WSMGS Pick of the Week

"Oh, It Is Love" - Hellogoodbye
It made him think of me and that completely made my day.

So...perfect

Found this quote today and it was perfect:

We write to taste life twice, once in the moment and one in retrospection.
-Anais Nin

So...declaration

I have become a true believer in writing.
Writing anything.

Especially about my life, who I am - my thoughts, dreams, memories, family - and any other form of journal writing. Not because I should for posterity, even though I think that is true and very important, but because I need to. Writing is extremely therapeutic for me. There are two stages of the writing process that make me love writing and need to write.

Stage 1: spilling my guts onto the page.
Getting everything out and organized on a page helps me make sense of my thoughts and feelings. Most of the time it helps me find a solution. Sometimes the solution is just to write it down. Writing, especially poetry, has really cured me of some major emotional frustration. For that reason alone, I will keep doing it.

Stage 2: rereading reminds me who I am and how far I've come.
When I go back a read things that I have written, I am uplifted. Being able to return to those times and feelings helps me to either see how far I've come, or reminds me of what truly is important. Every time I reread things I've written I am so glad that I took the time to write it.

Last night I went back and reread this one and I felt like a new woman.

Have you ever written a self-declaration? Who you are, what makes you you, what's important to you, and what you are passionate about? If you haven't, you should. Go do it now. Take the time and do it. You will be so glad you did - time and time again.

So...Adults

Adults

The girls took a road trip down to NYC to visit
friends and get fake Ids. They were adults now
and could do stuff like that. She went along
for the ride. They sang with the windows down

in the middle of traffic. It made them feel
like they could do anything, like buy beer
or get tattoos. A plan was made – Ids first
than tattoos. They were adults now
and could do stuff like that. She went along

for the ride. In the shop her friends got nervous.
This was their plan not hers. She just went
along for the ride. As they were about to
leave she grabbed the book. “This one,”
she said determined and calm and took a seat.

She was that kind of girl.


Wednesday Prompt:
mistake

So...I'm a Jacob fan

I don't exactly LOVE Twilight, but I do love Jacob.
Have you seen this trailer?
I think I'm going to like this one better than the first.
Even if it is just for those abs...


Seriously though, I am a Jacob fan.

Oh, and a side note: I saw Cheaper By the Dozen 2 on tv recently, and guess who's in it? The actor who plays Jacob. Just for reference in case he ever comes up while playing the six degrees of Kevin Bacon.

So...Wonderfully Wordy

And we're back...

My next feature is an old friend from MA. We knew each other back in Needham, MA when we were in elementary school. We played all the time, we danced together, and went to church together. I haven't seen her in about 20 years. I can't believe I can even say that.... Ok, maybe it hasn't been quite 20 years, but you get the idea. I'm getting old.

Anyway... that's beside the point.

Today's Inspiration:

I reconnected with Shelley through our family blogs about a year ago. I was instantly impressed with her positive outlook on life, her cute family and obvious adoration for her three beautiful girls, and her CREATIVITY. She really has an amazing gift. Wonderfully Wordy is her blog dedicated to her vinyl lettering and amazing project ideas. On top of her creativity, I appreciate how REAL she is and her honesty when it comes to motherhood, family, and day to day life. I was excited to find out a little more about this lovely lady.

> How long have you been blogging and what inspired you to start?
Let's see, I have been blogging on my Smith Family Blog since (checking blog history) July 2006!!!! WOAH.. that is a LONG freakin' time! lol. I remember when I was trying to decide if I wanted to start a blog, or a myspace page. LOL. Good thing I went with a blog. ha!

The reason I started my family blog casonshelley.blogspot.com was because we had family who lived in California, while we still lived in Utah. It was hard on my family to not be around and see the first grandkids grow up, so I wanted a great way to share the day to day with them, without having to call and repeat stories time and time again. Blogging was simple and easy. So I knew that when I wanted to start doing vinyl lettering, and make a little business out of it, that a blog was the way to go, to start up! I would love to move to a website eventually, but for right now, with three very small children... blogging is about as much as I can handle! :)

> Talk a little bit about Wonderfully Wordy. How did you get into vinyl design? How long have you been doing it?
I LOVE having my Wonderfully Wordy business!! My husband, funny enough, encouraged me to start doing vinyl on the side. I'm pretty sure that he was fed up with how much money I was spending on the stuff, from other people and stores, that he thought this might help...little did he and I know the REAL start up costs for something this big. LOL. It all worked out and now I can put a little in the pot at the end of the month and make a car payment or buy a cute piece of furniture, and feel like I did my part! It feels great! I guess that's where it all started, to be honest. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a SAH mom. But let's get real. You get married, you have a couple of kids, move about 10 times, get a husband graduated from school, and you feel like you don't remember who you are anymore!!! After about 2 years of the day to day, with twin babies and another on the way, I felt like I needed something of my OWN! Anyone who has children TOTALLY knows what I'm talking about. When you have kids, it's overwhelming, sometimes thankless, and completley unselfish. So somtimes you have to... stop... and make yourself a priority and do something that takes your mind off the daily stresses.

