Fresh Start!

Happy New Year Everyone!

I get super pumped this time of year because I love fresh starts!

As a bonafide scatterbrained disorganized last-minute throw it together type of person in need of a more consistant quiet time and fewer pounds on the scale and less clutter in my house, I can't wait to try to do it all better in 2011!

Yes, if you read my blog from last year at this time you will probably find the same types of goals (except I gave myself a later starting date so I could have a baby!). But here I am again, starting over.

"Why Bother?" you may ask yourself. Perhaps you are one of the many people who go ahead and quit before they begin. You may think of some things that would be good to improve on but you know how these things go, you... like myself ... have had 30 or so years to learn that you are a mess and unlike me, you have decided to just accept it.

With each passing year instead of becoming more jaded, I become more hopeful for the future! When I look at my past I see failures, but I also see improvements. (very gradual ones in some cases) but still, any tiny step in the right direction is better than none.

So lets 'Press On' people!

This year my goals pretty much cover everything:

Daily and Weekly must haves:

Consistant Quiet Times

Consistant Family Devotions

Consistant Excercising

Maintain a Healthier Diet

Consistantly keeping a cleaning schedule

Making a point to encourage others

Some one-time goals:

Finish painting Micah's room

Potty Train Allie

Completely declutter and organize entire house (more on this later)

Teach Micah to read

Others to be named later...

Do you have a list? Do you have an action plan to make it happen? My main problem is daily stuff. Basically, the second I decide to do something every day, I avoid it like the plague. Am I the only one like that? The Rebel in me comes out in full force and starts tearing up those schedule sheets about a week into the year. I need to come up with a plan to psych her out and get those dailies done.

More on this later.

PS With my fresh start you may have noticed I have a fresh Blog title, Hopefully some more meaningful and heartfelt blog posts will come along soon to go with it.

Remember the Answered Prayers

Today I realized that God had answered my prayers in a specific area.

Sometimes we get so busy with day to say that we don't stop to remember. What was on my heart a year ago?

A year ago I was 8 months pregnant and the news was full of stories of the Swine Flu. I ws worried about it. Someone even emailed me an article that said that the fatality rate for pregnant women hospitalized with swine flu was 1 in 4. The news article went on to say that doctors were recommending pregnant women be vaccinated. The vaccine was only a few weeks old and untested. I was more afraid of what it might do to my unborn baby than getting the flu. But both were worrisome.

I prayed, I stayed home alot and I carried antibacterial soap to slather on grocery store buggies.

We made it till Noah was born, and then he ended up getting a rough start due to a mistake the hospital made. After a week in the NICU he was released with dire warnings. 'Flu season is about to begin', they said. Just beginning in January? Yikes.

So we prayed. (and stayed home a little longer)

It's been a year now. Noah will be eleven months old tommorrow! And our home has been a healthy one all this time. Sure we have had a few issues... an ear infection here and there, a case of the sniffles and some impetigo... but overall, until about a week ago we have had none of the stuff I had worried about.

I just wanted to take this opportunity to praise God for that answered prayer. Sure, we have spent this week with coughing and sneezing and sniffling... There's been fever and crying...I have been stayed up late with one child and gotten up early with another for several days now. But I won't complain. Our family has been truly blessed this year and with God's blessing maybe it will be another healthy year before our turn comes around again.

Hope you and yours are well!

Misty

Poem: Stay at Home Mom... what did you do today?

This Poem speaks my heart....

I heard it this week and it was just perfect so I wanted to share:


Stay at Home Mom... what did you do today?

Today I left some dishes dirty,

The bed got made around 3:30.

The diapers soaked a little longer,

The odor grew a little stronger.

The crumbs I spilled the day before,

Are staring at me from the floor.

The fingerprints there on the wall,

Will likely be there still next fall.

The dirty streaks on those window panes,

Will still be there next time it rains.

Shame on you, you sit and say,

Just what did you do today?

I nursed a baby till he slept,

I held a toddler while he wept,

I played a game of hide and seek,

I squeezed a toy so it would squeak.

