My July List Revisited

We are almost to the end of the month and I have seen so many of my items scratched off. The top three are my focus for this week and a few further down the list are on my list of things to do later in the week. I can't wait to see what this list looks like on July 31.

1. Clean out office
2. Purge scrapbook stuff (in office)
3. Purge bookshelf (in office)
4. Begin planning and "designing" kids' room decor (in the works in my head.... more to come as I complete little parts of it..... no sneak peeks :)
5. Gather and edit photos for the past few weeks (family album)
6. Catch up on Addie's album (May and June)
7. Do a little work on Ian's album (want to have his completed first year by his birthday)
8. Purge Addie's drawers
9. Deep clean bathrooms
10. Clean bathroom cabinet fronts
11. Clean kitchen cabinet fronts
12. Google how to fix an ice maker
13. Scrub baseboards close to front door
14. Spot clean carpets
15. Clean out my closet (Thanks, Brian, for actually doing this one)
16. Take stuff to the consignment shop
17. Make pom-poms for Addie's room
18. Order tissue paper to make decorative pom-poms for Ian's birthday in his colors (Brian's not on board with this idea so we are scratching it out. Hey, one less thing for me to do!)
19. Frame cross-stitched pictures for Ian's room
20. Look online for a consignment shop for "home-type" things
21. Find pattern for sofa throw pillows
22. Make coffee filter wreath
23. Make a new dessert for the family
24. Clean the blinds in two of the rooms
25. Organize my dresser drawers
26. Begin planning Ian's first birthday party

Easter Eggs | An Adventure

I was the teacher who never did crafts with my students because of the mess I knew was bound to happen and I wanted nothing to do with it. In fact, now is the perfect time to thank my dear friend, Cathy. Cathy, thanks for being such a great homeroom mom and doing crafts with my students.  You will never know how much I (and I'm sure, they) appreciated that!

I have done little crafts with Addie (gluing buttons on construction paper and making pictures, sewing finger puppets), but never anything that pushed me beyond my confort zone.  All of our crafts fall into the "safe" category- nothing that can be splattered, stain, or otherwise leave Mommy traumatized in any way.

Then, I picked up an egg dying kit.  I knew Addie would enjoy it, but I didn't realize how much I would, too.

When she saw the kit in my craft closet (which was open for a cleanout/purge/prepping our Baby's album), she could not put it down and kept asking when we could do the Elmo eggs (the kit has a Sesame Street theme).  I explained, according to the pictures on the box, that first we had to cook the eggs, then put them in cups, and they would turn colors (honestly, how many details do you need to give a three year old? Generalities work well for me.). 

On Friday morning, after Brian had his devotions, Addie found the kit and brought it to him.  "Daddy, we cook the eggs, put them in cups, and then they color!" Brian couldn't believe she was giving him the directions for "coloring" the eggs.

While we ate breakfast, I boiled 13 eggs. I wanted to make sure that we had plenty of good eggs to work with.  Addie sat on the counter and I let her place the eggs in the big pot (the stove was not yet on) very gently so they wouldn't crack.  As I suspected, two of the eggs expanded partially out of their shells.  I had those as the second part of my breakfast. All of the others were taken out of the water, put back into an empty egg carton, and placed in the fridge to keep from going bad.

After I cleaned the living and dining rooms, I called Addie into the kitchen and pulled out the egg dying kit (which I had hidden earlier in the morning). Addie was beside herself!  We laid down several layers of newspaper and she put on one of  Daddy's t-shirts.  I got all of the dyes ready and told her what I was doing with each step.  I loved it when I told her that I was getting warm water for the cups- "Not too hot and not too cold. Just right!" she said.

Then we began the process of dying the eggs. We only did 10- 2 for each color of dye.  She was so careful and gentle with the eggs.  I was amazed at how painless this project was (Laugh, I know you want to.) She used the little tool to turn the eggs over and over until they were the right shade of the color they were in. Then I took them out of the dye and placed them in the little drying holder.

