May 10 on 10

 "What? Don't all messy faced toddlers sit on the table?"

 I had an MRI this morning. Thankfully, it was so early that it almost seems like it was just a bad dream. And wow, I'm old.

 Memorizing her verse for Bible. Apparently it works better if you pace around the kitchen.

 Brotherly love.

 My new workspace. As you can see I'm busily... twittering.

 My inspirational view from said workspace.

 This is very important. The SECOND right answer. Never the first.

 Sweet sleepy baby with a knot on his forehead. I'm seriously considering a helmet for the poor child.

 Trying to put my new contacts in. I get a little better at it every day.

 Favorite song. It will probably change tomorrow, but at least today it was.

BONUS PICS JUST BECAUSE IT'S YOUR LUCKY DAY:

My reading material. LOOK HOW MUCH NONFICTION I HAVE!

 My dog giving me a condescending look. He thinks he's better than me.

 Gotta get those teeth out somehow. (JUST KIDDING!) Notice Sarge's face.

 Nope, it's still there. He lost the other one when he was 3 during an unfortunate "superman" event.

 Do we look tired? Cause we are.

 The only picture I edited. Then I got lazy. But look how nicely my boy did his last phonics paper for the year.

Yeah. No caption necessary.

Are we really surprised who wanted to be the cop and who wanted to be the crook?

The Purpose of Passion

I'm reading a really great book. It's saying a lot when I read nonfiction. It's called The Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell. I admit, when I got it based on another author's suggestion, I thought it was tips on writing about war. I'm kind of surprised I still went through the motions to reserve it and pick it up at the library. But it is not about war, thankfully. It's about fighting yourself and becoming the author you really want to be underneath all the self-doubt and laziness.

I've definitely got both of those on my back constantly. So an arsenal of weapons to wage attacks on my two biggest enemies is a timely and necessary pursuit.

There was a great exercise about identifying your passions when you are thinking through ideas for stories. The things that an author feels most strongly about will cause him or her to write in the most meaningful way. So at Bell's insistence, I wrote down a list of my deepest beliefs. The things that are unshakable, non-negotiable beliefs I would stand up on a soapbox and preach about if I felt they were being threatened.

Not surprisingly, most of mine are about God. I thought I would share my list on my blog. If you'd like to make your own list, please provide a link to your blog in the comments. I'd like to read them.

My Strongest Beliefs

1. God is perfection and love.

2. Jesus is the answer to every question.

3. The best stories always directly or indirectly point to Jesus.

4. The Bible is the ultimate model for any story.

5. Prayer changes things.

6. Greater love doesn't exist than someone being willing to sacrifice their life for someone else.

7. In the end, God wins.

8. Life without imagination is cruel and joyless.

9. Creativity is one of the most amazing gifts of God.

10. Anything worth doing is hard.

11. Nobody can be me better than I can.

12. You're only asking for trouble when you add your own rules to God's rules.

13. Humility and meekness offer the Holy Spirit opportunity to be strong and change things. 

14. Pride is the root of almost any sin.

15. Forgiveness heals relationships.

16. Pretending to be better than you are is a roadblock to your dreams.

17. I'm nothing but a sinner saved by grace.

The Good, the Bad, and the Not So Attractive

 The Good. I got a camera. I am the proud owner of a new Nikon D3100 that I have only dropped once so far. (Collective gasp from all the photographers.) Not only do I have this wonderful new camera that is taking really good pictures of my currently uninteresting life as evidenced here, but it was given to me by my amazing Grandma who is two years in heaven and still managing to buy me the coolest presents. You may ponder this if you wish. I finally decided to buy an expensive camera because if I had asked her what I should get, a camera would have been one of her first answers. Grandma loved taking pictures of people she loved. I think she was always trying to capture the moments of fun and togetherness and hold on to them forever. I am mournful in spirit that Grandma never knew the endless wonder of digital photography.

Good thing number 2: Season finales. I'm just going to be honest here and say that around this time of year, I get a little obsessed with my "stories." I try to keep this to myself for the most part, after all, no one likes to admit that they have a tendency to go overboard on something. But no one that reads this blog will think any less of me. Or if they do I can live with it. I've kind of lost interest in almost all the shows I was watching, but there are two I won't miss for the world. Fringe, on fox, and Castle, on abc. First of all, give me a story that's headed somewhere specific and that will stop when it gets to the end. And please please please give me characters that make me care about them and capture my interest. And there you have the fun that is Fringe. Fringe also keeps me on my proverbial toes. Generally, I can predict where a television show is headed in the first five minutes or so. I'm not trying to praise my highly intellectual television viewing ability, I'm sure everyone can do the same. But the difference is I like to be surprised. Fringe makes me crazy by throwing me for continual loops. Ask MacGyver, I've tried to predict it. I've tried to be just as completely out in space as they get. I'm almost always wrong. But what's more unusual, is that when I'm wrong, I end up liking their trail better. Anything that can surprise me AND satisfy the story-lover in me has my utmost respect. I look forward to every last juicy, scientific, mind-blowing bit of the next and final 15 episodes.