I pulled a wagon, sang a song,

Taught a child right from wrong.

What did I do this whole day through?

Not much that shows, I guess it’s true.

Unless you think that what I’ve done,

Might be important to someone,

With bright brown eyes and soft blond hair,

If that is true … I’ve done my share.

Author Unknown

The Pre-Christmas Movie List

Happy Holidays Everyone!

This is the time of year I love most. It's about this time that I hit the most euphoric holiday mood and just go crazy baking and planning and dreaming of holiday memories. This may actually end up being the height of my yuletide spirit since I am sometimes over it just a bit by the time Christmas actually gets here. Once Christmas is upon me I am too busy to feel the fun anymore.

Anyway, while I don't put my tree up until the day after Thanksgiving and don't listen to Christmas music until then either, I do however enjoy some festive holiday movies while I am in the kitchen cooking for my family. I don't want to watch my favorite Christmas movies just yet, I like to save those, so I have collected up a very few movies that I feel are perfect for this pre-thanksgiving time. Some of these actually contain a Thanksgiving scene and most have just a hint of Christmas, maybe in the last few minutes.

Here they are and I hope you will watch a few of them and enjoy! Oh, and you can click to read about them on IMDB

1. Holiday Inn - Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire are funny and entertaining in this 1942 classic. Bing plays a showman who wants to quit and be a farmer but ends up turning his big farmhouse into a club/hotel that is only open on holidays. The musical numbers are great and Fred's tap dancing is terrific as usual. The Fourth of July scene is great and the 'Father Abraham' song has been edited from the televised version because of the blackface routine. This movie features the debut of Bing's classic song 'White Christmas' and there is even a Thanksgiving scene.

2. The Shop Around The Corner - A wonderful black and white movie with young Jimmy Stewart. This movie was the inspiration for 'You've Got Mail' but I like this one better. It's a cute and funny tale with a slight holiday flavor toward the end.

3. By the Light of The Silvery Moon - This Doris Day film is set in the 40's and is charming and fun. It's few musical selections are nice and the side stories are funny. It's like a Norman Rockwell painting come to life and is set around Thanksgiving.

4. Meet Me In St. Louis - Ok, I am just considering adding this one to my list. I have seen it a couple times in recent years and I like the little girl in it. I also love the song 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas' which debuted in this movie. If it's not your bag, then go watch 'The Wizard of Oz'. Judy Garland is in both. (and for some reason the major networks want us to watch 'Oz' on Thanksgiving.

5. Stars in My Crown - Just one of the most ignored wonderful movies ever made. Not available on DVD (last time I checked) and a rare glimpse of a movie with major screen stars which glorifies God! It has a really great story and a sweet ending too. If you ever get a chance, watch it! If it were available on DVD I would own it in a minute!

6. It's A Wonderful Life - And finaly, my all time favorite movie! I just can't wait until Christmas to watch this. I usually watch it about once a week during this time. (Not actually sit down and watch it, but you know, have it on in the background while cooking) Only the ending involves Christmas and then only slightly. I know it is a classic Christmas movie, but really it fits into the spirit of the season even as early as Thanksgiving.

Whether you watch these or your own favorites, Have yourself some Happy Holidays!

Busy

What have I been busy doing?

Sorry I haven't been sharing much. I have been busy doing home-school, homeschool co-op on Wednesdays, MOPS every other Monday, Heart to Home once a month, children's choir Wednesday nights, a major cleaning out of my storage building, a garage sale (that flopped) and have begun doing pencil portraits from photos (See Here).

What am I going to be doing?

I will be spending the next two weeks trying to finally get the house back in shape after the garage sale fiasco in time for the big birthday party for my son who is turning 5! Also I will be doing more portraits and preparing for the holidays.
I will get back into the habit of posting very soon, really I will!

Our new family recipe for Sloppy Joes...

These may sound a little crazy but taste great...

McKeithen family's Insanely Sloppy Joes-

Ingredient List:

Hamburger Buns
Plain ruffled potato chips
1 lb of ground beef or turkey
pepper
garlic powder
mustard
brown sugar
2 apples
1 package of kraft macaroni and cheese
1 green bell pepper
1 medium onion



Before preparing meat go ahead and be boiling the water for the Macaroni and Cheese and prepare as directed while working on other elements of the meal...

