then all this became history.

Mama Said There'll Be Days Like This

2009-07-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

Today was full of everything. Except for the pictures to prove it. But it's alright; I'll explain later.

It got off to a frustrating, tear-filled start, but began to get much better as the kids and I drove out to a town even smaller than ours for some fabric shopping. On the way home, our CD of the primary songs for this year came up, and right in the middle of "My Eternal Family" Charlotte said, "Mom, I'm going to be strong and righteous and kind, and help out so that you don't have to do it alone." If you're a parent, you know just exactly how that made me feel.

In the afternoon, I skipped the grocery shopping in favor of filling up the pool and letting the kids run around the yard with the little neighbor girl (who came knocking at the door just as I was about to pack the kids in the car and drag them to the grocery store). They also had an impromptu tea party, complete with ginger cookies. Can I tell you how much I love tea parties? It's just such a natural environment for teaching civility. Like today as the teapot was being wrestled over, it was the perfect opportunity for the words "Having tea is all about serving one another; here, let me show you. Would you like another cup?" to escape my lips.

I set my sewing machine up on the picnic table and worked on Calvin's quilt upgrade (he's grown out from under his baby quilt - thank goodness it's summertime!)

We had popcorn, watermelon and smoothies for dinner al fresco. Just as we were cleaning up, Modest Mouse's "Float On" came on the radio and we danced around like maniacs while we cleared the table.

So many times I wished I'd had a camera today (I sent the "good one" with Robert, who was off on an adventure). And then it occurred to me, that while it's nice to have pictures to look at later, to remind us of days like this, it's more important to actually have more days like this - I hope we have so many that they'll be etched into my children's memories far more profoundly than any picture could express.

This Month is Such a Special One ...

2009-06-29T00:40:00.000-07:00

We were in birthday party heaven this weekend, with two at our house yesterday and one today (not at our house, thank goodness!).

We started the day with a family brunch for my niece Kamden, whose 3rd birthday is the day before Charlotte's 4th.

The kids made Fruit-Loop necklaces first thing, so they'd have something to snack on while they waited for Grandma and Grandpa to show up.

Jessica made awesome waffles, and we got a little fruity! :)

Pretty Kami!

Jess made Kami her own personal cake ...

... and inside ... so fun!

Calvin could barely stand that it wasn't his birthday so he thieved the blown-out candles from Kami's cake and sang "Happy to you, Calvin!" and blew them "out" again!

Kami sitting with Auntie Chrys (my fantastic new sister-in-law), and Grandpa (my dad) in the background.

In the afternoon, we did Charlotte's party, which I themed loosely around Alice in Wonderland. We did invitations with a picture from the book (from the chapter "Pig and Pepper") which said "For the Duchess. An invitation from the Queen ... "

We put out the kids' ancient castle (I made it when Charlotte was *maybe* two from the box our TV came in, and we've been playing with it ever since) and some kid-sized tables and chairs in the yard. We hung these *super* simple tissue paper pom-poms (a rare Martha success!) in the trees.

The kids made "mad" hats. Well, the girls did anyway ... we couldn't interest the boys. *Shrug*

Here is my sister, graciously modeling one of our fabulous hat creations.

We had "Eat Me" cupcakes, "red-less" velvet cake (we left out the food coloring) and cream cheese frosting, which seems to be what I always end up making for birthdays these days.

And "Drink Me" juice boxes.

We played "Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?" only we called it "Who Stole the Tarts?". We were planning on doing "Pin the Caterpillar on the Mushroom" too, but we ran out of time.

And just because I hardly ever post photos of me and Robert, here you go.

Our favors ... a chocolate bar covered up with fun paper.

And of course, Queen Charlotte herself!

I would say "I can't believe she's 4 already!" except that I can. She is growing up fast for sure, but I love watching it happen. She's an amazing girl, and we are blessed and honored to have her around!

