Bugzmommy Blog

'Pretty In Pink' Quilt...Cottage Style!

2010-01-04T15:31:00.006-06:00

My Grandmother fell and broke her hip this past Fall...and suddenly life changed for her and many members of my family. My G'ma is doing quite well now after a hip replacement but she now lives with my Aunt and although it is a blessing for both of them, it is not without its stresses as well. I started on this quilt for my G'ma after she had her surgery as I knew it was going to be hard for her to leave her home for an indefinite period of time and I wanted her to have a 'lovey' to snuggle with on the couch as she read her books or wrote in her journal this winter.

I chose the pattern from Heather Mulder Peterson's book Livin' Large. The pattern is Pretty In Pink. Heather actually has a recent post where she made the quilt in a Christmas Seasonal color palette. Go check it out when you get a chance as it is lovely!

Here is the front of the quilt I made. I used fabric mainly from the Cotton Blossoms line by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.

I had the long-arm quilter use a swirly pattern for the quilting in a red/brick color that matched the red in the fabric:
I pieced the back as well to give it some design flair!
A close up of the back of the quilt: Here it is laid out beneath our tree in the family room. While the colors do lend towards the winter/Christmas season, it is not meant as a seasonal quilt. But it does look nice and cozy beneath the Christmas tree!
All folded and ready to give to my G'ma for Christmas! The colors in this quilt are exactly what I have in my home: earthy and warm! Good thing I have enough fabric to make another one since I loved this color combination so much! For that quilt I plan to use the same fabrics but use the pattern A Piece of Cake by Camille Roskelley.

I had plenty of links above so you can go and appreciate the works of the women who inspired me to make this quilt, both by pattern and fabric!

Quilted Crayon Roll...

2009-12-14T17:08:00.005-06:00

I found this pattern in a Better Homes and Gardens Quilting Ideas magazine. (Page 108) It is a quilted crayon roll.

It holds 12 favorite crayons. I made this one for my niece for her 3rd birthday. I paired it with a Princess coloring book for a sweet little gift.

This is the back of the crayon roll: Here it is all rolled up and tied! It was quite a simple project only taking me an hour or so to cut the fabric and batting, assemble, and sew!

In the Meadow We Can Build a Snowman...

2009-12-04T11:33:00.005-06:00

Sleigh bells ring....are you listening...

I've been busy with family, home, work, and crafting...that is why the big blog break.

These are a sampling of some projects I have in the works. I am spending the rest of my free time snuggling with my kids and hubby so blogging continues to be sporadic (at best)!

I wish you a happy, healthy, and above all joyful season!

Praying for Jaymun's Family...

2009-10-13T10:57:00.001-05:00

He lost his fight on Earth this morning....Please pray for Jaymun's family.

http://www.jaymun.com/

Fall Simple Little Table Runner...

2009-10-02T09:32:00.006-05:00

I was inspired by finishing the Halloween table runner last night with the machine binding so I got up this morning and finished hand sewing the binding for my Fall table runner! I am participating in Show and Tell Friday's at Cindy's today and thought this the perfect thing to share! We had a great crisp October morn. here in North Texas just perfect for an outside photo op of the newly finished table runner.

The fabric used is Gobble, Gobble by Sandy Gervais for Moda.

The pattern is for the Simple Little Table Runner by Camille Roskelley and came from the Moda Bake Shop. She has a great tutorial on the site for it!

The back of the runner is shown above.

The table runner was quilted in pumpkins and vines using burnt orange thread. Quilting was done by Becky at Old Town Quilts in Keller. I hope you enjoyed seeing my newly completed table runner! Go visit Cindy and see more fun items shared!

Halloween Table Runner...made from the Moda Bake Shop Pattern...

2009-10-01T18:42:00.007-05:00

Today I finished the Simple Little Table Runner by Camille Roskelley from the Moda Bakeshop !!! How fitting for October 1st! The fabric is Spooktacular by Sanae for Moda.
Here is a picture of the back: The quilting was done in designs of bats, witches, ghosts, the moon, black cats, etc...all Halloween-y things!
Below is a close up of the quilting:
It was such a fun little project. I highly recommend it. I did the binding on this one all with my sewing machine. I started a table runner with this same pattern using Gobble, Gobble fabric by Sandy Gervais for Moda, but I still lack like a foot on the binding where I am hand sewing it around to the back....I just need to get on it! I will post pictures of it when I have it completed.

I Remember...

2009-09-11T13:35:00.011-05:00

*Photo courtesy of Seth Hollady Flickr page

This morning I had the most in depth explanation thus far of what September 11, 2001 means with my 8-year-old daughter. I have always talked about it with her on this date, but this morning the conversation was more understood by her so she had plenty of appropriate well asked questions. I admit that I shed more than a few tears by the time we had ended our talk. It is not that it was laden with crying and blubbering but I find it impossible to talk about those planes that crashed into the buildings and the other that our brave 'everyday' brothers and sisters crashed into the field in order to spare other innocent lives on the ground without my emotions bubbling to the surface.

I remember exactly what I was doing on that morning. I was living the 'American Dream'. I was a first time mother, fortunate to be a stay at home mom; my 6 month old baby daughter was playing on the living room floor and I was sitting with her. We had just come in from a walk outside, me pushing her in the stroller enjoying a 'peaceful' morning. My husband had left for work. I had not even turned the TV or radio on that morning...and then my husband called. He asked if I had seen the news and that I needed to turn it on immediately and keep up with what was going on...Our Country forever changed...

We live very near a major airport so the sound of planes flying over is an hourly occurrence and a sound you really get used to...it just fades into the background, so that day, as planes around the country were grounded, the silence was truly deafening.

For some reason I have been more cognisant of this day this year. Perhaps because my innocent 6-month-old baby girl is now an 8-year-old little girl who is gaining more and more insight on the realities of life and what it is to be human and what it is to realize loss and fear and that things like 09/11 chip away at the idea that mommy and daddy can fix every single problem. Perhaps because as we spoke of 09/11 this morning before school, she asked some very adult questions and honestly, after 8 years, I still don't have the answers to give as I too ask those same questions.

We prayed for the families that were immediately affected, we prayed for our troops that are still fighting the fight, we prayed for our leaders, and we thanked God too that we live in such a great Country and that by living here we have the right to speak our minds, our fears, our thoughts, and our prayers....

We will never forget....

*Photo courtesy of The Road Here Flickr page.

First Day of Third Grade...

2009-08-27T13:56:00.005-05:00

This week The Princess started Third Grade! I cannot believe how fast times flies...feels like a moment ago I was walking her to Kindergarten and now we are already 4 years in! I made her favorite 'special breakfast' of homemade Monkey Bread! I did all the prep work the night before and then popped it in the oven in the morning first thing. She was so excited!

Of course I had to take all the obligatory 'first day of school' pictures. She did not want me taking the camera to school so I snapped all the pictures out in front of our house. And my how things have changed...here she is in front of our house on her first day of Kindergarten:

And here she is this week on her first day of Third Grade!!!:

She came up with her own unique hairstyle for me to fix for the first day. It was a little braid to keep her hair out of her eyes and then pulled back into a pony with the rest:
My little sweetheart is growing so fast! She did want me to walk her in the first day and I was more than happy to do so. I love living so close that we can walk around the corner to school!

I have some things in the work for fall and winter quilting/needlepoint projects and hope to post some of those this week! We have just been so busy with first week of school and back to dance classes, etc., etc.!

Autumn Quilted Table Runner...

2009-08-09T18:14:00.002-05:00

I picked up a charm pack of Autumn fabric the last time I visited our local quilt shop. It is Gobble Gobble by Sandy Gervais for Moda. It was so cute sitting there on the shelf that I could not resist!

I have been wanting to use the tutorial Camille posted at the Moda Bake Shop for quite some time now and this afternoon I thought, why not use the Gobble Gobble charm pack! I will have to go shopping for some fabric for the backing now but that should not be too hard ;-)

I pieced this together in a little over 1 hour this afternoon while my little boy talked to me and played around me in the dining room/sewing room. Now that I know how quick it goes together I think I will have to make a runner with fabric that matches my decor for every day to keep out on the table in the breakfast nook or on the island in the kitchen. I am going to practice my stippling quilting on this since it is not too big a piece.

What a fun project for a quiet Sunday afternoon. Go visit the tutorial and make your own!

Sunday Stash #1...

2009-08-09T09:50:00.004-05:00

I was giddy with excitement last week when I FINALLY found some of the fabric Lush by Erin Michael for Moda, more specifically the paint by number deer fabric!!!! I am still awaiting the arrival of the deer in blues and greens - it should be at my doorstep no later than Tuesday. However, the other fabrics I ordered in the line arrived on Friday. I LOVE them! I am planning a special quilt with these.

Tamara over at 1/4 of an Inch hosts a 'Sunday Stash' each week. It gives peeps like me who love fabric to see what others have in their stash and to explore different color combos and projects that are planned with the fabrics. She also has a Flickr group with the pictures as well.

I thought I would play along this week since I am so excited about the newest addition to my stash!

Neapolitan Bouquet Quilt Complete!

2009-08-05T12:41:00.004-05:00

*Photo courtesy of Corbis Stock Photos

Remember the Neapolitan Bouquet Quilt I was working on for my daughter? I blogged about it here and here. The pattern is from All Washed Up called Five and Dime. Well IT IS FINISHED! While the Princess was at her Grandmother's last week, I finally finished sewing the binding on her quilt! I am very pleased with it...and especially since it is my second quilt completed!

The back of the quilt is shown first as it illustrates why the name of the quilt:

Here is the top of the quilt:
I had it quilted in various flower patterns with dark pink thread:

Here is another shot of the backing...I just LOVE the texture the quilting gives to it:
And here is my sweetheart after I gave her the quilt all rolled up and tied with a ribbon! Now she and the Prince both have a special quilt from mommy to snuggle with while reading or watching T.V.:

Fall Quilts Sneak Peek

2009-07-28T11:52:00.004-05:00

I am too busy having summer fun with my kiddos to blog! However, I am on today to give a sneak peek of two quilts I am making for fall. I have most of the pieces cut, enough now to get started as I am adding borders to a pattern so don't want to cut into the other fabric until I have the patterned pieces already sewn together.

And here is what my little guy was doing as I was cutting. He was finding a place for all the fabric scraps beneath the table and chairs...lil cutie!

So what do you think? I got the inspiration from Cami and the quilt she blogged about in January.

I'll let you know how it is coming along! Now back to our summer fun!!!

Gotta Listen...

2009-06-19T10:38:00.002-05:00

This is an amazing arrangement that I just came across. It is Jon Schmidt. I love his reason for doing this arrangement...for his 7-year-old daughter. My 8-year-old daughter LOVES the song Love Story and so do I. I also love Viva La Vida by Coldplay and he meshes the two beautifully! It just gave me goosebumps listening to this arrangement. Definitely going to get the download for my iPod.

I just wanted to share!

New Moon....Can't Wait!!!

2009-06-02T08:31:00.002-05:00

Winner list of 2009 MTV Movie Awards:

Best Movie: "Twilight"
Best Female Performance: Kristen Stewart, "Twilight"
Breakthrough Performance Male: Robert Pattinson, "Twilight"
Best Fight: Robert Pattinson vs. Cam Gigandet, "Twilight"
Best Kiss: Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, "Twilight"

The movie New Moon is being filmed now. It will be filmed in Vancouver and Italy. It is due to open in U.S. November 20, 2009. The confirmed cast so far is:
Kristen Stewart … Bella Swan
Robert Pattinson … Edward Cullen
Taylor Lautner … Jacob Black
Ashley Greene … Alice Cullen
Peter Facinelli … Dr. Carlisle Cullen
Elizabeth Reaser … Esme Cullen
Kellan Lutz … Emmett Cullen
Nikki Reed … Rosalie Hale
Jackson Rathbone … Jasper Hale
Chaske Spencer … Wolf Pack Member
Tyson Houseman … Wolf Pack Member
Kiowa Gordon … Wolf Pack Member
Bronson Pelletier … Wolf Pack Member
Alex Meraz … Wolf Pack Member
Billy Burke … Charlie Swan
Edi Gathegi … Laurent
Rachelle Lefevre … Victoria
Dakota Fanning … Jane
Jamie Campbell Bower … Caius
Michael Welch … Mike Newton
Noot Seear … Heidi

If you are a fan and want to find more information on the movie, visit the official movie page here.

Tap, tap, tap...Is this thing on?

2009-06-01T14:46:00.002-05:00

Okay, I am not sure beyond family who (if anyone) actually reads anything I sporadically write here, but if you do, I need some fun advice.

I am in need of a few good books to read this summer. I have my copy of Persuasion by Jane Austen and a copy of the Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackerman but those two are a bit deeply written and will take some wading through to read. What I am looking for is a good read that is not smut or cheap romance but that is fun yet with some substance. You can view my Good Reads on the side bar to see some of the more recent books I have read.

