Life Moves Pretty Quickly

A very smart friend said to me one day, "as fast as kids arrive in your home, that's how fast they leave". I figure she knows what's she's talking about considering she have birth to 10 kids and was blessed to raise 9 to adulthood.  

When I started this blog I had one child living in New Caledonia, serving a mission for our church and the rest living at home.  Since then our oldest and only daughter has married and moved on, our missionary has returned home and after living with his grandparents for a year is finishing up his schooling at BYUi in Rexburg, Idaho, our middle son is now serving a mission in Xalapa, Mexico and my second to youngest will be leaving home next month for the MTC to learn French then he will be off to serve his mission in Paris, France. If you're keeping count, that leaves one child at home, a situation I experienced last in 1991.  I get asked (criticized) by people not of my faith quite a bit on how I can send my kids out on the world and not see them for 2 years. I tell them it's easy and truly it is.  I love The Lord, I believe in his gospel. I know that if you believe and have faith in Him then you will be blessed by following Him and sharing His gospel. My boys feel the same way and know that the 2 years they serve will bless our family and their lives in countless ways that will manifest throughout their lives. In the grand scheme of eternity, 2 years isn't even a blip. 

The best part about them serving a mission? I can't speak for others but this moment is pretty good,

this is all of them together again after 2 years, this is the day we picked Andrew up at the airport.  The extra kid in the back is Megan, I consider her one of mine too. 

Also it didn't bother me to trip over these well worn ugly sandals the next morning! 

All of this happened in June of 2012, it seems like yesterday, but the son I got back was the same yet different. For one thing he was no longer a boy, he was a man. He had been refined by the experiences he had living in a different culture than the one he was used to. He learned that even though we're not rich, he had it better than most. He learned to love the people he served, he learned to turn the other cheek, he learned how to catch, prepare, cook and eat a bat! He also came home with a thorough knowledge of French and can speak the island language of Bislama. These are experiences money can't buy.  

In October of 2013 our daughter Ashton married. I'll post more about her wedding later. 

My new son-in-law is geeky in a cool way. This was a day filled with love and laughter.  For example, the wedding selfie:

And the photo booth: 

But most importantly, family.

I can't stress the importance of family. I was telling my husband the other day that I was so grateful to a God in Heaven that is so much smarter than me and knew although I was happy with my two oldest kids, He knew I needed more in my life so He gave me as I called them for much too long, the little boys. Never mind that they all tower over me now. Without those three our lives would not be as joyous as they've been these last 20 years. 

Born in February of 1995 was Jordan, Jojo to the family. He is now serving a mission in Mexico and like his brother before him, went off a boy. He's had to learn a new language, then teach in that language, learn that plumbing isn't always reliable and that in Mexico they use more of the chicken than his mom does and corn tortillas come with every meal, every meal. The best part for me is knowing that when he returns he will be a better version of himself after all those experiences. Here he is just before baptizing this lovely lady, she's 101 years old, can you imagine the joy this brings? 

I look forward to his return eagerly, I can't wait to have him speak to the Mexican side of our family! Again this is something no amount of money can buy, these experiences are priceless! 

Then there's our second to youngest, Cameron, he's 19 months younger than Jojo. Cammy as I call him, has been called to serve in Paris, France. His mission encompasses the area that his grandmother is from the Alsace-Lorraine region. What are the chances that I would have 2 sons that serve French speaking missions? No chance at all because truly there is a God in Heaven that knows better than me. 

Cameron making a face because I insisted on photographing him:

So very soon, he will be off on his own adventure and he will have those experiences that will enhance and enrich his life in untold ways. And as for me, I will write him and his brother every week and look forward to Christmas and Mother's Day when I will get to skype with them. The house will be a little quieter and a little neater because only the youngest will be home. But soon, very soon Jordan will return and then Jonathan, Bubba to you and me, will graduate and be off and we will be empty-nesters. It happened in the blink of an eye. 

