365 Project Day 31

Baking cookies tonight. Some will go to a reception being held at the church tomorrow and some will stay here for us. With money so tight I have had to do a lot more baking to make sure that there is something sweet around for after dinner. I have also been cooking a lot more dinners. If you havent tried allrecipes.com you should. I can plug in a couple ingredients I have on hand or a type of recipe that I may be craving and I get back all sorts of choices with reviews and suggestions. It makes cooking and especially cooking on a limited budget a whole lot more fun. I get to use my love of creating and feed my family at the same time.

365 Project Day 30

My work space is already getting plenty of use. Today (30th) it was the perfect place to work on invitations for Trinity's second birthday which we will celebrate in just 2 weeks. Its amazing how much easier it is to create when everything is at your fingertips and you dont have to go to hiding places in 3 different rooms to pull out supplies.

365 Project Day 29

Sweet nectar of the gods! The one thing (thing=of little importance in the grand scheme of things) I can't live without?...a large Diet Coke, easy ice from McDonald's (preferably the one by my house. Dont ask me why but they really are not all the same). I have to have one every day. As vises go it could be worse. I dont do drugs or smoke. I dont drink or gamble. All I ask for is this one simple thing...my sweet nectar of the gods!

365 Project Day 28

I found this wonderful vintage toy at a flea market months and months ago when Trinity first started walking. She played with it a little but wasnt that impressed so I put it away. I pulled it back out for her today and she loves it. She walked all over the house with it, ran over our feet, tried to get the balls out, even pushed it under the chair saying "bye toy" then "where's the toy?...there it is!" (basically peekaboo). I'm exhausted everytime she leaves cause I've been laughing the whole time I'm with her.

365 Project Day 27

Trin was here this evening and as usual she totally cracked me up. Tonight she had me pull her car seat up in front of the TV so she could sit in it and watch Wheel of Fortune. She clapped and cheered and called out letters with the contestants. She even put her water cup in the little cup holder. She had her very own theater seat right there in the living room.

365 Project Day 26

Here is the craft area I have set up in my utility room. It is right next to my desk so I can work in both places if I need to. There is still a lot more to do in here but I'm excited that this part is mostly set up. Now I can move the rest of the stuff in and get this thing done...finally!!

365 Project Day 25

I love it when Michael's has its clay on sale. I have another day or so of work to get the utility room and my work space set up and then I need to get creating.

365 Project Day 24

After playing in the snow all afternoon at the POG Winter Carnival it was back to our house for some family time. We really enjoyed relaxing with Sarah and Trin. Well, not really relaxing but I had a ball playing with Trin. (I had to take my glasses off when peek a boo became too spirited to wear them.) She is such a joy! She makes me laugh and amazes me every day. What a blessing!

Point of Grace Grand Opening

Today we celebrated Point of Grace's Grand Opening with a Winter Wonderland. The plan was to have a company bring in snow for some fun winter activities. There was also going to be a horse drawn carriage, inflatables, soups and hot chocolate and live music. The day before it was 82 degrees here. The Winter Wonderland was looking like it was going to be a melted mess in no time. Well, God took care of things as He always does and provided us with the perfect day. From 82 the day before to 42 on the day of the celebration. The weather was perfect, a little windy, but the snow lasted, the sledding hill was a huge hit, the carriage rides were wonderful and I understand we went through 45 gallons of hot chocolate. It was quite a day and we had a great time. What a way to celebrate! God is good!

365 Project Day 23

As soon as Trinity walks into my house the first thing she says is "GRAMMMMMY!!" (or her version of it anyway). The second thing is almost always "Pretzel?". The child is addicted to pretzels! Thank goodness for Sam's and the industrial-sized pretzel jar. I guess it could be worse. She could be addicted to candy or soda. I'm hoping her choices are always so healthy. For now though we'll make sure to stock plenty of pretzels for our favorite little visitor.

365 Project Day 22

Artha was assigned this book as one of her summer reading assignments for her English class. She actually hasnt even read it yet but with all the talk of the movie coming out I decided to read it myself and see if it was any good. I'm enjoying it. Its not really my typical choice for a book but its well written and I'm eager to see how things turn out. I dont think I'll see the movie though. I'm usually really disappointed when I see a movie based on a book that I've read. They just never seem to do the books justice in my opinion so I'll stick to reading and leave the movies to someone else.

365 Project Day 21

Bethany's quilt project is done. She presented it to the class today. She doesnt know her grade yet but she said the teacher couldnt stop smiling so I guess she did alright. We had a lot of fun with it and talked a lot about family history and people that are gone but not forgotten. This is the kind of project I get excited about and making the quilt was really fun for me. Its something she can hang on to. A reminder of the time we spent together on it and the family members whose names are stitched on it.

