Melodie's Life

Wedding last weekend

2010-10-22T13:17:00.001-05:00

Anne and I went to a wedding last weekend. My good friend Steph Wilson was shooting the wedding and wanted to "borrow" Anne for a few pictures. What kind of crazy would I be to say no?!

Fall pictures

2010-10-20T13:17:00.000-05:00

I tried this Sunday to take pictures of Anne. I always like to take pictures this time of year, because it's her birthday, but also because the views are so pretty. :)

Fall!

2010-10-20T12:55:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to be more intentional with learning/creating activities with Anne. Last week, the leaves were just beautiful, so we had to do something with them. Here's what we came up with. One day we picked up leaves. The next we made the garland. She even helped iron the waxed paper together. She felt very "big."

Summer 2010

2010-10-20T12:46:00.001-05:00

So I guess I was on a blogging vacation for the summer. lol Anyway, I'll post some pictures to catch up.

She's decided she likes to play pretend. Her favorite pretend at playgrounds is restaurant. We take turns making and serving food. :)

And we went to a Royals baseball game. She loved it. :) I thought she might be bored, but she totally wasn't. She was interested in what was going on and cheered when they hit the ball. It was great!

I put her hair back in her baseball cap. Her hair was made for it. :) She looked so cute.

The summer was great fun. We spent so much time outside learning and playing. She's talking so much more and it's been so great getting to talk to her and figure out what's going on in her head. Next up: Fall!

Un-professional, here I come

2010-05-21T14:54:00.000-05:00

Let's start with this - I love my job. I love being able to take my daughter to work with me. I love that I don't have to dress up. I love having flexible hours. But sometimes all of those things backfire!

Yesterday, since Mindy is out of town, I picked up some donated (free!) onion starters and seed potatoes. And so today I'm in gardening clothes and flimsy washable flip-flops. But I forgot that a representative from a Xerox printing company was coming to meet with me today. And of course he was in a suit & tie. Now, I love my job and I love being a mom and I love that they mix so well, but today I felt like I looked like a "mom." Slouchy clothes, hair not done, not much makeup on. Toys and dolls in the office. And I had to tell him to be quiet so he didn't wake up my sleeping child.

Maybe the lesson should be check my calendar so I'm more prepared?

Whole Wheat Soda Bread

2010-05-08T15:42:00.000-05:00

Okay, so this is the bread I made last week, for those who came to my party on Saturday. It's super easy and tastes great. It's best right out of the oven with butter, in my opinion.

Whole Wheat Soda Bread

Ingredients:
1 c white flour
2 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs cold butter
2 c whole wheat flour
1/2 c old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 c buttermilk (I used soured milk - just add vinegar to sweet milk - but don't be skimpy - the acidity in the milk reacts to the baking soda to make the bread rise)

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Combine the first four ingredients and mix well. Cut in butter. Stir in whole wheat flour and oats. Make a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in buttermilk. Mix with a fork just until blended. Knead on well-floured board 1 minute (Not too long - too long will make the texture too tough).
Shape in a ball and set on greased baking sheet. Press into 6 in circle and cut a cross in the top. Bake 40 minutes or until well browned and the loaf sounds hollow.

I made this on Sunday evening, as well, and that time I gave Anne a small ball of dough to knead herself and shape into a ball. She thought it was pretty cool, but wasn't too excited about the messy hands. I say this to say that you can make the bread the size you want - just adjust the baking time.

Things to read and a laugh

2010-04-26T21:57:00.000-05:00

-Reading this made me laugh more than I have in a couple of days. If you have kids, especially, it's a must read. :)

-Seeing this made me want to city camp on our back deck. Ben thinks it would be fun, too!

Happy Monday!

A Clean House

2010-04-26T12:13:00.002-05:00

I'm all about this!

I think I'm going for it

2010-04-25T15:22:00.000-05:00

I'm going to do it. You know, the jars? I'm so in love with the idea, that I'm determined to try it. But I don't have matching jars, and buying jars would not only require money, which I don't have, but would be beside the point. :) So since I don't have beautiful matching Ball jars, I'm going to repurpose glass jars I empty - spaghetti sauce, salsa, etc. To create some sort of match-y-ness, I think I'm going to paint the jar lids a matching color. That should help, right? And I'm going to store things in them. Cocoa, baking soda, maybe icing sprinkles (they are so colorful!) - I'm sure I can find lots of stuff! Yay! I'm so excited, I've already started taking the labels off a couple of jars. By the way, I'm sure this will be the yuckiest part of the whole process.

Kitchen Organizing

2010-04-23T14:43:00.004-05:00

OMG! I so love this system! It's gorgeous AND functional! Granted, the countertop would have to be clean to be able to see all of that loveliness, but still. I officially have jar-envy now! All of those beautiful Mason jars. I have un-matching glass jars, but it probably wouldn't be as wonderful that way, huh?

This was a tip on SimpleBites and the picture is from there.

Conundrum

2010-04-21T12:01:00.000-05:00

Why is it that a two-year-old (yes, my two-year-old) girl can spend 2 minutes pouring water out of her cup onto her lap (while I'm working, of course), for unknown reasons, then look up at me holding out her water soaked dress, and say, "Mama, help me." This is just one reason that mamas of toddlers have days they feel just a little bit crazy.

But I read this post and this post today and they made me feel a little better.

Welcome back!

2010-04-20T22:24:00.000-05:00

Well, welcome back to me. :) It's been too long! And of course, so many things have contributed. :)

Anne's been soooo sick with allergies. She's finally getting mostly bit back to normal. Thank goodness. :)

And Ben took the computer to school with him for a while. But that's okay, because it meant that he passed another test! Yay! Only one more to go. Then he can get a job. Whew!

