February 1, 2012

Just sayin’

I love reading quotes. I love posting them on little post-it notes on my desk, tucking them in my journal for a time I’ll need them, waking up to a bit of inspiration. But I realized, I didn’t have a quote of my own…until now.

“So often for our children we secretly hold the desire for them to be the prettiest, the strongest, or the smartest. I’m abandoning this. Instead I pray to model a life of cultivating one’s passions and one’s inner discipline. In this way, may I guide our children to find their true beauty, their strength, and their genius. ” – Maria Carter

Thanks Cooper Bates for stirring me to write this without even knowing it. And for all of you reading, what words resonate with you so deeply that they would hold your name beside them? I want to know.

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July 21, 2011

Pantry Math

Summer is fun and relaxed and awesome, but I still have at least 5 mouths to feed 3 times a day, depending on the day. My mom’s a teacher, and she always tells me to do what I can when I can, with what I have to make learning fun and easy. So, in a moment when I needed to make dinner and keep my little ones busy, Voila, spaghetti night and Pantry Math.

Small pyrex bowls, index cards, beans, cotton balls, pennies…my daughter did this over and over and over again with the different items until she mastered it. She had a lot of fun and dinner got made. Then we just added bigger numbers! Let me know your quickie ideas for keeping your kids skills engaged over the summer – I’ll take any tips I can get!

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July 20, 2011

Princess Camp Dropout

This is Avery. She is a 3 year-old Princess Summer Camp dropout.


Avery has two brothers and in my effort to give her some special girl time this summer, and an opportunity for independence free from mom and the boys, I enrolled her in Princess Dance Camp. After 20 minutes of wailing in her tutu while the other princesses in camp swirled around her, she was escorted out by the instructor yelling earnestly, “I don’t want to be a Princess, I just want to go jump on the trampoline!” My never-give-up instinct kicked in and wrestled with having her stick it out. We sat there another 15 minutes until my husband’s words about our kids silently echoed in my head, “just let them be.”

Clarity struck and I realized Princess Dance Camp was more for me than for Avery. Even though I have three sisters and one brother, I was a tomboy most of my childhood. I still can’t comb my hair in a decent hairstyle, I didn’t wear makeup until I was 18, and I live in jeans 90 percent of the time. My friends are pleasantly shocked when they see me in a dress. I played restaurant, store and built tents, rather than dressed Barbies and princesses. I guess I wanted Avery to experience all the girly-ness I didn’t thinking I missed out on something. If I’m honest, I wouldn’t change a thing. I have great girlfriends, I’ve grown into my “girly” side and I still love to run on the trails and get muddy. I have friends that DO love dress up and love to play dress up on ME, so that solves the hair and clothing dilemmas.

I am all about celebrating the “divine feminine” as my friend Aline would say. I just realize that the divine comes in many packages. Who knows, a year from now, Avery might find great joy in Princess Dance Camp and that would be adorable. Until then, Avery loves animals like crazy, and drags her seven foot hot pink snake, “Willie” into our chiropractors office each week for her adjustment. She is funny and sweet, and even though she can rock a tutu, she does it on her terms with dirty bare feet on the trampoline.

So, here’s our own version of Princess summer camp with her little bro (see pic below):


As Avery wiped her tears and we drove home from the princess experiment, this Dr. Seuss quote came to mind, “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” I guess at the end of the day, I’m glad Avery passionately spoke her mind. I hope that’s the woman she’ll be someday too.

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Posted Under: Family, Kid Stuff, Observations
July 16, 2011

Design in Mind

If you ask my husband, I forever have some home decorating or home improvement project going on. I think I got that fixer-upper gene from my dad. While pregnant with my daughter 3 years ago I challenged myself to renovate my mom’s 70′s style home – family room, kitchen, flooring, and accessories – on a budget of $10,000. I did it, and I learned a lot of what to do and what not to do. Mostly I learned I am happily addicted to making a house a home. I love flipping through interior design magazines, and design blogs are like crack. I have to proceed with caution or I can get stuck in that vortex pretty quick.

