2014: Make the Most of It

 

Christmas has come and gone...

The year is over,

flown by, really,

in a whirl,

as a new year begins

and the never ending theme and thought

that runs through my head is

how fast time passes.

We've all read about the unimportance of material gifts

and the ever growing importance of time,

And each year, as I get older

I realize my Christmas list gets shorter

because the things I really want

can't be bought

from a store

Or ordered online anymore.

That life means more...

This year I gave my grandma something I couldn't really create –
but only give back to her
that which she earned:
Her memories.
Her time.
Her experiences. 

Those can't be replaced or replicated any longer,
only remembered,
in old,
weathered photos,
with cracks and frays and
fancy cursive letters
written with care
by a 20,
30,
40 year old
woman, mom and grandmother
who was writing her memories there;
and how her eyes reflected the joy of those times
and her voice quivered in sharing the moments with us.

And it hit me.
And I realized,
really solidified,
that no gift I have ever gotten
or will ever receive
will replace the time and moments
I have yet
to experience.
That I have the opportunity
now,
today,
to create
those moments,
and not regret
that time is passing.
That it will pass,
whether I make something out of it,
or not.



And that the memories created
in moments like this
with kids
with family
are priceless
and can't be bought..



2014 gives us an opportunity to start fresh. To develop deeper friendships, to be intentional in the time we share and be a presence in the lives of our kids and those we love.



This year, my word for 2014 is experiences.

Make the most of it! What's your word for 2014?


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Teenage Birthday Party

It's official: I have a teenager at my house!
This makes me both happy and sad, as I miss my little pint sized boy but am excited for the young man he is growing up to be. My blog has been quiet as we've been living life and celebrating these moments together. Turning 13 was a milestone for him and a reminder to me: I realize more and more how present I want to be in their lives, how fast it goes by and I feel full. My cup runneth over and it seems once I hit these moments I finally feel ready to write again and share some of what we've been up to and crafts I've fit in between.

So, here is a little window into how we celebrated his special day. In addition to family parties, I asked him, if he could only do one thing for his birthday, what would it be? He said he wanted to go Go Kart Racing at a nearby track. A grown up track. That went fast. I hope this isn't indicative of his future driving desires - but for this day, he got his wish. Some pictures of his day are below!

Birthdays at our house always start the night before. I decorate the table special for the birthday boy, there is a small present to unwrap and I write him a letter, just to him, about how special I think he is and the ways I have seen him grow this year. They never ask if they are getting a present in the morning, but they always ask if they are going to get their letter. It's a tradition I'm so glad they enjoy. Do you have a birthday tradition like this with your family?

 

Then it was off to Go Kart Racing!!

One of my favorite parts of the party was the cake HE picked out! It was an XBox cake with chocolate cake and caramel frosting inside. My friends at Twinfully Sweet made it for us and they exceeded our expectations!! If you're in Southern California, I HIGHLY recommend these girls for any party!! As you can see, the Xbox cake ROCKED!

I thought these cookies looked like they had tire tracks across them. The boys did too. Everything was a hit!

It's still surreal that I have a 13 year old...

{Me surprising him at school -- I take my parental job of embarrassing him VERY seriously.} ;o)

As tough as it is to please a teenager {wink}, he had a great time, great food, great friends and everyone left feeling like a winner!

Thanks for reading! Do you have a teenager at home? What activities do they enjoy? What birthday traditions do you do in your family?

Check back tomorrow as I share my first official Christmas craft of the season! {Inspired by the movie Frozen - you don't want to miss it!}

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{What I Wore} A New baby

Last week I stayed with my sister and helped with my 2 year old nephew and 2 WEEK old niece. They were so much fun and both so sweet I didn’t want to leave! I mean – aren’t they cute?

 {Ruffled Romper and Bow: Target}

But, let me tell you – I have a 9 and 12 year old at home and I forgot how different life is when you have LITTLE little ones!! Here is a brief list of things I learned (or relearned!) while I was there. Maybe you can think of even more things!

