Two Weeks Later...

Without notice, I took a 2 week blog break.  My loyal blog followers (that would be y'all reading these words) are considered friends or family.  Nobody shouted "HEY! Where did you go?"  The world didn't end, although some felt it was destined to happen this past weekend.  Life went on.

Over this short break, I focused on my family and kept active with various happenings in our lives.  Thinking about the time spent away from blog land, the words "when I last left you..." and "two weeks later..." popped into my head.  It made me smile and chuckle to myself, as I conjured up comic book style visions.  

A single moment can change a life forever, so 2 weeks can surely bring on changes.  What changed for me during the past 2 weeks?  Let me put it this way...

Two weeks later...

Mother's Day 2011

Mother's Day arrived on May 8th, and on May 10th I became another year older.  My wonderful husband (and boys) picked out a priceless gift... floating paper lanterns!  If you haven't watched the movie Tangled, you'll need to see it to fully understand why this is such a beautiful & thoughtful gift.  Rain was expected, so my husband presented me with the lanterns and I get to choose the date and location to set them off.  I've been caught singing "I See The Light" with a smile on my face since we saw the movie, but the smile is a little bigger now.

My absolute favorite show, Smallville, went out with a super series finale.  I'll admit it, I'm a complete sappy nerd.  I cried.  As a fan from the very beginning (10 years ago), it was bittersweet to watch, but it was brilliantly done.  The creators, cast, and all those involved with Smallville have my admiration.  I hope the cast & crew find success in whatever they take on next.  Thank goodness I can watch them together on dvd, because I'll miss seeing their on screen talent & chemistry all in the same place.  I'd list my favorite actors/actresses from the show, but it would end up being a cast list.  They all brought their individual WOW factor to each character.  Did I mention I'm going to miss this show?

During my hiatus I once again realized that we are in warp speed.  At times I feel so rushed and it's difficult to give 100% to everything.  My hopes & dreams tend to sit on the back burner more often than I care to admit.  Ultimately though, being the best mom I can be right now means so much more.  Taking the time to just be near my husband, even if I'm reading and he's working on a project, is more important than accomplishing something the world finds amazing.  At the same time, remembering that I set goals for a reason and doing what I love is a part of who I am.  The pressure of perfection cannot overtake simple joys.

Nothing life changing occurred, but I enjoyed the chance to just breathe with one less "to do" item on my list.  

Do you love it when you get a glimpse at beloved characters "two weeks later," or years later, when a movie, tv show, or story ends?  Do you put your own spin on things and use your imagination when no "what happens next" turns up?  If a sequel comes out later, do you most often feel disappointed or excited by the portrayals?  

Check Out Sara Bareilles song, "Breathe Again," that was used in the Smallville finale!  

One of my favorites... the song and the artist!

Time Warp

 My birthday is one month away.  While many hit a "certain age" and decide that celebrating a higher number isn't their favorite activity in the world, I still look forward to it.  The getting older part isn't exactly anyone's cup of tea, but I'm lucky enough to regain a fairly youthful appearance.  It's even been suggested that I should be involved in the sting operation of a "to catch a predator" type of show.  Regardless,  the approaching annual milestone left me pondering what I would do if I could go back in time and guide my younger self.

Am I the only one to ponder this travel back in time idea?  Absolutely not.  I'm certain there must be a book or movie about this kind of thing.  Back to the Future does show a few alterations in Marty McFly's life after his adventures, but it's not quite the same.  Brad Paisley's country tune Letter To Me certainly has the right feel for my train of thought.

Can you picture it in your own head?  Time warping back to those youthful years and passing along a letter, watching a familiar teen from a distance, or having a face to face conversation with your you of yesteryear?  Are you reflecting with a smile or a little sadness?  What would you say?  Would you do anything at all?  Would you want to change the person you have become today?  

