Adventures and Pursuits

Go Fish for Breakfast

2011-06-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

It is finally summer here. The weather isn't summer yet, it's still in spring mode. But school is out and we are free! Yes, even me. I LOVE not having to nag everyone in the mornings to get ready and out the door on time. Oh yes, I am FREE!!!

So to celebrate our lovely freedom, we are eating sweet cereal. We never eat sweet cereal. Except at Christmas when Santa fills our stockings with the stuff. I decided that the end of school was deserving of sweet cereal.

Unfortunately, we were all out of milk this morning.

I learned that my children really don't care about milk when given the opportunity to eat sweet cereal. And if there is no milk, we don't need spoons either. Just bowls, fingers, fists, and the sweet, crunchy cereal.

Since they were already digging through their cereal, they decided to make a real game of it. Go Fish!

"Hey, Little Man, do you have any greens?"

I don't know if it was a good thing to do with breakfast or not. It was unusual for us. But really I think it was a nice way to start our summer.

Peaceful Lilacs

2011-06-06T11:58:00.000-07:00

My lilacs are blooming. And I am happy.

Yesterday was nice and warm. Warm enough that our windows were still open after the kids had gone to bed. I sat on the couch just breathing in the heavenly scent of my lilacs. If a scent can be peaceful, and I think it can, then lilacs are one of the most peaceful scents ever. Like freshly bathed babies. I love them.

Heidi

2011-06-02T06:32:00.000-07:00

This is Heidi. She is beautiful! The eyes, the smile. And she's my sister! I've been feeling the need to write about her lately.

I can remember the day Heidi was born. I literally jumped for joy. I was SO excited to finally have a sister!

I was always happy that she was my sister and always loved and adored her, but it wasn't until we both became adults, and were married and having babies that we got really close to each other.

Now I don't even like to think about what I would do without her. We live in different states, but we talk on the phone a lot. Sometimes we don't actually talk on the phone we are just on the phone with each other and are completely comfortable not to talk. It's just a nice feeling knowing that she is on the other end of the line.

The other day I called Heidi to tell her about my next door neighbor and how he grew up knowing Bing Crosby. His dad was friends with Bing. (Can you imagine???) I had to tell Heidi about this because she has been a huge Bing Crosby fan since she was born I think.

As we were ending our conversation I started thinking about how I needed to call my other sister, Dixie, next because she also really loves Bing Crosby. We all do.

Anyway, I started to say, "Love you, Heidi" like I always do, but I had Dixie on my mind. So it sounded like this, "Love you, Dih........." and then I just quit. I was hoping that Heidi hadn't heard the Dih.

Oh, but she had. We laughed and laughed. She still loved me.

She is such an amazing sister. And friend. She is such a good sister that I was able to steal this picture from her facebook page, and then tell her about it, and she was totally cool with it.

Thanks, Heidi. For everything. I love you!

Cuteness amidst the Craziness

2011-05-24T16:11:00.000-07:00

This is a crazy week. CRAZY WEEK!!! Oh my goodness! And last week wasn't much better. Whew!

So I'm sharing some amazingly cute pictures that Miss Watermelon (formerly Miss Bear, we've had a change of nicknames) took of herself at the local Farmer's Market a little over a week ago.

My Personal Hair Salon

2011-05-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

Miss Monkey is doing my hair while I sit here at the computer. She came up with a new hairdo and is trying it out in my hair. She calls it Mermaid Lagoon. So far it has mostly involved lots of brushing and combing and moving my part around.

I love it when she does my hair. I always loved having my Mom do my hair when I was a kid. And I love that I have someone to do my hair now. Even though she is only five. It is so soothing and comforting to me. My body relaxes and I don't have a care in the world.

I love that Miss Monkey likes to do hair. She likes all girly and feminine things. Bows and dresses and perfume and lip gloss. She says she likes to make people fancy. She sets up her little beauty parlor about once a week.

I am not so girly. I really like feminine things and beautiful things and feeling like a girl, but it doesn't come as naturally to me as it does to Miss Monkey. I just recently figured out how to properly apply eye liner. Miss Monkey was right there with me every step of the way. She was so proud of me that she made a special announcement that night at the dinner table. "Guess what everyone? Mom learned how to use her eye liner today!" I'm hoping I can learn a few things from her.

Adventures on a Bus

2011-05-13T17:41:00.000-07:00

Our town is not real big. But it is big enough to have public transportation. Free public transportation, at that! Oh yes! There are 2 bus routes to choose from. Between the two you can get pretty much anywhere you would care to go in this little town of ours. We love it!

Yesterday Miss Monkey, Little Man, and I needed do to some birthday shopping. So instead of driving in our van, we took the bus.

The closest bus stop to our house is just a sign next to the sidewalk. It works well, but is not the most enjoyable on a rainy day. So we walked an extra block and a half and were able to sit in a nice covered bus stop.

Oh, and yes, we were wearing coats. Spring has been very slow in coming to this neck of the woods.

The bus came, and we climbed aboard!

We read an old Family Circus comic book during the ride. They don't always get it, but they usually like the pictures.

It wasn't long before we arrived downtown. We started shopping but then had to find a bathroom as quick as possible. Turned out the closest one was at the bagel shop across the street. Into the bagel shop we went, used the bathroom, and then bought two pizza bagels. I just can't walk all the way through a store, use their bathroom, and then leave again without buying anything. I can't! Way too much guilt.

With full tummies we resumed our shopping. We found just what we had been looking for, plus lots of requests for future birthdays, and made our purchases.

While waiting for the bus to come to take us home, we hung out around the fountain.

It was so fun! The kids were great, and were thoroughly worn out when we got home. Gas was saved and our shopping was done! Mission accomplished.

Happy Day

2011-05-11T13:08:00.000-07:00

I like today. It’s been good so far. I planted a few flowers in my yard. Zinnias and petunias just like my Mom used to plant in our yard when I was a kid. The sun is shining and a little breeze is blowing. I feel good today. The day will get busier and crazier a little later, but for now…it’s not.

I’m serving leftovers for dinner tonight. The kids will not be happy about that. There are five of them and it is not possible to make them all happy at dinner time unless we are having pizza. But Mr. Wonderful will be, so maybe that will kind of even things out. I hope so anyway. And I’m happy that I don’t have to stress over what to make for dinner and then try to make it in a shorter amount of time than I would like to have to make whatever it is because I would have had more time to make it if I had only planned ahead a little better. Hopefully that came out right. If not, maybe it’s close enough that you can at least get the gist of what I was trying to say. Well, anyway, I’m glad I don’t have to go through all that tonight.

Hooray for today! I hope you have a few bright spots in your day too!

Mr. Wonderful

2011-05-06T15:43:00.000-07:00

This is my Mr. Wonderful. I know lots of other women have their own mr. wonderful's, but this one is mine. And, oh my goodness, is he wonderful. I call him that for very good reason.

Isn't he handsome?! I love his eyes. And his dimples. Whenever I mention his dimples he tries to hide them and makes this really funny face in the process. I love it!

He called me a few minutes ago to see how I am doing and how my day is going. He asked if he could bring dinner home. He even asked if he could bring me some incredibly yummy ice cream. I happily accepted the dinner offer but said we could do ice cream another night. Friday's are usually cookie night at our house and I've been looking forward to them all day. I'm so glad he is bringing dinner home, though. That is such a huge relief today and he knew it would be and is taking care of it without me saying a word. What would I ever do without him? I really don't even want to think about that. So I won't. I'll think about dinner. And cookies. And Mr. Wonderful.

Oh, I love my Mr. Wonderful!

Hello Again

2011-05-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a whole year since the last time I did anything with this blog. And for most of that year I actually didn't really care. I thought about blogging sometimes. And I missed being able to express my thoughts in this way. But whenever I thought about actually sitting down and writing a post, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I may go into that a little more some other time, but not now.

For now, I just want to catch up a bit and then move ahead. Life has carried on as usual this past year. My kids grew and got older. I got older and my hair got long again. And I added a few more gray strands to my lovely collection. We've all been busy. And life has been nice.

My Dad took this picture of me just a few days ago.

I’m not sure right now what I will be writing here in the coming days. I have a few ideas. The thoughts in my head seem a bit jumbled and blurry all banging around in there. So that when I write something down and it actually makes sense, I feel a little surprised and even excited. And I like that. I like that I can take something out of my head and have it make sense. I feel like I've accomplished something. And so I want to blog. I'm looking forward to it.

Just so you know

2010-05-20T09:30:00.000-07:00

My blogging has been a little sporadic since about February when I started the Great American Postcard Swap. But, I just thought I would let you know that I think my blogging will be even more sparse in the coming weeks. I'm having a hard time really focusing on life lately and I need to buckle down. There are just too many times during the day when I find myself mentally writing blog posts (that never get published anyway) when I should be thinking about other things. I need to pay more attention.

Thank you, thank you to those of you who do read my blog and leave those comments here and there. I appreciate it very much!

♥ Aimee

Three Times

2010-05-19T14:02:00.000-07:00

My dreams are hardly ever repeated. In fact, most nights I don't even remember dreaming at all. But, the other night I had the same dream three times in a row.

Next week I am flying to Minnesota for my brother's wedding. Just me. Mr. Wonderful and the kids are staying home. That in itself is a little mind boggling to me. And exciting too, I must admit. But, back to the dream I had three times in a row.

I dreamt that I was at the airport all ready to go to Minnesota, but I had forgotten my driver's license and could not get on the plane. I tried and tried to call Mr. Wonderful so that maybe, by some miracle, he could find it and bring it to me in time for me to make my flight. He never answered the phone.

Three times I had to dream this! I woke up completely stressed.

That morning I started making lists of all the things I need to do before I go, and all the things I need to take with me. "Remember Driver's License" is written at the very top of my list. I still get nervous when I think about that dream. But, for that very reason, I don't think I actually will forget to bring my driver's license. I don't want to get overly confident though. Then the dream might come true. ~SHUDDER~ Let's hope not!

Have you ever had a dream like that?

Getting to Know You part 26

2010-05-13T09:34:00.000-07:00

Q: What was the last movie you watched?

A: The Glenn Miller Story starring Jimmy Stewart.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Morning Stories

2010-05-12T17:41:00.000-07:00

The topic for today's Wordfull Wednesday is "Caring for your Family - How do you let them know you care about them? What do you do as parents to show your children they are loved?" Visit Chocolate on my Cranium for more Wordfull Wednesday entries or to participate yourself.

