photo mischellany

Megan and I play a lot of "go fish". How in the world is she beating me? I rarely win...maybe that's why she wants to play so much.


Adam was out of town several weeks ago and I took the girls to see The Lightening Thief. Sadly I was bored, perhaps you need to read the book so it doesn't feel so choppy. They really liked it.


Seeing the goggles at the edge of the pool just made me happy.




Something about this photograph I just love.


Earlier in the week I may have looked at this photo and said "It's been far too long since I've pulled out the paints", but today after a conversation with Adam and Jill about 10,000 hours I'm thinking, "I have a lot of hours ahead of me to get where I want to be." Luckily today it doesn't feel intimidating. Why can't that feeling last?


I've been helping out in Tess' classroom with junior achievement the last three weeks. Even though they're a great class, I'm still so impressed with teachers...it's a tough job.


Made these tags to go on the party favors for Bella's birthday party. I have a thing for butterflies right now.

mystery plant

They found random seeds in the yard on Saturday and wanted to plant them to see what would grow. Megan was certain it was a watermelon seed, Tess wasn't so sure. They did agree on one thing though, it needed a marker so they could keep an eye on it.

she's 10!

It's crazy. It really is, that I've been a mother for 10 years. I knew the day would come when you would look across the table and see your little child, grown into a little lady, able to participate in conversations and yet still excited about the little things. She's definitely her own self full of her own individual ideals, but still enough mine that I'm allowed an opinion as well....wonder when that will change? Three, maybe five years.

Here is a list of 10 things I love and adore about the girl she has become...
(I could have gone on and on)



-She loves knowledge. Craves it.
-Her favorite TV shows are Nova, Everyday Italian, and American Idol.
-She has a fabulous memory. If you want to know what color shirt a character wore in a movie, you ask her. If you want to know the lyrics of a song, you ask her. If you want to know what day we left and come home from a vacation, you ask her. She knows. Seriously. I would trust her account above my own or anyone else's any day.
-She loves hamburgers and 5guys.
-She loves getting lost in the world of words. She's a reader. She's been known to write as well and even won the reflections contest at school this year for a poem she wrote.



-She likes alone time. I think it's something she needs daily to replenish her spirit. She's like her dad in that way and I have learned to love it.
-She's aware of what she's not good at and wants to improve. I'm not exactly sure where this comes from or if everyone has it and it comes at different times. It's not something that weighs her down, rather she's conscious of it and wants to be her best self.
-She doesn't loose control...ever!
-She has a strong testimony of Jesus Christ.
-She loves animals.
-She has the most beautiful color eyes. They're greyish-blue. Very unique just like her.


Doesn't she looks so old in this picture? I can totally picture what she will look like as a teenager.

Love your guts Bella.
I hope you have a magical day.
love, mom

fhe | game night

We played Scrambled States for FHE. It's a lot of fun for the kids, educational and easy enough that even a 5 year old can play. Basically someone asks a question and then you have to find the state card that corresponds with the question (the cards were scattered on the table). The first one to find the right card gets the point.


It started out good. Calm.


Adam and I had a good time watching them grab for the cards. They were all pretty agressive picking up the cards and each one they touched were somehow mangled (fyi there was usually always more than one card that was right so luckily no fighting).


Of course we had some bumps in the road when Megan lost several times in a row. We didn't wait for her to cry instead told her she could join us when she was ready. Luckily, it didn't take long to get her back in the game. I've found when you don't indulge it works better for everyone.


It was funny to see the answers they came up with. Some of the questions were like, What State's Capital City has a three letter word in it? Took a long time for them to find Topeka. Tess got that point.


By the end of the game it was quite loud, lots of laughing and cheering, and they all had made their way onto the counter. Exactly the way a game night should be...right? Bella was the one who ended up winning, while Tess and Megan tied for second. Not bad.

monday miscellany

-It's been a cleaning day today. Love Mondays.

-I never mind cleaning days when I'm listening to a book. I've been listening to Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese. I started it last summer and never finished, not sure why. I'm quite enjoying it today.


