Story time...

When I was a little girl my grandma had book about a little blue ghost.  Well, all the pictures were in blue ink.  See how cute?

Every night at the same time he gave the loose board on the stairs a little creak.

Anyway,  every night at the same time he gave the loose board on the stairs a little creak and the parlor door a little squeak to remind the Whittakers that it was time to go to bed. 

I need a Georgie in my attic.

I need a Georgie to remind me to switch the laundry to the dryer.

I need a Georgie to remind me to start the dishwasher. 

To feed the dog, get the mail, vacuum before the baby finds bits of junk on the floor, that I left something on the stove when I went to take the dog food from the baby, my own phone number.  For Heaven's sake, I need a reminder to eat lunch!

Does this happen to ANYONE else?  I feel like I am too young to have had my brain fall out. 

The good news is, I still know my name.  Some days that's all I can say for myself.

WOOT! Reveal time!

I am so excited about my new bookshelf!  I have been wanting one for sometime, but if you want one that's not going to fall apart when you move it then they are expensive! So when I saw this on the Nate Berkus "No money Makeovers" segment, I was pretty stoked.  Now, mine was not quite so free as Nate's, since I have no wine crates available to me.  BUT I was able to get some old apple crates from an orchard.  I had to pay 5$ a piece and clean them up, but in the end it is much more sturdy and awesome than this high quality product.  This Momma LOVES getting quality for a stellar price. Plus it's lightweight and OH-SO shabby-posh.  And who doesn't like that?!  So, ladies, here she is!

Member the guitar case? And see my new phone too?  It totally works!

I personally think it turned out even better than the one on TV!  Oh, and sorry about the laundry going on in the background.  But lets just not pretend with each other, k?

AND, I am totally linking this post up to Tea Rose Home.  I feel famous when I get visitors from over there.  If you are one of them, WELCOME, and feel free to follow if you like what you see!

One day...

One day, I will have a house and a yard I can do anything with that I want.

One day I will come up with a way to get the baby to hold still during diaper changes.

One day, Logan will be warm again.

One day, I will be as cool as Mandi from Vintage Revivals AND figure out how to do all that crafty brilliant stuff with a baby/toddler helping me :)

see how helpful?

One day I will figure out how to either make money doing something I love, or just be able to magically afford doing things I love without feeling guilty about spending money.

One day, I will be confident enough to wear things I like without worrying that I look stupid. 


One day, I will finish this dang couch project!

One day I will remember that RedBox is only cheaper if you actually only have the movie for one day.

One day, I will fall in love with every vegetable.

One day I will not accidentally murder every seed I plant.

One day, I will keep the table cleaned off AND the sink empty for two days in a row( I can't seem to handle both)

One day, I will travel. 

One day, I will be able to suppress my excitement and actually give my husband the perfect gift ON his birthday!


Today, I will unload the dishwasher.  I will put in a batch of laundry.  I will throw the tennis ball for the dog, write, and keep dangerous/valuable objects away from my baby all at the same time.  I will eat a banana and some whole grains for breakfast.  I will shower.  I will pick up toys, make bottles, change wiggly bums, drink a lot of glasses of water.  I will nap instead of exercise because I am too dang congested to be bouncing around and acting energetic.  I will remember that I really love my baby and he is only being naughty because he doesn't feel good either.  I will write down the awesome project ideas that I get so I can save them for the day I don't need a nap when Muffin does.  I will make my husband laugh, and probably feed him dinner.  I will wait patiently(without whining) until he gets home and I can watch Biggest Loser. I will rejoice in the fact that I get to stay home with my handsome little guy and watch every discovery he makes.  I will enjoy every moment and not dwell on what MIGHT happen one day. 

LINKY? I'm doing one!

everyone needs a nap now and then

Ok.  Here at Happy Momma I have been focusing on what makes ME happy.  But I want this to be a place where you can celebrate and share what makes YOU happy.  I want this to be a place where we help each other learn how to be Happy Mommas with Happy Homes.  One thing that makes me a Happy Momma is SUNDAY NAP TIME!!  Now, I only have one child.  So I can lay down when he naps every day.  But you know how that goes:

"Oh, I better hurry and shower while he is asleep."
"Well, if I get the towels in the wash now I can put them in the dryer when I wake up."
"Oh, right.  Stuff is still in the dryer.  I'll just hurry and fold it."

