Peru wreath

This wreath is my favorite so far. I used vintage map paper (of Peru!) from a Rand McNally 1960 atlas book for the paper rosettes. All materials are vintage except for the straw wreath base.
I don't want to give this girl up but I want to go to BlogSugar worse thanI want to keep "her"...
So for sale she goes!
How's your week been? My kids have been a handful. This momma's tired. Shawn kinda forgot about me tonight and just now got home.

But he's redeemed himself:
Nightey night!

A "new" wrap

So I don't pride myself on being a good housekeeper. I'm just not...and that's that.
My friend T loaned me this baby carrier she SEWED.
She sews everything (purses, nursing covers, blankies...) and I'm begging her to let me sell some stuff for her in my Etsy shop.

I'd never tried a back carrier (except for that mountain hiking contraption), and it was a little tough to hoist Story in there, but I did it (possibly incorrectly?). And I love it!
We both do.
Babywearing rocks.
I am off to bed and am wishing I wouldn't have eaten broccoli prior to this evening's run...

Ahem.

Ooey Gooey Monster Bars-Perfect for Holiday Cookie Exchanges

Treat a friend to one (or ten!) of these monster bars.

My friend J treated me (isn't that just as sweet as it gets? A friend who knows your love for chocolate and makes you a special treat?!) and Wilder/I have made them twice since our play date last week. I have shared from both pans, but not as much as I should've.

They are just so hard to stay out of:
Recipe (so easy):
Monster Bars by K. Brown
1/2 c. margarine, softened
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 c. peanut butter
4 1/2 c. oatmeal
1 c. M&Ms
1 c. chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients together and spread in an 11 x 15 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes, being careful not to overbrown. Cut in 1-1 1/2 inch squares; they are thick, gooey bars.
I cleaned a little today. I am impressed with myself as it is a rare occurrence that I clean before 9pm, or, well, ever. Wilder was busy playing with the Swiffer sweeper and Story was having her Cheerios affair, so I cleaned.

Had to capture the cleanliness on camera because it won't last.
Off to do stuff.

iPhone photo post

I needed this weekend. We were just home a lot...wonderful, warm home.

We did everything together (church, groceries, lunch at IHOP today, family cuddles in our huge bed on Saturday morning), instead of Shawn going here, me going there, and the kids split between us.

Story helped with groceries:
Our spur of the moment double date is the only thing we did without the kids; was thankful our sitter was available last minute. Here's A and I; she's awesome. Our guys talked design while we talked sleep schedules and a possible camping trip.

I seem to be wearing the same shirt every day. That's how bad my laundry pile is.

Shawn and I also watched Life As We Know It...together. On the couch. In the same room! For two hours...and I didn't even craft or fold laundry during it.

I love looking at pictures on Shawn's iPhone. It's a treat to see things from his creative perspective. Here are some I made him send me:
We really only read vintage books to Wilder. They are oh, 60-pages and some of them boring...like the one about the whales. There are no people in that book. Illustrated whales aren't that fun to look at.
Oh, Sissy. You are my heart.
That's what I get to see if I get my butt up to run!

706th post

This is my 706th post. That's alot of blogging! I now have 100+ "official" followers; thank you. Hurrah!

That is small given the millions of other bloggettes who have access to "more" and "better" resources than I do...but I still can be proud!! I am having fun and this is my happy place.

Since I'll probably never be asked these "questions for famous bloggers" {quotes mine} by Marta Dansie over at Marta Writes, I'm going to pretend she heard about my 104 followers then proceeded to ask away, in celebratory fashion.

It's Friday and I feel like talking.

Here goes:

No matter what mood I'm in I can always go for: a chocolate malt at Sonic then two-hours estate saleing.
My favorite go-to outfit would have to be: dark wash skinny jeans, stretchy tee, cardi, flats, headband.
A good source of inspiration is: my children. They motivate me to be genuine, confident, have faith like a child, and to dream big.
Am so glad my parents taught me: the value of education. Not just the value of secondary education but the value of learning lessons {especially spiritual ones} as we exist. No circumstance or person is part of my life by accident; we learn from all of it.
A song I like to dance to is: You Rock my World by Michael Jackson.
I wish everyone knew about: the redeeming blood of Jesus.
The best thing in my makeup bag is: Mary Kay liquid eyeliner! It's so fun to apply and makes me feel glamorous.
My dream spring break vacation spot is: a float trip at the Grand Canyon. Tent camping, hiking, the whole bit. I would cry I would love it so much. God made that big hole in our world and I want to see it!
This may be a surprise, but I am passionate about: women's ministry; I don't know what this will look like down the road but I just have a heart for making women feel special, valued, beautiful, and loved. I have overcome a lot of strongholds and would like to share my successes with other women.
A favorite book that changed me for the better: was the Sacred Romance: Drawing Closer to the Heart of God, by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge
One of my pet peeves is: hearing nails being trimmed, loud chomping, ambulance sirens (all of them are noise aversions)
My favorite daily ritual would have to be: I am not a very ritualistic person at all but I do enjoy my sweets of the day.
I am trying to be better at: running, reading the Bible, spending time with Shawn, having patience with my children, saying "no", managing time wisely...
The most recent rad thing I found online was: all of you
I can't live without: being able to be affectionate with my family. I hug and kiss my babies and husband like it's my Miss America talent!