After they were all dyed, she got to pick one egg and all of the rest went back into the fridge. The kit came with character holders and stickers so she decorated her little egg with all seriousness.  As she finished an egg, it went back into the fridge and we would bring out another for her to decorate.  We decorated four before lunch time.

Then it was time to clean everything up.  The dye was dumped in the sink, the plastic containers rinsed and put in the dishwasher (just going to save those for craft projects), and the newspaper tossed.  For lunch, I made a small egg salad sandwhich for Addie using the extra egg that I had made but didn't use. In the evening after Daddy left to have a Guys Night Out with Dad, Jim, and the son of Dad's friend, we decorated some more eggs.

According to the April 2011 edition of Better Homes and Gardens, as long as the eggs have not been at room temperature for more than two hours, they are safe to be eaten.  The dye we used was a non-toxic pure food color dye- be sure to check what your dye label says before eating.

If you attempt egg dying this year, I hope your experience is as enjoyable as mine was.  I'll definitely be dying eggs with Addie in years to come.

Projects: 2010

Last year, in July, I posted a list of projects that I wanted to complete before the end of the year.  I then went back over my list to see what I had been able to finish and what was left to do.  I thought I would make it a tradition to have a year end project list to give me something to work towards at the end of the year. 

I want my list to 1) give me some momentum as we rush towards the end of the year and the Christmas season 2) motivate me to finish up some projects that I have lost the desire to complete in the middle of the year, and 3) encourages you to make a list for yourself.   

There is one condition as we work on our lists.  We cannot go into our list thinking "It's okay if I don't finish or reach my goal."  Although this is a no-stress project list, we need to set goals for ourselves so that we have a sense of accomplishment at the end.  Having a mental back door will undermine our sense of drive.  Go into this with a "go get 'um" attitude and even set a reward for yourself at the end.

• Complete my December Daily scrapbook (more to come on this in the next few months.  It is a yearly project inspired by Ali Edwards)
• Have a garage sale
• Empty out attic
• Clean out garage and keep only the necessary
• Complete at least 10 scrapbook layouts based on older photos
• Complete at least 10 scrapbook layouts based on current photos
• Complete two crocheted hats
• Complete two crocheted market bags
• Create my family/friends Christmas lists and plan purchases and when to send them
• Complete all partially completed scrapbook layouts

If you decide to make a list for yourself, I would love to hear about it.  Leave a comment or post a link in the comments to your blog so we can see your list and encourage you to finish the race to your finish line.

As I did last year, I will be posting updates as items on my list are completed and giving a year end update to see how much of my list was completed.  I think I will also be doing a list in January.  Start thinking now of some things you would like to accomplish in the new year.

Happy list making!

So Excited!

Elmo is the toy of choice around here. Addie doesn't play with dolls or stuffed animals very often (unless it is her Elmo or Tigger). Elmo gets pushed in the baby carriage, the baby doll gets taken out and put on the floor to make more room for Elmo (the picture was taken just before the doll was put on the floor). A few weeks ago, Brian and Addie were watching Elmo videos online. This one is my favorite. It combines Elmo with a Sesame Street version of Time to Say Goodnight sung by the talented Andrea Bocelli. Although Addie usually goes to sleep well for us, I'm sure this conversation is what she is trying to tell us at times. I am so amazed at how Mr. Bocelli did not allow his blindness to keep him from using the gifts that God gave him. What a voice!

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I am soooo super excited right now! I have sold two items on Etsy! Do you remember the crocheted market bag that I made several weeks ago and put on the Haiti By Hand Etsy Shop? Well, it sold about a week and a half ago. And then, Thursday I found out that the Filet Stitch Crocheted Afghan sold. Both of my items were shipped out as quickly as possible. Right now I am working on several toddler hats to put in my shop and then I'm off to make some aprons.

My Current Favorites

These are just a few of my current favorite digital scrapbook pages. All of my digital pages can be seen by clicking on the Flickr icon on the sidebar. Even in my traditional pages, I've been using white as my background. It helps to stretch my patterned paper and supplies, and the focus remains on the photos. What I love about the digital style versus the traditional is that I can size my photos however I want instead of being limited to the standard 4x6 size. Most of what I use on these pages has been freebies from different digital scrapbooking websites. The list of supplies can be found at the bottom of the post.

