Halloween!

(Since I always forget to blog, I'm in the mood and am attempting to catch up a little!)
We were happily surprised that here in Pennsylvania, when this lovely holiday falls on the Sabbath, many of the townships schedule trick-or-treating and festivities for the preceding Saturday night! Our very own township did just that, so we were able to dress up our girls for friends' parties and send them out to collect many pounds of sugary treats. Conan spent two hours going back and forth from the front door to Christian's room down the hall where they were video gaming, while I spent a good hour devouring a favorite mystery book, then visiting with our good friends who stopped by with their adorable little 2 year old "elephant" (daughter)! Elizabeth, being a teenager, wouldn't finish her cat makeup until she arrived at the party, so I never got the completed picture, and Emma was extremely comfy in some newly acquired footy pajamas! Christian and his friends put on masks and raised their deep voices an octave or so in an attempt to collect some candy bars (by sounding 13)! This was after they lined up on the back deck with air soft guns, shooting into the back yard... such boys! It was too fun!!! Pumpkin carving was slimy as always and we roasted some of the seeds coated with butter and the amazing Mediterranean sea salt I brought back from Mallorca this summer! Yuuuuuumy!

Hurray For Paint!!!

I was so completely horrified by the state of the walls in our new place; covered with patches of spackle and builder-grade flat white paint! So, while my hard working husband was out of town earning a living, I moved everything to the center of the family room and after pouring over hundreds- maybe thousands, of paint colors, just went with the colors calling out to me, the ones I loved! I kind of gulped, bought the 3 gallons, one for each room, and broke out the rollers and drop cloths. After an agonizing 4 days (you know how it is... trying to live with everything in disarray, running out of paint with half a wall to go... etc...) I had a beautiful new home! Really, that's what it felt like. I'm relishing in the deliciousness of robins-egg blue for the family room, a yummy cinnamon hued kitchen, and every time we come and go, loving the dramatic deep blue-green entryway! Since we are relegated to renting at the moment, it's all I can really do to make the space my own, and it makes a dramatic difference in turning a house into a home! It just feels like me! By the way, I LOVE the new Martha Stewart paint at Home Depot. It covers entirely in one coat, and has an amazing depth to it- for about $25 a gallon! NICE!

Looking Back at Summer!

I really am shocked at how long it's been since I've been on here!!! It's insane! Anyway, we've had some really crazy last several months and I'm finally sitting down to do some updating... Here's the condensed recap: we moved in June in an effort to return to our kids' former schools, couldn't find a house, so we shoved all of our belongings in a huge storage unit! July 1st, the kids and I (and dog) took off in our blue minivan and drove to Provo by way of Nauvoo, IL, then to Mesa, Tucson, then across the southern U.S. to Mississippi, then returned to PA!!! Quite crazy! That took some time... I kind of stayed extra long in Utah because of a stubborn infection that got me down.. I had to be back in PA by the 2nd of August to board an airplane out of Philadelphia heading to Spain! Emma and I got to experience life on the island of Palma de Mallorca (quite a destination!), then Renee' and I were fortunate enough to head off to London for a weekend of great food, comfy bedding, the Tube, and LOTS of walking! We had a blast! After returning to Spain for several more days, we came back to the states (very grateful to be able to understand those annoying airport announcements, and not having a 4 inch cockroach try to attack my feet while USING a public bathroom-yep it happened in Mallorca...). Unfortunately, Conan still couldn't find a house while we were gone; fortunately we have some amazing friends who took in our lovely teenagers while Conan and I were both gone (his business trips..) Hence, an extended hotel stay... fun, fun... We all survived!

Now I'm thinking about it all and wondering HOW we actually survived, but here we are, in a new place with some really super memories... I have the best husband and children in the world along with extended family- my mom, siblings, parent's-in-law, husband's siblings, and even a few random strangers who took care of us/entertained us over our homeless summer! Thank you everyone... I'm still attempting to load pictures onto my computer from London.. having technical difficulties... I'm confident I will get them here soon!!! I love our families!!!

Hurray for snow... and letting go!