-Bella had a birthday party at the local rec center Friday after school. The highlight of the party for me was when the 7 year old named Dillon crashed the party. We were passing out pizza to all the girls when I noticed a strange boy sitting at the table ready and willing to eat. I asked him if he was suppose to be at this party and he said, "Yes, my mom dropped me off". I was laughing so hard about it I just couldn't kick him out, plus he was so insistent that he was suppose to be there. It's funny, it took a long while for Bella and her friends to notice him. Once they did they asked him if he was going to a girls or boys party. He said, "boys". As soon as he said it you could see something in his brain click. He scanned the room and realized it was a "girls" party. His face went bright red and ran out of the room. Good thing he got his fill of pizza first.

-Nothing like letting the fresh air in to help clean away the weekend. I am savoring these spring like days while they last. I hear it's suppose to snow tomorrow. :(


-Now that I have 3 hours a day to do my shopping when I need to take kids with me it's a wonder how I was able to do it all those year.


-I was sent the WC brochure in the mail last week. I have to say it was pretty creepy/crazy seeing my name in print, however, I am feeling a little more excited about it.

FYI for those of you who want to come to my class and my class only. I found out that unless you purchase a ticket through me you will need to purchase a day ticket which is $25. I am more than happy to get you a ticket for my class only I just need you to 1) email me, including your name and address & 2) send me $9 before March 31 (I will send a reply email letting you know where to send money). The tickets will be mailed to me and I will send it by mail to you. Now I don't believe these tickets guarantee you a spot. I can't imagine the class will fill up, but I know if it does they won't let you in so allow time for parking/walking.

recitals

The Primary Presidency spoke in church today, which means I spoke in church today. Admittedly I was not happy about the timing of this talk and tried to use whatever persuasion I had over the Bishopric (Adam) to make this assignment later on in the year, but to no avail. I guess today was as good as any. I tried to see it as an opportunity to practice my speaking skills for Woman's Conference and with that in mind it was really the easiest speaking assignment I've ever had.

Because it was the Primary that spoke we had Bella play the violin and another girl accompany her on the piano for a musical number. I was just happy I was first and didn't have to go after them because it always gets me a little emotional to see the kids express themselves through music.



Speaking of the violin we've heard it a lot lately around the house as Bella and Megan have been preparing for their recitals that were held last week on the 18th. They both did a tremendous job. I'm so grateful for the time and effort they put into their pieces knowing getting up and performing is not the easiest thing.

I never really know what to expect from Megan, she could either be silly or quite serious, from what I can tell she enjoys performing, but this time she put her silliness aside and had her game face on. Much like her sister Bella who focuses all her energy on the instrument and tries to show as little emotion as possible. She enjoys performing with a group rather than on her own and has told me she would love to be in an orchestra one day.



One of my favorite things about watching them perform is to see the relief written all over their face when they're practically running off the stage. It's cute and sweet and I know exactly what that feels like...I felt it today. I love to see Bella's sitting with me (above) with such a contented look on her face enjoying the rest of the recital because her part was over.



Of course if you asked them the best part about the night is the celebration afterward...always a trip out for ice cream.

daily life

I've challenged myself again this year to take a photo every day. I almost didn't because I'm doing the 12of12 challenge, but for me it's become such a habit that it was a no brainer. I don't even have to think about it anymore it just happens.

What I mean is, each day I wake up knowing I need to take a photo of something, something that represents our day, but I never know what it will be. Occasionally I'll have a date with friends or I'm helping out at the school and I make a mental note that I can take a photo then, but mostly I just let the photo find me.

Like this photo...



While I was going to get the mail the other day I walked passed our library and found the two of them this way...Tess was doing homework and Megan was drawing. When I saw it my first thought was that's my picture. I ran to get my camera hoping the entire way they wouldn't move and lucky for me they were as oblivious to me as I wanted to them to be.

