ella is 10!

my oldest child is in the double digits!!! could it be true? this was a special birthday for ella, so we wanted to to something exciting for her. she never asks for anything, so we decided to update her bedroom to be more 'tween' friendly.

i'm sorry for the quality of these pictures, but they were taken at 10:30 pm the night before her birthday. we wanted to surprise her on her birthday, so we updated while she was sleeping. our kids love to have 'sleepovers' in each others rooms, so we convinced her to sleep in the boys room that night.

she had a wall of black chalkboard paint that we cleaned off and added some frames. we also decorated with some blank cd's. we really only added a new bedspread and throw pillow, but it all transformed the room in a really fun way. she LOVED it.

ella continues to be the best big sister in the world. seeing these two ride around on that scooter is about the cutest thing ever.

ella is very laid back and unassuming. she is so easy to be around and has a very calming influence.

a quick picture of ella with her sister, mother, and grandmother!

i had to include this picture because it just shows how friendly ella is. we went to get a pedicure for her birthday and there were a few other little girls there. it didn't take long for ella to befriend them all and start them in on some games. she loves people and they love her right back.

ella was in dance this spring and did such a great job. doesn't she look so sweet? the last picture is of ella with her bff/cousin romey. these two have such a great time when they are together. i'm so glad they have each other.

let me just finish by saying that the amount of good packed into this girl is unbelievable. i honestly don't know how i got so lucky to be her mother. happy birthday dear sweet ella. it's been the best 10 years of my life!

anyone in the market?

so...i'm losing my mind.  i made this necklace for my good friend to give to her niece for graduation.  i then promptly lost it on the way to the post office and had to make her a new one.  well...one month later look what made an appearance in the dark recesses of my mini van!  yes...it is a scary place.  anyway,  i think it's adorable and figured someone might want it.  if you do, it's $19 and 100% sterling silver...with a fresh water pearl.  the disc that says BYU is a nickle size, and the other one is a dime size.  first come first serve.  you can leave a comment or send me an email.  thanks!

jack's baptism

i honestly cannot believe how fast my kids are growing up. jack is such a special kid. his baptism day was wonderful. he was ready for this day and i'm pretty sure he felt loved by all of our guests.

some of the honored guests...cousin romey, ella, cousin lucy, and cousin adam.

grandpa colin, cousin andrew, grandpa stuart, uncle dave, dad, uncle ryan

mom (me with a mouth full), aunt jenny and cousin wyatt, grammy

cousin elle, sister ella, cousin ashley (left), beautiful aunts heather and christy

cousin jersey, aunt sue, uncle ryan

me with jack's grandma's

cousin crew, jack, cousin ryan

same cute boys!

me and my boy (left) jack and his dad (right)

jack with each set of grandparents

we are so so proud of the amazing kid he is!!

power of moms

i just wanted to quickly send you all HERE.  it is an awesome website for any and all kinds of mothers.  and while your there check out THIS.  they have a video contest going on right now, and one of my most dear friends in all the world, erika, is one of their two finalists!!!  her video is called 'i am a mother' and is amazing.  please check it out (90 seconds long...c'mon...you have 90 seconds), and then vote for it at the bottom.  you might even see a familiar face in a couple of the pictures.

erika is one of the most amazing people i know and i would love for her to win this contest so she can attend the power of moms retreat with me in june!!!  any of you are invited to attend as well, but you'll have to register and pay the regular way.  click HERE for details. 

mom's have power!  and I AM A MOTHER!!

happy mother's day.

jack is 8! what?! when?! seriously?!

it's a big year for jack.  he is now officially 8 years old and in our church that is a big deal.   i am amazed each day as i watch him.  he is so inquisitive, analyzing, and naturally good at everything.  when it comes to just about everything…jack gets it.  he's not perfect, but he's perfect for our family.  i know i've written before about how smitten i was with him from the first moment i met him, but i just can't say enough about how much i love this kid.  i'm so glad he's still a little needy at nighttime (wanting me to cuddle and scratch his back) because he is starting to pull away a little bit from the hugs and kisses.  it KILLS me.  i thought i had him good and brainwashed into always giving me hugs and kisses…we will see.

here are a few things i want to remember about my 7/8 year old jack.

    •    he is such a handsome boy and i get people telling me that all the time.

    •    he is the same size and weight as his little brother max (2 years younger), but it doesn't seem to bother him too much…yet.  he just smiles and goes on when someone asks me if they are twins.  it happens all the time.

    •    jack usually knows the answer…and he wants you to know that he knows.
    •    jack can get super silly and can have us all in stitches in an instant.

