Merry Christmas!

Merry Little Tree Christmas

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Storybook Quiz!

This morning I had the brilliant idea to make an original game for baby showers. After doing some googling I discovered other people have had this brilliant idea as well, but not  as many as you would think! So here you have it.

What you need to do is guess the book I've taken these quotes from. After you're done, scroll down to see if you're right!

Here's my take on the Storybook Quiz:

Storybook Quiz

1.         You turned another page! You do not know what you are doing to me! Now... STOP TURNING PAGES!

2.      “Now look at this house! Look at this! Look at that! You sank our toy ship, sank it deep in the cake. You shook up our house and you bent our new rake. You SHOULD NOT be here when our mother is not. You get out of this house!” Said the fish in the pot.

3.       “Now my dears, you may go into the fields or down the lane, but don’t go into Mr. McGregor’s garden.”

4.       A mother held her new baby and very slowly rocked him back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. And while she held him, she sang.

5.       Skit skat skoodle doot. Flip flop flee. Everybody running to the coconut tree.

6.      When Joseph was a baby, his grandfather made him a wonderful blanket to keep him warm and cozy and to chase away bad dreams.

7.       And, in no time at all, in the factory I built, the whole Once-ler Family was working full tilt.

8.       In an old house in Paris that was covered in vines lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.

9.      On Friday he ate through five oranges, but he was still hungry.

10.    Little Nutbrown Hare, who was going to bed, held on tight to Big Nutbrown Hare’s very long ears.

11.       Goodnight light and the red balloon.

12.    Front feet, back feet, feet, feet, feet.

13.     His mother called him “WILD THING!” and Max said “I’LL EAT YOU UP!”

14.     “Across an ocean, over lots of huge bumpy mountains, across three hot deserts, and one smaller ocean... there lay the tiny town of Chewandswallow.”

15.      “Ronald,” said Elizabeth, “your clothes are really pretty and your hair is all neat. You look like a prince, but you are a bum.” They didn’t get married after all.  

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Here's the answers:

1.         The Monster at the End of this Book

2.      The Cat in the Hat

3.       The Tale of Peter Rabbit

4.       Love You Forever

5.       Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

6.      Something from Nothing

7.       The Lorax

8.       Madeline

9.      The Very Hungry Caterpillar

10.    Guess How Much I Love You

11.       Goodnight Moon

12.    The Foot Book

13.     Where the Wild Things Are

14.     Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

15.     The Paper Bag Princess

How many did you get right?

Paperbacks, Video Games, Life.

I love video games.

Yes, this may come as a shock to you that a Mormon housefrau enjoys something other than canning and quilting (actually both things I know nothing about). Yes, I know there are more productive things I could be doing with my time. In fact, I used to be a tad reluctant to spill the beans about my spare time in case the other women at church turned their noses up at me (they haven't). So here comes the confession. I love video games.

I'm not a hardcore fanatic about it by any stretch of the imagination. I don't play World of Warcraft, or other games that include Chinese prisoner forced labour.  I did not get dressed up for the midnight release of Skyrim. I went, but I did not get dressed up.

Strangely enough I believe my love for video games comes from my love for books. I could read before I went into Junior Kindergarten (the Ontario equivalent of Pre-School) and ever since I've been voracious. I love throwing myself into the world created for me by an author. I love discovering new places and people from the comfort of my arm chair. I've been known to get a book, sit down, and not get up again until I've finished. I would read in between classes at school, on the bus on the way to work, on my breaks at work, while eating, while folding laundry, while making supper, and so on and so forth.

Stemming from this love of losing myself in a story is a love of RPGs (role-playing games). A good way to describe this love is to describe how Brian and I differ in the ways we play video games. We'll use Skyrim as an example.

When we got Skyrim Brian and I were both super stoked. We had played Oblivion and loved it, and had been anticipating Skyrim for months. We decided we would take turns playing our characters and that we would only play if the other person was there as well, so that we wouldn't miss anything while the other was playing. This was excruciatingly hard for me.

Hey look, a butterfly!

Brian loves taking things slow. He'll start the main quest, but the first chance he has to run into a nearby cave or tower and he's off like a shot. He always does the faction quests before finishing the main one, and loves doing as many side quests as possible. Oh, he'll get around to doing the main quest, but not before exhausting almost every dialogue option from every character in every town on the map.

Hey look, a dragon!

I, on the other hand, am much more interested in the story. I want to see what happens. Will the dragons take over Skyrim? Will Alduin become a tyrant dragon lord again? How does this all turn out? If it were up to me I would have sat down and played nothing but the main quest line until it was finished.

