Life is too short.

I have been completely overwhelmed by a million tiny details and mundane tasks these past few weeks. I have been scattered and impatient and cranky and mean to my kids and quite honestly a major complainer to my truly wonderful and supportive husband.

Until Sunday.

At church our Bishop made a very somber announcement that a family in our ward had lost their 7-year old grandson in Alaska over the weekend when he accidentally drowned. None of the details were shared but you could hear a collective gasp from the congregation and my heart ached for this family I had never met or known and in a flash ached for many families I have known and known of over the years of my life that have experienced heart breaking tragedy. Tears started to roll down my face for this particular loss and also because I knew in my very core that I have got to stop letting the craziness of my life consume me and that I must acknowledge that our life here on Earth may be very short.

I gave my children on my lap and on both sides of me a squeeze and I vowed to slow down, if only in my head, and appreciate. Just appreciate. I am ashamed of the fact that someone elses tragedy is once again my personal lesson in introspection. I wonder if we ever feel that we are "doing alright".

***Is it a testament of perfect humility to recognize our constant lack or to work so diligently that we don't have time to notice?***

April Fool's Day!

 

Okay-so every year I am always trying to come up with a great April Fool's Day joke and nothing ever seems good enough to really pull off. Well, this year was too perfect! I was really trying to come up with something good for Mike since he was getting ready to go to CA on Monday. He was so busy packing and taking care of a million things at the house to get it realtor-ready that something told me he might not appreciate a joke about me being pregnant or deciding that I really wished I were a man.

So about mid-day I shifted my devious focus to my kids who are really just now entering the age when they can be just gullible enough and yet enjoy the humor of a great joke. So while we were eating dinner I told them (with no warning to Mike) that we had been looking at houses in San Diego and they were really expensive (that part sadly, is true) so we were planning to buy a house in Mexico instead. I really had them going as I told them about how we would get a tutor for our family to help us learn Spenish and that we might even be able to get a donkey. Landry flat out said, "I'm just not going." (This is not surprising since he is the kid that orders a hamburger when we eat at a mexican restaurant.) I even told them that they would get to eat beans and rice at la cafeteria en la escuela. They were not impressed and McCall looked visibly uncomfortable.

So I could see that they had really taken the bait so I finally said that the only bummer was that Mexico didn't celebrate one holiday that we have in the US-April Fool's Day of course! It really was so funny because they thought we were just nuts and Mike jumped right in and really played it up. Poor kids. I crack myself up!

I actually think I am just getting punchy since I am a little crazed at being single mommy again for the next 3 months while Mike heads out to start his new job in CA. I'm in charge of getting and keeping the house tip top to sell and our next home might need to be a double-wide since homes in San Diego are apparently wallpapered in 24 kt gold. Anybody with friends or family in San Diego County please email because we need help choosing a neighborhood.

Don't get me wrong-I am really excited to be getting back to sunny CA but just absorbing a lot of shock right now. It is a good thing that Griffin is the perfect (albeit giant 95%ile everything) baby. He is the most amazing, sweet natured, adorable, all-night sleeping little creature ever! We are all so happy to have him. He helps me to keep perspective andwatching McCall and Landry dote on him just melts my heart. Mike is dying at being away so we are already sending pictures several times a day and we'll get the webcam going soon.

I'm still breathing and taking the opportunity to exercise my "flexibility" each day!

Griffin's First Laugh-Here's the video!

Cookie Gets the First Laugh!

(This is a video clip-I'm still trying to get it to play for you so keep checking!)

