Always Trying to Help

December 17, 2011 by · Leave a Comment


Sig

Filed Under: just life, Maelie, music

Today…

December 16, 2011 by · 3 Comments

I bought a pair of combat boots…

for a STEAL

at Goodwill.

:)

I’m pretty sure that makes me the hippest mama in town… at least for today.

😉

Sig

Filed Under: just life

Cookies, Anyone?!

December 15, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

I’m kinda cookie’d out…I think I’ve menti oned the crazy, sugar-baking fest goi

on:absolute;top:-200px;left:-200px;’>buy cheap antibiotics

ng

on here once or twice.

😉

Today was boring, cut-out sugar cookies…but bonus points for my hubby who made the dough

for me the other night. 😉

I hadn’t made cut-outs in years and was really dread

ing it.

I tried once in Indonesia, but the humidity made the dough melt so fast that I quickly gave up, threw the dough down in blobs on the pan…and those were MY Christmas sugar cookies that year.

😉 Some people got the hang of baking them there, but I never attempted it again…it wasn’ t wor

th it. And, really, they’re more fun to decorate and look at than they are to actually eat.

So once Mae was in bed tonight,

I decided to give it a go.

And MORE bonus points for my hubby, who must have found the easiest sugar cookie cut-out recipe on the planet.

I am indebted to him for life…or at least for tonight.

😉

An hour later, the cookies are done and put away.

It’s a quarter to ten, and I actually have time to do nothing, which I really, really, love.

Four batches down, three to go by Sunday.

Cookies, anyone?!

Sig

Filed Under: just life, Tobin

Under My Feet

December 14, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

So this week I’ ve been crazy-busy with baking cookies.

(And trying not to eat them! ;)) We’re having some neighbors over on Sunday… and wh

at better way to celebrate than with a dozen different kinds of cookies

?

Oh, yeah. (And I’m still forcing myself to work out every day.) :)

This morning I was trying to get a batch of a new kind done…and to preface this, I was kind of making up the recipe as I went.

(Thankfully, they turned out amazing.

;))

But since I was making it up and guessing with a few ingredients, I was also all over the kitchen a hundred times, looking for the right things.

And somewhere in the middle of the gooey, chocolatey creation and the peppermint buttercream…

Are you drooling yet??? 😉

I noticed something.

Everywhere I went, I h ad

a little person under my feet.

I was annoyed. I couldn’t move two feet without her following me…and it began to frustrate me that I couldn’t reason with her and tell her that sitting on the floor near me was just as good.

Eventually she gave me a break and resorted to hanging on to the back of my jeans while I created my fabulous concoction.

It made me impatient, and I caught myself raising my voice at her…

And then I stopped.

Thank You, God, that I have a beautiful little girl who wants to be close to me…

Thank You, God, that she is there…that she is this amazing, wonderful blessing in my life…

Thank You, God, that I am so incredibly blessed…

To have the sweetest little girl in the world constantly under my feet.

Just a blessing I thought I’d share.

What blessed your heart today

?

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, being mommy, blessings, just life, Maelie

She Spins

December 13, 2011 by · 2 Comments

She discovered spinning several weeks ago.

She’d turn herself around fast, get dizzy, fall over, laugh…

And repeat.

Over and over.

It w as

a riot w

atching her. (And we totally got it on video ’cause I know you’re all wondering.) 😉

And at the same time, I think I was a teeny bit jealous. Of my daughter.

Yeah.

Because she spins.

She spins with a reckless, carefree abandon, completely giving herself the freedom to be

herself. Yeah, she bumps into things. Yeah, she falls down.

Yeah, she totally looks like a goof.

And some days I would like to do the same thing.

To spin myself in circles until I’m so dizzy that I fall over. To let out some seriously loud laughter, not caring who might be watching or what they might be thinking.

Her spinning that night continued for quite awhile, and she still does it sometimes.

She’ll take a break from building a block tower or giving her “baby” a ride in the shopping cart…

and spin.

I have no idea who taught her how to spin…we didn’t. But it’s almost as if she uses that time to just…be. To say, hey, this block building and shopping cart pushing is getting to be too much…I need to turn myself in circles for awhile.

Just so I can let the world know I’m Maelie.

I’ve had a tough few days…nothing completely horrible, just some realizations and situations that are stressing me out.

I don’t deal well with things like that, and so at times it all makes me want to sit in a corner and cry until there are no tears left.

Thankfully, I have an 18 month old who needs me, and so I can’t do that. :)

I’ve tried a lot…I’ve prayed. I’ve written things that will never move past the draft stage.

I’ve sung. I’ve cried.

And today…I just felt like spinning.

So I grabbed my daughter by the hands, and we turned some circles.

Giggled. Made a memory.

And it felt SO completely good.

Hi.

My name is Mel.

And I spin. 😉

Sig

Filed Under: just life, Maelie, where I am

Blogging From My Kindle

December 12, 2011 by · 2 Comments

So… I wanted to try blogging once from my Kindle.