Scenes from the Backyard

2009-06-03T20:42:00.000-07:00

We read a chapter from Peter Pan today - and I could hardly believe it, both kids sat still and listened! It was awesome! Then I read a chapter from my own book ("Things I've Been Silent About" by Azar Nafisi) while the kids splashed in our little pool and climbed trees. It was awesome! (Edit: I totally just said that twice. It was really that awesome, though! :)

This is yesterday. I love simple summer dinners outside - scrambled eggs, grapes (which were a little sour, but I was so excited to see California grapes - we haven't been buying them all winter because they're imported - I snatched them up and we loved them anyway!) and asparagus. Perfect!

We're eating frozen blueberries these days at snack time.

And ... who hangs art on the side of their house? When it's cheesy thrift store art I don't have to care about - ME!

Art, Chickens, and Ballet. They go together, right?

2009-05-28T14:23:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been awhile. I have no excuses, only very good reasons. Like I've been sleeping a little here and there. :)

First, because some of you asked to see pictures, here's that thing I did with the kids' art in our stairway. This is just the beginning - there's plenty of art, wall space and green paint to go around!

In other news, we took the chickens outside! It was their first glimpse of the world outside their nesting box in our master bathroom (yeah, I've been showering in the kids' bathroom for a few weeks!). They should be outside permanently in just a few weeks. We've yet to come up with names for them, but we're getting closer. I'll keep you posted!

And finally, we had Charlotte's last dance recital for the year this week. We totally showed up on the wrong day (but not just us - there was another family that thought it was on Monday, too!). Luckily there's a playground nearby.

After that, we went out for Thai food and called it Family Home Evening.

Here are some shots from the actual day, of Charlotte on stage in her tutu:

(This one's her "are we done with this yet?" look ... but I think it's nice anyway.)

(And this one's all: "I'm outta here, I can see cookies over there!")

Constant Motion

2009-05-09T20:27:00.000-07:00

That's where we've been this weekend - in constant motion. Which is fitting, since we have spent almost all of it celebrating our own little blur of activity.

First up: a bike of his very own, and helmets for both kids. I have a feeling we'll be doing this jaunt around the neighborhood quite a bit in the coming months:

Also, we saw this cool little spider along the way. I'm always glad when I choose to stop and point these things out to my kids, rather than just passing by. Even better, of course, when they point them out to me.

And today we went to the zoo - our first visit of many (I hope!) for the summer.

I could sit and watch elephants all day ... but there were monkeys to be seen! And tigers! And whales! (Which we ended up skipping this time, we were all zoo-ed out before we could get there.)

Also, this blue-tongued skink. So cool.

I know, I know, you don't come here to see photos of zoo animals. Here are our animals instead:

Calvin had a great time riding along on my back where he could see just about everything pretty easily - much better than a stroller.

Charlotte and her BFF Sophia. Katelyn's back there, too! I think Jason probably got a better shot of all three girls ...

Cute girly-girls!

Here's Robert wielding Jason's super-mega-camera-deluxe.

And finally, our Spring King!

Ready to spring into action ... "Look out 2 - here I come!"

Of Animals and Cookies

2009-05-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

Just a couple shots from yesterday with the chicks. Robert and Charlotte really share a love for animals in a way that's different from me and Calvin, I think. So while they were hanging out with the chicks, Calvin and I hung out in the kitchen with a couple Oreo cookies. :)

Signs of Life

2009-05-06T16:46:00.000-07:00

We've been busy this spring, which is why I've been so sparse here. And still there is so much to do! Here's a little peek into what we've been up to so far:

Tulips and new rose leaves.

Ah, blue skies and clothes dried in the sunshine!

Raspberry canes. I'm already salivating.

The hydrangea emerges.

Getting ready for eggplant and tomatoes.

Robert building the "aviary."

Charlotte and her impression of a rocket ship.

Treasures. :) I'd rather have them on my windowsill than all over my lawn!

And finally, some more recent shots of "the girls" ... still yet to be named. We're waiting until we know which ones we're keeping:

They're looking much more "chicken-y" don't you think?

Up next: Calvin's birthday. Because that's the Big Thing that's happening next. Can you believe he's going to be TWO?!

