The moments that matter most.

Wow. So many thoughts and emotions going on in my heart and mind today, that I just need to put them down somewhere. This is my outlet~ my mother's heart that has never stopped beating even when this world broke it in two.
This note flows out of that brokenness. It flows from the place in me where I can still 'see, feel and recall' the brokenness in such detail all these years later. It flows from the heartache an empathy I am feeling for the families in Newtown, CT who are re-living their pain and nightmare on this anniversary eve of the loss of their own little ones. It is spilling out from the goosebumps I got as I read the text from a dear friend who is headed to the ICU to quite possibly say her final goodbye to a special little girl even as I type this out.
Life is cruel and cold at times, and my own experiences have softened me toward other broken hearts in this world. When I hear of other hurting hearts, my own heart remembers a time and details that have yet to fade year after year. 
The details of Teagan's final days and moments are etched on my heart and mind forever. The littlest moments were elevated to some of my most precious memories in light of her loss. It is those moments that matter most. The moments that we all have with our loved ones every single day. But for some reason, we don't hardly recognize their greatness or worth. Often times we even get annoyed by them, or frustrated and worn down. By their timing, and their frequency- by their 'mundaneness' among all the long to-do list we all have every day. These moments are the ones I cherish the most. Yet I STILL take them or granted far too often, even after learning the lesson of their value and worth having been schooled by sudden loss, heartache and grief. 
They are moments we all have with the people around us. We sit down at a meal and eat together. Do we listen and laugh? Do we care about the smallest accomplishments our children or spouses have made that day? Do we see how sweet their tired eyes are as they wake to another day...another good morning hug...another bowl of Frosted Flakes? Do we have any idea how special it is that we can hug them and hold them in our arms? Do we study the color of their eyes? Do we tell them how much we love them- even if we are all running late and we can't find the cellphone or keys? 
I can remember sharing the last bowl of tapioca with Teagan on the night before our incident. She was delighted over a bowl of warm tapioca. She and I sat at her small table and talked about how much we both loved real whipped cream. The earth didn't shake. The mountains didn't tremble. But it was a moment I will never forget. There was love and innocence in that time and place. There were dreams to be chased and more dancing to do when we were done! There was no reason to believe that moments like this weren't going to last forever. Hours later I would wake her up from her cozy night of sleep and help her get dressed and brush her hair and tie a ribbon in it one last time. The details were about to change. Forever.
Some days I mess it all up. I hurt from missing Teagan. I hurt because I miss the sound of her voice- her joy and delight over the littlest things. Sometimes I miss her so much that the people around me wonder what they did to make me mad. They wonder what they could do different to make me smile. Some days I wake up so sure that it must have been a dream, but it's real every day. Some days the strength comes and my heart and eyes re-open to beauty, happiness and joy. I am reminded of the details that I cling to and they make me want to love more, live more and try to be better- even with a broken heart.
I write this as I sit at the little table where Teagan and I shared countless meals and that last bowl of tapioca. I haven't ever been able to part with it {plus all the other kids have used it countless times too for the very things Teagan loved and used it for- playing Playdough, coloring pages, eating meals and snacks and hosting tea parties at it too} and I love being able to have a tangible remembrance of those special times spent with her. I am thankful for all the new memories made at this table, and I am grateful that broken hearts heal little by little. I am reminded again as I my heart weighs heavy for others facing grief and sorrow and heartbreak this Christmastime, that each and every moment is a gift. Every detail a blessing. The smallest moments blur together and get lost even more so this time of year. But if even for a moment we open our eyes to them and see their true worth, we will hold a priceless treasure in our hearts forever.

Some fresh starts...new beginnings!

