Seeing the story in your photos...

I'm sure you've all heard the phrase "A picture is worth a thousand words". Well I have a lot to say. I mean, a lot. I take tons and tons of photos! I've always been interested in photography and I don't have to tell you that it has come a long way in recent years! In high school I took a photography class and we used SLR cameras and developed our own film in a darkroom. Now, I have a dSLR (a digital Single Lens Reflex camera) and I rarely pull it out because I have an amazing camera in my hands at all times on my iPhone! I love that documenting everyday moments is so easy, but I do have to admit that when I pull out my "big" camera, I'm always glad I did.

The other day, I had the opportunity to take photos for my Aunt and Uncle and their kids and grandkids. I am not a professional photographer. I have to stress this, because I'm not amazing. I only take photos for family and friends on occasion because I enjoy it. What I am, is a memory keeper. And that helps me to see the stories in the photos.

The thing I love about photos that are mine or of people that I love, is that I see things that others don't. For example, in the photo below, you might see two little kids sitting on cement. I see two kids who were just dancing around. I see two cousins who were having the best time together. I see Ryder trying to get Mae's attention. I see snippets of personality.

In this photo, you may see a happy little girl. You may see that the happy face isn't completely in focus. I see Mae, who loves her Poppy. I see the look of pure joy that is on her face even after 10 minutes of doing the same thing. I see a grandpa who indulged her, and although you can't see it, his smile was as bright as hers.

In this photo, you might see an imperfect family photo. You might see a funny face on a little boy. I see one of the strongest families I know. I see four people who God put together for a reason. I see a little boy who, despite the fact that he's having a really rough morning, is really trying to put on a smile to make his mommy and daddy happy. He really was trying so hard. :)

To me, the beautiful thing about taking these photos is the story behind them. It's a story only I can tell. It's my perspective. The photos on their own might not say the same thousand words that I have to say. That's why memory keeping is so important to me. 

Next time you look at your photos, ponder on them. Look at them and let your mind wander. Dig a little deeper. What can help you tell the story of that photo more completely? I would love to hear from you how scrapbooking (or memory keeping in any form, really) has changed your perspective.

It's a way of life...

Today I wanted to talk about why I do what I do. Why I scrapbook. Why it's important to me. Why it's so much more than a glorified photo album. There a few things that really make this worth it to me and I want to share those with you.

The People
All of this thinking stemmed from listening the most recent episode of the Scrap Gals podcast (I highly recommend it. This episode, but also the podcast in general!).  Tiffany and Tracie started the show by talking about how they got into scrapbooking and how they met. They were both so passionate about the subject and it got me to thinking about the amazing people I've met through scrapbooking (Tracie being one of them) who have changed my life for good. There is something so magical about connecting with people who have the same passion for memory keeping. I don't know if I've met anyone in real life that is as insane about scrapbooking as I am and that's why I'm grateful for the online scrapbooking community and all of you! The people make this a great hobby.

It's more than a hobby. It's a way of life.

I truly believe that. For me, scrapbooking is so much more than pretty paper. It has changed and affected every aspect of my life. In a good way, I think. I am more aware of the world around me and how it affects me and my family. I'm conscious of the little seemingly insignificant moments and I find a way to document them. Through scrapbooking, I come to realize my blessings. When I sit to write the journaling for a layout it causes me to reflect on the moment and think about how/why it influenced me and why it's important to me.  Ultimately, I am a better person because I scrapbook.

Telling my story is important.
I don't keep a journal. I've always been bad at that. Except from ages 8-15 and all I talked about was which boy I was in love with. For me, scrapbooking is my journal. It is my perspective on events and everyday moments from my life. No one else can tell that story. It's mine. I would love to look back and see my mom's perspective on life at 30 (my age now), and I hope that my daughter will feel the same way.

Words + Photos = Magic

Photos are amazing. We've all been told that a photo is worth a thousand words. Well, sometimes those words don't convey the story I want to tell. I love Ali Edward's idea that there is something special where photos and words meet. So true. All of that patterned paper and all of those embellishments are just the cherry on top. They are a fun bonus to this memory keeping.  Again, words + photos = magic.

I love it.
Simple as that. I scrapbook because I love it. Everything about it. All of the stuff I said above and more. I love the process of finding papers and embellishments to reinforce my story. I love sharing my layouts and I love sharing my ideas with all of you. I don't feel like this is an obligation. I feel like I just don't know any other way. It truly is a huge part of my life. Not a day goes by that I don't think about or do memory keeping in some form and I'm so grateful for it!