Vinyl, was MY creative outlet.

I feel that I have always been pretty creative. I love art, hair, music, clothing, design, drawing... the list goes on. It has always been a way for me to get out of my comfort zone, while still feeling comfortable... hope that makes sense. :) I think that everyone has a need and want to be the first to do or create something. If we didn't, then we would never have the need for world records or high end, popular designers. Creating something that you are proud of... whether it be designing vinyl, baking a new recipe, or simply painting a room is so completley rewarding to me! Once I saw how interested and excited other people were in my vinyl products, that I had designed, I KNEW that this was the right line of work for me!! And I have been doing it for about 2 years.

> You (obviously) are incredibly creative. You always have new projects and amazing ideas. Where do you find your inspiration? Where do you find your quotes, or do you come up with them on your own?
When I started Wonderfully Wordy, I knew that I would need LOTS of ideas for projects, quotes, pricing, layouts, techniques... and MORE. So I literally spent a whole WEEK sitting in front of my computer, book marking other vinyl websites I liked, quotes I came across, rooms that I wanted to see vinyl in... things like that, so I could go back and reference them later. It really helped me get a handle on what people like, and what was most popular. Some of my favorite sites are:
http://www.scrapnfonts.com/
http://www.etsy.com/
http://www.wisdomquotes.com/

> Tell me a little bit about vinyl scraps. I think this is a great concept and want to know more about it.
Vinyl Scraps was a really fun way for me to get myself into the "scrapbooking industry." I'm TOTALLY not a scrapbooker (one expensive hobby at a time, people) but I LOVED making cards! I have actually sold a few cards on my site, and can't WAIT to get more up!

I'll let you in on a little secret. I am TOTALLY OCD. I love for things to look perfect. And so when I was making cards and needed little phrases, or words, I would get SO frustrated with stamps, and rub on's because they just... never worked for me. Stamps would bleed, and rub on's from the scrapbooking stores would always be splotchy and would never come out how I wanted them to. So one day I was sitting on my computer, designing some vinyl for a client, and my friend was working on a little scrapbook album when she let out a frustrating growl. I asked her what was wrong, and she told me that she had spent about 8 bucks on this dumb small, sheet of rub on's for ONE little word, and she JUST messed it up, and couldnt' use it anymore!! I asked to see it, and ended up creating almost an exact replica, in vinyl! She LOVED IT. It wasn't NEARLY as fragile, and it only took a few seconds to apply! I knew right then, that I was onto something.

I currently have a sheet of "Thank you's" "Happy Birthday's" and a sheet of "This and That" (a mixure of a buch of phrases and such) I LOVE them, and it makes sending out a home made birthday or thank you card SO SO easy!!

> You are the mother to three very young, and very adorable girls. How do you find time to run your business, find time for your family, find time for yourself, and still have energy to be creative at the end of the day? Any secrets to managing it all? Any advice to for fellow overachieving, crazy-busy moms?
OH sheesh, this is a hard one. But I know I'm not alone. I have found that being a Mother, Wife, house cleaner, servent, nurse, maid, party coordinator, vinyl business woman, problem solver, and baby maker is a WHOLE heck of a LOT harder then I thought it would be.

I used to tell my friend... "Why doesn't someone WARN you that when you get married and have kids, that it really SUCKS sometimes!!!"

LOL. Please don't take this wrong. I LOVE my children and husband more then life itself... but somedays when you're kids are screaming in your ear, fighting over a barbie, your inbox is full of vinyl orders, you're washing sheets with throw up on them for the 4th time that week, and then your hubby walks in the door and asks, "what's for dinner"... you want to DIE! Am I right!?!?! lol. SO I guess I don't have a great answer for this. I AM an overacheiving mom who spanks her kids, yells and cries a LOT, spends too much money on luxuries, like McDonalds and The Children's Museum and STILL feels like what I have done at the end of the day, just WASN'T enough.

It's just recently that I have realized, that somtimes... loving your kids and trying your VERY hardest is the ONLY thing that you CAN do, most days! I have to quote some vinyl, that is on MY wall at this point, if I may....lol

"We may not have it all together...

but together we have it All"

This is definitely my new motto. :) And as for my advice and sanity, most days....

A tall ice cold glass of water, a bag of frozen semi-sweet chocolate chips, for easy access, in the freezer and LOTS of mindless blog surfing.

