This is mine for May:

1.  Stop and smell the flowers.  Yes, even flowers have a sweet smell.

2.  Be more patient.  Summer tends to bring out the ogre in me.

3.  Go fishing!  This will be our family outing for the next few months.

4.  Train my German Shepard.  He’s a puppy but he won’t stay that way.

5.  Complete my May quilt project.  A flower mug rug.

6.  Go on a picnic.  I’ve always wanted one of those baskets!

7.  Watch a good movie.  Ironman 3 comes to mind.

8.  Hold hands.  Sometimes it’s the little things that count for so much.

9.  Enjoy the last month of my son in Kindergarten.  He’s moving on to 1st grade!

10. Tell my family how much I love them.  Every day.

I like this template by Amanda Blake. This is one of the ones I use. www.amandalblake.com

It’s that time of year again and my son and daughter are very excited about this challenge.  My daughter can’t read yet so she won’t be logging in any minutes but she likes the idea that she can do her ABC’s and her 123′s.  Yay!

Will you take the challenge?

Let’s Do It!

http://thestir.cafemom.com/big_kid/154043/9_things_moms_need_to?utm_medium=sm&utm_source=facebook&utm_content=fanpage

Here is the one from Parenting.com:

http://www.parenting.com/article/31-reasons-you-shouldnt-feel-mom-guilt

Now one of the things from my personal ‘mom guilt’ list that I will add is that I feel a tremendous amount of guilt when I do something for myself on occasion.  For example, if I buy myself an outfit or a purse.  I look at my prize and then I feel guilty because I feel as if I should have used the money for something my children need, like clothes, or even my husband needs, like work shoes.

The other thing I feel guilt about is when I tell my kids to brush their teeth (they are still learning) and I don’t follow up with them afterward, especially their nighttime brushing.  I dream of the cavities that are sure to be growing.  I’m just so tired at the end of the day and I figure one night (or two) won’t make a huge difference.  I’ll just brush extra hard the next morning!  LOL!!

Ok, I know there are loads of other guilt trips we burden ourselves with but we really shouldn’t be so hard on ourselves.  It’s all part of being a mom because it is such a hard job (rewarding too).  We need a break now and then.

Do you have any guilt moments as a mom?

I thought this was funny. Imagine if this is really how we do it?

When we first bought our house, my husband’s (beautiful, blue-eyed, and FAT) cat came with us.  She disappeared the following day.  We never saw her again.  After that we happened to come by a rabbit.  One of my husband’s employees gave it to him.  (My husband works in construction).  I liked that rabbit.  He was big, with a black and white coat.  He was pretty much maintenance-free (bonus!) and he was funny to watch.  My son was a baby then so he didn’t really know about him, which turned out to be good because he escaped from our yard.  (were we bad owners?)  We were renovating some areas in our home at the time and the man who was building us a mailbox accidentally left our backyard gate open.  We never saw him again.  ‘sigh’

Then along came a turtle.  Wow, yes, a turtle!  He was pretty cute and it was neat to try to see if we could find him the next day in the yard since he camouflaged so well into the desert landscape.  It used to rain here more than now but back then the weeds grew so fast with all our seasonal rain and that particular year our backyard got out of hand and it became a jungle!  Well, my husband got to work cleaning and mowing the yard after he made sure that the turtle was across the yard (it’s pretty big) and to make a long story short, the turtle somehow made its way across in a few minutes because next thing you know, all you could hear was that ugly deafening crack of shell.  I won’t go any further.  Rest in peace.

So then after the trauma of the turtle, we happened to rescue a pair of pugs from the street.  Our intention was to give them to the local Humane Society to see if they could locate their owners.  They were full breeds and it appeared that they were brother and sister.  Oh boy, what a surprise it was when we realized that the female was in the process of delivering a litter of little pugs one morning.  I mean, since I had never had a dog in my life I called my husband to ask him a few questions about her demeanor and that’s when I deduced that she was indeed giving birth.  Gee.  Well, we took care of them and gave her pups away to good homes and kept the pugs…for awhile.  Our gate was left open again and they ran away.  We never knew who opened the gate and we never saw those pugs again.  I think they were married.

