Arrgh! Madcap Maya the Fearless

Hiatus

Taking a break for a while. Be back when things lighten up! Until then, posts will be sporadic.

(source)

Easiest Ever

Because right now I need two things: Easy & Dessert! My kids wouldn't eat dinner tonight. Even after three separate attempts at three separate kid-friendly dinners. Dad is on a thesis film set all week, and Maya hates to eat for me (but Wes can always get her to eat like a champ). Somewhere around 8pm, right at bed time, I gave up and made these. They ate the entire first batch. Don't tell the authorities.

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1egg

Splash of Vanilla

Mix together until smooth.

Drop by small spoon fulls onto lined baking sheet. 

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

Let cool and enjoy!

Day Hike

Finn's had a cough. It's one of those croupy coughs that sounds like a circus seal. And since we have waaaay too much experience with that, we know that cold damp air is the best thing for Finn when his cough is honking and barking all over the place. Solution? Bundled up bambinos and a waterfall!

 

Solicitation

I barely escaped it as I was breezing into Fresh & Easy this afternoon: "Excuse me, do you care about the environment?" It took me a second to process the fact that the two women outside the store with hand painted cardboard signs were not in fact homeless, but gathering donations for what I assumed was a charitable cause. (Anyone still reading after that last judgmental sentence?) "Excuse me, MA'AM? Do you care about the environment??" Darnit, they were still trying to catch me with my conscience on the line. What they were pitching was just not working for me. Or should I say how they were pitching. There were a few things wrong with their approach. Not only were the women flanking the only entrance to the store (which I HATE, and it only makes me avert my eyes that much more, and walk that much faster past their home-made clip boards), but they were asking me the worst possible question they could ask. Do I care about the environment? Really? Somehow I was a little offended that they were even asking people that question. I was kind of afraid that if I did stop, they might produce photos of less fortunate doe-eyed children in foreign countries in need of my help. And then I would be tearing up too much write my signature clearly on the line.

But really, these people are probably promoting something totally legitimate and worth-while, right? Maybe even worthy of my attention and support. It's like any group of people with an agenda, no matter how well-meaning that agenda is. There is no way to avoid those who are promoting/sharing/offering/soliciting/selling their foundation/faith/experience/cause/product. And I admit sometimes I am a sucker for a good thing. But there's got to be a better sell, right? (Something other than the good ol' heart-string-tug standby.)

So I grabbed a cart, and forgot all about the environment as I started shopping for pudding packs. As I rounded the corner to the hard cheeses, I passed by a woman who had super short hair, like mine, only blond. She complimented my short hair in passing, which always goes over well with me. So I stopped, and we chatted for a while about things of great importance like hair color and blogging. And then she casually, almost as an aside, mentioned that she works for Arbonne, and something about samples. And in the back of my mind a little bell was going off, telling me that I might fall into some Arbonne demographic. But as soon as I hear the word "samples" something switches off and I'm on freebie auto pilot. And darnit, she was just so genuine and easy to talk to, and she couldn't believe I was 31, and I had already given her my blog address (Hi, Liz!), and we had that whole short hair thing going for us. (Not to mention she easily looked 10 years younger than her age, which admittedly intrigued me.) And before I knew it I was giving her MY e-mail address, when she hadn't even asked for it. So there you have it. Whether she was really at Fresh & Easy to shop for smoked gouda, I don't know. But we easily fell into a nice conversation, and her business happened to come up. And that is the right sell. The personal exchange. Sure, the foundation/faith/experience/cause/product may or may not always work for me in the end. But I still had a chance to tell someone a little about me, in return. And that blog address? If she does visit (Hi, Liz!), she's probably going to get a healthy dose of who I am and what I am all about, as well (did I mention I sell on Etsy). Win win.

As I left the store, I sauntered obviously and slowly out of the sliding doors. "Excuse me, ma'am. Do you care about the environment?" And I swear I wanted to say, "No. No I don't!" just to see the look on their faces. Come on. Of COURSE I care about the environment. I just spent my allotted quarterly cosmetic allowance on all-natural and organic beauty products. Too bad I didn't run into an Arbonne consultant at CVS first...

Happy Heart Day!

Leave Nothing Behind But Goodness

 

 

 

Movies for a Lovely Day

True, I'm not that into Valentines Day, but I do love a good love story!
Here are my picks for a good flick to watch with your honey, or on your own:

Sweetheart:

Be still my heart:

Rip your heart out:

 

Wrapping up Supermom Series 3 with Catherine's Resolutions!

