The Madness of Maria

Noah's Upcoming Birthday

2011-09-25T11:48:00.001-07:00

Noteworthy Birthday Boy Birthday Invitation

Invitations for all occasions: graduation day, birthdays, & weddings.

View the entire collection of cards.

Kids' Clothing Inventory

2011-07-27T07:17:00.000-07:00

With 5 munchkins to clothe it's essential I have an inventory to keep track of what they have & what they need for each season. Here is an inventory I came up with last night & I am really excited about getting it all filled out! Just wanted to share in case you're in need of one too. Click here to download & just make sure to go to Print Preview & select to Fit it to one page. You can change the kids' names of course & corresponding sizes to fit your needs. And of course if you have any suggestions on how to improve it, please share!

Full Out Cleaning Schedule

2011-07-21T07:53:00.001-07:00

I have tried to perfect this for years & finally I think I got it! If you are interested in seeing my full cleaning schedule for my home, click here. I have one copy laminated & I just cross off what I do each day for two weeks & then wipe it off to use again the following week. It is color coded for how many times a week I do that particular chore. It is a two week system & then it also includes a small section for cleaning I would like to accomplish once a month.

If I skip a day & get behind, I don't backtrack. I just follow the schedule for the current day & know I will get back to what I missed when the next week comes around. This way I am not stressing about what I have & have not done because I know it will always come back around.

Happy Cleaning!

Bad Behavior=Consequences Chart

2011-07-21T07:37:00.000-07:00

It's a Keel Family Revolution today! While Mark was here on R&R we came together as a family to discuss the most problematic behavior & the consequences for those bad behaviors; agreed upon by everyone! So, I have made a chart & will be hanging it up today. I pray it helps us bring more peace into our everyday family life.

We all agreed that the most problematic behaviors in our family were: HITTING, ARGUING, CALLING OTHER PEOPLE NAMES, BEING DISRESPECTFUL TO MOM & DAD, & NOT PICKING UP AFTER YOURSELF. The chart available for download details the consequences we chose for each behavior.

If you are interested in seeing the chart, you can get it here. There is also lined, numbered paper for one of the consequences that you can get here.

Summer Madness Contained.....Possibly

2011-06-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

I have a sign hanging by my front door that reads, "Chaos, Panic & Disorder. My work here is Done." This is how I feel most of the time but with summer break upon us I am determined to not let the chaos control us. Instead I have come up with a daily schedule we can look to for suggestions, but it's not mandatory. I have learned in my simple 34 years that high expectations lead to major disappointment, so we dream big but don't expect perfection.

So.....I have put together a daily schedule & a list of freetime ideas & quiet time ideas. I think they're really great references for any family of any size that feels they want a little more say in how their day goes. It's totally flexible which is just the way I like it. Although there are a few things that need to be accomplished everyday & it would be best if they were accomplished at a specific time. It's just a really good guideline. So I figured I would share them here.

It is an Excel workbook. 3 sheets. One is the Daily Schedule, one is Freetime Ideas & the other is Quiet Time Ideas.

Just click here to get it.

I really could have used more quiet time ideas, so if you have any, please add your comment!

Hope you enjoy these & have fun controlling the chaos!

Another Year Survived

2011-03-12T06:41:00.000-08:00

It's been so long since I posted on my blog & how sad is that?!? I miss it so but just have not had the energy, time, motivation or desire to share the struggles & changes in my life. Currently Mark is deployed to Afghanistan for a year & I am still struggling with Stage 3 Bipolar Disorder & heavy periods of depression, who wouldn't with 5 kids & a household to handle all by themselves? I wonder if I did blog though, if it would help me feel like I have an outlet, a stress reliever to share my thoughts & dreams & failures & triumps (however small)? I just might try to start blogging again, because I need to reintroduce things into my life that I used to love doing. Wanna come along for the ride?

School Sack Lunch Menu

2010-08-20T15:58:00.001-07:00

I searched & searched for a set menu for school sack lunches, but found nothing. BUT! I did find some great ideas that I used to combine our own menu & I figured I would share it with you!

MAIN DISHES:

Bow Tie Pasta w/ Veggies

Tuna Sandwiches (in the shape of a fish)

Mini Cracker Pizzas

Pretzel Kabobs

Chicken w/Ranch Dressing

Beanie Weenies

Hawaiian Roll Sandwich

Mini Bagels w/Cream Cheese

Chicken Nuggets w/Honey Mustard

PB&Honey Sandwich

Club Sandwich

Mini Football Subs

SIDE ITEMS:

vanilla pudding

Jello-O

mandarin oranges

edamame

deviled eggs

banana bread

chips & salsa

popcorn w/cheese seasoning

graham crackers

Chex Mix

If you want any of the recipes, just let me know. I invested in a 3 compartment Ziploc container for each child, as well as really small bowls for dipping sauces and one insulated container. This will cut back on ziploc bag use. We also bought a lunch bag for $3.00 at Wal-Mart that fits everything just fine.

We make our own pudding & Jello-O because the cost is cheaper, no matter how you look at it. My kids are finally EXCITED about packing their lunches & of course I add a little note from Mom in the morning. I think I have some printable lunch notes & riddles that I have somewhere....I'll link to them if I can find them.

Something to Show For it.

2009-08-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

What do we have to show for all of our hard work? What do we have to show for all the children that we birthed, well, the children! But, what do we have to show for all the times we've attempted to teach them something we figured they would never understand or remember? Where are our awards for all the dinners cooked & not burned? For all the laundry stains we've miraculously gotten out of that favorite piece of clothing? Where are the ribbons for First Place in Speedy Diaper Changing? Or the plaque for Most Dirty Diapers Changed in a Single Day? Where are the ribbons for making it through another day? Well, the new day is our award I suppose, but once again, my husband is about to embark on a new journey for him, for our entire family. He will report to Officer Candidate School on Sunday, the 30th. I could not be prouder of him. He has received numerous plaques, coins, ribbons, certificates, trophies and titles these past 9 years in the Army. I often become envious of all of his achievements & the fact that you can see them & touch them helping you to remember where you've come from & where you're headed. I feel so inadequate next to him & as he proceeds through Officer School, I know he will get high marks. I know he will do very well & come out on top. He'll undoubtedly come back even more fit than he was before, which was pretty darn fit & me, I'll just be the same old unattractive size I've been since having the twins. With him being gone for 12 weeks (the trial run) at first, it will be my first challenge with 5 kids to care for & not just 3. And often when I see the twins wreaking havoc, they feel like 6 kids. I have been challenging my own demons, banging & knocking them down each & every time I can, only to have another show me it's not quite done with me yet & just as I get a handle on that, will I be able to handle my own family? It's nearly mind boggling doing all we do with Mark here, I cannot imagine how we will survive with him gone. I know we will, but at what quality of living & what will it do to all my mental progress? He asked me last night if I was scared. I couldn't help but say, "Yes, wouldn't you be?" He had to agree I had the bigger burden to bear. Well, at least we can agree on that & having someone sympathize with you can help a great deal. I need another mom with 5 kids, a set of twins, a husband gone (12 weeks at first, a month break at home, then away again for 6 months!!), a 5 bedroom home to maintain, the entire family household's finances to keep up, doctor's appts. to go to to keep you from running away & a desire to be more, to be able to do more or be happy with where you are at. Where are those moms?

I had not looked at the header of this blog for quite a while & when I did, it instantly brought tears to my eyes. I don't even know that Maria anymore. I don't remember what she was like, what she loved to do, how she made it through the day with a smile on her face. I look in the mirror now & it's not the same woman. This woman has sadness in her eyes, anger on her lips and regret in her heart. This woman wears two sizes bigger than the girl in those pictures because she gave birth to twins, very healthy, wonderful, adorable twins who needed more room in her stomach than she could handle & now all that extra skin is lifeless and permanent. And she doesn't have the time, energy or the faith to even try to do something about it, fearing all the hard work would only prove to do nothing, but make the lifeless skin more noticeable against a smaller figure. The one & only thing that I know to be the same is the love she has for the main man in her life. In fact, that love is even stronger because of what they've endured, but she feels unworthy to ask for this kind of love, yet she holds on with all her might praying he won't break when things get even tougher because she's sure that they will, they always do.

I just wish I could take all my gratitude for my 5 healthy, beautiful, wonderful children; my gratefulness for a 5 bedroom home with so many nice things and closets full of necessities; my love for good things and good people & just magnify it so big that I can't deny that it's there, that it will overtake all the bad & cover it with good. But, that's not reality, hahahaha, that's just stupidity. I have to grapple and inch and fight my way through it all to get to the top where all that stuff lies.

I'm tired. But, there's just a little bit left in me to keep going, for today.

anything to give me that extra nudge...

2009-06-08T18:48:00.001-07:00

It's been a great while since I did any crafting or card making or scrapbooking, but I did eek out some time right before we moved to make a few cards for a lady that won some in a service auction back during Christmastime. I was way overdue on getting them to her, so I figured to give myself a little inspiration to get back in the crafting spirit, I would share the cards I did make for her.

The Simple Things

2009-05-27T07:26:00.000-07:00

When life seems so incredibly rough, stormy waters every day, impossible decisions to make, waiting for things to get brighter, easier, better.... the simple things mean so much. Like ripe summer fruit & a new favorite container to hold them in. I got the container at Ikea during our trip to Cincinnati & knew it was perfect for these fruity treats.

"Who, me? You shouldn't have."

2009-05-11T07:13:00.000-07:00

Click Here

Vote for Maria's Design

2009-04-17T10:57:00.001-07:00

Kroger is hosting the Design a Reusable Shopping Bag Contest. Please view one of my favorite designs and vote for it before May 15. You also can create your own design and enter the contest. Show your support and vote for this design.

Sincerely,
Maria

To view this design and vote, visit
http://www.designareusablebag.com/vote-for-designs/bag.aspx?BagId=23620&banner=kroger

2009-04-16T04:33:00.000-07:00

Eventually, I will live in Europe for an extended period of time & hope that this happens to me one day while traveling by train, which in & of itself is so totally cool.

The Irony

2009-04-10T05:08:00.000-07:00

My 3 oldest children & I spent a bit of our afternoon yesterday talking about the meaning of Easter. I was very proud that they knew why we celebrated Easter & the Easter Bunny was merely an extra element to get them treats & candy, hahahaha. But, it got me thinking about how I celebrate Easter. I check off the to do items on my list: Get Candy - Get Baskets - Get Treats - Plan out Easter Bunny Arrival - etc. My mother-in-law & I briefly spoke of it & how many other religions have week long activites & ways to remember Christ & rejoice for his sacrifice for us. Our religion, however, doesn't do this. I think they leave it up to us. So, what was I to do? How could I bring myself closer to the idea & reason for our Easter celebrations?

