Silver leafing

I "inherited" an old gold mirror from my in-laws years ago. It has never been my favorite color. I've always wanted to paint it silver. I few months ago I was inspired by this article in Better Homes and Gardens.




I finally bought some silver leaf at Roberts the other day and the sunshine motivated me to get to it. It took me hours! It wasn't as easy as I had hoped, but was fun to try. Here is my mirror so far. I still need to seal it with something and I may use something to tone it down a little.

Sunshine

The last few days have been beautiful. It really makes me want to get more done. I feel more motivated to do and get done than I have in a long time. I think I am going to silver leaf my mirror today. Maybe I'll get my laundry folded, too.

What is the sunshine fueling you to do today?

MaLM (Make a list Monday) - Dream houses

What I never knew my house needed until last week:

1. Five outdoor fireplaces (yes, all the same fabulous yard)






2. My own bowling lanes

3. My own arcade (with no less than 30 pinball machines)

4. A grand entry bigger than my current house (what else would you do with 21,000 sq. foot house?)

5. An instant-tree for my pergola (complete with light up berries)

6. A red rock view like no other (I always thought an ocean view was necessary)

7. A great view from the outdoor shower, too

8. A rock courtyard with presence

9. My own stage

10. My own art hall on the way to my bedroom

11. A playroom city


12. Bar stools IN the pool (saves low energy folk from the necessity of leaving the pool to get a little drink and snacky snack)



13. An artsy, expensive and useless sink



Yep, that should about do it.

Blankies, a spot of sun

My kids all have had favorite blankies. My mother bought Dawn, our first, the same blanket that my brother Todd had forever. Dawn really took to it. So Rachel got a pink one, Scott got a yellow one (like Todd's) and Andrew got a blue one.

Dawn has finally grown out of hers. Rachel still likes hers and will sleep with it if it available. Scott "needs" his many times a day. Andrew hasn't really bonded to his, or so I thought.

Andrew's is one of the two blankets that we cover him with every night in his crib. But he has never shown it much attention until today.

Today he came running up on his short little turbo legs and asked in his sing song voice,

"Mom, can you get my blankie?"

It has never really ventured out of the crib before. But today it has been playing with him just a little.

Those always warm and sometimes stinky blankies are security for my kids when Matt and I are not there. I love that about them. Sometimes dragging them around, remembering (and forgetting) them is quite a pain. But a sweet child's comfort and security are definitely worth it.

And that is a spot of sun for my kids and me today!

P.S. Yea for spell check working again!

Longing for green

After Christmas, I get a little excited about goals and such. I like Valentine's Day, too. But most of all I start dreaming about my yard and planting lots and lots of flowers. Like any other area of my life, my plans are what I do best. The putting into action part is the trouble.

Today I spent too much time on this online garden planner from Lowe's. The first is my current yard. The second one is my proposed plan with a small courtyard and path in the front yard with a dry stream bed leading to a small water feature in the back. Sigh, dreams.



FYI: I liked this yard planner. I tried the one on BHG.com and wasn't able to navigate it. I will likely try some more; I'll let you know how they work.

Positive reinforcement

Maybe the most satisfying part of being a mom is the positive reinforcement I get all the time. You know those little moments when you know you are really appreciated, that your efforts are not going unnoticed or unappreciated.

Last night I made a lovely dinner that unfortunately contained broccoli. Two of my children are not the biggest fans of that particular vegetable. Scott was not happy. As we insisted that he eat at least one bite, he got more and more agitated. Finally, on the verge of spilling tears, he looked at me and with gushing love and a quivering lip said,

"But what if I throw up when I eat it?"

Mmmm. Complete satisfaction.

Our early Anniversary

fOver the weekend, Matt and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary a little bit early. Never mind that we celebrated it a lot early last year in Hawaii! But a coming baby will just make you plan a little ahead, or a lot as the case may be.

On the agenda, Kolob Canyon


St. George Parade of Homes




sleeping,
our Bed and Breakfast, the Seven Wives Inn Matt and I love the quirkiness and personal experience of B&Bs (not to mention the fabulous breakfasts)

climbing,
Matt had to climb this lovely rock in the middle of a golf course. He is such an sandstone nut.

flying,
We took two free helicopter rides around new developments. It was our first time and we loved it.


