Domestic Divas

For the sake of this post, you can call my Holly ... not because my birthday is on Christmas, but because Holly Homemaker seems appropriate after my recent accomplishment.

I've blogged about my Tuesday lunch dates with my dear friend Beth {who is always referred to as my dear friend cuz that's what she is} which we have been enjoying for 2 years now. What started as a celebration when our kids went back to school a few years ago has turned into something that I look forward to immensely. Summer usually throws us off our schedule so I am always anxious to get back to our weekly "catch up" lunches. We've gone from toting 3 kids with us {Kendyl, Alex, & Cougar} to just the 2 boys, and this year Cougar is the lone child who gets to enjoy our company now that Alex is in Kindergarten (a moment of silence for Beth sending her baby to Kindergarten). P.S. This photo is from a lunch date last year as we stood with the boys and let them throw pennies in the fountain outside of Paradise ... Beth will probably kill me for posting it.

This year we've made a few adjustments to our Tuesday lunch date plan. You see, both of us are making an effort to change/improve our eating habits. I know .... Anyway, rather than eating at Paradise Bakery, Chipotle, or Einstein's Bagels once a week we've been "eating in" a bit more and just enjoying our time catching up at one of our houses. That was, until this past week. My dear friend Beth {who will now be referred to as Becky ... as in Becky Homecky} had a brilliant idea. She suggested that we spend our afternoon making freezer jam!

Now, canning is something that is very new to me. I've canned chicken twice {and need to do it again}. I got a canner this past Christmas and have been wanting to learn to use it for more things to add to our food storage. I know a canner is not required to make freezer jam, but the mere idea of canning something just FEELS so domestic, doesn't it?

I had never made freezer jam before. I have had so many people tell me how easy it is but had never taken the opportunity to do it myself. Beth's suggestion was exactly what I needed to get me moving!! With raspberries being on sale I loaded up, bought jars, pectin, and was ready for my first freezer jam experience.

Beth was an expert, of course, having made it before. I followed the directions on my package of pectin (I ended up buying the reduced sugar formula on accident but it ended up being just as easy) and in less than an hour had 9 beautiful half pints of homemade raspberry jam!!!! I honestly could have stared at those bottles all afternoon ... I was so proud of myself! Beth made a batch of strawberry and a batch of raspberry and hers were just as pretty as mine. I was totally basking in our domestic goodness!!

The best part? We had a fabulous time catching up, swapping stories, AND had the pleasure of being domestic and doing something useful for our families {and I got to learn a new skill}! We have now decided that we are going to spend more of our Tuesday lunch dates doing fun things like this ... our next project will likely be making aprons to wear during our domestic endeavors ;) Both of us have been wanting to learn/practice basic sewing skills and we're hoping aprons would be quick, easy, and something we could make again for gifts! I'm also thinking of craft projects, home decor, baking, and more canning to be done ... peaches are next on my list of things I want to learn to can.

Of course we will still make trips to Paradise Bakery - we can't give up the "regular" lunch dates that we love so much, but I'm excited about this new domestic outlet and look forward to the things we will learn and make together :)

P.S. The very same night I actually made another batch of raspberry jam, but made COOKED jam in the canner that can be stored in my pantry for a year ... how's THAT for domestic? I'm still gushing over the mere idea of it all!!

Happy 13 {and 1/2} Year Anniversary

We actually celebrated our 13th anniversary back on March 6th but since I was taking my blogging hiatus I didn't write about it. We aren't really big anniversary celebrators ... it typically involves dinner at the Outback Steakhouse. We don't usually do gifts, either - probably sounds super unromantical and unthoughtful to most, but it works for us ... it certainly doesn't go unacknowledged, we just don't celebrate in huge fashion like others do and we both like/want it that way. Heaven knows we buy enough for ourselves throughout the year!! That will all change in a few years, of course, when we celebrate 15 years with a trip back to Maui ... worth saving the money from the other anniversaries to make that happen!!!

This year we DID do something out of the ordinary, though. In January I decided that I needed some motivation {again} to get back to a more regular exercise routine and decided that training for a race would be the perfect solution. The only other race that I had ever trained for was the triathlon that I had completed almost 2 years earlier. I knew that the city we live in hosted a run every year around the first part of March so I looked into it ... it fell on our anniversary, March 6th. I had the option of a 1 mile fun run, 5K, or 10K. I knew that in the past I had been able to run the distance of a 5K pretty well (not PRETTY, but well enough to run the distance without stopping) and decided that a 10K would push me harder and farther than I had ever pushed myself to run and felt that would be a great challenge for me.

