Let them be Little...Her first dance...

Last fall there was a school dance that I didn't make it a priority to attend...We weren't told about it with too much notice (I don't know about you but I need a couple/few weeks of notice for most everything around here...we are always penciling things in on our calendars and the sooner, the better if we have any hope of attending!)

Anyhoo -
Our kindergartender was pretty disappointed we didn't make the fall dance, so I hunted up the dates for the 'winter dance' and put it on the calendar...
Not only was it something she really wanted to do, it's also a major fundraiser for our school's PTO - Anything for a good cause right?

So...
I played a little new age telephone, wrote a note on paper and gave it to my 6 year old, to give to her new 6 year old BFF from school, to give to her mom...offering to pick up said friend and bring her to the dance with us.
To our delight - she responded via email and it wasn't long before me, my kindergartener and her BFF and the soon to be kindergartener little brother were off to the school dance.
What could a school dance for kindergarten kids possibly be like I wondered....boys on one side, girls on the other?
We certainly didn't have dances when we were SIX!
Well, this school dance was for the whole school - grades K-6...
Even more awkward?

No. Not-so-much.

I cannot get over how much FUN this Friday night was!

We arrived at the school about 15 minutes after the 2 hour dance started...
It was already rocking...
The gym was a hopping, lights were turned down, disco ball on, DJ spinning tunes like Tik Tok by Ke$ha, Firework by Katy Perry and Gaga's PokerFace...(None of this my kind of music - but me oh my did the kids have a BLAST!)
They also played We're not going to take it - Twisted Sister!
WHAT?

The whole night was so much fun...Maybe it was seeing my kids enter 'the next stage' in their lives...the chapter that involves hanging out with friends while Mom hangs back...The part where for two hours, they don't need me, except for to check in with me from time to time.

I sat alone, hanging out on the sidelines, handing out money for Crazy Hair Paint ($2.00), bottled water (.50), glow in the dark items ($2.00-$3.00) and popcorn, candy and chip treats (.50)...
(Admission was $5.00 per family)
(Note to self, go early, get a table or a seat and bring along a kindle or an ipad like dozens of other parents did...another note to self: get a kindle or an ipad like other parents did!)

I wandered around, making sure the kids were doing ok, were having fun, and were being good...

I snapped some pictures and some videos - at the request of the kids...
And now, excuse me while I wipe away some tears...
The 6 year old has requested that I don't share them all with you here in my blog land.
WHAT?
I KNOW!

She's having some self esteem issues...
She isn't a big fan of compliments at all, and for that reason, chooses play clothes most days over her adorable jeans and sweaters...over her cowboy boots and hats that she previously adored. BOO!

So, I present you...
The night in pictures...but only the pictures allowed by the 6 year old residing in this house.
I guess this marks the day where I now take the kids' privacy into account before blogging...and that's ok with me. And it's not like I never have...but now comes the time when I actually ask them before using my own judgement...

We have the pictures and videos saved at home and the kids enjoy seeing them over and over - they just aren't ready to share them all just yet!
Which is too bad...cuz 6 year old jamming out to some of today's hottest hits?
Does life get any better than this?

Also, no, it wasn't snowing in the gym - please ignore the dirty filthy lens on my point and shoot -
There was too much action and it was too dark for my cell phone to take any pictures...so I had to use the crusty old point and shoot...it's better than nothing...

D and H's best boyfriend from school jammin' -

Break Dancing!

The Class of 2024 having fun on a Friday night!

The older kids (probably 3-6 grade or so, hung out at the front of the gym, near the DJ and danced and sang, the younger kids did just fine on their own with the wide open spaces that the back of the gym allowed them.

Crazy Hair Paint - $2.00

H and her BFF~ M~ in her kindy class - born just 1 day apart ~ 

For the days leading up to the dance, she walked around the house singing about this boy...
H and M, sitting in a tree, K.I.S.S.I.N.G

WHAT? I KNOW? Oh my heart...
She just loves him and he's the sweetest little thing...

 At first, D wasn't so sure he wanted to go to a crummy old school dance.  What he forgets is, he has just as many friends at school as she does - including a good buddy from daycare who is in kindy this year...

They showed off their breakdancing skills all night long!

Ah yes...I am in no hurry to have them grow up...

Let them be little I say...

But I sure am enjoying the new experiences that life is bringing their way...and seeing life through their eyes.