    •    jack's silliness often happens at inappropriate times.  were working on that one.
    •    he is still our super sensitive boy and i'm really trying to figure out how to best parent that.  i know i don't react well most of the time.
    •    jack loves basketball and can now be found most days in our backyard playing on our newly poured basketball court.  he has schooled me in 'p-i-g' and 'h-o-r-s-e' more times than i care to admit.
    •    he is taking piano lessons and can memorize a song in no time.  of course that means we hear the song over and over.  we are still hearing 'up on the housetop' regularly.
    •    jack is very responsible when it comes to getting things done.  (except perhaps keeping his closet clean)  i must admit that he is my 'go to guy' when it comes to little household tasks.   ("will you please take the garbage out, change the wash, unload the dishwasher, wipe off the counters, etc.")  he knows how to do it all and usually does it willingly.
    •    jack is very wary of people and situations he is not familiar with.  he has passed up play dates and even birthday parties if they involve homes and people that he does not know well. 
    •    jack thrives on routine.  he always wants to know what to expect and what is on the agenda.  it can get tough at times because he usually wants to know the exact amount of time something will take.  he gets frustrated when i cannot give him a definitive answer.  he definitely is not his father's son in that regard.  paul is still trying to get a handle on the concept of time.
    •    i never have to worry about jack's school work and homework.  it's done and done well without much of a word from me or his dad.

    •    jack has the most beautiful skin.  i would have never guessed that my red head would have gotten the nice skin from my father, but he sure did.  he has beautiful auburn hair, carmel skin, and clear blue eyes.  like i said…he's a looker.

    •    jack gets along with his sister ella famously.  i can't remember the last time i heard them argue.  i love that they are close and care about each other.  below is the cutest note that he wrote to ella just a couple of weeks ago...for no reason at all.

    •    jack is very creative and loves to spend time coming up with 'inventions'.  i love to see his little brain working.

• jack has insisted on wearing suit pants, a belt, white shirt and tie to church for well over a year.  he likes looking dressed up…just like his dad.  

    •    on that same note, he loves spending time with his dad.  if paul is ever going to work late i have to come up with some other fun activity to ease the pain.  there is no one he'd rather hang out with.

jack is one special kid and we are so blessed to have him in our family.  we can't wait to celebrate him even more in a couple of weeks at his baptism.  happy birthday little man jack.  love you more than all the numbers.

brotherly love

i just got an email from my mother.  it read as follows:

Kara Dear-
 One of the pictures on your blog, (plus your description to me about how Nora and Max don't get along always) was an inspiration to me today to write this little "for fun" poem.  I'll attach the poem and the photo that "inspired" the thoughts that may go through Nora's head about her relationship with her brother.  Let me know what you think. 

                                    

                                  BROTHERLY LOVE

                                                 By

                                      Helen W. xxxxxxx

                      My big brother is such a tease

                      Would you kick him out or sell him please?

                      He interrupts and calls me names

                      He says he’s best at all the games

                      Sometimes he colors all over my page

                      He dresses up crazy like he’s on stage

                      He makes silly faces and sings silly songs

                      He climbs and wrestles and gets head bongs

                      He laughs at me and takes my toys

                      He runs and pushes and makes big noise

                      He likes to pinch and likes to fight

                      He bothers me both day and night

                     He must be first and have the best

                     When my friends come here, he’s such a pest

                     He snitches treats from off my plate

                     When it’s time to go he makes us late

                      But if someone else says that he’s bad

                      It really, really makes me mad

                      Because inside I surely know

                      That he really, really, loves me so!

how awesome is that?  she just whipped it up...no big deal.  i know i've mentioned it before, but my mom is quite the poet.  i need to feature more of her amazing pieces here.  i'm so blessed to have her.  the funny thing about this poem, and nora, and max...is that it reminds me of the relationship i had with my big brother dave when i was little.  what keeps me sane through the bickering that happens between these two is the hope that they will one day be as close as dave and i are.  we are great friends and i'm so grateful he is my big brother. 

nora jayne is 4!

nora jayne is 4 years old!!!  of course i meant to have this post up on her actual birthday, but life has once again gotten so crazy!!!  there is no way that i'd let this day go without documentation. 

all i can say is that nora is an absolute joy.  maybe it's the fact that i've mellowed as a parent, because let's face it, all my kids are a joy, but i've had so much fun enjoying each and every stage with nora.  (i'm sure my use of punctuation on that last sentence is horrific...whateves)   here are some things i always want to remember about my 3/4 year old nora jayne:

    •    she lights up a room when she enters
    •    she is the biggest poser when she sees a camera







    •    she used to have to carry a purse with her at. all. times.  i have pictures somewhere of her even sleeping with her purse.
    •    she loves anything hot pink and sparkly. 
    •    she rotates through favorite princesses.  right now it's definitely ariel.
    •    she is my best dish unloader...no joke.
    •    she is my best "clean clothes put-er away-er" (you know what i mean)
    •    nora still sucks her thumb
    •    she has transferred her loyalty from her 'cozy' to her 'blankie' after cozy was "lost"...kind-of defeating the purpose of losing cozy in the first place. 
    •    nora gets up every morning, gets herself dressed, brushes her teeth, and gets a headband on usually before coming in to wake me up. 
    •    nora is the first one to get up in the morning...early...just like all my other kids did at her age.
    •    nora wants to say the prayer at every meal, event, and bedtime.
    •    when nora doesn't get say the prayer she cries saying 'i never said the prayer.'
    •    nora goes to preschool at miss tiffany's and can write all her letters and numbers.  she knows a cute little song/saying for each one of them.
    •    she still naps almost every day.  hallelujah.
    •    she still adores her older sister...rightfully so.
    •    nora and max almost never get along.  it can be torture if they are the only two together.  good thing they have other siblings.

