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Since I am a guest designer for My Mind’s Eye this month, I wanted to make sure to post a copy of each of my layouts here, too. These all use the amazing My Mind’s Eye products. Journaling Reads: Details:
Nathaniel woke up at 3am last night and though he desperately tried he couldn’t go back to sleep. I tried everything I could think of. I hugged him, left him alone, held his hand, and even put him on the big bed and nursed him but nothing worked. By then I was wide awake, so we just got up. I read, he played, we hugged, he ate, David woke up and then I decided Nathaniel could go down again. So off he went and so did I. Jake woke up and fed David and I slept for a few hours. We both woke up then and it was much better. A little while later David started his wii day.
I read more of my book (I am enjoying the Kindle a lot and don’t miss my Sony much) and then I fed the kids again and went to the book fair to get David some early reader books. Then I decided I needed to get out more so I took Nathaniel and went to a local cafe so have a sandwich. We ate and laughed and I read. I finished my book and then we went grocery shopping. I am always so much happier when there is a lot of fruit in the fridge. When we got back, the kids ate again and Nathaniel was in his pre-bed funny mood.
I snuck a smile from David.
Nathaniel was lying on the floor and laughing and laughing.
And making these weird, funny shrieks.
And of course David joined in, he never misses a fun playing opportunity.
Then the kids had their baths and are now in bed. I did a few of my todos and rested a lot today. Now I am off to do some gratitude art and some layouts. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For: I cannot tell you how many times I’ve tried to do an art journal and for how long. Three-four years? I’ve done so many versions. All of which are half done. Just like a written journal,this is something I can’t seem to make a habit of. A month or so ago, I was in a really bummed mood and I said something about it on Facebook and the amazing Caroline of Maya Road sent me some Maya Road goodies in the mail to cheer me up (and cheer me up they did!) and just a few weeks ago my awesome friend Katie had also sent me a few things. So I dug into my stash of other MR stuff and since Caroline had sent me two awesome books with canvas and I religiously watch Donna’s amazing inspiration wednesdays, I decided this was all a sign to tackle this task again: I took the binder and pockets from this album and the canvas pages from this one. Since I love color lately and I am trying to choose joy I decided to focus my album on happiness and went hunting for quotes around happiness. I printed a bunch of them, painted my album and the pages in colorful colors and just had fun. For the cover, I painted it with teal fluid Golden acrylics. Then I put it back on. I attached a prima flower I’ve had for a long time and painted the letters with magenta and then covered them with stickles. A little tag with the year and it was done. I removed the rest of this cause this minibook is being published. Will bring it back in January
On the back, I put a reminder that I get to “choose” my days and to choose joy. And a little part of a doily.
I like the way the branch goes across my cover.
I originally painted the inside magenta. But then it felt too loud so I covered it with offwhite, seethrough cute tape I had so now it looks magenta but also a bit more interesting.
I painted the pages with Claudine’s paints, which I love. This quote says: “Some pursue happiness, others create it.”
“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things. ~Robert Brault”
“The greatest happiness you can have is knowing that you do not necessarily require happiness. ~William Saroyan”
“But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads? ~Albert Camus”
“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet. ~James Openheim”
“For happiness one needs security, but joy can spring like a flower even from the cliffs of despair. – Anne Morrow Lindbergh”
“The fact is always obvious much too late, but the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy a liquid. ~J.D. Salinger”
“You need to learn to be happy by nature, because you’ll seldom have the chance to be happy by circumstance. ~Lavetta Sue Wegman”
this one was for fun. i wanted it to look like two people were lying down, holding hands, looking up at the stars.
another just fun page with no quote.
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. ~Mahatma Gandhi”
“A sure way to lose happiness, I found, is to want it at the expense of everything else. – Bette Davis”
“Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length. ~Robert Frost”
“Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn’t know you left open. ~John Barrymore”
“Of all the things you wear, your expression is the most important. ~Janet Lane”
“Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. ~Marcel Proust”
a little detail.
I covered the inside here with tape, too.
and finally a top look:
I can’t believe I finally finished an art journal. Not your typical one but I love love love it and it sits on my desk and reminds me to choose joy every day! Thank you so much, Deb!
Nothing like nature to inspire and awe. This week felt like it went by too too fast. I have a bunch of items on my todo list but none of them are inspiring me all that much so I keep putting them off. But I feel guilty about it so I get nothing else done either. Great, eh? Happens sometimes. Nathaniel’s been really obsessed with shoes lately. Puts them on, takes them off.
my sunshine.
And eats them, too.
After we picked up David, he decided to play with Nathaniel by putting legos behind his back, inside his clothes.
And then they laughed.
And laughed.
And then came the hugs.
Love that they love each other. Love love love it.
And then Daddy came home and there was much much rejoicing. And playing with a box of goodies he got. They both sat in the tiny box and laughed and then cried and started having tantrums. Which meant it was time to eat and sleep. And me, I’m going to ignore my todo list, and read tonight. And then cuddle with my love. And then read more. Here’s to a good weekend. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For: Since I am a guest designer for My Mind’s Eye this month, I wanted to make sure to post a copy of each of my layouts here, too. These all use the amazing My Mind’s Eye products. This uses this month’s sketch.
Journaling Reads: Details:
When I first got the sketch, this is what I did with it.
