Randomness

1. I forgot to show you our new family member. Nibbles is Potter's first pet. So far so good. Easy to care for, likes being handled, no escapes yet.

2. Guess who can climb up on the couch alone?

3. The girls got a couple nice dresses for Christmas. Here is Rosebud in one of hers.

4. And one of Princess' has a matching doll dress which she loves.

5. Clearance Christmas ribbon, need I say more?

6. And lastly, just because the holidays are over it doesn't mean winter is gone, right? So I hung some snowflake ornaments the length of our vaulted ceiling (lousy pic) and made a winter scene in the huge apothecary jar my b-i-l got me for Christmas. Clearance tree ($1.19) and berries ($.39) and coarse salt. Perfect for my January table.

speaking in church. must begin writing!!

So cultured

Yesterday we were browsing through Home Goods for the first time. I was walking through an intoxicating haze of decor yumminess when Princess brought me out of my trance.

She found the teapots.

Mom!! "Look at all the oatmeal makers!"


We definitely enjoy our "quick oats".

Six Simple Words

Sometimes my friend K posts a snippet of her day using six words. I love the idea and hope she doesn't mind me copying it.

SO for today,


holidays complete - familiar life again remembered

Feminizing the living room

So I like football; shoot me.

And I like dark colors, and stripes, and plaid. I'm pretty much a guy.

Just kidding. I do really gravitate toward all things masculine, though.

I have been loving our couch from two years ago so much.

Before:

It has the coolest shaped back ever, and I love the colors. I was starting to tire of the plaid, though. Just a smidge. So I decided to go out and surprise Strider with a new sofa!! Kidding again.

My parents' gift to us this Christmas was a myriad of gift cards to some of our favorite places, one of which was Ross. Love Ross.

I decided the whole living room needed a feminine makeover so I forced my sisters to follow me around Ross deciding on some lovely pillows to tame the "man look" and soften things.

After:

I love the result.

I also repurposed some decor items.  I covered some decorative balls in twine and dried beans to make a centerpiece.  I also added ribbon to my candles to dress them up.  I stuck greenery on a stick and made a cute topiary.  Really happy with my shelf.

Cost:  $34 for pillows which technically my mom bought.  Sa-weet!

Linked to:  Before and After party at Thrifty Decor Chick

Hello routines

It's so quiet.

All the boys are gone. Which means their fighting is gone. Which means their making up and playing Star Wars again is gone.

And Daddy is back at work.

And the Wii is off.

And much of the house is clean.

And the screen door won't slam till 4pm.

And this little girl who loves her brothers very much is lonely.

My Word

I am looking forward to a great year.

I present my 2010 word to you:

EMBRACE


I am coming upon a year with many opportunities and milestones ahead.  But usually when faced with an uncomfortable or new situation I tend to backpedal and retreat. When things don't go the way I planned I sink low.  When I don't understand I give up.  When life is hard I want to rest. 

I am promising to keep this word in my head to help me embrace change, embrace my imperfections, embrace my talents, embrace my trials, embrace my roles, embrace the journey, embrace my children, embrace L-I-F-E more this coming year.  I hope you will join me.

Finished!

Last night I met a big goal of mine. I have now read the entire Bible, finally.

In 2007 I read the New Testment. Then in April 2008 I started the Old Testament. 21 months later I am done. I told myself I would finish this year. I wondered at times if I would get through it. Chronicles, Isaiah, UGH.

I didn't understand 90% of what I read and there are lots of things in there that were eye-opening. In fact, I hope my children are adults before they read much of it. But I know that when those words were written they were to benefit us and the word of God can be found throughout the 1184 pages.

I am thankful for the insight I gain when the scriptures are a habit for me and I am blessed to have them within my reach at all times.

Something struck me when I finished. As you can see in the top picture the final words are "THE END of the PROPHETS". I am so grateful for my testimony that I live in a time when we know it is not the end of the prophets. I know that if God spoke then it makes perfect sense that he'd speak now. I love learning about this gospel that brings me so much happiness when I follow it.

P.S. I think I just set a record for using the word "I" as much as humanly possible in one post.

Resolution Revolution

I admit it; I love to make resolutions. Unfortunately I am also a perfectionist. So while the process of making "the list" is satisfying, the subsequent veering off the path is damaging to my soul and my self image.

Enter in the "One Word" concept.

It was developed here (I think) and used here and here and here.

Basically it takes a look at your goals from the end rather than the beginning and it sounds intriguing enough for me to give it a whirl.

It is also suggested to mull it over for a bit to see what your heart is really telling you to focus on. So I am posting this today in the hopes that in the next 2.5 days I can get a better idea of where to put my energy for 2010.


words currently in the running:

balance
aware
appreciate
engage
live
cherish
purpose
anchor
love
focus
connect
presence


If you embark on this journey as well please tell me, or leave a link to your post in the comments.

Ahhh, much better

All is calm, all is bright

The wrapping paper is all in the recycle bin, Santa's belly is a little fuller, and the tree is going bye-bye this afternoon.

We had a wonderful Christmas as a family, with lots of time together and many carefully chosen and received-with-gratitude gifts. In addition, one of the highlights was seeing/talking to my brother Matt in Mozambique via webcam. Very cool.

I hope you had a chance to spend time with or speak to loved ones this week. Family really is everything. Really.

Christmas music

I really enjoyed hearing the kids do their Christmas songs at school lately. They did a great job and I love the music of the holidays. I have been listening nonstop on the radio. Nothing brings the spirit into the season more easily than just listening and singing carols.

Merry Christmas!