for eyeglasses

Stella has been complaining of headaches for the past few weeks, and new glasses are on her Christmas list, so we got her eyes checked today. Eyeglasses are such a marvel! Both of my girls are nearsighted, and I often think about what their lives would be like if they didn't have access to good sight. I am forever grateful that we are able to provide it for them.

for stella

Stella turns 10 today! When Stella was born, she had a hard time latching on. She would cry and cry and not really be able to nurse very well. We ended up supplementing her with formula and she became the easy, contented baby that she still is today. Stella hates to be a bother. She says thank you after every meal, is quick to do chores, and transitioned to her new, more difficult school just fine.  She is the best friend--thoughtful and considerate, and would like nothing more than a day at home, crafting and playing. I am grateful to have her sweet spirit in our family! She is a joy.

happy weekend

It's little league season! Hooray! Elliot and I went out to the park after school yesterday to practice hitting some balls. He was mostly excited about wearing his new baseball socks, but he did manage to hit two balls out of the park and into our neighbor's yard. It's volleyball season, too, and after a little bit of practice with Stella, she asked if she "could go inside and do [her] homework now." Ha! So maybe volleyball isn't her thing, but she sure has fun with all of the girls on her team.

Here's some good news: Mike placed second in a pitch contest at school! He got a humongous check and everything. He did a great job and I am so proud of his hard work. His winning idea was a mosquito killing fan, so maybe we're getting into the mosquito killing business? I'll keep you posted.

I have a mountain of laundry to catch up on today, and some sewing projects to finish. But then I'll be ready to party. And by party, I mean attend little league and volleyball games. :)

Have a happy weekend!

on a wednesday

I've been down with a cold all week. The kind of cold that makes your brain feel fuzzy and your limbs feel weak. It hit Stella, too. So we're taking it easy and putting off our chores and work for another day.

I've been replaying the talks from last Saturday's Women's Conference the past few days. They were all so great, but Sister Carol F. McKonkie's talk on holiness really resonated with me. If you have a few minutes today, it's worth a listen.

She says, "Holiness is in the striving and the struggle to keep the commandments and to honor the covenants we have made with God. Holiness is making the choices that will keep the Holy Ghost as our guide. Holiness is setting aside our natural tendencies and becoming a saint through the Atonement of Christ the Lord. Every moment of our lives must be holiness to the Lord."

And, "If we would be holy, we must learn to sit at the feet of the Holy One of Israel and give time to holiness. Do we set aside the phone? The never ending to-do list? The cares of worldliness? Prayer, study, and heeding the word of God invites His cleansing and healing love into our souls. Take time to be holy, that we may be filled with His sacred and sanctifying spirit."

As I have changed some habits and given more of my time to holiness, I have felt an increase in knowledge and peace and love in my life. I know that our Heavenly Father wants to bless us with these things, but we have to seek them. Reading my scriptures everyday, attending the temple as often as I can, and fulfilling my duties at church have helped me to feel His peace.

I am grateful for church leaders who instruct and testify and help me to come closer to my Savior. This weekend is General Conference, two whole days of instruction and testimony, and I am really looking forward to it.

glasses! and contacts, too!

Right before Christmas, Stella started complaining that she couldn't see things far away very clearly. Funny thing: I had just bought her some little fake glasses to put in her stocking. But it turns out that she needed the real thing! After an eye exam, we ordered a home try on kit from Jonas Paul Eyewear (just like Warby Parker but for kids) and loved the Maddie. We placed our order, and just a few days later, her glasses were here! She was so excited to wear them to school, and to be able to see the chalkboard again.

Another funny thing: as excited as Stella was to get glasses, Mabel was just as excited to stop wearing hers. All she wanted for Christmas were contacts. :)

happy birthday Stella!

Of course I am thankful for all of my children, but today we celebrate our Stella, who turns nine years old. If I could describe Stella in three words, they would be: quiet, thoughtful, and kind. I don't know how I got lucky enough to be her mother, but I sure am grateful for the opportunity!

a month of thanksgiving

Happy November! It's my most favorite month of the whole year! Not only does our weather improve drastically in November, but today marks the beginning of my month of Thanksgiving. Every year, during the month of November, I focus on gratitude, and then I post here on my blog something I am thankful for, every day for the whole month. I've been doing it for years and it's the best thing I do for myself. It puts my challenges into perspective, makes me more content, and definitely brings me a lot of joy. Plus, feeling extreme gratitude and contentment is a really great way to enter the holiday season. Have you ever tried it? Why don't you do it along with me? I promise you will see a happy difference in your life.

And so, I am thankful for November, for the opportunity it gives me to take stock of my life and focus on all of the really fortunate blessings I've been given.

Here's a quick look at our Halloween:

We had Kip from Napoleon Dynamite and a banana.

And a really sweet Dorothy and an Obi Wan Kanobi.