Anyway, any suggestions are appreciated!

Chocolate Chip and Butterscotch Cookies...

2009-05-27T13:57:00.007-05:00

I just finished making some rockin' cookies and had to share the recipe! I was trolling some fave blogs early this morning and came across yet another great blog to add to my bookmarks...Twice Remembered...don't visit it unless you have a few minutes or hours because it WILL suck you in! Her style is positively engaging and inspiring.

She had a recipe on her site for Best Ever Chocolate Chip cookies and since I am not one to pass up trying a 'best ever' anything let alone cookie, I just had to make these! The Little Prince and I mixed up the batter and decided we would stray a bit from the Chocolate Chip only part and instead we added 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1 cup of butterscotch morsels for variety ;-)

The recipe claims to make a cookie that will stay gooey moist and chewy even after they have cooled and since that is my fave kind of cookie I was glad to try out the recipe...so here they are and guess what? They are WONDERFUL!!!! Definitely a recipe that will go in my recipe binder. Just see how good they look and they smell even better:

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
INGREDIENTS
* 1 cup butter, softened (I used butter flavor Crisco sticks)
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1 cup packed brown sugar
* 2 eggs
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 2 teaspoons hot water
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (I used 1 c semisweet chocolate chips and 1 c butterscotch morsels)
* 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional) (I left these out)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth.
Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.
Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add to batter along with salt.
Stir in flour, chocolate chips, and nuts.
Drop by large spoonfuls onto ungreased pans.
3. Bake for about 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are nicely browned.

I did what she suggested and used two level tablespoons worth of batter and rolled them up in a ball and baked 9 per large cookie sheet. I use Silpat or parchment paper to line my baking sheets for perfect nonstick cookies. I baked my cookies for 12 minutes and they were perfect. She suggested trying a test cookie for 10 minutes first and let cool, and see if you might like it even better. After removing them from the oven, I too let my cookies stand for just a few minutes until they were firm enough to transfer to a wire cooling rack.

They are delish and if you don't take my word for it, just look at the little Prince enjoying his cookie!

Camille is at it again!

2009-05-27T13:45:00.002-05:00

Camille over at Simplify has a great post up that you just have to read! She just got back from the quilt market and has some great links to the designers. That way you can get to know the designers that come up with all the wonderful patterns and designs we all love and use in our crafts!

Oh yeah, AND she is doing a GIVEAWAY!!! Go check it out...you can thank me later! ;-)

What's Making Me Happy Today...

2009-05-11T12:47:00.008-05:00

The year's at the spring
And day's at the morn;

Morning's at seven;

The hillside's dew-pearled;

The lark's on the wing;

The snail's on the thorn;

God's in His heaven

-All's right with the world!

~Robert Browning

These things are making my Monday a happy one:

Rain falling softly outside...

A pretty pot of plants on the patio table:

"The world's favorite season is the spring.

All things seem possible in May."

~Edwin Way Teale

The soft colors of the petunias in the hanging baskets...we always pot a few of these around my daughter's birthday in March:

"Spring - an experience in immortality."

~Henry D. Thoreau

The hostas with the rain drops shining like jewels upon their leaves in our flower bed:

"When April steps aside for May,

Like diamonds all the rain-drops glisten;

Fresh violets open every day:

To some new bird each hour we listen."

~Lucy Larcom

The roses abloom standing tall and proud as the rain ever gently kisses them:

"Be like a flower and turn your face to the sun."

~ Kahlil Gibran

My newly potted 'fairy plant' (fuschia) by my wicker settee under the patio...sitting there watching the rain today with a cup of coffee is so pleasant:

"Sweet May hath come to love us,

Flowers, trees, their blossoms don;

And through the blue heavens above us

The very clouds move on."

~ Heinrich Heine, Book of Songs

Pink and white petunias in an original terra cotta pot from Italy...a pot my grandmother used in her garden and now I use in mine:

"Sweet April showers

Do spring May flowers."

~ Thomas Tusser, A Hundred Good Points of Husbandry, 1557

Oh, and inside, my new ironing board cover is making me happy:

And of course the smile from this guy...he is making me happiest today:

Neapolitan Bouquet Quilt

2009-05-04T13:11:00.010-05:00

*Photo courtesy of Corbis Stock Photos

The ice cream above is what came to mind while piecing the top of the quilt for my daughter! The quilt top is in strawberry pinks, creamy vanillas, and chocolates with floral, stripes, and dots...so as my previous post stated, the name I thought of was 'Neapolitan Bouquet' for the quilt. With that in mind, I rethought how I wanted to piece the back of the quilt. What do you think?

Here is the quilt top all completed:

And here is the back of the quilt, all completed:
Viola! My daughter's 'Neapolitan Bouquet' quilt is ready to go to the long-arm quilters this week! I think we will quilt it with a flower quilting technique. Then I will bind it using the same floral focus fabric from the vertical strips on the quilt top. I can't wait to give this to my daughter for snuggling up under while watching a movie together. I made it wider than my last quilt so that two can snuggle easily under this one!

Oh, and my ever so lovely handmade bag/tote came today!!! I am so excited. It was made with beautiful Amy Butler fabrics from the ever talented Janie from Clutterbags on Etsy. I ordered the bag a few weeks ago and she did an excellent job! She even made me a custom diaper/wipes case to go with it that has a zipper closure and a removable wrist strap, making this little gem very versatile and perfect for growing with us and for carrying other things once we are out of diapers around here (which will hopefully be within the next few months!) Go visit her site and see her wonderful work!!! The pictures below do not do it justice and the bag is so much more beautiful in person!!!! I could not be happier with it!

Here is the bag/tote alone:Here is the bag along with the diaper/wipe case:

Also to note, our whole school district is closed this week due to the H1, N1 virus or Swine Flu. I am fortunate enough that this thrills me to have an unexpected week with both my kiddos home to just play and enjoy each others company, but I realize for many parents this is a hardship if they both have jobs outside of the home. I pray that the sick are healed and that the parents facing hardship due to school closures are comforted and that relief for all of this comes soon. Please keep our community and especially the sick in your prayers.

Just Bliss...

2009-04-29T16:56:00.011-05:00

*Photo courtesy of Flickr law_kevin

Contentment, bliss, harmony, ease, delight, happiness...joy.

What a surprise this afternoon. I have had a terrible pressure headache most of the day and it is grey and raining here but I am feeling complete contentment right now. I picked up my daughter after school and a neighbor friend came home with us. My son and the girls had a snack and then sat at the kitchen table with the girls each painting a masterpiece and my son happily playing with Play-Doh. I put some kid tunes on the iPod and fixed a pot of coffee (with yummy sugar free vanilla caramel creamer) and was able to forget about my headache and tidy up the kitchen while listening to the delightful conversation of the children.

We are so blessed to live in the community that we do and especially in the neighborhood that we do. We have the best neighbors that have become dear friends and it feels like family around here, truly it does.

I just wanted to savor and remember this feeling this afternoon...so happy...so joyful...so grateful.

"The more we express our gratitude to God for our blessings,the more he will bring to our mind other blessings. The more we are aware of to be grateful for, the happier we become."

- Ezra Taft Benson

"The fruit of the spirit is love, joy and peace."

- Galatians 5:22

"I came that you may have and enjoy life and have it in abundance, until it overflows."

- John 10:10

Latest WIP Quilt...

2009-04-28T09:22:00.006-05:00

I started on a quilt for the Princess. It is a 'stack and whack' quilt so it should not take me too long to complete the top and backing. I chose an All Washed Up Pattern called 5&Dime. And look, I learned today that they have a blog! It uses a menagerie of fat quarters that you just stack and um...whack! You cut them up into a few varying sized squares and rectangles then you use a focus fabric for sashing in the middle and voila! I am adding a few borders to this one though to make it a bit bigger for my daughter to snuggle under and I am doing something a bit different than what the pattern calls for on the backing. So it is mostly this pattern with my own design and inspiration thrown in!

These are the fabrics I chose: Back Porch Bouquet for Maywood Studios. (The pink and chocolate damask on the right is from Joann's but I decided I did not like it with the other fabrics so I nixed it.)
Here is my layout for the quilt top without the borders:

The strip laid out on the left is part of what I have planned for the back:
I already have the top just about pieced. I had to order a bit more fabric for the borders I want to add and hope to have that fabric by the end of the week so I am crossing my fingers that I will have the top and the back complete over the weekend and have it ready to quilt early next week!

While sewing and ironing the pieces together last night I decided what I had to name this quilt: Neapolitan Bouquet! The colors remind me of the Neapolitan ice cream we would have as a kid. You know, the kind that came in the box with chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry lined up in rectangles...and in our house where the chocolate was always gone first ;-)

I'll update as I move along with this latest project!

Happy Easter and Resurrection Rolls...

2009-04-15T10:29:00.017-05:00

I hope everyone had a very happy Easter weekend. We had a great one! Egg hunts at church, dyeing eggs and the Easter bunny here at the house, Easter lunch at Nana's and more egg hunts with the cousins!

These are some of my favorite pics of the kiddos:

We also started a new Easter tradition of baking Resurrection Rolls on Easter morning. They turned out perfect and quite tasty as well!

Resurreciton Rolls Recipe:

2 packages of Pillsbury Crescent rolls
3/4 stick of melted butter
8 large marshmallows
2 Tbl ground cinnamon
2 Tbl granulated sugar

(mix the cinnamon and sugar together in a small bowl)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Separate crescent rolls into individual triangles. The crescent roll represents the cloth that Jesus was wrapped in.

Using 1 marshmallow, representing Jesus and His purity, dip into melted butter. This represents the oils of embalming.

Dip the buttered marshmallow in the cinnamon and sugar.This represents the spices used to annoint the body of Jesus.

Wrap the coated marshmallow tightly in the crescent roll(not like a typical crescent roll up, but bring the sides up and seal the marshmallow inside). Then wrap with a second roll in the opposite direction making sure to seal all the seams. This represents the wrapping of Jesus' body after death.

Dip the roll with marshmallow inside into melted butter and then roll in cinnamon and sugar mixture.

Place in a 350 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes.The oven represents the tomb (pretend like it was 3 days and nights!)

When the rolls have cooled slightly, the children can open their rolls (cloths) and discover that Jesus is no longer there, HE IS RISEN! The marshmallow melts and the crescent roll is puffed up,but like the tomb - IT IS EMPTY!

Mod Quilt-Along Binding Almost Complete...

2009-04-09T14:34:00.003-05:00

Well I have almost completed my first quilt! I have about half way to go on hand sewing the binding around to the back of the quilt. I probably would have been finished by now but I had oral surgery this week and it put me down for a few days. I am feeling better now and once I have caught up on necessary work around the house and for my business I will finish up this binding!

Top of the quilt with partial binding:

Back of the quilt with partial binding:

I have to say that I was most pleased that my corners turned out nice and mitered! Elizabeth had a great tutorial on the binding and I praise her greatly for helping me in having my first quilt turn out so nicely!

I can't wait to finish the quilt and wash it up so it gets a crinkly, comfy look and Drew and I can curl up with it and watch cartoons!

Mod Quilt-Along Quilt is Quilted...

2009-04-02T08:27:00.005-05:00

Here is a picture of the top of the quilt all quilted! I still have to bind it and so you see the white batting showing around all edges. I am binding it with a navy blue fabric that has little gold stars on it.And here is the back quilted, again, you can see the white batting on the side as it is without binding:

I went ahead and had the quilt quilted by a professional as I just love it too much to use it for trying out my hand and machine quilting for the first time. I took the quilt in for a quote on Tuesday and to my surprise the woman at the shop said she would get right on it that day! She said a 'first time quilt' deserved to be done right away! So, I picked it up all quilted on Wednesday!!! I am so happy with it. I imagined as I was working on this quilt that if I was an experienced quilter that I would quilt it using a dog bone pattern for some whimsy and visual interest. I walked in the quilters shop ready to get the quote and tell her to just use a stippling quilting pattern since that is what the Quilt-Along is using but she said to me, "Oh, I have something that I think would go perfect with this quilt." Can you imagine my surprise when she showed me quilting of DOGGIE BONES along with profiles of dogs that look like labs!!! Wow, was that meant to be or what!?!

Can you see the profile of the doggie below. He is on the left side of the picture and his nose is up in the air some facing to the left. His ear is in the center of the bottom left brown square:

Here is a better shot perhaps. The doggie is in the brown and this time he is facing towards the right. His nose is in the air and he is looking up at a dog bone:

So now I just have to follow along in the Quilt-Along to bind the quilt. Then it will be finished and ready to give to my son!

There are lots of great finished quilt pictures rolling in at the Mod Sampler Quilt-Along group on Flickr site so go take a look!

Fabric, Fabric, Fabric!!!

