Random Pictures...

Our Raymond Art pictures look beautiful in our front room. The wreath is a gift from when we got married. It's made of olive branches. Notice the symbolism next to Christ? :)

Brandon's studio. It has been so nice to have a ROOM devoted to his work. Especially since he now has 30 students - private piano and some group voice lessons. I can't tell you the wonderful world I now enjoy that is SANITY. Brandon's such a good dad and tries to work with Ashley every morning before school. She's a lucky girl!

His beloved desk. (He also has matching file cabinet and bookshelf.) Notice the old time phone. He's so proud of it. It has a good speaker phone. I think it makes him feel important. Haha.

Our green, hawaiian bedroom. Those are pictures we took in Hawaii. We'll eventually have curtains, hawaiian art, etc etc. I'm keeping it classy though. :) We love the green. It's like living in green, lush Hawaii.

This is just a favorite, CHEAP find from IKEA. Don't know what I'll make it into yet, but I love it.

Just Because I Feel Like It

A Special Treat

I went to use the toaster the other day and found this...

At first I couldn't figure out what it was either. And then I knew. A melted Dora DVD.

NICE.

DEAD BIRD

A couple days ago we all watched as a little, tiny bird tried to find cover beside this bird house that Ashley built with Papa.

We very quickly realized it wasn't ok. It flopped around a bunch, and then we saw it die. Right in our backyard.

Later the next day, I heard Ashley shriek. I ran to find Dallin HOLDING the bird. The poor, tiny little, lifeless bird. He was fascinated. We had a huge hand washing session after that. His favorite Diego sandles were found at the scene of the crime, and they stayed there. Yuck.

I MADE BREAD!

Yes, I, Heather Stewart, hereby made bread. Wheat bread to be exact. I'm so proud. I didn't even skip a single ingredient. I made three loves of yummy, healthy, lip-smacking bread.

I felt like a pioneer. So domestic.

Notice the corn bowl. I think I need more big mixing bowls. :)

I got to punch the dough and everything. All sorts of rising was involved. Very complicated. :)

Oh, and see that heart shaped teaspoon?! I seriously love my heart shaped measuring spoons that my mother in law Terri gave me, and I get SO much joy from them. I smile every time I use them. Every time! (One of them was recently crunched up in the garbage disposal. It was a very sad day. My precious!)

Look at that beauty. I don't know if it's any cheaper to make homemade bread because we already ate the first two loafs, in a couple days. I also laugh because of how lumpy it is. Most other people's bread is smooth and rounded. It's my first time people! Give me a break. :)

P.S. You know it's a big deal when someone takes the time to document it. :)

I finally cut it...

This is right after his long Sunday nap, so yeah. A bit tousled.

I cut Dallin's hair. It was long, but oh so cute (see the first post and Dallin's Beiber hair). I'm always a little sad everytime I cut that beautiful, thick hair. Did I mention that he has those long, black eyelashes too? Boys. They get all the goods.

Anyway, the whole process was kind of dramatic. I quickly cut it in the bathtub. (I have to seize the moment if ever I get an inkling of desire.) I drained the tub, cut it, then wiped it up as best I could and rinsed. After the first couple snips, Dallin looked down and went into shock. I mean, these were two inch lops of hair all over his body - so I understand. He freaked out, and I quickly tried to cut the rest. Not the best haircut, but he needed it.

Drama in the Stewart Home

When: Wednesday February 9th 2011

Where: Our House

Time: Approximately 9:30PM

The problem?

This

And This

It started just like any other night. The kids in bed, Brandon and I watching TV. Me in my big red robe. You know the story. And then it came....

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! CARBON MONOXIDE!!!!!!!!!!!

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! CARBON MONOXIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!

The sound was deafening. The children were screaming! I mean, it was dramatic people.

We opened every window and door and got the kids out of bed. We all huddled by the door. The low that night was 36 degrees.

The alarm eventually went off, and the kids went back to bed. We closed the doors but kept the windows open. At about 10:30PM we hear....

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! CARBON MONOXIDE!!!!!!!!!!!

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!! CARBON MONOXIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Again, the whole dramatic process. Dallin kept talking about the "firetrucks are coming".

We checked the battery, and checked for errors. Then we called the gas company. In about an hour a nice man was here with a Ghost Busters looking machine to check our home. I was grateful he was thorough - like, in our attic thorough. He figured out that when our oven starts up, dangerous levels of carbon monoxide are emitted. We still don't know why it took so long after dinner (a simmering soup on the stove, and corn bread in the oven) to trigger the alarm. But maybe our house is just too tightly closed up and the combo of the oven, stove, and candles proved too much. We'll be calling about that oven being replaced.

We got to bed at 1am. We haven't had the problem since, but every night Dallin asks "Is the fiyoh suck (fire truck) wid da Cahbun Onoxide comin?"