Back at Christmas time Miss Banana went through a kind of rough time. Her very best friend moved away. She really, REALLY, missed the structure and the keeping busy of school while we were on Christmas break. And it was winter. The sun didn't come up until 7:30am and then had set again by 4:00pm. She was miserable. The whole family was feeling the effects and I knew that we had to do something to help her, but I just couldn't figure out what that something might be.

I noticed that if her day started out good, things were always a little better. By starting out good I mean what happened in the first 10 seconds of her being awake. If she could have a good thought in those first moments, her day was happier. But if in that short time any negativity was able to creep in, the day was lost.

This sounds pretty dire, and really it was. Mr. Wonderful and I prayed and prayed for Miss Banana and what we could possibly do to help her. One night when I was at book club, I got one of a few answers we received. A friend there mentioned, without knowing about our situation with Miss Banana, that when her girls were younger she would wake them up by reading to them. A light bulb turned on in my head. No, not just a single light bulb. I was practically seeing fireworks! I knew I had to give this a try! I chose a book that night. I had always wanted to read A Little Princess to my girls and I thought that this was the time to do it.

So the next morning I went into the girls' room (they all three share a room) about 5 minutes before the normal wake up time. I stood in the doorway so that I could use the hallway light to read by. I gave a simple, "Good morning, Girls." and started reading.

That was a beautiful morning! Miss Banana was much happier, and so was everyone else. Reading in the mornings did not take care of the whole problem, and we still had some rough mornings at times, but it did help.

After getting a couple of chapters into it, I was suddenly afraid that when we got to the sadder parts of the book, all our happiness in reading in the mornings would be gone. But that has not happened. All three of the girls really enjoy the story and our morning reading time.

Of course, it didn't take long for Kiddo to hear about what was going on in the girls' room. He wanted to have a little morning reading time too! Since I was keeping the time to 5 minutes or less, it wasn't hard to add another 5 minutes in the boys' room. For them I chose How To Eat Fried Worms, by Thomas Rockwell. When we were about a third of the way through the book, Kiddo stayed up one night and finished the whole book. I had been trying to get him to read that book for a few months, so I was not too disappointed. The next book I chose was Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan.

I can't say that I read every single morning. But it is becoming a very nice tradition that I hope we will stick with for years to come.

Sing

2010-05-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

Today in church I was sitting next to Kiddo and was listening to his voice as we were singing one of the hymns. I really enjoy the alto part of that hymn, so I switched. As we started the second verse I could suddenly remember sitting next to my Mom in church and listening to her sing the alto part of that same hymn. I always loved listening to her sing hymns in church.

I loved listening to her sing anything. When I was little, one of my favorites was "Sing" by the Carpenter's except that I didn't know that they sang it. I only knew that my Mom sang it. Years later when I heard the Carpenter's singing it on the radio, I was a little sad to find out that Mom hadn't actually written that song.

Thank you, Mom, for singing to me. I can't imagine what my life would be like if you hadn't.

I LOVE it when my kids say...

2010-04-26T15:55:00.000-07:00

...OKAY. It is one of my favorite things to hear.

A Little Romance

2010-04-23T15:46:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to share a couple of fun blogs I found recently all about dating your husband. They have tons of ideas. I don't think Mr. Wonderful would really go in for some of the crazier ideas, but he always likes to know he is loved. I think there is something for everyone on these blogs.

The Dating Divas

Love, Actually

I'm looking forward to some fun dates. Thanks ladies!

International Family Postcard Swap

2010-04-22T11:39:00.000-07:00

Zoe of Playing by the Book is organizing the International Family Postcard Swap. You can visit her blog to read about the details. We are joining in and are so very excited to participate! Thanks Zoe!!!

All Girls Outing to the Quilt Show

2010-04-20T14:56:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I took my girls to a local quilt show. It's a tradition I'm trying to instill. They do think quilts are very pretty things and were way excited to go. They even counted down the days! .

It was fun for me to see how each girl acted at the show.

Miss Banana really wanted to study the quilts and take time to look at each one. She had some definite favorites. (sorry for the blurriness)

Miss Bear liked every quilt, but wouldn't look at one quilt for longer than 5 seconds. I couldn't tell if she was bored or really excited. I wasn't able to get a picture of her because she did not sit still even once. I should have told her that I wanted to take her picture. I think that might have stopped her for a minute.

Miss Monkey loved every quilt with any pink in it. She was mostly just happy to be out with the girls. She did find a cute little monkey to adore. And yes, she did dress herself and do her own hair. She is 4, you know.

We didn't stay very long, but did enjoy our time together and we are all looking forward to next year.

Getting to Know You part 25

2010-04-16T09:55:00.000-07:00

Q: What happy exclamation do you use the most?

A: Sweet! or sometimes Super!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Overcoming The Invisible Mom

2010-04-14T02:20:00.000-07:00

Kiddo is in the 4th grade and is in the process of deciding what is "cool" and what is not.  So far it's been quite the process, and I know we are just at the beginning. I've always wanted to be a "cool" mom. The kind of mom my kids won't be embarrassed by. The kind of mom they will feel comfortable talking to. And listening to. I want to be that kind of mom.

At the beginning of the year I signed up to help at the school every Wednesday. At first this was just fine, but as the weeks went by, I could sense that my level of "coolness" was dropping.  At first Kiddo would come over and talk to me, then he would just wave, then by Christmas time he just quit looking at me altogether.  Like if he didn't see me I wasn't really there. I was trying to be the "cool" mom, so I left him alone. I didn't push it.

But I was bothered.  I wasn't hurt by Kiddo's actions, I was worried about the kind of relationship we had and would have in the future. I was afraid that maybe he didn't really know just how much I loved him.  I realized that I hardly ever hugged him, even at home.  I used to when he was little but had gotten out of the habit as he got older. I used to give him great big hugs we called "shield hugs".  The normal bumps and rough spots of life weren't so bad when he was protected by my sheild of love. How could I have forgotten?

So I've changed my mind about being cool.  Now, when I see him at school, I go to him and give him a big hug. No matter who is watching. I hug him and tell him that I love him.  At first I was afraid that he would be mad at me. But he wasn't. He hugged me right back!  Sometimes he will see me before I see him and he will sneak up behind me and surprise me with a hug! It is so great!

For more Wordfull Wednesday entries, or to participate yourself, visit Chocolate on My Cranium.

Pink Carnations

2010-04-12T15:49:00.000-07:00

On Friday I bought a bunch of pink carnations at the grocery store. There were so many that I could barely fit them all in my wide mouthed jar that I like to use as a vase.

This is all that was left by Saturday morning. Miss Monkey liked them so much that she took most of them to bed with her Friday night. Little Man picked the little purple flowers in the yard and brought them to me.

Getting to Know You part 24

2010-04-08T09:10:00.000-07:00

Q: What is the busiest day of your week?

A: Wednesday. I am so glad today is Thursday!

Yesterday we had dentist appointments for the 4 oldest kids, I helped at the school, had a meeting about Primary (the children's organization at church in which I am very blessed to serve) at my house, Kiddo had band after school and Miss Banana had piano lessons. Mixed in with all of that was all the everyday stuff: naps, meals, laundry, homework, etc., etc., etc. Thursday is a welcome sight!

Please leave a comment and tell me about your busiest day of the week.

A Visit from the Stomach Bug

2010-04-06T13:43:00.000-07:00

Considering the title, this might sound a little strange, but I had a really wonderful weekend. I felt like it was some of the highest quality time we've had as a family in quite a while.  We spent Friday and Saturday nights at Mr. Wonderful's grandparents' home. It is always so good to visit them.

We had a good drive (5.5 hours) to Grandma and Grandpa's house.  The kids got along great! We all enjoyed a very nice day together on Saturday and happily went to bed that night. I was peacefully sleeping when Mr. W woke me up very, very early on Sunday morning (about 1:30) saying "What was that?" Kiddo was throwing up. In the middle of Grandma's kitchen floor. He had been sleeping on her carpeted livingroom floor so we heartily congratulated him for making it to the kitchen. We got him and the floor all cleaned up, found an empty ice cream bucket, and sent him back to his sleeping bag after moving it away from the other kids. We went back to bed hoping it was just something he ate. I always hope that.

One hour later we heard more strange sounds. This time it was Miss Monkey. I won't go into all the details this time. Let me just say that once again, Grandma's carpet was spared. Such a relief!

After getting back in bed yet again, Mr. Wonderful and I had a hard time going to sleep. We would both jump up at the slightest moan or sound of movement from the kids. We were wide awake. So we talked. For almost two hours. We talked about so many different things. It was wonderful!

The next day Miss Banana asked me why we have to get sick. I told her that it's just part of life.  But, I've been thinking about that question and our weekend experience. If the kids had not been sick, Mr. Wonderful and I would not have had the sweet, peaceful time to ourselves that we enjoyed so much. We worked together and worried together. And were brought closer together because of that.

I'm starting to realize that quality time does not mean perfect time. And really, why should it be? Life is not perfect. Why should I expect quality time to be so far out of my reach that it hardly ever happens?  It is not out of my reach at all. It is right there in front of me and all I have to do is grab onto it.

The stomach bug turned out to be pretty mild and only Kiddo, Miss Monkey, and Little Man ever got sick. Another blessing. Yes, I really did have a wonderful weekend.

A Fine Time at the Library

2010-03-26T08:54:00.000-07:00

I love going to the library. Unless I have a fine. Or even think I might have a fine. When I finally find the lost book that has caused the fine, I drop it in the outside return box instead of having to go inside and face that fine and the librarians who I assume are thinking the worst of me. "You misplaced a library book? For three weeks??? What kind of person are you?" That's what I think they must be thinking. So I avoid it. Until my children manage to talk me into going to the library once again. It takes all kinds of courage and feeding off of my children's excitement to get me up to that desk where I quietly say, "I have a fine I need to pay." I'm afraid my face turns red every time. It's rather prone to do that.

Just yesterday we found one of those poor lost library books. Thoughts of dread started filling my mind. I kept pushing them out. I know that it really is silly to dread the library and the librarians. So, after taking Miss Bear to her afternoon Kindergarten class, Miss Monkey, Little Man and I went to the library. I went right up to the desk and handed the book to the librarian who was smiling at me. I told her the book had been missing and that I needed to pay the fine. She said "OK" and kept smiling! And I'm pretty sure my face did not turn red. In less than a minute my fine was all gone and I was free of guilt. I was excited to be in the library again! The kids and I chose some new books and a couple of movies. I talked to another librarian and asked if she could recommend any good books about the states for young children. She couldn't think of anything but left a note for the reference librarian who would be in later. Librarians are so neat!