I wanted to do a layout using seveal pictures taken from our trip to Disney. The sketch is from Becky Higgins.

One of my scrapbooking "things to do" is to make a month in review page for each month from 2009. This was the first in my layout mission. The template is from Ali Edwards from Designer Digitals. This is one of the two items I have purchased.



I love my husband so much. There are times when I am looking through our pictures that I just have to make a layout with our relationship as the focus. I love the idea of digital pictures because I can "crop" a photo is unusual ways, but the originals are still safe.

I am a list maker and a goal setter. Without a goal, I feel like I'm wandering aimlessly. I decided to make a list of goals I would like to accomplish this year.

2003 we were engaged, 2004 we were married, 2007 we were pregnant with Addie, and here we are pictured in December of 2009. I love how these pictures tell our story. I love how they show the love we had for each other in our engagement and how that love has grown and developed over the years.

Photo editing software: Adobe Photoshop Elements (my Christmas present from Dad), all elements and embellishments are from freebies from the following companies: Shabby Princess, Paisley Press, Katie Pertiet, Scrap Girls, Ali Edwards (font).

Haiti By Hand

Today is a two post kind of day. Don't forget to check out the Saturday Recipe Swap post. If you remember, last week I had mentioned a couple of ladies who were directly affected by the terrible earthquakes in Haiti. Kristi's uncle has been found and was able to contact his family living here in the states. They were so relieved.

Rebecca Sower visited Haiti the week before the tragedy struck and developed relationships with many of the women there through the Haiti Gospel Mission. She has opened up an Etsy shop for the women of Haiti featuring many of their handmade crafts. All of the money made through this site goes directly to the wonderful women of Haiti who are trying to make life better for their families. There is no middleman.

Rebecca has already sold all of the inventory brought back from the women. She has asked for crafters here in the states make items to donate to the Haiti By Hand shop to sell for the benefit if the ladies in Haiti. I was in the process of making this crocheted tote bag when the call was sent out. I sent the information to Rebecca Sower, and it will be up on the Haiti By Hand site very soon along with many other beautiful items handmade by women here doing what they can to help women there. (My sister, Faye, is modeling the bag for me.)

You can help out in two ways. You can either purchase items from Haiti By Hand (remember that ALL monies go directly to the women in the artisan group of the Haiti Gospel Mission) or you can handcraft an item and contact Rebecca Sowers to have your item posted on her site. There are so many ways to help our fellow believers in Haiti.

The Sweater

I had mentioned a sweater that I was working on a few weeks back. I did finish it within a week (woohoo!), but because our main computer picks and chooses which pictures it will download, I haven't had a chance to show you. Here is my little doll wearing her crocheted hat and sweater. The pattern is Free Crochet Pattern 90462AD Flutter Baby Top Lion Brand Yarn Company .

A Look Back at Projects

I thought that before the end of the old year and the beginning of the new one, I would look back at my projects list and see how much I have been able to accomplish. I have my original list here, and in italics I have added what I have actually done beside each item.

1. Make cornices for the windows (I will need Brian's help with this one)- Pops built the cornices for me, I covered them, and Pops and Brian hung them. They look beautiful. Thanks, Pops!


2. Finish the afghan I began for Brian while we were dating (don't laugh!)- ahem, I found the instructions book (lucky me), so I feel an obligation to finish the afghan...eventually.


3. Organize my gift station- did!


4. Wrap any unwrapped presents and tag them- Now that Christmas is over, I am going to make tags for next Christmas's gifts so I can get a head start. As I begin getting gifts, they will be wrapped and tagged.


5. Complete one photo album scrapbook- that felt good to complete. It was even nicer to lose the pressure of designing an entire layout for all of those pictures.


6. Put a couple of items on Ebay or Etsy- I did. Sold a few things on EBay and got a gold star seller rating.


7. Organize garage (maybe when the weather is cooler?)- We did. Felt good to have a cleaned out garage...for a little while.