Why do you scrapbook? There are no wrong answers. :)

Somebody put that Rock there for you...

Today I want to share a little piece of my heart with you.  I'm sharing this because I haven't been able to stop thinking about sharing this for weeks.  And because it changed my life.

On Tuesday, September 23rd I went to Persnickety Prints to be part of a live studio audience for Amy Tan and Kelly Purkey's upcoming Inspiration Live! class for Big Picture Classes which airs on November 1, 2014.  We got some darling kits for each of their classes.  Amy taught a mini album workshop and Kelly taught us how to make three scrapbook layouts.  All the while there were people filming the 25 or so of us that were there for the live class.

Stacy Julian (co-owner of Big Picture Classes) was the hostess and she was walking around trying to see who had a story or a tip or a technique to share that they could later add into the video for the class. (Watch for me if you sign up!) As I was making a page for Kelly's class, Stacy noticed that I had written an interesting title on my photo...

somebody put that ROCK there for you.

She said, "Oh!  I bet there's an interesting story there!  You wanna share it?" And she started waving for the video guy to come over.  

But I immediately shut her down.

"It's a really good story," I said, "but it's kind of long and really religious so I don't think I should share it."  

Stacy looked at me knowingly and said, "You're probably right." And then she said the thing that I haven't been able to get out of my mind.  I've thought about it literally every day.

"Isn't it funny that sometimes we don't share (or are afraid to share) the stories that are most important to us?"

It is.  Why don't we share those moments that impact our lives for good? Why can't we talk about religion?  Why can't I publicly share something that changed my life?

I'm here today because there is a really good story behind this photo.  Why wouldn't I want to share that?

I wrote the whole thing in my journal, so I will just share the entry.  I went to a youth girl's camp with my church (I'm a Mormon!) for four days this summer and it is there that this whole thing happened.  It's slightly embarrassing, but still worth sharing, so here goes:

                “Today was the hike. Boo.  Anyone who knows me, knows I’m not a hiker.  I never have been. But now I’m so darn out of shape that hiking feels like dying.  So I decided to go with the first years.  I thought I heard someone say that the first year hike was more of a nature walk.  Uh-uh. No. It was super hard and uphill all the way. I remembered the hike a few weeks ago with our ward to Stewart Falls.  And I remembered how I didn’t make it.  But Bishop and Bro. Soderberg were very encouraging, and super nice about it, so with that thought in mind I started trudging up the trail. Already the tail end.  But that’s okay.  I was determined to do it this time.  A gentleman named Brother Nelson from the sixth ward stayed at the back. Even when I told him I was going to slow everyone down, he stayed behind me.  Bishop, knowing that I struggled the last time, said, “You got this.  You’re going to do great.  I said a special prayer for you this morning.” That struck my heart.  What a thoughtful man.  I said a prayer last night too and asked Heavenly Father to help me today. Because I knew it would be hard.  I’m so grateful I can go to my Heavenly Father with problems like that.  Nothing is insignificant to him.  I kept trying to think of ways I could get out of going on the hike, but I made the choice to toughen up and just do it.

So I trucked along determined to make it this time.  I had to stop quite a bit.  Those hills were tough.  Brother Nelson was SO patient and very quiet and calm. I would stop for a minute and we would sit there quietly looking around.  In my head I was thinking, “I could just stop here.  This is far enough.” But Brother Nelson was so patient with me and I didn’t want to let him down. Sometimes he would point out different plants or animal trails. Sometimes he would tell me that he wasn’t there to go fast.  He loved listending for the breeze the the trees.  He was very observant and could tell when I was struggling. Often he would tell me encouragingly that I was doing just fine, or he would point out the next resting place or let me know what the next part of the trail was like because he’d hiked it before.  Occasionally when we were resting he would tell me a little story about his hiking experiences.  Early on, he told me a story that I’ll never forget because it taught me a very important lesson.  He told me that when he was about eight he went hunting with his grandpa.  His grandpa would sling his elk or deer over his shoulders and carry it down the mountain.  It was such a heavy load.  Every once in a while he would find a big rock and exclaim, “Somebody put that rock there for me!” and he would take the deer off his shoulders and throw it on the rock and rest for a minute.