We checked out our books and dvd's, went home, and sat down to read. It was great! And this time I'm sure we won't lose any books. I hope.

Getting to Know You part 23

2010-03-25T09:04:00.000-07:00

I watched Napoleon Dynamite for the first time over the weekend. I'm not quite sure what to think of the movie. But high school has been on my brain since then, so.....

Q: What was your high school mascot?

A: I went to two different high schools. First the Cougars and then the Wolverines.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Postcards, etc.

2010-03-22T14:35:00.000-07:00

The Great American Postcard Swap is off and running! Hooray! Group 1 is swapping, Group 2 is starting this week, and Group 3 will start two weeks from now.

I've had a few questions as to what kind of postcard should be sent and what should we put on the back. Good questions. The postcards should be state themed, meaning they should have something to do with the state you live in. We have received 4 postcards so far (so exciting!) and they are each great examples.

On the back? Tell us a little bit about your state. And about yourself if you would like. Or just list some fun facts about your state. You can write it by hand, print it on paper and glue it on the card, or print it out on an address label and stick it on.

What do you do when you receive the postcards in the mail? My kids always check the mail. As soon as they see a postcard, they start yelling, "Moooooooom! Mom, mom, mom, MOM! We got one, we got one!" If it is a reading child they also yell out where it came from. We get everyone together, read what the card says, then find it on the big U.S. map we have on our family room wall. I printed out a smaller U.S. map for each of the kids as well. Found them at Eduplace.com. The kids locate the state on the smaller map and color it in. The bigger kids learn the state capital as well. Over the next couple of days we learn a little more about the state. Things like state flower or state animal, farming or industries, when it became a state, and sometimes I slip in a big historical event or famous person. We don't do much at once, just a little here and there. I'm amazed at what even Miss Monkey is learning and remembering. We write it down on regular lined paper and keep it in a binder we now call our "States Book" along with the kids' maps.

Learning Table has been posting some great resources about each state, including a link to some nice notebooking pages to use as you learn about the states.

Caroline of river-girl.com made this sweet envelope for storing her postcards.

Havin' Fun Yet? is giving away a couple of educational DVD's about Arkansas that were produced by the Secretary of State's office! Fun, Fun, Fun!

Patrizzia of iCreate and her daughter are quite busy as well!

Any more ideas to share?

2010-03-20T06:58:00.000-07:00

Good Morning. The sky is lighting up. It's a beautiful color. The birds are awake and making lovely sounds. My favorite is the mourning dove. I am awake too. Everyone else in my house is still sleeping. Peaceful quiet.

Getting to Know You part 22

2010-03-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

I wasn't sure what to ask today. At breakfast this morning, Miss Bear asked a question that cracked me up and I decided to pass it along.

Q: Do you like muffins or pickles better?

A: Almost everyone in my house chose muffins. Kiddo chose pickles!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Getting to Know You part 21

2010-03-11T06:17:00.000-08:00

Q: How many brothers and sisters do you have and where do you "fit" in your family?

A: I have two brother and two sisters. All amazing I might add! I am the oldest.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question so that we can all get to know each other.

The 5 of us at our family camping trip last summer.

Love and Friendship

2010-03-10T16:45:00.000-08:00

The topic for Wordfull Wednesday today is Nurturing Love and Friendship in Marriage. I already talked about this a little in a previous WW post. So I'll just add a little bit to those thoughts.

Mr. Wonderful and I love to laugh together. We all know that laughter is a very healthy thing, right? It is relaxing, it improves blood flow, releases endorphins, and even boosts our immune systems. As long as we are laughing together, laughter has some pretty wonderful effects on our marraige. We feel closer, we forgive easier, we enjoy each other more, and don't stress so much. Like I said, Mr. Wonderful and I love to laugh together. We laugh at funny things the kids do or say. We laugh at the corny jokes we tell each other but would be too embarrassed to say in front of anyone else. We love to laugh at Don Knotts. And Bob Hope. We love to laugh! And life is good.

These pictures really have nothing to do with marraige, but they are my favorite laughter pictures, so I'm going to share them anyway. For more Wordfull Wednesday entries visit Chocolate on my Cranium.

Alabama

2010-03-09T08:24:00.000-08:00

Our first postcard has arrived! It was an exciting thing, let me tell you! My whole purpose in this postcard swap (besides getting fun mail) was to help my kids learn more about all 50 states. So, after receiving our Alabama postcard, we set out to see what we could learn about that great state. We found some wonderful resources online.

The Alabama Secretary of State has a neat Kids Page which includes Alabama history, symbols, fun facts, and even a couple of games. We learned that Alabama became the 22nd state in 1819, the state animal is the black bear, and that Alabama and our state, Idaho, share the same state insect, the Monarch Butterfly.

The Alabama Department of Archives and History also has a kids page which includes some nice printable activity sheets.

Kidskonnect has an Alabama page with lots of really neat links. We could spend lots and lots of time exploring there.

The Alabama Tourism Department has a Flickr photostream with over 600 photos. And on the actual Tourism Department website they have quite a few virtual tours of places all over the state. These were both great ways to "visit" Alabama.

Do you know of any other good Alabama resources? We would love to hear about them.

Great American Postcard Swap

2010-03-09T08:09:00.000-08:00

How it works: 50 families (one from each state) will swap postcards over the next year. Each state will have their own week and will send out 49 postcards, one to each state, during that week. We will go in alphabetical order of the states. At the end of 50 weeks we will all have received a postcard from 49 other states!

To join: Check the lists below to see if there is an opening for your state, then send me an email me at adventuresandpursuits (at) gmail (dot) com.

Postcards: Please send state themed postcards and include 1 or 2 state facts in the message area. Postage to send 50 postcards is $14.

Swap Groups: There are ~~three~~ FOUR separate swap groups each needing 50 families. The following lists show which states each group still needs. I will update these lists as spots are filled.

Group 1

North Dakota

Group 2

North Dakota

West Virginia

Wyoming

Group 3

Kentucky

North Dakota

South Dakota

West Virginia

Group 4

Montana
Nebraska
North Dakota
Vermont
Wyoming

Grab a button!

GAPS Blogroll

2010-03-05T15:16:00.000-08:00

I thought it would be fun to put together a list of the blogs of our GAPS families. So we can get to know each other a little better. Not everyone has a blog or would like to share it if they do, and that is just fine. We have such a huge variety of families! How exciting!!!

To the GAPS families: If you do not see your blog listed here and would like it to be, just send me an email, adventuresandpursuits (at) gmail (dot) com.
Group 1

The Geeky Gimper - Alabama
In the Potters Hands - Arizona
Havin' Fun Yet? - Arkansas
Let's Explore - California
Livin' in a Boys World - Colorado
Mel's Box of Chocolates - Delaware
One Happy Mama - Florida
An Island Life - Hawaii
Adventures and Pursuits - Idaho
iCreate - Illinois
Houseful of Maidens - Iowa
KC Jayhawk - Kansas
Table Scraps - Michigan
Blah, Blah, Blah - Missouri
Barefoot by the Sea - New Hampshire
River Girl - New Jersey
Olivia Jean: Keepin' it Green - New Mexico
Knitology - New York
Thurman Family on Flickr - Ohio
Unforgettable Childhood - South Dakota
Kids Stuff World - Texas
Me and the Boys - Utah
Bird and Little Bird - Vermont
Clothesline Chronicles - Virginia
The Weaver Fam - Washington
The Cute Little Bainbridge Family - Wisconsin
The Mobsquad - Wyoming

Group 2

Serendipity Mama - Arizona
Itty Bitty Wittes - Colorado
An Organized Mess - Hawaii
The Crafty Monkey - Louisiana
Something To Do - Maine
The Berni Family - Minnesota
The Leggett Family - Mississippi
A Lifetime of Days - Missouri
Our Adventures - Nebraska
Trying Traditional - Ohio
Imagine Creative Name Here - Pennsylvania
Dancing in the Rain - Rhode Island
The Merediths - Tennessee
Blue Yonder Ranch - Texas

Group 3

Two Girls and a Boy - Arizona
Kiwi Adventures - Colorado
MonkeyBoy Adventures - Connecticut
RS Island Crafts - Florida
A Few Good Things - Idaho
Give It a Go - Illinois
Deco Dollop - Maine
Camie and Matt - Minnesota
Me and My Double B's - Mississippi
My Many Coloured Days - Montana
The Happenings - Nevada
Kimmarie's Korner - New Jersey
Home of the Budds - Oregon
The Fantastic Five - Tennessee
Pluto and Back - Texas
Sunshine Daydream - Virginia
Refined Metals Academy - Wisconsin

Group 4

Mrs. Marine and the Tiny Troops - Hawaii

Getting to Know You part 20

2010-03-04T08:29:00.000-08:00

This might seem like a silly question......but here it is:

Q: Do you have a cell phone? If so, how long have you had it? And what color is it?

A: Nope.

I really wanted to ask this question because I wonder sometimes if there is anyone else who does not have a cell phone. Anyone? I am completely curious!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

House Stories

2010-03-02T16:09:00.000-08:00

March is my month for the 1 Year 12 Quilts quilting bee. I love houses in quilts so I'm asking the ladies in the bee to make house blocks that represent them. They will all have the same blue sky, but the houses will be all different kinds of sizes, colors, and styles. I'm excited!

I've made two house blocks so far.

I'm planning to make one block for every house I have lived in. These two blocks were actually made with the same house in mind. The first real house Mr. Wonderful and I lived in after we got married. Before this house we had lived in apartments.

This is the actual house just a couple weeks before we moved into it.

It was small and old and in a not very nice neighborhood. There was an oil refinery just half a block south of us and a very large and busy railyard about two blocks north of us. We were quite literally on the wrong side of the tracks. But it had a nice big flat yard and two huge trees in front. We really did enjoy our time there.

But that house is no longer there. The city we lived in made plans to re-align and expand the street next to it and even put in a greenway running along the new street. Our house was in the way. I was pretty sad when I first heard about it. But it turned out to be a great thing. It came at just the right time for us. And we got a great deal!

I'm trying to decide now which house to sew next. Each house has it's own special stories and memories. I'm really looking forward to this quilt!