Then I thought it was too blank and I added journaling and more stuff.
Journaling Reads: Details:
Then I still hated it and decided it wasn’t “me” so I did the one above. Which feels a lot more “me”!! 🙂
Journaling Reads: It has quickly become my favorite thing to photograph. I already have hundreds of pictures of the two of them hugging and I am pretty sure I will keep taking them for as long as they keep hugging. I come from a culture where people touch a lot. We hug each other, we hold hands, we kiss each other on the cheek. When I first moved to the United States, I was amazed at how little people touch each other and I still feel sad about that so it makes me extra happy to see my boys hug. It is proven that hugging makes you feel happy and watching them hug makes me happy, too. There are many downsides to having two kids instead of one. It’s a lot more work, the noise level is much higher and there’s the bickering. But watching them play together is a wonderful gift to me and watching them hug fills me with pure gratitude.
I have a ton of imperfect photos today. There’s a lot of movement in my house when the kids are both here and it’s hard to capture that in a photo. It means blurring and missing limbs. I rarely take photos like that. But today I decided it would be fun to just snap photos anyway. Here’s one with the boys wrestling and laughing.
Nathaniel riding the car.
More wrestling, pulling, laughing.
Tugging back and forth on the quilt Jake’s mom made for the kids.
And, me, I got my Kindle in the mail! So I immediately made a cover for it. Sick of seeing this fabric yet? Not me!
Nathaniel looking out the window longingly. He loves loves loves being outside.
And focusing hard on the legos. I love that he sits on the chair now.
And David with his new crane that he made all by himself.
This is us. This is what our days are like. Work, play, laugh, whirlwind. But most of all, joy. A lot of joy. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For: Out for pub. BAck in a bit.
Both Ways is the Way I Want It was on my list for this year and I decided this was a good time to pick it up. I was so wrong. This short story collection is full of terribly sad stories. I don’t usually read short story collections cause I don’t like them. They are too short and don’t give me enough time/space to get to know the characters or get into the story enough. And this was no exception. I wanted more for each story. Maybe that’s cause they were all so sad and I kept hoping for something happier, I don’t know. She’s a great writer. I loved her writing. I just wasn’t in the best place to read these sad, sad stories right now.
Today passed too quickly and I now have to rush to get to my book club on time so I am going to keep it short. The morning was same as always, taking david to the bus, nathaniel napping, me working etc. Then around midday Nathaniel and I went to work to meet some work mates for lunch. A few more his etc, and I was back home and it was time to pick up David. This is a common scene in my house. Both my kids, playing quietly. Love them.
And I grabbed a smile. this one just for me.
After some more work, I decided it was time to organize my albums. I had ordered a bunch in the last few weeks and they came in. So here they all are. Bad photo, apologies.
Black for David, Brown for Nathaniel, Red for me, Light blue for both kids together, Purple for misc., and Darker blue for Jake. That’s it. Love having them organized and marked. And I made a set for my side table too. This holds one of each for current layouts. So when I am done photographing it, it goes into one of these albums. When they fill up, I put them in the big pile and take out a new one. Easy peasy.
I had moments of stress today and I chose joy and it paid off in a big way. Choosing joy really works! Then I took the plunge and did something I was afraid of and that worked too! and then I got a wonderful email and that made me happy, too. And some more amazing emails that need time and focus for a reply (tomorrow, I promise!) so I’ve been busy but really grateful and really happy. My big recommendation today: take a chance. Put yourself out there. You never know when it works! Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For:
Catalyst One Hundred and Twenty is: what are you waiting for? Thoughts:
Happy Tuesday. I woke up exhausted thanks to my crazy brain and my inability to quiet it down. Little boy’s screams at 3am didn’t help much either but oh well. Such is life as a mama. We woke up and immediately turned the TV on to see this:
And just as David was complaining it wasn’t him, we also got some of this:
and he was so so excited. Screaming with joy. This was for Margie’s HSN show. And you can still buy the kit online. I made four layouts for her and I will show them over the next few weeks. But you can get two sneaks above. It was really quite a thrill to see my layouts on TV. Thank you, Margie, for the opportunity. Then we drove David to the bus and came back home and got to work. Nathaniel’s been putting the little lego hats on his fingers ever since he realized they are the perfect size. It’s so cute.
And now he’s able to reach some of the crackers in the pantry. So we have to constantly remember to keep the door closed.
Around 2pm, we drove up to David’s school cause I had a meeting with his teacher (I am the room parent for the class) and then we drove back home. Daddy showed up soon after and David was thrilled to spend some time putting his new legos together. (They came in the mail today.)
A little running around, some food, and many smiles (and tears) later we were ready for bed.
Nathaniel’s growing up so much lately. He loves playing with shoes and puts them on and off all day long. He also still loves tiny lego men. And the fabric ball. And he can now climb up on the couch next to me and get down by himself. He’s also louder and screams a bunch. Which I do not love, but I still adore him to bits. I’ve been really exhausted for days now and so I am very unproductive and feel tired and overwhelmed constantly. I am not sure what the cure is. I don’t seem to be able to sleep/rest enough. Thankfully, I don’t have huge deadlines but it’s still very annoying and I hope it passes soon. Three Things I’m Grateful For: Three Things David’s Grateful For: |
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