by oh amanda on June 30, 2009
Now that the fam isn’t visiting, VBS is over and I have a week of no responsibilities, I’ve been online a little more. And looking at stuff I want to look at just for fun. So, here’s a few gems I’ve found this week. These are the:
Top Ten Internet-ish Things I’m Excited About
1. MckLinky. OMG. A Mr. Linky alternative. I tweeted about how I wished someone would do this weeks ago. The internet-gods are listening! I’m using it today…let’s see how it works, ok? (Thanks Lisa!)
2. I caved. I finally started subscribing to SimpleMom. Well. It’s because I need some simplicity in my life. I have finally realized that housekeeping is not anywhere on my top ten gifts or talents. And I need some help. She has some clean-looking downloads. And I really agree with a lot of what she says. So, yeah, I’m a simplemom-ite.
3. Impress Your Kids. We’re re-launching IYK with it’s own domain next week! I’m so excited. I took an unintentional bloggy hiatus from it. And I’ve missed it! I’ve got some new ideas for it and I can’t wait to share them with you.
4. GoogleReader. I told you in my bloggy manifesto that I cleaned out my feedreader. Well, what I didn’t tell you is that I acutally had TWO feedreaders…a bloglines and a googlereader. Both filled to the brim. Now I’ve just been using GoogleReader. And I like it. If I finally figure it all out, I might do a tutorial on it because I looked everywhere online for one and couldn’t find one that really explained anything.
5. Survivor: The Blogosphere. My friend Sarah is having a blogging conference retreat in North Carolina. I just asked my sisterchicks if they’d like to go. It sounds so fun—blogging info (including great speakers like Maria Bailey), the mountains of NC and some spa action! Plus we’ve been talking about a sisterchick blog for awhile…whad’ya think?
6. Misty’s SENSEsational Swap! I haven’t done a swap in forever and when I saw Misty’s I had to join! It’s based on the five senses and it’s a family swap–meaning Lydia and I will make/find/buy stuff for another family. I think the swap is closed now, but you’ll want to head over to Misty‘s anyway–because she’s just lovely.
7. Pushing Daisies final three episodes are online! Well, only the final-final episode is on hulu or fancast. But you can buy them on itunes. We’ve already watched one of them. I tried not to cry too hard during it. It was delicious as usual. I think I’ll do a three episode recap after I’ve watched them all.
via applebed's flickr
8. MomTV I haven’t vlogged in forever. And now MomTV is up and I haven’t even done ONE thing with it. I’d love to do a live show. How fun would that be? Have you watched one yet? You can watch the speaker live, then chat while they are talking AND you can be live on your webcam, too. Cool, huh? I want to do one. Now, if only I could think of something worthwhile to talk about…
9. OK, fine. Impress Your Kids’ new domain. You can have a sneak peek…and subscribe to the feed.
10. Your Top Ten list for today. (see below!)
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OK, let’s see it! What’s YOUR Top Ten today? Post a list on your blog, link it up here on the MCKlinky and start commenting & visiting away!
by oh amanda on June 29, 2009
Yesterday we had lunch at a Chinese restaurant. While Lydia was eating her fried rice and sipping egg drop soup, she suddenly looked grown up to me. I don’t know if it was because her hair was cute or because she doesn’t need any help eating or because she literally got taller the night before. But she was just more grown up!
Les has been telling her that every time she grows up he is going to give her a spanking. She thinks it is hilarious. And she loves to announce to us, “I think I grew last night!”
Later that day she said was washing her hands and apparently felt taller because she said, “I think I grew up!” She stepped out of the bathroom and said, “Now I can be a Mommy!” And I wish you could have seen her face—she was so serious. As if nothing could be more exciting. As if that was her main goal in life. I said, “Lydia, you will be a great Mommy.” And she must have seen the wistfulness in my eyes because she looked at me seriously and said, “Mommy, will you be sad when I grow up?” I grabbed her in my arms and said, “Oh, Lydia! I will be happy and sad. There is nothing more exciting to me than seeing you grow up. But I’ll be sad because I can’t kiss your neck anymore.” And here I kissed her neck till she screamed with laughter.
Then she said, “But you can still kiss my neck! And I can live here. My daughters can live in my room. And, uhm…I can live downstairs.” She went on to discuss how it would be when she grew up and lived in my house. If only!
When I realized that my love for Lydia grew with her, I was no longer sad that she was growing up. In fact, I look forward to Lydia and Asa growing up because I know I will know and love them more than I do now. But every now and then I get a little glance of life without a sweet little girl reaching up to give me a kiss or pretend it’s my birthday by giving me her toys wrapped up in blankets. I’ll miss hearing, “Moooooommmmmmyyyy!” first think in the morning. And I’ll miss, “But why? WHY? Why, Mommy?”
But. I will get to sleep late. So, there is that.
by oh amanda on June 26, 2009
A review? A giveaway? What happened to your bloggy manifesto, Amanda? Well, I already had about 4 or 5 things to review sitting on my virtual desk when I wrote my manifesto. But regardless I would have accepted this book because I LOVE IT.