 

 

{click on photos if you want to see them up close}
It has been another whirlwind couple of weeks! There was my 40th birthday- which happened to be my kids' last day of school before Christmas break began, so it was a day of parties for them and excitement and a band/choir concert for us to attend. Lots of work went into it for me and I was thankful that we were all healthy and could get through it. To top it off, although it wasn't a day of partying for me, Chip did make cream puffs for me and when we got back from the kids' program we all got our jammies on, and there was candle blowing, wish-making and happy birthday song-singing, so it ended on a nice note. A good way to start a new decade. Mellow, a dollop of whipped cream and smiles all around. My life rarely looks the way I imagine it, but it is always better than I deserve and there is happiness all along the way. Even if it gets pushed to the bottom of the agenda at times.
My goal for this coming new year is to constantly remind myself that happiness is there...I just need to keep my eyes and heart open to the way it is packaged. That's probably a good goal all the time!
So the new year is coming and today I have a few sneak peeks before the big reveal of Cocoa Daisy's first kit of 2013~ Pemberley! It is so full of wonderful teals, pinks and yellows. I was up in my scraproom playing and scrapping away the past few days. I was loving it so much! There is definitely a lot of happiness in my scrap room right now. Even Chip says he wants to make something sometime! That's a pretty big claim and surprise to me. If he makes anything, I will post it here for all to see. =)
I scrapped one page from my heart as it continues to feel heavy and sorrowful for the families of Newtown. I will post it in more detail and tell you some of the thoughts I had while making it. Please continue to lift their broken hearts up in prayer. I know firsthand how the pain and sorrow got so much heavier and real as the friends and families around me got back to "normal" in their life, where in my own life the hole Teagan left just got bigger and Wyndham's needs pressed in harder on Chip and me. Grief is hard road to walk and I just know these souls will need prayers for comfort, strength and healing for a long, long time.
One of the other things I made this month was a mini album to hold hopes and dreams of mine for this fresh new year that we are about to jump into. A big part of me can't wait. I know the number 13 is unlucky for a lot of people, but Chip and I are determined to make it a year of good luck for us. I hope we rise to that occasion, and in this tiny book I am writing down quotes and notes to keep me going and pushing toward new and wonderful things. If you have any good quotes or thoughts on the New Year, leave them in the comments here. I would love to add some more thoughts and phrases to my book. I will show you the inside pages of that soon too!
In the meantime, here is the link to more sneak peeks and you are more than welcome and personally invited to be a part of the reveal tonight on the Cocoa Daisy message boards. There is always a flurry of activity, fun and some RAK's to the boutique too! SO if you have the time and want in on the fun, come on out tonight! And if I don't get back here in time, Happy New Year 2013 to you!! I hope you enjoy a fresh start too!

Summertime in the kitchen.