2009-03-31T15:41:00.003-05:00

You know what I have a perhaps unhealthy obsession with at the moment - FABRIC! There are just so many wonder fabrics out there to create with. I could spend hours browsing fabric shops and imagining all the wonderful projects I could create...I say I COULD because the fact is that I have small children and a job and household to run. However, I do find time to browse some great shops online and especially on Etsy.

Recently, I came across another great blog called A La Mode where I can also see some beautiful fabrics and great creativity. Even better, Heather over at A La Mode is having a fabric giveaway this week and next as well!!! If you get a chance, head on over and take a look at the site...and if you love fabric as much as I do, sign up for the give-away!

Day out With Thomas...

2009-03-30T11:48:00.003-05:00

Yesterday we took the kids to see Thomas the Train! He was in town for a short time pulling train cars at the Vintage Railroad near us. For those of you that don't know, meeting Thomas is like way up there on the list for 3-year-old little boys...not so much for 8-year-old sisters but she had a great time as well!My son could not believe he was standing in front of THOMAS THE TRAIN!

Here we are as a family riding in one of the train cars. All the while on the ride songs from the Thomas series were playing and the kids were singing along!

Here they got to meet Sir Topam Hat. They are looking at the person there you pay to take your picture and not at me, but still a cute pic. The Little Prince had said all morning that he was going to shake Topam Hat's hand! He just beamed when he met him.

They had lots of Thomas and Friends models for the kids to play with.

Then there were some very elaborate models to look at but not touch.

It was a crisp sunny morning and a great time! There were bounce house, carnival food, music and stories for the kids and a great way to spend a weekend morning. The Prince has yet to stop talking about meeting Thomas!

Mod Quilt-Along Back Complete!!!

2009-03-27T12:37:00.003-05:00

I DID IT!!!!

I completed the back of the quilt for the Quilt-Along today! I LOVE it. Elizabeth from Oh, Fransson was such a help and good guide through the project! I am quite pleased since this was my first time to attempt anything like this. You can see the other finished pieces at the Flickr site.

My little boy, for whom the quilt is for, was helping me this morning as I finished the back. He found a great new use for my sewing rulers! Roads! He was making roads and driving his little cars over them...it was precious!

Mod Quilt-Along Quilt Top COMPLETE!!!

2009-03-26T18:44:00.002-05:00

Obviously I went with the blue sashing and am happy that I did! I think the quilt will be perfect for my little boy and a quilt that will grow with him since it it not too 'cartoon-ish'. Tomorrow I will take care of the back of the quilt. Hopefully that will not take me as long since it is not as involved as the top. This has been a great learning experience and I am quite happy with my first quilt so far.
Now off to enjoy an ice cold Diet Coke as my kiddos play outside some. We had some rain here yesterday and today so everything looks squeaky clean and greening up. Spring is here!!!

Finished Blocks all Laid Out!

2009-03-24T20:27:00.009-05:00

I laid out all of the finished blocks for the top of the Mod Quilt from the Quilt-Along this afternoon! I have gone back and forth on which sashing to use on my quilt top for the baby-man so I put down the fabric for the blue sashing on one half of the blocks and the fabric for the cream sashing on the other half of the blocks and I made a decision.

The BLUE is the winner!

I appreciate how the cream stands out against the blocks, but I think the blue just really makes them pop and brings the work together. I will use the fabric you see in some in that bottom middle square with the darker navy background and yellow stars as the binding.

I will start sewing the sashing to the squares tomorrow. I was hoping to get to it today but I had too much work to catch up on, a meeting at church, dance class for the princess, a mountain of laundry, and a little boy that needed me to play!

As an aside, here is something soooo cute I watched and heard the baby-man say today during play. I had a neighbor friend over for a bit and she brought her son who is my son's age. They both have just recently turned 3. They were zipping around downstairs. As my son zipped by he says to the other little boy "Hey Jeff, I mean Batman, wait!" I stopped my son and asked him if he had said 'Batman' and he said yes so I asked him who he was and he said "I Superman!" It was such a sweet moment. Really the first time I have witnessed him really playing with a friend in a pretend role like that! He is growing so fast and it is such a blessing to be a part of his milestone moments!

My daughter just turned 8 and it happens so fast. It is such an amazing and truly awesome thing to be a parent and to join these little beings on their journeys to discovery. I cherish every single moment of it and am truly grateful to be their mother.

Block F Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-23T12:53:00.002-05:00

I finished piecing and sewing all the blocks for Block F this morning! Whew!!! I am still awaiting the alternate fabric in case I decide to nix the bottom far left and bottom far right fabric (both with stars in them).

I also laid all of the blocks out both with the navy sashing and the cream sashing and took pics so I could make the final decision on that with it all laid out. HOWEVER, I went to put my camera card in the computer to upload the pics and THERE WAS NO CAMERA CARD!!! It was still in my computer from uploading the last bunch. I desperately need to shower and tidy up around here so I will lay it all out again sometime later and CHECK FOR THE CAMERA CARD before taking them all up again!!!

Block E Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-22T12:53:00.004-05:00

I finished piecing and sewing block E for the Quilt-Along. I am wondering if the dominant fabric on the bottom far right and bottom far left work with the quilt...hmmm...I found some fabric in the Casbah line from Timeless Treasures that coordinates with the dominant fabric in the top far right and have that ordered to see if perhaps I want to remake the blocks containing the two 'star' fabrics and use the Casbah fabric. I will decide once I have the Casbah fabric in my hands. Right now, I have just block F left to go before all the blocks are complete so I will continue using the 'star' fabrics as if nothing else, I will use them in another project at some point. I also ordered some fabric called Modern Love for Timeless Treasures. So I will have some decisions to make about the 'star' fabric once all of these arive!!!

I am pretty sure I will go with the navy sashing as all of the votes were for navy and my hubby and sweet daughter both like that one too!

Which Color???

2009-03-19T09:05:00.003-05:00

Option #1 off-white/cream sashing: Option #2 darker blue-on-blue tone sashing:

Okay I need advice.

I first chose an off-white/cream color for my sashing on the quilt for the Quilt-Along. However, my fabrics tend more towards the traditional instead of modern and I now think that the lighter color sashing might not work. I laid out the fabric I had chosen for the binding and wonder if that looks better for the sashing. I would have to choose a different binding fabric but that is okay because I have time to do that. I think the blue-on-blue tone fabric pulls out the blues and navy blue from the other fabric and makes the chocolates and tans look warmer.

What is your opinion? Do you like the lighter color or the darker blue OR do you have another suggestion???

Block D Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-19T08:12:00.005-05:00

I finished up Block D for the Quilt-Along this morning. Elizabeth had a great tip on her blog site about using freezer paper to help square up your blocks in case you are off a bit. I used it with these blocks as I did get a few a bit off. It worked great!

*****************************************************

Today is my Princess's EIGHTH birthday!!! I cannot believe she is 8! She is sitting here behind me while I type...She awoke this morning and came downstairs where I had the breakfast nook table all decorated and had her cake and presents out for her. She was so excited and could hardly wait to tear into the gifts. Daddy was just leaving for work so she (being the sweet little diplomat) asked to open one gift before daddy left so he could see and then save the other two for when her little brother woke up so he could enjoy too! Gotta love her negotiation skills ;-)

Will post pics of the Birthday Girl later, but now I want to go spend some time with her!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABBEY!!!

Block C Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-15T20:25:00.004-05:00

I finished all the blocks for Block C in the Quilt-Along this evening! This is MY VERY FIRST quilt so while I am nervous that I am going to screw something up, I am just as anxious to see the finished product! I think, so far so good...

My little boy loves to look at the block above (first row, middle) and decide which woof-woof, or 'gog' as he pronounces 'dog' is hiding behind the little blocks that make up that big block! He is so cute...he will say, "um, this gog is hiding behind this whittle block." Just makes my heart smile!

Block B Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-15T11:56:00.003-05:00

I got Block B for the Quilt-Along pieced and sewn this morning! My little boy get so excited when he sees me working on his 'woof-woof' quilt ;-)

Yesterday I went with a friend to the Quilt Show in Dallas. There were some great quilts and yards of great fabric. I reined myself in and just bought a few great fat quarters to go with my Bee Fabric and then did buy fabric for my daughter's quilt when I finish with this one I am currently working on for the Prince!

Block A Pieced and Sewn...

2009-03-13T17:40:00.007-05:00

I got all of my "Block A's" pieced and sewn. When I went to square up the blocks, there is really nothing to square up. In fact, I measured and I am a tad under the 8.5" across that the patterns says there should be. I measured my seam allowance and it is 1/4" and my pieces are the 4.5" each so what is the deal? If I pull it apart more it reaches closer to the 8.5" so am I just not ironing flat enough? I just did not want to distort the fabric. Elizabeth says that there is minuscule pieces if any you should be trimming up so hopefully I am okay!

I had my first experience with breaking a needle on my sewing machine this evening! Luckily my hubby was here to talk me off the ledge and help me get the broken needle out and a new one in and my machine working again! (I had the wrong stitch chosen for the presser foot I was using...just hit the wrong stinkin' button!) However, (and this was BEFORE the needle breaking fiasco) my sewing machine will not feed my fabric backwards to reinforce my stitching! The last time I used the machine it worked fine but today it won't feed it towards me for reinforcement but will totally feed it properly when sewing so I am not sure what it going on with that.

On a lighter note! My sweet hubby drove me and the little Prince over to a quilt shop in a neighboring town that a neighbor of mine frequents and I found the yummiest fabric! AND all the fabrics are $4.99 per yard that is 50% of what I usually find them for! Check out the Chloe's Imagination by Tina Givens for Free Spirit that I found! Wow. I bought her very last yard. I LOVE this fabric. Now I need to find some pretty yellow daisy fabric to pair it with and some brown and yellows and off we go on another project, perhaps for the Princess!

Go check out the Chloe's Imagination pictures at the FreeSpirit Quilting Fabric site as my pictures don't do it justice with this rainy day and low lighting.

Now off to snuggle the kiddies as it is officially SPRING BREAK for us and the Princess has a whole week out of school! YAY!

Quilt-Along...

2009-03-13T07:52:00.006-05:00

Well, I am jumping in and doing my first Quilt-Along! Oh, Fransson! is hosting it at her site. I have admired her work for ages now, always checking and keeping up with her blog as time allows. She has some great step by step directions so far - even for us newbies! There is a Flickr group so we can all see each others' color choices and progress.

I decided to make my quilt for the little Prince, since the afghan (which the finishing border is IN PROGRESS on) is for the Princess. I found a great fabric at the quilt shop that features Blonde, Chocolate, and Black Labs! I just HAD to use that and then work all my coordinating fabrics around that one:

The lil' Prince's first Lovie happens to be a Webkinz Chocolate Brown Lab! (along with his blanka blue of course!) so you see, I just had to have these little puppies on the quilt! They will also be on a large part of the backing as well as the pieces of some blocks. The complimentary fabric for this one is a chocolate marble from Moda...of course...chocolate lab lovie :-)

Here are all the fabrics I have chosen:

The photos are a bit dark as we are having some rainy days here and there is little good natural light...sorry!

Here is a shot of all my patterned fabric:

And here is a shot of all the solid marbles from Moda:

Here is what I am using for the binding:

I cut all my pieces for the quilt yesterday! I was short less than 1/8 of an inch for one of the 4/5 x 4/5 squares I need for just one fabric so will have to run back up to the shop today to get a tad more of that one but otherwise, all the pieces are cut and ready for the fun part - piecing!!!

Today he is three...

2009-02-06T07:53:00.007-06:00

My precious prince...
FIRST birthday!
SECOND birthday!

And today you are THREE!

Happy Birthday my baby-man!!!

Quilting...

2009-02-01T18:19:00.003-06:00

Okay, I am just about finished with my daughter's daisy afghan. My next project is my first quilt! I am using the fabric Shangri La by 3 Sisters for Moda. I have all my pieces cut and the quilt planned and am ready to start piecing it...as soon as the afghan is all finished....one week TOPS! I am so excited. The fabric is just devine. But don't just take my word for it. A new blog I came across today, Green Fairy Quilts, also sings the praises of the Shangri La fabric! In fact...she is hosting GIVEAWAY featuring that fabric! Go visit her and get yourself in the drawing.

I will post pictures soon of my WIP quilt!

Show and Tell Friday...

2009-01-23T08:06:00.003-06:00

I am participating in Show and Tell Friday over at Kelli's place today.

I am sharing some of my favorite Christmas gifts I received this past Christmas. Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE coffee. My husband bought me this sweet cream and sugar set to go next to my coffee maker. I love the inspirational phrases on them!

He also bought me the salt and pepper set from the same line. Again, such wonderful words and phrases adorn these little vessels.

And for good measure, he bought me a plate from the line to display in my plate rack on my counter....it says "Faith is Your Companion"
It worked so perfectly to add these to our kitchen as they fit right in with the decor of creams, browns, and iron work. I was so excited to open these little gifts!

