Happily Ever After Girls Camp Gift

I helped with planning our Ward camp for the Young Women from 12 to 17 years old. The theme was based off of Jenny Phillips program and President Uchtdorf's talk.  One of the things the leaders wanted to give the girls was a tile with the quote "Be true to the Royal in you."  A friend of mine did most of the hard work, but she let me help put the vinyl on the tile.  I also got to use my use my cool Silhouette machine and learn more about it, by cutting the tiaras for the tiles.  They turned out so cute that I had to share!


We also put the girls names on denim drawstring backpacks and the tiara above.  I love how I can take one shape and change the size to fit my needs.

Pushcart War Book Club

It's book club time again, yeah!  I say that like there is a regular and set time for our book clubs, instead of whenever Mom finally finishes reading the book everyone else finished days ago.  (OK, sometimes it's more like weeks.)  Pop over to Arizona Mama and read our latest happenings. 


What are you reading this hot summer day?

All Because a Little Bug Went Ka-choo!

I've loved this book since I discovered it when my first daughter was a toddler.  While I still appreciate the humor of the book, all too often it parallels the chain reaction that is life.  Here's my story in Ten on Tuesday style!

1. Last week our TV died. 
2. Because our TV died, it needed to be replaced.
3. Because it was being replaced, my husband using logic beyond my understanding, replaced it with an even bigger TV - that doesn't fit in the space we had between the two tall cabinets we used as an entertainment center.
4. Because of my thriftiness, we laid one of the tall cabinets on it side and used that as a TV stand. I am amazed at how much dust grows on those out of sight places. I am also amazed at how often I say that.
5. Because there is half the storage space and since we mostly use digital music, we purged our CD's 
6. After dusting the remainder, we stored them in another closet.
7. We also purged movies and video games.
8. Because we are only using one of the cabinets, there is an extra that needed a home.
9. I rearranged the storage in my craft room and made room for the tall cabinet.
10. Because I rearranged the craft room, I dusted all those containers before settling in to our newly arranged home.

I wonder if the Little Bug in the book was as exhausted as I am?

Media Mayhem: Blogs

Today's installment of Media Mayhem features three blogs. I'm thinking it would be inappropriate to feature my own blog posts over at Arizona Mama, so I'll feature three blogs that consistently inspire me. 

• Your Homebased Mom - She has great recipes, parties and crafts.
• Chocolate on my Cranium - This homeschooling mom of a bunch shares ideas about educating children and her strong testimony.
• If You're Happy & You Know It - She has scrapbooking and those cute boys.

Thanks to RJR Daydreamer for this really fun blog hop.  I enjoyed the people I "met" by checking out their blogs and those of you that were kind enough to leave comments on mine.

Media Mayhem: MOVIES

Today I'm continuing with RJR Daydreamers Media Mayhem blog hop.  Tune in next Sunday for our regularly scheduled Family Home Evening post.


We do enjoy watching movies in this house as you probably guessed from our movie quote contest we had a while back.  Since we enjoy movies so much, I decided to take the easy way out and use the three movies in this picture from my movie night article I wrote for AZ Mama.


Holes
This is my favorite movie!  I love the story of perseverance and friendship.  And of coarse I love the quote, "Can you hear the empty spaces?"

Second Hand Lions
This is my other favorite movie!  These two eccentric uncles make unlikely caregivers for their nephew, but they all help each other with the help of an old, worn out lion.  My favorite quote is, "Corn, corn, corn! Nothing but corn!"  You might be surprised how often it works into my daily conversation.


Meet the Robinsons
I don't think this one would make my top 10 list, but it's an enjoyable flick with a great moral.  The great moral also makes a great quote, "Keep moving forward."


So there you have it, my three random movies of the day.  Now if you are wondering, "Doesn't she watch grown up movies?"  The answer is not so much.  I'm just a rated PG kind of a gal.  

I did go see the new LDS film last night, 17 Miracles. It's about the Willie Martin handcart company.  I enjoyed it, even though I knew it was going to be sad.  There was a surprising amount of humor, mostly at the beginning.  It's definitely worth watching, especially with your kids.