365 Project Day 20

The girls took their self portraits to put on their MySpace pages. I thought they were pretty awesome and since they dont want to stand still and let me take a picture of them, I thought I'd use these. Such beauties!!

365 Project Day 19

Here I caught Trin in midconcert on her little piano. She is currently in that "squinting at the camera" stage so I feel lucky to have gotten a picture of her with her eyes open. She is such a delight and brings me so much joy!

365 Project Day 18

You would not believe how much stuff is in this little room! The living room continues to fill with all manner of things and yet there is still so much left in the utility room. Lots of sorting and purging today. The trash can will be more than full on Tuesday. More planning too as I try to figure out the very best way to organize things so the room is neat and functional again. Too tired to even think of sorting one more thing. I'll start fresh again tomorrow. Maybe I'll actually find the bottom of this never ending pit.

365 Project Day 17

Today gets two pictures. As you can see the pile of stuff in my living room is growing as I slowly remove and sort all the stuff currently in the utility room. Its hard to believe such a small room can hold so much stuff. I started sketching out the room, all the things that are large and staying exactly where they are and the empty places where I need to make the absolute most that I can out of every inch. It'll all be worth it...It'll all be worth it...

365 Project Day 16

I finally broke down and started the project that I have been most looking forward too and dreading at the same time. The most out of control room in my house is the utility room which is also the laundry room, my office, storage and the place we stash everything that doesnt fit somewhere else. Its a great room and if its done right, will be very functional. I just have to clear out all the stuff, plan the layout and make it happen. Yeah right! Anyway, here is the first days work. It doesnt look like much but this is the result of a lot of sorting and purging. It'll all be worth it....It'll all be worth it...It'll all be worth it...

365 Project Day 15

We've been without a working dryer since the beginning of this past summer so we have been hanging laundry on the line outside. Amazingly its a task I really enjoy. It gets me out in the fresh air and the sun which I really need to do more often anyway. Things dont dry nearly as fast in the winter as they did in the summer, which was just about instantly in the heat we had, so I'm not getting as much done each day but I'm enjoying it nonetheless. Such a simple task and one that reminds me of days gone by. Someday we hope to get the dryer fixed but I'm really in no hurry to have it back. In fact, I'd miss this daily task and the way it changes my perspective just a little each time I do it.

365 Project Day 14

The fig tree is only one of the many areas of my yard that need to be trimmed. This pile was the result of just an hour or so in the yard and doesnt even make a dent in all the trimming that needs done before anything starts greening up for spring. Unfortunately that can come shockingly early here in Central Texas so we'd better get a move on! Still no takers?

365 Project Day 13

This behemoth is the fig tree in my back yard. Now imagine it full of leaves and fruit. The things is so huge it takes up about a third of my yard. Needless to say one of the things on my to do list is to trim this thing back to a more manageable size. Now all I need is a chainsaw and some big strong men to come do it for me. Any takers?

365 Project Day 12

Tonight I had the pleasure of attending my monthly Bunco night. We started this group almost 8 years ago and have played every month since. Though some of the members have changed and people have come and gone from the group, one thing has always remained the same. I am blessed once a month to get together with some of the most incredible women it has ever been my priviledge to know. We eat, we laugh, we talk, we scream, we even play a little Bunco but at the foundation of it all we are there for each other, in the good times and bad. We've seen each other through births and deaths, lost jobs, new careers, health scares, parenting problems, relocations and new adventures. And all of that over a handful of dice and a mindless little game called Bunco.

365 Project Day 11

Today was the day we have been waiting and praying for for almost 10 years. The dedication of our first permanent home for Point of Grace. From the first meeting at our pastor's house almost 10 years ago, through worshipping at 3 different schools and meeting at any other location we could find, to today. Its been a wonderful journey and one I feel priviledged to have been a part of. I cant say we finally have a church because we have all along. Point of Grace, the church, is the incredible people we are blessed to share our life in Christ with. But I can say our church finally has a permanent home and I look forward to all the memories we will make in this beautiful facility we will now call home.

365 Project Day 10

Following the lead of a couple of my friends I posted pictures from my childhood and high school days on Facebook. It has been so much fun reminiscing with old friends and reconnecting with others. I feel so blessed that I grew up in a small town where I went to school all 12 years with the same kids. We all have that in common and it is something that will always connect us. I consider that a priviledge. I can look back and see that my early life was filled with so many wonderful people who shared in some pretty great memories and I love that even this many years later we can reconnect and get excited about sharing them.