Thanks for taking a look. Go on over to Kelli's place to check out more Show and Tell postings.

Lost Again!

2009-01-22T09:40:00.008-06:00

"When are we?"

Last night was a much anticipated night of TV greatness! Lost is back after its many month hiatus! I must say as much as I hate waiting between seasons, I do like how they play all the episodes back to back this way without re-runs...it is easier to keep up!

We were buzzing with excitement around here and we even had a Lost themed dinner last night! I found some cute Dharma Labels online to have our food looking like it had just been dropped on the island.

I thought the two-hour premiere was greatness! I loved that they jumped right in and answered some questions and solidified the idea that time travel is part of the plot. I read a commentary this morning that I enjoyed. There are some interesting points in there.

Here is another interesting commentary for you. I do have to make a disclaimer that I have not read all of the comments on these commentaries so am not sure if there is any profanity or dim- wittiness in them so read comments on them at your own risk. I do know the commentaries themselves are clean.

Something that struck me as odd and probably important was when Sawyer injured his toe. He has run around the island barefoot for weeks now but the writers decided to center in on him injuring his little pinky toe and pulling an item out of it...I think that the oddity of it has to be significant!

I hope all you other Losties enjoyed! It looks to be an eventful fifth season and I can't wait!

*Lost Poster Image courtesy of Wikipedia

*Video courtesy of CharmedCharlie21 on YouTube

Daisy Afghan WIP Update...

2009-01-21T16:52:00.011-06:00

I have one last daisy square to make and then I will have all my squares completed for the Princess's afghan! You can read about it here and here. I taught myself to crochet back in the Fall and have been working on squares as time allows since then. I am excited to see the finished product and have my daughter snuggle up under it! Her room is a soft pink and sage green garden type theme. She has a Victorian Crazy Quilt as her bedding that is made up of different gingham, floral, and daisy fabrics. I think the afghan I am making her will fit in quite nicely.

Here are some of my squares stacked up: Here is the point I was at last week with just a few more squares to go! I laid it out to see what it was going to look like:

After I finish my one last daisy square, I will whip them all together by rows and then whip all the rows together into the afghan. I am going to put a few borders around the finished afghan to pull it together and then a final border of a crocheted ruffle to girlie it up even more!

Oh, and just to share a bit of excitement we had. School was out on Monday so the kids and I had great plans to organize the play room (it is in bad shape). We ran out for some bins to do some sorting and when we got back home the smoke alarms were going off! After deciding that there was no fire and after calling my neighbors to make sure they did not see any smoke rising from the house from a vantage that perhaps I could not appreciate, I was at a loss as of what to do. My DH was so helpful. I called him at work and he says, "Hmm, well, open a few windows and turn on the fans in those rooms and call me back in five minutes if they have not stopped." (note...we had a new AC/Furnace put in over the summer and he was thinking perhaps some of the new oils were burning off and setting the alarm off....HOWEVER, we had been running the heater for months and this had not happened!)

The sound of the alarms were grating on my every nerve and the kids were a bit ancy by now as well. One of our neighbors was nice enough to come over and help me get them down. They are all wired into the house as well as have a battery backup. He discovered that the one in our bedroom was faulty so was making the others go off. My husband called during all of this to tell me he was on the way home to help. I told him our neighbor had helped me get them to stop so DH ran by the local hardware store to buy all new smoke detectors since ours were the ones the builder installed when the house was built 12 years ago. Whew- problem solved! It did however wreck my plans of organizing the playroom, because after running around for 45 minutes trying to make smoke alarms stop going off the only thing I wanted to do was sit down and have some chocolate! Of course I got no complaints from the kiddos over this either ;-)

Camille is right when she blogged that these are the greatest chocolate chip cookies! I borrowed the recipe from her site. I made a batch and the kids, hubby, and I pigged out on these...oh, and we did take half the batch to our dear neighbor for making the smoke alarms stop!

Prayer Warriors...

2009-01-17T09:34:00.005-06:00

I wrote in my last post about a blog I started following recently. Kelly and Scott had tried to conceive for many years and were blessed nine months ago with an answer to their prayers. I have followed their journey towards parenthood and marveled at their faith.

Their daughter, Harper Brown Stamps, was born yesterday at 7:03 PM. She weighed 9lb and 12oz. But she needs our prayers. She has pneumonia and had to be flown out of state to a children's hospital. Kelly will be able to join her there sometime today after she is released from the hospital where she gave birth. Scott and his parents are already there with little Harper. The latest update stated that Harper will have to be put on a heart/lung bypass machine.

Please pray for Harper, Kelly, Scott and their family. Pray for the doctors, nurses, and technicians that will be bringing care to little Harper. Lift them all up...

Where I Have Been...

2009-01-16T19:48:00.014-06:00

I have been MIA due to snuggling up with my family and enjoying quiet moments as much as possible through the hustle, bustle, and traveling that comes with the month of December!

The kids enjoyed a visit with Santa...The Princess got her wish and Santa brought her a HOT PINK digital camera so she can practice her photography. She was beyond thrilled. The Prince got his wish of a train table and train set - they both marveled at how Santa must have hurt his back bringing that down the chimney! The magic of the season touched us all!

On Christmas Eve we went to the family service at church then came home to our tradition of a lasagna supper. However, on Christmas day we enjoyed a traditional turkey and dressing dinner (this was my first year to make dressing on my own and I must say, I was pleased with the results!)

I am happy to report that I got a new sewing machine for Christmas and have already sewn a few pillowcases for the kiddos and have been collecting fabric for beginning some quilt projects! I will post some pictures of my projects I plan to start and my Daisy afghan for the Princess that is almost completed this weekend.

The Hubby got a guitar for Christmas and has been learning to play. The past 3 weeks he has really done well and has impressed me with his progress! He can even play me "Love Me Tender" which honestly melts my heart. There have been days I have been sitting down in the office working and I hear that sweet serenade emanating from the upstairs playroom as he is practicing while the kids play - no sweeter sound, honestly - the sound of my family!

I have enjoyed keeping up with the blogs I read throughout the past month, but decided to take a break from posting in order to spend as much time as possible with the family. I am back now and plan to update on my projects and what we did this past month over the next few days. I even found a few new blogs over the past month that are simply wonderful:

Kelly's Blog: She is having her baby TODAY...go wish her the best and keep her in your prayers!

Angela's Blog: She is a Moda lovin' mama...need I say more?!?

Bloom: A wonderful site full of beautiful stitch work, quilting, and gardening.

Go give this ladies a visit...they have some beautiful posts!

I'll be back tomorrow to share some pictures of my projects...

Too much turkey!

2008-12-01T20:16:00.003-06:00

It is the day after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and I am exhausted!!!

We spent the holiday traveling to my mom's then to see my husband's family so it was a lot of time on the road. A great time was had by all. We ate way too much and now really need to get back to the workout routine!

I have some great pictures from our travels. We stayed at my mom's one night and day and then at the in-laws River Place (basically a ranch in the middle of nowhere) for the next two days. We saw plenty of game, spent time by the campfire, and just enjoyed the company of family.

I spent today catching up on work for my business, getting laundry done and Christmas shopping. Tomorrow I need to clean house and get the rest of our Christmas decorations out. We put one tree up on Sunday night when we returned home as the kids were just dying to have a tree up. After that, we went to dinner and then drove around looking at Christmas lights.

I'll have more to say later and some pics to post, but for now...I am tired and need to rest!

Show and Tell Friday...

2008-11-21T08:21:00.004-06:00

Today is Show and Tell over at There Is No Place Like Home.

Every house where love abides
And friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home sweet home
For there the heart can rest.
~Henry Van Dyke

I want to show you some treasures I found this week! I attended a Southern Living at Home party earlier in the week and the director who was hosting the party had this B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L fireplace screen for sale at a deep discount! It is new to the fall catalog so I got a steal with the discount! You cannot really tell from the picture, but my bricks stair step down and the screen fits in like it was made for the space under the lowest line of bricks!

At the same party, there was a drawing for a beautiful painted Gail Pittman Urn. My Aunt attended the party with me and she WON IT! Then, she gave it to me!!! What a great Aunt!!!! My new dining furniture is due to be delivered in a week or so and I am so excited to see how this is going to look displayed on the buffet/hutch with some pine boughs in it adorned with ornaments!

I found a few more treasures this past week that I just could not pass up. I am creating a family portrait wall between our entry and family room. I found a great wall plaque at deep discount while at Hobby Lobby. I paid...wait for it...$3 for this beauty! I LOVE what it says: Family: All Because Two People Fell In Love.

Then while at JoAnn's I came across this little goodie. It says: Family, One of God's Masterpieces. Again, found it on deep discount (the only way to shop!)

I hope you enjoyed some of my finds this week. I love decorating our home and it always thrills me to find items that really speak to me and make our home a warm and welcoming place for our family to come back to after a day of work or school!

Thankful Thursday...

2008-11-20T13:48:00.009-06:00

Thanksgiving
The year has turned its circle,
The seasons come and go.
The harvest all is gathered in
And chilly north winds blow.
Orchards have shared their treasures,
The fields, their yellow grain,
So open wide the doorway
Thanksgiving comes again!
~Old Rhyme

Over at There Is No Place Like Home, Kelli has been hosting a 'Giving Thanks Week.' It is a great idea to prepare our hearts and homes for Thanksgiving. So many wonderful ideas and recipes have been shared there!

I am sharing decorating ideas. Here we have our breakfast nook where our everyday family meals are shared.

The basket on our table holds Autumn linens such as tea towels and napkins...I just LOVE my acorn napkin rings I found on sale at Kohl's last year after Thanksgiving! I think I paid something like 0.45 cents a piece for them!
I tied a fall foliage decorative pick to the back of each chair using a pretty fall wired ribbon.

Here is a close-up of the detail of the chair adornments:

And another one:

I have a chalkboard over on the wall near the table. I write menus or inspirational quotes on this board. I liked the saying I saw on the Warm Pie, Happy Home blog of "The Frost is on the Pumpkin" so that is what is on the chalk board right now. I have two wooden pumpkins hanging from the hooks, one pumpkin reads 'Autumn' and the other pumpkin reads 'Harvest'.

My home makes it easy to decorate for the Autumn months as my decor and colors tend to be very warm and cozy variations of reds, browns, sages, and tans. In my dining room I have this little vignette:
Here is a close up of the sconces. I bought the white pumpkins at Wal-mart and then simply tied a fall rust and cream checked ribbon around the stems and placed a few autumn picks behind them on the sconce:

I keep these toile buckets up all year on a wall in my dining room. I change the greenery in it for the seasons. Here I have it all dressed up for Autumn:

And here is my creation from Wordle. I found this through Heather and LOVE it! I used words here that represent the feelings I have around the Thanksgiving holiday. I will make a different one for Christmas and post that when I have it. I framed it and set it on my antique school desk in my entry. I found the wooden oak leaves and acorns just today on sale to set by the frame:

I hope you enjoyed seeing some of my Autumn/Thanksgiving decor. Go visit Kelli for some more great ideas! Melissa also has her post up and still collecting comments regarding holiday decor! There are some great ideas out there in blogland!!!

Paper Craft - Christmas Gift Tags...

2008-11-20T05:30:00.004-06:00

The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other. ~Burton Hillis

My daughter and I thought it would be fun to make our own gift tags for our Christmas packages this year! Last weekend we gathered all our supplies, sat at the table, cut out tags and stamped away! It was so nice and such a good time just to chat and create. My daughter is 7 years old and LOVES anything crafty. I made sure we made very simple tags so we could concentrate on the 'togetherness' and creativity instead of stressing over the perfect overdone commercial-looking gift tag - and trust me, if you know me, you know how difficult it was not to let my OCD tendencies take over and turn the craft into a commercially, glittery, overdone, STRESSED OUT, mess that was no fun in the end for me or my daughter! I tend to like things, um...perfect, but I am learning to see the perfection even in the flaws. It is more important now that I am the keeper of these two little beings that I concentrate on the moment, the memory, and not the 'thing' we are working on! And you know what? I LOVE our little tags we made!
I found these great clear stamps from the Martha Stewart line in the scrapbooking section of Wal-Mart no less! We found the paper, stamping ink, acrylic blocks to mount the stamps, ribbon and cord all at Hobby Lobby.

We had fun cutting out decorative little snowball shapes with my craft scissors. My daughter picked to stamp the silver snow flakes and blue Joy on these then we punched the hole and used a blue glittery cord to attach to the tag.
We stamped 'To' and 'From' on the back.

Then we worked on these cute stamps with a red Merry Christmas and red cardinals. Then stamped a green 'To' and 'From' on the inside and tied with red glittery cord.

Onto our Noel tags with a silver dove and tied with the glittery blue cord. We stamped the 'To' and 'From' in blue.