I talked to my friend Kasey - who had become an avid runner - about training programs and what she had done to prepare for her first races. She sent me a copy of the program that she had followed. It was broken down into 3 runs a week for 8 weeks leading up to race day. I started with running for short amounts of time with walking in between to build endurance and distance. I did most of my training on a treadmill and almost broke down sobbing when I ran outside for the first time and it was SO MUCH harder than my treadmill was. My next outside run was better and I felt more confident in my ability to finish. That was my goal, after all ... to finish the race. Not to be the fastest in the pack, but to be consistent in my training and to finish. My longest training run before the race was 5.5 miles so I worried about finishing the entire 6.2 miles. I really wanted to RUN the entire way but didn't want to be too disappointed if I had to slow down to walk.

My stomach was in knots the morning of the race. I worried about keeping a decent pace because the treadmill had always kept my pace for me. I was nervous that I would get to 3 miles and want to stop because it was hard. I was terrified that I would have to go to the bathroom {we've all heard stories of runners with pee dripping down their legs ... or worse. Sorry to be graphic but these were my thoughts}. I hated the idea of being passed up by grandmas and having people along the side of the road actually watching me run ... and sweat ... and look as glamorous as I do when I run.

My reality was that the race was exhilarating!!! It was so fun to have people cheering me on - I didn't even think about how awful I looked, how bad my running form was, or that I wished I could run faster. I fell into a good pace and the crowds and other runners kind of faded into the background as I concentrated on my breathing and the music on my iPod. Cute Tatum & Abby (two of the young women from our church) were sitting the curb in front of Tatum's house in their PJs cheering and waving me on. My friend Brenda came to cheer with her husband and baby Brody and it seemed like they were there every time I looked up!! They moved all along the course and were at every spot when I needed just a little push ... and they were taking pictures the whole time!! I was super sad thinking that I wouldn't have any pictures of my first running race since I had conned my husband into running the race with me!!!

That's right ... Steve ran the race, too! What a way to celebrate 13 years together, huh? I know ... 13 years ... we should have done a half marathon (13.1 miles) ... um, no. The 10K was a huge challenge for me. Of course Steve's training consisted of running one night a week and playing basketball on Tuesday nights. And, of course, he finished before me with a much better time. I told him to run his race and I would run mine ... I can't talk when I run anyway and I told him he'd look like a pansy if he didn't finish before me. We started together and ran the first short stretch together but once we rounded the first corner he was off on his own and I was falling into my own pace and moving toward my 6.2 mile goal. It certainly wasn't easy but I ran every step of the race and crossed the finish line feeling strong and accomplished ... and proud of myself ... and tired. I plan to run it again next year, too, as long as my old body can hold up ;)

I found that 13 years of marriage is sort of like training for a big race ... some days you easily fall into pace and can go much farther than the day before. Some days you just hope to make it 2 miles. Some days you worry about what you look like, how fast you're going, or if your "form" is any good. Some days you worry about embarrassing yourself or falling short. Some days you wonder if you can push through when it gets hard. But, we have friends and family lining the course who are cheering for us and helping us along, we know we have the support of each other, and we know that when we struggle, the other is there to help us push through and make it to the end. And, at the end of it all, there's something so rewarding about the feeling of celebrating that kind of accomplishment together ... just like the accomplishment of a lifetime of wonderful memories - like our first 10K.

P.S. Our official chip times were 58:12 and 1:04:09 ... just so I have it recorded somewhere. Nothing spectacular but we weren't in it to be spectacular ;)

Time Well Spent

I love that my husband will spend his day off doing things like this:

Cougar is one lucky boy and LOVES that his daddy will build trains and Legos for him. These trains were put together last Thursday and stayed up all week ... today it was the entire Pirates of the Caribbean Lego collection {which he proceeded to play all afternoon with his sisters}.