Taken in February of 2014. Left to right: youngest to oldest, the last picture of them all together for 5 years. 

Is it worth it? You bet! 

Terri 

My Family

So here we are in Las Vegas for a few days visiting family. On Monday, the hubby and I decide to take the boys out to shop and get lunch. As we are attempting to get on the freeway and missing the on ramp we decide before we go anywhere we need Diet Coke, logical right? It's while we are in the drive-thru that a typical family conversation occurs. 

Me: (reading billboard) Tourists bring in 45 billion in cash to Las Vegas. 

Hubby: really? 

Me: that's what the billboard says. I think that's what I'm going to do, open a casino in the living room. You won't mind will you? I'm sure the Feds won't either as long as I pay my taxes. 

Hubby: the local authorities might. Well I guess you can bribe them. 

Me: so this is our plan, we'll start with roulette and craps. 

#1 son: and Russian Roulette, you gotta have that. 

Me: no thanks, I'd run out of places to hide the bodies. 

#2 son: no mom, you're missing another income opportunity, organ harvesting. 

Hubby: yeah, think of the money to be made, it doesn't have to be a good kidney, just a kidney. 

#1 son: then you've got, hearts, lungs, livers, corneas and I'm sure someone will take the rest off your hands, this is a win/win. 

Me: how did I go from hypothetically running an illegal gambling den to harvesting body parts? 

Hubby: we're just trying to help you realize your full potential. 

This people is why I love my family. 

Hello? Anyone there?

I know I shouldn't expect anyone to stick with me considering my last post was in September!  September! It seems like yesterday. So what have I been doing with myself?  Once October hits my attention turns to thoughts of Halloween.  I love decorating and costuming for it.  Here are a few items that kept me occupied:

This is my youngest Jonathan.  He was willing to let me dress him as PeeWee Herman. This is the easiest costume I've done in a long time.  Most of it was thrift store finds including the white shoes.  Thank you Deseret Industries in Las Vegas! I did make the bow tie.

My daughter Ashton and her boyfriend Matt. Ashton found this ugly, homemade bridesmaid dress at the same thrift store and I did the rest. I also did the make up.  I found an awesome tutorial on how to do the make up on youtube. It was so much fun and I got to use most of my MAC makeup brushes!  

Here is the 3 of them at our church Halloween party or Trunk or Treat.

This was on a trip to Grandma and Grandpa's in late September.  This was just after a successful trip to the Deseret Industries thrift store to find all the goodies we used for Halloween.  I probably should have fixed all the glowing eyes everyone has in this picture.

I have a bit more to post including one tutorial and some photos of Jordan in his costume from Halloween night. He's the one on the left.  He decided on the 31st that he needed a zombie costume to go hang out with friends that were also going to be zombies.  We spent about 45 minutes in the front yard destroying one of his older brothers old suits with everything we could think of, including fire, to make it look properly zombiefied.  Then I did make up for him and some friends.

Here's a sample of what I will be posting the tutorial on and some projects I have completed recently:

One of my hubby's shirts that he doesn't want anymore. I turned it into a cute shirt for me.

My Homer Simpson angel, we have a giant inflatable Homer that goes in the front yard every year. I always wanted one for my tree. Yes I know it's goofy but that's who we are as a family.

A dress I made for Ashton, as you can see I am totally inspired by TV shows like Mad Men and Pan Am

 I was asked last week if I could make a bow tie out of a neck tie, why yes I can!

 Since last December I have become the proud owner of some AMAZING shoes! These I ordered from Bakers! They were on sale! They are the most gorgeous shade of purple.  I just had to have them.  I did get something for my hubby since I was buying shoes.  He got a Green Lantern Snuggie and a Doctor Who t-shirt from TeeFury.  

I saw this in an In Style magazine while waiting at the urgent care for my son, he sprained his wrist, nothing serious.  I love it but not the colors. I'm thinking green/brown or blue/orange. 