I want to thank all of the Supermoms from this series!! I loved the range of women, and reading all of their resolutions. I'm wrapping things up with on of my favorite bloggers, a single mom and author, Catherine, of WonderBookPress:

Her posts often crack me up (see HERE), and her sense of humor and timing didn't fail to make their way into my three questions:

What is one thing you plan to do, in 2011 to:

• Be a better mom

• Be a better wife

• Be a better self

Catherine and darling daughter Claire

The one thing I plan to do in 2011 to be a better mum?

One word.  Electronics. 

I need to impose stricter guidelines on Claire's time with those crazy computer video games.  Poptropica has become a mini major obsession with her. I can tell she is in a trance when her eyes glaze over and she mumbles things like 'in a minute...or...sure thing mum..." She's better than most 12 year old boys (and she's only 7).  I think it has to do with the fact that I teach piano every day for 3 hours and can't really intervene with a game of weather bingo.

But, that is my one thing I plan to do. 2 hour limit on the computer per day. Period. No if's ands or but's (even if she does negotiate like a clever defense attorney from Texas).

How to be a better wife in 2011?

I like to pretend I'm married to Javier Bardem. He really loves it when I cuddle him and tell him he's hot in Spanish. I'm going to do more of that.

(I've included a photo of us on our last vacation...he surprised me with a trip to Bali....he's so funny.)

And of course....how to be a better self in 2011?

Try to minimize my time in fantasy...

Supermom Series 3: Making Resolutions with Molly

Welcome to Molly from My Favorite Things! Have you discovered My Favorite Things yet? If not, skip on over for a new delight once you're done reading Molly's answers. She has such a fun, fresh take on things! And I am excited that she is with us today to answer my Supermom questions:

What is one thing you plan to do in 2011 to:

• Be a better mom

• Be a better wife

• Be a better self 

TO BE A BETTER MOM: I started off 2010 as a mom of two boys. At the end of 2010, I became a mom to three. 2011 will be my first full year to mother three rambunctious, crazy wild and often tender little guys. Sometimes I have to catch my breath when I realize the awesome responsibility that is mine. Most nights I go to sleep with the resolve to do better. Be better. To speak kinder. To take more time. Summon more patience. Give more love. Most of the time I feel inadequate. I want to be everything they need me to be. I want them to feel in their soul that I love them from the deepest most sacred part of me. And so it is the little things I will focus on this year. Ten more minutes of light saber battles. A few more minutes of snuggling before bedtime. One more book. Five more minutes of playing tag or tossing the football. I want them to know they come first. Before laundry. Before my blog. Before making the bed. They are woven into the very essence of who I am. And I want them to feel that.

TO BE A BETTER WIFE: To love deeper. To adore. To admire. To support. We have been married for 8.5 years. I know my husband "knows" I love him. But I want my man to feel it. To feel it in the way I look at him, even in the midst of chaos. To feel it in the way I don't complain if he is 20 minutes late. To feel it in the way I dress just for him. To feel it in my gaze. My hugs and my kisses. I want him to know we can weather any storm together. Tackle any obstacle. And enjoy the sunshine after the rain. My goal this year as a wife is to love my husband unconditionally. Truly. I promise to bite my tongue. To criticize less. The little things make me blow up and I refuse to let that define me. My husband is a rockstar and should be treated accordingly.

TO BE A BETTER SELF: Be Molly. Sounds funny, yes? I want to be comfortable in my skin. Not compare. Not judge. But look in the mirror and honestly be happy with being me. Embrace the fact that I am a bit OCD when it comes to organization. To admit that I love Harry Potter. Have an addiction to hot chocolate. And be okay that I let my middle son eat waffles for every meal. I refuse to shop at Walmart and I have a love affair with Target. I might have a slight obsession with eyebrows and an over abundance of latte bowls. I hate clutter. I've been known to take a bubble bath in the middle of the day and eat a charms heart lolly pop for my treat at night. I love sweets and have a hard time eating my greens. And that is why I am also making it a point to take my vitamins this year too.

So true

This photo is taken from my friend Emily's blog, over HERE. And it's totally cracking me up!