> What are you going to miss the most about living in Utah? What are you looking forward to about your move to Tuscon? How do you think this move will change your life?
Oh gosh. This one is easy! I will miss my Family... My Friends... My House... My vinyl and craft supplier... lol. The list could go on for hours. The weather, the food, the people, the culture, the grid system, the mountains, the SLC temple, downtown... OH and by FAR... THE SHOPPING!!!!!!!!!!!....I LOVE Utah. The second we get a chance to move back... we are THERE! It's been the best place to live EVER. I met my husband, got married, had three babies and have made best friends there. I wouldn't change the last 8 years of my life for anything in the world!

Well.... now that we are in sunny, hot, dry, sandy Tucson....... ha. I'm actually okay. This move for us was completely emotional. We knew what we had to do for Cason's job, and we're glad that we made this choice. Was it easy? No. Is it going to pay off in the long run? Yes.I have never had to move to another state, and now know how hard it REALLY is! Kudo's for those of you who have done this multiple times!

How do I think this will change our lives... Well, it might sound funny, but you know how you can just look at a couple and, TELL that they are... "older and more mature"... I think we just hit that milestone this last year. LOL. (pretty weird) We have had to deal with a LOT lately. And there is something to be said about a happily married couple that can juggle what life has had to throw at them. We have come a long ways from nights full of hours of fun with other "newly married couple friends" and chatting away till all hours of the night.Now it's more like babies, books and bed, before 10. :) And we're okay with that! There is a sense of security, knowing that no matter how out of style you are, or how big your butt get's... you will always have a husband who loves you and kids... who hopefully never learn how to use the word "fat" in the right context. lol. jk.

> What blog do you most frequently read and why?
What blog do I most read... and why. Hmmm... I would have to say, embarassingly (is that a word) enough, that I don't have just one. Blogs are like peanut butter M & M's to me... you start with one... you see the potential of a whole bunch, and before you know it... you're starting in on another "fun size" bag. **sigh** it's NOT a pretty picture.

Lots of my faves are on the left side of my blog roll... (I'm TOTALLY into home decor and before and after furniture and thrift finds, right now)and on the right side, under "other fun blogs".

Totally check them out!

> Do you have anything new and/or exciting coming up on your blog that you want us to know about?
As far as my Wonderfully Wordy blog goes... I just got everything back up and running again... from the move! And I'm throwing my FIRST home vinyl party on the 3rd of September, so look out for some great deals, on extra, already printed vinyl, after my party is over!! I can't wait! Pictures to come!

Thank you so much Shelley!
You are truly wonderful. Thanks for sharing you and your talent with us. I will continue to reference your site for upcoming crafts and projects. I too need a creative outlet and love to craft, but I am one that uses other people's ideas and can't come up with my own so well. So I am thankful for people like you!

WSMG Pick of the Week

This has been around for a while, but I love it.
I laugh out loud everytime I watch it.
It's just what I needed tonight.

Because, because, because, because!

So...Megan in Real Life

So, today wasn't so bloggerific.
Wasn't my best day.

Probably not really worth blogging about, but I think it's important to note and document that life is not perfect and doesn't always go the way you want it to. Ok, what I meant to say is I am not perfect. Not like that's news to anyone, but I felt like I needed to say it. For the record.

So excuse me please for what's coming next...

I like to think I can do anything. Most days I think I can. But the reality is I can't. At least not without Husband by my side. (I know it sounds cheesy and cliche, but that's the truth and I think being in love excuses a little cheese now and again. There I go again...more cheese...)

ANYWAY...as I was saying...

I can't do everything.
I learned that lesson the hard way a couple years ago.
And these sweet, adorable, hilarious, fun, amazing little girls are kicking my butt.
I am seriously out numbered.
They go and go and go and right when I feel like I'm about to lose it, they keep coming at me. From all directions. I try really hard and want more than anything to be the best for them, but I worry that I fall short in too many ways. Some days it just feels like too much.
I can't do this by myself.
Thank goodness I don't have to.
Thank goodness for my Husband and all the holes he fills.



Ok.
I'm done.
Moving on...

So...LDS Gems

Have you heard of LDS Gems?

Well, I just barely have.
And let me tell you...
I am tickled.

I love all things inspirational and uplifting (virtous, lovely, and of good report, or praiseworthy...) and I am excited about this one. Now through my daily browse through Google Reader I will have little gems to remind me of the MOST IMPORTANT things in life.

Thank you LDS.org

So...Husband I miss you already

We don't have set jobs in our household.
There are not certain things expected of Husband to do or certain things I'm expected to do.
I don't really believe in that.
That's not how we roll.

However, there are things that we tend to do more often than the other.
For instance, Husband usually mows the lawn - although I have taken my turns and I quite enjoy it.
And I usually do the laundry, but Husband definitely helps load or fold now and then.
That being said...

