Skating

On friday I went to a local ice skating rink with about 70 first graders, 4 teachers and several other parents.  The kids were so excited.  Most of them had obviously never been ice skating before.  Watching these kids try something new was really fun to watch.  They get on the ice and quickly look around for something to hang onto.  They were allowed to use chairs from the school.

Looks a little precarious huh?  They were there for about an hour and a half.  The kids got really good at falling, getting up and falling again.  I watched from the sidelines.  I had the excuse of having to watch the other two munchkins.  This California girl has ice skated once and it was memorable enough to keep me safely off the ice.

The last few days my mind keeps going back to the ice skating idea.  I have decided that ice skating is like being a mom...  You really have no idea what you are getting into when you bring  that sweet bundle of joy home from the hospital.  You have seen other moms and have decided that it can't be that hard.  The skaters on tv make the sport looks so graceful and effortless.You step out on the ice and smack!  Your feet fly up and your back side hits the ice.  You quickly get up and try it again.  It is either that or get wet.  The sleepless nights and rough days of early parenting test us in a way that nothing else can.  It is worth every hard day just to hold the precious life God has entrusted to you.  My favorite is hearing "I love you mom!"

I had my MOPS group meeting on Friday.  It is so refreshing as a mother to know that we are all on the ice together.  We can pick each other up when we fall or laugh together at the frequency and gracefulness of our "skating".  The "poop stories" and the "guess what my child did the other day" stories can bring us together.
The fact that we are not all alone on the ice brings such great comfort.  God is always there and He sends others to encourage us.  It is very easy to focus so much on just staying in an upright position on the ice that we neglect to help other moms.  I need to be a encourager and a support those that God puts around me on the ice.

Homemade Pizza Crust

I have 2 pizza recipes that I mainly use.  I have joined these two into something yummy and quick.  (One of the recipes had to be made 3 hours ahead.  Who has time for that?)   Here is my new and quick recipe for pizza.

2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast
1 cup warm water
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup wheat flour
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

In a small bowl combine sugar, yeast and warm water.  Let mixture sit a couple of minutes until it bubbles (I think they call this "proofing" the yeast.) 

Add olive oil and salt to yeast mixture.

In a medium bowl mix wheat flour and yeast mixture.  Add white flour to this dough and knead until smooth.

Sprinkle corn meal on your counter and then roll out your dough.  ( I never can make a perfect circle with my pizzas.  It just looks more "homemade" that way right?)

Add sauce and then top with mozzarella, pepperoni, parmesan cheese and anything else that you like.  This pizza was for the kiddos and they hate vegetables.

Bake the pizza at 400 degrees for 16 - 18 minutes or until done.

Use quality ingredients.  I am kind of a mozzarella snob.  It has to be Precious low moisture part skim mozzarella.  The cheap cheese will leave greasy puddles on your pizza.

The Shelf

Sometimes you get a project in your mind and think about it for a while.  I decided that I wanted to make a decorative shelf to put nick-knacks on.  I would like to think that a person can do just about anything if they research & plan it out well.  Well I learned a little different...  I learned that there is such a thing as a double mitered joint and making said joint is not easy.

I did what every person does when considering a project... I googled it and ended up watching a video of some guy making the shelf.  Easy enough huh?  I took my husband's truck to the home improvement store and bought my materials.  Eleven dollars later I was ready to do this project.  The next day while my hubby was at work I got the saw out and made my cuts.  I couldn't nail the pieces together because I couldn't hook up the nail gun to the air compressor. OK.  So I waited for my husband to get home and help me.  I was a little proud of how far I had gotten without "adult" supervision.  He gets home and I proudly show him what I have done.  Good so far right?  Well, I he had seen the video on the web that I had watched.  At that point he nicely explained to me that what I made was not the same thing as the video.  I did a mitered corner but not a double mitered corner.  By this point we were both confused... him as to what I was doing and me as to what a double miter looked like.