New Postcard Swap

2010-02-26T06:06:00.000-08:00

Just a quick post to let you know that Tanya has started her own postcard swap! She is just getting started and needs lots of participants. Visit her blog, Tanya Peila, to find out more.

Getting to Know You part 19

2010-02-25T06:20:00.000-08:00

Q: What food do you dislike the most?

A: cooked spinach......UGH! (yes, I think it is worse than cooked carrots.)

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Quick Update on GAPS

2010-02-24T08:34:00.000-08:00

I've sent an email to the first group. We are still missing four states: Delaware, Louisiana, Rhode Island, and North Dakota, but I think we'll be ready to start swapping next week. Yay!!! So exciting!!!

Keep checking the other two groups. They are getting there!
Group 2
Group 3

I have quite a back up list. I haven't been able to send an email to all of you yet. I am working on it. I am hesitant to start more groups yet because some states seem harder to fill than others, and I don't want to start a group that I won't be able to complete.

I did receive an email from Debbie about a slightly different kind of postcard swap that she is organizing. Check it out on her blog: Children Grow, Children Explore, Children Learn.

Also, Tanya has started another postcard swap. Check her blog, Tanya Peila, for details.

I would normally have a Wordfull Wednesday post today, but that just didn't happen. If you would like to read some great WW posts today, head over to Chocolate on My Cranium.

Have a great day!!!

What I Saw in a Split Second

2010-02-22T08:25:00.000-08:00

Every now and then someone will tell me that Miss Banana looks just like me. I always smile and say, "You think so?" but I never see it. Until the other day at the park. I looked at her and saw myself. I wanted to tell her to freeze or something.

I took this picture as quickly as I could, but didn't quite capture it. It was only there for a few seconds, but it was most definitely there. The look in her eyes, the shape of her face, even the way she walked. I saw and remembered my 7 year old self. The feelings, the energy, the awkward teeth. I was so surprised to see so much of myself in her. Surprised and excited. And grateful for the memory and understanding that came in those seconds.

GAPS 3

2010-02-19T12:58:00.000-08:00

What is the Great American Postcard Swap (GAPS)???

Here's a quick recap: 50 families (one from each state) will swap postcards over the next year. Each state will have their own week and will send out 49 postcards, one to each state, during that week. We will go in alphabetical order of the states.

The first group is almost full!!!
The second group is not far behind!!!

Time for a THIRD list! How exciting!!! This group is already off to a great start!!! We still need a family from each of these states:

Alaska
Delaware
Hawaii
Kentucky
New Hampshire
North Dakota
South Dakota
West Virginia
Wyoming

I am really excited about these three groups and am going to focus on getting them filled and swapping. If you are interested please send me an email. adventuresandpursuits@gmail.com

Grab a button to put on your blog to help spread the word! Thanks!

Getting to Know You part 18

2010-02-18T06:31:00.000-08:00

Q: Are you right or left handed?

A: left handed

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

GAPS 2

2010-02-16T08:33:00.000-08:00

If you don't know about the Great American Postcard Swap, click HERE to get the details.

!!!Update!!! I have started a list for a THIRD swap group. It has 9 states already! Keep those emails coming!

If you want to join PLEASE send me an email. Even if you leave a comment, I still need an email so that I will be able to contact you. PLEASE SEND AN EMAIL TO adventuresandpursuits@gmail.com. THANK YOU!!!

As promised, here is the list of states we still need for the 2nd swap group. We have 14 states already!!! I will keep updating this list as I've been doing for the first group. Thank you to all who have joined us. This has been a lot of fun so far, and we haven't even started swapping yet! If you know of any families you think would enjoy this, please send them here!

Kentucky
North Dakota
West Virginia
Wyoming

Today we are...

2010-02-15T15:13:00.000-08:00

...rearranging the furniture. And dancing. We even moved our gigantic piano thanks to the huge casters Mr. Wonderful put on it a few years ago.

We are also watching the bohemian waxwings that are filling up our trees.

And we are doing lots of cheering. We've added quite a few new families to the postcard swap today. Only eleven more to go!!! And the second swap is coming along too. I'll post a list of the states needed for that one tomorrow.

We are having a great President's Day! What are you doing today?

Getting to Know You part 17

2010-02-11T06:02:00.000-08:00

Q: Do you live in the same state/province you were born in?

A: Yes, but I live in a completely different part of the state and have lived in two other states between times.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Love Song

2010-02-09T22:29:00.000-08:00

For Wordfull Wednesday this week, Cocoa asked us to share "our song" if we have one, or just our favorite sappy love song. Somehow, Mr. Wonderful and I have never had a song that's "ours". But I definitely do have a favorite love song. "Something That We Do" by Clint Black. It makes me cry every time I listen to it!

To enjoy more sappy love songs, head over to Chocolate on My Cranium.

Come Join Us!

2010-02-08T12:42:00.000-08:00

I learned about a super awesome postcard swap last month but was too late to get in it, so I'm hosting my own!

How it works: 50 families (one from each state) will swap postcards over the next year. Each state will have their own week and will send out 49 postcards, one to each state, during that week. We will go in alphabetical order of the states. I would like to start the first week of March. At the end of 50 weeks we will all have received a postcard from 49 other states!

To join: email me at adventures and pursuits @ gmail dot com

If you are interested, but your state is not on the list of states we need, send me an email anyway. With enough interest I will put together a second (or more?) swap. I don't want anyone to miss out!

!!!UPDATE!!! I have a list started for the second swap! Seven families so far! Keep spreading the word!!! Tell your friends and family, send emails, and post it on your blogs!

And a big THANK YOU to those who have helped in promoting this swap. I could not have done this without you!!!

***NEW UPDATE*** The list for the second swap can be found HERE. Thanks!!!

ANOTHER NEW UPDATE --- We have a third group started. The list is HERE. WooHoo!!!
I decided to add a 4th group! Check HERE!!!

States we need:

North Dakota

The Button: Grab the button and spread the word!!!

Things to remember: This is a family swap, a great way for kids to learn about the states. Postcards should be state themed. You can buy them or just make them yourself if you'd like to. The cost to send 50 postcards is $14. Did I miss anything? Please send me an email if you have any questions.

Getting to Know You part 16

2010-02-04T14:52:00.001-08:00

Q: What time is it?

A: 2:54 PM

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Getting to Know You part 15

2010-01-28T09:14:00.000-08:00

Q: What do you use on your hair?

A: Head & Shoulders, Suave conditioner (wild cherry blossom), and a brush.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Top 3 in Marriage

2010-01-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

Cocoa's question for this week's Wordfull Wednesday is "What are the three most important things to you in marriage?"

I thought of my three real quick. Forgiveness, Kindness, and Friendship.

1) Forgiveness - It has to be sincere and quick. And it needs to happen often. I call my husband Mr. Wonderful, but he is not perfect and neither am I. We both make mistakes, forget things, make messes, or do things that frustrate the other. Sometimes it is harder to forgive than at other times. When it is harder, I get on my knees and pray for help. And I get it. My anger goes away, I remember how dearly I love Mr. Wonderful, and I am able to forgive and forget. Quite often I end up loving him even more.

2) Kindness - This shows up in so many different ways. One way for us to show kindness is to have a good attitude about taking care of our family and fulfilling our responsibilities as a husband and wife. Another way is in the way we speak, the words we choose, our tone of voice, and even the thoughts we have. There are also many, many extra little ways to show kindness. I love it when Mr. Wonderful chooses to watch a movie that he doesn't particularly enjoy, but he knows that I really like. Or when he puts his warm feet on my freezing cold feet. Or when he tells the kids that he loves me and thinks I'm the most beautiful woman on earth. I know what he appreciates too. Chocolate chip cookies (made with real butter), extra long kisses, and quick phone calls or emails while he is at work, just to tell him I love him. None of these things take huge effort, but they add so much to our marriage.

3) Friendship - Again, this is something that takes effort sometimes, and has lots of different aspects to it. Mr. Wonderful and I don't really have a lot in common in terms of hobbies and activities that we enjoy. He loves the outdoors and engineering electronic devices. I love sewing and shopping at thrift stores. We do enjoy reading together, although it is hard to choose a book sometimes. And we love walking together. Every date we go on includes a walk, and has since long before we were married. The important thing is that we spend time together. Communication is a big part of our friendship as well. As we have worked at spending time together and really talking/listening to each other we enjoy each other more and more all the time.

I asked Mr. Wonderful what he thought are the three most important things in marriage. He said, "Forgiveness, service, and rosy cheeks and beautiful eyes." He sure is Wonderful!

Inspiration of Late

2010-01-26T14:22:00.000-08:00

This post might seem a little random. It's just a few of the things I've enjoyed and found helpful lately.

I loved THIS POST and THIS POST from Simple Mom. Such super ideas!

I also really enjoyed THIS POST from Chocolate On My Cranium.

You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd! This is such a great song by Roger Miller. We all love it. Thanks Jane and Jocie! I tried adding a youtube video of this song, but it kept popping up little ads and I don't want ads, so here are the words. I highly recommend listening to the song if you can find it.

Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

Ya can't take a shower in a parakeet cage
Ya can't take a shower in a parakeet cage
Ya can't take a shower in a parakeet cage
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

All ya gotta do is put your mind to it
Knuckle down, buckle down, do it, do it, do it

Well, ya can't go a-swimmin' in a baseball pool
Ya can't go swimmin' in a baseball pool
Ya can't go swimmin' in a baseball pool
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

Ya can't change film with a kid on your back
Ya can't change film with a kid on your back
Ya can't change film with a kid on your back
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

Ya can't drive around with a tiger in your car
Ya can't drive around with a tiger in your car
Ya can't drive around with a tiger in your car
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

All ya gotta do is put your mind to it
Knuckle down, buckle down do it, do it, do it

Well, ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

Ya can't go fishin' in a watermelon patch
Ya can't go fishin' in a watermelon patch
Ya can't go fishin' in a watermelon patch
But you can be happy if you've a mind to

Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd
SPOKEN: "Ya can't roller skate in a buffalo herd"

I recently read "Yearning for the Living God" by F. Enzio Busche. It is wonderful! I get to go to Book Club tonight to discuss it. It is a compilation of experiences from Elder Bushe's life, beginning when he was born in Germany just 3 years before Hitler came into power. He grew up in Nazi Germany and was even drafted into the German Army just before the end of WWII. He has had quite a life and experienced amazing miracles and blessings. I really enjoyed reading this book!