One of the jobs Husband tends to do more than I is clean up after Dog.
Ok, I admit...I avoid it at all cost.
So of course, last night, while Husband is away...
Dog had to go and mess on the carpet.

Husband, I appreciate you and all you do for me
more than you know...
Please come home soon!

So...Better Safe

Better safe than stinky.

Trees reach from both sides of the trail,
making a tunnel for me to run through.
It’s nice to have the break from all the heat.
But shady places welcome shady people.
I bring my dog to keep me safe.
He’s big and black and looks like he could protect me,
but he is scared of cats.
And water.
Still I feel safe with the illusion of fierceness,
except when we encounter a mother skunk
and her baby. I know her fierceness
is not an illusion.
I want nothing to do with her.
My big, black, illusion dog doesn't help
communicate my treaty of peace.
I see her raise her tail in the blur
while sprinting by her.
I needed the exercise anyway,
but next time the dog stays home.
I’ll take shady over stinky anyday.

Wednesday Prompt:
Better safe than _______.

So...zucchini

I cleaned out our garden before we left for our trip.
Even still, I came home to a baby-sized zucchini.
That's not to say that it was small...
It was literally the size of my baby.

So of course we made yummy zucchini bread.

Because I like tricking my kids into eating vegetables whenever possible.





And good thing the kiddos like it because we will probably be eating it for weeks!

Zucchini Bread
3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
3 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda
3 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
2 cups grated zucchini
3 tsp. vanilla

Cream together eggs, sugar, and oil. Add dry ingredients, then add zucchini and vanilla. Pour into 2 loaf pans and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.

So...I'm baa-aack

Hello again.
I have missed you so :)

Our nine day trip to Needham, MA was full of family fun, wonderful trips around Boston and into Maine, a missionary farewell, movie night, family photo shoots, food, food, and MORE FOOD. I felt like we were gone forever, and as much as I am glad to be home, I am avoiding returning to reality at all costs. I blame laundry day on not getting dressed until after lunch...

Here's a quick review on our trip:
- surprise visit from sis-inlaw and twins
- beach day in Ogunquit, ME
- seafood dinner: adults only
I've realized I don't like lobster so much, or muscles
- day at my new favorite park in Auburndale, MA
- Chinese food
Utah Chinese food just does NOT cut it
- Castle Island
- Younger Brother's missionary farewell
- Open House to celebrate missionary farewell
visit with so many old friends = great time
- buffalo chicken sub from Cowlick's
a must
- Younger Brother set apart as missionary
- late night meal at Anna's Taqueria
Younger Brother's last supper
- watch Evita in honor of Younger Brother's mission to Argentina
horrible movie, and I can't get the music out of my head
- temple trip with Husband to the Boston Temple
we hadn't been there since our wedding day and it was WONDERFUL to go back!
- dinner date with Sis & Bro-inlaw
- family photo shoot by Sis-inlaw
- visit best friend
- trip to Boston Commons & Boston Gardens
swan boats were closed :(
- breakfast with Sister
- late night laughs with Sisters & Brothers
- girls movie/dinner night
Julie & Julia - LOVED it
- lots of playing with cousins

Basically, we had a blast.
I love being with family.
I love Massachusetts.
I need more of both in my life.

So...We Are The Same

We Are The Same

I call this house home - 

where I was born,

where I grew up,

where I left to go grow up.

Not a lot has changed.

We both have aged

through college, marriage, and into motherhood.

We are the same.

When I walk into this same house I grew up in 

that hasn't changed, 

I feel the same.

I feel seventeen.

Wednesday Prompt:

return

So...Julie & Julia

I've seen it.

Have you?

It was easily one of the best movie's I have seen in a long time.

Go see it.

I absolutely loved it.

And I adore Meryl Streep.

So...Second Daughter sings

So...excuse me

On Wednesday we are hopping on a plane and headed back east to my hometown.
Needham, MA
The place where I feel a little more complete.
Can you tell I'm excited?

I can't wait!

So...Saturday To-Do's

I have been dragging lately...avoiding my house chores at all cost.
Since we are leaving on Wednesday for 9 days, I think I need to bite the bullet and get to work today so that our house doesn't smell like a barn when we get back.
It really needs to be cleaned.
And since miracles happen when I make lists...here we go.

Saturday To-Do's
- clean both bathrooms done
- clean bathroom floors done
- clean kitchen floor done
- clean entryway done
- laundry going
- vacuum
- clean glass/windows/mirrors done by First Daughter
- dust done by Second Daughter
- organize junk in mudroom
- weed in backyard
- return books to library done
- go on date with Husband done

Oh how I love cleaning days - or at least I do once it's all done.
I am most excited about the last item on today's list :)