A few years ago I picked up Donita K Paul‘s first book, DragonSpell. It is a young adult Christian fantasy novel. Didn’t know those existed, did you? I read it because I wanted to find some books the older kids in our children’s ministry in Birmingham would like. Little did I know I’d be glued to every single page! It’s kind of a Lord of the Rings quest meets Harry Potter’s funny names meets Narnia’s Christian allegories.
The setting is an other world full of singing, healing, telepathic dragons. There are seven races of people–including dog-like, dwarf-like and elf-like. It would take me too long to explain but with names like emerlindians and trumanhofers you know it’s going to be fun!
So, when Donita K Paul’s new book, The Vanishing Sculptor came across my inbox, I was psyched stoked excited. This one is a stand-alone novel set several hundred years before the DragonSpell books. The official recap says,
Return to the world of the dragon keepers, where the fate of three missing statues will determine the fate of the world. Tipper, a young emerlindian woman, has been responsible for the upkeep of her family’s estate since her sculptor father disappeared several years ago. To make ends meet, she’s been forced to sell off the artwork he left behind. When at last her father returns, accompanied by two strangers from a distant land, Tipper discovers that her actions have unbalanced the foundation of her world, as well as her father’s life, and she must act quickly to undo the threat. But how can she save her father and the world on her own? The task is too huge for one person, so she gathers the help of some unlikely companions—including her guardian, the giant parrot Beccaroon, the wizard Fenworth, and his librarian Librettowit—and sets out on a quest, eventually witnessing the loving care and miraculous resources of Wulder.
I’m about 115 pages in. I’ve been reading it every day after VBS and keep wishing Asa wouldn’t crawl on my back so I could finish it! So, wanna read it? It’s so popular it’s not on PaperBackSwap.com. You might be able to hit up your local library, bookstore or amazon OR YOU COULD WIN IT HERE! For some reason I didn’t get a book to giveaway. BUT I contacted Waterbrook and hopefully they’ll send me a second copy. If not, you can still win my very gently read copy. Just leave me a comment here and I’ll pick a winner by Monday! (Don’t worry, I’ll have it finished by Monday!) Waterbook is sending Mary Carolyn her very own book! Congrats Mary-Carolyn! (Which means I’m keepin’ mine!)
by oh amanda on June 25, 2009
It’s day 4 of Vacation Bible School. The preschool kids are doing Crocodile Dock (you’ve probably seen the signs near you, it’s a popular one!) and the elementary aged kids are doing a Performing Arts Camp. At the Performing Arts Camp, they take classes like Prop Building, Guitar, Choir, Solo, Drama, etc. (There are some games and crafts in there, too.) Then on Friday night the kids present the play/musical that they’ve been working on for all the parents.
I’m just a Coach at the Performing Arts Camp. So, I hang out with a group of about 10 kids for all the large group activities. During classes, I am assisting my bff, Staci with “teaching” her classes: Drama, Sign Language and Cheerleading. I put teaching in quotes because half the time Staci and I are staring at each other with “what in the world should we do” expressions on our faces.
Drama is easy. We help the lead characters of the play learn their lines, deliver them with flair and block their scenes. In sign language, we’re teaching a group of kids signs for a particular song. (You know I’m a fan of signing!) But cheerleading. Oh, cheerleading. Not my forte. I took gymnastics back in the day. But cheerleading? No rah-rah-ing here!
So, we made up a cheer for the girls to do. And by “made up” I mean, MADE UP. And the girls think it is the absolute best thing they have ever done in their entire lives. They probably think we are professional cheerleading coaches. I kid you not. They do their cheers all the way down the hall at the top of their lungs. They want to practice more than we do. I’m telling you, they LOVE it!
Now all these classes are pretty fun. I’m hanging out with Staci for two hours, so no matter what we do, it’s gonna be fun. It’s the next hour or so that tests my sanity. I take my team (ten plus kids) to the playground and then to lunch. I guess I haven’t been around elementary school students for awhile. I think they are from another planet. Here’s just a little bit of what I’ve done the past four days:
I spent 15 minutes trying to explain that cheating is wrong. They did not believe me. They did not agree that “sharing answers” was wrong. At all. They refused to believe it and looked at me like I was an alien. I had to break up a playground-wide he-thinks-she-thinks-he-thinks-he-likes-her debacle.Which included banning the use of the girl’s name and the boy’s name in the same sentence. I have repeated myself more times than not. I have repeated myself more times than not.
Once as Staci and I were walking down the hall and every child in the building was running to their designated spot to wait for their Coach (running to wait…), I said, “Wouldn’t you love to see yourself at this age?” I would SO love to know how I behaved. I’m not trying to say they are all bad and disobedient. They aren’t. Most of them are sweet and having the time of their lives. But they are seriously like a completely other breed of human. Does Lydia really have to grow up to be 5th grade girl? Does Asa really have to be a sweaty 8 year old one day?
Oh, but my favorite confession of the day: “Noah told me to kick my friend, Paul. So, I did…but very lightly. And Paul whined about it!” My response, “The next time someone tells you to kick someone. Do not take their advice.”
