Good Better Best

Always the overachiever, I can't even choose just one word for my 2010 One Little Word. 

2009 began with high expectations. My word was LEARN and I had all kinds of hopes and intentions. On-line classes, a stack of books to be read, various plans to be put into place with my children. Reality struck less than one month into the year when I was called to be the Young Women's President in our ward (church congregation.) I spent the next several months struggling (and learning, for sure!) how to balance this enormous responsibility and still maintain some semblance of order at home. Some of my intended learning venues and plans had to take a back seat - my path certainly took a turn that I wasn't expecting!

But all in all, the year was full of learning. I learned that I love teenagers! I learned to do some very creative balancing of church responsibilities and home life. I learned I can go four days without a shower at Girls' Camp and absolutely love every minute of it (except perhaps the bear!)

And later in the year, I was able to add a few of those things I had been planning from the beginning. I took and finished a fantastic photography course from John Gringo at Creative Techs. I finished two parts of a five part Photoshop class, also at Creative Techs. They have a great selection of classes and best of all, they're FREE!

I plowed through a pile of books, though probably not original goal of 52 and learned that I love the Elizabethan period (thanks, Nyla!!) The Lady Elizabeth and Katherine were definite favorites.

I learned that letting go of some traditions in an effort to simplify was ok. And that skipping others was a huge let down for my family and won't be an option next year.

Which leads me to my choice for 2010. I spent some time this year considering my one word. BALANCE came to mind, but didn't quite encompass what I wanted. FOCUS was another front runner. I thought I had finally settled on PRIORITIZE and even posted it, put it out there in the cyber world in response to a couple of blogs. But there was a little niggle in my brain that said it wasn't quite right.

Then, I recalled this talk given by Elder Dallin Oaks in the LDS General Conference, October 2007. I needed more than a word, I needed this phrase for my 2010 mantra. GOOD BETTER BEST. The brief summary at the top of Elder Oaks' talk says it perfectly: "We have to forego some good things in order to choose others that are better or best..."

Obviously, it applies in my spiritual life. But it really is something I want to apply in all areas of life. Too often, I get caught up in something that is good and miss out on that which is better (or best) for me and my family. I can already see that it will be a great tool in my yoyo-ing weight loss/better health journey. Family life, interaction with my children and husband, choices about creative endeavors to fill my time - all can be governed well by keeping this phrase at the forefront of my brain.

Here's to a BETTER year, hopefully the BEST yet!

365 layouts in 365 days (44-50)

Picture post (prompt 5)

(Layouts to follow shortly. I just got a lovely stack of photos back from ScrapbookPictures and it is time to play!)

Conversations with a 3 year old (prompt 4)

Since Max started kindergarten in August, Mason gets my company 24-7. And I get his  =)  Conversations with Mason run the gamut from perplexing to silly to downright hilarious. Consider this recent funny:

Mason - "Mom, we should get a dolphin at our house."
Me - "A dolphin? What would you do with it?"
Mason - "Mom! I would play with her."
Me - "Where would she live?"
Mason - "At our house."
Me - "The dolphin needs an ocean to live in. Where would we get one?"
Mason - "From the water, Mom! And we would put some mud around the house, too."

PSA - If you dress your three year old as a road sign for Halloween, be prepared to have a backseat driver for years to come. "S-T-O-P! That spells stop, Mom. You were supposed to stop!" or "Hey, Mom. You can't park here! N-O spells no. No parking!"

10 Things (I'm reading) Prompt 3

I love to read and I usually have an assortment of books, magazines, newspapers and other reading material all going at once. I wish I could speed read!

The latest pile on my bedside table looks a little like this

The Cellist of Sarajevo

A haunting little book that I picked up at a bookstore in Seattle while visiting with my sisters. Fascinating look at the brutality of war juxtaposed with the healing powers of music. Doesn't hurt that I absolutely adore cello music and asked Michael for one for Christmas.

The Creative Family

A great resource for any family that values tradition and creativity. Concepts will be familiar to anyone who espouses the Waldorf or Montessori traditions. The author has a great blog, which is where I discovered the book in the first place.

The Lost: A Search for Six of the Six Million

Picked this up at Powell's bookstore in Portland. HUGE bookstore - Michael and I could have stayed all day just browsing.

This is a bit of a return to an earlier passion. In middle school and high school, I devoured every book I could get my hands on that dealt with the Holocaust. It sounds...wrong...to say I am fascinated with the subject, but I can't really think of another way to say it. Excellent book!

An Echo in the Bone

This series is my guilty addiction. My mother-in-law first introduced me to Outlander several years ago and I have been in love with Jaime and Claire ever since.

Canon EOS Digital Rebel Xsi/450D for Dummies

Always trying to improve my photography!

Columbine

A disturbing but incredibly fascinating look at the facts of the Columbine massacre. Debunked many of the media theories that most people probably still believe today. Very well researched and definitely a page turner.

The Mists of Avalon

Fantasy and science fiction - more guilty pleasures. This is an oldie but a goodie. Love Marion Zimmer Bradley!

The Time Traveler's Wife

4th or 5th time through. One of my favorite books ever!