Snow Canyon

Zion National Park

and its wildlife

a little history (Brigham Young's winter house)

and fabulous chocolates.


Check, check, double quadruple check-o-rama!

A spot of sun

Love you!

Percentages and Desires

The other night, after a long day of work, after a long battle (in the sweetest sense of the word) with the kids, getting dinner ready, eaten, and cleaned up, I was tired. Bone tired. Lay down on the cold kitchen tile and never get up until Easter tired. Matt was graciously getting the kids in the bath while I endeavored to wipe all traces of dinner from the chairs, tables, bibs, dishes and counters. he walked into the kitchen, and I looked at him imploringly and said

"Right now, I want to take a long, hot bubble bath about 90%."

But when I got to the percentage I got all confused. At that moment I felt like at LEAST 90% of my wants were wrapped up in a hot bath. But I quickly had to refigure my numbers. Because at that moment the chore of cleaning up the kitchen was winning out. So I had to give the kitchen 51% and a bath just 49%. But that is just not what I was feeling. But it was what I was doing. So it had to be right didn't it?

Then I had to revise again.

"Okay, maybe not. Maybe it's more like 35% wants to clean up, 33% wants to help get the kids to bed, and then the left over 32% want a bath." I couldn't come up with the real way to numerically portray how I felt. I still felt like 90% I wanted a bath. But by this time it had crept up to at least 95%.

The real truth was that I finished the kitchen while Matt bathed the boys. Then I went downstairs and put clean sheets on the girls' naked beds, got them in bed, went upstairs and kissed the boys too. Then Matt and I sat down and spent some quality, quiet time just sitting together.

By this time my bath dreams had all but vanished, well, they had faded. My percentages had been wrong again. Being with Matt was well over my desire for a bath too. I kept puzzling over how I could divide up my want-percentages to accurately depict how I felt. Matt told me that the problem was that my votes had been split. That seemed to make sense, but still I wasn't happy.

Since that night I think I've figured it out. My body wanted a bath about 99% that night. My brain wanted the kitchen cleaned 99%. And my heart and soul wanted to help my husband and my kids be happy and settled 99%. I guess my heart must be stronger than my mind or my body, at least that night it was.

This is how it should be. This is what I think I want out of my life. I want to learn how to control my mind and my body and give my heart what it truly needs and wants.

I've also been pondering what I really want out of life. My sister-in-law posed such a question on her blog. This experience seemed to somehow apply to that question.

What does my body want out of life? A beach, good chocolate, and hot baths. What does my mind want? Stimulation, learning, good books, good conversation.

But what does my heart want? What do I really want, in the greatest percentages? I've come up with my answer.

I want to merit eternal life with God.
I want to help my husband gain eternal life with God and me.
I want to help my children gain the blessings of that same eternal life.
I want to make it as easy as possible for the people all around me, the people of the world, to gain eternal life with God.

That is what I want out of life in my heart of heart. And if sometimes my body or my mind want something more and are screaming out for attention, I'm sure I'll give it that too. But I hope that mostly, over the course of my life, I will give my heart what it wants most. I'll give it a chance to learn loving and giving and charity. And then I'll give my heart true happiness and joy. Amen.

My hubby WWWuvs me

Matt gave me the sweetest Valentine's gift this morning. He made this lovely card with my new Cuttlebug. Inside looks like this:

So we floated (okay, my pregnant self lumbered) over to the computer and found the most sweet and thoughtful series of short essays on "us". With his permission, I share it with all of you. Spend a minute or two reading some of his Wife Rules at www.mywiferules.blogspot.com I'd try to suggest a few really good ones, but I can't really say I love one more than another. Each one is perfect. They make more sense if you start in January at the beginning (scroll to the bottom) and read in reverse. Some are more funny like this one and this one, and some, like this, more serious. But anyway you lean, you'll be entertained--he's such a great writer.

And honey--I think YOU rule, and I love you more than I could ever say (or write).

