Promises.

Today was my first day working full time (I was working half-days for several weeks) and it wasn't the best start... We let the kids stay up to watch The Biggest Loser and thus this morning they (WE) were quite grumpy and difficult to extract from their warm, snuggly covers. We were finally able to rub the sleep from our eyes and converse without snarling or whining but it took a bit. Don't you just LOVE those kind of mornings?? (eye roll)

BUT. We sang worship songs on the way to school and I think it shifted our outlook on the day..all of us. Because we were suddenly in good moods and parted ways with sincere wishes for each other to have a good day and hugs & kisses. I pulled away from the school seeing two smiling kids waving goodbye & my own huge grin in the rear view mirror.  

My day at work went well. Learning lots of new things (which I always enjoy). On my way home, I stopped at McD's to get an icey cold Diet Dr.Pepper because I knew I'd need it.  I pulled into the driveway and was trying to brace myself for the barrage I would be facing...barking dogs needing to be fed and taken out. Kids needing help with homework. Dishes & laundry and all those other things that take up hour after hour. 

I walked in..and granted, the dogs WERE barking & going bonkers with glee that I was home, but the next thing I noticed was that the house smelled delicious...dinner was simmering on the stove thanks to the hubster. The kids then greeted me and informed me they had NO HOMEWORK today (this just does NOT happen as of late). Wahhooooo!

I took a relaxing shower, ate a delicious dinner, and get to lay in bed and watch Survivor in a bit. All in all, a good day. Much different than anticipated. And that will teach me to worry or be stressed about something that hasn't even transpired. Who needs it?!

Life is crazy and full of "those days".. why create them unnecessarily? 

rainbow, a photo by metroman8 on Flickr.

That's what I was thinking a few minutes ago, while admiring yet another rainbow. 

Have you been seeing all these tremendous rainbows in the sky lately? Vibrant and sometimes doubles! I've never seen so many in such a short time span. And they make me feel.. good. Plain and simple. Here's why..

It's like God is giving reassuring squeezes with each one. Like He's saying "See? I told you I would never leave you. That I would not forsake you. Despite all the ugliness you see on this crumbling Earth, there is still beauty. Though there may be pain, it is not without purpose. This rain signifies the inconveniences, the battles that seem like they'll never end, the pain...and then you'll notice I let it subside and I bring promises of hope. Take heart and press on, little one" 

Yep.

XOXO

~S

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior" (v.2-3a, NIV).

Today was my first day working full time (I was working half-days for several weeks) and it wasn't the best start... We let the kids stay up to watch The Biggest Loser and thus this morning they (WE) were quite grumpy and difficult to extract from their warm, snuggly covers. We were finally able to rub the sleep from our eyes and converse without snarling or whining but it took a bit. Don't you just LOVE those kind of mornings?? (eye roll)

BUT. We sang worship songs on the way to school and I think it shifted our outlook on the day..all of us. Because we were suddenly in good moods and parted ways with sincere wishes for each other to have a good day and hugs & kisses. I pulled away from the school seeing two smiling kids waving goodbye & my own huge grin in the rear view mirror.  

My day at work went well. Learning lots of new things (which I always enjoy). On my way home, I stopped at McD's to get an icey cold Diet Dr.Pepper because I knew I'd need it.  I pulled into the driveway and was trying to brace myself for the barrage I would be facing...barking dogs needing to be fed and taken out. Kids needing help with homework. Dishes & laundry and all those other things that take up hour after hour. 

I walked in..and granted, the dogs WERE barking & going bonkers with glee that I was home, but the next thing I noticed was that the house smelled delicious...dinner was simmering on the stove thanks to the hubster. The kids then greeted me and informed me they had NO HOMEWORK today (this just does NOT happen as of late). Wahhooooo!

I took a relaxing shower, ate a delicious dinner, and get to lay in bed and watch Survivor in a bit. All in all, a good day. Much different than anticipated. And that will teach me to worry or be stressed about something that hasn't even transpired. Who needs it?!

