RACES

Maddie and Bella love to have races! They have a lot of energy and since they weren't able to go outside for months we had to come up with some ways to get the energy out! It is finally warming up a bit so we can play at the park somedays! We can't wait of the wading pools and aquatic center! Anyway, most days we have races from the kitchen to the family room. Then we do dancing. I'll have to take some pictures, because it is darling. The girls can do all sorts of ballet moves! The love to have Dad come home and play ball or wrestle and tickle. They are pretty fast little runners! They like to jump off the couch and on to the big bear and they always get up after and say, "CRAZY!"


Our little girls are growing up so fast!

Projects

I love doing projects! After the girls go to bed it is one of my favorite things to have my alone time with my current project. I like trying new things, and I think there is a sense of accomplishment when you can see something you've made. When the girls were little I remember thinking that I would never have time for myself again. If I got a few minute nap or shower it was a blessing! I rarely had time to do any extra little thing. Now that the girls are on a pretty regular routine- one good long afternoon nap and bedtime around 8, I have some time for these kind of things! There are so many things I'd love to make and learn how to do. I have to try and control myself because it is like that talk from conference in October about good, better, and best. While these things are fun to make and have it is sometimes easy to neglect other important things- like cleaning the house or reading scriptures or working out etc. I'm trying to be better at the balance. I'm enjoying this time though-while I can do things like this. (Maybe that means we'd better have another baby... No, not yet!)
Here are some of my current projects...

This is my first ever quilting project. All those tiny squares were quite the process, and it actually doesn't look that great clos up, but I'm learning. My friend Jessica is a talented quilter so she taught a few of us the techniques on this. I learned to embroider, and then to piece together the quilt, hand quilt, and do the binding. I really enjoyed it and want to do more quilting in the future.

This is one that I'm so excited about. It is our BLOG BOOK! I did it through blurb.com where you can just import your blog and then you format the pages. It actually didn't take very long. I worked on a page or two at a time forever, but then Jessica inspired me with her finished book, so I finished it in a couple of days, and it really was fast! It is such a great thing to have. The quality is wonderful too. It looks very professional and it is so nice to have out blog in a hardbound book that will last forever. I've decided to start doing the girl's scrapbook this way as well. I've been doing it digitally, but by the time I buy the photo paper, sheet protectors, and all the ink, it gets expensive. You can make any kind of book on blurb so I think this will be a good way to do their album. We stared our blog in May of 2006 so it if fun to look back at all the entries from just before the girls were born.

I made frames! I have painted them or gotten the mat/glass or even the pictures yet, but this was a fun new thing to try so I thought I'd post it. My friend Betsy is an incredible photographer and she did our family pictures last year. She makes frames all the time so she taught a few of us how to do it. We went and bought the wood and used the power tools and everything! I was pretty proud of myself! I'll post these when they are finished.


Anway, I think it is nice to have a few things to work on to learn new skills or just to develop talents. I loved Elder Ballard's talk for young mothers in conference! He was totally speaking to me! I thought it was great how he said to pick a couple of things to learn or work on. Good advice! :)