This morning I was sent my daily e-mail from Meridian Magazine, a site I highly recommend, it has great LDS contributors that write articles on many different topics both religious & not. This particle article was titled, The Irony of Gesthmane, the Cross & the Garden Tomb. I can be an emotional person but often when I read of the Savior's journey into the city & then into crucifixion, I feel great sorrow, but do not shed tears. I do not shed tears because I know he knew his role & his strength in overcoming brought to mind a child running in a race & you stand on the sidelines saying, "Go! You can do it! I believe in You!" He knew he had the Father with Him & that He was fulfilling the prophecies spoken of for many years. He chose this role. Where I do shed tears is when he appears to Mary & she not realizing at first who He is. The moment He speaks her name, "Mary," she knows. This is where the tears flow freely.

Here is the part of the article that really touched me:

It could have been any one of us.(referring to Mary being at the tomb at that moment). He chose to reveal himself first to a single individual and in that moment taught the world that the Atonement is utterly personal. He made it universal to all, but he did so by making it intimate to each one of us, as he did to Mary. It is universal one soul at a time. To my mind, it is utterly inevitable that the greatest story ever told should finally culminate and convey to the world in the sound of this single word, a person's name.

How quickly fortunes can change for the worse, and how quickly, on the other hand, fortunes can change for the better. In Luke, we read that by the end of the first Sunday after the crucifixion, just the third day after the Savior's death, he had appeared to Mary Magdalene at the Garden Tomb, and then to other women of Galilee, and he had appeared to Cleopas and his companion on the road to Emmaus, and when these two returned to Jerusalem that evening to join the apostles, they were told that Christ had also appeared to Simon Peter. Three of these witnesses were identified by name, Mary, Cleopas, and Simon, and perhaps a dozen more were unnamed. And then Jesus suddenly stood in the midst of them, the apostles and others, and said “Peace be unto you.” Luke 24:36.

It may seem ridiculous but I struggle with a selfish feeling that our religion does not focus enough on women & I'm not talking about how we have Relief Society & Young Women's or how we are recognized in many ways by apostles & prophets & those around us. I struggle with the fact that so much of what we learn was of men, written by men, experienced by men. Thank goodness for sections of scriptures, like Ruth, to give me some hope. But, it had been on my mind a lot lately, especially after returning to the temple after so long. I didn't feel the message personal to me, as a woman. Then to read the account of Mary at the tomb & how she was the first Jesus chose to present himself to & that he then visited other women of Galilee & then to the men. I was overrun with emotion. I put myself in that place & I could more easily do that because Mary was a woman. And I tried to imagine her reaction, her feelings, her gratitude & joy & I felt washed in the Spirit.

Why Mary? Why a woman? I thought about this for quite a while & my personal feelings are that we, as women, can feel love greater than any man. Only a woman can know another woman's sorrow at losing a child, just as Jesus' mother, Mary did. Oh the sorrow she must have felt to see her Son so horribly treated, to know she would no longer have him near her to love and to protect. Oh the wonder Mary Magdalene must have felt at the tomb to see her Christ before her, not dead, but alive. While Jesus prayed, seeming to bleed at every pore, the apostles slept. A woman would see his anguish & want to run to Him to comfort Him, to help Him.

How lucky I am to be a woman.

Lost in La La Land

2009-03-26T10:09:00.001-07:00

I haven't been the best blogger lately. I started cleaning challenges & then lost sight of them. My thoughts have been too scattered to really share. BUT! I figured it was okay to share my successes.

I am back to my cleaning schedule & it now includes scripture reading & prayer at the VERY TOP!

I only have to go to therapy once every 2 months!!

I got a good report from "the pill doctor" today & I don't have to see him for another 3 months!!

I am hugging my kids more & more each day & willingly. This wasn't so easy for me many moons ago.

I have actually made cards & completed a craft this month.

So, although I don't have much to blog about on a personal level. I am still here, striving, thriving & living!!

Weekly Challenge Preview - REC ROOM

2009-02-27T05:36:00.000-08:00

Just so you can see what I have to work with.

2009-02-27T05:35:00.000-08:00

NEWS FLASH*********************NEWS FLASH*****************

I've actually been doing some reorganizing, dejunking, whatever you want to call it & I am ready for another Weekly Challenge! So, I'll work some more on it this weekend & have fresh pictures for you on Monday. We're going to do what I call the REC ROOM, but if you don't have one of these, it can be your "extra room" or your "big closet". It's basically the place you put what doesn't belong anywhere else. For me, it contains our craft dresser, board game cabinet, the babies' toys & our coat bench & closet. So, I have my work cut out for me.

Get ready for the challenge, you know it will feel so good when you can stand back & see what you've accomplished.

And on a side note, I was putting away clothing the other day & realized that no matter how much reorganizing I do, my husband is still a neater person than me. The top picture are his Army clothes & he folds them. The bottom picture is his shirt shelf. I folded those. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. When you look at the two together, it looks like a 2 year old did the shirt shelf, hahahahahahaha. I just can't stop laughing. hahahahahahahahaha If I went to Basic Training, I could accomplish so many goals in my life.

#1 - take orders from others without talking back
#2 - lose weight & gain more energy
#3 - learn to eat an entire meal in less than 2 minutes (I can just about do it in 5 now.)
#4 - learn to fold clothing & bedding in immaculate fashion - (you should see the corners of our sheets when Mark helps make the bed)
#5 - learn to be patient waiting around for hours doing nothing waiting for someone else that's going to tell you to do more nothing
#6 - learn to appreciate an extra hour of sleep even if woken up at 3:00 am to start your day
#7 - learn to keep phone calls short & simple

SIGN ME UP!

Thrift Store Finds

2009-02-24T07:37:00.000-08:00

My fellow thrift store junkie, Sybil & I were talking about the art of shopping thrift stores. I have two other people in my circle of friends & family that seem to never have the patience or luck of finding those one of a kind or much needed items. One friend mentioned how she might need to take me along to add a little bit of luck to the dig, hahahaha. It made me want to share my latest favorite finds. They're a bit vintage, I have been feeling very vintage myself these past few months so they were fantastic finds to suit my new mood.

I have always wanted a wooden salad bowl set, especially with matching salad bowls & 6 of them at that! I scored this at our local Goodwill for $3.50 & it is in excellent condition! Now all I need are the wooden tongs which I believe I saw there for another $3.50 but didn't want to pay that much.

These caught my eye as I was checking out. What a beautiful emerald green color & so they have the whole vintage crochet thing going on. I don't know who they'll fit, but I'll get someone to wear them!

I could have jumped for joy when I spied these shoes! They aren't the girls' size, too small for Mavaney, too big for Isabelle, but they will sit in a special place until Isabelle or Daphne can fit into them. These instantly threw me back to a time when mothers took their little girls to the nearest department store, filled with wonderful things neatly stacked or hung and as they head to the shoe department, the little girl is dreaming of beautiful, shiny, patent leather shoes with a big gold buckle. Oh, it was a divine find for me! And at a mere $2.50!! They look like they have hardly been worn & are so well made. They even have a shiny gold sticker inside the shoe that reads, "Red Goose Shoes" with a goose pictured. Wow is all I can say.

Even when you are poor there is still a wealth of treasure to find.

Calling All Creative Minds!!!

2009-02-23T14:13:00.000-08:00

We are planning out Relief Society Birthday Celebration for the end of this month. Our theme is Relief & Aid. We are focusing on the history of the Relief Society & how it was based upon bringing aid to others. We plan on using basic birthday supplies, colorful paper products, balloons, but we need something along the Relief theme. We are giving away these adorable charms that are shaped like Band-Aids. So, I'd love to use gauze & band-aids, stuff like that. I would love ANY ideas you have!!! Thank You!

Kitchen Challenge Revisited

2009-02-03T11:09:00.000-08:00

No excuses to give about why it's taken me so long, but I'm not going to be a quitter!! I tackled quite a bit yesterday: utensil drawers, linen cupboard, appliance cabinet, food cupboards, spice cabinet! The thing I'm happiest about? Getting rid of all the stuff I never used or didn't like. It feels so good to purge.

My Rules in Letting Go:
If you have not used it in the last month in 30 + days of cooking, you don't need it.
If you have not eaten it yet and it's expires, get rid of it.
If you have fabric napkins, but you haven't once used them, pass them along.
If it's an appliance you used once at Christmas, get rid of it. You'll figure out how to do without it next Christmas.

When it comes to utensil drawers, containers are key! I found out I also liked keeping my metals & plastics separated. If you can't do that due to limited drawers, containers would be a great way to make it happen. Think about how much fun someone else might have using that quesadilla maker or rice steamer! Because they surely aren't seeing any action at my house!

If you too have let go of the challenge in recent weeks - join me & pick it back up again!!! I think we might go for the office/desk area as our next challenge. What do you think?

BEFORE

AFTER

2009-02-03T11:00:00.000-08:00

BEFORE

AFTER

No before, but let's put it this way, there used to be two cupboards this size full. Now I'm down to this, I think that's pretty good.

Leven Thumps for $1.99

2009-02-03T02:48:00.001-08:00

Deseret Book has Book 2 & 3 of the Leven Thumps series on sale for a mere $1.99!! Go here!

Just Commercials

2009-02-02T05:15:00.001-08:00

If you're not a Super Bowl fan (which I'm not) & you don't even make the time to watch it for the commercials (which I don't). Here is a link for you!! Watch all the commercials from the Big Game here.

Free Bakeware!

2009-02-01T08:49:00.000-08:00

Just grabbed a free baking liner that I cannot wait to use! Go here & get yours today!

**Be aware, shipping will cost you $1.00 along with a 7 day free trial to Home Savings Mall, BUT (and this is one of the #1 rules to learn in getting things for free) you simply call the 1-800 # and cancel within 7 days and you are charged merely the $1.00 to get your bakeware.

Enjoy!

FREE Personalized Lovey Dovey Day cards!

2009-01-31T06:16:00.001-08:00

QUICK - before the big lovey dovey day arrives!! Click HERE for free V-day cards personalized!

I ordered this design with a picture of the kiddos on back! So fun & totally free! They even pay shipping!

Free $10 from QVC

2009-01-31T03:08:00.000-08:00

Passing on a great deal to my bloggin' pals! Go HERE and follow the instructions & you will receive $10 to spend absolutely free! No catch. No gimmicks.

**Ispyed this great deal here.

What I used my FREE $10.00 on! An album to scrapbook Mark & I's backpacking trip last year for our 10th anniversary. I am hoping to get it done & give it to him on our anniversary this year!

Medication Malfunction A.K.A. Kitchen Challenge: Day Three

2009-01-16T13:23:00.001-08:00

Medication is not fool proof. Neither is re-organizing your kitchen. I'm sorry I have not updated you more on the kitchen challenge. My human nature got in the way & please let me assure you there is plenty more that needs to be tackled in my kitchen, so there is plenty more to update you on, when the meds kick in of course, hahahahaha.

