Lost Love...New Love!

Have you ever just stopped loving an accessory?  Maybe it's a pair of earrings, a purse, a pair of shoes?  It isn't that you didn't love looking down at your feet every time you put them on.  And you KNOW you looked twice in a mirror every time you put those earrings on when you first bought them.  Now, though, you don't even give them a second glance.  It's not that you've been offended or hurt by them, you've just outgrown them.  They just don't fit in anymore.

We have many systems in our family that have gone by the wayside just like that.  Schedules, calendars, job charts, chore charts, you name it, I've made them, decorated them, and discarded them.  They were useful while they lasted.  Maybe we just get bored easily or I just like the motivation my kids have when the brand new chart goes up.  No matter...we are onto a new chore chart.  Check out what I did with it!

Valentines Subway Art

I L-O-V-E subway art!  That's why it's perfect for Valentine'sDay!  I like to create it and make it pop off of the paper.  (Tough to see in this photo, but it really is 3-D.)  My version of subway art includes finding fantastic paper...insert Echo Park's Truly Yours line!  It's fabulous!  I will be teaching a class to show you how to do this very type of subway art at the Heartland Paper in Bountiful on February 1st.  You can find the details on their blog http://heartlandpaperandalittlemore.blogspot.com/p/page-club.html  just give them a call to reserve a spot in the class.  I'd love to see you there!

I had planned on posting some sort of cooking fun last week when my DS shared his stomach flu with me. You know, the older I get, the longer it takes me to get over those "little" viruses. Whew! 5 days later and I am still feeling some nausea. At least I am not throwing up! Anyway...here's what we had for dinner tonight! Parmesan Chicken Bake. It's a lovely treat. Don't get me wrong, I still love a nice plate of Chicken Parm, but I didn't have to do all the work to prepare it. I'll save that for a treat when I go pay someone to feed me (which isn't often). Try it out sometime!

My Version of Subway Art

It's all the rage and I happen to LOVE it! 

I don't know about you, but I DESPISE cleaning up after the holidays.  I LOVE to put up the decorations, turn on the music, start baking, attend parties, give gifts, look at lights, share warm thoughts....then, the dreaded clean up.  It really doesn't take any longer to take things down than it does to set it up, so why do I put it off so long?  I am not trying to prolong the season.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I really did.  I am ready to move on.  I just hate to take stuff down.  I don't like to clean up after dinner, either.  I have a friend who promised me that if anything ever happens to our DH's (heaven forbid), she would be happy to move in with me.  I will cook, she'll clean the bathrooms, do the laundry, and clean up after dinner.  Where do I sign?  If you want to clean, I'll cook for you ANY DAY!!!  I'll decorate for your holidays if you clean up after mine.  Any takers?  OK, I won't wait for the hands to raise, I'll just go put away the Christmas decorations.  It was a lovely month, wasn't it?

The New Year...finding joy in 2012!

So, with a new year comes a fresh start, right?  I can hardly believe that nearly a year ago we were planning to move to New Orleans.  In fact, I look at the first and only post I had last year and am astounded at how quickly the last 9 months have gone by.  We did not move to LA, we did not get to return to having Dad take over as the primary financial support.  We did, however, sell the house and move to Clearfield, UT.  We struggled to find some jobs that would take care of us while DH gathers more hours as a helo pilot while awaiting someone to hire him to fly.  The Lord is always looking out for us, though, as we were able to take care of ourselves, procure a place to live, feed ourselves, and still have a decent Christmas.  We have healthy bodies, happy children, and enjoy being together.  I am working to find some balance in my life, making sure that I spend my energies in ways that return to me what it is that brings to me the greatest joy possible.  So it is that I am returning to this blog site, setting up pages.  I desire to create and I think I will find joy in sharing.  May you find joy in what I create.  If you don't, may you find joy somewhere else.  We all have our own tastes.


Shelley

...in the beginning

Wow!  My DH has been gone for a whole 5 days, now and I miss him terribly.  I spent 3 1/2 years being the provider for our family and jumped back into SAH Mom overnight.  I always knew I did a gazillion things every day when  I was home full time, but whew!  I have never been more tired, nor have I felt more accomplished than when I have been able to focus on home and my family.  It was so wonderful to get to stop and read 3 books to my son and sit down to watch the amazing duo doing "tricks" on the trampoline.  My office has been returned to the creative haven it was originally intended to be.  I may miss my hubby, and I may feel like crying without being able to kiss him good night, but I am so very grateful for his willingness to take over providing for us and to work  his tail off to get our new life started.  I can't wait to see him and fall asleep on his chest.  That is, truly, the sweetest place on earth!

Shelley