Simple FHE: Joseph Smith

2009-05-04T14:56:00.000-07:00

So, I struggle with Family Home Evening. Making things simple is not really one of my strong points, and so it's hard for me to come up with simple gospel lessons that are also fun for the kids. I feel, somehow, that I have to teach them everything all at once. Which is totally stupid. It's definitely important to me, though ... what's that quote about wise parents never missing an opportunity to teach the gospel to their children? I want to be wise and establish this weekly opportunity while the kids are young, so that we have less of a chance of missing out as they get older.

This week, though, I think I've got the simplicity thing down. Here's what we're going to do:

I took a picture of Joseph Smith from my collection of gospel-art-from-the-Ensign. Mounted it onto construction paper. Cut it into 6 puzzle pieces. I labeled the backs of the pieces as follows:

1 - He wanted to know which church was true.*
2 - He read in the Bible that we can pray to know the truth.
3 - Read James 1:5
4 - He went to a grove of trees to ask Heavenly Father in prayer.
5 - Sing "On a Golden Springtime"
6 - While he was praying, he saw Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, and they answered his prayer.

(*Text is almost word-for-word from the example of the First Vision story in the Nursery manual, lesson 21.)

I will hand the pieces, in order, to the kids so they can put the puzzle together and end up with a picture of the person we just described. Then, if their attention spans are still with us, we'll read an abridged version of the First Vision from the scriptures.

And that's it.

Oh, also I promised Charlotte that we could play one of our new games - either "Hi-ho Cherry-o" or "Hungry Hungry Hippos" (I know, really reverent, huh?) - that we found in great shape at Goodwill today. So if all else fails, we'll at least have another family game night (which we're trying to establish as a regular Sunday night thing - last night was our first, and it was really fun, so yay!).

Los Pollitos

2009-04-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

Today was a birthday, of sorts, at our house. Although technically, I think it was Wednesday. In any case, we added a few new family members today!

Welcome to our "red light district" ...

This is the Barred Plymouth Rock - she'll eventually be sort of black/white stripey. We can already tell she's a plucky one, and very curious.

Here is one of the Buff Orpingtons (on the left) and the Ameraucana (on the right), to whom I'm already pretty attached. She seems to be a little unsure of herself in her new surroundings - I can relate. If she turns out to be a he, oh, I'll be sad.

The two "Buffys" and the Barred Rock, having a snack and getting to know each other better. I haven't really attached much or anthropomorphized the "Buffys" - aside from calling them that - I think because it's hard to tell them apart right now, and if all four chicks are female, we'll most likely be saying good-bye to one of these two.

Robert made a cool little plastic window in the nesting box so that the kids could see inside. It lets in some natural light for the chickies, too, and gives them a little bit of a view besides the walls of a cardboard box.

Here is their eventual home, in process, yesterday. It looks a lot taller than it really is.

I have to admit, I wasn't too sure about this new adventure when Robert first came up with the idea. But now that they're here, it's going to be hard to part with one of them (we're only keeping three).

Any ideas for names?

Easter Hunt!

2009-04-14T22:48:00.000-07:00

We are so digging Cailean's awesome idea, and we're definitely doing it next year. (Ok, Cailean, I know it's a SugarDoodle idea, techincally, but we got it from you so it will forever be your idea around here.) But this time around, we just did the typical (minus the bunny - I don't think I've really ever recovered from the story my brothers told me when I was maybe 5 or 6 about my dad shooting the Easter bunny on a hunting trip - we just told our kids we were hiding their baskets for a hunt, and had them go searching from egg-clue-to-egg-clue to get them). Here are just a few photos from our rainy Saturday egg hunt with our Renton friends:

Calvin ate, like, 4 of these sandwiches - whoever made them, I want to know what you spiked them with! ;)

And this photo? Totally kills me. When did she become such a little lady?

On Parenthood

2009-04-12T23:04:00.001-07:00

I came across this quote last week, and it really resonated with me. It isn't strictly about parenthood, but to me it became all about parenthood as I read it:

"There are events in the future, and not very far ahead, that will require all our faith, all our energy, all our confidence, all our trust in God, to enable us to withstand the influences that will be brought to bear against us. ... We cannot trust in our intelligence; we cannot trust in our wealth; we cannot trust to any surrounding circumstances with which we are enveloped; we must trust alone in the living God to guide us, to direct us, to lead us, to teach us and to instruct us."