As you wait, let me know what room you'd like to tackle next. I'm thinking......office?? bedroom??? definitely not the bathroom, hahahaha.

To Be Continued...................

Forrest Gump said WHAT?!?!?

2009-01-16T13:16:00.001-08:00

Tom Hanks, an Executive Producer for HBO’s controversial polygamist series “Big Love,” made his feelings toward the Mormon Church’s involvement in California's Prop 8 (which prohibits gay marriage) very clear at the show’s premiere party on Wednesday night.

“The truth is this takes place in Utah, the truth is these people are some bizarre offshoot of the Mormon Church, and the truth is a lot of Mormons gave a lot of money to the church to make Prop-8 happen,” he told Tarts. “There are a lot of people who feel that is un-American, and I am one of them. I do not like to see any discrimination codified on any piece of paper, any of the 50 states in America, but here's what happens now. A little bit of light can be shed, and people can see who's responsible, and that can motivate the next go around of our self correcting Constitution, and hopefully we can move forward instead of backwards. So let's have faith in not only the American, but Californian, constitutional process.”

When informed of the "Forrest Gump" star's comments, Kim Farah, a spokesperson for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, told Tarts, "Expressing an opinion in a free and democratic society is as American as it gets."

Bill McKeever, a rep for the Mormonism Research Ministry, added, "Personally, I find it un-American to tell people that they shouldn’t vote their conscience. Hanks said he doesn’t 'like to see any discrimination codified on any piece of paper.' Considering that just about every law discriminates in some form or another, makes this comment ridiculous. Hanks’ comment shows that he very much believes in discriminating against people with whom he disagrees. I may not agree with Mormon theology, but I certainly defend their right to express their opinion."

I used to LOVE Tom Hanks. He made such great movies & seemed like the perfect gentleman, but I guess I was wrong. Good thing I don't base my movie watching on actors' opinions......I had no idea people saw the Mormon church as such a powerhouse. Give me a Woo Hoooooo for the Mormons!! Just the thought of people 'paying' the church to make something happen in the government, I'm cracking up, out loud....#1 because I think it's an absurd idea (he obviously has never met the Prophet of our church, any of them!!!) & #2 - even if it was true, well, it's still funny because that would mean everything is a total farse & we'll be hit by a giant asteroid one day & we'll all never know the difference.

Kitchen Challenge: DAY TWO

2009-01-08T23:25:00.000-08:00

The fridge was my project for yesterday and I quickly realized this was even a job I could do SITTING DOWN! Yea for that! Running after two little ones all day doesn't let me sit down for too long, other than to do quick e-mails to my favorite e-mail buddies.

I had cleaned out our fridge about 3 weeks ago, so it wasn't too bad on the dirty scale, but it did need some revamping in the organization department. I just hate all the small stuff. It drives me crazy to have to dig through it to find something or to have things falling off the shelves while you move things around. So, my goal was to change that.

Of course the babies are always there to help.

I used a small basket for yogurt & fruit cups on the top shelf so they don't get lost in the mix. I also used a leftover plastic container from cleaning out the plastics the day before that was great for fruit. If you put it out where you can see it, it will get eaten faster & it can be one of the first things the kids see when they go searching for an after school snack.

I also moved the shelves so that the larger things were on the bottom & I had two rows above to be able to better see the miscellaneous stuff. I like it much better. I also arranged the milk & eggs by expiration date so we would use the older ones first.

I'm a very pleased homemaker! Looking forward to today's task, which I have not decided on yet. How are you doing on your tasks??

I should have taken a picture of the large drawer on the bottom. I used another small basket for sandwich items. We make a lot of sandwiches & I figured it would be nice to have a basket you could just pull out & you've got what you need; meat, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce - just grab the mustard & mayo & you're good & it also makes it easier to put it all away, the biggest problem about making sandwiches especially when you're between the ages of 5-9.

Kitchen Challenge Day One

2009-01-06T10:00:00.000-08:00

Today I tackled the plastics cupboard as well as my baking cupboards. It wasn't as hard as I had first thought & I feel great having gotten it done. The babies of course had to help me separate it all.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I used a container with no lid to keep my small bowls from being lost. I love to use them to prep spices & sauces for dinner & to use for syrup and sauces for the kids dipping needs.

Used a green Dora bowl I almost tossed to hold all the lids for bigger items I don't want lids on all the time. Mark says the spinning container contraption is one of my smartest purchases in 10 years! And I found these great yellow & red baskets I completely forgot I had. They will be so fun for burgers & fries!

And even better, I found things way in the back of the cupboards that I didn't even know I had! The shortcake basket pan - HOW CUTE! And if you know my love of organizing, you will know how much I LOVE the brown box!! Can't wait to find just the right use for it.

A spice organizer?? NO KIDDING!

And WHAT are these??? I wouldn't even know what to do with them. Any help??

Needless to say, today's task was a success! I even had a medium sized pile of stuff to give away & several things I tossed in the recycling!

Managing Our Homes Well - Challenge #1

2009-01-05T10:48:00.001-08:00

Yesterday it was my Sunday to teach in Relief Society. I always look forward to these Sundays because I get to choose what to teach from a long list of provided materials & resources. As I looked over the list, I saw the lesson from The Latter Day Saint Woman handbook titled, "Managing Our Homes Well". There was a multitude of resources & similiary titled lessons that I used to compile the main idea. It's always amazing how you come upon a lesson hoping it will help others & you realize it was probably meant most for you, but the lesson went over well & I have decided to present a challenge to myself & my fellow sisters each week. A challenge to help us maintain order in our homes & a higher level of functionality so that we can simplify our lives & spend more times caring for the life of our souls.

SO..... Week One's Challenge is.....THE KITCHEN!!!

(Disclaimer: I am by no means a professional cleaner, organizer or plan writer, but I am a bit obsessive about lists and plans and schedules and order. I have read many, many, many websites, books, articles, magazines on organization and de-cluttering and all I want to do is share this wealth of information I have running around in my brain. I only want to help myself and maybe even in the meantime help a few others to get that jump start they need to make more time for the eternally important things by getting our homes in order. If you don't like my suggestions or you know better ones, by all means, go for it & share your ideas freely. I know that in feeling you have a team of women all reaching for the same goal, it gives you that little extra push you need to keep going.)

You can pick a few tasks to do each day or take one day & do it all, it's up to you & your schedule & of course this comes after your more important duties, which you should be prioritizing as suggested. Pick the top 5 most important things you need to do each day & make sure you get those done, that way whatever else you are able to fit into your day is just added to your success.

Suggested Tasks for your Kitchen:

Task 1: Your fridge

* When is the last time you went through & got rid of all the expired food, the unused containers of leftovers, the science experiments? And after you do that, clean that baby! Get some cleaner, lots of papertowels or rags & make it sparkle! Add a new box of baking soda to keep down the odors. You can even go so far as to organize a few things.

* I have small, low baskets that I use for separating cheeses & meats on my shelves & the veggies in the big drawer in the bottom. The Dollar Tree has an endless supply & variety of baskets that can be used for organizing & believe me, they work just as well in your fridge. There is even a basket for kid appropriate snacks that works great when my kids say they are hungry.

Task 2: The plastics cupboard

*Do you hoard all used plastic containers; sour cream, butter, cool whip? Do you have an over abundance of Rubbermaid & other plastic storage containers? Do you even know if all of them have lids? It's time to tackle that cupboard space & let go of what doesn't serve it's purpose anymore.

*A reasonable amount of containers is 10. This is more than enough to keep leftovers in your fridge or pass along goodies to neighbors & friends. If it has a lid, keep it, if it's doesn't, recycle it if you can or donate it. Some containers can even be used in the garage to keep nails/screws separated or for paint containers.

* If you don't have the space to store your containers with their lids on them, you can use a container that did not have a matching lid to store your lids in & that way you have only have one place to look for the lid or put it back after washing.

Task 3: The rest of your dishes

*How many pots & pans do you have? Do you have lids that don't even fit pans you have? How many baking dishes do you own? How many mixing bowls? My suggested number for these items is as follows:

3 saucepans

1 large skillet

1-2 medium/small skillets

2 stock pots

And anything else you use at least twice a month.

3 cake pans

2 10x13 dishes

2 pie plates

2 cookie sheets

1 jelly roll pan

2 square (8x8 or 9x9) baking dishes

2-3 casserole dishes

And again, anything else you use at least twice a month.

5 good mixing bowls of varying sizes is more than enough

REMEMBER: The more you have, the more dirty dishes you create for yourself.

Task 4: Utensil drawers

* The same rules apply for utensils. If there are gadgets you have in your drawers that you have only used once or twice in the last 6 months, it's time to LET GO. Use slim long containers/baskets in your drawers to separate your utensils whether it be the everyday kind or the cooking/baking kind.

* As you clean out these drawers - take everything out & wipe down those drawers! Odds are, there are quite a few crumbs in the bottom. And you only need 2 sets of silverware per person in your house. 2 forks, 2 spoons, 2 knives for each person. Anymore than that, just causes more dishes to do & more clutter in your drawers.

*Are you a cookie cutter junkie? Do you really need 4 Christmas trees & 8 stars? Cut down to the basics, two of each & keep them in an oversized ziploc bag or a shoebox.

Task 5: Linens

* How many dishtowels do you have? How many tablecloths, placemats & napkins do you have stored away? Cut down, let go of those you don't use on a regular basis. If it's a holiday tablecloth, put it away with your holiday decorations. It's a good rule to have at least 4 good tableclothes, 2 sets of placemats in a general color to match your tablecloths & 2 sets of fabric napkins if you use that sort of thing. If you have one fancy set you only use with your fancy dishes, set it aside somewhere with your fancy dishes, don't keep them with the everyday linens.

Task 6: Food Cupboards

* Do you know where all of your rice & beans are? Could you find the cake mix if you needed to? Do you know where that box of au gratin potatoes are that you bought two shopping trips ago?

* Take the time now to go through your cupboards. Pass along to friends or neighbors the food you know you or your family will not eat. Sometimes I buy new snacks for my kids that they simply will not eat, but that doesn't mean their friends down the road won't think they're the best snack ever!

* Separate food types- potatoes, rice, beans- then pastas, boxed dinners, packaged sides. Again I use baskets in my cupboards too. I have a basket for envelope mixes, soups, spices. I have a basket for muffin mixes and quick snacks in envelopes. They work wonders for organizing your cupboards. Make rows in your canned goods for veggies, fruits, soups, cooking needs.

* Don't put out the new cereal boxes or the new packages of snacks until the old ones are gone. Find a closet or a shelf somewhere or your food storage area to keep the new boxes. People in your home will always go for the new, wasting the old, so don't even let them know they're there until all their other options are exhausted.