8. Scrapbook all pictures left in box after photo album is complete- I grabbed my square punch, punched out all of the important parts of the pictures, and made several layouts using the squares. Another project that was satisfying to complete. What ever was left was put into a photo album.


9. Finish cross-stitching the picture of the two turtles- haven't even attempted that.


10. Make bulletin board for Addie's room- Did! It turned out beautifully and filled in an empty wall in her room.


11. Turn small cross-stitch projects into frames wall art- Did, and I put one on Etsy.


12. Make an apron with fabric my cousin Belinda gave me- That was a nice project to do. I have enough material to make several more that will probably end up on Etsy.

Ten out of twelve things accomplished is not bad! I am so excited to come up with a new list of projects for the new year. I will probably have Brian's afghan and the turtle cross-stitch on my list, but I think I'll put them towards the bottom.

The Office Mini- Renovation

Brian said that because I relaxed so much while visiting GrandTiti and family, I had so much pent up energy that it caused me to do what I did last Monday and Tuesday. What did I do? I decided to tear apart our office on Monday. I guess Brian's assumption is partially true. I did have all week to think about my least favorite room in the house, what I wanted to do in there, and how I would set about accomplishing it.

I literally emptied the desk, bookshelf and closet onto the office floor. (Until I am able to download my pictures onto Brian's computer I won't be able to post any. Our computer is very picky about which files it will download from my camera.) For anyone that knows me well, messes make me a little stressed. I am not compulsive in any way, it is just hard to see where to start in a mess. I decided that I would just pick one thing up at a time and decide what to do with it (keep, donate, or trash it). So that is where I began.

We have been blessed with so many books, many which were mine and Faye's when we were children or were bought when I was teaching for use with my students with the intention that my children would read them one day. However, our bookshelf was bursting at the seams and I hated walking into the office and seeing the bookshelf looking cluttered. So while Addie was napping (so important when deconstructing a room), I decided what was Addie-age-appropriate and what she would have to wait to read (meant for ages 4 and up). Anything that fit in the later of the two categories was moved into our bedroom temporarily.

After deciding what went back onto the shelves, I worked on books that were Brian's and mine. I found some great books that I plan to read and use as additional devotional materials and some books on marriage that we had gotten while doing a Weekend To Remember conference (highly recommend to every couple no matter how long or short a time you have been married or how wonderful your marriage is. The Biblical teaching and communication that it encourages has been known to save marriages and has strengthened marriages that were already strong. We went before our first anniversary as a gift from my parents, and have used the teachings ever since in our marriage.).

Addie's books (that are toddler durable) were placed on the lowest shelf of the bookcase so she can have easy access to her books. Other Addie books that we use for devotionals or are paper books are up higher so that she cannot get a hold of them.

My other dilemma was the proportions of the room. The bookshelf (which was the largest piece of furniture) was on the smallest wall and the smaller desk was on the largest wall. Brian did me the favor of moving the furniture around (the two pieces of furniture swapped walls) and then I could begin replacing certain things. The books that were too old for Addie were boxed for Brian to put in the attic (poor thing, he has so much work ahead of him).

I'll spare you the blow by blow of putting the room back together, but let us just say that after two days of work (Addie helped me on the second day to go through all of the notepads, sticky notes, index cards and desk related items. Did you know that a calculator is really a cell phone in disguise? I didn't either until Addie pointed that out.) everything in the office has a place/home and everything is pleasantly in its place/home. The only thing left for me to do is hang my paprika colored curtains. The room feels bigger, and I actually enjoy being back here now.

Eventually, I would like to slipcover the sofa bed (now I know why Mom hated this sofa- it was hers originally, and when Faye and Dad moved in with us after Mom's passing, we brought it over here for Faye to sleep on- it is a very drab green color) and put some coral pillows on it. But that is a job for another day. Tuesday night, I was so exhausted that I fell asleep at 10:00...very unlike me.

Maybe in a few days I'll be rested enough to take apart another room. Which room will it be?
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Today's song is O Holy Night performed by David Phelps.

