Several years ago Chad had a coworker named Andres, from El Salvador. His English was decent but he often used funny expressions. One of the comical things he said was, "I'm running crazy!" instead of "I'm really busy." For the past few years Chad and I have continued using this expression. When we are super stressed Andres' expression seems to express our feelings more accurately than saying the normal, "I'm really busy...."
All that to say, I AM RUNNING CRAZY!
Yesterday I accepted a freelance job that is insanely ambitious. I've never done this much work in such a short amount of time. I was having a relaxing and peaceful day. The girls were occupying themselves and I was painting some artwork at the kitchen table. Third Day's Blessed Assurance was on the radio. (Another favorite of mine.) The day was easy, peaceful, lovely. Then I checked my email, read the freelance opportunity, and accepted it.
In an instant my happy day was demolished. Anxiety oozed from every pore. I snapped the radio off, mid hymn. I paced the house with my thoughts darting off the walls and floor like a pin ball. The rest of the day was a internal battle for calm. I decided to have a fun day with the girls since I'll be working nonstop for the next eight days. We put on our swimsuits and got in the blistering hot car to go to the pool. As we backed out of the driveway I suggested we pray for a good outing together. Melody said she would pray.... it went something like this, "Lord help us have a good time today. Help me obey Mommy and cooperate. Please don't let anything horrible happen."
Forty-five minutes later we arrived at the Aquatic Center to discover a vacant parking lot and an empty pool. I eyed the girls cautiously as I told them the pool was closed. They both handled it beautifully, and I immediately realized Melody's prayer was answered. We ended up doing some shopping and I bought Melody her first Princess Collection item. (Three pack of glittery lip gloss.) I've been holding off on Princess items because I don't care for paying three times as much for a ball because it has an ugly Cinderella sticker on it. I usually control the situation by presenting her with two options... "Do you want this Eric Carle book or this polka dot ball?" Yesterday she decided that SHE would pick out a toy by herself. She found the lip gloss and freaked out saying, THIS IS SO COOL. THIS IS WHAT I WANT. I sighed and said okay. Then I spied a Hello Kitty lip gloss set. I have always had a soft place in my heart for Hello Kitty, so I showed it to her to see if she'd rather have that one. "The Princess Collection is better." she said.
We ended up having a fun outing. Her prayer was answered. Now I will ask Melody to pray for me as I start the freelance project.
7/30/2008
7/29/2008
my birthday
Yesterday was my birthday. As a (new) 32 year old, I don't expect my birthdays to be stellar. Yesterday blew my expectations out of the water.
The day began with Melody singing me Happy Birthday To You at the breakfast table. Her voice is so soft and sweet. At 10:00am we headed to town. (I hate it that I use that expression all the time. "Girls are you ready to go to town?" Ick.) Anyway, we drove to Renae's house for bible study time with Renae and Lauren, which is actually just talk time lately. We haven't been doing an actual bible study in long time. We mainly talk about our marriages, our emotional state, and we pray together.
Renae and Lauren remembered it was my birthday and had a decadent chocolate cake ready and waiting on the kitchen counter, complete with Reeses candies on top. We promptly ate three large pieces at the dining room table while the kids played in the out of sight playroom. A couple of hours later we headed to Cafe on Broadway, Siloam's finally successful small town lunch destination. Sweet amazing Harmony (the master mind of the restaurant) brought us two desserts on the house. This time Melody and Leah helped partake of the sugar. Leah ate cookie quickly, trying to keep up with Melody.
We got home just in time to crash into our beds for a nap. I slept hard for 35 minutes and then slipped out of the bed (Melody was next to me). I started some laundry and then doodled around the house until Beck arrived. She surprised me with a large coke from Sonic! More sugar! We sat under the twin ceiling fans on the back porch and caught up. We then spent 15 minutes decided which restaurant to celebrate our birthdays at. Her birthday is 3 days after mine and we always go out together to celebrate. So picture this: we're sipping cokes, talking about where to eat, and then she says, "Have you lost weight?" We instantly burst out laughing at the irony. I replied, "Not today!"