Candy Store, Spring Wreath, Lessons

There was this couple at today's estate sale that was buying ALL AWESOME mid-century stuff for their 16-year old daughter's soon-to-be-opened antiques booth {of course I had to chat them up because they kept looking at stuff that is my taste}. Lucky daughter.

They kept grabbing stuff up out of boxes and it made me so mad that I hadn't gotten to it first. I thought, if I didn't have the kids with me I could be doing what they're doing--finding all the cool stuff, cleaning it up, then selling it...

And that's when it sunk in that I am hoping for a season in my life that hasn't yet debuted. And I need to be really living in today (we always say that--it sounds cliche)...because the kids will be off to school in about 5 seconds and I will miss them terribly. Some days, it is difficult to set aside selfish pursuits. I think that's why the blog is so important to me. It has meant so much to feel valued in other ways.

Someday I will be the crazy lady getting on her hands and knees, digging in cupboards and crevices for mid-century treasures. But today, it's slipper slides at the park, play-dough monkeys, and Dr. Seuss. And the occasional kid-friendly estate sale. I love my babies and want every day to be fun and meaningful for them!

Pictures of some homes close to today's estate sale (the home did not look like these):
And some pictures from our Nifty Nuthouse (a permanent fixture/tourist location/destination place in our town) candy store excursion:
Peach rings, my fave!
And the spring wreath I made Grandma, for her to hang at the nursing home:

Library and lunch on a pretty spring day

This has been a really neat day! I got up early and ran outside; I have way more energy than I normally would at this time of the day. It was a very pretty run (maybe 5 miles?) "down by the river" with lots of "wildlife" to see and a pure, clean-smelling breeze. Except the breeze directly by the river smelled of fish. But I don't really mind that. It makes me want to camp.

We saw a puppet show at the library then had A and L over for lunch. My house was an embarrassment--dirty laundry in baskets in the kitchen, because who has time to cart them all the way down to the basement? Crushed Cheerios left from Story's crawling. Piles of dishes...I have to get in gear about my house. I just have to! Tips?

I want you to see some of these every day life photos. I am blessed in so many ways, but being a mom just might trump them all. My babies are my everything.

W & A played hard together; W needs interaction with older kids.

Some of these pictures are really low quality but imperfections are what make this blog MINE. Because I am not perfect! Also I don't shop at Hollister. The neighbor girls (teenagers) let me go through their Goodwill bags. There was a cute little A cup bra in there that cracked me up.

I remember being that small...

Anyway...
A & L are as precious as they look.
The end.

Ikea trip 2011--No boys allowed

Shawn and I were in the kitchen tonight eating cookies and cereal, attempting to hold a discussion about something other than logistics or the kids.

It was finances. Not too exciting...except that we paid off our one credit card then cut it up!

Well I was cleaning the kitchen and spilled my glass of frosty yummy COLD ice water. I looked at Shawn who knows not to laugh or say anything about my frequent water spills and I said, "I'm done cleaning. I'm stressing out. Just going to blog now."

I've got to do something about my nerves and clutziness.

Those goals aside, it's so beneficial to have a place to come {blog land} where I can feel like I'm contributing to something. The patio door is open and the spring breeze rustles my hair and sends the wind chimes into melody; this is my favorite time of year...I really want it to be a time where I put my husband and children first. Where we say "no" to some things we really want to do, just for the sake of staying in our pjs, or camping in the back yard, or going to the zoo.

Let's continue on the Ikea reflections. I'm ready to go back. We are going to make it an annual thing.

It was planned for months so we could save some dinero. I had no large purchases in mind and came back with some cute things for the kids, a couple of rugs, some nice white cereal bowls, a lamp, laundry bins...I wanted new bedding and curtains but those were too hard to commit to without Shawn's wonderful artistic input.

We stayed at Aloft. It was gorgeous & modern!


We ate at Buca Di Beppo, one of my fave Italian places.
We experienced three horrible traffic jams that made our 6 hour trip a 9 hour one. But friends stick together and we kicked the trip's bootay.
Here's some Ikea eye candy. I wouldn't have left you hangin', promise!
I want an all white bedroom. Maybe after the kids are doing their own thing.
Love this; it has a nice variety of textures:

Each of us found our favorite kitchen. It would be like, "Juls this kitchen is SO.YOU." The kitchen I liked was tiny like the one I have, with a green wall like the one I have...
Our loot:
I'm thankful the Lord kept us safe on the road, kept us alert while driving, gave us wonderful, competent husbands who cared for our babies, equipped me with a pump so I could come home and keep nursing, gave us the funds to get our homes in order by purchasing cool stuff, and for giving us each other as friends.

Couldn't imagine life without these girls. God knows the perfect people to put in our lives.
xoxo!