Fuddy Dud...

It is official. My child is a fuddy dud. For the second Halloween in a row Walker has opted out of dressing up. He has now convinced his younger brother that it is not fun to dress up either. Now what 3 year old do you know that does not like to play dress up? I used to spend FOREVER deciding what I was gonna be for Halloween. Not Walker. For the second Halloween in a row he is gonna go as himself . Not very exciting, but I guess he plays "Walker" well. The really funny thing is, he roars like a dinosaur, or barks like a dog at the people when they ask what he is. He just won't actually "dress up".

Walker the dinosaur...

Walker and Thomas Micheal at Mama's house before we started trick or treating.

I was originally gonna dress Connor as an elephant. As you can see that did not work. Walker said he did not want Connor to be an elephant, and the fit ensued. Connor was not about to wear that costume if Walker did not think it was cool.

I managed to dress Connor as a pirate. The bandana was a little tricky, but I really think he forgot he had it on after a while.

Connor LOVED this neighbors dog, and I think she loved Con too. YUCK!

We rode the golf cart around the neighborhood and gave out candy while we trick or treated.

It got unusually cold for SC, so the boys covered up.

At the end of the night we sat in the driveway and gave out the rest of the candy from the golf cart. Fun was had by one and all!

Fall Festival...

We went to the fall festival today for our cousin Gracie's elementary school. It was naptime, and the boys were horrible. I was reminded why we don't skip naps. Anywho, Connor did get to sit in a firetruck, and I think it was the highlight of his little life. He has talked about it all day. I thought I would share a couple of pics from our day before trick or treating...

Connor and Gracie. She is so proud of him.

Connor in the firetruck.

Gracie in her vampire teeth.

Aunt Virginia got the boys a Halloween treat bag. Walker was the most excited about his chicken noodle soup. He loves that stuff.

Connor digging in his treat bag.

Needless to say, the boys are napping now so we can trick or treat later with 2 happy boys!

Gray...

When Walker was almost 2, he became fascinated with Rabbits. Being that he is my little animal lover, he decided he really needed one, and I thought they were so cute and fuzzy it would be fun. Anyway, we bought him a rabbit for Easter. We picked him out a little gray dwarf bunny, and being a creative genius, Walker named him "Gray".

Well needless to say, Gray became my pet instead of Walker's. He was way too young to stay interested in an animal. He would play with Gray occasionally, but he was generally too busy and/or to rough. I always fed and watered Gray, so when I went out to do that on Sunday morning it was the regular routine. Sadly though, Gray had passed away sometime in the night. He was only 1 1/2 so I have no idea what happened. I have heard rabbits can be scared to death, but I really am at a loss as to what could have scared him. I guess I'll never know. Anyway, I figured I better tell Walker, since Gray was really his, but how do you tell a 3 year old his bunny died?

I decided to just tell him that Gray was not gonna be with us anymore because he went to Heaven to live with Jesus and some other animals. Walker's response was, "Oh Maaaaannnn!" Well nothing else was mentioned about it until I went to put Walker to bed tonight. His thoughts are always very random at bedtime. Tonight out of the blue he says, "I don't want Gray to move to Heaven. We should go get him back from Jesus." What do you say to that? Oh Maaannn! The only response I could think of was that Gray was happy with Jesus and Jesus would take good care of him. That satisfied him for now.

I will miss this little rabbit, and I am sure the boys will too.

Today's Finds...

Today we took the boys to The Little Gym for the first time. WHAT FUN! Walker did not participate this go-round. He is my cautious one. He has to sit back and check everything out first. Connor on the other hand, jumped in head first and loved it!

Afterwards we went to Chickfilet for lunch, and then on to Target. This is a treat for me because we live 40 mins. away from all of these wonderful places.

Now I have been put on a serious budget since the real estate market has crashed, and we have 2 houses, and my husband sells real estate, and I work for a real estate magazine. BUT I have to splurge and get coffee when we go to Target. You see I have another addiction I am gonna let you in on. I. Love. Coffee. I drink it every single day. I drink it a few times a day. I love everything about it. (the way it tastes, smells, warms my hands, and warms my belly) My sister, man I love that girl, worsened this addiction when she bought me a Keurig.