Life is crazy and full of "those days".. why create them unnecessarily? 

That's what I was thinking a few minutes ago, while admiring yet another rainbow. 

Have you been seeing all these tremendous rainbows in the sky lately? Vibrant and sometimes doubles! I've never seen so many in such a short time span. And they make me feel.. good. Plain and simple. Here's why..

It's like God is giving reassuring squeezes with each one. Like He's saying "See? I told you I would never leave you. That I would not forsake you. Despite all the ugliness you see on this crumbling Earth, there is still beauty. Though there may be pain, it is not without purpose. This rain signifies the inconveniences, the battles that seem like they'll never end, the pain...and then you'll notice I let it subside and I bring promises of hope. Take heart and press on, little one" 

Yep.

XOXO

~S

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior" (v.2-3a, NIV).

'Til the Last Minute..or so we thought.

Our weekend was pretty laid back. Just how we like it!
On Sunday, we went to church (always a refreshing kick start to the week)and I felt happy despite the gloomy, gray weather. The Spring blossoms in the trees certainly looked pretty against that backdrop.  




After church we went to lunch with the hubster's Dad at a local Mexican restaraunt. Came home and got started on a project that Josie was supposed to complete over Spring Break. Please DO take note it's SUNDAY, the day before the return to school. We thrive working under the pressure of a ticking clock! She had a plan all sketched out on paper and I was quickly rebuffed when I gave input on most anything. Kind of sad since I *love* the more hands-on, artsy stuff from school and miss that the most from our homeschooling days. She let me cut her grass for her. At her specifications. I gave my opinion on the shaping of the clouds and she contemplated and decided she'd just keep on doing it the way she had been. I got to staple the tree to the side!!!! AND I stumbled on the lion head with googly eyes in the most recent issue of Family Fun- so that's ALL me! 

Really, I'm proud of her for being an independent, creative thinker and wanting to do this on her own. I'm certain she'll get a top score!













The interesting twist to this is that late Sunday evening, she cleaned out her bookbag and gave me a crumpled up slip of paper which notified us that the project due date was postponed until two weeks from now.

So this will be sitting on our counter- being admired (and occasionally dusted) until it's time to take it into school. Nothing like being ahead of the game, eh?

And after a day of being cooped up indoors, looking out at gray skies and rain storms... it's nice to end it with a sky like this.

No complaints.




XOXO
~S

Spring has Sprung?

Well, it's SORT of Spring around here. Lots of rain..sometimes a downpour, sometimes a heavy mist..but the trees are blooming and fields are almost NEON they're such a lush bright green!













I took the photos above on the First Day of Spring. It was rather gloomy, you could see snow in the foothills but the fields...well, they speak for themselves!

Random tidbits as of late:

* Work is going well. It's nice to have a paycheck again!
* We got a "new" car.. a Nissan Murano. She's a beaut! Black, fully loaded w/leather interior and my sunroof/moonroof (really- WHAT is the difference?! Can anyone truly tell me?).
* The kids are enjoying their Spring Break- they've spent several days with Nanny & Papa and a day with their cousins as well. Spending the rest of it lounging around home and working on projects due upon their return to school. Fun stuff though, like diorama's.
* Made some DELISH oatmeal cookies that I dumped some yellow raisins & walnuts into..yum.
* Itching to take pics. Haven't been able to do much lately.
* Figuring out ways to get the kids to help out around the house and make them WANT to..it's tricky business but necessary.
* Ollie endured his "fixing" like a champ. Yay!
* I think I FINALLY broke the 35 year bad habit of biting my nails! They're lookin' pretty if I do say so myself. Well..prettiER. I don't have very cute hands/fingers.
* I've got 2 more weeks before I'm supposed to be "ok" to do cardio. I don't think I'm going to be obedient any longer. I feel ok and am raring to go. Plus, Mr. Doctor sir...my pants are SNUG. THAT is the official indicator of whether I should do cardio, not anything silly like wheezing lungs. Duh.
* I am officially addicted to PINTEREST ..Daily eye candy. LOVE it! Here's a link to my boards.....
* I realized I have TONS of open-toed shoes and hardly ANY closed-toe ones. Weird..and needs remedied ASAP, don't you think??
* my hair appt. had to get rescheduled to mid-April and I now have roots SO long that I have that popular two-tone hair..dark on top and light on the bottom. Only I don't feel very trendy. 
* We've watched some good movies as of late: 