...It's funny how writing sometimes takes on a life of its own. I had intended this post to just be a post about how much video games are awesome, but now I've come to realize that the way we play video games are the way we each live our lives.

Brian takes his time with things. He enjoys the little moments. He appreciates the day to day monotony of life, because that's what life really is.

I tend to rush through things. I am always looking towards the end of whatever is happening. I spend my day doing stuff until Brian gets home from work, rather than doing stuff and then "Oh, hey, Brian is home from work!" I need to slow down and enjoy the little things. In fact, this reminds me of a talk this General Conference given by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf entitled "Of Regrets and Resolutions."

My wife, Harriet, and I love riding our bicycles. It is wonderful to get out and enjoy the beauties of nature. We have certain routes we like to bike, but we don’t pay too much attention to how far we go or how fast we travel in comparison with other riders.

However, occasionally I think we should be a bit more competitive. I even think we could get a better time or ride at a higher speed if only we pushed ourselves a little more. And then sometimes I even make the big mistake of mentioning this idea to my wonderful wife.

Her typical reaction to my suggestions of this nature is always very kind, very clear, and very direct. She smiles and says, “Dieter, it’s not a race; it’s a journey. Enjoy the moment.”

How right she is!

Sometimes in life we become so focused on the finish line that we fail to find joy in the journey. I don’t go cycling with my wife because I’m excited about finishing. I go because the experience of being with her is sweet and enjoyable.

Doesn't it seem foolish to spoil sweet and joyful experiences because we are constantly anticipating the moment when they will end?

Do we listen to beautiful music waiting for the final note to fade before we allow ourselves to truly enjoy it? No. We listen and connect to the variations of melody, rhythm, and harmony throughout the composition.

Do we say our prayers with only the “amen” or the end in mind? Of course not. We pray to be close to our Heavenly Father, to receive His Spirit and feel His love.

We shouldn't wait to be happy until we reach some future point, only to discover that happiness was already available—all the time! Life is not meant to be appreciated only in retrospect. “This is the day which the Lord hath made … ,” the Psalmist wrote. “Rejoice and be glad in it.”

Brothers and sisters, no matter our circumstances, no matter our challenges or trials, there is something in each day to embrace and cherish. There is something in each day that can bring gratitude and joy if only we will see and appreciate it.

I think I need to be more present in the moment and less worried about the outcome. I need to enjoy my little family while they're little instead of looking forward to retirement. Appreciate each little tickle and giggle. Savor every cuddle from my precious baby. That will be my challenge to myself. I'll let you know how I do.

Until next time... enjoy the moment.

7 Myths of a Happy Marriage

My husband and I have been married for the outrageously long period of three and a half years. This, of course, makes me an expert in the field. We've been talking lately about how much bunk there is out there surrounding marriage, and the heartache so many of these misconceptions cause. Here's our take on things.


7 Myths of a Happy Marriage


1. Getting married will solve all your problems.

Some people think that if your relationship is on the rocks that getting married will solidify the bond you have, thereby making you both happier. Uh-oh. Chances are, if there are serious issues in your relationship before your wedding, they're still going to be there afterwards. Marriage isn't a magic reset button that lets you start over and get things right a second time around. Marriage is a continuation of the habits, actions and interactions you shared before that walk down the isle. If your significant other and you had foundation-shattering arguments/jealousy issues/anger/control issues/financial problems before you became Mr and Mrs, those problems will still be there the morning after. Except now on top of those problems you're married to someone you may not really like.

2. Having kids will solve all your problems.

If I think about the time in my life that I was the most ornery, cantankerous and hormonal, it was while I was pregnant. I felt sick and tired and cried almost all the time. If we had had relationship troubles before this hormonal roller coaster, I don't know how keen we would've been to get back on the ride afterwards. 

On top of the first nine months of potential strife, then you get to push a person out of you! Recovery from labour wasn't the most fun I've ever had in my life (dealing with two infections) and on top of that you can kiss a good night's sleep goodbye for quite a while. Evelyn is going on six months and has yet to sleep through the night. When you're sleep deprived and exhausted you aren't the most rational of human beings, and this can spell disaster for a relationship. 

Don't get me wrong. Having our precious little (ADORABLE) baby girl has been the best thing of both of our lives. She is so smart and strong and funny and quirky and cute, I never thought I would be able to love someone as much as I love her. But it is a heck of a lot of work! Luckily I have probably the most patient husband ever invented, and that alone has gotten us around dozens of potential train wrecks. 

