In Not Of

Hope Now - Addison Road

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 04:03:00 +0000

Eric Carle

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 12:52:00 +0000

Last weekend, we headed north. In my blog surfing I had come across one of the coolest things ever... The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. Can I just express my joy a little? Woohoo! Pictures! I love picture books. My favorite section at any bookstore is still the children's section. I have such great memories of books from growing up and I love to be reminded of them and to think about which might be good memories for my babies. Needless to say, the museum went on the "must-visit-before-leaving-New-England" list. When I saw that they had both The Very Hungry Caterpillar and the work of Virginia Lee Burton on display, a more prompt visit became necessary. :-)

So, Saturday we loaded the kids up and headed to Massachusetts. I was impressed as soon as we got there - the building is beautiful! It's modern and very white, but there was a lot of light in the main hall which made it very inviting. Also in the main hall are 4 very large color pattern paintings by Eric Carle. This is where we first got to reinforce the "Look with your eyes" rule (we had gone over the 2 rules in the car - "look with your eyes" and "stay safe"). I can't say I blame them for wanting to touch... the texture was soooo rich! Clara went up to the blue one and said "Look mama! Fish!" Then we entered the galleries... that was a little rough. The kids weren't really interested in what was on the walls, but fortunately there were some small activities and books by the artists in the area. I made Connor pick his favorites... something he's beginning to roll his eyes at, but at least it gets him to stop "going" for a moment and look around. We passed through the galleries fairly quickly with the kiddos, but Michael and I each went back through so we could really look.

Next we headed out into the orchard. Thank goodness the woman at the front desk suggested a run through the trees... it was just what Connor and Clara needed!

After the fresh air, we headed in to the art studio. Kids (and mommies) get to make art like the art they just saw on the walls. How cool is that?! The day we visited we got to make a tissue paper collage. It was very cool. We were given watercolor paper and the rest of the supplies were on the table. You begin by painting liquid starch onto your paper. Then you lay down a piece of tissue paper and paint over it with the starch. Clara loved using the paintbrush to lay on the starch. Connor was *gasp* a little distracted, so he threw down a few pieces of tissue and then went to play with the toys (and other kids) in the corner.

I did a run through of the shop... I told myself before going in that I would only buy something if it was very special. Well, there was so much special I didn't buy anything anyway! :-)

After that we headed home... well, after a trip to Arby's!

For your viewing pleasure, here is Eric Carle talking about The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

You Hold Me Now - Hillsong United

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 11:00:00 +0000

VERSE 1:
On that day when I see
All that You have for me
When I see You face to face
There surrounded by Your grace
All my fears swept away
In the light of Your embrace
Where Your love is all I need
And forever I am free

PRE CHORUS 1:
Where the streets are made of gold
In Your presence healed and whole
Let the songs of heaven
Rise to You alone

CHORUS:
No weeping no hurt or pain
No suffering You hold me now
You hold me now
No darkness no sick or lame
No hiding You hold me now
You hold me now

VERSE 2:
In this life I will stand
Through my joy and my pain
Knowing theres a greater day
Theres a hope that never fails
Where Your Name is lifted high
And forever praises rise
For the glory of Your Name
Im believing for the day

PRE CHORUS 2:
Where the wars and violence cease
All creation lives in peace
Let the songs of heaven
Rise to You alone

BRIDGE:
For eternity
All my heart will give
All the glory to Your Name

Clara at 3

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:35:00 +0000

Holy Cow! My baby is 3!

I still remember her as a tiny little thing. In this picture she is about 2 weeks old. She was a very awake and aware baby. And very easy...

At three, Clara is a very bright little girl. Her teachers at school love her and comment on how "sharp" she is. Her favorite thing is playing outside, followed closely by dressing up in her princess dress and taking care of her babies.

She's not much of an eater... a little more picky than her brother, but she LOVES vegetables. I know! Strange child! She frequently requests that I make broccoli. She also likes "macky-oni and cheese" and "dog corns". :-D

Clara has a bit of a stubborn streak. She's still surprised by not getting her way and can throw a good tantrum. We're still figuring out what works as far as discipline for her. When she's really mad, you can just see her brain clicking away...

She sings continuously, often making up her own songs. She stomps any bug she sees. Sometimes I jokingly tell Connor to get his sister to "take care" of that spider for him, and he does! And she will!

I love my little Bean!

My Current Favorite Song

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 02:05:00 +0000

I'm so, so sorry....

All the Outdoors

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:14:00 +0000

Holy cow it was glorious here today. Bee-U-Tee-Full! And "warm". You know, I think we reached 60 today. Actually, that was perfect.

