sharing the love: valentine's matchbook download

Remember these sweet Valentine's matchbook covers I made for the girls last year? Still love them. If I run out of time to make some new ones, I might actually have Ella use them again.

wedding day: mr. + mrs. patrick mccrary

I'm finally feeling like I'm back among the living. When the Dr. said it would take three weeks to recover from the influenza bug I had, I should have believed him.

Christmas was simple and wonderful. I only got half the decorations up and we ate off paper plates for Christmas dinner. Guess what? The world never stopped turning. Not once. :)

And we made it through the wedding. It was delightful and beautiful and perfect. Until we get the photographer's photos back, here are a few I quickly snapped . Can't wait to see the others.

We adore Ashlee's parents and family. She has four sisters, zero brothers.

Check out those blue skies and no snow. It's the middle of winter in Utah, people! Just a little chilly, but the sunshine was wonderful.

wedding word art

My son, Patrick, and his fiancee, Ashlee, asked me to create a large framed custom word art to display at their reception. (Only ten more days!) Ashlee had a tear sheet in her "wedding ideas" notebook of a similar one. She's been so organized through the entire process. This is what I came up with.

They gave me a list of words to include. It has phrases, memories, places and words that have special meaning them. The print size will be 16x20. I'm going to frame it in a simple black frame because they want to hang it in their home after the reception.

All my "assignments" for the wedding have been in the works for awhile, I just need to finish them up. Wish me luck!

a little Christmas inspiration: it's all in the packaging

Ella has had a difficult time with so many packages arriving on our porch and none of them being for her. Finally, the UPS man brought a great big box just for her and Madi. (It's from my brother, Mike, and his wife, Lynn. Thanks, guys!). As excited as she was, you'd have thought it was Christmas! Oh wait, it is. :) One of the things I love about the holidays, is having boxes arrive on my porch.

christmas: a sweet and simple craft

Ella pulled a "do a craft with Mom" card from our activities advent the other day. I think it's her favorite one, besides "choose a holiday treat." Yep, the girl has a major sweet tooth.

So we twisted pipe cleaners together to make candy canes for Ella's tree. (Real ones would mysteriously disappear, I'm sure! :)) They look darling. Then we had fun forming letters and spelling words. Ella loved adding a little "whip-dee-do" at the end of each letter. :)

gifted: Christmas teacher gift

When it comes to gifting others, I tend to give things I love or would love to receive.

sweet moments and scripture advent download

My experience has been, that recognizing and being grateful for those sweet and simple moments that touch our hearts is what makes life most meaningful and memorable. You can't make them happen, they just do. And you smile, offer a little prayer of thanks, take a picture with your heart, and know. And then they happen even more often. That's why I love Christmas so much. It's filled to the brim with opportunities to find and cherish those little moments.

a little Christmas inspiration

I was flat on my back with the stomach flu yesterday. Between all the nastiness, I looked through my Pinterest holiday board for a little inspiration. I thought I'd share some of my favorites.

I started collecting toddler size socks a few years ago when I saw this advent calendar from Martha Stewart. I'm going to use it as a garland.

holiday favorites: cranberry sauce

We had a quiet little family Thanksgiving with some of the kids and our granddaughter, Madi. It was wonderful.

out and about: St. George, UT mini va-cay

Every fall, Lynn and Patrick take a "boys" trip together. They've gone to Yellowstone several times and Zion's National Park. This year, they sort of invited the girls (me, Ashlee and Ella). We all headed to the condo in St. George and on Saturday we went our separate ways.

The boys took off for the day exploring back roads and visiting the site of the Mountain Meadow Massacre. They also visited a ghost town called Grafton.

The girls had some serious shopping to do at my favorite spots. Not before hitting the nail salon though. Ella and I got manicures. Since Ashlee was having her bridal photos the day after we arrived home, she got both a mani and a pedi. Ella asked me, "Hey, why does Ashlee get both?" :)

apple carrot muffins

I had no intention of taking such a long break from blogging. I've been enjoying the fall weather, scents and palatable flavors tremendously this year. And I've been quite domestic. (What's up with that?) I actually enjoy it, but it does come in waves for me. So family, enjoy it while it lasts! :)

All the fun recipes and ideas on Pinterest inspire me. I know that's part of it. And then I got together with some friends to can apples. I asked my friend and neighbor, Natalie, to show me how and four other friends joined us. It was so enjoyable. Yep, I'm pretty sure that's were it started.