* Go through your spices. Some spices do expire & there's no point in using them because they will add nothing to your dish. Buy an inexpensive lazy susan to keep out on your counter to hold the spices you use on a regular basis, keep the rest in your cupboard. Make a list of those you don't have or need to replace on your next shopping trip.

YOUR REWARD FOR MEETING THE CHALLENGING: The extra time you just saved by not digging for food in the fridge or cupboards, the time you just saved on not washing so many dishes, you can now use that time to choose a sister to serve the next week. Write a heartfelt note, share a good article out of the Ensign that touched you, invite her to lunch, just give her a call & see if she needs someone to talk to. It will be a reward for both of you!!

Reflections on another year passed.

2009-01-01T05:47:00.000-08:00

I'm sure that we can all say it's been a year of ups & downs because that's part of living, right? You can't have sorrow without having joy and you can't feel love without feeling hate. But, there are years that you can honestly say you feel you've had more than your fair share of one or the other. Then again, who would say they had had more than their fair share of good, happiness or love? Bottom line, in all the pain, sorrow, hate, etc., I have seen much joy and love and support and good in people and in myself. I had to work through the bad to see all of that though, so is this past year of heartache and struggles worth it to know what I know now. Absolutely.

Am I looking forward to another year? You bet! Bring it on because I am only stronger than when 2008 started. What do I hope for this year? To remember all I overcame last year. To continue to feel like I am a good mom and that I can do my best and that my best is good enough. To continue to love and adore the man I married almost 11 years ago. To continue to better and love myself for who I am now that I have gotten to know myself better. To increase my relationship with Heavenly Father, to thank him for all he helped us with in 2008. To cherish every single moment I have with my kids before they are grown up and I am not the first thing in their lives anymore. To take the good with the bad and still keep a smile on my face!!

My resolutions this year? I usually try to keep them pretty simple.....ths year, I'm going to work on learning to live on less. Learning to use more of what I have before I go out and buy another one. Learning to give more without trying to gain from it. It's a multi part resolution of course, but you get the idea.

What are your final reflections on the year now passed?

Happy New What?!

2008-12-31T07:52:00.000-08:00

Welcome to what we like to call 'Mom had strep-3 kids on Christmas vacation-2 babies running amuck-Dad's doing his best-Dad's getting sick too-quick trip to Granny & Gramps-drop & run make the most of our last day of Daddy's leave-now it's Mom's job to make it all better'.

Hope you had a wonderful holiday too.

5 Things Tag....

2008-11-24T07:01:00.001-08:00

I have been tagged... and beware, I'm in an odd mood today. You never know what you're going to get with me.

5 things I'm passionate about.

1. People. I want as many people as possible to feel loved and know their worth.

2. My husband. He is my rock. He is my greatest love.

3. Myself. I feel I deserve good things and I deserve to be happy.

4. Being a mother. I don't want to be perfect, but I just want my kids to remember happy times and lots of them.

5. Crafting. I love to craft. It gives me a sense of accomplishment. It gives me great joy.

5 phrases I use all the time.

1. Last time I checked I was the mother.

2. I recall asking you to do something.
3. Who made this mess????
4. When is my turn to get a hug from Daddy?
5. Get the babies out of the bathroom!!!!!

5 things I want before I die.

1. A modest home with a nice backyard.
2. All my scrapbooking caught up.
3. To see my children find love and be happy.
4. A family reunion.
5. A medication free life.

5 things I want or need

1. A clean house with no clutter.
2. A daughter that does not fret about her hair and clothes
3. A personal assistant
4. A personal chef
5. Constant medication

5 places I want to visit

1. Rome
2. Greece
3. Jerusalem

4. Spain

5. China

5 Favorite Restaurants

1. Olive Garden
2. Steak n Shake
3. Macaroni Grill
4. J Boy's
5. Panera Bread

5 favorite television shows.

1. Desperate Housewives
2. Supernatural

3. So You Think You Can Dance
4. The Office
5. Unwrapped

5 people I tag

1. Sybil
2. Tara
3. Amy
4. Annmarie
5. Johna

Black Friday Ads

2008-11-17T22:47:00.000-08:00

http://www.black-friday.net/

Not that I will be out, but there are some good deals. You can even make your own shopping list on their website and it will separate it by store. Pretty handy.

Still here....

2008-10-26T22:49:00.000-07:00

I really miss blogging. I still do some of it, if it's not too involved or if it doesn't require too much thought. But, I do miss my own musings about life & love & just living! But, my days lately have consisted of staying in my pjs all day, playing with the babies when I need some sunshine in my day, coloring in kids' coloring books because it's very calming for me, eating way too many Nutty Bars, watching way too much TV (unheard of in my personal life), watching movies (which I normally NEVER do without Mark & NEVER during the middle of the day), eating cold cereal for just about every meal, sleeping as much as possible huddled way underneath my covers, and taking baby steps, just small baby steps to get anything done.

So, just to blog, here are some more specifics, just because. My pjs consist of comfy pants, an old T-shirt & a big comfy sweatshirt for the late nights or early mornings I just can't sleep. I have 3 pairs of extremely fluffy socks on stand by to keep my feet warm.

I love to color in Disney coloring books, although I did give in & color with Noah in his Star Wars book. That was interesting. I think I used just about every color of brown imaginable just to get some contrast going on the page. Oh & Strawberry Shortcake. She's fun to color too. I didn't realize how much I horde crayons! When they were on sale for $0.22 a box at school supply time, I bought a TON & we have just have boxes & boxes. With so many kids using them, you can't go wrong having too many.

Nutty Bars are my new favorite snack. I have consumed far too many this past month & really need to get my meds adjusted so I don't gain 50 pounds by the end of the year.

During my TV watching, I have seen more paternity tests on Maury than I care to admit, I love the new show on Fox called Fringe. I am still totally likin' Desperate Housewives, Pushing Daisies, The Office, Lost, Samantha Who, Ugly Betty, CSI & Supernatural!! I watched two of my favorite movies, Where the Heart Is & Legends of the Fall, which I never tire of watching.

My favorite cold cereals, beware, this could be a really long list.... Cocoa Puffs, Fruity Pebbles, Cocoa Krispies, Ohs, Frosted Mini-Wheats, Honeycomb, Corn Pops, Honey Smacks, Quisp (when & if I can find it!! - it's very vintage), Rice Chex & I could go on & on & on.

Today my baby steps will consist of getting out of bed, getting dressed (taking a shower if I can muster it), getting the babies dressed, putting a diaper bag together, putting myself together, getting in the car, going to the doctor's office & praying all the way there that he will have some answers & some help for this poor pathetic gal I call myself.

Mental Illness is very real.

2008-10-13T22:32:00.000-07:00

This is a post I have thought about writing & thought about not writing & now think I need to, to continue in a forward direction.

I have struggled with depression, panic attacks, manic episodes & anxiety for over 8 years. It started shortly after having Mavaney, which of course looked very much like post partum stress & having had kids one right after another it seems for several years, it still looked like post partum stress. I had bounced around from pill to pill, from doctor to doctor trying to find relief. I was doing what I could at home as well, taking time for myself, reaching out for help, sharing my feelings, but nothing seemed to lessen. I was up & down, up & down all the time & so completely frustrated with the lack of control over my own emotional & mental well being. There were times I even thought I was doing really good & would quit taking the medication to try it on my own, which worked for a while right before I got pregnant with the twins.

This past summer, I started to feel very depressed again & we once again told ourselves, it's just post partum stress, so I went back to the doctor & asked to be put on meds again for the sake of my family & myself. We waited for the meds to kick in & start helping me out, but things only got worse. I realized this the night I had a dream. I usually have very vivid dreams, but this time it was different. It was Heavenly Father & he simply said to me, "Tell your husband what you have been planning." That day I was wracked with fear, guilty, all sorts of emotions trying to figure out how I was going to approach my husband & tell him what had been going on with me.

Mark was set to do some teaching in Georgia for a month & I thought it the perfect time to plan my suicide. I was so tired of being up & down with my emotions. I was so tired of putting my husband & my kids through the roller coaster ride of my happy times & my down times. I had sought relief in so many ways with no real success and this seemed the only way to ease the pain.

How do you tell your husband you were planning to leave him & your children? I have never been so scared in my life, but I knew I had to do it. Not only because it would stop me from doing it, but it would let him know that things were going very wrong, very quickly.

Mark has actually been trained in suicide prevention while being in the Army & he was able to step up & really get the ball rolling on getting me some help. We went to the doctor right away & got referred to a psychiatrist & psychologist off post. I got an appt. that very week. I went twice a week for a great while until the doctor felt I was making great progress and I could cut down to once a week. But, during this time I have learned tremendous things about my life, about myself & about what I can accomplish & have control over & what I can't.

I also found out I am bipolar, which answered a lot of questions about the things I have been fighting for many years. It all made sense now, which was sad, but enlightening as well.

It hasn't been anywhere near easy walking down this path. It has been one of the most grueling times in my life. I have made progress, but I still have so very far to go. The progress I have made has been so eye opening. I have realized there is a real Maria behind all of this madness. I am determined, I am strong. I am opinionated & bossy. I am creative & compassionate. I am loving & sensitive. I can be in control.

I still have bad episodes from time to time as my body adjusts to the new medication, but I feel confident my doctors care about me & about my eventual triumph over my fears facing my personal demons. And not only do I credit my doctors for helping me, I must give tremendous thanks to my amazing husband. He has had to see me change in so many ways. He has suffered with me through the days & nights of crying & panic attacks. He has been there with me through the times I just wanted to hide & run away. He helped me see I would only be hurting everyone around me to cut my life short. Seeing his role in my wellbeing has only confirmed my belief & Heavenly Father's promise that there was only one man on this Earth meant for me & that he had been prepared for me.

Even my kids have been incredibly helpful, supportive & loving. They have been there to help me & witness the scary times even when Mark was not around to help. They have found me passed out on the floor from a panic attack & known exactly what to do to get me help. They have been there for me when I was curled up in a ball in the corner crying uncontrollably. They have been there when I didn't want to get out of bed.

Mavaney has always been so mature for her age and I felt I needed to share with her some of the deeper things going on so that she would know how much I loved her even when it didn't seem that I did. It was remarkable the bond I felt with her & she cried with me & said, "Mommy, I wish you had told me before. I feel so bad for you & I could have helped you more if I had known." I get teary eyed just remembering that very special moment.

I want to share my testimony with you of many things. I believe deeply that Heavenly Father is watching over us always. I believe He has such great love for us, we simply cannot comprehend the magnitude of His love. I believe I am a Daughter of God & I have a purpose here on this Earth. I believe in the power of prayer & what it can do to heal wounds & gain strength when you think you have none left. I believe in the incredible power of friendships. My friends have been such a rock for me during this time. They have watched my kids so I could go to the doctor, they have cooked meals for my family, they have shared words of comfort & their own personal struggles to show me I too can overcome. Thank you to all of you special women in my life.

