Girls Camp - I made it!

I recently spent a short week in the Cedar City mountains with my ward girls camp. I had some reservations about going, but I actually had a really great time. I found that going to girls camp as a leader, is somewhat the same as when I went as a youth. All the estrogen was still present in both emotions and other unmentioned forms. I found that being in charge was often a relief and occasionally a burden. Being referee was the burden, thankfully I only had to play the part very few times. Being in charge helped me build relationships with the girls and leaders I would otherwise probably not have built.

Being at girls camp with Devri probably made me enjoy the experience even more. It was fun to watch her interact with the girls and learn new things and hopefully feel the spirit. Beehives still have that semi-childlike innocence about them that makes their emotions for the spirit a little less dramatic. She's a Beehive. Then came the "snipe" hunt. Boy, we did a great job of performing for the new girls this year-but it was really hard to fake the whole thing for my own daughter because I knew she'd catch on if I laughed or tried to hide my snickering. The log I threw into her pillowcase that we carried back to camp, didn't look much like a snipe when we dumped it out for examination. But the screams.....we're hilarious. (Sorry Devri, I know it was a mean joke ;)

The food was incredible, probably not fit for a camping experience, way too extravagant, but nice. Im looking forward to a burned hot dog and Ripples potato chips next time. Those always taste good while camping. The Triple Berry Cheese Cake made in the dutch ovens were well worth the time and effort though....I'll share that recipe if you feel tempted. You can make it in your oven at home too.

Long post-short, camp was fun. I know I am a better person for going and I have stronger feelings for the scriptures, journals and "REMEMBERING TO SMILE". I hope I get to go next year too.

Wheres Martha?

So, some might be thinking, "Laraine used to be really busy making, designing, and decorating all of these nice (at least I thought they were nice) and fun things for us to come make and take. What is she doing with her creativity? She must be too busy? Could she be CREATIVITY burned out, or felt outdone by the many very capable, creative, and stylish people she knows? Or maybe she is just more into keeping her family floating than being Martha Stewart?"

Well, those are all very correct assumptions and real reasons for me not to spend time at JoAnns, Micheals, Roberts, and online supply stores. Yet, I have managed somewhere in that group of reasons -NOT TO BE CREATIVE- to find time for these (see photos). Not house decor, not picture frames or fantastic wall shelves, but addicting fabrics fashioned into some great baby blankets and baby activity mobiles. My goal was to achieve a great sense of style (for mom and child) and be less ROMPER ROOM!
Here's what I've done. I have already had some orders for the blankets which were a little unexpected. I am jumping into open houses to sell the baby mobiles.... and have a break off ideas in the works. STOP ME! Or, maybe this is my sanity?, having a life outside of "mother" in the few spare moments I find. II think it was the great revolution in fabric availability that got me started. Spending time making prototypes with my sis-in-law is a tornado of creativity, being that's how this whole thing got started. It was a team effort




It's hard to tell, but these are handy
take with you baby entertainers. I love the fabrics, don't have a baby, and still want to carry one around just because they turned out so cute.
The pipes have hooks to attatch toys for baby and then they all store right inside the bag. It weighs like 2 lbs. and can store flat in a suitcase, take it to church, go to grandmas, or the park...we could go on! Anyway, heres the sneak peak-but let me know what you think. And watch for more twowisebirds.etsy.com

Moving On

Four years of driving the Escalade, as good as it was, is now coming to a close.

IT'S FOR SALE! - SOLD

It has served me well. I enjoyed the handy DVD/Child entertainment package, spacious interior, and great dependability very much. With mileage just above 100K miles we are sure it still has at least that many and more to go. All the cracker crumbs, slurpees, soccer snacks.... it survived them ALL! Looks darn good - even the tan interior. But, it's time to move on to something smaller, maybe? It will be a new experience to have this kids breath whisping down the back of my neck in a CAR, but it's worth saving some gas, right?

