To You From Us

Gotta love the inspiration you can find on Pinterest! 

Here is a Valentine for you from Jake.......

And Mal!

Cutest darn things I have ever seen! 

HAPPY V-DAY! 

GUESS WHAT I MADE?!

I love Pinterest! Have I told you that lately? Well, I do! 

The other day we had a party in the Lindstrom Fam and I was in charge of a treat! I started to look through some of the things I had "pinned" to my "Yum" board and found a picture of these. So, I jotted down a quick grocery list (large & small marshmallows, green, red, blue & yellow sprinkles & food coloring, green & red jelly beans, black licorice pieces, black frosting & orange jellies) and headed to the store! 

Look what I created.......

In the Lindstrom Fam there is way more than one fan of the Angry Birds! These were a hit! 

And to really seal the deal, I cracked out a few of these......

Minions Cupcakes! Again from a picture on Pinterest! 

I used the left over licorice pieces for hair, black frosting for the eyes & smarties for the glasses, and half of a twinkie and some blue frosting for the base! How fun is that?! 

Man alive were they ever fun....and surprisingly easy, to make! 

FAMILY YAHTZEE! Super Fun Christmas Gift Idea!

Can you believe that it is time to start really thinking about Christmas?! Where does the time go?!

As I was thinking about the gifts I would be giving this year it made me think of one of the favorites we gave last year. It was SO fun to make them and SO fun to see the reactions of those we gave them to! This was actually SUPER easy to make and totally easy on the wallet! I mean, I would say they were under $5 each! I made 10 or so! If you are looking for something super fun and original, you should totally try these out!

FAMILY YAHTZEE

This was the version we gave to Jake & Mallory. We called it "Daw-tzee". How fun is that?!

You will have to pardon the box on this set. I was on the tail end of paper and the front got a little scrappy.

Let me give you the break down......

My friend Maryon grabbed us a couple of lengths of 2x2 boards.

Technically, they measure 1 1/2x1 1/2. They were about 8 feet long. You can get a LOT of blocks out of one of those puppies and each board was like $1 - $2! Awesome!

Now for the cutting......

MyR's hubby has a fabulous saw that he agreed to let us use. Brave Man!

MyR first measured and drew lines every 1 1/2 inches for the length of the board. Once that was done, it was time to start cutting.

Now, if we only knew where the ON button was for this thing!

HAHAHA! We found it! After a little searching and then trying to push the handle down to see if we were missing something, we found out that THAT was the key to turning it on. The saw RIPPED into action!

See that look on MyR's face?

The only reason why I even got this pictures was because I was holding my camera up to be ready for the first cut. When that baby screamed into action, I jumped so stinking high! My finger hit the button and CLICK! I caught a picture of MyR that will FOREVER make me shake with laughter! I think it kind of freaked her out! Hahaha! Look at her neck! Oh my! LOVE IT!

Once we had it figured out, we cracked right through the boards. At the end we had over 100 blocks cut! SHEESH!

Just a note...When you get to the last couple squares of a board....SKIP THEM! Just toss the remainder! We tried to use every inch of that board and when we tried to cut the very last part something crazy happened and a block launched out of the saw and across the garage. I am SO glad no one was in the way. Perhaps all of this is why MyR's hubby was a little nervous about us using the tools! :)

After the blocks were cut, it was time for sanding. We held up a circular sander and held the on button while holding the blocks to the paper. It made quick work of each block. However, by the end, our hands were numb from all the shaking and our minds were jello from the tedious-ness of it all! :) Next time I don't think we will try to tackle so much all at one time! :)

After the sanding the blocks were painted, paper modge-podged on & picture applied, I modged podged the whole thing to give is a finished look.

As for the pictures, there are 6 pictures on each one of the blocks/dice. Find the pictures you want, add the numbers 1-6 to the bottom of each of the pictures & shrink to 1 inch. Maryon used Microsoft Publisher to do this. It worked perfectly. I have also done the same with the Microsoft Photo editor since then. You will have to know how many pixels are in an inch, and maybe do a little experimenting.