The point is this: having kids, while the most incredible thing you can do, will not relieve stress, but mostly add it. 

3. Love means never having to say, "I'm sorry."

What a crock. While this line from a movie has been ridiculed relentlessly, it nevertheless deserves a look-see. In reality, love means saying "I'm sorry" almost as often as you say "Gesundheit." What you're saying when you said "I'm sorry" is really "I value you as a person enough to admit when I'm wrong or upsetting you." And sometimes you say sorry even when you don't think you're in the wrong, because it just isn't worth it. Humility in a marriage is one of the most important traits to possess.


4. You have to fight in order to have a successful marriage.

My husband and I have never been in a fight. Before we got married we were standing in the hallway at our church talking to people, and someone said, "What? You haven't been in a fight? Uh-oh... How do you know how you will react to one when you have one? You guys should probably get in a fight." Brian and I kind of laughed and said "Oh... well you know..." Right after that person left one of our church leaders said, "That's sure a lie. My wife and I have been married 25 years and we've never gotten in a fight. Well, once we did, but it was completely my fault." 

So there it is from the horse's mouth, folks. They have had a successful, happy marriage for longer than I've been alive and have had a total of one fight. 

Some people say that unless you fight to hash things out, things will bottle up inside you until you either explode or completely resent the person you're married to. Also not true! In our marriage, if something is bothering one of us we simply bring it up to the other person and discuss it like rational adults. I need to make one of those little old-fashioned ecards with the caption... you know what? I will make one:

And do you know why no one has ever said that? Because yelling at someone does nothing but either make them mad or make them sad. Neither of which will solve anything.

5. Never go to bed angry.

While we have never been in a fight, that doesn't mean that we've never been upset at each other. (Okay, mostly I mean I've been upset at my husband. I could probably run over his childhood cat and he'd say he's sorry because I'm sad). But lots of times I'm either hungry or tired, and so I'm cranky. All I need is a nap or a good (enough) night's sleep and I feel a thousand times better. 

If we stayed up and tried to hash out whatever was bothering me, I guarantee things would end poorly. Usually the next morning I wake up and realize, "Hey, I guess it isn't worth it to be upset about the way you chew your food. Sorry about that!" Or, if it is something that needs further discussion, having a cool-off always helps. 


6. Your spouse should automatically know what's wrong without you having to explain things.

Husbands, unfortunately, are not mind readers. While this would be convenient, we have to make do with communicating to our spouses when things are bothering us. Brian knows me better than I know myself most of the time, but that doesn't mean that he knows when I am upset because of something that so-and-so said during the day while he was at work. A couple of times he has thought I was mad at him when really I was just really frustrated at my professor or stressed about an exam or now, that Evelyn had pooped and puked all over both of us and I'm just really tired. Being happily married means that we need to communicate all of our feelings to our spouse, and not expect them to just know why we're mad.


7. You need to have different interests in order to keep yourselves from going crazy.

My husband and I are very similar. When someone at my husband's work was asked to describe me he said, "...She's like a girl version of Brian." We like the same kinds of movies and TV shows, the same music, the same sports, the same books, the same video games, the same activities. And those things that we didn't like before we got married we've learned to like. Did Brian love spending an entire afternoon crafting when he was a single guy? Nah, but he enjoys it now because he enjoys spending time with me. Did I use to hang out and play Lego for a whole morning? Sure didn't, but I've learned to enjoy it through Brian's joy for it. 

The point is this, people:

Love and respect each other, and you will be happy.

Also, think your spouse is the best.

Dinner Planner

I made a dinner planner for my friend's bridal shower!

This Dinner Planner can be written on with any kind of dry erase marker. 

To make this I used the photo that was in the frame (you know, the one of the awesome couple from the 90's) as my template for the paper. I cut my paper to fit it and glued the red paper to the grey with a bit of overlap to make it stick. Then I glued the ribbon across the seam between the papers. 

I used stickers to write out their name on the top and the days of the week letters down the side. I used a ruler to make sure everything was level.

Then I used some sandpaper on the glass to give the glue something to stick to, and I glued the notepad to it.

Voila!

Baby Closet Dividers

I wanted to make something to divide Evelyn's closet with, but didn't really like the idea of using old CDs. I got these at Michael's, painted them and then affixed tags and tied little bows on them. I wanted to keep them kind of gender neutral in case the next little one is a guy!

