Recycling Sweaters into Stockings

Oh, how I love thee let me count the ways. . .

Kitty. My sweet little pup. She's a snuggler, a playful, tender heart, and an inspiration. We can all learn a thing or two, or three, from Man's Best Friend. When you come home, at any hour mind you, they wake up, waggle their tail, and chase you around. They're so easy to forgive, even when you've just rubbed their nose in the wet spot on your carpet, followed by a good dose of lemon juice to the mouth, and a "You Naughty Puppy!" before tossing the little thing out in the snow. But, never holding a grudge they'll run right back in and give you a snuggle. Oh, how I love my puppy and tonight I just had to tell someone. So, there you have it someone's, that little Kitty is keeper!

Giving in to Temptation.

I don't know what's so alluring about frozen poles, frosty windows, or cold metal spoons, but there's definitely something.

Today, that natively born Californian gave in, and was surprised by the consequence. Ky stuck her tongue to the window of the school bus, and in -24 degree weather you can guess what happened. When I laughed, she very seriously said,

"it was not funny, mom. My tongue was bleeding!"

Sad, but still a little funny...

"Have I seen his hand in my life today?"

Early Onset AAADD... KNOW THE SYMPTOMS

I just got this from my Mom in Law, I cracks me up, it's Me! I'm only 29, I must have Early Onset. Can anyone relate?


Recently, I was diagnosed with A.A.A.D.D. -

Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.

This is how it manifests:

I decide to water my garden .

As I turn on the hose in the driveway,

I look over at my car and decide it needs washing.

As I start toward the garage,

I notice mail on the porch table that

I brought up from the mail box earlier.

I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.

I lay my car keys on the table,

put the junk mail in the garbage can under the table,

and notice that the can is full.

So, I decide to put the bills back

on the table and take out the garbage first.

But then I think,

since I'm going to be near the mailbox

when I take out the garbage anyway,

I may as well pay the bills first.

I take my check book off the table,

and see that there is only one check left.

My extra checks are in my desk in the study,

so I go inside the house to my desk where

I find the can of Pepsi I'd been drinking.

I'm going to look for my checks,

but first I need to push the Pepsi aside

so that I don't accidentally knock it over.

The Pepsi is getting warm,

and I decide to put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold..

As I head toward the kitchen with the Pepsi,

a vase of flowers on the counter

catches my eye--they need water.

I put the Pepsi on the counter and

discover my reading glasses that

I've been searching for all morning.

I decide I better put them back on my desk,

but first I'm going to water the flowers.

I set the glasses back down on the counter,

fill a container with water and suddenly spot the TV remote.

Someone left it on the kitchen table.

I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV,

I'll be looking for the remote,

but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table,

so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs,

but first I'll water the flowers.

I pour some water in the flowers,

but quite a bit of it spills on the floor.

So, I set the remote back on the table,

get some towels and wipe up the spill.

Then, I head down the hall trying to

remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day:

the car isn't washed

the bills aren't paid

there is a warm can of

Pepsi sitting on the counter

the flowers don't have enough water,

there is still only 1 check in my check book,

I can't find the remote,

I can't find my glasses,

and I don't remember what I did with the car keys.

Then, when I try to figure out why nothing got done today,

I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day,

and I'm really tired.

I realize this is a serious problem,

and I'll try to get some help for it,

but first I'll check my e-mail....

Larsen's "Title of Liberty"

I am so excited about my Family Home Evening tonight, I have to share.

A cute fam shod in President's Choice Aluminum Foil (Shield, Helmet, Sword).
Flag: A Polka-dotted pillow case.
Pole: Old witches broom for a flag.
Fabric Markers.
Bible and Book of Mormon

Today while I was studying I had a strong feeling that our family would be blessed by having a defined GOAL, and a STRATEGY to get there.

As a family we are studying the heroic stories of Captain Moroni, Helaman and the Stripling Warriors (Awesome stories, especially the 2060 brave young boys, fighting for the freedom of their families and attributing their strength and faith to their Mothers who taught them about God. READ it HERE.)