Although each day is very similar to the next, it's actually quite different when you start to appreciate each day for what it is...another piece of our story. I guess for me that's the reason I keep up with this challenge. It's become my journal in so many ways and hope through my photos of our daily life my children will get a good understand of the woman I am and the family life we have.

i still feel jumpy from the events that took place this morning

I was minding my own business enjoying a nice warm shower when I got that weird feeling you get when you're being watched. I slowly turned toward the shower curtain thinking about my day instead of the weirdness when I saw a sliver of a crack and an eye staring back at me. I lost it.

After he got done laughing and protecting he's genitals he told me it was when I yelled out, "Hey...NO!" and tried to cover myself that he realized the prank worked far better than he had hoped.

Funny, I remember it this way. There was a neighbor boy, Megan's friend, I was watching at the house. He and Megan were playing together downstairs and thought nothing of getting in the shower. Well, you can imagine when I saw the eye in the lower half of the shower who I thought it was. In about 2 seconds this ran through my head, HEY Bryon what are you doing. Oh My...NO! You're not suppose to be in here. What are you doing? Wait a minute that's not Bryon. Holy crap, who is that. And then I remembered Adam was going to come home to pick something up and I realized, @#%&...it's Adam. Finally the fear I felt inside became audible and I couldn't stop screaming. I was yelling at him soft profanities and all the while he was laughing. I simply couldn't believe he would do this to me, except I could, this wasn't the first time.

I guess it's the Irish way of saying I love you. Or in his words, "adding spice to your life."


PS Looks like Megan's day was full of the Irish too. She keeps coming up to me with all kinds of stories about hearing Leprechauns.

give me your ear...

They were interested in what I was doing all those hours on Sunday evening so I read them my talk...the parts that I could see.

The best part wasn't that they told me they liked it, but that they listened.

monday miscellany

-It's suddenly quiet now. The giggling little girls left for school and I'm finding I'm missing hearing their laughter in the distance.

-I need to know, how can loosing 1 hour make it feel like you've lost 8? I woke up this morning knowing I slept fabulously, but didn't feel rested. Instead I felt like I was making myself get out of bed at 2am. I noticed that even Adam and the girls were effected so it wasn't just me. Looking forward to my body adjusting to the time.

-I do, however, love the light in the evening. I don't enjoy loosing the light in the morning, but man do I love feeling like there's more time in the day.

-I started The Forgotten Garden last night and wish I hadn't. It captured me right away and it's all I can do not to steal away on the couch and read the day away.


-We celebrated Adam, my father-in-law Tom, and Bella's birthdays at our house on Satruday evening. Bella didn't know until a few hours before that we were celebrating her birthday as well. It was funny to see her anticipation grow even though she was already so looking forward to all the cousins coming. FYI she is the best person to give gifts to because her reaction make you feel like you gave the perfect gift...and it's usually true.

-I keep getting these strange phantom itches on my ear lobe. I still can only feel part of my left ear and absolutely no feeling on my ear lobe (not a surprise, I was told that would most likely happen). Anyway, my ear keeps itching, but when I go to itch it I can't feel it so there is no relief. It's maddening.

- I feel slightly guilty about blogging right now. I'm suppose to using these few hours while everyone's gone working on WC. I spent a good 6 hours yesterday working on it and retyping what I already have because I lost my file. Don't ask me how. Lucky for me, since it's already happened once (loosing my talk), I've been in the habit of printing it out when I leave the computer. So glad I did.


I went to lunch with my friend Dani last week, even though I wasn't expecting it, she bought me lunch for my birthday. It's always so hard to try to make lunch dates fit, but decided if you really want something you find a way. It was so good to see her, she the type of friend who always comes with a smile on her face and always makes you feel loved. Thanks for a great afternoon Dani.

-One of my new favorite things: when a bill comes in the mail, particularly a medical bill, and it says I owe $0.00.


Last Monday night for FHE we had an art lesson. The girls have been drawing a lot lately so Adam decided to give us all a lesson on vanishing points and perspective. It was very useful to me as well. It was a huge hit with the girls, in fact I've never seen them pay so much attention, even Megan kept from talking.