So, if you or anyone you know is looking for a great condition, well cared for, gently used, less expensive yet beautiful looking ride, it's right here.

$10,900 (due to calls just in it's first day of signage there seems to be lots of interest)

Mostly for us, it's "farewell" to one of the longest relationships to a vehicle we've ever had. We actually made it more than a year or two with this one because we liked it so well.

Office Re-do

Before ...............................................................After

I took it upon myself to recreate Dan's office into a more modern style for Father's Day. I did it sort of PIMP MY OFFICE style so he really didn't see it until it was all done, though he knew it was going on. I then decided for his birthday, that he should have a new desk to polish off the look. So I searched D.I. and Savers and came up with a beauty to redo and re purpose. Here's a glimpse of how it all turned out. It kinda gave me the bug to do more "re-do's" around the house. Maybe when the kids get back in school? For now, I'll relax knowing this task is finished. :)

Before ..........................................After

BIG Bug Scare

I wandered outside shoeless to throw some trash in the garbage the other night. To my suprise I nearly stepped on this poor little ( I mean 2 1/2 inch, picture it in your mind) beetle on my driveway. GROSS! This thing is huge. I don't know if any of you have seen these in our great state before, but c'mon, is this normal? I nearly passed out at the thought of how it would feel to "squish" the darn thing.

The kids think it's museum worthy and that I should contact a scientist for display purposes. Im just glad I caught it and that it's resting peacefully in a jar instead of lurking outside somewhere.

Who needs a dog?

How entertaining!!

We used to have a dog, it chewed some damage into everything we have, we got rid of it, and now once again we have pets (plural). DEER! We have had deer in our yard occasionally since we moved here. But because the snow is so thick this year, some have taken up residence. The gate is open in the backyard and every day around 10:30 these two deer show up for a snack. They are doing a great job pruning the bushes. They are also "fertilizing" with their droppings. I don't think these deer are afraid of an audience because I went out to shovel the driveway the other day & they just watched. The kids don't really find it a novelty anymore, but Owen still gets a kick out of them. I'm fine with the entertainment they bring for now, I'll just be mad in the spring when the snow melts to reveal piles of black beans they left behind :( YUCK! Oh, speaking of pets, I don't want to forget to mention our 3 wood peckers that are trying to break through the stucko by endlessly pecking....... or the pheasant who adores his reflection as he pecks on our basement window every day. Did I tell you about the squirrels that nibble my tomatoes in the summer? Seriously, how do my kids dare ask for a pet when we have such exotic ones already?

Still like the snow?

This morning when I woke up and saw that we had received a new 4 inch layer of snow, I was having a hard time deciding if I was glad? I am really tired of the cold! I would live in a 70-90 degree part of the country if there were such a thing and if it were possible (like if I had only myself to think about). But I must say that the beauty that comes with dumping layers of snow is pretty enjoyable. I think my weariness of the snow comes from a parking lot experience I had with Owen a couple of weeks ago during church. I share this only because I've decided that the most entertainment I have had lately has been laughing totally at myself.
Owen was brought to me by the nursery leader saying he was "wet". And boy was he wet. I guess that diaper was done. So I decided to go change him at home and come back. I did just that. But after returning and getting Owen out of his car seat, the iced-over parking lot finally won. I went down....but not before doing a Fred Flinstone jog that was probably entertaining enough. I wanted to spare my child from injuries so I didn't really catch myself. I just held onto him. We hit the ground, our heads clanked together and the razor sharp ice chunks dug well into my pantyhoseless legs. The best part of the fall itself was the spread eagle that took place on the way down. Oh, was anyone watching? My answer is NO, at least as far as I can tell and if they were they didn't want to humiliate me by making it known. Owen cried, I had tears in my eyes! All he kept saying is "mommy slippy me". Needless to say, we got back in the car and drove home to inspect the damage. Now when I say anything about church, he reminds me that we fall down at church. Injuries were limited to bruises and scrapes-but the incident will definitely not be forgotten.