Addie's Hat

Ecclesiastes 9:10a- Whatever your hands find to do, verily, do it with all your might.

I have mentioned in the past that I have picked up my crocheting needles again. I realized that while at one time in my life, projects that took a longer amount of time were gratifying, that is no longer the case. I also came to realize that the type, color and texture of the yarn has a great deal to do with the enjoyment of the process. And believe me, I have been enjoying to crochet.

I decided that Brian's afghan works as an oversized shawl draped over the office sofa and I have washed my hands of it. Beside we have so many crocheted afghans around here by more experienced crocheters that my unfinished afghan won't even be noticed. And...I have no idea what happened to the book that the pattern came from (I'm thinking I accidently sold it at a garage sale-oops!).
I have come to love smaller projects. By smaller I am not saying that they are one night projects (well for my mom-in-law they might be. I have never seen anyone crochet as fast as she does!), but they may take a week or two or less, depending on how much time I am able to put into them. The hat above was one of those quick, easy, while Addie was napping projects. The free pattern to make it can be found here.
I am also working on a sweater for her right now. I began on Sunday afternoon and I am trying to have it finished no later than Saturday so she can wear it when we go to see some Christmas lights. It is labeled as "experienced" but I decided to go for it anyway. I'll post the pattern link for it when I post the picture.

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Today's video is the new song by Matthew West and Amy Grant called Give This Christmas Away. There are some clips of Veggie Tales in there (the song is on the new video St. Nicholas), so Addie Baby, this one is for you.

Ever Learning

Proverbs 31:13- She looks for wool and flax and works with her hands in delight.

I think that when we decide that we no longer need to learn anything new, we begin to stagnate as human beings. There is so much out there for us to learn and do in the way of books to read to help us grow in our walk with the Lord, books to give us ideas on being better homemakers, wives, and mothers, new cooking techniques, sewing stitches, and a whole host of other ideas. I have decided to grow in all of the ways mentioned above, and this year, you will get to watch me try new things.


One thing I am presently doing is learning to knit. During the past week with Belinda, she taught me how to knit (those book diagrams literally left me in knots). I am going to be practicing my stitches for a bit before I launch something I am very excited to do.

I also went looking online at different sites to find free crochet (and knit) patterns. My favorite was Lion Brand Yarns. I found a beautiful jacket for me, an adorable sweater for Addie, and some ponchos for some little girls that I know (thinking next Christmas already).

I would encourage you to think of somethings that you would love to learn or do and then create a plan of attack to do it. Our Creator has put the desire in all of us to create things with our hands (a pretty good arguement against evolution in the idea alone). Now, I need to get back to my knitting swatch for some more practice.

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Here is Perry Cuomo's version of the Little Drummer Boy. Some things are just timeless

December Daily Base Pages Part 1

Just thought I would show you the beginnings of my December Christmas Album. The pages are all prepared in advance so there is less thinking on my part and more enjoying the time with my family. I checked the calendar to see which days I would need to arrange for more pictures to be included, but otherwise, I just asked God for creativity and had fun. I can always add to the album as events come up, but there is no stress in creating elaborate layouts for each day.



The first picture/page is going to be an 8x8 picture of the decorating of the house. Honestly, that is part of the celebration, isn't it? I'll just choose my favorite picture of the decorating procedure and print it out as an 8x10. I have no aversion to cropping pictures (I can be pretty ruthless about it). With foam stampa and acrylic paint, I stamped the word "Prepare" directly onto the page protector.

Day 1: It is a baseball card holder that has been cut down and can hold 6- 2 1/2x 3 1/2 inch pictures on each side for a total of twelve pictures. I can also add patterned paper in the slots if I don't have enough pictures for all of the slots.

Day 2: I cut the paper to be 4x8 inches, machine stitched along the edge, and sliced the remainder of the page protector off. I stamped the number 2 with acrylic paint directly to the page protector.

Day 3: This was actually a left over page from a previous scrapbook project. A little strip of patterned paper on the side, a circle spot, and a number 3 cut out of patterned paper complete this happy little page. (You can see the back side of day 2 on the left.)

