Filed under: Uncategorized
I’m still in an odd place where this blog is concerned not knowing if I really feel like keeping up with it this summer. But…
I got some news yesterday that’s tugged on my heart relentlessly. I found out that an old friend from HS has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. To be more specific it’s an oligoastrocytoma. The funny thing is that about a week ago I was watching the boys play outside when he stumbled into my thoughts and I couldn’t get him out, so I went onto Facebook and looked him up. So yesterday I get and update saying he has started an info page for friends and family about his progress as he nears surgery. I think the way God works is simply amazing, why would I think of someone that I hadn’t talked to in almost a decade?, why couldn’t I get his name out of my mind?, why did my heart break a little when I found out about his tumor?. Maybe because as christians we really are one big army here on Earth to support one another. Maybe I couldn’t get his name out of my head because an angel was was yelling his name, calling to troops to battle. Just recently at our church we were able to witness a real miracle, by watching our whole congregation pray for healing for a small child and three days later hearing that the doctors could find nothing wrong with him (the test must have been wrong). I believe we can pray healing into the lives of our family & friends. When my grandad had a lung tumor the deacons of the church prayed over him the night before surgery and when the x-rays the morning before sugery showed no tumor the doctors were amazed.
I think we all have heard of a story similar to this. So let this be my shout to call the troops to battle… “PRAY!!!!” Pray for healing, pray for peace, pray for wisdom for his doctors, pray for his famliy’s strength, pray for absolute recovery. Bryce really is one of those people whose personality and energy has a gravitational pull of it’s own, he has a light that really could change the world. I believe he will get the chance.
I will keep everyone up to date on his progress and I absolutely expect many of you to pray. What I know so far is that on June first they start brain mapping to make sure they don’t injure any parts of his brain that control his speech or memory during surgery and then on June 4 they plan to operate. I set a reminder in my phone for the morning of surgery to pray, imagine if everyone did that, maybe we could fill the room with a thousand angels!
Filed under: Uncategorized
I’m sure just like everyone else I’m in full Easter scramble, but since we are throwing our Passover Party tomorrow, and Grey’s Easter Party at school is this afternoon I’m way behind and typing this when I should be showering. And so my list of things to do for the next 24 hrs looks something like this:
- Pick up candy filled eggs for Easter egg hunt (at school)
- Make fun snack for school party
- Take Gentry to library story time
- Go pick up surprise gift for special party guest
- Pick up 16lbs of lamb from butcher and prep it for tomorrows cooking
- Make flourless chocolate cake
- Go to little league meeting
- Go to yoga
- Make 20 programs (Haggadahs) for the party
- Make placecards
- Buy ribbons, flowers, wine, and shoelaces (for Grey’s dress shoes)
- Get goody bags ready for the kids
- Prepare Seder plate
So there you have it, I’m tired just thinking about it. All I really want to do is go get my nails done and tan and see if I still fit in the dress I planned to wear.
Filed under: random
I figured I better post something soon since I got a very concerned phone call from my mother yesterday, and a nice comment from a blogger buddy about my absence (thanks Megan). Our life was very hectic last week, it was Grey’s spring break so we went to Cincy for the weekend to go see the Dino exhibit at the Museum of Natural History and then we went swimming at the hotel pool and the next day headed off to the Creation Museum. Our kids definitely were exposed to the full spectrum of evolutionary thought, but I’m pretty sure all they cared about were the dinosaurs 
. I also started exercising this week, so between that and eating a little less so I can fit in my cute new J. Crew swimsuits, I really don’t have enough energy at the end of the day to care much for blogging. Then Fri I got a bit of a sore throat that lasted through Sat., went to a baby shower Sat. night, Sun we got up and went to church, gave Grey and Vlad haircuts etc. We are just as busy this week with swim lessons starting, t-ball meetings, Passover, yoga, and then throw in normal life and don’t forget Easter! I should be able to post pictures again soon since we’ve finally located our charger at my moms house in Oklahoma.
So I will leave you with something I found too cute to resist, a “to do” list from Leafcutter Designs (some people simply must be admired for the creativity and imagination) 22,23,&27 are my faves.
1. Have a silent tea party with blindfolds so everything is served and shared through touch.
2. Cut a small slit in your pillow, insert your hand and feel the feathers, then sew it back up.
3. Pet a moth.
4. Type with your tongue.
5. Touch the tip of every spike on a cactus very carefully.
6. Spell sentences into each other’s palms with a finger.
7. Document sleep wrinkles.
8. Carefully pour a handful of sewing pins back and forth between your hands.
8. Remove and save every seed from the surface of a strawberry and send each one to a different person in an envelope.
9. Unroll an entire spool of thread onto your bare feet.
10. Choose a pair of pants and run your finger over every seam and stitch.
11. Have a friend select 10 garments from your closet and try to identify them all by touch with your eyes closed.
12. Arrange your socks into a kaleidoscopic pattern on the floor.
13. Hide dimes at the eye level of small children where adults won’t see them.
14. From memory, draw a floor plan of the earliest home you remember living in.
15. Draw a tiny picture of your personal superhero and tape it to your toothbrush.
16. Take a walk in a shape of your choosing – plot it out on a map either before or after.
17. When a child is sitting behind you on the airplane, turn your barf bag into a puppet.
18. Make paper airplanes out of your paychecks before sending them to your bank.
19. Collect carpet lint and then juggle it.
20. Write a message on a friend’s porch by arranging leaves into words.
21. Grow flowers in the basket on the front of your bicycle.
22. Replace a door inside your house with fabric and a really long zipper.
23. When guests come over replace your toilet paper with a little basket of leaves.
24. Hide notes to future readers in library books.
25. Leave jokes on paper for your post-person every day, each day providing the answer to the joke from the day before.
26. Plant a seed and camp out next to it, watching it every moment until it sprouts.
27. Glue wiggly-eyes onto your face on your driver’s license.
28. Perform miniature story slide shows with tiny hand-drawn pictures in front of a door peep-hole after knocking on a neighbor’s front door.
While swinging his arms wildly Grey starts to say:
This and this and this and this make a zapatroid
Me-You mean a trapazoid
Ya a zapatroid.
Gentry definitely a Daddy’s boy right now which became very clear the other day when I was asking the boys what their fav. super heroes were.
Me-Gentry who’s your favorite; Spiderman, Superman, Batman?
DADDYMAN!!!!!
We’ve also had a problem with the little guy getting up in the middle of the night to devour bottles of sprinkles. The only evidence to be found is candy colored fingers in the morning. So a couple of nights ago I felt Micah shoot out of bed (at 4am) and race down the hall. He caught Gentry red handed climbing up the pantry shelves. And what did he have to say for himself?
You supposed to be in your bed Daddy, you supposed to be sleeping in your bed.
I just took the Luscher Color Test that Seleta posted about today and the results were scarily dead on. I constantly tell Micah how stagnant I feel because we aren’t ready to move yet. I feel like this time in our live has taken waaayyy to long to complete. Anyone who knows me at all has probably heard some form of this before, but at least now I feel like I fall into a category and am not just going crazy
PROBLEM UNDERLYING THE PRESENT STRESS — Feels restricted and prevented from progressing; seeking a solution which will remove these limitations.
DESIRED OBJECTIVE — Hopes that ties of affection and good fellowship will bring release and contentment. His own need for approval makes him ready to be of help to others and in exchange he wants warmth and understanding. Open to new ideas and possibilities which he hopes will prove fruitful and interesting.
CURRENT INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR — Distressed by the obstacles with which he is faced and in no mood for any form of activity or for further demands on him. Needs peace and quiet, and the avoidance of anything which might distress him further
I have roses all over my house that are the color of the one in the top left corner and for the past week everytime I look at them they make me happy…go figure.
Filed under: soul
I’m so excited, at yoga practice last night I did two things I’ve never been able to do. I’ve never been athletically inclined, I’ll never do a perfect layup or ace a point, and to be honest I have arms like noodles. I’m pretty good at yoga though, I’ve got the flexibility and leg strength, but the noodle arms have been a problem. I’m getting stronger though because last night I did two things I’ve never done before. I didn’t hold them for long, and I did happen to face plant while doing side crane (because I was so excited that I did it), but the fact that I did it at all has me totally stoked. My teacher Erin is awesome, exactly what you would expect from a yogi, she fit, joyful, and very motivated. If you want to join me some night just let me know, doing yoga in an actual studio as opposed to a gym is like night and day and it’s definitely worth trying. Namaste!
Parsva Bakasana
Sirsasana II
Filed under: decorate
- Mirasol Flaminco Umbrella
(Found on www.logangardens.com)
on top of this:
- Andalusia Double Chaise
(found on www.authenteak.com)
when the sun sets I will sit inside of this:
- A perfectly white screened porch
On the screened porch, a Turkish kilim, made with recycled flour bags and flat-woven carpets, softens the limestone floor. Rug, Rugs by Robinson. Chandelier, Fontana Arte, (404) 835-6150. Pillows and birch logs, Max & Co., Atlanta, (404) 816-3831. Bowl, Christmas trees and ornaments by Roost. Round resin coffee table by Oly Studio.
when I get hungry I will go inside to this and open a bottle of wine and start dinner:
- Perfect French Kitchen
In the kitchen, dual islands reference a traditional French kitchen—one for prep and the other for pastry-making. The Calcutta gold marble tiles of the backsplash are carried around the windows and doors to unify the space while industrial pendant lights add a sense of casualness. Cabinetry, Morgan Creek Cabinet Company, (770) 975-9244. Pendants, South of Market. Tile and plumbing, Waterworks, (404) 266-1080. Built-in coffee maker, Miele. Range, Wolf. Refrigerator/freezer, Sub-Zero. Dishwasher, Bosch. Cupcakes, Star Provisions, (404) 365-0410.
Now wouldn’t that just be perfect?
Alphabet Boyby Paula Prass $126
Here’s her fabric from the Flights of Fancy series and while I don’t like the namesake print (it’s cute just not my style) I love the coordinating fabrics.
Flights of Fancy Rain Dot
Flight of Fancy Chinese Fret
FoF Garden Trellis Lime
I think they make such a cute bed
The tray that started it all
These are the elephants that we thought were so cute, I think the set would look really awesome with a few of these embroidered onto the quilt and maybe the bumper.
She’s also got a really cute blog called Show + Tell where you can get ideas, promo codes, and a sneak peek into her home life. I think she’s got the cutest laundry room ever, I love the paintings of her boys.
Paula's laundry room
If you are fond of the the Flights of Fancy series it’s on sale at Quilt Home right now 15% off, just enter the code flight15, sale expires Sunday Mar. 8.
Filed under: crafts
Well our camera battery is dead and no matter how hard I search I cannot seem to find it. It’s driving me CRAZY!!! I have so much I want to show you. The boys as usual have given me a million reasons to snap a photo but I’ve also been embroidering like crazy, cute designs on their polos, squares that will eventually be turned into a quilt, napkins, and whatnots. I’m also going to attempt to make an overnight bag (Vera Bradley style) with the Eclectic Layer fabric from Tina Givens and I plan to line it in a supercute pink and white stripe.
Hopefully they will end up looking like this…
Hope Garden Miller Bag from Vera Bradley
I don’t know about you but I’ve had a super stagnant weekend. I’m so tired of the cold air, dry sinuses, not being able to grill (can you imagine a good grilled steak…mmm), and a complete lack of motivation. So I’ve tried to inspire myself this morning and here are some things that really made me happy.
J. Crew’s new spring “look book” I love this outfit, perfect for an outdoor party.
August Peep Toe from J. Crew $225
Dressy jersey Grecian V-neck long dress $98
Victoria ruffle cami $88
Beautiful European house plan 20-961 from houseplans.com
“A house is a series of layers that should filter experience in rhythmic and evocative ways.” -Ross Anderson
I’ve always loved to look at blueprints and this one captures pretty much everything I want in our future home (except it’s a little too big, I don’t want to clean this much space).
Country living decorating in white
So many home plans have the dreaded “bonus room” above the garage and most people just stick a recliner or desk along one wall and make it some kind of multi-purpose (never used) room. I love the idea of turning one whole wall into a bunk room, a lot of coastal homes have them but most of us inlanders don’t see them alot. I think they would be great for slumber parties or when your parents visit, neices & nephews, etc.
I stumbled across this website while searching for photos for this post and was captivated, Velvet & Linen. I got so caught up that I wanted to post ALL of them. But here’s one of my favorites.
Designers James Strickland and Suzanne Rester Watson