Maryon packed the pictures (5 copies of each picture, 1 for each of the dice) into a 4x6 size photo (fits 24 pictures each) then uploaded them to the nearest photo store and had them printed. 54 cents for every 24 pictures....Great!

We used a corner rounder on our pictures and the paper underneath, just helped to clean them up a bit!

For the boxes, I picked up a few unfinished wood jewelry boxes at the craft store. I painted them and modge-podged paper to match the dice. Then I made a title image for the game that included all the pictures on the dice. I modge podged this to the top and then gave it all a couple more coats to seal it.

The boxes were $3 each. Maryon found a lot of tins, the perfect size for the dice to fit in, at a thrift store for like 50 cents each! She spray painted them and they turned out awesome! Do whatever works for you!

Then we made the scorecard. It matches a "Yahtzee" scorecard almost exactly. The rules are all the same. The dice are just a bit bigger and a whole lot more fun! :)

When I printed the cards I chose the option of printing 4 per page. I cut them into individual small sheets that would fit in the box. Then after I gave the gift I emailed a copy of the file I had made with the specific scorecard so that they could print extras, as needed.

Really, such a fun gift to give and receive! We did a Grand kids set for my in-laws. 5 of their children had children at the time. Each little family had a side and the 6th side went to a picture of Grandma & Grandpa. I think I called the set, "Lindstrom Grands Yahtzee" or something like that. Another set was for my parents. They have 7 kids. We put a family picture for each of the children and their families. The last 2 kids aren't married yet, so we put a picture of them together on the last side. We also did individual families and found fun pictures of each family member or different combinations of family members. I did a set for my younger sister. A picture of each of her closest friends on each side.

Gathering the pictures can be the hardest part. I emailed and asked siblings, for the gifts for parents, and used a lot of Facebook or blog pictures. Thank goodness for those.

If you are interested in making this fun game and you have any questions, please let me know! I will totally help you! Your friends and family will LOVE these! The only problem we have now is finding a way to top this! :)

THE "MOTHER BOARD"

Why the "Motherboard"?

It wins the title for two reasons:

1) It is the centeral place for all the things that keep this house running orderly, as far as the maintenance goes. It is the reminder, to each person in the household, of the responsibilities each person has in the home each day!  

2) The Mother is generally the one that is pushing for the cleaning and jobs to be done. This wall does it for you! NO MORE "NAGGING"! I mean really. What an ugly word! Wouldn't it be great to have everything get done, but still keep that label far from you! I think YES! :)

So, here is THE wall. Right below the Family Home Evening board is where the job wheels with Mom & Dad's responsibilities should go. As it is, they are missing, but you get the general idea.

I believe that a job chart, that is effective, helps teach kids to be self sufficient. Isn't that what we are ultimately trying to teach?! I mean, the clean house is great, but having kids that can govern themselves when they are older is FABULOUS! :)

About Job Charts:

Make it fun! If they are simply checking a box, it won't be nearly as successful. The jobs aren't fun, but the feeling of accomplishment and being able to see that IS!

I made these job charts 1 year ago. They just kinda popped into my head. My kids have successfully done their jobs almost every single week since then! Our friend came over and his kids were begging him to get them a job chart like them, swearing up and down they would do their jobs if they had a job chart like this! I do have to admit....they make it SO much more fun! Plus, they are just over 3' x 3'. They DEMAND attention! :)

Let me give you the run down....

This is Jake's chart. He wanted to help with the quotes on the bat, bag, etc. It was fun to let him have a bit of input.

The baseball theme followed the theme that popped into my head, "Pitch in and Help". I also wanted to make sure that there was a lot going on so it was more interesting, but easy to follow. Everything is made out of cardstock from Stampin Up, other than the canvas material for the bag.

Feel free to click on any of the pictures to get a closer look.

The yellow boxes across the top have a baseball with the day of the week on it. Each week starts with Sunday and ends on Payday...Saturday.

The rows across the bottom and on the far right are reserved for "Bonus" jobs. These are the paid jobs. All of the the other jobs are known as "responsibilities". They must ALL be done on the right day in order to be paid. 