Sloppy Joe Mix-
Cook about 1 lb of ground meat (beef or turkey)
While browning meat add about-
half a cup of diced green bell pepper
half a cup of diced onion

Once the meat is browned add in

3 teaspoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of yellow mustard
1 tablespoon of garlic powder or to taste
pepper and salt to taste
3/4 cup of ketchup

Heat through.

Toast buns if desired, then place a layer of Ruffles chips on bottom buns, spooning sloppy joe mixture onto chips, then spooning macaroni and cheese onto meat. Last, add sprinkling of diced apples and top with other bun. Enjoy!

Homeschool Has Begun!

My little student:

We started school last week. I have been anticipating and fearing this time for many years! I am committed to homeschooling all of our children, but I am a little nervous about actually pulling it off! We are trying Sonlight's Pre-K curriculum this year. Micah is 4 but turning 5 later on this fall. He is already showing signs of being a little ahead of me. I am alredy suplimenting the read-alouds with worksheets I have collected and we are also beginning practicing writing his letters and working with flashcards and other games.

We have been starting around 8:30 or 9:00 each morning and have been finishing before his 2 yr old sister gets out of her crib. She usually hangs out and plays in there till about 9:30. The baby has been getting up with us but then going back to bed a little later. The school times have been quiet and though Micah is usually a ball of loud noise and constant action, he likes the one-on-one time and likes completing the worksheets. The read-alouds are really short so he usually does fine sitting still for them too.

I also like to wrap-up school time with some drawing for fun. I enjoy it as much as he does. Here is an example of one of his drawings... we usually draw on paper and put it up for display but occasionally he and his sister draw on their magna-doodles and we take photos of it to save the art.

I think he is rather talented, but then I may be biased. (and have no other 4 year olds to compare it with!)

We finished our second week today and I am soooo happy I didn't have to send my baby away and entrust this precious opportunity to someone else.

The Simple Life

Our preacher is doing a series of sermons on 'Living the Simple Life'. I was sitting in church the day he announced the name of the series which he would be focusing on all summer. The moment I heard the title I was excited and anxious to hear everything he had to say on the subject.
It is my desire, always, to live simply. To focus on the important things and let the rest go.

The sad part of the story is this. In my busy-ness I have missed all but one part of the sermon series. I was happy to find that each of the sermons are available to listen to online... but still have yet to sit and listen to them.

I guess I really need to hear them since my life is so complicated I can't even find the time to hear about how it needs to be simple.

As I am fast approaching two milestones in my year 1. My Birthday and 2. The beginning of my first year of homeschooling.... I have had many resolutions floating around in my brain.

Two I am beginning today.

1. Drink Tea... Sounds silly but I needed a healthy substitute for all of the unhealthy drinks I have been consuming. For 7 months now I have been nursing a baby and have been thirsty 24/7. I have mostly consumed various caffeine free sodas each day and gallons of chocolate milk with cappuccino flavoring.
Today I am going go begin an attempt to substitute hot decaff tea with honey and lemon to keep my mind off sodas etc.

2. I started a new quiet time in the morning. I should always be doing a daily quiet time but I am terrible at keeping it going. I am starting again again.

There are many more... mostly to do with our scheduling and making this house run more efficiently. (generally it is a train wreck)
So, more resolutions to come!

Make the list!

Achievments Build Confidence
Confidence is required for Achievements

It's the Catch 22!

If you have a goal and you feel that you will never be able to accomplish it. Try achieving other related smaller goals first. As you achieve you will build your confidence for the big stuff.

