this was soooo made for me...

A Swedish Furniture Name Generator!

If you love IKEA as much as I do, you'll get a kick outta this one. Funny!

february love.

( photo: frydogdesign.blogspot.com )

I don't care what the haters say about Valentine's Day... Claiming that we should express our love for one another every single day, not just on a "designated holiday"... Saying that it's a sham, a holiday created by the greeting card companies...

Blah. Blah. Blah.

Seriously?

I agree with the part about expressing love every day (very important). And maybe the greeting card companies, florists and candy makers make a ton of money on Valentine's Day, too. So what? They also rake in the $$$ Big bucks $$$ on Mother's Day, does anyone object to that one? Shouldn't we love our mothers every single day???

I'm a romantic at heart. I LOVE love. I'm not sure if I believe in "love at first sight", but I do believe in true love. It's happened to me, it's real and it's possible. I feel sorrow just thinking about a life without true love.

And I LOVE Valentine's Day! It's my number 3 favorite holiday behind Thanksgiving and Halloween. I look forward to all the red and pink, the lace and ruffles, the sweets and especially making valentines!

It's one week away and I've got nothing but love and Valentine's Day on my mind.

♥ ♥ ♥

neglected.

I am watching Martha Stewart's Blog Show today (on DVR, I'm a day behind... what does that tell you?). Obviously, it's all about blogging and it just made me remember my long, lost blog... Gosh, I haven't blogged since Christmas and before then, who knows?

So, I just wanted to say hi... I miss my blog. I wish I were here more. But honestly, I can't promise I'll be here more often in 2010. Really, I'll do my best. My intentions are good. But tell me...

How do I find the time?

So for now, Happy New Year! Happy MLK day! And Happy Valentine's Day! *just in case* :)

See you soon!

Christmas blessings.

happy birthday, Mom.

We love you like crazy...
(turn off music player at bottom of page before you click PLAY)

Make a Smilebox greeting

Christmas memories + traditions.

It's week 2 of the 12 Weeks of Christmas. If you'd like to know more about the 12 Weeks of Christmas event, be sure to click the link. I LOVE participating in blog-hosted events, ESPECIALLY when they are holiday-related in any way.

So, this week's entry is focused on the memories and traditions of Christmas. One of the most beloved of our Christmas traditions is focused on our family and our faith. For us, the Advent Wreath is at the very top of our list of favorites...


photo taken December 2007 in our home

I treasure the quiet moments each Sunday when a new candle is lit and we spend a some time together for prayer and reading scripture and talking a little bit about how we wait for Christ during the Christmas season. It's a good reminder, especially for the little ones in the house, that Christmas should be Christ-centered. It's hard to remember that when you're little... we understand.

I also believe it's so beneficial to children to celebrate traditions like the Advent wreath from year to year... We've had an Advent wreath in our own home for at least the last 10 years, probably more. I believe that the tradtion will be passed down through our daughters to their children someday and it makes me feel like we will be sharing a bit of what is meaningful to us today with our loved ones in the future.

I love tradition. What's your family's favorite tradition?

small world.

Back in May, Wendy and Tyler of Blue Lily Photography took the most beautiful portraits of our five girls in Old Town Temecula. Of course, we think our children are the most gorgeous ever, but isn't the photography equally amazing?



Well, Wendy and Tyler travel all around the country taking beautiful pictures of all kinds of people and families. It just so happens that they have also taken photos of Stephanie Nielson and her family... (Stephanie survived a terrible airplane crash and is recovering from her injuries, going strong I might add!) In fact, you could see Blue Lily Photography ALL OVER Stephanie's home when she appeared on the Oprah show yesterday.

Wendy blogged about Stephanie's appearance ... click here to see her post and be sure to click the link for the Oprah video clip. What a story.

Small world.