Lessons in Learning

I had the opportunity to teach in Relief Society today {for those who are not members of the LDS church that is our Women's Organization} and it was truly humbling. I was given a talk entitled "That Our Children May See the Face of the Savior" from our last General Conference to base my lesson on. I spent a lot of time reading different messages that have been shared about our own relationships with the Savior, how we can teach our children about him, and how important it is for us as parents to use everyday teaching moments to teach about Christ and live our lives as an example of Him. I often find that I am the one who needs the lessons the most when I am asked to speak. There was so much that I wanted to share with the sisters about the importance of our jobs as mothers. I had WAY too much content for the amount of time I had {I ended up having to skip over at least 3 pages of notes}. I cried WAY too often and felt like a babbling idiot more than once (which is BIG for me because I am typically a very unemotional person who only cries about 3 times a year ... really). In the end I can only hope that the ladies there walked away with a small portion of what I did.

I ended my lesson with this quote that came from a talk that Elder Jeffrey R. Holland shared in a talk over 10 years ago {you can read his entire talk HERE} - it is an excerpt from a letter that was sent to him from a young mother who struggled at times with feelings that she couldn't measure up to the tasks expected of her (boy, can I relate). To quote from his talk:

But one thing, she said, keeps her going: “Through the thick and the thin of this, and through the occasional tears of it all, I know deep down inside I am doing God’s work. I know that in my motherhood I am in an eternal partnership with Him. I am deeply moved that God finds His ultimate purpose and meaning in being a parent, even if some of His children make Him weep.
“It is this realization,” she says, “that I try to recall on those inevitably difficult days when all of this can be a bit overwhelming. Maybe it is precisely our inability and anxiousness that urge us to reach out to Him and enhance His ability to reach back to us. Maybe He secretly hopes we will be anxious,” she said, “and will plead for His help. Then, I believe, He can teach these children directly, through us, but with no resistance offered. I like that idea,” she concludes. “It gives me hope. If I can be right before my Father in Heaven, perhaps His guidance to our children can be unimpeded. Maybe then it can be His work and His glory in a very literal sense.”

WOW. I closed with this video that was created with pieces of this same talk. Go grab a tissue and make sure you watch it. Every time I watched it as I prepared for my lesson (and learned to download YouTube videos and burn them to DVD ... YES!) I was overwhelmed by the sense that I am doing better than I think I am. The Lord is there to carry us through the challenges as long as we will rely on him. Elder Holland also said, "if you try your best to be the best parent you can be, you will have done all that a human being can do and all that God expects you to do." Thank goodness.

Going, going, gone ....

I should be working on my Relief Society lesson that I have to teach tomorrow but instead am trying something new ... posting to my blog from my phone! How's that for being distracted? Not that I couldn't try it any time or that I couldn't do it from my last phone - which I never did - but my new Android phone make me want to use it for EVERYTHING!

So the real story here is that Kendyl lost another tooth. Not just any tooth, mind you, but a front tooth ... the one that completely changes the way your child looks forever. It happened so suddenly, too. Tuesday night she mentioned that her tooth was wiggly. Wednesday morning she was showing me just how wiggly it was. Kayla came to pick up the girls to take them to school (we carpool) and I got a call before they even reached the school that her tooth had come out. I sent my baby out the door that morning and picked up this little girl after school (photo taken w/ my phone in the car ... don'tcha love the hot sweaty look?):

I think she's pretty cute ... and looks older *sigh*

Middle School Mama

First I have to say thanks so much for all of the sweet comments that have been left or e-mailed to me ... you sure know how to make a crazy girl feel the love!! I hope my reentry didn't leave you feeling like I was in the bottom of some dark abyss - it never got that bad ;) Life is fabulous most of the time and the rest of the time it is the pits or somewhere blissfully in between ... like everyone else's.

Last week met us with another milestone in our house - Middle School. That's right ... summer is over {in the blink of an eye} and the kiddos are back in school (can I get a little WOO HOO? We really did have a great summer but it was time for ALL of us ... the kids miss it just as much as I do)!!! Brinley has stepped up to the big leagues of Middle School. I'll be honest - I've been dreading it for at least 9 months. The mere idea of the new campus, administrators and teachers I didn't know, lockers, "tween" clothing {including training bras}, cruelty, language, "outside influences", etc. were enough to make this mama want to lock her up and homeschool her!! That, however, would never be an option for me because she is too passionate about school (and I couldn't do the homeschool thing ... having been a public school teacher). Toward the end of 5th grade I started to notice her attitude toward "moving up" become more nervous and I was afraid that my own fears were rubbing off on her - yikes. A change of attitude {for both of us}, 2 tours of the school during open houses, some fun school shopping for clothes and the MANY school supplies required by the middle school and we were both feeling much better. She dove right in last Monday and is loving the whole thing. She was accepted into the honors program so she has the same group of kids in her 5 core classes ... some of which she knows from her elementary school. She has a few friends in her homeroom class, too, which was comforting to find out. She's got a group of girls that she eats lunch with every day (I had nightmares of her sitting alone in the cafeteria). She got into band and has decided to play the french horn which, by the way, is one of the most expensive instruments to rent or buy ... just learned that last night. Ugh. Tonight she announced that she wants to run for Student Council which is awesome - she's a great leader. The kicker about that? She can start hanging posters and campaigning on Monday and has to have a speech ready for approval on Monday ... and I have to teach Relief Society on Sunday. How in the world am I supposed to have the time to work on a campaign over the weekend?!? No sleep is the only answer, unfortunately.