One great excercise to do now, is to look back on your previous achievements. When I first started to do this list I could only think of maybe a couple of things. I truly don't feel like I have done a lot, and really, these acomplishments may not seem like anything to you or anyone else, but the important thing is that they made a big difference in my confidence levels or I felt very proud to have achieved them. (Note: I don't take credit for most of these, but give the glory to God for blessing me with the opportunities that I had and seeing me through the tough stuff)

My top ten achievements:

Teaching myself to draw (at an early age)
Getting Cody's CD (this is a dog obedience title, hard work involved, did this in high school)
Graduating college (with honors) )more about this another time)
Participating in Summer Missions ( a summer away from home, was scared to death to go!)
Marrying Joey (it was a long difficult journey ... more on that some other time)
Becoming a Mom (I never knew it would be so natural for me)
Passing the teacher's exam (a really really hard test for me!)
Teaching myself to quilt (have gotten infinite enjoyment out of this)
Learning to drive competantly (I know, sounds stupid but I didn't drive until a few years ago)
Illustrating a Book that was published (a small book but it is in book stores)

Hugs for Nurses (available on Amazon.com)

Now you! Make a list of your top ten achievements. Let me know what they are if you do it. Don't be embarrassed if they don't seem big. Some of mine aren't. The important thing is if they meant something to you.

Also, the real bonus of making this list is that it makes you want to add 2 or 3 more really cool things in the future! I know a couple of things I would love to add to this list and I just need to focus and work hard to make them happen!

Scaredy Cat!

Today's post is about something I have been thinking about very much lately. Confidence. You can call it courage or self-image or all sorts of things, but for my purposes today I will stick with 'Confidence'.

I recently stumbled upon a blog by a man who writes and advises people on being more confident. He calls himself 'The Confidence Guy'. This began to stir up a world of thoughts in my brain all about how we see ourselves and how that effects what we do.
You see, I have a few goals.
I have always played around with different goal ideas and earlier in life I could never settle on particular ones for long lengths of time before I would decide that something else would be more worthy of my energy. For a long while I thought I had a problem with finishing things. That isn't so much it after all, however. I don't have problems finishing what I start, only prioritizing things that are left up to me.
God, Family, Friends... these are priorities I am certain about. With these I have no problems. It is the list of goals I am free to come up with on my own that I had trouble settling on.
After having my son, and turning 30 I began to have a much clearer mindset on my goals and which ones I would like to accomplish. I think the reason for this is that I felt more confident and also that being a mom is very fulfilling to me and that took the pressure off of me to find some way to make my life feel more important.

Ok, so now I had chosen some goals that I was certain about. Now what?
Now I have some issues with achieving those goals that I didn't have before. I think much of the problem lies with confidence.

Maybe you, like myself, feel not so confident in some of your abilities. This doesn't mean you are a weak or meek person. I am very confident in my opinions, my value as Christian who was fearfully and wonderfully made by God and accepted by Him. I even have tons of confidence in certain talents that I have such as my art and quilting.

So what is the problem? Why is it that when begin to do anything that is part of a dream of mine, I start having difficulties?

Because my own brain begins whispering to me that what I am trying to do will fail.

Does your brain do that to you? Until I read a few articles by the Confidence Guy I never stopped and really paid attention to that little voice that was sabatoging my mission. I mean, I was aware of it, but not aware in a way that helps me be defensive against it.

Until now.

Watch out little voice, I'm on to you!



Next time: A simple excercise to boost your confidence and help you set some goals.

The Etsy Shop

The Etsy shop is up and running now. I still have various projects waiting in the wings for final touches to go in the shop. I am happy to say that being up to my ears in baby quilt-making has been as fun as I had hoped it would be. Many things lose their fun when you start doing them for money, but in this case - being totally in control is the way to go. I will probably offer some customization but will limit it to certain choices so that I can keep a handle on things. Here are some photos from the last couple of weeks.

This just in.. while I was writing this blog I got my first sale on Etsy! Yay! What a great start to my morning! I can't wait to sell more quilts. Now off to buy more fabric!!

Misty

Baby Quilt Bonanza!

Hello everyone! I have been very busy this week doing two things. Reading tons of wonderful blog entries about subjects that are important to me like Homeschooling and Family and Babies and also Sewing lots of baby and toddler quilts! Above is one of the ones I have made to sell. I am getting a little better at taking more insteresting photos of them for the shop.

