A Sea of Cards

Most of you know that I am a scrapbook consultant for a Utah based company called CLOSE to my HEART. My intentions of partnering with this company were never to make a living out of it, but simply to have access to a product line that I personally use. In fact, I am guilty of sharing my discount and perks in some way with practically everyone that ever ordered from me. I love paper crafting, and the notion of preserving my children's memories and keepsakes in a tangible form. That is why it breaks my heart to admit that soon after receiving my 5 year anniversary pendant from CTMH, my status dropped to Jr. consultant status because of a lack of sales. Initially, it seemed that this would be inevitable due to our precarious economy-and perhaps that had a small influence on my overall ordering volume. But I correlate my lack of sales to a lack of scrapbooking! My life is overcome with a variety of responsibilities that have unfortunately trumped the time necessary to keep up with my much loved hobby. When I am not scrapping among community and friends-I am not ordering for myself or community and friends!

That is why when my darling friend, Stefani, invited me to paper craft with her I eagerly blocked out my calendar! She was in need of thank-you cards in bulk. Stef is the master of card making and presented a darling template that could be easily recreated with a variety of paper combinations and embellishments. We set up an assembly line and before we knew it, had produced a couple dozen super cute and easy thank you cards. But more importantly, we took the time to feed that little creative monster that lives in most of us. And now that I have re-ignited that creative outlet-I can't wait to do it again. Thanks Stef!

My ties with CLOSE to my HEART are still intact. So if any of you are interested on getting back on that paper-crafting horse, please don't hesitate to let me help!!

Hansel and Gretel Eat Right

Dismiss whatever version of Hansel and Gretel you have stored in the archives of your mind because the first grade play of the tale, is far less scary then the one that I remember!

Enter stage left: The cutest, most well-dressed narrator you've ever seen-okay, it just says "Kaden"

Kaden proudly recites his first of four memorized lines complete with facial expression that draws a laugh from the audience, "Hansel and Gretel live in the woods with their mother and father. . ."

The well-rehearsed chorus sings.

Kaden: "Hansel and Gretel decide to run away from home so that they can only eat junk food. They soon run into some rabbits."

Hansel and Gretel begin their journey in search for junk food when they are approached by some health conscious rabbits outfitted with ears and Addidas head and wristbands. . .

Kaden: "Hansel and Gretel go in to search for the witches but some birds landed right in front of them."

. . .singing feather masked children and an array of other impressively costumed forest creatures also attempt to persuade the Hansel and Gretel's eating choices. . .

Kaden: "Hansel and Gretel are very hungry now. They see some smoke in the distance. Could that be the withes house? They soon ran into some raccoons."

. . . but eventually they stumble upon the most darling, I mean scary, witches and turn down the enticing offer of a lifetime of Cheetos, candy bars and soda and return home to live with their well-intentioned parents! THE END

P.S. Of course my talented and willing husband was enlisted to build the witches' house and forest trees-both of which far surpassed the teachers' expectations :)

St. Patty's Day

I am totally on board with a holiday that only takes a little food coloring (and colored hair gel this year)to celebrate!

Was Einstein Potty-trained?

My baby. He is 3 years and 4 months old and LOVES the alphabet. In fact, love may be an understatement. He loves the alphabet so much that I have to limit his time with his favorite toy-the alphabet puzzle-or he will prefer nothing else. He learned the alphabet and their corresponding sounds by the time he was three, and shortly after started recognizing common letter combinations ( ie. C-A-T). Now, I have lost track of the vocabulary that he is able to spell. Literally, he figures out new words everyday. Yesterday, it was S-H-E-E-P and D-U-C-K. In this picture he proudly spelled R-O-C-K-E-T and then said "cheeeeeese", indicating that he wanted his picture taken! The interesting part is that this is not done phonetically, but rather by memory. He has recently begun to discover the phonetic connection behind some words, and my guess is that he will be reading in the next 6 months. Now if I could just get my little genius potty-trained . . .

I'm 29...again!

(The boys sweet birthday gift- a jar full of handwritten slips of reasons why they love their crazy mother)


Did you ever use the measuring cup system to report your age? (You must be eight. Actually, I am eight and three quarters!) You must remember counting down the weeks and then days until just minutes existed until your next birthday? Some families maintain their sanity by choosing to celebrate birthdays by a sophisticated system of even or odd years, or milestone birthdays only. I, however, did not grow up in a traditionally sane family, and one of the benefits of that was "Martie's Parties"! When you are fortunate to live with the person who is the life of every party, every single birthday-no matter how big or small, even or odd, life changing or not-was celebrated like it was the most important day of the year.

Despite the fact my memory is horrible, (my husband blames it on high school-don't ask), I have wonderful, vivid memories of my special day-even as early as the day I turned 5. (Who could forget a real flower arrangement from my dad, a "color me five" crayon-shaped birthday cake, accompanied by a three story handcrafted Barbie house!) The proceeding years traditionally yielded my room being covered in streamers and balloons,the most coveted slumber parties in school and my favorite breakfast being served on the very special red birthday plate.

Fast forward. I have been 28 and three quarters for a very long time now and am counting down the days until I get to turn 29...again! I am trying to be depressed. Depressed about turning another year older. Depressed that this year I have to work on my special day. But I can't manage to stifle the childlike excitement that still exists for me as February 25th approaches. Epiphany. At face value this must appear to be so self indulgent. It is not. It is simply the result of a little girl that was allowed to feel special and loved, needed and recognized, year after year, by parents who hardly had the means or maturity to even realize the importance of what they were accomplishing.

Ding-dong. This year the doorbell rang at 6:00 a.m. on February 25th. My sleepy husband rolled over and groaned. I stirred quickly because I knew the only person that would be bold enough to ring my doorbell this early on my birthday would be my mother. My mother in her pajamas, holding a bowl full of a labor intensive batter because apple pancakes are still my favorite. They are quickly cooked and served on a very special red birthday plate!

I am so thankful for parents that instilled in me and then continue to celebrate my self worth. I am also thankful for a husband and children that indulge me by carrying on the tradition. My kid brother turned doctor, drove up with his family to spend the weekend. My sweet sister-in-law emailed me the customized header and background that now compose my blog. There were countless cards and messages of well wishing, of which all I am sincerely thankful. I hope everyone has the opportunity to feel loved, appreciated and celebrated the way I do thanks to the best of family and friends :)

When I grow up I want to be like Daddy!

Sterling: When I grow up I want to be a robber.

Me: A robber?

Sterling: And a policeman and a dolphin.

Me: You can't be a good guy and a bad guy, silly, and a dolphin is an animal.

Sterling: And a worker.

Me: A worker? What does a worker do?

Sterling: You know like Daddy. I want to be a worker so I can build stuff like Daddy. At his job he just builds things like houses. He can build anything! His work is so cool.

Me: Is Mommy's work cool too?

Sterling: No, because at your job all you do is just sit there!