While there are "things" I would be grateful to change about my younger years, I realize just how those ups, downs, highs, & lows have molded me into... me.  I kind of like who I am today, flaws and all.  I have two amazing children and a husband I wouldn't trade.  Life isn't mean to be perfect and even if you alter the past, it doesn't automatically ensure "perfection."  Different maybe, but perfection?  Nope.

I've learned a great many things in my almost 32 years, but I certainly do not know it all.  Hopefully my growth will continue for a great many more years.  Experiencing life is worth celebrating.  Each and every year is precious.  When I'm a feisty little old lady in my 60's,  I wonder if I will look back, smile, and ponder the same...

Would you go back in time?  Write a letter to your teenage self?  

What would you say?  

Can you think of any great books or movies that follow these theme?

Enjoy Monday with a little Brad Paisley....

A Wimpy Kid Birthday

Stampin' Out The Work Week has a fun theme this week.  In honor of my oldest son's birthday and reading month, I present to you... A Wimpy Kid Birthday.

My son wanted to do something special for his birthday, so we gave him permission to invite two friends over for a Wimpy Kid themed afternoon this coming weekend.  Invitations were kept simple.  We printed the information on a piece of blue paper with the "stick figure" style image that you find on the first book cover.  From there we decided to keep it going.

Our birthday party fun will include a game of Wimpy Kid Scrabble before the pizza arrives.  Then we'll jump into some Wii games & just having fun in general.  The final event will be popcorn and a movie...  The Diary of A Wimpy Kid of course


For the birthday treat at school, we made brownie cookies and topped them with the "cheese touch."  It was nothing more than a flattened vanilla tootsie roll with golden yellow and green food/icing coloring added to accomplish that aged cheese look.

A very simple button was worn to school declaring that my son was indeed the "Birthday Kid."  I printed this from our home computer and added a little color by hand.



His brother and I continued the theme with our homemade birthday cards.

Decorating for the weekend party goes beyond balloons, yet it's not too involved either.   Foam versions of our main character and a paper birthday banner add just enough of a wimpy birthday kid touch to make the day festive.

When our son's buddies go home, they'll have one of a kind thank you bags to take with them.  A quick straight stitched bag with a small piece of canvas on the front, adorned by the wimpy kid, will hold all the goodies.  Candy bars with a simple paper wrapper, "cheese touch" popcorn, a decorate your own button kit, bookmarks (what book themed party doesn't have bookmarks), "Diary of" journals that we created (an in progress rough draft sample shown), and of course a pencil for all the writing and drawing that will go inside the journal.

I love it when a theme comes together!

Enjoy the wimpy photos.  Feel free to comment with any questions you have on the projects shown.  As always, enjoy stampin' out your work week!

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Continue scrolling for more photos.

Today Is Not Monday

Wow!  It's not Monday!  The plan was to blog yesterday, but life had it's own ideas.  Beyond the thunderstorms that flashed, boomed, and shook homes, we had a few unexpected items on our to do list.  It involved stripped beds, pillow cases, and couch covers.  We cleaned carpets and used up a can of lysol.  All of this was a result of our oldest son coming down with a case of pink eye!

We had a nice visit with some of our East coast family this past weekend.  It wasn't nearly long enough, but we enjoyed every bit of our time with Grampa & P.  We celebrated my father-in-law & M's birthdays during their stay with us.  The boys had a hard time saying goodbye.

M's birthday is today!  My sweet baby boy is 5 years old!  Time goes by so quickly.  When I think back to the day M was born, I remember anxiety, excitement, and anticipation.  M's birth was scheduled, due to the complications of my previous labor and delivery, so it didn't hold the same amount of surprise as my first.  However, it was the day that my family became complete.  My husband and oldest son were the only ones (besides hospital staff) to hold M before I did.  While I was being stitched up and recovering from surgery, they bonded with M.  I felt so blessed and grateful to hold that little man in my arms for the first time.  I cannot believe how quickly 5 years goes by.  Happy 5th birthday M!  I love you!