After he told me that story, every time we came upon a big rock, he would say, “Somebody put that rock there for you.” And I was able to take off my backpack and rest for a minute and get a drink.  It may have been a good thing that it was quiet and we were away from the rest of the group, because the spirit was working in my heart. I knew that Someone had put that rock there for me, and it was my Heavenly Father.  And that rock is my Savior.  And when I’m weary, and my load is heavy, and I feel like I can’t go on because it’s so hard, I can lean on my rock and I can give up my burdens and have my load lightened and I can be refreshed.

That hike was a lot of uphill climbing, and for me, it was hard.  Sometimes our lives are like that and we have many trials and feel heavily burdened.  But if we make the choice to go on, our Savior will step in and lighten the load for us. Our choices matter much more than our abilities because after we’ve done all we can do, the Lord steps in.  And it’s very helpful if you have a guide.  Someone who knows the way and can warn you of danger and tell you what’s up ahead.  For me, on the hike, that was bro. Nelson and I liken him to our dear Prophet President Monson, as well as our loving Bishop and his counselors. Quietly leading us along the path, not forcing us, but encouraging us to make that choices that will lead us to happiness. 

I’m so grateful for the agency that we have been given.  I’m grateful to know that making wise choices will help me be prepared to meet my Savior when he comes again, and I know that He will come again.  I know our Heavenly Father loves us.  I know that he sent his Son to be our Rock.

I share this experience with you today because it's something that gave me hope.  Something that strengthened me.  Something that brought me peace.  Something that reminded me that I am never alone.  (Something that reminded me why I was baptized into the LDS church 22 years ago today!)  Mostly I share it because, like I said, it changed my life.  And I don't want to be afraid to share the things that are most important to me.

THANK YOU STACY! For saying what you said and for the way you said it.

We don't all have the same religion or the same viewpoints, but I hope that we all have a Rock. Someone or something that brings us peace; that keeps us grounded.  And if you don't, go do something about it.  Go find that.  And then share it. :)

PS - There is an awesome movie called "Meet the Mormons" that hits select theaters around the United States today!  

"Meet the Mormons examines the very diverse lives of six devout Mormons. Filmed on location and across the globe, Meet the Mormons takes viewers on a journey into the day-to-day realities of individuals living in the U.S., Costa Rica, Nepal and beyond. From their individual passions to their daily struggles, each story paints a picture as rich and unique as the next while challenging the stereotypes that surround the Mormon faith."

It's really quite interesting and entertaining and I highly recommend it!

The Good Stuff

So, I was listening to the Paperclipping Roundtable (a scrapbooking podcast) a few weeks back and it wasn't the topic of the podcast, but somehow May Flaum got to talking about what pages in her scrapbook her and her family actually appreciate and love looking back on.  And I have to say it was a real eye opener for me.

May was talking about how she likes doing pages about her family and how much she loves them and how she's so glad they are in her life and blah blah blah.  She said that those were the pages she didn't really care about, looking back on them.  The ones that really stood out and that she and her family enjoyed looking at were the pages where they could say "Oh! Remember when so and so did that?" and "Oh man!  I forgot about that!  That was hilarious!", etc.

It really got me thinking, because I love doing reflective, feeling-based pages.  I think that's important.  But in the end, everyone is going to know that I love my husband and daughter.  What they will want to see is the good stuff.  The stories we tell over and over around the dinner table.  Things that made us laugh out loud and the quirky stuff that our kids did.

Things like the fact that Malia used to love worms.  And this time she put it in her pocket.  And he didn't make it.  And she thought it was sleeping.

Or that time we took a walk around Grandma's house in Idaho and Malia kept calling the little reflectors "lollipops".

(Sidenote: I miss Sassafrass!)

Or even just the small fact that Malia HATES having her photo taken.  It always requires bribery.

These are the stories I want told.  Don't get me wrong, I still like the fluff.  I'm still gonna do the fluff.  Because I like making pages about how I feel and about how much I love people.  BUT. My One Little Word this year is LOOK and I want to make LOOKing for the story part of my journey. There's been a lot less of that kind of scrapbooking around here lately, but that's going to change.  I want to scrapbook The Good Stuff.  After all, it's the "stuff" that makes me love them even more. :)

Do you have any scrapbooking goals for yourself this year?  I wanna hear 'em...

You should know...

You should know that I love my daughter. She is the color in my world and the light in my life. You should know that Malia is a beautiful little stinker.