Fast forward three hours. Chad arrived home with orange gerber daisies, a card, and Milano cookies. Does anyone see a trend here? Basically, my birthday was one sugar wave after another. I was happy all day because there was never an opportunity for me to come down off the sugar high.
It was a terrific day. I felt very loved and peaceful. One treat came toward the end of the day. Leah was drinking a smoothie and Melody was in the tub. Thus, it was a quiet moment. The kitchen radio was on and my two favorite songs were played, one right after the other. The first was Blessed Be Your Name and the second was the hymn Come Thou Fount. I sang along and felt deep joy in those six minutes. It was like a birthday present from KLRC.
The day began with Melody singing me Happy Birthday To You at the breakfast table. Her voice is so soft and sweet. At 10:00am we headed to town. (I hate it that I use that expression all the time. "Girls are you ready to go to town?" Ick.) Anyway, we drove to Renae's house for bible study time with Renae and Lauren, which is actually just talk time lately. We haven't been doing an actual bible study in long time. We mainly talk about our marriages, our emotional state, and we pray together.
Renae and Lauren remembered it was my birthday and had a decadent chocolate cake ready and waiting on the kitchen counter, complete with Reeses candies on top. We promptly ate three large pieces at the dining room table while the kids played in the out of sight playroom. A couple of hours later we headed to Cafe on Broadway, Siloam's finally successful small town lunch destination. Sweet amazing Harmony (the master mind of the restaurant) brought us two desserts on the house. This time Melody and Leah helped partake of the sugar. Leah ate cookie quickly, trying to keep up with Melody.
We got home just in time to crash into our beds for a nap. I slept hard for 35 minutes and then slipped out of the bed (Melody was next to me). I started some laundry and then doodled around the house until Beck arrived. She surprised me with a large coke from Sonic! More sugar! We sat under the twin ceiling fans on the back porch and caught up. We then spent 15 minutes decided which restaurant to celebrate our birthdays at. Her birthday is 3 days after mine and we always go out together to celebrate. So picture this: we're sipping cokes, talking about where to eat, and then she says, "Have you lost weight?" We instantly burst out laughing at the irony. I replied, "Not today!"
Fast forward three hours. Chad arrived home with orange gerber daisies, a card, and Milano cookies. Does anyone see a trend here? Basically, my birthday was one sugar wave after another. I was happy all day because there was never an opportunity for me to come down off the sugar high.
It was a terrific day. I felt very loved and peaceful. One treat came toward the end of the day. Leah was drinking a smoothie and Melody was in the tub. Thus, it was a quiet moment. The kitchen radio was on and my two favorite songs were played, one right after the other. The first was Blessed Be Your Name and the second was the hymn Come Thou Fount. I sang along and felt deep joy in those six minutes. It was like a birthday present from KLRC.
7/24/2008
late night craziness
A few nights ago Chad was working late. Leah went to bed at regular time, but Melody stayed up to wait for him. We had a fun girl time. I put her hair into a multitude of pony tails and then grabbed the camera....
7/21/2008
poop drama
For two days Melody was afraid to poop. She would sit on the toilet and say things like,
The poop is going to hurt me.
I very want to wait.
I will go later.
I will go when I am four.
Poor girl! We trying everything... singing, laughing, stories. She even said, "Mommy will you pray that my poop won't hurt?" The next day the girls were in the tub. Melody jumped up. I HAVE TO POOP! She held on tight to the toilet so her slippery body wouldn't fall in. I rubbed her legs and said, "Try to relax sweetie. You can do it. It will be over soon. I know how you feel." It was like having a baby.
Soon she was finished. The offending object was indeed massive. Poor little girl. (She was proud of it though.) Then she said excitedly. IT DIDN'T EVEN HURT! GOD ANSWERED OUR PRAYER. This has been happening a lot lately in her life. We pray about bandaids coming off without pain, bug bites to shop itching, and the like. It's fun to see her realize that Jesus cares about the details of her life.