And I went to my grandmother's 84th birthday party. It was lots of fun! I'll try to post pictures tomorrow.

And my mom was here for a week. Lots of fun. But didn't want to spend a lot of time on the computer. I love to have guests, but it's nice to get back to my and Anne's schedule. I never thought I would be one to say that. But I've embraced it!

Now it's time to go to bed.

Poo-Free Update

2010-03-22T20:30:00.000-05:00

Read the first installment here. It's going great! I'm totally over the transition period now and am very happy! Anyone that's going to try it, my suggestion is to not be afraid to use shampoo in the transition. I got my hair cut after two weeks and so I washed my hair with shampoo that day. (I didn't want to be the one she talked about for the next couple of days- the one that came in with dirty hair.) So then it was go progressively icky-er for about another week. Then, almost miraculously, everything was great. It was kind of weird, actually. It took me a couple of days to realize that it felt clean. And in fact, I'm having to cut back on the percentage of baking soda to water because my hair's a little dry. I'd say I'm pretty happy with the results. I still have to use some smoothing creme when I wear my hair curly (but so much less than when I shampoo'ed), but I'm not noticing any buildup, so whatever works. :) So I'd say the experiment was successful and I'll continue doing this.

Happy Spring - Finally!

2010-03-18T22:13:00.001-05:00

It was such a glorious day! And even though it meant dinner was late - actually very late - Anne and I had to celebrate the sun with our first trip to the park. She loved it! This was a new park for us; I found it in January. The benefit of this one is that it is just around the block from our favorite grocery store. Oh, and she didn't make it all the way up the "stairs" that she's standing on. She got to this spot and then looked down - uh-oh! She wanted down right away!

And yes, snow is coming tomorrow night. Crazy! (This is the other reason I was desperate to be outside today!) I hope you were able to take advantage of the wonderful weather today, too.

And work is my liturgy...

2010-03-18T21:09:00.000-05:00

Ann at Holy Experience is a poet. And her post last Friday about work is great.

All work is good work. The work of our hands is always making the world a better place.

And work is my liturgy, motions of worship to Him, who from, and to, and through, are all things....

Simple acts of cleaning are my humble, conquering efforts in the quotidian struggle between chaos and order, creation and disintegration, God and Death. And I frame this cleaning as my monastic beauty, my daily wrestle, to create, in imperfect ways, a world for these loved ones... like You created so perfectly for humanity when the world began....

"To lift up the hands in prayer gives God glory,
but a man with a dungfork in his hand,
a woman with a slop pail,
give Him glory
too.

God is so great that all things give Him glory, if you mean that they should."

~St. Ignatius Loyola

If you have ever thought your life is not important (and isn't that all of us?!), you should definitely read it.

Stickers!

2010-03-17T17:02:00.001-05:00

Anne loves stickers! She really likes to put stickers on our noses.

First warm day of spring

2010-03-17T16:16:00.000-05:00

The first warm day of spring! We were outside for several glorious hours.

First green!

2010-03-17T16:08:00.000-05:00

Anne and I found the first bit of rosemary growing in our neighbor's garden. The first green bit always deserves to be photographed. :)

Walking tour of Columbia, Missouri

2010-03-03T16:23:00.000-06:00

Monday, Ben and I went to Columbia, Missouri. I got free bus tickets, so we rode a double-decker bus there and then walked around. They have a really cute downtown district. We went in lots of little shops- free trade, handmade, crafty, art galleries. It was definitely a college town- lots of bars! Then we walked to the University of Missouri. It was a nice campus, even if it did make us feel a little old. :) I took more pictures, but my internet (or computer) is going really slowly right now, so there's no time to wait for the pictures to upload. We'd never been there before, so it was a fun day! A little cold, but no snow, so not too bad. It was fun to walk around with no agenda, just seeing what there was to see.

One week, No-Shampoo

2010-02-26T13:49:00.000-06:00

Okay, so it's been a week now since I went shampoo free. Ben still thinks I'm crazy, but I figure why not. If you follow "natural" type blogs, I'm sure you've heard of it. And really, the first time I read it, I thought those people were crazy, too! But I kept hearing about it and it seemed like a lot of people were doing it. And it's super cheap, so I figured I needed to try it before spending more money on shampoo.

I'm pretty much using the same method as Tsh at Simple Mom. Baking soda with water, pour it on, scrub it in, rinse it out. Then spray on some apple cider vinegar. And rinse. It's super easy - I definitely like that! Some people say their hair was miraculously better from the first time they did it. Mine wasn't. Lots of people talk about a transition period where your hair could be yucky. And I'm not into dirty hair. :) Well, even after a week, my hair doesn't look dirty, I don't think. However, it feels a little dirty. I'm not sure whether that's the transition or that's what it's going to feel like as long as I'm doing this. But I'm hanging on. I will say, I used to use lots of "product", as salon people say. Because my hair is frizzy and curly and thick and long. Anyway, I think I need a haircut (It's been at least a year - have I mentioned our tiny budget? LOL) and that would make it better, but I'm not sure. But I've done the completely natural thing since I started this method - no additional products. And my hair's not very frizzy. It is, however, over the top static-y! I don't know why, but I've just been wearing it back to manage the static.

Anyway, I'm hanging on. I told myself when I started, I could do it for two weeks and if I hated it, I would stop. But I don't hate it. I just don't love it yet. Jury's still out. I'll keep you updated.