I also finally finished Noah's baby quilt! And here it is-

Along with the cutest baby on the block. I love this photo, it just brings me tons of joy. I think if I frame it and put it on my desk it will make me smile a million times. I'm so glad he decided to bestow that lovely grin while I was taking a pic of him with his quilt.

Oh, and that reminds me. We usually take photos of our babies every month on their One month day, Two month day and so on. We have done this with all three until this month! I was thinking his day was the eleventh and I was just waiting for his Five Month day to take the obligatory photo... then the eleventh came and hubby called from work to break the news when he realized... Noah's 5 month day was on the 4th! Ahhh... I was thinking of Allie's. Bummer. Turns out 3 kids is too much for my pitiful brain to keep up with.

Sorry Noah! lol. If it helps, I probably did take a photo of you that day, it just didn't have a homemade sign in it that said '5 month day'.

More news and quilt photos later!!!! Have a nice Sunday.

Finding out my true passions in life more each day.

But first... A little pic of Noah. Isn't he adorable! I could just kiss him all day long, and I do!!!
More pics of him later. I know I said I would post more soon, but my camera usb cord is suddenly in the non-working category so... later.

I am so excited these days. Really I have been growing in excitement and awe in leaps and bounds since the day I first became a mom. I think it really started when I first met Joey then when we finally married and then my joy was dampened for quite a while during a time when I was on birth control and then later when I was off of it but still waiting to have children.

By the way: The pill is the devil and my body simply can't handle it. I believe without a doubt that many women today suffer from horrible moods altered by their hormones via their birth control pills.

But back to my excitement. Every now and then it seems that God pushes through my poor attention to Him and manages to draw me into a better understanding of what I am supposed to be doing. Today was one of those days that I see just a little clearer. Over the past couple of years I often take these steps of enlightenment when I am guided by like-minded Christian mothers who blog.

I specifically have been inspired and encouraged by three women in particular and I would like to shine a spotlight in their direction.

Joy (The Stay-at-Home Missionary)

Sarah Mae (Like a Warm Cup of Coffee)

Missy (It's Almost Naptime)

When I am too busy to check anything else or too self absorbed to stop and think about what needs to be focused on, I will still stop and listen to whatever these women have to share with me and I am usually left very glad I did. Joy and Sarah Mae teach me and lead me along a path of being a Godly Homemaker and Missy does a little of that and a lot of making me laugh too.

Thanks to these girls and the articles they point me too and the books they discuss and the people they have learned from and met - I have discovered more and more the things that I am passionate about.

TV or No TV That is the Question

TV or No TV?

In the past few years we have had our ups and downs in this household and along with the layoff/beginning a new job cycle has been a cycle of having our Direct TV suspended and reinstated several times. During the times when we have no TV we borrow movies from the libarary... watch tv shows on Hulu... and since the addition of an Xbox 360 back in December we have also watched Netflix directly on our tv. So we stay entertained.

I go back and forth in my head about whether we should have any television at all. I know that we can do without. I know that keeping things simple around here is in everyone's best interest and tv complicates things even if only a little. So it is probably best not to have it. (and save money) By the way, when we do not have our satelite turned on, we get zero stations.

However... It is the beginning of summer. We have watched everything on Netflix instant watch a dozen times (the kids stuff anyway) The movies at the library will be slim pickin's now that all the other kids are out for the summer. (and because our library made it possible to checkout 10 dvd's per card so now they stay wiped out) and well.. I like having tv.

So this weekend, I let hubby know that I was thinking of having it turned back on. There is just something about having tv that makes me feel like we aren't on the edge anymore, but getting back on our feet. There are two levels of tv in our house though... lately we stick with the lower of the two levels.
This package of stations only includes kids channels, the Food network, HGTV and Weather channel (also Hallmark and Science channel) it only runs about half the cost of the "lowest package available" at Direct TV. Yeah. I know I just contradicted myself. That is because the folks at Direct TV are liars.
If you call them and ask them (or look it up on their site) what their cheapest package is, they will lie and tell you the one that is twice as much. Only if you know about this one ahead of time can you request it.
Crazy!
It's like knowing that you can order Pintos and Cheese at Taco Bell, though it isn't on the menu.
Yeah, just like that.