We stayed away from having pets for a long while after that, mainly because my children were babies at the time and I wasn’t going to care for a pup too.  But time has passed and my children are now 5 and 3 and they had been asking for a dog.  So we visited the idea of having a dog again and we looked for just the right one for the better part of one year.  We finally did adopt one, a 2-month old puppy from the Humane Society.  His name is Shakespeare and he has been with us for 3 months now.  He is a good, very playful dog.

Here is Shakespeare:

What?  I got another dog?  Yes, I did.  I didn’t intend on getting two dogs but Champ came up because we decided that Shakespeare needed a companion and Champ and his brothers and sisters were going to be sold to the highest bidder and I’ve always wanted a German Shepard.  He is a month old.  It wasn’t an easy decision but we are committed to having healthy pets for our children while they are young and they are so happy with them.  Now our family is complete!

How many pets do you own? 

I recently read an article about how to make more time for writing (http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/there-are-no-rules/make-more-time-for-your-writing via Writer’s Digest).  I was reading the article because I was writing chapters for the book I am writing.  Remember that?  I mentioned it several times in and around this blog.  Yes, I got a kick of inspiration and I made time to write.  A LOT!  I’m so excited.  It’s a small thing but I feel so accomplished.  I knew that I had to make time to write because before I was just writing a lot of little paragraphs here and there.  It became a slow process that turned into a yearly progress.  I wanted to speed things up a bit.

Busy, busy, busy….

And speaking of writing, I must confess that I haven’t really finished a novel in the last six months.  I started reading a book called The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown (I’ll get to my point of view on that book in a bit) but I kept putting it aside because it turned out to be one of those dreaded “struggle-through-it” books.  I kept at it though, thinking that I would finish it soon.  I didn’t.  I sidetracked to my son’s reading list:  The Cat In The Hat, Peter Rabbit, This Is The Sun, Or Is It? then I went back to the book.  Oh, I have to catch up on my Ladies Home Journal subscription, and I did.  There was still that book, The Weird one.   I read a few pages before I found myself writing my own stuff.

The Weird Sisters is a boring book.  There, I said it.  It had promise, really.  I mean, three sisters who don’t really like each other, and are not really at that likeable for that matter, who go back home with a lot of baggage each.  Their mother’s cancer diagnosis is the excuse that brings them back together.  What had originally peaked my interest in the book is the Shakespearean theme, from the character’s names (Rosalind, Cordelia, and Bianca) to a littering of Shakespeare’s quotes.  When you read the quotes, however, it becomes problematic.  If you’ve never read Shakespeare, or if you are not familiar with his works, or if you simply forgot which play/sonnet the quote it is referencing, then it is hard to get past the unnecessary use of so many of the author’s quotes.  It gets tedious.  The second part of the struggle of this read is the narration.  It is termed third person plural narration.  What in the world is that?  I had to go back to my high school grammar books and look that one up.  Supposedly each sister is narrating but it is at times hard to figure out who is the actual narrator.  There are a few times that it seems as if there is an invisible fourth sister who is speaking in fourth (?) person.  See how confusing it is?  That alone made me drag my feet.   I think this whole ‘style’ of writing is a waste of time and loses the reader rather quickly.  I did a little research on this book and many reviews are not favorable.  Most of the consensus is the narration issue and that the plot is weak.  I didn’t like the book and I just got stuck.  I was truly disappointed and I won’t recommend this book, if only because I didn’t have the patience work through it.  I’m about 3/4 of the way through.  Might as well finish it but I’m not looking forward to it.

Crazy Little Projects – I don’t remember how I came across this particular site (I think I most likely entered a fabric contest) but I love it.  The owner is Amber Price and she loves to sew and like me, loves fabrics.  I first noticed her site because she did a Learn To Sew Series for a beginner.  Even though I know how to sew, her approach to teaching how to sew was in how easy she presented the material.  It was easy and FUN!  She added photos (something I’m still not good at here), step-by-step, and a project that referenced the lesson in question.  Her site also includes giveaways, tutorials, and fun, easy ideas.  Check her out:  http://crazylittleprojects.com/

How To Finish A Quilt - This is another favorite.  It is a quilting site for beginners and the ‘quiltist’ (her word) is a lady by the name of Eileen Thomas and she’s great.  She has a quilting course that you pay for online and get started with great information, projects, and confidence.  I love her videos, step-by-steps, diagrams, and most of all, the abundance of information.  She makes everything make sense.  If you are a beginner, this is a great place to start.  She is also on Facebook and Twitter.