Getting to Know You part 14

2010-01-21T09:00:00.000-08:00

Q: How do you like your toast?

A: With a little homemade applesauce spread on top.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Stretch

2010-01-20T13:44:00.000-08:00

My friend Jen issued a challenge the other day to stretch ourselves and see what our minds are capable of. I thought it was a great idea, but then wondered what I should do to work my brain muscles. I really want to strengthen my memory and my ability to think logically.

I don't know how accurate this is, but I've heard that recalling and recording memories you do have will strengthen your memory and help you remember even more. I figure it's worth a try. So I've started writing about some of my childhood memories in my journal. I might even write about some of them here. Even if it doesn't help me remember anything else, I'll have recorded what I do remember and I'll always be glad to have that.

I've been remembering what the house looked like that I first lived in. My parents live in it now, but it has been expanded and remodeled quite a bit and doesn't look much like it did when I was little. I also wrote everything I remember about my youngest sister being born. She is almost 11 years younger than I am, so I remember quite a bit. It was a lot of fun to remember all of that, especially since she is now expecting her first baby.

Since I'm not sure that writing down my memories is much of a stretch for me, I decided to take a class through BYU Independent Studies. They offer quite a few classes for free. I don't have to finish by a certain date, and I'm not graded or worrying about credit. All I have to worry about is learning the content. I'm excited about that. I'm taking the Basic Arithmetic course. I know I have learned all of this and more, but it has been a long time since I had to do much math and I'd like to freshen up a bit before getting in too deep.

Besides BYU there are lots and LOTS of free online courses available from some great colleges and universities.

The Master List of Free Online College Courses
The Master List of Free Language Learning Resources
University of Texas at Austin
Yale
Utah State University
MIT

That's only a few. My brain is tired just thinking of all you could learn. I'm remembering, though, that I'm a tortoise...not a hare. I'll get there!

Fresh Air

2010-01-15T10:16:00.000-08:00

Cough. Cough, cough, cough, ............. cough. That's what's been going on at our house. Since before Christmas, in fact. Everyone was coughing and no one was getting better and no one was sleeping, either.

(Isn't cough a funny looking word?)

This last weekend was especially rough. Monday came and the sun peaked out and the temperature got up to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. It was beautiful! So I opened the windows. Every one. And the fresh air came pouring into our germ infested house. It was glorious! We all went around wearing sweaters and jackets and smiles. The clean air helped our bodies and our minds.

That night we slept. We slept well. I even had a couple of dreams.

We still have the occasional cough, but the worst is far behind us. I am so grateful for fresh air.

Getting to Know You part 13

2010-01-14T13:50:00.000-08:00

Q: What is something you have and use regularly that you did without either as a child or an adult?

A: A shower. Until I was almost 16 I lived in houses that only had bathtubs. I didn't mind at all at the time, but I sure do love showers now. It would be hard for me to give that up.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

My Family

2010-01-13T14:50:00.000-08:00

Wordfull Wednesday is back! Check out Chocolate on My Cranium for more Wordfull Wednesday entries. All of the topics for this year will focus on families. For today we are asked to tell about our families and what makes us unique. I like using nicknames for my family members to maintain a little privacy. I know my blog isn't read by very many people, but I like to stay on the safe side.

This is my family.

Miss Banana, Miss Bear, Mr. Wonderful, Little Man, me, Miss Monkey, and Kiddo.

Our family started, of course, when Mr. Wonderful and I were married in the Denver LDS Temple just over 10 years ago. We really are best friends and it is so very nice.

Our first child was born one month before we celebrated our 1st anniversary. All of our kids are approximately 2 years apart. Definite stair-steps.

We live in Northern Idaho, far from any of our extended family and we miss them all terribly. We go to church every Sunday. We are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We enjoy homemade pizza, ice fishing (I have never been, it's always just Mr. Wonderful and the kids.), amateur radio (Mr. W and I are both licensed and Kiddo is working on it.), camping, having friends over, going for walks, chocolate chip cookies, the Andy Griffith Show, reading, and monopoly. Nothing too extraordinary, but still a pretty special family, I think.

January Fabric

2010-01-06T08:43:00.000-08:00

The Quilting Bee has started! Hooray! January is Donna's month. I got her fabric and pattern in the mail last week. I haven't had any sewing time since it came, but I'm anxious to get started on it. I'm definitely going to practice a few times before making the actual block to send to Donna. Check out the 1 Year 12 Quilts blog or Flickr group to see what her block will look like and how it's all coming together. It is a very pretty block. I can't wait to see how all the blocks look together!

2010

2010-01-05T10:34:00.000-08:00

Somehow the number 2010 always seemed very far away to me. It's rather strange that it is actually here. Maybe that's a good thing. I'm so surprised by it that I can't get it out of my mind and I haven't accidentally written 2009 on anything yet! I think that's a first for me.

I am excited for this new year. I want to write more. Hopefully that won't bore anyone to tears. I would also like to take more pictures. They won't necessarily go with what I write though. I think I just need to get into the habit of keeping my camera with me and making sure I have fresh batteries when I need them. Oh! I'm going to make a really awesome battery pouch like my friend Cathie did. One side holds fresh batteries and the other side holds dead batteries. Check it out HERE. It's so cool!

I'm not really making any resolutions for the new year. I'd just like to keep going in the right direction.

Going. That's pretty important. But at what speed?

If I go too slow, I'm never going to get anywhere. If I go too fast, I'm going to burn out and still won't get anywhere. I've been thinking a lot about a scripture in Mosiah (found in the Book of Mormon).

Mosiah 4:27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.

This scripture reminds me of the Tortoise and the Hare fable. That's what I want for this year. To be a tortoise. Not the most remarkable or accomplished, but one that keeps going and getting a little farther all the time.

Getting to Know You part 12

2009-12-31T05:01:00.000-08:00

Q: Will you be staying up to see the new year come in tonight?

My A: Probably not. I haven't in years. The kids go to bed, and I go to bed too. I'll party tomorrow. Happy New Year!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Betelehemu

2009-12-24T08:14:00.000-08:00

I just had to quickly share this really cool Nigerian Christmas carol. It is so full of energy and excitement! What a great way to rejoice in the birth of our Savior! Merry Christmas!

for a time

2009-12-14T06:12:00.000-08:00

This week is looking super, SUPER busy. Lots and lots to do. Happily, I am not feeling overwhelmed about all of this right now. But in an effort to keep sane this week I've decided to stay away from the computer for a time. Definitely for this week...but it could even last into the new year. I'm just planning to take one day at a time. I am very much looking forward to Christmas!

I might even come back with another new look for my blog. Something for the new year. Amy from A Common Place Life has started a new blog, Patchwork Weblog, all about how to enhance a blog. I followed her tutorial on how to change background color to get my green that I like so much. Thanks Amy!

Have a wonderful week and holiday season! I'll catch you later!

Getting to Know You part 11

2009-12-10T08:14:00.000-08:00

Q: Have you ever traveled or even lived outside of the country of your birth?

My A: Nope. {sigh} Maybe someday. For now it sure is fun thinking about all the places I would like to go!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question. I'd love to hear any stories you've got to share.

Edit: If you have never traveled or lived outside your country, where would you most like to visit? I would like to go to Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. After that, I have a great big long list...

O Christmas Tree

2009-12-08T16:09:00.000-08:00

On Saturday we went as a family to go cut a Christmas tree. It's a tradition of ours that started with our very first Christmas when James and I had been married for only a few months. We started it then because we both REALLY wanted a real Christmas tree, but knew we could not afford to go buy one. We had heard of people cutting their own trees in the National Forest, but didn't know much about it. We found out that a permit only costs $5. That was in our budget!

We bought a permit, got a map, and headed out to the woods. I have to admit that I didn't really enjoy our time spent getting a tree. It was so nice to spend time with my new husband, but I was cold, and pregnant, and not feeling completely great. We found what we thought would be a perfect tree and managed to get it home strapped to the top of our little old car. When we got it all set up in our apartment it looked funny. I mean funny in a comical and strange sort of way. It was not what we had pictured. But it was what we had. Our decorations were pretty meager as well. We bought one box of small colored glass balls and one strand of colored lights. It just wasn't enough, so we sat down together at our little dining table and made some simple star ornaments out of construction paper and glitter. I think we made 20 or so. Now, 10 years later, I only have one left, and it is faded and misshapen. But it is one of my most treasured ornaments.

That funny looking tree of ours really grew on us. It smelled good. It still had pretty pine cones attached to it. And it was ours. Somehow it made us feel more like a family and not just two people who were blissfully learning a whole lot about each other.

Our next Christmas was quite different. We had a new baby, a new job, and a new home. Since we had so much, we decided to go buy a nice tree at a regular tree lot in town. The cheapest one there was $40. We bought it and took it home. Within just a couple of days it was dropping pine needles like crazy! We found needles everywhere! We were still finding and cleaning up needles from that tree by the time the next Christmas came around. We cut our own tree that year. And have every year since. Well, really James has. Because of babies and small children, I've almost always managed to get out of going to cut the tree. Until this year. James and the kids really wanted me to go, and I knew that Little Man would love the experience, so I said I would go. I wasn't really looking forward to it. But the day came, and I went. I had a good time. A really good time. Things didn't quite go as smoothly as planned. But it was OK! At one point we were all crammed into our Jeep driving through the snow trying to get to the place that the map said was designated for cutting Christmas trees. All of a sudden we came to a dead end. The road we were on did not connect to the one we wanted to be on like it looked like on the map. The kids were starting to ask, "When are we going to stop?" We didn't know. Little Man said, "Out? Out?" I explained to him that we were going to go find a tree to cut down. He looked out the window, pointed and very excitedly yelled, "Tree!" We were in the middle of the forest surrounded by trees. Why should we not stop right there and get one of these trees? He is a smart kid, that one. On we went, slowly working our way back to the main road so that we could go to a completely different area. The snow on the trees was very beautiful. And we were going slow enough (about 10mph) that we actually had time to look a little closer at things as we drove by. We were all squished against each other, but no one was complaining about it. We were warm and munching on the snack we had brought along. I was so content! So happy to have my most favorite people that close to me. I told them so. I felt so good, that I just had to sing. I sang one fun Christmas song after the next. I mostly sang by myself, everyone else was busy eating, but every now and then one or two would sing a little bit with me. It was wonderful! We did finally get our tree and it still looks a little funny. But we love it. And I am very much looking forward to being able to go cut a tree next year!

