More Keepsakes!

 I'm thrilled to have finished three more wedding keepsakes for a friend.  'Tis the season of weddings!  Need a unique wedding gift?  All you have to do is mail me an original wedding invitation and I will decorate, ,frame and send it back to you.  Send a check along with the invitation or use Paypal.  Here are pictures of the latest wedding invitations that I've done.

This bride and groom had little motorcycles on their tables at the reception.  I will add a touch of any unique theme.

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This wedding had a Mardi Gras theme with masks.  See the mask at the top?

Embellishments are my favorite to add to any invitation or announcement.

I also do anniversaries, new births and graduations.  See my earlier posts labeled "keepsakes" for more pictures.  Thanks for looking!

There's Yogurt on the Window

We've had a very busy summer so far.  If we weren't going out and doing something, we've had friends in to visit and play.  I never mind having company, especially when it's someone to keep my kids busy, like a play date.  But today was different.  I just wanted a day with nothing to do so I can get caught up on my own stuff that I needed to get done.  My daughter was constantly asking for someone to come over and play today and I said, "we don't have to schedule something exciting every minute of everyday.  You have a bedroom full of stuff, go find something to do."  She responded, "I'm going to keep whining until you let me have a friend over to play with."  So there you have it.  That was my whole afternoon.

At 8:00pm, I turned around and looked at the house.  Good gracious!  This is what I get for letting the kids have too much fun while I stayed busy on my own tasks.  Heaven forbid, I accomplish what I need to get done without regretting it!  Of course the kids' energy rapidly depleted when it was time to clean up and I was left yelling.... a lot.  How many times do I have to say, "pick up those papers and put them away" before I go crazy?  In fact, I yelled so much that I started to lose my voice.  I didn't even yell that loud, just a lot.  I don't even want to know how yogurt got smeared all over the window and why the carpet is soaked in the playroom.  This is what I get for getting something of my own done.  I remembered an article I read on Yahoo! that said "stop yelling at your kids once and for all" and it said to talk quietly to your kids instead of yelling.  My first reaction to that statement was, "why talk quietly when yelling feels so good?"  Sometimes, yelling at my kids feels good to get all my frustrations out, then again, that just adds to my frustrations.  I suppose being a mom, I just can't win.

So here I am, 11:00pm and I'm sitting here for the first time in weeks and I'm doing nothing of importance.  It feels good.  I decorated three wedding invitations today, which my goal was to get them done by Thursday.   I can't wait to take pictures of the finished keepsake.  I will post them once they are finished.  I'll tell ya, these keepsakes are a unique gift.  They are beautiful and they preserve special moments in life like a wedding, anniversary, births and graduations.   If you're ever interested, I ship, accept Paypal and I would love to do a Keepsake for you.

The Meanest Mom

Today, it was declared by my children, not only at home multiple times, but also in public that I'm the meanest mom and I don't like my children.  I have never said, "I hate you" or "I don't like you" to my children... ever.  I will say, "I love you, I just don't like this behavior" to my children.  All last week, my girls and I were at Girl Scout Camp every day.  We hiked in the woods in 90 degree weather, got rained on, sat around a hot fire cooking food, made crafts, pot latches, and earned lots of patches.  We had so much fun that we pretty much wore ourselves to exhaustion.  As soon as we got home, the girls were to empty their bags, wash their hands and straight upstairs to shower and get ready for bed.  Then we would eat something edible for dinner and then we crashed.  I was lucky to do one load of laundry, just so we could keep wearing our camp shirts everyday.  Because of this chaotic schedule all week, my kids and I barely got enough sleep, which lead to all this mean talk from my children.  The girls are yelling at each other, fighting, spitting on each other and then just as fast, they can swirl around and be super nice to each other.  My 3-year-old started hitting me and yelling "no!" for everything I say.  How did my children become so mean to me and I'm the one declared as the mean one?  This is exhausting!

I think I figured it out today, after I treated my girls to ice cream and then after that their ears shut down for the rest of the day that I am too nice.  How can I be too nice and mean all at once?  I'm a mom, that's how.  I proclaimed today that anything that relates to me, gets put on the back burner until late at night when I can accomplish something in peace.  Today when I needed (not wanted) to buy a new pair of shoes, my kids automatically thought they could get something too.  This is after I said "no" a million times in the store before the shoe store.  Why can't I get something just for me because I NEED something and my kids get something they WANT just because they can?  Frankly, I get tired of saying no, but at times, I find myself turning it into a little secret game of mine.  How many times can I say "no" until I drive myself crazy?

