9.28.2011

happiness project, step 3: honor your truth



step two of my happiness project lasted kind of a long time,
because it was a humbling experience.

i learned about a lot of things i need to work on as a friend, family member & human.

i learned a lot of my strengths & weaknesses when it comes to being genuine.

knowledge is power!
i can celebrate the good inside of me & change what i am not proud of.

i also re-visited something i already know about myself:
my deepest heartaches and conflicts stem from falling into old patterns.

so, step 3 is about working on that.
it'll be more than letting go.
it'll be about restoring things that were lost.

i'm taking soul restoration 2 @
bravegirlsclub.com for the next 6 weeks.
and i can already tell it is going to absolutely change my life.
i've already begun my self-work & it's going to be so enlightening & empowering.

i'm going to try something i've never really done before:
i'm going to keep my goals & processes for the next little while totally private.
i'm not going to blog about it. {i'll blog about other fun things instead!}

i'm going to spend several weeks working on solving the issues
that seem to be causing me to feel weak, less-than & not enough.

i'm going to hold {myself} accountable,
without needing others approval to feel worthy & important.
i am going to reduce the inner noise, focus and work on honoring my truth.

it'll all be between myself & my god.
*the way it should be.

thanks to all you lovely souls who read my blog &
support me in my wonderful, happy, challenging, struggling, beautiful, crazy life.
i can feel it, and i love you. ♥

9.26.2011

bloom



my spring zinnias died a long time ago.

i tore them out and we endured a long summer of boring dirt/weeds in the flowerbed.

but across our little doorstep,
in the gravel, a tiny seed sprouted
...
and a beautiful zinnia grew & bloomed among the rocks.
it steadily grew & grew, in the wicked arizona heat, without water.


and i believe god made it a pink one, just for me.

such a little thing-but it inspires me.

i love walking outside to the bus stop every morning with the girls and observing it's growth & progress.


...and taking with me throughout the day,

it's reminder,
that we can all bloom where we are planted.

there is beauty, even when our circumstances are difficult.

there are opportunities for growth, even when things seem destitute & rough.

there is potential to be reached and goals to be achieved, no matter what the odds.


look to the sunshine & live.

needed this ♥

9.21.2011

shocked & excited!



a couple of days ago, i entered a giveaway on one of my very favorite blogs,
brave girls club.

they were giving away spots in their online course called soul restoration 2.

and guess what?!
i was one of the winners!

i am so extremely excited!
i am so inspired by the ideas & creativity that brave girls club offers.
i cannot wait to begin the course!

feeling very blessed. ♥

9.20.2011

bedtime shenanigans



pre-bed festivities at our house are sort of hilarious & involve a lot of musical pleasure provided by yours truly.

it's a little ridiculous, but it's kind of fun and my kids think i'm amazing even though i didn't make "teen tones" in junior high. {wink}

after we are done with baths, i comb the girls hair whilst belting this song, very obnoxiously {like mother gothel} to make them laugh hysterically & encourage less whining:



chloe usually reads us several stories.
we drink sippies of milk.

while i'm brushing their teeth, i sing 2 enthusiastic rounds of this song:



before jumpin in bed, we pray for safety and "to dream of unicorns and rainbows and kittens" [direct quote from chloe tonight.]

and as they relax, cozied up under their covers, the favorite musical number is:



i'm lucky if the last one stays in my head all night,
but unfortunately it's usually barney. :)

9.19.2011

playroom



i'm happy, thrilled, overjoyed, and ECSTATIC
to report that we have successfully combined our girls into one room...

it's taken a couple months & some seriously frustrating times, but
they are now, both, consistently sleeping through the night without drama.

*which leaves us with one HAPPY mama & a spare bedroom.

so, i've been working on #16-a playroom.

i gave myself a $20 budget,
and have i already spent it on a curtain rod & fabric.

so it's mostly just rearranging & organizing & being creative with my at-home resources.

my girls are already loving the changes.
i'll share a peek when i'm finished. ♥

9.16.2011

panels



i've had the fabric + thread to make some panels for my sliding door since my birthday.

myron chucked the vertical blinds {yay!} and installed the rod & clips shortly thereafter.

