The Happiness Project :: Week 8

Koen's class had a special daddy day.

Roger took the morning off from work

and grabbed some hammers (real and pretend)

to have some fun creating a sculpture with his little guy.

I sent the camera with him

and told him that he had to photograph

the experience so I could see it.

From the look on Koen's face

I think that he was pretty proud

of the turtle sculpture that they constructed.

I love that Roger took

the time out of his busy schedule

to do this with our boy.

 

Their piece is displayed

 in a place of honor

in Koen's room.

 

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

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Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
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The Stay at Home Mom Chronicles : The sound of a magic marker drawing.

My days around here seem to run together.

Ordinary moments unfold around me daily

and I need to stop and relish in them.

One day, my boys will be out living life

and I will miss these everyday experiences.

So, I am taking the time to document

the simple moments that pass between us.

I'm calling this little collection of memories...

The sound of a magic marker drawing.

Since becoming a mom, 
 I have gained the uncanny ability to
hear a magic marker drawing from anywhere in the house.

I could be way back in the laundry room
and I swear that I'll hear 
a lid being popped off
and the drawing begin.

I always pray that it's drawing on paper.

 

 Most of the time, I rush across the house
to discover that the kids
are indeed drawing on paper as they should.

But every once in a while,
I 'll catch them in the act
of abusing their magic marker privileges
and scribbling on themselves.

It's both infuriating and adorable.  
 I scold them to high heaven
when I catch them doing it.

  

I secretly love to see them
covered head to toe with 
the bright brilliant marks on their little bodies.

They must feel so creative and free.
I often send Koen to school
with faint drawings left on him
because I couldn't scrub it off completely.

His teacher always laughs a bit when she sees it.

I know that I will look back
on these moments
when I dart across the house
to put a stop to the magic marker shenanigans
 with a smile.

I love our crazy little life together.

Once Upon a Time Mommy was Funny...

I was recently cleaning out my closet when I came upon this silly little award (a Genie lamp that you shake and it tells your fortune) that I received in high school when I was voted wittiest of my graduating class. I remember that it was bestowed upon me at our senior Prom, which was an Arabian Nights Theme.

I didn't mean to save it but my beloved father, who is known for pilfering through the trash, saved remnants of my adolescent years and gave them back to me in a box on my 21st birthday. (Also included in said box were forged sick notes and bad progress reports-thanks dad).

Anyhoos...I found this dinky award the other day and my children grabbed it right up and started playing with it. "Why do have this, mama?" Koen asked while shaking it feverishly. I then told them the story about how all the kids at my school voted and said that I was the funniest person in our class.

They couldn't believe it. I think that they were impressed because now they ask me to tell the story of how I was the only person who campaigned during the voting process. I stood by the ballot box and bribed people with Oreo cookies and it totally worked!

 Let me just say that I've never won anything in my life except for honorable mention in the softball throw in the 3rd garde, 4th place in a poetry contest in the 10th grade, and 1st place in a dance contest at a bar in Atlanta when I was 28 years old. That's it. Needless to say, winning that stupid award was a high point in my life.

So, it makes me happy to see my boys grabbing my esteemed award (that I forgot that I still had) and asking Aladdin their future. They ask all kinds of questions ranging from "Will we get McDonalds for dinner?" to "Will I be famous when I grow up?" Their little faces light up as they wait for the answer and I can't help but think back to the night that I won the award. I was so young and unsure of what my future would hold. Little did I know that these two silly and wonderful little boys would be in my life.

I like that I have hard evidence to show my children that I was a person before I had them. I like that they can hold that award and know that their mom was officially the funniest person in the room at one point in her life.

It's the little things, people!

The Stay at Home Mom Chronicles : Book Orders

My days around here seem to run together.

Ordinary moments unfold around me daily

and I need to stop and relish in them.

One day, my boys will be out living life

and I will miss these everyday experiences.

So, I am taking the time to document

the simple moments that pass between us.

I'm calling this little collection of memories...

The Excitement of Book Orders

One of the best parts of being a kid

is coming home from school

with Scholastic book orders.

Griffin just loves sitting down

and looking for books

that he wants to order. 

He actually sits in one place

for an extended amount of time

and gets completely engrossed

in the search.

He circles the books that he wants

and then we sit together

and talk about all the books

and then he narrows down 

his decision.    

He feels so big when

he gets to be the one to fill out the order form.  

I get a kick out of sitting down

after he goes to bed and 

scanning the pages for all the books 

that he took the time to circle.

I love that he has a love for reading.

I love that it's such an even in our home

to pour over the book order

and imagine all the possibilities of each story.

The hopeful little circles that he draws

will forever be a memory

of his childhood for me.

