Q: How hard it is to find decent photos of you and your spouse?
A: Very hard.
Photo credit goes to Charity P. (Thanks for snapping this shot, and for sharing it, CP!) I tried to look at my blog with fresh eyes tonight, to see what it might look like to someone who hasn’t seen me for years and I quickly realized that I rarely post photos of Jeremy and me together. Not a huge problem, but one also not easily remedied with help from my iPhoto files. Apparently Jeremy and I never take pictures of ourselves. Okay, so never is a long time. But it’s a rarity. So next time my husband and I are standing next to you, friend-with-a-camera, be certain I’m going to ask you for a favor.
This picture captures my 31st birthday celebration at Blue Orchid. I believe 31 is the age where you begin to forget how old you are. Either that, or I was so worked up at turning 30 that nothing else is memorable.
A quick glance around the first floor of my house reveals how very much I’ve fallen behind… in about every way. That’s how things go after the entire fam has been sick, but still, it’s now driving me crazy. Couscous under Liv’s seat at the dining room table, garage sale clothes stacked a few feet away from the couscous, the old stroller returned by my sister-in-law only a few feet away from the couscous and garage sale clothes. Yikes! Can we either call Merry Maids or find something all-consuming for Livia to do for about eight hours solid?
This is life. Sickness and organization rotating in cycles, with no need to get all worked up about either. The couscous will get swept up, the clothes will make their way to the basement prior to their eventual sale, the stroller will eventually be placed in the garage.
All this to say, if the status of my dining room is any indicator, then you can imagine what my email inbox looks like. If you are waiting on a response to an email, please don’t feel ignored. Or at least consider yourself in good company. You and the couscous have something in common. And goodness knows I love couscous. ; )
Last year was the first time Livia handed out little Valentines cards to her classmates. It was so darn cute to see the teeny Incredibles cards and envelopes we found at Target. She received a few really creative handmade items last year as well—and I was inspired to make something at home this year. So before we get too far from V-Day, here’s some of the craftiness we came up with this year. (Next year I’d like to try hanging hearts and heart-shaped pancakes.)
The recipe for shortbread hearts can be found on Needs More Butter, our community dinner recipe blog.
I took the ruler idea from the Family Fun website, which has quite a few cute V-Day card options. Since Livia was sick and missed the Valentines party at school, I just might be able to make this sweet gift come together for her teacher as a belated Valentine.
**I should point out that finding six-inch rulers is far more challenging than it should be. If you think ahead and order online, you should be fine. If you want to be like me, I recommend buying four rulers from Hobby Lobby, then driving to Target, Michaels and ShopKo before returning to Hobby Lobby and giving up your perfectionism just a small bit in order to buy five more (gasp!) non-matching six-inch rulers. I ended up thinking about a certain preschooler’s Valentines far more than any adult ever should. Don’t be like me; buy online.
I could not have been happier with a special delivery to my door yesterday and here are the reasons why. 1) My husband gave me this delightful gift. 2) I love chocolate truffles, and 3) these phenomenal chocolates are handmade by my very talented friend Elaine Cranford.
Aren’t they beautiful? They are, honestly, the best chocolates I’ve ever eaten. Divine.
For more information on these truffles, check out Zola Chocolates.
Today was a good day. We played inside. We played outside. We walked down the block with Joie, Simon & Renae.
The wee one is in bed and now it’s time to watch tv and cuddle with my husband.
Goodnight, mouse. Goodnight, house.
It’s a snow day in Lincoln, Nebraska—not because of the snow that’s already accumulated, but because of the snow that is expected to fall today. The announcement of a snow day is STILL exciting for me even though I’ve been out of school for almost 13 years now. I think there’s a collective, community anticipation of fun when school is called off for the neighborhood kids and I’m sure we’ll see them out in force today, making snowmen and sledding down the few hills we have in this flat part of the country.
Livia and I hit the grocery store yesterday for a few staples and aside from a library run this morning, we’re prepared to enjoy a homebound Friday. I’ve already promised her adventures both outdoors and in. As long as everyone gets healthy here, we’ll be doing fine.
What are your plans for today and tomorrow? Does anyone have big Valentines plans?
Yes, it’s technically February, but I have so many fun pictures from the last day of January that I can’t help but post a few here. In one day we celebrated Adam’s birthday at Lazlos, Simon’s first birthday (1/30) with his family, and Joie’s 30th with a bunch of folks at Grace Chapel.
Kristin and Madeleine. I can’t resist a mom-and-daughter shot.
Adam and Matt. Matt made the blog! Hope I didn’t promise you otherwise, Matt.
Birthday Banner. Renae made this gorgeous banner for Simon’s birthday. It was so cool!
The Paparazzi. Simon was surrounded by adoring grandparents, great-grandparents and aunts and uncles.
Birthday Boy. Eating cake for the first time.
Joie and Keri. I love this pic of Joie laughing.
I am feeling kind of random tonight. I had great intentions: January was all about stories in photos and February would be all about writing. In fact, I had toyed with the idea of not posting photos at all this month and focusing on painting pictures with words. In theory, it is a lovely, achievable goal. In reality, I haven’t posted anything this month. And tonight is nothing special, just a small post to break the malaise I’m experiencing. The picture of the seed pod, with kids playing in the Haymarket in the background, definitely represents my somewhat random state of mind this evening. Ooh. Know what’s good for random? Ing. Here goes…
Baking a 9 grain bread from Hodgson Mills. And I must say, my house is
Smelling divine. I’m
Looking forward to
Spreading some butter on a hot slice of bread in about 30 minutes.
Reading quite a bit of the Twilight series and
Trying to decide exactly what I think about Edward. Right now I’m
Thinking he’s annoying and controlling. But I still have Book 4 to go. I’m also
Trying to get back into reading scripture. I want to know the Word of God far better than I do, so
Studying John is now my goal. I’m also
Working on Tim Keller’s prayer study for my small group with Redeemer. So far, so good. Finally, I’m
Getting sleepy and
Desiring some good time with Jeremy this evening. Enough
Blogging already. ; )
The recipe for Esther’s Orange Marmalade Layer Cake is posted on Needs More Butter. More photos can be found on my Flickr site.