About 90 seconds after Melody hopped back into the tub, Leah squatted down and pooped into the bath water. I guess she didn't want to be left out of the poop drama.
The poop is going to hurt me.
I very want to wait.
I will go later.
I will go when I am four.
Poor girl! We trying everything... singing, laughing, stories. She even said, "Mommy will you pray that my poop won't hurt?" The next day the girls were in the tub. Melody jumped up. I HAVE TO POOP! She held on tight to the toilet so her slippery body wouldn't fall in. I rubbed her legs and said, "Try to relax sweetie. You can do it. It will be over soon. I know how you feel." It was like having a baby.
Soon she was finished. The offending object was indeed massive. Poor little girl. (She was proud of it though.) Then she said excitedly. IT DIDN'T EVEN HURT! GOD ANSWERED OUR PRAYER. This has been happening a lot lately in her life. We pray about bandaids coming off without pain, bug bites to shop itching, and the like. It's fun to see her realize that Jesus cares about the details of her life.
About 90 seconds after Melody hopped back into the tub, Leah squatted down and pooped into the bath water. I guess she didn't want to be left out of the poop drama.
7/15/2008
index card art
Melody and I recently put together a package to send to our far away, very missed friends. The project began at Walmart. It was July 1st. I was pushing the monster blue double toddler cart around the acre store and found a back-to-school art supply sale. It was amazing.
Elmers glue: 20¢
24 pack crayons: 22¢
two glue sticks: 30¢
colored pencils: 60¢
pencil sharpener: 20¢
I stood and stared, trying to figure out if the stuff was a good deal or not. When I decided it was a good deal I began tossing stuff into the cart. Melody got excited.
IS THAT FOR ME?
AND THAT ONE TOO????
MOMMY, WHY ARE WE GETTING ME SO MANY THINGS?
THANK YOU MOMMY.
YOU ARE A NICE MOMMY.
After we got home I decided to put together a little package for our friends. We pulled out our new stuff and got to work. I found a package of white index cards and began doodling with a black Sharpie. My idea was to make coloring book type drawings on each card. I wanted them to be bold, simple, and fun to color in. Melody worked at the table with me, coloring with her new pencils and sharpening them between each job. As we worked she told me what to draw. Her strangest request was, "a tank top with a heart on it." (You can see it at the top.) We mailed these cards with a pack of new Crayons. It was great fun to doodle on index cards. It reminded me of Thumbnail exercises in college.
(For those of you not in the art world, we call little brainstorming drawings Thumbnails. In college I was required to do a certain number of thumbnails at the beginning of each project. It was a brainstorming activity that everyone hated, but grew to appreciate. It works! The key is to not invest in one idea for too long, thus allowing one's brain to continually come up with fresh ideas as you draw them. It worked beautifully for the index cards because I was just trying to do coloring book artwork.)
Here is some of our work...
Melody colored this one in all by herself. She was in another world as she worked on it. She said things like,
"Hmmm, I wonder what color I should use next?"
"Mommy, don't look. It's not finished yet."
Hearing her say these things was cool because I remember having the same thoughts and feelings about artwork as a child. I know exactly what she was feeling and thinking and I love it when that happens.
Elmers glue: 20¢
24 pack crayons: 22¢
two glue sticks: 30¢
colored pencils: 60¢
pencil sharpener: 20¢
I stood and stared, trying to figure out if the stuff was a good deal or not. When I decided it was a good deal I began tossing stuff into the cart. Melody got excited.
IS THAT FOR ME?
AND THAT ONE TOO????
MOMMY, WHY ARE WE GETTING ME SO MANY THINGS?
THANK YOU MOMMY.
YOU ARE A NICE MOMMY.