You should know that I can't wait to see her when I get home from work to ask her about her day.

You should know that last night I read her a book about volcanoes, only to find out later that the night before she had a nightmare about falling in lava and dying...oops.

You should know that I would do anything for my baby.

You should know that being a mother is super challenging and super rewarding.

Just thought you should know.

Forever...

Just wanted to share a quick scrapbook page:

Supplies: CS - Close to My Heart; PP - Fancy Pants, Sassafras; Tickets - Close to My Heart; Die cut Title - My Mind's Eye; Stickers - Close to My Heart, Little Yellow Bicycle; Punch - EK Success; Foam '3' - American Crafts; Ribbon - My Mind's Eye

I cut out and popped up some of the little hearts from the Sassafras paper. I love how it turned out!

These two people are really what matters most in my life. So glad I get to spend forever with them and I can't wait to see what the future brings.

What does forever hold for you?

The Enormous Egg...

Disclaimer: Beware, this is a wordy post...

I have never had a good imagination. When I was little, I could never think of anything to 'play' with my Barbies so I cut their hair instead. My mom stopped buying them for me. I never loved playing house or school or things like that because it was hard for me to think of scenarios and situations required for those games. Even now, when Malia wants me to play with her I have a hard time pretending to do a voice for her little toys. I have a hard time pretending to be someone else. Maybe that's why I have always loved books.

From a young age (really young. Like 4 years old), I have LOVED reading. Books provided the escape to another world that my young mind needed, but I didn't have to make up the story. The author weaved a tale that brought me into their world. The Enormous Egg was the first book I really remember reading.


I was five years old and had just skipped from Kindergarten to the first grade because I had a seventh grade reading level. My teacher, Mrs. Voorhees took our class to the library to check out books. I went with the other kids to all the fun books. Remember the Mr. Men and Little Miss books? I wanted to check out Little Miss Sunshine. I loved those books. My teacher steered me away from the fun books and made me look at a twirling rack of chapter books near the checkout desk. She asked me to choose one of those books. I ended up picking The Enormous Egg. I hated that she made me do that.

Well, thanks Mrs. Voorhees for seeing my potential because I loved that book. From then on I always tried to pick at least one chapter book, and read books like 'Heidi' and 'A Wrinkle in Time' (still sneaking in the occasional Mr. or Miss book). :)

Well the other day, thanks to a gift card I won at work (thank you Carlie), I went and bought that book...and 14 others. I think that all of a sudden with Malia starting school this fall I have really been thinking about the profound impact that books have made on my life. I want to share that with Malia, so we started reading some of my favorite books from when I was young. We started out with 'Ramona the Brave', which she loved. If you haven't read them, the Ramona books are awesome. We will be reading all of them. Thank you Beverly Cleary. We are now in the middle of 'The Enormous Egg' and have big plans to read all of the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle books. Again, if you haven't heard of them, look them up. They are fantastic!

Malia has been loving our reading time and surprises me every time she says, "Mom, can we please just read one more chapter?" I love it. So grateful for the fire sparked that woke me up and said "Read your favorite books with your child!" And, I encourage all of you to do the same. We have seriously had so much fun.


Now that you've listened to me go on and on about books, just wanted to share something crafty along those lines. If you haven't already, you will soon see these little faux book cards popping up everywhere. I decided to take a stab at it.
KAREN!! IF YOU ARE READING THIS AND I HAVEN'T DROPPED OFF YOUR PRESENT, STOP NOW!!!
My friend Karen had a birthday yesterday and I thought that this would be the perfect house for a gift card to Barnes and Noble. To make the front and back cover I just cut some chipboard to 5x7 and covered it with old book-ish looking paper. Then I stamped and gold embossed on the cover to make it even more book-ish.

On the inside I put the gift card and suspended a banner and a cupcake from the book pages. Also used my handy Close to My Heart Library Card stamp to write a little note for Karen.



Here is a shot of the spine.

And here you can see the book pages. They are just 4 accordion folded strips of paper glued together in a rectangle. You can't see it very well, but I added a little piece of satin ribbon at the bottom to look like a place holder. I love the way it turned out!

Supplies: PP - Basic Grey, Martha Stewart Crafts; CS - Close to My Heart; Stamps - Close to My Heart, Practicing Creativity, K&Company, Hampton Arts; Decorative Tape - 7Gypsies; Ribbon - Close to My Heart; Ink - Ranger, Tsukineko; Embossing Powder - Ranger; Label Punch - EK Success

Enjoy! Go read a book! Or make one...