I hope to jump back into sharing my life with you, whether it be good or bad. And I hope you will want to continue on the journey with me.

Amazing sale at Scrapnfonts.com PLUS COUPON CODE!!

2008-09-25T06:09:00.001-07:00

Use Coupon Code LISAFONTS until 9/30/08 for an extra $10.00 off any order of $25.00 or more! They are having some amazing sales right now on printables & digital sets, they are moslty $0.25, $0.50 & $1.00! HOLY CANOLI!!!

http://www.scrapnfonts.com/

Hope life has been good to you.

2008-09-20T12:28:00.000-07:00

Facebook. Probably all of us or at least most of us are familiar with the internet wonder modeled after MySpace (but way better!!) that helps us to reconnect with old high school pals, friends, church members, or helps us to stay in touch with those we're still close to.

I received a friend request today from someone & I didn't recognize the name & the profile photo was not a straight on shot to at least help me try to remember a face, so before I accepted the friend request, I wrote a quick message pretty much saying, 'Who the heck are you & do I know you?'.

The guy was nice enough to write back & shot off some other names of people he ran around with & he mentioned I was a cheerleader & was his life long crush (just kidding on that part), but that he was pretty sure he knew who I was. So, come to find out, yeah, he knew me, but I still couldn't quite remember him, so I gave him a link to our family blog just because I love to show off my family & I ended the reply message with "and I hope life has been good to you," to which he reiterated the same thing to me when he replied & then it hit me.

Why do we say that? Shouldn't it be more like, "I hope you've been good to your life," instead of "I hope life has been good to you,"? Because what does "life" have to do with it? Isn't it what we do with our life or how we react to what happens to us in our life?

So, take a moment & think about it, "Have you been good to your life?"

The God Particle

2008-09-18T22:52:00.001-07:00

Mark & I have been following this news story closely. It's downright amazing & scary. I can't quite explain it myself because I barely understand it, but here is an excerpt from an excellent article in National Geographic, "Starting sometime in the coming months, two beams of particles will race in opposite directions around the tunnel, which forms an underground ring 17 miles in circumference. The particles will be guided by more than a thousand cylindrical, supercooled magnets, linked like sausages. At four locations the beams will converge, sending the particles crashing into each other at nearly the speed of light. If all goes right, matter will be transformed by the violent collisions into wads of energy, which will in turn condense back into various intriguing types of particles, some of them never seen before. That's the essence of experimental particle physics: You smash stuff together and see what other stuff comes out."

Scientists are trying to explain how the universe began. How we all became what we are, how the universe went from nothing into so many vast & complicated things.

I have to sit back & wonder, what questions will this answer? Will it make us feel any differently about how the universe got its start? Will our curiosity get the best of us in this situation? What do you think? The article is lengthy, but I highly recommend reading it. It was pure fascination for me.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/god-particle/achenbach-text

Michael's 50% Coupon - this week only!!!

2008-09-16T11:27:00.001-07:00

You can use a coupon a day! That's awesome!!

Grand Opening Specials

1000th Store Celebration

Michaels is bursting with excitement! Come in and help us celebrate the opening of our 1000th store with the lowest prices of the season and exceptional grand opening specials.

This week only, download a coupon and
save 50% off any one regular priced item.

Peachy Cheap you are GENIUS!

2008-09-11T05:21:00.001-07:00

Peachy Cheap

This is one of the coolest things I've come across in a long time!!

Sent via a FeedFlare link from a FeedBurner feed.
http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/publishers/feedflare

That's it for tonight!

2008-09-10T18:57:00.000-07:00

Okay, that's it for tonight. I have been sitting at this computer FAR TOO LONG! I need to go cuddle with my hubby before we both crash land into dreamytime. I hope you like some of my ideas! I will probably pick 6-8 ideas to have the women sign up for. I even found a GREAT signup sheet over at http://www.executivehomemaker.com/ which is a great website to peruse when you have the time!

I have some more great ideas I found tonight just for your own personal craft files. I'll try to share those later this week.

Idea #17 - Flower Magnets

2008-09-10T18:44:00.000-07:00

Do you have any fun magnets on your fridge? These would be just the thing to stick up all those great pictures from my kids!! And so easy to make!

Find them here!

Idea #17 - Scrabble Tile Pendant

2008-09-10T18:41:00.000-07:00

This is one of my FAVORITE ideas & I'm sure I could get quite carried away with it! The instructions are here. I figured I could buy old scrabble tiles on Ebay or maybe even find some in old Scrabble games at thrift stores, the rest is easy to come by! What fun!!

Idea #16 - Formula Can Makeover

2008-09-10T18:33:00.000-07:00

I use a can of formula a day & they are not recyclable, which just KILLS me, so I knew I could figure out something to do with them. At Super Saturday I will bring the cans & tell people to bring paper, stickers, ribbon, whatever & they can decorate the cans for any holiday or occassion. I figured I could even plan to put out a few mixes, like soup or hot cocoa or cookies & you could scoop the mixture into the can & give it as a gift!

Idea #15 - Card Organizer

2008-09-10T18:13:00.000-07:00

This idea actually came from my mom, because she made one at a card class in Michigan, so I was so in love with it, a few months ago, I scooped up all the little containers Wal-Mart had & stored them in my craft room just in case I needed to make some of these for gifts or what not. There are dividers inside so you can separate your cards. I was using it just for homemade cards, but my friend Sybil, who has more common sense than I do, used it for her purchased stationary as well - brilliant I tell ya! The containers are less than $3.00 at Wal-Mart, the ribbon you can grab for $.88 a roll at Big Lots or $1.00 a roll at Michael's & I'm sure on sale at lots of other places, like Hobby Lobby. The dividers you make out of cardstock & jazz them up with your own paper & the front I just used some leftover letter stickers to spell out cards.

Idea #14 - Antique Hearts Family Home Evening Board

2008-09-10T18:08:00.001-07:00

There are about a million different ways to make a Family Home Evening Board, but I really like this one just for it's antique look & I know for a fact this project can be done VERY CHEAP! I found it here. I would put a picture of the family members on each heart rather than just their names & I could probably use rub ons for the words above each knob.

Idea #13 - Red Plate Tradition with matching placemat purse

2008-09-10T18:01:00.000-07:00

I love this idea, but I don't think I would use the Christmas theme with it. I would still use a red plate, but a more common placemat with red in it so that I could use it for birthdays or any day where someone in our family needed to be honored. Instructions on making both can be found here.

Idea #12 - Brass Plates Game

2008-09-10T17:57:00.000-07:00

Sorry no picture, but go here & you can download the PDF file of this game. It is very well put together & if you printed it out in color, you could then laminate it so it would last & it would be a great family game to pull out on a Sunday night or for Family Home Evening. This website is incredible & worth a look when you have the time.

Idea #11 - Embossed Velvet Table Runner

2008-09-10T17:44:00.000-07:00

The only problem I foresee with this project is the price of velvet. I would scour Wal-Mart's clearance fabrics & maybe even Ebay. I thought this might appeal to the more seasoned set of women in our ward, those who would not care so much for the baby, cutesy stuff. The embossing really does look so beautiful on this type of project & it only takes a stamp & an iron & the fabric of course. Found it at mormonchic here.

Idea #10 - Fun with wooden block & letters

2008-09-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

I just love wooden blocks & all the things you can do with them. I especially love Halloween themed projects. I spotted this one here.

I can't remember where I found this idea, but I sure do LOVE it!

Idea #9 - Decorated Wipes Case

2008-09-10T17:30:00.001-07:00

Totally love the skulls!! I have seen this idea used with the large wipe cases too. So easy, so simple, so stinkin' adorable! I found this idea many, many places as well, sorry I don't have any specific links.

Idea #8 - Decorated Burp Cloths

2008-09-10T17:26:00.001-07:00

What fun! If they're going to spit up on something, might as well make it look pretty! It will disguise the grossness of anything that lands on it, right?? I would give credit for this pic if I could remember where I got it from, but I can't, so sorry!! Dear way cute burp cloth maker, If you happen to see this post, please let me know this is your picture!

Idea #7 - Onesies with Ties

2008-09-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

Just too darn cute!!! Found them here.

Idea #6 - Tag Blanket for Baby

2008-09-10T17:16:00.000-07:00

I have blankets similar to this for my munchkins, but I know they would probably like these better. Daphne in particular LOVES to chew on tags & the possibilities, once again, with this project, the fabric, the ribbon - just endless!

Got the idea here.

UPDATE ON President Hinckley's B's!!!

2008-09-10T17:12:00.000-07:00

I got a comment from the gal at Adhering Thoughts & they offer the vinyl lettering for the tile project for $8.75 for the 12x12 size! HOLY COW! That's tremendous! Gotta give a shout out to them for letting me know & a shout out because it's her project that's pictured! Thanks for the idea & the great price! THANK YOU!

5 More Ideas Tomorrow, Maybe even 10!!!

2008-09-09T08:57:00.001-07:00

I'll post more ideas tomorrow! Gotta get back to cleaning so I have more time for crafting!!!!!

Idea #5 - Notebook/Pen/Crayon Roll Ups

2008-09-09T08:53:00.001-07:00

I am addicted to notebooks & pens & this would be a great & absolutely fun & frivolous way to store my notebooks for different projects or ideas. I found the tutorial here. I love projects that give you such freedom in choosing color, fabric, ribbon. The possibilites are endless!

Along this same line is the crayon roll up here. This would be awesome for the car or church!

Idea #4 - Looky Loo, I Spy Bottle, whatever you want to call it!

2008-09-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

Once I mentioned I wanted to do something along these lines, I got tons of responses & different ways to do it. I don't have a photo of the actual way I want to do it, although I do have an actual example my friend, Amy, let me borrow. This bottle idea is by far the fastes & cheapest. Here are the instructions on this version.

The actual version I would like to present is like a fabric envelope that you can open & the top is covered in vinyl which holds your "list" of things to look for & the bottom part is where you put the pellets or rice & all the little goodies to go searching for. I figured you could even use cut up old jeans or flannel shirts to use for the backing which would be sturdy & virtually cost free! I'll post a pic later.

Idea #3 - President Hinckley's Be's

2008-09-09T08:45:00.001-07:00

This was a highly requested craft. The only thing I don't like is the lettering (to purchase online) is not as cheap as I would like it to be. This website offers the cheapest price I have been able to find so far. I think the instructions are pretty self explanatory.

Idea #2 - Glittery Snow Candles

2008-09-09T08:42:00.000-07:00

I need a way to simplify the instructions to suit a Super Saturday craft, but here are the instructions I do have.

IDEA #1 - GLASS TEMPLE BLOCK with or without LIGHTS!

2008-09-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

1. Temple Glass Shower Block

I hear you can get these shower blocks pretty inexpensively at your local hardware store, but I saw another version just yesterday where you buy a glass drill bit, make a hole in the back & add lights....oooooohhhh preeeetttttyyyyyy. I am going to try to print my own vinyls to add. Buying them is somewhat costly & I like to offer the most inexpesive, but FABULOUS crafts I can! Here is the lighted version that I stumbled upon here

and here.

