Guppies and Goldfish...who knew they were so delicate?

So being the fabulous science teacher that I am, I decide that the second graders will raise guppies as part of their life science unit. Not only will we raise the guppies but we will build them tiny fish homes out of two liter bottles, aquarium rocks, and aquatic plants. Now I am not a novice at this, we did this two years ago. It worked beautifully. The guppies were happy in their two liter home and there were many happy second graders. The guppies even obliged us by having babies. Oh sure they ate some of their young but really there were quite a few. The kids didnt seem to really care. Anyway earlier this week I decide its time to go and purchase the guppies. Now the last time we did this one of the other teachers took care of procuring the fish so this was new territory for me.

My kids and I arrive at Petsmart in our lovely little suburb around 5 p.m. I am super tired, I just want to buy guppies and get the heck out of there. We go up to the fish person who is looking oh so busy twirling her hair and smacking her gum. Below is our conversation. I will just call her FP (fish person).

Me: Hi I need some guppies.
FP: What?
Me: I need some guppies, about 20 or so
FP: What kind?
Me: The cheap kind.
FP: What kind is that?
Me: Ummmm I dont know maybe feeder guppies?
FP: We have these.... waves her hand towards a tank. I see those guppies are 1.29 a piece.
Me: Wow thats a lot for feeder guppies.
FP: no not really. Look these are more... waves hand towards guppies that are 2.54 each
Me: I think these are maybe way more fancy than I need.
FP: You do have a filter and heater right?
Me: No
FP: you need a filter and a heater
Me: I didnt last time.
FP: I am a fish expert, you need a filter and a heater
My boy: MOOOOOOMMMM when are we getting fish... I want some. I want some to keeeeeppppppp!!!
Me: Look fish person I just need 20 guppies, cheap. They are going to a bunch of school kids. They will live in 2 liter bottles. I have done this before
FP: oh no you cant do that
My boy: MOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM can I have this snake. PLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE??????
Me: ok fine what about goldfish. I can improvise. You have cheap goldfish?
FP: Gold fish need a filter.
Me: Are you freaking kidding me???
FP: Gold fish waste is highly toxic. Without a filter the goldfish will die in 3 days
Me: Are you for real?
FP: I am a fish expert. I am telling you they need a filter
My boy: MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM I need a bird....look my hand fits in the cage.... pleeeeeeeese?????
Me: Look lady, I had goldfish that I bought at woolworths when I was 12. They lived in a tiny bowl that I rarely changed the water in. They were still alive when I left for college. Then I think my mom killed them. Point is they had no filter. I am not for a minute believing this crap about goldfish needing a filter.
FP: I cant sell you any fish
Me: Are you kidding? What fish go in the fish bowl if you need a filter for everything
FP Betas. i can sale you betas.
ME: yah. you think I am buying 20 betas at 5 bucks a pop? Are you on drugs?
FP: Look lady I am highly trained and I am not selling you any fish if you arent going to put them in a tank with a filter.
ME: yah ok, you arent selling me any fish

So I extract my child from the parrot cage. Remove my daughter from the rabbits and get the heck out of that crazy fish store. I call up Capitol Aquarium. Hi there, I need some guppies. Feeder guppies
CA: sure we have those
Me: how much
CA 15 cents each
Me: do I have to buy a filter?
CA: are you kidding? for feeder guppies?

Yah I new that FP was insane! I just cant figure out why. So the guppy saga continues. I buy them Monday. I will let you know if they all go belly up.

Hellish

Its been a hellish week, the details of which I cant go into a public blog, no matter how well I think my identity may be hidden (yeah not well at all...oh so easy to see pics of me...but I digress) So back to the main subject... yes hellish... its been hellish. I know sometimes bad things happen, and sometimes those things are completely out of your control, and you cant make them better but it still feels like crap. So thats where I have been this week...(ya know in case my one or two readers are wondering). I think I will be back in the swing of things this weekend. I have a very funny guppy story for you as soon as I sit down long enough to type it out. :)

Here Fishy, Fishy

My latest card. I made this using the PTI Pond Life stamps, Lemon Tart cardstock and ink, and Summer Sunrise ribbon. This is the last card I made before going on a scrapbooking frenzy the other night. I did 10 pages in one night, granted they were 8x8 but still 10 in a night is quite a few. Finally finished my Chicago album... yes I did take that trip LAST summer. I am a wee bit slow.

