Back To School

My babies went back to school 2 weeks ago and I am not quite sure what to do with myself.  I am one of those crying mommas and yet I held myself together until both girls were out of the van.  Our school district has a separate kindergarten building so while my oldest attends the elementary school right in our neighborhood I have to drive across town to drop off the youngest, so holding back tears was tough until she was delivered to school.  I didn’t want to cry in front of them and leave them feeling stressed or sad.  They were so excited to go to school. 

I did well keeping tears at bay but there was a day last week when I looked into the back seat to tell my youngest something and I remembered I had already dropped her off and I cried all the way home.  I still need some time to adjust to our new normal around here. 

On a crafty note, I used my Silhouette Cameo to make the cute apples with their grades.  Of course I needed cute props! 

Mason Jar Mugs

I know everyone has seen these by now as they have been all over the internet so they are not new but, I tell ya, I had the hardest time finding the instructions for them.  By instructions I mean, I needed to know what size grommet and drill bit I would have to locate or purchase.  I wanted this to be a one and done type of project.

So, I’ll share my supplies with you in case you have been wanting to make these fun jars to keep your drinks bug free while outdoors this summer.

I picked up the blue Ball Mason Jars which are a limited edition.  They were too pretty to pass up even though they cost a little more than regular jars.  You’ll need a 3/8” drill bit, a drill and rubber grommets sized 9/16” outer diameter and 1/4” inner diameter.  The grommets were the most difficult thing to locate but I found them at Lowe’s in the hard to find hardware drawers in the same aisle as the screws, nuts, bolts, etc.  There are 2 grommets in each pack for a $1.04. 

Then you simply drill a hole, carefully snip off any hanging pieces of metal and then fit the grommet down into it.  Such a quick and easy project and would make a fun hostess or even housewarming gift.   

That was a mistake!

Over the past couple of years we have made pinecone bird feeders for our feathered friends.  We were a little late getting to it this winter but we do have a regular bird feeder that is stocked all year round so it wasn’t a big deal. 

Since the girlies like to help make these feeders we took a few minutes this afternoon and spread lots of peanut butter into the pinecones and then rolled it in some bird seed.  We tied on some pretty pieces of yarn and I put them in the tree outside of my office window. I snapped a photo and came in. 

No sooner than I had shut the front door my girls yelled that we already had a visitor in the tree!  Awesome!  That was so fast.  I came into the office and lo and behold there is a squirrel attempting to reach our newly hung feeders.  The sneaky little rodent made off with one of the feeders in less than 2 minutes!  I caught him on the roof before he bolted away.

My oldest said “That’s okay.  I wanted the squirrel to have mine.  I wanted to be kind.”  Bless her little heart.  In the moments like this, where she chooses to be positive and thoughtful, I feel like I may just be doing an okay job as a mommy after all. 

I hope you are having a great weekend!

Winter Weather

The weather has been an extreme roller coaster of temperatures so far this winter and I think it has some of the wildlife confused!  I have had a ton of robins visiting my yard lately and the freezing rain didn’t keep them away this morning.

Now if only the cardinal and his lady bird would not fly away when I try to take their photos I would be a happy photographer!

Finally Home

After feeling unsettled for the past 14 years, I am finally at home.  Being in the military and then a military spouse means you move around a bit more than the average person.  You try your best to get settled and establish routines but eventually you will have to pack it all up and start again. 

James will be retiring from the Air Force next year after 24 years of service and we discussed at length what we would do back last fall.  Retire out of Germany or take one last assignment back in the USA.  A job came up that he was qualified for at Fort Knox, KY so he applied and here we are.

We wanted to get settled in and stick around for awhile so we found a real estate agent (hi, Glen!!!) and looked at many homes.  We researched the local schools and neighborhoods and made an offer on our very first home.  Things worked out, obviously, and we moved in a few weeks ago.  I have been unpacking, painting, organizing, etc. 

I hope to share some more photos soon and even share our last 2 trips in Europe, Brussels and Venice.  I just felt the need to post and get back to blogging today.  I have missed my creative outlet a bit and look forward to establishing new routines and sharing our stories.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Tuesday!

Hedgehog Love!

We are big fans of cute hedgehogs here at the Gibson house.  The girls have adorable hedgie jammies from Old Navy and a cute hedgie inflatable toy we picked up from Ikea a few years ago.  Now we have a real live hedgehog in our yard!  This little guy (or maybe gal) has been a frequent visitor as of late.  A few weeks ago, just as it was getting dark, I told JG we had a giant rat running across our yard and he told me it was a hedgehog and after a better look I could see it really was.  Yesterday the hedgie returned several times throughout the day and I was able to get this photo from the safety of our patio!  Not that I am scared of him, I didn't want to scare him away.  I think he has been hiding out in our bushes and I don't mind.  I hope he becomes a regular visitor as he is fun to watch.