It's been a whirlwind in our lives lately.  Birthdays, holidays, illness, end of the school year activities, and the list goes on and on.  As Summer vacation is fast approaching, I've decided to make some blog changes.  From June 1, 2010 through September 2010, I will be blogging once a week on Mondays.  My Monday and Wednesday blog schedule should return to normal in October.  Much like my previous "Holiday Blog hours,"  there may be unpredictable blog posts scattered amongst the Summer days.  Possibly even a craft induced post.

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend.  Thank you to all of our veterans and the families who support them!  *  Happy Birthday to my father-in-law (yesterday)!  Happy Birthday to Diane tomorrow!

HAPPY 5th BIRTHDAY TO M!!!

Happy Birthday To Me

Me & my 2009 Arnie's birthday cake

No matter how young or old you are, birthdays are important.  In fact, each year is special and priceless, because you'll never get those days back.  Those that wish they could spend just one more day with loved ones will be some of the first to tell you how precious a birthday is.

When I celebrate my birthday each year, I think about my Mom.  This is not just because my birthday sometimes falls on Mother's Day (or only days different).  Giving birth to my first child opened my eyes to how special that day can be for a mother.  My heart fills with pure joy when my boys' birthdays occur each year.

Last year, I hit a very big milestone in my life (not the only one of the year).  I hit the big 3-0!  If you remember correctly, Mother's Day fell on May 10th last year, so I shared my day with all of the other moms in this world.  My celebration, with my Mom, husband, and boys, was quiet and special.  Those that remembered my day made it even more cherished.

Today, I will party like a rock star as I turn 30 again!  Okay.  Fine.  I won't party like a rock star.  I'll have another peaceful and blessed birthday, unless my husband and boys have been hiding something really big.  Admitting that I'm getting older shouldn't be a big deal either.  People still mistake me for a teenager on a regular basis.

How do/did you celebrate Mother's Day?  Birthdays?  Do you have special traditions with Mom?  Are birthday traditions different for yourself, your spouse, your kids? 

Happy Mother's Day to all of my Mom readers... especially my Mom!

*****

This week is full of celebrations!  Just to name a few:  Mother's Day, my birthday, & of course my 1 year Blogger-versary!!!  Would you like to celebrate with me once again on Wednesday?  Will there be prizes you ask?  Of course there will be!  What's a celebration without presents?

Oh, and don't think I'm going to forget this past weekend...

*** HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MARYBETH!!!  ***

Birth Day Reminiscing

Today I opened my pantry and debated on grabbing a brown paper lunch bag.  It won't be holding anyone's lunch today, but may be needed a short time later in the event that I start to hyperventilate.  As I contemplate the last fast paced 7 years, I can't help but feel as though someone has knocked the wind out of me.  Seven year ago today, I gave birth to my first born son.

As every year goes by, I feel that undeniable bitter sweetness that almost every mother knows.  Watching your child grow and experience all that life has to offer at his age induces smiles and tugs at heart strings.  Then the moment hits when you realize another year has gone by and your baby is no longer, your toddler is no more, the preschooler you love has entered school, and this cycle of growing up is never going to end.  You delight in the changes and yet your heart breaks as well.  The time is rushing by at warp speed and there is no way to turn off the overpowered thrusters of time, from newborn to 18 in no time flat.

Birthdays are meant for reminiscing, looking ahead, and celebration.  My mind has travelled back in time to the early hours of March 14, 2003.  I remember staying up to visit with my Mom, who was of course visiting Maine to await her first born grandchild, and going to bed much later than I should have.  I had a few contractions through the evening, but we assumed they were nothing more than Braxton Hicks.  Evidently, we were wrong.  No more than a few hours later, I awoke with a jolt, jumped out of bed, and felt my water break.  Phone calls were promptly made and I grabbed a quick shower before we headed to the hospital.