Truthfully, I never really enjoyed these stories like I do now that I am not only reading but, explaining the stories verse by verse to the kids (ages 3 and 5). The other day Ky came up to me and handed me a drawing explaining it was an "epistle" from her to me.

And so, tonight for Family Home Evening we are going to "Strategize" just like all the great Captains of the Bible and Book of Mormon do in war. With Satan waging a war against all of us, including my sweet little ones I feel like it's time that they help mommy in the battle to fortify our family (Family Prayer/Scripture study, and Family Home Evening). They are diligent warriors in the fight for clean teeth, always reminding me even when I'm too tired and wish they would forget just this once and go to bed, teeth unbrushed and all, but they don't forget much at their age. So, what better way to help our family remember the little things that matter most.

In conference Elder Bednar told a story about raising his kids and trying to do the small things. He said things didn't always go as planned, instead there was a lot of:

"He touched me", "She looked at me" and "Dad, He's breathing my air!"

I loved this story because it really hits home, so much of what we try for doesn't go as planned. Elder Bednar goes on to say, if he asked his grown boys what they remember most about family prayer, scriptures, and family night it would probably be that the CONSISTENCY of always doing it. I can see how this would be such a invaluable lesson. And, I want my children to be able to fall back on knowing how to be consistent in living the gospel too, especially later in trying times when they are on their own.

Happy Birthday Stac.

(CATCH UP POST)

Stacy's Birthday. We showed up at the YMCA to surprise her after Porter's swim lesson. She said when she walked out and saw us from a far, she thought, weird. There's a bunch of my friends, all dressed up for someones birthday, I must not have got the memo. Little did she know it was for her birthday! A week late.

It was a fun night, well -minus the really crude comedy show we endured for all of 10 mins. Leaving was more than awkward since we had already ordered dinner for 10 people, you could hear a pin drop let alone 10 people meandering through crowded tables to leave. But in the end we moved the party to the Cheesecake cafe and laughed our heads off while we consumed our weekly caloric intake all in one slice.

Stacy is one the most rad friends I have. She's so adventurous, and her interests are as diverse as they are many. She takes a course at the college like history or anthropology just about every semester, is an advid cutural arts/theatre enthusiast, and is currently learning to sew. This summer she moved to Utah with her 2 children and husband for the month of August. . . just for fun. Her talents include sewing pajama bottoms and bags. . . and yes, more bags, button collecting, balloon animal artistry, and chatting (with exception during SYTYCD when we take vow of silence). Stacy aspires to be in a Hollywood movie, possibly live in the States, and be my next door neighbor, where we will happily wear our pj's till noon, and watch Regis and Kelly over bubble tea. Her sincere love for people and appreciation of their quirks is one of my favorite things about her.

She knows how to laugh out loud and is always up for a last minute party, (unless she's out with her Old Lady's Club). She's a night owl, gets up at the crack of noon when possible, loves sappy movies, attending the Cinema and still claims the "Little Princess" to be her all time favorite. But, most of all, like Diana of Aveonlea, she is a Kindred Spirit and a true Bosom Friend.

(This picture below is telling a story of: Me, a nail, and an angry
can of spray paint, 5 mins before I had to leave for the party.)

The Ky Funnies.

Ky: "I can't wait to read the new Unicorn book with you!!"

Ky's first grade dress.

Mom: "Actually, I didn't buy it because it talked about some bad things" (the dad leaves his wife and kids)

Ky: (noddling her head) "Like Mud?"

Another Ky funny. Last week I got a call from a friend who's daughter rides home on the bus with Ky. I guess this little girl came home worried that "Ky and her family didn't have food or a house because her family is so poor." When her mom asked why she thought this she said, "Kyanne said her family gives all their money to the kids in Africa. Do we have to do that mom?"

Wish I could take credit for this generous idea, but it's all Ky's. While we are trying to help her school raise money for a school house in Africa, we still have food of our own. Her imagination has been doing overtime this week.

She also came home from school on Friday after the field trip and told me her teacher didn't let her go because she didn't receive her permission form. After having called the school and left 3 messages last week to ensure they received the permission form, and finally talking to Ky's teacher that morning who said she had received it, I was livid.