The Happiness Project :: Week 7

 

We took a trip to the Windmill Plantation

and went on a walk on a dirt road

lined with wildflowers.

It's a walk that we've taken many times

and one that I've told you about before 

but it just makes me so happy.

I love the conversations that unfold

as we tarry down the path.

Koen pulls out his "Swiss Army Knife"

and checks his trusty compass.

"We're going Easter!"

he says and I chuckle.

"Let's go explore North America"

he says

and I chuckle even more.

 

We don't make it far down the road

and we move very slowly

because we have to stop to explore the ground.

Griffin walks ahead

and is making up mysteries out loud about 

the old plot of land that we walk over.

 Tracks present themselves beneath

our feet that must be inspected and discussed.

Maybe it was a baby raccoon?
Maybe it was a zombie deer?

I laugh at that one too.

We search for turkey tracks

to share with Daddy and Granddad.

Then we gobble and stomp

like wild turkeys all the way back to the cabin.

It really is the best that life

has to offer little boys.

 

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

Want to join me in my quest
to scout out happiness for a whole year?
Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
Then, steal my button and include it in your post.
Don't forget to link up to Mr. Linky.

God help me, I've had this song stuck in my head since last Wednesday...

You're welcome!

In bloom...

Flowers have exploded all around me.

I just had to say hello to the pretty girls

showing off outside.

 

 

\

I just love this time of year!

The Super Amazing Life of Koen

Koen had a little birthday celebration

with his classmates yesterday.

I made a poster celebrating his life so far

and told the class all about my sweet boy.

I know that it looks like a 2nd grader

made the poster but I don't care,

Koen  thought that it was awesome

and that's really all that matters.

 

Griffin was even able to come to the celebration,

which was a super big deal.

Koen was so proud to have his big brother

run around the classroom with him.

They were both pretty much beaming the whole time.

 

The birthday ceremony is pretty precious.

The months of the year were laid out on the floor

in a circle around the "sun".

Then, Koen held the earth

and circled the sun 4 times

to symbolize each year of his life.

I just loved watching him orbit

around the room.

Then it was cupcake time!

Woo Hoo!

I can't believe that my little guy

is 4-years-old!

The Happiness Project :: Week 6

I hopped on a bus filled with 28 kids

and helped chaperone Griffin's class camping trip.

It was an adventure.

The first night Griffin crawled 

into my tiny little bunk and slept on my head.

The second night, I was so exhausted that

I shamelessly bribed him with $5

to sleep in his own bunk all night.

It totally worked.

I was so tired I would have paid $20.

  

The children did so many fun activities

but the highlight for me was 

spending time in beautiful places.

 We hiked to this waterfall

and even got to climb behind it.

It was magical.

It was such a wonderfully reflective trip.

The view was totally worth the hike.
 I loved being there to experience it all with Griffin.

 

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

Want to join me in my quest
to scout out happiness for a whole year?
Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
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A Brief Intermission

I'm helping to chaperone

Griffin's class camping trip for a few days

while Roger stays home with Koen.

 Wish me luck as I'll be

in a cabin with 16 smelly boys.

I'm brushing up on my fart jokes to get street cred.

The Happiness Project :: Week 5

We celebrated Koen's 4th Birthday over the weekend. 

It was sweet and simple homespun party.

My mom made these cute little cupcakes

with Dinosaur eggs on them and orange frosting,

all at Koen's request.

The children watched a dinosaur presentation

and were able to touch real dinosaur bones and fossils.

They were all mesmerized. 

 

The weather was perfect for a "Dino dig".

Each kid grabbed a shovel

and searched for bones and teeth.

They found some amazing stuff.

Even the big kids had fun

making discoveries.

Koen felt a little nervous when it was 

time for everyone to sing Happy Birthday.

A moment after this photo was taken

he broke out into big ol' crocodile tears.

He cried during the entire song

while hiding in my chest.

It's hard being the 4-year-old birthday boy

but it was still super cute.

<div style="text-align: center;"> <br><br><br><br><br><br><a href="http://leighvslaundry.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBDlTpcH4NLUtEmwNL0NN5VLXVeyjV46LKaE_IoC7X_RD8bZ-n_b5j289xzqMLNM1le6o35B_0XOuvMBXJem-9PEiJp-mFplO6No54TEbwKtFqQGo2AXj55bde2DYHTASGWyexlFZehWn_/s1600/happiness2.jpg" /></a></div> <br><br><br><br><br><br><br /> <br>

Want to join me in my quest
to scout out happiness for a whole year?
Simply post a photo of something that
makes you wildly happy and tell us all about it.
Then, steal my button and include it in your post.
Don't forget to link up to Mr. Linky.