Now so you don't think she's the ONLY one who started school last week I should mention the other munchkins. Ashton is in 4th grade this year and Kendyl is in 1st grade. I am the luckiest lady around because they both got the teachers that I wanted them to ... both of which we have had before!! I am thrilled to work with these ladies again and plan to do some extra "spoiling" just cuz I love 'em. Kendyl's teacher is actually the one that I babysat for after she had her first baby so there is an extra special connection there ;) Both of them are doing exceptionally well and are loving being back in the classroom.

And now a photo of the girlies ... with a preview of my new product releasing in my shop on Monday!

How about the littlest of the bunch, you ask? He started preschool two days a week! I was really torn about it, to be honest, because he is still very young and has 2 years before he will start school. What it came down to was that socially he needs to be around other kids more. He is so lonely when his sisters go back to school and while I try to plan playdates for him, it's nice for him to establish his own "routine," too. He's loving it so far and his teacher says that he is doing very well in terms of participating and focusing {when required}. Here are a few shot of him as he headed out the door on his first day:

That kid cracks me up!! Well, I think that covers our first day of school happenings ... I'm sure I could go on but that is MORE than enough for one night!!

Reentry

So, you’ve probably noticed that I quit blogging a while back. I imagine most (including myself) wondered if I’d ever come back to post again. I’d love to say that it was because I didn’t have a single minute of “free” time. I’d like the excuse that we have done absolutely nothing for the past 9 months. Perhaps a broken arm and inability to use a keyboard would work {not true, in case you were worried which, I’m sure, you were}. But it really wasn’t for any of those reasons ... it wasn’t even because I was just too lazy to do it. I made a conscious decision to quit for a while - not just posting but reading other blogs, too. Perhaps it was drastic but it’s been a good thing for me and something that was needed.

It came about for two reasons ... not that I owe an explanation ... that I want to write down for my own remembrance. Some may think that I'm a bit cuckoo {which we all know is true} so I apologize up front for my possibly irrational thinking ;)

First, as I started looking back over my incredibly irregular blog posts I started to notice a pattern ... they were becoming less about me and my family and more about my crafting/creative team work/design work. The sad reality is that this was becoming a more accurate reflection of my life and it was staring me in the face. Don't get me wrong - I love to create and I LOVED all of the work I was doing in terms of creative team assignments and designing. The problem came when I started letting the super late nights creep in {on a very regular basis} and the computer time take over more than it should. When the "balance" is off it affects everyone and it was definitely affecting our entire household. That needed to change.

Second, there's something you should know about me ... I'm insecure. Don't pretend like you're surprised by that - I know we all have our insecurities (or at least I like to believe others struggle with them, too, so play along). What I began to notice was that the more I read other blogs, the worse I started to feel about myself. I realize that blogging gives us a place to be "our best self" and that most people don't blog about the {not-so-glamorous} parts of life. The trouble came for me when I felt like my life was nowhere near as exciting, my craft projects were not as creative, my photos were not as fantastic, my exercise plan wasn't as extreme, my home was not as well decorated, my children were not well enough behaved or dressed ... you get the picture, right? Yes, I was comparing my worst to everyone's best - never a good thing.

What really hit me was when I would read comments on my blog like "I don't know how you do all that you do," or "I get tired just reading about your life," or things like that. Now, if you ever left one of those comments I DO NOT want you to feel bad about it ... you did NOT cause me to stop blogging ;) It made me think to myself "what if reading MY blog makes someone have the same bad feelings about themselves that I do when I read other blogs?" Not that it ever should because, remember, my life was {in my mind} no where near as great an anyone else's life.