Media Mayhem: SONGS

We interrupt our regularly scheduled posts to play along with RJR Daydreamer and his Media Mayhem Blog Hop.  Today's theme is songs.  I don't think I can pull off the level of coolness as Mr. Daydreamer, but here's three songs that come to mind this fine Saturday morning.  I don't know that I would call these my favorite songs, because favorite is often overused at our house.  We have hundreds of favorites in just about every category imaginable.  I think I'll stick to songs that make me want to dance around the house.  Yes, I only dance around the house.  Anywhere else would be too embarrassing for my kiddos (and me).

• I'm not a Lady Gaga fan, but I can't help but dance when I hear her song Poker Face - especially in the Percy Jackson movie.
• Smash Mouth's All Star is another song that calls out the be bop in me.  Everyone looks good with their fingers in the shape of an "L" on their forehead.
• We'll finish off the list with a blast from my high school days; Brian Adams' Kids Wanna Rock.

There's still time to join the fun and start with three songs of your own!

Friday Favorites: June 24

Happy Friday!  It's is a happy day here because everyone who had the flu is on the mend.  Hopefully we are done with this run of the flu.  And there's other good stuff too.  Here's my Friday favorites.

• I just read more details about the evo 'll conference and I'm so excited!  It's going to be a great party - where I get to learn cool stuff and meet awesome people! (You can see how excited I am by all the exclamation points!)
• With my down time this week, I finished Sarah's Quilt.  Then I jumped into the last book of the series, Star Garden.  I love this series.  It even inspired me to write a story of my own.  We'll see how it goes.
• Family history - I learned some interesting facts about the little island where my grandpa grew up.  It was called Sansego; the name was taken from the Greek word for oregano that grows on the island.  Just learning a bit more about where he lived, creates a connection to him.

Of coarse I found some other favorites in my Google Reader!

• I love the Around the World in 80 Days Reading Bingo Chart Chocolate on my Cranium shared!  (Try saying that 3 times fast.)
• Silhouette has frosted vinyl - too cool!
• Think Fast shares a super cute card with shrinky dink butterflies!  I never thought about running shrink plastic through my Silhouette.
• Check out the cute key quotes at Your Homebased Mom.  She even shares a download of the poster she made for a graduation gift.
• No Friday is complete without dreaming of treats.  Two Peas & their Pod share a recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars that remind me of the ones my mom made when I was a kid.
• If that's not sweet enough for you, try New Nostalgia's Salty Sweet Peanut Butter Caramel Funky Fritos.  This is one of those recipes where my eyes aren't sure it would taste good, but my brain would definitely give it a try.  Hopefully I'm not the only one whose body argues with itself.

All of me wishes you a good weekend enjoying a few of your favorites - just share your plans so I can live vicariously through you.  Thanks!

Differences Between Boys and Girls

OK, we'll skip the most obvious difference between boys and girls and go straight to this week's focus - the flu.  A couple of my girls were the first to get sick.  They were miserable.  They laid on the couch and occasionally ask for something they needed.  If I asked, they would let me know they weren't having any fun and would appreciate if I'd pull out the genie lamp and magically cure them.  When they started feeling better, they even helped take care of me when I was sick.
 

Yesterday, my son was down with the plague.  He laid on the couch and moaned and groaned and complained.  He spent so much energy focusing on how awful he felt, he wouldn't let himself go to sleep - which is definitely what he needed.  I did what any bad mom would do; I let him watch 20 something episodes of Phineas and Ferb.  Then he wouldn't go to sleep because he was wrapped up in the show.  Which was better on my nerves than his whining.  I knew men have a bad reputation for how they handle illness, I just didn't realize it started so young!


I also realized I prefer Phineas and Ferb over Deadliest Catch; at least they don't have to beep out the cartoon.

Fruits and Veggies Around the World

We finished our first week of Stay at Home Summer Camp.  The theme was fruits and veggies around the world.  Pretty unique theme - it's not mine.  One of my kiddos came up with it.  I posted the details over at Arizona Mama.  Check it out, leave me a comment, it's all good.

Upside of the Stomach Flu

This weekend, the stomach flu busted through our family.  Fortunately not everyone got it, but it changed our weekend plans.  Now that we are on the mend, I thought I'd share the upside of the flu in honor of It's a Crafty Life's Ten on Tuesday.

