american crafter

So....on a whim I decided to enter a crafting bloggy contest.
All I had to do was enter one of my favorite crafts,
then three talented judges (super star crafty bloggers)
were going to pick their favorite 15 crafty bloggers
from everyone who entered and 130 people entered.

Imagine my surprise when I got an email from Amy
telling me that I had been chosen to be a contestant.
I wrote her back and explained our situation with the
call and how I didn't know if I'd be able to get everything done
because I was going to be out of town and such...
but she encouraged me to give it a go.

And she also told me that I was actually chosen #2 out of 130 people.
That's CRAZY!
My crafts are not THAT cool.
I just copy what I see,
in my own way of course.

So anyway, I've got my first craft for
Be my valentine
done already, just have to photograph it!
Can't wait for you to see it.

Then this weekend you can go over to Amy's blog
Naptime Crafters
and vote for your favorite craft...
if it happens to be mine
AWESOME
and if not, that's totally cool too!

This was my audition craft...

we covet your prayers

My husband made this announcement in church yesterday.
We truly appreciate your prayers.
God's WILL be done.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

On Monday, January 24^th, I learned that Concordia Lutheran Church, Jackson, TN, has issued to me a Divine Call to serve as their Pastor. The documents and accompanying material have now arrived, and I am in the process of reviewing them. Just as you were led by the Holy Spirit to call me to be one of your pastors, so now the people of Concordia Lutheran Church have been led by the same Holy Spirit to extend to me this call.

I ask that you join me and Jamie in praying for a decision that will be for the good of Christ's kingdom and for the benefit of both congregations involved. If you have any questions about the call process, or wish to offer any thoughts, one way or the other, please don’t hesitate to share them with me. Feel free to call or email at any time I hope to announce my decision on Sunday, February, 20^th.

I thank you for your prayers.

God bless,
Rev. Greg

We will be going to Tennessee on Wednesday to check out the church/housing situation and will prayerfully consider this call...and his current call to Mt. Calvary.

super bowl party ideas...

It's getting close to time for the annual Super Bowl Party! I started having Super Bowl parties when I was a youth director in St. Louis! Lots of good memories. Like the year with the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction...well, we never saw it. I know how "raunchy" those half-time shows can be so instead of watching half-time with the youth group we made up our own commercials and acted them out during half-time. That was WAY better than any half-time show.

Not sure what I love about having Super Bowl Parties, probably just being able to have a party in February (unless I'm throwing Greg a surprise birthday party...sorry babe, no surprise party this year) and getting together with friends to eat good food and ignore the TV is always fun.

This year since my husband has been much more involved with the youth from church we decided to invite them over....and I'm SUPER excited! Not only do I get to go crazy with crafts and decorating (even though I never really get everything done that I plan in my head to do) but I also get to hang out with the awesome youth from our church. And my kids are SUPER excited about that too!

I didn't make a ticket invitation this year (see last year's here) since it's open to all the youth, but I do plan on busting out the traditional Super Bowl quiz that I get from The Source for Youth Ministry. In addition to that quiz, this year I've been given these great Super Bowl Party Games from Python Printable Games.

My plan is to have some fun games around for those who aren't SUPER interested in actually watching the game. This way they can still be involved in some aspects of the fun football atmosphere. You've gotta check out these great Super Bowl Party Games though. The download includes 15 printable games, and once you purchase these games you can print as many as you'd like. You can also purchase the games individually. These games look like lots of fun and will save me time from having to create my own games. Some of the games included may not work so well with our youth group but they'd work great with a group of adults (ex:"Super Bowl Widows Newlywed Game"). And some of the games will be perfect for our party (ex: "Super Stupid Bowl mad libs"). You can check out some of their Free Printables too.

You can see some of the details from the party we had last year and get some ideas for your own party. I'm hoping to get more of the decorations done early next week so if they're ready and I have time I'll post my ideas....otherwise you'll just have to wait till after the BIG GAME to see how it all turned out.

Do you have any SUPER BOWL Sunday traditions?