With seven mouths to feed and sometimes one more, when Chip is home from work, I find myself in or around the kitchen most of my waking hours. At least it seems like that in the summer. I am lucky that most of my kids wake up and are pretty mellow about easing into the day as far as breakfast is concerned. They love a hearty breakfast and Brock especially enjoys his morning coffee. But nobody really wakes up demanding food. Some of them even go to the pantry and pick a box of cereal or make themselves a piece of toast without any help from me. So that is a nice perk to having night owl kids. =)
I still have a hard time making meals that all the kids like, and I still feel like our repetoire of foods get boring very quickly. I would love for my kids to like more varieties of foods, but it just turns out to be more trouble than it's worth when I make new recipes these days. We eat as many fruits and lots of fresh vegetables this time of year. We cannot keep enough fresh berries or watermelon or corn on the cob around here. I think my kids could live on blueberries, raspberries and peaches if I let them for three months.
I thought I would share a couple of pictures and recipes of two of the things we had to eat this week. Both these recipes are easy, semi-healthy as far as muffins and pie go, and they were gobbled up by every one of my kids.
The first is recipe is for Oatmeal Blueberry Muffins. I modified the recipe when I doubled it and used half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour. I added fresh blueberries and fresh peaches diced up too. They were very good, especially piping hot out of the oven. I am going to make them with raspberries and peaches next time, just because I love that combination too.
The second recipe is one that has been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl. I never liked chocolate as a kid; I have since grown to appreciate and even love rich, bittersweet, delicate chocolate in many forms. But my first love is still toward the vanilla, custard-type and anything coconut desserts. This pie is so easy to make that it has earned the name Impossibly Easy Coconut Pie. Or Impossible Pie for short. The ingredients are placed in a blender and it makes its own crust. It is virtually fail-proof. Which is a wonderful thing for beginning pie makers. I know there are a couple of variations to this pie- one even calls for Bisquick, but I have always stuck to this recipe my mom made. There is something to be said about tried and true.
The recipe is as follows:
Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar (I use less becase I usually have sweetened coconut)
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup coconut
2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup of melted butter or margarine
Directions: Place all ingredients into a blender and mix until combined. Pour into a lightly greased 9" pie plate and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees. Bake for about one hour.
I always keep an eye on it those last 10 minutes or so just to make sure it doesn't get too golden brown on top. We ate ours with fresh whipped cream and peaches and we polished off the last piece between 4 of us for breakfast the next morning. I figured it had enough eggs and fruit in it to count as a jumpstart to breakfast. My kids didn't argue with me about that.
If you have any favorite summer recipes you make over and over, I would love you to tell me so in the comments. Especially if you think kids would love them. I am at that point in the summer where I am ready to try anything new in the kitchen. I hope my kids might be ready for something new too!

My Pie in the Sky memories.

I found this old TGIFriday's dessert menu in a drawer of papers the other day. It's glossy and double-sided and I've kept it for a long time. Teagan wanted me to frame it and hang it on the wall by our kitchen table at one point. It's just some old pictures of desserts, but boy does it bring back memories to me!

I almost added a paragraph in the post about my Letter to my 16-year old self that I should have not eaten so many TGIFriday's Thin Onion Rings or Pie in the Sky dessert. I lost count of how many I ate during my college years- they were so good and you know what? I have some wonderful memories of those days and the people I shared apps and dessert with back then that I don't know if it such a bad thing that I lost track of how many baskets of rings we had together. They were times and people I will always be fond of.

Is it a wonder to you, as much as it is to me, just how closely food and memories are tied together? I think of the meals I shared with my family as a kid. I still remember Sunday meals with friends and family around our big table together. I always think of my Grandma Shirley on St. Patrick's Day. She loved the holiday, anything green and especially making her famous corned beef and potato dinner for friends and family. I think of picking berries at my other Grandma's house. Her strawberry patch always had loads of berries and even though they were ripe and sweet and delicious, we kids still loved to dip them in a bit of sugar when we ate them. She always made the best dinner rolls too. I've never had anything close to them. And her chocolate cake bites covered in coconut...mmmm. I feel like a kid again just thinking about them.

I sometimes wonder what my own kids will remember about growing up. I am not the best when it comes to making dinner and meals. Chip is a great cook. I am good when I have recipes, time to shop and plan and people that I know will appreciate my efforts. When it comes to nightly meals, I have to admit we eat more homemade buttermilk waffles and orange julius than we probably should. But my kids never complain when I make that meal and so the meal stays in our dinner rotation frequently.

I know food is powerful in many ways. Do you have any favorite foods that evoke strong memories? I'd love to read yours...

Today I am missing Pie-in-the-Sky for some reason. And I don't think it just has to do with whipped cream.

Time for some chocolate around here!

