Thursday 13: Catching Up

I haven't written here in awhile. I actually have like seven drafts since my last post but I never actually finished them. I do that a lot. :-/ I either get bored with it, get busy, or I change my mind about posting what I'm writing about.

But...I really like doing Thursday 13...I like lists. :) So here's 13 updates for our life lately...

1. Last week, the girls and I had lunch at a sports bar. A local non-profit group that I support was having a donation drive and lunch there. The girls just thought it was SO cool that they were in a BAR and there were BEER signs on the wall! :-P But there was no beer going on...just lunch. I had chicken tenders, Ashlyn had corn dog bites and chips, and Aubry had a grilled cheese sandwich and waffle fries. ;) And there was a lot of items collected so I'd say it was a pretty good day!

2. Last weekend we went to Chuck E Cheese. A lot of parents loathe that place, but I like it. They have good pizza and it keeps the girls occupied for awhile. I really, really love that the kids can keep their cash-out tickets (and they never expire!) to save up for a bigger item instead of just coming home with crappy plastic tops and candy all the time. The girls each found something for 1500 tickets. They have about 1000 more to go! 

3. We also went to the drive-in last weekend. We go about once a year and the last couple years my parents have gone with us. We pack up some snacks and drinks in the cooler and take some chairs and enjoy the evening! We saw Ice Age 4, Brave, and Madagascar 3. My mom slept through the last two movies and Ashlyn fell asleep about 20 minutes before the end of the last movie. ;) But me, dad, and Aubry stayed up for all three! We had a really good time. I love the drive-in because it's a lot more economical. All 5 of us are able to see 3 movies for $28...it costs that much for just me and the girls to see 1 evening movie at the theatre. 

4. Tonight the girls and I went to Michaels. I found a 25% off coupon that's good until Saturday. Since it's been so dang hot lately (it was 106 today and supposed to be even worse the next couple days) we've been doing a lot of arts and crafts. I wanted to pick up some canvases. They had value packs on sale...I got 5 16x20 and 7 12x12 for $15 each. There was also a rolling 10 drawer cart on sale for $38. Then we grabbed a couple little art sets the girls picked out and some acrylic paints that were on sale for $.89 each. I got it all for the original price of the organization cart! Here's our art area now (in my bedroom). 

 

5. One simple art project we did not too long ago was one I found on pinterest. You just trace your hands and draw lines across the paper with curved lines where your hand is...makes your hand look 3D on the paper. The other picture is something I used to do when I was in middle school...the teacher would draw a line and you would draw a picture from it. I also found this site on pinterest and printed a bunch of coloring pages. We've spent a lot of time coloring them before bedtime. 

 

6. I took pictures of the girls and my nieces this month. My oldest niece has hit a stage where she HATES to have her picture taken. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a photo of all four girls but I got a couple good shots that day anyway: 

  

  

 

7. And then there was some swimming: 

 

8. Board games are another favorite on a hot summer day: 

 

9. A good friend of mine just had a birthday last week. He is a big fan of all things Civil War. We went out to dinner with several friends and I gave him this picture that I drew. It turned out a LOT better than I expected. I usually do not draw portraits very well. Had I known it was going to come out looking so well, I would have used my charcoal pencils instead of a mechanical pencil! 

10. I am SO glad that Burn Notice is back on right now. It is one of my favorite shows...and it's nice to have some new episodes while all my other shows are on hiatus. The girls like Burn Notice, too, so we've been watching a lot of the older episodes that I have on DVD, too. 

11. I also recently found Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken really cheap on Amazon.com and bought it for the girls. I hadn't seen it since I was in middle school...but I knew they would love it. It has horses (which they love) and stars Gabrielle Anwar (who plays Fiona in Burn Notice) so they thought that was cool. 

12. Speaking of Amazon.com, I really, really love having free streaming video with my Amazon Prime membership. I've had it for quite awhile but never really took advantage of the streaming video part of the membership. I don't have cable and couldn't sleep one night...so I went looking for stuff to watch. There's SO MUCH on there. I started watching a new show...The Secret Life of An American Teenager. I like watching a series from the start so I'm all caught up now...and I like that it has new episodes through the summer, too. But there are a LOT of shows and movies on there...I could keep myself busy for quite awhile! 

13. I think today we are going to do one of the things in my Stuff To Do With The Kids board on Pinterest...but I can't decide which one! We might have to do a few. :) 

Laundry - Finished Product

I just realized that I never published a post with the actual finished product of the laundry room makeover. So here are some pictures of the girls' new closet! I even broke out my actual camera for the occasion instead of using my cameraphone. ;)

Here is the complete view of the laundry room from the door. The washer and dryer are at the right behind the door. Next to them are the hampers for dirty laundry: whites, lights, darks. I love that they are stacked because it doesn't take up as much room and it fits perfectly right there. When one gets full, I throw a load in the washing machine. Then the open area with the slanted ceiling...that's my storage area. The pink tubs have photos, old electronics and computer stuff, and then behind the white stacked drawers are my holiday decorations and stuff like that. The grey tub holds the girls' shoes. The white drawers...the bottom drawer has the girls' socks, the next two drawers have clothes for Ashlyn that Aubry has outgrown, and then the top drawer is for clothes that Aubry will grow into. On top of the drawers is the crate of outdoor toys...didn't really have a better place to put it. :P And then to the left is the girls' closet.

My dad installed the bar for me to hang their shirts. The shelf on top needs to be screwed down but the battery on the drill died. The boxes on the shelf hold the girls' seasonal clothes (right now their summer clothes are in there). All those cloth bins hold the girls' play clothes and clothes they can wear to their dad's house. They each have a bin for tops, bottoms, and then the middle bin has both their seasonal clothes. Then all the drawers below hold the rest of their clothes. The top drawers hold underwear, tights, and misc things like bras, undershirts, belts, vests, etc. The middle drawers hold pajamas and jeans/pants. The bottom drawer holds the girls' skirts, shorts, and t-shirts. I would actually like to have more drawers, but I really don't have anymore room. What we have works out well, though.

Everything is labeled...I got a great deal on a label maker at Walmart. The girls know exactly where everything is. And if my mom or even my dad (who requires specific instructions for anything) could easily find what clothes they need if I'm not home for some reason or I need them to go to my house to grab something. As the girls get older, they'll also be able to help put away the clothes since it's pretty much a no-brainer when it comes to where everything goes. But...I'm waiting a little awhile on that battle. I'm enjoying the peace of not arguing about them putting away their clothes in their rooms anymore. ;)

I REALLY like having the girls' closet in the laundry room. It makes it a lot more convenient and I'm better about getting their clothes put away sooner. I don't have to carry the hampers up and down the stairs all the time which is really nice. And the clothes stay a lot more organized this way. The girls like it, too. In the morning they come downstairs and pick out their clothes and get dressed in the laundry room. Everything is right there in one spot. And right across the hall is the downstairs bathroom where they brush their hair and teeth. Mornings definitely go a lot more smoothly, now! And before bed, they take off their clothes and put them in the hampers then put their pajamas on. It's just so much more efficient for everyone.

Plus, they both have a lot more space in their rooms. Most of their toys are kept in their closets, now. Definitely a good idea all around!