Today I took my kids, my friend and her three boys on a 30 minute drive to go to our local splash playground. We get there and would you believe it? No freaking water until May 1!!!!! So we had 5 very disappointed kids, 2 irritated moms and drove back 30 minutes and went to a regular (no water ) park. That lasted about an hour but it was so HOT. So we went back to my friends house and the kids played in the water at the house. Now we are home and its time to get back into the school /work routine. I always hate Sundays for that very reason.

PaperTrey Ink Blog Hop

PaperTrey Ink is hosting its monthly blog hop tonite. You can go here for the details. This is my entry. I stamped the mum from the garden of life set with summer sunrise and black noir. I colored on it with some of American Craft scrapbooking markers. I cut my small squares of PTI ppaper into a lovely little border to frame my image. Its all adhered to PTI cardstock and tied with a lovely summer sunrise bow. I really like the way it turned out.

Handwriting- Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Have you ever had the pleasure of teaching a small child how to make their letters? It ranks right up there with potty training or being stabbed repeatedly in the eye with long, sharp stick. My son is in preschool. I went back to work, so as part of my punishment my son has to go to "daycare preschool" not to be confused with "parent volunteer-free love hippie preschool" that my daughter got to attend during the few short years I could afford to be a stay at home mom. So anyway, I digress. My son goes to daycare preschool. Its a nice place. The teachers are lovely. However they feel the need to send home homework. The homework involves lots and lots of writing practice. Its horrifying really. Try teaching your 4 year old boy who can barely hold his pencil how to make the lower case a. The correct way mind you, where you start from the top and go around and then up the stick and down the stick. See I know this stuff. I teach school. I have taught handwriting to whole classes of 1st graders, even Kindergartners. It sucked then too... but nowhere near the way it sucks now. My son is a perfectionist. He HATES to be corrected. But unfortunately letter a can only face one way and when one makes it backward one must be corrected. And then the crying, the whining, the gnashing of teeth. I participated in this for a half an hour tonight and I must say I feel as though I have been tortured. Want to break those detainees in Gitmo? Give them a four year old, a penmanship sheet and tell them the 4 year old must produce legible writing.... within the next hour... without a snack. Yep that should do it.

New Stamps=New Card

PaperTrey had another release on the 15th and I managed to spend LOTS of money on new stamps, paper, and ribbon. The package came Friday and now my crafting corner is a HUGE mess. For some reason I am unable to clean up as I go. So far I have made a couple of cards and done a whole lot of playing around. This card is going to my dad for Father's day (that is if I can find it by the time June rolls around). Between school (my job) and two extra committees I am on I havent had a moments peace to do much of anything except take care of my children, which explains my once a week blog posts. I will try to do better. Happy Sunday.

I'm Back....

So after being in bed most of the weekend, I sucked it up and went to work yesterday. I am still not 100% but I am feeling MUCH better. Unfortunately now the girl is sick. She is going to miss school today, hopefully she will be on the mend soon.

My computer and wireless router (mac airport) went totally crazy on Sunday night. I did everything possible to fix it. NOTHING. Now it used to be I could sit and surf tethered to my DSL but once I went wireless... well people there is nothing like surfing from the comfy couch or bed. So I knew I could not live with this crazy mafunctioning (and might I add BRAND NEW) airport. So I called my tech guy from work (He does not work for the school district and that is why he is AWESOME). And would you believe he came out the same day, worked on my computer for over an hour, fixed it and then only charged my 40 dollars!? I heart him very much. He has a friend for life. He was telling me that he and his friend do it so cheaply because they just like helping people, especially teachers. I know of no one else who makes a housecall for 40$. Again, I LOVE him! So I am back to surfing wireless again which is wonderful.

Hope you all have a wonderful Tuesday!

Freaking Sick!