Something new for Christmas

2009-12-07T14:22:00.000-08:00

We are definitely getting into the Christmas swing of things around here. We are singing and listening to Christmas music every day, our tree is up and decorated, our stockings are hung, and we're almost done shopping for or making all our gifts. So I had to redo my blog too!

No, I really didn't have to. In fact I probably should have spent the time doing something else. But I didn't. And so far, I don't regret it! Tomorrow morning when I'm running around like crazy trying to find everything everyone needs for the day, but has managed to lose and only Mom can find, I might have some second thoughts about the time I spent on the computer today. But there were some new things I've been wanting to try and some old things I've been wanting to get rid of. There are still a few changes I want to make. But I'll save those for another day.

The bell on the header is from a vintage Christmas card I found on Flickr. (Thanks for the suggestion, Cocoa!) As you can see, I only used a part of it. I'm pretty happy with the way it all turned out. I might play around with it a little bit more, but maybe not. I really am trying to keep life simple.....so what I have will have to do. I really do like the blue background! It is such a pretty color!!!

Edit: I don't know why I called the background blue. It's green! I guess there is a little blue to it, but mostly green. Still such a pretty color though!

Getting to Know You part 10

2009-12-03T15:09:00.000-08:00

Q: Sunrise or Sunset? Do you have a preference?

My A: I have always loved watching both, but sunrise is my very favorite! When I watch the sunrise I feel peaceful, hopeful, excited, and energetic all at the same time.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Advent Envelopes

2009-12-02T06:34:00.000-08:00

I finished my advent envelopes on Monday! Just in time. We sang our first song last night. And it was nice. I'm looking forward to singing the rest. I think the kiddos are too. I know they are looking forward to choosing an envelope and finding out what song they have chosen.

I had considered putting numbers on the envelopes. I think most advent calendars involve numbers. Maybe that is part of the definition of an advent calendar. I should find out. But I wanted this to be a random kind of thing. Definitely a surprise kind of thing.

Here is the list of songs we will be singing this year. I think I will change it a little bit for next year...probably every year after that too. Wait, wait, wait! I'm getting way ahead of myself here. Just wait and see how it all goes this time around!

All of the songs come from the Children's Songbook or the Hymnal. Both from my church. If you click on each title it will take you to a page where you can print out the sheet music or you can listen to the song. If you click play as it is it will just play a piano accompaniment. If you click on "words and music" on the upper left-hand side of the page, then click play, you can hear a nicer recorded version with actual people singing. All of this is available through the Church's Music Website. I LOVE THAT SITE!!! It's amazing!

Away in a Manger

Christmas Bells

Have a Very Merry Christmas!

He Sent His Son

Little Jesus

Mary's Lullaby

Oh, Hush Thee, My Baby

Once within a Lowly Stable

Picture a Christmas

Samuel Tells of the Baby Jesus

Sleep, Little Jesus

Stars Were Gleaming

The Nativity Song

The Shepherd's Carol

There Was Starlight on the Hillside

When Joseph Went to Bethlehem

Who is the Child?

Angels We Have Heard on High

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing

It Came upon the Midnight Clear

Joy to the World

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Oh, Come, All Ye Faithful

Silent Night

The First Noel

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T06:34:00.000-08:00

Real Life

2009-11-24T12:55:00.000-08:00

Thank you to those of you who commented on my last post. You are all so wonderful! I had thought about apologizing for letting my stress overflow onto my blog...but I won't. A lot of blogs I read are about lots of wonderful things. So wonderful that I get the impression that life is just perfect in other homes and parts of the world. Logically I know this is not true, but I still get that feeling sometimes.

My life is really not perfect. It is really not terrible either! I am very grateful for the life and circumstances I have been given. But it isn't perfect. I have bad days, and I make mistakes, and crummy things happen sometimes. They come and then they go. Some of them I try really hard to forget. Some I try to remember so that I can learn from them and try to do a little better next time. So, occasionally I am going to blog about my imperfect life and the things I learn.

I learned, or was reminded, of a few good things on that stressful day last week.

Sunshine is very wonderful and I had been missing it.

I very easily forget cleaning tips that I've learned and used in the past,
and should make them a habit, not just a good idea now and then.

I really don't have to do everything.

Oh yeah, I want to improve myself...I don't always want to be just like
this. It is ok to make changes here and there.

I need to vent. Simply talking or writing about what is troubling me
does wonders for the way I am feeling. As soon as I published that last
post I felt much better about things and I was able to get over feeling so
overwhelmed.

Prayer is ALWAYS a good idea. I can't think of anything that helps
more.

I want this to be a blog about the real me. I can't be anyone else. And I'm pretty happy about that.

Oh, one more quick thing. I'm almost done with my Advent Envelopes. The envelopes themselves are all done and I'm about halfway finished with the little cards to go inside. I can't wait!

Getting to Know You part 9

2009-11-19T12:44:00.000-08:00

Q: What are you doing to get ready for Thanksgiving?

My A: Going crazy trying to clean my house! And trying to stay focused on the things I am thankful for and the really wonderful blessings I have been given and not be distracted by other things that really don't matter.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question.

Ok, I'm going to add another question or two today. Where do you start when you have a huge, overwhelming task to accomplish? I am facing such a task today. Actually it's a whole bunch of smaller tasks that are all piled up into one gigantic mountain of a task. In my mind it is just about impossible. It seems so overwhelming to me that I don't know where to start, and so I'm just NOT starting. That doesn't help anything!!! Does this happen to anyone else? If so, what do you do? I know, and I tell myself, that if I will just start I'll feel better and I'll accomplish something (as opposed to nothing!), and life will be looking up. Maybe not perfect, but certainly better than it was before. How do you take that first step?

Ribbon Tag Toy for Babies

2009-11-16T13:23:00.000-08:00

Christmas is coming quicker than I had realized. I kept going along thinking, "It's only November, I've got plenty of time..." Why do I do this to myself??? Thanksgiving is next week!!!

So over the weekend I started and finished one Christmas gift! It is for one of my very littlest nieces and I hope she likes it.

My Mom gave one of these to my youngest when he was pretty little and he loved it. Then I saw this idea, and decided to try something like it. My babies all loved the crinkly noises that plastic makes. I just used an empty wipes package and stuffed it inside the square. It measures approximately 6x6 inches.

Today I'm Thankful For...

2009-11-14T13:44:00.000-08:00

very helpful and kind people,
a daughter who says, "Ooooh, Yay!" when I say, "You need to practice the piano."
sunshine,
a husband who loves me, no matter what,
prayer and the peace it brings,
wonderful parents,
pumpkin pie,
and a nice warm house,
just to name a few.

Getting to Know You part 8

2009-11-12T11:20:00.000-08:00

Q: What kind of jewelry, if any, are you wearing right now?

A: One ring on each ring finger. My wedding ring and a CTR ring. That's all I usually wear.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

1 Year, 12 Quilts

2009-11-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

I joined a virtual quilting bee!!!

I am SOOOO excited!!!

I've seen lots of people around blogland that were participating in virtual quilting bees and I really wanted to but never could find out about one in time to join in. But then Alissa and Kristen started the Block Party Quilt Along and started a Flickr group to go with it where lots of new quilting bees could be organized.

I jumped right in!!! And now I'm part of the 1 Year, 12 Quilts virtual quilting bee with 11 other amazing ladies!

What is a virtual quilting bee? I had never heard of one until about a year ago when I got busy with blogs. Here is my basic definition. Usually 12 ladies (I have come across a couple of quilting men) make up a quilting bee. Each one is assigned a specific month. When one person's month comes they send enough fabric to make a quilt block to each of the other bee members and they also usually request a certain kind of quilt block. A log cabin block, for example. The members then make that block with the fabric they were sent and then send the completed block back to the person of the month. Then the next month someone else gets to take a turn, and so on. By the end each person will have 12 quilt blocks to make into a whole quilt. Of course, there are all kinds of variations on quilting bees, but that is basically how it all works.

1 Year, 12 Quilts will start in January. My month will be March. I've got a few ideas about what kind of block I want to request, but I don't know about fabric yet. I'm already having fun thinking about it and wondering what kinds of blocks others will choose. I can't wait to start!

Getting to Know You part 7

2009-11-05T06:12:00.000-08:00

Q: What did you eat for supper last night?

A: French toast and applesauce.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Influences

2009-11-04T08:03:00.000-08:00

The Wordfull Wednesday topic for today has given me a lot to think about. This is the assignment from Chocolate on My Cranium: Besides the Savior, Heavenly Father, and your family, list ten of the most important and influential people in your life. Write the reasons why they are and have been so important to you. Some of these will be people you have known, but some might be people you have only heard of or read about." (Mary Ellen Edmunds, Peculiar in a Good Way, pg.23)

This is what I've come up with.

George Bean - I don't remember not knowing George. We grew up together and were in the same school and church classes. George was born with spina bifida. He taught me so much about what a person is able to do regardless of their physical abilities or disabilities. We played together as kids, inside and outside. When we got into Jr. High and high school we danced together, wheelchair and all. We went on a few dates and he was a perfect gentleman, he even opened all my doors. He was a wheelchair racer. He went to college and lived on his own. He married a wonderful girl in the Temple. He had faith. And such a strong spirit. George passed away at age 25 and I have no doubt that he is still working hard and accomplishing great things.

Dwila Perriton - Dwila was my visiting teacher about 8 years ago. She taught me what it really means to be a visiting teacher. She loved me. She helped me whenever she could. She even taught me how to piece quilt blocks. I've been hooked on quilting ever since.

Cecily Dixon - Cecily is my neighbor and my dear friend. She has been a mom for five years longer than I have. It is so nice having someone with just that much more experience right down the street. I can't even begin to tell all that I have learned from Cecily.

Marjorie Pay Hinckley - Sister Hinckley amazes me! Her faith, cheerfulness, wisdom, hard work, and love are just a few of her characteristics that I would like to emulate. I was only able to listen to her speak once in her life, but I loved every minute of it. What a sweet example she is to me.

Fred Rogers - I grew up watching and loving Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. As I got older and learned more about Fred Rogers I loved him even more. Here is one of my favorite quotes from Mr. Rogers that is very fitting for today's topic, "If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never even dream of. There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person."