And so came the blogging hiatus. I needed it for my own psyche. My family needed it so we could refocus on things as they SHOULD be. I used the time away to remember that I have a pretty darn good life. My house is still not immaculately decorated, I still run on my treadmill on a less-than-regular basis, my photos are still snapshots rather than portraits, I still eat too much candy, and I still glean lots of creative inspiration from others rather than inventing something new, but it's my life ... plain and boring as it may be to others {or myself at times} ... and I'm blessed immensely.

So what made me decide to start posting again? I missed it. I missed the "connections" that blogging provides. I'm sad that I missed out on sharing so many stories from the past 9 months - it's been a wild ride around here with lots of changes! I'm sure I'll post about some of our past happenings in the mix of the new. I won't make any promises on how often I'll write or that it will be all "sunshine and roses" when I do ... that wouldn't be reality, right? What I am going to do is "get over" my insecurities and focus on the things that are truly important to me - imperfections and all :D And what about my crafting/designing? It still keeps me busy ... and I love it ;) I did what I SWORE I would never do and started another blog just for my business! I'm not great at keeping that one up, either, but if you're ever interested in that part of my everyday life you can check it out at ikaridesigns.blogspot.com (or click on my button in the sidebar).

Next post will be more entertaining ... promise. I even have pictures to share ;)

Backlogged

Okay, so I knew this was a lofty goal, but I didn't realize some of what November would throw at me!! Difficult decisions, promising adventures, and not enough time to do all I planned. I've done some post-dating and will continue on my list because I do have innumerable things to be grateful for. Thanks to those of you who have stopped by and left your comments ... it means so much to know that you still come by to check on me after I've been such a wayward blogger the past few months!! My goal was to post every day, but I've posted more this month so far than I have in a long time and it feels GOOD!!! Hopefully I can keep it up. I will have a complete list of 30 things I am grateful for by the end of the month - I may just be posting 2 or 3 at a time now in order to catch up :)

Online Shopping

As much as I love Target, I can't help but love online shopping! I'm not a "try on" kind of girl most of the time - I'd much rather purchase, bring home, try on, and return what I don't care for. Perhaps that has something to do with the fact that I usually have at least one child with me any time I go shopping. It doesn't help that my closest mall is about 20 minutes away and the "good" malls / shops are closer to 45 minutes away! I suppose if I was a fashionista I would love the idea and experience of "real" shopping more, but I am not. I digress ....

The online experience is much more "user friendly" to me - you have WAY more options than what is available in any one store, you can easily price compare for the best value, many sites offer FREE shipping and returns which is *perfect* for my "anti-try on" personality, and I have access to shops that I don't have locally - or that are 45 minutes away (which, let's be honest, is completely inconvenient) *HA*

Online shopping saves me time, money, and my sanity - who would not be grateful for that?!?

Music

I'll admit that I'm pretty well out of the "cool" music scene these days. I can't tell you how long it's been since I listened to the actual RADIO and recognized anything being sung ... unless it's been used on TV ;) Our car and iPod were taken over a while ago with the hottest in "tween" music - Hannah Montana, Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Taylor Swift, Aly & AJ, Demi Lovato - you get the picture. Yet there is something magical about these tunes. They have taught my girls to *LOVE* music ... even it it's "teeny bopper" music. Sweet Kendyl literally lives her life in a musical and sings her way through everything. I love hearing her figure out the lyrics to a new song that she's heard. All of the girls are so cute in the car as they sing along to the latest one hit wonder!! Cougar is even starting to join them in his own extremely time delayed, one word way :) And the dancing along? Don't even get me started on the fun dance parties!!

I believe there are very few things that can evoke emotion in me the way that music can. Pictures can take me back to a certain time but hearing the music of that time makes me FEEL like I'm right back there! My college days were filled with awesome memories of roommates and music - blaring our radio or CD player, laughing, and being crazy. Rob Base (It Takes Two) will forever make me laugh hysterically and make me think of Deb and Kasey ... and we ALL still know every word!!

It's not just the "fun" music that makes me wanna get up and dance, either, that I'm grateful for. I find such power in the Hymns of the church. They bear such powerful witness through their messages. Other songs of faith strengthen and clam me. The tinklings of my girls as they learn to play the piano brings me joy. Buying a new ringtone makes me smile (currently "I Gotta Feeling" from the Black Eyed Peas ... and the BYU Fight Song for Steve). Finding a great song that motivates me to run a little harder is always needed. I am grateful for music and the role it has played throughout my life!