So its been like five days since I posted... my life is boring as heck so that could be why... but actually its because I have been sick or have been taking care of a sick child all week. I did manage to drag myself to work, which is probably why this thing has hung on for so long. My body decided it was done earlier this evening and I have been in bed ever since. This of course means my two children have had the run of the house with little to no supervision. Lucky for me my girl child made her brother peanut-butter and jelly for dinner. She even served it up with a side of goldfish crackers. She made herself a bean burrito and then she brought me a soda. I have raised that girl right. (She is 7 by the way). Anyway after she served up her brother dessert (skinny cow ice creams) he came up here, crawled in my bed and fell asleep. I dont have the strength or energy to move him so I am just hoping he went pee before climbing in. My dd is watching Sponge Bob downstairs, how could I deny her after the excellent care she has given me and the boy. Anyway thats my update. Hoping to feel better tomorrow because I have a billion things to do and not one of them revolves around lying in bed all day.

PS. Katie and Tommie, I haven't forgotten your prizes... they are packed and ready to go, just waiting for me to take them to the post office... hopefully tomorrow, but definitely by Monday.

New Card and Funny Story

So this card is made with all papertrey ink supplies. Its an expectant parent congrat card for some friends of mine. I really like the way it turned out. I wasnt sure when I first started putting it together. I had to rework it a few times.

And Now onto the FUNNY STORY
So my boy is in the bath splishing around and of course, because he is a boy, grabbing his parts. He looks up and says, "Mom where are your intestines?"
"In your stomach" I say. He glances up looking at me very strangely.
"Where??"
"In your stomach."
"No they are not!"
"Yes they are in the area of your stomach, inside you."
"Look MOM! They are right here!!!" He is grabbing his sack
Yeah Cole those arent intestines... those are testi*les!
"Well thats pretty much the same thing!"
rofl (changing the spelling of certain words so I dont get some bizarre google hits)

We Have a Winner! (And a runner up!)

Here is our winner! Congratulations Tommie! Please email me (derbylea at mac dot com) with your snail mail info and I will get your prize right out to you! And then because my son threw a huge fit when my daughter got to draw the first name, we have a runner up. So congratulations Katie! Katie, I still have to check my prize drawer but something crafty will be making its way to you as soon as you email me your snail mail info. My email: derbylea at mac dot com

Almost Finished Castle and blog candy

So here is the nearly finished playhouse. The kids are beyond happy. FunDaddy just needs to put on the finishing touches. What color should we paint it? The boy wants fire engine red with green trim (ummm NO!) The girl wants "rainbow" (I am afraid to even know what that means!). What color do you think we should paint it? (Our house is a yellow color... like wheat maybe?).

BLOG CANDY

I have been meaning to do blog candy when I hit 5000 hits... well Nichole Heady (from Paper Trey Ink) linked me on her blog the other day ( I should mention I screamed, shouted, and danced with glee) and since then I have had like 900 hits... LOL. So I am well passed 5000, which means its BLOG CANDY TIME! Up for grabs is one brad stencil from All my memories, one package of studio G stamps, and one pack of stickers (of which I cannot remember the brand at this time). Leave me a comment, tell me what color you think I should paint the house, and I will use one of my children to randomly draw a name from all my commenters. You have until 12 noon on Sunday, April 6th to leave your comment. I will draw names and post a winner on Monday. I will ship in the USA or Canada. Thanks for playing!

Builder Predicts Castle to be Finished Soon

What? You cant really see the progress in this photo? Well, I guess thats what I get for sending the camera with the seven year old. This was the best picture out of the bunch. By the time I looked at them it was dark and thanks to Daylight Savings its still dark! Why cant they just leave the clock alone? Anyhow, I digress. The castle now boasts a roof, four finished walls, six windows and a new enlarged balcony. It has a front porch and a breakfast bar (you can see the bar in this picture). The children are just waiting for FunDaddy to put the finishing details on. FunDaddy predicts it will take another week to finish out the balcony railing and put on the shingles. More pictures to come.

I got new stamps!

