siena
Baba & Siena
Siena's party has really been a production that's taken me months to get together. (But don't get me wrong....It was all a labor of Love.) I've been shopping for different things on line & in stores to be well prepared & to help save money by using coupon after coupon but even then we still had times of running to Target & craft stores to get all the things we needed to make the cake or get something together at the last minute. I can't go much further right now until I say a little "Thank you" to the ones that I got a lot of my ideas & party suppliers info from-Ellen, for Cinderella, the pinata idea & table rentals. Evan's Mom, Sara for the Donation gift idea, & Julie for the The Hope House idea as our Charity. Yes, we had a donation drive at the party. In lieu of giving Siena gifts this year we opted for donations to a local charity. I just felt like this would be a good time to start teaching Siena about giving rather than receiving & besides, she has plenty of toys. She still got gifts from a few people & from family. Thank goodness there really hasn't been a shortage of anything in her life.

With all that said....The party was a big hit with Cinderella as the main attraction. She was planned originally & Siena knew about it but then I pretended to cancel her when Siena got into trouble one day. Therefore she was quite surprised to open the door at the party & there stood Cinderella. I guess you may say the cake was a main attraction too. It was a main construction to say the least. Aunt Betty & I were the team for this one. It took a good 2 days to complete. I was determined to make it once I had bought the kit & we did. I didn't think Aunt Betty really knew what she was in for when I told her that we were going to make a castle cake over the phone. So once she got here, she saw the cake kit box & WOW...I have never seen her eyes grow so big! LOL! But she pulled through & got to work with me in the kitchen for the whole ordeal. I know I could not have pulled it all off without the help of Aunt Betty & Baba! Oh....and of course my sweet gopher, Mark.

The Castle Cake Construction

Cinderella came in the door singing songs & continued on & danced a little with the kids. During her stay she declared every girl a Princess & every boy a Prince with the help of the birthday girl. Finally after taking pictures with everyone...yes even Daddy as you can see, she helped serve tea (pink lemonade) to the kids. The tables were set with mixed fruit, Princess slipper & tiara cut cookies, chocolate dipped strawberries, tea sandwiches, carrots & dip & party mints. After lunch it was time to cut the cake....and oh it was a hard thing to do, after assembling & decorating it for 2 days...but I had the duty & I did it. Everyone thought it was too pretty to eat but at least it did taste really good. Probably due to the fact that Aunt Betty had added her secret ingredients to the boxed cake mixes. After cake we wrapped things up with the pinata. It was a Princess Castle pinata & Mark held it while the kids pulled the ribbons for all the treats to fall out. I didn't make treat bags up for the kids but instead opted for pretty handmade cookies made by a local cookie lady. She did a great job so I just wanted to show them off in the slide. I forgot to get a picture of the frog one before they were gone but the boys got a frog with a crown on it.

The Decorated Castle & The Royal Ball

All of the kids had a great time as I've been told...even the boys. I think a few got into Cinderella a little more than their sisters did. But that's all good.

So all the great items that we collected for the Hope House, Siena & I dropped them off the other day. They were very happy to get them. Siena wanted to see the house & we took some pictures of her & the director at the house. I hope this all helps to teach her about giving & of course it's most important to just be with your friends at your birthday party.

Siena gave the Donations to the Hope House

Springing Back to Spring!

2011-06-09T23:14:00.012-04:00

I have to back up & fill in some Spring events that I've neglected to write about & that would be soccer to start with. Siena was on a county team of boys & girls playing for a few weeks. She missed a few games because of the weather & one because it was so muddy on the field that she just wasn't going to play........Well she is a Princess ya know.
At the end of the playing season it was Pizza & awards time at CiCi's. Siena couldn't wait to get her hands on her very own trophy!

We can't forget the butterfly project.
I had bought a Butterfly growing kit months ago for a birthday gift for a friend of Siena's but it turned out to be a treat for her instead. It didn't come with the caterpillars so we had to send off for them & then put them in their home & watch them grow. Well if you can image a 4 year old waiting to see butterflies grow then you're in for a treat yourself. Every day we had to hear..."When will they be butterflies?" & "Can I look at them?" LOL! But it was cool to see her love them & not want to let them go. We just had to make sure that she could get one on her hand before it flew away.

It's going to be a long summer keeping her busy. She's only been out of school for a few weeks & already I'm exhausted. Mark being gone so much with work is really hard on both of us but Skype is helping along the way. The most recent thing for fun that we've done was go for an Art Day with some of her preschool friends & we've had a play date with another friend the other day. The art day was here in town at the local historic home & art studio of Gari Melchers. I arranged for her class friends & us to go to their program called Preschool Palettes which is an early childhood program for 3-5 yr. olds. It introduces art & art museums to young children. After the class which was a finger painting project we all had a picnic under the trees on the lawn of the estate. It had turned out to be a beautiful day with perfect weather.

So now this all brings us to what's happening now & that is the Birthday plans & picking up Baba (Grandma) from the airport & Aunt Betty from the train station tomorrow. I've been planning this big birthday for months now. It going to have a special guest....Cinderella herself! Yes, she's the same Cinderella that we've seen at 2 other birthday parties. Siena knew I had asked her to come but then one day she had gotten into trouble & I acted as though I was on the phone with her canceling. So now she doesn't think she is coming. She'll get a big surprise when she opens the door for her at the party. To top it all off....I know I'm crazy...but I'm making a castle birthday cake. You may remember that I had found a complete brand new in the box, Wilton Castle birthday cake set, at a thrift shop months ago for only 3.00. Well...I'm going to try & do it. I know...I'm crazy. Maybe I should call Target to have a back up cake ready. LOL! Wish me luck!

Graduation Day!!!

2011-05-26T23:09:00.006-04:00

Today Preschool, tomorrow MIT......or Harvard or Yale!

It was Graduation day on Wednesday. Our little Princess is growing so fast. I definitely know what parents mean now, when they say that their children are growing up so fast. I can't believe Siena will be going to Kindergarten next year. Or as she says, "this year, Momma." Since technically she will be starting in this year of 2011, she says she will be starting "this year". She likes being technical about everything. She's so creative yet so good with Math it's hard to say what she will become at this point.
But the school put on a nice little graduation ceremony. The children walked down the isle to the tune of the graduation march from the back of the church. It was all too cute! We just wish Daddy had been there but work had to take him away this time. I was able to capture a little on video but it was hard to hold it steady since I was laughing so much. The whole time while they were singing, Siena was yawning. LOL! But at least I got some good still shots. There was a picnic afterwards on the church green which was a smorgasbord of foods from all the parents. Our class provided the sweets, so Siena & I made dirt cups complete with gummy worms. Of course she was too happy to help me make them the night before. After eating we ran around getting some shots of her with all her classmates. It is sad to be leaving such a great group of kids & parents. There won't be any of them attending the Elementary School that Siena will be going to.

Guess Where We Went!

2011-05-20T22:41:00.004-04:00

Finally!!! The rain finally let up for one day, to let us go pick strawberries.