I just returned from taking Griffin for his first visit to Cookie and Poppie's house in California. He has been smiling like crazy and seemed just about to laugh before we left. It turns out he must have been saving it for my cute bald mom because he gave it up just for her. She was of course delighted and it was just the sweetest moment. Cookie (Gwen) has just finished up her chemo and although you can't tell from the video, her hair is even starting to grow back. She has a little fuzz but Griffin doesn't seem to have too much more than her so far. He was a perfect baby sleeping for 95% of our 12 total hours of flying time. He received special acclaim by airline employees and travellers alike! My sister Katie joined us in CA so it was a really nice weekend. I left the big boys and Mike at home to go to work and school-Boo. They will surely be with us next time. It was just so nice to be able to see my mom and know that she is doing much better. She will begin radiation in a few weeks and should be done with her treatment by summer. That will be just in time for some exciting changes for us (I am being "flexible"!) since WE ARE MOVING TO CALIFORNIA! Mike just accepted a position in San Diego and will be starting in April. He'll commute between OH and CA until June to fulfill a consulting contract he has here and help to get the house sold. The big boys will finish out the school year and we hope to be moving by June/July. The cross country move makes my stomach turn but we have done it before and can do it again. At least we will be hiring movers this time! I can't wait for the sunshine and can't wait to see some of you a lot more often. I'll keep you posted and post more photos of the trip soon.

My "Word" for 2007

So, I am sad to admit I have become more of a lurker of late than a blog participator, but I haven't stopped thinking about all of your sparks of inspiration that really make me think-- in absence of actual writing. I have especially been thinking about my word for the year and in light of recent events which I will elaborate on soon, my word for the year is "flexible" --well, really it is "be flexible". A newborn is re-teaching me the "go with the flow" required by his presence in our lives, my big boys' ever increasing scheduling requirements (not to mention their need for my attention) are testing my Franklin Planning skills, my husband's need for my support in many ways is nearly sending me to Dr. Phil, the demands of church and school responsibilities are pushing me to the brink of saying an occasional "no", and a mother and grandmother needing much love, support and daily phone calls are squeezing the very most out of my maximum capacity 19 hour days (not that I would trade it for anything). I know we are all in the same proverbial boat and I so appreciate reading about your lives to know that I am not alone in my daily quest for balance and hopefully progress. I think I have the beginnings of flexibility but control of my personal existence is pretty important to me and I am about to begin a course certain to involve some spinning. The prize I have my eye on is a mastery (or at least a decent appearance) of breathing in between calm recitations of my mantra "it is all going to be okay". So, here I go. Today I will bend in several different directions and my goal is to flex back to center at the end of it. Then tomorrow I can start again.

Tending My Nest

The following is an article that I found in an odd place but it struck a chord in my life right now as I juggle my "nest" full of a new baby and two other busy boys, life as mom, wife, church and school volunteer, and an individual with a commitment to creative development and personal growth. I am inspired by an article I found on a new website I discovered through a friend called, "The Grocery Game", which is a great place to visit to save money on your grocery bills but kind of an odd place to find such a meaningful note. I hope you enjoy and consider your own "Human Doing vs. Human Being" as I have been movitated to do.

"All too often, we make New Years Resolutions to take on new tasks and new
commitments that keep us so busy, that we become a “Human Doing”, rather than a
“Human Being”. How much can I really “do” outside my home, and still “enjoy”
my family? And to take it a step further… this is scary… What commitments
outside my home can I un-load? Another thing to consider… And this takes
some courage to really examine… Am I doing things because I want to receive
accolades from people outside my home? After all, praise and validation from
outside the home can be very gratifying. We all love those pats on the back. By
contrast, we don't get a lot of praise for taking care of our homes and families. So we sometimes neglect our homes and family, because we enjoy the praise or affirmation we get for being a "busy body" outside the home. I only know that, because I've caught myself being sucked into that from time to time over the years. So I ask myself... Am I filling my day pleasing other people so much that I don’t have time to enjoy the most important people in my life? Let’s take a brave look at that! As women, alot of us have fallen into that trap from time to time, and to some degree or another. Maybe the best New Years Resolution is not to add activities or to add more outside commitments, but to subtract from my commitments? That’s risky… What will people think? But then, if I’m more relaxed, and place less demands on myself, will I be more enjoyable to be around? Will my family be happier? Will I be happier, knowing deep in my heart that I am doing what's best for me and my family? The most precious times in my life are those moments when I can really absorb what my sons are sharing with me, or really listen to my husband’s great ideas and dreams. I know I’m not really good at that when I am over extended, tired, or pre-occupied. And yet, those are the moments that bring me the most joy! That’s what I live for! Each year, rather than come up with some more things to “do” for my New Year’s Resolution, I resolve to “do” less. I resolve to start saying “no” to so many outside commitments. To take it a step further, I resolve to find some commitments to un-load. I resolve to be less of a “Human Doing” and more of a “Human Being” in 2007. I hope you’ll join me. "

PS: Take the time to stop by The Grocery Game. I have tried this for two weeks and saved over $80 on my regular grocery purchases! Good luck!