12of12 | March

[click here to enlarge]

01. Coming home from a late night with friends early Friday morning. As I was nearing my house I realized it was after midnight and qualified to make it into the collage.
02. Last night Adam and I went out with friends. We started with dinner, but then split up. The boys went to a boy movie and the girls went to one of our YW (young woman) school performances and then saw Remember Me.
03. It was such a nice day, Megan and her friend Kimball went outside and never came back in.
04. Peeps because Megan had to have them.
05. I enjoyed the outside too by roaming around my yard to see what I could find.
06. The kids making there way to the car after school.
07. I bought a bunch of oranges today which will most likely last about 24 hours, with Tess around we go through them so quickly. I cut some up into wedges for the kids and well, couldn't resist one myself.
08. We took home Bella's classroom pet hamster Stein. Good times. The kids were so excited to bring him home and it's the reason Megan's running so far ahead of the other girls in picture 6.
09. I worked on new Primary talk/scripture handouts.
10. When Adam came home from work we sat and talked while he looked through his new Elle Decor magazine. One of his favorites.
11. The girls were just leaving after an afternoon of play to walk their friend home.
12. My friend and I had time between the school performance and our movie so we hit Barnes&Noble. With my gift card I bought Gentlemen and Players & The Forgotten Garden.


Make sure to add your post to Mr. Linky so we can all see what your day was like. If your blog is private you can always add them to your flickr account (or easily make a flickr account) and share your collage that way. Hopefully it was another enjoyable 12th.

Dear Mom,

[just to clarify the Tess in the letter is her friend, not sister. ps she gave me the ok to post it.]

This letter from Bella was waiting for me on my bed. It was a very tender moment for me as a mom as I realized a) more is going on in my daughters life than what I can see and b) my little girl is not so little anymore. She's almost ten and has ten year old thoughts and feelings (even though sometimes I'm convinced she's wise beyond her years).

Her thoughtfulness and desire to want to do the right thing constantly amazes me. I hope and pray everyday that I can be the mother she needs, that she will leave the house everyday knowing she is love, that I can provided her with the right kind of information so she can make the best decision. I thought it was so cute when she said, "you aren't trying to tell me what to do, I just want an opinion." I guess at the end of the day they just want someone who will listen to them without judgments and understand who they are. I guess somethings never change...we all do.

We talked about her letter this morning and she left for school feeling good with a smile on her face. She could not be sweeter and I admire so much how she wants to be a better friend and wants them to be happy. I'll I kept thinking as I watch Bella and Tess get farther and farther out of my site was, "Never change sweet Bella girl, never change".

12of12 reminder

Just a quick reminder that it's the 12th so don't forget to take pictures all day. Have fun! Look forward to seeing what you come up with this month.

For more information about 12of12 go here.

the maid quit today

It's not that I have kids that don't do anything around the house, they do. In fact, I have noticed what big helpers (wow that sounds babyish) they've been for me since last summer. They do what I ask like when the dishwasher is full or their clothes need to be put away they always leave what they're doing and help me. Sometimes I hear a "ugh" in the mix, but usually (operative word) they are willing to help.

The frustration comes from not picking up after themselves. I'm sure I don't need to explain it as anyone that has children or a roommate or even a spouse knows what it's like to constantly be cleaning up someone else's mess. I feel like I'm a good mom in this area and when I see a mess they make I ask them to clean it up, however, 1) why do I have to remind the to pick up after themselves? and 2) it's the stuff they aren't around for that I end up cleaning myself. For instance, when they've already walked out the door for school and I walk pass the bathroom after reminding them to put away their toothbrushes and I find said toothbrushes on the counter accompanied by toothpaste globs or wrappers from whatever they've been eating found in various places throughout the house or pjs left on the floor of the laundry room instead of putting them in the designated bin or the snack they're making for school ends up on the floor, most likely already been stepped on. It's maddening. Some things I can wait for them to come home, but some things need to be taken care of...like food on the ground.

