little man

Ya, we're still plugging along over here in spite of what my blog activity level shows. For those of you who don't already know, we have an announcement to make.

  It's a boy!

Please welcome Little Man. A month ago we received this precious little guy for foster care at only 7 weeks old to keep while his mom pulls things together. Most likely he'll be with us for 6 months to a year. I am having so. much. fun. that I need to say it again. He is So. Much. Fun. And yep, I already know I'm going to need therapy when he goes, but I try really hard not to think about it right now.  It's been exactly 14 years since my last baby and it is a completely different experience this time around.

Number 1 difference is the boy thing.  We've never done that around here before and more than once this little guy has caught us off guard... But wow, he is handsome and I try really hard not to dress him too girlie. I do have to admit, we have ALL been guilty of slipping and calling him 'her' though, at least once. Poor kid!

Number 2, I am 14 years older than I was with my last baby and have had some pretty substantial life experiences in that time. My body and my intellect aren't handling the endless day and night-time scheduled feedings at maximum capacity. In fact, I think I have never been this exhausted in my whole life. Not even when I was 16 and I yelled at my mom that she would never understand how tired I was...  Sorry, mom. Again.

This leads nicely into Number 3, which is that I am blessed to have wonderfully amazing teenage girls (I know, I totally don't deserve it) who have made all the difference. Between them and my helpful Count Studley, we are handling this experience with minimal trauma. And last night he (That's Little Man, not Count Studley, well, and Count Studley) slept for 8 hours and this morning he laughed his first ever really real laugh because Count Studley was being so ridiculously silly in his face.

The last difference is my perspective.  He is pretty much a grumpy-pants a lot of the time but I'm pretty good with it.  He reminds me a lot of how Our Princess was when she was really tiny.  Only she was Ultra-Major-Grumpy Pants. Then, when she was 3 months old exactly, she turned into a brand new happy princess and we've lived happily ever after. Those 3 months seemed more than eternity for a first time mom, and I wondered constantly why no one ever told me the truth about motherhood. But now she is 16-stinkin-years-old, and my perspective is so different than it ever could have been then. So I don't worry so much about the housework and the laundry and fall canning and even my fun projects, and I hold him too much, and I talk to him when he is sad, and we sing and we dance and in a couple of months he'll be just fine. And then I'll give him back to his mom. What were we ever thinking??

Our church held it's semi-annual general conference this weekend.  This is always a favorite time for our family.  We set up the card table in the living room and work on craft projects together while we watch each of the four- two hour sessions.  This conference, as life in general as of late, was a little different.  My Angel's fourteenth birthday was on Saturday and Count Studley was out of town for work.  The sessions flew by between making and decorating a birthday cake, fixing favorite meals, opening gifts, visiting with friends, and a trip to the mall for birthday shopping as well as the usual feeding, changing, napping and playing with the baby.  I'm grateful for the technology that we have that gives me an opportunity to watch and read and watch again these messages that are so uplifting and inspiring for me, especially when life gets complicated.  It was also fun to see on Pinterest that others had gleaned the same insights that I did and have already been creative with them.

These are some of my favorite thoughts to ponder with a link to the individual talks as well as the sources from pinterest:

proclamationpictures.blogspot.com

Ann M Dibb

yourhomebasedmom.com

Linda K Burton

diapersanddivinity.files.wordpress.com

 Henry B Eyring

281fourthstreet.blogspot.com

"Sometimes in life we become so focused on the finish line that we fail to find joy in the journey."

This man speaks directly to me every single time.  It's like he looks right at me and tells me how it is and what I need to do.  Once again, this was just for me.  I'm pretty sure he was called to this responsibility just for my salvation. 

  Dieter F Uchtdorf

And lastly, so good to remember when life becomes full of uncertainty, from our prophet:

diapersanddivinity.files.wordpress.com

President Thomas S Monson

Keep Smiling!

for Frances

To my Dearest Fan Fran,

Thank you for caring.  You will always be one of the truest friends I have. I miss you and hope that your school year has started in a spectacular way.

