Valentine's Day 2018

Valentine's Day

We celebrated Valentine's Day on two different days this year. We had our family Valentine's Dinner the Sunday before Valentine's Day and then celebrated a bit on the actual day as well. We have had so much going on with all of the kids every single night of the week including Sunday nights which was extremely annoying; so that it was VERY DIFFICULT to even squeeze in our family dinner this year.

I also neglected to decorate until about a week before Valentine's Day but it all worked out since I didn't take it down until the last week of February. This month has just been a wild one.

Reilly came over that Sunday night and we didn't go to Ailey's New Beginnings and we did our usual Valentine's Day feast...with homemade pizza. My family loves this so much! We make our own dough and have all the toppings and then they just create away. We used to make them heart-shaped but now they just want to make LARGE pizzas. Ha ha. We also made our favorite holiday salad...we usually make it for Christmas...but this year we made it for Valentine's Day instead...Spinach salad with strawberries, red onion, feta, candied pecans, and with a homemade balsamic dressing. It was delicious. I opted not to eat pizza and ate tempura shrimp instead. Yum. This was all washed down with icy cold strawberry crush.

I forgot to take a picture after the table was completely set with treats and gifts and everything. This was when it was half way done. Not sure who took this picture. But glad I have it. Yes, that is cereal on the table. Reilly requested Special K with Red Berries instead of candy this year. :) All of the love notes are my favorite! I love that tradition. It seems that we have had an extra amount of bickering going on lately between the kids so it was nice to hear what they loved about each other. Tyler and I opted to exchange our gifts on the actual holiday.

This was our dessert and it was FABULOUS!! A huge platter of cream puffs and strawberries drizzled with chocolate and powdered sugar. So good. We had a fun family night together...lots of laughs...and dancing. Oh yes. It was pretty great!

On the actual day...Bryn was ready to go in her pink and red outfit. Again, no picture. I am slacking this year. She had found some awesome scratch-and-sniff Valentines to hand out to her classmates that were exactly like the scratch-and-sniff stickers that my sisters and I used to collect in the 80s. I loved those! This year she didn't have to make an elaborate Valentine Box. Hallelujah. Have I mentioned how over elementary school projects I am? This was true last year and it is even more so this year because Bryn has had an absolute ton of elaborate and time-consuming projects and more are on the way. Ugh.

I made traditional red lunches for the kids. Stapled shut so that they could be surprised. They really love this. Sometimes I wonder why I even started this tradition...like this year...when I totally forgot to make them and had to get up at 4 am to put them together when I remembered. That is love for you. But the kids love them so much and look forward to them every year so I will continue. :)

This was also the first elementary school Valentine's Day party since the beginning of Valentine's Day parties that I didn't attend nor volunteer at. I was heading out of town later that week and just couldn't squeeze it in. Well...no one died. Bryn did fine and had fun without me there. Who knew? I guess I can let that guilt go.

Tyler brought me my favorite tulips, a box of hand selected Mrs. See's chocolates, a gift card for a mani/pedi, and the world's sweetest valentine card. He did well! I love that guy!

Ailey was complaining that morning about how Valentine's Day isn't fun in middle school. They don't do anything special and she didn't want to see all the girls with boyfriends walking around with their flowers and candy while she wasn't getting anything. Well...what did she find stuck in the slots of her locker that morning but a long stemmed hot pink rose!! A secret admirer!! She decided Valentine's Day in middle school wasn't so bad after all!!

That night the kids ALL HAD A BUNCH OF ACTIVITIES!! Ugh... school and church activities don't care about parents and Valentine's day dates apparently. Tyler did bring home Taco Bell so that I didn't have to cook and we ate it together in the kitchen by the light of a red heart-shaped candle while we waited to pick up the kids from all of their activities. Romantic. Ha ha. Tyler's birthday is the week before Valentine's Day and we usually do our big celebrating then but this year Tyler was sick on his birthday and then all of the rest of us got it and I was sick on Valentine's Day. We got gypped this year.

But despite our crazy holiday... I couldn't ask for a better Valentine!! I love that man of mine.