Natalie had extra Rome apples from her parent's trees, so she gave me a big box. I also borrowed her apple corer/peeler/slicer and now I want my own. It's very cool.

relief society meeting: cooking club

We're starting a new meeting for the Relief Society (the women's organization in our church) this month. It's called the Cooking Club. We're inviting sisters (or they can volunteer) to hold a meeting in their home to demonstrate and share a taste of one dish from their family favorites recipe file. The focus will be on simple and healthy dishes their family loves and that they enjoy making. They can share additional recipes on a handout if they'd like, and I'll help them with the entire process.

I'd much rather prepare a "tried and true" recipe I've actually tasted. I've been making a point of trying new recipes lately and have had a lot of misses--and some successes too. More misses though. We have some women in the ward who love to cook and are good at it.

Our first Cooking Club meeting will be a little different. With the upcoming holiday season approaching, we thought it would be fun to get together to learn to make yummy pies. We have a sister in the ward, Tamsen, who has some mad skills in that department. Everyone I talk to says her pies are amazing! We sent out an ingredient and supplies list and we're all going to mix and roll our pie crust right along with Tamsen. Then we'll add our choice of filling and have a finished pie to take home and bake! How cool is that? We're going to have some very happy husbands in the neighborhood. :)

fall field trip 2011

It snowed just a little today. Ella and I talked about the seasons. I told her I think fall is my favorite. She likes summer best because she gets to visit Grandma and Grandpa.

A couple of weeks ago the kindergarten class went on their fall field trip. Ella was a little anxious, but so excited.

E with friends, David and Ella B.

Her lunch was planned a week in advance. We packed her favorite things (a ham and cheese Lunchables with an Oreo, apple slices and juice), because it was a very special occasion.

Even more exciting than packing a special lunch, was riding the school bus. Finally! For a year before Ella started kindergarten, she would tell me how much she was looking forward to riding the bus to school. (We live one block away.) As thrilled as she was, Ella told me she cried when she first got on the bus, just a little, so no one could see. (Then I cried just a little, because it made me sad.) But then she forgot how scared she was and it was okay. :)

At the park in the canyon, each student received a paper bag with a list of items to collect. Being in the canyon + collecting = one happy little girl. Ella is an expert collector--mini princesses, rocks, Happy Meal toys, rocks, ponies, rocks, pennies from the Meadow Fairies (more on that later), rocks.

happy halloween 2011

My day was wickedly busy! Which makes me laugh, because I have friends whose days are like this every day, and it's their norm. I just don't function well when I'm over-scheduled and can accomplish more when I keep things simple. I also give myself one day per week--Thursday--that I schedule nothing. It's a free day and it's my day to do the things I want. I have Lynn pick up dinner on the way home, so I don't even cook. It's one of those essentials in my life.

I started the day with attending the Halloween parade at school--so fun. I worked out, checked e-mails (and yes, Pinterest, but only for 15 minutes :)). I picked up Ella from school, got her lunch, got dressed and we headed to play therapy. I went into the play room with Ella this time. We're starting a new thing called "relationship enhancement," hoping it will help her with an issue she's struggling with right now.

Then I was off to the United Way of Utah County to be taped for a presentation at the "In Her Shoes" Gala, which is a fund raising event hosted by Women in Philanthropy. They support some of the programs at the Family Support and Treatment Center. I shared our experiences with the programs at FSTC and how they have benefited us.

I was behind the camera on occasion when I worked for Creating Keepsakes and Making Memories, but it has been a long time! I was definitely out of my comfort zone on this one. But it's been awhile since I challenged myself to do something that made me nervous and even a bit fearful. It ended up being very rewarding. And Karen and John were awesome. That made a huge difference. Of course I got a little emotional at the end. I always do when I'm talking about something so dear to my heart.