I did what any over reacting Mother Bear would do, I called and wrote a "I mean this in the nicest way possible" email to the teacher. But, lo and behold this too was only due to Ky's imagination, she had attended the field trip. Awh, I only felt like a semi-idiot when the teacher called me back very confused.

Being CREATIVE. .. especially as a Mom.

This message speaks directly to my heart. I struggle and worry often as to whether the time I spend creating (sewing, crafting, blogging) is of value or if I should be doing something more important with my free time. I keep going back and forth between giving in to my crazy love for sewing or stopping it all together to pursue what I think are loftier goals. Watching this video
helps me realize there is value in all sorts of creation.

And, for those who see the subject (creating) and think it doesn't apply to them, because they don't paint, draw, sew, craft, play an instrument, or other ways the world views "creativity" it does. From where I stand I see that imagination and creativity permeating every part of our lives. Jess is a really talented artist, husband, and businessman all due to his imagination and ability to create. My mom is extremely creative in how she cares for people and helps them over come problems in their life.

And, one of the most creative people I know is a mom my age and a dear friend. Some ways she has inspired me with her constant creativity are through:

-Amazing family home evening lessons to teach her children on a weekly basis. She really puts tons of effort and planning into creating these. And, has a whole cabinet full of the different lessons and all the stuff that go along with them. (ie. Lesson: Putting on the whole armor of God. Activity: Having kids shoot Velcro darts at a unarmored Velcro body where they of course stuck, and then shoot that same body with all it's laminated and cutely colored armor on, where it won't stick. I was there for that lesson it was a riot! She also gave the dads aluminum foil to make "real" custom fit armor for the kids.) That takes major amounts of creative energy.

-And, last year around Christmas their family had a dinner patterned after a dinner the Savior would have had when he was on the earth, including sitting on the floor, unleavened bread, figs and olives with her little kids and husband around Christmas time. Not to mention the annual Christmas Talent show.

.-Darling Kid Parties: ie. A 5 year olds movie party, where all the little girls got to where boas, star glasses and walk down the red carpet (red dollar store table cloth). Complete with a concession stand ran by dad, real paper money, and lots of treats! Another one was a cute Pirate party where the kids got to walk a ballet bar which was the Plank of course to get their party treats.

-And, her wealth of knowledge if full of creative ways to motivate, teach and impact her children. Like a jar in her pantry with fun ideas to ward off boredom. Another idea I've adopted and has worked great for us is: "Morning Cards". I laminated cards with pictures of a made bed, toys box, toothbrush/hair brush, a child saying prayers etc. And, instead of telling the kids over and over, did you do....this, this, and this? I just ask them to do all their cards. The sweetest part of that has been walking in on them saying their morning prayers, they still only pray out loud and it's so sweet to see your 3 year old praying all by himself.

This friend has just been an inspiration to me by how much time and imagination she invests into creating experiences for her family that enhance and make her home a wonderful place. I always thought being a mom was a pretty repetitive and predictable job, but I've learned it can be as fun and exciting as you want it to be.

"Daddy wore a Diaper?"

I was telling a friend this story and didn't realize Ky was listening. Yes. Daddy wore a diaper. Coming home from Raymond Sunday night in hopes of getting Bridgey who was 'tummy sick' to wear one of his baby sisters diapers on the 3 hour drive home. Of course our first line of defense was a candy bribe and when it didn't work and I was out of ideas, daddy came to the rescue. He really took one for the team when he offered to drop his drawers and put one on himself. Bridge was stoked.

It just goes to show the power of : "Everybodys' doin' it".

Reminicent of that first year... Livin' on Love

The first year I was married, all I could see was Jess. My sun rose and fell around that 6 foot 3" freckled boy. When we moved to Huntington and got real adult jobs I was just shocked that we were expected to spend 9 and 10 hours away from each other everyday, year after year, all in the name of: Work. I could hardly stand it. Night after night we'd lay on our popped air mattress in our one room studio apartment and wonder if anyone else was really this happy and this lucky.

We moved to Huntington Beach the summer of 2002 with $30.00 to our name. No jobs, no food, no electricity. However we did have running water, an apartment paid up for the month, a 1970's Crown Victoria, and a surf board, what more did we need.
"Livin' on Love" was more than a song to us that first year of life.