- Joseph Fielding Smith, 1950

I don't know about everyday life in 1950, but this sure sounds like good advice for modern parenthood to me.

Come Into My Parlour*

2009-04-10T17:09:00.000-07:00

So! Here are some "during" and, well, since it's still not totally done, "during" photos of our living and dining rooms, which I've been painting. Today I had a girl from our ward come over and play with the kids so I could - and did! - get a bunch done. It's just lucky for her that I ran out of paint, or I might have been tempted to keep her here all day while I finished the job!

This is the used-to-be red-accent wall behind the piano. I started taking pictures off the wall and then decided to pull out the camera - and I'm ever so glad I did! I don't think I would have been able to put the pictures back on the wall in the right places otherwise.

This one's in the dining room, and you can see the ever-so-slight-but-all-important difference between the old beige and the new beige. You can see up in the corner, that we're painting the ceiling, too. I just don't really dig white ceilings if I don't have to have them to brighten up a room. The beige is light enough, and our ceilings are high enough, I'm putting the two together!

Here's another one of the red wall, for context. You can see in the upper-left corner the old/new, and our paint sample swatches in the middle-right. And also our overnight bag, sitting there since last weekend, and the dining room blinds, and a box of office files (don't you like how I said that - as if we had an actual office!).

Speaking of office, here it is, such as it is. The window on the right is in the entryway and looks out on the porch; the window on the left is a sort-of three-way bayed wall/window at the front of the house. Earlier in the week I ordered this computer armoire for this corner:

Sweeping to the left, here's the front window. The orange chair really belongs in Charlotte's room, but we're short on seating until I find the perfect upholstered cushy reading chair for that space. Anyone have any suggestions for how to hide the outlet the lamp is plugged into?

And finally - here's the un-accented wall! I thought it was going to take some getting used to, since this wall has been that deep red ever since we moved in. But the light just reflects off the wall now, instead of getting sucked in, and I think our pictures look so much nicer hanging there - they don't disappear into the red, I just love it already.

Hooray, we can finally hang Robert's cuckoo clock from Germany! I have been resisting putting it there, because that corner has been so crowded and dark. But now I think it couldn't go anywhere else (of course, it's only decorative for now - the chains are just way too tempting for little hands to grab and pull).

Sofa, naturally, and into the dining room (that window way back there is the kitchen sink window). I just love books in a dining room.

And another dining room-from-living-room shot. Blue tape on the windows = I'm not done painting yet! That wall is still the old beige until I make my next trip to McLendon's for paint!

So that's it. It's coming along. Come visit for real anytime! (Next step for these rooms, I think, is to pull out the carpet and put in hardwood - so it'll be in all of the downstairs - which I think will be really nice with the new paint. Lucky me, I often see the previous owner of our house at the library with her two kids, so I was able to ask her who she hired to do the hardwood in the first place!)

*Oh, and can you guess the song I have had running through my head since I typed that subject line? The British spelling should give you a hint.

Conference Weekend Photo Gallery

2009-04-06T14:32:00.000-07:00

We went to Robert's parents' for Conference weekend, to get some visiting time with them, and because they have BYU-TV.

Calvin became the View-Master.

Notice Robert in the background, still in his pajamas - now that's what Conference weekend is all about, isn't it?

A girl and her grandma.

A boy and his grandpa.

Here's Robert getting ready to fold his arms.

We also played outside:

And found some interesting things growing in the garden!
(Robert's mom suspects this is an ancient artifact from the family's early years. It was out by the old swing set - does anyone know the identity of the pirate who buried this treasure?)

The kids' Miller cousins came over for a few hours, too, but I was too busy visiting with the adults to take photos - except when Charlotte and Edward came into the kitchen to play ball. I had to ask myself, even though I know the answer: Why doesn't she play this nicely with her brother? Ah, well. Hooray for cousins!