1. A phone call announcing the arrival of the flu didn't come until the end of date night.
2. The kiddo that drives didn't get sick and was able to take the other healthy kiddo to church.
3. No last minute pre-Father's Day clean up necessary.  It's amazing how nobody is interested in eating at your house when the flu visits.
4. I think the best gift my hubby got was not having the flu.
5. I didn't get it until early Monday morning, so I was able to cook a nice Father's day dinner for those who could eat it.
6. I lost 2 pounds!  Although for all the trouble, I think it should be more.
7. There's nothing like being sick to make you appreciate being healthy.
8. There's also nothing like Mom being down and out to make kids appreciate having her healthy.
9. My kids were very compassionate and helpful.
10. I'm ready to pack away the red Gatorade and crackers until next time I sick!

Hopefully you had a better Father's Day.  Here's to eating anything but crackers.

Family Home Evening: Tithing

Our Relief Society lesson was about tithing, and the instructor sent us all home with Family Home Evening packets.  Since it was my turn to teach the lesson at home (and I was feeling overwhelmed), that's what I shared.  I read a couple of stories she included in the packet; Tithing and Pizza, and a picture story called Spencer's Potatoes.


The rest of the lesson came from the Gospel Principles manual.  It lists six main purposes the church uses tithing funds.  Our Relief Society instructor quizzed us, since it was so much fun I quizzed the family too.  They figured out all but one. 
 
1. Build, maintain, and operate temples, meetinghouses, and other buildings.  

2.  Provide operating funds for stakes, wards, and other units of the Church. (These units use the funds to carry out the ecclesiastical programs of the Church, which include teaching the gospel and conducting social activities.)

3.  Help the missionary program.

4.  Educate young people in Church schools, seminaries, and institutes.

5.  Print and distribute lesson materials.  

6.  Help in family history and temple work.

Did you get them all before you looked at the answers?

Our activity was Harry Potter Uno.  (Didn't we play that last week?)  One of my kiddos tried a new recipe for our treat - Lemon Slice Cookies.  They were very good.  Definitely a keeper!

Saturday Sentament:Fathers

I saw this quote on Travelin' Oma a couple of weeks ago.  It is one of my favorite fatherhood quotes.

Teaching his children is the mark of a civilized man ~ J. Ganz Cooney

Friday Favorites: June 17

Happy Friday!  This week has been busy and most of my project deadlines end over the weekend.  I'm looking forward to slowing down a bit next week.  We'll see if that happens.  Through the craziness, I have several favorites.

• Grass / Trampoline - The grass is finally in enough to open access to the trampoline which entertained kiddos for long stretches yesterday.  Trampolines + sprinklers = super happy kiddos!
• Silhouette - My super cool toy totally intimidates me.  I'm so excited I used it successfully for a couple of Girls Camp projects.  I'll have to show you next week.
• Plans that come together and people who help make that happen - My kiddos have been so helpful this week, often without even being asked!
• Family Photo Challenge - Don't forget to vote for your favorite picture in our first challenge.

There's some cool stuff going on beyond my little house.

• It's Free Font Friday again at Creating Keepsakes, and they have a digital sticker download you can use on Photoshop.  The Photoshop thing would be cooler if I understood how to make it work.
• Nellie Design has cute printable tickets for Father's Day.  This might work well with our gift for Dad.
• I'm not a fan of creamsicle Popsicle, but I'd try Your Homebased Mom's Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes.
• I heart Faces shares a tutorial on photo editing for those pictures that are too dark.  The even have a linky tool if you want to try your hand at the process.

So what does your weekend hold?  Big Father's Day plans?

New and Improved Photography Club

Thanks to the suggestions and encouragement to my last post about our Family Photography Club, we made a couple of changes.  First, a couple more of the kiddos decided to participate.  Second, we added a hands-on challenge element that turned out to be a ton of fun!


I still want to learn the mechanics of photography, but in small doses.  I caught the new kiddos up to what we learned so far, keeping it very simple and brief.  It really wasn't that much since it was mostly introductory material.  Then we briefly went over the standard focal length lens and discussed a little about how it relates to depth of field and distortion.