You can thank me later for this recipe. Actually, you can thank my mom. A few weeks ago she came over and brought with her 2 things- a chocolate cake mix and an angel food cake mix. In just over one minute we had the above pictured dessert in front of us. My kids fell in love, and so did I. And I am not typically a big chocolate fan. Don't get me wrong, I do like good chocolate and melted chocolate with real whipped cream is even better. But given the choice, I will choose vanilla over chocolate almost every time.
But this cake? This cake is a must in your recipe file.
So put those two items on your next grocery list- a chocolate cake mix and an angel food cake mix and be prepared to fall in love with the deliciousness of this easy, EASY dessert!
It goes together like this:
Place both cake mixes into a bowl and stir them up. Next, grab a coffee cup. Get one that's a little on the large size- not your china tea cup. Pour 1/3 cup of the dry cake mixture into your mug. No greasing required. Add 3 tablespoons of water and stir it up a bit. Got it so far...cake mix and water in a mug. Now, if you want you can add in some chocolate chips or peanut butter cups or nuts or whatever you like to mix into your cake. I like 60% cacao Ghiardelli chips myself. So toss them in or skip that part if you don't have any mix-ins and place your mug in a microwave for 75 seconds.
When it beeps, you can eat this cake straight out of the mug, or spoon it out onto a plate or bowl. This is where the whipped cream comes into play if you like that dort of thing too. I do. It's my favorite part. Next to the melted chocolate and hot, fluffy cake. =)
It is seriously that easy, delicious and probably not the best thing for your New Year's diet resolution. But it is a really great recipe to know, keep on hand and really fun to enjoy alone or with a group of people. I have not tried it with cake other than chocolate, but the kids and I think it would be fun to try with Red Velvet mix, Classic Yellow and even Funfetti.
I guess there have been different versions of this floating around the web. I haven't seen them myself, but if you know any good links, leave them in the comments here. Also, a few people have asked about finding me on Pinterest. You can do a search under "people" and type in my name with no spaces: jodyferlaak. You should find my account. I plan to 'pin' this recipe for a few friends who have asked about it.
Chip was gone for 4 days this past week to Orlando, FL for the PGA Show. The last thing I made him add to the grocery list were two cake mixes before he left. Turns out you don't miss someone being away quite so much when you can enjoy this cake- fresh and hot. Oh. And when your mom comes to stay with you for 3 of the 4 days too. =) Thanks, Mom!!

Celebrating Wyndham's Birthday!

Today our family is celebrating Wyndham's 10th birthday! We kept it simple- as we do most things around here and that meant Crew was helping me bake a chocolate cake at 9 am this morning. The only kind of chocolate cake I liked when I was a girl was my mom's Wacky Cake recipe. So when Wyndham signed that she wanted "Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting" to me when I asked her about her birthday cake I knew I was going to make her a cake from scratch.

She deserves the real deal!

It's hard to believe that she is actually 10 years old. I still remember everything about the day she was born- and a whole lot of the events that have transpired over her decade of life too. Teagan was so proud to be a big sister again and she and Chip decided on the name Wyndham. Weighing in at only 4 lbs. 6 oz. and yet being full-term, we should have known Wyndham was extraordinary from the very start.

She has been through more ups and downs than any of the rest of us in this family and yet she has a smile on her face so often and a glimmer in her eye that only fades usually only during her extreme medical challenges.

I have cried out to God to spare her life more than once. I have also wondered why God has allowed so much suffering her life so many times too. Too many times to count. And still God gives her grace for all she goes through. And some of it rubs off of her onto the rest of us and we feel strength and grace from God through her.

That's pretty amazing for a little girl who can't walk or talk right now and just turned 10.

She is very special and loved by all of us who are lucky enough to be her family. She is loved by a lot of friends and family near and far too.

As rough as she's had it, I have this feeling that if she could talk she would tell you that she feels like a lucky girl more often than not.

We're really hoping that she starts gaining more strength to be able to walk again soon. The fact that she has overcome so much in the past 10 years makes me believe in her for this current challenge and for future ones too.

Happy Birthday, dear Wyndham!

You are so loved and we hope you enjoyed your simple birthday party with us today. Love, Your Family

Yum. Cake.