Happy Birthday Andrew...

As you all know, yesterday was Easter. Well this year, Philip's brother's birthday fell on that day too. He would have been 34.

As the family gathered at the cemetery, I found myself thinking about Christ's atonement and being somehow more grateful than usual this year for the knowledge that we will see our loved ones again someday. The knowledge that we can be together forever. I have such an amazing amount of gratitude for all that He did for us.

*Just a funny sidenote - As we have been trying to teach Malia about the atonement this week we have also been talking about heaven a lot. She somehow has it ingrained in her that since she has been in heaven (before she was born) that she has died before. Because when people die, they go to heaven. :)

A little analogy...

The other day we went to Thanksgiving Point's Farm Country to see the farm animals. There were goats, chickens, llamas, pigs, ducks, bunnies, horses, cows, etc. What really caught my eye though were the peacocks. When we first came around to them Malia oohed and ahhed over how beautiful they were. And they were. Just like this, the peacocks were pretty.

We walked around a bit and on our way out, the peacock displayed his feathers.
(my picture stunk, so this one is courtesy of the National Geographic website.)

How much more beautiful is this bird now? A crowd formed around the enclosure and everyone marveled at the beauty of this God-given creature. And it got me to thinking. Now, bear with me because this analogy is a little far-fetched. But it's what came to my mind and I feel it's worth sharing.

You and I are like peacocks and the feathers are like our talents and quirks, and everything that makes us who we are. When we hide our talents and quirks away, sure, we look nice. But when we share them with others our true beauty shines forth and everyone can see how beautiful we are.

As this idea rolled around in my mind, I got to thinking of all the things that make me who I am. I'd like to share a few with you...

My husband calls me an old grandma because I love jigsaw puzzles, reading, and watching QVC.

I can never get sick of watching Pride and Prejudice -- but only the one with Colin Firth.

I have a 'tender heart' according to my friend Sadie. I cry at everything. I don't watch the news because it is all sadness and it breaks my heart. I cry at commercials, TV shows, and movies. I cry when people tell me they are moving. I never bear my testimony because I cry when I am filled with the spirit. I get emotional when I see something really beautiful like clouds or sunsets or waterfalls. Really anything in nature could make this list. I cry when I see something adorable. Like a daddy teaching his kid how to ride a bike. Enough said. I am a big old baby!!

I love rap and hip-hop.

I love taking pictures. I love that my father-in-law says this will be the most documented generation. I plan on being a part of that.

I am addicted to watching old TV shows on Netflix through my Wii.

I can't bear the thought of deleting a comment that I get on a blog post or an online gallery. I feel the love! They are all saved in a folder in my e-mail account. :)

I would love to hear what makes you YOU. Spread your feathers. Share your beauty.

Smiling...

I feel like I haven't posted or been 'in the blog-o-sphere' forever. I would like to say that I've been busy....but I haven't. Not really. Malia has been in Idaho with my aunt and cute cousin Annika (who is just a year older than her) visiting my grandparents all week and Philip has school every night. I guess I've just been relishing a little time to myself. I think we all need that. A little 'Me' time. Funny thing is, usually my 'Me' time is spent on the computer and scrapbooking. :) How ironic.

Anyway...while I've had this time to myself I've also been thinking about Mally and Philip and all the things I love about them. The little quirks that make them who they are. The things that I have fallen in love with.

One day, eating lunch, Mally said "I want to use my teaspoon," (at least that's what I thought she said) and she grabbed for a grapefruit spoon. I tried explaining to her multiple times what it was really called, a grapefruit spoon, but she is super stubborn and insisted on calling it a teaspoon. Finally I asked Philip why the heck Mally kept calling that spoon a teaspoon, and he gave me a little enlightenment. "She is calling it a teeth-spoon. Because it has teeth."


Now that makes perfect sense. :) I will never correct her again. I LOVE that she calls it that. Miss that girl. But she will be back from Idaho in a few short hours. (And then I may be wishing she would go back again...)

