Busy

It's been a busy couple of weeks around here ... so busy that I didn't even realize that it's been TWO WEEKS since I blogged. I have actually had to purchase a special wipe-off board just to keep my daily schedule straight. I'm not complaining since the busy-ness includes a new writing project that I've taken on -- but it's seriously cut into my blogging and bejeweled blitzing time.

Another of the reasons I've been so busy is because Rob was away last weekend which meant that I didn't have any time to sit around doing nothing while he's taking the girls for coffee or to the Lowe's. He and his siblings and mom went out to Long Island to see where they spent their formative years. One of the stops though was where I spent MY formative years. Tally, Terry and I (and my parents) lived in this house from 1959 (well Terry didn't live in it until 1960) until we moved to Illinois in 1961. The only memory I have of this house is that there was a fire nearby one day and that I think I remember hearing about it while sitting on on the swingset. I have no idea if we even had a swingset, but I do remember a lot of talk about a fire. Neither of my parents remember much about it either. So here's the house. As you see, Rob didn't get a shot of the plaque that I'm SURE was placed there in honor of my sleeping there as a child...:The girls and I spent much of last weekend tossing out old toys, and trying to find something in good enough shape for a toy swap that my Moms Club had last week. We found a few things that were in good enough shape to swap, but most of the stuff, including much of what you see in the picture below (snapped during a playdate with their pal Georgia!) was tossed. We kept cousin Shelby's dance outfits though because they are still in great shape and fit beautifully and look so darn cute on them, and neither girl could part with shoes (I have no idea where that comes from...) but we also found some dress up stuff to donate (including the hat, below.) In exchange I got some great Barbie accessories and some puzzles that will be in their stockings this Christmas. I got involved in a challenge project over at the Pioneer Woman and had to make a photo book with the them FACES. Culling my thousands of photographs I managed to fill the book. Here's one of my favorites. Obviously I had fun in photoshop making their faces green, too:

I didn't win (didn't expect, too -- more than 900 people entered books) but I did manage to create a book that I liked AND wrote a poem to go with it, so it's all good!)

I've been doing a lot more writing lately, which is good, and I got an urban rebounder (it's a trampoline that you can run and jump on, that has a stabilization bar so I don't fall off) so I can exercise two times a day, in between writing and taking Hannah and Lizzie hither and yon.

Oh, and speaking of them, Hannah is READING. Hallelujah. And she LOVES it. DOUBLE HALLELUJAH!! I knew once she made the connection she'd be a good reader, since she pretends to read books all the time, but I'm very proud that this has turned out to be true.

Finally, here's my most recent favorite picture of the girls. I took it in the spring (when their hair was still long) and thought I might add it to our Christmas cards, but decided to use a different picture, so I'm posting it now for you all to see.