Official Review: thought it was goofy & pretty cute. Love Reese Witherspoon.

Official Review: Wow. What an amazing true story. Lots of language in this one (not a surprise)

Official Review: kind of a snooze fest. Great scenery & soundtrack though.

Official Review: Don't ask me why. I like The Rock. I just do. So sue me. This one was crazy..and kinda graphic in terms of violence.

Official Review: Kinda crude. Kinda funny. Kinda "eh".

Official Review: Really liked it. Love Rachel McAdams..she's adorable & a great actress.

Official Review: wacky, funny, great cast. We really enjoyed it!

Official Review: Another AMAZING true story. SO well done. Such an inspring story of love & dedication. Hillary Swank and Sam Rockwell were SO good. And Minnie Driver. And Juliette Lewis..she's a nut but oh-so-good at those "off" characters.

Official Review: whoa. pretty good movie..a nice surprise when you don't know what to expect.

And yes...we really, really like movies. Especially on cold, dark, dreary nights and weekends.

I'm thankful for so many things right now... life has it's ups and downs and we're steadily climbing an "up" mountain. God is good. Plain and simple. I could go on and on but really, those three words have been swirling around in my brain, in my heart and out my mouth a lot the last few weeks- so I'll just leave it at that for now. 

XOXO
~S

Germ Warfare

Though I've been doing well, the rest of my brood has succombed to a nasty bug for over a week. Josie is the carrier monkey..last Friday she came home complaining of having had a headache all day. She fell asleep (this does NOT happen with this girl) and awoke with a fever AND the headache. We had family visiting from out-of-town and they ended up getting sick, the hubster and I felt a little under the weather the next day but I snapped out of it. Bob just kept getting worse. Then Matthew got sick that night. Only he had the added bonus of vomitting. LOVELY. Meanwhile- Josie was peachy keen Saturday despite cold symptoms.

Here it is the following Saturday evening and we're STILL battling germs & illness! I'll be SO thankful to be rid of it. Today I did my best to at least improve the overall feeling of infestation... I opened some windows for a little bit to air it out, got dishes & laundry caught up (the laundry was a major FEAT), wiped down EVERYTHING with cleanser, tackled the bills & mail from the last few weeks, went through a huge stack of kids school papers, took pics of stuff to sell on Ebay and some various other tasks to tidy up. It's MUCH better around here than it has been in WEEKS.

Another task successfully accomplished this week = I found a job (finally!) so our daily schedule will change a bit. I think it's going to work out well and feel blessed to have it after searching for so long.

Other reasons to be happy:

• I get my hair cut/colored this week. After so many months. I'm embarassed to say how long it's truly been. Let's just say I am WELL past ghetto roots!
• Our Ollie pop pup is getting fixed this week. I think we're all happy about this- especially our other pug, Pepper. We've realized Pepper has the patience of a saint..and Ollie is an Energizer puggy. (eye roll)
• The kids will be back to school after a full week out! (the not-so-fun part=all that make up homework)
• Bob will be back to work after a full week out!

Reasons I'm not too happy:

• my doctor says I still can't do any cardio. 
• I haven't taken much in the way of pictures lately
• puppy with a bladder the size of a pea

But I don't like dwelling on the negative. Let's get back to happy things....