I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

can't stop taking her picture

a new oven

I've been wanting a new oven since we moved in to this house.
The one in the house is old, heats unevenly and two burners don't work.
So, today we got a new oven...
okay, not really, but I made a new oven for the kids.














Have I told you how much I love cardboard, scissors and packing tape?
It's fun to make new things for the kids to play with...
we all get to use our imagination in the process!

keeping kids safe

Things aren't the same today as they were when we were kids.
SO many things have changed in our society.

It's obviously important that we do everything we can to keep our kids safe.
This is not going to be a long winded post about what you need to do to make them safe.
I'm not an expert. I know the basics. I do my best.
I would be devastated if anything serious happened to one of my kids.

There are many things out there to help keep kids safe,
from safety proofing your home, to labeling your kids shoes,
(kid nappers don't usually change the child's shoes)
to the great C.H.A.D. car seat stickers
(if you live in San Antonio and would like one we have a bunch at our church)
and I have created my own version of a child id card
(from looking at other id cards), that I am giving to you to use also (if you want).

I made two copies of each kids card so that Greg and I can each carry one.
I should have made another set to leave at home for babysitters.


The file that you can download just has black boxes, you'll just have
to print out a photo of your child and attach it to the card.

The front and back files did not match exactly so I printed them separately,
but I'm sure once you download the file you can fix that in Word
if you know how to do that, I don't really know how so I didn't worry about it.


Use kid safe ink and get their thumb prints.
I'm pretty sure that you don't need to do thumb prints on children under 2,
because their thumb print is not really "permanent" before 2.
But check with your local authorities on that one because I've been known to be wrong!


Fill out all the information, either before you print the cards,
or just write the info in after you've printed them.
Laminate the cards...or use contact paper or something similar.


Then cut the laminated cards and you're all set to put them in your wallet.

You can download the file for these ID cards here.
And if you'd be so kind to leave a comment if you download that would be AWESOME!

Also check with your insurance company, sometimes they have child id kits for free!
What is the most important thing for you in keeping your kids safe?

a new year...a new me?

So with the new year upon us...
(can you believe January is almost OVER?!)
and with me being more intentional about things,
let me tell you a little bit about what has been going on over at our house.

We are going to try to get further out of debt.
We've already been successful at finishing payments on one of Greg's student loans.
*insert happy dance*
We WILL be better about keeping up with our budget each month.
Part of that budget will include planning ahead...
for things like vacation, Christmas, parties, etc.
Setting a little bit aside each month to make sure
we can pay cash for things is SO important.

So when we go on vacation we have the money we need for gas and food and stuff.
Thinking about vacation has me thinking about our luggage.
Most of our luggage is in pretty good condition,
but this Delsey Luggage is pretty awesome.
It looks so sturdy, like it could withstand being strapped to the top of the van...
because with three kids and a two week car trip we may need to do that.

Another thing we are doing is trying to simplify, get rid of things,
stop buying things we don't really need.
Part of this also includes moving some furniture around
to make our floor plan work better for us.
We currently have my grandfathers old roll top desk in our kitchen,
we are planning on moving it to the entry way of the house.
It will hold all my antique cameras.
We will move the cedar chest
which is currently at the entry way to the living room,
it's already full of blankets so we figured that would be a good place.

So, in the kitchen we'll have a little more space for playing, learning,
and just being together since that's what the kitchen is for right?
I'd love to get a kid size table and chairs in there too. Something like this

or this

or this

and I know Greg would love for us to have something like this.


This year I am going to be more intentional about meal planning too.
If we plan more meals, we'll eat out less, spend less money on groceries,
(since we'll actually know what we're going to be eating)
and we'll be eating healthier meals as well.
Yes, of course I'll still be baking (I'm not giving that up)
but it's just so nice to have a plan and to be able to know
that dinner will be taken care of and I don't need to fret at 4:30
about what I'm going to make.

It's so awesome how having a budget and a meal plan
can really make your life less stressful.
You'd think that by having the structure of each of those things
you may feel as though you have no freedom.
But having a budget and a meal plan really make me feel more free.

