What to do with this stuff?

As I prepare for next year, I am trying to purge and clear out, gather anew & organize. So for all you veteran hs moms out there, what do I do with all their crafts and artwork??

They just produce so much of it and obviously it can't all be saved. I have very little wall space to use for school purposes already. But I can't toss it in front of them. Do I just tell them I'm putting it in a box to make room for next year's beautiful creations and hope that they will forget about it (they always do at this age)? Or what? Any other ideas?

Making space for BIG BOY TEETH!

I am sooooo delayed in posting this but I didn't want to forget to get this pic up, even if it is a month old!

Jefferson was so excited to lose his first tooth (end of May, for heavens sake)!

But me, being the super-duper prepared mom that I am (uh, not...) almost forgot to put something under his pillow. I had wanted to give him a dollar coin since they aren't common and he loves them. I meant to go out in the evening to get it. However, I shot straight up in my bed at 6am the next day, somehow subconsciously realizing that I hadn't done ANYTHING! What a bad Mommy!

I raised around the house trying like a crazy woman (oh wait - I AM a crazy woman! LOL!) to find something special to put with 4 quarters and managed to scrounge up a collectible coin from his daddy's desk. And with the stealth that only comes from 6 years of creeping around as softly as possible in order to not wake up a baby/child, I managed to get that first special toothfairy treat under his pillow without waking him OR his little brother! I am still amazed at myself for pulling that one off!! Call me by my new name - Super Stealthy Awesome Mommy (oh please - the name should really be "Dumb Luck Mama"!)!

Thankfully, these crazy happenings were all unbeknownst to the excited 6 yo who was more than pleased with his prize! And my prize is that teensy-weensy, tiny little tooth (holy cow -it's so little!) that brought so much joy when it first showed up 6 years ago in our first fat baby's toothless little grin. I have a special place for it in his baby book....

Summer fun with Bloggy Friends!

In the midst of our summer craziness, I was blessed to get the chance to meet up with one of my favorite bloggy pals, Living to Learn and Learning to Live. She is better known in my bloggy circle as the one and the only - the great Momma Roar!

She is fabulous with a sewing machine (just look at these cute clothes that she throws together in a snap!), loves shoes, has the diligence to give up on soda (tough though it was!), has three beautiful children, and loves the Lord! But what's also really awesome is that she lives practically next door and her kids are close in age to mine! So when she dropped me an email to try to plan a little fun something, I was glad to accept.

I will admit that I was a little nervous to meet her in person - after all there is safety in the bloggy world for those of us who tend towards the introverted side. But she put me at ease right away with her friendly smile and easy going nature! We met at a local clock & watch museum with our boys - Jefferson (6yo) and Quintin - who both seemed to have a blast too. I was so glad that they could meet as I am always looking for boys for Jefferson to connect with (he couldn't stop asking when we would see Quintin again!).

Jefferson loved the craft time (anything involving paint is aways a hit with him), checked out all the clocks & watches on the museum tour, and especially enjoyed the old, mechanical show clock (called the Engle clock after Stephen Decatur Engle - in case anyone has a keen interest in that bit of history) from 1876. "It's like a t.v.!," he says. I think he mis-understood the tour guide who was asking the kids what they would do for entertainment if they lived in 1870 and didn't HAVE a t.v! Ahhh... the way they think! I hope Quintin enjoyed it as much! But here I am wishin' that I was as smart a blogger as Momma Roar and had brought my camera to get some pics. Hopefully she will be good enough to share? ;-)

Momma Roar and I had a wonderful time chit chatting while trying to keep paint out of our boys hair (it was a kids' day at the museum). We talked about so many different things but I wish that we had had even more time together. I hope that since we live so close, we can get together more often - perhaps church or hs co-op!

It was such a pleasure to meet you in person LA!! (Sorry - I forgot to mention that I noticed and totally loved your awesome FitFlops! *chucklechuckle*). I'll be glad to get to know you and your family more as you begin 1st grade this year!

Wordless Wednesday - Dirty kid

This is as dirty a photo as I could find of one of my kids (Reagan 4 yo)! Not that my kids don't get dirty - I usually just forget to get photos before I clean them up!

Check out more dirty little tots at Boys Rule My Life and her Dirty Baby Carnival!