Love always,

any takers?

from pinterest

Wow! I knew I'd be out of commission for a while, but WOW. We have never had such a crazy adventure of a summer in our whole lives!! We left mid-June for our two week road trip.  Super fun + super long.  Our girls were amazing and we (mostly) got along really well. Thank goodness for technology.  You know those days of singing joyfully and playing car games together as a family as they went? The only singing that happened on this trip was with Disney SingIt on the Wii and the only games that were played were on the Wii or the Ipad, and many movies were watched between all of us, together and independently, I'm afraid. I decided that Count Studley and I have never in our 17 years of marriage spent that much time consistently together. right next to each other. Until this trip.  I'm grateful we had that time together, but I'm also grateful that he has another 25 years until retirement ;)!! Speaking of retirement, when that day comes, we are definitely moving to rural New York. Gorgeous.
We had 3 days after we got back from that trip before we left for our church's girls camp.  Since I am the assistant girls camp leader, those three days were spent pretty much entirely with last minute preparations for the camp. And unpacking. And doing laundry. And repacking. One of those days was the 4th of July, so my poor family skipped out on that holiday pretty much completely.  And I had even found so many fun things on Pinterest to try!! Boo.  We did slap together some pbj's and headed up to our local Independence Day show for a couple of hours to watch the fireworks and hear the group Kansas perform. (I totally didn't remember who they are and they even came from my day!!)
We got home from girls camp on Saturday evening and had to be ready to leave Sunday morning for our next adventure.  So Saturday night was filled once again with unpacking, laundry, and repacking. Sunday morning I headed out to take Our Princess to a ranch in Island Park, Idaho where she was attending a horse camp for the week. After dropping her off there, My Angel and I headed over to my parents house for a couple of days to hang out with my aunt and cousin who are visiting from Australia.  Then we (did laundry and) headed up to Island Park with my family to stay in a gorgeous cabin and spent a few days touring Yellowstone National Park before heading over to a rained-out rodeo that Our Princess was supposed to be performing in. She got to sing the national anthem, and that pretty much was the beginning and the end, because it was dumping rain and the horses were going crazy. We picked her up on Sunday morning and got home Sunday evening.
Monday morning at 6:30 a.m. we had to be at our church ready to leave for a 3 day pioneer trek with the young men and women. So Sunday night was spent, you know, unpacking, doing laundry, repacking. Monday we rode on a school bus for 7 hours to the middle of nowhere in Wyoming, Tuesday we walked 15 miles. (plus an extra 3 to find Our Princess and her 'lost' peeps) Wednesday we bussed for 2 hours, walked another 5 miles and then bussed again for 6, getting us home just after midnight.  Thursday we unpacked and did laundry.  Our realtor called Thursday afternoon to see if we could do a showing and I looked around at the piles of laundry, clean and dirty, the tents and sleeping bags strewn all over the yard, the weeds that have completely taken over my flower beds, and the dust that was at least an inch thick on the furniture, and all I could do was laugh. And say no.
So this week begins is my summer vacation.  It will be filled with all kinds of relaxing things like trying to find my vegetable garden under all the weeds, and trying to find my piano under the dust.  And probably doing laundry.  And hopefully visiting the chiropractor, lol.  But I'm home and I'm so happy to be. This weekend we will head out to go camping with Count Studley's family, then Our Princess is off to Especially for Youth at BYU Idaho for a week while we visit more family.  We'll then finish off the summer with My Angel attending MDA summer camp. Then comes the blessed day when school starts and we have to stay home. I have always dreaded the first day of school, I love love love my kids being home for the summer. Home being the key word here. Home is not something we've been at all this summer and my craft room and the solitude of those quiet school days is calling me as loudly as it ever has.

Anybody else out there living it up this summer?

Hoping your Summer is as happy as mine.
Keep Smiling!

good things

Count Studley and I were talking last night.  We're about to embark on a super big, super long -78 hours of driving in two weeks- road trip through 15 states to New York (even Canada!) and back.  I know. We're totally and completely nuts.  He said, 'It's big, but we seem to do everything big, that's just how we are.'  I thought, 'Ya, that's true, but why in the world are we like that??' Our summer, just like our life, is completely and totally packed with one good thing after another.  And it really is wonderful.  I can't even believe the opportunities and adventures we are blessed to experience. I only hope that we can enjoy each good thing as it happens, instead of stressing and worrying about what is coming next...