Like, even though that certain puppy has a teensy bladder and must be taken out a bazillion times a day- he's still pretty cute and cuddly. If you stand still for even a moment and he's around- he'll plop on your feet. If you're laying on the ground watching tv or reading..fuggedaboudit....

A new lunchbox that's SO stinkin' cute..it makes me wish I were back in elementary so I could have one too.

But I *CAN* have these.

Is there NOTHING a cup of ice cold milk and stack of Oreos can't cure?!

I think not.

Hope you had a blissful weekend!

Blessings,

Sarah

The End is Near!

My title isn't in reference to End Times... it's about this CRUD (aka Pneumonia) that's consumed my life since January 18th. That's SIX WEEKS, people. Since coming home from the hospital, I've felt like I've improved each day..just a tiny bit, but enough to notice and be hopeful. Then after a couple consistent days of that, I'd have a HORRIBLE day. Then improve...then take a step or two backward feeling horrible. Then a couple good days. Back and forth, back and forth.. It's been driving me CRAZY. The last two days were bad days. Very achey. Tons of coughing. Extremely tired. Yesterday morning I coughed and coughed, nonstop until I got physically ill. After that, I felt a bit spent but much, much better. I spent the rest of the day coughing like crazy, but I felt different..a better kind of different. This morning I woke up feeling more like myself than I have in SO very long. I felt giddy! My voice sounds more like ME than it has in weeks. My head feels clearer. My lungs feel clearer (despite the incessant coughing still). Today I feel SO good!!! I'm going to be cautious in exerting myself, but I haven't felt such a marked change until now. VERY exciting!

You should be excited too- because now you won't hear much about my being sick. A couple posts about it and numerous FB status updates and *I* am sick of reading about it! 

To celebrate this... I brewed myself coffee for the first time in over SEVEN weeks. I've had a few Starbucks since being out of the hospital..but I haven't made coffee at home. Just haven't wanted it. But this morning it was the first thing I thought about. So see??! I *AM* more like myself today!

Do you have a French Press? 
Oh my goodness....if not, you need to get one, so you don't feel left out.
Because you ARE missing out.

Not only is it deliciously rich, but there's something about the process that's to be savored.

Don't know how it's done?
First, put a kettle of water on to boil. While you're doing that, put a rounded Tablespoon of freshly ground coffee (coarse vs. fine is better with a press) per 4oz. of liquid. My press is 12 oz. So I toss in 3 heaping Tablespoons (A. I'm slightly rebellious. B. I like my coffee STRONG), sometimes even an extra one, into my empty press. Once the kettle has come to a boil, pour in the water- almost to the top (you have to leave room for the lid/press to do it's thing!). Take a chopstick and give it a few stirs and this is what you'll see....




Beautiful, right?!
Now, place the lid/press on top. Let it sit for about 3 minutes. Then carefully (and slowly), push the plunger down. Be sure to keep it straight and steady or the grounds will sneak out and into your brew!





Here's what it looks like before you press the grounds down to the bottom. See the pretty bloom on top?? Then the layer of grounds, then the brew.
YUM.





Once you've pressed the plunger all the way to the bottom, pull out your favorite coffee cup and carefully pour yourself a bit o' happiness. Adorn with creamer, should you feel so inclined.
Voila!

One positive thing about the last few weeks of being stuck in bed is that I've read a number of books. Here's a few that I just finished. The "Hunger Games" trilogy by Suzanne Collins is SO good! I read "Catching Fire" in a few hours and once I realized I only had a few chapters left before I finished it, I hopped online and put a request in for the final book. I hope I don't have to wait too long!





So here I sit, this morning... at the table. Laptop whirring. My first cup of home-brewed coffee in seven weeks, listening to my favorite Pastor online (James Macdonald), a bit of blog surfing and watching SNOW fall outside. It's not sticking, but it's certainly pretty to look at. 

 



Hope YOU are having a WONDERFUL day!!!
Remember to savor the little things in your day that bring you joy!

