Life in Focus

tell your story

Today is the last day of April and do you know what that means?  It means that tomorrow is May 1st and the beginning of a month long story telling celebration!  With inspiration from Lain and her fun LOAD concept, I am so excited to spend a few minutes each day in May creating a page and saving our memories.

It does seem rather ambitious to think that a story could be told every day for a month, I know.  But, when I heard about this challenge, I jumped right in and didn't look back.  So, how will I ever accomplish such a feat when there's so many other things to do in a day?  Well, I've put together some strategies that I think will work for me.

First, I am being very realistic about expectations for myself.  I'm not out to win any design competitions or big prizes by doing this.  Instead, this is for me and my family and for the soul purpose of telling the stories that I want to be saved forever.  So, my intention is to tell them with photos and words and a simple design scheme....simple, that's the key.

Second, I'm using a new system for organizing the stories that I want to tell so that I can spend more time playing and writing and less time finding stuff.

It's a  3 ring binder with page protectors that hold the photos, memorabilia, and any supplies that I want to use to tell my story.  When I have 20 minutes, I can sit down with my binder and get to work creating the page. I've heard of others that use this idea and say that it works great!

Third, since getting the story from my head and heart to the page takes a little more time for me, I'm using a system for that too. 

It's my "journaling station" that will sit on my nightstand.  The intention is that every night before I go to sleep (and when it's nice and quiet in the house), I will pull out my notebook and tell the story that will be included on the page for the next day.  That way, it really will be just a matter of putting it all together when I have a few minutes of time.

31 stories told by June 1st
ready, set, GO!

today's agenda

What?!  It's been almost 2 weeks since I last spent time with my blog?  How can that be??
I suppose it's the whirlwind of birthday celebrations, work, laundry, play rehearsals, track meets, costume sewing, laundry, dinners, groceries, and everyday motherhood that brought me to two weeks later....and it's nice to be here.

I have a fresh "to do" list in hand and ready to tackle it so that I can have time for more blogging about all the exciting, creative, and fun stuff swimming around in my head. 

On with today's agenda....
1. take deposit to the bank for cub scouts
2. head to Costco for a huge load up on groceries
3. finish photo cd for "Joseph" show
4. bake chocolate chip cookies (haven't had these in the house in ages and we NEED them!)
5. spa day for puppy...short nails and a bath are in order
6. returns at Target and stock up on pens and pencils (not sure where they all go?)
7. clean out fridge and pantry..pretty sure there are science experiments in both!
8. download birthday photos
9. work on promo folder for new Big Picture class
10. take fresh flower surprise to my sweet sister- in -law, Karen, for all of her help lately
11. put together a dinner menu for the month of May

Pretty sure I should stop there, get in the shower, and GO!  Back soon.....

Hope you have a happy and productive day too!

a birthday countdown

I have been busy planning, preparing, and even plotting for Owain's birthday next week.  You see, I love birthdays and everything that has to do with them...the cake, the gifts, the surprises...oh, especially the surprises!  I have always very lovingly exercised every creative muscle I have into celebrating these important days with my family and this one is no exception.  My youngest is turning 10 and I can hardly believe it.  That old "don't blink" saying?  Yep, I think I blinked.

Anyway, I thought I would share some of the fun in store for this big guy and start by showing you this...

I made him a countdown calendar so that he can see for himself just how long he has to go until the much anticipated day.  I had so much fun with this project!  It's hard to tell in the photo above, but on the left is a stack of Heidi Swapp playing cards that countdown the days from 10.  I didn't put the year on it anywhere so that it can be used for future birthdays too. When the big day finally arrives, it will look like this....

The project is mounted on a piece of sturdy chipboard and can be hung by wire or even put on an easel.  It made me so happy to give it to him and the smile and big hug I got in return were an added bonus!

This would also be a great project to create to countdown a holiday, a vacation, or even the last day of school.  So fun!

Easter in Review

I realize I'm a little late in posting our Easter celebration (thanks to computer malfunctions) but
it's still in the same week (and I now have a new monitor) so here goes...

We had an absolutely beautiful Easter Sunday here in Michigan and we were all ready to open up the windows and enjoy the fresh air of spring! 