I just don't understand why they can't pick up after themselves? That's all. Yes, they do what I ask, but why can't they take the initiative and see that they've dropped food on the ground, pick it up, and put it in the trash or go the extra step and put their clothes in bin or throw away the empty wrapper?

I can't say what set me off for sure this morning. It really wasn't one thing, I think it was just all the things, all the time.

deep breath.

I have been working on a job chart that realistically is going to have to wait until May when I have more time to devote to it, but the jobs are not the problem. They do their jobs. I need some type of reward system that encourages them to pick up after themselves. Any ideas? I've tried the, "whatever you leave out goes in the garbage", but that doesn't really work when what they're leaving out is the garbage. I'm at a loss. I need advice. What has worked for you? I'm willing to try anything.


PS I hope this post doesn't come off as complaining. I'm not trying to complain, I'm not is a bad mood or even feel frustrated right now, rather just looking for some advice so I can better teach my children how to work.

PSS unless you didn't get it...I'm the maid that quit.

outing

If I could freeze time it would be now. Today with my little family was perfect--as perfect as I think it can be. We spent the entire afternoon together and there was no fights, no crying, no whining, no one saying I'm tired or bored. Everyone just happy to be together tooling around town before we headed to a birthday party.

Our day took us to Barnes&Noble, it usually does. Our normal routine is the girls make their way to the kids section while Adam and I pick out a few books of our own to look through and then we meet back up. This time the girls found the "little miss" books and Megan was thrilled to see that she", little miss chatterbox", was actually in them. That surprisingly provided lots of entertainment for her.



For me the best part was being admits the action, but being consciously aware of how good it was. More than once I looked over at Adam and said, "I'm loving this day. It's so good right now." he agreed. It's so enjoyable to see how excited my girls are to find something new and then eager to share it. Bella and Tess spend sometime in the juvenile section looking for books they're interested in while Megan read about reptiles with her dad. I love that they're readers and once a book is finished that they're excited to move onto the next adventure. Bella wanted Percy Jackson book #5, Tess is anxious to start Diary Of a Whimpy Kid, and Megan well, she was pretty fond of Little Miss Chatterbox.




[Tess and Bella were showing me Diary Of a Whimpy Kid and how the book is full of sketches. They found one of his baby brother and they couldn't stop laughing...it caught on.]

The best part about taken self portraits is you never know what everyone else is doing. You hope they don't know a picture is being taken so they are natural. Looks like it was natural. We definitely all had a good laugh.

it's my boys birthday

We woke up to snow on his birthday last year. I remember waking up really early, for some reason I couldn't sleep, and took this as the sun was rising. Still one of my favorite photos.

I'm safe inside this morning listening to my girls and their cousins laugh and thinking about my boy. It's his birthday today, but I already told you that. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world and I blame him for it. Thought I would share with you why.



There is never a dull moment when he's around.
He has a way of making you feel.
When he loves, he loves with his whole heart.
He's always looking for an opportunity to serve.
He quietly puts up with my many sp.



He's an artist.
His art is uninhibited.
He likes old and used things.
He has very specific opinions and isn't afraid to share them.
He is not a fan of TV and reminds me frequently, "TV will always disappoint".
Because of me he has a fondness for almond toffee symphony bars.
He's not afraid to work.
He's not afraid of anything....except confined spaces.
He's confident.
He lives life to the fullest.



He loves books.
He reads about inspiring men and woman.
He has the best taste in music, especially the more emotional tunes.
He loves the fall.
He has a thing for the Northwest.



He loves to travel.
He loves architecture.
He will travel 40 minutes just to find a good place to have breakfast and walk around.
He's a pizza snob.
He's a great host.
He enjoys entertaining.
It's all about the mood for him.
He loves creating the perfect ambiance, which for him includes great music and low lighting.
He loves candle light.
He's touch is healing.