XOXO
~S

Happy Valentine's Day!

Two years ago, I found this cute idea on the internet while blog hopping..but since we were homeschooling, we didn't really do a bunch of Valentine's. This year, the littles are attending a Christian school and in a typical classroom environment- so I sifted through the miles of "favorites" (seriously. it's out. of. control.) and we re-created it. I quickly discovered that cutting a slit in the photo above/under the hand didn't have enough give to push the lollipop through. So I grabbed a mini paper-punch and it was the perfect solution. The lollipops slipped through with no problem (ie: tearing/puckering of photo).  I took the pics of the Valentine's late at night so the coloring is a bit off- but you get the idea.







Things have been a bit NUTS around here the last few weeks. About three weeks ago, I picked up a cough somewhere. It sounded wet/gross almost from the get-go and then I started feeling flu type symptoms. After a week, I was getting worse- and having difficulty breathing and moving around. So I went to the ER and they took one look at me and whisked me away and the rest was pretty surreal...I landed in the ICU for a couple days and then was able to be in a regular room for a couple days after that with a pretty killer case of pneumonia. My left lung was almost entirely solid white on the chest x-rays, which apparently is really bad. ANYway- that was an experience I do not care to go through again. And if I ever have to receive shots in the stomach (to prevent blood clots) again, boy howdy.... those HURT!! I'm STILL coughing, STILL sore from all that coughing, STILL relying on an inhaler several times a day, STILL spending a lot of time in bed. I am getting better but it's slow going and driving me a bit crazy. I have so many things I want to do!!

The first day I was admitted, my poor hubby went home to take care of the kids and was going to clean up the house for me (remember- I was sick for a week prior to going into the hospital, thus NO housework was done. No dishes. No laundry. Yeah..nasty) and after a load of dishes were run in the dishwasher, the dishwasher started making odd noises. He went to investigate and found the kitchen floor flooded with water. He tried to turn the dishwasher off and it wouldn't..it wasn't hooked up to the breaker either! The landlord showed up and was able to get it turned off (some obscure button under the sink- totally WEIRD) but Bob and Matthew had a ton of water to clean up. Poor guys. We finally got a new one installed the day after I got home from the hospital.

My kids and hubby were total champs while I was in the hospital.. they kept up on homework, taking care of the dogs, and surprised me with a new bedding set when I came home. I felt blessed!

AND..I was incredibly blessed by my family and friends- all the texts, calls, emails, facebook messages,etc. of concern and prayers made my heart swell!
I'm eager to get back into the swing of things but still having to take it easy. As long as I keep improving, I'll have to just be patient. The control freak in me has a hard time with that though!


In the meantime, I've been reading and looking at TONS of magazines (my sister, my bff and the mail have all kept me in supply..there must be 40 lb. of 'em by my bedstand!), watching tv and movies on Netflix, blog surfing, haunting Pinterest, Ebay, and Facebook and enjoying time with my family.


Here's to a lovely Valentine's Day for you all!


xoxo
~Sarah

Tickled.

So Josie brings home a stack of graded papers/tests today.. I start going through them and scan through her answers on a History exam. 

Question: Who wrote the Constitution of the United States?

Josie's answer: "Who? A group of men. because they wanted to."

Question: In what city did the representatives gather to write the Constitution?

Josie's answer: "Where? I think France. because they wanted to."

I think it's funny that she answered a question with a question initially. And the whole "because they wanted to" just made me laugh. Maybe I'm easily amused...




Blessings,

Sarah

Picture Perfect.

Josie has always been very into the girly-girl things, but having a big brother that she loves to keep up with, she's enjoyed playing with Star Wars & Super Hero figures, legos, light sabers as well. These pictures sum her personality up SO well! Girly outfit, complete with tutu skirt- on the floor rolling with the dogs and playing with her brothers Star Wars toys. LOVE. IT.