Then the gold reindeer and green pine tree tied with glittery green cord and stamped with a green 'To' and 'From' on the other side.
Here are the finished cards! We have four different types and we made ten each. This was such a fun project to do with my daughter. I am so glad I chose not to 'go overboard' and instead practice what this season is really all about...not about 'things' but about moments - times spent with loved ones and special memories made.

Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time. ~Laura Ingalls Wilder

(I apologize for the poor quality of the pictures. It was late when we finished so we had no natural light! I hope they show up somewhat!)

For more paper crafting ideas, go visit Kelli!

Sunday's Reflection...

2008-11-16T09:11:00.007-06:00

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

~Colossians 3:12-17 NIV

Photo Credit: Flickr

Show and Tell Friday...

2008-11-13T19:43:00.019-06:00

Happy Friday!!! It is time again for Show and Tell Friday over at There is No Place Like Home.

Come along inside... We'll see if tea and buns can make the world a better place.

~The Wind in the Willow~

I have a special fondness for tea cups. I enjoy the images they provoke: good conversation enjoyed over a cup of tea, reflection, relaxation, introspection, comfort, quiet...

Today I will share some of the tea cups I have collected. The first one below is a simple cup from Garden Ridge that I just adored and picked up one day.

Strange how a teapot can represent at the same time the comforts of solitude and the pleasures of company.

~Author Unknown

All the cups below have special stories attached to them. My husband's grandfather bought antiques and we are fortunate enough to have some of the saucers and tea cups he had in his collection. The yellow rose tea cup and saucer:

The tea cup and saucer from Japan:
The tea cup and saucer with the dainty pink flowers:
And my favorite from my husband's grandfather's collection, this precious pink and white footed cup and saucer:

Each cup of tea represents an imaginary voyage.

~Catherine Douzel

Take a look at these six dainty perfect little cups below. These have a very, very special story, a story that in fact came as a beautiful surprise to me as an adult. My grandmother loved to go 'garage sale-ing'. She would take me with her on Saturdays (or Sairdees as she pronounces it in her leftover Alabama drawl) when I spent time with her in the summer. I remember finding many treasures on these Saturday's with my grandmother. Treasures such as dolls, books, and toys.

A little over ten years ago, after I was married, my grandmother gave me a box filled with six items wrapped in old brown paper bags. I unwrapped them to find these six sweet little cups. In discussing the 'gift' she told me that I had in fact picked these cups out at a sale on one of our Saturdays. She says I insisted I wanted them but I was just a little girl, younger than five years old. So unbeknown to me, she bought these, and put them away for more than 20 years and then presented them to me as a young woman starting a home of my own.

What a treasure these are to me. Not only are they a beautiful addition to the display in my dining room china hutch, but every time I look at them I am reminded of the wonderful memories of time spent with my grandmother.

I hope you enjoyed seeing a few of my special tea cups and saucers as much as I enjoyed the precious memories as I wrote about them. Now go visit Kelli to see more Show and Tell links today!

Another WIP...

2008-11-13T12:29:00.009-06:00

I now have over 20 daisy squares completed for my daughter's blanket. I was stumped as to what pattern to create and use besides the daisy squares. I think I have decided on a granny square of six rounds - the first two rounds pink, the third round green, and the last three rounds pink. Then when I join all the squares I will make a border using green alone, then multi yarn with green and pink and finally the outside of pink alone using a scalloped edging. It think it is going to be so sweet! Her room is pink and green with daisies and a garden theme.

However, while trying to sort out the color design of the squares other than the daisy squares, I started another crochet project! If you are keeping count, I now have 3 projects in progress...I am trying my juggling skills ;-)

I thought I would 'practice' on the snowflake hexagon that I will need to know how to make for the snowflake afghan. Well turns out these are FUN! Plus, with all the Christmas commercials already on the TV, it put me in the mood to give these a go. I found my groove on them and have a few completed.

I am hoping to complete my daughter's blanket by Christmas and then dive into the snowflakes so that at some point this winter I can complete that blanket! Two down, and just 57 to go!

Show and Tell Friday...

2008-11-07T07:57:00.008-06:00

Today, for Show and Tell Friday, I am sharing pictures of my hand painted fall goblets and two of my precious fall plates.

The plates are from the Johnson Brother's Friendly Village collection. The top plate is a vignette of an apple orchard. The plate on the bottom is of a pumpkin patch.

Here is a closer view of the apple plate.

And a closer view of the pumpkin plate. I won these plates off Ebay just this year and just adore the rustic, cozy, 'heartland' feel they lend to my fall decor.

Now onto the hand painted fall goblets. I have had these for many years now. There are four of them painted with two different designs of fall gourds, pumpkins, leaves, and acorns.

I adore the detail of the painted acorns even on the bottoms of the glassware. That way they look beautiful when out for use or when hanging on the glass rack!

I hope you enjoyed sharing some of my treasured fall dinnerware and glasses that adorn my kitchen all during the autumn season! Now, go on over to Kelli's and share in some of the other wonderful 'Show and Tell' posts!

Gratitude Garland...

2008-11-06T20:54:00.024-06:00

Whew, I just finished cutting out 30 leaves and my hands are ACHING!!! But it was worth it. I finished the 'gratitude garland' - an idea I borrowed from Chris and which she borrowed from Heather!

Here is how I did it:

I found leaf templates, where else, but the Martha Stewart website. I enlarged the leaves on my copy machine to 145% to get the size I wanted. I then taped the leaves I enlarged to white card stock and cut out the shapes to form my templates. (I chose just three different leaf types.)

I used the templates I made to trace the leaves onto varying fall colors and patterns of scrapbooking card stock. I decided to make 30 leaves - 1 for each day in November.

I cut out each of the leaves, then punched holes in each, and finally strung them onto a fall ribbon. Each day, this will remind my husband and me to talk to the kids about what we are thankful for and we will write these things on a leaf.

Before our Thanksgiving meal we can read what we wrote on our garland throughout the month. I also figure this will be a neat keepsake to look back on over the years reminding us what our children were thankful for when they were so small. I think this will be a great yearly tradition!

By the way, you can find more great paper crafting ideas over at Kelli's blog so go give her a visit!

Also, Melissa at The Inspired Room has her Holiday Linky Love post up! Go visit her to get some more great inspiration for Holiday decoration. There are some crafty people out there in Blogland!

Works for Me Wednesday...Toys Worth Buying

2008-11-05T10:45:00.008-06:00

The theme this week over at Rocks In My Dryer for "Works For Me Wednesday" is Toys Worth Buying. There are lots of great ideas for the upcoming holidays and you can be assured they are mom and kid tested!

My addition to the theme is what to buy your child for his or her toys on the go. For any mom that has a little boy, surely you have 1 or 25 little toy cars lying around the playroom, stairs, dining room, well, any and every room of the house! My little guy loves playing with his cars and he always wants to take them with us when we run errands to play with in the car or just to have sitting beside him.

I found that a soft-sided lunch box works very well to put a few toy cars in and is completely child-friendly for my 2 1/2 year old! He will gather a few of his cars, zip them up in the little lunch box, and off we go.

The great thing is you can find themed lunchboxes at most any retail store. We picked one out that is perfect for carrying around the little guy's toy cars. You can find them in girl themes too and they would be perfect for carrying around little dolls or such. We even throw in a few books for those really long errands!

I think any kiddo would be completely happy with a favorite character themed carrying case for their toys on the go! What a great (and inexpensive) thing to buy for your child or as a gift!

Can You Hear the Rustling of Falling Leaves...

2008-11-04T08:54:00.019-06:00

"How silently they tumble down

And come to rest upon the ground

To lay a carpet, rich and rare,

Beneath the trees without a care,

Content to sleep, their work well done,

Colors gleaming in the sun.
At other times, they wildly fly

Until they nearly reach the sky.

Twisting, turning through the air

Till all the trees stand stark and bare.

Exhausted, drop to earth below

To wait, like children, for the snow."

- Elsie N. Brady, Leaves

"In the garden, Autumn is, indeed the crowning glory of the year, bringing us the fruition of months of thought and care and toil. And at no season, safe perhaps in Daffodil time, do we get such superb colour effects as from August to November."

- Rose G. Kingsley, The Autumn Garden

"When the trees their summer splendor

Change to raiment red and gold,

When the summer moon turns mellow,

And the nights are getting cold;

When the squirrels hide their acorns,

And the woodchucks disappear;

Then we know that it is autumn,

Loveliest season of the year."

- Carol L. Riser, Autumn

"November's sky is chill and drear, November's leaf is red and sear."- Sir Walter Scott

"The morns are meeker than they were,

The nuts are getting brown;

The berry's cheek is plumper,

The rose is out of town.

The maple wears a gayer scarf,

The field a scarlet gown.

Lest I should be old-fashioned,

I'll put a trinket on."

- Emily Dickinson

"How wonderful it would be if we could help our children and grandchildren to learn thanksgiving at an early age. Thanksgiving opens the doors. It changes a child's personality. A child is resentful, negative—or thankful.Thankful children want to give, they radiate happiness, they draw people."- Sir John Templeton

Light your favorite Fall candle, fix yourself some hot spiced tea, and go visit the Just A Girl blog for some great ideas and links on sharing gratitude with your children this month! Kelli at There is No Place Like Home also has great ideas for counting our blessings with your children.

I plan on making the Gratitude Leaf Garland and daily my children will help me write on a leaf something we are thankful for leading up to Thanksgiving, then I plan on reading these before our big meal!

The Simple Woman's Daybook

2008-11-03T18:45:00.016-06:00

FOR TODAY ...Monday, November 3, 2008...

Outside My Window...Sounds of the evening...the sun has set

I am thinking...It has been a good Monday, a good start to the week. The Halloween decorations are down and put away and I am looking forward to a month of Thanks

I am thankful for... A soft bed awaiting me, a full belly, the laughter and chatter of my family at days' end

From the kitchen... Nachos with ground turkey taco meat, fat-free re-fried beans, 2% cheddar cheese, shredded lettuce, fat-free sour cream, and fresh tomato salsa

I am wearing... Denim capris, amethyst 3/4 length sleeved shirt, bare feet, glasses

I am creating... Crochet daisy squares to put together an afghan for my sweet daughter

I am reading... Harvesting the Heart by Jodi Picoult

I am hoping... For peace of mind for my husband and me as we make a decision regarding our families future and home

I am hearing... my husband playing with the children in the family room. He is so kind and gentle a daddy showing great patience with some tired kiddos

Around the house... I will clean bathrooms this week and further ready our flower beds for the chill of autumn

One of my favorite things... the smell of the smoke wisps in the air on chilly autumn evenings as families gather 'round the fireplace, whether indoors or out

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Keep up with the election...we voted early last week, shop for some slacks or skirt for myself and daughter as we are having family portraits taken next week and those two items are all I have left to find, work and further market my business, make some decisions regarding the home...

Here is picture thought I am sharing...(Both my men 'Trick-or-Treating' on Halloween Evening)

Visit Peggy at The Simple Woman Blog for more great Daybook entries...

Thankful Thursday...

2008-10-30T10:14:00.002-05:00

Today, Iris at Grace Alone is writing about why she is thankful for her five senses. It is a lovely post. Be sure to visit and read it.

In counting my blessings this week, I am thankful for:

The privilege to serve our community and children via our preschool/Kinder/Pre-K program at church
My house (I am praying very hard on this one...we LOVE our house, location, neighbors, proximity to great schools...however, we are a growing family plus I work from home and do find we are in need of more space. We currently live in a beautiful home. It keeps us sheltered. It offers separate rooms for my children. It has a sepaate office, dining, and play room. It sounds silly and petty to want more. I find that we have enough rooms but need a little extra space in each room for storage and such, especially with the kids getting bigger and my business [prayerfully] expanding.) So, I am thankful for the home I have. It is our family's haven in a busy world. However, I am praying on what decision we need to make for the future.
My business. I am able to work out of my house running my own small business. It keeps me available to my children and husband and allows me to feel at peace with my domesticity working together with my professional life. I am in prayer over this as well right now as I am considering expanding in some different directions and hope and pray that the path laid before me will be positive for me and my family.
As always, what I am most thankful for is my God who knows my heart, my husband who cherishes me, and my children who inspire me to be the best mother/teacher/role model I can be.

"Blessed are those that can give without remembering and receive without forgetting."~ Author Unknown ~

Show and Tell Friday...

2008-10-24T09:28:00.009-05:00

Kelli over at 'There is No Place Like Home' hosts a show and tell each Friday. Today is my first participation.

My show and tell is pictures of the initial 'R' that I have around our home. 'R' begins our family last name. I am proud of my family and what we stand for so I enjoy finding items to decorate our nest with our last name initial.

"Proper names are poetry in the raw. Like all poetry they are untranslatable." ~W.H. Auden

"When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses." ~Joyce Brothers

I am quite fond of these little teacups and the linen napkins. I am not sure if you can see, but the napkin that is in the teacup has a little red embroidered ladybug on it! If you had not guessed from my blog, I just adore ladybugs! I found the teacup and the linen napkins at Anthropologie and fell in love with them!

