Psalm 78

<sup>Reading this encouraged my heart today:

4</sup> We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation
about the glorious deeds of the Lord,
about his power and his mighty wonders.

⁵ For he issued his laws to Jacob;
he gave his instructions to Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to teach them to their children,

⁶ so the next generation might know them—
even the children not yet born—
and they in turn will teach their own children.

⁷ So each generation should set its hope anew on God,
not forgetting his glorious miracles

and obeying his commands.

Time to Reflect and Refresh

I'm thankful to have a wonderful husband who takes such good care of me. He comes home from his long days at school and helps with dinner, laundry and bathing the kids. And if that wasn't enough, I'm able to spend Saturday mornings hidden away in a coffee shop reading, planning the week's activities and taking a little break from the busyness of home life. This morning I got a much-needed haircut, had coffee, did a little shopping, and went to the library. I love to browse the children's section with my kids, but today I was able to browse the adult section. I found a great art book, a soup cookbook, a couple of decorating books, and a book about vintage kitchen glassware.

This morning I revisited Honey for a Child's Heart. This book is a great resource for children's literature.

I love to pack my bookbag on Saturday mornings and head out the door for a good cup of coffee. Even better are the smiles and hugs I receive hours later when I return.

Not Again!

As if the "2002 Relaunch of Strawberry Shortcake" wasn't enough to break the hearts of her many fans, she's being altered once more!

Don't get me wrong, she's kinda cute. My 6 year old son just informed me that her new look is "her cutest look!" And, after all, these dolls are made for kids--not for 34 year old nostalgic mommies.

If you're a fan of Strawberry Shortcake, you can click here to find out more about these "relaunches."

So, which do you prefer? The 1980, the 2002 or the new 2009 version?

Problem Solved

Yum...

and yum.

Probably not the best thing to snack on at 11:00 at night, so I tossed in a banana.

Much better.

Afternoon Pick-Me-Up

When 3:00 arrives, nap time is over and my girls begin to stir. They're always so energized--but mommy? Not quite! Sometimes I don't think I'll make it to dinner time.

To remedy this, I make myself an afternoon latte. It's become a necessity, in fact. Coffee is a beautiful thing. I couldn't resist taking this picture today. Hooray for coffee!

My current favorites:

hazelnut
Irish creme
vanilla

My favorite brews:

Peet's Sumatra or Espresso Forte
Seattle's Best French Roast
Starbucks Italian Roast

Valentine Mice

For someone who can't stand mice, I sure do a lot crafty things with them. These mice are made of folded paper hearts...simple! You can find the instructions to make these here. For the tails, I used rick rack instead of lollipops.

Vintage Valentines

For those of you who love vintage style, do you ever want to kick yourself when you realize that you used to own many of the things you look for in antique stores today? I was only 8 at the time, but oh, how I wish I would have saved a few of my Strawberry Shortcake valentines!

They look so sweet in my kitchen.

Touches of Pink and Red

I've always loved Valentine's Day. Isn't it such a wonderful day when you're in elementary school? What fun to pick out a box of Valentines at the store and then pretend not to enjoy passing them out to all the boys in your class! The first year I taught school, I had to pinch myself when I realized that I would be organizing my own Valentine parties. And how could I resist all the yummy chocolate delivered to my desk from at least 25 students? Oh, day of all days!

Packing up Christmas is always difficult for me. It's so refreshing to add touches of pretty pink and bright red around the house after the gray and gloom of January.

Groundhog Day Fun

Happy Groundhog Day! My kids are always excited to wake up on February 2, because we make our predictions about Mr. Groundhog the night before.

Before breakfast, I get the computer all geared up so we can watch the news clip from Punxsutawney, PA. The kids are always so excited to see the "real" Mr. Groundhog. :)

All set for breakfast!

Here's a little Groundhog Day snack for the littles. Hide a Hershey Kiss in a bowl of yogurt, topped with green sprinkles.

They'll love finding Mr. Groundhog hiding in their bowls!