This thing is sent from Heaven. The only downside is that you have to get the coffee for it at Target, or the internet, or some other fine establishment that sells their machines. So, since we were gonna be near a Target, I decided I needed to run in and get my coffee. Lucky for me, Walker wanted to get a couple of horses, so I got to pass the clearance aisle. I was so excited to find this:

I have been watching these for a while but did not want to pay $30 each for them. I got them for $6 a piece. I think they will go beautifully in my dining room. I will have to post pics of them actually hung later. I also got those 2 frames for $3 each. I love a good bargain, and since I got all this for a $20 bill, I figure even the hubby will be proud!

Where's Connor?

So I was starting some laundry, and Walker comes and says to me, "Where's Connor?" Of course, knowing how Con-man is I immediately went looking. It obviously did not take long to find him...

We have a child lock on this pantry, how he got in there I can not say for sure. When I asked him what he was doing, he replied "snack". Guess he was still hungry. He'd only eaten a bowl of oatmeal, 1 cheesestick, 2 popsicles, a slice of bologna, and some popcorn since he had been up 2 hours ago.

I'll update more adventures of the destructor later!

The Destructor Strikes Again!

Connor is at it again! He is such a little tornado. I have learned that if you have something you like, you better keep it from Connor. He is constantly plundering in drawers, cabinets, the diswasher, the toilet, you get the picture. If it can be opened he opens it. If it can't be opened (i.e has a child lock) he opens it too. Walker was never like that, so I have had a hard time adjusting to the constant havoc Connor reaks.

Today's victim... the bath loofah! (Though looking at the pictures it looks a bit like a snake, it's only a loofah!)

What can I say? Atleast he keeps things interesting for me.

Makeup On a Pig...

Ever heard the expression "You're just putting makeup on a pig?" Well that is exactly what I did to the boys bathroom in our new house. For those of you who don't know, we bought a new house 3 months ago and have done a lot of remodeling. As with most things, the renovations costed more than budgeted and everything could not be fixed at one time. My boys' bathroom is the one room that fell to the backburner. It is one of those bathrooms from the seventies with that fun mustard tile on the floors, walls, and counters. We did manage to make a few changes, hence the "makeup on the pig" comment. We could not change the pig, so we just made her look as pretty as possible with a little makeup. We changed the light fixtures, mirror, vanity top, sink, and fixtures. Since the tile is mustard yellow, I went for a primary color scheme with the decor and the little projects turned out cute.

I got these towels for $3 each at TJ MAXX, added the ribbons and had them embroidered.

I just bought frames and some scrapbooking stuff about brothers at Hobby Lobby for some inexpensive artwork.


I got this shower curtain at Wal-Mart and had it embroidered with the boys initials and added the ribbon and buttons. I think I am still gonna add another ribbon and some pompom trim. Don't want to make it too "girly", but I think I would like it more with more trim.

So there you go. Just another peek into how I spend my time.

My Mom's the BEST!

This post is a reply/challenge to Chris over at Just a Girl . I enjoyed her post about her Mom last week. She was bragging on how big of a help she is when she comes to visit. Now I am sure that Chris's Mom is fabulous, BUT...I just couldn't let this opportunity pass without saying that MY MOM IS THE BEST! Hands down, no ifs-ands-or-buts, don't even question it, like it or lump it, it's just how it is.

In this short weekend visit she took me shopping, did all my laundry, fixed one of my favorite meals, and spent oodles of time with my two little monsters. Here are a few pictures of the weekend...





Proof that my laundry is done AND put away, the putting away is always the hard part for me. It is usually just clean and piled a mile high on the dryer. (She probably washed atleast 10 loads of laundry, ridiculous I know. ) I should have taken a before picture. It would have made Chris feel better about her laundry pile.


This is not the best picture, but it is one of my favorites. It is called Goolash (sp?) and my Mom always made it when I was a kid. It's just ground hamburger meat, corn, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and elbow macaroni. There is just something about how good it is when Mom makes it. I can never get it quite right. The cornbread finishes it off. MMM MMM good.

We got to see a beautiful sunset over the river.

Nonnie and Walker on Dino.

We went to the river for a birthday party and Beaufort Boil Saturday night. Above is the Beaufort Boil, if you've never had one you are missing out. These are huge in the Lowcountry (SC) where we live. Let me know if you need details. This is perfect for large parties that are casual.

