currently...

time: 7:15 p.m. on thursday evening

feeling: frustrated that coleman just broke his fireman hat (that he loves) because he was acting psycho and hitting it with a plastic bat. and that i didn't have the umph to stop him.

watching: olivia

listening: coleman singing "the itsy bitsy spider" 

wondering: how he can rationalize that he can't take his medicine while he's pooping, yet he manages to play baseball while pooping??? 

hoping: that he does OK at daycare tomorrow. pretty sure he's feeling well and will be fine, but there's always that fear. 

wishing: tomorrow's weather was forecasted to be better than it is.

eating: nothing. ate a spaghetti taco for supper though.

drinking: a glass of wine. white zin. which i don't normally drink. but the bottle was open and it's light. and i'm pretty sure a dry wine would wreak havoc on my recently-healed sinuses. 

waiting: for coleman's bedtime. don't judge, i've been stuck inside with my little munchkin for 2 1/2 days. no help. no break. no daylight. if i want bedtime, i think i'm justified. 

planning: for a busy day tomorrow. mentally preparing. 

laughing: because i thought i could do this post spontaneously. coleman had other ideas...the post had to wait until after bedtime, but we had this awesome webcam photo shoot, so it's all good...

the silver lining

today, i am on round three of cabin fever and figured it would be a good time to focus on my blessings.

today i am thankful that...

:: coleman's meds are kicking in

:: we have good health insurance and didn't have to think twice about two dr visits within a few days of each other

:: my boss has a family and is understanding of my having to be home (again)

:: despite the cabin fever, we have a home that is cozy and i love being here. even when feeling yucky.

:: we have a DVR. and iPhones. sick day entertainment at its laziest.

:: the three bouts of sickness have been separated by a few days so I could at least make an appearance at the office.

:: i can do some work from home as coleman allows or after he's in bed.

:: his illness and mood could be a lot worse. he has handled it all relatively well.

:: matt was able to take him to both of his dr appointments

project life

 

i feel a little cliche, but i've jumped on the bulging bandwagon...i'm tackling project life. 

on the off-chance that you've been hanging around here for several years, you may recall some similar attempts. 

back in 2008, i tried taking a photo a day. i added digital journaling and printed the snapshots, adding them to a regular photo album. i didn't finish. 

in 2009, i purchased becky higgins' project 365 kit and tried it that way. i didn't finish. i made it to august, if i recall correctly.

though it was disappointing that neither project lasted the full 365...i don't regret tackling them. i was able to capture everyday memories in a unique fashion. and that's worth something, regardless of how long it lasted. 

so where does that leave me for 2012? 

my key word for this project is *realistic*. my expectations have to be just that. here is where i am with this project...

:: i have not purchased any new products. despite the temptation of becky's awesome assortment, i'm working with what i have leftover from the 2009 kit. if i'm still going strong by the time these are gone, then i will "reward" myself with new stuff. and believe it or not, i'm totally ok knowing that the pages won't match. 

:: i'm keeping it simple, simple, simple. my focus is on completing the documentation. no frills. no fuss. 

:: i'm not worrying about taking a photo a day. i'm concentrating on documenting the week. i will use whatever photos are available (whether a lot or a few). i will add in pieces of life and varying levels of journaling. 

:: i must be flexible. if things go spiraling out of control, i may do a two-page spread that captures two weeks or a month. and that will be okay.

:: i vow to offer myself grace and forgiveness in this project. this is supposed to be fun. 

from this project, i hope to gain a few things. the obvious one is the finished project of having our family's life well-documented. i am also hoping it will help me to slow down a bit and better capture the little things. and maybe, as a result, better appreciate those little blessings. i also hope that it will help force me to prioritize a little creative time each week. a piece that's been lacking in my life for quite a while now. 


here's to a third time's a charm. cheers.

one little word: grace

despite not feeling the drive to reflect on last year's goals and set out a list of specific resolutions, i do feel compelled to choose a word for 2012. i'm not sure why, but i do.

i've mulled over it a few times these past few weeks. i've made lists and was pretty sure i had a word. and then it hit me...two weeks into the new year. i was totally off-base and the word just showed up. which is kind of what i would expect it to do. so when it did, i didn't really question it. 

my word is grace. 

strangely enough, i always thought of this word as a characteristic of a person ("graceful"). it wasn't until the last year that i started to understand it in a biblical sense. the act of grace. 

other words that i considered for this were adequate...but they were either action words ("balance") or implied searching for something ("contentment"). but grace...grace has already been given to me. everyday. by Him. 

my struggle is granting myself grace. (and accepting grace of others.)

i read something this week that really hit home for me. it was about subtracting things from our lives at the new year, rather than focusing on what we can add*. the last thing i need in my life right now is more. 

but i do need more grace...given to me, from me. 

yes, i have struggles and things to work out. but in the grand scheme of things...my life is good. and i need to remember that. one reason i can't see it is because i can't get past the flaws and the faults and the mistakes of everyday life. 

so in 2012, i will grant myself grace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12:8-9

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

in case you are curious...

last year's word was focus

in 2010, i began my year with the word strive

but then changed it mid-year to balance

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if you are unfamiliar with the concept of *one little word* i recommend checking out ali edwards' blog here: one little word

