Not much to post as of late..... I guess I've just been in a bit of a blogging funk.. The chore chart and followup dollar store visit has been a HUGE success!! I love not having to sound like a dictator and things still get done... It's the end of the month already and Isaac was quick to tell me that means a movie or dinner or something real special for a month of good tude about chores... Oh and I've started a new policy around here, if you like and value your things I wont find them on the floor, so if I find things on the floor I will assume that you don't care for that item and either throw it away or donate it... It's just starting to catch on with them that I mean it :)
Chris is on vacation all this week, I think he will even be home the kiddo's first day of school, this next week Tues.... Yes we are the last to start it seems..... We went to orientation tonight and I like both teachers and can't wait... Norah will be a first grader, how does that happen??
I'm going to be the chauffeur of a 4th grader and a 1st grader with a 3yr old sidekick.... how did I get here....hmmmmmmmmmmmmm

We are going to "The Shedd Aquarium" this week, so excited, I'll try to remember to take pictures:)

I just dispatched 4 children from my house and the kiddo's are in bed for the night, time to go fold some laundry... Have a good night all.....................

Pictures with Captions

Look at these awesome Gladiola's from my yard this year....
The take a minute jar, love the concept have yet to use it...
I asked Norah if she wanted to pluck the carrot's from the garden the other night :)
Homemade ice cream in 10min. in a baggie........ 1pint worth, perfect serving size for me :-)
This is Norah with Polo... As of yesterday Polo found a new home.. about 10 days ago my big buddy Jedi found a new home with my niece at my sisters house....

Helping a friend.......and maybe myself ;)

This is a girlfriend of mine, click on over and help her out............

http://theorangeclothesline.blogspot.com/2011/08/digital-scrapbook-software-giveaway.html

The rare moments.......

MUST photo document the moments when all 3 are getting along AND smiling!! whoop whoop

Norah, Norah, Norah...................sigh............

So this past Tuesday Norah did something I didn't expect to see/think about/try to process/discipline... This child, after once again refusing to empty the dishwasher and starting to pit the tantrum I didn't feel like dealing with said she was going to go to her room "to rest" which usually means to sleep until we wake her up.
Keep in mind that Isaac was reading to me while I was getting ready for work and Ari was...............doing something.... Once Isaac finished and went to put his book away he says "Hey, where is everybody" I say with a smile in my voice, everybody is right here buddy, me, you, Ari, and Norah is in her bed....
He say's "no she's not".....
I think, what, I didn't see her go past me.......
Well then where is she??
Ummmm mom........... She's in the garage getting on her bike.
WHAT?!!!! How did she get there, (light bulb) Oh no she didn't!! Oh yes she did. My 6yr old daughter climbed out her window and if not for the locked gate across the driveway she could have been gone for a ride!!!!!

I am OPEN TO any and all suggestions as to WTHeck and Why???




!!! My biggest challenge if you will is that she was not sent to her room as a punishment but wanted to go to her room.....

We went to a wedding this past weekend. It was 2.5 hours away. We brought only our daughter:) SHE loved it!
Almost there......

She got to wear little white shoes that had heels AND mascara... I am raising a girly girl that's for sure....

THE chart

So after my last bout with the miss regarding doing something I asked/told her to do and the tantrum that forced me to do something I swore I never would do(darn me for saying I would bc then I'm forced to follow thru) I've been looking to ways to get the proper behavior vs. the "other" method(that I will NEVER do again).

I created a fun, neat, easy, not overwhelming "chore chart". It is easy enough, you do your day's worth of chores and come the following week we will take a trip to the dollar store. If you do not then you will watch the other kiddo's get 1 thing from the dollar store.
AND THEN at the end of a month a special treat will be rewarded(provided all have done the months chores) to all with a trip out to dinner(the whole family) or dinner and a movie or maybe get pizza and rent a movie(final decision is up to mom and dad)

Everyone seems to be on board with this plan and so far it's working pretty well. Ari of course is 3 and can't just be told to "empty the dishwasher" so mom or dad need to help him with his but he's doing them I'm happy to say.



The one thing that I noticed and NEVER realized until I made the "rough draft" of this chart is that our kiddo's initial's make IAN. You know my angel..... That was pretty cool and I don't know why it took me 4 years to realize it...

The weekend in pictures

On Saturday morning we went to a local "park" that has a beach and splash pad.....

I had a hard time picking just one from here to post.......

This would be the beach when we were there. It was slowly filling up the later it got. Glad we were leaving before to long...
Saturday afternoon/evening I had a bachlorette party for a girlfriend to go to... I did in fact skate out after the dinner portion of the evening when the "mom's" did (I know boring) but hey I had to serve in early church and a long day of travel to look forward to the next day....

Climbing the big rope structure before we left..

Sunday we chose to spend a large majority of the day stuck in a van that chose to have the air conditioning stop working during our travels..... We went to spend a few hours with Chris's brother and family to celebrate the younger lovely's early 4th birthday. They are moving to China, Today as a matter of fact, for the next 3-5 years(sounds like a jail sentence when you say it out loud:)) It was a lot of fun and even though we were in 2 traffic jams on the way home and it took about an hour longer and EVERYONE in said hot mess of a vehicle was ON EDGE and fighting and whining and not sleeping AT ALL I'd do it again in a heartbeat......

Safe safe safe travels extended family... Looking forward to December... You know cuz I wont be visiting for any type of long weekend......