As it was forecast to be so lovely, I made plans to hit up the local nature center with the chill'uns. Best decisions I have ever made! We had such a wonderful day. And after the last two weeks, Connor needed even an ok day, so a good day was fabulous!

The last time we went to the nature center was a year ago. Boy does a year make a difference. There was no whining. I didn't carry Clara at all. There was no running around crazy without listening to mom. Yay!

I showed Connor how the trails were marked and then he led the way (with just a little guidance and a few reminders to look ahead for the next blaze). He enjoyed climbing the rocks. When I asked him what his favorite part of the trip was he said "I just like walking." Clara happily hung out in the middle. She's a little collector... she found all kinds of cool little pine cones and nuts. She even stuck a little moss in her pocket. Near the end of our trek, I kept waiting for her to be tired of walking, but she just walked along singing little songs to herself. Did I mention that it was a great day?

I'm Being Social

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 18:20:00 +0000

Aren't you proud of me? My bestist friend just moved and left me all alone (hehehe) so I've been a little loney. After about a week of just me time, I realized I need to meet some more people. So my social-phobic little self got out of the house and went to a few things. It was good. I just really need to get over my stupid anxiety. And I need to not be afraid to jump into a conversation. And ask questions. And just talk in general.

I'm still confussed over how I'm so totally cool to be in front of a large group, but a small group just petrifies me. One day maybe I'll figure it out. :-)

In Need of the Nanny

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 01:44:00 +0000

Wow. It's been a rough week around here. Clara is... rather high maintenance... and she can scream. We've known that for a while, but she has seriously kicked it into high gear. Connor is... well... throwing crazy fits himself and whining continuously all while being sneaky and lying. I'm still working it all out in my head. Blah.

Meanwhile, Michael and I are weight watching. It's going well. It's much easier (for me) now that we're both doing this together. :-) Today is the first day I've really been hungry... and it's because I started working out. Yay!

Rumble

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 03:51:00 +0000

Perhaps, judging by the amount of yelling happening in my house, the adults should have staggered the start of their diets...

The Girly Girl

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 18:17:00 +0000

Clara is a girly girl. She wants to wear a "pretty dress" everyday. I can only get her in pants if I explain why they are needed and point out that they "match". She always wants "clippies" and "hair ties" for her hair. She loves shoes. She likes jewelry.

I don't know where it came from. I don't mind accommodating it, but *woah* is it weird to me.

The Birthday Party

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 17:42:00 +0000

Let me preface this by saying, my forte is not planning. I operate best and most creatively under pressure and that pressure is normally time. This is all just another way of saying that I am a total flop at planning birthday parties. If you want people to be able to come, you have to let them know more than a few days in advance. Fortunately, my kids don't know any better yet. Next year, however, there may be trouble if I don't mend my ways...

All that said, Connor had a super fun party! I decided in November that a science party was the way to go. I'm not really big on character themes (when boys are concerned it almost always ends in mock fighting, which is ok in small groups...) and some of the other more generic fun themes had already been done by friends. So science it was. I used my lovely friend the internet and found www.SteveSpangler.com. This site can make anyone look like a magical science guru. Lots of fun experiments with instructions and links to a fabulous online store. Connor and I love to watch the videos. I could do this! I could throw a great party... but after finding the link to Mad Science, I came to the conclusion, why should I? They have all the supplies and already have a program... I decided to let them do it. That's when my flawed nature came into play. You kind of need to call and schedule those things in order to continue to make your plans. In the end, we had 2 friends come and had a blast! Lots of dry ice fun. I would recommend Mad Science to anyone. :-)

They began with a simple water trick. The kids had to follow which cup had the water in it. In the end the water got dumped on the birthday kid, except there was no water!

Then came the dry ice. Mmm...

I love their expressions in this one!

In the end, I can't believe my baby has turned 5! He's such a helper. I love you soooo much Connor!

Hehehe...

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 05:01:00 +0000

Just dropping by with a little hi!

I feel the need to tell stories about our life again... it's a good thing. I've missed the writing part that you don't get while doing other things... er... facebook... twitter... ~:-) So here I am!

I'm going to go about this in the low commitment way. I'll write when I want to. If you want more, email me! :-)

Check you on the flip side...

Military Wife

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 01:41:00 +0000

This is one of the best of these I've seen. It was sent to me by a friend... another military wife.

What is a MILITARY Wife?

They may look different and each is wonderfully unique.

But what do they have in common?

They have THIS IN COMMON!

Lots of moving---
Moving.
Moving far from home.
Moving two cars, three kids and one dog----all riding with HER of Course.
Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house.
Moving curtains that won't fit.
Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.
Moving away from friends, moving toward new friends.
Moving her most important luggage; her trunkful of memories.