Anyway, Hubby got the satelite back on for me last night as like a gift kinda thing. Today I will begin the fight to limit the kids tv time. If it ends up being more trouble than it's worth we may have it turned off again.
In the meantime, I will be enjoying the Disney Channel, HGTV and Food Network. I hope they have some good shows for the summer. I already plan on probably having it turned off again in the fall when we begin homeschool and maybe making it a regular summer thing to have it back on again.

Oh by the way... I don't hate you Direct TV even though you lie... I really appreciate the fact that we can call anytime and suspend our deal until further notice. Thanks for that!

Finally Got an Etsy Shop

Here is my darling Allison modeling my first quilt for sale in my new Etsy shop. I really need to work on a finishing a couple more to post in the shop. Here is the link, just in case you want to visit sometime (or shop). There will be an option to have a baby or toddler quilt custom made too. I can do this same sort of strip quilt with novelty fabrics for boy or girl. (this one is for a boy- with Thomas the Tank Engine, Disney Pixar's Cars fabric and bugs, racecars and baloons)

Cozy Cuties (my Etsy Shop)




And I can also applique a name on it in contrasting fabric. Much like I did for the baby quilts in the previous post.

I know, One measly quilt... but hey, it's a start!

Unanswered LOST Questions

This is dedicated to those of you who, like me, invested a lot of time, energy, and fanatical fandom to the LOST universe and have now been left wanting to throw a hot pocket at Abrams and Lindeloff!

This video includes some (not all) of my unanswered LOST questions (plus a few questions I know the answers to)...

http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1936291

Fresh Look

Well, I felt like changing up my blog. I think I like this. I will probably add new artwork soon too.

As for what is going on this week, I am back to quilting and thinking again of starting an Etsy shop.. I did an easy toddler quilt this week to donate to a fundraiser some friends are giving for another friend in need, and I had some material left over so I made another to sell. I usually do baby quilts and I am thinking of offering to custom make them with the baby's name on them like I did for my daughter... Below is a photo of that one and one of my recent gifts. Soon I will post the one of the quilt I have for sale and another gift quilt I made recently that I can't seem to find right now.

I am interested in anyone's opinion on how much I should charge.. what I could name my online shop and whether you think there is a real market for these.

Thanks!

Misty

What's goin' on?

This looks like a few of my great Uncles. He is headin up my blog today because I today I am talking about talkin'.

Lately I am tempted to try to sound more charming by droppin my g's ... you know like sayin' and walkin' and singin' ? (mostly because I have been addicted to 'LOST' for the past 2 months as previously mentioned and Sawyer and Kate sound so darn cute!)

"Well, well... Lookee whose hooked on phonics!"

After all, that type of speech is part of my cultural heritage. Raised by my Grandparents I should be talkin' that way all the time. Unfortunately, I spent most of my life trying to lose the drawl that comes from my extremely rural upbringing. Now, that didn't actually work, I still sound very southern... but I don't actually alter my words. And it doesn't stand out much since everyone I live around sounds exactly the same. I wouldn't even know that I sound pitiful if it weren't for a few comments that have been made and a terrible phone-in radio event! First, I used to work as a receptionist for a Christian publishing company. They got calls in from all over the country so it wasn't unusual for people to point out my accent. That's ok though I found a few of their accents cute too.

However,

My most embarrasing moment of bumpkin-ism was when I called in to my favorite talk radio show on WLS Chicago- the Roe Conn show. (click to listen live online Mon-Friday 2:00-7:00pm) I had been listening for years and I called one day because they were on the topic of people who go to those weird sci-fi conventions and I have a cousin who traveled to Paris the previous year to go to a Stargate convention.(She also has gone yearly to a stargatecon in Canada and has even served as a body gaurd to one of the stars there) Anyway, I was so thrilled to talk to my fave radio personality and thought it was cute when he mentioned liking my accent, but then I later heard myself on the radio (due to a time delay) and it was horrible!