Then came the fun part!  I had searched around for a few challenge themes.  We went with I heart Faces current theme - Bright & Vivid.  Everyone had 10 minutes to take shots in and around the house of things that are bright and vivid.  We were allowed to use photo software to crop our pictures,then we chose our favorite to submit.  Since their submission was already closed, I thought I'd post them here and let you vote for your favorite.

Buttons
 

Bright Flower

Spiral Ball

Toys, Toys, Toys


Please vote for your favorite in the comments section!

Summer Bucket List

We’ve been brainstorming for the last couple of weeks, deciding what kind of fun activities we want to accomplish this summer.  I was surprised that our list had a slow start, but now it’s looking very healthy.

• ·         Go to the big park
• ·         Outdoor mall
• ·         Vacation
• ·         Summer school
• ·         Reading programs
• ·         Library
• ·         Play dates
• ·         Sewing lessons
• ·         Mesa Temple
• ·         Pottery studio
• ·         Paper weaving
• ·         Bowling
• ·         Summer camp
• ·         Movie night
• ·         Homemade ice cream
• ·         Scavenger hunt
• ·         Just Dance
• ·         Swimming
• ·         New Harry Potter movie
• ·         Photography club
• ·         Book Club
• ·         Diamondbacks game
• ·         Bass Pro Family Summer Camp

I made a pretty list and we’ll put a sticker by the ones we accomplish.  I probably should have done a little more research because one of our ideas was to go to an exhibit at the Center for Creative Photography at the U of A; but they are remodeling.  No exhibits until late August. 

What’s on your summer bucket list?

Family Night Phantom

Several Mondays ago the Family Night Phantom visited us with a knock on the door, a plate of cookies and this cute poem.  

Family night is here again, time for stories, time for fun!  Here’s a special treat from us to eat together when you’re done.

Next Monday night, it’s your turn to make a treat - not once, but twice.  Then two more families in our Ward will have a snack that’s nice.

Write this message out again, try not to give a clue on who the Family Night Phantom is, the secret safe with you!

The Family Night Phantom

 

We were pretty slow in passing on the fun, but better late than never. We will definitely enjoy more Phantom fun in the future and I thought I'd pass on the fun to you!

Family Home Evening: Service

Apparently I really needed to hear a lesson on service. Our Relief Society lesson was about kindness; which evolved into a lesson on service.  Then one of the kiddos did a lesson on service using the first experience for Good Works in the Personal Progress book.  I love the challenge of recognizing and acknowledging service others give to you for two weeks.  We talked about the times we give service without even realizing it and how much those seemingly little things can mean so much to those being served.  There are other times when we need to be aware of specific ways to serve; instead of asking "What can I do to help?", just offer "I'm bringing dinner tonight".  


We played I Never for our activity.  Everyone started with 10 M&M's.  The first person stated something they had never done, everyone who had done that thing has to eat an M&M.  The goal is to be the last one with M&M's.  Loosing never tasted so sweet!


Speaking of sweet, we had double chocolate cookies for our treat.  Those of us who bore our testimony at church had double treats.

Saturday Sentament: Happiness

We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather recognizing and appreciating what we do have. 
~ Frederick Keonig

Friday Favorites: June 10

Happy, happy Friday!  The weatherman said summer is finally coming with it's 110 degree temperatures in just a few days.  I was really enjoying the below average temps lately, but they can't last forever.  Fortunately we have a few ideas of how to avoid the heat, I'm thinking movies and ice cream.  Here's today's favorites.

• Mopped floors and a couple of kiddos who were not only willing, but eager to help!
• Watching the ultrasound of my grand baby.

There's some cool stuff in my little blogging world too.

• A truck load of summer reading programs. I listed all the Arizona programs I could find over at Arizona Mama.
• I have heard of Buttermilk Syrup; the Tasty Kitchen Blog shares the recipe and lots of pictures of the process.
• Positively Splendid has a giveaway for wood craft shapes that should help keep the kids busy.
• Creating Keepsakes is hosting Free Font Friday - CK Limerick is really cute!

Embroidery

Not only is my daughter a talented web designer, (yes, I still smile and say "pretty" every time I go to my blog), she also embroiders cute things for my blog! 

