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My little Samantha is 3 years old today. I say this every birthday, but it's so true: I can't believe another year has gone by. More so for Sammy since she is my baby. Of course the birthday girl got to lick the spoon after Mommy iced her cake. Happy birthday my sweet girl.
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*sigh* It's hard having a dear friend that lives 1800 miles away. Shannon left this afternoon after a too quick 3-day visit. Here we are sporting our Twilightshirts that we wore to the movie. Yes, we are Twi-hard fans.
Shannon & I became friends when I lived in California. We were in a playgroup together, but it took a couple of years before our friendship developed. Basically we both learned that we loved to scrapbook and started to crop together. Our relationship blossomed from there. We also were the first two women in our playgroup to have our second children. She and I both have 4 children in the same order: a girl, two boys & a girl. They are all relatively the same ages, give or take a couple of months. As I mentioned before, we both enjoy scrapbooking. And lastly we are both Christ-followers. She is certainly what Anne of Green Gables would call a kindred spirit.
So even though we live so far apart we still stay connected, talking on the phone almost every day. While raising small children it's hard for us to get together much more than once a year, but we make the most of it when we do. Since she and I are such big fans of the book Twilight, we planned this year's visit around seeing the movie together.
After picking her up from the airport, we went to Chili's. That's a little tradition of ours. We both love their fajitas. And there Molten Lava Cake. Yummers! We saw the movie (which I mentioned below). Friday we did some shopping & Saturday we scrapbooked and got some hair bling. And today we went to church and she went home. I swear, I just blinked and the visit was over. Too little time to spend with such a dear friend.
An interesting God-incidence (I don't believe in coincidence), the message at church today was about being intentional about living in the moment and making memories with your family and friends that you can look back on. I thought it was neat that Shannon and I were doing just that right then.
I am so blessed to have found Shannon and I am so happy to have her in my life, even if she is 1800 miles away. I'll take what I can get! And I'm doubly blessed to have an awesome husband who took over cooking, cleaning and childcare while Shannon was visiting so I could have a more focused visit with my friend. It was a great weekend even if it was too short.
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And I must say after staying up until 3 a.m., I am looking a bit like a vampire myself. Moms of 4 kids need their sleep.
Shannon & I showed up at the theater at 11 p.m. and were shocked by the crowds. Who knew we weren't the only freaks in Coeur d'Alene staying up to see this movie. It was playing in 6 theaters and there was easily 1500-2000 people there. Wow. Who knew?
We enjoyed the movie. Edward and Bella were both well cast; they looked a lot like how I imagined them, as did Charlie and Edward's family. I think if you are a fan of the book, you will enjoy this movie because of what it is. It's fun to see the characters on screen acting a story you love.
9 times out of 10, the book is better. This is most definitely the case here. Most of the time in that case it's better not to have read the book, with nothing to compare it to. As far as Twilight goes, if you are not a fan of the book, I wouldn't recommend this movie; you would probably think it was kind of hokey. The books are in Bella's head a lot, so how does a person act out what she's thinking in a movie? They tried, but I feel the movie was a little abrupt in how Bella & Edward's relationship developed because you couldn't hear what was going on in Bella's head. If you've read the book, you know, but I don't know that it would make much since if you haven't. Like I said, it would seem hokey.
I understand in movies they often have to change the story in a book to fit the movie screen. What works in a book doesn't necessarily translate to the movie screen. Some of the scenes did not fit my imagination at all. There has only been one book-to-movie that has and that was The Lord of the Rings.
My biggest disappointment was the meadow scene (and if you've read the book or seen interviews of Stephenie Meyer about the book you know what I'm talking about) is my favorite scene from the book and Stephenie's initial idea for the book; it was hardly in the movie at all. And Edward may sparkle, but not how I imagined it. I expected more prisms, more brilliance, but he looks like he got ahold of a can of glitter spray. Disappointing. I have to wonder if this is how Stephenie imagined it? I guess that's the nice thing about books is that you can imagine in how you would like it to be.
All in all, I did enjoy the movie. And seeing it with Shannon was a huge treat. If you are a fan of the book, it's certainly worth seeing. If you haven't read the book, read them first. We Twilight fans are not crazy.
Oh, and I'll be back to my regular blogging schedule next week... and then Thanksgiving will hit.
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You can see by the countdown clock... Twilight is opening tomorrow. I am going to pick up Shannon from the airport and tonight at 12:01 a.m. was are going to see Twilight!!!
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As the mother of four, it's all too easy to get overwhelmed with just taking care of them. Throw in taking care of the house and shopping and you have the makings of a nervous breakdown. I have found through years of trial and error that I have to be intentional to take care of myself as well as my family.
What do I mean by being intentional? I have to pen in time on my calendar just for me. I have to guard that time and realize that by getting a regular breather from the rat race of my life, I am not only caring for me but caring for my family too. Have you heard that saying, "If Mom ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." It's so true! As a mother, I set the atmosphere of our home. If I'm grouchy, my kids certainly feel it. In turn, if I'm calm & happy, the whole household runs more smoothly. That's what I mean when I say caring for my family includes caring for myself. If I make sure to schedule time in my life for me, my home is a better place to be.