THINGS I LEARNED WHILE WATCHING A NEWBORN AND A 2 YEAR OLD

1. Apparently, you CAN sing “Ring Around the Rosies” all day for hours and hours and not get bored. (If you’re two.) Along with Frere Jacques, Ring Around the Rosies was was my nephew's favorite song. I learned that when we “all fall down” it is much easier to fall down on the couch with pillows than on the floor. And I also forgot how catchy those songs are. I was humming them in my head all week. In fact… I’m humming Frere Jacques as we speak….
2.  You talk about pee and poop – A LOT. When you have a new baby and a 2 year old that’s potty training all you do is discuss bodily functions, examine poop and ask “do you have to go potty?” Good times.
3.  At any given point in time in the day, someone in the house is naked – or about to get naked. Yep. This one is self-explanatory. Plus it was hot, so little ones run around in their diapers, or are eating, potty-ing, bathing or changing. It doesn’t matter if company is over, or not. Or if you’re in public.
4.   You plan your trips and activities in 1 to 1 1/2 hour increments. (Because someone is either going to need to eat, or nap, before that time is up!) So we became experts at getting the kids ready and out the door in the morning so my little nephew could play outside before his sister needed to eat again! (So I guess this one could also be titled “You learn to multi-task!!”)
5.    9:30pm bed time? Sounds good to me! The first couple days I was still my old night owl self. After 2 days of playing with a 2 year old and holding a newborn between feedings, I found 9:30pm a good time to crash. Or rather, it found me. I TRIED to stay up, but my body and eyelids usually had other ideas!
6.  However ‘ready’ I was by 7am is how I looked the rest of the day. True story. I did not realize this on the first day. Sorry to anyone who saw me in public those first couple days. My nephew woke up at 7am. If I wasn’t ready by that time, forget getting my hair done, adding jewelry or accessories to my outfit. And if my sister wasn’t there, I very well probably would have ended up in my pajamas all day. PS – yoga pants make great PJ’s. 
7.  When you hold a newborn baby – people often don’t see or hear you – they just see the baby. I held my newborn niece during most of our outings. She liked to cuddle in the baby sling and I would get lots of “aaaws,” smiles and comments. Example:

{Polka Dot Sunglasses: Target}

KIND LADY: Aaaw, what a sweet little baby! How old is she?

ME: Thank you! She’s my sister’s baby. She’s 2 weeks old.

KIND LADY: How precious! Congratulations! You don’t look like you just had a baby at all!

… … …

ME: …Thank you! 

(Sometimes it’s not worth the argument.)

But everything was worth it, because this sweet smile is what I woke up to every single day:

How about you? Do you have little ones? Can you relate to this list?

Mini-Man Cave

Do you have a mini-man? That's what I call my two boys. Except that one of them is not so mini anymore. He will be in 8th grade and still shares a room with his little brother; so, I anticipate that he is going to start wanting his own space soon. Being a single parent and owning a small townhouse means I have to get creative with finding more space. The only place I could really go was out. So I spent [more hours than I would have liked] cleaning out my garage, organizing, and creating a little corner for him I like to call our "Mini-Man Cave."

There is a loft storage, about 6 ft high, in my garage, and I created this man cave underneath it:

Here is how the space began:

What's missing in this view is the loft storage, but you can see that the garage is all slab cement and icky storage. [And the only before picture I have because my computer crashed as I started this project, erasing a lot of my photos.]

So, starting with such bare bones was a little intimidating, but exciting, as we started designing and things started to take shape.

THE PAINT: I started by painting the orange stripe on the wall [The color is Behr "dragon fire" paint picked out by my son. Isn't that a cool name for paint?]

THE FLOOR: I then started laying down the black and white vinyl tiles. [Self stick, 12" square tiles purchased at Lowes and super easy to install!]  They were perfect for a low traffic area and easy to keep clean in our garage!