2 months later, on this fine friday-i woke up feeling ambitious.
so, i pretended i knew how to sew curtains {i don't}....


and finished up my goal/project for the month.

they're {not} perfect by any means, but i'm randomly happy with them.
i'm going to love having pretty gold yumminess hanging in my kitchen. ♥

9.15.2011

"cloud water"






we could not get enough of the rain that we got the other day...
we jumped for joy,
played ring around the rosie to our hearts' content,
& got soaking wet- loving every minute of it.

cooler temps/blissful arizona fall/winter is around the corner!
there's hope! who knew?

9.13.2011

genius baby



liv came up with the amazing idea to
drink her yogurt from a upcycled circle-k straw in the morning.

i give her a spoon,
she throws it,
finds daddy's latest 44ozer,
steals the big blue straw,
i trim it down to baby-size,
& she's in business.

it cracks me up every time
& makes {way less} of a mess than the self-spoon-fed method.

happy toddler, minimum mess.
win-win. :)

9.08.2011

on my mind this morning


{via}

late last night i was feeling a little melancholy.

just feeling like certain blessings that [i feel] like
i have been really patient waiting & working for aren't coming.

things that i feel are righteous desires seem to be out of reach for me.

my initial reaction to this, is to think:
am doing something wrong?
am i not having enough faith?
am i not being [good] enough to deserve it?

but after really thinking about it and feeling those feelings & think those thoughts,
i still find hope.

i know that the lord will work it all out.
he'll send me what i need, when i need it.
because he loves me.
and knows what i need more than i know what i need.

i think we all have things we wonder about these days.
politics are crazy.
the world is unsafe.
things are uncertain.

but i know that
daring to dream,
having hope for a better time,
doing all that i can....
being realistic-but not cynical,
and just being grateful for what i have in THIS moment,
is what will make me truly happy.

that's all.
have a great day. ♥

9.07.2011

blondie




oh my precious liv.
i feel like i never blog about her because i take most of my photos while she's sleeping.

if i take photos while she's awake,
my house is covered in the contents of:
some kind of liquid soap,
powdered food,
wet wipes,
or cracked eggs.

yes, she's two.
she's intense.

but boy, is she an angel.
those big blue happy eyes of hers- they speak to my soul.
she came to our family at just the right season.
her spirit is a comfort to me...reminds me that all good things happen in the lord's timing.

as she was coloring a few moments ago, she shouted, "i did it!" with every marker she opened. [it was the cutest thing ever...] and then she came up to me, where i was eating my eggs, and commanded, "in my mouf!" i finally surrendered my plate of eggs to her, for her to finish. and then she went and filled a pitcher of water & used that for her drink to go with her meal. and now, she's as happy as a clam, eating her second breakfast [my breakfast], drinking from the biggest water cup in the house.

i love my demanding, beautiful, amazing, sweet, sweet baby.
so blessed to call her mine. ♥

9.06.2011

oh yeah, i have a blog



hello.
i've been a {tad} weak-sauce with the blogging...i feel a little boring lately.

i took a picture of my lunch today because it was really pretty & made me happy,
.....but other than that, i got nothin'.

life is swell & uneventful.
i like boring.
feels nice.

9.01.2011

baby's first year!



hey guys!

so, here's the scoop on one of my new classes @ scrapbooks-etc: baby's first year.

it's a 4-part class & if you sign up for all 4 installments, you will complete an entire album for baby's first year.

each class is $22, and you receive 3 single-spread 12x12 layouts for that cost.
*with the option of copying & purchasing the supplies for a matching double spread at class, including a darling information/stat sheet for you to fill out about baby each month.

you get to pick girl [top row] or boy [bottom row] kits.

here are the class dates:
september 9th, {next friday} 10:30am-12:30pm
[layouts for month 1, month 2 & month 3]
*pictured above

october 14th, 10:30am-12:30pm
[layouts for month 4, month 5 & month 6]

november 11th, 10:30am-12:30pm
[layouts for month 7, month 8 & month 9]

december 1st, 10:30am-12:30pm
[layouts for month 10, month 11, & month 12]

if you sign up for all 4 classes, you will receive 20% off a WeR 3-ring album of your choice, at the end of the series of classes. :)

great deal, super fun layouts, and some seriously productive scrapbooking!

you can sign up online here & receive 10% off.
or, call scrapbooks etc. & they'd be glad to assist you: 480-854-2303.
*you must pre-register, so i can plan to make you a kit.

and remember! if you can't make it the day of the class, i can hold the kit for you & you can do it @ home! ♥

thanks!!! hope to see you there!