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*oddly enough, what i read that inspired me was also written by ali edwards. appropriate. it was part of her newsletter series. highly recommend signing up (it's free). 

moving forward...

i started writing a post reflecting back through 2011 and how i did with the goals i set a year ago. but in reality, my heart wasn't in it. i've also contemplated a long post of goals for 2012...and again, my heart is not there. it's not that i don't care about my past or my future. but i'm busy, and have been for awhile. and i'm pushing along in survival mode. 


i wish i was able to blog more, but when i do blog... i want my heart to be there. so, i didn't do a recap of my goals or favorite photos or highlights of 2011. i'm just rolling on...


i do have some things for 2011 that are top of mind and i'd consider "goals". i don't have a formal list, but they are in my mind and my heart. oh, what the hay, i'll go ahead and throw out a quick list...


organize. purge. home projects. balance. project life. pinch pennies. cut calories. move more. communicate. love. kindness. intentional. grace. 


really, it's not much different than any other year. 


here's to a (late) start to the new year. cheers.

merry christmas

from our family, to yours...

tis the season: santa - round three

round three with santa clause...and in this case, mrs. clause as well (isn't that precious???)...

this time we didn't even try to get coleman to play along (i totally would've, but matt's a wimp and wasn't willing to test c's patience in a fancy smancy room full of respectable adults!). 

so...what's a girl to do when there is a santa, mrs. clause, and no willing child? well, she's to force her teenage stepson to pose with her of course! he's such a good sport!

tis the season: deck the halls

i'm gonna be honest...decorating has been a tough thing this year. i lacked my normal motivation and christmas spirit. the thought of certain decorating tasks felt like....well, tasks! i wanted our home to feel like christmas with the warm glow and scents, like it always does. but executing it was a different story. add in to this that our floors were being redone in the middle of december...on the main floor of our home...where most of the decorating is done...yeah, that really helped with the motivation. 

so, i took a more minimalist approach...focused on the things that bring happiness to our little crew of four. things moved more slowly than normal, but eventually we got to a point of a decorated home, though much less glamorous than past years. 

 

coleman had this tree in his room last year but didn't pay it any mind. but this year, i decided to put it on a small chair at his level (rather than on his bookshelf). i gotta give myself props...good move! it made all the diffference. he was so excited and proud of his little tree that he decorated all by himself. it didn't matter that there were trees in the house nine times as tall as his, with sparkling lights...all that mattered was this was his tree. 

 

earlier this year, i lucked out and finally found the fisher price nativity scene (even got it for a great price at target!). i was a tiny bit worried that maybe coleman was getting too old for it. but that was unnecessary.  he loves it. our windowsill in the breakfast nook is the perfect toddler-height spot for it. 

 

after a long day of decorating...these two were pooped out, apparently (but i pressed on!)...

 

these lights here...they have been the heartache of the season. the garland on the stairs was stripped of its old lights and restrung. this photo was taken right afterwards when all was working. it didn't last for long. the bottom half went out first...and now, as i type this, the garland is completely burnt out. and i don't have the "umph" in me to restring it. again. 

the pre-lit fake tree upstairs...similar story. multiple parts of it were no longer lit. matt, spencer and i all struggled to fix it. we tried everything we could. no luck. ultimately, i restrung the top portion of the tree so it would look presentable from the entrance of the house and left the rest (the only way you'd see the back of the tree is to go into coleman's or our bedroom). but alas, another portion of the tree has sense burnt out. needless to say, this normally gorgeous display of twinkle is looking pretty dim this year. 

but let's move on to more positive things...

  

coleman was totally into putting ornaments on the tree this year. it's nice to have an enthusiastic helper again. (spencer still plays along but his heart just isn't in it like it used to be!). 

and this photo just makes me smile...this is an empty reel (designed to hold christmas lights) and a pot holder destined for good will. he insisted on playing with them both and kept saying "it's a party". cracks me up. 

 

and proof that spencer does still help with a smile...here he's putting the ceremonious first ornament on our live tree. 

 

and here is our posed picture. every year we make matt hang one ornament...and he has to do it slowly so i can capture a photo. future generations will have false illusions that matt actually participated in the christmas decorating activities.

tis the season: santa - round two

this was coleman's second meeting of santa this christmas season. 

 

the event: a morning event hosted by matt's company

 

the attempt: matt's willingness to sit with santa also

the hope: just one good photo. maybe? sort of? 

the outcome: good enough :)

at least there were no tears...

and one photo where his head isn't buried. 

baby steps. 

tis the season: christmasville

several years ago, our city began hosting a christmas festival called christmasville. matt and i were immediately fans. (matt loves the city, i love fesitvals. perfect match). with spencer being older when it first began, we have struggled to find things for everyone. this year was no different. coleman was old enough to enjoy some pieces...and we just drag spencer along for the ride. 

we did some shopping with local vendors. we checked out the gingerbread house contest (always one of spencer's highlights). we toughed out a long line so coleman could take a train ride...and it was worth it. look at this face....

 

and these faces aren't too bad either... 

 

the last thing we did was catch a dog comedy show. it was pretty darned entertaining! i think we all enjoyed it! here are my boys in the audience...