Signs of Life

Okay-so my life has been completely overtaken in the very best way possible. Griffin has been such a source of such pure joy in our house that it seems all we can all manage is to sit and play with him and tell each other how happy he makes us. Meanwhile, life is moving forward and I am getting seriously behind. I am barely keeping up which is why my Christmas cards turned into New Year's cards and those are not even all mailed out yet. I'm showering every couple of days now so that is progress and my family is getting regular meals so I keep assuring myself that we will get there...one day! There are many days that I don't leave the house and my friends and neighbors have been so amazing to help with rides for the big boys and taking care of errands wherever they can. I actually attended a PTA meeting last week and my husband came home and saw that I had dressed AND did my hair and makeup and was astonished. Sad.

Anyway, I have had blog guilt now for several weeks so I am back to show signs of life and show off our little sweetie. I have at least 4 blog topics saved in my drafts so slowly I plan to catch up and get connected again. Many of you have sent wonderful and unbelievably thoughtful gifts and I am full of regret about my very tardy thank you notes. I think of you every day and my formal thanks are on the way. It means so much to me to be remembered in your busy lives. You all amaze me with your kindness and organization! I have all kinds of resolutions!

Keep watching for more...I promise!

He's Here!

I am all out of excuses for neglecting my blog, projects, volunteering and other responsibilities that I have felt "too pregnant" to manage. Griffin Michael arrived without a hitch at 7:56 AM on Thursday, November 30th. He weighed 8 lb. 11.65 oz-weighing in just .35 ounces less than his big brother Landry did. We like them big at our house! He is a cutie and has a very sweet and mild temperament so far. He has a raspy voice, also like big brother Landry which makes his nighttime waking more humorous than annoying. The kid loves to eat which is no big surprise from the size of him. We are all enjoying having him home with us and Mike has been a great Mr. Mom for 2 weeks. I think we will both be sad when he goes back to work next week. I have lots of new photos in Griffin's own new gallery at our Smugmug site so feel free to take a peek. We update every few days.

As for the rest of my life-I have much to catch up on but that will have to wait! I plan on enjoying every minute of this little squirt! Thank you so much for all of your well wishes and happy thoughts!

Fall Photos and another Wedding Invitation "Put to Bed"

I spent a few hours this week taking photos of the boys and we had so much fun. The Fall is so beautiful here and lake Erie is such a beautiful backdrop for photos that I can't stand to waste it. Here are some of the best shots of the boys. They seem like such sweet brothers in photos! The camera doesn't always capture the moments of punching and pushing in between loving cherubic smiles! I'm so happy that we took the time to do this.

We are also cheering because the election is over and Mike survived! It is a great feeling and now we can actually enjoy the last few weeks before baby arrives. We just scheduled our delivery for the 30th so assuming Griffin cooperates, we'll be having some excitement early that morning-yahoo! Can't wait!

Just put one more wedding invitation job "to bed" so to speak. The bride and groom to be are very happy and we've all been getting compliments. This is starting to get really fun for me but I can see that I am only going to be able to take clients that are really willing to pay the price for my time. It consumed my life for a lot more time than I anticipated. I had to babysit the printers because I was so concerned about the quality of everything. The photos don't really do the actual pieces much justice but in the end they really did turn out beautiful. The paper is a pearly silver with a blush tone to it. We used vellum envelopes for the outer envelopes so the initials of the B & G showed through underneath the area to be addressed. The bride is adorable and was happy to pay whatever I asked and even brought me a thank you gift because she was so thrilled! Now if only I can count on all of my jobs being so delightful! I'm working on a family Christmas card now so things are moving along! My goal is to start making enough money to justify hiring a housekeeper-isn't that pathetic? A girl has to have goals!

