Making My Heart Happy This Morning

1. Becoming the Autism Support Group Liason for Rock Harbor. The autism maze looms confusing for so many hurting families. Humbling to be able to be a part of helping some to find some answers and hopefully build friendships.
2. My two new favorite words:

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3. Now that I'm approaching (can I say it?) mid-thirties, thinking it's time for less trendy (not that I've been I clothes horse) and more classic. Loving this new light weight trench I found. Pretty reasonable but oh so lovely on. Not so springy but timeless. A good coat covers a multitude of fashion errors. The length covers a multitude of midthirtyness.

5. Getting reeeeely close to wrapping up Luke's one year album.
6. Shoes and shipping negative $5!
7. Sweeping to Earth 101.
8. Spring. Any product with "easy", "carefree" and "garden" on the label- I'm all over it. And love it when color pops up in your garden that you didn't have to plant. That's not a weed is it?
9. My dear Dad just emailed and thinks he and mom might be able to come out this summer!! (**Big grin**)

10. That RH is doing this:

::alla t in the house::

Our preliminary-rough-draft-practice-first-shot website: here.

Leila's riviting account of the zoo:

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Beautiful park and ten-minute train ride find. Love those.
And there were clowns making balloon monkeys in palm trees.

For those of you who have time to make things: you can make this.
Watching Pingu:


Cutie skirts for girls at KatchyKids:

Shito-Ryu Karate-Do Genbu-Kai International

So Alla Toscana is the venture I was eluding to several posts back.
A Tuscan rental/real estate and tour business with my friend who lived part of her life in Chianti and whose parents still live there.
She's contacted by old friends to sell their properties and rent out others.
There will also be a touch of wedding planning involved. She wants me to go in 50%.
Exciting ...
Tempting?

Yes. Stretching too far? Where are my limits? I also want to explore more with photography and digital scrapping workshops.
So much to do. Comparatively miniscule amounts of time.

Meanwhile, Leila is saying...

• When she has any article of clothing off: "I'm partially 'makit' [naked]"
• "Mommy some?" (When she doesn't want something on her plate, thinking I suppose that sharing will get her out of having to eat it herself).
• "Whoa, dude". ??
• "I'm baffled."
• "That's wierd."

In four months Leila will be taking lessons here.

Just throwing it out there: 6 minutes of negative emotion suppresses your immune system for 21 hours.

Luke in living room:

Excitement at the zoo:

::with assistance on six::

Fell in love with photography all over again after watching this.
Completing our summer ensemble with surfer hair:

Springyness:
Finding balance...


Home design inspiration.
Peaceful home....Mmmmmm.


Nah, truth is girls...we love our chaos. That's where we blossom.
...right?

Looking forward to spending time with these beautiful women in Septemeber at the Women of Faith Conference.

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Everyday Italian is a Hint

Cinders and ashes everywhere!
Portions of Anaheim Hills were evacuated last night.
That's a two mile drive. We are living under a cloud of ash today.
But my spirits are high.
And my sky is sunshiney.
I'm working on a project with one of my very best friends.
I can't wait to share with you.
Stay tuned!

• See, it is a legitimate obsession. We have our own magazine.
• So, for some unknown reason, I said, "Whoa dude" to this car that almost smashed into the side of us yesterday as we were driving down the road. So today, as we were in the car Leila says, "Whoa dude" and then, "I'm baffled". (Which she picked up a few days ago).
• Luke is starting to imitate more and more sounds. We got a ba-ba-ba for banana today (number of syllables was right); he said "oben" for open, "ater" for water and "up" quite a bit which he used to say but lost.
• A few from Sunday's beach jaunt:
  
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::your visual dna::

Fun from Suzanne.

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

::video for nan::

• I'm afraid I'm going to have to be completely obnoxious about shamelessly posting videos of my children because my lovely mom (who is across the country) is getting snippets of her grandchildren mainly through this blog. Feel free to bypass if it's too much. Most of them won't be all that gripping. Mom, these are for you (love you : )).

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• Blogger hasn't let me post comments to my blog buddies' blogs over the last couple of days. I'm I alone here? But I didn't get my blogger updated. Did you?
• Beach this morning before church. Thinking it might be a little much with having to wash the sand off and scrub up to Sunday best but it might be worth it as Luke seems to get so
  
• Still working on Luke's updated baby book. There were so many pictures I left out of his first one.
• 
  

Chart your habits with Joe's goals.

::what they will become::

Updated: Eighth challenge courtesy of my good friend Cheryl.
Moms: Seven big challenges for you...

1. Develop in your children a positive self esteem (how? Develop your own sense of humor. Don't make a big deal out of small things.)
2. Develop in them a sense of adventure. (teach them to be courageous and that failing is okay. Teach them to take the good with the bad and try new things, travel, new experiences).
3. Develop their faith (pray with them, start a dream journal, help them to see possibilities they may not have seen. Teach them the concept of valuable growth in hardship.)
4. Teach them to keep their promises. (If you say you are going to do something --do it! If you have to sacrifice to keep your promise to them, see it as a golden opportunity to show them how important it was to you that you keep it --not to guilt them but to teach.)
5. Teach them to be learners for life. (Teach them to read, take classes and try to sports, skills.)
6. Teach them to have a sincere love for God. (We don't just go to church Susie, we go because we love God and this is why we love him...)
7. Teach them that they are valued and teach them to value others. (Whisper in their precious ears, "You are precious, you are loved, you are smart, you are the best.")
8. Teach your child the secret of self control....by restraining yourself, of course, restricting them when they get out of control, helping them to delay gratification (saving for purchases etc)

Most effective way to teach these: be an example yourself and keep a strong marriage.

Taken from yesterday morning's Nurture notes on speaker Paul Meyers. Some challenges I'll be working on. Join me?