Castle may be a bit more predictable as far as plots go, but they're at the sweet spot. If they were the standard and quite unimaginative mystery/cop show that is on every other channel they wouldn't have caught my attention in the first place. But it's about a writer, after all. And they've come to the turning point of the story, after four patiently developed years. I've always loved Castle's wit and character interaction. They've slow-cooked a zesty blend of homicidal detectivism and literary interplay and placed on top a healthy dollop of comedic icing. And how can one resist a story when two people start out at opposite ends of the spectrum and gradually their variances and contentions become respect and love? They've played the romance old-school and precious few take this route anymore. So they have my attention for at least another episode, the last of their fourth season.

The Bad. I realize no one wants to read a blog that is authored by a whiny complainy-mcplainerton. But life has been a little challenging lately, and it helps to put it here on the proverbial page. A tangled string of dr appointments has plagued three members of our family, and I'm a little overwhelmed. My baby boy has had two seizure-like episodes and will be seeing a neurologist next month. I have a prescription in hand for an anti-seizure medicine that is supposedly going to help tame my migraines, but it is with dread I contemplate taking it and discovering what long list of side effects it will cause. And it is with even more dread that I will have an MRI. There are few things I find more terrifying then tightly enclosed spaces.


Also challenging at the moment is trying to finish homeschool. We are in the home stretch. But neither Spirit or I have any interest in furthering our grasp of 3rd grade mathematical principles. Battles are erupting. Students and teachers go missing when the time comes to reduce our fractions or solve our equations. It seems like the last 5 or 6 lessons stretch on to infinity. I have great respect for the teachers out there that manage to accomplish this part of the year with not one but as many as 30 completely un-self motivated 8 year olds.


The Not So Attractive. Yeah. It's time to get serious about diet and exercise again. I put it somewhat out of my mind for a month. Time's up.


Check out not-so-unattractive Screech and Sarge. And if you Twitter, find me. It's my new adventure, and it's actually pretty fun!

Ten on Ten: Nondescript Day

 Coffee.

 J eating his smoothie in usual J fashion.

 At least we look busy.

 At least he looks like he's practicing.

 J helping with the dishes I avoided until dinnertime.

 The Sarge said she'd sweep.

 J's 437th escape attempt.

 Snack.

 While vacuuming, I discovered a little artwork J left for me.

Sigh. Relaxation.

Ten on Ten

It was a lazy Saturday. I did accomplish things, but I also moved slowly. It's nice just to exist sometimes. Here is the photo documentation of my day for the "Ten on Ten" ten pictures on the tenth.

 This is how my daughters have been sleeping lately. They pulled their mattresses on to the floor and this is how we find them in the morning.

 Screech's newest activity. Sitting on the potty fully clothed for about 5.2 seconds, then yelling "ALL DONE!"

 Big sisters can always be counted on to color on you.

 Watering our seeds.

 What amoxicillin does to my children.

 Playing some Mario Cart.

 Dancing to some tunes. (I believe it was actually the William Tell Overture.)

 Supper. Thank you, Pinterest. (Recipe: HERE.)

Pretty little lady.

Awana car painting.

I hope you had a very nice Saturday as well. Don't forget to change your clocks tonight!

Match Made in Heaven - Homemade Rose Body Lotion

One of my very favorite smells in the world is rose. I don't think this is highly unusual, as it is a beautiful, clean smell. Also an expensive smell. Just a few milliliters of it's essential oil goes for hundreds of dollars.

I haven't sprung for the real thing, but I did get a little bottle of rose absolute in jojobo oil.  I have used it as a perfume (sparingly, it's a very strong scent.) but recently, lamenting the state of my hands after the cleanup that followed our family's gi bug, I had an idea. I blended about 25 drops of my rose/jojobo oil in a bottle of Whole Foods fragrance free body lotion I found in the linen closet. Just unscrewed the cap and poured in the drops. Closed it, shook it up, and instantly had the best smelling lotion I've ever used. With the added benefit of rose oil, which is good for the skin.

So give it a try if this sounds like something that would appeal to you. I also recommend the use of rosewater, which is reasonably priced and also available at whole foods. I use it as a facial toner and room spray.

Enjoy!

Encouragement by Accessories

Giving a shout out to Marissa at Recklessly Inspired for her new line of pendants and rings dedicated to the purpose of encouraging others. Gallery of options or request a custom made piece. Check it out now and enter to win a free custom designed piece of jewelry.