I organized a small group of us Moms & kids from preschool to go out to a nearby farm to pick yesterday. We were supposed to go last Sunday with just us & a few other friends but it was a washout. We've gotten so much rain lately but at least everything has turned so green & lush.
The strawberry field was totally muddy. This wasn't the same farm that we went to last year that had a playground but a closer farm & the kids loved it just the same. There was a sand pile that kept them busy while we Moms got to chat. The farm also had a green house & small shop filled with some homemade goodies & if you know me...I had to go shopping.

We Have Babies!

2011-05-16T15:03:00.003-04:00

Looks like that Momma bird that wanted to build a nest in my front door wreath found a new place to do so. Last week while our yard man was putting down some new mulch, he spotted a new nest in a bush in the front yard. It had 3 eggs in it. We've been keeping an eye on it ever since. We've even seen the Momma bird sitting on them too. Not sure of the kind of bird. Just the typical blackish gray kind. Today I just looked & it looks like they just hatched. They must be too young to even produce a chirp at all. I couldn't hear anything coming from them but one keeps opening it's mouth for food.

A Little Extra

2011-05-13T22:16:00.004-04:00

Even though I was just trying out a new lens on the camera, I still like these shots. I guess we could call this, "The Many Faces of Siena"?

Our Mother's Day Outing.

2011-05-08T21:35:00.010-04:00

While driving down to Richmond yesterday I was telling Siena all of the things that I love about being a Momma. I had listed a string of things with the last one being "and I love that I am your Momma, when she said, "One more thing...annnnndddd....I Love that you are my Momma." Wow! I am sooooo Blessed!

Yesterday I got to finally sleep in a little. But once I got up Siena was anxious to give me the Mother's Day cards she made & the Gift card that she & daddy had gotten me from Kohl's. We then went off to Richmond to one of our favorite little Italian resturants, Bertucci's. We were lucky that we beat the crowd. We didn't have to wait for a table & the food was yummy as ever.

After lunch we headed over to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens. A nice mom from preschool had given us 2 free passes. We had planned on going anyway but the passes sure were a treat. We were supposed to pay for Siena since children 3-12 usually cost to get in but I guess again, she must have looked much younger to the man at the desk as he just took our free passes & just said ok. What luck huh? LOL!

I didn't think that the gardens were really that crowed either for Mother's Day so it wasn't so hard trying to get pictures without everyone being in them. It was a perfect day. The weather was on our side. It was a beautiful garden with even a children's garden that Siena loved. Next time we need to go back so that she can wear her bathing suit & play in the water sprinklers more.
Just a warning: The slide show is long. There were so many photo opportunities & with Siena cooperating I took advantage of it all.

These are the cards & picture that Siena made me from Preschool.

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-05T23:05:00.008-04:00

This is what it's all about!

My Beautiful Daughter. Inside & Out!

Still A Winner to Us!

2011-05-03T15:44:00.005-04:00

Thanks to Everyone that Voted for Siena in our local Chic Fil A Photo Contest. Unfortunately she didn't win. There were 2 voting venues. Online & at our local Chic Fil A but she didn't win either of them. Her photo won't be hung in our local Chic Fil A but we, of course, feel that she's just as photogenic regardless. We also have 2 beautiful pictures coming to us from the photographer.

Prettying Up the Place

2011-05-02T17:03:00.010-04:00

With a little help from Mother Nature that is. Spring is my favorite time of the year. I love flowers & just can't ever get enough of them. I took a few pictures of my favorite little venues to show them off. The wreath on the front door is my latest project. I just used the base of an old wreath that I had so I made this one for under $20.00. The problem now is that I had to run off a bird that was in it today. Maybe he/she thought that he/she could make a nest in the little faux birdnest that I put in it or was making friends with the faux bird.
My clematis on the back deck has never bloomed this well, but with all the rain we've had, everything is growing so beautifully. Roses are all over town already too. They usually don't come until much later.

Next outdoor project: Planting some Spinach Seeds & Zucchini plants in the deck planter boxes. I've got a little garden fairy that's eager to help me too! :)

A Good Check Up

2011-04-28T23:30:00.005-04:00

It was that time again...The Dental Appointment! This time I let Daddy take her. I didn't feel I would have much luck with trying to let them clean her teeth, so I let Daddy have a hand at it. Well sure enough, they both came home with smiles. She's been several times before but never would she let them actually clean her teeth. We had talked about it more this time so maybe with that & being a little older helped. I was just worried that they would fine cavities since I wonder if she's brushing good enough. But Mark said that the Hygienist said that she's doing a good job. I think the last visit taught her a lesson since one tiny cavity had to be filled. So far so good ...no more cavities have come about!

Just Because!

2011-04-27T20:56:00.003-04:00

A Nature Day!

2011-04-26T13:36:00.015-04:00

Today has been a very productive day.(Dispite the photo,LOL!) We didn't have anywhere to go today. I got a lot done at home but I still managed to give Siena some time. We just hung out today & enjoyed a little nature. We put some bird seed in the feeders & then we laid in the backyard for a while & did some cloud watching. She wanted to do a little nature craft that she learned by watching Disney's "Oso". Leaf etchings.
They're so nice that we have decided to send them to Baba. (So be on the lookout for some mail from Siena, Baba.)

You know, it really doesn't take much time to show kids a good time. Just take them into the backyard & show them some nature. Do something creative with what's in your own backyard. I'm sure there's more ideas even on the Internet.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T22:30:00.002-04:00

It was an early Easter morning for us. But then again, it's always early when it comes to Siena. She's an early bird. But the Easter Bunny left Siena a new Princess move, Beauty & the Beast & a bag of Easter Marshmellows. For lunch we did a little cookout with our friends Maribel, Elmo & Kevin followed by the Easter Bunny coming back to hide eggs for us in the front yard. Siena & Kevin took off to find them all on a beautiful sunny day! We were excited to have a nice day for a change. Lately you just never know what you'll get around here.

Ready for Easter

2011-04-23T18:40:00.007-04:00

We visited the Easter Bunny at Busch Gardens the other day when we were there. I really wasn't that happy with the picture & Siena didn't have on a pretty dress but that's where she said she wanted to take her picture. It even came out in a really poor color so I had to scan it & tweak it with photo shop before posting here. Oh well, guess we will go to the Mall next year.

Today we dyed eggs & Siena's neighbor friend was over to help. So now the Princess is all ready for Easter.

Spring Break!

2011-04-22T10:39:00.005-04:00

It continues to be a roller coaster of weather here but Spring Break is this week. We didn't go too far from home this time but we did have a little adventure. We drove down to Williamsburg & Busch Gardens for 2 nights. I think we timed it just right since we got a deal over the Internet with a "Bring a Friend for Free" ticket. Basically buy one get one free. Then while at the hotel, the night before going to the park I caught another deal on line. It was a Preschoolers promotion. All Preschoolers could get in Free if registering online for the summer. I did just that for Siena, but I didn't have her required birth certificate with us. Luckily they were nice enough to let us in for the day. Just have to bring it next time if we go back.