Speaking of Idaho, last time I was visiting I found this really cool "Seventy-Seven" house number on one of my grandparents neighbor's homes and took a picture. I knew I wanted to use it for something but didn't know what for the longest time. Then, a few months ago it came to me. I have been wanting to do a scrapbook page about Philip for a while (he and I are grossly neglected in the family scrapbook), and I decided to write down Seventy-Seven things I loved about him. Now as much as I love him, it was hard to think of Seventy-Seven things I loved. So it became simply Seventy-Seven things about the man I love. Get ready because here they come:

1. You frequently burst into song. 2. You sleep with your mouth wide open. 3. You love Coldplay. 4. You are the best Daddy ever. 5. You speak Spanish. 6. You are a quoter of movies, The Office, & Arrested Development. 7. You love to wear big, ugly, puffy vests. 8. You think I take too many pictures. Too bad! 9. You like being tickled. 10. You have green eyes. 11. You have a scar on the right side of your chest. 12. It bugs you when I touch your scar. 13. I touch your scar a lot. 14. you have a receding hair line. 15. You were born 10 weeks early on April 4, 1981. 16. You love computer/nintendo games. 17. You play piano and guitar by ear. 18. You do dishes. 19. You literally have a million legos. 20. When we were dating, you scrapbooked with me. 21. You love to cuddle. 22. You have two younger siblings & four older. 23. Sometimes you yell 'Mally' in a really annoying voice. 24. You like to bug me on purpose. 25. You work with teenage brats. 26. You love history. 27. You could eat Taco Amigo every day. 28. You teach Gospel Doctrine @ church. 29. BBQ sauce is your 5th food group. 30. Your feet usually stink. 31. You like tomato soup & grilled cheese sandwiches. 32. You have a really ugly beard when you grow it out. 33. You love BYU. 34. You call BYU Cougars, 'Cuggars'. 35. You are a milk drinker. 36. You always take the trash out. I never do. 37. You love Life cereal. 38. You usually expect the worst. 39. You are 5'10ish. 40. You sing the wrong words to songs all the time. 41. You are a romantic. 42. Sometimes you take baths. 43. You love hanging out with your brother Thomas. 44. Your name only has one 'L'. 45. You love playing basketball. 46. Your favorite colors are green and blue. 47. Your middle name (Elisha) means 'God will save'. 48. You have a good imagination. 49. You get along well with kids because you still are one. 50. You like to wear layers. 51. Every time you work out, you come home, flex, and ask me if you look stronger. 52. You dance like a white boy. Which you are. :) 53. You bug me to dance with you all the time, but I hate dancing. 54. You like to mow the lawn. 55. You went to Chile on a mission. 56. You don't need glasses, but you want to need glasses. 57. You can't wait until your hair goes gray. 58. You once used silver spray in your hair to see how cool you would look with gray hair. 59. You like the movie 'Tinkerbell' because the music reminds you of when Malia was tiny. 60. You snore. Rather loudly. 61. You lost your older brother Andrew in 2000. 62. You hate my passenger-seat driving. 63. You want a son. 64. You love your daughter. 65. You like chess. You wish you could play Wizard's Chess. 66. You hate/are allergic to dogs. 67. You love Harry Potter. 68. You love movie scores. 69. You can lose your temper. 70. You once threw dice @ a window and it broke. 71. You were a tree-climber as a boy. 72. You like cats. 73. Sometimes you talk in your sleep. 74. Your favorite movie is 'Field of Dreams'. 75. You make a mean omelet. 76. You call my mom 'Mommita'. 77. You are my husband & you are stuck with me for eternity! I love you!


After making the page I realized that these really are seventy-seven thing I love about him. The good and the bad things. Those little everyday things that we would miss about our loved ones if they were gone.

Homeward Bound...

Last week, one of the most amazing men to ever walk this earth returned home to his Father in heaven at the ripe age of 91. Now, I may be a little biased, seeing as it was my husband's grandfather, but I believe that all who met him would agree that he touched their lives for good. He is known by Dad, Grandpa, Russell, and to us he is 'Horse Papa'. (He was in the business of raising horses.)



One of my fondest memories of him is seeing him ride as Uncle Sam in the Strawberry Days parade each year. He was awesome! And he kept trucking along up until a few years ago. I love that he did that!

People keep telling us, "Sorry for your loss". And it really is our loss. But we are not sorry. He lived a good, long, life and I remember him always saying that he was ready to go whenever the Lord wanted to take him. I'm sure he missed his sweetheart dearly. I know there was a joyous reunion in heaven that day.