So that's my little catch-up post. I do have some things to blog about regarding November but right now I need food and I need to finish laundry.  I hope everyone had a great holiday season.  I loved Halloween and Thanksgiving.  I especially enjoyed watching USC trounce UCLA in football last year. By the time Christmas rolled around it was just icing on a great holiday cake.  

 Terri

Yes I am dressed as Zombie Snow White. I stopped dressing like a pretty princess for Halloween when I discovered little girls I didn't know liked to touch me with their sticky hands! Yuck! 

Sewing, laundry, rain, chauffeuring and did I mention sewing?

I am happy to report I have finished: 1 wedding dress, 6, I think it was 6, bridesmaids skirts, 2 skirts for the brides cousins and 1 mother of the bride dress in the last month and a half.  2 days before I completed the wedding gown I was contacted by a young woman who was given my name by Helle, she needs not 1 but 2 dresses for Prom.  So I will be making this:

She wants it slightly modified with spaghetti straps and a low low back.  I'm just glad the fabric isn't sequins but rather a lovely silk and embellished lace.   I will be using a Butterick Pattern 4657 and modifying it.  I find when I am crunched for time this is the easiest method.

After checking out tons of patterns I decided this was the closest to the style. 

This is the second dress she has requested, and yes the skirt will have feathers.  This one she wants in black. The bustier top will not have the jewels on it since again they brought me fabric that is already embellished.

This is another pattern I have had in my collection for some time and have wanted to make it forever.  I found some gorgeous cotton fabric that just said Easter to me so why not make it now?  My Sweetie and I are planning to head to Viva Las Vegas Weekend in April and vintage clothing is needed.  This is Butterick pattern 4790 from 1952.  It was called the "Walk Away Dress." You can read a brief history here.  It was easy to make with just 3 pattern pieces and then binding. I love the fact that some of the pattern companies are reissuing vintage patterns.  I love them, the dresses are so feminine.

Here is the fabric and the binding, now to search the closet for some shoes that will go with this dress.  














So for my Sweetie who has a great sense of humor and since I rarely sew for him, I found an outrageous  fabric that I will be making a Hawaiian Shirt out of.  The fabric is called Mirage and I purchased it at Michael Levine's in Downtown LA.   I also found buttons made from coconut!

That is everything that is on my sewing table at the moment.  Monday I peaked into Jordan and Jonathan's room and realized the laundry is up to my hip.  It has spilled out of the hamper and is threatening to overtake the room.  Jonathan was doing the laundry for himself and his brother but has decided it's for the birds.  So I guess it's back to me.  I hate laundry.  I don't mind folding it but I hate sorting and remembering to take it out of the washer then put it in the dryer.  I hate that after I fold it, instead of putting it away my kids will leave it on the dining room table and just take what they need for that day.  There has to be an easier way. 

It has also been raining quite a bit.  I'm not crazy about winter but some of the positives about it: warm jammy pants, my hubby's sweatshirts, my mother's beef stew, wearing boots, my new polka dot coat, hats and the mountains (hills)behind our house get covered occasionally by snow.  During the cooler times of the year the tops of the mountains (hills) also get covered by the clouds blown in from the ocean.  I love this, when my kids were little we started calling it the "cloud monster" because of the way it crept over the top of them.  Lately I've taken to calling them the Misty Mountains.  I've been rereading Lord of the Rings in my spare time. 

The rest of the time seems to be taken up by chauffeuring kids here and there.  To school, from school, to Church, friends houses, jobs and doctor appointments.  I cringe every time I have to get gas.  OUCH!  If this keeps up I'm investing in horses for the boys.  At least I am grateful that I no longer have to travel 10 miles to the grocery store, we now have one 2 miles away, along with a gas station a bank and Subway!  If I'm feeling ambitious and weather permitting I may even walk there.  I believe somewhere in my garage is one of those old lady shopping carts.  Notice I didn't say ride my bike, the hills in our community still defeat me.