THE EXTRAS: I wanted the space  to be a place my boys could hang out, play [the tv has no cable, it is hooked up to an old PlayStation 2,] read, play board games [stored in the storage cabinet pictured] and just relax. I had been collecting art and little things for this space for a while, so was happy when it finally came together! Here are some of the extras!


I picked up the two sports signs at Home Goods several months ago. I love their wooden background and texture...

The folding table and chairs are for camping. I had the table already but bought the chairs at Big 5. I thought they were easy to move around, the right size for a small space and we could actually take them when we DO go camping! Both the table and chairs fold easily if the boys want to clear the area to play a game.

The lamp is also a camping lamp. It can sit on a table or it has a hook for easy hanging.

Of course, our favorite part of the man cave [and the piece that took the most time] was the rock wall!

Every boy needs something to climb, right? This started out as a bare white wall. I hand painted the rock pattern then chalk marked the studs. Most of the rock holds are bolted into studs, and a fair few are anchored carefully into the dry wall. The rope was also anchored into the ceiling. [But before you hang a rope for your children to swing from, please make sure it is bolted and anchored securely into a stud, and always test it yourself or with a professional before a child swings from it!]

My boys helped make this wall. I think any time kids have a part in the creation of something, they feel more ownership over it and they take better care of it. They also felt really proud that they had a part in the rock wall. Through the process they learned how to tighten each bolt in case, over time, they come loose.

Of coure, the best part is getting to test your handiwork!!!

The boys are very happy with their new Man Cave. My son said now all he needs is a hammock and a refrigerator in there and he would never have to leave! We'll see kiddo, we'll see. lol

They have already tried to say "No Girls Allowed" and actually, I'm okay with that rule. In fact, I may hold them to that in a few years. [wink]

What do you think? Do you like our Mini-Man Cave? How do you create extra space for your kids?

I'd love to see you -- follow me on Facebook|Instagram!


Sharing at Somewhat Simple, Tatertots and Jello, 52 Mantels and some of my favorite places.

4th of July Treat Pops. Sort of.

I love the 4th of July. It's my birthday month (woohoo), I love red, white and blue and there are so many fun crafts and food to make!

This year I'm having some friends over to watch the fireworks at our local lake. I thought to myself, "self, you should make some really awesome treats - one of those everyone will think is UH-MAZING, how-did-you-do-that sort of treat." And they should look festive.

So, when my grocery store was selling these at buy one get one free -- suddenly I had 24 cake treat pops.

Doesn't the picture make those pops look so pretty? So I immediately looked on Pinterest for inspiration (since you know there is no original idea anymore - even when I think I'm being creative and original, Pinterest Popper burst my bubble.) But I digress. :)

And I found these...

{source}

 I liked the red, white and blue - but instead of colored cake, I wanted colored frosting and white cake.

Yesterday I was at a party where I thought I'd practice these treats before the 'big show' on Thursday.

Lessons learned:

1. Mini cupcakes are not EXACTLY the same size as a push up pop.
2. If your cake is not the same size as your push pop, the frosting will "bleed."
3. Buying store bought tubes of colored frosting only kind of works. There isn't enough frosting for 12 push pops. Each tube frosts 3-4 at best.
4. Store bought frosting tubes are REALLY hard to squeeze out after a while. Especially toward the end. Your arms may hurt.
5. You will need to do more push ups and maybe lift some 5 lb. weights for a bit to prepare for your next push up treat pop adventure.
6. Smushy and messy treat pops taste just as good as perfect looking ones. True story.

So, I ask you, I am actually going to attempt this again for the 4th - any tips for success?

 

What's on your menu for the 4th of July?

Dear Mommas

Dear Mommas,

It will take more than one well planned day or one well planned post to tell you how special you are. Because, you are more than a mom.

Way more.

You are a teacher. Guiding little hands and feet along the right path, helping with homework and sharing life’s lessons.

You are encouragement. Your child’s first cheerleader, building up their confidence and their character. Showing how to lose gracefully and win even more gracefully.

You are honesty. An example of truth, trust and reality wrapped in love that shelters their young minds and gives them room to grow.

