Today's project

I finally worked on Emma's skirt today. What a great way to alter old jeans.

Emma picked out the fabric. Thanks, Cassie, for the inspiration.

Emmalee started preschool!

After mcuh thought, we decided to go ahead and enroll Emmalee in preschool. Thanks to a tip from another mom here in Boise, we found a great place for her to attend. Monday was her first day. She has been so attached to me since she moved that we weren't sure how she would handle it.

She jumped in with both feet...just started playing and then writing her name when it was time. The teachers said that she didn't ask for me the entire 2.5 hours. I was so happy about this that it didn't even hurt my feelings! (Smile)

"Slow Dance"

I received a forwarded e-mail earlier today. It included a poem that was written by a teenager terminally ill with cancer. (Her name was not listed).

SLOW DANCE

Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won'tlast.

Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask How are you?
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?
You'd better slow down
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won'tlast.

Ever told your child,
We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch,
Let a goodfriendship die
Cause you never had time
To call and say,'Hi'
You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won'tlast.

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift.... Thrown away.
Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over.

The poem hits me in so many ways. I see myself in it in so many places. How often to I tell my kids I can't do something because I'm busy cleaning? How often do I pass up an opportunity to be kind to someone? How often to I spend my day hurrying around trying to get everything done. How often do I think of my friends and family but don't take the time to call them or send a card?

How seldom do I take the time to know what really makes my husband and family happy and then do it? How seldom do I take the time each day to enjoy the simple beauty around me? How seldom do I take the time to just sit and listen to my kids? How seldom do I take the time to just be, rather than doing?

I want to take time to enjoy the little things each day, to see true smiles of happiness on my kids' faces, really listen when others are speaking, spend more time on spiritual things, and be a good friend to those that mean so much to me.

Signs of Fall

I had to say good-bye to my favorite summer drink - ice tea - and hello to my favorite cold-weather drink - hot tea.
This cute little guy dropped in just in time for Fall. Thanks, Mom!

I've discovered that it's impossible for me to take a photo of Emma in the close-up mode unless she's sleeping. Way too much motion! We broke out the long sleeve dresses and tights this morning. Of course, this afternoon it's supposed to be 80! Gotta love Idaho!

More signs of Fall to follow...the trees are just starting to turn.

Project #2

Wall-hanging for our meal-time graces

Today's 30-minute project

The space on the front of my refrigerator has outgrown the space needed to display the kids' art projects. We've got a large blank wall in our office over the kids' table.

Items needed:

One piece of molding with a flat surface (Lowe's cut mine to 5')

Two pieces of scrapbook paper

Modpodge (spread on the molding, apply the paper, press out air bubbles)

6 clamps (I tried to find the ones that you can screw in...no luck! In the office section at Wal-mart, they had packages of 2 with magnets on the back. I cut a piece of thick double-sided tape to fit the back of the magnet, superglued it to the magnet and then superglued it to the board)

Picture hangers for the back

I saw this idea at a friend's house in Portland. She had also photo copied pictures of the kids, cut them into squares and modpodged them on the board in between the clamps.

A river ran through it!

Nice and dry at my house before the race

One hour later...not so dry anymore! But still smiling!

The first river of many we saw along the way.

Trying to show the thousands of people behind us. Also shows the dark, foreboding sky.

The view from the two-mile mark, looking down on our destination.

Two-mile mark

One of the "Tuxedo Men" that greeted us at the finish line.

The finish line!

Waiting for our ride. Mom's holding up the pole!

Yes! We did it!

Those of you that read this from Portland might think these are photos from before we moved. We've been here a month and didn't see any clouds until Friday morning. This morning, the deluge began. I felt like I was back in Western Oregon! It would have been o.k. if I were sitting inside watching it from the warmth of the house. However, Mom and I were downtown at 8:00 with thousands of other women, standing in the rain and thunder and very close lightening to walk the Women's Celebration 5k. Even though we were all wet and cold before we even started the race, there were smiles to be seen everywhere. Women were dancing to the music as we waited for our turn. Cameras were snapping. There were tons of young girls...from stroller-age to preteens. Whether they were huddled under an umbrella or bravely standing in the downpour, they were smiling.


For me, this was a personal achievement. When I started my weightloss in 2006, I decided that I'd enter a walk once I reached my goal of losing 35 pounds. 60 pounds later, I finally did it. I got up early on a Saturday (that's pretty normal with my early-rising kids), I stood in the rain, I walked the course and finished it. It made it even more special to have Mom with me.

Look up!