Summer Sizzle

As the sidewalks sizzle in the Arizona heat, how do we stay sane during the summer daze?  

• Time for sleeping in and slacking off (to some extent)
• Every morning, we strut our stuff and sweat to stay in shape
• Showers and solace take us til lunch
• Afternoons are devoted to summer reading programs, summer camp, book club, summer school and hopefully scratching something off the summer bucket list
• And if that doesn't stretch me to the limit, I try to sneak in a cleaning project, a sweet new recipe and sewing lessons
• As soon as the sun starts to set, we sometimes settle down with a good flick or other celebration.
• Add the summer stuff to the rest of life's responsibilities, no wonder I'm stressed!

Chocolate on my Cranium is hosting Wordfull Wednesday.  The challenge is to use alliteration to share a typical summer day.

Summer Science Experiments

Liven up your summer days with an occasional science experiment.  I enjoyed science in school, as long as there wasn't too much math.  But the days we did something hands on were always the best.  Things haven't changed much.  When I took my Biology class last fall, not only did I enjoy the experiments, so did my kiddos.  


The ultimate experiment involves food like our M&M experiment.  We've also had fun with fireworks in a glass.  I want to try this magic powder.  Check out The Science Mommy for more great ideas.

Family Home Evening: Temple Facts

One of the kiddos shared some specifics about the temples in Independence, Kirkland, Far West, Nauvoo and Salt Lake City.  Independence and Far West weren't built, but we have visited the dedicated sites.  It reminded me of - and supplemented - our Temple week we had last summer as part of our Stay at Home Summer Camp.


The rest of the evening was spent playing Harry Potter Uno and eating rainbow sherbert.

Saturday Sentament: Motherhood

I know it's almost Father's Day, but I couldn't resist this great quote.

A mother who radiates self-love and self-acceptance actually vaccinates her
daughter against low self esteem. ~ Naomi Wolf

Friday Favorites: June 3

Happy June!  Summer's officially started here - school's out and temperatures are in the 100's.  Here's today's edition of Friday Favorites.

• Sleeping in! At least I can if I so desire.  My body is still waking up around 5am, which is earlier than I had to get up on school days. 
• Still loving my new blog design.
• My desk is still clean!  It started growing piles again, but this morning I took a few minutes and found there home.  One pile of materials I'm gathering for a project next week ended up on the floor, but my desk is still useable!  

And here's my favorite posts I found on my Google Reader.

• Chef Tess's Brown Butter Banana Strawberry Bread.  I'm definitely adding this to the list of recipes to try.
• I discovered the Silhouette blog.  Now maybe I can finally master my Silhouette.  I love this cool etched glass tutorial!  Who knew the Silhouette could do glass etching too?  I wonder if I can get it to clean my house and organize my life?
• The Mother Huddle takes homemade popsicles to a whole new level.
• Your Homebased Mom shares recipes for White Chocolate Mousse and Cream Cheese Mousse that she served at a recent Crepe Bar.  My list of recipes to try is getting very long.  I need to do some serious cooking this summer.

Simple Pleasure

Chocolate on my Cranium asked what brings me simple pleasure.  Right now it's my new blog design!  I know I mentioned it yesterday, but I can't stop looking at it.  I really need to stop looking at it because I have a thousand other things I should be doing.  It's just so clean and pretty and unique because my daughter made it just for me!


OK, I better get back to those thousand things I'm supposed to be doing.

May Numbered

I'm so excited to start June off with a new blog design!  My talented daughter made this custom little beauty for me and I love, love, love it.  Here's how I spent the rest of May.


.8 - Number of pounds lost.

1 - Books read.  I'm closing in on two more, so hopefully next month will be better.  I am still really enjoying Sarah's Quilt.
3 - Hours spent switching my blog over to the new design.
4 - Scrapbook layouts completed. 
7 - Articles written for the Homemaking Cottage and Arizona Mama
8 - Piano practices.  Now that's more like it.
15 - Challenge projects completed.  This seems to be my achievable number.
27 - Blog posts.

43 - Comments.  It is so good hearing from you!
1573 - Page views!  A new record by a landslide.  Thanks for visiting.