Mrs. Christiansen - I was a daydreamer when I was a kid. And so I took a long time to get things done, especially school work. I had to spend a lot of recesses inside finishing my work. Mrs. Christiansen was my 4th grade teacher. She suggested that I set a timer at home while doing my homework and try to beat it. It worked!!! I still struggle with getting my work done quickly. When it seems to get especially bad, I use the timer trick, and it still works.

Robert McCloskey - My very favorite book as a kid was Make Way For Ducklings. I've loved books and reading since then. And I've always wanted to go to Boston.

Lance Farmer - Bishop Farmer was my bishop when I was in high school. He encouraged and expected me to do good things. He also set a wonderful example of doing what the Lord asks of us, even if it is hard.

Cathy Clark - I gained a lot of confidence in high school. My choir teacher, Mrs. Clark, had a lot to do with that. She was a wonderful choir director but she did so much more. She loved and encouraged her students. She got to know us and gave so much of herself to us.

David A. Bednar - One of my favorite speakers is Elder David A. Bednar. I first got to listen to Elder Bednar when I was attending Ricks College and he was the new President there. I loved listening to him speak then. He wanted the students to really get to know the scriptures and strongly encouraged us to bring them to every devotional. At the beginning of each devotional he would ask to see our scriptures. It was quite inspiring to watch as thousands of students lifted their scriptures into the air. In one particular talk in 1998, he was talking about the future of Ricks College and he compared it to Nephi's experience in being commanded by the Lord to build a ship. President Bednar said, "In essence, then, Nephi was commanded and instructed to build something he had never built before in order to go someplace he had never been before. May I suggest that Nephi's experience in building that ship is a model for us at Ricks College as we prepare for and move into the next century. We, too, must build something we have never built before in order to go someplace we have never been before." I was so impressed when I heard him say this that I wrote that last line on a blank page in the back of my scriptures. This quote immediately came to mind 2 and a half years later when I heard the announcement that Ricks College would become a 4 year university called BYU-Idaho. It also comes to my mind whenever I am faced with new challenges that threaten to overwhelm me. Almost every time I hear Elder Bednar speak I come away feeling so enlightened! I learn so much from him. His last talk in the October General Conference was another one of those. So wonderful!!!

Fun Clipart

2009-11-02T09:55:00.000-08:00

I've been finding some fun old pictures lately like the one I posted on Halloween. Here are a few of the sites I've found. Sometimes you have to explore a little to find the vintage pictures, but it's worth the effort.

Karen's Whimsey

Vintage Holiday Crafts

Public Domain Clipart

The Vintage Moth

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

Getting to Know You part 6

2009-10-29T08:10:00.000-07:00

Q: What is your favorite part of Halloween?

A: Halloween is not my favorite holiday, but I do love the chocolate! I also really enjoy carving pumpkins.

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Pass the Pumpkin

2009-10-27T13:11:00.000-07:00

I guess family games have been on my mind a lot lately. We like playing games as a family. But it can be a little difficult deciding what to play sometimes. Everyone has different favorites and dislikes and abilities and attention spans. So I am always on the lookout for new games to try that we can all enjoy together.

Last night for Family Home Evening I came up with a new version of hot potato for us to try. We all sat in a circle and passed around a small pumpkin instead of a potato. I turned on some music, let it play for a minute or so then turned it off again. In regular hot potato games the person holding the potato (or pumpkin) would just be out. But in this game the person holding the pumpkin gets to draw one thing on the pumpkin. An eye, a nose, an ear....whatever they want. (James pointed out to me that everyone will want to hold on to the pumpkin as long as they can instead of passing it on quickly. He was right. But usually a quick reminder was enough to get the pumpkin going again.) After drawing on the pumpkin that person takes a turn at running the music. We had them turn away so that they couldn't see where the pumpkin was. It helped to keep things a little more random.

This is what we ended up with:

Isn't he cute? Perfect for Halloween! We only did the one pumpkin last night. We all had a good time together and now have a fun new addition to our porch.

What kind of animal am I?

2009-10-26T13:43:00.000-07:00

While organizing our games last week I came across a favorite. I made it a couple of years ago. Since it was out I thought I would take a couple of pictures and share it.

Without looking, everyone gets one card taped to their back.

Then we have to try to figure out what animal is on our back. We take turns asking questions. But they have to be yes or no questions. Things like,

"Do I live on a farm?"

"Am I a mammal?"

"Do I have feathers?"

The first person to figure out their animal wins. Everyone else still really wants to know what animal they are, so we just keep going till we are all done.

We love this game! It is great for Family Home Evening. Or for rainy/snowy/cold afternoons when the kids are bored. I also like it because the kids don't fight with each other while we are playing. They want to know what animal they are, but they also know they can't figure it out without help so they are as nice as can be.

Friday's Fix-up: games

2009-10-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

This isn't much of a fix-up but at least it's something, I guess. This closet has always been a problem area. It is finally starting to shape up! This week I straightened up the two bottom shelves. They weren't terribly messy, but that tub really needed to be organized!

Nice and neat! (that blob of black stuff is just some black paint that some child thought should be there.)

I'm very happy to say that the next shelf up doesn't need any straightening! Last winter when I posted my very first Friday's Fix-up I decided to store our games all on their sides (except a select few that really couldn't be on their side) in the hopes that they would be easier to put away and would then become less of a mess. It worked! The games are still nicely stored on their sides and we even tend to get some of them out more often because they are easier to get out too!

Next week I'll do that last shelf and this closet will be done! Hooray!!! It feels so good to be making some progress!

If you have a fix-up to share please leave a comment telling about it or with a link to your own blog post about it. I will add your link to the bottom of this post.

Getting to Know You part 5

2009-10-22T13:41:00.000-07:00

Q: What was the last song you had running through your mind?

A: I Think We're Alone Now

I just got home from the grocery store...I think that's where it came from. I really don't remember hearing it though! Brains do such funny things sometimes!!

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

What's in my name?

2009-10-21T10:20:00.000-07:00

For Wordfull Wednesday today, we were asked to explain our first name. Why we have it and what it means.

My name is Aimee. It is the french form of the name Amy and means beloved. I've always loved that it is french! And spelled just a little differently. My parents really liked the name Amy, but then saw it spelled Aimee and liked that even better. Growing up I rarely ever heard of anyone else named Aimee. Just lots of Amy's. My mom even cut out a picture from the newspaper in 1983 showing the family of Ferdinand Marcos, including a niece named Aimee who looked like she was about my age. I still have the clipping. In the last year or so it seems that I've run into all kinds of Aimee's. Even one with the same maiden name!

To read other's Wordfull Wednesday entries, visit Chocolate on My Cranium.

Scraps, Beautiful, Scraps!!!

2009-10-19T13:52:00.000-07:00

Last week was a very nice week. On top of every other good thing that went on, I won a bag of scraps from Sew, Mama, Sew. And oh my, are there some amazingly beautiful scraps! This picture really doesn't show it all very well. My favorites are hiding way back there on the right. Four pieces of Heather Ross's Far Far Away fabric line!!! I knew I wouldn't ever buy any because it's SO expensive. But it is so pretty!!! And now I have a little bit to look at and do something with, if I can ever decide what to do with it.

I've had lots of fun just looking at all of these different scraps! Thank you Sew, Mama, Sew!!!

Getting to Know You part 4

2009-10-18T14:41:00.000-07:00

Q: How tall are you?

A: 5' 5"

Please leave a quick comment with your own answer to this question!

A Day Off

2009-10-17T09:01:00.000-07:00

Today my super, amazing, and wonderful husband has taken all the kids out for the day and I get a day off. I'll be spending most of it here.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

The Pledge of Allegiance

2009-10-17T08:11:00.000-07:00

Instead of a fix-up

2009-10-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

I had every intention of getting my fix-up done for today. But I kept putting it off and having other things to do. Then I thought I would try to do it real quick this morning, but I've decided to do other things today. It is my birthday, after all. So I'll have a fix-up next week.

I wasn't going to blog about my birthday, but I've had some really nice thoughts today and wanted to share them. Mostly I've felt very loved. Encouraged. Liked. (which is very different from being loved I think, and just as nice.) And thought of. I don't quite feel deserving of all of this, but I'm very grateful for it.

The picture is of a card I received. It's so lovely. Inside was a quote from Louisa May Alcott. It fits me so perfectly that I had to make it part of my blog. It's at the top of the left sidebar.

Thanks for loving and liking and thinking of me today! It's been a very nice birthday!

Getting to Know You part 3

2009-10-15T08:33:00.000-07:00

Q: If you could only eat one food all day long, what would it be?

A: pumpkin pie! mmmmm

Please leave a comment with your own answer to this question!

Getting to Know You part 2

2009-10-12T08:01:00.000-07:00

Q: What time of day were you born?

A: 11:42 pm

Please leave a quick comment with your own answer to this question!

Park City Girl Quilt Festival

2009-10-09T10:19:00.000-07:00

Amy at Park City Girl is hosting a Quilt Festival. So I'm blogging about this little quilt again so that I can participate.

Last spring I joined in a swap from Creative Chicks and got some great fabric from my partner Michelle. We both enjoy making skirts for ourselves and daughters so that is what we had in mind when choosing fabric to swap. I made a cute skirt for my 3 year old, and still had some fabric left over. So I decided to make a little doll quilt out of the rest.

I used an old white pillowcase to make the border. It is SO soft! This was my first time quilting with a walking foot. I enjoyed the process and really like the way it turned out!

For the back I used orange with a very small white polka dot. I had just enough of the bright flowery print to make the binding. I tried sewing the binding on by machine with this quilt. It looks ok. I am very far from being a perfectionist so this was alright with me. It was very fast, and I really liked that.

I love this little quilt! My girls use it for their dolls, but sometimes I just like to pick it up and look at it. It always makes me smile!!

Friday's Fix-up: I can see the floor!

2009-10-09T09:37:00.000-07:00

This week I tackled the bottom of our hall closet.

I sorted out the puzzles and they are now stored in the top of the closet where little people cannot dump them out. I took everything else out and the only thing that got to go back was our bocce game. Don't you love that carpet? I think it must be the only place in the whole house that still has the original carpet.

Now if I can only keep it from turning into a dumping ground again, all will be well! Next week I'll move up a little higher in this closet and organize a shelf or two.

If you have a fix-up to share leave a comment telling about it or leave a link to your blog post about it. I will add the links to the bottom of this post.