Keep Smiling!

raspberry crumb bars

We made these yummers this weekend.  I don't even want to disclose how fast the entire 9 x 13 pan disappeared. Ok, fine, I'll give a hint, it was less than 24 hours.  I know, wrong!  My Angel even figured out how to elevate her chair up just enough to reach the pan and sneak one or two or I actually have no idea how many she really ended up eating. They remind me of lemon bars, minus the lemon plus the raspberry... They are totally fast and easy to prepare, too, which makes them even tastier in my book!

Raspberry Crumb Bars

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs, well beaten
3 cups flour
3/4-1 cup raspberry jam (freezer jam is the BEST!!)
2 tablespoons sugar

Cream butter, sugar and eggs together.  Add flour and mix thoroughly.  Press half of the flour mixture into the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking pan.  Spread jam over crust.  Spread remaining flour mixture over jam carefully, sprinkle with sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.

Enjoy!

look up

Pinned from Pinterest, found here.

Summer is definitely here, and I was complaining to a friend the other day about how ridiculously full it is.  I told her that next year I was putting restrictions on what everyone is able to participate in so that we can have some serious summer down-time. At that moment, it hit me that Our Princess only has one. more. summer. as a kid after this year.  The weight of that thought just about crushed me. I took back everything that I'd said and decided right there that I will encourage her to participate is as many things as she chooses, this year and next, and enjoy every second of it. There will be plenty of time in years to come for down-time.  And as we race from one exciting adventure to the next, this will be my motto!

Elder Carl B Cook, October 2011:

"At the end of a particularly tiring day toward the end of my first week as a General Authority, my briefcase was overloaded and my mind was preoccupied with the question “How can I possibly do this?” I left the office of the Seventy and entered the elevator of the Church Administration Building. As the elevator descended, my head was down and I stared blankly at the floor.

The door opened and someone entered, but I didn’t look up. As the door closed, I heard someone ask, “What are you looking at down there?” I recognized that voice—it was President Thomas S. Monson.

I quickly looked up and responded, “Oh, nothing.” (I’m sure that clever response inspired confidence in my abilities!)

But he had seen my subdued countenance and my heavy briefcase. He smiled and lovingly suggested, while pointing heavenward, “It is better to look up!” As we traveled down one more level, he cheerfully explained that he was on his way to the temple. When he bid me farewell, his parting glance spoke again to my heart, “Now, remember, it is better to look up.”

As we parted, the words of a scripture came to mind: “Believe in God; believe that he is … ; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth.” As I thought of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ's power, my heart found the comfort I had sought in vain from the floor of that descending elevator.

President Monson’s encouragement to look up is a metaphor for remembering Christ. As we remember Him and trust in His power, we receive strength through His Atonement. It is the means whereby we can be relieved of our anxieties, our burdens, and our suffering. It is the means whereby we can be forgiven and healed from the pain of our sins. It is the means whereby we can receive the faith and strength to endure all things."

"Turn your face to the sun and the shadows follow behind you."
~ Maori Proverb

 Keep Smiling!

crazy over flip flops

 Today is the last day of school.  To celebrate summer break being here, (YAY!) I decided it would be fun to share these crocheted flip flops, because that's what summer is all about around here! You can never have too many flip flops, especially super cute ones!

This is just single crochet! (I think?) If I can do it, anyone can. Tie a knot around the strap.  I'm using 2 strands of yarn on these ones to get the furry feel.

 To begin, the yarn lays over the top, and the hook slides underneath the strap. (above)
 Grab the yarn with the hook and pull it back from underneath.

 Hook the yarn from the top and pull it through the yarn loop on the hook.  The first time (mine) only has one loop, but after that, there will always be two loops to pull through.  Pull it through both loops each time. Someone else may recognize that this really isn't crochet and I've invented something new.  Don't tell me if it's not, I was so excited to get it!

 As you continue, push what you've done back towards the beginning really well so that it's not leaving any holes. It looks lots better if you can keep the tension pretty tight and even as well. Keep going around until you've pushed it all back tight and made it to the other side of the flip flop!  And That's It.  I know, right?

These flip flops can be 'fashioned' with any kind of yarn.  These ones were made with a really fun velvety chunky yarn.

They can be even be improved upon when they are embellished or 'accessorized" with flowers and such.  These ones are pom pom balls made from the same yarn.

