Warning: Hormone-Induced Post Ahead

I've been feeling down lately.
Not at all myself.
Overwhelmed, frustrated, impatient, sad, angry, disconnected, and stretched really thin.

But tonight I had dinner at my mom & dad's, shared in my dad's excitement at the boat he's building, ate a delicious meal made by Mom with love (and I didn't even clean up after. I always clean up after.), saw my little nephew who is just too cute for words.
I sat and did nothing.
It felt good.
Really good.

Then I came home, got the boys showered and tucked into bed and sat in front of my computer for a little me time before tackling this clutterd house. I read someone's scrapbook journaling about surviving terminal cancer and "saying yes to life." I read this blog entry from a mom who was having a bad day and "prayed for kindness today. For the words that come out of my mouth to be soft spoken. For the motive behind my actions to be love. Clearly love."
And I can't help but think that these are all signs.
Little signals from some greater source that come at just the moment you need them.
Like a hand reaching down to pull you back up again.
The whisper in your ear that everything will be ok.

We all have bad days. Nobody's life is creamsicles and cookie dough all the time. And these sprinklings of rough times remind me of the good in my life. Lets me see the positive with more appreciative eyes. And allows me to be more compassionate and gentler with others (and myself).

Here's to the creamsicle-filled days ahead!

On my mind

Here's a whole bunch of randomness popping into my head as I work on baseball banners for the upcoming parade:

• having sick kids for nearly a solid month is very draining: physically, emotionally, intellectually
• creating is my therapy; some people need exercise, some use alcohol, some seek counseling. crafting is my drug of choice, and like an addict when I don't get my fix, I can get pretty nasty (or "mean" as I heard more than once today from one little boy)
• 24 hours is just not enough time: to read all the books I want to, look at all the blogs I want to, make all the projects I want to, learn all the new things I want to, play with all the mediums I want to
• right now I am on info overload--so loaded up with inspiration and want-to-do's that I can't begin. when I get this way I know it's time to take a step back and create something or play.
• tomorrow will be another sick day, but hopefully not a lay-on-the-couch-all-day-and-watch-tv kind of day. I'm hoping for an I'm-recovered-but can't-go-to-school-just-yet kind of day. If it is, let's play and make stuff ALL DAY. No computer, no phone, just play and create.
• i feel so much better now

Now Showing

In these four days of trapped-in-the-house-sickness our two tvs have played:

• Curious George
• Cars: The Movie (about three times)
• Kungfu Panda
• The Wiggles (Maddox's pick)
• Zeus and Roxanne
• Matilda
• Home Alone 3
• Wall E
• endless episodes of Drake & Josh and iCarly

When there are sick kiddos, all screen limiting rules go right down the toilet (pun completely intended!).

Chop Suey

We tend to eat a lot of pasta with ground chicken or turkey. Here's a good one that I made last night. My oldest had seconds and asked to take leftovers for lunch today.

1. In large pot brown 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of ground turkey with diced onion and garlic (however much you like--I used one clove of elephant garlic).
2. Meanwhile, cook 12-16 oz of pasta (we like elbows), and I add some chicken broth to the water to give the pasta a little extra flavor.
3. To the cooked meat mixture, add 2 cans of condensed tomato soup, and one can of petite cut diced tomatoes. I rinsed each can with just a small amount of water and added that in, too.
4. Add some black pepper, a dash of crushed red pepper, and some Italian seasoning (which we were out of so I used pizza seasoning). I don't really measure my spices unless I'm following a recipe, so maybe about a teaspoon or so of the seasoning.
5. Stir well. Then add about 1 cup of shredded mozarella (or a cheese of your liking).

I am a big fan of these kind of meals: one pot (ok, in this case a pot to boil pasta), kid-friendly, ingredients on-hand, and make in the afternoon and eat it whenever you're ready for dinner.

Enjoy!

One Pretty Thing!!

Rachel from One Pretty Thing featured my ribbon bookmark tutorial in today's Daily DIY. This is such a thrill for me; and a very much needed boost on my happiness meter!!

Remember Today 6.9.09

{remember} how the sickness continues. Just when you think it's safe to send the kids back to school. . .the stomach bug strikes again. This time it's Camden.

Here's a re-cap of the past month or so:

• 5/19, 20, 21, 22: Logan home sick with stomach bug;
• 5/29: Camden falls and goes to his first ER visit for his first stitches on the night we are away from them for the very first time;
• 5/30, 31, 6/1, 2: Maddox sick with stomach bug;
• 6/1, 2, 3, 4, 5: Logan home sick with strep throat;
• 6/8, 9, 10 (and hopefully no longer): Camden home sick with stomach bug.