365 Project Day 9

With all the chaos and uncertainty in my life right now the most comforting thing I can do is to make order out of what I can control, my environment. With that in mind I am planning to organize, purge and clean my house until things make sense again. Today was going through miles of files and paperwork, creating an organized system and beginning the process of pulling things from all over the house into an organized and central location. While this isnt the most fun thing to do it is necessary right now as I try to regain some of the control in my otherwise out of control life.

365 Project Day 8

I had the pleasure of spending the evening with my darling Trinity. She is such a joy and amazes me all the time. Her favorite game with me right now is the "I love you more" game. I tell her I love her and she tells me "Uh Uh, I love you more." and back and forth it goes. She spent part of the evening in my lap feeding me "shoo shoos"...that Cheerios in case you are wondering. There are few things better in this world than the absolute, unconditional love of a grandchild.

365 Project Day 7

I came home from the chiropractor today and was greeted to an amazing sunset. The picture doesnt even begin to do it justice. It was as if the whole sky was on fire. I am reminded of a thought that I have quite frequently, how much God must really love us. To my mind, He didnt have to make our world full of so many beautiful things. I mean it could have been gray and flat and nondescript and we never would have known the difference. Instead He chose to surround us with examples of incredible beauty. A constant reminder of His overwhelming love for us. Pretty cool if you ask me!

365 Project Day 6

Phil and I started working on cleaning, purging, rearranging and organizing the house today. May take us the rest of the year so you will probably be seeing more pictures of it. Today Phil worked on his desk area which is in the living room/kitchen area. He collects dragons which dont really go with the rest of the decor so our room has been dedicated to them. Some have made there way out obviously and are now adorning his desk. Thankfully I like them too but they still dont gel too well with my red apple kitchen and my rustic country decor. Oh well!

365 Project Day 5

Well, I'm finally taking the Christmas decorations down. Its certainly more fun to put them up than take them down but it always leaves me with the feeling of a clean slate, a new beginning. A new year is upon us and the possibilities are endless. With hope for a better new year, I put away the last hurrah of the old. All the while knowing that in what seems like the blink of an eye we'll be pulling them out again, celebrating another glorious Christmas season and saying goodbye to another year.

365 Project Day 4

Today I spent some time with my sweet grandbaby. Trinity is such a joy and she never ceases to amaze me and make me laugh.

I love the idea of this project being more about little closeups of my day. Some days I'm sure there will be events that will require actual photos of people but in the meantime I love trying to show my day with one shot.

365 Project Day 3

Bethany and I spent the day working on a project for school. The project requires that they come up with a box or other container that they can decorate and fill with items that will help them give a presentation to the class on a book they read. The book Bethany chose is called "The Quilt" and is about a boy who learns about his family history through stories told over a family quilt. In the book, each square represents a member of the family who has passed away. The quilt is brought out whenever there is a birth or death and the people on the squares are remembered through stories told over the quilt. I love the idea of remembering those who have passed and children getting to know them through memories and stories of their lives.

We put together a simple patchwork small enough to fit on her desk and we are now embroidering the names of some of our family members who have passed, all the while talking about them and sharing memories of the ones she knew and stories of the ones she didnt. We will have to include pockets on some of the squares to fit with the assignment and allow her to put items in them that will help her in her presentation but the remaining squares will all have names.

I love it when the kids have projects that are fun to help them with and this one in particular touches on two of my very favorite things, crafting something and family history.

365 Project

My friend Kathy told me about this idea and as I'm currently in a scrapbooking mode, I decided to accept the challenge. Seeing as how my last post on this blog was in March (I cant believe its been that long. Where did the year go?) it'll be interesting to see if I can rise to the challenge and maybe even come up with some interesting shots.

The basic idea is a photo a day for a whole year. I may not post everyday but I'll try to get a photo every day. So, check back periodically to see how I'm doing and if you have suggestions of things you'd like to see please pass them on.

I already missed day one so I've included 2 for today.

Christmas at the Zilker Park Tree

We enjoyed our annual trek to the Zilker Park Tree in short sleeves this year. Its so funny to go back over the years and see how we are dressed. One year it is so cold we are out there just long enough to stand under the tree, ooo and ahhh a bit, snap a couple pictures and then head back to the warmth of the car. The next, like this one, it might be short sleeves or light jackets and we take the time to really appreciate the joy of spinning under the tree and taking lots of pictures. Either way, its a lot of fun and one of our favorite annual traditions. Trinity really loved all the lights and after a couple tries, really got a kick out of spinning. She recovered a lot faster than whoever was spinning her and was always ready for more.