A Proverb

2009-04-02T13:53:00.001-07:00

Has anybody else heard the saying:

Our house is clean enough to be healthy
and messy enough to be happy

I just love that.

... and Got Sick, Sick, Sick!

2009-03-24T13:38:00.000-07:00

We've been sick. We have not played outside, even when it was sunny (we spent that day at the doctor's office getting diagnosed with "not-flu-nothing-we-can-do-go-home-and-get-some-rest"). We have not been to church. We have not commemorated Mr. Roger's birthday (it was the 20th) or the first day of Spring (also the 20th). We have not visited family like we planned, or worked in the garden, or made progress on any one of our various projects. We have not folded the laundry or cleaned the bathrooms. We have not looked forward to making - or eating - dinner.

It's getting better, though, and I hope we'll be normal again by the weekend.

Before we got sick, Robert went and turned 32. Photos from the blessed event are having trouble uploading, so here's a link. Photos courtesy of our good friend and photographer extraordinaire, Jason Teeples. Grandmas - there are some good shots of the kids in there! And video!

Finally, here are some photos of the kids in their new pajamas, which came in a package from Grandma Miller today. It was a much needed and very appreciated diversion from our usual doom and gloom around here lately! Thanks again, Grandma!

(One of those marks on his head is from falling and smacking his head on a box while he tried to follow me to the bathroom. In the dark, dark middle of the night. The other mark is jam, I think.)

(Trying so hard to look happy. Today was pretty miserable for this one.)

(Not pictured: Me "attacking" Robert with a toy lion while he tries to take the picture.)

Oh! And how could I almost forget? Here's a thing that Charlotte's been learning these days - largely untaught by us, by the way, she is pretty much coming up with this stuff on her own (with a little help when she asks for it, of course!):

Robert and I were reflecting that although it's been miserable to have all four of us sick all at once for an entire week, it's been an amazing learning experience, as well. We've had to help each other out and lean on each other in ways that we're not used to. We - well, really *I* - have had to let a lot of stuff go, and that's been awesome. It's been really refreshing to truly and honestly not care if the dishes and laundry piled up or the toys got left on the floor or whatever. And I've been amazed at how put-together the house is anyway, since we've all pitched in to help out. We've all been a little emotionally on-the-edge, too, and when Robert showed me a trailer for "Where the Wild Things Are" and I started to cry because our kids are growing up so fast, right before our eyes, and there is so much that I choose to miss out on because I'm preoccupied with my own issues, we had a good conversation about things that we can change in our lives to remedy that. It's been good.

Keep in Mind ...

2009-03-15T22:56:00.000-07:00

This has been one of my favorite pieces of art for a long time. I even loved it before I ever saw it, and this is why:

"This poor little caryatid [an architectural support - like a column - sculpted in the shape of a woman] has fallen under the load. She's a good girl - look at her face. Serious, unhappy at her failure, not blaming anyone, not even the gods... and still trying to shoulder her load, after she's crumpled under it.

"But she's more than just good art denouncing bad art; she's a symbol for every woman who ever shouldered a load too heavy. But not alone women - this symbol means every man and woman who ever sweated out life in uncomplaining fortitude until they crumpled under their loads. It's courage... and victory.

"Victory in defeat, there is none higher. She didn't give up... she's still trying to lift that stone after it has crushed her... she's all the unsung heroes who couldn't make it but never quit."

(From Robert A. Heinlein's "Stranger in a Strange Land")

On Saturday I had the unexpected opportunity to attend Deseret Book's Time Out for Women. At first I thought of all the reasons why I couldn't go - the dirty dishes in the sink; the mountain of laundry I *still* have to fold (seriously, I should take a photo or you won't believe how huge it is!); the general wreck my house was in because I moved furniture around on Friday; the unplanned Primary lesson; the grocery shopping; etc. And then I realized that these were exactly the reasons why I *should* go. And so I did. And it was worth it. And here, for what they're worth, are some of the thoughts I came away with:

* Appearances are important, but not in the way we often think about them. There is a reason to have a tidy home and outward appearance - it leaves us free to concentrate on other, more important things. It's when the appearance of things *becomes* the focus that we can get too caught up in them and lose sight of what matters most.