Often waiting-
Waiting, waiting;
waiting for housing;
waiting for orders;
waiting for deployment;
waiting for reunion;
waiting for phones calls;
waiting for the new curtains to arrive;
waiting for him to come home
For dinner----AGAIN!

They call her 'military dependant', but she knows better.
She can balance a checkbook,
Handle the yard work,
Fix a noisy toilet,
Bury the family pet...
She is intimately familiar with drywall, anchors, and toggle bolts.
She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move ---- all with ONE Power of Attorney.

She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.
Reinvents her career with every PCS; locates a house in the desert, the arctic, or the deep south and learns to call them all 'home.'
She MAKES them all home.

She is fiercely IN-dependent and somewhat hasty;
Leaps into decorating, leadership, volunteering, career alternatives, churches and friendships.
She doesn't have 15 years to get to know people.
Her roots are short but flexible.
She plant annuals for themselves and perennials for those who come after.

Military Wives quickly learn to value each other.
They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse-network and accept offers of friendship and favors and record addresses in pencil.

Military Wives have a common bond.
The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands, his commitment is unique.
He doesn't have a job, he has a 'mission' -- he can't decide to quit -- he's on-call for his country 24/7, but for the military wife, he's the most unreliable guy in town!

His language is foreign:
TDY
PCS
TRE
OPR
ACC
DCA
BDU

And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.
She is the long-distance link to keep them informed the glue that holds them together.

Military Wife has her moments----
She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, and refuse to move to Siberia.
But she pulls herself together.
Give her a few days, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, a pledge to the flag, and a wedding picture.
And she goes.
She packs.
She moves.
She follows.

Why?
What for?
How come?
You may think it is because she has lost her mind.

But actually it is be cause she has lost her heart.
It was stolen from her by an amazing man
Who must put duty first
Who salutes the flag
And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military husband,
She will remain his Military wife. And proud of it.

Moving...

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 19:39:00 +0000

my stamping blog. You can now check it at http://traceystamps.typepad.com. ~:-D

Summer Fun!

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 20:10:00 +0000

The weather has been beautiful lately - perfect for outdoor fun! This morning we headed out to our local brand spanking new park. It's great. They made it to be accessible for all ages and abilities, so Clara can play and have fun and I don't have to worry as much about following right behind her. She always finds something fun (and safe) to do. So here are the highlights of our morning. ~:-)

All buckled up and ready to go. Jackets on for the chilly morning air.

Clara doing what Clara does. She would be happy swinging the whole time if I didn't make her get down and go play.

Clara was glad she left the swing when she found the roller slide. She did a continuous loop of the steps and slide for about 10 minutes.

Spiderman, Spiderman. Does whatever a Spiderman does. Connor is getting very good at climbing the different ropes and rock walls and such. Once he actually tries it, he loves it!

The Tale of the Vaseline

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 02:04:00 +0000

So I'm retitling this one "It Could Be Worse" because yes friends, it could be and I'll share at the end of my tale. The following is a true story.

There was a day, not long ago, when a little boy was having more than a little trouble listening. So he was sent to his room by his father. His father went to check on him about 10 minutes later... perhaps the boy had fallen asleep? It was so very quiet up there.

The father opened the bedroom door and found the boy, with and entire jar of Vaseline smeared all over his body. Stifling his laughter, the father removed the Vaseline jar, backed from the room and went back downstairs, waiting for the mother's return (she had escaped the madhouse for but a few minutes).

On her return, the father greeted the mother. "You have got to see this" he said, explaining the situation. The mother went upstairs prepared for the worse, but found that the boy had removed most of the Vaseline by wiping himself off on an old towel. "Schwoo," she thought, "crisis averted."

The mother was about to start on the coming safety lecture when she detected a familiar scent. A very strong, familiar scent. Her inner alarm went off. "What is that smell?" she asked the boy. "I don't know," came the expected reply. The mother turned back down the hallway and immediately saw the problem. The Febreeze bottle, once full, was now empty.

The mother, blood pressure rising, turned back into the boy's room. "Did you spray Febreeze in this room?" she asked, her voice doing a poor job of hiding her anger. "Yes," came the reply.

The mother stepped into the room and her feet immediately felt the damp stickiness on her feet. The smell grew stronger.

She fled the scene, yelling behind her as she went. Something about "stay in your room" and "you know better" and "what were you thinking". The boy (of course) burst into tears. After 15 or so minutes to calm down and form a plan, the mother and father went up the stairs to clean the boy and the room.

