REVERB 10

Okay, so my dear friend, Elizabeth has been faithfully committed to participating in Reverb 10. Which in turn has caused me to reflect on the prompts as well. So, I thought I would participate too. Let's see how it goes. I am going to do a synopsis of the last 7 days that I have missed. Here it goes.

December 1 – One Word. Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you? (Author: Gwen Bell)

Whirlwind. That would be my word. I choose this word because it has gone by so fast and I can't believe it. So much happened, changed, and been revealed to me that I am not sure where time went.

For 2011, I would choose the word, bountiful. I want my year to be described as full. Full of love, family, challenges, blessings, time, positive energy. I realize that this might lead to chaos but even in the chaos I want to see beauty.

December 2 – Writing. What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it? (Author: Leo Babauta)

I stress myself out with time. I do not use time to its' best ability. I waste time when I shouldn't and I rush it when I should enjoy it. Can I change this? I think so. I think I can become better organized that the minor things in life don't become so overwhelming and take away time from me to enjoy writing again.

December 3 – Moment. Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors). (Author: Ali Edwards)

I am not into retreats. I feel like I have been there, done that, got a t shirt kinda thing about retreats. Not that they do not have merit. I just feel that personally I am somewhere different. I attended a retreat in April of this year and had a moment that I have yet to figure out. The weekend was great. I meet so many wonderful women and had a good time. It was the last morning and we sat in a circle, holding hands with the people next to us. I believe there was either music or a prayer going on or possibly both. I was holding my friend Nancy's hand. I could not focus. I kept hearing a voice, my voice saying, "Touch is healing...tell her that healing beings with touch." I know it sounds weird. I didn't hear this booming voice, I heard my own telling me that my new friend needed to hear those words. No idea why but I needed to tell her. Forget what was going on, prayer or no prayer. When we finally let go....I told my friend those words. And she knew what they meant. It was powerful. That day I learned that my voice (God's voice) speaks to me all the time but I often times put it on mute. Anyways this moment was big for me because I needed to be reminded that "my inner voice" is valid and I needed to give it more credit and listen more to it.

December 4 – Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year? (Author: Jeffrey Davis)-

I don't know if I can take complete credit for this. I am expecting and wonder has definitely been a part of my life since May of this year when I learned we were pregnant. Hearing a heartbeat that is not your own but within you causes wonder beyond belief. I am constantly in awe (& wonder) of this little person inside of me. And the fact that my body has adjusted to this little person, making room for her, her movement to sound (particularly her daddy's voice), this is just to name a few.

December 5 – Let Go. What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why? (Author: Alice Bradley)

I am still working on this. I think I am pretty good a letting go of things and people (which is scary) to begin with. I try not to hold on to too much.

December 6 – Make. What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it? (Author: Gretchen Rubin)

The last thing I made was hair bows. I made several hair bows for my nieces. I would like to learn to make little dresses......which is weird because I don't like dresses but I would like to make my little one a dress. I would also like to make some aprons, curtains, scarves, just tons of crafty project that I would give as gifts. But I definitely need more time.

December 7 – Community. Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2010? What community would you like to join, create or more deeply connect with in 2011? (Author: Cali Harris)

I mentioned early that I had attended a retreat back in April. Well, that is where I found community. Interestingly enough! These wonderful and amazing women have been such a support for me throughout my pregnancy. I did not expect that at all. They have been excited when I was terrified. They have showered me with love when I have been at rock bottom. They have shown me that even though they only met me in April that love knows no time constraint. You can truly love someone and have only begun to get to know them. I felt the loss of some sense of friendship this year and these women have lifted me up. They have surrounded me with such amazing love. They showed me that I am loved by so many people and that is where my focus should be not on my expectations of others.
I would like to continue with this church community and possibly become more involved in various opportunities offered through this community.

Hostess Gifts

So my friends hosted a shower for me and I made some hostess gifts. It was very simple and reasonable to make. Here are a few pictures of the final product.
I made Brown Sugar Scrub, tied cute ribbon I had, attached a bath scrubby, and made a label. Below you can read the label.I thought they turned out super cute and was something that could be used by my hostess. And I just noticed the typo....oh well lesson learned. Opps!

Without Further Ado....

Here is the finished product......
There are no baseboards yet. It is still a work in progress. But enough delay.

This is the entry way.



This is the view from the dining room.




This is the view in the living room.




This is the kitchen minus the frigde.


Okay. I know I could do a better job posting but I just thought I really just needed to get it done. Please excuse the mess in the background. But I do really love my floors and my casita.
A big thank you to my hubby for agreeing to take on the challenge and my father in law for jumping right in and making the dream of a wood floor come true.

A story

I started this post so long ago........and just wanted to share the story in pictures ....enjoy!

164 days of chaos = amazing floors

Okay, so April 29, 2010. I came home to this. My furniture was being moved to begin the tearing out of tile.


Everything had been moved and stored. And on April 30th I came home to this. The dust of tile being destroyed by my wonderful husband.

This was the beginning of the chaos. It was only suppose to take a few weeks. Little did we know how much work it really was.

From a pile of wood in the garage.

To a beautiful gym floor. Yes, it is an old gym floor that was pulled out and recycled. So the 3-point line and free throw lines are still on the floor. It is really neat to see. Excuse the awful pictures (this is all I had on my computer).

Below is the dining room. If you look carefully you can see the lines of the old floor.

This is my father-in-law finishing the last part of the floor. I really don't know what we would do without him. We are indebted to him for life. (This is not the only project he has taken on with us).

The floor has now been completely installed. It took 164 days from start to finish. One hundred sixty four days of moving furniture, tearing out of tile, laying of sub floors, pulling of old nails, and the unending work of installing these beautiful maple hardwood floors. One hundred sixty four days of chaos, chaos with an intent, a small idea and dream come true.

And in approximately in 12 days they will be refinished to a beautiful English chestnut color and will look amazing.

Keep posted for more photos of the finished product. I can't wait!!!

Alayna......

This is Alayna's first day to eat cereal....

Actually her first day was 2 weeks ago but I am finally posting it.

She is getting so big.....Just thought you would like to see her.



Here is the first time in a high chair......Not exactly a happy camper.


Here is the first spoonful of cereal......
What is this?
Noooooo! I don't want to!!
Let's give it another shot.....(after getting my bottle).
Hey, where are you going? This stuff is good.
What? A girl can change her mind.

Glasses......a Milestone Moment

So guess who joined the club of glass-wearing cuties? None other than my oldest niece, Katie. I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I visited her.


She is the type that is super quiet and doesn't say much but you could tell that she likes them. Which is great for kid to like something that makes you different.

Here are a few pictures of her in her glasses.


Doesn't she look like a big girl? And so much like her mama?