And helping the school to raise a few funds for the PTO? 

Everyone wins...

Help Kickin' the Habit ~

Sure - I know Soda/Pop (whatever you want to call it) isn't good for you -
But...I like it...

We like to keep a small variety of cans on hand for a caffeine fix or a special treat every now and again...

Turns out old man winter is helping us kick the habit!

These were in our garage overnight - temps dropped to something ridiculous below zero...

Oh well - at least I didn't leave it in my car this time...I've done THAT before!



***Using the Verizon Razr 4g to capture all of life's moments, including the above photos for this post! Lightning fast so I don't miss a thing!

Rob Vila - Alternately Titled...Demolition Man...

Well, after spending countless hours applying to be on this DIY show or that one...and even managing to get a  scout out to our house for an interview once...

I'm giving up...
Besides...Who needs their help anyway?

I AM married to Rob...Rob Vila.
Ladies and Gentleman...

I bring you deconstruction...via my very own demolition man...err, men.

A peek inside the door of our 'master bath' - I use the term Master loosely...as it's also the ONLY bath on the main level of our home...
Small vanity, pocket door leading to one of the two bedrooms on the upper level of our house...(broken for the last year or so by an overzealous child who loved opening and closing that door fifty seven hundred times a day...) and then closet...

 From the closet you move over to the monstosity of a whirlpool tub...
A nice tub...a big tub...
But also a tub that takes up a ton of space - We've never really loved this tub...especially when I was 9 months pregnant leaning over it to bathe a 1 year old...oh my those were the days...

 Next to the tub...the toilet...

 And next to the toilet - behind the door...a shower...
Nicely hidden...so many folks never even knew we had a shower in this room - of course -we've used it as a broom closet for the last 10 years...storing the vacuum and other random junk...
It's leaked since the day we moved in.
And by leaked - I mean, water runs through the floor and into our lower level. Awesome.

We tried to fix it to no avail...so we did what any other person would do...We ignored it in hopes it would go away...It didn't.  We are currently on our 11th year in this house...

Here's the skylight which I love...a person can never have enough natural light...

(But what we don't love is the cottage cheese ceiling ~) 

 And so...finally...after all these years of not loving this bathroom...
We finally decided to go for it...
The hubs got to work...

 um...hello? Nasty.

 Even though he was doing just fine without my help...I offered and he did need me to help get these gigantic mirrors off of the walls...I couldn't believe they came off in one piece...but they did! Until of course...
I set one side of the smaller one down on the garage floor too quickly...and the corner busted right off...
GRRRRR.
No matter - We weren't planning on re-using these mirrors anyway - but I did find someone to take the larger one...by large - I mean huge...60x64 inches!

Every project needs a Foreman...

With his own tools on his waistband - (tape measure)

And Hammer...

 And then the real fun began...

 If I'm being honest - I guess I thought we'd take turns with a sledge hammer and then we'd just sweep it all up and toss it out...
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

 My husband literally worked this out of here tile by tile by tile...hammer and crowbar...

 He worked sooo hard...by. himself!!
Talk about sweat equity!!

I offered to help but...he wasn't really interested in having me help...I don't know why........................

 And then on to more tile on the step of the awesome whirlpool tub...

 And once the step was gone...it was almost like...ok wait...this totally changes the feel in here...should we just keep it?
And...the answer is no...no thank you.

 As if that tile weren't a ton of work...he then got to work getting rid of the cottage cheese...(If only it were that easy huh ladies?)

 What. a. mess.

 But a billion times better...

Safety Glasses!

 And then...I took the kiddos out for some fun...and came home to find...A giant empty spot (and a fun little hole) where the whirlpool once sat!

 And now...it sits in our garage...Anyone need a whirlpool tub? Can you even believe he busted that thing out of there while we were gone?

He had the help of our wonderful friend and neighbor Denny - for SURE this could not be done by one person ~ and how lucky are we to have friends willing to take on this project! YIKES!

They also popped out the vanity...Which now, when I look at it - seems it was alarmingly tiny. Did four people really utilize this vanity space for teeth brushing and getting ready?

Well ladies and gentlemen...
There you have it...
The before...

& you should know...this was our first major take on ever...it went a little better than we thought...or I should say...he thought...and I am so so proud of my hubs for taking on this project...(Especially with me!YIKES!)

And the after...?
Well...the reconstruction begins in about 12 hours...