I hope you enjoyed sharing my treasured letter! Go visit Kelli for more Friday Show and Tell!

Thankful Thursday...

2008-10-23T07:20:00.018-05:00

Here is another moment to reflect on my many thanks...

Yesterday a cool front made its way across Texas and it brought welcomed Fall weather - blustery wind, grey skies, and a bit of rain. But before all that, I took a walk with my toddler son, as he rode around on his little scooter. The sky was the bluest blue as we walked, before the weather changed. We were delighting in pointing out all the pumpkins and festive fall decor adorning all the homes in our neighborhood. We live in a very family-oriented neighborhood (one of the things I am thankful for) and it is so calming to share the same values and ideals with our neighbors and friends that surround us. During the walk I was just overcome with what the Lord has placed before us - the beauty in nature, even little things if we just take the time to breathe and see. Breathe and see, sometimes that is the best answer. Don't fret and panic, breathe and see...

Me and the little guy came home and prepared for the cooler weather and made ready for our afternoon snack we would share with my daughter after we picked her up from school...homemade hot cocoa in special festive cups, the children helping me sprinkle pretzels after I dipped them in chocolate bark, and the fellowship of being together in the kitchen, our hands making our snack and enjoying conversation and the company of each other. Breathe and see... To breathe-in is also called inspiration....hmm...think about that one: If we take time to really breathe we can also experience inspiration in the other sense of the word too, to be inspired and to really see...Breathe in and let the wonder of the Lord inspire you.

Here are the pictures of my thankful afternoon spent with my children...

"Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help. You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever."
-Psalm 30:10-12

For more Thankful Thursday posts, go visit Iris at Grace Alone.

With Love, To My Daughter...

2008-10-22T09:14:00.010-05:00

A daughter is a day brightener and a heart warmer. ~Author Unknown

A daughter is the happy memories of the past, the joyful moments of the present, and the hope and promise of the future. ~Author Unknown

I started a new project. I am still making the Granny Squares for my family room afghan but since I am confident in my ability now, I have started on an afghan for my daughter! Her room is pink and green (a garden theme) and she has a Victorian crazy quilt from PBK on it with daisy's, pink and green gingham, etc., etc.

I found a great pattern for Daisy Granny Squares and started on those! I have only completed six and need about 56 for the throw I want to make her, but I completed those in a couple of days, so I figure if I work a little each day I can have it finished for a Christmas gift! I am still deciding on whether to use all Daisy Squares or mix it up with a few plain pink, green, or white squares, or maybe some classic Granny squares in pink and green, or any combination of pink, green, and white.

I am saying a prayer with each square I make and envisioning my sweet princess snuggled up with this blanket and it keeping her warm, covering her in her mother's prayers. It is such soft yarn that I just know it will be something so nice to snuggle under.

You can find the pattern on Mary Ellen's site. There are lots of cute 'Granny Alongs' out there on blogs and some great pictures on Flickr.

Quilt Giveaway!

2008-10-16T06:00:00.002-05:00

If you haven't yet, go visit this talented girlie at Pigtails and Snails. She is giving away a beautiful quilt. Her blog has some great pics and information on quilting and her the life and times of a mommy in the midst of it all!

Thankful Thursday

2008-10-15T21:06:00.006-05:00

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."~ Melody Beattie ~

This week I am thankful for:

My husband and children that make my house a home.
A day spent in the company of my aunt and lunch with my sister and nephew.
Being humbled in a moment of 'green eyed-ness' and remembering this quote: "Happiness is in the heart, not in the circumstances..."
Neighbors that truly do care.
A soft, warm bed to fall into at the end of the day.
A mom that gives up her Saturday afternoon to play with my toddler so my husband and I can spend the time with my daughter for a special outing just about her.
Soft new yarn found in the perfect colors for a new project.
The cool front that has arrived and brought with it some rain and fall weather!
My little boy's healing knee.
The upcoming holidays and family and friends that I look forward to sharing them with.
The weekend in sight and plans to spend it with family.

"It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,and to sing praises unto thy name, O most high:To shew forth thy loving kindness in the morning,and thy faithfulness every night"— Psalms 92.1-2

To read more Thankful posts, visit Iris at Grace Alone.

My Newest Obsession...

2008-10-14T14:21:00.014-05:00

Where have I been you might ask? There are many answers to that question, but the one that is most fun is that I taught myself to crochet! I am working on granny squares to piece together into my first afghan. I also took a knitting class that was most helpful in my knitting that I started...LAST Autumn! But for now, the grannies are my obsession. I am going to use the ones I am currently working on for an afghan for my family room and it is good practice so as soon as I finish this I have great plans for this snowflake afghan with a red background instead of blue. I want to make an afghan for my daughter sort of like this one, and then an afghan for my son sort of like this one!

Oh and THEN, I found these cute patterns: 'Santa's Cookies and Milk' and this Nativity are high on my list that I hope to complete before Christmas. I also adore these: Pumpkin Pie, a cute reindeer, oh, and this little mouse to go with one of my daughter's favorite books....you can see how my OCD is taking over with the potential for cuteness that I might create.

Here are the Granny Squares in progress and then the 12 I have completed as of today:

I'll update my progress but for now, back to my Grannies!

Rainy weather = Baking weather!

2008-09-10T13:27:00.014-05:00

I am going to gain 15 pounds before Fall really even gets going around here! It is another drizzly day here in Texas, so it is a bit cooler albeit humid outside, but it sets the perfect scene for staying indoors and continuing with the cleaning this week and baking! Today, the little Prince and I made homemade oatmeal raisin cookies. They smell wonderful and are just waiting for the Princess to come home so that we may all have a cookie and some milk as our afternoon snack.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies:
1/2 butter flavored Crisco
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups old fashioned, uncooked oats
1 cup raisins

Preparation
1. Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat margarine and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.
2. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto un-greased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

So that was one of the fun parts about our day. The sad part is our making a decision regarding our new kitten, our little kitten who is sitting here with me on the desk chair as I type, keeping my lap nice and warm. Here is the back story:

We adopted Isabella (Bella) a few weeks ago. We had been looking for a cat for a while knowing we wanted a young one to be a family pet for our children. She was just the perfect fit for us! Even had the name Isabella that was perfect! (Yes, I just finished the Twilight Saga and LOVED it, and thought it so sweet that this perfect little kitten had the name of the heroine in the story!) She is the sweetest 4-month-old kitten. She is just like a little dog. She is playful yet gentle and she LOVES to follow The Princess and The Prince around. She finds the most precious places to take her naps and is just perfect. She happens to look very much like Margo, the cat we had for about 13 years and then had to make the hard decision to euthanize while I was pregnant with Drew due to her having cancer that was making her very ill.

However, as par for us over the last few months, our streak of bad luck continues. The Prince started sneezing and sniffling when we brought Bella home and it intensified. He has been around other cats of friends and family so I figured he would be fine with one as a pet since The Princess lived with Margo for all those years. HOWEVER, I did talk to our pediatrician and learned of a simple blood test that can test for allergies without going through the scratch test initially.

I took The Prince to have blood drawn and they tested for some different allergens with cat being one of them. The test rates allergies on a scale of 0 to 6 with 0 being no allergy and 6 being severe allergy. The Prince scored a 4-5 allergy to cat. Oh, I cannot tell you how sad we are. If I had known about a ‘simple blood test’ to test for allergies we would have done that before adopting the cat, but in the past the scratch test is what was used and that is not pleasant as I went through it as a child and remember itching terribly when a scratch was positive. The nurse told me it was a fairly new test they were using so not to feel bad as I could not have known unless I specifically asked what we could do (which I did after The Prince reacted to Bella).

So, The Princess is just heartbroken, as am I. I was very attached to our Margo and it was so difficult when we had to put her down that I just did not want a pet until now. And then we find this perfect kitten that acts more like a puppy than a cat and it looks like we will have to give her back. I do have The Prince an appointment with an allergist but the soonest she could see him is in two weeks. I had to take allergy shots as a child so even if we cannot keep Bella I want to have a consultation with the allergist to assess the situation, especially with his eczema which can be triggered by an allergen.

Bella is so outgoing and playful yet gentle and sweet. When she plays with the kids her claws never come out. No one has had any even accidental scratches that sometimes happen with a kitten. I have prayed on this but know that it is most important for The Prince to not have to live with a pet that makes him miserable with sneezing and itching. We can have a puppy, but I am just not ready to potty train a puppy and The Prince together. And The Princess and I both love cats so this is difficult knowing we might not be able to ever have one.

Poor Little Prince and Princess though, as they tell me constantly they don’t want to give up Bella and they WANT to keep her. Poor mommy and daddy trying to gently tell them that we just cannot. We are due to give her back to her foster mommy this weekend. I have dragged my heels about it for as long as I can. Ugh, I just keep hoping for some divine revelation that puts me at ease with giving her up. It may sound crazy but she feels like she just belongs here even after a few weeks. The Prince loves her too and the whole thing is just a hard decision all around.

What a long-winded post and seriously teetering on both ends of the emotion spectrum! Sometimes, randomness is the rule around here ;-)

Fall is in the air!

2008-09-09T13:28:00.005-05:00

Mmmm, it is raining softly outside today so I lit some candles and cleaned house. It is a good day to stay indoors and get some 'nesting' accomplished! Between the Orange and Clove candle, the orange wood floor cleaner, and the freshly baked Applesauce Puffs the whole house smells of autumn!

I found the recipe for the Applesauce Puffs (a great fall after-school snack) at Kelli's place. She links to the recipe on her site. She also has some great ideas for the home so browse around if you visit there.

It is about nap time for the little guy, so I had better go get him settled so he can get in a rest before we pick the big sister up from school. Enjoy the afternoon!

"The spirits of the air live on the smells
Of fruit; and joy, with pinions light, roves round
The gardens, or sits singing in the trees.
Thus sang the jolly Autumn as he sat;
Then rose, girded himself, and o'er the bleak
Hills fled from our sight; but left his golden load."
~ William Blake, To Autumn

Fall Decorating...Sneak Peek

2008-09-08T18:56:00.007-05:00

I am posting just a little sneak peek at my fall decorating! See here in Texas, it is a 'crisp' 90 degrees still so it still feels like the dog days of summer most days! I am spending this week cleaning house and plan to finish all the fall decorating this weekend. I will post more pictures next week.

Enjoy!

Now, go visit The Inspired Room for more great Fall Nesting ideas! I'll be back next week to post more pictures of our nest.

"Besides the autumn poets sing,

A few prosaic days

A little this side of the snow

And that side of the haze."

~Emily Dickinson

Thankful Thursday

2008-08-07T06:00:00.009-05:00

The last few weeks have brought many financial demands on our family...I won't go into it all, but let's just say, everything needed maintenance or replacement all at once! Instead of dwelling on the mere pennies left in the home/car maintenance account, I will instead be thankful that we had the means to fix and replace!

Other things I am thankful for today:

Two safe vehicles
A cool air-conditioned home (temps have been over 100 for quite a few days now)
Clean clothes all put away in their place
A strong, able body
A clear mind amidst all the chaos of the past few weeks due to much prayer and faith
The man in my life that is a best friend, loving husband, and so caring and compassionate a father
Two little people that are so full of energy it just takes my breath away
My family
A few days break to relax with my husband and children and reflect on our many blessings

What are you thankful for my friends?

My Children Inspire Me...

2008-08-06T07:18:00.009-05:00

"Children of the same family, the same blood, with the same first associations and habits, have some means of enjoyment in their power, which no subsequent connections can supply..." ~Jane Austen, Mansfield Park, 1814

"We cannot destroy kindred: our chains stretch a little sometimes, but they never break. ~Marquise de Sévigné "

“Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.” -Charles R. Swindoll

We're Off to See the Wizard...er...Shamu!

2008-08-05T17:07:00.011-05:00

We are so excited about our trip to Sea World!

The Princess and I went and found some Sketchers Cali Gear shoes today on sale. She found some cute mosaic shoes and I found some white shoes (they don't make cute mosaic ones in mommy size!). They are like Crocs but have a closed heel so we can wear them on the roller coasters. I remember the last time my sister and I went to Sea World we had to sit on our flip flops on some of the rides so they would not fly off! Of course we had to get some cute little Cali Bits to go on them...I found a daisy, ladybug, and bee with some white jewels. The princess's shoes came with some but we added some more multi-colored jewels. I found the Prince some Thomas the Tank Engine Crocs, but they were not in his size....they had the size above and the size below...will have to hunt those down when we get back as he was going nuts over them!