Accch! I didn't know I sounded like that. Like a total hick.

There go my dreams of ever being on talk radio.
You know how they say 'He has a face for radio'? Well, I have a voice for blogging. lol

In other news... I am hooked on Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies. And Chocolate Milk, but that has been going on since I started nursing. You would think I was trying to gain weight.

Oh, and my little fella is 4 months old as of yesterday! Pics coming soon.

My baby girl turned 2!

My little girl turned 2 recently and I have been busy not blogging until now. So here are some recent pics of her. I entered her in the Parents Magazine cover contest with some of these shots not long ago. I know there are a million kids entered, but I also know that many people take bad photos which effects their chances. I looked through the other entrants and found photos of kids with food on their faces, blurry shots, pictures of them from 50 ft away, etc. Just based on the quality of the photos I think we have at least a shot of being in the finals. Not to mention I think she is a doll! Anyway, it was just for fun.

For all of you new readers I want to welcome you. I will be posting more often than I have been. Welcome and thanks for adding me to your list of blogs to read!

Next up. We have chosen our Homeschool curriculum and will beginning in the fall!!! Lots to say about that coming next time!!! Have a great day!

Misty

What I've been doing...

This is what I have been doing! Several weeks back, I discovered that all previous seasons of this show were available to watch online, so I watched the pilot episode. (Had never seen a single episode and miraculously have never heard anything about it either) I was hooked! I have been obssesed ever since! In the past month I have seen all 130 episodes of Lost and now I am caught up with the rest of the world waiting for the final episode which is only about 4 weeks away. I have never done anything like that before and I currently don't have any form of television accept for netflix on our Xbox 360 which the kids use to watch a few cartoons.
Now I am watching them all again with Hubby while he goes through more slowly. He just finished season 3 last night. It is really fun discussing it with him.
Now that I am not watching 2 or 3 a day I can blog again, so... I'm back!

More news later!

Elephant Experiment

For my Friday Finish, Here is an elephant I did for a challenge on redbubble.com. I didn't actually get to enter it into the challenge because they said it didn't meet the requirements. The group that issued the challenge is for Illustrators and they said this isn't an illustration, it's a collage. I know, however, that an illustration can be made in many ways. I usually use digital means along with sketches to make illustrations, this is hardly any different. Anyway, I love it and you can buy it as a postcard here-

I am also working on a children's book for my kids. I was going to use my usual drawing style for it, but now I am considering using this torn paper/mixed media look instead. Maybe with less muddy colors to make it more child friendly.

I also did this owl today...

I think he is cute. You can get a postcard of him too if you like... Here

Have a great weekend!

Misty

The Star Chart

Well, we have finally begun with some organization in this house. Along with a more organized bedtime schedule (which is still in an experimental phase) we have instituted what I like to call "The Star Chart" My four year old absolutely LOVES it and it is working wonders with him every day. (He was definitely getting out of control.. or should I say in control- of everything as in 'had Mama wrapped around his little finger')

The basics of the star chart is this- I decided on about 7 things each day that he can earn a star for. At night after our bath, we put a chair in front of the poster in the hall and he climbs up. I have a book of stickers that he gets to choose from to go with each star. He enjoys this, and I draw a star next to the sticker. (originally the stickers were supposed to be stars, but we didn't find any)

The last square is for extra stars earned for spontaneous things that day. (the only thing we have given that for is for him to take his medicine without fighting it and it helped alot!) We also put an extra star here (a really big one) if he gets all of the other stars for that day.

And here is the key for him- for every 20 stars he gets one dollar! We make a big deal of getting a dollar bill (so far we have lucked out finding one in the house each time lol) and we put it in the envelope we have tacked over the poster which says 'Micah's star money'. He usually uses it on a hot wheel, which is like gold for him. We are wondering if he will ever have the will power to wait and save up a few and get a bigger toy. I don't really push it though, after all, he is only 4!

