XOXO

This one is for my very own frog prince. Sometimes there is more frog than prince about him, but who's complaining.
Oh......I am.
I am still under the illusion that a simple kiss will help turn him into a prince.
He requires a little more than that, well, a lot more than that, but he is and ever will be my knight in shining armor, or frog or whatever.

I liked this one for my kids. If life is a sport, than I am glad to have them on my team. I choo choo choose them.

Sometimes.

No, that's mean, ALL the time. See? I AM a good mom.

This one is for my mom, sisters, and friends. I have been truly blessed to have people in my life who truly get me.
Anna, if we weren't related I'd wish we were. For the sole fact that you "get" what I just said makes it even more so. 'Nuff said.
Mom, you are the only person who knows what I am feeling with a simple "hello" on the phone. You are what I aspire to be with my daughters.

Wishing you a very early Happy Valentines day.
XOXO,
Michaela

Flash back Friday

A girlfriend of mine, whose blog I religiously follow, has Flashback Friday's. Since I love everything she does, I am therefore going to copy her!
Thanks April!
This falshback is only from earlier this month though. My 2nd oldest child, Serelle, was baptized.
She was so nervous and had us go over and over what she would do or not do.
The commitment she has made at such a young age is a shining example to all of us around her. To be willing to take such a big leap of faith and be baptized at 8 years old is a big deal. Especially for a girl who likes to fly under the radar and is very shy when not around her family.
Looking at her now as a young girl, I see so much of who she will become.
She is loyal to her family and friends. In her own way she looks out for those around her and is very conscientious of making sure no one is left out.
She is also very intense in all she does. She loves intensely. Dislikes intensely. Is happy intensely. Is mad intensely. Is generous intensely. Is obedient intensely. The list goes on. She is a work of intense opposites and contradictions. Most of them good, a lot of them frustrating, but all of them Serelle.
So, for this Flash back Friday, I want to say, I love you Sis. Thank you for choosing me as your mother and for making my life complete.

Monday Doors on Tuesday night

My second grader comes home every Monday with a Monday Door. It is a simple photocopy of a cartoon door that opens to reveal what she has written.
It is usually quick and to the point but more often than not it melts my frozen heart. To be able to look back at our week or weekend through her eyes is very refreshing and funny. Needless to say, I have saved every single one.
So, in light of this little happiness maker, I would like to start my own Monday Doors. ( yes, in true Michaela fashion, on Tuesday night)
This last week, along with everyone I know, my thoughts and prayers have more often than not been turned to those in Haiti. Especially with the feelings of being unable to help. Or that what little I am able to donate through tithes, seems so inadequit in the big scheme of things. What can my few measly dollars do for all those suffering?
The conclusion I have come to is that it can't do a whole lot. It won't go very far or make even a small impact.
But, if there are a lot of us giving, then together it equals something big.
All those small or big donations get put together, and allow those who can go and help to do so. I saw a picture of people loading all these boxes onto a crate to be shipped over to Haiti. The boxes were filled with things that are really needed.
Soap. Blankets. Clothes. And maybe what I was able to give paid for that blanket or t-shirt. And I can only imagine how grateful I would be to be on the receiving end after having lost everything I own.
So, please don't ever think that what you can afford to give is ever too small. It all adds up to something greater than us all.

Goals and blabbering

So, according to my last blog I am supposed to blog about "something" once a week. Mondays, I think...

No, do not go back and read it! My bringing it up should be more than enough!

My goals and ambitions always seem so much bigger than the reality of my actual life.

Crafting.....not happening

Photography.....only in my dreams

Blogging diva.......'scuse me while I recover from chocking on that statement

Organized everything......I am feeling more than a little delusional here

And the list goes on and on.

I once heard somewhere that you are your own worst enemy and critic and whatever else negative you can think of. That the reason why people fail is because they are afraid of success.

At the time I couldn't understand that statement. WHO doesn't want to be successful?!

Well ,I am realizing it is all very, very true.

Here I am, with every opportunity ( other than financially. ie: going and buying my dream camera and equipment right this very instant)

That if I would just get out of my own way I could accomplish so much more than I do. Just scraping by isn't working anymore. I have let myself slide by for far too long!

Well.....

I sound all fired up and ready to go....but I think if 've learned anything from my past it's that I need to take itsy bitsy teeny tiny almost infinitesimal baby steps. Like, still in the womb , baby steps, if there is such a thing.

So, I am willing to commit myself to monthly goals for now. ( and changing the last one to blogging whenever the heck I feel like it!)

For January I want to just be more connected.

Connected to my kids.

Actually stopping what I'm doing and looking at them when they tell me something. There is just something about eye contact that really changes how they are talking.

Connected to my hubby.Who I sadly neglect way too much. For that one I have no excuses. Unlike the Elvis song I need a little more conversation and a lot more action. ( No, not that kind.....like I would tell you anyway. HI! Mom.)

Connected to my Heavenly Father. That is personal and something that I can only do on my own.