He's handsome.
He has the most inviting blue eyes.
He's understanding.
He is good at surprises and anticipation.
He's fond of giving gifts.
He likes to shop at Banana Republic.
He's a writer.
He loves to share what he knows and learns.
He gives of himself freely.
He's a morning person.
He enjoys his time alone.
He really dislikes anyone who calls after 8pm. You are forewarned.
He dislikes obligations.
He's not a fan of small talk.
He loves deep meaningful conversations.
He's encouraging and helps you believe you can do anything.
He enjoys spending time with his family.



He's the best father.
He loves to make his girls laugh.
Any free moment he has he saves it for us.
He's my best friend.



He motivates me to be a better person.
He makes me feel like the luckiest woman in the world.
He taught me what it means to love.
He taught me what it means to live.
He is my everything and I thank God daily that he is mine forever.

Happy Birthday my love. I love you like salt.

sick day

doesn't usually advise eating chocolate for breakfast
unless you're absolutely convinced that's the kind of advice you need
~storypeople

I read that quote this morning on my phone as I laid in bed checking my email. It put more than a smile on my face and decided then and there that I was calling in sick today. I'm taking the day off.

I'm saying no to cleaning & laundry & WC & bills instead I'm kicking up my feet and spending time of the couch reading. Maybe I'll get lost on itunes for a while buying music with my gift certificate and wrap Adam's birthday gifts (it's tomorrow). Perhpas make a dent in my messy studio because that's the fun kind of work and eat newly bought girls scout cookies. Who knows maybe I'll just take a nap. The options are endless.

You should join me. I'm telling ya, it's doing wonders for my smile.

childhood magic

The tooth fairy found this note waiting for her...



You know when you have a moment where time stops and you know all the hard work and frustration is completely worth it? This was one of those moments for me. I wasn't expecting to find a handwritten note from her and it made me all warm and soft on the inside. She desperately wants to believe and so I gave her reason too.

I answered her in the same fashion using my left hand and stole my friend Janessa's idea by sprinkling fairy dust (pink glitter) on the note and on her bed. Leaving her room as quietly as I could I was grateful my parents created the magic for me when I was a little girl.

This morning she couldn't wait to tell me about the note waiting for her in return and the glitter on her bed. She said, "when this tooth falls out, I'm going to ask her what she looks like."

I'm already looking forward to it.

ramblings before bed

The tooth fairy is suppose to be visiting our house tonight, problem is the tooth fairy is tired and ready for sleep so she needs to find something to do to keep herself awake. Reading wasn't working so blogging it is.

I'm glad for a moment to blog. I've missed it...a lot. My time has been consumed with Woman's Conference (sorry to keep bringing it up, but it is my life right now and you probably will keep hearing about it until May 1st. Trust me I am praying for May 1st to come sooner than you are). The reading/pondering/searching have taken up every bit of my time and for good reason. I feel a huge responsibility to say something meaningful while being true to myself. I pray I don't disappoint.












[we each took a turn in the night to work on each others canvas.]

I was looking through these recent photos I took of the art/painting night I had with my friends last week. I guess you could say I'm trying to pin point exactly what it is I love about these moments in my life and why I'm drawn to them. There are many and for many different reasons. 1. I need a creative outlet. 2. I enjoy being with my friends. 3. I need me time. I think we all need that little break from the everyday life, if it's going out with friends or visiting a quiet bookstore to roam the isles, it helps us appreciate what we're leaving behind. Like now. Adam is in CA for the night and as I close up shop, put the girls to bed myself, and look into my empty room I think, it's nice to miss him.

Lately we, Adam and I, have been talking about confidence or the lack there of as the case may be. It really does baffle me how much I struggle with it. The night I was painting with my friends it all came crashing down (my confidence) and despite the fact that I had a great time I left feeling like painting just isn't my thing. And I'm ok with that if that were the issue, but it's not. My lack of confidence sadly goes far beyond a paint brush...if only. Adam and I discussed ways to gain confidence, but I still wonder if it's something learned or if it's just something you are born with. Food for thought. What do you think? I have to believe it's something that can be attained by all. At what lengths?...that is the better question.

I'm certain now my girls are all fast asleep so I will say goodnight and leave my ramblings for another day to do the work of the elusive tooth fairy.