You are vulnerability. Your children see you at your best and at your worst. They view the faults and cracks in the surface and see right through the façade of perfection to who you really are. And still love you with all their hearts.

You are kindness. Modeling manners, social graces and reactions to difficult situations. When the world can be tough and cruel, you offer love.

You are broken. Don’t hide it. Embrace it. You are human, you throw momtrums, you make mistakes and your children will know that it is okay to make mistakes too.

You are craziness. Let it in. It is the silly and crazy that often bonds our families into tight knit units of inside jokes, humor and acceptance.

You are a nurse, chef, organizer, personal shopper, assistant, disciplinarian, maid, stylist, chauffer, mediator, fighter and pacifist.

You are a hero. To them. To your children you are their first friend, their best friend, and despite all our faults and brokenness and vulnerability, or perhaps because of them, you are irreplaceably and unconditionally loved.

You are unique. You may feel you are none of these things, one of these things or all of these things. And no amount of advice, books or blog posts {wink} can tell you what kind of mom you will need to be on any given day. God gave you your  specific children for a purpose; because you have a unique skill set that only you can share with them.

Own it.

You are real.

And if you are reading this as a first time momma, single mama, a one day momma, a seasoned momma or reading this thinking of YOUR momma; I want you to know,

you are loved.

Happy Mother’s Day!

 

Keep your love for one another at full strength, because love covers a multitude of sins. ~I Peter 4:8

Medal Display



Something my kids and I like to do together is run. I'll admit that sometimes running isn't fun - in fact, some days it hurts. But the family bonding time we get from it is worth every pound on the pavement. So, ever since my oldest son was about 7 years old, we've been running races together. Their first race was a one mile kids race, and when they figured out they got a MEDAL at the end - it was ON! They both now run 5k's and my eldest is even contemplating running a half marathon!

 

Well, when you run a lot of races, you accumulate a lot of medals, so the quest was on for a creative way to display all our bling! Last year, my friend gave me her daughter's old crib rail. My initial thought was that I'd paint it a fun color and use it to hold craft fabric. I held that thought until I saw this photo on Pinterest. KariAnne used an herb rack for her medal display, but the crib rail was equally up for the task. So, I painted the light oak wood a stainless steel and the result was this unique medal display:

 

 

These are just my medals right now. (My boys' medals are waiting patiently on corkboards in their bedroom.) I have a few more medals in a box somewhere... but no more excuses on not hanging them up now that they have an official display!!

You can see a couple special medals above, but my favorites are by far the ones we earned together.

 {Their first 5k medal!}

This medal will get a special spot on the display. xo

How about you? What activities do you enjoy with your family? Would you use this idea to display sports medals? Team medals? What other ideas do you have to repurpose a crib rail? I'd love to read your comments!

Teacher Appreciation Gift Ideas

Last year for teacher's appreciation week my son's school had a theme for each day. {You can see the ideas I shared for each day here.} This year, it is more simple. I will be using some of the same ideas I used last year, plus a couple more.

For example, this year, instead of a little bag of candy -- how about putting the treat in a mason jar with some twine and a cute tag?

I found these mini jelly jars and they were the perfect size for a teacher treat! Plus, I like that they get to use the jar after they eat the candy! {It's the perfect size for a tealight or refilling with treats.} I also used this idea for Administrators Professional Day and it was a huge hit!

I was searching around for more ideas and found  this printable from Capital B. Isn't it sweet? I love the poem and my son's teacher is always asking for school supplies!

And finally - Love the Day always has AMAZING ideas! I am in love with this little Owl!! I usually say us teachers have enough mugs - but I'd make an exception for this adorable Owl mug!

You can see more of this mug and download your FREE printable here.

And I would be BESIDE MYSELF if a student gave me this berry basket filled with all these goodies!!! {Hint, hint if any of my students see this.} Also from Love the Day! Check it out here!

Has your school had Teacher Appreciation Week yet? What did you do? What other ideas have you seen? I'd love to hear them!

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