Jake's "RESPONSIBILITIES" are:

Morning & Bed time responsibilities: which are listed here by the side of the chart. Jake has asked me to re-do these lists with 2 boxes by the side of each with a picture of a peanut (you know, because of peanuts and crackerjacks) in it so he can move it from one column to the next as he finishes each of the items to make sure he gets them all. In order to remove these two balls he has to complete everything on the list.

Act of Kindness: Each day the kids complete an act of kindness for either someone in our family or at school. This has been one of the greatest additions to a job chart! Jake and Mal make each other's bed's, get each other breakfast, or play a game with each other. Teachers are helped at school, help is given to friends, etc. One day Jake was especially helpful and sweet all day long. That also counted. An attitude of love can also be considered an act of kindness. We encourage them to pray for Heavenly Father to help them see the needs of others around them so they can help where they can. Just trying to develop good habits.

Scouts: During the summer this is an everyday thing. He either works on a project or passes off a goal. Last year after his summer break from scouts he returned to receive his Bear and a whole load of other awards. I have never seen a kid so excited! He worked hard!

Journal: This is a job that is only on Sunday. It takes the place of the household chores that need to be done, since it's Sunday and all.

Household Chores: These include Vacuuming, Yard Work, Laundry (whites one day, colors another), Mop, Vacuum Stairs. These are not paid jobs. These are just the everyday responsibilities. During the school year I remove them all from the chart, except for laundry.

When the "responsibility" is done, he takes it off the grid and puts it in the bag.

Then there are the bonus jobs:

• Mow Lawn
• Yard Work
• Wash Car
• Baseboards Upstairs
• Baseboards Downstairs
• Vacuum
• Mop
• Act of Kindness - FREE (for Sunday)
• Clean out pond
• Downstairs bathroom
• Kids bathroom
• etc.

Each ball has a picture of the job to be done and the amount to be paid for the job on it.

The bonus jobs have to be done on the day they are listed under, or before, in order to be paid for them. The jobs in the far right column can be done at anytime. We try to encourage him not to save them all until Saturday. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. It's totally up to him.

The paid jobs are placed on the Mitt. Each Saturday all of the jobs on the Mitt are added up and we pay him. During the summer he makes about $12.50 per week. During the school year it is closer to $5 because the yard work jobs are gone, plus others, to leave more time for school & family stuff.

If he didn't get the job done on the right day or at all, we just remove it from the chart and put it in the bag.

Each day, once all of the jobs are completed, he moves the ball with the day of the week on it, up to the bat. This let's him know that he did everything for the day! Kind of a big check off the list!

Now for Mallory.....

She is only 4. Her jobs are a bit different. And she is a girl, so she gets a cutsie girlie chart! I love it!

This pot is actually the first thing that popped into my mind when I started inventing charts for them. It was SO fun to see it come together! It is so cute and SO fun!

Mally's grid is full of backward flower pedals. On the back of each pedal is a picture of the job that needs to be done.

Each yellow circle at the top represents the day of the week. This will be the center of the flower. As she finishes her responsibilites she attaches the pedal to the back of the "day circle" and puts it back on the chart.

Mallory's Responsibilities:

• Say Prayers
• Scriptures (she usually watches a "Living Scripture" video and we do the fun little quiz at the end. She LOVES that!)
• Get Dressed & Do Hair
• Brush Teeth
• Make Bed

Then she has her Act of Kindness....that one is on the little green leaf that goes on the stem of the flower.

Mallory's Bonus Jobs:

• Free Act of Kindness (Sunday)
• Dump Garbages
• Help with Dishes
• Yardwork
• Help with Laundry (sorting and loading)
• Organize Toys
• Help in the Garden

These are the cute little Lady bugs at the bottom of the chart.

Once all of the jobs are finished for the day, Mallory puts her newly made flower on the top of a stem in the flower pot. The leaf, for her act of kindness, goes on the stem. Then the ladybug for her paid job get's it's place to crawl around on the pot, until Saturday when the earned amount is added up and paid out.