When we asked Siena what she liked best about our trip, she answers: "Riding the up & down Elmo ride, the Teacup ride & eating Fruit Loops at the hotel." Priceless!

Also this week it looked as if the Easter Bunny had already been to our house. Siena's sweet Baba (Grandma) & Aunt Betty sent some goodies! I don't think there's anything left for the Easter Bunny to bring.

Goodies from Aunt Betty!

Goodies from Baba!

Party Time!

2011-04-16T22:23:00.003-04:00

It was Easter Party time at Preschool last Friday & I was one of the Mom's in charge of the party this year. At the beginning of the year the Moms sign up for a holiday party & this year I choose Easter. The kids were eager to hunt eggs in the church yard then it was back inside for the little party. I made the bunny cookies on a stick which were a big hit. Thank goodness I didn't screw them up like I did Daddy's Birthday pie. The bunny cookies were a Wilton kit from JoAnn's so it was a little easier. After snacks the kids moved to the next table for a craft which I also supplied. Mini suncatchers to paint. Siena of course painted her bunny in her favorite color of blue.

Please Vote For Siena!

2011-04-15T14:17:00.005-04:00

I've entered Siena in a Chic-Fil-A restaurant photo Contest here in town. The winner will get to adorn the walls of a Chic-Fil-A here. Just click on the link. It will take you directly to her photo, then click "Vote". Be sure to vote everyday. Rules are for one vote per server per day so please vote everyday. Feel free to post the link on your Facebook page, twitter or Blog so we can get more votes. Also give us an extra Vote from your Cell phone. Thanks so much!

http://www.beverlytoves.com/ChickfilAContest/tabid/112/ViewEntry/393/Default.aspx

For Free!

2011-04-13T22:18:00.006-04:00

In preparation of Siena's big Birthday this year, I've been buying things here & there in order to make sure I don't forget anything & of course get it at a good price. So I'm always looking for sales & deals. Since I'm signed up on line with the local Yahoo "Freecycle" I decided to post a request for some teapots to use at the party. The kids will be having pink lemonade tea. Well after only one day, a very nice & generous lady came through for me. Today I picked up all of these beautiful teapots for FREE! All of them are in perfect condition too. I know some won't go along with my theme but I know I can use at least 2 of them.

Girl's Rule!!!

2011-04-13T14:11:00.004-04:00

One of Siena's Preschool teachers just sent this picture that she took of the girls in Siena's class on the playground the other day. I love it & just wanted to show it off.

Ni Hao!

2011-04-12T16:33:00.004-04:00

That's Hello is Chinese, if you didn't already know.

Siena just finished up with Chinese language classes a few weeks ago. It was a small class that was given by a native Chinese lady that also is a mother that homeschools. As it turned out, all of the other students were homeschool kids & most of them were a little older too. The class was fun but nothing very formal & Siena enjoyed it. It was held on Fridays after Preschool so by that time of day she was a bit tired. We had just enought time to grab some lunch then head over to another church where it was given. The teacher made it fun by doing a few things like bringing in some Chinese foods for tasting & getting the kids up in front of the class to sing songs. I have to admit, that as I sat in on the classes, there were times I thought Siena wasn't paying much attention but now that classes are over I can tell that she did take in a good part of the words that were taught. We try to use the words at home that we learned.

On the last day of class, the teacher held, what she called a "Public Speaking". She had arranged for another native Chinese lady to come in, observe & grade the children on what & how well they could repeat what they had learned. I wasn't sure if Siena was going to do it or not but she ened up going up in front of everyone (accompanied by me, of course) & doing a great job. She even spoke up loud & clear. She wasn't the winner of the "Speaking" but certainly was a winner in my eye!

Daddy's Birthday & The Weekend

2011-04-11T05:06:00.006-04:00

Friday was Daddy's Birthday so he took the day off work to join Siena & I for her school field trip to the Train Museum here in town. It wasn't too much to write home about but I guess the kids got a kick out of it & got to ride on the mini work train. After that we went for lunch at our favorite Asian restaurant. Mark had said that he wanted a Banana Cream Pie for his birthday instead of a cake. So I did my best at making my 1st cream pie. Oh boy...never again! Not sure what happened but it didn't turn out so great. The cream center didn't set & the pie was runny. I was okay with the meringue top at least but we ended up throwing most of it out. For the 1st day is tasted like Banana pudding so it was okay with me but after that it had to go. Better luck next year Baby!

Finally! A Nice Sunny Day!

2011-04-04T15:22:00.006-04:00

It was finally sunny & warm enough to go to Lowes yesterday & buy some new flowers. Oh yeah...I did have a coupon to burn. ;) We actually had a few house things we needed to get so I got some herbs & flowers to make it to the 50.00 mark so we could use our 10.00 off 50.00 coupon. So once home, I got to planting some things in pots on the back deck. Siena wanted to go dig in the far backyard so I had to give her some of the old potting soil since that ground was too hard to even dig in. She loved every minute of it. It's amazing how she can go from, digging in the dirt, to playing Princess the next. But what's even more amazing, is how she is so much like me when I was a kid. Ahhh...those were the good old days.

Hard at work....filling a bucket!

There are actually some buds on those trees. Sadly, most trees around here are still without any leaves.

My Deal of the Week

2011-03-28T23:09:00.003-04:00

Well every since I've been buying clothes for Siena, I've always been going to Consignment Sales & Mother's Marts & such around here. I had never even heard of those type of sales until we moved here but there are lots of them to choose from. I even sell Siena's grown out clothes & toys at them myself. So last week was one of the larger ones that I participate in. It's held at a Church & they sell it for you. You don't have to do anything but tag your items & drop them off. But being a seller, you have 1st dibs on all the consigned goods on the 1st night of the sale, called "sellers night". I was able to snag some pretty good deals. Two of them being these 2 sweet little dresses that were brand new with tags still on them. I can't remember exactly but I know they were each under 3.00. Also this particular Consignment sale gives you 70% & they only take 30%.

By the way, they both fit & she looked so cute in them!

A Daddy & His Princess

2011-03-27T20:59:00.003-04:00

Last Monday night the Daddy's got to have their special time with the kids at Preschool. Remember, earlier this year the Mom's had a Tea, so this time was Dad's night & Siena couldn't have been any more excited to take her Daddy! As usual these days she chose to wear her Tiara, but how fitting since she is of course, Daddy's Princess, right?

The Leprechaun Trail

2011-03-19T22:40:00.004-04:00

For Siena's class St. Patrick's Day party, I was in charge of spreading all of the treats around the church that the Leprechaun supposedly left. The kids had a blast collecting all of the green stickers, tattoos, gold coins & shiny shamrocks that made a trail that led to the pot of gold. The pot was filled with more treats that they collected & then it was time for refreshments. Be sure to check out those cool handmade binoculars that were used to help them. When the kids came back into the classroom, the room had been trashed by that silly ol' Leprechaun too. Siena just couldn't get over how much of a mess that he made. She talked about it all day.
The things kids believe. I just love their little minds!

Top of the Mornin' to Ya!

2011-03-16T21:37:00.003-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy Anniversary!