Sometimes, as I go about my day, I forget to look up. I'm so busy trodding along with my face looking down...down at the cleaning, the cookings, the toys on the floor, the crumbs on the floor, all kinds of things on the floor...that I don't notice what's going on around me. The little things. When I went out to get the paper one morning this week, I looked up and this is the face of the moon that was staring back at me. Gorgeous!

That night, as I came around the corner at the end of my walk, I looked up. There was a beautiful sunset...almost missed by me.

This morning, I looked up and saw the first clouds we've had since we moved here in mid-August. But aren't they beautiful clouds?

It's so good to be with the kids. They constantly remind me to look up. "Mommy, what's that?" "Mommy, why does that happen?" "Mommy, look at that beautiful bird." I so appreciate the little child...they aren't spending their lives worrying about what needs to be done at home, at work, at school. They are exploring, being curious, asking questions, looking up. I hope to be more like one of these little children...start looking up more often at the beauty around me.

Just a little dirt on the kids...

June 2004 - Ryan - While in Idaho, Nana told Ryan that she had chocolate icecream. He said, "I don't like chocolate icecream. I like regular ice cream, because I'm a regular guy!"

January 2005 - Ryan - I was "explaining" to 2-week old Emmalee that she needed to go to sleep at night. Ryan said, "Remember, Mommy, she does not understand!"

September 2005 - Ryan - "Kindergarden must be pretty."

Mom - "Why?"

Ryan - "Because there's a garden in it."

September 2005 - Ryan - "Mom, I don't like the girls in my class."

Mom - Why?"

Ryan - "They are crazy all of a sudden. They almost give me a heart attack all of the time!"

September 2006 - Mom - "Your sister is crazy, Ryan."

Ryan - "Yep, she's never out of the mood of playing!"

October 2006 - Ryan came home from kindergarden and told me that he got in trouble and the teacher was going to call me. He asked if I could not answer the phone for the rest of the day.

May 2007 - Emma talking about a 3-year-old boy at the store - "He's a cute little fellow!"

May 2007 - Ryan was helping me get dinner ready for company. I said, "See how much work it is being the mommy?" Ryan said, "Yeah. Good thing I'm going to be a daddy!"

September 2007 - As Emma and I were getting ready to leave for swimming lessons, I said, "Ready, Freddy?" She stopped what she was doing, looked up at me and said in her best gangster voice (not sure where that came from!), "Did you call me Freddy? You don't want to call me Freddy!"

October 2007 - Ryan was tackling Emma. I came over and lifted him off of her. Emma popped up and said, "Thanks, Mom. You saved my life!"

November 2007 - Emma was not watching where she was going and walked into a wall. She turned around, pointed at the wall and said, "You can't hit me like that, Wall!"

January 2008 - Bob was still here when the kids woke up. He told Emma goodbye. Emma said, "Does Daddy have to do to the office to grow more pokeys?" (The kids name for stubble on Bob's face when he gets home from work).

March 2008 - Emma wanted to dance, so I put on some nice opera music by Il Divo. She said, "Mommy, that's not pretty. That's scary!" I put on Bon Jovi. "Mmmm, that's pretty!"

April 2008 - We were eating, and Emma wasn't eating. I told her that she couldn't have her cookie if she didn't eat her dinner. She looked at me with sad eyes and said, "Mommy, you're breaking my heart!"

September 2008 - Emma didn't want to finish her spaghetti at dinner, so she told me that it gave her a "noodle ache."

My little chef

If you spend very much time in my house, you know that there are always chocolate chip cookies in either the cookie jar or the freezer. Dad pointed out to me the other day that the cookies seem to have been missing since we moved in. Since he's stopping by here bright and early tomorrow morning, we decided to make cookies. Rather than true chocolate chip cookies, the kids requested the swirled chocolate/peanut butter chips. Yum! Ryan started out as my helper. However, after cracking the eggs, he went off to play with his dad. Emma climbed up on the chair and helped out. This is the first time she's been able to help through the whole process (or at least the parts that didn't involved a 375 degree oven).

She loves the mixer...keeps turning it up higher and higher.

Who could resist a helper as cute as this?!

Self-portrait while they're baking.

Mmmmm...milk, warm cookies and a Barbie tea set. Would could be better?

She even washed dishes for the very first time. It's so nice that, at this age, they think it's fun! She even multi-tasked and washed the floor in front of the sink. :)

The finished product in my new cookie jar from Grapples. If you live and have never been, give me a call...it's an awesome place Mom and I visited this past week. Thanks, Jamee, for the information on the store!