Mal makes $1.50 per week.

In order to make this successful you MUST pay every Saturday. We have gotten behind a week here or there, but I totally see the difference in the kids' motivation the next week. It is always great for them to see the reward for their work. If we are consistent in pay, they are consistent in working.

We, thanks to Dave Ramsey, don't give "Allowance". He firmly disapproves of it. It encourages a sense of entitlement. Instead, give little jobs and pay what you can. Call it commission. The kids will understand the importance of working hard for what they want.

We have also learned that by paying our kids we get to teach them vital lessons in money management. Both of the kids pay tithing (10%) on everything they make. They know that everything we receive comes as a blessing from the Lord, so by donating 10%, as the Lord has commanded, according to our faith, they are able to feel the blessings of obedience and understand the concept of charity. Also, we are able to help them understand the need to save money for college, cars, etc. and we teach them to avoid debt like the plague.

Oh did we ever get a lecture when we bought our last vehicle a few years ago. We did not pay cash! :) He was a bit disappointed! We have taught him that taking on debt limits options and choices you can make. Ry and I learned that first hand years ago. We are both glad that we can teach our kids to make better choices than we did! :)

So, add to that wall 2 job wheels that have the day of the week around the top, a triangle cut in to show the job to be done on that day for Ryan and I. The wheel is turned to the next day when the job is complete and you have one full MOTHERBOARD! You are happy because you don't have to "Nag" to get things done, everyone knows what is needed, they never have to ask, and you have kids that are getting a good lesson in Governing themselves!

VIOLA! It doesn't get any better than that! :)

The perfect "MOTHERBOARD" for smaller spaces!

My kids start school next week....FINALLY! Not because I want their sweet little mugs gone from my side, but ORDER! I want ORDER at my side...desperately.

This Summer will easily go down as one of the most fun and most relaxed Summers of all time. We had so much fun in our trailer....in fact, so much I can't bear the thought of leaving it for the Winter. Another battle for another day. A day when I decide to go looking for another option. For now...I AM FIGHTING IT!

So you all know about my MOTHERBOARD right?! Needless to say, the darling things didn't fit on the walls of the ole RV. BUMMER! My kids went chore-less for a Summer...DOUBLE BUMMER! Really, I can see the difference in the little turkeys. Not just the excessive messiness, but also in the attitude a bit. Work is good for kids...and don't let them tell you any different! :) Hahaha!

So, today I begin work on these lovely beauties. My friend Michelle, a woman of MUCH talent (I want to be her when I grow up), the mother of the wise Stockton that made the statement "I would rather have a small house and a big life, than a big house and a small life", is the maker of such fine ideas. I love them! I love that they are way functional and take up a very small amount of space even more! Check them out.....

Ladies and GentlemAn (for my one male reader) the job clipboards......

How is that for combining a Family Home Evening and Chore Chart for the whole family, all into one little clip board! I told you she is amazing!

A pocket for each person. An interchangable tag for each job!

I LOVE those cute little clothes pins!

As a reminder , a little something to think about while grumbling about the jobs mom "MAKES" you do.

And of course embellishments to make Mom happy!

I can't wait to get mine done! The kids can wait....but who asked them?! :)

Next week Mallory is my buddy for half days. She starts her first year of "real" preschool this year. The next week she continues in the afternoon with her Developmental Preschool. The one she has been in for 2 years. The one where her therapists and teachers can't get enough of her. The one where SHE rules the school! Morning Preschool, then afternoon monarchy!

Which leaves me to RULE the house/trailer/whatever is next. Yes my friends...I will be on my own Mon-Fri from 8am - almost 3pm. YIKES! What shall I do with myself?!

Are you Pinterest-ed?

Have you hear of Pinterest yet? Maybe you have heard people mention it here and there and you have said to yourself, as I used to, "There is NO way I am getting involved in ANOTHER social networking/time waster/addiction". Believe me! I was there! SO THERE!

And then I checked it out!

