28th September 2017
Every summer we take an annual beach trip with each side of our family to spend time away from the norm. There is nothing better than a semi circle of lawn chairs and the sound of waves in between the conversations, even with all the sunscreen applications and sandy snacks:) Here are some of my favorites photos from this summer…
13th September 2017
funny things our kids have said lately…
Watching golf with Madeleine- “Here goes mint boy.” (The golfer wearing a mint color shirt) “Oh no he missed it.” (Practice swings) “Why are they clapping he hasn’t made it into the hole yet?”
“Marks aset go!”- J
M-“My eyes are burning from the pool.” Me-“Yes that’s the chlorine.” M-“I’m allergic to chlorine then. Does the beach have chlorine?” Me- “No, it’s salty.” J-“Why?” M-“Because God sprinkled salt in it and just mixed it all up.”
Madeleine practicing her rhyming words as we pull up to our house and our neighbor ‘Mr. Rich’ is outside…,”Mama! Rich, bitch! That rhymes!!”
“There’s a bug! Clap it mama!” – J
“Wow! Joseph got money lines for his birthday!” – Madeleine’s reaction to one of Joseph’s birthday cards that had money inside.
“Oh! I had a tooty in my mouth!” – J
“That skeleton has bad skin.” – M
“Dad, these shrimp are dead right?” -M before shrimp for dinner
“My dad is as fast as a car!” – M
Playing ‘house’ with Madeleine and she tucks me into bed and then says, “Goodnight, now I am going to have wine downstairs on the couch with my husband.”
Joseph LOVES chapstick and says, “Don’t kiss me on the lips because I have chapstick on, you can kiss me on my cheek.”
Joe asked for a bite of Joe Joe’s ice cream at chick fil a and he says across the table, “No, because I’m too far away.”
“That gun shotter is shooting for a woodpecker.” – J
“Mama, you are such a great mama I wish all kids could have you as a mama. I think we can fit 18 kids in the guest room.” – M
“1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10! You better not, here I come!”
“A moth is a butterfly at night.” -M
“I can talk now, I am all warmed up.” -M
“I got nail polish on my dress, but don’t worry, we have oxyclean.” -M
M-“All T-Rex’s are dead.” Me- “Yes that means they are extinct.” J-“Yeah they are pee eww!”
“It’s just like real life.” M’s reaction to her dance recital dress rehearsal and seeing the big stage
Me-“Joseph, wipe that mean look off your face.” J-(grabs a wipe) “Where is it??”
“Mom, can you get ‘space’ on your phone and ask whoever is driving anything to space and see if we can see Jupiter and all the planets?” – M
“How did you get that scab on your nose?” M- “Well, at the wedding party it just flew on there.”
“My voice is running out of battery.” -M
“Daddy, when you put cologne on you smell handsome.” -M
“When you make a mistake in the toilet you use a plunger.” -M
“If you have a lot of boogies you need a tissue. If you have a little boogies, just pick it.” -M
Madeleine was spinning in circles on the stool in the doctors office and she almost tipped over. I said, “Woah, that was scary, you almost tipped over!” Madeleine said, “Tipping over is always in style.”
At the dinner table one night Madeleine out of the blue says, “You know, we should really go to Great Wolf Lodge.”
M-“Daddy, why do you have hair on your chest?” Joe- “Because God made me that way.” M-“Papa doesn’t have any hair on his head because it all went down to his legs.”
There were some ladies speaking spanish in the bathroom stalls and Madeleine says out loud, “They are being silly when they talk!”
“Mama can I have Modelo? I’m a dult.” Me- “Oh you like beer?” M-“I like white wine.”
12th July 2017
This past year we enrolled Madeleine in her first extra curricular activity, dance class! It was so much fun because she was right in the middle of a ballet phase and often played “ballerina,” at the house. Classes began in the fall and lasted until spring, ending with a dance recital at the beginning of summer. Madeleine’s recital number was a ballet routine to “Every Girl Can Be a Princess,” and her costume included a tiara and wand. Right up her alley.
Classes were an hour long each week, starting with half an hour of tap and then half an hour of ballet. The hardest thing was keeping Joseph entertained for those hours:), but now he wants to take dance when he “grows older.” Madeleine enjoyed it and learned a lot but what I think she loved most was the freestyle and imagination activities her teacher did with them. I loved the tiny ballet slippers and tutus and watching her from the waiting room:)
As the end of the year approached, I was so worried about the recital because Madeleine became increasingly shy over the year and I was afraid she would freeze on stage. But dress rehearsal went smoothly and Madeleine didn’t want to stop watching all the other numbers and analyzing all the costumes;)
In the end, the recital was adorable and Madeleine did so great! I hope I always remember her big “stage” smile, the precious way she held out her tutu, how deliberate her wand waved and the way her spins were delayed yet intense. She didn’t seem the least bit nervous on stage. The whole thing was so sweet I wanted to cry and laugh the entire 2 minutes she was up there. We can’t wait to get the recital DVD so Madeleine can watch her own performance. We are very proud of our tiny ballerina!