The kids had a lot of fun, but I am always so glad when Halloween is over. :)

a mid week update

I want you to know that forgetting yourself in service for someone else really works. I came home from helping a neighbor on Monday and my life felt so manageable (it is manageable, I was just having a small freak out). I have always known this, but it was nice to be reminded of it. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve. Really and truly. It is the best medicine.

Good news. I finished sewing one of the three halloween costumes that require my needle this Halloween season. It is pink and shiny and really twirly, and no, it's not for Stella! Mike and I are going to a Halloween party this weekend and costumes are required. Speaking of Stella, she had the hardest time deciding on a costume this year. After many internet searches and a family vote, she finally chose one, so I am headed to the fabric store today in search of blue gingham.

Bad news. Our cat brought in another rat last night. Luckily it was before we had fallen asleep. I heard the tell tale signs in the hall outside our bedroom, and sure enough, there it was, quivering with fear in the clutches of our cat, starting at me with its beady black eyes. It's become so common, I don't even scream anymore. Into the trap it went and off to our neighbor, who so kindly disposes of them for us. It's a team effort, this ridding our neighborhood of the rats.

If you're near a Krispy Kreme, stop by for some pumpkin spice doughnuts. Today only!

cute printable from Alexa Zurcher

here we go!

Oliver left first, bright and early this morning. Because he is now in 6th grade, he will have an extra hour of instruction in the afternoon, so it will be a longer day than he is used to. Other than that, he is at the same school with the same friends as he has been for the past two years. He attends a public school in our district with a more rigorous academic curriculum than our regular neighborhood school. He is doing well there and I am grateful for that option.

There were a little more jitters in our second group. Mabel is off to high school! She will be a third generation Warrior, as she gets to attend the same high school that Mike and his mom both attended, where she will be doing the International Baccalaureate program. She is nervous, but I know she'll do great. She is bright and kind and so capable. She is excited to be out of uniforms, but of course that led to a little outfit stress this morning. Ha!

Elliot will be in all day first grade, much to his chagrin. I know he'll love it once he's there (he is especially excited to eat lunch in the cafeteria), but he thinks that all day is going to feel really long. It probably will. I sense an extra early bedtime tonight.

And Stella is ready in her cat pants to take on third grade!

Hooray!

happy weekend

The kids are off of school on this beautiful Good Friday. After a late night at the Easter Pageant last night, they are sleeping in. I am skipping my run to save my knees, which have been making really weird crunching noises when I bend them, and will spend the morning fighting the losing battle against the weeds in our yard instead.

I am adding The Gift of Grace by President Uchtdorf to my Easter prep reading this weekend. The older I get, the more I realize that if I want a holiday to feel special, or meaningful, it is up to me. I don't want this Eater Sunday to pass me by in a blur of jelly beans and chocolate bunnies. It is so much more than that!

I hope you will feel the peace that Easter can bring this weekend. I know that because Jesus Christ suffered for me (and you), we can be redeemed. We can be forgiven. And we can live with our family again once this life is over. All He requires is that we follow Him.

Here's a great little animated video about what can happen when we choose to follow Him.

Have a peaceful, happy weekend!

Oh, and one little word of advice: if you have a young girl living in your house who likes to receive letters in the mail, find her a pen pal. Stella's pen pal, Audrey, sent her the sweetest Easter package the other day. It was the highlight of Stella's week. She has carried that little bunny tote around with her everywhere!

for Stella's decision to be baptized

Today was a special day in our family. Stella was baptized. I am thankful for her decision to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized. We believe that baptism is the first sacred ordinance we participate in and starts us on the path back to our Heavenly Father. It is a commitment we make to follow Jesus Christ for the rest our lives. I know that Stella knows these things, and is ready to make this commitment. I am thankful for her sweet spirit and for this happy day.

for our Stella

When Stella was two, I was convinced that she was my most stubborn child. Boy was I wrong! She was probably just tired at the time, because Stella is the sweetest, most easy going person in our family. She thanks me after each meal and is always the first to give Mike a hug when he comes in the door. She is a friend to Elliot and puts up with the teasing that comes from Mabel and Oliver. When I met with her teacher for parent teacher conferences, he couldn't stop grinning. When she met with the bishop for her baptism interview, she left him teary. Stella quietly glides through life, spreading cheer with her breathless little voice. I am thankful that she joined our family eight years ago today!

for the desire and the ability to create

Stella turns eight soon and she has requested a special dress to wear at her baptism. I am happy and grateful to oblige. The desire and the ability to create are part of our divine makeup as women, and I am grateful for the opportunity to make use of this special part of me.

I wrote a similar post last November (and probably the November before that, too). I love the quote I shared from President Uchtdorf. He said, "Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty. The more you trust and rely upon the spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come."