The above photo is of Cameron's big toe on the left side about a half inch above the joint you can see the break.  The doctor said it's healing nicely and he should be back running in about 5 weeks.  Hard to believe he managed to go hiking with his Scout Troop last Friday and Saturday up Mt. San Jacinto. Go Cam!
  
So that's life this week, the kids are out of school next week for Spring Break, I will need to start a list of projects for them.  Our friend Kurt Rose is extremely ill and in need of prayers. My son Andrew reports that he is well and has been on his Mission now 8 months! Where did the time go?  I continue to feel blessed that I have a family that loves me, a (repaired) roof over my head, food to eat, clothes to wear, cars to drive and good friends willing to celebrate or sympathize with me.  But most of all, I am grateful for the tender mercies of the Lord Jesus Christ in my life.
Terri

Family, you gotta love them.

 I decided that I would introduce you to my family, The family photo was taken at Church on Easter Sunday in 2009.  It's probably the last good photo that was taken of my family.  My friend Cheryl took this photo for us.  Of course with 5 kids the chances of one giving us a funny pose is always a possibility. I can usually get them to cooperate if I let them give me a goofy pose after we get the good one.  The funny thing is my favorite picture usually turns out to be the funny one.  So let me introduce you to my family.  From the left: oldest child and only girl, (how's that for placement?) Ashton,who also happens to be the oldest grandchild on both sides of the family and was the only granddaughter until she was15! Next is #1 son, Andrew, currently serving a Mission in New Caledonia. Next up, my hubby John, he is the best husband and father I could have asked for. Yours truly, then #2 son, Jordan, just turned 16 is almost as tall as dad now and can't wait to get his license. Next we have #3 son, Cameron, I'm not saying that Cam is the most handsome of my boys but he is the most charming.  In our Church, kids are encouraged not to date until they are 16, Cameron has had girlfriends since the age of 2! I've lost track of the number of girls who have told me they are going to marry him! When I'm annoyed with Cam I usually tell him he took my pretty, and that's why I'm not as cute as I once was.  Finally we come to #4 son front and center, Jonathan, since this photo was taken he passed me in height.  Did I mention I'm only five foot?  I'm wearing 5 inch heels in this photo.  Jonathan has been my buddy since he was born.  Of all my kids, he was the most mine. Let me explain, all of my kids loved me as babies but once I had fed them, they pretty much preferred other people, for Ashton it was Grandma, Andrew was Grandpa's boy, Jordan liked hanging with Dad, and Cam liked kicking it with Ashton. So understandably I decided this last child would be mine, and he was.  He wouldn't let anybody hold him but me, he was mine until I had to let him go to school. I think that was more painful for me than him.  So that's the family.

This photo is of my son Andrew and a family he met in New Caledonia.  Andrew updates us weekly on what he is doing and how much he loves serving the Lord.  My friend Sara just dropped her son off at the Missionary Training Center in Utah this week so that he could begin his mission, she said something very profound about the feeling you get sending your 19 year old son into the world.   She said that her heart was full but broken at the same time. And that is a perfect description of what it's like.  More about Andrew can be found here: http://elderajam.blogspot.com/
The joy that comes through when Andrew writes us is evident and I'm happy that he loves what he is doing.  I try not to miss our classic movie nights too much.  For more about my beliefs and information about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints go here: http://lds.org/?lang=eng.  I am by no means an expert so if you would like to know more I say go to the source.

Well I think that's good for now, I have to get ready to go to the garment district in Los Angeles. I'm going to stop by the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) to take a gander at the Academy Award nominated costumes then look for fabric for a new Renaissance Faire costume. (yay!) My friend Cheryl will be coming along, her daughter Lacey is getting married in April and her fiance and father will be meeting us in LA so that they can purchase new suits for the upcoming nuptials.  Did I mention I'm making the wedding dress?  It's coming together very well and I'm honored that I was asked.  I will post pics after the wedding, including photos of the construction.  
So I'm off,
Terri