gratitude day 9: favorites

time is precious right now. just dropping in to share a few of the things we're loving lately.

1. cocoa mojo.

a healthy, vegan, raw, cheaper, DELICIOUS alternative to my hot chocolate habit. contains a blend of reishi mushrooms, which are wonderful for boosting your immune system, among other things. i would pay almost any price for this, but it ends up being about the same price—per cup— as steven's hot chocolate. (triple the price per ounce, but you use 1/3 the amount in a cup). and it's significantly less than a cup of hot chocolate at starbuck's. i have mine with steamed rice milk. it's so good it makes me want to weep. i recommend going for the 3-pack—at least until i convince my local health food store to carry it.

2. life/planet earth collection.

the earth and all its creations are amazing. this is one of the few dvds that everyone in the family enjoys. again, and again, and again. plus it helps to finally have blueray, hdtv, and surround-sound. come on over and watch it with us.

3. dark water by laura mcneal.

this book is nothing like i'd thought it would be. it is not a romance; it is not your typical ya paranormal thriller; nor is it anything like any other book i've read in a great while. it's set in fallbrook, california and is a fictional account of the true-life story of the evacuation and devastation that occurred during the wildfires. the gorgeous, almost sparse prose, tells a haunting, devastating story that i just can't forget. the characters are real, flawed, wonderfully portrayed. i love a book that turns the world on its axis for me. no happy endings here, just longing, regret, and a look at the bitter truth told in a most compelling way. i would have liked to get a better feel for amiel, one of the main characters, but he remained a mysterious enigma to the end. well-deserving of being a national book award finalist.

4. the above artwork, composed solely of paper. i can't remember the source. anyone know?

5. crane's cool mist humidifier.

comes in almost any animal you could think of. we got the elephant. it's adorable and the best humidifier i've ever owned: quiet, automatic shut-off, inexpensive, and high output. we love it and our sinuses do too.

what are some of your favorites?

gratitude day 8: motherhood

women hold up half the sky -chinese proverb

"study after study has taught us, there is no tool more effective than the empowerment of women." -kofi annan, former secretary general for the united nations

"i have said lately that women are like lionesses at the gate of the home. whatever happens in that home and family happens because she cares about it and it matters to her. she guards that gate, and things matter to that family if they matter to her. for example, if the lioness at the gate believes in the law of tithing, tithing will be paid in that family. if that family has a humble little portion of ten pesos coming in, that lioness will safeguard the one peso if tithing is important to her. if that lioness at the gate knows about renewing her baptismal covenants with god, she will be in sacrament meeting on sunday, and she will prepare her children to be there. they will be washed, cleaned, combed, and taught about that meeting and what happens there. it isn’t a casual event, but it is serious to her, and it will be serious to them. the lioness at the gate ensures that temple worship is taken care of in the family. she encourages that participation... service happens if she cares about it. sisters, you are each like the lioness at the gate."
- byu women’s conference thursday, april 29, 2010, julie b. beck

nothing in life has fulfilled me the way that being a mother has. no design created, no piano piece performed, no sentence written can match motherhood. my children are my greatest creative work. not even the dreariness of never-ending laundry piles, or the constantly sticky kitchen floor can diminish the joy i receive from them. i love being a mother. it is an eternal blessing.

gratitude day 7: confessionals

i am grateful for confessionals.

i just finished reading a great book: THE GIFTS OF IMPERFECTION by brené brown. in one chapter, she explains why it is so important to share things that make us feel shameful, to own our stories, and to not run from vulnerabilities. without having heard/read it before, i have been doing this all along here on my blog with my confessionals. in brené's words:

shame hates it when we reach out and tell our story...it can't survive being shared. shame loves secrecy. when we bury our story, the shame metastasizes.

thank you, dear readers, for showing compassion and empathy when i confess here on my blog, instead of judgment, blame, or trying to "fix" my problems.

so, in the spirit of sharing, here's my latest confessional:

i confess, i am terrible at keeping all my balls up in the air. i tend to hyper-focus and then I have a hard time stopping one thing and moving on to the next. there is no moderation in my life. i spent an entire day cleaning [toothbrush scrubbing, grout-sealing, baseboard-wiping type of cleaning]. the next day i spent an entire day writing. followed by an entire night watching season 1 of grey’s anatomy on netflix. then an entire day graphic designing. only to realize I have not done the laundry all week. or read a book. or blogged about what i’m thankful for. and oops, are those the vitamins i’m supposed to take every day still sitting on the counter?