But here are a few design inspiration blogs that are oh too pretty not to share.

Annette Tatum designs some lovely rooms and dreamy linens. I snagged some for Avery’s bedroom last year at Baby Coco, one of my favorite baby boutiques in Austin, TX. Her blog, The Well-Dressed Home is a great combo of beautiful and tastefully eclectic. Like how awesome is this room? The hippie chick Gemini side of me would have loved this room when I was a teenager. Heck, I could hang in there tomorrow with some girlfriends and a glass of wine.

Lauren G. of House of Design blog oozes inspiration on so many levels. Lauren is the design guru behind my blog, and look at this snazzy notebook she handmade for me!

Just came across Sara Gilbane’s Travel for Design blog. I may not have the budget of some of the ideas in her design, but I like to look at blogs like these for object placement, creating vignettes, color ideas, and scale of furnishings relative to one another. Also love her spin on traditional style.

Inspiration is everywhere. Even if you only have the time or money to make one corner of your home a little slice of beauty and personal expression, it’s all about making it yours. And, if you have some fave design blogs of your own, please, feed my addiction. Share them with me.

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Posted Under: Inspirations, Loves, Recommended, Uncategorized
July 14, 2011

Supermom…really?

Got this video forwarded this morning from two inspiring moms, Aline Hanle of Conscious Catalyst Consulting and Tamora Burk of Maverick Dean Creative Group. I love smart mamas with a sense of humor. All I can say is I found myself checking off how many of these “I will nevers” I do daily, and adding in my own. Like, “I will never use my child’s own underwear as toilet paper in a parking lot and then let him go commando.” Hell, I broke ten of the “I will nevers” just to write this blog post.

Mamas, enjoy. One moms’s parenting nightmare is another’s resourcefulness.

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May 22, 2011

Reboot This

reboot-button

I fried it. I fried my camera card. and battery. I did a reboot on my PC with camera cable and camera attached. That is because I forgot my camera was attached. That is because like many of you moms and bloggers, I try to sneak in a post between meals, diaper changes, naps, instead [...]

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Posted Under: Observations, Uncategorized
May 11, 2011

Montessori Rocks!

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I am a Montessori mama. I was a Montessori kid myself. I love that the Montessori school my kids attend has some of the coolest teachers and kids and parents I’ve ever met. And, I love the spirit of community and creativity that happens when parents and teachers come together following their hearts and focused [...]

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Posted Under: Inspirations, Loves, Observations, Recommended
April 21, 2011

Timing is Everything

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Timing is everything.  And it’s divinely perfect when we think about it.  Today, I called my girl Betsy and thinking of her made me think of watching the movie Country Strong with her not too long ago, and swooning to this song “Timing is Everything” playing in the soundtrack.  Hearing it come out of Garret [...]

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March 24, 2011

It Happens.

RenWoman150res

Today I am sitting at the Austin airport for over three hours, by way of accidental circumstances that give me the opportunity to write my latest blog post in over a month. Sitting in my driveway about an hour ago, I had one of those“shit happens” moments. After carefully orchestrating the week to prepare for [...]

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February 6, 2011

Forecast: Creation, with a chance of snow.

snowboots

Sometimes the forecast of life surprises you, and delivers far more than you predicted, in a good way. For me, this week’s included newborn nephews and freshly fallen snow. Visionary women who follow their hearts. Being a student again at 37. These four little days in February will have a lot of history in them [...]

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Posted Under: Family, Inspirations, Observations
January 26, 2011

Oops, I did it again.

makeup

Damn. I did it again. I was seduced once again by the allure of the makeup counter. The bright lights, the pretty packaging, the sets that entice you to pick them up like an artist’s palette and finger paint yourself to gorgeousness. Forget about the fact that I have not worn foundation or lipstick on [...]

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Posted Under: Observations
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