So a few weeks into the new year and I feel good.
Now, let's hope I can implement a few other things
that I need to be intentional about,
and stick with the things that I know I need in order to be a happier
less stressed, a little more in control (in a good way) person.

Oh and one more thing.
We've been "unplugging" more and more.
Trying to go without TV as much as possible...
and it's soooooo good for the kids and after Micah
gets over the initial "we're not watching TV today"
he forgets about it and has a great time playing with Naomi,
playing with his cars, reading books, etc.
And it's been good for me too...
not spending as much time on the computer,
(thus the weekly blog posts instead of a consistent daily post)
and spending more time sewing and crafting
(look for some felt food in my etsy store in a week or so).

Looks like it's going to be a GREAT year!

Check back soon for a review from the CSN stores!!!

happy birthday grammy

Happy Birthday mom!!!
I hope you enjoy your birthday today,
being spoiled and spoiling those two sweet little girls.

Naomi made a little book for you.
I thought it might be helpful if I explained what the pictures were.
She had some good stories to go along with them.

This is you sitting on a chair blowing out the candles on your birthday cake.
Can you see it?


This is you, grammy, with Naomi holding Hannah on the right side,
and you are helping Micah put on his socks. (notice your extra long arm)


This one is AWESOME....but you may not see it right away.
The two people that you see faces of are me and Naomi,
then you are taking a picture of us.
Do you notice the back of your head kinda in the middle of the drawing.
I guess you're see through, but your head is not.
Clever right?


This is our family.
Greg is on the left, I am behind him,
then Naomi is in the front kneeling and wearing a "cover feet dress"
and Micah is on the right holding Hannah.


Okay, these drawings are not in your birthday book grammy
but I wanted to share them anyway.

This is our family, I am on the left, then Micah, and Hannah and
Greg is on the right. She told me that Hannah is older in this drawing,
and she's kneeling. I asked her why she wasn't in the picture
and she told me "I had to go potty"


Then I asked her to draw a picture of her and I holding hands.
This is what she drew. I'm going to be using this drawing for a little project.
Can't wait to get it started.



So grammy, I hope you have an amazing birthday.
Your cards aren't in the mail yet but hopefully will be before the week is over.
Your present will be coming soon and
I hope you get it before you leave the country!
We love you so much and celebrate YOU today!
God's richest blessings mom! LOVE you!!

so easy toddler food cookbook - review

I was given the opportunity to check out this great cookbook for toddlers
from the Fresh Baby company.
They tell you right on their website what they're all about.

"We’re here to offer you simple, all-natural solutions
for feeding your baby, toddler, and school-aged kids,
and to support you in raising a child with healthy eating habits."


So Easy Toddler Cookbook provides survival tips and simple recipes for the Toddler years.

*48 page Toddler cookbook
*Family-friendly, simple recipes making it convenient to make healthy meals
*35 recipes with photos and USDA nutrition facts information
*Practical advice and tips for toddler eating behaviors and healthy eating*Available in English or Spanish (en español)

This book offers lots of great tips and advice for eating with toddlers.
That is invaluable information for parents of picky eaters.
My kids are pretty good about eating what we give them.
Although Micah tends to be more picky than Naomi,
he doesn't like to eat meat too much and picks at other things.
But they both LOVE their fruits and veggies!

This cookbook is helpful in that all the recipes feature a color photograph,
it has ideas for how to round out the meal and
they have kid friendly recipes that are easily adapted for grown-up taste buds too.

I made the Tuna Casserole and the Avocado and Orange Salad
for dinner the other night.
I wasn't sure how the tuna would go over since
when I made it in the past they wouldn't eat it....
but, they ate it all and wanted more.
Micah LOVED the salad and could have eaten it all if I didn't stop him.
It's always nice when your kids ask for more!!

We started a new thing in our house recently.
We were so tired of the dinner time battles and
the amount of wasted food, so we start by giving them
SMALL amounts of everything we're eating,
then when they finish everything on their plate
they can have more of whatever they want
that is being served at dinner.