Picture taken by my friend, Cary, at the Mad Hatter show in September. :)

Happy Valentine's Day!!

January: Things I am Loving

1.) Goal Setting

I explained all of this in my year end review post. I love setting goals and am busily working on all of them. It's a sickness. But I love it just the same.

2.) Poldark (all seasons)

In January, Tyler and I finally got caught up on all of the seasons of Poldark. We love it! We watched the first season two years ago and really liked it but wanted to wait until more seasons were out to watch again. It is so good! I think we are in the minority though...we are not Demelza fans. She bugs!! We like Elizabeth even though she is frustrating too.

3.) Lights and more lights!

Once all of the Christmas lights were down things seemed pretty dark around here. I went out and purchased two more lamps to flood our home with more light. It has been great! I am on the hunt for yet another lamp too. I now have two lamps in our kitchen and three in our living room. I am loving it. Everything looks super cozy!

4.) Prescription Migraine Medicine

I get migraines and they suck. Normally I get one the week of my period if I don't feel it coming on early and am able to stop it. For years ibuprofen and rest in a dark room would get rid of it. But in the last few months that stopped working. I finally resorted to buying over-the-counter Excedrin Migraine and that was working pretty well. Then in January I got a terrible migraine that wouldn't go away with anything...ibuprofen didn't work...Excedrin Migraine didn't work...sleep didn't work. It was horrible. I went into my doctor and was prescribed a prescription migraine medicine and it worked like a charm. I finally got some relief after a week and a half of a nearly constant migraine. I am so grateful for medication!! Just a couple of doses got rid of my never-ending-migraine and I have been feeling fine ever since. 

5.) Crepes

We are all about the crepes right now! We have a delicious creperie near our house. We have been going there for several years but kind of forgot about it. Kameron and I were going out for breakfast and he chose to go to breakfast there and that opened the floodgates again. They are so good!! So many amazing flavors: both sweet and savory. Plus I love the mini-Martinellis!! 

January 2018

I chronicled New Years and the following week in my previous post...so onward to the long (and often dreary) month of January. January is my month to think about what I want to accomplish in the New Year. The one thing that I really love about January is the fresh start.

Speaking of a fresh start... I was released out-of-the-blue from being the 1st Counselor in the Primary Presidency and got called to be the PRIMARY PRESIDENT! Gulp. This will definitely shake things up around here. I love Primary and I am happy to serve there. I also have an awesome presidency that I am really excited about!! That makes it even better.

One of the family goals that Tyler and I made this year was to spend more one-on-one time with the kids...or two-on-one time. We are already pretty good about this but as the kids get older and busier we definitely have to be more intentional about it. Things got off to a pretty good start in January.

Tyler had a fun movie night with Reilly and Kam. The three of them have very similar tastes in movies and they have a great time going to the movies together!!

Ailey and I had a lunch date at Starbucks!! This was during the school day so it felt extra fun and special!

Bryn and Tyler attended the big Daddy/Daughter Dance at the high school. This is a tradition that Tyler does every year. He has taken all of our girls. They love it! Bryn requested that they both wear her favorite color...purple.

They went out to dinner too! Bryn requested going out for Mexican food.

They danced the night away! They always stay until the very end of the dance. All of our girls love to dance and so does their dad. Tyler said that he was so sore the next day! Ha ha! Bryn said that what she loved the most was that he actually danced with her instead of sitting on the bleachers looking at his phone like a lot of the dads did. How sad. Tyler said that it was crazy with little girls just dancing with their friends while the dads were sitting on the sidelines or on the bleachers looking at their phones.

Tyler texted me this video of Bryn doing the whip and nay nay. Ha ha!

Normally this is the time that Kameron and I have our Mother/Son Date which I love and look forward to all year. Unfortunately he had to work and couldn't take it off. We had just had a mother/son breakfast date so I was okay with it. Normally Ailey has other plans on this night but she was home so we hung out and binge watched all kinds of TV and ate homemade caramel popcorn. It was fab!!

So good!!

Ailey is in the Cooking Club at her middle school. It started in January and she is loving it!! They are learning to make all kinds of delicious things. They work with one of our local food banks and will be helping to cook food for them and for those they serve. I love that! Teaching kids to cook and to serve those in need in our community! Win-win.

