Our day of love

It started with a demonstration
on the use of a Bible concordance.
Of course love was the word of the day.
The girls looked up a few of the familiar verses
in their own Bibles.
They each picked a favorite
or one short enough to be age appropriate
and turned it into a poster.
I even let them use paint
because it was a holiday, after all.

We did some school.
It was warm.
The girls played outside,
if making beds on the deck and cuddling
with the kitties in the sunshine constitutes playing.
They stripped off all their winter clothes
and went searching in the basement
for their "summer" shoes...
crocs and sandals.
It wasn't THAT warm.

I spray painted some old frames
out in the melting snow drifts.
I made a pound cake
without the butter....
I discovered today
when I went to warm up my coffee in the microwave.
Hello, bowl of butter.

There was an inappropriate facebook comment from Steeb.
I was not surprised.
He likes to be inappropriate in public venues.

I helped Josie make red jello for our special dinner.
We didn't give it enough time to set
but it still made for a pretty topping
for our butterless pound cake.

We each cleaned one room
so Daddy would be proud
and we could relax during the evening's festivities.
Addie set the table.....
removing a leaf for a more intimate meal.
There were candles
a tablecloth
valentine napkins
pretty china
and our very last bottle of 75% off sparkling cider.

There were love notes at each place
from Mommy
and the girls decided to wear their girliest pink dresses,
the chiffon kind,
not the Gap kind that I prefer.
Hair was still sort of in French braids from church,
something I was quite proud of.

Steve grilled burgers and brats
because it was so warm,
making me very anxious for the real spring
and all that goes with it to arrive.
Afterwards, the girls wanted to recite their love verses.

It got quite silly
and turned into a dance party.
The inappropriate kind.
They are their father's daughters.

Next were games on the Wii.
Have I mentioned we love our Wii?
Ella and I sneaked off to my cozy bed to cuddle and read.
There was talk of possibly piercing her ears
and she asked if I remembered when she was "2 or 3"
when I would pick up her pink blankie with my toes
and throw it over my shoulder
before carrying her upstairs for her nap.
Of course I remembered.
It was yesterday.

Gwen and her Daddy and the chubby cheeks she has become quite proud of.

Gwen, in all her rambunctiousness,
found us in our hide-out
and crawled way down under the covers
ripping apart my bed.
She pulled of my socks to give me a foot massage
but ended up trying to pick the fuzz from between my toes.

The Wii games ended.
Daddy came to find us
but we were fake sleeping
like we always are when he comes to find us.
Ella stayed "sleeping" even as Daddy threatened
her belly with zerberts
again and again and again
he counted down
breathing right on her without actually zerberting.
It was torture to watch.
But she stayed there
still as a rock with a little smile peeking
from behind her strategically placed
sleeping hands.

And THEN,
I got a homemade Valentine!!!!
Admittedly, it had taken him several attempts
to correctly cut out a heart.
The scraps he left on the table were proof.
But it was homemade.
And he was so proud of himself.
Like a kindergardener bringing home
a special gift for his mommy.
I melted.

Counting my blessings this Valentine's Day!

I found an old $10 frame for some of my new letter press art!

"self indulgent ramblings of a hopelessly flawed wannabe"

Remember when that used to be my blog sub-title?
I kinda miss it.
It was my license (a word I can NEVER spell correctly the first time) to ramble
on and on and on in my posts with no apologies because
hey, you were warned.

I think I'm gonna have to start using it again.

Starting now.

On baths: I just finished a glorious bath! After playing volleyball last night
certain muscles really needed a good hot soak.
And I can totally multi-task whilst drowning away my aches and pains.
Josie sits on our (freshly disinfected post-flu) toilet
and reads me her science and history lessons.
It's win-win.
But I remember, as a teenager, thinking that baths were the most disgusting thing ever!
How could a person get clean soaking in their own dirty water?!?
I thought.
On the rare occasion that I did take a bath,
I immediately followed it up with a shower to get clean from my bath.
CRAZY!
And I may have given my mom a hard time about her bath-taking.
I was such a loser.
Sorry, Mom!!!

On Jeannie's new and improved blog:  How can you improve something that is already perfect? I love this gal's blog....especially a recent post about having THE talk with her son, but my favorite little extra is her playlist that immediately sets a positive mellow mood for my day....songs with beautiful harmonies.....you have to take a listen. And maybe crank your computer up real loud so you can hear it while you soak in the tub:)

Today, I would like to take part in Jeannie's blog "challenge," for lack of a better word, to post photos of the people I love. I am no photographer....though I DO dream of becoming one. Nothing special (the photos, that is) but these are my girlies who I get more and more proud of every day. They are sweet, silly, creative dolls who make me smile. Most days. 