Scholastic – Everyone knows about the Scholastic site but it is the blog that I am fascinated with.  I am a big reader and my long-term ambition is for my children to love reading as much as I do.  This page:  http://www.scholastic.com/parents/blogs/scholastic-parents-raise-reader is filled on all kinds of ideas on how to Raise a Reader.  It has tips on how a parent can greatly help their child want to read.  The entire site contributes to the scholastic success of every child.  It also has information for teachers, administrators, and librarians.  I became more involved with the whole Scholastic world when my son’s school held their annual Book Fair sponsored by Scholastic.  I love this site.

There are so many other blogs I can name but one of the reasons I mentioned these three in particular is because of how much information each site provides.  I love how much effort and dedication they have to their craft.  I hope to be one of those too as I get better at this myself.  In the meantime, check out their sites and let me know which site you love too.  Most now are on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.  Information is knowledge and I love these sites!

Oh, one more thing.  The following link is not a blog but I find it just as fascinating – https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/HolidayCentral?fref=ts.  It is a Facebook page called Everything Holiday that is dedicated to every holiday on the calendar.  It is one of my favorite pages on Facebook.  It kind of works like a blog but with pictures and captions.  I don’t know where they get the pictures (some from the Internet, I’m sure) but they are all relevent and abundant.  Check it out and you’ll see what I’m talking about!  It’s neat!

Here’s one of their current pictures posted for Easter:

But how do you choose what kind to make?  How do you choose color, style, size, or design?  Over a period of time I have come across all kinds of quilts from different sources, stores, quilters, and the internet and I’ve come to the conclusion that most quilts come in two abundant varieties: traditional block or geometric quilts and applique.

I have been working on what I call a “season quilt” by putting together all kinds of applique motifs that represent each holiday in each season.  I haven’t put it together yet because I am still working out the themes, which are turning out to be many.  This leads me to think that I will perhaps need to break them up per season.  That may be a better turnout, but I’m not quite sure yet.

The point, however, is that I’ve determined that applique quilting is a lot more fun and turns out a better-looking quilt than the ones that have blocks, triangles, and so forth.  I’m not saying that they are not lovely, but I think they lack something to make it more original.  I love working on the traditional ones for practice, or to give as a gift but in my home, I love looking at little owls, ladybugs, flowers, little trucks, coffee cups, hearts, etc.  I like the pillows, throws, blankets, coasters that have those pretty designs.  Don’t you?

The two images below are random pictures that I found on the internet of applique that I love to see around my house.  Not only for bedding, but these are some examples of things I like to make:

Let’s look at an elderly’s point of view:

Love is not a fantasy; it is a real commitment and a lot of hard work!  I most admire the couple who got married and made it ‘until death do us part’, as it should be.  It takes a lifetime to build and sustain such a partnership and it takes trust, loyalty, and fidelity to want it that much.  Can you imagine what a couple who has been married say 50, 60, 65+ years have shared, seen, and experienced in all those years?  Can you imagine being married to the same person for that long?  I don’t pretend to glorify a union who must also go through hardships of all kinds and dismiss that they may come out battered and bruised.  It happens to the best of us.  Life tests marriages at every level and it won’t be roses all the time.  But it is precisely those times that makes the marriage thrive.  The two people have to want to make it work and want to make the other person happy, even in trying times.  It is a conscious choice to be that marriage and to give all of yourself, no matter what the circumstances.

In my life I was fortunate to meet and be friends with a couple who had a long marriage, 60+ years.  From the outside looking in I saw a wonderful couple who were always together, were always laughing, smiling, being genial to everyone, and the best of all (my favorite part), they were always holding hands.  That small, simple gesture was so meaningful because of what it represented.  To me it spoke volumes:  ‘you are my wife/husband’, ‘I am here to protect you’, ‘I love you’.  She told me that it was respect that kept them “in sync” when I asked what her secret to her long, happy marriage was.  Enough said.

There is no such thing as a perfect marriage.  That simply does not exist.  You just do what is morally right.  On the flip side of that coin, society today makes a mockery of marriage, especially in the entertainment world, where the young viewing public is so susceptible.  They get their ideas that it’s ok to break-up if the going gets tough.  What a sad time we live in.