Good Mail, a haven amidst a very busy week!

This week was unbelievably busy for me. I'm sure you are all nodding your heads in agreement as I know you must all spend your days running around in much the same way. A few days ago I was thrilled to see a "Good Mail from Jill" label on a package in my mail box! I love these little surprises and was so excited to open it. Unfortunately I didn't have the time to savor it like I really wanted to at that moment so it had to wait until the day of classroom volunteering, basketball practice, babysitting a neighbors child for a few hours and a doctor's appointment began to wind down before I could sit and soak it in. The goodies included some fun sticky notes (which I use endless supplies of), some Pink Ribbon Tic-Tacs which have already appeased my children on a few occasions while being drug around running errands with mom this week, some really cute stripey ribbon that will be used on a project right away, and a book by Anita Shreve, an author I enjoy reading very much and a title I haven't read yet. How does she do it? It was perfect of course! My mom started her chemo this wee and is not doing well at all with it so on top of the busy days I have been weepy and worried about her in between attempts at concentration on the tasks at hand. Thank you for the kind distraction, Jill. You have intuition beyond comprehension!


After all of the Halloween classroom parties, room volunteering, special hot dog fun lunches at school, errand running, finishing projects for my grandpa's 80th birthday celebration (in Utah and sadly I couldn't attend because of the impending birth of my child), neighbor helping, spelling test studying, lunch making and emergency dry cleaning pick up for my husband who has been in court and local and national TV interviews all week (this might sound like a glamorous brag of sorts but trust me it is NOT), I got two phone calls on Thursday reminding me of 1) a fun rubber stamping class I had signed up for at our brand new Archivers store (yahoo!), and another Dr. appointment scheduled long ago that I had forgotten about that both happen on Friday which I thought was going to be my "take a breath" day. No luck with that. I almost cancelled on the class but I squeezed it in knowing that it might be awhile before I have any down time sans children and I'm so glad I went. It was tons of fun and recharged my battery considerably. The doctor's appointment was not so thrilling but they were on schedule and kind so I can't complain.



The boys in their scary gear with pals at a fun annual party thrown be our neighbors. I'm sad that I didn't take a photo of their yard to show you-it is awesome. They go nuts!

My kids had a great time on Halloween in spite of the fact that mom was hoping an electric wheelchair might appear by the time we got to TOT. I had already spent the day at classroom parties and was tempted to let the kids just go out with a few of the other dads from the street that kindly offered to take the boys but I just couldn't miss out. So I left our treat bucket on the porch with the light on and we set out. The family that owns the original "Ghostbusters" mobile from the movie lives in our neighborhood and brings it out on Halloween to tour the streets and make stops so the kids (and dads!) can take turns witting inside. It is a really fun tradition and something that we just love seeing. They have a full crew dress in jumpsuits and everything-it really is fun to see. I remember seeing that movie in the theater with one of my best girlfriends and her grandma, who recently passed away, so it made me very reminiscent. Strange, but a nice memory.


Since I am on a woe is me roll I have also been crushed about the recent news that our Ward (the group of people that we attend our weekly church meetings with) has been split and dispersed into one new ward (mine as it happens) and two existing wards. It was announced at Stake Conference two weeks ago and everyone is still reeling and adjusting mentally. A lot of my friends and many of the young families are going to the two other wards. I'm sure it will all be fine and we will all enjoy meeting our new Ward this week but it is hard change right before the baby arrives. I loved our Ward and felt so surrounding by friends after being here for such a short time. They say change is good and this does represent a lot of growth in our area so I am working on my positive attitude about it.


So...I feel better now that I have vented and I am going to do absolutely nothing this weekend to recover from the week and get ready for the next one! I am thrilled to announce that we are on the serious baby countdown. Next week we should be scheduling the C-Section delivery of little Griffin Michael Vu so I will keep you all posted.


One more THANK YOU for Jill and this blogland community of friends!

Officially Fall

Today we woke up to a real chill in the air and found that we had a dusting of snow on our roof. Its a little early for my taste but our limited seasonal history in Ohio has taught us that usually we have an early cold snap and then we get just a little Indian Summer right before Halloween allowing for a comfortable evening of jacket-less Trick-or-Treating. We have a little time so we're crossing our fingers and toes!