And a new punch. I used them to make this card. Oh I got some new stickles too... they are on the card as well. I have been making so many cards that I have seriously negleted my scrapbooks... I have pictures upon pictures that need to make it into albums.... even the kids have noticed I have not done as much as usual. Of course I continue to buy.... buy is what I do best! I have my new punch, which I was alerted to by the members of CKMB. I do not recommend going there unless you have a large supply budget... haha. Then of course I bought the new stamps when I saw them at my Local Stamp Store (LSS). I was there looking for dew drops, which they did not have. I couldnt go home empty handed now could I?
For my non crafting readers, I provided lots of linkage in case you are wondering just what the heck I am talking about.

Card Info:
Bird stamp: inkadinkado
Sentiment: PTI
markers: american crafts
stickles
stampin up pp
unknown cardstock

Fake Grins

Why is it when kids hit a certain age they suddenly decide its time for the fake grin? And it never really looks like a grin... it just ends up making the generally adorable child look constipated. I took this picture 5 times. All 5 times my boy has a version of the fake grin plastered on his face. I went through this with my girl as well. It lasted at least 3 years and she still pulls that stupid fake grin out on occasion. The thing that gets me is, it isnt just my kids. My niece and nephew are afflicted with fake grin. Children of my friends have also been afflicted with fake grin. It seems to be something every child masters.
Another thing I have noticed children always act like adults are completely stupid. They do it so often we ask the child, "Do you think I am stupid?" To which said children always reply, "No." But you know they are thinking. Yes! Yes I do, I think you are a complete moron, which is why you are always asking me these rhetorical questions anyway.

In Memory of...

My Aunt Jane
Cancer stole her life this week. She was my mom's baby sister. The younger girl in this photo. I didn't know her well as she lived far away for my entire life. I do know she was a loving mother, a loving sister, a good wife, and a kind person. She sent me a card every Christmas and always asked about me when she spoke with my mother. She leaves behind a devoted husband, a son, a daughter and two beautiful grandchildren. She was only 55.

Papertrey Blog Hop

Welcome Papertrey Blog Hoppers! I am not sure what all is involved with this blog hop but I do know your project should have ribbon as the focus. I had so many ideas... but this is the one that actually made it from concept to card. I really like the way it turned out. If I ever stamp on ribbon again I will definitely try using the stiffy stuff because this is a bit blurry for my tastes.

I made this using the PTI white cardstock which I cut down to a card size of about 4x6. Then I cut strips of the PTI patterned paper and adhered it to the card. Next I cut pieces of PTI ribbon (in both sweet blush and berry sorbet) and adhered those to the card. I stamped a PTI birthday sentiment on the sweet blush grosgrain. Finally I tied bows with the PTI ribbon and attached them with glue dots.

You can read all about the PTI blog hop here. If you like my project and want to vote for it you can head over to the PTI forum and vote there. Thanks for stopping by!

I Actually Won Something!

Inside of the card

I won the stamps used to make this card from Papertrey Ink. Its the Wedding Set. It seems to me I never win anything so I was overjoyed when the random number generator picked me! I really dont have a lot of weddings coming up... just two this summer that I can think of. Still I am having fun creating wedding cards that I may one day need! All supplies are from PTI.

Work on the castle continues...

FunDaddy has recovered from his illness so the work on the castle continues. We now have three walls with siding... a "breakfast bar" area on the inside, and the balcony (minus the rails... and yes both kids continually climb up there-I see a trip to ER in our future). FunDaddy has given an estimated completion date of about 2 weeks... which I am sure like the date any builder gives, is completely off by at least a month or so.
I hope you all have a Happy Easter tomorrow. I am sure I will be hiding eggs all. day. long. But I plan to enjoy it, because even though they drive me crazy, they are growing up way too fast.

Cupcake Card

Are you sick of Papertreyink yet? If you are, I apologize. Clearly I am obsessed! So this card took me the better part of an hour to put together. I just love the little cupcakes. The frosting and the cake are two different stamps so its easy to make them different colors. I am a totally novice stamper... I just started this past fall, so I am really learning as I go.

Supply List:
Cardstock: Papertrey ink white, sweet blush, and berry sorbet
Ink: Palette ink in berry sorbet, aqua mist and black noir
Ribbon: Papertrey ink, aquamist swiss dot
Stamps: PTI Its a Celebration and Birthday basics

Egg Box!