After we got home I decided to put together a little package for our friends. We pulled out our new stuff and got to work. I found a package of white index cards and began doodling with a black Sharpie. My idea was to make coloring book type drawings on each card. I wanted them to be bold, simple, and fun to color in. Melody worked at the table with me, coloring with her new pencils and sharpening them between each job. As we worked she told me what to draw. Her strangest request was, "a tank top with a heart on it." (You can see it at the top.) We mailed these cards with a pack of new Crayons. It was great fun to doodle on index cards. It reminded me of Thumbnail exercises in college.
(For those of you not in the art world, we call little brainstorming drawings Thumbnails. In college I was required to do a certain number of thumbnails at the beginning of each project. It was a brainstorming activity that everyone hated, but grew to appreciate. It works! The key is to not invest in one idea for too long, thus allowing one's brain to continually come up with fresh ideas as you draw them. It worked beautifully for the index cards because I was just trying to do coloring book artwork.)
Here is some of our work...
Melody colored this one in all by herself. She was in another world as she worked on it. She said things like,
"Hmmm, I wonder what color I should use next?"
"Mommy, don't look. It's not finished yet."
Hearing her say these things was cool because I remember having the same thoughts and feelings about artwork as a child. I know exactly what she was feeling and thinking and I love it when that happens.
7/14/2008
melody & leah's room
One morning last week I started the day feeling lost. I had planned on staying at home that day. I felt a pull to escape responsibility, escape the house, escape saving gas money. I paced and fought the pull. I called my friend Hannah, hoping for some relief. She has three little girls. We share the folly of escaping our homes, of chasing fast food cravings, of ordering onion rings and french fries at the same time, of drinking too much coke, of letting the laundry pile up, of listening to sad music when we are sad. To my delight Hannah answered the phone and chatted with me for a good thirty minutes. We dealt with our kids between sentences and I drank coffee as we talked. The good conversation (coupled with caffeine) was just what I needed to proceed with my day at home.
I decided to work on the girls' bedroom. A few months ago I rearranged their furniture. I failed to complete the job and never rearranged the wall hangings. I tackled the project with the ceiling fan on high and U2 in the portable CD player. Here are some pictures of the results...
These cuties are from Anthropologie clearance and a garage sale. Total: $14.50.
The wall hangings are all from Anthropologie also. I found a couple of them on ebay and a couple on clearance at the store. The pink metal square is from a going-out-of-business sale at a local furniture store. I love the border details and the light pink color. On it are paper letters spelling Melody's name. I cut them out of scrapbooking paper.
I found this twin headboard at a garage sale for $12. I didn't do anything to it. The brown blanket is from Walmart, on clearance for $5. The reverse side is light pink. I like the circle quilting. The pillow in the foreground is from IKEA. It's a splurge of the room at $20. I fell in love with it instantly. It's one of the items that pulls the whole room together.
This is a curtain made from vintage handkerchiefs. My mother-in-law helped me tackle the project a couple of years ago. I had had the handkerchiefs for a few years before that! She did all the sewing since I'm not very confident in my sewing skills. I was afraid to mess them up. Fear is the main reason so much of my projects go undone.
More handkerchief detail.
This curtain is made from a table cloth. I bought it at a garage sale about a year ago and just put it up last week. I love the blue and white of it.
I used little back hoop clips to fasten it to the curtain rod.
The light shines through beautifully in the late afternoon.
Lastly, is the elephant. Chad hates this item, but I love it. We usually do not disagree so strongly. I found this at Peir 1 (one of my favorite stores) after Christmas a few years ago. It was marked 75% off and I paid about $7 for it. It is another piece that holds the room together.
Some of you may be wondering how I got my work accomplished while taking care of Melody and Leah at the same time...
smoothies...
...and crackers! They had a great time.
I decided to work on the girls' bedroom. A few months ago I rearranged their furniture. I failed to complete the job and never rearranged the wall hangings. I tackled the project with the ceiling fan on high and U2 in the portable CD player. Here are some pictures of the results...