Gwen having a melt-down this morning because her booster seat was too cold.

These two STILL prefer to sleep in one twin bed together. I don't know how they do it.

These two like to crawl into our king sized bed for morning snuggles.
And that is a Gwen's new post-flu toothbrush which she slept with all night!
And notice the ponytail bands on Ella's wrist......
she is trying to be just like her mama:)

Addie, barely recovered from the flu bug herself, taking time to  read to a  puking Gwen.

Happy Weekend!!!!

a craft room

I'm going to have my very own craft room! Sure, it will be in the basement, with the piles of dead asian beetles and the occasional dead mouse.....but my very own craft room!!!!

Steve picked up some cupboards for free and if we can ever track down the right sized masonry drill bit, those babies will be hanging on the wall chalk full of all my goodies.

As I am looking forward to this project, I am realizing how much "stuff" I have stashed in different places around the house......tubs of scrapbook paper over there, a shelf full of glitter letters and ribbons over here, a drawer full of ephemera over there...... I'm starting to understand why he has been the one pushing for this craft room all along;) It will be so great to have all my stuff in one place......maybe it will be just the extra kick I need to actually follow thru on creating the things that inspire me. Also, my new room will be right next to our washer and dryer......maybe he is thinking that if I spend more time near the laundry, his shirts won't get so wrinkled;)

Either way, I am happy. I will probably rock my mud boots down there......you know.....mouse reasons. But I will have a place to call my own! And decorate how I want! Three cheers for the possibilities!!!

I didn't take a BEFORE before picture. Just imagine a dark corner of a dark basement with boxes of Christmas decorations and the poor books that haven't found homes on shelves yet. Here is an almost before picture.......after finally hanging the cabinets and hauling down a big old "on loan 'cuz someone might want it back someday" desk. It may be the nicest piece of furniture we "own."

Stay tuned for after photos!

Today.....

• I am thankful to be among the living after a horrible bout with the stomach flu.
• After losing 5 pounds to that nasty bug, I am eating waffles and Mountain Dew for breakfast. Oops. So much for that weight-loss jump start. But it tastes. so. good. Reminds me of my first meals eaten after giving birth. So hungry.
• my house looks like this......

• I almost broke down and cried after seeing the house like this, discovering that I have yet another sick kid, and then realizing I was out of Q-tips. It was the Q-tip that broke the proverbial camel's back. Have I mentioned how much I am addicted to Q-tips?
• I am thankful that Gwen is almost tall enough to puke in the sink. Not as appropriate as the toilet, but way more so than all over her bed.
• I will let Gwen believe that the words to the song she heard on the radio really were, "Take Me Home, Gwen Virginia...." She was so excited......I didn't have the heart to tell her......
• I am letting the girls watch a recorded episode of Wipeout. Before we do school. Scratch that. Everyone else is getting a snow day. I am going to take another sick day.

Not sure if I told the one about our cat sneaking in the house and peeing all over our couch while we were gone over New Years? We have been short on seating ever since.....which is why there is no furniture in the picture of our living room and yet we have three chairs crowded into the TV room. What do people without TVs do to survive an almost all family episode of the stomach flu?

Happy Birthday to ME!

I finally broke down and spent my birthday money. Half the fun is knowing I have money in my pocket to spend however I choose.......100% guilt free. So I like to take my time deciding on just the right guilty pleasure. After perusing my favorite letter press shops on Etsy, I have decided on these.......

Note: I still haven't figured out how to make blog posts wider so as not to cut off my photos......HELP! In the meantime, if you want to see my delicious treats in full view you have to click on the picture.

.....for my kitchen.

And though I really can't stand biscuits and gravy [so NOT a breakfast food], Steve would die for his grandma to whip him up a batch. Such a fond memory of good times at her place up North.

And finally, this one will be perfect for one of my new photo walls. A reminder not to take each other for granted:)

You can be sure I will be making the long hike down the driveway to the mailbox each and every day until I receive my gifts.

Happy birthday to ME!!!

keeping on the sunny side......or at least the partly sunny side

I've had a rough couple of days.....

nothing major, but there are times when I feel like a FULL+ time employee

with NO benefits.