    •    nora is always 'on stage'.  she is hyper aware of how she looks and of people around her.  right now it's funny and cute.  we'll see how that translates to the teen years.
    •    she really is easy to take on little errands and is a great little buddy.
    •    nora has the ability to find the fun in almost anything...even cleaning up her room.
    •    nora can clean her room pretty good by herself except for making the bed.
    •    she loves mac and cheese, bagels with cream cheese, avocados, berries, apples with peanut butter, oatmeal, veggies with dip...mostly just the dip, and ice cream.
    •    nora loves lip gloss and 'pail nolish' (nail polish)
    •    nora is a very girly girl and is a fun change in our family as ella and i have never been extremely 'girly'.

we love our nora jayne so much and enjoy every moment of having her in our family.  happy birthday missy moo!

problems are only opportunities in work clothes

“Life is full of problems. Opposition is not only unavoidable, it’s essential. Without opposition, without problems big and small to test our resolve and stimulate our thinking, we would accomplish very little. Muscles do not grow without resistance and neither do people”
Music & The Spoken Word

inside my head

i've recently finished a book that i thoroughly enjoyed. it really is what is says it is. there were so many funny thoughts, quips, and musings that really resonated with me and i laughed out loud throughout the book....often in public...which garnered many strange looks.
one of my favorite things she wrote was this:

"i think 90 percent of what/who we are is never really verbally communicated...
i like to write things down - moments, memories, lists, quotes, thoughts.
compulsively sometimes.
i need to gather all the thoughts that are locked in my head and put them on paper."

i completely agree that people really don't know most of what we are about. it's kept safely in our heads. a lot of the time this is a great place for it to stay, but i also think we could truly know, appreciate, and understand someone better if some of these little tidbits were exposed.

this is why i'm starting a new little feature called 'inside my head'. it'll show up any time i feel i have something...or several things about me that i'd like to document. of course, blogging in general can be a lot like this and i've done it once here, but for me i've focused more on using the blog like a scrapbook or journal. 'inside my head' will be very random...and hopefully fun.

so, here is my first list of tidbits inside my head.

• why do i mostly write in all caps and type in all lowercase?
• i think it's funny that my brother in law, who is an attorney, is married to a girl named sue.
• i seem to want to buy every new piece of clothing in gray. not sure why because i see my personality more of a yellow, or green, or maybe blue....
  
• what's the difference between gray-grey anyway?
• i really like the look of flap pocket jeans but it drives me crazy that i can't just stick my phone in the back pocket on the run.
• i am always the last to leave book club.
  
• i feel bad when i realize how easy it is to make my parent's day, and that i don't do it more often.
• i hate the lid to the pam cooking spray. it always hits the nozzle and sprays right at me!
• it is so much easier to parent one child at a time. i'm a really good mom when i'm one on one.
  
• once i sold every piece of clothing i owned (because i hated most of it) to a consignment store and took that money to buy just a small batch of things i loved. it was awesome and liberating.
• when asking nora what she wants for her birthday her answer invariably starts with, 'hot pink sparkly'. insert whatever you want after. (purse, shoes, lip gloss, nail polish, etc.)
• in most situations i take two stairs at a time. what does that say about me? i'm anxious?
• i think it's weird to write a check on your birthday. one part of me wants to tell the person i'm handing it over to that this isn't any ordinary day...but i don't...because it is.
• i'm almost always a member of the 'clean plate club'.
• i love root beer barrel candy...but never go looking for it.
  

that's enough for now. i think i'll end these posts with one of the things from this book that really struck a chord with me.

'but writing with simplicity requires courage, for there is a danger that one will be overlooked, dismissed as simpleminded by those with a tenacious belief that impossible prose is a hallmark of intelligence."
-alain de botton, the consolations of philosophy

lucky number 13!!

13 really is my lucky number...and now it's yours peri!!!

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

13

Timestamp: 2010-03-15 04:55:33 UTC

if anyone wants one of the lucky necklaces just drop me an email at thisandthatjewelry {at} gmail {dot} com. they are a lucky $13 a piece!

sunday stew...bite size

this is what my kids are doing right now...love it!

my new solution for shirts with stains...t-shirt transfers!

the birthday cake my dear friend erika made for me. not surprisingly...i cried.

playing with the drums max got for lego rock band. yes, i get into it...it's fun.

max and his silly friends on the field trip bus on his birthday.

aren't these boys adorable?

nora and my darling niece audrey reading happily in my window sill. i love it.

the darling note we found from jack to ella. these two get along famously. really. it makes my heart happy.

the semi-trailer truck that smashed into paul on a drive up north. thanks to the snow bank for slowing the truck down, or paul may not be with us today.

paul's car.

sweet nora jayne at 2:00am after a trip to the emergency room. after falling out of bed a few times it finally caught up to her. possible hairline fracture, but she's still smiling!

the end

post edit: i just downloaded the images from the web for the t-shirt transfers. legal? not so sure, but i'm not making a buck off of them...unless you count the $$ saved by not having to buy new t-shirts.