10th May 2017
We have a tradition to interview the kids on each birthday starting at 2. It has been fun to look back and hear their sweet voice and also how fast their “favorites” change. Here is the commentary from Joseph’s 2 year interview complete with his adorable “um’s.”
What is your name? Joseph Chawles
How old are you? 2 (as he holds up one finger)
What’s your favorite color? Um, brown. Brown? Yes.
What’s your favorite snack? Um, trains.
What’s your favorite flavor ice cream? Um, chwaklit.
What is your favorite snack to eat? Um, golf ball hahaha! Do you like gold fish, fruit snacks…? Can I have some fruit snacks?
What’s your favorite dinner that Mama makes? Um, sausage paaaaaaaasta
Who’s your best friend? Um, Madeleine.
What’s your favorite shirt to wear? The piwate (pirate) one.
Where is your favorite restaurant? Um, ketchup.
Do you like Chipotle or Freebirds? Um, Freebirds. Freebirds or Chickfila? Um, Chickfila. What do you like to get at Chickfila? Chicken nuggets and Friiiiiiiiiies
What’s your favorite drink? Sausage Paaaasta! No, sprite, root beer, lemonade, juice? Sprite. I’m making a choo choo train on my tummy.
What do you want to be when you get bigger? A choo choo train.
What’s your favorite toy to play with? Um, pink. How about Paw Patrol, trains….? Trains, I’m gonna play with my trains (walks away).
What is your favorite book? Go Dog Go
Who sleeps with you in your bed? Um, Chase doll and horsey and puppy and puppy blanket and gray blanket and blue blanket.
What’s your favorite thing to do at the park? Sliiiiiiiiiides
What was your favorite present you got for your birthday? Um, dirt cake! I ATE THE DIRT!
Who do you love? Madeleine Are you going to get married one day? Yes.
Where are you going to go to college? Ride the airplanes.
What do you want to be when you get bigger? Ride the yewo (yellow) airplane
There are so many precious things I want to remember about him at this age and I’m trying to write them all down before I forget but when I start to put them on paper I almost go blank. I feel like I need a notepad in my pocket 24/7 to jot down his little quotes and mannerisms. Like, how he always asks to hold my hand when he is scared or upset (even when I am driving and especially when I’m trying to eat). Or when I am putting him to bed at night and he protests me turning off the lamp with, “I wanna talk a widdle bit.” So we talk a little bit and then I say it’s time to lay down and he says, “I wanna a cuddle a widdle bit.” Well ok:)
Lately he has been super mischievous, but when I correct him he tells me he is only “attending” (pretending). “Mama I only attended to throw that at the TV.” Yes. We had to get a new TV. I love how particular he is about HIS side of the rocking chair and how he always wants a stool to see what I’m doing in the kitchen. And his sweet little way of asking questions that begin and end with “why.” “Why do birds have wings mama, why?” “Why is it dark outside, why?” Or how he will hurry and eat his fruit snacks super fast or chug his chocolate milk in the morning and no one notices until he says, “I beat Madeleine.”
I know there will come a time when he doesn’t want to cuddle or hold my hand and he won’t really ask for my opinion, but for now he is my two year old little boy and this is the time of our lives.
26th April 2017
Easter is such a wonderful season of the year and our family kicks it off with lots of celebration and tradition; dying eggs, holy week masses, stations of the cross, egg hunts, and bbq. Highlights: Dying eggs with whisks (life changing), Joseph sleeping on the cousin club pallet in his sleeping bag for the first time (woke up at 5 AM wanting to look at tractors on the computer with Pops), rodeo at Grandma Pawelek’s with Honeybun the calf/puppy, Joseph looking out our front window for the Easter bunny on Sunday morning, and Madeleine calling Nerds candy “turds.” Here are some of my favorite pictures from our Easter weekend. Happy Easter y’all!
12th April 2017
I can’t believe Joseph is TWO years old! We celebrated him with a tractor birthday party at our house because this little boy is crazy about excavators, dump trucks, “dull dozers” and diggers. Oh and he has known all their names since he was 20 months and he WILL correct you. I laugh because I carry 5 small construction vehicles in my purse at all times, like I used to carry pacifiers, because they will distract him out of a tantrum or quietly entertain him for a bit. We sent each of his little friends home with one as a party favor:)
Joseph’s birthday gift from us was a sandbox in the back yard because he would play in the flowerbeds with his trucks and tractors all day long if we would let him. “Give that boy a sandbox,” one of my great aunts told me. Haha! It has been a big hit with Joe Joe and it was a fun party attraction too.