My mom crocheted the cute flowers on this pair, I'm not quite that skilled at crocheting yet...

I made the straps on these ones to go around the back of My Angel's feet, since she has trouble keeping this sort of thing on.  I learned how at Make It and Love It here. They work really well and are totally comfy.

And anyone who knows me just a little bit will not be astonished to see the absolutely perfect, absolutely brown, ones that I did (for me!).

Happy Crafting!

mom's granola

My mom makes the best granola in the entire world.  Every time we go home, for as long as I can remember, she makes it for us just because she loves us.  It only took me about 6 years to figure out that I could make it myself.  Since then, it has become a familiar friend at our home.  You can add flax seed, wheat germ, raisins, almonds, dried fruit, anything you like.  As my mom was making (a second batch) this weekend, we decided it would be fun to add craisins.  Next time I'll try it... Yum!

Mom's Granola
5 cups uncooked oats
1 cup coconut
1 cup cashews
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon brown sugar

Spread oats on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Heat 10 minutes at 350 degrees.  Combine oats, coconut, cashews, salt, and brown sugar in a large bowl.  Stir in honey, oil, and vanilla.  Mix thoroughly with a spoon until dry ingredients are well coated.  Spoon onto cookie sheet, bake 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees, stirring every 10 minutes.  It cools as a solid mass, but comes apart easily.  Store it in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

beautiful people

For some reason Memorial Day this year, more so than others, finds me reflecting on the people that I love that I have lost in my life.  I've been thinking specifically lately about memories made, lessons learned, and opportunities missed.

I have lost way too many dear people in my life than seems fair, but I have lately been thinking of three specific losses that have really touched me and changed my life in different ways.  

My Grandma passed away several years ago.  I miss her so much! She is one of the number one joyful memories that I have of my childhood.  Because we lived next to them, she is a part of most of the memories that I have growing up.  I spent day after day with her, listening to her, playing with her, creating with her, singing with her.  I even ate bread and milk with her.  It was the most horrible tasting stuff ever, but I wanted to be like her!  She was always smiling, always glad to see us, always looking for opportunities to teach us.  We played with her cats, ran and played in their irrigation water, climbed her weeping willow trees, smelled and picked her lilacs, put on puppet shows, and played house with her dishes made from jar lids and medicine cups.  My favorite thing to do was to sleep over at her house.  On those special occasions, we played games, wrote and illustrated stories, made paper dolls, ate popcorn and played dress-ups. She never seemed to be too busy for us. When Our Princess was born, she sent me a letter filled with the songs that she used to sing to us when we were small.  When My Angel was born, she sent me another letter that was filled with her favorite inspiring hymns to give me strength in hard times.  These letters are still some of my most cherished possessions.  I think about her so much more than I would have even thought, and often feel like she is close, giving me strength and pushing me through when I need it.  She'll be one of the first people I hope to see on the other side.

Around the same time that my grandma died, we lost a very close friend to pancreatic cancer.  He and Count Studley had been best friends growing up and he married one of my best friends in the whole world. The boys proposed to my friend and I at the same time. (in different places!) We had the most out-of-control dreams and aspirations of where our lives were going to end up.  We beat them by a month in marriage and in first-born. We got girls, they got boys. We laughed and teased and spent all of our spare time together, even when it was hard to fit in.  Just as he finished PT school and he and his wife had two gorgeous small boys, he was diagnosed.  He fought hard, it was an ugly and difficult battle, and yet through it all he stayed so strong.  It didn't even seem right, yet through the whole battle, he and his little family were sharing strength with us and everyone else around.  They were so close to God, and they helped us to feel that closeness as well.  We wanted to be with them whenever we could, just to feel that strength.  The meager help we tried to give was nothing compared to the lessons we were taught from experiencing what we did of that with them.  He was an incredible man, and I've never doubted that he was needed to serve on the other side and that he has been doing amazing things there.  But I can't help but feel sadness for the loss that his family and friends have suffered since his death. I still absolutely love and admire his great wife, my friend, who reminds me still to laugh and be crazy even when I don't feel like it. Our relationship with them has been one of the greatest life lessons that we have ever experienced and I will always be grateful for them.