Here is a photo of the chart. We just draw it on the poster and don't worry about perfection (obviously! lol)

Right now he gets stars for: Eating breakfast and or lunch/Being nice to Allie all day/ Being polite to Mommy and Daddy all day/ Helping with cleanup/ Brushing his Teeth/ Taking his nap with no fuss/ Eating all his Supper/ and Other.

He has improved a million times in several areas... he tries to clean his plate at meals now (unheard of before)... he is always nice to his sister (if he isn't, he starts apologizing right away!) ... it took several days before he stopped talking back to us, but he is trying to control himself now. We are seeing much less attitude than we were... thank goodness!!!... Also, naptime is now not a fight for me and him and I look forward to it soooo much more! YAY!

There is soon to be a second chart for me and his daddy too.. I am putting on mine- Didn't lose my patience all day with the kids/ Had prayer time/ Read the Bible/ excercised/ Cleaned kitchen (my most hated chore) and a few other things... For fun, I thought we would give ourselves a song on itunes as a little treat for so many stars. It isn't so much as a motivational tool for us, but a way to see if we are being consistant and to keep each other accountable.

Oh, and we are about to start awarding Micah a dollar for each memory verse he learns.

We have incorporated the 'Star Chart Ceremony' as I call it, into our new nightly bedtime routine. Like I said.. it has done wonders!!! I am so happy with it. Hubby really likes it too. I can't wait until Allie is old enough to participate also. I think they will probably get competitive with it.

As Micah grows we will change the goals he can get stars for. Soon there will be homeschool work and more household chores, as well as more behavioral goals.

I so hope he doesn't get bored with it!!! If you try it, definitely let me know!!!
Oh, here are some recent photos of our crew too....

Baby Noah... being petted by his loving big bro! (Noah is two months old today!)

My baby girl is getting big.. but not to big for the bouncy seat appearantly!

We built this city... (I like singing that when I think of this photo! lol)

Chaos and Murphy's law

Things have been busy around here this week. It is 6 weeks since the new year began and that is how long I gave myself before trying to start some resolutions. I have managed to begin a few, but mainly everything has been sidelined this week by lots of speed bumps. We did however, institute a new bedtime routine, which Joey is happy about and also a reward system has begun for our 4 yr old, in which he earns stars on a chart each night for things he did during the day, like go to nap without complaining and being nice to his sister all day. When he gets 20 stars he will get a dollar which is equal to a new HotWheel, which to him is like gold! It is working! He is acting a million times better when asked to so something and is really watching his behaviour more!
I will get back with more on that later, right now I hear a 6 week old calling!
Laters!

Octo-finish!

Here is the illustration I finished this week. I took a lot of time to work on the details. I am pretty happy with him. I have 2 other animals finished too, I may post them later. I am going to find some kind of project in which to use all these guys together soon. I am planning to do some sketches tonight. We had a very rarely seen snow day here in Louisiana today, and I have been busy uploading pics this evening to facebook. I will probably post some of those on here tommorrow. As for now, gotta go cook some supper! Feel free to grab my button and show everyone your accomplishments on fridays!

Craftiness for V-day!

I took a little time this week to make homemade Valentines cards. I got this great idea from Pink and Green Mama. Hers are probably better, but hey, I am just glad I actually took the time to do it! Here are mine-

I used some drawings of Allie's and cut hearts out of them. (she mainly fills papers up with lots and lots of scribbling) Then I layered those hearts on top of some cardstock ones I cut out and then put another tiny cardstock heart on top and sewed them onto the folded cardstock card with my sewing machine. (which just happened to already be threaded with red thread) and it didn't take long at all.

Then I cut out hearts from Micah's drawings and sewed them on the inside. I outlined hers in red and his in blue. I wanted the cards to have parts made by both of them. I think the grandparents will love them. I love them! I also may send some to our friends kids. I know that Micah is ecstatic when he gets anything in the mail, so maybe they will enjoy them too.

The only problem is that I only made about 11 and now I want to send more, so I may be cutting hearts out again today.

Also today I want to share a photo of my husband looking really cheesy. He is a cutie though. I give him most of the credit for the adorability of our kids....

Who has two thumbs and looks good in black?

This Guy!

Hahaha! Have a great day!

Misty