I mean, really.
by oh amanda on June 24, 2009
August 1938
My great-great-grandmother wrote on the back of this picture. According to her they are in West Branch, Michigan. And the people are: Agda, Henry, Dara, Ed, Dad (my great-great-grandfather), Arvid, Uno (?), Melvin (?), Henry Jr. The questions marks are hers.
This is an interesting one to me. First of all, Agda. She’s the one sitting in the guy’s lap NOT looking at the camera. Based on what I know speculate about Agda, this is SO her! (You might want to catch up on all the Agda pics. They are…interesting.) If you look closely you can see how the focus is really crisp and clear on my great-great-grandfather and then blurry around the edges. I also like the little boy’s faces…no matter the time-period, boys will be boys! And the house is just full to me–the dark wood, the numbers on the top and what’s that on the right—flowerpots? Very interesting picture.
Do you have a retro photo to share? Post it on your blog and leave your link in the comments so we can all see!
by oh amanda on June 22, 2009
I used to work at a bridal shoe salon. That’s right I said SHOE salon. We had 100′s of styles of wedding shoes. Isn’t that fun? We also sold accessories like flower girl baskets, gloves and earrings. I guess I got bit by the wedding bug there because I ADORE wedding stuff. I could look through wedding sites and magazines for hours. I love traditional weddings. But what I really like is the twist on the old. I like weddings that showcase the couple and their unique-ness. So, here are a few of my
Top Ten Favorite Wedding Ideas and Traditions (or things that SHOULD be traditions)!
1. Bake Your Own Wedding Cake. This is the idea that inspired my Top Ten. You really need to read her whole post because you can hear the meaning behind it. But basically she baked her own wedding cake. Then, she and her husband served it to all of their guests. So, it doubled as the receiving line. Isn’t that great?
photo from faith durand
2. Serve Communion. Les and I had communion at our wedding. It was an act to show that we were honoring Jesus in our marriage. When a pastor friend of mine got married, instead of just he and his bride receiving communion, they served it to all the guests. They simply held the bread and the wine at the front of the church and everyone walked up to the front. It was moving and intimate!
photo by tanja lippert photography
3. Communion Chalice
At the aforementioned communion, the pastor encouraged the couple to take communion every year on their anniversary. This would be a time to renew their vows to each other and to God. But the fun twist is that the pastor gave the couple a beautiful goblet engraved with their names and wedding date. So, each year they can have communion with the same glass. This is my new gift for every family member that gets married. (Be forewarned, young-ish family members!)
4. Handkerchief
I always (always!) cry at weddings. When I worked at the shoe salon, we sold several lace handkerchiefs. One particular handkerchief came with directions to sew into a baby bonnet for the bride’s first child. As a mom, I can now imagine how sweet this would be! An heirloom to pass to my daughter—something from my wedding day and her newborn days…then she could use it on her wedding day. *sniff*
from kellen studios
5. Creative “Guestbooks”
There are too many great ideas…you know what? I think I’m going to do a Top Ten of this in a few weeks. But here’s my favorite right now…
photo from paperladyinvites flickr
6. Passing On…
I like anything you pass on to another bride. My grandmother gave me a bracelet (when I was quite young) that belonged to her. It had blue stones in it. (It may have been something she got at a garage sale. But as she was married to a millionaire for several years, I like to think it was worth something.) Anyway, I wore it in my wedding. I gave it to my cousin’s bride and I hope she passes it on to someone else in our family one day!
7. Mother’s Bouquet
I can’t remember where I heard this first but I LOVE IT. Instead of a boring wrist corsage, why not RECREATE the mothers’ wedding bouquets for them to carry down the aisle? Imagine their surprise when they are giving away their babies, to have a little glimpse back to their own wedding! How honored they would feel! (How can I suggest this when Lydia gets married without sounding self-serving?)
photo by twin lens llc. via stylemepretty.com
8. BLOG.
Obviously I am going to say this. But how cool would it be if you documented your entire wedding process? When you sent out your save-the-date cards, you could include the blog address and people could follow your journey! It would be like your own reality-tv show. Only on the web. And not so trashy.
9. Get a Good Photographer
Because these are my wedding pictures…
photo by nightmare photography
You can cry with me now. (See all epic failure pictures here.)
It’s hard for me to even look at wedding pictures now. Of course, if I could redo it, I’d spend every dime on the photographer. I scoured my new favorite wedding blog, Style Me Pretty and found so many beautiful pictures and photographers. I had to use them all in my post. Please click through and visit their sites. They’ll take your breath away!
10. Have Family Wear YOUR Colors.
My brother got married at Christmas-time. They had the family (those not in the wedding party) wear red and green. The family pictures turned out gorgeous! So even if your grandpa didn’t wear a tie (uhm, like mine!), then at least your wedding pictures will be color-coordinated.
photo by jonahtan canlas photography
OK. Are you lovin’ every bit of that?! Do you have any great traditions to add? What did you do at your wedding that was a little different or non-traditional? I wanna know!
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Now it’s your turn!
1. Write a Top Ten post on your blog.
2. Then copy the PERMALINK to your post in the Mr. Linky below.
3. Please link back to my Top Ten Tuesday post so others can join the fun.
4. Leave some comment love for the rest of the particpants!
Happy Tuesday!