Oh, another thing - I've been doing it with Anne, too. And for her, I do love it! There are more tangles, so that's not great, but the washing part is good. It rinses out so easily. It has almost ended the tears in the bathtub. (She hates having shampoo rinsed out of her hair.) That alone is reason enough to keep doing it with Anne. :)

Gotta go get some rest in before Anne wakes up from her nap! Happy reading. Happy Friday!

Friday Quick Post

2010-02-26T13:00:00.001-06:00

So I made a necklace for my sister yesterday morning. It was my first try on beading with Anne around. It wasn't bad. She had some of the same beads in front of her and she was stringing them on her own cord. There were some pretty specific design requirements since she wants her baby to be able to play with it while she's nursing, but I think I like it. It's longer than I like (due to the nursing), but I think I'd like a shorter one.

I also made myself a new necklace last night that I love, but I haven't taken pictures of it yet. So you'll have to wait. Sorry!

The Best Muffins Ever

2010-02-26T12:52:00.000-06:00

So Simple Bites posted earlier this week How to Make the Best Muffins Ever. And I have to say, I was pretty skeptical. I mean, I've made some pretty good muffins before. But I used her recipe yesterday (a basic oatmeal muffin) and added in white chocolate chips and frozen blueberries (one of her suggestions). Oh my goodness. Best. Muffins. Ever. Really! You've got to try them. Oh, and I liked that they weren't that sweet. If I wasn't adding in something fairly sweet, I might even want to add some sugar, but the recipe only has 1/4 c of brown sugar. And I'm thinking of trying Agave nectar next time and see how that tastes. But really. Try them. You'll love them!

Shape Collage

2010-02-25T13:29:00.002-06:00

I found this fun site. Shape Collage Here's the collage I made really quickly this morning.

Lent

2010-02-22T22:24:00.000-06:00

Lent seems a little surreal this year. Mostly because I have a two-year-old daughter, I didn't get to attend our church's Ash Wednesday service. And this past week, as I have been trying to live into the Lenten season, I've realized how important that service has been to me in the past. Kind of like how important they say a funeral is for mental closure with a death. Next year, I'm definitely going to go to a Ash Wednesday service. Anne will be three, so I'm sure things like this will be easier.

Speaking of which, I'm really struggling with how to observe Lent with Anne. I've looked at lots of sites online and gotten some great ideas (like this one and this one) but they just seem a little old for her. But I'm really enjoying the way our pastors are leading us this Lent. Okay, it's only been one Sunday, but Mindy's sermon was great. Essentially, the idea is that Lent is about love and joy. Only through understanding God's sacrificial love for us, can we begin to know ourselves and live into God's kingdom here on earth. (Mindy, forgive me if this is not the point you were trying to make! I miss pieces here and there while caring for Anne.) Anyway, so to connect those two points - I've decided to just try to find new and creative ways to help Anne understand how much God loves her. What could be a better way to understand Easter, right? It doesn't get any more basic than that. God loves us.

It's too late now, but tomorrow I promise to update you on my no-poo adventure.

A Classic

2010-02-22T21:44:00.000-06:00

Until Anne got this book for Christmas, I did not understand people's fascination with it. How could it really be that cool?! But it is. Really. It is. Anne loves it and we read it just about every night. I've decided it's the words. I fully admit that I love words and can randomly love or hate a word just because of how it sounds. The phonemes she puts together are soothing. They really are. The repetitive "oo" and "sh" sounds are so calming. Anyway, it's just what I've been thinking about.

Catching up

2010-02-22T19:42:00.000-06:00

That's what I feel like I've been doing all week! I have a pile of laundry on my couch to fold that feels like Mt Everest! I'm determined to tackle it tonight during The Big Bang Theory (Ben and I love that show! :)). But part of the work, I'm making for myself, I'll admit. Here's the pile of Anne's toys that I'm going to go through after she's in bed to figure out which to keep upstairs, which to put in the basement and which to give away.

Yikes! That's a big pile! Definitely high on my to-do list. One little girl doesn't need that many toys!

But there are still beautiful things in my life.

She's not really big into dress-up yet, but she does like her fairy wings. :)

Isn't this a beautiful daisy? It was at Ben's parents house. Spring is on the way.

Two - 30 Days of Beauty

2010-02-13T18:49:00.005-06:00

Ben's brother is getting married tomorrow, so we're in Lincoln. Anne loves her grandparents, and it's nice to come for a visit. This one will be brief since we have to be back for work and school Monday. Travel today was great. Traffic was fast but not too heavy. And Anne slept. Aren't sleeping children precious?

And I've rediscovered a crochet project this week:

I pulled it out of the closet and remembered how pretty it is! It's a repeating ribbed shell pattern. It will be a small afghan for Anne; I started it before she was born. I guess that's the other thing - she still doesn't have a mommy-made blanket and I feel like she needs one! So I'm working on it again.

And I don't think this really goes with the beauty theme, but I had a flash of brilliance and discovered how to take pictures of Anne!

While I was taking pictures of the blanket she wanted, as usual, to see what pictures I was taking. She's noticed that pictures show up on the back of the camera (on the LCD). But my camera's LCD is one that flips out and around. So I flipped it out so that she could see it while I take pictures of her; I looked through the viewfinder. She loved it! She sat still for about 20 pictures. Not all of them came out, of course, but it worked better than usual.

And to close, a beautiful quote, courtesy of ...infinitely learning...

“There is no such thing as a simple act of compassion
or an inconsequential act of service.
Everything we do for another person has infinite consequences.”

~ Caroline Myss ~

Simple Living Media Giveaways

2010-02-10T10:51:00.003-06:00

So I told you earlier that Simple Mom added on. So to celebrate the blog launches, they're each giving away a great prize package.