SUPER SATURDAY IN LESS THAN A MONTH! HOLY CANOLI!

2008-09-09T08:23:00.000-07:00

I was recently called as Second Counselor in the Relief Society which makes me the Enrichment Counselor & since we don't have an Enrichment Leader & a very sparse Enrichment Committee, I was asked if I wanted to have a Super Saturday this year which was already scheduled for October 11th!

If you have ever had the pleasure of attending a Super Saturday you know that it is very difficult to survive the holiday gift giving season without one, so YES I WILL HEAD IT UP! YES WE WILL BE HAVING ONE! AND YES, I WILL BE GLUED TO MY COMPUTER SEARCHING BLOG AFTER BLOG FOR SUPER SATURDAY IDEAS!

So, I am going to post my ideas & finds here for that other poor soul that might be organizing a Super Saturday of her own. And if you feel so inclined to give me your opinion or improvements or ideas on anything I post, PLEASE DO! I LOVE INPUT!

Free Money!

2008-08-29T01:49:00.001-07:00

I'm always up for free money & I wanted to share with you what I've been doing to get it! I just got my free $25.00 GameStop gift card in the mail yesterday. All I had to do was complete a few simple surveys & over time I had earned enough rewards to choose how I wanted to spend those rewards, so I got the gift card to a store all of us enjoy. I use http://www.e-rewards.com/welcome.do?ln=en&cc=CA. There are more recommendations for taking surveys for money at http://www.vanillajoy.com. It's so easy, why not give it a try??

The Original Scrapbox - UPDATE!!!!

2008-08-29T01:32:00.000-07:00

Word on the street is, Vanillajoy.com will be giving one of these away!! GO CHECK IT OUT! IMMEDIATELY!!!!!

http://www.vanillajoy.com/

RetailMeNot.com

2008-08-29T01:18:00.000-07:00

If you know me really well, you know I DO NOT pay retail if I don't have to & I will search & search & search until I find what I'm looking for on sale, on clearance, used or with a coupon code.

This site is great & a constant source of great deals for me & my family.

http://www.retailmenot.com

RetailMeNot.com is the largest source of online coupon codes and is a really easy way to save whenever you buy anything online.

I'm pretty sure...

2008-08-27T06:14:00.000-07:00

I will die without one of these in my lifetime....OH MY GOSH! How in the world do you raise $1300.00 + shipping costs to buy something exclusively for yourself?!?!?!?!?!?!?! This is truly the coolest thing I have ever seen & in our lifestyle of moving about so much & having many little hands to get into things, this thing is PERFECT!!!!! Maybe I should sell ALL my craft stuff & start a fund to buy one of these & then work on refilling it, hahahahahahaha. That would take me years I'm sure! Oh well...a craftin' girl can dream.

http://scrapboxstore.com/

VANILLA JOY BRINGING SOMEONE SOME JOY!!

2008-08-25T10:21:00.000-07:00

Vanilla Joy at http://www.vanillajoy.com/ is having a giveaway - A CRICUT!!! Oh these little machines look like so much fun! Go check it out & leave a comment to gain an entry to win!!

I didn't clean...

2008-08-24T20:24:00.000-07:00

I decided if I was going to have a lazy day I might as well make it a full 24 hours, so it's nearly midnight & I just got done watching a really great movie & I watched it all by myself - no interruptions, no yelling, no asking questions, no wiggly kids climbing all over me. It was great, just the kind of movie I like with a little bit of magic & fantasy & a great cast. The story was very well written I thought & I loved the costume design, the set design, the angles shot, it was all just exactly what I like in a movie of this type. And to make it even sweeter, it's rated PG!!!! I will definitely let my kids watch this movie & I will definitely be adding it to my collection. I thoroughly enjoyed it & highly recommend it. Now I'm off to see what I can get done before I crash into bed, which I do believe has been invaded by one little red headed boy!!

Do you have these kind of days?

2008-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

Mark is at work. It's Sunday & he has staff duty. This means he went to work at 7:00 this morning & will get home about 9:00 tomorrow morning. Sometimes I take advantage & work on personal projects or do deep house cleaning or just hang out & play with the kids all day, doing absolutely nothing. Today has been one of those days. A day where we just play & eat & sleep & do whatever we please like the Lost Boys in Neverland, not a care in the world, only days to live however we wish. But, the result of a day like this is what you see below & it only takes one day, one single day of carefree living. We skipped church because of Daphne's croup & the girls woke up with sore throats & coughing, my boys are the only ones that have shown no signs of sickness, so we have just been lazy all day long.

What will it take for me to recover from a day like this....well, I won't be able to sleep until I clean it, so it will take at least 2 hours to do it right, which isn't that bad. I'll eat that cheesecake sitting there on the computer desk calling my name & then burn off the sugar rush with housecleaning after I put the munchkins to bed with lots of hugs & kisses & smiles from a Neverland kind of day together. When is Wendy going to come & play mother & rescue us from this mess?????

That's toys on the piano & underneath it, Mavaney's stuff from the car that she just dumped on the floor on her way in. (At least she took it out of the car like her dad asked her to.) Diet Coke that just never made it's way into the kitchen & the bookshelf, it makes me want to cringe when it looks like that.

Noah had corn puffs for breakfast & Mavaney baked a cake, so there are some remnants of that left on the table. We haven't had a sit down meal all day long.

I have a love/hate relationship with this island in our kitchen. It's great cupboard & counter space, but when you don't keep it cleared off, it only adds to the monster of the mess.

My ironing pile which I usually try to work on on Saturdays or Sunday mornings. No such luck this weekend.

Grant knocked over the basket of toys, Mavaney got her backpack out & didn't hang it back up. I have littered the computer desk with all sorts of things off & on today playing seek & find games with the kids online or creating my newest blog.

The dishes should have been done a long time ago, like 6:00 this morning when I was awake. I believe the dishwasher is full of clean dishes & that's one chore I absolutely HATE to do, is unload the dishwasher. I usually leave it for the kids.

That's a dirty diaper on the floor. Mark doesn't understand how I can change it & then not take it right then & throw it away. I just get too busy sometimes I guess. In the chair is a package from a scrapbook store online that has yet to be opened after almost 2 weeks after it arrived on my doorstep. I have been saving it for a special moment, guess that moment just hasn't come along yet.

That trash bag in my room is from Isabelle's room (about 3 weeks ago) when she refused to clean it up, I went down there & put everything in a trash bag. We have lived this 3 weeks without a single thing in that bag, I couldn't even tell you what's in the bag, so this must mean we never needed any of it in the first place, right?? And how can you pick something out of your drawer & not take the 1 second it requires to close that drawer? It falls in the same category as disposing of dirty diapers I guess.

When the bedroom looks like this, Mark says it looks like my dresser threw up. Guess it kind of does. Grant knocked over the vacuum & since Mark had to work this morning & wouldn't be home until tomorrow, I rebelled & didn't make the bed. It's been hot at night too, so obviously it looks like neither of us used very many covers last night.

ANOTHER BLOG?!?!?!?!?!

2008-08-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

I have far too much unused space in my brain or I have a serious addiction to creating blogs, but I have done it yet again. Check it out at http://crafts4theearth.blogspot.com/. Let me know what you think!

Top Ten Faves Tag from Creative Homemaker Blog

2008-08-22T08:43:00.000-07:00

1. Fave Shoes- American Eagle flip flops - broken in & just right
2. Fave Room in my House- My Craft Room although I am hardly down there these days, boo hoo...
3. Fave Soda- Fresca, Pepsi One
4. Fave Treat- Cheesecake with cherry topping or a good juicy burger from a fast food joint
5. Fave Pastime- scrapbooking, e-mailing friends, card making, baking, playing with my kids, camping
6. Fave Household Chore- dusting, straightening up
7. Fave Car- I don't have one. Just need something that fits us all & drives well!
8. Fave TV Show- Lost, Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Medium, Samantha Who, The Office
9. Fave Store- Thrift Stores!! Target, T.J. Maxx, Costco, Gap, American Eagle (online mostly - great clearance)
10. Fave Time of Day- When the kids are all asleep & I get to choose something to do just for me.

Go check out her blog at http://creativehomemakers.blogspot.com

2008-08-22T08:33:00.001-07:00

Dark Angels: A Novel by Karleen Koen

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I love books set in the 1600's or anytime where royal court is high & mighty & filled with stories of love, betrayal & all that other juicy stuff. This book was a bit hard to read quickly. The wording just didn't seem to flow very much. I would not consider Ms. Koen one of the better historical fiction writers, but I did finish the book. I wonder if I would enjoy her Through A Glass Darkly which follows the lead character, Alice Verney into later life?

View all my reviews.

Decoupage Day

2008-08-13T11:10:00.000-07:00

I have never decoupaged before. I know, it sounds crazy, knowing how crafty I am & how I love to try new crafty things, but this is one thing I just have never ventured to do, but today I can check it off my "Done That" list. A little prologue of sorts....nothing in our house is new, okay, I take that back, the TV is, but the furniture is not new. We are so lucky to have been where we were in Germany & to have been able to acquire such great furniture, all used & amazingly affordable, so just imagining a brand new piece of furniture in our house seems silly to me, because it wouldn't fit along with everything else. So...to jazz up an old desk, one we have had since we got married, I long ago attempted to paint it, as you can see in the before picture.

And then the kids added permanent marker decorations & the handles didn't really fit so they kept falling off, so the desk has looked like this for years. Today I decided that HAD to change. I had bought the napkins & modge podge over a year ago, so it was about time I knocked this project off my list!!
TAH DAH! Okay, so my husband was right, the cream paint border would show through, but you know what, I still think it looks better than it did. It's done & it only took me all afternoon, but I did play around with some digital scrapbooking while I was waiting on the modge podge to dry & I played with babies here & there too. Now I just need to clean up the top part of the desk & vacuum & I can call it a pretty darn good day!

And while I'm sharing projects, I'll throw this out there too. Another long procrastinated project marked off the list. I purchased this silk print from my favorite antique shop in Butzbach, Germany called Kattja's. I paid 2 euro for it. I have had it sitting around, folded up, since I bought it almost 2 years ago. Just this past month I finally got it framed. The dilemma was that it didn't fit in a standard frame size & it was much too costly to have it professionally framed, so on one of my clear days I got the idea to purchase some vintage lace on Ebay & add it to the sides of the piece. I got the suede matte at the frame shop on post & I used a coupon on the frame at Michael's. I really do like the way it turned out.