And by the time you are finally drifting off the baby wakes up and your nap takes a nose dive.  BUT on Sunday, nap time is different.  I lay the baby down and go right to bed.  I don't do chores on Sunday, so that gives me a better nap.  Plus, I go ahead and put in earplugs and when the baby wakes up, Dad takes care of him.  One day I week, I get a really nice nap.  It is something I can do for myself to recharge.

That's what today is about.  YOU!  To be a Happy Momma, I believe you have to be able to relax once in a while and just do something you want to do.  Everyone needs a break, even Mom.  So, today I want everyone to blog about what YOU do to feel good!  It can be every day, every week, or just whenever you can get it.  Then link up and read other mom's ideas.  Be sure to link back so that all YOUR followers can have a chance to link up too!  Of course, my feelings never get hurt by new followers, wink wink, nudge nudge.  

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Sorry, world!

I was really mean and I taunted you all with stories of my living-room make over and then NEVER posted anything more.  Well, here's the thing...

1) my babe was sick for like, 2 weeks!  Who can get anything done THEN?
2) My camera sucks.  I can't keep it in batteries!  I thought rechargeable ones would do the trick, but no.  So, I have to be really fast and trick-sy to GET the pictures, then I have to switch the card to my husband's camera so I can use up ITS batteries while I download pictures.  No, I can't just use his, it takes crap-for-pictures. 
See?! See how poor and pitiful I am?  Ok...kindof a lame list of excuses.  Here's what is going on with the living room so far:

Couch Cover almost done.  I still need to hem and tack on the ruffle pieces.  I also need to pin the seat better so Muffin doesn't un-tuck it every time he pulls himself up on it.  But it's coming right along.

Pillows I destroyed  one existing pillow for it's guts...I have yet to actually make any pillows.

Curtains YAY!  Totally finished.  Um, I bought them.

Nate Berkus Bookshelf Crates found and stacked!  I just need a picture of this one.

Picture Frames painted and back on the wall.

Wow that doesn't look like much.  But it is going to look SO posh when I'm done.  I'll duke it out with the camera soon!

funny baby

Yesterday we were at my cousin's house.  Little Muffin was crawling around and around, trying to keep himself awake.  Suddenly he abandoned his jingle-chicken and made a beeline for my cousin's foot.  After head butting her foot for a little season, he chomped his gummy grin down on her big toe!  "Small child," I said, "it is weird to suck on other people's toes."  I have, at least momentarily, convinced him to stick to his own. 

If he REALLY had his way, he would be perfectly happy with the dog toys.  He's seven months old and already makes the dog cry! Who's kid is that?  But really, how can you do anything but laugh at a face like this?

Remembering a Grandpa

The teacher in church today quoted this talk from President Hinckley.  I was flooded with my memories of that sweet man and had to come home and read the rest of the talk.  Is it any wonder he felt like a grandpa to everyone?  I thought this talk was perfect to share here at Happy Momma, because it is all about women and mothers.  So, here are some highlights:


Many of you are mothers, and that is enough to occupy one’s full time.

You are companions—the very best friends your husbands have or ever will have.

You are housekeepers. That doesn’t sound like much, does it? But what a job it is to keep a house clean and tidy.

You are shoppers. Until I got older I never dreamed of what a demanding responsibility it is to keep food in the pantry, to keep clothing neat and presentable, to buy all that is needed to keep a home running.

You are nurses. With every illness that comes along, you are the first to be told about it and the first to respond with help. In cases of serious sickness, you are at the bedside day and night, comforting, encouraging, ministering, praying.

You are the family chauffeur. You are driving your children about on paper routes, taking them to athletic events, driving them on ward outings, hauling here, there, and everywhere as they pursue their busy lives.

And so I might go on. My children are now all grown. Some are in their 60s. But when they call and I answer the phone, they say, “How are you?” And before I can answer, they ask, “Is Mother there?”

She has been their strength all of their lives. Since they were babies they have looked to her, and she has always responded with affection, guidance, teaching, blessing their lives in every way.


Now we have granddaughters who are mothers. They visit us, and I marvel at their patience, at their capacity to calm their children, to stop them from crying, and it seems to me to do a thousand other things.