2011-03-15T00:27:00.006-04:00

Among our Celebrations this month, it's also our 13th Wedding Anniversary today!
Here's to another 13+ years with the sweetest Man on earth! I Love you More than the day we Married!

We celebrated our Gotha Day & Wedding Anniversary on Saturday by going to lunch & taking in a movie. We settled for a kid friendly one of course & watched

"Gnomeo & Juliet". It was cute but I guess bad timing since Siena was almost falling asleep during most of it.

On Sunday we were invited over for lunch to our friends, Maribel & Elmo's so we took desert. I picked up a cake at Target to add to our little celebration.

A Blessing 4 Years Ago Today!

2011-03-12T20:38:00.004-05:00

Four years ago today, the most wonderful Blessing in our Life occured!

Happy Gotcha Day Anniversary to Us!

Treasure Hunting

2011-03-04T22:44:00.007-05:00

No I didn't go on a real treasure hunt, but I did snag some great things today while shopping at 2 of my favorite Thrift Shops. I don't get to go as much as I'd like to these days & besides I'm really trying to down size & not buy so much. But after dropping Siena off at school today I ran to 2 of my favorite shops & got a few great deals. Among my many finds I got 2 practically new pairs of shoes for myself for only $1.00 a pr. They didn't even look like they had been worn. I don't normally bother looking at shoes since they're usually pretty ratty by the time they get to a thrift shop but these 2 pr. caught my eye. It's weired because the dressier sandals are a size 8 & the hiking sandals are a size 5. I wear a 7 1/2. But both fit & even feel so great on. I wasn't going to keep the hiking sandals but was going to try to sell them on Ebay but since they fit & feel so great I'm keeping them. Besides, the ones I had been looking for on-line run about $90.00 so I think I reallllllyyyyyy got a great deal!

Look at the shoes, not my toes.. I know I need a pedicure & yes, I have freckles on my legs! :)

It was at one these same shops a few months ago that I got another treasure. I found this Wilton Castle Cake kit for only 3.00. It was all intact, brand new in the box & never used. I've since priced it out & found the lowest price to be about $17.00 & that's online plus shipping. I'm going to make it for Siena's Birthday this year. Wish me luck that it will look half this good. LOL!!

Let's Play

2011-02-26T14:42:00.007-05:00

While I have to admit, I'm not a fan of pretend play. I love being with my daughter more than anything, yet the way she loves to play most is the opposite of me. I love reading to her, teaching her new things, cooking with her, doing math with her & playing board games. Those are just some of the more interesting things that I prefer. Yet she, on the other hand has such a vivid imagination! For instance, she will often tell you what a piece of half eaten food looks like. "Look Momma, it looks like an upside down boat." Then there's the other side. The side that wants you play her way, while playing "pretend." That's where the director comes out. It wouldn't surprise me if she ends up working for Disney one day. Creator/ Director! Oh yeah....owning it all one day too! :)

We played in her room this morning & I watched her in awe! Her creativity is wild & out of this world. I Love it & I would have it any other way!CEO/ Director Princess Siena

I Know.....

2011-02-23T22:05:00.004-05:00

....that I still need to post the pictures from Hawaii. But in the meantime I was playing around with one of the shots I got of Siena playing on Wakiki Beach. I can't decide if I like the color picture or the black & white one the best. I ended up straightening the black & white up a bit too. But I know one thing though. I wish I had gotten her whole shadow in the picture.

HaPpY VaLeNtInE's DaY

2011-02-14T17:27:00.018-05:00

All Dressed up for Valentines Day. We had 2 parties to go to today. One at school & one at a friend's house.

Siena got lots of cards & candy from her Valentines at school. Ohhhh the sugar overload!

My Sweet Valentine gave me a card & my favorite perfume, "Happy". And my tiniest Sweet Valentine gave me a beautiful handmade card & picture of herself!

Ok...I have to show you my own little gift to myself. If you know anything about me, then you know that I consider myself to be the Coupon Queen, at least around here. So I had a "Buy One Get One Free" coupon for a House Plant from Home Depot. You have to sign up with their Garden Club to get offers like this one. Anyway...I got 2 African Violets for the price of one which was only a total of 2.80. Not too bad....Happy Goodies to Me!

Siena also got tons of goodies in the mail all week from her Sweet Baba & Sweet Aunt Betty. A box full of treats & money from Aunt Betty. From Baba she got a card with money & a cute Doggie purse filled with candy & cool shades! I want to let you all know that we have a new Sweetheart in the neighborhood! We are proud to announce that our dear friends Brian & Daniel have been Blessed with a New Baby Girl! Her name is Sandi. Sandi is 4 months old & her forever Mommy & Daddy are Over the Moon in Love with her! Isn't she a doll? She is the sweetest baby! This weekend we had them & our good friends Maribel, Elmo & little Kevin over for dinner. This has been the sweetest week we have had in a long time in more ways than one!

ADOPTION = LOVE

Happy Belated Chinese New Year!

2011-02-10T22:18:00.000-05:00

Welcome the Year of the Rabbit!

Chinese New Year was on Feb. 3rd this year. As I mentioned in my last post we went to China Town on Oahu to celebrate but since our dinner there was suboptimal I thought we needed to celebrate again. So tonight we did. We cooked a semi Chinese dinner consisting of long Chinese noodles, fried rangoon & BBQ ribs on the grill & just for Siena, her favorite, miso soup.

It's customary to eat long noodles for Chinese New Year to ensure a long life.

Siena's Favorites: Chinese noodles & miso soup. Hold the seaweed please!

Check out these cool Chinese Symbols. Siena was born in the year of the

Dog. What's your sign?

The Chinese Banner we got in China Town hangs above Siena's bed!

Aloha again!

2011-02-04T05:15:00.032-05:00

This should take us to my last post for this vacation. We leave tomorrow. (Friday Hawaii time) Boo! It's going to be hard to leave this beautiful weather & go back to snow, rain & freezing temps. Anyway , last Tues is where I need to pick up. That day ended up being Mark's 1st work day so Siena & I went down to the beach. We 1st walked down the beach a little to take a few pictures of Diamond Head. All along the way Siena played in the surf. There were never any shells on the beach but she picked up a few small rocks that she wanted to keep. I let her keep 2 since I don't think you were supposed to take the lava rocks out of the state. Also along the way I found 3 pieces of what I think are sea glass. I've never found any before but isn't it broken glass that's been smoothed around the edges by the sand & water? It's really pretty but I think it's really sad that it's there in the 1st place since it usually starts out as broken bottles on the beach. Once back to the hotel we walked over to the Lagoon that was just on the other side of the hotel tower that we were staying in. By that time it was time for a little snack so we split a Hawaiian shave ice. And boy did it taste so good on the beach. I took a picture of Siena playing in the sand that I've voted to be one of my new favorite pictures of all time. I had to go ahead & post it here. But don't worry I will be posting many more once I get home & I'm able to use our photo editing program to get them all cropped & adjusted just right.

