My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays...

My heart runneth over:

.....with a variety of emotions as I celebrate another year of life.



As I process these emotions
(Joy,
regret,
happiness,
disappointment,
excitement,
fear,
contentment,
and a handful of others)

and think back over my 35 years, I realize how incredibly blessed I am.

I am healthy (as is my entire family), have a fabulous husband, three amazing, beautiful children, and by every definition of the phrase...My Heart (Cup) Runneth Over......"I have more than enough for my needs".

Beautiful Tree Skirt

I'm addicted to Pinterest.  It teases me with all kinds of fun and creative ideas. From funky scarves made out of old t-shirts to hangers for flats made out of curled up wire hangers.  From photo and meal ideas to puffy paint on canvas. 
Heed this warning....DO NOT check out Pinterest unless you are ready to accept the addiction.

My latest find was this no-sew Christmas tree skirt.
Supplies included:  old sheet (could use an old blanket or painters tarp), 2 yards linen, 3 yards burlap, hot glue gun, scissors and a yard stick.

I started with an old twin sheet; folded it, then folded it again.  Then I cut it to make an oval (the original called for a circle, but I wanted more of an oval shape), I also cut the corner to make the inner circle.  (Minus the cat when you create yours :) )

I then cut the linen and the burlap into 3 inch strips.  Not an easy task with the burlap, so I had to lay it out across the entire floor and cut them one by one.  I was able to fold the linen and cut 3" strips, a few at a time.  I ended up with a pile of material (which clearly my cat AND dog loved!)

Then I warmed up the glue gun and began to fold the material:

I did a row of linen, then 2 rows of burlap (which was a little harder to fold, but certainly not impossible).

A couple of hours and a few burnt fingers later, here was the beautiful final product.  Sorry I didn't take many pictures in the middle of the project...I got carried away.

And here it is under my tree:

The pictures do not do this skirt justice.  It is really beautiful!  I love it! Thank you Pinterest!!

Homemade

We made some homemade Christmas ornaments yesterday.
The dough recipe was 4 cups of flour, 1 cup of salt and 1 1/2 cups water.  But the dough was not the important component.....the paint was, of course

E took the decorating very seriously.

Some of her masterpieces.

Her sweet hand:



H was more abstract with her ornament.



And my Heart Man's little hand:

Aren't these ornaments so incredible!   Makes me smile every time I look at them.  My kids are so precious.  I wish I could keep them little forever.

Oh Black Friday.....

Dear Black Friday,
You did it again!  You teased and tempted.  You angered and frustrated.  You tired me and made my body ache.  You made me say 'this is stupid' close to 100 times.  You seduced me to make silly choices (going to one store 3 times!).

But you also made me laugh. You allowed me to eat crap at 3am. You did save me money. You helped me check off nearly everything on my list. You showed me that I AM a patient woman.  And most importantly......You gave me time alone with two women I really love!

For them, the lost sleep and madness was worth it!
Thanks ladies...til we meet again next year!

Thankful

The simplest things in life make me so thankful.

Doesn't your heart just melt.........mine does.

Thank you God....for Everything!!

My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays....

my heart runneth over:

-with well wishes for my Dad on his birthday!
Hope you have a fabulous day, Dad.  Thank you for the love and support.
You are literally the best!  Enjoy your day!

p.s.  the kids say:  "Happy Birthday Papa!!  We love you!!!"

I need.....

I’ve been scouring Black Friday ads.  Not because I love to shop (BECAUSE I DON’T), more because I love a good deal….I mean REALLY love a good deal.  Plenty of crap has been purchased in my home simply because it was on sale! 

As I have been looking through the ads, a realization came over me…..in this busy, material-obsessed world sometimes it is difficult for our brains to process what our ‘needs’ are….versus our ‘wants’.  After I crossed many, many things off the shopping list….I started to think about what my current needs are:

- a (long overdue) date with my husband

- an extra dose of patience

- a nap

- 10 minutes of silence to pray

I don’t think it’s much….but much needed….much more needed than anything in those black Friday ads.

The Who's

Introducing

Cindy Lou Who, Betty Lou Who.....

 

and Stu Lou Who

 

oh.....if I could only get Jeter to wear antlers

and paint Ed green....

My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays

my heart runneth over.....

....with appreciation for my amazing parents.  God truly blessed me! 
I can only hope that my children feel the same amount of love and respect for me as I do for my parents!  Thank you for everything that you have done and continue to do!

Love it!

How do you steal your mom and dad's OCD hearts?

Vacuuming......yeah baby...that's how!

My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays - Part II

This day marks such an important milestone that I had to have two Wednesday posts!!

my heart runneth over:

.....with an abundance of joy.....EIV is 8 weeks post-op today; incredibly healthy and happy!
Praise God!!

My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays!

my heart runneth over:

....with simple pleasure ......as I helped my 5 year old make an art project for school!  Something about crayons, glue, cutting paper shapes and ribbon, in the company of my sweet H, that just made me smile.

Change

Hope you like the new look of the blog.
I would like to hear from you. 
Please tell me what you like.
Please tell me what you don't.

Halloween

Have you heard the one about
a nurse
a pro soccer player

and the frog?

Me neither.

But I do know that this trio had so much fun
on Halloween.
They scored nearly 4 gallons of candy...how much fun is that!

O. H. S. Lesson #4

EIV was on the bypass machine at approximately 3:30pm on Wednesday afternoon.  Off at 4:30pm.  Moved to the PICU around 6pm with more tubes and wires than I could count.  Sat up around 12am Thursday morning, rolled over around 2:30am and ate at 7am.  Moved to the heart floor around 2pm and could have went home by 11am Friday morning. By 4pm, he was crawling and walking behind a toy. When he  was released on Saturday morning, he was sent home taking ibuprofen and Tylenol....that's it.

Lesson Learned:  Babies are TOUGH, TOUGH, TOUGH! Tougher than any adult I know.

O. H. S. Lesson #3

Throughout EIV's journey, God blessed us with ears upon which our story (and stress) could be told, arms that wrapped around us, and constant support and kindness offered to us in thousands of ways.

Lesson Learned:  GOD IS GOOD......
And People are:
Kind
Loving
Supportive
Comforting
Generous
Funny
Surprising
Thoughtful
AMAZING!

My Heart Runneth Over Wednesdays!

My heart runneth over:

1.    At 7am with Joy – looking into my children’s eyes this morning; their beautiful, sparkling blue eyes (thank you daddy for those genes!)

2.    At 7:45am with Sadness – driving to work on this gloomy day; chance of snow this afternoon.  I miss spring, summer and fall ….