I would ask Joseph what kind of birthday party he wanted and he would tell me, “A tractor one, a yayow tractor one.” There are so many awesome construction party ideas out there that planning was simple. I always love when one of their ideas happens to be a section at Hobby Lobby! How do they know? Ha!
Whenever we asked Joseph what he wanted for his birthday he would always respond with, “Cake,” and giggle at the thought. I told him my idea of dirt cake, to go with the theme, and he was so excited to eat dirt! One of his little friends, who is very tidy and clean, would NOT even try it. He took one look and said, “Nope, that’s too dirty.” Joseph didn’t seem to mind and I think he kind of liked be the center of attention during “Happy Birthday.”
It is so fun to celebrate another year with Joseph and reflect on the little boy he has become; energetic, sweet, joyful, considerate, respectful. I’ll write more about him at this age in another post because I just want to remember it all!
Happy Birthday Joseph!
27th December 2016
3rd November 2016
Paw Patrol is the favorite show in our household these days, so Madeleine and Joseph dressed up as Skye and Marshall this year, and Joe and I tagged along as Ryder and Katie. It was always funny when I told people what we were dressing up as and they had never heard of Paw Patrol #parentprobs. Paw Patrol is on a roll!!!
We had fun with family and neighbors trick or treating and got enough candy to last us till Easter! Madeleine told us “her bucket was tired of carrying all the candy,” and “skeletons are not scary they are just cool.” :)
Hope you all had a happy Halloween!!
18th October 2016
When we transformed the “craft room” into Madeleine’s big girl room, I was challenged with fitting all the supplies into the guest room…CLOSET. I really wanted our last bedroom and guest room to feel spacious and relaxing for our visitors, not crowded with glue sticks, sharpies, and fabric scraps.
Before – This was the desk in M’s soon to be Big Girl Room
Taking down the desk was a little emotional. I got this desk in 5th grade y’all! It was from The Container Store, which probably started my love affair, and it’s amazing because it can grow and assemble in so many different ways. Sad day because they don’t sell it anymore:( Anyway, I took it to college (all 3 houses), it spent a few years in my brother’s casa, and then here it was in our first house. I didn’t cry or anything but I really did not want to get rid of it or pack it away in the attic.
Light bulb!! I got the idea of taking the different pieces apart and utilizing them as closet storage pieces. Much to my excitement, the tall tower of shelves fit perfectly in the tall hanging space of the new “craft closet.” Holla! And then to top it off, the mid size shelf fit perfectly in Madeleine’s closet. The only thing we had to put up in the attic was the desk top. Hooray!
Before
Before
After
The shelves now are full of bins and boxes that hold all my craft supplies. TIP: I save old jars, chocolate tins, and cans and then paint them to coordinate with other containers in the same space. In this closet, I painted a tin, the frame of the cork board, and an old hat box.
The drawer contains the necessities like pencils, scissors, rulers, tape and tacs. On the various shelves I keep boxes of markers, ribbons, my sewing machine, and a file box. I parked my scrapbooking bag and stationary sorter under the shelf and the wrapping paper container is also on the floor along with hat boxes full of paper, fabric, and refill supplies like staples, tape, etc. The over the door organizer actually came from our pantry when we first moved in and updated it here. I love having most of the supplies just a grab away and not tucked into a bin, on a shelf, up high.
After
After
With our days as busy as they are, I don’t have as much time to start and finish a project. Having an organized space and accessible materials means I’m able to save some prep time and get to the things I need more efficiently.
Want me to come organize your closet? Hire me! Check out my services page or email me at
letsGITorganized@gmail.com
10th October 2016
Madeleine turned three in August and we celebrated with a cheerleader birthday party. Madeleine fell in love with cheer last football season when we took her to her first high school game. We were very prepared with snacks and activities to keep her busy throughout the game, but to our surprise, she sat on Joe’s lap the entire time taking it all in. From the band to the breakthrough, to the kick line and kick off, she was in awe. She talked about it all the way home and into the following weeks so I pulled out my old cheer megaphone, some pom poms and Joe’s cousins’ tiny SV uniforms they wore when he played, and Madeleine spent a lot of time playing “cheer,” throughout the year. I joke that she is head cheerleader because she is very bossy particular about formations and cheers we call.
We had fun prepping for the birthday party by painting “Go Fight Win” signs and making pom poms in a variety of school colors. We decided to serve tailgate food like hotdogs and chips and for dessert we made a football cake. All of Madeleine’s friends got to decorate a megaphone with school spirit stickers and then fill them up with candy from the backyard piñata.
The best part of Madeleine’s party was early in the morning when the bounce house arrived. M and her cousins were still in their pj’s watching from the back porch as the bounce house inflated and Madeleine started yelling, “Mama mama! I want to go put my Baylor cheer uniform on and get my REAL pom poms and go do cheerleader jumps in there!!!!” And she did.
Three Cheers for Madeleine’s Birthday! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! 
