Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Every Day a Little Wetter and Better


paper:Vinnie Pierce ThankYou Kit, fonts: CenturyGothic,Taggettes, brush:Mel's Photoshop Brushes

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Carefully Crossing


Just had to capture this!
credits: alpha by ShabbyPrincess, bubble brush by Hawksmont

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Hardware and Handle bar Mustaches


Finally finished one of my "long term" projects! It probably wouldn't have been long term if I had focused on it exclusively. But, having a toddler and having personality much like a butterfly that likes to flit between many ideas and projects, it has taken a while to get this one done. I'm so glad it turned out! Especially since when I bought this cheap ugly armoire off of KSL.com for just a few dollars, my husband's face said, "You can't be serious." But he loaded it up anyway and brought it home to our garage. (He's such a sweetie - we probably get along so well because we both have unusual "projects".) I have a n imagination for the potential of things and I really enjoy making things aesthetic. It is like adding a rainbow to a cloudy day; its beauty does not have any function but it adds so much to our lives like hope, happiness and peace. Several coats of paint and new hardware later (the old hardware I'm calling handlebar mustaches) and we have a perfect storage solution for the playroom. PeaPod is already checking it out!

Saturday, August 16, 2008

High Places

The safest place to be in a home of a toddler is as high as you can get. - thoughts by Duncan the Cat



“The responsibility mothers have today has never required more vigilance. More than at any time in the history of the world, we need mothers who know. Children are being born into a world where they “wrestle... against spiritual wickedness in high places”

"However, mothers need not fear. When mothers know who they are and who God is and have made covenants with Him, they will have great power and influence for good on their children.” Julie B. Beck, “Mothers Who Know,” Ensign, Nov 2007, 76–78


Friday, August 15, 2008

Muffin Tin Monday


I am so excited about this idea: Muffin Tin Monday! You take a muffin tin and fill it with different foods for your toddler or kids to eat lunch out of!Who says you can't eat out of it either! The presentation is easy and fun while creating a different perspective of the food. It is just so interesting! I think you could even group the foods according to type and nutritional values for older children as a learning experience. I am always searching for ways to make good nutrition fun; this idea fits that search perfectly. Thanks so much for sharing Sycamore Stirrings!

Thursday, August 14, 2008

A Smattering of Stuff

The Olympics are simply amazing. These athletes and countries from around the world join for a short time in one goal. It always brings tears to my eyes. When I heard that China literally put a pretty face out for the world to see with a different voice behind the stage, I wasn't surprised. Isn't that what China is trying do in the political arena - to put on a pretty face for the world? What other voices do they hide that we do not see or perhaps even hear? China is right though, we would like to see only the beautiful. It is no wonder that whole countries do not appreciate one another when we, as human beings, generally cannot appreciate the beauty of an individual for the sum of their parts.


Just a little pic of our playing in the sand during our anniversary. Wow, I'm so glad I have a person who understands me so well. I'm so glad to share my heart, my thoughts, my feelings, my hopes with him. This world can be quite blind to our minds and souls.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

My Nasal Passages will Never be the Same

It has been 5 years since the 2003 Northeast Blackout. I can't believe it has been that long. My memories of that time have stayed quite fresh because they were burned into my olfactory senses. Well, the memories are as fresh as the smell of decay can be. We were living in Michigan at the time. We had a freezer in our basement full of food (as poor students we would stock up on sales and I would make lots of meals ahead of time to make it easier for our hectic schedule). You cannot imagine the smell that smacked us in the face when we came home and opened that freezer! Now, I can handle a lot of smells (except when I'm pregnant). I can handle 90 yr. old ladies with rotting teeth that smell like old spinach and broccoli. I can handle the anaerobic bacteria smell that puffs into the air after opening up necrotic tooth canal. I can even handle 3 pack-a-day smokers with strong liquor on the breath, hairy tongue, and periodontal disease that you can smell from the waiting room. But I could not handle the smell from that freezer full of week old rotting meat. IMy nasal passages will never be the same. Thank heaven I am blessed with the nicest, most generous husband in the world! He cleaned up the whole mess - armed with a full box of garbage bags, a mountain of rags and a bottle of bleach. He looked like a train robber in an old western movie with his bandanna wrapped around his face. He wasn't a gun slinger, since there was no gun - but he did wield that Clorox like a weapon! Six months later, we were able to use the freezer again. I swear I smell something...

Talking Dirty

You would think after identifying 600 species bacteria in the mouth, we would have found them all. Nope! Prevotella hiticola has been named and found. It is amazing what a complex ecosystem our mouth is.