Fighting Teens Leads to A VERY Clean Sidewalk - And Peace!

You would think brothers ages 17 and 13 couldn't find so much to fight about.

But they do. And they did.

And I was sick and tired of it.

So I decided to make my Tackle It Tuesday project one of supervision while they tackled the project I had planned to do.

Cleaning our sidewalk that hasn't been cleaned since moving here in April 1994:

While they still fought it out a little bit after they began scrubbing and then power-pressure rinsing, they quickly figured out it would take twice as long to get it done at that pace.

After that was over, my nerves thoroughly frayed, I did learn something: oh boy, do teenage boys come in hand at tackling the tough jobs! And they're mighty handy with a pressure washer too!


I am so proud to say, even after their task was complete, my oldest boy continued - WITHOUT BEING TOLD - to pressure wash the entire house, shutters, gutters, and trim!

And the best part? There has been peace in my house ever since! ;)

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From Deck to Patio: The Preparation

After 15 years, it has become necessary to replace the deck.

Sadly enough, it's been put off so long that the thing has become a hazard. I feared a neighbor would drop by, only to have the deck collapse at the very moment they stepped up to the door.


With a week off, Brian decided it was time to tackle this project.

We have decided to replace the wooden deck with a concrete patio (less maintenance, longer lasting - read: EASIER).

And since converting our garage to a fourth bedroom a couple years ago, I have always hated loathed the driveway coming right up to the bay window.

It just screams THIS USED TO BE A GARAGE!

To get that monkey off my back, we're going opting for a larger-than-our-deck patio that will come underneath that bay window.too.

So the first order of business was to remove a section of the driveway.


And of course, Daddy's little sidekick had to get in on the action of demolishing the deck.


Brian and his little sidekick, along with the help of our next door neighbor, accomplished a lot in one day! By Monday evening at 7:30 p.m., it looked like this:

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Order In The Closet, Please

Bigger Brother is a rebel when it comes to keeping his room neat and organized.

And he has this really, really annoying habit of tossing things into the bottom of his closet.

So this week's MUST-DO was cleaning and organizing his closet.

But he overhead me talking about and, instead of risking eye-rolling and a chastising from Mom, he rushed to beat me to it (thinking I would believe it had been clean the whole time - insert one of my eye rolls here.)

His speedy, last-ditch efforts resulted in this:

Not exactly what I was looking for. So I took the project over from there. My efforts produced this:


Stepping back to check out my hard work, I realized something: Princess A has more shoes at 5 months old than her 13 year old brother.

And he's perfectly okay with that. *sigh* Boys are so much less expensive to raise.

You've gotta love 'em for that alone!

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We Got Our Sleep Number Bed!!

Okay, maybe it appears to be more of a brag than a tackle -but, I promise, there was work involved!

Brian has serious back trouble. Seems we're always shelling out money to the Chiropractor (thank you stupid, worthless insurance!). If that wasn't enough, he also suffers from sleep apnea that has recently gotten worse. Being up with the baby at night, I have often been near panic as I noticed he would go as long as 50 seconds without breathing! (Yes, I counted not guesstimate!)

So after much research into back trouble and sleep apnea, one thing kept popping up over and over: Sleep Number Beds.

I'll admit, I'm a cheapskate; a horrible cheap cheapskate. And I wasn't keen on the idea of paying so much for a bed. But...it wasn't about me and I wanted to do it for him. (At least until I have a chance to up the life insurance!)

So we broke down and purchased one and it was delivered yesterday. And, of course, I insisted that it be put together yesterday too! (Who cares if he worked 9.5 hours?! I don't want him to stop breathing in the middle of the night or keep whining about his back! HA!)

So being the mean, demanding wife that I am, I cracked the whip and here's the results (sans the sheets and comforter):

The bed arrived in 4 separate UPS boxes. We had been forewarned that it would be like putting together a Lego set; which turned out to be exactly what it was like.

Putting together the pieces, attaching the air pumps, inflating the mattress, adding the top cover - 2.5 hours total assembly time. And that time includes taking time to entertain a baby, quick assistance to the older children as needed, and one 10 minute break for cleaning up projectile baby vomit from where one of her brothers tossed and shook her a bit much.

All in all, I am very pleased with our new bed! Next time you're looking to buy new mattresses, be sure to visit http://www.sleepnumber.com/ - the Reps are awesome in answering any questions you may have!

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Tales From The Chest Freezer

Once upon a time I had a bright idea. It was to buy a chest freezer.

I bought it. Then I put food in it.

Then I forgot about it.

No joke. In the midst of remodeling our home (converting a garage to a bedroom/bathroom), it kind of got shoved into a storage closet (still plugged in) and forgotten.

