We’re Moving

I’m taking a break from posting a DIY this weekend because I have a DIY list a mile long. It’s with a mixed bag of emotions that I announce our family full of stories will be relocating our narration 1200 miles north. We’re moving back to Michigan.

A little over 5 years ago, The Narrator and I embarked on an incredible journey. We had fallen in love with Florida and after our vehicle stranded us in the freezing Michigan cold one Christmas Eve, we started having warmer thoughts. It was an adventure that we knew we’d regret if we didn’t try. It was time to stretch our wings and head out on our own. We moved to this town not knowing a soul, but excited about the opportunities God had presented. It wasn’t easy packing up and leaving everyone and everything we’d ever known, but God met us on the other end in the form of life-long friendships that have blessed us beyond measure. Through it all, the good and the not-so-good, God has grown us in ways I never, ever could have imagined in the past 5 years. He stretched me by teaching me how to open up my home to crowds of people monthly, hosting out-of-town family and friends for weeks at a time, and having 2 different precious gals live with us. I received so much more than I gave in every situation. I became a Mom and experienced pregnancy and motherhood and a sick baby in the hospital surrounded by women who took care of us like family. My life is fuller than I ever could have dreamed. I’ve learned to open my heart and love like never before.

Over the past few months, we began to realize that it might be time to move back. Each time our parents came to visit and the kids had to say goodbye it got harder and harder. I thought that after 5 years the farewells would get easier. Instead, I found myself crying harder each time. It stunk. The climax was last week when we dropped Nana and Papa off at the airport and I drove away with 2 kids in the backseat crying, not understanding why their grandparents couldn’t stay forever. We decided it was time to put out some feelers in regards to moving back home. The thought seemed absurd to us with the economy and housing market in the state that it is – especially in Michigan. We knew it would take an act of God. And that’s what He did – He acted.

A week or two before Christmas The Narrator sent out a few resumes and heard back within a week on one. He didn’t realize until he got an email regarding setting up an interview that he knew the guy he’d be interviewing with. About ten years ago we had worked with his wife and had dinner as couples a few times. We had completely lost touch and had no idea he was now at this company.

The job description fits The Narrator and he’s excited about the vision they are working out.  God is in the details, and I plan on making that clear throughout this whole process. Stick around in the coming weeks as I continue to share the little God-details that have blown us away.

I was visiting my Grandma when The Narrator called to say they had offered and he’d accepted. In fact, being at her house when I got the call was a big God-in-the-details moment. That morning after breakfast, Little Miss had asked if we could go visit Great-Grandma “to see if she’s doing better.” We had nothing planned that day, so I called her and we headed down to visit. I had been nervous about telling her we were probably going to move, because I love her so dearly, and it has been such a joy for her to have my kids around. So being there, telling her about the possibility, and then getting the confirmation call while at her house was God’s perfect timing. It was so much easier to tell her in person and for the kids and I to be able hug and love on her. I’m quite certain God prompted Little Miss to ask to go see her that day. I’m glad I listened.

The Narrator will be working remotely until our home sells (another great God-detail). We have a list of things to do before putting a sign in the yard, but we’ll be working through it quickly. We’d appreciate your prayers through this process – the work of selling our home, finding the right realtor and buyer, packing up, and saying the goodbyes that I just can’t think about yet. (Another God-detail, in 3 days, a discount airline begins flying DIRECT from here to there making it so much easier and affordable for us to visit, and our friends to visit us there!!!) And for our kiddos – this is going to be quite an adjustment for 2 little minds and warm-blooded-bred bodies!

As we got into the car to head home that day from Grandma’s, this song was playing in my cd player. It caught my attention and my heart swelled until I thought it would burst with praises to God. Here and there, everywhere we have gone, He has been there directing our steps – even when we took detours and paid the price for it – even when we’ve paid the price for the mistakes of others. Listen. Let me tell you what He’s done for us.

Know what? I love you.

It seems to be so often when my kids open their mouths they show me the heart of God in an innocent, pure form that I am able to receive.

Most recently, I think I’m seeing a new side of what Jesus meant when He said:
“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

I find it interesting that he said little children. I have little children. Two of them. And as I observe them unashamedly love each other and love those around them, I get more of a sense of how Jesus might desire us to live.

Both Little Miss Sunshine and T-Rex are  very free with letting people know they love them. Randomly and frequently in the middle of a conversation one of them will say, “I love you, Miss so-and-so.” The best part is watching the reaction of this unexpected declaration of love on the adult’s face. Her or his face will soften and with lit up eyes give a hearty, “I love you too!!”

Freely offering love. I think that’s the way God originally wired us, and when Jesus said that humbling ourselves like a child to come to Him, must involve this kind of love as well, not just for Him but for His people.