As you can tell we had a fun and productive weekend. Thanks to my Mom and Dad for making the drive to see us and for all the work this weekend! I love you all!

Crazy Connor...

I planned on posting something creative today, but I just could not pass up this opportunity to show how funny my life is with my little fireball. I am sure anyone that has more than one child can tell you that they are all so different. There is no better example than my 2 boys, and I think when Connor was born God broke the mold. He is an absolutely fearless,happy, inquisitive, hilarious, and stubborn little ball of energy. If Connor is awake he is going 100mph, and constantly into something.

Anyway, when we were at my parents house this week I was getting ready to put Connor to bed, and when I came downstairs to get him this is what I found...

My Dad (Poppy) was standing there watching Connor chowdown on Walker's left over spaghetti. Pop said he didn't see Con for a couple of minutes so he thought he better check on him. He found Connor belly up to the table. He was really enjoying it, so we just let him finish, but man oh man did he ever make a mess!

There is something to be said for the free entertainment that having kids provides. They truly are a constant joy.

The new DINOSAUR...

Yes, I said dinosaur. I think this is so hilarious. My husband's grandpa loves to get my 2 little monsters new and unusual stuff. This time he even outdid himself.

They are both into dinosaurs, especially Walker. So, Papa (a.k.a. grandpa) had them one made. Now we are not talking any dinosaur. This thing is of mammoth proportions at over 7 feet tall and 13 feet long. WHAT? Yes, you read correctly. We are talking putt putt course material here. When I first got wind of this I thought it was a joke, when I found out it wasn't I began to panic! Where do you put a dinosaur that weighs 1000 lbs., and not draw tourists? My yard was not an option! Hence "Dino" is living at our place on the river.

As you can tell the boys LOVE this thing and Papa has decided to have another one made. The next one will be brown and a different shape. I guess it is a good thing I have a crazy sense of humor! God love Papa.

Anyway, just thought you all might enjoy this post since Christmas is just around the corner. Wonder what the shipping charges on one of these would be? HA! HA!

Picture Addict!

Okay, so I realize you probably don't know this about me yet, but I am a picture addict. If there is a 12-step program out there for this sort of thing I should probably enroll. I have one of those mom's that ALWAYS has a camera out. When I was growing up I was always peeved by it, but I really enjoy those crazy pics now. I NEVER thought I would be that same "camera-hanging-around-the-neck" mom, until I had kids. Now I am beginning to realize that I have become my mother (cue the twilight music!) SO... today I am posting about a set of shelves I had my father in law make to display some of them. This picture does not really show how large they are. The length on the bottom shelf is 6 feet, and the one on the top is 18 inches.

I am overrun with pictures and always dreaming up new ways to display them. These are some of my favorite beachy pics. Thought I would share because the shelves were so simple to make and they hold several of the pictures without looking cluttered.
I put this second picture up so you could see a little more detail in case any of you handy gals out there may attempt this. The one detail you can't see that is sort of crucial, is the groove in the wood that keeps the pictures from sliding off the shelf. I have no clue what the official name is, but it is similar to what you have on shelves in a china cabinet so you can stand your plates up. Clear as mud? I never claimed to be eloquent, just creative!
The other option for keeping my pictures in place was a small trim on the front of the shelf. I did not want a "lip" on the front of my shelves, but you may.
Let me know if you give it whirl. I'd love to see how they turned out for you.

Let the FUN begin!

Well, today I have finally decided to "officially" start my blog. I am gonna name this little blog Mandi Shandi's because that is what my Mom always called me as a little girl. What can I say, I needed a name and it was available. Anyway, as my good friend Staci would say, I have been a "stalker" for a long time. I absolutely love to browse other blogs in search of inspiring ideas for my home or scrapbooks. I have come to find that all you bloggers out there never disappoint. After much consideration, I decided that I also may have something to add to this world of creativity on display in Blog-land (yes I made that up, but that is where I tell my husband I am going when I disappear to the office computer). I am really excited about this, but am the first to say I am a complete amateur, so I am gonna beg and plead (okay, I am on my knees here) for some love from you experienced bloggers as I try to figure this whole thing out.