I'm talking lots of overtime.

And I'm not referring to my paid job.

(I get reimbursed for that.)

I really struggle with finding balance.......

balance between work and homeschooling and housekeeping and cooking and dishes and laundry and bill paying and thank you writing and personal and professional development, etc.

About once a month (hmmm) I get into a funk and just feel like giving up.

Not giving up on this crazy wonderful life,

but maybe the dishes.

Yeah, I could give up the constant dish washing.

And the bills.

I just can't do it all.

I'm pretty sure I need an outlet.

And something other than decorating my big beautiful farmhouse

because I have a very opinionated husband

(whom I love dearly)

And I've decided that trying to decorate in a way that makes me happy

only brings about disappointment and frustration.

And so, in an attempt to pull myself out of my pathetic pity party,

I will post some pictures of things that bring me joy.

Because, really.......

Life is good!

My photo wall! After months of begging......

Thank you 3M photo strips!

Watching the girls expertly crack more than a dozen

of our own farm fresh eggs for a Saturday egg bake brunch.

My favorite jeans and a new pair of wool socks.

Brrrrr. Our house is freezing!

My birthday find from my favorite local consignment shop.

Ooooh, the possibilities!

What is left of my store bought birthday cake.

And the clementines aren't bad either:)

a month in review

It's been a LONG time since a real post. Just so I can feel better about my long absence, let me catch you up quickly with a few photos of these past few weeks. Because I have high speed internet and I can:)

It has been a cold month with lots of time spend indoors. We busied ourselves making lots of journals to give as gifts.

And I finally got around to making those pretty paper chicks.....appropriate homemade ornaments for our first Christmas spent at the Juicy Roost. Even though we didn't get a tree:(

Josie celebrated her 8th birthday with a gorgeous kitty cake and kitty gifts. That girl loves her cats.

We enjoyed many meals by the the beautiful light of the garland and have made a good dent in my stash of 75% off sparkling cider.

Naps were taken in the comfy big chair my parents gave us.

We spent several days visiting my brother down in Arkansas with his amazing family.

Unfortunately, I was too busy cuddling my adorable nephew to remember to take any pictures:(

Hunting hats became a favorite wardrobe choice for Addie.......less hair combing involved.

And we finally broke down and got the family a Wii. We are not disappointed.

Christmas Day, among other days, we got stranded in the driveway. This is me passing time in the car with crazy kids as Steve attempted to rescue us.

The kids found a nice alternative to sledding.

We made a nice warm batch of homemade play-do. I think there is a good chance I enjoy kneading and molding it more than the kiddos. So therapeutic.

New Year's Eve Day we took advantage of a "window of opportunity," speeding between the freezing rain and blizzard conditions to make it back up to the Northland to spend much needed time with good old friends.

There was Wii dancing.

And a reindeer hunt.

A few rounds of my new favorite game.......telephone pictionary.

A kid performance for our dear recovering ex-pastor.

I am so thankful for all the amazing people in our lives!

There.

Caught up.

Unedited style.

an affinity for anatomy

I have an affinity for anatomy. It probably started in high school when I took a first responder/EMT course and had to learn the 16 part answer to the question, "Follow the path of a red blood cell......" Then there were the hours I spent in my human gross anatomy lab, dissecting and identifying all the components of the brachial plexus before racing home to wash off all the formaldehyde stank. I feel it noteworthy to inform you that I just spelled formaldehyde correctly on my very first attempt. Because I'm cool like that.

Anyhoo. This morning I turned over my parental duties to our new Wii (because it is Christmas break) and lost myself in the abyss of a handmade marketplace. My birthday is coming up, you know.

Among many other delicious treats, I uncovered this.

(you'll have to go look at it cuz I apparently need to reformat my whole blog to get the picture to show up for you.)

And now that I've discovered these

I have Steve's blessing to begin beautifying our boring and barren walls. I can hardly garner my giddiness as I tell you, We now have an entire wall designated for fun photos of family and friends! And wouldn't this print be perfectly positioned among the pictures of people we love?

There has to be a p-word to use in place of love! Help me!

I have to ask...... there are many we hold near and dear to our hearts. Friends and family who are far away....... would they love this print as much as I do, affinity for anatomy aside? Would they be happy to hang a heartfelt reminder that though far away, they are in our hearts?

because I can't help myself

Smitten

I just discovered "The Sing-Off."

Wow.

My new fave.

And judge Ben Folds is dreamy.

Just sayin.