What do you think?

Wallpaper is from Impressions – Beyond What You See

Have you been quilting, sewing, or crafting?  How’s it going?

I’ve been keeping it light, mainly a lot of mending but it was relaxing and I got a lot out of my ‘to-do’ basket.  I bet you have one of those too, right?  Those odds and ends piled up that you’ve been meaning to get to but didn’t quite have the time?

Well, now it’s back to work.  I’m making a simple bathroom curtain for my sister in our father’s house.  It’s a simple straight stitch but I think I will do a little tiny bumblebee applique in the bottom corner……just a tiny one. 

This is the material my sister chose for the curtains.  It’s VIP by Cranston 2011 www.CranstonVillage.com:

A Little “Spring”y, just in time.

Yes and no.  You see, first of all I love calendars!  I know, cheezy, huh?

I’ve always had a calendar in some form or another throughout my life.  Kind of like a journal, which I also always keep with me.  I started with a small pocket calendar just to keep up with the days.  They were also cute.  I began using them to make appointments, birthdays, and jot down some notes.  I soon realized that the calendar started looking very messy with all my big writing and I was becoming confused with the small, tiny spaces.  I then graduated to a flat, 1-year, monthly, At-A-Glance calendar where the blocks were bigger and there was more space to keep additional information, which I did by adding school, work, and family activities in addition to everything I was already writing in it.  I used that format for several years and I really liked it because it is practical and functional.  However, they are so bland with no color or theme.  I like color.  I love pretty pictures.  I love to open to a page with lots of different aspects like texture, color, and themes.  So I hunted around and found my Vera Bradley agenda, which I have been using for the last 3 years.  These have color, pockets, and nice tabbed dividers.  One small drawback is that the monthly blocks are a bit smaller than the 8 1/2 x 11 calendars, which I missed.  Still, I used it and in addition to everything I was putting in it, I added my son’s kindergarten activities and stickers.  I love stickers!  I also began to write down memorable or significant events in my life (like deaths, events around town, or unexpected experiences) without meaning to, like in a journal.  Did I find my go-to calendar?  Well, sort of.  While I love the Vera Bradley agenda, my handwriting is big.  I have large print and I have a hard time fitting some stuff even if I try to write smaller.

What I decided to do for 2013 is divide up what I write in my agendas into several calendars.  Yup, that’s what I said, several.  I have 5 different calendars for 5 different purposes:

1.  Vera Bradley School agenda – I carry this one in my purse, my every day agenda.  In it, I keep appointments, my son’s school activities, and birthdays.  That’s all.  I find this to be practical and that is all I really need to carry with me at all times.  Also, it helps that my agenda stays flatter.

2.  Lang’s Extraordinary Women Monthly calendar - I keep this one on my desk at home and this is the one where I write down all my activities that have to do with my personal interests, such as crafting, quilting, and scrapbooking.  I have my January projects in it, for example, and I write down each step I take or events I’m attending or classes I am taking as they relate to each subject.  This is a way for me to track my progress and see that I am actually accomplishing something.  I like this one because it is big, has plenty of writing room, and the calendar itself inspires me with its pictures.

 3.  Peanuts 2013 Wall calendar – I have put this one in my son’s room.  He is very curious about time and dates so I thought it would be a good idea for him to start getting a sense of time, such as days of the week, when he goes to school, special dates, and so forth.  He really loves it.

4.  Mom’s Ultimate Family Fridge calendar - Now what mom doesn’t have a refrigerator calendar?  This is very handy and it keeps family dates for all of us to see.  I only write down information pertinent to our family business so that my husband doesn’t have to go into my purse or ask me what is coming up.  He’s in the know too.

5.  Twelve Things To Remember Mini Wall calendar – Finally, I got a small wall calendar for my office just to have something pretty and inspiring to look at.  Again, I love to look at pretty pictures and for 2013, this one fit the bill for me.  Just like I glance at a clock, I like to look over and glance at a calendar just to make sure I’m on the right day!

As you pick your own type of calendar, keep in mind to keep it simple and to your needs.  I’ve had so many years with a calendar and for me it’s like recording a piece of the past.  It’s a way to look at your life in unique ways.  It also serves as a way for you to find or pinpoint certain items that you may need for the future.  Neat, huh?