Isnt this gorgeous? And so clever? Thats because its not my own original idea! I got the template off of SCS. It was put there by a very creative and talented lady named Brenda Quintana. I wanted to make sure I gave her full credit. Anyway using her template, PTI polka dot stamps, PTI Aquamist ink, cardstock, and white cardstock I put together this cute little egg box. The ribbon is American crafts, white staz on is stamped on the acetate. The Hoppy Easter stamp is from a 1$ studio G stamp. These are time consuming to make... well the first one was, the second wasnt so bad. I think they are totally worth the time and trouble.

The "Castle"

Hey look at that! It looks like we are getting an addition doesnt it? Yeah, thats the play house. HUGE, I tell you. Maybe we will just have the kids live out there. There will be a porch, a balcony, a trapdoor. What more could two kids want? Oh how about working shutters on all 6 windows? Maybe a pole to escape the balcony? You want dormer windows in the roof? You've got it. Oh you want planter boxes to plant a garden? Why sure, you can have that too. Fundaddy is going all out. It should be mostly done (meaning siding and a roof) in the next week or so. FunDaddy is battling a cold right now so the project is on hold for the time being. FunDaddy does not make a good sick person... but thats a whole 'nother post!

New Cards

Man I am loving Papertrey Ink! I just got a bunch of new stamps, cardstock, and ribbon for my birthday and I have been on a card creating frenzy. Here are a few of my recent creations.

Little Birdie

I am in love with these little birdie stamps from Hero Arts. They are really small and cute. The size of the card is 3x3. I made a ton of these to give to people at work when they are having a bad day or when they do something that needs a little more than a verbal thank you. Sorry the picture is fuzzy. I took a ton of them and they all have that fuzzy look. I desperately need a new camera... maybe after payday.

The One Where My Son Eats a Lemon

"Hey Baby Boy, What are you doing?"
"I am eating a lemon!"
"What? Lemons dont taste good."

"I want to try it! I like lemons! Its a fruit!"

"Ok, go ahead but I am telling you it wont taste good."

"Iiiiickkkkk! this is horrible, I hate it! Why did you make me eat this lemon?"

Middle Aged

Yeah... I officially reached it today. I can not believe I am this old... those older than me assure me its not old at all... but I know the truth. I settled on this number as "OLD" when I was in highschool... and I stand by it! Whats your official "OLD" number?

Secret Messages

So FunDaddy in a fit of craziness decided that he wanted to build the children a playhouse. He is capable of this, he is quite good with building except that it takes about a year and a half to finish anything. Also the "thing" must be grand in scale. Like my daughters bed. Gorgeous, a thing of beauty really... however it takes up nearly her entire room. So this little playhouse... yeah he chalked it out yesterday on the grass... people it is ginormous. But I held my tongue.

I get home from work and FunDaddy announces he must go to the store and buy lumber for the castle...umm I mean house. So off he goes... 1.5 hours later he isnt back yet. I am thinking he must of had an accident or something. So I call him. Below a transcript of our conversation. (all items in parenthesis are my own translations of what I feel his 'secret' message is) All of his parts should be read in a raised voice tinged with panic and complete irritation.

FD: "what?"
Me: oh good you are alive
FD: I cant get this wood in the van! It doesnt fit! The *$%#@ is too small (Gawd dammit woman why did you make me sell my truck?)
Me: oh
FD: I told you it wont fit! This is crazy! Now I have to buy rope! (I want my truck! who cares if I couldnt take the kids in it! I want it back!)
Me: sorry I thought something happened to you
FD: I had to buy rope! Its not working. I have to drive with the tailgate up! (this is your fault! you made me sell my truck!!)
Me: ok is there something i can do to help?
FD: No! I have to use this rope, that i had to buy, ok? (I told you nothing but a new truck will fix this!)
Me: ok then... oh look my phones dying! bye!


FTR, I did not make him sell the truck I simply told him we couldnt afford the ins. on all three vehicles and really we barely used the truck, plus it was constantly breaking down. he sold it himself to some guy who had a landscaping business.

Anyhow, secret messages... things we arent saying but its so clear we are.

