nephew date

Time with Aunt Lindsay always looks a little different from the norm & I love it. The boys have let her in to their otherwise "No Girls Allowed" world.

new 'do

sucker

I was looking at the receipt from H&M, & found that I had purchased a "Fancy Hair Acc." Funny, because I would have bought a $10 broken harmonica if they labeled it a "Fancy Hair Acc."

seattle

This guy is 30!

H&M missed me so much they were there waiting across the street from our hotel.

Dinner at The Walrus & the Carpenter.
Probably the most unique dining experience Matt or I had ever had.
Very reasonably priced, too. Thank you stephmodo,
you were the best tour guide! We hit up her recommends for
Sitka & Spruce, Oddfellows, & Molly Moon's as well.
Everything was brilliant.

Exploring the city beyond the tourist stops meant a lot of time in the car.

They have flowers in Seattle, popping up everywhere. Ahh Spring, come quick.

The boys spent the weekend between Grandpa & Grandma Butlers house & our house with Aunt Lindsay. They asked if we could leave again next weekend, I will take that as a good sign. Here is a funny joke they told my sister: Parker said Whoopi Goldberg must have had gas a lot when she was little to get her name. Kaleb immediately remarks, THAT'S MY GIRL!

swoon

Amazed at the big, big things stirring in our hearts. Matt & I had a beautiful birthday trip to Seattle, more to come on that.

bittersweet

Oh that face with those pink cheeks & snotty nose & dirty fingernails! What has me swooning? Matt & I are off to enjoy a weekend in Seattle to celebrate his birthday. Why are the kids so perfect right before you try to get away?

birth day

Not just Matt had a birthday yesterday. Welcome, Kiel Asher Archuleta. I am in awe of how new life is thrust upon us so graciously from our God. He is seriously SO GOOD. Congratulations Kelly, Kirsten, Koen & Kace!

heart attack

The Archuleta Valentine's Day was a success. A lot of pink & I love yous & this heart shaped pizza roll for dinner.

30

Breakfast at the Nampa airport for Matt's big day.

I am so glad you were born Matty Matt! The universe is a happier place to be with you in it.

my love

Even if he does wear his boots in bed.

heart day

(found here)
Awhile back I wrote about some things I would like to change in me. In that same spirit, to write more. Just put it out there, my words & no smiling boys to charm you into liking the real me more. I thought I would write about something I think I have right.

I like pink. Like, a lot. It is this 4 year old little girl inside that, thanks to Anna & Erin, burst outta me in 10th grade after a decade of repression. I am right on this one. Maybe if you are male,  it is something different for you but I am a girl & we like pink.

Isn't that how it goes with girls? From the start they are the perfect shade of pink & they smell of pink things like roses & they look, so good in pink.

So here's to your Valentine's Day 2011, I hope it is very pink.

artsy fartsy

Rainbow Lego castle, built with Collin. See that lone pink Lego? That's me.

Modern art project I taught in Parker's classroom.
Kids all hated it despite the awesomeness of the final product.

Pumpkin cream cheese muffin goodie bags!
I made them from scratch, yup, I am fancy like that.

Spotted this crow in the tree in our front yard. Kind of like Poe's Raven, eh?

good advice

"...it's the only way to become unstuck and make room for whatever lies ahead. "Ask yourself what you want your life to look like over the next few years," Grufferman writes, "and you'll come up with a vision for your future, which will be your personal theme. Once you have your theme, you can work on getting rid of everything in your life that doesn't fit the theme, and you will be prepared to let go of the clutter."
According to Grufferman, who cites organization and time-management guru Julie Morgenstern as her inspiration, there are different kinds of clutter in our lives -- not just objects but obligations, habits and, yes, people. "People can be just as de-energizing and draining as piles of newspapers and magazines," she writes. "If there's someone in your life who drags you down whenever you see her...maybe it's time to reconsider the relationship." Granted, sometimes a complete break isn't an option. If that's the case, Grufferman advises figuring out a way to minimize the amount of time you spend together. When it comes to shedding objects, she suggests that after we pick the treasures we want to keep, we decide what to give away, sell, recycle, or donate and then do it."

This was part of a newsletter I receive from Seventh Generation cleaning products. Good stuff.

thanks

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, and confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow."
                                                                                                                  -Melody Beattie

Isn't that a great quote? Love it. Today I am grateful for all my near & dear ones, a cool new way I found to edit photos, & I scored Adobe Photoshop last week online for just $45! So the pictures around here should be looking much better or maybe just funkier.

more kitchen pics

Not really a before shot, more so, a year-into-this-100-year-old-house-we-are-trying-to-deal shot. If I can find it, I will scan in the flier for the house when we bought it. The kitchen before is NASTY, and they used it as a selling point!

I was waiting for all the stars to align, for the magazine worthy shots. But hey, after a few weeks of wear & tear, these shots I snapped of our kitchen redo look amazing!

Most of the work still to be done is caulking & painting that baseboard. I have a feeling that will require another coat of paint to put on the chalkboard wall, then at long last, the boys can get to doodling.

The Blur

            Moving through the happy blur that is our life. Stay-at-home mom, & loving it more than ever.

                        Sportin' some Scooby footie pajamas & backward "unnies." To each, his own.

                                                              Parker has a mullet. It is RAD.

 

Collin loves to snuggle these days. In our bed, but with his favorite blanket & pillow. He suckers us with this request every time when really, it is just a ploy to swing from our ceiling fan. Yeesh....I DO live in a zoo. But someone keeps feeding the animals & the groundskeeper has not shown up for work in a long while.