For the 1st time Siena wasn't afraid of the water like she had been in the past. She loved playing in it but unfortunately we never went too far out since it was so cold. The Lagoon area would have been great to snorkel in but just too cold for my whole body. After the beach we got cleaned up & went to the I-Hop across the street for a late lunch. Just to give you an idea of the prices here, our lunch was 24.00 not including the tip. With that I got a soup & salad and a soda & Siena got the kid's mac & cheese w/ broccoli & a chocolate milk. Anyway...it was that day that I took some pictures of Siena in front of the Hotel sign & water fall in her new big girl dress that we got in Maui. After our lunch at the I-Hop it was time for Mark to be getting back from work so we headed on back.

That evening here at the Hotel we caught a TV show being filmed. It was the new Hawaii Five-O. They apparently had been filming most of the day. They also used some of the hotel guests as extras but like Mark said, "They picked all he pretty people staying here for the extras." Since we don't watch the show we weren't sure which people to try to find that were the stars. Later that night I went back out window shopping when Mark & Siena went to bed & they were still shooting. I talked with a couple that pointed out some of the main actors. I was able to get a few shots of them but nothing really good.

On Wednesday, Siena & I went to the Mall via the city bus. I guess we could have walked it but I wasn't sure if she would have done the whole walk & I certainly didn't want to carry her. It wasn't a bad ride anyway. There wasn't a playground in the Mall like she had hoped for but there was a small arcade with some kiddie rides so she got to ride a few things for fun. My whole shopping intention was to shop for Siena a new pair of sandals. I found a shoe store for ladies & kids that had the sweetest little girl shoes with affordable prices. I didn't get any brown ones that I wanted to find but I did buy some cute black ones. They had a little heel to them like a big girl shoe. Siena calls these type of shoes "click clock shoes" because of the sound they make when she walks. By the end of our shopping it was time for Mark to be leaving work so I had him pick us up on his way back to the hotel. It would have been our plan to try to celebrate Chinese New Year while hear but we kept missing each island's celebration because of our travel back & forth so we just decided to take in Oahu's China Town for dinner. We got down there pretty late in the day so most of the shops were closing. I wanted Siena to see the stores goods but we only made it to a bakery & got a little Chinese New Year banner & few sweet treats. One of them was a little moon cake. It was good but the other treats weren't so great. We went to dinner at "Chen's" which was suggested by one of the locals but was very disappointed. The service was terrible & my beef broccoli was full of cheap fatty meat. Mark said his seafood bowl was okay.

Thursday was another morning for Siena & I to hang out. We didn't have anything planned so we went down to the hotel shops & grounds for some picture taking. The hotel grounds are great for picture taking & has lots of beautiful orchids. The Hilton is also a popular place to hold weddings. Right in the middle of everything is a sweet little white chapel. We were allowed to check it out. Siena decided she wanted to be married there & says she "wants to marry Daddy." Yeah...we will see how long that lasts. LOL! But throughout our stay we did see several beautiful Asian brides in their gowns getting ready for their big day. So you never know, we may be back here sometime ( in the far future & long after college I'd hope ) to host Siena's wedding. Hopefully we will win the Lottery by then too! Thursday was Mark's last work day & he was able to get out early. Our plans were to head out on the road to the popular North Shore. We 1st got in the car & wanted to find the Hula Grill for lunch that was in Waikiki Beach. We ate at the one on Maui & loved it. But the traffic down on the main drag where the Hula Grill was supposed to be, was so crazy so we went on up the road by Diamond Head. We stopped at one of the scenic views for pictures & then headed on, in search of food. We were using "Mark's trusty GPS" (and I'm saying this sarcastically) to help find a restaurant. Well...let's just say it took us on a little scenic side trip. We ended up the mountain side with great views & cool homes mind you, but no restaurant. We finally stumbled upon one of the restaurants that we went to 3 years ago & had lunch there. Really good Italian for a change! After lunch we were just too pooped to go on anymore so we headed back to the hotel where we all had a nap. I know, we sound like we are really a lot of fun, but after all of the running around & Mark working, it was catching up to all of us. That evening we went back out to the Mall since I wanted to get back there to pick up something that I had on hold for Siena. Also while there we did catch a little of the Dragon Dance that was going on in front of a Chinese restaurant in celebration of Chinese New Year.

Hawaii has been a lot of fun. The most perfect weather on both islands with lots of sun. I think next time we have to see the big Island (Hawaii). That's where the active volcano, Kilauea is. That would be awesome to see. Actually when we were leaving for the airport, the car rental bus driver said that it was because of it's eruption is why the skies on Oahu were so hazy & is called "vog." It would also be a good idea to have a lot more money when we go next time to be able to enjoy more shopping. I don't think there is any other state in the union that you will see as many Japanese tourists or I should I say "shoppers" than in Hawaii. For the Japanese, Hawaii is quicker to get to than the mainland & they have the money to shop at all the high end shops. Hawaii's cheaper for them than Japan. The state of Hawaii caters to them really well with all of the Asian restaurants too. For the most part Siena was really great on such a long trip. There was one time that I had to put her in time out because of becoming so fussy & demanding but that did the trick. She was a big girl Princess after that. Now we all just need a vacation after this vacation!

Be sure to check back in a few days to see all of the pictures. I will post them throughout this post so that they will be with each days events.
Aloha....we're now homeward bound!

Back on Oahu

2011-02-01T03:47:00.011-05:00

Today we flew back to Oahu. We will be here until Friday night when we leave to go home. So far the weather is beautiful. Maybe a tad cooler especially at night. Maui is a little more south. We are at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. The same place that we stayed at 3 years ago when we where here while Mark went to work. We are even in the same tower with the view as last time. The Rainbow Tower. Supposedly it has the largest mosaic tile work on the side of the building & is recorded in the Geniuses Book of World Records. It goes all the way up the side of the building. Our room is on the 23rd floor so that tells you about how big it is.

We got in today about midday so we just strolled around the hotel grounds & then walked over to a restaurant across the street for dinner. It was the same coffee shop, as they call it, that we frequented a lot last time while here. Here in the Hilton Hawaiian Village...let's just say, "It ain't cheap to eat." There are a lot of shops here around the hotel grounds to keep you window shopping for days. Also there are a few Koi ponds with fish & flamingos. Siena's favorite area was the pond with the turtles & penguins. Just by that pond is also the sweetest dress shop that carried little girl's clothes. I found Siena a cute little dress that I just had to get. It had red flowers on it. Since they weren't blue I wasn't sure if she would want it. But since she is all about wearing dresses these days...just like Cinderella, she had no problem with it. Tomorrow's plans I think will be low key. Mark will have to go into work so I think Siena & I will just take in the beach. Aloha!

Maui

2011-01-30T03:07:00.041-05:00

Okay...we've been on Maui for 3 days now. I'll go back & start at day one here. We arrived at the airport with yet another uneventful flight (thank goodness). Just going to our hotel the island seemed a lot bigger than what I thought it would be. I guess I'm comparing it to islands of the Caribbean. When we finally got to our condo it was getting late in the day so we didn't venture out until the next day. Our condo is nice & clean & even appears to have been recently updated. I think the resort itself is rather old but the grounds are very nice & well kept. We are sitting right on the beach & our unit has an ocean view. We are right down from the town of Lahaina where there are lots of resorts & major hotels.