Drill Team is also in full swing! (Had to block out her school name on her uniform). Since Ailey is a team captain she has extra practices and long days. I pick her up from school four days a week at 5:15 pm. She loves it though and does such a great job with the girls!

Tyler taught Reilly to change her own tires. She is learning to be an independent woman and is doing a great job adulting!! It's nice to have her close so that we can help her with things like this and I know that she is so glad to have her dad nearby when she needs him.

Bryn had a Donuts with Dad Breakfast her elementary school. They had fun and got to hang out with the basketball players from Gonzaga. Always enjoyable.

Sadly this month, the prophet and President of our church died... President Thomas S. Monson. He was such a great man and lived such a life of service to others and to the Savior. I am so grateful for the life and example of this wonderful man!! This wasn't totally unexpected as his health has been declining. Still it struck Ailey and Bryn pretty hard. This is the first prophet that Bryn knows to die and Ailey was very little when President Hinckley died so they were pretty sad and full of questions about what happens now with church leadership. We have had some great family discussions. I love that President Monson was able to connect with the children of our church in such an amazing way. He will be missed.

We got a whole ton of snow on the day of his funeral which was held in Salt Lake City, Utah. We decided to call it a snow day and we kept the kids home from school so that they could watch the live stream of President Monson's funeral and procession. The. Best. Decision. Ever.

I have such a special memory of this morning as we watched the funeral and tributes to President Monson. There were tears and so much gratitude for him and for the gospel in our lives. He has left behind a wonderful legacy.

We have been hitting the gym...along with every other person in Spokane in January. This particular day Kam was annoyed with me and refused to work out beside me. Moving down one machine down was his act of rebellion. Ha ha! Go for it.

17 is precious.

Reilly had Ailey and Bryn come and spend the night at her house for a sisters sleepover! They had the best time!! I love that they want to do things like this together. They had a weekend of cooking, crafting, watching movies, doing facials, beauty treatments, making hilarious videos, and snap chats.

They also did a bunch of hammocking at the park. They were so tired when Tyler and I came to pick them up. They had so much fun hanging out with Reilly at her house and meeting her roommates. They are already planning their next one.

Bryn had some dental work done. She needed to have two teeth *shaved* down to make room for the other teeth that were coming in. She had her first experience with numbing and laughing gas. She was a trooper and had a great sense of humor about it!! She wanted some yogurt from the grocery store afterward and we were laughing all through Albertsons. Can't you tell? Ha ha!

Brynnie smiling with her numb face. I have an epic picture like this of Reilly from about this same age. Man, whenever I need to laugh I whip it out. It's a gem. Here's another one for the collection. Ha ha.



She kind of looks like she is about to cry but really she was laughing so hard and that was her crazy smile.

One day when I was in Kam's bedroom gathering up his dirty clothes and I found this written on his white board:

I love it! That smile more kills me. Ha Ha! He is a bit on the grouchy side these days. Again, seventeen. He is very easily bugged by his parents!!

But despite being a bit on the grumpy side; he is an excellent cook! This was a Sunday dinner that he prepared for the family. Two kinds of spaghetti...a vegetarian sauce and a bolognese, angel hair pasta, teriyaki edamame, and brownies for dessert. He's not going to starve on his mission!!

Another family goal that Tyler and I set for 2018 was have each of our kids take turns preparing a  Sunday dinner. They get to plan the menu and prepare the food. This was something that Tyler's family did when he was growing up and he and his siblings loved it because they got to cook all the things that they liked and didn't have to eat anything that they hated. Kam went old school with spaghetti. Ailey is next and she has been pinning things up a storm on Pinterest; as has Reilly. The girls are definitely going more elaborate. Ailey's delighted to think that there will finally be a Sunday dinner at our house without any vegetables!! She is thrilled. Ha ha. Bryn will get to pick a meal too but she will get help with the cooking although she really is a pretty great cook at eight years old!