A tisket, a tasket, a Michaels Easter Basket

Michaels had these cute wooden baskets for a buck. I covered it with paper (Doodlebug). Then I added some baubles and a prima. It went fairly quickly. The hardest part was cutting the paper, especially since the wooden egg is already adhered to the basket. I wanted to line the inside but it was just too difficult for the amount of patience I had today. So I am thinking maybe I will put some fancy tissue in it. If I were to do it again I would paint the inside before adhereing any paper.

I got nothing to say except....

Happy Leap Day!!! I couldn't miss my chance to publish on February 29th!!! Its suppose to be sunny and 70 here today so I am a happy girl!

You Can't See Me... I'm Camouflaged!

This picture cracks me up! I had to buy the girl the camo clothing for a school assignment (they were studying animal camouflage.) and of course the boy then needed the same thing. So now I have two kids running around looking like jr. soldiers. Its so funny to look at. The boy even has camouflaged shoes. He requested camo underwear as well! As much as kids (or grown adults) say they hate (hated) being dressed like their siblings my two love it! Of course there isnt a lot of matching clothing available for a couple kids of opposite sexes and three years age difference but I try.

More Scrappin'

Another page made with my HG kit. I love this kit (actually I bought two, similar but not the same). I still can not believe the deal I got.

Tiger

This is my cat Tiger. He found me one day and insisted on being let in the house... that was about three years ago. He sheds more than any cat I have ever had. And now it seems shedding on my clothes while I am wearing them isnt good enough. Now he wishes to shed all over my clothes before I even put them on! I guess this will teach me to leave my armoire open in the morning.

New Layout and Randomness

I broke into my new Heidi Grace kit, ya know the one I got for a steal at Tuesday Morning? I had fun playing with all the scrappy goodness inside. My craft table is a mess! But I didnt want to clean it up because I know I am just going to mess it up again today.
****
I often wonder what its like to be in the mind of a child. Here is an actual conversation between me and the boy last night:
Boy: I love you Mommy!
Me: I love you too!
Boy: I love you soo soo much!
Me: I love you to the moon and beyond!
Boy: It snows in Antarctica every day! What will happen if it stops?
Me: The snow will melt?
Boy: I really like monkeys.

A New Card

I just got my new stamps from papertreyink. Oh how I love them. I didn't even really like to stamp until I found these... but I digress. I made this card for Lois. I read about Lois here. I think its amazing how quickly these crafters pulled together to pledge 100 cards for Lois and then send them out... and it took mere days. Sometimes I find that the internet is an amazing thing.... what did we do before Al Gore invented it? (Yes, I know he didnt really invent it... but hey he wants credit... )

Back to the card, Papertrey stamps, papertrey paper, and papertrey ribbon and ink. Oh and stickles...can't have a card without stickles.

I just love a man in a sweater vest!

My kid picked that outfit out for himself at the store. A few days before Valentine's he informed me that he had a party to go to and that he had no "handsome" clothes. He begged me to take him to the store for "handsome" clothes and "fancy" pants. So we went to Target (only the finest for my boy). We looked through rack after rack of clothes when he saw this sweater vest combo. He insisted on owning it. How could I resist? Fundaddy thinks I should have resisted. Fundaddy does not think real men wear sweater vests. But just when FunDaddy was about to have a break down over the vest, the boy piped up and said, "Don't you think the girls will like me in this Daddy? Don't I look cute?" Suddenly FunDaddy felt all better.

Saving Money!

Look at all this scraplicious yummy stuff I scored at Tuesday Morning! Never am I this lucky! I got two Heidi Grace Paper kits, full of delicious paper, chipboard, stickers, and alphas. I got 3 boxes of rub ons, a bunch of assorted bling, lots of cute stickers. And all this for a mere 35 dollars! Yes, I understand those of you who are not craft addicts are probably thinking this is a ridiculous sum to be spent on paper and stickers... but I assure you this is an awesome deal. You could spend 30 dollars on just one of those paper packs. I figure I have saved FunDaddy at least 40 dollars here. He should be thanking me (He's not, but he should be). He should thank his lucky stars I am addicted to craft projects and not something much worse... like designer handbags.