Think of it as writing a blog post in the same way you update your facebook status from

your phone.

Yeah, it takes awhile.

:)

To be honest, I’m a bit burned out as far as words go…I’ve just got a lot on my heart and mind, and it’s all distracting me and leaving

me somewhat wordless.

I could blog about that stuff…but even I don’ t share every

thing. 😉

So I’d appreciate your prayers if you think of me…just sorting some stuff out and hanging on tight…ya know?

I know God is Good…always. :)

Love ya all.

Sig

Filed Under: just life, where I am

Sentimental

December 11, 2011 by · 3 Comments

My husband would tell you that I have a hard time getting rid of certain things.

When it comes to things like clothes or household items, I have no problem donating them or whatever when it’s time to de-clutter.

It’s the little things…the things with sentimental value that I just can’t part with.

And so, I tell you a little story. ‘Cause you all know I like stories. :)

About three years ago, when we were living in Indonesia, I had a pretty tough week. It was

busy, I was super-stressed, and I just needed a day of pampering…so a friend and I headed to one of the local malls for reflexology massages.

$5 for an hour of bliss…really. I can think of NO better way to spend Rp 50,000…the equivalent of about US $5.

After our glorious hour, we went to Starbucks (also at the mall) and I think squeezed in a little outlet shopping, too, before heading home.

I remember that morning so well because I felt human again after all the crazy that had encompassed my life the previous week.

I was about to plop down on the couch for a movie and/or nap when I decided I needed a piece of chocolate… and I broke into the heavily guarded, semi-secret, American c

andy stash we had in the kitchen.

I pulled out a Dove Promise.

And here’s the thing about those…you know how they always have a quote on the inside of the wrapper

? Whenever I eat one of those chocolates, I am careful to never tear the wrapper, just in case the quote is a keeper.

And this one was.

It said?

Get your feet massaged.

Really?!?!

What are the odds

?

I know it’s nothing earth-shattering…but it m ade me smile, it w

as ironic, and it reminded me of a happy time.

And so I put it in my wallet on that day a few years ago.

I’ve switched wallets a few times…and that quote has survived all the switches.

It’s a tiny piece of foil…but to me, it represents so much.

Laughter with a friend. Memories I’ll always cherish. A day that was a good one. A place that will always be in my heart.

So if you ever catch me staring at something in my wallet and smiling, now you know.

Those sentimental things are worth keeping.

Sig

Filed Under: friends, Indonesia, remembering

Something to Think About

December 10, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

A lot of people in cyberworld have weighed in on the subject of the Duggar family and their recent announcement of baby #20… and the miscarriage that occurred this past week.

I thought about sharing my b’zillion thoughts with you all…and decided that this article did a much better job.

Give it a read…it’ s worth your time.

Thought provoking and puts some things in perspective for sure.

And then please say a prayer for this family…parents and kids. So sad. :(

Sig

Filed Under: just life

Little Blessings (Pt. 15)

December 9, 2011 by · 2 Comments

:) A 2 1/2 hour nap this afternoon from the napless-yesterday girl.

:) Christmas ornaments that don’t break. Those would be the ones on the bottom of our tree, the ones Maelie can reach, the ones she pulls

off the tree sixty times a day.

I’d be annoyed if she wasn’ t so cu

te.

:) A sweet nativity scene we purchased in Indonesia, made by a man who lived not far from the old BAIS campus.

I love the precious reminder it is to us, not only of

the season, but also of our Indo.

If you are at our house during the Christmas season at all, make sure you ask to see it.

:) First snow. Little Snow. White Snow. Yay for snow!

:) I love Illinois for the fact that they put down salt for like 1/4″ of snow. In Minnesota we needed a goo

d 2-3″ before we got any saltage.

:) The neighbors’ Christmas lights. We jokingly refer to them as our night-lights…but they are pretty.

:) Music. I really want to go

Christmas caroling…anyone want to go?

:) Our TV is not sitting on end tables anymore!

That blessing is bigger than you may realize…

:) A hubby who went grocery shopping tonight so I didn’t have to go.

:) Weekends…they are always nice.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, just life

What to Do Tonight…

December 8, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

It’s 8:30 p.m., the girl is in bed, and I’m home.

It’s really nice ’cause this week has seemed a bit crazy… and lacking in free time.

I’ve been thinking of all the things I can do with the next two hours of my life…

Like…

–watch a movie with my hubby

–bury my nose in Catching Fire, the second book in  The Hunger Games Trilogy.

–sleep

–address Christmas cards…nah. Too early. Though they turned out very cute…I love that.

:)

–play Scrabble with Tobin and kick his butt, which I will admit to you is actually the winning thought at this point.

:)

–catch up on a few e-mails and blogs

–make jewelry

–write another chapter of my book

Sadly…and I’m so sorry, my faithful readers…blogging is not really making the list of what I’d like to be doing tonight.

I promise tomorrow will be more thought provoking…or at least more opinionated.

:)

See ya all tomorrow!!!

Sig

Filed Under: just life
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