The Lady Elizabeth

My baby sister (hey Nyla!) got me hooked on Elizabethan historical fiction. This is a great one!

Parenting the Strong-Willed Child

Do you have one of these? I have several. Possibly six  =)  Well, at least two anyway. Always reading and trying to improve my parenting skills. The somewhat (verbally) combative relationship I have with a certain child is distressing and I am constantly looking for ways to change that relationship for the better.

And with that, you can see why I am wishing for speed reading ability!

And the other 6

That's all folks!

(yes, there are only 5. I CAN count. I had to remove one of my layouts because....it is being published!! Woohoo!!!)

365 layouts in 365 days

Signed on for a new little (ha ha) scrappy challenge. October counts, so I'm already 31 days in. I've got 12 for this week, but I'm banking a few since I know the holidays will be crazy.

More to follow after I play taxi driver for a bit =)

The Girlfriend (Prompt Two)

Her name is Julia.

It seems that we have entered the phase of life of being parents to teenagers. So much of it, I enjoy more than I ever dreamed. I always considered myself a baby lover and certainly one who adores the toddler years. As the kids approached 7, 8, 9...I felt like I lost a bit of that enjoyment. And I was petrified of the approaching onset of teen-hood. Teenagers were snarky, disrespectful, consumed-with-self creatures I really didn't think I would like.

But then I had a couple of my own. And despite some occasional snark, a smidgen of disrespect and being very much all-about-me, I found that they were actually quite delightful. Definitely lots more fun to take shopping (only applies to the girl) and much easier to understand than a toddler!

The one aspect of teenage-hood that I still look upon with some foreboding is the blossoming of hormones and the advent of the boy-girl exclusive relationship. Matt has "liked" girls before and had a traumatic, heart breaking two-week "relationship" with a young lady earlier this year, but Julia has now been a constant for a couple of months. First date, first major school dance (Homecoming, pictured above) and pretty much 24-7 texting, IMing, Facebooking or just a quick text to me saying he has not taken the bus home but is at Julia's.

While I delight that my sometimes awkward son has found such a wonderful friend and more, my very Mormon mother instincts shout BEWARE. Too much, too soon, too close before that all important mission I hope to send him on in less than three years.

I know of what I speak (type.) I always had a boyfriend. Middle school, high school, college. I started even earlier with the liking of boys (yikes!)  and I know the dangers and pressures he will face, but that is a story for another day.

Julia is a sweetheart - I like her spunk and style very much, but I definitely have motherly reservations and concerns. They have followed the rules so far - no dating til 16, group dating only, group activities only. I just hope the lessons I have taught him are instilled deeply.

A new chapter in (blogging) life (Prompt One)

This blog has mostly been a spot to share completed scrapbook pages. A few pictures of the family here and there since I know my Grandma occasionally reads it (86 years old, reading blogs AND on Facebook. Love it!) A few memes that catch my eye and a random post thrown in for good measure. Not super interesting really, unless you're my Grandma and want to see what the great grandkids are up to. It doesn't really even do that much, unless you can read the journaling on my scrapbook pages.

Someone might find inspiration in a layout or two, but the actual verbal content leaves quite a lot to be desired. Then I saw an advertisement for an on-line course. I loved the class description of Shimelle's Blogging for Scrapbookers. It was exactly what I needed to get more out of my blog and use it as a scrapbooking tool.

I went through Stacy Julian's Library of Memories class at Big Picture Scrapbooking and using her amazing system, I have been scrapbooking old photos along with my newer pictures. And I have found that telling the stories from those older pictures is sometimes really, really hard. I. Just. Don't. Remember! And it makes me really sad that so many of the stories from my older children's younger life are already gone. I've captured many, to be sure, and I have little notebooks of important stories and quotes all over my scrapbook room. But they're not super organized and all over the place and some memories are just lost. The stories are so much easier to tell and record when using photos fresh out of my camera.

And that, right there, is my only goal for this class. I want this blog to be a place that the very fresh, very new stories about the most recent photos are recorded so that I can come back tomorrow, next week, next year and find them to record them in my scrapbooks. This way, I will remember.

15 more Minutes of Fame

One of my favorite layouts was featured on the Studio Calico blog. Scroll down - mine is the 5th layout! I'm thrilled! The ladies at SC are incredibly talented; so much inspiration there. And their kits? Fabulous!

Happy Halloween!!

My most favorite day of the year!! Our Halloween is under construction (wink!)

LOAD Day 31 - I did it!!

31 layouts (plus a few extra) in 31 days. Scrapped every day!! Woohoo!

LOAD Day 30

One more day to go. And if you know me, you know I'm scrambling! It is the day before Halloween and costumes are needed tonight for Trunk-or-Treat...and they're not finished yet! Yikes. I work best under pressure (read - procrastinate until the last possible moment) but this year takes the cake!! I don't think I've ever NOT been done so late.

LOAD Day 29

LOAD 26, 27 & 28 (almost done!)

LOAD 23, 24 & 25

Busy, busy. No time to post. Did find snippets of time to scrap and just eeked out enough pages for the LOAD challenge.

LOAD Day 22

Catching up - LOAD 20 & 21

LOAD Day 18 & 19

LOAD Day 17