It's been 3 years since I've opened it. Sadly enough, there is cheese in there that, even while frozen, has grown penicillin! And freezer burn is suffering from freezer burn!

So, now I have another bright idea...

For my Tackle It Tuesday and similar projects this week, I'm going to clean out my chest freezer. Then I really am going to put stuff back into it and not forget about it this time!





Now, I just need to do a little defrosting! :)


This project listed at:

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A Blog Makeover (Again) for Tuesday Toot!

It's time for Tuesday Toot again hosted by Mommy Community!

Come on over and join in the fun of tooting your own horn!

For my toot this week:

I'm going to have to restate my toot from last week about a blog makeover. I actually took the time this weekend to sit down, get serious, and learn a little about CSS and template tweeking.

So, I put hubby on "Baby Duty" and got to it. You can see the results! :)

Feel free to let me know what you think!

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Tuesday Toot: Blog Makeover

Have You Registered for my Sane Fitness Giveaway?

What is the Tuesday Toot Meme? Mommy Community says, "Well, it means every Tuesday, you get to post an accomplishment that you have done. As moms sometimes, we are quick in praising our kids and others about their accomplishments but we are 'shy' when it comes to our achievements so … here is your chance."

My toot for this week is that I managed to give my blog a makeover somewhat. It's not exactly what I'm looking for, but it's a step in the right direction.

I found a lot of tips to spruce it up. For example: how to use Google docs to create a form, how to create a horizontal navigation bar in blogger, and downloaded PaintNet to create my own header and buttons.

See More Tuesday Toots at Mommy Community!

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Tuesday Toot for March 24, 2009

It's time again for the Tuesday Toot, hosted by Mommy Community!

Last week, I had a list of toots. So this week, I'm not going to toot my own horn, but my hubby's. (lol)

A few weeks ago, we suffered quite a bit of roof damage during some late winter thunderstorms. After finally getting the insurance to pay off, my husband worked all of this past weekend (along with 3 of his buddies) replacing our old shingled roof with our new tin roof!! It looks so nice and so professionally done...and hubby is not a roofer (nor were his friends)!

So thank you, honey (and your buddies too!) for working so hard and making our house look so nice! I really, really, really (you get the picture) appreciate it!

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Tuesday Toot: A List of Accomplishments!

It's time for the Tuesday Toot again from Mommy Community! The idea behind the Tuesday Toot is that each week mommy bloggers get an opportunity to "Toot their Own Horn!"

So join us each week to give yourself a pat on the back for a job well done!

My toot(s)for this week:

I've got several toots!

1. I finally started my M2MG (made to match gymboree) color guide!
   
   
2. I got a second contest listed!
   
   
3. I finally captured a smile on camera from my two month old daughter!
   
   
4. I'm more than halfway done with listing my ribbon from where I'm shutting down my business.
   
   
5. And, last but not least, finally found time to go with my 17 year old son to get fitted for his prom tux! (He wanted to go alone, but hey...it's a first and Mom wanted to go! lol)

It's been a busy week!

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Tuesday Toot: Closing Out A Ribbon Business

It's Tuesday again and that means it's time for the Tuesday Toot hosted by Mommy Community.

Each Tuesday, take time to give yourself a pat on the back for a job well done with the Tuesday Toot...then come on over and share it with others!

And don't forget to visit others and find out what they've accomplished this week!

For my Tuesday Toot this week, I want to give myself a pat on the back for finally starting the shut down of my ribbon business, Weebons.

While it was an extremely good business, I just can't manage it with 4 kids at home: a teen, a tween, a preschooler, and a newborn.

I had already had to put it on hold when I was pregnant and put on bedrest beginning in October. I finished up the orders I had, then just let it sit. But now I realize that I just don't have the time to return.

So, yesterday I began organizing the ribbon I had. Cutting it into five yard sections and listing it on an eCrater store (my "rent" will be up on current store at the end of the month - no sense in paying that expense).

So that's my toot for this week! Hoping that my toot next week will be that I'm finished! lol

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Tuesday Toot: Preparing for the Spring/Summer Consignment Sale

Everyone deserves a pat on the back....even if we have to give it to ourselves. Join us at Mommy Community each Tuesday to toot your own horn about your accomplishments for the week!

For this week's toot, I want to brag about my accomplishment in getting all of my stuff ready for the upcoming local Spring/Summer children's consignment sale.

This may not seem like much of anything to brag about on the surface, but I managed to do it through all six of us having the stomach flu and tending to the daily needs of a six week old infant (which is, amazingly, 5x that of the other kiddos! lol).

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