Simple Organic is giving away a package that includes Laundry Tree SoapNuts (I've really wanted to try these!), Bummis organic cotton diapering kit, a Diva Cup, [Me] & Goji custom cereal, and Amanda Blake Soule's (SouleMama) books The Creative Family and Handmade Home.

Simple Mom is giving away a package that includes a 70 inch strand of pearls from One Pearl, a year of photo overlays from Ali Edwards, and a year's subscription to Seeing the Everyday magazine.

Simple Bites package includes 25 vanilla beans, a Smith knife sharpener, a cookbook called Blog Aid that was created to benefit Haiti, a sampling of products from Canterbury Naturals, and a Keurig single serve coffee brewer.

Simple Kids and Simple Homeschool are both giving away packages as well. They include Amanda Blake Soule's books, $50 gift card to Imagine Childhood (that's the place Carra blogged about last week), creative coloring books by Flipflops and Applesauce, as well as a signed copy of Jamie Martin's Steady Days which I can highly recommend, even though I haven't made my way all the way through.

In the interest of full disclosure, I get an extra entry in these giveaways by blogging about them, LOL, but I am really excited to be reading these blogs. And the products in the giveaway are top notch.

SimpleMom adds on

2010-02-08T17:05:00.001-06:00

So I've been reading Tsh at SimpleMom for a while now and I love it. :) She inspires me to be the best version of myself without going crazy. "Live Simply. Stay Sane." But they've unveiled today an umbrella company, Simple Living Media. And they've opened three new blogs, Simple Homeschool, Simple Bites, and the one I'm most excited about, Simple Organic.

Simple Organic is about sustainable and healthy living for mainstream people. We’ll cover green tips and trends, provide tutorials on repurposing items you already own, frugal crafts that celebrate nature and responsible living, and ways to improve your health and lifestyle with natural remedies.

This is a positive, family-friendly place geared to the average home manager interested in “greenifying” their home and lifestyle. We have no interest in piling on the guilt or preaching a hermit lifestyle.

The goal of Simple Organic is just as it sounds: to make things simple. Attainable. Do-able.

Anyway, that's my plug for Simple Mom today. :)

30 Days of Beauty

2010-02-08T09:48:00.000-06:00

Emotional stress takes so much out of me! It's been a rough weekend and I feel like I've got nothing left to start my week with... yech. So I'm taking this opportunity to remember the beautiful things. Bluebirdbaby has started

So I'm going to join her quest to remember that spring is coming!

And while today's photos certainly aren't as beautiful as hers, they spoke peace into my life this morning. And that's the point.

So actually on my to-do list today is to enjoy spending time with Anne. Since I have no energy today for two-year-old-ness, I thought I needed the reminder every time I looked at my daily docket. And I realized that Anne enjoying drawing with markers (so much more exciting than crayons, apparently :)) is a beautiful thing. To enjoy each thing you are doing, as you are doing it - that's a great thing about a kid. No worrying about the next thing - just enjoying the present.

And it's snowing today. Again. And it's February 8. Can you tell I'm not that excited about it? But thinking about the 30 days of beauty, I was reminded that I'm lucky to live somewhere in the city where I get to look at trees. Trees are very important to me! And trees are beautiful covered in a blanket of new white snow. So this is the view from my front porch.

And I'm going to relax and remember that the laundry will always be waiting for me and choose to focus on Anne. We'll both be happier.

Homemade Cleaners

2010-02-04T21:46:00.000-06:00

So Laura, these are for you. :)
When I was researching recipes, most everything said to use the Alkaline cleaner for basic cleaning. And I use it occasionally. But I really like the Acidic cleaner. I use it all the time. Maybe it's because I don't use cleaner for things like wiping off counters, or maybe its because I have hard water, or because I have a small child, but I find the Acidic cleaner is what I reach for first. I spray it on, leave it for a minute or so, then wipe clean. It works great!

All Purpose Cleaner - Acidic

The acid in this cleaner will dissolve mineral buildup and neutralize and deodorize many body fluid odors.

1/4 c white distilled vinegar

1/2 t liquid soap or detergent

3/4 c warm water

couple of drops of essential oil - I like orange oil

Combine ingredients in a spray bottle and shake to blend before use. Spray surface generously then wipe clean.

All Purpose Cleaner - Alkaline

This is the all-purpose cleanser you should reach for first, because it works on most dirt.

1/2 t washing soda (NOT baking soda)

2 t borax

1/2 t liquid soap or detergent

2 c hot water
couple of drops of essential oil - I like orange oil

Combine the washing soda, borax, and soap in a spray bottle. Pour in the hot water (it will dissolve the minerals), screw on the lid, and shake to blend and dissolve. Spritz on surface and wipe to clean. For tough dirt, leave the cleaner on for few minutes before wiping it off.

This cleaner is environmentally friendly, but the washing soda and borax are caustic, so keep out of reach of children and pets.

Consumption for Convenience

2010-02-04T21:14:00.000-06:00

I was cooking tonight and was struck by just how ingrained it is in our society to use throw-away items just because it's convenient. This recipe told me to put the partially prepared items on waxed paper or aluminum foil until the next step. And frankly, I probably wouldn't do this just because I don't have enough countertop space - I'd automatically use something that would hold up on its own. But why use something to throw away? Just so you don't have another dish to wash? That's not an awful reason, I admit. But it seems a little lazy and shallow. I know these are not revolutionary ideas, but it just struck me differently tonight.

Snapshots

2010-02-01T21:53:00.001-06:00

This is our cozy "fireplace." Anne's warming her toes after a bath.

This is the face of a very unhappy 2 year old that couldn't have another cookie. She can cry at the drop of a hat. :)

This is Anne's first tearing/gluing art project. Cute, eh? She's pretty proud of it.