Here is the deal. There have been a million different things that I have seen online, websites or blogs, that I have LOVED and sworn I would remember to come back for. But I don't. I forget. There is a lot on my mind. Then menu planning or party time comes a long and I am blank! Not one little thing running through my brain! Where are all those good ideas. I can't remember!

I kid you not, a couple of days before I caved and looked into Pinterest I was trying to come up with some way to print, but not print because it would take to much ink, or save, but somehow organize ideas, to my computer. Anything! I needed to find a way to remember some of these things.

My friend Courtney,  is the one who finally got me to surrender to Facebook, and I am glad I did. Really glad. {I love running in to friends that I haven't seen for years and we are already caught up on each others lives, because of FB, then just talking like we have talked everyday for the last few years! LOVE that!} Well I have seen her talk all about her love for Pinterest and one day, after a taunt from me about it, I got an invite to join from her. I let it sit for days in my inbox. Then, I got curious. I checked it out.

It only took about 10 min before I knew my way around....that is a big plus! Then, within 11 minutes, I was TOTALLY IN LOVE!

The Concept: Picture a filing cabinet full of files where you keep ideas. Crafts. Recipes. Organization. Inspiring Quotes. Lists of books you want to read. I could go on and on! Whatever you want, whatever you are interested in. Well, that is Pinterest. You create "boards" which would be like your files. Then, as you see things online that you like, you click a little button on your browser that says, "Pin It", select the picture that you like, select the board you want to put it on and click "Pin It". DONE! It is saved! Now, lets say you saved a recipe. A party is coming up and you are looking for something delish to make. Open up Pinterest. Click on your recipe board. Click on the picture of the item you want to make. In the upper right hand corner there will be a link back to the original website with the instructions! SIMPLE!

You can also "follow" boards that have been created by other people. Either your friends on Facebook, friends from your email, or people that you notice have the same tastes you have.

It is GENIUS!

I have to say that I felt for a long time that I was losing my creative drive. I just didn't feel inspired. Kind of a bummer, with our new house around the corner. Now....I mean, I can't wait to get in that house and get going! I have saved color palettes, crafts, room decor ideas, yard ideas, etc. I feel totally inspired! I love seeing others ideas and then putting my own twist on it!

For dinner, I just made my entire menu from recipes I have found online! All saved on my "YUM" board. I have also found tons of fun ideas for family parties, pot luck get togethers, etc. Don't even get me started on Holiday decor and food ideas! Oh my! I am so excited!

To be honest, I had a hard time dragging myself away from it the first day....ok, and maybe the second! :) I felt like I was going to miss something totally amazing if I wasn't there. I had to set rules. I check once per day, sometimes twice, if I don't have anything else going. I only pin the things that I would do or things that inspire ideas that I would actually like to do. AND, I have learned that it is good to only follow the boards that you are interested in.

When you log in you will be on a page that shows all of the boards you follow. You can scroll through all of the recent pinnings. "Repin" the things you want on your boards. If you notice that there is a lot of room on your page being taken up by things that just don't interest you, go to that persons profile and unfollow that particular board. Easy!

Alright, are you sold yet? You will love it! I promise! I will say that you MUST click on "account" in the top right corner and then select "help". It will take you about 10 minutes to go through all of this. They are fabulous about walking you through everything so you have a really good understanding. I did that and then I totally took off! It was easy!

If you want to try it send me an email at yourlifeuncommon@gmail.com. You have to have an invite to join. If you "request and invite" from them, it could take weeks before you get one, because of the volume of new people joining. I will send you an invite and you can get going right away! :)

WOO HOO!

HAPPY PINNING!

"The Dreamstepper"

I have a ridiculously creative sister in law. Her creativity knows no bounds and always seems to leave me shaking my head in wonder! She is amazing!

So, my Mom, as I have mentioned before is a book lover. L.O.V.E.R. She also happens to have a birthday, as most do. Hers was January 29th. A few weeks before her B-day my sister in law sent out an email to everyone requesting a picture from each of our kids to add to a book she was making to my Mom. The idea behind this......