We did get a few feet of snow over the weekend, and I am done apologizing for my blogging (or lack of) skills... This is a new goal I have- to be kind to myself! So far it is going very well... I actually scheduled and got my OWN haircut, and I'm not saying awful things about myself when I look in the mirror! No more berating myself for not exercising EVERY DAY, and when I eat something yummy, but way too fattening, I'm enjoying it without reservation. Along with that, I am eating better and actually wanting to walk the dog. What is it with us women expecting ourselves to be perfect, then when we fall short (big surprise), we beat ourselves up thoroughly? I found myself feeling guilty for laying in bed- WHEN I HAD THE FLU!!! Okay, come on, that is too much... So, I saw a book at the library about caring for ourselves from the inside out, I promptly checked it out and opened it up; within the first chapter there is a challenge to make a pledge to yourself (type it up and save it) to treat yourself as your own good friend! Wow, what a concept. It's not like I've never heard of it (try, "Love thy neighbor as thyself...") but for some reason I just forgot about it. Maybe it's just a natural cause and effect of having children who we would do anything for, even give up our own needs (selves) for. Well, there has to be some way to balance it out- so we take care of our own real needs first, then we are better able to function and take care of those we love. In my pondering and studying, I have realized that I can easily neglect myself, criticize myself, and become way to hard on myself because of it all. Maybe it's the age... Or the fact that my oldest child is approaching adulthood himself! I read somewhere of the irony of our children struggling through the teenage years, right when we mothers start struggling with our own sense of identity. I am letting go of unrealistic expectations of myself and enjoying life more on a day to day basis, because it's good for me. More reaching out to others, more forgiveness of my own weaknesses, more love for God (and just as important, accepting his unconditional love for me) and more gratitude for the magnificent blessings he gives to me... Ahhhhh, it's divine! (Along with all of that white powdery stuff we have tons of!)

December!

I actually can't believe so much time has gone by so quickly... I sound old by saying that, but oh well! This blog is bad for my self esteem! I'm just not very good at it! The worst thing is when some amazing corporate working mom asks me point blank what I do all day while my kids are at school... and I have to come up with some concrete answers! Um, well, ohhhhh, hmmmmm.... STUFF!!!! And it's all for the good of the family, ok???

Anyway, we had a super Thanksgiving in Cape May, NJ! It's the most adorable Victorian town right on the Atlantic. We went with two other families and had a blast. The main components being the gourmet Thanksgiving buffet (the bread pudding was "to die for"!!!), and the indoor pool area (the last day we spent 6 hours in there...). It was pretty amazing looking out the windows from our room and seeing the beautiful ocean. (I have to say, the only problem with the East coast is that you have to be a morning person to see a spectacular sun rise, as opposed to the west coast sunsets in the evening- my time of day!) Conan would say, it's worth the sacrifice! We also went to a great zoo with lots of lively animals, and found some really cool shells we haven't seen anywhere else on the beach. We took the ferry to Delaware to get home, stopping in Bethany Beach to visit with friends at their beach house. The ferry ride was pretty crazy with huge waves and very unsteady walking conditions! It was great!

Then, December hit... Always way busier than I'd like it to be. Elizabeth's chorus at school did a super job at the "winter" concert! I spent the first week working on a Christmas tree for our dining room that would be covered in pictures from past Christmases, and other nice memories. That was so fun! I copied all of the pictures in black and white, then mounted them on two different papers. My colors being red and black, I couldn't find any fun black paper in my stuff, so I grabbed some black and white toille fabric from my stash and copied it on cardstock! It worked! I attached ribbon hangers (a stapler worked great), then hung them up! I love looking at it... It has really been simple reminder of what my focus should be this time of year. I had a visiting teaching lunch last week that was a hit- a great way to get all of our sisters together. We decided that the best part of the menu was the honey butter for the rolls... Oh, and the caramel apple cider. Yum!

The girls and I made our traditional sugar cookies, which they frosted and decorated so nicely! Also, Emma and I found a super peanut butter fudge recipe that is amazing! We've already made it twice and have shared it at two different events! The first weekend of December brought us 6 inches of snow!! That was awesome! It only stayed for two days, but that first night the kids spent hours in it and loved every minute of it. Christian and friends decided they would strip down to shorts and run around barefooted in it... Fifteen year old boys... who gets them? I had to get a picture of that!

We have spent a lot of time together as a family this month, which I really cherish. We miss being with our families, especially this time of year, and think about them often. We picked out a Christmas tree last weekend at a local farm and brought it home to decorate with the years of collected ornaments (mostly homemade- the best ones being the ones out of popsicle sticks with glued on school pictures!). We also had a lovely family home evening Monday night with our good friends from our old neighborhood and church ward. My wonderful friend with the five ultra talented string playing boys (someone has to have them...) gave us all a mini concert, too.

I am so thrilled to be able to go to the White House on Monday with a few fabulous friends! All of those beautiful trees amid the history is something I look forward to seeing!

Here are my two favorite recipes for the month. Enjoy what's left of December and 2009!

