updates

hey all, i was reading a friend's blog and discovered through then reading a linked blog (you know how that goes...) to a mom's blog wherebye (okay its a long train to where i found this!:) i found these two really neat toy sites: http://www.willowtoys.com/ and http://www.quiethourstoys.com/. i am scheming already for kyrie's birthday which come at the end of july. i am hoping to steer clear of any plastic items or mass produced - dare i say i may even make her something from that sewing machine down in the basement? (i have got to get it to the shop to have it looked over first!) i know that she is really interested in farms and animals and i also want to encourage her artistic/creative personality ... so maybe a stable for farm animals?

one thing i really want to do after reading Soulemama's The Creative Family (aka Amanda Blake Soule) is to create an art wire and hang the pictures and the inspirations up. and two other recommendations for encouraging the little thinkers and budding creatives in the family: framing some of our most favorite creations; and giving each child their very own art scrapbook - like a moleskin, where their projects can be saved and enjoyed. these suggestions will help with the ever increasing collections of papers and projects covering our dining room table, the kids table and our walls (imagine kyrie taping her pictures up on the wall - i really enjoyed watching her do this. i thrills me to see her so excited and free to share with our family the things she makes.)

graham has been away for the past few days and we had our wonderful friend, michelle, come back to newport to help me with the kids. (she is part of the renewal bible study we help our with at salve and truly one of our most favorite babysitters/friends!) she left this morning and i had a bit of a mini depression. missing graham, glum with the weather threatening to rain all day and mostly just misting (although it was beautiful outside and i love listening to the distant foghorn.) i was trying to figure out what to do with the kids and mainly wanting to just sit and read my book, which i finished. (the copper scroll by joel c. rosenberg) it wasn't until mid-afternoon that i got up the energy and motivation to continue our launry/folding/putting away chore that is stretching out nearly a week from the beginning of the task. more on that later. anyways i was thinking about how i missed graham and feeling slightly sorry for myself when i realized what an ungrateful mama i was being: ie. hello my sister-in-law kyla is home with 3 little ones while my brother is deployed until the end of the summer and I AM COMPLAINING about a weekend apart from my husband. snap out of it girl! so i did. note to self: need to send my niece a 1st year birthday present and an encouragement card to kyla!!!

so about the laundry situation: my good friend alicia suggested i do the "one load a day" rule that flylady teaches. so i did it today - now mind you i am still hammering away at the piles from this past week - but every day is a new day and hopefully by tomorrow (sunday - a day of rest!!) i will be at my goal. all folded, put away and only one load a day. so thank you to alicia for the suggestion and the kindness you delivered it with.

i guess this means that i am still in that mode of getting ready and ramped up for blaise's arrival sometime at the end of august. and as i am typing i remind myself that the first two babes were born early!!! not that i expect this again for our last one but it gets me thinking...i need to get cracking on the continueing saga of dejunking our basement. its all about preparation. really i am just preparing early for our move next summer, too. ahhhh before i start getting stressed out...breathe deeply and remember every day is new day and its one foot ahead of the other, baby steps. little small projects that are doable.

i know that i have not blogged in awhile or rather on a very consistent basis. i want to b/c it always makes me feel so much better. i can collect my thoughts and gain perspective. reading some of the other mom's blogs tonight has really encouraged me to be not conformed to this world but transformed by the renewing of my mind. ie. read some of these blogs and be encouraged and don't read the blogs that bring negativity into my thought life. not that its bad to read a heavy or a sad blog post, rather think on the good things.

i am going to log off and fold this laundry and then read some of the word before i visit the land of nod. there will be more frequent bloggging and also a change of the layout soon. maybe even a change in the purpose of the blog. its all in the works.

sweet dreams

for the vintage in all of us...

www.stores.rubyjane.com

i know i havn't been around lately - seems like i can hardly sit down anymore...i want so much to be doing and going places like the park with the kids at least once a day if i possibly can since it is nice most days...but i am planning a major overhaul of the blog and maybe a focus change.

i found this site on one of my reader subscriptions - blissfully domestic. enjoy!