L is for....

School has started and we've been trying to get into the swing of things.  You know - waking up at a good time, getting dressed instead of wearing our pjs or swim clothes all day, keeping up on the laundry, signing papers that need to be returned and getting that nasty homework done on time.

I've been looking forward to having 3 (!) kids in school this year.  Hard to believe!  Do you know how easy 2 kids can be?!?  I have a list of projects that just keeps getting longer and longer.  Things like painting and rooms and presents and just miscellaneous fun 'stuff' to do.

With our third child in kindergarden this year, we've been getting to see all the 'new' things through her eyes.  She brings home her paper from school and shows us all the 'homework' she gets to do.  We get to hear about her teacher and all the new friends she gets to make.  We get to learn that L is for things like Lollipop, Letter, Light and Lemon.

On Tuesday Sept. 4th, my husband and I learned that L is also for Leukemia.

Madi - 1 week before diagnosis

Our beautiful little kindergardener had some blood work done that morning to find out the cause of the bruising and lethargy she was dealing with.  By 2 pm we had a call from our pediatrician telling us to go meet with a pediatric oncologist and be prepared to be admitted to the local hospital.

A whirlwind started as soon as we were finally admitted to the hospital.  Thankfully, we were blessed with some wonderful and understanding nurses.  One nurse in particular, Ms. Janet, became Madi's buddy and cared for her in more ways than just making sure medicine was taken on time and vitals were as they should be.

All these new, and somewhat scary, situations and experiences for our little girl to have to endure.  Being poked and prodded by complete strangers, being carted to different treatment/procedure rooms, having a port put in, having to take 'yucky' medicine and just feeling crummy overall really started to take a toll on her by Friday.  That morning she looked at me after taking her medicine and said, "I really don't want to do this anymore."

We have been home since Sunday and coming home never seemed sweeter.  Our lives are busy with one more thing added to the mix, but we have some wonderful friends, family and even strangers surrounding us with love and support.

The point of this post is not to make you feel sorry for us.  While this isn't the diagnosis we wanted, the prognosis is excellent.  We found through testing that Madi has ALL, a very common and treatable form of Leukemia.  Her age, gender and several other factors are in her favor.  She is responding well to treatment so far and is having few side effects.

The point of this post is to ask for prayers.  Many, many prayers.

We are keeping our minds on the positives and not dwelling on the negatives.  We really are okay.  While we know there are many rough days ahead, focusing only on the bad will make this whole experience even worse.  Kevin and I are taking any opportunity and making sure something is gained or learned by some or all of the kids.  Even Kevin and I are growing in many ways at this time.  Most importantly, Madi is learning at a very young age to let her light shine.

So, projects will come - eventually.  Once we get into our new 'normal', I'm hoping to still do projects and crafts to help keep me sane during this time.  (Kevin would tell you I lost 'it' a looonnggg time ago, though.)  I've got several in progress now and just need to finish up - my life's story.

Keep us in your prayers!

***We now have a blog just for Madi to keep everyone posted on her progress - Madi's Milestones ***

Spring Break

Here it is June and I just realized I haven't shared our Spring Break trip with you.  We rarely go anywhere other than to see family, but this time I had an itch to see some old friends.  It was well worth the time and travel!!

Here is the route (roughly) we took on our road trip.  It ended up being around 1700 miles.  (blah)

Friday - Our first stop was Bowling Green, KY.  My sister and her family live there and it's a good halfway stop on our way to GA.  Bonus - we got to attend my niece's 3rd birthday party.

Saturday - Arrival to Harold and Paula's home.  They were kind enough to give our crazy family a place to stay for a few nights.

Sunday - Attended worship services at South Fayette church of Christ.  It was great to see and talk with all our friends!  We were invited over for lunch at a friends house, Jay and Bridgette, following morning services.  We had a great time catching up and the kids all played together without arguing the whole afternoon!  The food was good and the company even better!

Monday - Took a trip into the city with Michael, Larissa and the girls to spend the day at the Georgia Aquarium.  Such a fun time and all the kids were kept entertained.

All the kiddos

Sawyer has a new buddy

Tuesday - Lunch at Chopsticks in Peachtree City, GA.  (YUM!)  Drive to Auburn, AL to stay with the Roberts family.  Once again, the kids had a blast and we adults got a chance to catch up.

Roberts and Wise kids

Wednesday - Drive to Huntsville, AL to spend a few days with Crystal and her family.  Attended worship services at Jordan Park church of Christ and caught up with some old friends there.

Thursday - Totally bummed the whole day.  It was GREAT!  Lots of time for the kids to play and run around outside, Kevin was able to catch up on his sleep, and Crystal and I got to catch up on all things going on in our lives.  When J came home from work it was like old times when we were all newly married and we could sit around and talk and laugh about anything and everything - we just have kids running around now.

Friday - Headed home.  The drive was uneventful with tired kids and lots of movies being played.  We did hit the outskirts of St. Louis just as the tornado watches/warnings were being announced over the airwaves, though.  Nothing like dark clouds and hail to welcome you home.