We went to Michael's on the way home and I found the PERFECT little notebooks in the $1 bins. They are blue on the front and have that hard plastic cover page. They have a little band around the edge of the pages to keep them together. I found stickers of sea animals in the scrap booking section along with letter stickers in with different colors of blue on them to look like waves! I wrote the kids names on each using the sticker letters then in a Sharpie marker underneath their name wrote "Sea World Memories", and then back to the stickers to spell out 2008. I then let them put whatever stickers they wanted on the pages inside. I figure they can use them for an autograph book for the characters they will meet on our 'Seafari' tour and the Princess will like to record her favorite things from the trip in it as a journal! She is excited and the Prince was squealing with delight as he put on this sea animal stickers!

Again...Where Does the Time Go???

2008-06-05T15:45:00.003-05:00

Wow, has it been FOUR months since I updated this site? I guess so. We have been busy, busy, especially the last few weeks. We have been wrapping up school and dance. The baby-man is busy, busy developing his vocabulary and saying the cutest and most surprising things at times! Last night we were eating Chinese take-out and he had noodles covering his high chair tray. Out of the blue he says, "Big Mess!" He is funny because he will just all of a sudden have a new phrase to say! I know in his little mind he has been listening to all of us talk and his little brain is stringing together words that make sense and then all of a sudden a situation comes up and WHAM-that is where he is supposed to use those words together! It is amazing, amazing to watch your child learn to use language. What other time in life are we learning and putting together as much as those first few years. We have to learn a basis of knowledge for an entire lifetime! I LOVE witnessing this again!

Where Does the Time Go???

2008-02-13T18:20:00.006-06:00

Wow, it has been a while since I posted. My baby-man is now officially a "tod." He turned two at the beginning of February. We celebrated his second birthday with a football party since he loves anything football! He had a great time with his family, little cousins, and a few friends from Gymboree.

He is learning to talk and says some pretty cute things:
All dogs are “woof-woof’s”
Any body of water is a “baf” (bath)
He calls Hannah Montana “bofe” (meaning “both” since her theme song is The Best of Both Worlds)…can you tell he has an older sister?
He loves to say “No-No”…I wonder why ;-)
He now tells me when he goes to the “baf-oom” (bathroom) so I figure we will start potty learning soon. We still need to master getting our pants up and down easily by ourselves before we can be independent in this endeavor though.
He loves to dance and lets me know that he wants to listen to my iPod so we can sing and dance! And it melts a mommy’s heart to have her little boy want to dance with her!

He can really throw a football and well! He is very sweet and well behaved but is a normal two-year-old boy and tries to give mommy a heart attack at times…especially with his stunt of moving the ottoman out from the couch and then LEAPING from the ottoman to the couch! I am now in the midst of planning my daughter's SEVENTH birthday!

What a wonderful ride we are one...I can see time passing like a blur - akin to my childhood rides on the park Merry-Go-Round (remember those old metal rusty things!) I remember lying on my back as a parent, grandparent, or older friend would push faster, faster, FASTER!!! I could look up and the sky was the constant, never wavering - just the blue sky - while looking out showed the blur of the landscape whirling by. I pray that as we journey onward on our merry-go-round as a family that my children will know those important constants; the constant of love of God, love of mommy and daddy. I pray my children will always know that no matter where the "ride" takes them, they have unconditional, never wavering love and support of family.

I am thankful for these days. I am soaking them up...

Christmas Tour of Homes

2007-12-17T17:41:00.000-06:00

A friendly little snowman waits by our front door to welcome you into our home, all decorated for the holiday season!

Won't you come in and have some fresh, hot coffee? We have some oh-so-good Eggnog creamer. Grab some white chocolate dipped pretzels too! My lil' princess's job is to sprinkle the pretzels as soon as I dip them in the white chocolate! The lil' prince holds the job of 'quality control' and tastes them for us to make sure we did a good job! ;-)

Here is our staircase all aglow! Along with our candy cane tree in the foyer, the 'formal' tree in the dining room, and our memory tree in our family room. (Notice that this year they are all decorated only about two-thirds the way down...we have a toddler this year!)

Below is a close up of under our tree in the family room...the children's nativity along with some favoriate ornaments...ornaments the children can play with, an ornament of Santa kneeling beside the Baby Jesus - I love this one because I bought it with a book about St. Nicholas and it weaves together nicely Santa Claus and Jesus, the real reason we celebrate Christmas! Oh and we can't forget mommy's ornament...a cup of Starbuck's Coffee of course ;-)

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

A close up on our wreath on the mantle:

The Princess' tree in her room and the Prince's tree in his room:

And finally, our 'countdown to Christmas'. This year I filled this cute little metal stocking with 25 candy canes and we have been keeping track of the days until Christmas every night by taking out one of the candy canes and hanging it on our tree in the foyer, then we change the number on the chalkboard. The little Princess loves this and the little Prince does too, but for other reasons...he was VERY quiet one day and I caught him eating one of the candy canes off the foyer tree wrapper and all!!!! So since then, I found some fake candy canes to hang on the tree but we put the real ones in back and so far he just thinks they are all fake now ;-)

As you leave our home, let me impart a favorite quote by Linus (straight from Luke 2:8-14 King James Version) in answer to Charlie Brown's question of the true meaning of Christmas in A Charlie Brown Christmas:

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will
toward men."

Jesus is the reason that our family celebrates CHRISTmas!
Our family wishes you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!!!

Now head on over to BooMama's to tour some other great homes!

Knitty-Gritty!

2007-10-08T19:06:00.000-05:00

Okay folks...I am taking up a new hobby...as if raising the two little ones, working my transcription business from home, serving on the board at the preschool, AND remodeling our kitchen at the moment was not enough...I am trying to teach myself to knit!

Sarah, over at In the Midst of It, inspired me! She taught herself to knit this past year and has made some adorable hats for her little one. I can do this! I have mastered casting on and the knit stitch...now I am going to tackle purling and then the cast off or binding off...

If anyone out there reading this knits, I welcome ANY advice! I am starting small and trying to work myself a scarf, then my little princess will get a scarf (see that lovely pink, green, and white yarn pictured above!), and then I want to make my little prince some cutsie little hats from the book, Itty-Bitty Hats, by Susan B. Anderson. The book is absolutely darling. If nothing else it is just fun to browse these sweet little creations. However, I do hope to master the art and make some of these myself!

One question for you knitters out there: The picture at the very top shows my practice swatch of what I hope to one day be a scarf for fall...my first knitting project. I am doing a basic knit stitch for this so far, but the edges are going from small (at my cast on stitches) to wider as I go...is this a common problem and if so, what am I doing wrong???

Thanks for any advice.

Autumn Dancin'

2007-10-01T06:14:00.001-05:00

Last weekend, in order to more officially welcome in Autumn and October, we pulled out the yard art for Fall. I was placing a little girl scarecrow and a little boy scarecrow I had found at the nursery in the flower bed along with a few pumpkins. The little girl scarecrow is just a bit bigger than the little boy so it is a perfect "big sister/little brother" look to match our family right now.

My little girl was helping me place them. I tied the two scarecrow's hands together so they would be holding hands and the little girl scarecrow kept turning in the wind some. I told my daughter, "Well, I can't keep her from spinning," to which she replied, "Oh no mommy, it is okay, see, she is dancing!"

My little girl is always looking on the bright side. She really seems to have a great outlook on life, even at such a young age. I pray she will retain that and that her father and I can nurture that in her. She is such a joy and a happy little girl. What a blessing she is to us.

Menu Plan Monday

2007-10-01T06:01:00.000-05:00

Another Monday is upon us! The 1st of October...it certainly does not feel like autumn in Texas...still quite warm and humid, but it will change, it most certainly always does. Last night we put out the little girl and little boy scarecrows in the flower beds - holding hands - along with a few pumpkins and mums. The Princess and little Prince squealed with delight at the sight of these!

We are still under construction in the kitchen. We have completed the powder room and the floors. The counters are due to go in this week and then the back splash and then the painting and DONE! It has been a lot to coordinate, but it will be worth it in the end. This week, I am without all appliances save the refrigerator and microwave and a little toaster oven! I am relying on the grill, crock pot, and left-overs for our meals.

Monday: Grilled salmon and veggies (squash, asparagus, onions, and peppers)...(chicken nuggets for the kiddos)

Tuesday: Pineapple Chicken in the slow cooker (I am borrowing this right from Laura at Organizing Junkie! Thanks!!!)

Wednesday: Crock Pot Roast and potatoes, along with green beans

Thursday: Soup and sandwiches

Friday: Bar-b-que sandwiches made with the left-over roast with baked beans.

I should have some before and after pictures up soon. Have a great week and head on over to Laura's for more great recipe ideas!!!

Menu Plan Monday

2007-09-16T20:24:00.000-05:00

Monday: Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole and green salad

Tuesday: Low Carb Beef Enchilada Bake Casserole

Wednesday: Slow Cooker Autumn Pot Roast, green beans, and rolls

Thursday: Santa Fe Chicken Casserole

Friday: Sandwiches or left-overs

We are remodeling our kitchen...and it will be dysfunctional for a while starting sometime next week! Soooo, that is why you see all the casserole dishes above. A casserole in a 13 x 9 dish will feed my family for two meals, so I am making a full casserole and we will eat half for our meal and then freeze the other half so as to have some meals to "nuke" when our kitchen is not functional over the course of the next few weeks! I already have some meals frozen like this from the previous week. I am figuring if we rotate left over casseroles, grilling our meals, sandwiches, and some take-out then we should be covered for about two weeks or so while we wait for our "dream kitchen!"

Have a great Monday and head on over to Organizing Junkie for other great meal plans!

Bed-Time Deep Thoughts...

2007-09-15T21:11:00.001-05:00

Last night, this is the conversation I had with my little princess right before bed. To preface, our little Prince has had the sniffles and we had just discussed whether he might be coming down sick or if it was just allergies...

Princess: Mommy, can you catch being well like you catch getting sick?

Me: (They are so precious) No honey, unfortunately we cannot catch being well, as being well is the normal, or what you hope is the normal for your body. Being sick means we were exposed to microscopic, teenie-weenie things that invade our body and make us feel bad.

Princess: Oh, that is too bad...it would be nice to catch being well.

Me: (Wow, don't kids just blow you away sometimes) Yes honey, it would be grand for so many ill people if we could just be around them and they could "catch" wellness.

What a great thought that left me to mull over as I drifted to sleep last night...No, we cannot "catch well" as in catch bodily wellness, but positive affect can be passed on to others. I am often drawn to the thought of how our behavior can influence others and especially our children we are raising. If we are not modeling what we are teaching or what our words are saying, then truly, we are teaching something all together different. It is the same thing as "actions speak louder than words."

I adore that commercial out right now about how one person sees another person help someone out. The person doing the helping helped because they were there and in the position to and the person watching just catches a glimpse of it and then it shows that person helping out another later on, and so on...paying it forward...I LOVE that commercial. It just reinforces that truly we never may know who or how many we make a positive impact on by our actions, so it is important to always strive to be the best "me" I can be. Yes, I will have a bad day, we all do, but perhaps that is the day I might "catch well" from another soul out there modeling their positive behavior.

I LOVE that my little girl already has these sparks of reason floating around in her consciousness!

Just For Fun...

2007-09-15T21:00:00.000-05:00

I came across this neat little "Internet gadget" on Rocks In My Dryer's Blog...It is very fun...and she is right, it is hard to pull your self away from it! You can enter text and the program finds pretty letters for you! Go try it! Here is my name all prettied up.

I just love pretty things that make me smile! ;-)

It has been far too long since I posted but I have been so busy getting back into the "school routine" as our little princess started the FIRST GRADE three weeks ago! Also, we are in the midst of a kitchen remodel so that has kept me busy as well. And since the evenings have become so pleasant out, when I am finished with work, I just cannot bear to sit in front of the computer when instead I can take my two little ones out to play.

Fall Is Just Around the Corner!!!

2007-09-05T21:07:00.000-05:00

Now that school is back in session and our summer fun has been had, I am gearing up for Fall! I can feel it, a change is on the horizon!

I am dusting off some old and new recipes for autumn. Here is one I am going to try that I just found. It is for a dutch oven, but I think I may try this in the crock pot!

Enjoy!

Autumn Chicken and Apple Stew

1 chicken, cut in parts (I am going to just use chicken breasts)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
6 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 carrots, peeled, sliced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 apples, peeled, sliced
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth, warm
1 cup applesauce

Spray large Dutch oven with vegetable cooking spray and heat over medium high temperature. Add chicken and cook, turning to brown on all sides, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with nutmeg, salt and pepper. Spread mustard over chicken pieces; add warm broth, vinegar, cloves and carrots; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook 15 minutes. Add apples and cook 5 minutes. Add cabbage, stirring into liquid. Cook, covered, about 10 minutes more or until fork can be inserted in chicken with ease. With slotted spoon, remove chicken and vegetables to warm serving bowl and keep warm. Into liquid, stir applesauce; boil on high temperature 5 minutes and pour over chicken and vegetables. Serve with brown rice, if desired.