* Emily Watts shared this anonymous verse, which I hadn't heard before:

With thoughtless and impatient hands
We tangle up the plans
The Lord hath wrought.
And when we cry in pain He saith,
‘Be quiet, man, while I untie the knot.’

* She also asked the question: What if the fruits of our parenting labors have less to do with how our children turn out and more to do with how we turn out? (Which made me think/realize: At the end of my life, I will not present my children to the Lord - I will only present myself.)

* I thought of Rodin's "Caryatid" (above) when one of the presenters said, "The struggle is worth it!"

* During Kim Nelson's presentation I had the thought: "You are not firstly a mother; you are first (and foremost) a daughter - Heavenly Father's."

* And Kris Belcher reminded us that Heavenly Father will give us trials we can't handle - otherwise, what is the need for an Atonement? He gives us trials that we cannot overcome by ourselves but with God, all things are possible.

Crafting it Forward

2009-03-13T14:18:00.000-07:00

So, my friend put this great invitation up on her blog, and I just couldn't resist playing along. I modified the rules a *little* bit, but not enough to make a difference in the spirit of the game. Here's how it goes:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice. For you. This offer does have some limitations:

1. You will not know what it's going to be, and there are no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2. It’ll be done this year. Translation: you may be waiting a little while.
3. Most importantly, you must offer the same deal on your blog - the first 5 people to comment on your blog (or Facebook or whatever, if you don't have a blog) get something made by YOU!

Line Upon Line: The Most Important Things

2009-03-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Today's lesson: Everything (from playing tag to washing the dishes) is more fun when you're a butterfly.

Oh, wait. I think we knew that one already.

The Fastest Little Pillow in the West. Also, I Hate Making Dinner.

2009-03-06T22:16:00.000-08:00

So I've had this little throw pillow with colors that I love and have wanted to make some others to go with it for our family/playroom sofa. Enter springtime and 2 yards of the perfect fabric! Aside from painting, I think throw pillows are one of the fastest and least expensive ways to transform a room. And there's almost no such thing as too many! I worked out the easiest way in the universe to make them, too, with no cutting and minimal sewing ... Here, I'll show you!

Here is 1/2 yard of washed and pressed fabric. This amount will cover a 17" pillow form.

Lay your fabric out right-side up, and then fold in the selvage ends like this - so that the side with the fabric info. is on top - and so that it measures about 18" square.

Zig-zag stitch along the top and bottom (the open edges) with a 1/4" seam allowance (or as close to the edge as you can get away with).

Turn the pillowcase right-side out like this, and press. (See that selvage edge? It's such a clean, smooth line and you didn't even have to sew it!)

Now stitch around the edges with a 1/4" seam allowance. This will reinforce the seam you made on the inside, and it will give the pillow a more finished, "piped" look - only you didn't have to spend the extra money or time on piping.

Stuff your pillow form in carefully - it'll seem like a tight fit, and you'll think you're about to bust a seam, but just go slowly and don't worry!

Here's the backside - much nicer than the last ones I did where I used ribbons to try and hold the "envelope" together - this one, by contrast, has plenty of overlap (which means no pillow form overflowing out the back! And no sewing on ribbons that fray and look awful after one trip through the washing machine!).

And here it is, hanging out with its new pillow buddies! (The one in the middle is where the palate came from.)

In other news ...

I hate making dinner. I love to cook, but I just loathe making dinner. Here's the deal: For breakfast, we're pretty typical with our cereal or toast or oatmeal (with the occasional I'm-not-a-zombie-this-morning-so-I'll-cook-something). Lunch is pretty much at the kids' request (which usually means PB&J, macaroni & cheese or something equally kid-typical). Snacks are usually apples or yogurt or whatever. But dinner is - at least, in theory - THE meal where we try new things and learn not to say "yuck" and make sure we're eating our yummy vegetables. But I am so disorganized in this area of my life that I never have the ingredients around to make something well-balanced and fabulous by dinnertime. 4:00 (or even 5:00!) pm rolls around and I'm wandering aimlessly from pantry to fridge trying to come up with something - anything - edible I can throw together. I'm annoyed with being so ... BAD at this making dinner thing. And so we're back to the weekly menu-plan idea. Which I've tried a few times and loved, but not enough to make it last, I guess. I'm inspired this time, though, by this menu-planning sheet on kootoyoo. I'll let you know how it goes. And I know some of you out there are faithful menu planners, so feel free to pass along your tips on how to make it work for good!