Review – Patons Classic Wool About the Home

The Narrator knows me so well. He ought to after all these years together! For my birthday, he picked up a JoAnns gift card so I could buy my own yarn, some small scissors to put in my knitting basket, and this great book. He knows me well enough to know that my hobbies are two-fold. The actual hobby itself, and collecting things regarding to the hobby (books, accessories, supplies, etc.) Lately, pattern and idea books have been my newest obsession, and since I have a whole new hobby – KNITTING!! I get to start collecting a whole new category of books.

This little booklet is filled with 13 felted projects (where you take a wool yarn, make the project and then felt it – basically shrink it tight in the washer with hot water). The projects are all for home decor and include both crocheting and knitting. There’s a wall organizer, various smaller organizers, chair pad, rugs, tea cozy, leaf table runner, accent pillows – and my FAVORITE – this cherry blossom wall art. For some reason, it had never crossed my mind to use knitting as wall art, but this piece is gorgeous! It will probably be the first piece I attempt out of this book. It will look perfect in our family room, which is currently art-less.

can't wait to make this one!

In addition to the patterns, the booklet also contains basic knitting and crocheting instructions, as well as felting instructions. Felted pieces are amazing. I can’t wait to try this method. Once a piece has been felted, the stitches are so tight together, that it looks like a thick piece of fabric.

Good job on the birthday present shopping, Narrator

love these pillows!

My Magical Birthday

My birthday was one of those magical days when you realize you are loved. It was one of those days where all the little “extras” added up for one life-long memory.

my birthday ticket

I’ve been to Disney a few times before, but this particular day the magic started at the ticket counter. I took advantage of the FREE birthday ticket! Already it’s a great day! I stood in line with my printout and a kind cast member was going through the lines telling everyone who was there for a birthday ticket to get in a special line. It was kind of funny because as we were all standing in line we realized we all shared the same birthday, so we started chuckling and greeting each other with “Happy Birthday!” “Well Happy Birthday to you too!!” At the ticket window, the gentleman greeted me with a big smile and the first of many, many cheery “Happy Birthday!!” greetings. I got an ultra cool souvenier ticket and a button to wear all day long announcing that it was my birthday. And everywhere I went ALL day long, ALL the cast members told me Happy Birthday. Never, ever, ever have I heard that phrase so happily said to me so many times in one day. In fact, we were walking down the street in Liberty Square when my father-in-law nudged me and pointed out a guy standing just outside a shop who had been HOLLERING a birthday greeting to me several times to get my attention. I hadn’t even seen him. But he saw me!

Little Miss Sunshine's gift pin

Our first stop of the day was a gift shop so Little Miss could purchase an autograph book with her birthday money. As she was checking out,  I noticed the cashier cast member had a Spanish accent, so I told Little Miss to tell her “gracias!” As Little Miss thanked her in Spanish, the lady’s eyes lit up and she reached behind the counter to get a special pin. She told Little Miss that she wanted to give her something, and handed her a TinkerBell pin that Little Miss wore proudly all day long. “Now we both have pins, Mama!” I instructed her to tell the kind lady, “MUCHAS Gracias!!”

I had wanted to do a few things we had never done before at Disney – the big one being having lunch with the Pooh characters at the Crystal Garden. I had called the day before to make reservations but they were all booked up. The kind lady on the phone instructed me to try to stop by the restaurant the day of our visit and see if they had any openings. I figured it was a lost cause and wasn’t going to plan our day around trying to get into a restaurant. But as lunchtime approached, my mother-in-law sent my father-in-law and her brother (who works at Disney) over to the restaurant to check availability while the kids and I rode the teacups. (Since I’m the only one in the family who can take the spinning with the kids!) My father-in-law said he asked if they had any openings and the lady told him at first that they didn’t. Then she thought for a second and said she’d check with her manager. She came back and told him they had 1 table open in 35 minutes! We had a flurry of cell phone calls to each other and we rushed from the teacups over to the restaurant just in time to have our name called.

T loving on Pooh!

Oh. My. Word. Lunch was AMAZING. I was so glad that we got in. First off, it was all-you-can-eat buffet and it was maybe the best food I’ve ever eaten. In fact, you know it’s good when the Uncle who works at Disney is impressed. We ate so much that I wasn’t sure I’d be able to walk around the rest of the day! While we were dining, Tigger, Eeyore, Pooh and Piglet walked around to all the tables signing autographs, conducting a parade, taking pictures and making the kids feel really special. It was so delightful to eat in a relaxed environment and have the characters come to the table. Our server noticed my birthday button and returned with confetti that she sprinkled on the table (mickey shaped of course!). Then after we had eaten, she returned with a cupcake and a candle and everyone sang to me. One of the little extras was that the table next to us also had a birthday. Their little boy turned 3 that day. They had pre-ordered a birthday cake and when they were finished with it, they brought the remaining half to our table and said they wanted to share it with us because they couldn’t eat it all. That was so nice of them! So I told the little birthday boy that I was also 3, but with a 2 on the end! The parents laughed.