We had such a great time!  Of course, it's because of getting to see all our friends and renewing old friendships.

** Larrisa's blog - Mmmcrafts
**Crystal's blog - Fussy Monkey Business

Momma's Salon & Spa

With school finished up and summer in full swing, my life is absolutely crazy right now.  Copious hours have already been spent at the pool, our door is a revolving door for neighborhood friends (which is great), the swing set only entertains for so long, and the kids are already complaining there is 'nothing to do'.  Plus, we are smack dab in the middle of VBS this week.  It is definitely summer, baby!

To change things up a bit, I took the time to 'play' with each of the girls' hair.
G's Woven braids:

C's Criss-Cross Fishtail:

M's Curving Dutch Braid:

 O's Double Headband Braid:

I'm sure next week we will break out the nail polish and decorate those little fingers and toes.

Hope you all are having a wonderful start to summer!

A Birthday and A Recipe

Our oldest turned 9 (9!) a week or so ago.  Crazy how time goes by so quickly and just seems to speed up the older the kids get.  We had a family celebration with a friend over - sweet and simple.

 This year Gretchen wanted an ice cream cake.  I was able to find this recipe for OREO and Fudge Ice Cream Cake at Kraft and just substituted in Mint OREOs.  So simple to make and tasted great.

Our next birthday is in September and I've already had a request for one made with Snickers.  :)

Borrowing Ebooks

http://lendle.me

For those of you who don't know, Kevin got me a Kindle Fire for my birthday.  I honestly don't know who has enjoyed it more - Me, because I have multiple books in one easy device / Kevin, because he no longer has to 'sleep' with the bedside light glaring in his face at crazy hours.  His most recent comment: 'Best purchase I ever made!'.

I usually get books from the library.  I'm typically too cheap to purchase ebooks (or any book, for that matter).  I stumbled across Lendle and thought I would share, though.  There is a full disclosure on there site under FAQ.  There are a lot of books that are not available for borrow; but, obviously, they wouldn't have the site if none were available.  Free books are always good - well, at least in theory.

For those who don't have a Kindle , Amazon has apps that can be downloaded to a smartphone or computer.

My Current Reads:

Ebooks - Protector of the Small Quartet Series by Tamora Pierce (First Test , Page , Squire , Lady Knight)

Hard Copy - Divergent by Veronica Roth

Craft Room Tour

My life is full of clutter.  I HATE clutter.  No matter how much I dislike clutter, I can't seem to eliminate it from my life.  Anyone else have this problem?  Sure you do.  Very few people don't have issues with clutter in some part of their lives.

I've been ignoring living with the clutter in our home for the past couple of years.  I'd much rather do what has to be done, play with the kids and then curl up with a good (or even bad) book.  Much easier on me than trying to sort through all our stuff.  'Bout as helpful as an ostrich burying its head in the sand, right?

Okay.  No more excuses.

• I'm feeling better and getting my energy back.
• Neighborhood garage sale in T minus 19 days.
• Little Man has turned 2 and there no more little Wises coming along.
• My life will be much simpler and nicer once I do this.

My craft room seemed the perfect place to start - since my husband kept making not so subtle comments about how much better he thought all my stuff would be moved to the basement.  I can't really blame him with the room in a constant state of chaos.

So, here is where it all started.

Actually, I believe this is after I had already gotten started.  I didn't like this.

Configuration 2 didn't work much better.

I moved our dining room table into the room instead of having everything spread through 2 rooms.  The table is a great space for me to lay out material for pattern placement and cutting.  It was just too much visually right against the basement railing. 

Configuration 3 started the creative juices flowing and I was able to get everything functional and looking nice at the same time.

Having the dining room table in the room is amazing!

I 'needed' a space devoted to the actual sewing process in the room, too.

This desk is a relic left over from my husband's college days.  This picture was taken after I had moved our massive computer.  It's a large surface to work on: plenty of room for both machines to remain set up and a place to sit and work on my laptop.

Putting the shelf above the desk has allowed me to use some of the vertical space in the room.  Bobbins, my Sidewinder, a radio and some odds and ends are housed up there.

I moved the desk down the wall a few inches to make room for some storage.  The drawers are holding thread, scissors, pins, fabrics and the little bit of felt I have.  The little cubby on the desk has a plastic bin in it holding my patterns.

The bookshelves are now organized and de-cluttered, as well, holding sewing books, magazines, my tools and the rest of my fabric stash.

The last area is the first a person sees when walking in the front door.  It should work well for ironing, but I'm not sure if I'll keep it like this.  (Pay no attention to the mess in the background.)

I'm loving the new space!  It's organized.  It's inviting.  It's calling my name.  Best of all?  No one else has stuff in the room.  This space is mine all mine.  Now to get a project going.

Better!

I'm back and doing much better.  I have a ways to go to getting back to 'normal', but I'm well on the way. Now I just need to gain about 15 to 20 lbs.  (Yes, I'm sure some of you would love to give me some of your extra poundage.  My husband has offered several times, but we have yet to figure out a pain free way of doing this.)