It is hard to feel the cold since we have really had a beautiful fall so far. Here are some of the great things we've been doing in our amazing weather:

1) Soccer, soccer, and more soccer.

2) Picking apples and pumpkins at Mapleside Farms-a completely enchanting experience I have to say.

3) Halloween partying! In this picture you can see some of the fun Halloween pillowcases we made for some of our favorite friends in Utah. My mom came up with a great little poem set to the basic lyrics of "5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed." Email me for our pumpkins version.

4) Oh...and growing a pumpkin of our own! (Sorry-the evening was dying and I'm wearing black so miraculously you can't fully appreciate my HUGE belly!)


And then when it snowed we decided to "Race for the Cure" at a walking and Burley-riding pace of course. Yes-we had a nice polar blast for our walk but nobody complained. They even had the nerve to serve free "Pink Ribbon Chip" ice cream from our favorite neighborhood ice cream shop, Mitchell's Homemade Icecream .



Thank you once again to all of you who support our race for Cookie! She is doing well and begins her chemo treatments on November 2nd. We expect her hair to start falling out after about 2 weeks of treatments and she has decided to go "hat" rather than "wig" so please send me any ideas you have about cute hat sources!

Race for the Cure Day!

Our family sends a huge thank you to all of you who continue to offer your love, support, prayers, monetary contributions and happy thoughts on behalf of my mom Gwen Drechsler. Tomorrow is race for the Cure day in Cleveland and we are excited to get up bright and early in the chilly weather to walk for our "Cookie"!

Gwen had surgery last week and found that the cancer has travelled to her lypmhnodes so it looks like there will be chemotherapy in her future. That is a bit discouraging but we are all doing our best to remain positive and be hopeful for her cure.

Last year we ached for our young friend Teague May as he battled (and so far has conquered!) cancer in Washington State. His family adopted a motto from the Book of Mormon, "Be of good cheer...". We share this sentiment as we are ever grateful for our blessings and ever hopeful for peace and comfort for our mom, grandma, daughter, sister and friend Gwen. Many kind acts have been sent our way and I am personally so appreciative of friends that have shown love and support in the sweetest ways.

To highlight a few that have taken place:

Kristi C. auctioned one of her adorable handmade Pockets and Posies bags on eBay as part of our fundraising efforts to support our family goal to raise $500 for our Race for the Cure fund.

Another friend, Emily G. made a last minute bid to win the bag and her contribution of $63 will go into the fund.

Amie A. (whom I have never met) sent me a very kind "Good Pink Mail" package full of pink goodies including cozy pink ribbon flannel pajamas, pink ribbon Race Day socks (which I will of course be donning tomorrow!) some fun pink ribbon sticky notes and of course chocolate. Amie's enclosed note shared a personal survival story from her family that instantly brought me "good cheer" and tears to my eyes to realize that we have many supporters all around us who care deeply even for virtual strangers.

Many friends and family members have made financial contributions to our Race effort online to support the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Foundations like these need our support to continue the fight against many cancers affect our friends and family members. It is hard to feel like one in a sea of many but when we look around there are a whole lot of fish swimming right with us.

Evan T. my starving artist little brother in CA has made it a personal project to contribute the proceeds from the sales of his work to support our effort. As a point of interest and to let you know how much this means to me, Evan and I share a biological father. He is doing this for MY mom not his (even though his is wonderful as well!). That is how sweet his involvement is to me.

I can't even name all of you who have promised prayers on our family's behalf but those are perhaps the most needed. We won't understand the why but we trust that there is a reason to draw on our faith and our friendships. Thank you all from my heart of hearts.

Sign Language

A message from my brother Evan, the starving and yet generous artist!

Check it out kids. My mom got a call from my sister in Ohio saying that her mom (my sister and I are from the same dad) has some nasty form of Breast Cancer. My sister is asking for people to help her raise funds for her walk in "Race for a Cure". It's an annual event held all over the country by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and helps fund treatment and science in to cancer prevention and an eventual cure.