Valentine's Day Lunch

I wanted to make something cute (embarrassing) for my husband to take with him to work on Valentine's Day, which also happens to be our anniversary. Here's what I came up with!

Contains:

     -Red grapes

     -Candy hearts

     -Granola bars with hearts on them

     -Jam sandwiches cut out into hearts with a cookie cutter

     -Cinnamon hearts 

     -Chocolates in a heart

     -Pink grapefruit pop

     -Crackers

     -Valentine's Day paddle ball

     -Harry Potter valentines!

I found these awesome Harry Potter valentines here.

Excited husband!

Yarn Wreath

Yarn wreaths got me pretty excited last Christmas. I'd been wanting to do something cute but was a little afraid to try. A yarn wreath seemed totally do-able. And it was!

To start I a marked out on the wreath form with pen how large I wanted each segment to be. I tied the white yarn around it in a knot and then just started wrapping! You have to make sure to push the yarn together while you're wrapping so that it's tight against itself, otherwise it will look sloppy.

When I got to the end of the segment I cut the yarn with enough of a tail to tie it to the red yarn. Then just keep wrapping! I cut the tails off the yarn that I'd tied and tucked the extra yarn under the part I was wrapping over.

To make the pick lie flat my husband took an exacto knife and dug it a little niche to set in. I used Weld Bond to glue it in and then wrapped the yarn over it. When I got to the end I simply tied a knot in the back.

Voila! 

12 Days of Christmas - Abridged

Can O' Dates

I made this Can o' Dates for my friend's wedding! I got the clear paint can from Michael's and the idea from My Creative Stirrings. I printed off a bunch of their date ideas and added in a bunch of my own, to personalize it to our city and to my friend. It was super easy to make and looks pretty cute! She just said it was one of her favourite gifts. Aww :)

Menu Board

I made this Menu Board for my sister-in-law for Christmas last year. The idea was that she could write her family's favourite meals on the blank slips and put them up as she liked!

To start I went to a sheet metal place in our town and asked them about remnants. They had this 1 foot by 2 foot piece of galvanized steel that I could purchase. I got my father-in-law to bend the edges over with some tools from his work, but you could probably do it if you had some clamps and a strong husband :) I got my grandparents to drill the holes for the ribbon, and the base was done!

***IMPORTANT*** Make sure you sand down the steel before you try to Mod Podge the paper to it, otherwise it will just peel off. Sand it enough so that the surface feels rough to the touch.

For the days of the week magnets I used tiles from Michael's and placed stickers on them. I was going to put a coat of Weld Bond over top but it made it a little too matte for my liking. I affixed magnets to the back with Weld Bond as well. 

For the food cards I cut up place cards that I got from Walmart, and just used the side with the silver border. I made a pocket for them using a blank card and a bit of cardstock. I glued the sides together but if I had had a sewing machine I would have used that to make it more secure (plus the stitching would have been cute.) 

For the recipe holder I used the same colour cardstock as I had used to make the food card holder cute,folded it in half and then stuck on the bit of the blank card I had cut off to the top of it.

I used Weld Bond (but Mod Podge would work just as well) to stick the paper to the steel underneath. Make sure you lay it down evenly, starting at the top and pressing down the paper as you go. Don't try to just lay it down flat, otherwise you will end up with a bunch of bubbles trapped underneath. I had my husband help me with this part - four hands are better than two! I also used Weld Bond to secure the ribbon that covered the seam between the two papers. 

I stuck a magnet pad of paper on the bottom half for her to write her grocery list on, stuck some stickers in strategic places, and voila!

Menu Board!

Mother's Day Cards

For Myself, Just Because.

Between a personal epiphany and something I saw in a movie (Eat, Pray, Love), I've decided something. I'm going to stop doing things for other people and start doing them for myself. That sounds worse than it is, I promise. What I mean by that is that so often I think, "Gee, I'd love to decorate my house for <insert holiday> but no one will see it, so what's the point?" Or, "I could get dressed and look cute today, but I'm just going to Walmart and I probably won't see anyone I know, so why bother?" 

But now, I'm going to do things for myself, just because. I love having my house decorated for holidays. So what if no one else sees it? I will see it, and it will bring me joy. I feel better about myself as a person when I feel cute, so you know what? I'm going to wear whatever will make me feel happiest. I know I need external validation, but do I really? If I put on a cute outfit and no one of importance sees it, does it make the outfit any less cute? If I decorate my house to the nines and the only people that see it are my husband and my visiting teachers, does it mean that it was a waste? Of course not! As long as I find joy in things, that is all that matters.