On our 2nd day Siena & I went out to the beach. She couldn't wait to get in the sand with her bucket & shovel. The water is crystal clear. The sand isn't really white but rather brown, I suppose of all the added lava rock sand. In the waters are thousands of small black rocks. The water felt cold at 1st but not so bad after being in it awhile. But that was only my feet. I didn't even try to walk out any farther on those rocks! We went back up to the pool & got in there where the water was much warmer. Even though Siena is not that fond of the water she actually did pretty good this time. She didn't try to really swim but she did let me move her around in the water more than usual. Oh...by the way, the hot tub was great too.

That evening we went into the town of Lahaina where it was full of tourist shops. When we dropped into one of the beach side restaurants for lunch Siena was sound to sleep. I carried her to the table & she was still out of it so we ate while she slept in the chair. Of course as soon as we drove off she was cranky & hungry so we found a McDonald's & got her a Happy Meal. Unfortunately the "Happy Meal" didn't really do the trick because after she finished eating we reluctantly decided to go back down the street to do some window shopping & it wasn't long before she had a major meltdown. All of the people in the shops were coming out to see what was happening. Because if you know Siena, her screams could pierce & break windows. But we survived. That evening I took Mark & Siena back to the condo & went back out to do some shopping & all was better.

While I was gone Mark & Siena said that they saw whales just off the beach. I had the camera so they weren't able to catch any pictures. But I did catch the sunset off one of the other roadside beaches & a free Hawaiian dance show at the mall that I went to.

Now this leads us to Friday. We were going to do the drive to Hana but we got started too late. So instead we 1st booked a Luau at one of the hotels. We got a great price on it but we did so by agreeing to listen to a timeshare sales pitch on Sunday morning so yes, we have that to contend with that yet. After booking the Luau we then drove out to the Iao Valley state park. There we trekked up through the mountains that gave way for the view of the Iao Needle which is a natural rock pinnacle. Also along the trail was a small water fall & stream. Lots of great picture taking!

That evening we set out for our Luau. Siena was happy to hear that she could go on stage when the MC announced that anyone wanting to learn to hula could come up & learn from one of the dancers. She was happy to go but only with me. So there we were, with about 30 other guests up on stage trying to hula...& yes Daddy got it all on video. Anyway...the food was an adequate buffet. I finally got to taste poi which really didn't have a lot of taste to it. But the pig that had been roasting all day in the imu, which is an in-ground pit, was really good. The show was great. Great dancing & even a fire show. I believe Siena was even impressed.

We finally headed on to the famous Road to Hana on Sat. morning. Now the start of this road is way on the other side of Maui from where we are staying. With that distance & the time it takes to do this ever winding cliff hanging drive we had to set out pretty early. The drive starts out in a quaint little bay/surf town called Paia. Mark had done his research to find the best coffee beans on Maui, so a pit stop at Anthony's coffee shop was a must to-do before starting the scenic drive. And by the way, who do you think did all the driving? For most of the way, Mark was a bit car sick. There were so many scenic stops that we just couldn't even do all of them. We did find a private garden, "The Garden of Eden", that we paid to drive into & had our picnic there & also saw our 1st large waterfall. Once on the road again we came upon the same waterfall just off the road. While some of the falls were not easily accessible I did manage to trek down to one of them myself. I stepped on about 20 large black rocks to get to that same big waterfall after finding out that just on the other side of the bridge I could have taken a nice smooth path along side of all the rocks. Oh well...it was worth the adventure to get there anyway. But Mark & Siena waited up top since we knew that Siena would not have been able to make the trek. Several hours later we reached our pilgrimage...Hana! While there wasn't much there but the old General store that I had read about it felt good to know that we had "Survived the Road to Hana." And yes, we had to do the same drive back. The views were incredible & the drive was adventurous to say the least!

Well now this brings us up to date. Today was our day with the timeshare salesman. I won't bore you with the 2+ hours of sales pitch but just say that "No" sorry, we didn't buy a timeshare in Hawaii. The rest of the day was spent doing a little shopping, lunch on the beach at the Hula Grill, then back to the condo for some pool & beach time with Siena. Again I was able to get her into the water without being so fearful. Swimming yet? No...but for her this was all progress. While down on the beach we made a small sandcastle before heading back to wake up Mark from his nap to get ready to go to dinner.
Tomorrow we leave to fly back to Oahu. Mark will start his work week on Tuesday while Siena & I hang out at the Hilton & maybe do some sightseeing & shopping on our own. Aloha!

Aloha~ From Hawaii!!

2011-01-26T00:55:00.003-05:00

As I said in my previous post we would be going to Hawaii for a Winter Vacation. It's actually a vacation/ business trip for Mark. But this time around I plan to keep up with my posts while on the whole trip so I can finally add a little more substance to them rather than just pictures. But then again maybe that's about all most people care to check on my blog for are the pictures. Yet keep in mind I'm hoping that one day we will be able to transcribe this Blog into a some type of "Life Book" for Siena.
Anyway...here goes. For starters we are here! On the island of Oahu that is. After the long uneventful flight we checked into our hotel near the airport around 10:30 PM last night (Monday night) their time. Needless to say, we have some major jet lag to over come. We managed to crash in our freezing hotel room despite the wonderful slightly cool tropical temps outside. We have no control over our hotel room's air conditioner! Yes I'm freezing! This morning we got up & headed out for the drive-in next door for some reasonably priced food (something that's hard to find in Hawaii). It ended up being pretty good for a drive-in kinda dive & it's probably the best deal around since all the locals were eating there. While waiting for our food at the window, a man dropped some coins but didn't bother to pick them up. Siena saw it & wanted to get them. I didn't care to pick them up either but one of the local lady bus drivers picked them up for her & gave them to her. Later while eating a man that worked there played the claw coin game & won two stuffed animals & gave one to Siena. So already we haven't been here for 24 hours yet & she's charming people left & right.
We didn't have any plans for the day since this is just a pit stop for 2 nights before heading to Maui for 5 nights then back here for the remaining time while Mark works. The aquarium seemed like the best choice for the day so we took the city bus over to the other side of town that felt like days to get to. The aquarium was small but actually really nice with lots of small tanks. One of the curators showed us & allowed us to hold some hermit crabs & touch a small sea urchin. But Siena only wanted me to do all the hands on. She didn't want any part of it. After that we walked down the main street that lined the famous Waikiki Beach, had lunch at Subway & browsed some shops. It was then time to head back to the hotel so we decided to stop the bus & get off at the Ala Moana Mall's food court for dinner. That was our day today in a nutshell! Tomorrow we are off to Maui so I hope to catch up on more posts while there. Aloha!...Oh yeah, the weather is Beautiful! Hope you all are staying warm on the Mainland!
(((Pictures won't be coming until we get back since I don't have a photo program on our netbook.)))