We moms are too nice.  We put all our own personal needs behind everyone else's needs and forget to take care of ourselves.  When we do get a chance to take a break, we feel guilty.  Perhaps that's one of the requirements of being a good mom.  Who wouldn't feel guilty taking a hot bubble bath in the middle of the day when the babysitter is chasing screaming kids all around the house?  Well, I suppose I've put up with it long enough that I can put ear plugs in and know that I can take advantage of this babysitter while I have her in my grip and can't go anywhere until I get out of the tub.  She may never come back, but at least I got a bubble bath out of it.

It's important that we moms take care of ourselves.  I pray at night that God will keep me motivated in the morning to want to go to the gym and get a good workout.  He answers my prayers the very next morning (every single time I pray it) when my kids start fighting and wrecking the house, I grab my gym shoes and rush the kids out the door without a second thought.  I get two hours to myself and I can pound my frustrations out on the treadmill or spin cycle.  Read How to Survive Your First Spinning Class by Associated Content.  I will freely admit that I have shed tears on the cycle during class.  I have been that stressed and that frustrated that I can release all that through my pedals and out through my tears.  When I got it all out, I smile the rest of the spin class.

Moms, you owe it to yourself to ignore those mean comments by our children, erase all the guilt when you get a moment to yourself and it's OK to tell your children, "if you can be good for one hour, Mommy will be a happy Mommy for the rest of the day."   You are a fabulous mom, a loving mom and the most giving mom on all the planet.  Just don't forget to tell yourself that everyday!

That's a lot of hits!

I recently wrote 8 Uses for a Rainy Day Box and it has gotten 2,900 hits!  I've never written anything that has gotten so much attention.  I just had to share this fabulous article.  Parents!  Do you need to keep your kids busy while you're on an important phone call?  Need to get something done without constant interruptions, check out this article!  You'll be glad you did!

Getting married soon?  Know someone who is?  I was married 10 years ago, this September.  Making a Wedding Welcome Bag For Out of Town Guests has become quite the new fad lately.  Check out this article for something new for your guests at your wedding.  This article has reached almost 800 hits!

Interested in who the guards are of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier? This is a short article about what they have to do to become a Sentinel.  This has gotten over 250 hits.

How about reading an Interview with a Korean War Veteran?  My father-in-law tells about his experience in the Navy.  My father did the same:  Interview with a Navy War Veteran.

Thank you for visiting my Yahoo! articles.  I write for Yahoo! because writing has always been a hobby of mine.  What better way to get paid when you embark on one of your favorite hobbies?

What is it about slacking?

I met a new friend today and I was telling her about all the writing I do.  I realized that this sad little blog of mine has been neglected just like my journals.  When I logged into my blog to send my new friend the link, I noticed I got my first follower.  That prompted me to get back in gear.

As I sit here, listening to my dog snore under my feet, it's 11:30pm and I still have nothing important to say.  I have been busy writing for Yahoo! and of course, the Fourth of July activities has kept me very busy.  My husband has been working so much lately, I've hardly seen him in two weeks.  With that being said, I've gone borderline crazy with kids running around, me trying to write and still keep the house grounded; I'm not getting very far, or perhaps I am.  I've been double featured on Yahoo! and the beat assignments are rolling in.  I'm so excited to be writing for a reason but sadly, the lack of time given to me in a day has dwindled like mad lately.  I wonder why I'm so tired these days, then realizing it's because I've been up super late getting my own things done in peace while the kids sleep.

So, I don't have much to say, feeling like such a slacker.  I've got tons of ideas running through my mind but because they are overwhelming my brain, my brain shuts down and I have nowhere to go.  I get distracted very easily and I would swear on a hot fudge sundae that I've got ADHD.  My poor kids will always know me to have a laptop on my lap while multitasking love to them.  It's a sickness that I've created for myself.  I've read articles about going on a "technology diet" and how good it is for you to wean yourself off of technology for a while.  My brain has officially become mush and it needs adult stimulation: real knowledge and real brain exercises.  A "technology diet" would not be of best interest to me at this point.  If I did, I'd really go crazy!

Being a stay-at-home mom has been the best decision I have ever made for myself (ok, for my kids too).  I'm spoiled and I know it.  I don't have to rush out of bed, get ready, drop the kids off at daycare, work all day, come home and work some more and do it all over again.  Although, I do work just as hard as the full-time working mommies, I feel that I work even harder.  I'm sure all you moms out there feel the same. 

So here I am, jabbering on when I should be in bed.  So what keeps me slacking?  The quiet house when the kids are sleeping, no TV on for distractions, the phone is not ringing and I can sit here and waste time my own way.... and man!  Does it feel good!