Day 3 Side 2: I covered the base page with polka dotted paper, a journaling spot, and a handmade tree made up of scraps.

Day 4 Side 1: I have a personal die cut machine (oh my, it is old!). I punched out an envelope, closed it up completely, and then used a scalloped border punch to reopen the envelope.

Look for more updates in the upcoming days.

December Daily 2009- Part 1

I will have to do another few postings featuring last year's December Daily album (I can only put five pictures up per post), but I thought that I would let you get a sneak peek at the cover of this year's book. It was a Making Memories album that I covered in an Anna Griffin patterned paper using Modge Podge.

I have been gathering Christmas type papers and trimmings all year long in anticipation of this album. On Tuesday, I worked on the first 12 pages of the album (pictures to come soon). The idea is to pre-make your album pages in different sizes and shapes to give variety to the album and to take the stress level and complication during the actually month. Because I know what type of pages I am working with ahead of time, it helps me to know how many pictures I need to take each day and what type of layout they need to be (portrait or landscape). I also have some dates already on the calendar so I can also plan to put pages that will require more pictures on those days.

I hope that if you were able to visit Ali Edward's blog that you were inspired to participate this year in the December Daily album. I am looking forward to this project, and I can't wait to start adding pictures!

My Wonderful Man

I am so in love with a wonderful man. He was chosen by God (and my parents) for me. As I was looking through our pictures, I realized that we aren't in very many pictures together anymore because one of us has the camera and the other has Addie (who is usually in the picture- and we certainly can't give her the camera to snap some shots of us!).

On Saturday night, Brian asked me if I wanted to go to Perkins with him for either dessert or an appetizer and coffee (you know I am all about coffee!). Addie was already asleep for the night, so Faye stayed with her, and Brian and I went on a date at 10:00 p.m. (did we feel like a couple of kids or what!). It was so nice to sit down face to face with the one you love and just talk about your thought, ideas, and what is going on in your day-to-day routine that you tend to assume the other knows about. My only regret was having half of the appetizer and not getting their pumpkin muffin lathered in icing. Hey, if you're going to spend the extra calories, it might as well be on something like a pumpkin muffin and icing!

I would encourage you to go on an impromptu date with your spouse. We are blessed to have Faye with us right now to babysit when we get a notion into our heads, but if you don't have someone that close for impromptu babysitting, see about swaping days with a friend or check with Grandma and Grandpa (actually, do that first). Date night is always a good thing and will serve to strengthen the bonds of your relationship.

The Story Behind the Layouts: I wanted to make some layouts that featured Brian and me together (since so many layouts feature a cute little person). The pictures on the first two layouts were taken pre-Addie and the pictures on the last were taken this September.

The Journaling: Layout 1- Brian, thank you for always standing beside me, for leading our family, for getting up to go to work everyday, for being such a good father to our daughter, a wonderful husband to me, and a sweet son to your parents, for never denying me anything, for watching Addie so I can give piano lessons, and giving me time to pursue my hobbies. If I haven't said thank you before...thank you.

Layout 2- May we never forget the thrill of a good cup of coffee and a long conversation.

Layout 3- When we've been married 59 years, will you still be my boyfriend?

Products- Scrapbook Factory Version 3.0 (layouts 2 &3), Shabby Princess freebie (layout 1)

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Tomorrow I will be sharing a little of my December scrapbook. This is not my original idea. It came from Ali Edwards. I did the project last year, and I loved it! The premise behind this project is to prepare a "mixed-up" scrapbook ahead of time, document each day in December (most people do only the first 25 days- I'm, doing the whole month because Christmas doesn't end in our family on the 25th), and each day do a bit of journaling, picture taking, and putting together (it is easier to remember how you feel and what you are thinking as it happens than to wait until the end of the season and then just write "I love Christmas!" because you can't think of anything else to say). By the end of the month, you will have a beautiful (and shall I say completed) scrapbook of your Christmas season. Click here and here to see what Ali has done with her albums. The first link shows half of her album for this year. The other link shows her completed album from last year.