My New Haircut

2008-08-07T02:19:00.000-07:00

I'm really surprised that after I posted about that e-mail I got from the lady at church complimenting me....ON MY NEW HAIRCUT....that no one asked to see it!!! Well, I'm sharing anyway! I have gone back to shorter hair. It is truly who I am & what I like so enough of that growing my hair out crap! And if my sister EVER reads my blog, I'll have her know my kids all think I look EXACTLY like her now although she has been growing her hair out although they don't know that.

I should know better.

2008-08-04T20:23:00.001-07:00

Having married a man who loves the outdoors, I should know better when he says, "Let's go on a hike today." In my mind, I am thinking, maybe a 20 minute hike or so & it will be easy, no biggie. But, we get out there & he's got the map out, he's planned out a trek that might push us, but not kill us or at least not totally & then about halfway through he looks at me, I guess my face doesn't tell lies very well, and he asks, "So, how much further can we go?" He's asking permission on setting the challenge level & I realize what I've gotten myself into. I say, "No more than what we just did 3 times in a row." I'm horrible at mileage or directions, heaven forbid I ever get lost in the woods by myself. I've got a baby on my back, although she is the lighter load, but she's the louder one & she is grunting FOR me. At one point, I actually ask her to be quiet because the noises she is making are the ones I want to make, but I'm trying to keep my smile plastered on, although the sweat is dripping into my eyes & I can feel my shirt starting to stick to me & Daphne's grunting is making it even clearer how I really feel about this hike!!! I'm not mad at Mark, I'm mad at myself, for not being in better shape, for not being able to push away the crankiness, but I swear I am doing all I can to show I'm happy & show that I'm enjoying myself. So, we arrive back at the car, almost drained of our water supply because the kids are the furthest thing from camels & I cannot wait to get somewhere where I can just sit & relax & rest, so we take the kids to the creek to play & I put the babies in the playpen & enjoy some resting time & we get home & I am still totally pooped! So, we sneak in a nap with the babies & when I wake up, I am still exhausted. Originally, my idea for today was to go on a small hike, enjoy some time with the kids & then later that night go out by myself to eat somewhere, do a little shopping, just be by myself after almost a month with no hubby to help with the clan & I find that after the time well spent with family & my husband's idea of a hike, I am far too tired to even entertain myself. I should know better. But I still LOVE YOU HONEY & I'd go hiking across America if only to be with YOU!!!

She didn't have to, but it's the fact that she did.

2008-08-04T19:17:00.000-07:00

The background: The woman who wrote this is someone I only know because we go to the same church or we used to be in the same ward & she was part of Music Makers which we frequented last year for quite a few months each Thursday. She has 3 super cute kids & she was always so helpful & happy & full of ideas. But outside of this, I really don't know her very well. She has since moved to another ward, but one that meets in the same church building as ours & this past Sunday I had to be at church early for a meeting, so the other ward was still in session when I got to the church. Today I received this e-mail....

Hi,

On Sunday I saw a lady walk past me talking to my dad and down the hall towards the Primary Room. I thought to myself, who is that? Must be new to Radcliff Ward, because I didn't recognize her from the E-town ward. Then she stopped by the clerks office and I could see her face - and it was YOU!!! (: Nice looking hair cut - you look great!!!

Just wanted to let you know.

Good luck with the first day of School!

Now, she didn't have to say anything at all. I haven't talked to her or seen her in months! I never went out of my way to be her friend or talk to her in great detail about much of anything & I have never said more than just "Hi, How are you?" to her in passing, so why am I sharing this? Because I am continually shown the genuine kindness & sincerity of heart in the people I share my spiritual beliefs with. They are truly an amazing group of people. She didn't have to write this to me. She could have thought it & never put those thoughts into words. So, how did she know that something like this would change my whole day? My whole week? How did she know that this was something I needed to hear? That it was so incredibly important to me as a person, as a woman to know that people care enough to share a nice thought with me? It wasn't the only special note I've gotten recently. There was a phone call, a shared hug with a new friend in passing at church, another e-mail from someone who shares in my personal struggles giving me support & encouragement, all in the matter of 24 hours. How, with all of this, just for me, could I not believe in a higher power? How is it possible to think it is simply all conicidence? It's not possible. It's divine intuition. It's the Spirit. It is the unity of women. Oh how blessed I am.

I'm sure this woman will not read my blog, but I feel the need to say thank you to her because she truly has no idea what good she has done for me at this time. It brought me to tears & though that may seem silly, the small things really can touch you so deeply when your spirit is so fragile. Thank you for taking the time to life my spirit.

PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-07-24T09:08:00.000-07:00

After 8 years of being a parent, you would think I've got this down. After a lifetime of organizing & loving every moment of it, you would think I would not be here, in this situation, AGAIN. After threatening, bribing, coercing, begging & pleading, you would think we would ALL be better at this. So, I am downright BEGGING for your help. This is what our playroom is reduced to about once a month. 3 rambunctious kids & a mom who is just too plain busy to watch their every move and we are once again standing in front of this nightmare come alive.

You can tell I have more than enough shelves, drawers, compartments & ways to organize & keep everything separated. Ways that are simple for children to understand, ways that make it easier to get a favorite toy & then PUT THAT TOY BACK WHERE IT BELONGS.

My real issues is this....... My children simply have too much stuff. The last time I went through their toys for our yard sale, I really thought I had condensed, that I had gotten rid of all the nonsense, but apparently I have not. I know I need to cut down. I know that if they didn't have SO MANY choices, then there wouldn't be such a mess of this size.

The help I need..... what do 3 kids need as far as toys go? What is the bare minimum I can let them keep? I am willing to throw it ALL away & go back to letting them entertain themselves with books, crayons, outdoor activities & homemade toys like pots, pans, boxes & bubble wrap. But, it's hard to throw away all the things you know you bought them for birthdays & Christmas, because it's so hard to admit to yourself that you bougth them too much or that they really didn't want that toy & only played for it with a few days before they tossed it aside never to look at it again.

So, I am welcoming any & all opinions & ideas about what to do. Please no comments on how terrible it is or how did I ever let it get this bad. I have beat myself up enough, thank you, but I am so ready for any & all ideas on how to CUT BACK. I know how to organize it, I just need to know what to get rid of.

PLEASE HURRY!

I led you astray!

2008-07-13T22:05:00.000-07:00

AAACCCKKK!! I hate knowing I tried to promote a product I don't really care for, instead of posting the correct pic of the product I do love, so I must make a correction!!!!

The Electrasol tablets I love to use in my dishwasher are GEL TABLETS, not powder! The secret is in the gel I believe! So, here is a pic of the ones I meant to recommend!

THIS BOOK BELONGS TO ME!!!

2008-07-13T14:42:00.001-07:00

I absolutely ADORE these bookplates!! They are free & they are so, so fun! I can think of plenty of my friends that would get a kick out of these too! Put them in your fav craft books, romance books, vampire books, cookbooks!! http://craftsanity.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/blackapplebookplates.pdf

My FAVORITE cleaning product.

2008-07-13T01:29:00.001-07:00

I happened upon this cleaning product while shopping at Costco. They had a coupon for it, it looked promising, so we bought it. I had no idea how well it would work & how much I would love it! I have used it on just about every surface in my house & was literally SHOCKED at what a great cleaner it is! And it's good for the environment?!??! EVEN BETTER!!

My Recommendations on some great girlie products!

2008-07-13T01:22:00.001-07:00

This stuff ROCKS! I don't like to get burned just to get a tan & I certainly don't agree with using tanning booths, but this lotion will give you a nice summer glow without the chances of skin cancer! And it doesn't overdo it like so many of those self tanning lotions.

I am a lip gloss junkie! But, I am VERY PICKY about the kind I use & when I found this from Avon, I was THRILLED! It gives a touch of color, but has shine too & it stays on really well! I splurged & got two colors to satsify any mood I'm in!

This was one of those products where I said, "Now why didn't someone think of this sooner?" A big brush for your top lashes, a small brush for the bottom. PERFECT! And this stuff works GREAT, no smudging, no clumping, just great length, great fullness & overall a PERFECT product!
If you do shop Avon or you never have, give it a try with my friend, Jean. Link below!!

http://jtagliere.avonrepresentative.com/

This Brand vs. That Brand

2008-07-13T01:17:00.000-07:00

DO NOT USE THIS! I was trapped by the ECO nature of this product only to find out it is HORRIBLE at actually getting your dishes clean! And this was even in a BRAND NEW dishwasher.

I will stick to my FAV brand that works EVERYTIME & gives me sparkling dishes, very clean with no residue.

My husband tag!

2008-07-11T04:56:00.001-07:00

My husband tag!

What is his name? Mark Ryan Keel

How long have you been married? 10 Crazy, Amazing Years!!!

How long did you date? For a few months when we were in high school & a few dates here & there until we graduated high school & lost touch until we got back together late 1997.

How old is he? 32 (which he hates & he so doesn't even look it!!!!!)

Who eats more sweets? DEFINITELY ME!

Who said I love you first? He did, on the swing in his parents' yard.

Who is taller? He is.

Who can sing better? I think he can sing great, but he just doesn't like to. I think I sing pretty well.

Who is smarter? He is way smarter than me.

Who does the laundry? I do, but he is helpful when it gets to be too much, especially when it comes to his work clothes not being clean. Sorry hunny!

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Facing which way? Am I looking at the bed from the end, if so, he sleeps on the right. When he leaves for work, I like to sneak over to his side & snuggle in his pillow. It smells like him.

Who mows the lawn? Mark mostly, but I help when the kids are calm enough for me to go out there. Sometimes yard work is like a date for us, hahah.

Who cooks dinner? I do. But lately it hasn't been often. I think Mark can cook better than me, but he just doesn't have much time to do it.

Who drives? I do. There is a guy that checks id's as you go on post to Fort Knox & he will always tease me about chauffeuring him around, like I'm spoiling him.

Who is more stubborn? Me by a mile!

Who kissed who first? He kissed me. And I recall him saying it wasn't a very good kiss & he was glad I got better. Maybe I was just nervous, hahaha.

Who asked who out first? Mark broke up with his girlfriend at the time to ask me to his prom. WOO HOO!

Who proposed? Of course Mark!!

Who has more siblings? I do. He has one sister, I have two brothers & one sister.

Who wears the pants? It's an equal partnership, but we each have roles where we have to wear the pants more often.

Ok now I tag Sybil, Tara, Chandi & Christy & ANYONE ELSE who wants to do it!

2008-07-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

The Penny: A Novel by Joyce Meyer

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I did not know this was termed "Christian fiction", I just liked what the inside cover had to say about the story. I finished it yesterday & LOVED IT! It was an excellent story, though very heartbreaking at times, but with a wonderful "happy ending" for all involved in the story. It was about the power of God even when it seems like he's not there for us & how we may have to fight longer than we want to, but we will overcome. It also touched on forgiveness & it's healing power & about friendship in times of segregation between two sweet girls from very different families. It was an excellent, very touching story. Highly recommend & it's not that long so it's a great summer "beach" read.