meeting Fawn the animal fairy

It was just magical to experience Disney through my kids eyes and see their eyes light up talking to the characters. (T-Rex couldn’t stop “petting” Pooh!) The funniest of funny was watching T-Rex get all googly-eyed around the princesses and fairies. He’s all gung-ho and chatty the rest of the day, but around the pretty girls he is SPEECHLESS and all grins. Oh my goodness what a riot! And of course Little Miss is all chatty with the characters, but she couldn’t quite understand why the big fuzzy characters didn’t talk – only the people characters did. It didn’t make any sense to her because in the movies Pooh and Tigger talk. Ah the magic for them at this age is that everything is REAL to them. It’s a joy as parents to re-live a bit of that mysterious, magical imagination that we lost somewhere along the living of reality. To see the nighttime parade through their eyes for the first time, to see the wonder of fireworks over the castle – it truly was a magical day, and I loved every minute of it.

Nana’s Flying Bugs

We said goodbye to Nana and Papa yesterday. Ugh. Never, ever fun saying bye to family – especially with 2 kids in the backseat crying as we pull out of the airport “I want them to stay foreeeeeveeeer!!!!” Sigh. It usually takes me a week or two to recover from airport drop offs. I try to find lots of happy things to do. So we will be stickering and coloring and gluing and going to a puppet show and everything else I can think of for the next week! In the mean time, we will also reminisce…

One day last week while Nana & Papa were here, the kids were going a bit stir-crazy. We’d had a string of cold (for us) days, and with the onset of the sniffles and an impending theme park day, I had been keeping the kids inside. Nana came up with this creative idea to occupy them for awhile. Inspired by our library storytime about ladybugs, she drew a ladybug on scrap paper for T-Rex and then he colored it in. She proceeded to cut it out, punch a hole in it, and tie a piece of yarn in the hole creating an indoor kite. Little Miss Sunshine drew her own bug (isn’t it so cute?!). The kids had a blast running through the house with their flying ladybugs.

Depending on your kids age and ability, they could do this project on their own – drawing and coloring the bug, cutting it out, making the hole and tying the string. I would suggest reinforcing the area around the hole with tape before punching it.

Hours of burning-off-energy fun!!

Birthday Blessings

I have amazing family and friends coast to coast. They blessed me beyond measure on my birthday. In addition to all the wonderful greetings I received, we spent my birthday at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. In case you haven’t heard – Disney World is offering FREE admission to 1 park on your birthday during 2009. I’ve been to Disney World a number of times over the years, but celebrating my birthday at Disney was one of the most magical experiences ever. I think it was the combination of it being my birthday, and getting to experience the Magic Kingdom through the eyes of my kids, experiencing a few new things while there topped with a few extra blessings just made the day almost indescribable.

I’m still recovering. I’ll give you a recap in a couple days when I have words to give the day a bit more justice. Until then, check out how you can go to Disney for free on your birthday!

The power of books

I have always loved to read. In fact, when I was in the second grade, I had to get my first pair of glasses. The eye doctor told my mom that I should get outside more often. Apparently he thought I sat inside and read all day long, hence my poor eyesight so young. My mom looked at him and said, “Oh she spends lots of time outside – reading!!”

I have a long list of favorite childhood books, and I recently discovered a box full of them in storage at my in-laws. It was like re-living my childhood as I dusted off book after book after book. Stories from Grandma’s Attic, the Little House on the Prairie series, and my all-time favorite the Ann of Green Gables series. I brought the books home and can’t wait to start reading them to Little Miss Sunshine.

So naturally, I’m thrilled that one of my kids favorite activities is going to the library for storytime and to pick out new books each week. We have a gorgeous new library just a few miles from our house filled with a million dollars worth of brand new books. Row after row after row of never-opened books. It’s like a dream come true.

A trip to the library early this month sent me home with a 700 page (or more) volume of all of Jane Austen’s books. I thought I might read a couple of the novels, but after it took me over 2 weeks to read Sense and Sensibility (loved it!) I thought my brain needed a break. I’m an impatient reader and I just couldn’t read it fast enough!

This massive volume of Austen was sitting on the coffee table the other day when iIttle Miss picked it up and decided to “read” it with T-Rex. They took turns flipping the pages making up stories.
LMS: “Once upon a time far, far away, there was a little girl. Ok, your turn, T-Rex.”
T: “Once upon a time, der was a leetle boy. He went to da store to get medicine for da baby.”
LMS: “My turn again!”