Isn't she cute with her really big monkey? (Thanks, Uncle Seth!)

And a picture from December that I've never posted. This was the Southern Rail Christmas Train that we saw at Union Station. It was fun. Anne liked the train part more than the Christmas part. :)

Funniest Thing I Heard Today

2010-02-01T21:23:00.000-06:00

Anne made me laugh today. When we got home from work today we were going to start an art project, but I thought she had a dirty diaper. When I asked, though, she said she didn't. I'm trying to work with her on telling the truth, so I got in her face and asked her again. Nope, no poopy pants here. So then I patiently reminded her that if she has poopy pants and doesn't change them, she'll have a sore bottom. "Will you have a sore bottom later, Anne?" She tilted her head, then said thoughtfully, "Lil' bit."

We changed her diaper.

Uh-oh

2010-01-27T11:28:00.003-06:00

Words you don't want to hear from your two-year old working with you in the office:

My scissors? My scissors!

Maybe I should pay more attention? (and no, she didn't do anything with them. She's just discovered that scissors cut and that's pretty exciting, apparently!)

Naming the Year

2010-01-26T18:55:00.002-06:00

Do any of you name your years? I read the idea on a couple of the blogs I'm following and I'm intrigued by the idea. Here's a post that Ann wrote about naming their years. Maybe it's just because I've had such a rough couple of years and have felt so out of touch with "normal" life, but it seems like year naming would be a grounding experience. As Ann says, "Named, we now have a destination, a way across the next twelve months." Maybe it's just the idealist/poet/romantic in me that likes the new different things I keep coming across, but I can't get this idea out of my head. (or maybe it's my heart?) I feel like it's a bit late, being almost the end of January, but I'm praying that God will give me a word to name this new year. I want this year to be different than the last two, but I don't think different happens accidentally. I need an intention. Not particularly a goal, because that suggests that there's an end.

Anyway, I told you all (all 3 of you that read my paltry musings), I'd try to blog more. So I am. And this is what I've been thinking about.

Oh, and about how when I asked Ben what he thought about me trying a homemade deodorant I'd read, he told me No! He said that was just too weird. :) Honestly, I already make all of our cleaning products, how much more weird would it be to do deodorant, too? But apparently, I have some convincing to do. LOL

Oh, and so many bloggers have amazing photos to go along with their posts. It's inspiring me to get out my camera more. Maybe tomorrow....

How to Handle Little People

2010-01-26T10:52:00.002-06:00

So since I'm following so many blogs now, I'm really going to have to work to post original content and not just tell you all the wonderful things I'm reading. But I couldn't help it today. :)
I've truly enjoyed reading Holy Experience. Her prose is beautiful. Beautiful in a special day, every day kind of way that I want to experience. Each ordinary day is extraordinary when viewed from the right perspective. Anyway, her (re)post from today was beautiful. How to Handle Little People: A (Non)Tutorial.

So much for blogging

2010-01-25T10:06:00.002-06:00

My title pretty much sums it up. My poor neglected blog.... So many other things are going on in my life that I haven't written. Different reasons on different days. But I feel like being honest today. So it's back to blogging.

I've started reading lots of blogs about mothering, urban living/homesteading, simplicity, etc. (like this one, this one, and this one.) They've inspired me. In fact this week I'm very excited about winning this book and accompanying home planner. A mommy blogger, Jamie at SteadyMom, wrote a short book about enjoying motherhood. About doing it intentionally, professionally, and giving your best to your kids. I'm really looking forward to reading it. Doing some things "good enough" is not always the easiest thing to do. So I'm working at it. Because Anne deserves best.

And I had time to blog today since I was sick yesterday and am taking it easy today. Anne's watching more tv than usual today so I get a chance to be on the computer. A treat for both of us. But now Ben is sick. Yech. Especially since his class started today. Hopefully he'll feel good enough to go tomorrow.

Okay, time for something to drink. (Nothing to eat and very little to drink for 36 hours takes a while to recover from.)

Anyone else feel like this?

2009-10-22T13:42:00.002-05:00

When will she be potty trained?

2009-10-21T11:59:00.001-05:00

I just changed a diaper that was ammonia-y enough to make my eyes water. (I love using cloth for many reasons, but the thought that I have to smell this one again makes me yearn for disposables!) Oh Universe, please tell me she'll be potty trained soon!

Do they not realize cheese is expensive?!

2009-10-15T11:30:00.002-05:00

I was looking today for a recipe for some kind of casserole with chicken, rice and frozen vegetables. But almost everything had cheese in it. I finally found a slow cooker soup recipe that looks good. Good grief. Even the recipes on the "budget" sites had a cup or more of cheese in them. Really, have they bought cheese recently?

That's my tirade for the day. Okay, now I promise to be more calm and balanced.

Mother in training

2009-09-30T13:21:00.005-05:00

A couple of days ago, Anne asked to wear her baby. So I tied up a scarf for her to use. She is loving wearing her baby! I love that she knows that slings are where babies belong. And I love that she's really getting into imaginative play.

Doesn't she look cute?

2009-09-30T13:17:00.001-05:00

One day watching a video, she was lying like this. I thought she just looked very cute. :)

2009-09-30T13:12:00.002-05:00

One day she looked up on the top of her dresser and saw my big doll. So I got it down and she's really enjoyed sitting next to her on the bench in her room.

Father, I know that all my life

2009-09-17T22:02:00.003-05:00

An article I read a couple of days ago referenced this hymn. It's by Anna L Waring, a Quaker turned Church of England, 1850. I can hear the Quaker upbringing in her writing.