On another note...Perimenopause is kicking my butt. It is official. I am in the thick of it...confirmed by a doctor. Good grief. Can my period just end! Do I have to have all of this other garbage AND a period! Here's how it has been going down...turn forty...gain weight...look at a donut...gain 30 lbs...hair gets brittle and thin...eyes crap out...get reading glasses...cluster migraines start...husband has a health crisis...stress causes even more hair to fall out...although weirdly only on one side of my head...have small emotional break down due to thoughts of impending baldness...make an appt to get hair extensions...get the good news that I am not balding...just hormones and stress...told I have tons of new growth...shout hallelujah...now onto my period...which is either early or late...and either super heavy or super light...hot flashes begin...they are sheer hell...good times ensue....find out that said good times can last for ten years or more... Now you are up to date. I am sure there will be more excitement to come...stay tuned.

Perimenopause is a real botch!

I have been busy planning for show season which is about to begin. It is always nice to have a break after Christmas but January is when we get all of our vintage shows lined up for the next year and start working on projects. Our first show of the season is in March.

Projects, projects, projects!

One afternoon when the kids were out of school and Kameron and Ailey were busy with friends...Tyler and I took Bryn on an outing to the park and the conservatory. We were dreaming of Spring! It was cold and gray outside but inside the conservatory it was full of spring flowers and it smelled amazing!!

We also pretended that it wasn't 40 below outside and went out for ice cream too!

Things have been busy and in full swing after the holidays around here. A new semester has begun with new classes and big projects. Bryn has had some huge projects due and she has been working on her science fair project. In other news, my brother Kirk had surgery and is doing well now. Kameron spoke in church and gave such a great talk. I'll post it on the blog. I had book club. We read the YA novel The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt. It was great!

That was our January!!

2017: Year in Review

2017: Year in Review

2017 has been a rough year. It has not been my favorite by any means. It has stretched us...almost to the breaking point...but it has also, hopefully, made us kinder, wiser, more filled with love for one another, and for those around us. That said, I would never under any circumstances ever want to repeat 2017!!

 I found it interesting that on the Instagram Best of Nine...all the pictures that were generated were from the last three months of the year which was also the hardest time of our lives. It was good to be reminded that there was beauty and joy there too.

Here are the highlights and lowlights of 2017:

-We redid Bryn's bedroom...new paint, new furniture, and new decor.

-Kameron got his first job!! He still has it and is a super hard worker and one of their most valuable employees. He works as a waiter at an assisted living facility. It has been so fun to watch him take this job seriously and to develop an amazing work ethic and to come to care about the residents there.

-Tyler turned 46!

-My brother Kirk got married. So happy about this! We love Meki!!

-Kameron had his first formal date/dance. Exciting!!

-I was a vendor at the Rebel Junk Vintage Market. This was the first show that Stacey and I did without our Mom.

-Bryn turned eight! A very special and momentous birthday!!

-We took the kids on an awesome spring break trip to the Oregon Coast. We had an absolute blast!!

-We repainted our living room. So needed!

-Bryn participated in a talent show. She did great!

-I had my first cardiology appointment. I had a weird bunch of tachycardia symptoms and ended up with a heart monitor for 24 hours. Glad to report that all was okay.

-Kameron got his DRIVERS LICENSE!!

-I got the results of my Ancestry DNA test. It was the most exciting thing ever!! I still need to blog about this.

-Reilly got stitches for the first time.

-Tyler's sister Lori came to visit!! We loved having her here and we had a ball!!

-Tyler and I saw a huge meteorite streak through the sky one night when we were going to the gym. So cool!!

-My Nana passed away on Easter morning.

-Bryn ran and did swimming for her spring sports.

-Tyler and I celebrated 22 years of marriage!!

-Grandma Judie and Grandpa Joel (Tyler's mom and stepdad) came to visit.

-Bryn got baptized!! Very momentous!!

-Reilly came to visit and was here for Bryn's baptism and Mother's Day. We loved it!!

-My Grandma Ellersick passed away. The end of an era. She was my last living grandparent.

-My extended family imploded...and everything about our extended family changed. Sad.

-Kameron went on a fun school trip to San Francisco.

-I was a curator at the amazingly awesome Farm Chicks Show!!

-I turned 45!