Lynsey

Getting to Know You

2009-10-08T05:57:00.000-07:00

One of the things I like so much about blogging is getting to know other people. Some are new to me, and some are people I've known for a long time, but blogging helps me to learn more about a person. So I'm going to try something new on my blog and I'm calling it Getting to Know You. Every Thursday, and maybe on other days too, I will post a simple question. I would like you to answer it in a comment. You could leave a one word answer or a few sentences. Something quick. I just think this could be fun!

My question for today is:

What color shoes are you wearing right now?

My answer for today is:

BLUE

Six Little Words

2009-10-07T10:09:00.000-07:00

Today's assignment from Chocolate On My Cranium is to describe ourselves in only six words.

I am very much a girl.

Balance and Prophets

2009-10-02T14:27:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged all week. I missed it! I have to admit that I am very happy just to be writing another post.

I've been working this week on finding the right balance. Life changes now and then, throwing new things at you or taking other things away. And I have to adjust and shift things around to find a new balance. I think I'm starting to get the hang of this particular balance. Maybe a little more tweaking, but it's looking and feeling good so far.

My mind has also been occupied by thoughts of this weekend. My parents are coming to visit. I am so excited to see them! And I get to listen to a prophet's words. The 179th Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be held tomorrow and Sunday, Oct. 3-4. I am so grateful for a modern day prophet to give us counsel and guidance from the Lord!

President Thomas S. Monson

Friday's Fix-up: clearing out the junk

2009-10-02T09:41:00.000-07:00

I have too much stuff. I try to keep it spread around the house in different places so that it doesn't look so bad. But there is one place in my laundry room that is really just a pile of stuff. It is in boxes, but they are overflowing and it is not a nice thing to look at.

My goal was to get rid of at least one box.

I got two!!! It seemed like such a daunting task, but when I started out thinking that I didn't have to do it all at once it wasn't so scary. I actually had a hard time stopping at just the two boxes. But I really had to move on to other things.

For next week I'm going to do more clearing out. Maybe another box, or maybe stuff from some other part of the house.

If you have a fix-up to share, leave a comment telling about it and/or leave a link to your post. Sorry, but I still can't get Mr. Linky to work. If you leave a comment with a link I will come back and add your link to the bottom of this post.

Friday's Fix-up: my cheap idea almost worked

2009-09-25T05:36:00.000-07:00

My bathroom has absolutely no decorations. None! It doesn't even have a nice shower curtain, just a very bland cream colored plastic one. The closest thing to any type of decoration is the light fixture. It has yellow roses. So I thought I'd go with that theme. I like yellow bathrooms.
Last week I found a flat sheet at a thrift store with yellow roses on it that match the light fixture almost exactly. It cost $1.27.

So I planned to make it into a nice shower curtain to cover up the bland plastic one. It was going to be so beautiful! And then I washed and dried it...........with a blue crayon!!!

Aaaagghhh!!! I have know idea how that silly crayon could have gotten into that particular load of laundry! I know, I know, I have five children. I should know by now that I need to check for crayons and other strange things in the laundry. But I didn't, and there went my beautiful shower curtain. So I moved on to the rest of my plan. The sheet was bigger than the shower curtain so I planned to use the extra on this empty wall space like Vanessa of V and Co. does.

That part turned out nice. It is in the bathroom with very crummy lighting, so you'll just have to trust me that the wall looks way better now.

Again, I found the hoops at a thrift store. Quite a while ago, though. The larger one cost 49 cents and the smaller ones cost 19 cents. Like I said, cheap! I think I'll have to keep checking for another sheet with yellow roses. I still would like to give my idea a try.

edited to add: I need to do some more clearing out of stuff. So for next week my goal is to get rid of one box of stuff from my laundry/sewing room.

If you have a fix-up to share, leave a comment telling about it or with a link to your own blog post. For some reason, I can't get Mr. Linky to work at the moment. As soon as I can I'll add it to this post.

Cathie

Who Am I?

2009-09-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

For today's Wordfull Wednesday we are supposed to describe who we are and even include a picture of ourselves. Visit Chocolate on My Cranium for more Wordfull Wednesday participants.

Cocoa said this would be hard. She was right.

As I started thinking about who I am and what I wanted to write about myself I immediately thought of some of my less desirable characteristics. I am easily distracted, I procrastinate, I'm not very organized. Things like that. I quickly stopped myself. Cocoa also said that we should show our beauty. What is there about me that is beautiful? I had to think.

I am almost 31 and am more comfortable with myself than I think I ever have been. It's a nice feeling to be happy being myself. I'm not always thrilled with myself. Sometimes I do things right and sometimes I don't.

And yet I would not be the person I am now without the person I was last year, or 5 or 10 or 20 years ago. So I am going to share lots of pictures of me. All kinds of different me's that add up to the me I am now.

Me at age 1.

I was the first child born to my wonderful parents. My mom (and my grandma and a couple of aunts) made most of my clothes when I was little. My mom taught me how to sew when I was old enough. I love to sew! I'm still learning a lot, but I very much enjoy it.

I very quickly gained two brothers. This picture was taken the day my brother Sam was blessed. I was 3 and my brother Ben was just about 18 months old. I did finally get two sisters. Heidi is 6 and a half years younger than me. (I remember jumping up and down when I learned I had a sister.) And Dixie is almost 11 years younger than me.

This picture of my family was taken at our family reunion this summer. It was SO wonderful to be with all of them. Oh, I love them!

I was a pretty quiet kid. I sang to myself a lot. And daydreamed a lot. I still do when I have a quiet moment. I also grew up with a large strawberry patch and a few lilac bushes in the yard. Those were some of my favorite places to sit and imagine. Strawberries and lilacs are still two of my very favorite things.

I got to go with my Dad on a trip to Seattle when I was 14. He took this picture of me in our hotel room. We had great conversations on that trip, and a few others I was able to go on with him. I still love talking to my Dad. And I love maps, traveling, and exploring new places.

I graduated from high school in 1997. Though I would never want to go back to high school, it was a great growing experience for me. Right after my freshman year of high school I moved from a small town in Idaho to Denver and a much larger high school. I spent more time with my brothers and came to depend on them quite a bit. I had to really decide what I believed and had to stand up for it. I landed the lead role in the school musical when I was a Jr. and gained a lot of self confidence from that and many other experiences. Now I am able to lead singing time for the Primary kids at church every Sunday and it isn't scary to me. I also met the boy who would one day be my husband. In fact we hung out quite a bit and dated off and on.

This is us when I was a senior and he was getting ready to leave on his mission. (I know it looks like an engagement picture, but it really wasn't.) I didn't tell him that I would wait for him. And I didn't. I wrote him a "Dear John" after he had been gone for 1 year. I did, however, realize my mistake. I broke up with the other guy and wrote back to James a couple of months before he came home. I learned a lot then. I came to appreciate James so much more than I had before. I realized that he really did have the qualities I wanted in a husband. Now I know that he has even more wonderful qualities that I didn't even think about at the time.

This is me as a new mother at age 21. I am so glad I'm not a new mother any more. I'm still learning a lot about being a mom, and there are lots of new things coming. But I do love being a mom. It has taught me and changed me more than any other experience I've had.

This is me reeling in a salmon in Puget Sound this summer. Yes, it was cold that day! James and I went to Whidbey Island for a few days to celebrate our 10th anniversary. As we were talking about what we would like to do on our little getaway James said that he would really like to go salmon fishing. He loves fishing. I don't mind fishing so much, but I am terrified of water and get pretty nervous out in a boat. James asked me if I would be ok with salmon fishing and I told him that "without kids, I can handle it." I really wanted to explore some of the little towns on the island and do some window shopping. James really does not like shopping. I asked if he would be too bored with that. He said, "Without kids, I can handle it."

So we went fishing and I really enjoyed it. I even caught the first fish! I'm learning that some things might not be as scary as I had thought.

And so this is me now at age 30. I wonder who I will be after the next 30 years. I'm excited to find out.

Pears From My Yard

2009-09-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

I'm canning the ripe ones today.

They are big and juicy and my kitchen smells really good.

Friday's Fix-up: more pictures on my wall

2009-09-18T08:53:00.000-07:00

I call my entryway the coat room. It is more of a room than a hallway and it is where we hang our coats and backpacks and stuff our hats and gloves and boots and helmets and whatever else happens to land there. It is usually a pretty chaotic place. And it's the first thing you see when you come into my home! This is a little mortifying to me. In a slight attempt to make the coat room a little nicer I hung up a few pictures on one wall, planning to fill the wall with pictures of people who are dear to us. As you can see, I didn't get very far.

I have now added 5 pictures, and it looks a little nicer. Fuller. More special people.

It's not done yet. I want to keep adding pictures. And someday I would like to get rid of that awful wood panelling!!! Or at least paint it. You just wait, eventually it will end up being a Friday Fix-up.

My fix-up for next week: super cheap bathroom decor for my very blah bathroom.

If you have a fix-up of any kind you'd like to share, write a post about it on your own blog and add your link to the Mr. Linky box below. Or leave a comment telling about something you have fixed-up.

♥Aimee

Advent Calendar Beginnings

2009-09-17T13:23:00.000-07:00

I started working on our advent calendar! I mentioned last week how excited I was about my idea...well, now I'm even more excited. So far it is turning out just like I had imagined it would, and that doesn't happen for me very often so I'm extra excited about this.

I've wanted an advent calendar for our family for a very long time. I wanted it to help us remember the reason for Christmas and be simple at the same time. The holiday season is so full of treats and getting stuff that I didn't want it to be a treat filled calendar either. I think I've got just the right thing!

Every night, as part of our bedtime routine, we read the scriptures together as a family and quite often will sing a song or two or seven, depending on time and mood. So, I am making 25 little envelopes out of felt and old scraps of Christmas fabric.

Inside of each little envelope will be a card with the name of a Christmas song for us to sing together before we go to bed. I'm hoping this will bring a little calm into our home amidst all the hustle and bustle of Christmas. I love the excitement of Christmas, but I also love the peace.

I love these old Christmas fabrics. I wish I knew how old the fabric was. It came from a tree skirt kit that my mom found at a second hand store and gave to me when I was newly married. I made the tree skirt years ago, and have hung onto the scraps since then. I really love these fabrics. I feel nostalgic just thinking about them. I have 5 envelopes done so far! They measure 3.5 inches tall and 3.5 inches wide.

This is what the back looks like.

All of these little envelopes will sit in a basket on top of our piano just waiting to be chosen. And of course we will know that as the basket empties, Christmas will be that much closer.