Another reason I agreed to do the taping, was because I love the Family Support and Treatment Center. We would not have made the progress we've made with Ella if not for their programs and resources. We know that. I wish I had a million dollars to throw at them, but I don't. So instead I will help them in any way I can.

On our way home, we stopped to see this display. Yes, I know it's juvenile, but it's silly and imaginative and Ella thinks it's hilarious. She calls them "the pumpkin bums."

halloween fun: monster slime kit

I went visiting teaching this morning (yes, I know it's the end of the month :)). I wanted to take along something fun for Halloween. We had such a good time and got so "freaked out" making magical monster slime yesterday, I thought I'd put together a kit with the supplies so Cami could make it with her own little monsters.

halloween fun: magical monster slime

There are a variety of recipes floating around Pinterest for Slime or Gak. My boys loved the stuff when they were younger. They probably still would. :) There's one special ingredient that the recipe we used forgot to add, which makes the slime "magical."

Ella, Gentry and Kate

 That's according to these three little monsters.

Ella and Kate wanted a play date this week. They both love to do crafts, so they dressed paper dolls with real fabric and made magical monster slime. Gentry (Kate's younger sister), hung out with us while her mom ran an errand.

10 tips for a successful super saturday

Whew! Another successful Relief Society meeting under our belts. Super Saturday is an activity held once a year for the women in our church. We get together to socialize, craft, learn new skills, and eat. Yep, it's good times. I was on the Relief Society Board for this event and there's a lot of planning and work that goes into it. I've put together a simple list of things we've learned.

1. Choose simple, quality, up-to-date projects that fit the needs of the sisters in your ward.

We hold our Super Saturday in October each year, so we focus on projects that can be gifted for Christmas and decorate our homes for the holidays. We also try to choose projects that teach a new skill. Our ward has a huge number of children, so darling hair accessories are always a no-brainer.

After making fifteen hair accessories, Sandra started teaching Melissa. :)  

Sandra's hair accessories (shhhh, they're Christmas gifts).

Projects that require painting add a level of mess and wait time. If you choose to include them, limit the number. Also limit how many projects you offer (and color choices you offer) for simplicity sake, kit prep, and teaching purposes.

out and about: sundance, utah

My sweet husband loves to plan surprises. And I love surprises. Yep, we make a great team. :) When we were first married, we spent a lot of time and weekends at Sundance. It's one of our favorite places to turn off the rest of the world and just breathe for awhile. I can literally feel the tension leave my neck and shoulders as we climb the hill to the resort.

About two week ago, Lynn told me, "Don't plan anything for this certain Saturday (last week)." He arranged for a babysitter and made reservations at my favorite place to eat at Sundance, The Foundry Grill. I had mentioned a couple of times that I really wanted to drive the Alpine Loop to see the fall colors. So after lunch, we did. It was a perfect day.

It was so peaceful and nice to just sit and soak in the light.

i love you, mommy!

Hi Mommy, I miss you so much. Are you feeling better?

an interest in pinterest: halloween goodness

A friend in my neighborhood posted on our Google group, looking for ideas her kids could make each other for Christmas. I suggested she look on Pinterest. Here's a follow-up to my reply:

I agree with Pinterest, but be warned, it sucks you in like a giant crafty black hole, never to be heard from again. Evil. Awesome evil.

Denise

I busted up. It's true. And yes, I was the one who shared the "awesome evil" with Denise. I'm so ashamed. :)

Yep, I'm officially addicted to Pinterest. I refer to it all the time in my conversations and a couple of times, I've even dreamed I was pinning--really.

I'm always surprised by how many people don't know about it. If you're not familiar, it's a place to gather the things that interest and inspire you and "pin" them onto boards you create.

pin + interest = pinterest.

It's the perfect organizational tool. I used to have a million posts and websites "bookmarked" on my computer. But trying to find them again was a daunting and time consuming task. Now I simply go to Pinterest, open my boards, and the information is all there, attached with a photo. It's pure genius.