Sleep in Heavenly Peace

I am having such a time comprehending the events of today. My heart breaks for all of those who will not be hugging their children tonight. I will never understand what drove a person to such an act. I just want to hold my children tight and keep them close. How do I let them out of my sight again? Can I keep them in a bubble, safe from all that is bad? My mind wanders to the picture of those little children being led from the school, hands on shoulders and fear on their faces. They should not know fear at this age. I think of the teachers who acted in such a heroic way to save their little charges, The teacher who took her first graders into a bathroom and told them to wait until the good guys came, that everything would be alright. She told them she loved them just to be sure that if the worst happened , they would know they were loved. The teacher who lost her life shielding her first graders from the bullets. They showed bravery and courage that is beyond fathomable. As I type this, my daughter is upstairs sleeping. I went to school to collect her today as she was sick. I have never been so happy to go collect her from school. My son is building something from play doh in the other room. It is way past his bedtime, but I dont care. I can hear his giggle and that is a sound that I hope I will never take for granted again. Hold them close, they grow so fast if we are lucky. Tell them you love them, show them every day that they are loved even on days they are not likeable Make sure they always feel safe

Rainbow Pancakes for Alex

My daughter is Autistic or has Autism depending on your particular preference. One of the difficulties we have with her is getting her to eat a more varied diet. She would live on Ramen, bananas, Kix cereal and pasta with Bacon if left to her own devices. She asked me for rainbow pancakes this weekend and since this is an item that is never requested, I leapt at the chance to get her to eat something different. After making the batter, it was simply a case of dividing the batter into seven bowls and coloring them. I made Alex help me as this is good therapy in and of itself! I was very doubtful that she would eat them but after she saw them all lined up she was incredibly happy. One rainbow stack and she was good to go. She managed to eat 4 which I am taking as a huge victory! ROY G BIV for the win!

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

I made these recently after discovering a rather large amount of canned pumpkin in the pantry. These were more than a worthy use for the pumpkin. They were amazing. Like, totally crave pumpkin amazing! The recipe I used came from Life Made Simple and required zero modification on my part. Make these now! Excuse the bad photo!

Peter Callahan's Kitchen

Oh be still my heart! I have a new favorite kitchen and it belongs to Peter Callahan. The awesome caterer and cookbook author is featured in this months HGTV magazine. Well worth picking up if only for this kitchen! Seriously, it is a great magazine and has exceeded my expectations. This kitchen, however, will be pinned like no other! Check out the gallery here at HGTV.com

Purl Soho

I have Purl Soho on my list of things to do on a trip to New York City. I have also tried (and failed) to learn to knit many times. The spirit is willing but the hands just don't seem to cooperate. However, I think this kit could put me over the edge. Besides being beautifully packaged and available in a choice of colours, it also promises me that I will be able to make 3 scarves without ripping the needles out of the wool and throwing it all at the wall. I like that! Available from Purl Soho

Go Mighty!

I may be a little obsessed with this site. It makes me happy to read the things people want to do and are willing to put out there. I lack the courage to say out loud the things I want to do. My fear is I may have to do them. My life list is long and I feel a pull to share it. Maybe #1 on the list should be 'Join Go Mighty and start checking off numbers'! I want to hike up Mount Rainier, learn to make macarons and master a simple crusty loaf of French Bread. These are just the first three things I could think of sitting at my desk! The 7 novels I have gestating in my mind? Maybe they could see the light of day. Fear of rejection? I should get the hell over it! Run a Half Marathon? Start with a 5k! Be a consistent blogger? Hmmm sounds doable! So with all this in mind, I think today I will hit the 'Request an Invite' button on the Go Mighty site and see what happens next! One thing is certain, it cant be any less dull than I am allowing myself to live life right now!

Yummy Kids Soap!

I picked up some of this at Target today. Oh my, it smells divine. I love it. Fresh apples - fall is coming! It is available online here but I paid less for it at Target.

The Urge to Purge

It hits me often but most times, life gets in the way. Today, however, the urge to purge picked a day when I have nothing else to distract me. I have way too much stuff and I can justify each hint with a reason to keep. However, it is just stuff that is getting in the way of living life. Jordan Ferney wrote on her blog 'Oh Happy Day' that she realized her stuff was taking up too much of her time. Taking care of her stuff was taking away from life. This resonated with me. So today I have a hair up my butt and a bag in hand. I also have boxes marked donate, give away and trash. I hope I can see this through. I have hid behind my stuff for far too long. Time to come out into the sun!

Words

I have a more than working knowledge of 5 languages. I love languages. One language I always thought of as an ugly language is German. However it dawned on me today that two of my absolute favorite words are from the German language. Both words describe a feeling that I don't think can be covered with a word in any other language! Schadenfreude - A feeling of pleasure derived from the misfortune of others. I admit to having this feeling on occasion. I see people who have been less than nice suddenly take their medicine and the feeling of 'yeah' washes over me! I admonish myself quickly but the feeling is noted!! Sehnsucht - this is a harder word to define in English. Essentially it is a feeling of intense longing or yearning. Sehnsucht represents thoughts and feelings about all facets of life that are unfinished or imperfect, paired with a yearning for ideal alternative experiences. It has been referred to as “life’s longings”; or an individual’s search for happiness while coping with the reality of unattainable wishes. Such feelings are usually profound, and tend to be accompanied by both positive and negative feelings. This produces what has often been described as an ambiguous emotional occurrence. It is sometimes felt as a longing for a far-off country, but not a particular earthly land which we can identify. Furthermore there is something in the experience which suggests this far-off country is very familiar and indicative of what we might otherwise call "home". In this sense it is a type of nostalgia, in the original sense of that word. At other times it may seem as a longing for a someone or even a something. But the majority of people who experience it are not conscious of what or who the longed for object may be, and the longing is of such profundity and intensity that the subject may immediately be only aware of the emotion itself and not cognizant that there is a something longed for. The experience is one of such significance that ordinary reality may pale in comparison. I have this feeling often - longing for something I cannot put my finger on but knowing it is out there somewhere. It is usually accompanied by a deep sense of wanderlust! Today is one of those days!

Mosser Cake Pedestals

I am not sure I have ever seen such a good price on these Mosser cake pedestals. The white and green 9inch plates are both just $12 each right now. You have to buy a minimum of two plates to get this price, but it is well worth it. These are classics!






Available from Bellacor

It's a little early for Valentines Day but.....

These little cards from Pottery Barn Kids are adorable. The scallop edges, the gingham envelopes, it all just makes me happy.

Available at Pottery Barn Kids

Dress #1

One of my resolutions is to be more sartorially unchallenged! I want to wear dresses again and with that in mind....here is contestant #1


Available at Modcloth

Happy New year

Yay to 2012. 2011 was a hard in year in many ways. My husband spent most of the year away from home and it put a lot of strain on all of us. He is still deployed but we are hopeful that in just about 2 months, we get the 4th quarter of our circle home! There are many other changes afoot this year but as they mainly involve the US Navy, I know better than to believe in them until I see the orders written in stone!

From a personal standpoint, I hope to make 2012 a year of personal enrichment. I need to spend time on myself both physically and mentally. It has been a very stressful few years and I need to make myself a priority. I believe that will help me be a better mother and wife.

I have a list of resolutions and I hope to make at least a few of them become realities.

So cheers to 2012, lets make it a great one!