The snow was falling as we drove along in those dark early morning hours.  Unbelievably, the ride was fairly calm aside from a few contractions.  We arrived and a nurse questioned if my water had indeed broken as another gush took place.  She no longer felt the need to question me at that point.  C took care of insurance forms as I was prepped for the long haul of labor.  During this time, I began to black out and the fetal heart monitor strapped to my belly went a little crazy.  Thankfully the nurses quickly had me taken care of and determined that the heart monitor may have slipped from the correct spot, as everything looked just fine with my baby boy.  My labor story, and Pitocin enhanced contractions,  continued throughout the day.  Around midnight, the doctors convinced me to let them give me an epidural and attempt to rest as much as possible through the night.  By 5 am the following morning, after broken sleep, I was wide awake.  Shortly afterwards, the epidural wore off on my right side.  By noon on March 15, 2003 it was clear that I was not progressing and discussion of a c-section began.  As I was unable to dilate much more than 1cm, we had no choice but to proceed with the cesarean.  After an attempted spinal, I still had some feeling in my right side, but it was time for my son to greet the world regardless.  On March 15, 2003, over 36 hours after my water broke, my eldest son, O, was born.

I'll never forget the emotions that ran through me on those two exhausting days.  The most powerful one was nothing less than love.  Having O changed my life in a way that no one else ever could have.  I am blessed.

Happy 7th birthday to my child, my son, my O!

I love you buddy!

What I Did On My Blog Vacation

I admit I'm having a tough time getting back into the swing of things today!  Maybe it's due to the 1 1/2 weeks I was on my blog vacation or the fact that it's the end of Summer as we know it in our household.  School has started back up and my youngest, M, and I are missing O.  I guess this sense of bitter sweetness tends to put me out of my element.

I'm sure you are brimming with curiosity as to what I have been doing the entire time I've been away, so here is my Summer essay, I mean my Blog Vacation  recap.

Since I last left you, I have spent little time on the computer.  Why you ask?  Partly because our Internet access went down for days, but mostly because I simply had a plan.  My kids and I would squeeze the last drops of fun out of every single day, before my son's Summer vacation was over, and have even more memories to cherish for a lifetime.  I assumed that time would cooperate with me and slow down just enough so that the first day of school wouldn't come quite so quickly.  Of course, we all know that time likes to frustrate just about everybody and it refused to comply.  Regardless, the rest of the plan went fairly well.

On the final Friday evening of August 2009,  I went out with my friend Mary Beth (check out her blog) and got a couple of hours with other adults.  My family enjoyed some cleaning, okay they didn't really enjoy that part, and a baseball game over the weekend before the final week of Summer officially began.  Once it did, we practiced getting up early and going through our typical morning school routine.  We held our final lunch box experiments during the week to determine the best way to keep juice cold while keeping water hot for oatmeal.  Library books were read, movies watched, and games played.  A school open house was held mid week, and we attended to meet the new teacher and explore the new school.  My stomach had been in nervous knots about the big changes not only my to son's day, but mine as well.  For me, meeting the teacher and introducing myself to some of the staff members helped to loosen those knots.  It helped even more when the music teacher, who my son had last year, stopped us and told us that she's excited to have O back this year.  What an amazing feeling it is to have a teacher tell you that your child is one that makes teachers want to teach and enjoy their jobs!  Before I knew it, Friday had arrived... I swear time decided to push the fast forward button on me... and it was my last "normal" day with my boys.  I sighed heavily when I realized this fact upon waking and looked at my boys sleeping in my big bed, they came into our room in the wee morning hours.  I decided to let them sleep in a little, while I snuggled with them and admired their sweet little faces.  Our final normal week day included a trip out for lunch and a crafty sock puppet project.  Can you stand the excitement?  I know, it's just too much. 