Father, I know that all my life
Is portioned out for me,
And the changes that are sure to come
I do not fear to see;
But I ask Thee for a present mind
Intent on pleasing Thee.

I ask Thee for a thoughtful love, isn't that nice? a thoughtful love
Through constant watching wise,
To meet the glad with joyful smiles,
And to wipe the weeping eyes;
And a heart at leisure from itself, I like this line, too. Rest from the cares of my heart. Rest.
To soothe and sympathize.

I would not have the restless will
That hurries to and fro,
Seeking for some great thing to do
Or secret thing to know;
I would be treated as a child,
And guided where I go.

Wherever in the world I am,
In whatsoe’er estate,
I have a fellowship with hearts
To keep and cultivate;
And a work of lowly love to do
For the Lord on Whom I wait.

So I ask Thee for daily strength,
To none that ask denied, none denied. none!
And a mind to blend with outward life
While keeping at Thy side;
Content to fill a little space,
If Thou be glorified.

And if some things I do not ask
In my cup of blessing be,
I would have my spirit filled the more
With grateful love to Thee,
More careful, not to serve Thee much,
But to please Thee perfectly.

There are briers besetting every path
That call for patient care;
There is a cross in every lot,
And an earnest need for prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee
Is happy anywhere.

In a service which Thy will appoints
There are no bonds for me;
For my inmost heart is taught “the truth”
That makes Thy children “free.”
And a life of self renouncing love
Is a life of liberty.

My first real sale!

2009-09-15T20:47:00.003-05:00

I made my first real sale on Etsy today! To someone I've never met and lives in another state! Yay! I mailed it to her today. I felt very successful! Congratulations to me!

If only this weren't true...

2009-09-02T10:59:00.002-05:00

Changing Diapers

2009-08-04T12:42:00.002-05:00

This morning Anne was playing with her teddy bears in her room. Then she got up on her bed, pulled off the changing pad and put it on the floor. Then she walked out of her bedroom. It didn't occur to me that she was doing something in particular. She came back in with a cloth diaper wipe she had gotten wet -- and proceeded to "clean" her teddy bear. And tried to put a couple different diapers on the bear. She was too cute! Besides pretend talking on the phone, this is the first creative/imaginative play I've seen her do. Very cool!

The perfect kid

2009-08-02T22:12:00.002-05:00

I was complaining to Ben that when Anne and I went outside this evening for 15 minutes, I got six mosquito bites - SIX - and Anne got none. I didn't think that Anne had gotten any bites all summer and I get a minimum of three every time I step outside. But then Ben said he saw her get a couple of bites last week on her ankles. And she never scratched!

My child covers her mouth when she yawns, says "Thank You" TOO often, and doesn't scratch mosquito bites. I think I have the perfect kid.

Miscellany

2009-07-26T16:55:00.004-05:00

Thoughts and updates. in no particular order.

Last night Anne yawned. And covered her mouth! I guess I must do a good job of covering my mouth too, because I don't know where else she would have learned it. Same thing with "Thank you." She says it all the time. I love it! I have the greatest kid.

We've started going to the KCK public library. They've got lots of movies. And the toys in the kids section are great. Oh, and fish! Can I just say that I love libraries? They are amazing places to me. We had a lot of books in our house growing up - books were certainly valued. But we didn't have a lot of money, so we didn't just go out a buy a book that we wanted. But go into a library and there are hundreds of thousands of books for the taking! Free! I mean, that's enough to take your breath away! I really want Anne to love books, too. And she's on her way. She loves to read books with us. And she loves to go to the library. I'm so glad.

Chocolate Banana bread is in the oven. Yay.

I've learned (thanks, Carra) how to make yogurt. It makes me happy. So easy. So cheap. So much better for you than the uber-sugared versions at the grocery store. And Anne loves it.

Anne knows all the motions to the Itsy Bitsy Spider. She loves it.

She's really starting to talk. Two-syllable words are becoming pretty common. I just have to remind her to use words when she's upset. :)

Okay, on to the next thing....

2009-06-29T13:53:00.000-05:00

Lots of LEGOs!

2009-06-29T13:19:00.000-05:00

She was too interested in the horses to look at the camera.

2009-06-29T13:17:00.000-05:00

Family picture!

2009-06-29T13:15:00.000-05:00

almost 6,000 pieces!

2009-06-29T13:10:00.000-05:00

The LEGO store was amazing!

2009-06-29T13:08:00.000-05:00

She loved being with Honey and Pops.

2009-06-29T13:06:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure what number tantrum this was that morning. She was ti-red!

2009-06-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

Maybe she'll be a world traveler?

2009-06-26T21:37:00.000-05:00

She enjoyed the exhibits about the colleges.

2009-06-26T21:33:00.000-05:00

This is the VBS exhibit.

General Assembly - Florida

2009-06-26T21:31:00.000-05:00

Snippets of Conversation

2009-06-09T09:32:00.002-05:00

Sitting on the front porch (or sometimes even in the back yard) Anne and I hear snippets of the conversations of the people that walk or run by. Sometimes these are interesting. Sometimes sad. Sometimes funny. Last night we were in the back yard and I heard a conversation approaching. As this couple ran by the only thing I heard was the man saying, "How the hell was I supposed to know what you're feeling?!" So stereotypical!

2009-05-29T10:48:00.002-05:00

Andy's post here is great. It's a passage from Brennan Manning's The Furious Longing of God - which is now on my to-read list. :)

Elizabeth Gilbert Quote

2009-05-27T11:25:00.000-05:00

All the sorrow and trouble of this world is caused by unhappy people....The search for contentment is, therefore, not merely a self-benefiting act, but also a generous gift to the world.