Back Tracking to Christmas

2011-01-22T22:10:00.004-05:00

Yes, I'm finally going to post those long over due Christmas picures. On another note I needed to do it before we took off on another trip. This time we're going back to Hawaii. We went 3 years ago, & yes Siena went with us then too. Mark is going to Ohau for work again & he wouldn't dare go without us! This time we're going a week ahead to visit Maui. So all that will be a new post when we get back. For now here are the long awaited Xmas 2010 pictures. Enjoy!

Christmas Eve & Christmas Day

Master Pieces Sneak Peek

2011-01-19T23:31:00.004-05:00

Ok, in reality I still have some more Christmas pictures to post but I just wanted to show a few peices of Siena's Artwork for now so I thought I'd throw these in. Some done at school & some at home.

I don't think I've shown these before.

Through the Skies to Baba's House we Went!

2011-01-03T15:41:00.004-05:00

Ok..it's catch up time.

We set off for Baba's house on Dec. 14 & came back on Dec. 20th. Good thing we timed it just right since there was a big snow storm after we got back that left tons of people stranded in airports. We had a great time though, visiting Baba & family & we even squeezed in a Disney day full of Princesses! So much going on so I'll just let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

Happy New Year!

2010-12-31T15:57:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas from Our House to Yours!

2010-12-25T17:18:00.004-05:00

I hope this post finds everyone healthy & happy. Unfortunately Santa brought me the Flu this year. It's been coming on for days. The best part is, of course, that Siena is well & happy. Oh & Daddy too. He's been a wonderful help as always! I will post more when I'm up to par at a later date. We were in FL last week & through the weekend, to see Baba(Grandma) & family & did one big day of Disney. So along with those pictures & Christmas day there will be tons of pictures. Stay tuned.
By the way...it's snowing now as I write & more to come tomorrow.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T17:17:00.000-05:00

Santa Says.....

2010-12-12T22:39:00.003-05:00

This is the 2nd year now that I've done this. This year it was even better. You're now able to put more information on.
So check out what Santa's message is to Siena this year.
Click on the link:
http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/watch/guest/ewaG9rTw4y25v3-tMbh8YA

Another Master Piece!

2010-12-08T20:33:00.005-05:00

Siena is really into making art work for her teachers these days so I just wanted to show off today's Piece de Resistance! I think she truly captured the essence of the flowing green landscape flourishing with multiple of colors in nature. Don't you?

Momma Gets a Plate!

2010-12-04T23:23:00.008-05:00

I guess I should be thankful I still have them but I'm just not a fan of Birthdays anymore. It only means I'm getting older but we all know the alternative, that you either have them or your time has come so you don't have them. None the less, it was exciting to Siena for me to have a Birthday. She was so excited to get me a present this year. I guess being 4 years old now means she's understanding it all better & wants to be more involved. She & Mark had went to Target the day before to get me something. He had told me that she had a Mickey Mouse plate in mind but when she saw the Princess plate, she said..."That's it! That's the one!" So on the morning of Dec. 3rd she could hardly wait to wake me up to give it to me. Since this was the 1st gift that she has ever picked out without any help & this is what she wanted me to have, it really meant so much to me. I cried when she gave it to me. But Siena being the little Princess that she is, just had to later ask if she could borrow it sometime. LOL! Other than that it was a quiet Birthday yet busy. I had a small craft show to do on Friday night & a bigger one on Sat. morning. We did manage to go out to dinner later that night with our friends Maribel, Elmo & Kevin. Maribel also came by the other day & gave me a beautiful necklace & earring set for my Birthday.

Just wanted to say thanks to Daddy this weekend for helping Siena with her school project. She had to bring home Ribbit (the class frog...no not a real one thank goodness) for the weekend. While out & about with him they had to take pictures & write about all their adventures in a journal.

The Best Birthday Gift Momma Has Ever Gotten!!!

Siena & Ribbit meet Santa at the Craft Show.

Siena brings Ribbit to Momma's Birthday Dinner

My Princess!

Santa's In Town

2010-12-01T22:19:00.002-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T19:21:00.004-05:00

Today I give Thanks for my Beautiful Daughter, My Wonderful Husband, My Whole Family, our Friends, our Health & Our Home.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch with our dear friends Maribel, Elmo & Kevin and some of their family. That's what it's all about, sharing & being together! Now let's bring on Black Friday!

Cinderella is in the House!

2010-11-13T16:27:00.004-05:00

It's been a Magical time ever since our little friend Sarah's Birthday party last week. Sarah had her 5th birthday party with guest host Cinderella herself. It was a beautiful party with tons of little Princesses filling her castle. Cinderella sang songs, told stories, declared all the little girls Princesses & the little boys Princes. This was the 2nd party that we had been to with Cinderella but Siena was too young to remember the 1st time. This time it really left an impression on her. On the way home from the party she went on & on about Cinderella even though she had never really been into the whole Princess thing. It's always been nothing but Mickey Mouse & the Gang. We told her that we had the movie if she wanted to watch it later that night so that she would understand the whole story of Cinderella. So we watched the movie & she has been in total character ever since. She wants nothing but to wear her blue Cinderella dress & reenact the whole movie. I of course have to play the Wicked Step Mother. She directs me & tells me what to say. I'll tell ya, if she doesn't become an actress or a movie director she'll miss her calling!

Finally Trick or Treat!

2010-11-07T00:38:00.003-04:00

We finally made it to the grand finale of Halloween! Before heading out we squeezed in pumpkin carving & cookie baking then our 1st Trick or Treater arrived...it was a little Tiger named Kevin. Yes, it was our friends Maribel & Elmo's little boy Kevin. Wasn't he cute? Siena could hardly wait to go fill her basket full of treats. Everyone could tell she was a girl underneath those ears so they kept calling her Minnie Mouse but she was quick to tell them that she was Mickey Mouse!

Craft Shows in the Middle of it All!

2010-11-06T23:52:00.004-04:00
In the middle of all the Fall action I've done 2 Craft shows in the month of October. It's been a crazy busy month. But I pulled it all off with good sales even. If you get a chance, be sure to check out my website & fan my page on Facebook! I just did a Giveaway tonight already on Facebook. Hope to do more soon! Here's some pics of my booth at my last craft show. Angel Pie Bows- www.angelpiebows.com

Down on The Farm

2010-11-06T23:08:00.003-04:00
Friday Oct. 29 was the field trip to Snead's Farm with the Preschool class. It felt like it had turned out to be the coldest day of the season so far. At least there was plenty of sunshine & it was a beautiful day! The kids had a blast!

2010-11-06T22:27:00.003-04:00
I hardly know where to begin! There's been so much going on lately. It's not like I didn't have enough to do...what was I thinking when I agreed to set up a cooking class for Siena's Preschool class at the Young Chef's Academy last month? Well...it's all about Siena & her friends anyway, right? So yeah...I set it all up & they loved it. They got to make Spooky Halloween Houses (Gingerbread houses). I had forgotten my camera so I got to use the owners camera but she hasn't sent me the pictures yet. I did manage to get a shot of Siena with her house once we got home at least.

