Doodles and Designs

I've always wanted to try my hand at graphic design. I finally got myself a tablet that hooks to my computer and lets me draw and write with much more control than I could get with a mouse or touch pad. It's awesome!

I used it (along with Photoshop Elements) to design our Christmas card and Sadie's Valentines.  But most of the time I just doodle.

I'm planning to teach myself how to use a vector graphics program so I can do even more, but for now I'm having a ball!

The Isle of Lewis

My friend, Karey, wrote the squeaky clean and super fun Husband Maker trilogy. In the second book, the main character, Charlotte, heads to Scotland, specifically the Isle of Lewis which happens to be one of my favorite places on the planet. I got to be Karey's consultant and loved reminiscing about the time I spent on the Island. (I spent 4 amazing months there in 1993.) In a fit of nostalgia, I wanted to post a few photos of the Island just to give a glimpse of how beautiful and quaint it is.

Hopefully I'll make it back there someday!

Lewis Castle at dusk.

A beautiful stormy day. The water and sky are so gray, but look at those rocky hills. 

Harris is connected to and south of Lewis. (Have you heard of Harris Tweed? The Isle of Harris is where it's made.) This little 9-hole golf course was in the most picturesque location, right on the Atlantic Ocean. My missionary companion and I golfed here one day. We were literally dodging sheep poop the whole time! A quick search shows that this course is now a much bigger deal than it was in 1993. 

This shepherd was just walking down the road and happily posed when we asked for a photo. A right happy fella.

Cead mile failte (Kee-ut mee-la Fall-cha) is Gaelic for one hundred thousand welcomes. That's how they treat you on the island. You won't want to leave!

Saying Goodbye

One of the members in Mesa posted this on her Facebook page (it made me cry a little bit...):

Oh, how we miss that boy! Today he's onto his next big adventure.

{Love you, Sam!}

Don't Eat Me!

What is your cereal telling you? :)

Wild Horses

Hard to believe, it's been over seven months since we said goodbye to Sam. He's over a quarter of the way through his mission! He's been in his first area this whole time - it's rare to stay in one area this long - but the time has come for his first transfer. I made him a card with a little help from Gary Larson. It's so perfect that I cut the cartoon right out of the book. :)

{He's going to love it!}

Dear Jeff,

Dear Jeff,

Thanks for the saw. No, I'm serious. I really like it and I'm excited about the cool things you can cut out for me! It was just a passing comment -- "Look at all these wooden shapes people are selling. I think we should get a scroll saw so you can cut cute things out for me when I want to make something." And then, Voila! a scroll saw appeared. I know it's used and didn't cost much, but that makes it even better. You must have gone out of your way to find it for me. This isn't the first time this has happened, of course. It happened with that used MINI Cooper we saw back in 2009 that now looks so at home in our garage. It happens when I'm overwhelmed with housework and the next thing I know, the dishes and laundry are done and the floors are mopped. It happens a lot. Kind of makes me feel like my wish is your command. :)

I really am excited about the saw.

Love,
Me

Preppy

In cleaning out some neglected nooks and crannies around here and I came across a note card where I'd jotted down an exchange between the girls a while back. It totally made me laugh! I don't know how long ago this was, but my guess would put Savannah around age 13 and Sadie about 5 or 6. For the record, they've mellowed out since then, which is the only reason I've been given permission to post it here. :)

Sadie was trying on some clothes. When she tried on a certain sweater, I told her it looked preppy. Savannah chimed in, "No, it doesn't, mom. I know what preppy means. I'm a prep."

Sadie's immediate reply was, "What does 'prep' mean? Does it mean you're mean? Does it mean you fight with your parents a lot?" 

Ah, out of the mouths of babes.

Imagesource

Contrast

It's pretty cold in my little corner of the world! We just got the phone call that school is canceled because of "extreme wind chill conditions."

Here is a little illustration to demonstrate just how cold we are...

Yesterday, at 5:24 PM, we were 69º colder than Mesa, Arizona where Sam is enjoying a beautiful winter.

As if that number isn't high enough, just look at the "RealFeel" and you can flip those numbers around. It felt like it was 96º colder here. Ninety-six degrees!

There is something very wrong with that.

Sam is serving others by helping them harvest their citrus fruit and we are trying to ward off frost bite.

On the bright side, the kids and I get to stay bundled up inside. It's been a crazy week, even with President's Day off, so we are happy for the break.

Penguin Love

Here's what we came up with for Sadie to give her class for Valentine's Day. I think they turned out cute and they were super easy to make. Of course, Sterling thought the caption should say, "I may live where it's cold, but I know hot when I see it!" Um, I'm not sure the fourth graders are quite ready for that....

Happy Valentine's Day!

My Best Decision

Twenty years ago today, Jeff asked and I said yes.

That led to this...

...which ultimately led to this:

Best decision I ever made!

My Breakfast Cowboy

 

Wouldn't this be the cutest advertisement for Golden Grahams? :) I love my little bug.