But, we thought it was fabulous! With no frig, and no money, we ate a lot of .99 cent hamburgers, and I happily gained the newlywed 19 in just under 90 days. This sticks out in my mind because our California wedding reception was three months after we got married, and no, I did not fit that pretty white dress!



But, life was grand. We ate a lot of hamburgers, .25 Homerun Pies, and cereal by candle light, we bought ice for the foam cooler every morning, played at the beach and surfed everyday. Our bed was a $20.00 blow mattress that popped soon after we moved in.


After that first month, this cute young girl living above us came and dropped off a grocery gift card for $150.00. We were so thankful. With tears in my eyes I asked her how she knew, and she casually said, "Oh, I saw your car." What! Who says that? It still makes me chuckle. Where I come from, if you are rollin in something with 4 wheels, you are stoked! So, it made me laugh every time people giggled or pointed at our awesome car in Orange County, it's a strange place all it's own.

After a few weeks Jess was hired by Yakaty Yak in Newport, we got electricity, internet and I finally found a job on the 23 floor of Deutsche Bank. Life began.

That year was: magical, that's the only way I can describe it. We were so charmed and delighted by everything that came our way, especially each other.

Any Moms Overwhelmed by the need to do . . .more?

I have put a few cute or silly videos up over time, that generally are time wasters, but this one is truly a blessing to watch. I feel so inspired and encouraged that I can do, instead of my usually feeling overwhelmed that I can't do enough. I'm posting it for everyone but also for myself, I think it would be a great 3 min. addition to my morning routine this week.

Long...Blonde...

...to short brown in only minutes. It's funny how I didn't think I'd really care. But, 5 days later, I still don't know how to style this do, and I'm starting to really care. I've tried curling, fliping, scrunching, bedhead, and I'm still at a loss. Yesterday I was seriously considering shaving.

Faith.

A sweet friend just came by and showed me this. It's of a little boy calling in on a Christan Radio Station. Just darling.

An Easy Halloween Advent

I haven't put the numbers on them yet. But, I think I'm going to embroider numbers 7 thru 1 on white circles, as a countdown the week before Halloween. And, fill them up with goodies or fun foamy Halloween cutouts to make Halloween Grams etc.

Wishing on Stars

When I was a little girl, I loved this tv show from the 80's called This Old House or something like that. It was about this cute family that all lived together with the grandpa too in this Old House. A Big Happy: with granparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, the full meal deal.

As a child my family, including all extended relatives consisted of 5 people. That was all, and most other families I knew were closer in dynamic to my family than that on the screen. With nothing in real life to relate this show to, it was mostly a sweet fable I'd wish for at night while looking at the stars. "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight... ending in Amen" It was somewhere between a prayer, and a superstitious wish, that I did religiously night after night until I was probably 12. I think I secretly thought if I was diligent enough maybe it would come true.

So, now when I look at my life filled with people: husband, children, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, and friends so dear they may as well be sisters, my heart swells up so big, it leaks out my eyes. Especially on Sundays. There is something about the kindness and genuine love and friendship I feel at church that makes me embarrassingly teary-eyed all through church on Sundays. I can't believe it's all true.

Who knew, wishing on stars really worked! No, I know all good things come of the Lord, and I feel so grateful. Below, are the pictures that inspired this recall down memory lane. How lucky are my sweet children. Here's a picture of the kids having their first sleepover with their cousin Livi. They had an absolute ball, and haven't quit talking about it since!

Halloween Quilt

Playing rookie from church. I feel kind of guilty, taking pictures of my Halloween Quilt instead of being miserable in bed. At the same time I couldn't go to church, hacking up a lung, and spitting out mystery green stuff. right? t.m.i? Well, just enjoy my spooky quilt, then.

To Make a House a Home: A Tribute.

Early in the Spring this year I can remember fervently petitioning help from the Lord to move into a different house. One that would fit our family's needs. At that time we had 2 extra people that we loved dearly living with us and another staying half time, making our small home full with 3 small children and 5 adults coming in and out of the house and needing make shift sleeping arrangments at night. And, at the time we were possibly going to add another, my 17 year old sister, making a total of 9 people in our 3 bedroom house.