-Kameron went on the Pioneer Trek and loved every minute. He had such an incredible experience.

-Ailey turned 13! She's now an official teenager!!

-Ailey went to her second year of Girls Camp and had a fabulous time.

-Reilly came home for another visit. Her third in a few short months.

-Reilly made the decision to move back to Spokane. We were all super happy about that!

-My good friend Jayni who lives in Utah came to visit!

-Kelley and Elle moved.

-My mom made the decision to purchase my grandparents lake house and she moved to the lake.

-We watched the solar eclipse. It was awesome.

-We did a ton of paddleboarding and kayaking.

-Stacey and I were vendors at the Funky Junk Antiques show.

-Kameron started school as a JUNIOR. Time is going by too quickly!!

-Ailey started school as an 8th grader.

-Ailey was nominated to be a WEB leader on Student Council. Awesome!

-Bryn started school as a third grader. She got Mr. Osborne as a teacher. Reilly had him in 5th grade and so Bryn was extra excited to have him as a teacher.

-I got a break from driving to early morning Seminary!! Kam drives himself to seminary and to school.  Hallelujah!

-Bryn started her second year of piano.

-Reilly moved back!!

-Bryn ran double cross country and had a spectacular year.

-Tyler spent A LOT of time this year doing onsite hydrodam inspections in multiple states.

-We bought a new-to-us Suburban. We love it! We are a Suburban family. When we bought the new Suburban we kept our old one too. They are the best! Tyler drives our old Suburban and I drive our new(er) Suburban and Kameron drives our Honda.

-Tyler was called as the Secretary of the High Priests Quorum at church.

-Someone broke into our garage and destroyed our garage door. Jerks.

-The Pacific Northwest burned. It was devastating. I have never seen it so horribly smokey. The air quality was absolutely terrible. Sports were cancelled. Kids couldn't go out for recess. People didn't go outside and if they did many wore masks.

-One of our high schools here in Spokane had a shooting and a student was killed. This hit very close to home as kids from our ward and stake attend school there. So sad.

-Bryn rode a camel!!

-Bryn qualified for the All-City XC finals!! She had a killer XC season this year.

-I was a vendor at the Mad Hatter Vintage Flea Market all by myself. (Tyler and the kids helped me.) It was an incredible show for me in so many ways.

-Reilly had unexpected gallbladder surgery.

-Bryn started tennis.

-Tyler had a brain hemorrhage.  Our world was rocked to the core and we are forever changed. Just writing that gives me a pit in my stomach and brings tears to my eyes. It was such a difficult and scary time.

-Tyler recovered. THE BIGGEST BLESSING OF OUR ENTIRE LIVES!! Miracles exist.

-Reilly turned 21!! How is that possible?

-Kameron turned 17!!

-I joined a book club. I haven't been in a book club for several years now and I am so happy to be in one again. Reading is such a gift in my life.

-Tyler and I got to hear the author Wiley Cash speak. It was awesome!

-We had an amazing and unforgettable Thanksgiving.

-I lost 20 lbs. Yay!!

-I was a vendor at the Pickin' Christmas show. It was also a great experience.

-I did two vintage shows by myself this year and I have grown a lot. Stacey and I did several shows without my mom as well. It has been an interesting year for Sisters Creed.

-Our family did Light the World! It was an incredible experience.

-Ailey tried out to be a drill team captain and she made it!!

-Kameron went to his first official rock concert. The Foo Fighters... with his dad!

-We had a wonderful Christmas!

-I made SIGNIFICANTLY more money with my Sisters Creed business than the year before. I set a big goal for myself in this area and not only accomplished it but exceeded it by a good amount. 2017 was my very best year, financially, with Sisters Creed.

-We survived 2017. A feat in itself.

-We rang in 2018!!


I read 40 books in 2017. Here are my top five favorites:

1.) The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Ann Bronte

2.) Seven Stones to Stand or Fall by Diana Gabaldon

3.) The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

4.) Of Mess and Moxie by Jen Hatmaker

5.) The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O' Farrell

My reading for 2017 was fairly disappointing. I didn't read anything that really knocked my socks off. I wish that I would've found a big sweeping novel that would've been all engrossing and that could've made my all time favorites list. But that didn't happen. I read many good books, more okay books, and several duds. In 2017 I read a lot of memoirs. Almost half of my books were memoirs or nonfiction. I also read a lot of classics and my old standby historical fiction. I don't know why but contemporary fiction wasn't cutting it for me this year. I could not find a book in that genre that I loved.