Yesterday was my birthday. Thirty-seven years of having a good excuse to eat cake in the middle of the busy holiday season. =) I was treated very well by all my family~ Chip kept the kids busy all day; or was it the kids keeping Chip busy all day?! Either way I basically got to enjoy some time out of the house (including a stop for an Eggnog latte) and enjoyed my time back in the house. Chip had baked me the second cake you see here- one of my favorites. It's a Pillsbury Bake-Off winner and the fresh whipped cream is the main thing I love about this one.

That other cake came from the colour lovers' blog. The creator of the blog celebrated his 28th birthday a few months back and his mom and girlfriend surprised him with a very colorful BIG cake! Wouldn't you love that! There is time, thought and love poured into both of these cakes and I am happy to say that I had a great birthday. Even though it meant I got another year older. If you wished me Happy Birthday on Facebook, I saw your note. It took me awhile to read over 100 messages, but they sure made me realize I am loved and that's a good thing when you get old too!

Good practice.

If you're my friend on Facebook, you may have noticed my post/link about the cake you see in the pictures here. We woke up to such a cool morning here in Michigan, and after taking the kids to a park and picnic to play with their classmates for this upcoming school year I was ready to warm up inside for the afternoon. Rather than turn on the heat, I looked up a recipe for Chocolate Zucchini cake and I baked instead. It did warm the house and it made the kids happy too. I had enough Reddi-wip on hand to top this cake off and even give Crew a few mouthfuls straight from the can. The cake, we decided, just might be the one we make for Crew's first birthday, which is just around the corner. I know, I know. It's hard to believe he's going to turn one. But the calendar doesn't lie.

I have a feeling, based on his happy squeals and hand-clapping after some morsels of cake, that he will be more than ready for a party and piece of cake all his own.

Weekend fun- Part 2.

Here's the wrap-up of photos for Memorial Day weekend and the fun time we all had with my mom visiting from Minnesota. I am so grateful to everyone who has served and who continues to serve our country in so many different capacities to ensure that we live free. That freedom is such a privilege and I want to say thank you- to any and ALL who sacrifice so much- including those families who live without their loved ones while they are away or have paid the ultimate for this freedom.

We so often take for granted that we can go to carnivals and church and play outdoors and simply enjoy whatever life has to offer us without giving it much thought. But I know that the smiles we all shared have come at a steep price for others. I love that this visit with my mom allowed us to make some wonderful, new memories, yet we still talked about our past and remembered the people we love who are no longer with us. We remember the past, but we don't live it in.

I think that's so important for being able to live a full life after the loss of loved ones.

Teagan would have been in the middle of all our fun and memories. She was just that way and I'm sure the years wouldn't have changed that about her. I know she would have licked her bowl of cream puff and whipped cream and strawberries clean- just as Ava did. She would have squealed on the "fast rides" and helped with the gardening and laughed as much as the rest of the kids. I'll admit it- I still miss her everyday. But I also know to appreciate every smile and hug that the rest of us share that much more. Memorial day weekend was special. As special as some of the other "ordinary days" we've had this month too.

Some more sweet stuff.

I've been basically out of commission the past three days as Bella apparently shared her illness with me. I've been loving that feeling of being achy, no matter where I sit or lay down, topped off with a fever that makes me feel like I'm freezing. Yuck.

Hopefully I will be back in business by tomorrow. Three days of this misery is enough for me. In the meantime, I thought I'd share some pictures of Crew enjoying his first Reddi-whip. He loved it and wanted more- straight out of the can. He's one of us, that's for sure. =)

I feel bad that I haven't been able to give my kids and hubby the hugs and kisses they usually get each day. Hopefully they've missed them too and will be ready to make up some of them when I get back in business.

Dedication Sunday~

Today we joined a few other families in our church in dedicating our children to God. It is a special time for us to publicly say that we acknowledge the need for God's guidance and wisdom as we seek to raise our children according to His will. We have always seen children as a blessing and a gift in our life. This Sunday we just had the opportunity to say , "Thank you God for blessing us with Crew and now we want to commit ourselves as parents/family to be the best we can for him."