She has SUCH beautiful hair. The texture, thickness, color...I'm SO envious!

And this one. Again... SO her!!! My little funny face.

Blessings,

Sarah

Dreary.

It's been a dreary couple of days....just torrential downpour to drizzle..then back to downpour again. Lots of flooding going on here in the PacNW. Fortunately we aren't seeing much of that. Just wet pant legs everytime we go outside. Between the wind & the rain- your chances of getting damp are pretty high, unless you have a rain slicker that goes head to toe, literally. And we don't. I have to admit...we don't even have an umbrella! We have rain coats but the one umbrella we had broke and we never replaced it! We're just hardcore like that....don't need no stinkin' umbrellas!!

With this weather we've been tucked inside, cozying up together on the couch under blankets & quilts. Lots of movies, games, reading, being on the computer (games, blog surfing,etc). I cringe when it's time to take the dogs outside..it's such an unpleasant interruption and having to walk them in this wet mess is just NO FUN (whine). The "taking the chill off" part isn't so bad though... lots of hot coffee or tea & a quilt do the job nicely.

Food like this is commonplace around here. Chili is a family favorite. This week, I welcome it heartily!

We watched the Golden Globes together the other evening. Boy, Ricky Gervais was a big disappointment. I always anticipate a bit of cheeky banter that borders that "fine line" between funny and crude, but he was just WAY beyond that. I didn't hear much laughter from the audience either. I hope he doesn't host for a third year, or we may not watch next year. I thought the standing ovation for Michael Douglas was lovely and Robert DeNiro's award speech was..odd.

And this is just one last gratuitous picture. Of Colin Firth...see him? He's there..look hard.  It's the best I could do at capturing a pic of HIM. And it WAS him I was going after. I.. swear.......(sigh) ok. ok. I've had an on again/off again crush on Mr. Depp since 21 JUMPSTREET. The last few years I haven't found him especially handsome but there are moments still, I guess (apparently).

And with that final bit of deep, meaningful information.... I sign off!

Blessings,

Sarah

A Sweet Deal

At least one Friday a month I make some sort of homemade snack for all of the teachers at the kids' school. I've loved having the honor of doing this for them AND I earn volunteer hours as well. In the past I've made banana bread, gingerbread loaf, and double chocolate cake pops. This time I decided to use this recipe in the back of this month's Martha Stewart Living for "Anytime Oatmeal Cookies".  These are SO. GOOD. Simple but delicious and VERY easy to throw together! Bonus!







Fortunately, when I went to pick up my cookie plate, I discovered that the staff agreed- there was nothing left but crumbs! I'm thinking about what my next Friday treat should be.
Maybe a variety of scones- sweet & savory? A coffee cake? Something breakfast related for a late morning snack, perhaps? Give me some ideas! In the meantime, here's the recipe for the cookies!


ANYTIME OATMEAL COOKIES Martha Steward Living
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temp
2/3 c. packed light brown sugar
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 c. golden raisins

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp. salt into a bowl. Beat butter and sugars until pale and fluffy. Mix in egg and vanilla, then flour mixture. Mix in oats, then raisins.
2. Using a 1 1/4" ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing each scoop about 2" apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 14 minutes. Let cookies cool on a wire rack. Makes about 4 dozen. 



Blessings,

Sarah

My boys.

Matthew has been coming home from school, getting his homework done, then working on his stop-motion videos. He's OBSESSED. Thus, the living room is always full of wooden blocks, legos, Star Wars figures, playdough and anything else he thinks will be suitable. It's actually very interesting to watch him working on these. He puts so much thought and detail into every scene. And then moves things just inches, adds something here or there and takes another shot. This process goes on for hours and hours until it's time to get ready to read and go to bed. 

