Presents and turkey dishes

This post is kind of a mishmash of things that have been going on around here for the last week or so.  I also say "Home Goods" 1.7 million times.  Prepare yourself.

 

#1. Presents

 

My brother Nick sent me and Spencer a birthday package last week.

 

Spencer got a Star Wars cookbook and ice saber molds.

 We're going to have to try a thicker popsicle recipe because it was impossible to take them out of the mold without them breaking.

They were still yummy.

 

I got some adorable basset hound salt and pepper shakers.

Right now they are being displayed in the dining room to keep Elliott from treating them like toys and breaking them to bits. 

#2. Parenting Win

 

Spencer has a hard time remembering to put his stuff away in his room.  He gets home from school, dumps his backpack on the floor in the kitchen and drops his socks and shoes in the living room.  Reminding him everyday has not worked.  So I took an idea from pinterest and made this "confiscated" box.  It seems to be working.

 

The little poem says:

Uh oh.

You left it out.

Mom picked it up.

She has your stuff. You’re out of luck.

To get it back, you must do a chore.

Once you’re done it will be yours,

just like it was before.



#3.  The mall

 

Elliott loves the mall.  Loves it.  He wants to go every day.  I took the kids after school last week.  I got some fall scented plug-ins from Bath and Body Works.

 

They got to go on the merry-go-round.  It was a win for everyone.

#4.  More lost teeth

 

Spencer lost his second top front tooth last week on the 10th.  It is his 6th lost tooth overall and his 4th lost tooth since July. 

 

He is very gapy and lispy right now.

 

 

The tooth fairy seems to be funding his college education. 

#5. Turkey dishes

 

I stopped at Home Goods on my way home from work last Thursday.  We needed coffee and that's where I buy all of our coffee.  While I was there I browsed through the dishes section. I fell in love with some turkey serving pieces, but I refused to spend my own money on them since I had been given a Home Goods gift card for my birthday.

 

Home Goods is one of those places where, if you find something, you have to move fast because it will not be there the next time you go, so after the kids were in bed that night I went back with my gift card.

 

I have always, always wanted a turkey platter. Dream come true.

 

#6.  Weirdness

 

I stopped to get gas on my way home from Home Goods.  The whole time while I was paying and pumping I felt like I was being watched. 

 

WHAT THE HELL IS THIS THING?  And WHY?

There was some sort of weird octopus stuffed animal wrapped around the passenger seat.  It was very, very creepy. 

#7. Organizing

 

While at Home Goods I also saw this scarf organizer.  I didn't even know that I wanted to organize my scarves, but I totally did.

 

It works so well!

#8.  More turkey dishes

 

While I was looking at the turkey serving pieces I saw that Home Goods had an entire set of turkey dishes.  I laughed and thought they were foolish.  Then I kept thinking about them.  And thinking about them.  And thinking about them.  I couldn't stop.  I went to work on Friday and thought about them continuously.   By noon I decided that not only were they not foolish but they were actually brilliant and I needed them to be mine.

 

So after work on Friday I stopped at Home Goods AGAIN (3rd time in 24 hours) and spent some birthday money on 4 turkey mugs, 4 turkey salad plates, 4 turkey bowls and 4 turkey dinner plates.

The plan is to use them for the entire month of November.  Then next year I will buy 4 more of everything.  Then in 2016 I will buy 4 more of everything. I would like to have enough turkey dishes for a big dinner party by the time we take over Thanksgiving hosting duties (whenever that may be). It's a brilliant plan!

#9.  Eczema

 

I mentioned before that we're trying to get Spencer into an eczema medication research study at Phoenix Children's hospital.  He has to be off his eczema medications for 2 weeks before he can be considered for the study.  His first day off was September 6th.  By the 12th he was in a full-on flare-up.  We can't use anything prescription or over the counter that could be considered "medication", but we can still use wet wraps and vaseline to soothe his skin a little.  We have the next appointment on the 22nd and that's when we will get in or not get in on the study.  It all depends on if he "passes" his blood test, skin check and EKG.

 

Wet wrapped hands.

We left him in the wet wraps all night.  It didn't do much.  He's still all rashy and his skin is bumpy and angry looking though.

He's really doing OK though.  He's itchy, but not miserable and not suffering. If he gets to the point where he just really can't handle it, we'll stop immediately.  But he keeps assuring us that he can handle this and can make it to Monday.  I promise we're not abusing him!