Our prayer for Crew was this:

We, as parents, have many hopes and dreams for our children, including Crew at this young age. Our greatest desire is that he will have a heart bent toward God and always seek to follow His will and call in life. We ask for God to not necessarily give Crew "a comfortable, easy life", but rather we ask that God will always be merciful to Crew and be His Source of strength and guide all along life's journey.
We hope that Crew will be a reflection of God's love, grace and mercy now and always.

As I have stated here before, it is no easy task to be a parent, but the rewards far outweigh the challenges. I thank God for trusting us with so many kids and I know I am better for having them in my life. Even as humbling as it can be at times.

It was a special day for our family and we topped it off with homemade pumpkin cheesecake {made by Chip} and whipped cream. That's the perfect way to end almost anyday, if you ask me.

Mmmm, pumpkin. And prayers.

You all made me very hungry with your favorite fall dessert comments. I especially agree with anyone who said "with whipped cream". I too love anything pumpkin and apple and crisp and cream. What a great time of year for dessert, huh?! Even Starbuck's counts as dessert if you ask me...it's more based on calories and taste, so for sure a Pumkin Spice Latte qualifies in my book.

I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes with you...one that can be modified to suit even the chocolate lovers that stop by here to read each week. It's a easy, delicious, calorie-laden dessert that I found after watching Paula Deen on Food Network one fall afternoon a few years ago.

The dessert is pictured above and you can link to the recipe by clicking here. It's called Pumpkin Gooey Cake, but the recipe has alternate flavors, like Chocolate Peanut Butter or even Banana flavor, for those of you who like things a bit fruitier. I've tried some of the variations, but have to say the pumpkin one is my favorite.
I also thought I'd share a link to some free desktop wallpapers for some of you who are skipping dessert these days. You deserve a little something too! I just changed mine to the picture above and am liking the clean look- yet with an autumn thought.

As for the mini-book giveaway, I will be sending a package to Christi in Orlando who loves pumpkin cake rolls and other pumpkin-flavored desserts. {Just email me your address: nitty.grittyjody@yahoo.com } and I will put some scrap goodies in the mail for you. Thanks to everyone who played along. I just may have to do more giveaways and clean out my scrap space as a result. I love that there are so many of you who love scrapping and creating and making things- even if they are small and simple. As far as I know the Social Butterfly Collection sold out over at SIStv, but I do know that there is a lot more fun and exciting stuff that will be available soon, so check over there or keep an eye out here for links/details.

You can also be praying for Jeanette and her family {JJ is the owner and my "boss"/friend at SIS} and her husband is going through treatments for cancer of the tonsils. I keep thinking of them so often and just know that God is bigger than cancer, that God is bigger than our fears, and I know that God hears our prayers and loves to show Himself to us through the dark times in life as much as the times of blessing.

I hope that I can update you all and post about Bob's complete healing and recovery at some point. Just as I continue to pray for Jaymun and his family. Nothing is too big for God!

Wrapping up the month.

I am happy to report that this week is off to a good start. Any week that has homemade cream puffs with vanilla pudding (cooked on the stove...not instant) and real whipped cream is a good week in my book. =)
I grew up loving cream puffs and often requested them instead of birthday cake for my own birthday. In making this batch of cream puffs, I really did have Chip in mind and knew they would make him happy. We had an early birthday celebration sharing dessert with the kids tonight, because tomorrow Chip and I will be going out for dinner with some friends. The kids didn't mind singing and having fun early. For me, the memories are more important than the date. =)
As we close this month of March, I am looking forward to April and hoping that spring shows up in all its glory. We, like everybody we know it seems, are anxious for sunshine and fresh air. I again want to thank many of you for taking on some of the little 'challenges' I posted here- from sending a card to Lois to help lift her spirits as she battles cancer, to the donations made for the childrens' hospital in Uganda, to your own personal reflections. I love that each day, each week, each month, we have the opportunity to make new choices, discover new things and take on challenges that can stretch and change us in many ways. I wish you all a Happy April!
If you must have the recipe for cream puffs, here it is...enjoy!
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a heavy saucepan, combine 1/2 cup butter (1 stick) with 1 cup of water and bring to boil. Next, add 1 cup of flour and stir until it forms a ball of dough. Add 4 eggs, mixing in one at a time, until the dough is smooth. (It will be slightly sticky.) Drop large spponfuls of dough onto a sheet pan...makes about 12-16.
Bake for 20-25 minutes.
Allow to cool for as long as you can before filling them with your favorite pudding, whipped cream, mousse or whatever else you love. =)