Yesterday I popped into my local discount fabric store. It has tables and tables piled higher than I am tall with fabric remnants. I only had a few minutes to search, but I found exactly what I was looking for - two yards of the most perfect ivory crepe, just what Stella's dress required. I've used Butterick 3350 more times than I can count. It is a wonderful basic pattern that lends itself well to alterations. I used it most recently for Stella's Princess Buttercup costume. This time, I am adding a few tucks at the bust, a feminine collar, and dropping the waist. I'm keeping the final product a secret from Stella, but I think she's going to love it.

first day

They're off! Mabel and Oliver left early this morning to catch their bus. They are in 8th and 5th grades this year. Last year, when they started at their new school, they were understandably very nervous. This year, I think they are just looking forward to seeing their friends again. And their bus driver. He's our favorite.

Stella and Elliot left a while later, for 2nd and kindergarten. Their school is just across the park behind our house, so we go out the back, through our gate. They were pumped. Elliot is in the half day class, so I'll be back to pick him up soon enough.

And now the house is quiet. And the beds are made. And this freedom feels really great. Hooray!

happy weekend

Stella stayed home from school for a couple of days this week because she said her throat felt "wet". I don't even know what that means. In her defense, she had a runny nose and a pretty awful cough, too. We both enjoyed not having to rush her out the door in the morning. And Elliot really liked having a playmate. We're counting down until spring break next month, and then summer will come soon after that. We're getting trunky over here!

I just finished remaking a wedding dress for a bride. It was sort of a big job, so to reward myself, I ordered a little print from artist Emily Jeffords. I have long admired her work and I am excited to have some of it hanging in my home.

Also, are you a cat person? I'm not, but the other five people who live in my house most definitely are. They thought this video of cats welcoming soldiers home was really funny. Cats can be so mean.

I am looking forward to going out with Mike tonight, but other than that our weekend, as usual, is wide, wide open. Have a good one!

roses are red

Stella's valentines contain all of the best things about Valentine's Day: roses, candy, and original poetry. We had lots of fun making these crepe paper roses to give to her classmates. They were a little difficult for her seven year old fingers, but after wrapping a few, she got the hang of it. She penned the poem, which we printed on card stock and tied to the stem of the lollipop.

p.s. Those teeth!

at this very moment

Some things I want to remember about life right now:

That Mabel is better at applying makeup than I am. That I have to wake her up half an hour earlier than Oliver on school days so that she can monopolize the bathroom. That she cannot for the life of her pick up after herself (but that she has lots of other more important talents, anyway). That she is turning into a teenager right before my very eyes.

That Oliver is balanced on the edge of being too old for his little brother and sister, but much to my relief more often than not, he falls to their side. That he will spend hours with them in the basement coming up with intricate play scenarios. That he is taking to tennis like he's always held a racket.

That Stella has lost all of her teeth (one more after I took that picture). That she still talks in a half whisper, pausing for breaths between syllables. That she is the best reader in her class and that she gives her love unabashedly to anyone within arms reach.

That Elliot will change his clothes fourteen times a day. That he doesn't think it's weird to wear a full baseball uniform, including cleats, to preschool. That he falls asleep on my lap every Sunday before sacrament meeting even starts. That he still whole-heartedly claims the position of baby of the family.

These are good days. There is so much I want to remember.

happy weekend

Every other week or so, Stella decides that she's too sick to go to school for some vague reason or another. On Tuesday, her throat was dry. She was worried that she would give her germs to the other kids in her class, and I couldn't argue with that, so of course I let her stay home, which meant that she got to come with me to my hair appointment. My roots wait for no one!

I'm hoping that all of the motivation I seem to have left in 2014 decides to show up this weekend. We have things to do and no desire to do them. Or maybe we should just go with it and take it easy? I never know if I should push through these feelings or let them be. I'll keep you posted.

Stay warm wherever you are! Happy weekend!

art in the girls' room

I rearranged my girls' room before Christmas, and I was finally brave enough to put holes in their wallpaper to hang the art we've been collecting. They each got a new print for Christmas. This pretty dreamcatcher print from Yellow Bungalow Shop for free-spirit Mabel. And this wonderful Uchtdorf quote for Stella. It says, "He who created and knows the stars knows you and your name. You are the daughters of His kingdom." It was a little over her head, I think, but Mabel got it. And I know that Stella will someday, too. Isn't it powerful? Have you ever thought about that? Our Heavenly Father, who knows the numberless stars, knows us! Each of us. I know this is true, and I want my children to know this, too.

for a morning with Stella

Stella has been feeling out of sorts for the past few days, so I let her stay home from school. She was an excellent companion during my big pre-Thanksgiving grocery trip. Usually I look forward to grocery shopping alone while Elliot is at preschool, but today I am thankful for the time I got to spend just with my Stella. And now we are ready to roast a turkey and bake some pies. Hooray!