do you keep a schedule? i would love to know how you divide up your time and tasks. how much time do you spend doing housework? cooking? errand running? working? please share.

also, we are trying to buckle down on unnecessary spending. so of course, i bought the shirt you see above. because it seemed like a need to remind everyone that voltron is the defender of the universe. anyone else have a hard time distinguishing between wants and needs?

i am retiring as a piano teacher after our spring recital in march. and i cried when i typed the flyer up in which i broke the news to my students. teaching piano has been a big blessing and part of my life while my kids were little and nap-takers, but as our family has grown and changed, it’s gotten harder and harder. that afternoon time is precious. i’m trying to focus on writing and designing while the kids are at school and then make the most of the time my kids are home—spending it with them.

i have a secret love for aaron neville. can’t be explained, but i thought i should share. do you have a secret musical shame?

i may or may not have much time to blog again before tax season is over. yes, i’m doing it "one more time." one more time. i’d rather write php code than prepare taxes, but i’m doing it for the money. i will answer to the name “tax whore” until april 15.


until then, i have to finalize a few things with a fun design project i hope to be able to share with you guys soon. and, i need to finish that novel i’m always writing about [when i should just be writing it.] i’m 88,000 words in and i can see, taste, smell, hear, feel the ending. there is crying—and kissing—involved in the final scenes. also, ocean waves breaking dramatically, but no one. word. sentences.

so, if it’s quiet around here for awhile, you’ll know why.

gratitude day 6: personal revelation

[The Annex by Hollie Chastain]

today i am grateful for personal revelation.

having the holy ghost as a constant companion is one of the greatest gifts in my life. through personal revelation i have been prompted to stay when i wanted to leave, to keep going when i wanted to quit, to respond with kindness when i was angry, to speak up when i was afraid, to believe in myself when i felt worthless.

the holy ghost, and more specifically, the personal revelation i have received from God through him has made me better. more than i would be by myself. it has shortened the gaps between who i am now and who i hope to be.

Julie B. Beck said:

"The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life...It requires a conscious effort to diminish distractions, but having the Spirit of revelation makes it possible to prevail over opposition and persist in faith through difficult days and essential routine tasks. Personal revelation gives us the understanding of what to do every day to increase faith and personal righteousness, strengthen families and homes, and seek those who need our help. Because personal revelation is a constantly renewable source of strength, it is possible to feel bathed in help even during turbulent times." -Ensign, May 2010, 10–12

[anna, does this answer your question about more gratitude posts? i think i'll keep going until i reach 21, but it might not be every day. i apologize. i sometimes can't live up to my own expectations.]

mixtape winter 2011

good winter morning! there are few things i love more in life than making my own mixtape. the best mixes are like a well-paced book—a few intense scenes followed by a quiet one, rinse and repeat.

allow me to share my latest mixtape with you. i can't stop listening to it. i wonder if i'll ever get sick of these songs. guess there's only one way to find out. if you'd like me to hook you up, send me an email or tell me in the comments ;-).

White Knuckles | Ok Go
Orange Sky | Alexi Murdoch
Shake Me Down | Cage The Elephant
Kites | Geographer
Night Winds | Geographer
Verona | Geographer
Mustache Man (Wasted) | Cake
I Was Made for Sunny Days | The Weepies
Hummingbird | The Weepies
Giving Up The Gun | Vampire Weekend
Big Jet Plane | Angus & Julia Stone
Yellow Brick Road | Angus & Julia Stone
Derezzed | Daft Punk
Normandie | Shout Out Louds
The Comeback | Shout Out Louds
The Ghost Inside | Broken Bells
Babelonia | School Of Seven Bells
Don't Carry It All | The Decemberists

lepidoptera love

there are one hundred things i should be doing right now besides blogging, but you know me: play first, work [harder/faster] later.

we finally photographed the makeover of emma's room, in which she requested butterflies. take a peek!

close-up of the butterfly migration. emma painted the flowers in the polkadot pot. tempra on canvas.

emma helped me design the artwork below [and seen framed in her room], including colors and her favorite saying from a children's song. if you'd like to make your own print , click on the image below, then print on 8 1/2x11 textured paper. we love arches drawing paper. trim down to 8x10 if desired.

if i have time, i'll post some before pictures and some more details.

gratitude day 5: date night

i'm grateful for date night. holding hands, popcorn, dark theater, and remembering why i fell in love with mr. coleman.