Her Preschool class's Halloween party was held on Wed. Oct. 27. The kids got to Trick or Treat throughout the church to all the offices. Mark & I didn't arrive until they had already done that but just in time for the party which consisted of lots of good eats & a wonderful Halloween story telling by one of the Moms.
Siena's Mickey Mouse costume was too hot for her to keep on the whole time but I was told that she did wear it around Trick or Treating.

Fall Works of Art

2010-11-06T22:19:00.001-04:00

Happy Halloween

2010-10-30T22:29:00.003-04:00

Happy Halloween Everyone!

Stay tuned for some posts of our Fun Fall & Halloween Outings!

More Halloween Treats!

2010-10-26T15:02:00.006-04:00
Wow, Siena is so blessed to have so many people in her life that think of her. Yesterday Baba(Grandma) sent a wonderful box full of Halloween goodies. Here's a picture of her posing with all the sweet stuff! Thank you Sweet Baba! We will see you soon!

Mother's Tea at Preschool

2010-10-20T20:27:00.005-04:00
This year instead of having a Mother/ Child open house at preschool in the evening, Siena's school had a Mother's Tea during school hours. One of the Moms told me that they changed it up this year since some of the kids got a little confused about going to school at night time. Sure wasn't Siena. I think she would go to school even in the middle of the night! In any case, it was a big hit with Siena. She seemed very proud to show me around her room & do the crafts during the Tea. The kids (I'm sure the teacher did most of the work) had made pumpkin muffins that were actually very yummy. I even got the easiest recipe for them that the teacher emailed us since some of the Moms were asking for it.

Apple Festival at Graves Mt.

2010-10-15T22:39:00.004-04:00
Even though we had a little backtrack of summer weather last weekend we still made it to another Fall outing. It started out nice & crisp in the morning but turned into a rather hot day up at Graves Mt. for their Apple festival last Sunday. Luckily there was a cool stream there to cool off in.
This was our 1st trip up there(about a 1 1/2 Hr drive) for the Festival & like I had heard, it was packed. When we headed over to pick apples most of the trees were pretty well picked over but at least we got the experience & some nice pictures. I tried to sit Siena up on one of the tree limbs but she didn't want any part of it. She later made a commit about if she had climbed it herself then she wouldn't have minded it. Well of course on her own terms! LOL!
Anyway...now that I got the goods it's time to make my famous apple pies!

The Pumpkin Patch with the Boys

2010-10-13T20:26:00.003-04:00
There are tons of pumpkin patches around here so the other day we went up to one right after school. We went with 2 other kids & their Moms to a small nursery that had a play area for the kids along with a small pumpkin patch to pick out a mini pumpkin. Even though the other 2 kids were boys, Siena didn't seem to mind. So I've been told by her though, Evan, one of the boys is the one that Siena & her little girlfriends at school love to chase on the playground. When she 1st told me about it, I asked her if she ever sat with him at snack time or any other boys. Here reply was, "NO! Like I told you before, Momma, I don't like boys!" But she sure liked running around with them at the pumpkin patch.

It's Finally Fall!

2010-10-07T21:25:00.003-04:00

Well I suppose it's finally Fall around here. I love it! Siena always says that September is her favorite month since she can go back to school. Now that it's October though the leaves are starting to change. As much as I miss Florida at times, it's times like this that I really don't. I love a change of season & we have that around here. I've gotten most of my Fall decorations up outside; a fall leaf wreath on the door & even another wreath that I made & hung on the other end of the front porch. I know....I need to get a pic. so you can see what I mean so maybe some pics. of Siena on the porch will come in my next post. But 1st I still need to get some fall mums & pumpkins. Anyway..it isn't a Holiday without Aunt Betty pulling through on her wonderful care package of goodies to all of us. Today we received a box full of Halloween goodies. We all got our favorite treats. I think Siena loved her cheese goldfish more than anything. I of course love my chocolates the best & I'm not sharing. LOL! Thanks Aunt Betty! Here's Siena posing with all of the goodies.

Preschool is going really well. Siena is happy to be making some new little girlfriends this year along with her old pals. One of the Mom's just sent out emails inviting everyone to a mini farm/ pumpkin patch tomorrow. It sounds like a lot of fun with lots of activities to wear out the kids for the day. There will even be a favorite there of Siena's. A Moon Bounce. I think we'll be wearing the new shirt that Aunt Betty sent too!

On another note be sure to check out my website-www.angelpiebows
If you're in the area check out my next show & sale on my website calendar.
I'm also on Facebook & you can join my fan page too by clicking on the link on the sidebar of my blog here.

Back to School

2010-09-13T11:10:00.002-04:00

Well I just dropped Siena off at school a few hours ago & had time to do a good walk downtown & still run to Target. Yeah...she's back to school. She had no problems going back. She was so ready. Before school we all meet in a big room up stairs & then the teachers come up to get them to walk down to the classrooms together. I didn't walk down with Siena today but did follow. Once she saw me, she wanted me to "just leave, Momma." My, how big she is! Pictures here are the ones that I took last Friday at Orientation. Most of her old classmates are in her class this year along with a few new ones. I think that works really well so they can have the comfort of old friends while meeting new ones. I think this year will go as smooth as last year.

Bragging Momma

2010-09-01T22:12:00.003-04:00
So if you want to call me one of those bragging Mom's, so be it! I can't help but brag about Siena's Math. She's been doing some Math workbooks for several months now & really likes it. We hope we have a real go getter with school work since she loves books & now she's pretty happy with Math. Here are a few pages of some workbooks that she's done lately that she usually grabs & does all by herself. I actually find that when she does it on her own like that, that she does it all even faster than if we sit with her to do it.

Playing Outside!

2010-08-27T20:43:00.005-04:00
We've been starting to get our taste of Fall lately with a few bearable days in the mornings & evenings. I love this transition time of the year since we can get outside to play. So here are some pictures of Siena riding her bike.

Also this week Siena was back at school but only for her Speech class so far. She won't start Preschool until mid Sept. She loves school & is ready to go back. We just got the notice in the mail for her Preschool orientation day along with who her new teachers will be. We are happy to announce that she'll have one of her teachers from last year who was actually her teacher's helper last year. She had taken a picture of herself & her helper and sent that too. Siena was so pleased that she wanted to write her a letter to give to her on orientation day. Here is a picture of what she wrote, of course with my help for the spelling.

More of the Photo Shoot

2010-08-23T22:39:00.001-04:00

A Photo Shoot

2010-08-19T23:48:00.001-04:00
Did a few photo shoots with Siena in the back yard today for my Website. Check out more on my Website. And while you're there, be sure to fan me on Facebook!
http://www.angelpiebows.com

Quick Note!

2010-08-18T23:11:00.004-04:00

Just a quick reminder! My new website is officially open with full checkout. Try to swing by to shop or just tell me what you think. Good or bad, I'd love some feedback. I'm trying to get more listed everyday but with a Princess in the house that's sometimes an impossible everyday task so bare with me.
Also when you're visiting please click on the link to "LIKE" us on Facebook.
http://www.angelpiebows.com/
Angel Pie Bows