Scratched Some More Off My List

Back in July, I posted here my list of projects to complete before the end of the year. One of my projects was to make an apron with the beautiful vintage looking material my cousin Belinda had given me.

This past Thursday, I decided that I was going to find an easy to make apron with no complicated details. I typed "apron patterns" into my search engine, and a whole multitude of links came up. I found a quick tutorial on A Feathered Nest for making an apron. Then after recording many sewing shows, I mixed the patttern from the tutorial with the directions from one of the shows, and this is the apron I got.

I was so proud of it, I wore it while cooking and then for the rest of the evening. I now have a better understanding of the pattern itself, and, Lord willing, I plan on making a few more in the future.

I can't wait for my next session!

Flower Free-Hand Art

I have decided to try my hand at a more free-hand style of sewing. I have enjoyed it so much since I am only limited by my imagination, and I am not bound to a pattern of any kind. No more worrying about skipping a stitch or miscounting. This little darling was a fun project that I did a few mornings ago while Addie and I watched her reading DVD. Everything was hand stitched (except for using the sewing machine to attach the denim to the interfacing) and the yo-yo (center of the flower) was handmade by yours truly. You can find this little darling in Addie's Attic. God has filled my head with so many ideas (when I asked God to bless me with ideas, I had no idea how many he would give me!), and now that I am actually translating them to fabric, my head is feeling less cluttered.

Projects Update and 100th Post!

My dear friend Cathy came for a visit on Wednesday with her daughter Kenberly. As always I couldn't wait for her to arrive. I enjoy our talks, sharing ideas (Project December...to be mentioned at a later date), and as a former nurse, I am able to ask her questions about Addie's development and get wonderful responses- things I NEVER would have thought of. For example, Addie has been waking up in the middle of the night crying lately. Cathy told me to keep track of it on the calendar because hormonal cycles can be seen early in girls. She also mentioned trying a hormone free milk with Addie to see if that helps or changes anything. I am in awe of your wisdom, Cathy!

As we were talking she brought up some of the projects that she noticed I had completed. I realized right then that I hadn't updated you on my progress (you know how bad I am about remembering updates!). Anyways, I thought I would look back at my list and see what I have accomplished with God's help.

1. The cornices have been made and hung and look wonderful!
2. I have organized my gift station...but gifts are always passing through (one of those jobs that is never done)
3. Wrap all gifts...I did, and then I ended up getting more after I had already wrapped the ones I had (another ongoing project)
4. I did complete the photo album scrapbook. Boy, did that feel good!
5. Scrapbook the rest of the pictures in the box. I grabbed my giant square punch and punched away leaving a bunch of scraps that Addie had a field day with. I arranged the photos to make a layout for Addie that shows different members of her family and reminds her of the godly heritage she has.
6. I made the bulletin board for Addie's room. I took our old bulletin board, spray painted it white, stapled scrapbook paper to it, and then stapled ribbon across it. It turned out beautifully (I think) and now we have a place where we can keep the list of Addie's weekly memory verses, and a picture of her little friend many miles away, Julia. (Her mommy and I were good friends back in our high school youth group days and were recently able to reconnect. If you want, check out her blog here)

So right now that is 6 out of 12 things done. Not a bad way to celebrate the 100th post of The Joy of Homemaking here on Blogger! I admit I am procrastinating about the crocheting project (did I mention that I realized I do NOT like crocheting?). Oh well, I am my mother's daughter and that means that I will not let these projects beat me. Watch out, projects, I'm motivated and dangerous!

Cornices

Here they are!! I am so excited!

My husband and pops-in-law picked up the wood on Saturday, August 1. Pops then cut and built the boxes to go over my windows and brought them to us on Monday. On Tuesday, my main project of the day was to cover the boxes with batting and fabric. That evening, my parents-in-law came over, and Brian and Pops put them up for me. Aren't they wonderful (Brian, Pops, and the cornices)! I love how they make the rooms feel finished as opposed to big and empty. Thank you, Pops and Brian, for helping me cross one of my projects off of my list.