Pomeranian cat?

2009-05-26T12:57:00.002-05:00

Anne and I went to the park on Friday. As Anne was playing on the play equipment, a lady walked up holding a Pomeranian. Anne meowed. :) I laughed.

Twirling!

2009-05-22T11:25:00.003-05:00

Anne's decided she loves to twirl! I love it. Sometimes she seems all tomboy - playing in the dirt and puddles, climbing trees. But the next moment, she's all girl. When given the option, she always picks pink or purple clothes. This morning, she went into her bedroom and took off her sandals and put on her black patent dress shoes. :) And now she's decided she loves to twirl. :) Sometimes she'll twirl till she falls down. She's so fun!

OMG!

2009-05-09T08:11:00.002-05:00

My child not only chews her fingernails, she's taken to chewing her toenails. Yech!

This week

2009-04-21T21:44:00.001-05:00

Anne discovered how to get on top of the table. She was too cute not to take a picture. :)

And look closely. Today Anne skinned her knees for the first time. Here she's waiting for band-aids.

Pedicures

2009-04-21T08:33:00.003-05:00

"There's nothing that says, There, there, everything is going to be fine, like a foot massage and fresh polish."

Amen!

Read this in a book this weekend and promptly went and painted my toenails. Not as good as having it done, but hey, I do feel better every time I look at my pink toenails. :)

Dandelions

2009-04-18T13:18:00.003-05:00

So I like the yellow dandelion flower. I admit it. But I have lots growing in my flower garden. And they've gotten BIG! Creepy big. :O Really. Have you ever seen a big dandelion? Ever looked at it?! Scary! They kind of remind me of some Star Trek alien. Very tentacle-ly. Yesterday they got to me so much that I had to get rid of them. Which of course is a good thing. Anne played in the dirt while I pulled weeds and she thought it was great fun! So it was outside fun all around.

The smartest person in the world

2009-03-30T11:18:00.003-05:00

When I get old

2009-03-26T21:08:00.002-05:00

I'm not going to be bitter and complaining. Especially to strangers! :) I went to a doctor today and while I was sitting in the fairly crowded waiting room, an elderly woman came and sat next to me. I don't mind talking to people in situations like this (I don't usually start the conversation, but sure, I'll talk). But then she proceeded to complain about her living situation, her kids, her medical problems, the doctor, the doctor's office - pretty much anything that she could complain about, she did. I do not want to be like that. I realize she may not have the life she wanted - her kids could live closer, her husband could still be alive, doctors could be on time - but there were good things to comment on. The weather was beautiful today! And there was a 5-6 year old wearing the cutest tights (really! horizontal colorful stripes!). Anyway. I am going to be an old lady that everyone wants to be around because I see the good things in life.

Libraries are great!

2009-03-25T14:05:00.001-05:00

Anne loves the library. We went this afternoon to get some new books. And when we left, I had set the bag of books on the ground to get her in her car seat. well, she got a book out of the bag and sat down on the asphalt to read it. :) She couldn't even wait to get home to read it. I love that she loves books!

Ambrose of Milan

2009-03-22T20:40:00.001-05:00

Lord Jesus Christ, you are for me medicine when I am sick;
you are my strength when I need help;
you are life itself when I fear death;
you are the way when I long for heaven;
you are light when all is dark;
you are my food when I need nourishment.
—Ambrose of Milan (340-397)

Saturday

2009-03-21T21:07:00.003-05:00

Today is Ben's birthday. Happy Birthday! We had a birthday party for him this morning. I love breakfast! Eggs, pancakes, sausage, and make your own fruit smoothies. Yum. And we played Settlers of Catan. It was more fun than I remembered. We had a great time.

Anne gave me flowers today for the first time this afternoon! She picked the dandelions from the church yard. Very cute. Granted, she took this back and played with them, but still......

Thursday we had a great night with my girlfriends. Why don't I get together with them more often?

Anne's deciding she wants to be a little more independent. Yay. (that one was sarcastic.....) Lets see, today she didn't want to eat what I fed her at lunch, she didn't want to stay where she needed to in the bookstore, she didn't want to come in for a bath, she didn't want to go to bed. Good grief. I have to remind myself frequently that independence is important. And she's so fun to play with now that she's older. :)

And I have a splinter. In an awkward place on my fourth finger on my right hand. I can't get to it to get it out. And it hurts. Okay, now I'm just whining. :) Better go to bed.

Nail biting

2009-03-13T21:14:00.002-05:00

Anne's started biting her fingernails. Not all of them, just her index fingers. I'm horrified! But as I looked for information about it, everything says to ignore it and at most try to keep her hands occupied when she's likely to bite them. Ugh. I want to do something.

Pictures I promised

2009-03-10T22:02:00.002-05:00

For about a week, she decided that reading lying down was very fun. And the book is cute, too.

2009-03-10T22:01:00.000-05:00

Such a cute baby! This smile looks just like her.

2009-03-10T22:00:00.003-05:00

She loves slides! (I also happen to think this picture is great. :))

2009-03-10T22:00:00.002-05:00

We went to a park in January, and I snapped this picture. It looks like her. :)

2009-03-10T21:57:00.000-05:00

Anne's first time on a jungle gym. The slide was her favorite of course.

Catch-up

2009-03-10T14:48:00.002-05:00

So it's been forever! I know! But it's been a bit of a crisis around here. But enough about that.

Anne is growing so fast! She is talking more and more every day. Dog, bird, Jesus, hello, hi, apple, please, Daddy, book (I think), bath. It's very fun!