Horse Papa's funeral was truly one of the most beautiful services. Some of the family members (myself and hubby included) sang a song entitled 'Homeward Bound'. Now, when I first heard the title I was thinking of the folksy Simon and Garfunkel tune. It's not that. :) Take a listen here:

Just in case, here are the lyrics:

In the quiet misty morning
When the moon has gone to bed,
When the sparrows stop their singing
And the sky is clear and red,

When the summer's ceased its gleaning
When the corn is past its prime,
When adventure's lost its meaning -
I'll be homeward bound in time

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

If you find it's me you're missing
If you're hoping I'll return,
To your thoughts I'll soon be listing,
In the road I'll stop and turn

Then the wind will set me racing
As my journey nears its end
And the path I'll be retracing
When I'm homeward bound again

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

(Ah)

Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return to you somehow

(softly)
Bind me not to the pasture
Chain me not to the plow
Set me free to find my calling
And I'll return,
And I'll return,
And I'll return . . .to you somehow

I believe that this song is about a horse, which was perfect and fitting for Grandpa Schow. The performance was beautiful and we had a bunch of instruments too. Philip carried the Tenor part amazingly and it was hard not to lose it standing next to him. :)

Just wanted to share some of my favorite photos of the day:

He had a gun salute (he served in WWII). We saved all of the shells and all of the grandsons kept one.

For some reason, this man in particular caught my eye and I just loved the way he looked. It was perfection. (I am a little weird. It's okay.)

Love this picture of this general (?) saluting the flag in honor of Horse Papa.

Folding the flag over his casket.

Some of his war gear.

Bless these little girls, who throughout the service reminded us of why we are here on earth and what makes it worthwhile.

Now, the most amazingly awesome and beautiful thing about the whole funeral, to me, was the horse drawn carriage that a man volunteered to transfer the casket in from the funeral to the cemetery. It was amazing. Pictures can not do it justice and it touched my heart. It was so fitting for Horse Papa. Made me cry. Of course.

I admired and respected this man for his kindness, charity, love, thriftiness, his heartfelt prayers, and his thoughtful words. In fact, I still respect him. What an amazing man. I have no doubt that God said 'Well done my good and faithful servant.' He endured to the end. Love him.

Lately I am...

...watching - Netflix and Youtube through my Wii...and LOVEing it! Why did I not discover it before now?

...wanting - the new CHA releases from Studio Calico. State Fair and Countryside are so delectable! Swoon...

Click the pic to see more...

...inspired by - Jennifer McGuire to do some more stamping techniques. That girl is amazing and knows how to do anything with stamps. I made this card. All the supplies are Close to My Heart. I love the inside (but conveniently didn't take a pic) because it says 'When I'm with you it feels like Home'. I definitely know a few people that make me just feel warm and comfortable. Put me at ease. Don't you?

...listening to - Mindy Gledhill. If you haven't heard of her, you NEED to take a listen. Her song lyrics are so uplifting and inspiring. I have many pages planned around the lyrics to her songs. Including this one:

It's based on a song called 'Hourglass' or 'Life's an Hourglass' about her little boy and how she doesn't want him to grow up so fast. The lyrics on the page read 'Let's fly away to Neverland and give our best to Peter Pan. Don't you turn around and grow up way too fast'. I realized later that the words are slightly off, but you get the idea. Seriously, she's amazing!!! I can't say enough. Saw her live at *Spark* last September and she sang/did motivational speaking. It was awesome.

...making - Accordion flowers and stuff. I like making little embellishments while I'm watching TV (or Netflix, as the case may be). You may remember my painted paper from this post. I can't just sit and watch something. I have to be doing something else too. Last night I made these little beauties. I like making things that can work together, and call me lame, but I also like adhering them to a little piece of transparency so I can easily find them later. :)

...excited - to have a Monday off to have a girl's day out and go to Tangled with Mal (finally).

...waiting - to hear back on some exciting, crafty opportunities!

...wishing - I had the motivation to deep clean my house on my day off. Too bad. Ha ha!

What have you been doing lately?

Resolutions...

As December is coming to a close I am starting to think about what I want to do for the new year. What do I want to accomplish and what do I want to change about my life. Every year I think of things and they don't get done. (One of the big ones every year is to lose like, 1000 lbs.) But this year I really want change. I have a lot of things on my list including, spending less, cooking more, reading my scriptures, etc., but one of the big ones is to spend a lot more time with my little munchkin. I am realizing how fast she is growing up (she is almost five!!!!) and it is freaking me out! Need to slow down a bit and cherish my daughter while it's still just her and us.

