First Entrepreneurial Endeavor

This past weekend we had our first ever yard sale. I am not a fan. I feel like people are judging me and my things. And I know I should not even be bothered because essentially we're getting rid of stuff we don't want anymore so who cares? But I do. I also hate the price negotiation. And watching things that were sentimental to me go for pennies.

But in preparing I asked the girls if they wanted to host a lemonade stand. Hannah of course jumped at the chance and Makaela was willing to follow along. Unfortunately Hannah was pretty sick that day so she came out for just a few minutes when Tylenol was working its wonders. Makaela had to work it by herself and, with Daddy's help, did rather well. Poor girl is plagued with shyness.

We should have had these girls out there a lot sooner. Almost everyone that came by bought a glass. I thought we should have sold them for $0.25 a glass to make change easier but Joel said $0.10. They sold out of their lemonade and made about $5.00. They decided they want to go to Yogurtland with the money. Now if we can just get them feeling better so we can go.

I am so proud of them.

Oh to be a kid again ...

A couple of weeks ago, we decided to dive into sorting through our garage and organizing it. Cabinets were purchased (thank you Craigslist) and work began. Due to the condition of the cabinets, not to mention that fact that our garage has been a nightmare since we moved in over 2 years ago, this job called for some later than normal nights. While we tackled to real work, the girls got to play outside til well after dark.

It will never cease to amaze me what their imaginations can pull together. Earlier in the day, Hannah had a bunch of toys out on the front lawn. She said she was camping and needed a tent. I went into the garage and found and old cardboard box. I cut it up, taped it into a triangle tube, and there was her tent. Not even big enough for her to comfortable crawl through. I figured she'd be into it for about 5 minutes, but no. It was her prized possession for the rest of the day.

So while we were working, they climbed into the back of daddy's truck and set up their campsite. I brought out a blanket and some sippy cups of hot chocolate because it was a cool night. They found the plush purple chair, recently given to us by the neighbors, the toys, and the cardboard tent. And let's not forget Daddy's light. They were entertained for hours. And would have been happy little kids had I let them stay up later or perhaps even spend the night in there.

I remember smiling as I observed them and turning to Joel and saying, "I want to be a kid again."

How cool that something so simple can amuse them so much!

Makes my heart happy

I love this iPhone photo despite the poor quality. Makaela nibbling on a Hawaiian roll, looking over her sister's shoulder to get in on the action.

The other day I up and decided to purchase the Jesus Storybook Bible for my girls. It arrived and to my great surprise, Hannah really took to it. Still unable to read, she's been enjoying looking at the pictures. It would be normal for her to give it a once over and move on, but on more than one occasion, I have caught her with the book, pouring over each page. She even requested that Joel and I read her a few chapters last night as her bedtime story. I couldn't be happier. Sadly, we're not a family who lives and breathes religion so when our kids openly welcome a little bit of faith based stories, we are more than willing to oblige.

In need of some perspective

I woke up this morning and immediately jumped into a pity party for myself. Awesome way to start the day!!!

Let me start at the begininng ...


Friday evening as I was getting ready for bed, I noticed my lower right eye was tender to the touch and a little bit red. I opted for some eye drops and went to bed.


Saturday morning we awoke early to set up for our yard sale. Yes, we finally decided to get rid of much of our baby items. I would say this makes it almost 100% official that we will not be having anymore children. My eye? Red and irritated. Unfortunately, Hannah also woke up not feeling so well, complaining of a tummy ache. She later developed a fever and even threw up that night. I decided at 7:30PM to head to urgent care for my eye as it was not getting better. Diagnosis? Pink Eye. Eye drops prescribed.


I set my alarm for 3AM and 7AM to wake up and give Hannah children's ibuprofen to combat her fever as well as to give myself the eye drops. Joel let me sleep in until 10AM only for me to awake for the day with a sore throat. We battled Hannah's fever all day with ibuprofen. Her mood, energy level, and appetite ebbed and flowed with the effectiveness of the medicine.


This morning she still had a fever though doesn't feel quite as warm. But now I am frustrated!!! Enter pity party. I have Makaela who has been on antibiotics for a sinus infection since last Monday. We discovered that after she had a second recurrence of a fever that she fought all of last weekend. Our 14 year old black lab has a scratched eye that we are treating with antibiotic drops every 6 hours since last Wednesday. I have pink eye and a cold and Hannah and her fever make for a mama who is feeling rather sorry for herself.


Hence my need for perspective. I have it good. I know this. I know there are people in this world right now who would give anything for a chance to nurse their children back to health from a fever because either (1) they lost a child (2) have never been able to have children (3) their child is suffering from something more severe or (4) they themselves are suffering from something that does not allow them the opportunity to administer care for their family.


And yet, all of this doesn't seem to make me feel any less bad about my own situation. And for that I feel guilty and like a bad person. I should admit that as the hours have passed from this morning, my mood has bettered. Perhaps because I am at work and not having to deal with "it" for these few hours. But I feel like I should be able to feel that I am lucky and act as such without a self-imposed reality check. Lucky that I get to wake up with my kids. That I have the means to provide the necessary medicine and medical care for not only my children, but my pets too. That I have a husband who steps in whenever needed without being asked. That my kids get to know that I will take care of them when needed.


I am thankful I, just last night, finished reading a book I picked up at the Good Will. It is called At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon. I decided to buy it because I needed something to read and it had "New York Times Best Seller" scrolled across the top and was priced at only $1.99. It's from the persepctive of a 60 something Episcopalian rector and though I am not sure I would recommend it to a whole bunch of people, I really enjoyed it. There's quite a bit of scripture referenced in the book, though I wouldn't call it a pushy religious novel at all. Due to this book, I found it very easy to say a prayer this morning as I was vacuming, to help me be thankful for my situation and to ask for grace in dealing with my kids; and to help my frustration go away. I am not sure I can say that I had that God-to-self connection I would have loved. The kind where you can really feel Him working right away, but I do have faith that he heard me. And I am pretty sure the book helped me remember I can turn to God in those lower moments.

So hopefully that perspective I need will sink in really soon. Forgive me for venting. While I do intend for this blog to be a means for me to share and record my story, I don't mean for it to be a negative place. I'll admit I feel slightly better for getting it out though.

Sidenote: I do think I have some fun stuff to share soon. Once I upload some pictures.

See ya!



This book turns out to be the first of a four-part series. I think if I can find the others for a decent price, I might just pick them up.

Awesome!

Love this picture I happened to snap of the girls as I was watching Wednesday's USA vs France soccer game! They didn't watch the whole thing with me but when they heard me spazzing out after Abby Wambach scored to make the game 2-1 USA, they came running. Both of them plopped themselves on our coffee table and began clapping and chanting, "USA! USA!" Could this be little women's soccer fans in the making? I sure hope so.

That night Hannah came down dressed in her soccer uniform from last season. Socks and all. She wanted to wear it to bed. Sounds good to me little lady. I should have snapped a picture of that.

We have signed her up for one more season of AYSO soccer. Last year, she did great the first game - even scored the first goal. But from each game on, she didn't run a whole lot, complained a lot, and didn't seem too interested in the game. She did however love getting a trophy which is why I think she was open to playing one more season. I am hoping that watching this USA team play will help instill some of the understanding and passion for the game. If not, we'll find her thing. I am not too worried.

Deep In My Heart

I have to say that I think last Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were some of the best days for me in a long time. And let me say, that this is NO way has anything to do with the fact that my two lovely girls were at their grandparents. Seriously! Though this did help allow for the 4 days of fun.

Thursday:
Joel, myself, and our two good friends George and Roxanne went to see Les Miserables at the Ahmanson Theatre in L.A. I believe this is the 4th time I have seen it. By far this is my favorite musical I have ever seen. And I am proud to say that I have seen quite a few. The story is so captivating and the music is spectacular. Each time I see it, I catch something new, and even though I know what's coming, I still end up shedding heartfelt tears. It's a must see. Fortunately we were able to get the husbands to get out of work at a decent hour so that we could eat dinner downtown before the show. This is usually an impossible feat when Rox and I go on our own. We had a very nice sushi dinner at a teeny tiny place called Kamasa. I really had no idea that the Ahmanson was so close to Little Tokyo. I have lived in the L.A. area my entire life and yet, have no clue about downtown and all it's treasures. So anyways, this Kamasa is in Little Tokyo which is quite cute and literally chock full of sushi restaurants. We have no idea how they all stay in business because there are so many of them.

Friday:
Joel and I went to a dinner party at none other than George and Roxanne's. Last year 4 couples got together and did "Fancy Dinner". Each couple hosted a dinner party for the other 3 couples. These dinner parties consisted of gourmet meals in a variety of courses. It was so fun and definitely a challenging experience. Well, the husbands didn't exactly take to the name of "Fancy Dinner" nor did they like dressing up to hang with friends so they decided that this year they would take over the hosting and do the exact opposite of Fancy Dinner. So George and Roxanne hosted theirs and we were welcomed into a Mexican themed party. We had to do TJ shots of tequila on the way in, and then were treated to Alberto's Mexican food for dinner. The guys were in Heaven as Alberto's was a college staple for them. It is always so much fun to get together with good friends. Lots of laughs. I wish we could do this with all of our friends out there.

Saturday:
Two words ... MATCHBOX TWENTY!!!!! My very favorite band. Words cannot explain how much I love them and their music. This is the second time I have seen them and their performance did not disappoint. We saw them at Pachanga Indian Casino. It was an outdoor concert and the warm summer evening only added to the awesomeness. There is nothing like watching people perform music live. Seriously I think I could I watch any band perform live and be moved. But to get to see your favorite band perform and be able to sing along to all the songs is so moving. I can't explain what happens to me. Somewhere deep in my heart I am just truly happy. In a moment removed from all the worries and frustrations normal life can bring. (please don't think I have anything terrible going on; all is well). It's almost like I am somewhere else. Maybe even someone else. And it's fun! And these guys, Rob Thomas and all his band members, seem to have such a good time performing. They laugh and tease and interact with the crowd. They appear to be very humble and appreciative of all their fans. It's just such a rewarding experience for me. At one point in the concert Rob Thomas told the whole crowd to sit down. He said, "Now doesn't that feel good?" It did, but I would stand all day and night to hear his music live. Then he asked if someone with a particular Twitter name was in the crowd. This guy stands up and Rob proceeds to explain that this guy had tweeted several times asking for a meet and greet with the band. That this guy had just returned from serving in Iraq and that he had surprised his wife with tickets to to concert. Rob apologized that a meet and greet couldn't be worked out because they were really busy and rushed but that he was dedicating their next song to this couple. How sweet is that?! During another point in the concert, he told the whole crowd to just Tweet "anything. Say you're taking your clothes off." I have avoided Twitter, but let me tell you, I am seriously considering it and making Rob Thomas the only person I follow. The concert was so good. I can't wait for them to come back again. Totally excited that they are working on a new album in Nashville right now.

Sunday:
If I thought the level of my happiness couldn't get any higher than the previous night, I was wrong. Joel was gone all day deep sea fishing and I got up to watch the Women's US soccer team play Brazil in the quarter finals match. What. A. Game!!! Oh my gosh. The roller coaster of emotions I experienced are unmatched. Nervousness, Excitement, Fear, Depression, Joy, Hope, Frustration, Anger, Bewilderment ... I am sure I have missed a few.

We are up 1-0 - totally stoked but irritated that Abby Wambach seems to fall down every time the ball comes near her. C'mon! You're tough and a stud of a player. I agree when Brazil's Marta yelled at her about needing to get up and play.

Then a penalty is called against the US in the box. Ugh! Seriously I still don't really see the foul but have come to realize that FIFA imposes some pretty strict rules. Not only does this mean a PK for Brazil but our defender, Rachel Buehler, is red carded and kicked off the field. This means we need to play down a man for the rest of the game. Not good. But Hope Solo can block this PK. She's a stud too. And block it she does. The jumping around I did in our living room was comical I am sure. But what? The ref has called a foul and is allowing Brazil to set up to take the PK again. Enter ANGER!!!! Total BS!! Hope Solo doesn't block this one and now the game is tied. Now I am nervous.

The game continues. US with 10 players and Brazil with 11. And to my great surprise, we're playing better with 10 than we were with 11. This shouldn't come as a surprise. I've been there before. A good team with good players will rise to the occasion knowing they have to play for efficiently and effectively. And so the US rallies, keeping the score tied at 1-1 and going to 30 minutes of overtime. OK, can we keep it tied and get to penalty kicks? If so, we can pull this off.

But stopping Brazil is difficult and sure enough they come up with another goal. A great shot by Marta and now I enter a depressed state. I am so not ready to see this amazing team of US women go home. I have only recently clued into them and am learning their stories. Relating to them. Loving them. Who they are as individuals and even more as Team USA. I want more of them. I watch each move with baited breath. The time is ticking away. When the time clock reaches 120 minutes, I've pretty much conceded the loss. We're in the final 3 minutes of injury time. Thank God Team USA didn't! Still down a player with the score at 1-2, Megan Rapinoe, a cute, spunky, blond, mid-fielder sends a ball from the left side and who is there to knock it in with her head? Abby Wambach!!!!!! Truly it was an amazing goal. With literally seconds left on the clock, Abby evens the score and we got to PKs. I seriously think my heart may have stopped beating for a second. In watching earlier games, I became fixated with Rapinoe. And I am not sure why. I was never a midfielder, but she was fun to watch come off the bench and play. And the constant story of Wambach being in a goal drought since last November played into the emotion. Yes, in a prior game to Brazil she had been credited with a goal, but it was a weak goal. This one, she EARNED! It was her, "F you! We ain't done yet!" goal. I loved it! I now totally now how Joel feels when watching the Lakers play in the playoffs. It's intense. We pretty much sailed through PKs. I was nervous when our first shot by Shannon Boxx was blocked but fortunately the ref called that one back because the keeper had come off her line. Boxx buried the next shot. And seeing Hope Solo block Brazil's 3rd PK was thrilling to say the least. What a win!!!!!! This team is amazing. Their composure and hard work is nothing short of inspiring. It makes me think about dusting off my cleats again. I find myself recalling fond memories of playing high school in soccer with all of my soccer friends. A tiny part of me longs to be reunited with them. Fortunately Facebook allows for some interaction, but we're all so far apart now and leading our own lives. I am so happy I get to relive those memories as I watch this amazing team move one to finals (they won the semi finals against France yesterday).

Thinking ...

So obviously it's been forever since I last had a post up here. Life has been hectic. But let's face it, even if I didn't have any activities or children or chores to distract me, I would still say life is hectic.

As far as scrapping goes, I have done a few things here and there. No layouts, though there is one in progress on my table right now. I have made several last minute cards that I didn't even have time to photograph. I even made some Disneyland autograph books which came out really cute but alas, no photos. Because why ... last minute, of course!

So why did I title this post "Thinking ..."? Well, that's what I have been doing over the past month and a half. Thinking about lots of things related to this blog. Perhaps it would help if I gave a little bit of background.

I started this blog at the request of a local scrapbook store. I was on the design team and in an effort to help with getting the word out about the store, as well as to provide inspiration to customers, I started Scrap Happens. Do you get my play on words there? If not, it's supposed to be like S*#t Happens. And that it does. Unfortunately, my local scrapbook store fell to hard economic times. But I liked having a blog. I liked the idea of a little extra pressure to do some scrapping so that I would have some content to post here. And I so I kept it going. Trying hard to post my crafty creations.

But soon, that pressure I liked the idea of so much in the beginning, became a burden. And I found my creative mojo fading. I think this has to do with a lot of things. I used to thrive in the late night hours. Waiting all day for my family to fall asleep so I could go into my craft room guilt free. Now, when the kids and husband are asleep, I find the couch calling my name. The craft room is too quiet. My computer in there too slow. I have nothing that is inspiring me to scrap. I don't feel like getting all of the stuff out. It's too messy. You get the point. And therefore the blog fell by the wayside. Because after all, it's called Scrap Happens and if I am not scrapping, I shouldn't be posting anything.

And then the Paperclipping Roundtable entered my world. I have posted about it here before. Basically it's a free weekly podcast where people who work within the scrapbooking industry get together and talk about various subjects pertaining to scrapbooking. They have the two regular hosts and then have a variety of recurring guests which include Ali Edwards, Stacy Julian, Anna Cabrerra, and Angie Lucas of Ella Publishing. To add to the fun, they have special guest spots which have been filled with people like Stephanie Howell (my all time fav scrapper), Kelly Purkey, Shimelle Laine, to name a few. Seriously, you should check it out. You can find it on iTunes and download it to your iPod or iPhone. Not to mention listening to it from your computer. Anyways ... I started listening and began to feel myself get inspired about scrapbooking again. But not the same kind of inspiration I had before. I was now and am now inspired to share/tell my stories through scrapbooking. Yeah, scrapping a birthday party or event will be fun from time to time, but if it's not telling a story about something I wish to remember or document for the future, more than likely, it's not going to see any game time.

Now enter the problem of remembering the stories I want to share long enough to actually get them scrapped. Unfortunately, my memory is terrible. I know it's because I rush rush rush through life all the time, and don't slow down to really let something special sink in.

To make a long long long story a little shorter, this is where my blog comes into play. I am no longer going to adhere to the rule that any post I make needs to be scrapbooking or craft related. I am not a "celebrity" in this industry and would be shocked if there are more than 5 people who pop in here from time to time. So my guess is this change is not going to make a lick of difference to anyone, but I felt the need to post something about the new direction I am going to take.

This blog will now be a journal of sorts about me and my family's life. A place to document things I wish to remember. A tool for me to use when I do find some time to scrap - where I can come back and look at past posts and think, "Oh yeah, I remember that. Remember feeling that."

So there you have it. Scrap Happens is taking a new direction. (ha! that makes me think of Glee) I will still certainly post scrapbook pages I complete up here. But hopefully you'll see more things about my day to day life. It is MY blog after all right?