It seems that I take this shot every year.  I just can't resist all the bright pretty colors
of this season...and all lined up in a row....simply irresistible.

One of three baskets waiting to be discovered in the morning. Notice the balancing
dragonfly and the ginger bunny, which were both huge hits!

Our puppy loved her first Easter and was especially delighted in the plastic eggs.
And yes, of course she got a basket of her own! The bunny left it on her crate
complete with a dog treat filled golden egg and new chew toy..she was so happy!


Owain's favorite part?  The hunt!  There were eggs EVERYWHERE and he managed to
fill his basket likity split.  We had so much fun that later in the day, I took
a bunch of the emptied eggs and hid them for him again outside.  He had a blast running
off that sugar buzz!

The sight after all of the loot had been found and collected!


One of our favorite food traditions for this holiday is our delicious (and much
anticipated) breakfast of "eggs goldenrod".  It is so good that everyone in the
house LOVES it and I have to double the recipe for 2 platters.  YUM!


We ended our great day with a great dinner.  I had so much fun getting out our
good china, setting a pretty table, and covering it with yummy dishes.  Our menu
consisted of  glazed ham, biscuits, spinach casserole (sooo good), pineapple and
blackberries, chilled asparagus salad, and deviled eggs. 

We all went to bed that night with full tummies, full hearts, and full of gratitude for
all of our blessings.  It was a good day.

ginger bunnies and pretty nails

Making Stacy's ginger bunnies this evening and was reminded (in a rude sort of way) of the importance of present moment awareness.  Um, well, I unknowingly added 3 3/4 tsp of salt to my dough instead of the required 3/4 tsp....what was I thinking??  Well, I was thinking about all of the things I wanted and needed to accomplish in the next 48 hours of my very busy life and I simply wasn't present. 

Salty cookies = Yucky!!  Lesson learned. 

I threw out the dough and started over and this time?  Well, I was very aware of every ingredient that went into the mixer!!  And, I can't wait to make these cuties because I know my kids will love them....thank you Stacy!!

So, I am now slowing down, being mindful of what's right in front of me, and not worrying about what doesn't get done.  Instead of worrying about details, I indulged myself (and my daughter) in a little "let's play spa" evening. I am loving that she still wants to spend this time with  me and she gives a pretty awesome hand massage, btw!!

Enjoy every sweet little moment of your Easter weekend.

simply savannah

Last week, Kevin and I escaped by ourselves for a few days away to the artful town of Savannah, Georgia. While we were there, we ate at great restaurants, walked along the river, slept in late, explored all the local art galleries, and went on a ghost tour where we listened to the stories and learned the history of this unique place.  We took our camera with us everywhere we went and were inspired to capture the details that are simply Savannah.  Here's a little peek at what we discovered on our journey....

An inspiring place to spend a few days for sure!

spring...are you out there?

This is what our "spring" break looks like outside.


This is what our spring break looks like inside.

Although it is 30 degrees, with snow and ice covering our corner of the world, we are doing our part to bring spring to Michigan...finally.  Making (and eating) Easter treats certainly helps!! 

In case you need a little spring inside too...

Candy Nests (makes about 2 dozen)
3 T butter-flavor shortening
1 (10oz) package marshmallows
1 t vanilla
6 cups crisp rice cereal (we used cocoa krispies)
Easter candy (pastel m&m's are perfect!)

Line 2 (12 cup) muffin pans with paper liners.
**In a large saucepan, melt shortening over medium heat.
Add marshmallows, stirring constantly until melted an smooth.
Stir in vanilla.
Remove from heat and stir in cereal.
Using buttered hands, press about 1/2 cup mixture into paper liners,
making a small well in the center.
Allow nests to stand for 30 minutes.
Fill with candy eggs.
**note....the saucepan gets soooo sticky!  It's a pain to clean (we love you Kevin)
but we think it's worth it.

there's no place like home

We're home again...safe and sound and feeling cozy after a few artful days away.  I'll update more on our trip soon but right now, I have a huge mountain of laundry to tackle.  Before I go, I wanted to share a little corgi cuteness. It seems that little Miss Princess Guinivere thinks this bed belongs to her.  

Can I get an "awwwwww"!?!?