Like a dream

 

Maddy recently discovered the joys of photography and can be found with my old film camera slung around her neck, focusing on various details and worrying about lighting and shutter speed. I can't wait to see the world through her lens. And I do have to wait. Oh, film. Remember the patience of film photography? She's taking a class and learning the darkroom techniques of developing film. Twice someone else opened up the developer with her film in it and she lost the entire batch of photos. Twice. Gone, like a dream untold. Heartbreaking.

. . .

I admit I'm a little out of sorts today. I went back to bed after the last of the kids left for school at 7:30 this morning because I went to bed at 1 (G got called out for a bit last night) and got up at 5:15 (driving kids to seminary) and I'm not a very nice person on 4 hours of sleep. Or at least that's the feedback I've received.

Morning dreams are odd. Today I had this strange & vivid dream where G and I were driving along and he remembered he needed to get something so suddenly he was gone and I was alone in the car. La di da di da, looking out the window, enjoying the scenery. Then I looked up and the car was veering toward a cliff because (hello!) no one was driving. I grabbed the steering wheel but ended up rear-ending two cars that were parked in a row, one filled with policemen. G showed up, a little bewildered about how I managed to crash, but kind about it.  We decided to find some bicycles.

Don't analyze that, please.

And, sorry, retold dreams are never very interesting but this is just to say that now I have a dream hangover, fuzzy and a little irritated and kind of defensive.

So fingers crossed on the nice person thing today.

List of five: How we roll today

1. It snowed. Happy April Fools Day, New England style!

2. Unfortunately, this car is not how we roll today.

Lauren and Maddy got into a fender bender last night, where they were the middle of a three-car cruncher. Luckily, everyone was okay other than being a little shaken. (They complained of some achiness this morning so we asked the doctor to check out Maddy's headache and neck ache and Lauren's back ache. All is well.) But still scary.  Someone please come up with a bubble wrap enclosure for our teenagers. Okay, thanks.

3. G had to do a video teleconference from home this morning so we got him all set up.

The tower of board games to position the light was particularly delightful. Oh, yeah. That's how we roll.

4. School is hard work. Naps are how we roll on Friday afternoons.

Changing the world, one nap at a time.

5. Thank you for your paint suggestions! They definitely led me in the right direction and now I have a very nice reference folder for future projects. I settled on Moonshine for our bedroom, a soothing grey. This was my Moonshine inspiration, at Young House Love , where someone sent me but I can't remember who:

So far I love it. The faded wallpaper and quirky tree mural from the previous owner are gone, baby, gone! Um, yes, it took me three years from that wallpaper post to get to the bedroom paint makeover. And, yes, I STILL decided the paint color at the last minute. I'm coming to realize (and G has long known) that's just how I roll.

Happy weekend, one and all! I will be enjoying General Conference, attending a dear friend's daughter's bat mitvah, doing prom errands with Lauren, and cozying up for some family time.

Outtakery

Just a few outtakes from this year's Christmas photo shoot...

Instead of my usual DIY self-timer method, I decided to splurge on having our photographer friend come and take them--especially since Lauren will be heading to college next year and we might not do it again for a while. 

What was especially wonderful? It was just a really fun afternoon spent laughing and playing--a nice family memory in itself. 

 ^We didn't want to drag the piano outside so we used piano music in a typewriter instead

And this one cracks me up every. single. time:  . . .

Chalkboards via Brooke at Playing Grown Up (but if you live near me, I'm happy to let you use mine) They have helpful little knobs on the back.

Photos by Nicole Barker

"it's the lovelight in her eyes..."*

 

Look who turned 15 this weekend!

Miss Maddy had a fabulous Saturday birthday: breakfast with some friends after her violin lesson, picnic+pie+presents with family, and then a party extravaganza with more friends (20!) here that night. 

Yep, Maddy's a joy and I feel lucky to know her and love her and mother her. She's one of those souls that came to earth already wise, curious, and open-hearted. One night when she was barely three, the girls were getting ready for bed. I asked them what they wanted to do for their last activity before bed. Read a book? Tell stories? Little Maddy piped up "I know! Let's talk about our feelings!" It cracked us up but it is very much who Maddy is: observant and sensitive and aware of everyone's feelings.

It's not that she's perfect or doesn't have struggles (remember this?) but she bravely lets herself feel the difficult emotions (like her occasional bouts with anxiety or sadness) or acknowledge whatever challenge she's facing, talks about and works through it, and is stronger and more compassionate for the struggle. 

{Brag alert.} I forgot to mention this earlier this year but maybe it's a good time to say it today. For posterity, right? {Feel free to skip; I'll never know.} At the end of the school year, the faculty members of her school select a student who has made outstanding contributions in the areas of the school values: service, leadership, character, and loyalty. Maddy received the award this year and here is part of the tribute one of her teachers wrote--he even was a bit verklempt as he read it out loud:

In the classroom, all of her teachers past and present describe her as a student who makes positive connections with students and teachers alike. She can always be counted on to do the right thing and she puts others before herself. Beyond the classroom, as a member of Student Leadership, she has been a leader of leaders. The faculty advisor describes her as "one who knows how to lead in a gentle way." As a member of the Model United Nations team her diplomatic skills are exemplary. These skills were clearly apparent as she carried herself as an ambassador would, admirably representing [our town] on the middle school trip to China. She has been integral in organizing and presiding over many of our student assemblies, including this one we are enjoying today. 

 She's a keeper.

*"it's the lovelight in your eyes where'ere you go" is the final line of one of our family's traditional birthday songs. We're the third generation to sing this particular string of 6-7 songs before the candles are blown out and the kids hold us to it every birthday (even if we do sometimes forget some of the words and make up our own).

What's UP, Halloween style

{Recognize us? Ellie, Carl Frederickson, and Russell from UP}

also The Riddler (Jenny, we totally swiped this from you)

and a lovely gypsy who evaded all photos but this one

Lessons learned: 

1. It's amazing what you can throw together with a last minute idea on a Saturday afternoon
2. It's more fun when everyone joins in
3. One of these years we should get ready early enough to take Halloween photos in natural light 
4. You can find pretty much anything you need at the 5 and 10
5. But you'll have to take four trips there in one day to get everything you need 
6. We like to pose with our hands on our hips around here