Magic Dance

2009-03-02T22:09:00.000-08:00

Charlotte had her first ballet recital today, and oh my goodness I think there must be nothing in the world that's cuter than a bunch of little girls in pink and purple tutus. Charlotte did most of the steps in her dance (which was a nice surprise - during the last rehearsal she just stood there) and a good time was had by all.

This is the best photo (I think) of Charlotte alone ...

And here we are together - I'm telling her how proud I am of her, and she really just wants to get down and play with the other kids. Oh well, so it goes. (At least it wasn't last week's declaration that "Mom, I don't want to be 8, I just want to be 16!" To which I didn't really say much but something lame and practical like "Well, good luck with that!" In retrospect I should have been a little cooler and said, "Hey, that's great. 16's an awesome age." Mental note: Be cooler.)

Ballet and New Paint

2009-02-28T15:12:00.000-08:00

Charlotte's been taking ballet classes and I finally brought the "good" camera last week - her last class before her first recital on Monday. This is the only photo I was able to get of just her alone ...

It's not through a studio or anything, and it's just held in this community center (sort of reminds me of Billy Eliott, only without the boxing). But it's her first class ever, and she's just having fun at this point. There's a jazz class right after her ballet class, and she's pretty entranced by that - I don't know if it's the older girls or the cooler music. Funny thing, the teacher turns out to be a woman that went to school (we're talking from 3rd grade through high school) with Robert. I'm sure he never would have imagined bumping into someone he knows in our little town. But apparently it's a small, small, small world.

Also, last week I spent in a painting/reorganizing frenzy unleashed on our family room/studio/playroom. The walls were this yellow color with a sponge-painted accent wall. Which is a style that has its fans, to be sure, I'm just not one of them. It's in our entryway, too (which is getting painted in the next few months, I think) ... and after we first moved in, and a very stylish friend of mine popped in unexpectedly and said in THE nicest way "Oh! Are you going to keep this color?" Hm. Well, anyway, the new color is one that Robert suggested. It's what we had in our old house for the kids' room. And it feels just so much more ... us. I love it.

Here's a corner of the room during the painting frenzy.

That same corner after.

And this is my little corner.

Cuteness All Around!

2009-02-24T14:55:00.000-08:00

Look! I made some more dresses! And these kids are cute! How much better can a blog post get?

These ones are a bit different from the other one I made in that they're reversible, and much easier to make. I made the pattern from looking at the dresses at this Etsy shop (while I love to support handmade, I just can't pay $40 for a girl's dress when I know I can make it myself, you know?). I didn't trust myself to get the bottom hem just perfectly lined up right, so I folded the fabrics to create a layered look on one side and thus avoid the issue altogether. It's a bonus that I think it even looks cuter that way.

We Heart Cookies!

2009-02-16T10:33:00.000-08:00

Next year, I'm totally making these. (Thanks for the idea, Patsy!)

Life's Too Short ...

2009-02-14T15:53:00.000-08:00

... to stash away beautiful fabric. Or, for that matter, to put boring curtains in your laundry room:

In other news, Charlotte's been revisiting old episodes of Blue's Clues since our VCR works again. Inspired by the episode in which Steve and Blue make things out of recycled stuff, we made a couple cardboard guitars. They were a big hit for a few days (and then they fell apart).

(She says she'll get a real one when she's older. Guess what, Charlotte? We have two real ones already - which your mom and dad swore they'd learn how to play. Someday ... )

(Calvin had great guitar-smashing style)

Hanging By a Thread

2009-02-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

I just had to share this image from A Print a Day. It illustrates so well just exactly how I feel sometimes. I took one look at it and said: Yes! That's it!