Grandma (my Mom) falls into a deep sleep after a long and exhausting day of librarian work. She then starts into a very peculiar dream. She is climbing a huge pile of books. With each step she steps into the plot of the book she steps on. Each step or plot idea is represented by each grandchild and a picture they drew showing Grandma involved in the story.

We all sent in our pictures. The kids were really excited about the task. They got pretty creative. There were pictures of Grandma painting a self portrait, Grandma shooting the winning goal at a REAL Soccer game, Grandma swishing her hips down an Italian fashion show runway and more. My sister in law used Snapfish to have the pictures printed into a hard cover book.

Oh I wish you could have seen my Mom's reaction! Page by page her smile and excitement grew. The older kids included their own narration. This is my Jake's, for example. He couldn't narrow it down between Backyardigans and Light Saber Duels, so why not both?!

For the little kids, Abby provided some fun narration to tie the story together. This was my Mallory's. Abby's text was: (from the previous page) "she took another step and...." (Mally's Page) "Was eating scrumptious pink cupcakes. But a crazy side effect was that Mallory and Grandma turned a beautiful rosey color. Grandma hesitantly took a stepped on the next book and was instantly....." and she is whisked off into the next book! How fun is that?! This is Mallory's picture (first people she has ever drawn, by the way).

The book ended with Grandma enjoying the experience of being a "Dreamstepper" but saying that she would much rather enjoy hiking through her wonderful life with the people she loved. The last 2 pages were a spread of pictures of each of the kids, the illustrators and co-authors of the book. Priceless!

I wanted to share this with you because I thought it was such a fabulous gift idea! Honestly, I would say that it is one of, if not her absolute favorite gift ever!

I do LOVE a good heartfelt gift!

Guest Post by Courtney@VintageGingerPeaches.com: TURNING CANTS INTO CANS

...and dreams into plans.

I guess that's what I'm all about! Hello, my name is Courtney and I'm blogging-in for Amy today! I'm here to get your creative juices flowing!

I blog over at Vintage Ginger Peaches, a blog I share with my 2 sisters (and soon we hope to have another few contributers, so stay tuned). Our "thing" over there is trying to inspire people to be creative... to DO something... to TRY something... we think that everyone has creativity inside them and it takes experimentation to find out what your THING is.

And it's important to have a creative outlet, don't you think? Between the 3 of us, we've done a lot of stuff and we share our knowledge, or misadventures, with you!

Recently, we sewed, styled, photographed, and photoshopped our way through Halloween:

 As soon as we saw Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, we knew...

 ...what our next big project would be. We've been out of control for Halloween before :)

 You can see past years, as well as more of this year on our costuming page.

 If you're a fan of Wicked (the musical), you'll for sure want to head over!

How about a few more randoms about what's going on in my head right now? Let's face it, I do a fair amount of flitting around!

Something I'm working at right now:

But I can't really tell you why yet :)

I just got the concept for my Christmas card in my head and I'm way excited about it! It will include some shots of these four cuties...

As well as...

My sweet new baby :) I tried to convince my husband to name him Ender, but no deal :) He's the only one currently awake as I write this... I keep tickling his belly to keep him awake a little longer so he'll sleep good tonight!

Also, my 10 year old daughter just begged me to sew some sequins on her socks for church tomorrow, so you know that's going to be hot :) But hello time consuming... not... looking... forward... to that.

Anyway! That's a little about us in a nutshell... hope I can help you get your creativity on!

PS--Thank you Amy for letting me play here today :)

Flashing Back for a "Tute"

Remember when we made these.........



 

Well they are being "tuted" about over at "Oops, I Craft My Pants"! If you have a blog...go join the Link Party! So fun!

Gifting your {HERITAGE}

A couple of years ago I asked everyone in my family to email me their favorite recipes. I have to say that I have a family full of AMAZING cooks. There are so many recipes that we have shared with each other. I really wanted to put them all in one place and then give them as gifts.