Anyway.  Now that I'm feeling better, I felt the need to do something - anything - to keep from just sitting around.  So, much to my husband's delight, I decided to rearrange some furniture and switch up a couple of rooms on the main floor of our home.  Kevin does seem to really love me.  ;)

I'm hoping the way I feel will just continue to improve and our family will be able to have a fun and full summer.  I'll try to get the house settled back in to a livable format in the next week and share some pictures with you soon.

So glad to be back!!

Please Hold....

As you well know, it's been a while since I've posted.  Truth be told, it's been a while since I've done any sewing or crafting.  (I know - GASP!!)  I've been having a lot of fatigue and other symptoms lately and I just haven't felt like doing much.  I'm working with my doctor to try and get to the bottom of things.  Until then, crafts are on the back burner.

Please say a little prayer when you think of me and I hope to be back to 'normal' before too long!

W.I.P's

I've been busy, as I'm sure all of you have been.  I thought I would give you a little sneak peak at some of the craft projects I've been able to start on and one I've actually finished.  (I'll spare you the pictures of all the baskets of laundry and my beautiful vacuum that seem to be my constant companions.)

Finished Projects

Working on...

I'm hoping to have at least one of these projects done in the next week to share with you all.  A couple of prayers and fingers crossed that everyone stays well and I don't come across any good reads to distract me.

Have a great Monday!

Oh, The Things You'll Find

Isn't it funny what you will find in your home?  We have moved many times as a family in the almost 11 year we've been married.  Each and every time we were told asked to go to a new location, it was always a good time to purge all the extra things we had accumulated.  

We haven't had an opportunity to purge in a few years.  A huge blessing in my mind.  Since we haven't had to move, many things have been sneaking their way into our home and staying much longer than needed.  I shared with you in Domino Effect Projects post about our basement clean up.  We went through so many boxes that day!  I was on a mission those couple of days, though.

I don't usually have much trouble getting rid of things, but I was really surprised at some of the things we found.  One box was full of papers that just needed to be shredded.  Several other boxes were full of religious books, work book and note books full of sermon notes.  Another box was full of Lori Wick books my sister and I read during our high school years.  My doll collection is stored in another box awaiting the day we get the basement finished to bring them out for all to see.  Kevin and I each had a box filled with high school/college mementos - pictures, awards, shirts, tassels and such.  Pretty humorous!

We found one of our old license plates.  I believe the other Alberta plate was given to a friend who collects plates.

I also found an old pair of jeans of mine.  I have no idea how many hours I spent stitching the flowers, leaves and vines on this leg.  I do recall having a horrible stiff neck on several occasions after stitching sessions.

 I even filled in some of the flowers and leaves.

Many items were sorted and gone through and a lot of things were put aside for the spring yard sale, put to the side to donate or just thrown away.  

I did hold on to my senior sweatshirt, Alberta license plate and my jeans.  There are just some things that I can't seem to get rid of.

Mint Oreo Truffles

If you recall, in my Peanut Butter Swirl Brownie recipe I mentioned my love for Reese's and Oreo.  I try really hard not to go down the cookie isle at the grocery just so I'm not tempted.  I was unable to avoid the temptation during a couple of my pregnancies and ended up with a 40 lb weight gain.  Not a comfortable thing during a Georgia summer!

The Original Oreo Truffles are yummy, but the Mint version are extreme - and I'm not really a mint person!

Mint Oreo Truffles

Ingredients:
6 oz Philly Cream Cheese (softened)
1 pkg. (15.25 oz)  Cool Mint Oreos, finely crushed
1 pkg. (24 oz) white almond bark

Directions:
1.  Mix crushed mint Oreos and softened cream cheese in a mixer until smooth.

 2.  Using a cookie scoop or spoon, roll into balls (about the size of a walnut). Chill for 30 minutes or more.

3.  Follow directions on Almond Bark package for melting in microwave.
4.  Dip balls in melted Almond Bark and let set on wax paper.
5.  Refrigerate.

These are great for get togethers and sharing with friends and neighbors.  Although, you may want to make 2 batches if you are wanting to sample and share - just to make sure you have enough.  

Kids Kitchen Tower

Most of you know I have a love for all things DIY - even doing some woodworking here and there.  It's just so much fun to make something out of nothing.  The addition of the power tools just pushes it to the next level for me.

I guess the 'nut doesn't fall too far from the tree'.  Since my father retired a few years ago, he has been able to get a shop area set up in their basement.  And, now that he has the time, he has been making a few things for my family and my siblings' families.

One of the projects he did for all of us was a tower for the kids to help in the kitchen.

 My kids love being able to have turns in the kitchen helping me cook.

 Or just being able to play in it pretending it is a spaceship or just a quiet place to go and look at books.

 It adjust to fit all my kids from the 8 yr old all the way down to the almost 2 yr old.  Giving each of them just the right amount of boost.

It's been a great addition and it's even better that my dad took the time and care to make it for us.  He even adjusted my older sister's to be a little wider to accommodate her two sets of twins.

If you would like one, Ana White has plans for a very similar one called 'The Little Helper Tower'.