So, what does that 'me' time look like? One of the first things is a daily quiet time. Whether my kids are napping or not, I get an hour of solid alone time. When I had napping children, I would first put them down for a nap. With my kids that were past napping (which all of my kids are now), I put in a movie & set out some crayons and coloring books, then I explained that it was quiet time now & they were to leave me alone for awhile. Then I gathered my things & retreated to my bedroom, where I would eat my lunch & read a book. No housework! Just time to breath. The housework will still be there when I'm done. Through repetition my kids learned not to bother me during that time & since I was just in my room I could still keep an ear out for them.
Another thing that I did was hire a sitter to come over twice a week for 3 hours at a time. In the beginning I stayed home and scrapbooked. As I began to gain trust for my sitter (I had never left my kids with a sitter other than Grandma before), I started using that time for all sorts of things, including errands. Not only did this time give me a much needed break, but it also gave my husband a break too. How? Because when he walked in the door I wasn't constantly throwing the kids at him and retreating. I knew that I was going to get some alone time right around the corner, so it took the pressure off of him to provide that time for me. He works hard too!
As mother, I should not feel guilty for needing some time without my children. I am still a woman, not just a wife and mother. I need to nuture me just like I nuture my children and husband. Whether it scrapbooking or going out for coffee with a girlfriend, it is important to schedule time for 'me' time on the calendar too. In pen.
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PROJECTS
Busy week for the Doherty family. But what week isn't? I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving break the week after next; the kids are getting a whole week off this year!
Joel has been working like mad to get some of the outdoor projects finished before the snow hits. We have been blessed with warmer weather for this time of year, up near 60 degrees. This weekend, with the help of our eager children, he worked on the deck railing. Yeah! This has been at the top of my honey-do list for too long.
The funny thing about this project though was the kids. I was working in the house while Joel was outside with the kids. From inside the house, I could hear all this pounding, too much to just be Joel. I walk out the front door to this (click on the photo for a bigger view):
All four of the kids were using scrap pieces of wood and a handful of Daddy's nails to make their own creations. This kept them busy the entire afternoon. Who knew?
MIRACLES
Friday evening before I met my gal-pals for Bunco, I went to Albertson's to do a little grocery shopping. As I went to check out, I went to pull out my envelope of coupons, which included $30 in Catalinas (these coupons could be used on any purchase like cash), and couldn't find them anywhere. I knewI had them with me when I went into the store, so I figured I must have dropped them. I backtracked through the store, asked at Customer Service & even looked in my truck. I couldn't find them! I called Joel at home to see if I might have left them there. Nope. I had visions of someone sweeping it up and throwing it away at the store. When I got home from Bunco, I looked everywhere for that envelope and while I was looking that parable of the lost coin & the lost sheep (Luke 15) came to mind & I started to pray that God would help me to find that envelope.
Fast forward to last night. Rebekah & I went out to pick up a pizza for dinner. During our drive into town, the song "To Bring You Back" by Paul Alan came on Air 1. The chorus of that song says, "I left the 99 to find the one and you're the one..." Immediately I thought of that envelope (because of the parable) and decided to stop by Albertson's one more time to see if anyone had turned in that envelope.
When I went to Customer Service, the woman looked under the counter and said, "I don't see it... but let me ask." She asked around and the woman whom I had talked to on Friday night came to the counter and say, "Oh, you're back! We have your envelope."
Needless to say, I was very happy. Thrilled. Beaming. And praising and thanking God. He is so good.
Today I went back to Albertson's, envelope in hand, and spent that $30 in Catalinas. I was able to purchase $80 worth of groceries for $5 out-of-pocket and received another $10 Catalina back. I love couponing!!
THIS WEEK
Wednesday night we have our initial planning meeting for our Women's Retreat in May for our church. I am coordinating the retreat this year along with my friend, Rychelle. My brother-in-law, Daniel, will be arriving tomorrow for a two-week visit (he's staying with my in-laws) & my best friend, Shannon, will be arriving on Thursday to visit as well for our Twilight weekend. This looks to be another full week with more grocery shopping on the horizon...
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I received the finishing touches for our bathroom this week. Our project began last spring when I came across this towel at Target. I'd a big fan of geometric patterns, especially polka dots & stripes. This towel & matching rug screamed at me as I shopped & I knew that they were the colors I wanted to do for the room. Most of the bathroom ended up this green that you see here except for right around the toilet, which we painted a dark turquoise. I just love this room & it makes me smile each time I go in there. I'm a big fan of vivid color.
After we painted, Joel tiled the floor which originally was linoleum & tiled the counter top which was originally Formica. He does beautiful tile work & I must say that was huge money saver as far as the remodel was concerned. New hooks, towel rod, toilet paper holder, lighting fixtures, sink, faucet and new toilet finished up the major construction. The room received a complete facelift.
Today I installed the last pieces to complete the room, the icing as is were. I ordered Uppercase Living Expressions for the room. The one behind the toilet says, "Faith makes things possible...not easy." I was able to get the design in 2 colors, thus tying together the rest of the room colors.
The Expression I got for above the sink is less inspirational, but I hope a good reminder for my kidlets. It says, "Wash Your Hands (Mom Said So!)."
I ordered another Expression that I designed myself with the easy-to-use custom design tool for the living room that says, "As for me & my house, we will serve the Lord." I'm going to have to have Joel's help for installing this one as the finished design is about 10 feet long. It's a big one!
I'm just love Uppercase Living's designs, which is the main reason I signed up to be a demonstrator. There are so many beautiful designs to choose from, they're reasonably priced & are very easy to install. And if they don't sell a quote or phrase that you would like, you can make it yourself. I made one for above the door of my boys' bedroom that says "BEWARE all ye who enter here."
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