Last year,  I lost a friend very unexpectedly from an infection that went bad.  I had known her for several years and had admired her since we'd first met.  We had a lot in common and had several opportunities to work together in church responsibilities. She was creative and intelligent and fun to talk to and I thought all the time that I'd love to spend more time with her.  We were even the same age! For some reason, she touched me. But life is crazy and I am the ultimate procrastinator.  Not kidding, as I drove past her work every single day, I thought about her and made a mental note to stop in to see her, but I didn't often take the time.  When I found out she was in the hospital, I rushed down to visit her, but she didn't even know I was there.  Within two weeks she went from healthy to gone.  I was devastated.  Her funeral was beautiful, but broke my heart, because it came out that she had been so lonely and sad for a long time.  She had never married, and had tried so hard to put everything she had into life, but it's challenging, and it's lonely, and good friends make all the difference. Count Studley couldn't figure out why I couldn't stop crying for weeks, but I knew that I had missed an opportunity that had been mine to touch her life and to let her touch mine in return.

IN GOD'S GARDEN

God looked around His garden 

and found an empty place.
He then looked down upon the earth 

and saw your tired face.
He put His arms around you 

and lifted you to rest.
God's garden must be beautiful. 

He only takes the best. 

He knew that you were suffering. 

He knew you were in pain.
He knew that you would never 
get well on earth again.
He saw the road getting rough 

and the hills were hard to climb.
So He closed your weary eyelids 

and whispered, "Peace be thine". 

It broke our hearts to lose you

but you did not go alone.

A part of us went with you

the day God took you home.

If tears could build a stairway

and heartaches make a lane,

we'd walk our way to heaven

and bring you back again.

In life we loved you dearly,

in death we love you still.

In our hearts you hold a place

that no one could ever fill.

-Author Unknown

Well that's a lot more reflective than I usually let myself get.  But I will always be grateful for the memories that I have and lessons that I've learned from people that I love who are gone.  Some of the lessons have been harder to learn than others, but they have definitely changed me and my perspective on this life that we're living. I'm grateful for the knowledge that I have that we will be able to be together with those we love for eternity after this life is through and to know that when someone I love is taken from this earth, they are in a beautiful place, with beautiful people, and that I'll be there with them someday, thanks to our Savior, Jesus Christ, who made it possible.



Keep Smiling!

for the love of birds

A couple of years ago, My Angel discovered a new interest. Birds.  She became fascinated with identifying them and feeding them and watching them.  We put a feeder outside her bedroom window and took photos as the birds came to eat so that she could identify them. She made a book cataloging their individual characteristics. She worked and studied really hard!

Since then, we've spent some time making some pretty 'creative' bird feeders. This is one for thistle seeds that Count Studley made from a garbaged (and emptied out!) power strip. I must admit that the birds (and the neighbors) never did figure out what it's purpose was...

We have also gotten some fun books with recipes to make treats for the birds and have tried several of them out. As time has gone on, My Angel  has become a little less obsessive, but we still try to keep the feeders full and we all have grown to love watching them come and feed outside our windows.
I've seen in all kinds of preschool activity ideas for years to spread peanut butter on pine cones and roll them in birdseed mix, and I saw these cute little wooden bird houses at the dollar store and wondered if they would be as effective.  Ya, they were, and look how cute they ended up being!

To begin with, I drilled a hole on each side of the roof to string some jute twine through after we finished. Next step; peanut butter.
I decided that these are even better than pine cones because the peanut butter spreads on so much easier. My Angel has a hard time using her hands but was able to do it pretty well.  She started out spreading the peanut butter on with a spoon, but then gave up and just used her hands. (Eeewwwwww!)

Then Our Princess and her friend smashed them into a pan of mixed birdseed, covering all of the peanut butter and pressing it down firmly to stay.

We cut up some dried fruit into small chunks and pressed it into the birdhouses, threaded the jute through with a large needle, knotted it, and they were finished!

These make really fun gifts, especially for grandparents. In fact, we gave one to a 'neighbor grandma' and have had to re-do it several times because it was such a hit with her birds. The birds eat everything right off to the bare wood, it's absolutely amazing!

I have thought it would be so fun to hang several of them from a tree, but the birds have cleaned them off so fast, I don't think we can keep up!

Happy Crafting!