Supermom Series 3: Making Resolutions with Melanie

Melanie and Robby have been friends of ours for a loooong time. In fact, my husband and Robby go way back (as in boyhood years). Melanie is one of the most genuine people I know. She has endured a lot in her young life, yet keeps such perspective and honesty. Not to mention they have the best Halloween costumes every year! I am so happy to have Melanie with us today answering my Supermom questions:

What is one thing you plan to do in 2011 to:

• Be a better mom

• Be a better wife

• Be a better self

Gotta love Halloween 2010 (wish you could see the eye makeup):

One thing I plan to do to be a better mom is spending more time with my daughter Gracie. We have big plans for this year, and I want to make a conscious effort to remember to do fun things with Gracie instead of just manage the fun things she does by herself. She is very good at playing by herself and keeping herself entertained which makes me think she doesn't need me to play with her because she's content. But I know she still needs my positive attention and I hope to give her more of that this year.

One thing I plan to do to be a better wife is to go out of my way to do something nice for Robby every day. I'm blessed with a wonderful marriage, and hard working husband, and I'd like to try and remember to show my appreciation by doing something for Robby that I know would make him happy. It can be anything from leaving him a note, to a back massage. I'm just going to remember to pick a time during the day to specify what it will be.

One thing I plan to do to be a better self is to keep a journal that will document my emotions and frustrations, and will also double as a gratitude journal. I deal with depression and I also have some bi-polar tendencies, and I've been taking medication for these issues for 10 years. Starting this year, I'm tapering off my bi-polar medication. I've just started this process but I can already tell it's going to be hard. So to keep myself from getting frustrated with this decision, I want to keep a journal specifically for how I'm feeling, then follow each entry with 5 things I'm grateful for just to keep perspective. I think this journal will be good not just for my medication adjustments but also through other big life changes that threaten to ovewhelm me.

The Light in the Middle of the Tunnel

Wes was recently recounting his past trips to Iceland. He marveled at the roads and methods of travel throughout the country. He described immense tunnels, boring miles into the earth, through the great mountains of untamed landscapes. Traveling through the belly of those sleeping giants was often long and lonely. Interspersed with lights to guide a driver through the quiet depths, there was no seeing the light at the end for a very long while, sometimes 30+ minutes at a time.

I tried to imagine what it might feel like to be planted surely in the middle of one of those tunnels, with no end in literal sight. Claustrophobic? Probably. Anxiety? Definitely! But Wes related the experience with only wonder and even respect. He marveled at the sheer ability to carve out a great path through the landscape, unseen by the outside world. I asked how he was able to travel through the black distance and still feel safe on those two-lane roads. "Oh, there are lights every so often." "How often?" I asked, a little doubtful. "You have to rely a lot on headlights." But then sure enough, just when it started feeling just a little too dark, another light in the tunnel would appear overhead.

 I'm in one of those tunnels right now. I don't think I'm the only one. And like a lot of our tunnels, it's not always apparent to the outside world. Still, we're motoring right along, a destination in mind, but not yet in sight. Actually, in our case we chose to drive into the tunnel. Anticipated it, even. We planned the trip, mapped it out as best we could, and headed out, realizing it might not be clear along the way. But we trusted, just the same.

So what do we do when we can't see the light at the end of the tunnel? Our own headlights are only going to get us part of the way there. We need the light in the middle of the tunnel.

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints we have these things called The Articles of Faith. There are 13 of them. And while I am far from knowing them by heart, parts of them often pop into my head, especially mid-tunnel. Right now it's the last article, lucky #13:

"We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul—We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things." 


I think it's the "we hope all things" that keeps persisting. Faith and hope are part of the same whole, are they not?  Faith is to hope for things which are not seen, but which are true. And it's what makes it possible to do the endurance part of that article of faith. Sure, I might be able to make it through the tunnel without the light. But it would take me an awfully long time. I might come out the other end altered, and not for the better. Or I might succumb to despair within the tunnel. Or worse yet, turn back, abandoning and resenting the journey. I unabashedly need the light. It reminds me of THIS hymn:

 The Lord is my light;

He is my joy and my song.
By day and by night he leads,
He leads me along.

I still have a stretch of tunnel ahead of me. I don't know how much more is left. I can't see the mouth ahead, but soon the pinprick of light will start to wink at us. I know this because I hope it—I have faith in it. And while I am waiting, I'll remember that I still have a light with me in the tunnel overhead. And it won't let me down.

 

A similar tunnel in Norway, taken on a 13 second exposure.  

original source: National Geographic

"And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."