She loves to play outside. We've had several really nice days and since I like to go outside, too, we've been outside a lot. She asks to go outside several times a day. And she doesn't understand why she can't go outside on the really cold days, or the snowy days, or the rainy days, or all of those days that aren't pretty in that never-ending space between winter and spring.

But my flowers are up! So spring is on the way! Tulips, Surprise Lilies, and purple hyacinths.

And I've started to sell my jewelry on Etsy. There's a banner on the right to the site, but it's http://www.AnnesInspiration.etsy.com. Tell your friends. :)

Gotta go. I'll post a picture of Anne soon.

Happy Christmas Eve

2008-12-24T21:46:00.001-06:00

Winter Solstice

2008-12-21T21:52:00.002-06:00

Winter Solstice is today! And guess what the Winter solstice means? It means from now on, the nights are getting shorter! Spring is on the way! And let me tell you, that's something to celebrate in my book! (and yes, it's worthy of four exclamation points. :))

Snoopy

2008-12-18T13:22:00.002-06:00

I love Peanuts. Schultz was a master at cartooning - even without words. Here's a classic:

Me, a Treasurer?!

2008-12-13T11:22:00.002-06:00

I know. It's like a cruel joke from the universe. :)

I just have to say for the record that the books balance, finally. With several hours of help from my sister, the accountant. Yay! (It's too long of a story to tell.)

Things

2008-12-12T18:18:00.003-06:00

Christmas is almost here. It hardly seems possible. And yet another year, even though I try to plan ahead, I still feel like I'm too busy to enjoy the season. Maybe next year I'll learn. But I have a party tonight, so I'm excited!

http://www.dailylit.com - totally cool site! You sign up to receive daily e-mails with short installments of books. That way you get to read whole books a little bit at a time. I'm going to try it with one of those books I've never managed to get through. (I'm thinking Tolstoy to start with.) :) The classics are free - the bestsellers are available for a small fee. Such a neat idea!

A verse for today I read on a blog I never read - 1 Samuel 7:12, "Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name Ebenezer, saying, 'THUS FAR, THE LORD HAS HELPED US."

Ice water

2008-12-10T07:26:00.003-06:00

So it snowed yesterday. Not lot. Probably an inch. But when I was heading to work I put Anne's higher tennis shoes on and her mittens on; I thought she might want to touch the snow. I had to stop to get something out of the car, so I put Anne down to wander. I look up and she's standing up to her ankles in a water puddle. I couldn't see her face, so I'm not sure, but I imagine she was thinking, "What is this?!" Of course, she's only ever been in warm bath water. :) I rushed her upstairs to change her into warm clothes. I thought it was hilarious. There's only one big puddle in the back. And she found it.

Gratitude

2008-11-27T11:32:00.003-06:00

So I read on Andy's blog this quote by Henri Nouwen as quoted in Brennan Manning's Ruthless Trust.

To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives--the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections--that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for. Let's not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.

I read it on Monday when he posted it and I've been mulling it over in my mind ever since. I'm sure I'm not there yet (will I ever get there?), but it's something to strive for.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Christmas

2008-11-22T20:11:00.004-06:00

We got out some decorations tonight. I left these on the floor since I wasn't going to put them on the tree. I thought Anne might like to look at them for a minute or two. She loved them! She played with them for almost 30 minutes! She would put them around her neck, take them off, bang them all together on the floor, over and over again. It was so cute!

Christmas pictures

2008-11-21T09:44:00.001-06:00

Steph is going to take Christmas pictures of Anne tomorrow morning. I'm very excited. I'll post the best ones as soon as I have them.

7 1/2 hours!

2008-11-16T20:14:00.002-06:00

That's how much sleep I got last night. Not broken up by nursing 3 times , either. :) Actually 7 1/2 hours all at one time! yay! I first put her down at 7:30, but she woke up at 9:45. But then she slept from 10 - 6 without waking up! (I slept from 10:30 - 6.) That's the most I've slept at one time since Anne was born, 378 nights ago. Maybe - hopefully - it's the beginning of a trend.

Some 1 year pictures

2008-11-08T10:10:00.003-06:00

I took these Tuesday, the day after she turned one year. There are more pictures on my photo album here.

2008-11-08T09:35:00.000-06:00

2008-11-08T09:34:00.000-06:00

*%^#! Daylight Savings Time

2008-11-04T06:08:00.002-06:00

Let me go on the record for being heartily opposed to daylight savings time. Before Anne, I thought it was a mere nuisance. I was wrong, it is so bad, I can't come up with a strong enough word. For the past while, she's been fairly routine - get up about 7, eat, play, snack, play, eat, nap in the afternoon, snack, play, go to bed about 7:30. I don't need a serious routine, but a little goal is good. And I like that I get to sleep till 7 and she goes to bed fairly early. Okay, enter daylight savings time. Sunday she was awake at 4:45. Took a nap at 9 a.m. Did NOT take an afternoon nap. Wanted to go to be at 5. Monday I got her to sleep till 6. Took a morning nap. Wanted to take an afternoon nap at 4 (!) and when I wouldn't let her sleep very long, she cried almost the whole time till she went to bed at 7. And today - up at 5:15. (in full disclosure, Anne has a cold, too, but I blame most of this on the time change.)

Screw daylight savings time. The creators obviously were not parents.

Happy 1st Birthday, Anne!

2008-11-01T22:02:00.000-05:00

Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday!

2008-11-01T22:00:00.000-05:00

She was having fun opening presents, but either is getting a cold or has allergies. She looks a little dazed, eh?

Visit from family

2008-11-01T21:56:00.000-05:00

Gramma and Grampa came to visit this weekend.

Halloween!

2008-11-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

We didn't go trick-or-treating, but she still looked pretty cute. :)