Best Brush

Please excuse this grodie looking picture. I love this brush. Emma (my 7-year-old daughter) left her brush at Stephanie's house over the break and so I bought this one for a dollar at the Food Surplus Outlet. It has changed our mother-daughter relationship for the better. It used to be that Emma would scream or cry when I would do her hair in the morning before school. I have curly hair and a tender head and so I have always brushed her hair really gently while holding it so it doesn't pull right from the scalp, but she would still always make a fuss. Since I got this brush she has actually asked me to brush her hair at night because it doesn't pull. I can brush my own hair which is full of tangles without crying as well. I love this brush! If you have daughters that cry at hairdo time I really recommend you get it. I think it is less than $6 at Walgreens. Happy styling!

Free Cosmetics!!

Hey girls -- free makeup at department stores.  Macy's, Saks, Lord and Taylor, Dillards... if you bought makeup at one of these stores in the last few years they are settling a 56 million dollar suit by giving out free stuff.  One item per person per store.  I got some Lancome mascara at Saks and some Clinique day cream at Macy's.  Pretty sweet!!  Only lasts while supplies last, starts today.

Introducing Royal and Ruby McKinney

Royal and Ruby

Royal Sumner and Ruby Tresler (my maiden name) were born on December 29th around 8:15 in the evening.  Royal weighed 5 lbs 14 oz and was 18 inches long and Ruby weighed 5 lbs 11 oz and was 19 inches long.  Both were born very healthy and strong.  

I ended up having a c-section after the ultrasound showed both little ones were transverse.  Though I wish I could've delivered vaginally, the labor and delivery part of it was way easier.....the recovery, not so much.  I'm just glad it's getting better everyday.  I feel great, though a little sleepy.  

I'm SO grateful for my little ones and I think it's such a blessing to have twins.  They are beautiful in every way.

Schools

Anybody know how to find out which schools in an area are the best?

The Nativity

We watched this for part of FHE tonight. It's about 5 minutes long if you have some spare time. The video is to the song "Breath of Heaven" by Amy Grant. I have always loved this song. If you listen to the words, try to imagine how Mary must have felt at this time.

Give oh give, give oh give

With the times the way they are and the holidays here we've been reflecting a lot on how blessed we are. We've been trying to teach Kendall about blessings and how fortunate we are and that with so much, we should try to help people who aren't as fortunate. I'm trying to give her little chances to give like having her put all our change into the 'bell piggybank' at the grocery store while explaining that the money goes to help people, and having her come to our tithing settlement which gave us a great opportunity to explain about tithing and offerings.

So, this morning we were watching Postcards from Buster and he was in China visiting kids who did things to help others. One girl raised money to give to sick kids. Kendall was all over it. (I think she liked that girl because she was a figure skater.) Anyway, she wants to earn money to give to sick kids and who am I to say no. I think it's great but I need ideas- what types of things can a 4 year old (with our help of course) do to earn money? You are all so creative so I thought I'd ask you.

Any ideas?

What's On Your Bookshelf?

I've really been enjoying Charles Martin's books lately. He's a christian writer so there isn't bad language or nasty talk. Really feel-good books. I'm finished with all his books and was wondering what you all are reading.

Gumdrop Wreath

Saw this on MarthaStewart.com

I think I'll try a small, multi-colored version with the kiddos.

Tools and Materials:
Styrofoam wreath form
Florist's wire
Gumdrops
Toothpicks
Decorative ribbon

Gumdrop Wreath How-To:
1. Wrap enough florist's wire around wreath form to leave a large loop for hanging. Break toothpicks in half. Lay wreath form flat.

2. Begin a short row: Place pointed end of a few toothpick halves into Styrofoam, following the form's curve from inside to outside; push one gumdrop onto broken end of each toothpick. After row is a few inches long, make a parallel row on each side until section is covered. Repeat until wreath is complete. (Note: If you try to complete an entire ring of gumdrops before moving to next row, it will be very difficult to create a uniform pattern.)

3. Suspend wreath from wire hanger, disguised with a wide satin bow.

snowflakes

I made these snowflake ornaments with my 3 year old the other day and she loved it. I got the idea from a magazine and I think they turned out pretty cute, I still need to find something to hang them with but it was super easy and fast so I thought I'd share with all of you! 

What you need: 

popsicle sticks

glue

buttons

I heart Etsy.

I'm not a big shopper and most of the shopping I do is online. I have a few favorite online stores that I regularly shop at like old navy and amazon but one of my very favorites is Etsy. It's where people can buy and sell homemade products and there are such unique things to choose from. You can find anything there I swear.

Here's the link...

http://www.etsy.com/

It's also a great place to sell all sorts of things. You pay a small fee to list things but don't have to pay a percentage like on ebay.

I'm buying these Christmas gift tags from there (minus the blue)...

Twilight Reviews

So ladies, it is here! What did you think about Twilight? IF you didn't see it you DON'T READ THIS PLEASE!

Reminder

I love this talk by Elder M. Russell Ballard in April 2008 conference. I've been feeling frustrated with my lack of energy lately. I feel like there's always so much to do and not enough time/energy to do it all. I remembered this talk and it is very encouraging and uplifting. I really like the quote from Anna Quindlen. I need an occasional reminder to stop and enjoy the moment instead of rushing to the next task.

"What can you do, as a young mother, to reduce the pressure and enjoy your family more?

First, recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction.

Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. She said: 'The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. … I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less' (Loud and Clear [2004], 10–11)."