Wanted to share one of my favorite recent (ish) layouts. Just me and Mal.

Supplies: Cardstock - Bazzil Basics; Patterned paper - Creative Imaginations, My Mind's Eye, Sassafrass; Letter Stickers - American Crafts, Making Memories; Font - Another Typewriter downloaded from the internet; Pen - American Crafts; Tab and Arrow cut from packaging on stickers by October Afternoon; Other - Paint, Fabric, Jewels.

Here is a closeup of the flowers I made. On the small one I just punched 5 small circles out of double sided cardstock and folded in the edges. Then I added some bling to the center. Totally easy and way cute. The bigger flower is made out of a strip of fabric (some random outdoor furniture fabric that I got out of the remnant bin). I just loosely hand stitched on the edge of a strip of fabric, pulled it tight and spiraled it into a flower shape. I topped it off with another circle punched out of paper.

One of my other resolutions is to get crafty and scrapbook more! I want to make more of my own embellishments and stamps! Looking forward to a great and crafty 2011!

A funny story...

Today Mally (age 4) and I were in her room and the following hilarious event unfolded:

Malia: Mom, let's go get a fresh peach shake!

Me: Ok. Should we go ask Daddy if he wants to go?

Malia's eyes light up.

Malia: Yeah! But let's make it a secret. We can make him close him eyes and him can't open him's eyes until we get there.

Me: That's a good idea Mal. Go ask Daddy if he want to go somewhere secret.

Malia runs into the other room, asks Daddy and we get ready to go. She was really cute and put a blindfold on him and led him to the car and helped shut his door and everything. I got into the drivers seat and she got all buckled in. When we were still in the garage...

Malia: Dad, don't open your eyes until we get to Taco Amigo, okay?


Philip immediately started laughing and so did I.

Malia: That isn't funny guys.

We drove the rest of the way there and then Mally took off his blindfold and exclaimed...

Malia: We're here!

Daddy: Wow! Taco Amigo!


I seriously live for moments like these. It makes my heart happy. :)

Spark...!!!!!!

This last weekend I went to the most amazing, beautiful, fun, spark-your-creativity, 2-day, all day crafting extravaganza at the most amazing venue - Noah's (which considering how close I live, I can't believe I haven't discovered it yet!)


It was filled with inspiring classes to *NURTURE* our creativity, cheerful music to *ENLIGHTEN* our lives, words of encouragement to *UPLIFT* our spirits, and friendships and memories to *CHERISH* for a lifetime.

I couldn't believe all the work that these talented women put into this event and I truly appreciated having so much in commen with so many people in the same place. At the close of our two day awesomeness we were asked to write down something that *sparked* inside of us. Even if it sounded crazy or if we didn't think we could do it. Write it down. I thought about this and wondered what would motivate me. What were my dreams? Lately I have found myself wishing. Wishing I could have this, or do that. With words of encouragement (and a few tears) from Rhonna, Liz, and Margie I realized that I can make my own dreams come true. Anything is possible if you work at it. And that is what I plan to do. I made this sign (which by the way is hanging from a really cool vintage hanger I bought at Dear Lizzy) to remind myself everyday that I can do it. I can have everything I wish for. But I need to make it happen.

I am so grateful for this experience and can't wait to see what they have in store for next year! Go out and get your *Spark* on!!!

PS: Shout out to all the ladies who attended *Spark* with me! Especially the Jen's :)

So Lucky...

I've been thinking back and missing Mally at this age (abt. 10 months). So much I miss about this. The cuddles, the baby smiles, the rolls (the michelin man rolls , haha). Right now I'm really wishing for baby numero dos. But...then I remember that I sleep at night now. Mally can play on her own without needing constant supervision. Basically, I can get things done! And then I think, I am so freakin' LUCKY!! I'm learning to appreciate what I have in my life right now.

Supplies: CARDSTOCK: Provo Craft, Bazzil PATTERNED PAPER: Crate Paper, My Mind's Eye, We R Memory Keepers BINGO/TICKET STUB: My Mind's Eye CHIPBOARD: Scenic Route LETTER STICKERS: Basic Grey PUNCH: Fiskars (my new favorite!) OTHER: pen, thread