Thinking ahead...

I am trying to see the bright side of this...

On Monday I splurged and bought new furniture for our front porch. We have lived in this house coming on 6 years. I have never purchased anything of this magnitude before, nor have I really ever had the desire to. I have always just left the front of the house alone. I have always hated the front of our house - it has always looked so bare - so dull. So the opposite of what I am!! We have huge wrap around porch and it just screams for decoration. So I finally found a set I liked - really liked - and so I bought it. I brought it home Monday and Marc got it all set up for me. Bella and I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening enjoying our new lounge furniture. And then this morning I woke up to a nasty surprise - we had been robbed. These morons decided it would be good to steal the cushions of my set. All my cushions. And all my other accent cushions which I bought extra to give the set a bit more flare and make it a bit more me. What am I supposed to do with this?? I was so angry this morning. And I felt so violated. I still do... I called the company where I bought the furniture and they referred me to the manufacturer. The manufacturer has opened a file for me and they will "try" and help me, but could not promise anything and even said that if they could get replacement cushions for me from the factory, it would probably take many many months... Sigh. WHY?? I am trying really hard to see the bright side of this situation, but right now, I can't...

My kids...

They are insane. So while preparing dinner I overhear them in the great room chatting.

Ethan: Belle, we need some more exciting yoga moves.

Bella: Ya, like upwards cat...

Ethan: Ya! And sideways parrot or upside down hamster...

Bella: Ohhh, how about rabid mongoose! Ya...

Ethan: Perfect! Tell mama we have new moves for her to practice!

WHAT?? My kids are crazy.

Ciao all.

Use it or lose it...

Soooo true. I have not scrapped ANYTHING in over six months. Yup. Nothing. And, here is the real kicker, I don't have the desire to scrap anymore. Don't know what happened. I just don't feel that need... And it is killing me, a little, inside. The guilt is what is eating me up. I have the most precious archive of my children's lives from the day they were born to now. Priceless. But I just don't have the desire to continue on... The last layout I produced was when we came home from Italy, and I think I only did a layout for Ethan's books... Not even Bella's books... I did not do anything at Halloween, or Christmas... I forgot all about Easter... So ya. Here we are, mid May, and nothing. And, to top it off, I had to create 10 cards for a Relief Society project and what once would have taken me maybe half an hour, took me 2 hours last night to do!! I was so flustered by the end of the card making, it was ridiculous. And I looked like I had fought some kind of bloody battle - my hands were black from stamping; my hair was sticking up from me pulling at it; my finger tips were raw from trying to make flowers and putting bling on them... Ridiculous!! I have lost it - the mojo is gone. Use it or lose it. So true.

Ciao all.

To my husband

Thank you for being my best friend; my confidant; my rock; my comedian; my sounding board; my guinea pig; my knight in shining armour; my maid and chauffeur many times over; my handyman/fix it guy; my clear mind; my rational thought; my calm; my compassionate side; my real and eternal love.

Happy 17th Anniversary!!
Love you.

Looking in the mirror...

I see myself in my daughter. Not in the way she looks. She looks like her father, and not me. But in the way she acts. Bella is me. When I am faced with a decision that I do not like, I don't answer. Instead, I come up with other options that are better suited to what I want. Bella does the same thing. Example - this morning we were getting ready for church. I asked Bella to put her dress on and to put on her little cardigan with the dress. She did not answer me. Instead, she came back and asked if she could put on anohter dress and put on a white t-shirt underneath. I said she could put the dress on but not the t-shirt. It woudl NOT look right. She would have to wear the sweater. She did NOT like this and did not answer me again. Five minutes later I wondered where she had gone. She was sitting in her room pouting, staring at the two dresses and trying to figue out which one would pain her least. It was a valuabel lesson learned for me. Answer up when asked what I want. It is better than being stuck with the less of two evils...

Ciao all.