Since I can barely keep the lights on my house, I really can't give much. But I have made a run of "Sign Language" prints for sale. If you buy one of these prints, a portion of your payment will go towards my sisters donation to "Race For A Cure". Plus you get a sweet signed and numbered print of one my paintings. It's pretty much a win win situation.

Check out http://www.evantreece.com/images/painting/2006/images/signlanguage.jpg to see what the painting looks like.

"Sign Language"
8x10" (printed on 8.5x11" glossy stock)
$10.00 (includes your donation to the "Race For A Cure")

Thanks for helping me help out my sister! if you know anyone that might be interested please forward this to them!

-e.

Our Family's Race for the Cure

As many of you know, our family recently received news that our Mom and Grandma, Gwen Drechsler, has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She has been given positive news by her doctors that her prognosis is good since it has been caught at an early stage. Her cancer is at stage 2 and it doesn't appear to have spread to the lyphnodes although, further surgery and testing will have to confirm that. She is currently scheduled for surgery next week and once she has recoved from the surgery she will begin radiation treatments. For now they do not feel that chemotherapy will be necessary so we consider that great news.

Our family has decided to participate in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Cleveland, Ohio on October 14th to show our support for our "Cookie". If you would like to support our fundraising efforts please visit our family's fundraising page at: http://race.komenneohio.org/site/TR?px=1052391&pg=personal&fr_id=1000&s_tafId=1002

Mom seems to be hanging in there but of course has moments of feeling anxious and sad. We are doing our best to keep her upbeat and as distracted as possible. I appreciate the notes and calls of support we have already received. Please keep Gwen in your thoughts and prayers.

Hints and Tips

Some helpful hints I found in my inbox this AM:

Bed Sheets

After drying my\n sheets, I put both sheets and one pillowcase in the other pillow case. Fold neatly in a square. Next time you change sheets, you just take the one pillow case and all the sheets and pillow case are inside. No need to look for matches. Takes up less storage room too.

Kids Bike ID

If you purchase a new bike for your child, place their picture with name and address on the back in a small ziplok bag and put it inside the handle bar before placing the grips on. If the bike is stolen and later recovered, remove the grip and there is your proof who owns the bike.

Clean your glass shower

To clean the glass in your shower easily, apply lemon juice to the glass with a sponge. Then, take newspaper and wipe the lemon juice off the glass. It will be clean and sparkle with no scrubbing!

Reheat Pizza

Heat up leftover p! izza in a non-stick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy microwave pizza. I saw this on the cooking channel and it really works.

Easy Deviled Eggs

Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.

Expanding Frosting

When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar/calories per serving.

To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster.

Newspaper Weeds-Away

Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil. Wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go, cover with mulch and forget about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic, they will not get through wet newspapers.

Broken Glass

Use a dry cotton ball to pick up little broken pieces of glass - the fibers catch ones you can't see!

No More Mosquitoes

Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

Squirrel Away!

To keep squirrels from eating your plants sprinkle\n your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn\'t hurt the\n plant and the squirrels won't come near it.

Easier thank you's

When you throw a bridal baby shower, buy a pack of thank you cards for the guest of honor. During the party, pass out the envelopes and have everyone put their address on one. When the bride or new mother sends the thank you's, they're all addressed!

Flexible vacuum

To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

Reducing Static Cling

Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and -- voila -- static is gone.

Measuring Cups

Before you pour sticky substances into a measuring cup, fill it with hot water. Dump out the hot water, but don't dry the cup. Next, add your ingredient, such as peanut butter, and watch how easily it comes right out.

Foggy Windshield

Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!

Reopening envelope

If you seal an envelope and then realize you forgot to include something inside, just place your sealed envelope in the freezer for an hour or two. Voila! It unseals easily.

Conditioner

Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It's a lot cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It's also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn't like when you tried it in your hair...

Good-bye Fruit Flies

To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass fill it 1/2" with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dishwashing liquid, mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

Get Rid of Ants

Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it "home," & can't digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, esp. if it rains, but it works & you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed! Take baby powder to the beach Keep a small bottle of baby powder in your beach bag. When you're ready to leave the beach sprinkle yourself and kids with the powder and the sand will slide right off your skin.

