kendra mccracken

Things Germaphobes Do In Hotel Rooms

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 16:56:00 +0000

Shawn was offered a free room and coupon for a free dinner at Indigo Sky Hotel in Joplin so we headed down there Saturday after he finished up his appointments at the clinic. We are not big travelers and as a result, I think I set the bar high for the times I stay in hotel rooms. I thought I'd share some of the things germaphobes do in hotel rooms. Some of these things are common practices, but I've been teased about others.

First of all, a sign like this strikes fear into the heart of a germaphobe. Not even joking here. See that last bullet point?

A germaphobe who rarely stays in hotel rooms has an immediate instinct to pull back the bedspread. We closely inspect for a stray hair. I pulled back the perfectly smooth bedspread that was expertly tucked under the matters and this is a sampling of what I saw across the whole sheet. I think a farmer had slept in his clothes in this bed. And to avoid using the "b" word, I think he also cleaned the debris out of his nostrils while he was in bed. The human brain's ability to combat shock is impressive. Rather than hyperventilate, I started laughing and looking around for someone to come out of the closet and yell, "You just got punk'd!" Shawn wasn't with me and I thought he'd set me up with a really cruel joke. Then I texted my friend Kristi who gives me grief for being such a wimpy hotel guest. She was outraged right along with me.

When I went down to meet Shawn for dinner, I stopped at the front desk and patiently waited for the people in front of me to finish. When it was my turn, I quietly asked the desk clerk if he would have our sheets changed and give us fresh towels. I was suprised at how embarrassed and apologetic he was. And when I shared the story with Shawn, he laughed at me. He said, "That sign is for people who are staying more than one night! They change the sheets when someone checks out. It was just a mistake." A while later I got a text from Kristi saying her husband was laughing at us for the same reason.

When we returned to the room and saw that the sheets had been changed, I was back into rational germaphobe mode. Germaphobes don't walk on hotel room carpeting. Socks are not enough protection and I forgot my slippers. It's a good thing Frye boots are so comfortable and go with everything, even pj pants.

Germaphobes don't stand in bathtubs without foot protection. You can't wear Frye boots in the shower and, while some germaphobes wear flip-flops, I already overpack so I use an acceptable alternative. I stand on a towel.

When a germaphobe gets finished showering, they never wipe their face with a towel that a stranger has wiped their unmentionalble parts with, no matter how "sanitized" it has been in a wash cycle. (My mama, a 30-year paramedic taught me to also never let the hospital staff encourage you to suck on a washcloth for this same reason!) If we forget to pack our own hand towel, we use toilet paper, but not from the roll on the wall next to the toilet. We unwrap a fresh roll.

A germaphobe never sets their bag on a bathroom floor. I don't even set mine on the hotel room carpeting. That bag is going to set on the floor in my own bedroom.

A germaphobe never lays their dirty clothes on a hotel room floor. As you can see in this photo, it is apparently OK to lay your dirty clothes on the clean towel someone else will use. It may be time to re-evaluate my practices!

And when you have to do your business . . . you never forget to put extra toilet paper in the water.

As a germaphobe, I will never understand how anyone drinks coffee made from a coffee maker that's stored on the vanity in a hotel room bathroom. Maybe if I needed coffee in the morning instead of being satisfied with what I get in my mocha frappes I'd be more lenient? And then there are the drinking glasses in hotel rooms. My aunt has been a flight attendant for 40 years so she is an expert on hotel rooms. She came back into her hotel room one day when the maid was cleaning. The maid was using my aunt's bath towel, that had been on the floor, to wipe out the drinking glass on the bathroom vanity. She says don't use the drinking glasses! I'm a bottled water girl in a hotel room.

A germaphobe looks at this bolster pillow and knows its spent a whole lot of time on the floor so that's where it gets kicked immediately upon entering the room. And the pretty towel swan (or if you're a country boy like my husband, the goose), a germaphobe would never dream of using that since it's on the bedspread.

Since the bolster is touching the pillows, the first row of pillows also gets tossed off the bed.

A germaphobe gets the heebie-jeebies at the thought of using hotel pillows, but it's not practical to bring your own. Packing an extra t-shirt or two to cover the pillow makes for much more efficient packing and it's more convenient than trying to stuff the pillow into your own pillow case.