Connected to what brings me joy and gives me a purpose. I have learned really quickly(or not, is ten years quickly?) that peanut butter and jelly sandwich making is not my calling in life and brings me no joy. I love and appreciate the fact that i can actually do this for my kiddos, but I am not delusional enough to think that this is enough.

Connected to my community. Whether that is through my calling in church or finding some way to do service.

So, I am not a fan of blabbering (hahahahahaha!)

I will end this with a hopeful heart and a guilty conscience. I mean lightened conscience....

I think.

Too early?

This is one of my motivators. what kid knows how to draw a Star Wars clone trooper on an Etch- a-sketch on his first try in under 2 min? My favorite nerd in the whole wide world, that's who!



Is it too soon to be thinking about my New years resolution?
Maybe.
But, for people like me who get an idea in my head and have to act immediately,
this might work in my favor for a change.
So.....
My news years resolution is going to be this blog.
What does this blog and resolutions have to do with each other you ask?
I'll tell you, even if your not asking.
I want to resolve to be more productive and actually finishing all my "projects" that I start and never finish.
I figure this blog will be a great way to commit to that. If I resolve that I will blog at least every Monday about something ( notice how I even type/said that in a pseudo whisper, that's how nervous I am!)
And by something I mean anything. It could be a craft that I started years ago, or a simple sewing project that might not be blog worthy, or a recipe that I am trying with no guarantee that it will be edible, or just a simple snapshot of my life in motherhood/wifedom/sister/daughter/friend/American citizen/obsessive compulsive/book connoisseur/semi-crafter/photography lover/church goer.
Wish me luck!

Puppy Love

I can not believe I am going to do this......
Blog about our dog. I know, I am not a dog"person" to say the least, but I am finding impossible to avoid.
We inherited this puppy from my mom, who inherited him from her neighbor.
What started off as just babysitting this mutt ( and I mean this in the nicest way, we really have no idea what he is other than part Chihuahua) quickly and inevitably evolved into permanent residential status for Buster. All along in the back of my mind I had this mental check list going of all things I would not put up with, and therefore be justified in re-homing Mr. B.


1. pees and poops everywhere.
2.barks or whines all night in his crate.

3. Bites or is overly aggressive.
4. Isn't compatible with the Alpha dog in the household,
otherwise known as Hubby/Daddy

This is how it went down.
1.The darn dog pees on command! ON COMMAND! I take him out every so often and say " go potty" and he.....goes potty. Darn. There goes #1 on get rid of, I mean re-homing list.

2.He LOVES to go in his crate. Snuggles up in a cute little ball and gives you his best puppy dog eyes.
There goes #2 on my (mustgetridofhimbeofrethekidsgtooattatched) list

3. Did you see the pictures? Nuff said. Darn darn darn. #3 goes down in flames.

4. So, I come home from grocery shopping the other day to find.......Hubby asleep on the couch with.......Buster on his chest sleeping away. Buster was too small at this point to have jumped up there on his own, so the only other explanation is that said Hubby put him there. Nooooooooooo.
So, having passed the test, and earned his stripes by being willing to be the new "baby" of the family, I formally introduce you to Mr. Buster Brown.

Keep on Keepin' on

I have been on a "journey" of sorts lately. ( I am not a big fan, or little, of calling things by symbolic names, but I was really stumped on this one.)

It's funny when you think you have all the little details of your life all planned out, then.......wham! splat! bang! boom! and any other hit over the head noises you can think of, things change.

Some days I am convinced that even though this wasn't a choice, it really is for the better. I no longer have to worry about so many things that I did before. I am FREE.

Then, ( insert wham! etc... ) I am angry and resentful. I wanted the choice. It was mine to make and not someone elses. I am a PRISONER.

Confusing as my nondisclosure is, I realize that it is applicable to a lot that happens in life.

Being free to make choices about my own life, and the "path" I want it to follow. Giving up that freedom is really difficult and can result in a seeming life sentence.

But what I have learned also is that I can choose weather or not I am held prisoner to the trials of life. Life happens. Life goes on. Life is ever changing. Life is short. Life is a dance. Such is life. ( gag me now, please. Even I am having a hard time resisting all those quipy little quips!)

The photo on here is one from our road trip this summer. One of the places we stayed in was Nauvoo. Those of you who are members know the significance of this place. Back when the LDS church was starting out, a lot of the members settled in Nauvoo to avoid religious persecution. Well, that didn't last long, and along with abandoning their homes they also had to leave their beloved Temple.
The path they took leading out across the Missouri river was called the trail of tears. As the saints left their homes and all they had grown to love, they could turn back and look back over their shoulder at the receding Temple. Many people had come here at a high cost and would face many more challenges along the way. Knowing this, many tears were shed.
In commemoration of all the diverse people who embarked on the journey west, the church put up placards of personal accounts from these pioneers. This one in particular touched my heart and I too shed a few tears.
The trail has since been renamed The Trail of Hope.
Those people truly knew hardship. And keeping faith, hope, and charity, during their journey.

I am on my trail of hope.......

I will journey on.