I think I have earned an honorary degree in pediatric nursing!

Makes me want to learn piano

This arrangement is amazing. Pause the player on the right first.

Remember Today 6.5.09

{remember} sitting at the kitchen counter, munching fruit snacks (I needed a sugar fix) with the boys sound asleep upstairs, and being so grateful that this week is finally over: a stomach bug for the youngest, stitches for the middle, and strep throat for the oldest. There's a reason I didn't take the nursing career path.

Remember Today 6.4.09

{remember} how good it feels to have time to keep a to-do list, and time to actually check things off it.

Maddox's writing

My littlest had his first school experience this year. We made a little gift for each of his teachers and he dictated to me what he wanted to write (in hand over hand style):
His favorite thing at school were the "projects" as he called them. He's such my crafty guy.

Writing his name was all him with just a little verbal direction from me: M (he's got that letter down), circle and a little line, circle and a big line, another circle with a big line, circle, and X. He just learned X and is so proud to be able to do it all by himself that he has taken to writing xtra X's. I asked him to add some O's because then at least we could pass them off for kisses and hugs!

Remember Today 6.3.09

{remember} making the great escape tonight to the bookstore: browsing through magazines, crafting and graphic design books, the tunes of Prince, the smell of coffee and paper, and leaving with a new journal and gifts for teachers (and getting a much needed break from my house).

Just for Kicks and Giggles

I'm probaby the only one in the world who loves these crazy chain emails. Not the ones where you have to send it along or else something really bad will happen to you, and not the ones that you have to reply in order to prove you are a true friend--don't send me those; I won't reply. But I love these ones that ask random questions that you answer. This stuff is great for posterity. Someday I will make a scrapbook layout or a mini album with people's answers (I actually save them in a folder in my email!). Consider yourself 'tagged' if you are reading this post and play along with me. Who knows you may have your very own page in one of my scrapbooks someday! This one came from my sister. Thanks, Sherri!

3's About Me

Three names I go by:
1. Mom
2. Mommy
3. MOMMMMMMY!!!

Three jobs you may not know I have had in my life:
1. Cashier
2. Teacher
3. Office Manager (my Dad was unhappy I left this one off before)

Three Places I have lived:
1. my home town
2. college
3. that's it

Three shows I watch:
(ooh, tough one, I've barely watched TV all year, seriously)
1. Jon and Kate (though they may have lost me as a viewer--so sad)
2. Grey's Anatomy (in the good old days, i.e. the first two seasons--haven't watched more than one epsiode all season)
3. American Idol (in theory, though I didn't make it past the top 20 this season)

Three places I have been:
1. Antigua (honeymoon)
2. Quebec (to see Celine Dion's final concert--should I be admitting that?!--I like her songs, what can I say)
3. San Francisco (to visit my best friend in high school--most favoritest city ever)

Three people that e-mail me regularly:
1. Kayla
2. Perry (and they're not love notes, either)
3. AC Moore (does that count?!)

Three of my favorite foods:
1. Baked Lay's
2. Chocolate
3. Anything I don't have to cook

Three friends I think will respond:
1. every
2. single
3. one of you (I mean it!)

Three things I'm looking forward to
1. The summer off with my boys
2. a trip to Storyland
3. lots of time to scrapbook

For the love of the gumball

I walked into my closet this morning to find this little set-up. What in the world?!

But upon looking upward I realized just what this little Mcgiver was up to:

Yeah, you need to be just a little bit taller, buddy. And apparently I need to hide these sugary balls just a little bit better, before we have another ER visit on our hands!

Remember Today 6.2.09

{remember} Logan's despair at missing field day at school this year. He's sick with a fever, and when he realized he couldn't go to school, he burst into tears.

Remember Today 6.1.09

{remember} how good it feels to be back in my stUdio creating. Just today I was thinking how I have no desire to start a project, no mojo to create anything at all, and here I am with one layout done and another started (thanks to the sketch inspirations from Splitcoast and PaperCraft Planet). I'll post photos tomorrow at LMC. Now I've got to check on Logan's fever and see if he needs another dose of Tylenol :(

I'm still here...

Sometimes life has a way of getting so, so busy there isn't a spare second for anything else. Of course the first thing to go is not keeping the house clean, or completing a project, or even finally switching over the seasonal clothes (yup, that took me nearly a month this season). The first thing to go is updating my blogs. I've started a new list of things to do and at the very top of my list is a big update to both blogs. Stay tuned!