Typically the dogs stay out of his way- but they have their moments where they get a little too playful and tear through the "work area" and our usually quiet boy will make gutteral noises of frustration and anger..and that's when one or both pugsters get tossed into the crate for a while. USUALLY the younger of the two. He could take a few pointers from the other..who is usually content to curl up next to the boy and wait for the occasional hug or pet between takes. 

Blessings,

Sarah

Butterfly slumber.

This little one LOVES creating a nest in her bed. Multiple blankets, pillows, dolls, books, etc. Inevitably it starts this way- all cocooned around her in bed. Then she kicks off all the covers and pushes half the treasures off onto the floor to sprawl, typically spread eagle on top of her covers. Then in the morning when I go to wake her, she's wrapped back up in a quilt, snug as a bug- back in a cocoon, though more streamlined. It's like this every night/morning. Love it.












She's spending the night with friends tonight...so I'll miss seeing her in her bed tonight.

Blessings,

Sarah

January 15, 2011

I've had multiple inquiries and requests as to WHEN I'm going to update this thing. WHY I'm not posting anymore. WHERE are all my pictures?! Well....I just haven't felt like posting! I didn't feel like I had anything worthy of posting..not much to say. Not many pics outside of my kids, etc. But I think with 2011, I will post whatever, whenever, however. Good, bad, bland...

SO... 2011 finds us very much in the same position as 2010. Some parts of it good, some not so much.

* The kids are LOVING school. Their grades are excellent, have good friends, love their teachers & campus.

* I'm thrilled that they are in school but I miss them during the day!

* I'm still looking for a job that will allow me to work while the kids are in school but be able to pick up them

   from school and be home with them in the afternoon/evenings. Between this economy and those time

   constraints, I haven't had much luck as of yet. I know something will turn up though! Just a matter of time

   and patience!

* Still listing on Ebay..not very consistently but I'm getting back at it.

* Still learning & LOVING photography. My goal for 2011 is to get my branding and marketing together

   and revamp my portfolio. Already in the works and I'm SO excited!

* REdiscovering that life is messy, full of hiccups and second chances but worth every effort.

* Realizing that I've come into my own and I need to not be afraid of that or what others think of that.

* Still need to find a good church home. Miss that fellowship and weekly affirmation of faith.

* A billion other things that I can't think of right now!

And here are a few pics that depict my days to an extent..

...the daily TO DO list. I'm obsessed with my lists. They make me happy and keep me in line (usually). And that's my camera cord, usually laying closeby to download whatever is on my camera.

The dining room table- always full of signs of life and disarray. Cups and plates not cleared as they should be, paper and writing/coloring utensils, games on the side table, fruit within easy reach for snacking... I should take a pic of the table at the same time, every day for a year... I wonder how different the pic would look?! Hmmm.... I've never tackled a 365 challenge. Maybe a thought for next year.

I drop off and pick up the kiddos most every day...it usually involves sitting in the car, in a long line, waiting to creep toward the entrance where they wait with their teachers. I usually take a magazine or a book but this last week, I've taken to calling my bff everyday to chat for a few minutes. She's usually sitting in HER car waiting in a line for HER kids, just 45 minutes away or so.. it's nice to just see how her day was and hear her voice. We're silly for not chatting more. But she gets me. She knows I'm not a phone girl for one, AND well. She just gets me and loves me anyway. And vice versa. *laugh*

And...at the end of the evening. I'm usually sitting on the couch, curled up with my laptop- checking in on Facebook (hopelessly addicted. I love that I can connect with so many people via this avenue), email, Ebay, cruising blogs, editing pics,etc.etc. These evening hours after the kids have gone to bed usually include a snack and some tv or Netflix too. As for what was in that bowl.... well. It COULD have been ice cream. Or it COULD have been nonfat Greek yogurt with a few almonds..but usually that's what I start my day with, not END it with. So I'll admit. It WAS ice cream. And it was GOOOOOOD.

More tomorrow! (..well, don't hold your breath. But don't faint when a new post shows up tomorrow either!)

Blessings,

Sarah