Summer Parties

Hello there Glitz fans! With summer in full swing we have been crafting decorations for my daughter's 14th birthday party. I can hardly believe that she'll be a high school freshman in just a few months! Time continues to march on! 
 

My daughter asked for a up-to-date version of shabby chic decor. As the hostess of the party, I wanted to keep things simple and fun. The invitations were made by sewing a sequins filled vellum pouch, then layering a variety of "Brightside" papers from the 6x6 paper pad. Cutting strips allows for making several invitations with the same design but different patterned papers. 

I added a few party supplies by adding washi tape flags to straws, wrapping a little patterned paper around a favor box and taping a sentiment to a framed mirror. The garland included pom-poms constructed from white cupcake wrappers, and die cut butterflies. In just under an hour I was able to make all of the decorations we needed for her party.

"Modern Shabby-Chic Birthday Decor" supplies:

Glitz Design "Brightside" paper: Plaid, Chunky Chevron, Bits & Pieces

Glitz Design "Brightside" 6x6 paper pad

Glitz Design wash tapes - mint chain & cherries

other: kraft card stock, vellum, sequins, baker's twine, mini clothes pins

Happy Birthday, Mom

happy birthday mom

{dad}

Happy birthday daddy. 

I am sitting here trying to think of something to say, a way to put into words the things that are in my heart. Again I am at a loss. Last year he was here, sick but with a real fighting chance, full of the hope of recovery. He was counting down the days until he could get back to work, and trying to figure out how to eat the things he liked with no salt. Our friend, Brother Leonel came and made him a homemade Mexican feast (including homemade cheese and tortillas) all with no salt. We were together. 

I treasure each of those little moments, and have been reflecting on them a lot these days. I am reminded again to cherish each day. You never know when this might be the last moment, the last Christmas, the last birthday you may have with someone. I have read this reflection on the Book of Job several times over the past few days which has been a comfort.

"Indeed the Book of Job avowedly only answers mystery with mystery. Job is comforted with riddles; but he is comforted. Herein is indeed a type, in the sense of a prophecy, of things speaking with authority. For when he who doubts can only say 'I do not understand,' it is true that he who knows can only reply or repeat 'You do not understand.' And under that rebuke there is always a sudden hope in the heart; and the sense of something that would be worth understanding." - G.K. Chesterton, 'The Everlasting Man'

Dad's 60th birthday

last year

{eleven}

Today our sweet baby girl turned eleven. The past year brought many heartaches, growth in body (7 inches) and in spirit, blessings and moments that reveal the soul. She has a simple, pure heart and self-giving love that is truly beyond her years. There are few greater honors than to be blessed to say that I am Emma's mom. Happy birthday baby girl.

“Youth is happy because it has the ability to see beauty. 
Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.”
- Franz Kafka

deLIVER us from evil

Yesterday we celebrated my dad's 60th birthday. The day after my dad got out of the hospital, and began the informed fight against liver disease (autoimmune hepatitis), my sister and I decided we should order shirts for his party... yellow being the natural color of choice. I got to work thinking of a clever logo for the party. Then it struck me... the Lord's Prayer - deLIVER us. By way of prayers, it's the best and it gets to the heart (and the liver) of the matter. I came up with something quick in Photoshop, uploaded it to my favorite T-shirt printer, CustomInk, and called to put a rush on the order. After talking to the kind customer service lady who shared about her own family's battle with liver disease they were off and running. We surprised Dad on Saturday with a sea of yellow shirts, a lot of laughs and a delicious and authentic sodium-free Mexican feast. (Thank you Brother Leonel!) Happy birthday Daddy! We're here for you every step of the way. I love you.

Pa and the grand-girls

my mom & dad

The 366 shot from Friday was from a quick stop on the way home, catching the golden hour of a perfectly sunny winter day.

Chesterton Quote of the Day

“The way to love anything is to realize that it may be lost.”