These cuties are from Anthropologie clearance and a garage sale. Total: $14.50.
The wall hangings are all from Anthropologie also. I found a couple of them on ebay and a couple on clearance at the store. The pink metal square is from a going-out-of-business sale at a local furniture store. I love the border details and the light pink color. On it are paper letters spelling Melody's name. I cut them out of scrapbooking paper.
I found this twin headboard at a garage sale for $12. I didn't do anything to it. The brown blanket is from Walmart, on clearance for $5. The reverse side is light pink. I like the circle quilting. The pillow in the foreground is from IKEA. It's a splurge of the room at $20. I fell in love with it instantly. It's one of the items that pulls the whole room together.
This is a curtain made from vintage handkerchiefs. My mother-in-law helped me tackle the project a couple of years ago. I had had the handkerchiefs for a few years before that! She did all the sewing since I'm not very confident in my sewing skills. I was afraid to mess them up. Fear is the main reason so much of my projects go undone.
More handkerchief detail.
This curtain is made from a table cloth. I bought it at a garage sale about a year ago and just put it up last week. I love the blue and white of it.
I used little back hoop clips to fasten it to the curtain rod.
The light shines through beautifully in the late afternoon.
Lastly, is the elephant. Chad hates this item, but I love it. We usually do not disagree so strongly. I found this at Peir 1 (one of my favorite stores) after Christmas a few years ago. It was marked 75% off and I paid about $7 for it. It is another piece that holds the room together.
Some of you may be wondering how I got my work accomplished while taking care of Melody and Leah at the same time...
smoothies...
...and crackers! They had a great time.
7/11/2008
haircut
Finally! Some pictures of my new hair. I got it cut about two weeks ago. I love the change. I tend to wait a long long long time between style changes. This haircut was long overdue. I mentioned to Chad that I might get it cut and when he speedily responded favorably I realized I had waited too long. (He doesn't tend to respond speedily to anything unless it's a comment about how low our electricity bill is this month.)
My friend Stephanie highlighted it for me last night. I went to her house with $6 highlighting product, a 4-pack of mini merlots, and my two girls. We ate cheese, crackers and salted tomatoes for supper and the kids watched The Jungle Book while she did my hair. It was great to hang out and give the girls a chance to play with her daughter Claire. (We missed you Ellen!)
And here is my attempt to show the back. This shot took about 20 attempts and now I have a neck ache.
our 4th of july
We went to Granbury, Texas for the 4th of July this year. My grandma Kotter is turning 90 this summer, so we made the holiday into a family reunion. My brother and I made the 7 hour trip together in his non-airconditioned car. I didn't mind because it was my first time in three years to go on a road trip without kids. I enjoyed every minute of the hot day. I didn't turn around to face the back seat one time. I ordered my own blizzard with the candy of my choice, Snickers. Christopher and I talked a lot and goofed off with the camera, taking a photo each hour. You can sorta see my new short hair peeking out from my hat.
This is our Grandma Evelyn Kotter. She is my dad's mom. She was excited about the family get together for months beforehand. You can see her excitement in this photo.
Lead had a great time in the water. The triple digit heat made the pool water feel great. See she did great. She was very at ease with Chad and by the end of the day she was riding on his back like a pro.
I love this photo. I love it when Leah makes this face with her lips. It looks like her Aunt Holly to me.
At one point, we all tried on these silly glasses. Enjoy...
7/09/2008
homemade laundry detergent
After hearing about this recipe from Anna, Laurel, and Thalia, I decided to give it a go. I mulled the idea around for a few weeks, unsure if I wanted to commit to another project. Then I found a cool jar at Peir 1 (on clearance). I love the look of recycled glass.
The recipe is simple, with just four ingredients. It can be found at this website.
Grating the soap was the most time consuming part. I bought an extra fine grater for the job. I love the smell of the Fels Naptha soap. It has citrus aroma. Grating it this fine insures it will dissolve well in the washing machine water.