They drive cars, they run computers, they attend the activities of their children, they cook and sew, they teach classes, and they speak in church.

Many of you think you are failures. You feel you cannot do well, that with all of your effort it is not sufficient.

We all feel that way. I feel that way as I speak to you tonight. I long for, I pray for the power and the capacity to lift you, to inspire you, to thank you, to praise you, and to bring a measure of gladness into your hearts.

We all worry about our performance. We all wish we could do better. But unfortunately we do not realize, we do not often see the results that come of what we do.

You are doing the best you can, and that best results in good to yourself and to others. Do not nag yourself with a sense of failure. Get on your knees and ask for the blessings of the Lord; then stand on your feet and do what you are asked to do. Then leave the matter in the hands of the Lord. You will discover that you have accomplished something beyond price.

Count your blessings; name them one by one. You don’t need a great big mansion of a house with an all-consuming mortgage that goes on forever. You do need a comfortable and pleasant home where love abides.

Every time this man spoke, I felt better about myself.  I felt the love and deep respect he had for the role of women and mothers. I loved hearing him talk about his wife and see him hold her hand.

Every time I saw him, I could feel his love for the members of the Church, and for all of God's children.  I never met him, but I felt like I knew him as well as my own Grandpa.  

He was funny and eloquent, but when he started pounding his hand on the podium or holding up his scriptures you could feel the power of the Lord pressing on your heart.  Because of President Hinckley, my testimony of Temples was strengthened.  Because of him I tried to raise the bar in my own life, and only dated those who had those same standards.  Because of him I respected my own mom more and realized how much she really did for me.  When I heard him speak about his wife and the respect he had for women, I wanted to grow up to be one of them.  To be a Mother.  Truly, what better calling?  And now that I am a momma, I am the happiest I ever remember being in my whole life.  How can you feel bad all the time when you know you are fulfilling your divine calling?

LAME! Me, I'm the lame one

Man, sometimes I think my brain went down the drain with the bathwater! 

First thing in the morning yesterday, I got a call from the orchard guy I called the day before.  He said "sure, I have some crates that I'd be willing to part with....for 5 bucks."  My husband punched me in the leg on his way out the door to class, (which I took as his stamp of approval) and I told the man I'd be right down.  NO LONGER FREE.  Oh well, still cheaper than getting the crates at the antique store.  This is the end of the part of the story where everything is going my way.

The rest of the day went like this:
-I got stuck in Orchard Guy's driveway.  He had to push me out.
-While finishing up another project, I didn't want the gluey thing inside the lid of my Mod Podge to fall out when I tipped it on to the bottle.  Solution?  Tip the bottle of course!!  My brain forgot it was full.
-While testing the spaghetti for dinner, I threw the fork against the wall instead of the noodle.
-oh yeah, and I froze the salad.

Usually I don't have that many revelations of my true hair color in one day.  But I guess as long as we are celebrating life we may as well laugh at ourselves.  Or maybe just me...

DERP!

LIES!

Nate Berkus, how could you?!

While I was watching the show today I was introduced to the new love-of-my(materialistic)life:

It is a book shelf made out of wooden crates.   LOVE!!  And I was DOUBLY excited because it was from his "no money makeover" segment.  Let's face it, we all love a good freebee, right?  And it would go SO GREAT with my "new" window(which I still haven't finished due to the unforgiving nature of Logan winters).  So, Nate used free wine crates from the liquor store.  SWEET.  There's one of those near my house.  So, I called them...NO!?!?  I melted like a watery witch into a puddle of broken dreams.  Apparently  Utahns only buy cheap wine that is shipped in cardboard...That doesn't work for me.  After visiting a thrift store, an antique store(25 bucks for an empty box!? It didn't even have "coke" on the side!) a Dairy(you'd THINK a dairy would have milk crates) and the Pallet and stinkin' CRATE store, I finally had to admit my defeat.  Also, stuff was closing by then and my baby was hungry.  Ebay sells them, but that totally defeats the purpose of a "no money makeover."  BAH.  Now what?  I guess I can call some orchards, but I'll have to go clear through the canyon to get anything they might have.  The dream was born and murdered before I even had the chance to tell my husband how free it was...*sniff*