-G.K. Chesterton

reflections on a decade

Tonight I'm feeling a little slow for a fair number of nights in a row with only a few hours of sleep, so forgive me if I'm a little off my game. (Not that I'm normally terribly impressive when I'm on my game).

My baby girl entered the wide world of life in the double digit category. I can hardly believe a decade has gone by since she first graced our lives with that sweet face. I stayed up till all hours, hence the no sleep, flipping through photos from the last ten years of her life. She's grown from my babe in arms to a lovely young lady only two inches shorter than me. But all through the past ten years her tender spirit, giving nature, helpful hands and sweet smile have remained very much the same. I look forward, God willing, to enjoying the next decade of life, change and adventure with this precious little gift of mine.

Torrey got up and made Emma cinnamon ro

For her birthday Emma wanted to wear a "poofy" dress and
this tiara-style headband that belonged to Stan's grandma.

A little compendium of the first ten years...

{nine}

I've spent some time recently looking through old pictures and scrapbooks... and remembering just how fast time flies. I think it's one of those things a mom never stops thinking about from the moment her first little one is born. They grow so quickly, and each age brings a new blessings and trials and memories and madness and beauty. Life is beautiful.

Emma turned nine yesterday. Nine. Wowzer!

We sat at the table tonight, over a heaping plate of spaghetti (her favorite food), and told stories of when she was little(r). How she weighed 8 pounds when she was born, had the softest cry and slept 22 hours a day. She grew like crazy, loved to be carried and loved being held by any fella that came by the house. So much has changed, and yet so many things have remained the same. I've been praying that this year she'll continue to nourish her soft heart and her care for those around her, to be courageous when necessary and humble always. (Luke 1:46-55)

Since I've been digging through some old shots, I figured I'd add one of the birthday girl at 3 years old. Wasn't it yesterday when they were small?

It took nine years for her to come within a few inches of my height, but only an instant for me to fall in love with her. Happy birthday to my baby girl.

Never stop being thankful to be alive

With one more year tucked under my belt, and beginning to sag from other parts, I am thankful for all of the blessings that fill this great life to overflowing. Grace and mercy overshadow the trials and errors. I am blessed to be surrounded by my family, loved by God and filled with hope.

hello 34

sunrise, sunset... swiftly fly the days

Sunrise, sunset
Sunrise, sunset
Swiftly fly the years
One season following another
Laden with happiness and tears

was humming this fiddler on the roof song while i was loading pictures onto my blog tonight. just thinking of how quickly the days and years seem to be flying by, and all of the happiness and tears they are filled with. how some moments i might not wish to live over, but how i would not change one bit knowing how the good Lord has lead me with His gentle hand along the way.

and now for the continuing journey through the bits of the mundane and the beautiful that make up my daily life. bits of beauty like the sunrises from my back deck on a crisp fall morning.

fun moments like growing older with my husband... or at least hanging with him while he's growing older! :) no big party, no throngs of people, no extras... just our family, a nice dinner and a few cupcakes. simple but good.

the mundane little things like the zillions of fall spiders making their homes all around our house and yard.

watching the years fly by in watching the girls grow... like torrey studying her script before broadcasting the morning announcements on the school tv's.

the beauty of family... my brother with all of the nieces and nephews while he was in town for the weekend.

my sister, my mom & stan celebrating their trio of birthdays.

the seemingly mundane yet beautifully telling picture of torrey reading the encyclopedia... for fun. :)

the beautiful bounty of nature from our weekly organic "box of good"

the beautiful gift of faith, and how it carries you through those years laden with happiness and tears...

the sweet simplicity of turning mundane puddles into play in the middle of a rainstorm.

so i know it said "sunrise, sunset", but all i have (as far as recent daily pictures anyway) are sunrise shots. so maybe it doesn't work especially well for the lyrics, but scrolling through the 365 pictures between the sunrise bookends... i am thankful for each an every moment because swiftly fly the years.