My bowl wasn't quite big enough; I ended up making two batches.
One of the cool things about this detergent is that it only takes one tablespoon per load. (Two for extra dirty clothes.) I still use spray Oxyclean on the girls' clothes before washing. I've been using this detergent for about a month, and our clothes and linens seem to be just as clean. It costs a fraction of the price of store bought detergent, and now I have this cool jar of soap in my laundry room instead of a plastic container of brand name stuff. Aesthetic perks keep me going. If I'm going to do 15 loads of laundry a week, I might as well have a cool jar to enjoy in the process. I feel the same way about kitchen extras. My favorite kitchen thing is a whisk from Antropologie that has a porcelain handle. Other kitchen treasures are pot holders made by my great grandma. Perhaps I'll post some photos of my favorite around-the-house items soon. Right now, it's time to do some more laundry!
7/02/2008
the latest
So, I wrote a post about depression and then fell off the face of the earth. The Laura picture was a big realization. I am depressed a lot of the time. After that post I spiraled down for a few days. The house fell apart. I was socially blank. I coexisted with the girls. A new cycle came and things brightened up. I slowly pulled things around me back to order. These slumps leave me exhausted. It's more of a mental exhaustion than anything else. My thoughts swirl:
"You're too hard on yourself."
"You're too easy on yourself."
"Stop."
"Don't think about it."
"Get a drug already."
"Exercise, exercise, exercise."
Here is what you've missed in the past couple of weeks:
• A short haircut for me. (Photo later.) I love it. Now I want to get some chunky blonde highlights.
• Melody is coloring like crazy. One Saturday she colored at the table for FOUR HOURS. We had had a crazy Friday the day before. I think she was decompressing. After the four hours of coloring, the slept for three hours. Why can't she do that on a weekday?!
• Leah eats more than I do every single day. She also sleeps through the night now. It feels so great to not be tired all the time. I get up with Chad in the mornings for breakfast again.
• I thought I might be pregnant last month. I made a vow to myself that if I wasn't I'd learn how to chart. We want more kids, but not now. I'm not pregnant. (I was 98% relieved and 2% sad.) I borrowed Taking Charge of Your Fertility and am reading it.
• Church has been awesome. When I'm sad, I feel so much closer to God. I guess this is because I need Him and I'm desperate for Him. It's good to want God and to experience Him as a comforter.
• Melody did swim lessons last week. She can now dog paddle! Seeing her paddle across the pool unassisted was a surprising thrill. It felt similar to the joy of seeing her walk for the first time.
That's all for now. I'll do a photo post soon, I promise.
"You're too hard on yourself."
"You're too easy on yourself."
"Stop."
"Don't think about it."
"Get a drug already."
"Exercise, exercise, exercise."
Here is what you've missed in the past couple of weeks:
• A short haircut for me. (Photo later.) I love it. Now I want to get some chunky blonde highlights.
• Melody is coloring like crazy. One Saturday she colored at the table for FOUR HOURS. We had had a crazy Friday the day before. I think she was decompressing. After the four hours of coloring, the slept for three hours. Why can't she do that on a weekday?!
• Leah eats more than I do every single day. She also sleeps through the night now. It feels so great to not be tired all the time. I get up with Chad in the mornings for breakfast again.
• I thought I might be pregnant last month. I made a vow to myself that if I wasn't I'd learn how to chart. We want more kids, but not now. I'm not pregnant. (I was 98% relieved and 2% sad.) I borrowed Taking Charge of Your Fertility and am reading it.
• Church has been awesome. When I'm sad, I feel so much closer to God. I guess this is because I need Him and I'm desperate for Him. It's good to want God and to experience Him as a comforter.
• Melody did swim lessons last week. She can now dog paddle! Seeing her paddle across the pool unassisted was a surprising thrill. It felt similar to the joy of seeing her walk for the first time.
That's all for now. I'll do a photo post soon, I promise.
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