This has cut the battles down a lot
(the battles aren't all gone)
It seems to give them more "power" and they like that
and it gives us the peace of mind knowing they are eating
a well balanced diet (for the most part).

I noticed that Fresh Baby also offers a baby food cookbook.
I have made lots of baby food in the past but
this might be a great book to check out just to give
me some more pointers and advice about making food for Hannah!

Check out the Toddler Food Cookbook though if you have a picky toddler.
It's not going to replace your full size cookbooks since there
are not a ton of recipes, but the ones that are in there
are very good, nutritious and helpful!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

to the theatre

Greg and I went to the Majestic Theatre last Friday night.

It was my Christmas present.
We went to see Cirque de la Symphonie.
It was a combination of the San Antonio Symphony
with some of the acts from cirque.
The theatre is so beautiful and we really enjoyed the performances
It made me realize how much I miss listening to live music,
and seeing a live performance.It got us thinking about all the shows we've gone to see at the theatre.
When we lived in Milwaukee, before we were married,
we saw Phantom of the Opera and The King and I at the Milwaukee Theatre.
When we lived in St. Louis we went to the Fox Theatre to see
The Lion King for our first wedding anniversary.
We went all out for that one and had dinner before the show at the theatre
and we had box seats...that was such an amazing show.
You really should go see it if you have the chance.

Last year I went with some of my girl friends to see Wicked
here at the Majestic Theatre, and that was also a very good show.

When I was young I really wanted to be an actress,
but I'm sure most little girls go through that stage.
I was a part of most of the plays my highschool had to offer,
and even did a few productions in college.
I really love to go to the Theatre and see a live performance,
it's WAY better than a movie to me.
Yes, movies have their place, but in my opinion live theatre is so much better.

So, I'm curious what shows you have seen live and
what you would recommend that I make sure I get to.
I've seen lots more live shows but not professionally done.
Lots of high school and college performances.
One of my favorite college performances was when my brother was
a lead part of the production of Blood Brothers.
It is a very moving production and worth your time to go see...
even in a college atmosphere. (and the college productions are
a lot cheaper but sometimes just as good, on a smaller scale).

And at what age have you taken children to the theatre?
My mom and sister and I took Naomi to see Cinderella
at the Fireside in Milwaukee last May and she did great sitting through it.
But the stage was right in front of her so I'm sure that made a difference.
If she was sitting in the balcony she may not pay attention as well.
Just curious if any of you have experience with taking kids.
I can't wait till we can go to the theatre as a family!

being intentional

I've seen on some blogs in the past that people like to pick a word for the year.
I thought that would be a great idea...
so I'm jumping on the band wagon.

I've thought about different words that I could use,
to help motivate me, to help me stick with things,
to keep me going, to inspire me, to remind me of my blessings.
There are so many to choose from.
But the word I kept coming back to ...
and the word I have chosen for ME for 2011 is...

INTENTIONAL

in·ten·tion·al 
in-ten-sh-uh-nl
–adjective
done with intention or on purpose

I feel the need to be more intentional about many areas of my life.
I can make a huge list here but you've seen it all before,
and maybe they're even things you struggle with...
Being intentional about reading my Bible,
spending more time playing with my kids,
sending encouraging notes to family and friends,
eating better, exercising more,
praying for my loved ones...and the list goes on.

I'm not a New Year's resolution person, I'm no good at follow through,
so why put myself through the torture of failing once again.
But if I have this word in my mind, and in a prominent place in front of me
then maybe it'll become more of a lifestyle change for me.
Maybe the things I want to be intentional about will just become a way of life for me.
That's the hope.

One thing that is heavy on my heart right now
that I really need to be intentional about is praying for my parents.
They spent leave on February 1st to spend 18 months
in Indonesia teaching English.

I know that God will provide for them, keep them safe and be with them.
But I also know how much I will miss seeing them in the next 18 months.
So, I am going to be intentional about praying for them, sending them letters
and keeping in touch with them via skype and other forms of communication.

This photo will be printed and posted near my computer
(and maybe all over the house)
so I can remember to be intentional about praying for them
and then hoping it'll just become a good habit.

What's your word of the year?