Makes 4 servings.
Per Serving: 159 calories; 19.8 g protein; 2.2 g total fat; 0.6 g saturated fat; 14.8 g carbohydrates; 49 mg cholesterol; 574 mg sodium.

Meditation Monday

2007-07-30T07:36:00.000-05:00

Quote for the day:
"Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person; having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then, with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away."
~ George Eliott

Monday mornings are a good time to meditate, be quiet, breathe deep, and think...A new week is upon us and it always helps me to take a little time, especially in the early mornings before the little ones wake, to just breathe and think.

The prose above is a great thought to meditate on for this week, for later in the week I will be visiting with a dear college friend of mine - a friend I have not seen for almost five years now, but I know we will pick right up where we left off. See, she is the best sort of friend. The type of friend I think of when I read that quote above. I can truly be ME with her. We were very close in college and spent many days together...you know, attending class, studying, and planning our classes around The Young and the Restless so we could sure to watch it back at the apartment while having lunch...mom and dad would have been so proud of our time management skills!

Anyway, she is not a person I ever felt I had to sensor my thoughts around, for she would not judge or hold against me something said in anger, sadness, or stress, but instead was always a friend. I never remember us even being cross...I am sure we were at times, but what I remember, what made our friendship so enduring is that she knew the human, real me, and loved me despite any flaws.

After graduation, I moved away, but then moved back, and then she moved away, and has stayed. We now live a few states apart, and don't talk near as much as I would like to, but she is still one of my best and dearest friends - and always will be. I love her as much as a sister! Later this week, I will stand up for her, as she is getting married!!! She stood up for me when my dear husband and I were married 10 years ago, and now I am honored to return the favor.

I am so fortunate to count her in my circle of friends, and she is one of my dearest...so here is to you my dear friend! I look forward to seeing you later this week, sharing some nice chats, and meeting your new family...it has been way to long...I love you!

Menu Plan Monday

2007-07-30T06:04:00.001-05:00

Monday: Grilled pork chops, grilled potatoes, fresh green salad.

Tuesday: Moroccan grilled chicken, couscous, green beans.

Wednesday: Chef salad or sub sandwiches on whole wheat roll.

Thursday: Take-out.

Friday: Seafood at a rehearsal dinner for a wedding!

Laura over at Organizing Junkie has some links to other great menu planning posts! Happy Monday everyone!

Thankful Thursday

2007-07-26T15:36:00.000-05:00

It's THURSDAY...one more day to go until the weekend! Today is a good day to be thankful...

I am thankful for...

-Sugar-free, fat-free, vanilla iced latte on a warm day

-Air conditioning

-A peaceful shower while baby-man napped

-MOST of the things to be done/picked up/bought/packed before our trip to Florida checked off the list!

-Play dates for the Princess, a nap for the baby-man, and a good book and lounge chair in the sun for me! (That was yesterday, but I am still thankful for it today;-)

-NO RAIN here in my part of Texas for the past week!

-Leftover roast to be made into Bar-b-Que sandwiches tonight for dinner!

-Snuggling with the Princess for an afternoon read and smelling her freshly shampooed hair

-A book I have been waiting for finally on hold for me at the library

-The opportunity for our first "family of four" vacation upcoming

-The sound of the baby-man playing in his crib and "talking" to his stuffed buddies after just waking from his nap

-My children and husband, safe and healthy

-Most of all for Him, our God, holding us in the palm of His hand...

Daily Joy

2007-07-23T19:51:00.000-05:00

Quote for the day:
"....every moment of our life does not have to be perfect to be of value. Too often, I realize, we fail to see the glorious reality of the simple joy that abounds in the seemingly mundane routine of day-to-day living. Instead, we tend to idolize the past, idealize the future & devaluate the present...What better way to show our appreciation to God for what we have than to embrace our lives, albeit 'ordinary' & 'unexciting' with joy?"~Winnie Dalley

My children are a great source of my daily joy. Since becoming a mommy, I have never felt closer to God, more appreciative of my body, or better a wife/daughter/friend. Being a mother has opened my eyes to more of the "important" things in life...it has opened my eyes to really "embrace the mundane."

John Lenon coined that great quote, "Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans." I see that, I live that (or at least try very hard to) now that I am a mommy. Oh yes, there are times of despair, there are times of not having showered for...um...three days! There are times when I cannot remember if I brushed me teeth, but really, when I am having "one of those days" I try to take a deep breath and then tell myself to look at the big picture - my kiddos will not remember that I did not wear makeup for most of the summer of 2007, but they will remember how it felt to get up early and have a special treat from the doughnut shop, or take a picnic to the pool, or to lay around and play board games on a rainy afternoon.

Now, don't get the idea that it is always "daisies and sunshine" around the Bugzmommy home on a daily basis...quite the contrary...there are days when the kids yell all day, there are toys strewn throughout the house, the dishes are piled up, and I feel as if I will blow my top...but then I overhear this:

Lil Princess to Baby Brother: Brother, when we get older and get married, not to each other because we cannot do that, but to someone else and we move out of mommy and daddy’s house but live next door, we can all get together at night and go out for ice cream!”

*sigh* That just reinforces the value of the "little things" in my life and how they impact my children. The "little", "mundane", "every day" things are so huge to a child. Knowing that my choice to "see the joy in the simple things" makes such an impact on my children...that is my daily joy.

Menu Plan Monday

2007-07-22T12:36:00.001-05:00

Monday: Meatballs with marinara sauce, whole wheat pasta, green salad
Tuesday: Crock-pot roast, mashed potatoes, green beans
Wednesday: Chicken Caesar salad and sliced tomatoes for adults and chicken nuggets, mac-n-cheese , and left-over green beans for kiddos
Thursday: Bar-B-Que sandwiches made from the leftover roast, pinto beans, deviled eggs
Friday: Left-over buffet

Head on over to visit Laura at Organizing Junkie for more great menu plans!

Sunsets and Moonglow

2007-07-18T16:57:00.000-05:00

My brain was just jogged, kicked into gear, and thoughts have been running rampant, all inspired by a blog entry I read just a bit ago written by Adrienne. I have followed this site for many months. I visited and prayed through their heartache over a sick baby. I visited and prayed through the time the family made the decision to release their child from the pain of this life and back into the arms of our Savior. I have continued to visit and pray through the months following as they work through life without their baby boy with them physically, but still ever present spiritually and as they continuing living their life with their daughter. The dear mother wrote a piece today and it referred to explaining to her 5-year-old daughter what a shot glass was. She did not expect to have to explain this, but the question came up, so she did!

Bravo for her! Teachable moments...yes, I too believe wholeheartedly in those, for if we continually gloss over the moments that are God-led, when children are really listening, we may not be there to answer their questions when they are knee-deep in a situation, and they may get the wrong information from a peer.

Teachable moments aren't always in the form of direct question and answer sessions, but instead, many times, they come in sharing of the quiet moments. In my opinion, these are by far the best way we learn, and most times are God-led. I have always shared openly my love, or awe is a better description, of nature with my children. I feel so centered and balanced when I breathe deeply the evening air, or witness the majesty of the sunset, the summer bugs at night, the glow of the moon as my daughter and I swing late on summer evenings, the wind through the leaves, the smell of rain, etc.. Since my daughter was a baby and now with my little baby-man, I am sure to point out when a thought, a sight, a sound, etc. evokes a deep feeling in me. I want those kiddos to appreciate and take notice of what matters in life - the small things, the miracles in the every day that we so often gloss over as we go about our daily "chores."

A few nights ago, I had one of those moments. I saw the most beautiful crescent moon hanging high above the night sky with the air deep and rich with a day fading away - the summer night smells of grass and summer bugs beginning their night serenade. I noticed the moon while leaving the gym and when I arrived home, my little girl (who was up later than she should have been!) said, "Oh mommy, did you see the moon?!?" She was lying on the couch in the family room looking out the window seeing that same moon I had taken notice of!

I see how meaningful it is to share with our children - share with them our visions - share with them all the little and big, obvious and not so obvious "teachable moments." I have done that with them from the beginning - shared all the wonders of God in our human world, and now at the ripe old age of 6 years old, my daughter is sharing with me and is noticing them on her own!

My First Post

2007-07-16T14:32:00.000-05:00

I am in the process of switching over from my Xanga-blog! This is my first post on Blogger, so please be patient.

I am a mommy to 2 little ones so too often my blog gets neglected while I am in the midst of being a SAHM to the 2 lil bugs while also working my home-based business. Since my work is in front of the computer, many times, when work is finished, I just don't want to sit in front of it any more to blog! I will try to transition smoothly and slowly to this blog and see how it goes!

Today I joined in with Menu Plan Mondays at my Xanga blog...perhaps I will start the transition by posting it here as well!

Okay, I have been following along with "Organizing Junkie" and her Menu Plan Mondays for quite some time now! I even incorporated her ideas on sitting down and writing a menu for the week and going to the store to only buy the items to complete my menu, and guess what?...It works AND saves us money on our grocery bill!

I find as my littlest one is getting bigger... ...too quickly I might add...that I find more time to add to my blog. I get around to a few really great blogs, but between my at-home business and taking care of the monkeys, I neglect my blog many times. Well today, I am going to join in with Menu Planning. That should motivate me to really stick to my working out our week's menu and keep saving us the $$$ on our grocery bill!

I tend to stick to a lower carb lifestyle, not just as a fad, but for the long-term health of my family and me. It has worked for us for the last few years now and so most of my menu will incorporate lean meats, veggies, and whole grains.
So here goes!

MONDAY: Cheese Topped Chicken & Mashed Cauliflower
(Calories 334) (Carbs 12g)5 oz (140g) (raw weight) boneless, skinless chicken breast (162)2 tbsp (1 oz/28g) shredded/grated low-fat cheese (70)1 medium tomato, sliced (35)1/4 tsp black pepper; 1 tsp olive or canola oil (45)4 oz (110g) cauliflower flowerets (florets) (25)1 tsp (5g) light butter (17)

Recipe Instructions
1. Beat the chicken breast to flatten, place in oven dish and drizzle oil over.2. Cook, covered in foil, in oven preheated to 180 degrees, for 20 minutes.3. Remove chicken from oven, top with sliced tomato, cheese, grill until cheese melts.4. Boil or microwave cauliflower until soft, mash with butter and pepper.
My family is somewhat finicky...although I will try anything once, so for them, I will bake the chicken and let everyone top with the other ingredients as we serve.

TUESDAY: Pinto beans and Low-Fat Smoked Sausages with taco seasoning, cornbread

WEDNESDAY: Salmon Fantasia with grilled asparagus/mushrooms/onions over brown rice. (Fish sticks for the kiddos)
Recipe Instructions:
1 pound Salmon Fillets 8 Tbsp. Honey 3 Tbsp. Soy Sauce 3 Tbsp. Fresh Ginger, grated 8 Tbsp. Olive Oil 3 Tbsp. Mustard 3 Tbsp. Chopped Chives 3 Tbsp. Lemon Juice 4 Tbsp. Butter
Mix first 5 ingredients (after the salmon) in a shallow bowl. Add salmon fillets and turn several times to coat well. Transfer salmon and marinade to a plastic zipper bag. Squeeze the air out of the bag before sealing. Marinate for 30 minutes (or longer). Remove from bag. Grill 3-4 minutes per side, or until the salmon is flaky.
In a saucepan, melt the butter over high heat. Add lemon juice and chives. Pour over the cooked salmon and serve.

THURSDAY: Hubby's birthday!!! Grilled steak, baked sweet potatoes, salad, whole wheat rolls and a homemade Snickerdoodle cake to celebrate!

Recipe Instructions:
Snickerdoodle Cake
1 pck plain white cake mix1 cup whole milk8 T (1 stick) butter, melted3 large eggs1 t vanilla extract2 t ground cinnamonCinnamon Buttercream frosting (recipe follows)Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Generously grease 2 round 9 inch cake pans with solid shortening and then duct with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set pans aside. Place the cake mix, milk, melted butter, eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute.Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping the sides down again if needed. The batter should look well combined. Divide the batter between the prepared pans, smoothing it out with the rubber spatula. Place the pans in the oven side by side. Bake the cakes until they are golden brown and spring back when lightly pressed with your finger 27-29 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 10 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edge of each layer and invert each onto a rack, then invert them again so that the cakes are right side up. Allow them to cool completely, 30 minutes more.

Meanwhile, prepare the Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting. Place one cake layer, right side up, on a serving platter. Spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer, right side up, on top of the first layer and frost the top and sides of the cake with clean, smooth strokes.

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting
8 T (1 stick) butter; at room temperature3-3/4 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted3-4 T milk1 t vanilla extract1 t ground cinnamon Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until fluffy, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and add the confectioner's sugar, 3 T milk, and vanilla. Then add cinnamon. Blend with the mixer on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, 1 minute more. Blend in up to 1 T milk if the frosting seems too stiff.

FRIDAY: Leftovers or Sandwiches