Midnight Valentine Inspiration

Did I ever tell you that I forgot to send Christmas gifts to school for my kids' teachers! FORGOT! Can you imagine my mortification (as well as my girls')? Dawn wrote her teacher a special letter telling her how much she liked her etc. because she felt so bad.

Well, we sent one on the first day back from Christmas vacation and felt like shulps. But we got it done.

You'd think with this recent experience I'd be looking to redeem myself on Valentine's Day. Well, I wasn't. However, midnight (or 9 P.M.) inspiration reared its ugly head, and I came up with these cute little treat containers. I only got a picture of Scott's, but the others were similar.

All in all, I'm hoping a little chocolate will go a long way towards my good standing with their teachers. :)

Pregnancy alters your brain

It is scientifically proved here that pregnancy alters your brain functions. It makes you forget. I just dare you to deny it. It happens to me. See for yourself.

Make a list Monday (MaLM) - Hopes for a new week

What I'm hoping for this week:

Better nights of sleep
Cleaner kitchen and bathrooms
Less cookies to eat
More chocolate (it is Valentine's after all)
Safe new tires
A heavenly getaway with the sweetest Valentine ever to temperatures in the mid-sixties! Wahoo!
Less dripping noses
More energy
No new books

Bean Life Science Museum Nature Photography Competition

Yesterday we heard that Matt's picture had won an Honorable Mention in BYU's Bean Museum Nature Photography competition. This was Matt's first competition and we are thrilled. There were so many beautiful photos; it was fun to peruse them all during the opening reception last night. The exhibit is open until March 14th, so go take a look.

You can also see his photo on his website www.ColorfulUtah.com right here.

A spot of sun

Today my gigantic ray of sun is shining into the night. So, I will postpone until tomorrow until I can unveil the great news! Ponder it here if you so desire.

Hell froze over

It happened here and here.

Thanks Julie!

Super Tuesday

Go vote! Make your lovely voice heard.

Rexburg Temple

A few weeks ago we went to visit my Mom in Idaho Falls. We spent one morning at the Rexburg Temple Open House. The day was very pretty, bright, blue sky and single digit temperatures! The temple was beautiful, peaceful and wonderful.

Due to President Hinckley's death, they postponed the dedication for one week. My sister (also in Idaho Falls) told me that there were 12 weddings scheduled for that week. AAhh. What would you do? Several went to the Idaho Falls temple, but others opted to postpone. What would you do? I can't imagine the pain of rescheduling everything for a week later.

P.S. My spell checking isn't working on blogger. Anyone else having that problem? Just beware, I never claimed to win any spelling bees.

Make a list Monday (MaLM) - February goals

Sorry for the somewhat boring list today, but chores must be done. So . . .

My goals for February

1. Fix up Scott's room to make room for Andrew. This will include a new bed, rearranged toys and clothes, finally hanging stuff on the wall, and lots of chasing Andrew back INTO his bed while he gets used to his new freedom of sleeping without bars.

2. Remember that my kids are just LEARNING! I am TEACHING them, not giving them their final exams. I am going to give much more positive feedback and try to eliminate the negative. We are starting a new incentive/reward system. In the past, we have started each month with a string of circles drawn on the chalkboard, each representing a quarter of their monthly allowance. They would loose them for the usual, not obeying, fighting, not getting chores done, etc. This month we are starting with no circles and awarding them one each day for a job done well, until they reach their allowance max. I am hoping this will give us a lot more opportunity to focus on what is going well.

3. I am going to take better care of my body. I am working on my lunches. Usually Matt takes our leftovers to work, providing him a yummy and healthy way to eat. I am stuck (of my own choosing, I like sending Matt with something good) with whatever is left, sometimes a sandwich, sometimes a hot dog, sometimes a yogurt and nuts. I resolve to eat a better lunch each day including fruit (easily done, that is already normal) and a vegetable (not so easy, hello baby carrots). We'll see how we do.

I think this will be a great month. We are going to have Valentine's Day, an early anniversary celebration (before new baby) and I can't wait to finish up the boys' room. Hope you are excited as well. Plus, I'm really hoping that the snow will slowly fade away this month and bring at least the hope of spring flowers and green grass!