So far...

being 35 is great! I've had a wonderful, mellow birthday. That ended with chocolate fudge bread pudding warm with whipped cream on top. Mmmm. Thanks for all the birthday wishes in the comments and sent to my email today.
I have some really wonderful family and friends! Love from me to you today. ~Jody

Kid's Eggnog...

Next week I turn 35. I was thinking about that last night as I fell asleep~ after going to the kids' school Christmas Program and thinking how fast they all grow up. It was not that long ago that I was dragging bulging diaper bags and a double stroller everywhere I went and I was unable to recall when I last slept five consecutive hours. Now I love that I get longer stretches of sleep, but I don't know that I am ready to grow up or at least grow older. How is that middleage sneaks up on one so quickly?! In the spirit of thinking about being a kid and all the fun it is for them this time of year, I found this great-sounding Peppermint Eggnog
recipe over at Martha Stewart.com.
Now, in the past I have been very outspoken about not 'doing or getting' Christmas stuff on my birthday...but for this fun nog {and if you know me at all, you know how much I love eggnog, custards, buttercream, whipped cream and vanilla!} I just may bend my own rules! =)
Here is the recipe and instrustions. If you make it, let me know what you think of it. And if you want another fun challenge, tell me what flavor(s) of ice cream would best describe your life up til now? I was thinking I could sum mine up in a double scoop of Rocky Road and Marshmallow Twist. It's had its share of rough spots and bumbps along the way, but I'm finding most of my life's 'twists' are really ribbons of good stuff in the end.
Maybe it's quirky and weird, but I think it would be fun to read some of your takes on life. Any Ben & Jerry lovers out there in Nitty.Gritty.Land.? This game's for you. =)

Where do the weeks go??

I do not recall that my school days flew by so quickly when I was a student in school. I guess perspective does change the way time feels. I always thought it took forever to go from Monday to Friday. Now I see it just whizzes by and I barely feel like it should be Wednesday...yet here it is nearly Friday!
We had another busy week at our house. Lots of the usual, classes, therapy, magazine sales, a field trip to an apple orchard (which yielded a delicious apple crisp this afternoon...yum! I love it warm with cream poured over the top...the kids had Reddi-whip on theirs), art projects, scrapping and reading new library books. There really is never a dull moment around here. In fact I am trying to figure out where I can squeeze a few 'dull moments' back into my schedule. I had no idea how much I really crave down time until it was gone. And so it goes. =)
The scrap stuff you see here is the new product designed by Kristina Contes for the Scrap In Style October Collection. I was so happy to get these items in my mail this week...the colors and papers are some of my favorites! I have played a little bit with some of the items already. I will be part of a weeklong challenge in the next couple of weeks as SIS Boutique continues their month-long celebration for their grand opening. I will post a link to my challenge and layout as soon as it's up. Fun stuff and lots of great prizes for those of you who choose to play along. If you've never scrapped before, now is the perfect time to try it out!
Thanks for so many great quotes in the last post. I've decided to create a little 'quote inspiration' book, and I plan to fill it up with lots of words of wisdom. So, whenever you come upon a great quote, feel free to leave it in my comments or send me an email. I will add it to my book! Now, if I could just figure out how to add minutes to my day... =).