Our final weekend of the Summer vacation did have more excitement to it.  Calming our 2 boys on Saturday morning was a bit more difficult than normal.  They were ready to battle over the best spot in front of the window by the door while waiting for visitors from Maine.... Grampa & Pamm!  I was able to briefly distract them with their first entry in the scrapbooking journal they are keeping this year.  My husband and I asked them to clean their rooms multiple times, and kept having them check to be certain they didn't miss anything.  We offered tv, games, and playtime often, but the only thing they wanted to do was watch out the window.  My adored father-in-law and his much loved significant other, were not going to arrive until the afternoon, but it didn't matter to my boys.  They were bubbling with excitement and nobody was going to reposition their train of thought. 

Finally, the knock on the door came and footsteps were heard running in that direction.  It didn't take long before my boys were literally climbing all over their Grampa!  After convincing the boys to let Grampa & Pamm get settled, we all prepared to head out to meet up with my Mom and celebrate her birthday at a loved local pizza place.  By the time we got home that night, everyone was more than tired.  The following day was full of family fun and dinner out.  Unfortunately, the visit was much too short and bed time came far too quickly.  Monday morning was spent missing Grampa & Pamm and wishing Maine & Michigan weren't so far apart.  We are already counting down the days until we get to see Grampa again for Christmas!

Labor day was all about having a little fun and being prepared for the first day of school.  It was a nice quiet day to just be with my family and reflect on all of the moments we've shared over this past Summer.  That's where Summer ended and a new school year began.  Where the bitter sweetness of seeing my kids grow up just a little more brought tears to my eyes.  This is where my blog vacation story ends.

A Double Blog Day

With only 1 week left before school starts (I'm squeezing in lots of fun time with my kids), Maine family visiting soon (YAY!), and an upcoming holiday weekend (an extra day with my hubby), I'll be taking a blogging vacation! I will be back to posting on Wednesday, September 9, 2009!  Today however, I have rolled 2 blogs into 1.  Enjoy!!!

P.S.  I have discovered a new fairy that I wanted to share in honor of the upcoming school year...

First Day Of School Fairy

&

a little Calvin & Hobbes on Summer vacation

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Part 1

I have a very special treat for everyone today...  A blog guest star!  He begged for this opportunity and is very excited to share his brilliant post for you today.  Introducing, my son, O!

Star Wars 7:  Sciwalkrs Hope

Acros the younvrs, Jeadi won the battle.  And the won agein.  And then the ships arivde.

The End

I hope you enjoyed this guest post and I apologize that the drawings to accompany this story are not scanned into our computer at this time.  However, some original photos by the author have been added for your viewing pleasure.  Obviously, my son is hopeful that George Lucas will create more movies for the Star Wars saga.  May the force be with you!

Got a comment for my guest blogger & Star Wars fan?  I'll be sure to share these comments with him as he's quite excited to be a blogger!

**********

Part 2

I am so proud of my boys!  I love them with every piece of my heart.  When the day comes that I am not here to tell them, God willing that will be a very very very long time from now, they will without a doubt know it to be true. 

One of the best parts of being a Mom is the gifts that our children give us.  No, not the flowers or homemade cards, although those are very dear to my heart, but the endless gifts that are not purchased in any store.  We get to explore the world all over again through their innocent eyes, dream and hope amazing things without "rules", and feel an unbelievable sense of admiration directed at us for no other reason than we are Mom.  Holding the title of Mom, Mommy, Mum, or Mama brings blessings that you never knew existed until you are bestowed with the honor.

As a Mom myself, I hold a deeper appreciation for the woman who raised me.  I admire her for all that she has done for me and my 3 siblings, as well as all that she has survived.  My Mother is a strong woman.  She often gives more than she receives, and has as strong sense of compassion for others.  I'm very grateful to have her in my life.  She's not just an outstanding Mom & Grandma, but an unbelievable person.

I want to take this moment to honor her and say...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

We love you!

September 6, 2009

If you have kids, what "gifts" do they give to you?  Did becoming a mom make you have more admiration for your own mother?  What is your favorite part of being Mom?