If anyone loves a party it's Jess and I, not only were we having fun but, it's fun to be helpful. At the same time our house started to feel like it was magically shrinking. Being disorganized by nature, these circumstances weren't helping me win the war.

I assumed if I was patient, the Lord would provide a miracle and our small house stuffed with a basketball team of people would sell even in a dead market, and we would end up with a roomier home for our family. As per usual, my plan was different than the Lords and I'm so glad it was.

Skip ahead to today, I sat down in our almost finished basement, watching the kids 'Backagon Doggy Show' (right), and felt overwhelmed with joy. Looking back I see how we got here, how a home that started out wrong in so many ways, became just right for our family. Had we of moved at that time we would have left the most wonderful ward we've ever been apart of, we wouldn't be living next door to one of my dearest friends, and we would have left a home that meets the needs of our unique family so well. As I reflect I realize I have fallen in love with all the houses I have lived in, it just takes awhile to make it Home.

Our first married Home was in Huntington Beach, California. It was just like a little cottage enchanted with magic and just a block from the beach, we lived there for our first 3 years, and it's the house I brought my first little baby, Kyanne, home to.

Our second home, and the first one we owned was in Raymond, Alberta, Canada. And, there we got to have a beautiful yard, another new sweet9 baby, Bridge, and could walk to grandma's house. It's the home Bridgey was blessed in, by his dad, grandpa Larsen, and Great Grandpa Bridge, who he's named after.

And, now our sweet home in Calgary. We've been so blessed. Every time I leave one of our homes I cry, and I know when we out grow this home in a few years I will cry again. Homes are sentimental places, that's why I wanted to write this post, as a tribute to these physical dwellings that have provided such wonderful comfort, refuge and joy.

Schools In

Ky is attending the Canyon Meadows Escuela where she is taught half the time in Spanish. And, Bridgey started Playschool, which me and some other mom teach alternating every 5 weeks. He loves it, wishes it was everyday instead of 2 times a week, and of course, like his big sister, packs his backpack before we head out. One of the moms/teachers last weeks said he was one of the most poliet 3 year-olds she ever meet. I was kind of nervous about how he would act away from home. I knew from early on that Ky would be well behaved in public, she's just like that. But, Bridgey is just Bridgey. Enthusiastic, Energetic, and Honest all the time.

Ky thinks school is fabulous. I always knew I would be that mom tearily waving goodbye on the first day of school, holding back the sobs until I got in to the privacy of my car, where I would have a good cry and count the minitues until her return. So, how surprised was I when I felt excited and cheerfully waved back to my enthusiastic Kindergartner on her first day of school.

Actually, I felt guilty, like I wished I could squeeze out a tear or something, but the truth is she was so excited for school! 2 years in waiting. She couldn't wait to ride the bus, line up, and wear a backpack half as big as her. And, I couldn't help but catch her enthusiasm. She's been attending for just over a month now and loving every minitue of it. She loves her teacher, playing kitchen, drawing, singing, and sitting by her friends on the bus. She's come home speaking spanish words with a much more authentic accent than Jess or I. She even has that accent sometimes when she says english words. At first I couldn't figure out what she was saying, but then I realized she's learning new english words at school too from her teacher who has a very strong Spanish accent. It's pretty cute.

The Big Apple

I'm off to New York tomorrow -Whoop, whoop!

I'm super excited. Loving show tunes and 'Sleepless in Seattle' like I do, I've wanted to go forever, and have planned many untaken trips since then. Most were planned with Nina by my side, in wee hours of the night. One of those nights was just before finals. We decided we were going to fail our classes anyways and should skip out to New York to make ourselves feel better. At least I think that's how it went, Me, Nins and Mark Harris. What were we thinking? That's what we thought about 5 in the morning when we realized we had stayed up all night, and had our finals in a few hours.

I'm a little sad to be going to the Big Apple for the first time without my better half, but we'll still go one day, we won't count this time. I wish I had a digital picture of us from college to post along with this fun memory, but here's one from her wedding 08'.