 By the time I was done My Grandma, Mom, Abby, Me, Lisa, Kayla, Suzi & Ashley all got one. I am sure that I will one day get one done for Rachel too. It was a lot of work. There are 200 recipes in each book. I have recipes from 3 of my Great Grandma's & even a few from my Great Great Grandma LuLu!

What a treasure!

 

I found this photo album! It was PERFECT! I cut all of the card stock to 4X6. Then I printed all of the recipes and cut them down to 3 1/2 X 5 1/2 and glued them on. They each slip in and out of their own slot.

Each category is done in a different color and each section is listed Alphabetically. It makes it so easy to find each one. Our sections are: Beverages, Appetizers & Breads (RED), Soups & Salads (BLUE), Main Dishes (YELLOW), Desserts (GREEN), Misc. & Canning (BROWN).

My Great Grandma Fenton was always canning something. I got all of her recipes. Chose our favorites and then called the Extention services to check the recipes for safety. She also had a lot of household remedy recipes. They are PRICELESS!

This is one of the title pages. My Great Grandma Fenton is one of the most influencial people in my life.

She was amazing!

 We all loved her so dearly. I love that she kept a journal almost everyday. In is she wrote so many cute little memories of each one of us. I put quotes from the journals randomly throughout the books. Each one of our books is custom made for each one of us! Lisa's (my sister) is full of quotes from Grandma's journal about Lisa, Abby's about Clint (my brother) when he was little, etc. There are a few that are just so Grandma they just HAD to be in there. The one above is my FAVORITE! If you can't read it, click on it. It will make it bigger. That is SO her!

This is a picture of one of the pages. This was really one of the most rewarding projects I have ever done! My Grandma Atkinson cried and sent me the cutest note after I gave her hers. That letter is priceless to me!

Here are some fun ideas of things you can add to your recipe book:

• Add pictures of family gatherings
• Add pictures of the kids in aprons & chef hats making the recipes
• Add pictures of the recipe
• Add recipes that have been a flop that have become a family joke

Get creative! Then send your ideas to me! I would LOVE to hear how yours turns out!

An Act Of Kindness

A couple of weeks ago I was having an especially hard time. I was missing my Little D so much that tears spilled over without warning....and of course, right in the middle of Sacrament Meeting, at church, my tears turned to uncontrollable ugly face cry. OH MY!

I left, cried it out, composed myself, then headed back to class.

In Relief Society our wards Young Womens Group came in. They had an announcement. They brought my hubby in with them. I had NO IDEA what was going on. I thought maybe they asked him there to say something or perhaps just for scenery...cause well, he is nice to look at! :)

That is when they unfolded this......

A Dawson Memorial quilt made special for our family! My Hubby joined in on the sobs this time!

I can't even tell you how much this meant to us! The kids dubbed it our "Family Blanket". We cuddle up under it for our family scripture time. Jake wraps up in it to sleep on his particularly hard nights. We all love to just sit and look at the pictures all over it!

WHAT A GIFT!

There are not many Young Women in our. Only 5, three of which just moved, sadly! They all put in many hours. Pouring through our family blog for the perfect pictures, stitching material together, tying and showing our family so much love! There is no way to adequately express how much we love each one of them...and their leaders (good friends of mine) for this!

I had to share it with you!

The pictures are a bit fuzzy, sorry about that. They really are quite bad, but you will get the idea! What a great gift idea!

The pictures were put into a collage then emailed to a printing place to be printed on fabric! BEAUTIFUL!

ENJOY!

A truth that brings un-measurable comfort!

San Diego Temple June 2009. The last picture with all of us in it.

A square for Dad.

(Again, I am sorry that my camera acted up! The pictures are perfectly clear on the quilt. The pics I took....not so much!)

A Square for Mom.

A Square for Dawson.

A Square for Twins.

A Square for Mallory.

A Square For Jake.

This gift is what gift giving is all about! I LOVE the amount of love that went into this. We know the girls love our Dawson so much! They all knew him and saw him at least once a week for almost his whole life. We know he loves them so much for every minute they spent trying to help comfort our family!

Thanks again girlies!

We love you!