Crossing Things Off My List

On Saturday, Brian and his dad, lovingly known as Pops, went to Lowes and picked up the wood needed to make the cornices for the windows in our living and dining rooms. That had me excited enough.

Then tonight, we heard a knock on our front door. We went to see who it was, and there stood my wonderful parents-in-law! They had come to deliver my cornices! My pops-in-law had come home from work today and put them together for me. I was so thankful and excited.

So tomorrow is Operation Finish the Cornices. I just need to run out and pick up some batting. My mother and I had already picked out and bought the material to cover the boxes, so I just need to cut the material to fit. My pops-in-law even lent me his staple gun so that I can complete my project. I am super excited. And as I promised before, I will post a picture or two of my completed project.

And, Pops and Mom, a big thank you to the both of you for taking the time out of your day to make and bring the cornices to me. I love you both so much.

Projects

Well, today is Monday and the beginning of a new week. I don't know about you, but for me the beginning of a new week brings anticipation and excitement of all types of projects that I look forward to working on and accomplishing. My problem with that is that I tend to over plan my days with Addie's school time, Addie's playtime, my regular house chores, and three or four projects that I want to complete by the end of the day. Never realistic, and always very frustrating. While the first three things always get finished, the last begins to build on itself, and then I become so overwhelmed with the projects I have placed on myself that I throw my figurative hands up and walk away, only to be inspired next Monday with my list of projects that have now grown even longer because I let my imagination get the best of me during the previous week and mentally begin creating and adding projects to my already mile long list.

Part of the reason I am getting so "inspired" with projects is because I have begun doing a cycle of organizing in the house. I used to only do a twice a year thorough organization. However, as Addie has grown out of toys and clothes, and as she spreads out in the house, I have found that doing a seven week cycle has really been doing the job of keeping us organized. Each room gets one week and when I get to the end of the rooms, I begin all over again. It has kept things from growing up around us, and we are more readily aware of when the house begins to close in. Our tolerance for clutter also stays low, and we all stay on the same page.

This morning while Addie was playing in her room, I began going through her toys and books. I was able to whittle down the amount of things she has in her room by removing toys that can be saved for a future baby #2 (and no, I am not making any kind of announcement here:), and toys that she has yet to grow into. I also moved some of her larger board books into the office and put them on the bookshelf in there. After putting her down for her nap (which is when I get my blog time), I looked back and got the biggest sense of relief at how clean and uncluttered the room looked. Tomorrow, Lord willing, I will tackle the closet...a bit nervous about that one.

So what I have decided to do is to put my list of projects here and choose one that I will faithfully work on every day this week for however much time I have available for it. Some days it may be a large chunk of time (an hour or two), and some days it may be five to ten minutes, but I want to start chipping away at my list so that by the end of the year, I can look back and see what God has helped me to accomplish with my time.

1. Make cornices for the windows (I will need Brian's help with this one)
2. Finish the afghan I began for Brian while we were dating (don't laugh!)
3. Organize my gift station
4. Wrap any unwrapped presents and tag them
5. Complete one photo album scrapbook
6. Put a couple of items on Ebay or Etsy
7. Organize garage (maybe when the weather is cooler?)
8. Scrapbook all pictures left in box after photo album is complete
9. Finish cross-stitching the picture of the two turtles
10. Make bulletin board for Addie's room
11. Turn small cross-stitch projects into frames wall art
12. Make an apron with fabric my cousin Belinda gave me

Do I expect to accomplish everything? That is my goal. If I go into this with a back door or a mental lower expectation (remember my post about expectations?), then chances are that I will not finish. However, with God's help, I intend to be successful at these projects. And how about this (for added encouragement for myself)? I will post a picture each time I complete a project for you to see.

Are you game? Why not make your own list of things/projects you would like to accomplish before the end of the year. We still have 5 months! That's plenty of time! Just make sure that your list is realistic to the amount of time you have. And feel free to share your goals, lists, and results with us. The purpose of this blog is to encourage each other to good works. I would love to rejoice with you as you accomplish your goals and projects. Now, which one will I start with...