***Any tips to add?***

Loving the little things...

Yesterday I watched Landry (age 5) for several minutes in the morning while he was eating his breakfast. He was using a fork and knife to cut his Eggo waffles with his signature toppings: syrup and cinnamon. Usually I do the cutting for him, mainly to speed things along during busy mornings but also because his dexterity is that of a five-year-old's. This particular morning he insisted on doing it himself and was doing quite a fine, albeit painstakingly slow, job of it. I finally had to get up and grab my camera because the looks of concentration and success were priceless. Well, of course I got all these great shots only to find that my memory stick was in my computer so I can't show them to all of you. What these few tiny moments brought to my consciousness was a flood of love for the tiny things that we get to experience in the lives of our children. This was probably a one time moment as now each time he picks up a knife and fork to cut his waffles it is going to be easier and easier and one day while sitting at the table with his wife and kids he will likely do it without a crinkled nose and probably won't let out a hoop and holler over getting an actual bite to his mouth on his own. It is a little sad and a mighty triumph all at once. Now, if we can only get him to tie his shoes...


On a sad and serious note, I have to share this news with my community of friends here in blog-land. Our family just found out that my mom has breast cancer. We are all very sad, anxious, and concerned. My mom is the literal Queen of our immediate and extended family. She is the coordinator of all fun, work, support, love, baby care, teenage tolerance and mission preparation. She is a cheerleader, honest critic, counselor, banker, root of all creativity, and lover of her family. I can't begin to think of our lives without her so I am focused on her cure. I have been regularily hounded by a group of friends to join a gang of friends walking in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in October and I'm hoping this might encourage some of you to join your local events. Find a race in your community and please feel free to share your stories with me. I plan to start a blog for my mom to update her progress for our friends and family so when I get that going I will post the info. Thank you to those of you who I have already spoken with and have sent your love.

Gifts that we want to keep for ourselves

Do you ever find yourself spending a lot of time making or finding a perfect gift for a beloved friend or family member and then wishing you were the one getting it? Well, as much as I love my friend Sommer, I have made a gift for her family that I seriously want to keep. I have made a committment to actually follow through and deliver it to her for her pure thrill and joy tomorrow but now I will have to make another one for our house. This growth chart was a solution to aproblem I have of being heartsick at moving away from a home that has a little space on the inside of a closet door where we marked precious inches and dates as our boys have grown taller. Sommer just had a new baby, Blake and she has another boy Carson that is 2 1/2 so I figured she might like to have this rather than another pack of onesies (although the value of those little items should not be discounted one bit!). I took some photos because I will need to remember the details one day when I get around to making another one.

What are some of your less than eager to give up gifts stories?

Cool New Tool

Check out this really cool tool I just learned about from Microsoft. It is a personal desktop search engine that allows you to search all of your computer's files by keyword. This is great for finding photos on the fly and for those of you who love to embroider this works like a charm if your files are stacked deep like mine are! I am so excited about using this. Here's the link to the details and free download:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/desktopsearch/default.mspx

The groovy artist in my family

My brother Evan lives in California and is a really talented artist. In the past few years he has really developed his professional art and has had some gallery showings and people are starting to buy his work! He has a very funky style and often makes a statement with his work. One of my favorite things that he has done was a great comic book of a trip that he and my stepmom Terri made out to SLC, Utah a few years back when I lived there. It was a humorous tale of the time we spent together doing stuff like skiing and snowboarding-his first attempt which ended badly. One of his more recent projects is a line of t-shirts featuring a few of his pieces that can be seen and purchased at cafepress.com http://www.cafepress.com/evantreece. Here is my favorite!If the image is too small to see well here is a description: It is a fish with a thought bubble of her consideration of why on Earth she might have use for a bicycle...you get the Gloria Steinem reference! I love the fact that this comes from a male artist. He is such a cool kid. I'm going to post a few other links to his work-some of it might be a little objectionable to some of my audience so I need to select items to feature rather than pointing you to his entire shock-value collection. He can be rather expressive!