Yes, Connor had a rough day that day. Actually, it's been a bit of a rough few weeks... Anyway, we stuck him in the shower and Michael scrubbed him to try to get the Vaseline off. I set to work on his room. His floor, walls, bed, toys, etc. were covered in a sticky gooey film of Vaseline and Febreeze. His toys got sorted and many were thrown away. I opened the window and vacuumed the mess out of that room, just running it over the damp spots to dry it out (nearly a week later and I can still smell his room from down the hall). He got clean sheets. He also got to stay in his room for the rest of the evening, coming downstairs to eat and then heading back to his room. All to soon he was actually put into bed... he had gone into the bathroom to "help" me clean up and squirted out about 2 cups of dish detergent into the tub, onto his soaking toys. Poor boy just didn't get the point. But he did get a good nights rest and the next day was much better.

So... are you wondering how it could be worse. Just check where Google brought me. Wow. It could be way worse.

Here you go Dad...

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 00:21:00 +0000

So Dad wants to know what's going on. I *suppose* I can update this. But it's sooo much work... I don't know if I can make it. ~:-P

Hehe. I could find some more pictures of Christian Bale...

Or...

There is this other cute person...

Clara stole her daddy's hat! And then she decided to join a race herself. Round and round the kitchen/living/dining room she went. Giggling the whole time.

These days she's lucky she's cute. I now realize the truth behind the terrible twos. Wow. It's amazing how much attitude can come out of such a little body. It's funny how she wants to cling to me and run from me at the same time. She wants to be so independent. At the same time she is timid and frustrated. Maybe if I keep thinking of it that way I can keep from wanting to lock her in the closet for the next year.

Up next... The Tale of the Vaseline. (just wait until you hear this one)

Shh... woman at work.

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 03:08:00 +0000

Sorry so quiet. I am alive, just really trying to get my business going. It is taking every spare minute. On that note, if anyone is interesting in hosting a catalog party...

Convention 2008

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 14:01:00 +0000

Hi there! It's been a little while, but I've been crazy busy and then out of town. I went to Stampin' Up!s Convention in Salt Lake City. Woohoo! It was sooooo fun! Just imagine 6000 women, all excited about stamping, all swapping card fronts like crazy, all in the same convention center. It was fabulously crazy. Here is the line headed for lunch after general session one day.

I guess line isn't really the right word. The first day we waited in line for 2.5 hours to shop in Momento Mall, the place to get logo wear and other SU! items you can't usually order. It was worth the wait. We just stood there chatting with each other and meeting everyone standing around us in line. It was fabulous! I'll be posting more over on my stamping blog, so check it out! Have a great day!

Funniest Sign in SLC

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 01:21:00 +0000

These flags make you visible as you cross the not so busy street... and evidently it's an offense to take one. I giggled everytime I passed these.

Talk me down

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:08:00 +0000

I feel like eating a whole cake. I just want something super-duper filling to eat. The Lean Cuisines for lunch just aren't cutting it.

Confession

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:20:00 +0000

So I have to admit...

I've had a crush on this guy

since he was in Newsies when I was 12.

After sitting through 2.5 hours of The Dark Night...

some things definitely get better with age.

Mmm...

Better

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 03:28:00 +0000

Just so no one worries too much, I am much better today. :-)

Thoughts

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 04:17:00 +0000

A bit sad right now.

I'm not 18 weeks pregnant. I'm not beginning to feel a baby.

I thought I felt better, but right now it's all new again. I stumbled across another woman's blog... she had a miscarriage recently as well. She wrote what she was feeling. How one minute she was pregnant and then she wasn't. How she dreads her period and what it means. How the thought of a positive pregnancy test is so scary... what if it happens again? Yup... I'm right there.

I've been thinking all these things and then just stuffing them deep into my mind. Can't deal with that now. Push it down. It will go away. But it doesn't. I'm angry and hurt. Right now I feel alone... like I'm the only one who knew the baby. Like to others it wasn't even there.

Sorry I'm so raw tonight. This too will pass, but I think I just had to write this.

RMT 4... a small gain

traceystamps@gmail.com (Tracey) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 02:27:00 +0000

Well, here we have it. The gain week. I see an old pattern becoming new again. Last year when I was losing weight I had this lovely little habit... lose, lose, gain. Lose, lose, gain. Every third week like clock work, I gained. And here it is again. I gained 0.8. I'm not too concerned. This is a direct result of me not tracking my food all week. Shame on me. I also did not run. So there it is.

Today is already much better... I've followed the mantra "Write before you bite." I will begin running again tomorrow as well. So that's it for now. Check in on the other participants here. And be sure to congratulate Carlos. He and Heather ran a half marathon yesterday!