View all my reviews.

2008-06-29T07:08:00.000-07:00

Empire Falls by Richard Russo

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was an incredible book. It didn't have all the bells & whistles of some great reads, but it was just clearly & precisely written with insights on human thought and desire. About how people in a small community can have so much diversity in themselves that they can experience the same complexities we tend to think a big city holds. The characters were all well developed and the story was very juicy. I enjoyed it from the first page to the last. I look forward to reading more from Richard Russo.

**I have always said I wish there was a rating system for books as there is for movies, but since there is not, I will add my 2 cents. There are some swear words & a brief description of a naughty incident at a frat party & some boyish sexual feelings towards an older woman, but all in all, the book is a might good read.

View all my reviews.

Beach Bag Essentials

2008-06-27T11:14:00.000-07:00

It just doesn't sound the same calling it a "Pool Bag", so although we will only be frequenting the "pool" or the "water park", we will refer to our favorite bag as the "Beach Bag". Mine I picked up at Old Navy on clearance which makes it even sweeter. These are just a few of our essentials that are kept in the bag for an easy pickup on our way out the door whenever the whim hits us to take off for some fun in the sun! What's in your "Beach Bag"??

When God Retreats

2008-06-27T10:46:00.001-07:00

I have been reading a book called Empire Falls, written by Pulitzer Prize winner, Richard Russo. I don't know what brought me to the book, but I have been quite enjoying it, despite a rather naughty frat party description, the book has been enlightening about human thought, even venturing into religious views and desires of the heart. Today I read something that was so profound to me, I felt I needed to record it in permanent form to further burn it into my mind. I have been fighting off personal demons of a measure I have never really had to fight before and each moment of truth or realization about ways I can overcome my worst fears are very, very precious.

Here is the excerpt from the book: "...to suggest that while God never abandoned us, neither was He on every occasion equally present, perhaps because His continual presence is what we desire most - that is, to be led away from temptation, away from ourselves. We want Him to be there, ready to receive our call in the moment of our need: lead us not into....Whereas God, for reasons of His own, sometimes chooses to let the machine answer. The Supreme Being is unavailable to come to the phone at this time, but He wants you to know that your call is important to Him. In the meantime, for sins of pride, press one. For avarice, press two...
"When God Retreats" had seemed one of his finer sermons as he'd delivered it to his sleepy early congregation. Exhausted and happy, he could find little fault with it as a personal reflection. That God had trust him to lose and then regain his path had seemed a wise, beneficent gesture."

I too believe that God has to let us go from time to time, mostly when He sees we need it most, to know that we can do some things on our own, only if it is to call on Him.

For those of us with daughters, granddaughters, any growing girl in our life...invest in them to start the change.

2008-06-27T08:28:00.001-07:00

Thrift Store Finds

2008-06-25T05:29:00.000-07:00

By now, many of you know I am a thrift store junky! It is so much fun shopping for treasures & great deals. These gold sandals that Isabelle fell in love with - a whole $1.40!!!

The lamp I needed badly for our desk in the office. This fits right in with our older decor from overseas. It was a mere $3.20 & works great!!

I collect pitchers and could not resist this mini one. The picture is not so great, sorry about that. But, I paid $1.80 for this baby.

The frame I am not a fan of, but the painting is really painted, not just a print & that is hard to find! And it's of a cello, one of Mark & I's favorite instruments! I have not decided where to hang it, I might repaint the frame first.

Tell me you had one of these as a kid! I just had to get it for the twins. It brought back such strong childhood memories for me & I snagged this vintage toy for a mere $5.40! Well worth it!

My Review of Ariat Flame Sandals - Crackle Leather (For Women)

2008-06-25T05:19:00.001-07:00

Originally submitted at Sierra Trading Post

Closeouts . Ariat's Flame sandals will put some snap and crackle into your summer sandal wardrobe. Nicely cushioned, suede-covered footbeds are made of cork and latex for custom landings. Elastic gore to snug fit Two crackle leather straps Polyurethane outsoles Heel: 2" Medium width Closeout...

PERFECT STYLISH SANDALS

By mmlk from army, usa on 6/25/2008

Sizing: Feels true to size

Width: Feels true to width

Pros: Comfortable, Cute, Durable, Stable, Breathable

Best Uses: everywhere

Describe Yourself: Stylish, Casual

These are INSANELY AWESOME sandals. They are stylish, not your ordinary brown or black summer slip ons & I love them! I wish I could get them in more colors. They are so comfortable, unlike other slip ons similar to this style. These are supreme!

(legalese)

Does Anyone Know??

2008-06-20T07:37:00.000-07:00

I did not inherit my mother's green thumb, although I did inherit her ficus tree & I just pray I don't kill it! There are more blooms popping up in our yard & I have no idea what kind of flowers they are. Can anyone help??

Simple gifts of love for Father's Day.

2008-06-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

Although I was horrible about getting out Father's Day cards to all the special men in my life, I did put together something for the main man in my life, all be it quick and simple. I have been collecting formula cans waiting for a craft I knew would present itself for their use & I think this one turned out really cute & just think of the possibilities with all the craft supplies I have at hand?!?!?!?

Paint the Town!

2008-06-20T07:18:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I can really, really see those gray hairs along my hairline popping up to say, "You're not as young as you used to be!" or "We're here to remind you every single day how you're getting older, " and I'll go out and buy some haircolor because I don't want to spend the money on a professional job although I'm SURE it would turn out much better than my own workings at haircolor. But, it was the night before we were going on a quick family trip for the weekend, so I wanted those gray hairs to be GONE! So, I picked up a box of slightly red haircolor that I thought would be fun for the summer. When I woke up the next morning to plenty of sunshine, I realized when the box said, Paint the Town, it really did mean, PAINT THE TOWN RED!!! I looked like a candy apple! After a couple of days, it calmed down & Mark mentioned it didn't look so bad & I even got a couple of compliments on it throughout the day. Guess I'll keep it for a while!

I swear they're "IN" right now!

2008-06-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

Bangs, that is. I tried to explain to my husband why I had chosen to increase the amount of bangs I have. I like them for one & two, they're in style right now. I may be over 30 & I may have several children, but it still doesn't keep me from at least attempting to look stylish. The conversation went like this (we're getting ready to leave the house to go run errands as a family - something I love, something he doesn't particularly care for. He says we look like Gypsies, hahahahahaha)

Me: "Hun, do I look okay?"

Mark: "Ask me later," with a silly smirk on his face. I know something is up.

Me: "What is it? My shirt, my shoes?" His face is still scrunched. I know if I hit the right thing, he'll give in. "My hair," getting warmer. "MY BANGS?!?!?"

Mark: "You're in 1994. What are your other options?"

Me: "Are you kidding me?" I've got my hair in a cute ponytail, bangs laid out natural & a little chunky, but I swear they're in style. Just look at this picture of Reese Witherspoon.
OKAY, I admit, I'm not Reese! But, her bangs look good & I was merely attempting to copy them in some form (see anniversary photo in prevoius 10 years post).

Still don't believe me? Check this link. http://www.stylelist.com/trends/hair-style-bangs He's lucky I'm not doing the blue eyeliner or watercolor dresses!!!!

So, I go into the bathroom. I wisp them to the side, make a little part & flatten them down some more.

Me: "There! That better?"

Mark: "You've hit 1998. It's better."

Whatever! If I like it, what do I care what he thinks? He still has to sleep with me every night, eat the meals I cook & say Yes Dear to stay out of trouble. I love that he tries to be honest. In 1998, I was 21 & feeling smokin' hot & on top of the world & totally in love. I may not be 21. I may not be smokin' hot & I'm not really on top of the world anymore, but I am still totally in love. I'll take 1998. Thanks babe.

Mommy doesn't want to share.

2008-06-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

The thing about Freschetta Baby Portabello Mushroom & Spinach pizza is that I don't have to share it because no one else like mushrooms & this baby is covered with em! Just like I like it! So it got me to thinking about the other things I love that I don't want or have to share with the other members of my family. My dirty little kitchen secrets.....

Bagels from Panera Bread!! My favorite, the literally named Everything bagel. If Mark knew I paid that much for bagels he would forbid me from ever buying them again, but they are just sooooooo good, especially with a very flavorful cream cheese to generously spread on them!

Roasted Red Peppers (I put them on sandwiches, salads, pizza or put them in my pasta)

Freschetta Baby Portabello Mushroom & Spinach pizza

Self explanatory & seen in earlier posts, so you already know I love them. They are sinfully good.

These are my top four! WHAT ARE YOURS???????

Sweet Summer Corn

2008-06-03T05:30:00.000-07:00

I had been awaiting the display of sweet summer corn at the grocery store with each trip these past couple of months & this last time it was finally there. I carefully picked out 6 ears and couldn't wait to get home and shuck them to savor the smell. We enjoyed them with burgers cooked on the grill & french fries. YUM!

I'M BACK!

2008-05-24T13:42:00.000-07:00

I survived a week of hellish strep throat, a full week in bed for me, pre-empted by a full two weeks of fighting off depression symptoms, feelings of total despair & anxiety, wanting to run away, not caring about anything and then I looked at myself in the mirror & said, "HELLO?? You live in a world where there are so many things out there to help you! You don't have to feel like this! You know what's going on! FIX IT MARIA!" So, I made an appointment at the doctor & she was GREAT! One of the best doctors I have had under the military medical system in a very long time & thanks to the power of modern medicine, a good doctor, my amazingly understanding husband and answered prayers - I AM BACK & FEELING SO MUCH BETTER!! I have a lot of things on my mind that I want to share with all of you, so keep checking back this week for hopefully some good posts from the Madness of Maria!

10 INCREDIBLE YEARS!

2008-05-24T13:22:00.001-07:00

Mark & I celebrated our 10th anniversary yesterday, Friday, May 23, 2008. We married in the afternoon of May 23, 1998 in Holland, Michigan surrounded by friends and family. It was a perfect day and so was yesterday. I cannot believe how madly in love I am with this great man. As most know, we already took our backpacking trip which was to celebrate our 10 years of adventure together, but we also had to do something to signify the actual day of our anniversary. Well, much to my displeasure I spent the ENTIRE week laying in bed very, very ill with aggravated strep throat. Yes, not just strep throat, but aggravated strep throat. BUT! On Friday, with really good pain pills & a full 24 hours + of antibiotics in my system I was able to get up out of bed, make myself look presentable, and clean the house a bit to surprise Mark when he got home from work. I didn't have the time or energy to get him a gift, so I cleaned up his armoire by refolding all the clothes and reorganizing them. To you my love, I give you the gift of cleanliness. What did he get me? A beautiful bouquet of flowers and a freakin' Citizen watch & bracelet! Way to show me up honey!! But, a girl's never going to complain about jewelry!! And I'm pretty sure my husband would never complain about a clean house. Happy TENTH!