Caramel Apple Cider: Bring cream and brown sugar to boil over medium heat.
1/4 c. heavy cream Stir in water and cider and heat just until it steams.
1/4 c. brown sugar Divide into 4 mugs, top each with 2 T. of caramel whipped
3 c. apple cider cream. Enjoy!
1/2 c. water

Caramel Whipped Cream: In a chilled bowl, whip cream with brown sugar until
1/2 c. heavy cream soft peaks form.
1 T. brown sugar

Creamy Peanut Butter Fudge:
2 c. sugar
2/3 cup milk
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
3/4 cup marshmallow cream (or 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows)
1/4 cup butter or margarine

Combine sugar and milk in saucepan; cook to soft ball stage (I boil for 4-5 minutes). Remove from heat; add remaining ingredients, mixing well. Pour into a buttered 8x8 inch dish. Allow to cool and cut into squares. (It sets up quickly and is ready to cut in about an hour!)

Another Sick Day...

Yippppeeee! After a whole week (2 weeks ago) of Elizabeth being sick, then Emma having that awful flu, Elizabeth came home from school yesterday with a 103 fever!!! I am really hoping this is it for the winter. My poor Lizzie. So, while she went to bed for several hours, I decided to take it upon myself to rearrange the entire downstairs. I was really hoping that Conan wouldn't come home until it was finished, but since it's now the following day and still not done, oh well! He never cares, but I just hate the thought of him at work all day and coming home to complete chaos! He's so used to my wacky design stuff that he just ordered sushi and picked it up for us while I cleared off a few feet of space on the kitchen table. That dinner was way better than the scrambled eggs I was considering... So, all is well... except for Elizabeth. We are really praying that she will beat it today; she was selected to sing in a small group for a choral festival tomorrow in Harrisburg and she really needs to be there...

Conan took Emma to a very lovely daddy-daughter event on Tuesday night at church and they ate a delicious dinner that the girls had all prepared ahead of time (spinach manicotti) and then the Bishop taught them how to waltz! They had these beautiful corsages and boutineers that an extremely creative leader made for everyone and they enjoyed it immensely!

With all the ups and downs of daily life, I am just happy to have so many blessings. That is what I reflect upon when it gets a little hairy around here. I was at Barnes and Noble yesterday doing a little design research (sinking into one of those comfy chairs they have for people like me who just go there to read, not buy!) and reading out of super talented, Celerie Kemble's book. I love her design philosophy in combining as many textures as possible to create a beautiful space that is also for living in- for real-life living, not what we want other people to think that we live like. So many of those magazine rooms look like no one could ever actually live there! Do they have family pictures? Anyway, it helps me to stay grounded knowing that life is what it is and I really just have to find contentment in it right now, not waiting for the better things ahead, but still able to draw upon that wellspring of HOPE that exists deep down somewhere... too much philosophy... I'm going to check on my sickie!

Happy Fall!

I am really an awful blogger... Oh well, I try! (kind of)

Halloween was weird at our house this year. I stayed up way too late the night before working on my new website (refreshdesignnow.com- check it out!), and Christian and his friend stayed up until like 4 in the morning... So we all kind of slept in on Saturday! I made scary jack-o-lantern face pancakes with chocolate chips (yum), and by the time we got our yard work and stuff done, it was time for Conan and Christian to go with friends down to Annapolis for the Navy game. They had a great time, even though Navy lost by 3 points...

Just about the time that Elizabeth got her costume together for trick-or-treating with friends, it started raining!!! NOOOOOOOO! It was reminiscent of our Halloweens in Seattle... So, she went with her friends (three of them as 80's girls- scary, and 3 in pajamas) and Emma and I went to McDonalds! (New tradition, I guess). Emma got her bumble bee costume on and we braved the weather armed with umbrellas! Since Emma had just gotten over her week long stint with the swine flu (icky), she was pretty tired after about the 4th house! She braved it out for two whole streets though... "must get candy"... We came home, changed out of our soggy clothes and watched Food Network- haunted house/cake and candy competition! So, no pumpkin carving this year which was totally out of the norm! It was so laid back...

The biggest news is that a fabulous friend of mine and I, after talking about it for several months, took the plunge and started our re-design business! We are so excited about it! She is super talented and amazing and I am just compulsive about design, so we fit together perfectly as business partners! We have one client lined up already, and one potential client! It's a little scary, but also just feels right, for both of us. We were delivering post cards on doors on Friday and looked at each other and cracked up... like, "what are we doing?"! It's great! So, on to new challenges and an adventure... I'm in love with the fall leaves, by the way- breathtaking here in southern PA!