This project that was supposed to be easy had now turned into a project that my hubby was graciously trying to "save/repair" for me.  I was irritated that I couldn't make a simple shelf by myself.  He was confused by the water-works running down my face over a craft project.

Needless to say there is no shelf picture to post with this story.  Sometimes you try something that seems sooo simple and fail.  I am trying to figure out if I should buy more material and try again or simply accept that there are somethings that are better left for craftier people.  I haven't completely decided which option I'll choose.  I didn't really want to post this failure but if it helps other wanna-be crafters like myself...

You may not have a "shelf failure" but sometimes things don't quite turn out the way you plan.  Someday I'll just look back on this and smile.  In the mean time I can still play with my 3 wonderful kiddos and make this house a home for the most understanding husband on the planet.  It does remind me of the time I attempted to make a doghouse unsupervised.  My hubby still smiles about that one and it was years ago...

Valentines Heart

I have been hoping to make this for a while but I finally had the deadly combination of time, materials and ambition today!

Materials needed:
styrofoam
newspaper cut into strips (the classifieds section works the best)
Mod Podge
red contruction paper
foam brush
glue gun
black ribbon with white dots


I wanted a piece of styrofoam that was heart shaped and about the size of a box of candy.  I wasn't able to find what I wanted so I just made my own.  Cut a heart shape out of styrofoam.

Then I just applied Mod Podge on the styrofoam and started layering my newspaper strips in complete randomness. (not really a word... so what?)  Then apply a coat of Mod Podge over the newspaper.

  Allow to dry.  Make red flowers out of construction paper.

To see how to make these flowers go to http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2010/11/diy-faux-curled-rosewood-wreath-made.html

Glue the roses onto the center of the heart.  Next add a little ribbon around the side of the foam heart.  Glue a loop of ribbon on top.

New Every Morning

Seeing the sunrise this morning reminded me of the Bible verse I put at the bottom of this blog.  As a mom it is easy to let the cares and stresses of this life weigh us down and overwhelm us.  It is such a comfort to know that God's mercies (or compassions) are new every morning.  He is with us throughout the day and He loves us more than we can imagine.  We may not feel prepared to greet the day but God is!  Rest and depend on Him.

The Flag

Every morning during the week I stand outside at 8:25 am and say the pledge of allegiance with a couple hundred elementary school children.  This is a great way to start out the day.  Listening to those little voices recite from memory a pledge that has such great meaning.  How much do they understand of what they are saying?  I have no idea but they say it with such gusto sometimes you just have to smile!

These kids all line up into their classes and say the pledge no matter how chilly it is in the morning.  How many adults do you know who would stand outside in 10 degrees and say the pledge?  Where would this nation be if everyone started their day this way?  After a while you would say it without even thinking of the words...  If you ever need to renew your patriotism listen to Red Skelton explain it (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZBTyTWOZCM) or John Wayne explain why he loves this country (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sekHkR5BKOY&feature=related).  You will look at the flag differently.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all!

Hello!

I am trying to share a few things that I am enjoying & learning in life.  It is so strange to write this but here we go!

I had lived in the same small town in California for 29 years.  My life was so "small".  I went to the same church that my parents helped start when I was a toddler.  The town I lived in had a population of 1500 people.  This town has a post office,  small grocery store & not much else.  My husband got a job in Montana.  We moved our family 1200 miles to Billings.  God has been faithful in so many ways.   My "world"  grew by leaps and bounds.  I had to learn how to make new friends.  (I am not the most out-going person.)  I put my oldest in kindergarten.  We went to several churches before finding the one we currently attend.  I had to become alot  more independent.

 I have changed alot since making the move.  This blog will be a place to share the things that I am doing and to encourage moms everywhere.  All moms can attest to feeling like they are a "bad mom" because they fail to meet expectations.  No matter how often we "fail" God can and will use us to guide the children that He has given us.  Sometimes all it takes is sharing our bad days and struggles with others to lighten the load.
Laughter really is the best medicine.