Worst Book of 2017:

The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware

Goals Review:

This year I feel like I kicked butt in my goals. I am a HUGE goal setter and goal tracker. I make A LOT of goals at the first of the year and I track my progress daily. This year I was determined to really make a big dent in some of my goals that are consistently on my list year after year. I am happy to report that I did. It really helped me to stay on track with my goals by dividing the year up into quarters and then that was especially great motivation for me as I saw the fourth quarter approaching.

If you follow Gretchen Rubin or have read her book The Four Tendencies which is absolutely life changing then it won't surprise you to find out that I am an UPHOLDER. I need to do a whole blog post about this book because it has totally changed the way that I see things and has helped me so much with my marriage and children. The idea is that people fit into one of four tendencies: upholder, obliger, questioner, and rebel in how they respond to expectations. Upholders meet outer expectations and inner expectations. We are goal setters and goal keepers...even if no one knows what they are except for us. Upholders don't need outer motivation. We motivate ourselves. This can drive my family crazy but it is how I am. I am an EXTREMELY motivated and driven person...in all areas of my life. Learning about the four tendencies and learning which tendencies each of my kids are and Tyler too has helped me to relax and chill out in my expectations for them and has also helped me to get over many of my frustrations with them. This has been HUGE! For all of us.

All of that should help to explain my goals for 2017... I set 183. Yes... 183. Some were big goals, some were HUGE goals, some were small goals, and some were baby step goals. My rule for goal setting is that they have to be "trackable". It can't just be "I want to be a better person" which isn't trackable. So if that was my goal I would break it down into smaller trackable parts and then track and monitor my progress all year. Or if my goals aren't trackable they have to be something that once I have done it... it can be crossed off my list. This year I accomplished 131 goals out of my 183. So I accomplished 71% of my goals for 2017. That was exciting because I set 48 more goals for 2017 than I did for 2016 and I accomplished 52 more goals than I did in 2016. I know... Tyler thinks I'm crazy too...but I love it. It is just how I am wired. And yes...I was super excited to set my goals for 2018. Don't ask how many goals are on my list this year. But I am already tracking away! Ha ha.

And that does it for 2017!!

December: Things I am Loving

December: Things I am Loving

1.) Reading Christmas Books

This is one of my very favorite Christmas traditions. I love wrapping up 25 Christmas books and putting them under the tree. The kids take turns unwrapping a book each night and we read them together. I wondered how this tradition would play out as the kids got older. I am pleasantly surprised to report that it is still going strong. Reilly all through high school would come into the living room each night to listen to or read the nightly Christmas book. She still does when she is at the house and it is time to read the book. Then I wondered how it would go with Kameron. But he too takes his turn to pick a book and read it and he will come and listen if he is home in the evening. So I consider that tradition a success!

2.) Christmas Cards

I absolutely love and adore Christmas cards. I love sending them and I love receiving them. I adore opening the mailbox in December and finding it full of cards from friends and family. Especially in this world of social media and no good mail only bills...it is extremely cheery to find Christmas cards in the mailbox. Plus I love to display them and see the cute pictures and wishes of good friends and family throughout the holidays.

3.) Chex Mix

Chex Mix is my kryptonite. It is my very favorite snack and I have absolutely no will power to resist a hot batch of chex mix straight out of the oven. Thank goodness I usually only make it during the holidays. It is so delicious and addictive!!

4.) Tipsy Brit Cheese

Our  family loves this brand of cheese! Both of these flavors are so delicious. I look forward to trying their other flavors as well. So good!

5.) Johnson Tries

I think it goes without saying that our family loves to place this little game. The holidays provided many opportunities for texted and snap chatted Johnson Tries all month long. Whether it was eggnog or candy or any other holiday snack or food...It is always fun to play and we love doing it!