Putting My Machine To Use.

Jacob got me a sewing machine for Christmas and I LOVE it. It has been so much fun. I racked my brain for all the sewing skills I learned in my younger years and put them to use. Although I'm not as creative as I would like, it is still tons of fun. I was surprised how easily I was able to use the machine and not have to sit and read the manual. It was like this machine and I were destined to be together. Here are the things I have been working on so far....

Jake and Lily were always having me tie a blanket and my apron on them as super hero capes so I thought it would be fun to make them real capes.

(blanket and apron)

The capes. Yes they need to be ironed but you get the idea.
Next I had to do something about my couch pillows. They were awful.

This is what they looked like before.


This is what they look like now. I had no idea what to do(this is where the lack of creativity comes in) so I was pretty much just making it up as I went along but I think they turned out ok.


Also I have been on a role today. I fixed Lily's pillow that has had a huge hole for the last 2 years and keeps losing it's fluff, I shortened two table cloths that were way too long and I made a doll blanket for Lily with the fabric that I cut off. I am loving having this machine.

A Lesson in Motivation

Kat and I are learning as we raise our children that they simply aren't the same and you can't apply a one-size-fits-all manual to rearing them. For example, Lily showed an early interest in potty training, beginning at age 18 months, and mastering it before she turned 2. Jake, on the other hand, has shown an aversion to using any type of "facility" other than his diaper.

We have tried on two other occasions to potty train Jake, but failed, always telling ourselves that Jake "wasn't ready yet." Then, a few days ago, I told Kat that if Jake is potty trained by the end of January, I will give her $300 toward an entertainment center she wants, and that she can add, over time, the money we save on Jake's diapers, probably about 30 bucks a month.

Needless to say, Jake was potty trained two days later.

Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!

Taking Matters Into My Own Hands

Before we moved here I was stressing about a lot of things due to the fact that we would be out in the middle of nowhere. One of those things was haircuts. I didn't know if there was a place around to get it cut or how far I would have to drive or if they would even do a good job. I decided to take matters into my own hands. I figured Lily's hair would be tricky and the boys would be a piece of cake but it turns out I'm pretty good with girls hair and terrible with boys. It is going to take lots of practice.(poor kids) I don't blame Jacob for not letting me touch his. This morning I even got brave enough to cut my own and I think it turned out pretty good. I cut off about 2 in. because it needed it bad.

I've always wanted Lily's hair to be shorter in the front and really long in the back without having it look choppy. I gave myself the same haircut because it was super easy.




This is what she would look like with short hair. I'm definitely not ready for her to have a chop anytime soon.




I think the back is nicely rounded. I was worried it wouldn't look right from behind.


As a whole, Jake's doesn't look too bad but if you start paying too much attention it's a sad story. I can't quite get it even on both sides and the back looks a little choppy. For a first attempt (actually it might have been my secoind) It's not too shabby.

Halloween and Superheroes.

Halloween on the rez was fun. Hundreds of people descended onto our neighborhood to get the candy. We ran out of our stash in the early evening, though the first trick or treaters came around 2pm. We stayed in the housing neighborhood, which was more than sufficient for our kids' needs. The highlight of the evening, for me anyway, was seeing two adults walking around in giant Minion costumes (see Despicable Me) and a small girl wearing Hit Girl (yes, I'm evil.)


Then today, Jake was in his Superman pajamas, and so I put my cape on him. Lily, not to be outdone (EVER), put her cape on.

For My Own Sanity

I remember a time long ago when Sunday was the best day of the week. You could go to church and be spiritually enlightened, relax and take a nap if you wanted or read and visit with family. I loved Sunday. Sadly I do not feel the same way anymore. Sundays are now filled with rushing to get everybody ready for church, entertaining children for 3 hours of church, missing nap time for baby which means he's crying all day and whatever other daily stresses we deal with on a day to day basis.
I was already stressed out on Sunday's before moving here and now I find myself being completely overwhelmed when Saturday night approaches. Jacob and I have new callings. He is now the ward clerk which means he has to leave at 7:40am for meetings and I am left to get 3 kids and myself ready and out the door by 8:40am in order to be to church by 9:00. My calling is the primary music leader. This alone stresses me out beyond all reason. I am terrified of this calling. I feel completely inept to do the job properly and I can't stand the thought of everybody watching me and counting on me to teach these children the songs not to mention it is going to take much preparation in order to get the lessons ready each week. I already feel like I don't have it in me to do the regular weekly chores and tasks.
These callings will keep both Jacob and I busy during the church hours so I have no idea what I am going to do with Asher. He is going through a phase where NOBODY besides me can hold him so he will probably end up crying the entire time which will make it hard for me to focus on teaching the music. Also we don't even have a nursery half the time so I might have Jake as well.
After church Jacob has more business to do so we end up waiting for him every other week for over an hour. We have been getting home around 2:00pm. By this time kids are tired, hungry, crying and I'm about ready to lose my mind.
Jacob has been great about letting me take a Sunday nap every week but it's not always as nice as it sounds. I usually can't relax because I can hear kids fighting or baby crying because you can hear everything that goes on in this house and there's no way around it. I would like to fix a nice Sunday dinner but when I'm that tired my family is lucky to even get a grilled cheese in which case I feel guilty for such a lame Sunday dinner.
I know that I am not the only one to go through these types of difficulties each week which is why I have to ask myself why do we do this? We don't get paid to do our callings. We don't get anything spiritually out of it due to putting all our focus on keeping kids quiet and entertained so what's the point? My response to myself is always the same....

I believe in a loving Heavenly Father and his son Jesus Christ. Them alone is more than enough reason for me to continue going to church each week. No amount of sacrifice and hard work on callings will ever pay back my debt to them. They have blessed me with so much in my life and I can show my gratitude by playing my part in this church and doing all that I can to become a better person. My Savior Jesus Christ gave his very life that I may repent of my wrong doings and return home some day to my Heavenly Father.
I can't imagine my life without this gospel. It scares me to even think where I would be without it. I want my children to learn as I did and know what I know so that they too can have the happiness I feel in my life. I go to church so that they can learn and grow in this gospel and know of it's importance. I go so that they can see how blessed we are because of it. I know that some day when they have grown a little more that things will get easier. I may have many gray hairs and wrinkles at a much younger age than I planned but I won't look back and regret a single one of them.

Evolution of a Cover

Hey friends, family, fans. I thought I'd just put up a quick post about how Britta and I came up with the cover design. When Britta first read the book, we talked about color themes, schemes, basic images that came to mind. With those things from our initial discussion, Britta came up with some basic concepts:





Then we start finding elements we like and dislike. I usually consult with a few trusted advisers. From there, we start narrowing down what we like, then brainstorm some more. This time we added a new element still at the concept phase.




As you can see from these two options, we went with the first, and developed it further.



Then we made a few tweaks for the final product: