My Many Colored Days: May 2010

24 May 2010

Paula Deen's chocolate chip pie

SO scrumptious!!!

Ingredients:
2 eggs
1/2 c flour
1/2 c packed brown sugar
1/2 c reg sugar
1 stick melted butter
6 oz. semi sweet chocolate chips
1 c pecans/walnuts (I used finely chopped because my family isn't big into nuts - they couldn't even tell and it added so much flavor!)
1 9-in. pie shell
whipped cream for topping

Beat eggs until foamy. Add flour. brown sugar. Beat together. Blend in sugar, butter. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Bake at 325 for 1 hour.

Enjoy!!!

18 May 2010

Phew?

I took last week off from blogging so that I could catch up on some things I was falling behind in - laundry, showering, ya know - the usual. Also, photography (the blog still isn't updated - oh well). The week flew by but certainly not due to folding and sorting or any long, luxurious soaks in the tub. I did a little photo editing, and I managed to deal with a few minor family crises with a fair amount of grace (blade of grass stuck in your child's throat anyone?). So I guess I can call that success?

I missed creating lovely things, that's for sure!

My daughter received this chalkboard as a birthday gift one year, a long time ago. She's 11 now, and so it's mine. Isn't that how it works? Lol. I've always loved it though, and have been borrowing it for various displays since she received it. It's fun on the porch during the holidays, with phrases like "Let it snow" (In TX? I wish!) and "Hurry Spring".

Well I've found one more use for it, and that is as a centerpiece for our kitchen table! Decorating my table is hard for me, mostly because I tire easily of what is there. So I am always trying to switch it up, and I rarely do the same thing twice. AND I don't really like the more conventional options for centerpieces.

I just jotted some words around the sides of the chalkboard that remind us of why family meals are important in our family. Set my cake stand in the middle, filled with some fun stoney apples I scored from Hobby Lobby (on sale!) and a little blue birdie, and I'm in love all over again with my kitchen! Funny how that works.

Do you have something lying around that you could use in an unconventional way?

13 May 2010

Having one of those weeks...

I'm sure you can all relate. The to-do list is officially 2 pages long, in my tiniest handwriting. So I'm sorry for the lag in blogging, but you know the saying - "Something's gotta give." I actually have been blogging, just not here. In the next few days I hope to have some new posts up on my photography blog. Gotta catch up! So maybe you'd like to visit me there (if you get to missing me too much). :)

In the meantime I will continue to check things off on my list so I can show you a cute idea for a centerpeice, as well as handstitched flour sacks and some fun collage ideas using paper and fabric.

And Austinites, have you heard about this?

Hope to see you there!

06 May 2010

Repost for Mother's Day: Somewhere

Somewhere someone has just found out she is going to become a mother. Somewhere someone has found out she won't. Somewhere a mother is crying for the loss of a pregnancy. Somewhere a mother isn't ready to be a mother. Somewhere a mother is giving birth. Somewhere a mother is sleep deprived. Somewhere a mother is staring into the eyes of a newborn. Somewhere a mother is picking cheerios up off the floor. Somewhere a mother is making sacrifices. Somewhere a mother is watching her baby learn to walk. Somewhere a mother is gently cleaning a booboo and covering it with a band aid. Somewhere a mother is rocking a sick child.

Somewhere a mother is finding out she has cancer. Somewhere a mother is dying. Somewhere a mother is caring for her own mother. Somewhere a mother is ready to give up. Somewhere a mother is asking for help. Somewhere a mother is cleaning the house. Somewhere a mother is making a meal for her family. Somewhere a mother has finally found joy in the little things. Somewhere a mother is teaching her child. Somewhere a mother is being taught. Somewhere a mother is feeling proud. Somewhere a mother is being humiliated in the grocery store by her toddler. Somewhere a mother is feeling trapped. Somewhere a mother needs a break. Somewhere a mother is feeling rejuvenated. Somewhere a mother has found time for herself.

Somewhere a mother is praying for her children. Somewhere a mother is praying for herself. Somewhere a mother is worrying. Somewhere a mother is doubting herself. Somewhere a mother is paving the way. Somewhere a mother is ready to take on the world. Somewhere a mother is being criticized. Somewhere a mother is losing her inhibitions. Somewhere a mother is feeling humbled. Somewhere a mother is reaching out. Somewhere a mother is helping another mother. Somewhere a mother is feeling unappreciated. Somewhere a mother is crying. Somewhere a mother needs to be held. Somewhere a mother is thinking of the future. Somehwere a mother is wondering how she is going to make it to tomorrow.

Somewhere a mother is attending a graduation. Somewhere a mother is planning a wedding. Somewhere a mother is burying her child. Somewhere a mother is watching her own child become a parent. Somewhere a mother's long journey is coming to an end.

Motherhood has its ups and downs. For every mother I've ever observed, learned from, been close to - here's to the bumpy ride.

04 May 2010

I know what I'm doing!

Yesterday I went to the grocery store with my 2 youngest children, ages 5 and 3.   My 3 year old is going through a transition right now... she doesn't want to ride in the cart but she's not quite mature enough to be on her own 2 feet, either. She just can't resist running off! All that space, and a big, heavy cart to slow Mommy down are just too much temptation for her.

Since I only needed a few things, I used one of the little carts.  It was the perfect height for Drew, and I rarely use them so it was kind of a new thing for him. He was begging to push it, and Sasha was having a fit because I was holding her (we were browsing the flowers outside near the parking lot and I was afraid she was going to get run over by a car), so I let him. He rammed into the back of my legs a couple times, and almost took out a whole tables of pots before I chided him. Just as I was saying "watch it", a man comes strolling out of the store and chastises me with "Let him do it, he needs to learn. He can handle it, Mom," and gives me this look like "You really need to chill." Normally I think I would have ignored him and kept going, but on this day I was feeling empowered. So I looked him squarely in the eye and said "I know what I'm doing," smiled, and guided my kids into the store.

My first thought was, "The nerve of some people!"  But then I realized that what was more important here was that I felt confident enough to stand up for myself. I knew that I had handled the situation appropriately, and that my reaction was reasonable. I cannot tell you how many times in my younger mothering years, however, that an experience like this would have shaken my confidence. I would have stewed over it, and fixated on whether or not I am a patient enough mother, and called my husband and friends and sought validation, and become bitter over this tiny interaction with a complete stranger.

As insignificant as it may seem, yesterday was a turning point for me. An a-ha moment. I DO know what I am doing.  I AM a good mother. I finally feel the way I appear to others! Lol. When you have 4 kids a lot of people will naturally assume you know what you are doing. Not always so. ;) But I feel like my vast array of experiences have resulted in a pretty good grasp of things. Or, at the very least, a little more confidence in myself as a mother.

We could all use a boost of confidence. So, in honor of upcoming Mother's Day, I hope that each of you will find a moment to sit down and realize some way in which you are succeeding as a mother. Don't seek the validation from someone or somewhere else, find it within yourself. It's there, I promise.