They continued this little scenario for a few minutes while my mother-in-law, Housemate and I watched. Then Little Miss said, “Do you like this story, do you want to read more?” After T-Rex excitedly answered “YES!” They snuggled deeper into the couch and T-Rex clutched Little Miss’s arm and leaned in closer than I thought was possible. She took a deep breath and said,
LMS: “R”
T: “OOOOOOOHHHH!!” in the most awe-filled voice you can imagine.
LMS: “Q”
T: “OOOHHHH!!”
LMS: “T”
T: “OHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!”

By this time we couldn’t hold it any longer, and my mother-in-law, Housemate and I giggled and laughed until we had tears rolling down our cheeks. She literally was naming letters and he was hanging on her every word, er um letter, as if it was the most brilliant awe-inspiring thing he had ever heard. Now, that’s powerful!

I hope their love of language and reading will last their whole life!

DIY Saturday – Make your own chicken broth

In a crockpot!!

Last week my visiting mother-in-law bought two small, whole chickens and we cooked them in the crockpot. We put a layer of carrots and celery on bottom, placed both chickens in the crockpot side-by-side and sprinkled a packet of Good Seasons Italian dressing mix over the top (this is also very good with the Ranch dressing packets). It was sooo yummy and created the richest broth.

She then taught me how to make more of my own chicken broth, and we filled up my freezer. I’ve been buying broth a lot lately for soups and it’s expensive!! This option is so much more economical and DELICIOUS!

1.After you’ve picked all the chicken off the bone, place all un-edible pieces back in the crock pot (bones, fat, gristle, skin).

2.Add in a few stalks of celery (with the leaves). We didn’t do this – but you can also add a few bay leaves and sage if desired.

3.Fill the crock pot with water and turn on low for 8-10 hours or overnight. Your house is going to smell soooo good!

4.Strain the broth into a bowl removing all the bones and pieces and allow to cool.

5.Once the broth has cooled , place it in the refrigerator until it the fat has congealed, and then scoop or scrape the fat off the top.

6.Place the broth into smaller freezer-safe containers (I’d recommend 1-cup containers, or freezing in ice cube trays and then placing in a freezer bag) and freeze. Broth will last about 6 months in a regular freezer.

Thirty-two

Today I am 32 years old. While 32 may seem like just another random birthday in the natural succession of years, it holds a bit of significance for me.

When I was about 15 or 16, I remember studying my face in the mirror and thinking I looked quite old. I leaned onto the bathroom counter until my nose touched the mirror. I leaned my head this way and that way and squinted just to make sure. Yup. I was sure. My face looked old. Much older than it should have looked for 15. My Mom came around the corner just then and asked me what in the world I was doing. “Mom, I look so OLD. I have wrinkles and dry skin! I look like I’m 32 or something!!” My Mom got quite the kick out of that as you can imagine. She also made sure to relay my comment to an aunt, who happened to be 32 at the time. I never heard the end of it.

So now I have arrived. And this time, I really do have a few wrinkles and dry skin to show for it. But somehow, inside, I don’t feel any older than 16!!

Knit and That

I promise, this won’t turn into a knitting blog. It’s just that I’m so excited that 20 years after my first attempt, I’ve finally got it! I’ve spent most of this week shoulder-to-shoulder with my mother-in-law, determined to figure out this knitting thing. After making ten 4-inch squares, I think it has sunk into my brain. It only took 20 years, but hey at least I never gave up! I’m also now 10 inches into a scarf and am planning to make a blanket next. Apparently, all my mom’s instructions were buried in there somewhere and just needed some brushing up and lengthy attempts. Now I’m addicted. In fact, while getting ready to go see a movie with The Narrator yesterday (Bedtime Stories – LOVED it, can’t remember the last time I laughed that much during a movie!!) I wondered if it would be ok to take lighted knitting needles into the theater and keep working on my scarf. I figured that might not be a good idea, besides I don’t have any lighted needles yet (yes, there is such a thing!). But if you ever go to a movie and see some crazy lady knitting with lighted needles, come over and say hi!

Here is T-Rex’s 4-generation blanket. There are squares on this blanket that I knitted, his Nana knitted, his Great-Grandma knitted, and his Great-Great Grandma knitted.

Hopefully Little Miss Sunshine’s blanket will be finished before Nana goes home next week. These are the squares that I knitted for her blanket. I decided to get experimental and go beyond the garter stitch and try a double seed stitch, basketweave, garter-bordered stockinette, and a garter ridge.

And as if on cue, it’s been Florida-cold all week long dipping into the 50′s during the day, and the 30′s overnight. I hear that’s about the same temperatures that Alaska had recently! Brrr!!