In case you haven't guessed, a germaphobe can be a little annoying to share a hotel room with. But our neurosis makes for cheap entertainment!

Control

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 21:18:00 +0000

I've been so hit or miss blogging for the past 6 months that this feels weird! Kind of like when you don't keep in touch with someone and it's a little awkward at first when you reconnect.

I was going through our analytics for our clinic website last week and reading them off to Shawn when I realized that I was actually looking at the analytics for this blog. He said, "What? Why would people look at a blog that never gets updated anymore?" He doesn't understand the power of Pinterest! So I'm back today. I'm not sure where I'm going with this blog from here. It's way outdated. I haven't kept up with the improvements in efficiency and how people use blogs differently than they used to when I started doing this. I don't even have a link to my home page for those (most everyone) who arrive here via Pinterest. And spam has become a major problem. It's ridiculous. I'm trying to decide whether to overhaul this blog or just start over somewhere else, whether to keep my blog name or start over there as well, whether to keep it as personal as it's always been or go more the direction of a DIY blog. Too many options and it's made me just keep walking away from making changes and from blogging. But I do miss it so I'm going to have figure it all out!

In my absence, I've done a lot of soul searching. Don't you "love" cliches? Honestly, I wasn't really searching. I actually was walking along quite content and I got smacked upside the head. It started with this book.

The Holy Spirit. That's always been that part of Christianity that I just ignored. I'd like to say it was an accident, but it was intentional. It was uncomfortable to tackle, first because it sounded weird. Not the ha-ha-you're-funny kind of weird. The real deal weird. To say outloud that Someone lived inside me? And it was scary. What if I said it and then I wasn't overcome by constantly feeling the presence of it and I found myself feeling like I didn't really believe it? It was intimidating so I just ignored. I had God and Jesus and that was enough. As I got into this book, I couldn't continue to ignore. I discovered it's been there since that day I found myself on my knees almost 18 years ago looking down at Matthew 7:13-14 in Shawn's bible. It's been working in me the whole time and I have felt it. I've just been resisting it.

After that, Caelan went to Alabama with the youth group from church and heard Matt Chandler speak each day he was there. He didn't even wait until he got home to start talking about Matt Chandler. It started before he even left Alabama. I had never even heard the name Matt Chandler before the announcement of the trip and of course, I wanted to know what I was sending my kid into so I started listening to the podcasts of his sermons. And I heard this one on The Holy Spirit. I've listened to it at least 15 times since.

These two resources led me to the choice of my One Little Word for 2013. It's Control. My focus this year is on learning to turn over control to The Holy Spirit. To listen. To obey. To let go of frustration when my own situations, in spite of my best efforts, don't go the way I want them to. To stop trying to control others, control their situations, to let go of frustration when people don't listen my advice or "have the sense" to do things the way you're supposed to do them. To be more compassionate and loving in my heart and in my mind because it's not enough to just do it outwardly. I'm still just as completely flawed as I have ever been, and I know I always will be so I don't have any business trying to control anything! Try to lead and influence, yes. But not control. And the only way I can do that is turn over control of my flawed thoughts and feelings and choices to One who is not flawed, and then pray that I pay attention when He tries to guide me.

After wrestling with the book and the sermon for a few months, I found myself last week in Joplin at the Third Day concert, a treat from my friend Meilissa (in the center). It was my first time seeing them in concert, and I definitely want to do it again.

Mac Powell's voice is just as incredible live as it is in their recordings. That's not always the case when you see someone live! We were sitting way off to the left of the stage and I couldn't see him through most of the show. The concert was in a church and I think that made everyone more reserved. It was funny to be at a concert and see a huge gap between the front row and the stage. It was definitely the quietest concert crowd I've ever been in.

He had to work a bit at getting everyone clapping!

But it was awesome because it was a more intimate setting. He told a lot of stories between songs. And because everyone was so reserved, anyone who wanted to was able to go up front and take photos. I kneeled on the floor in the middle of a group of little kids taking pics with their iPods, which was really cool.

I've been listening to Third Day a lot since the concert and rediscovered this oldie. It made me smile because it fits perfectly with my head thumping I got last year and my word for this year. I think I'll make it my theme song for the year.

My Gratitude Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:50:00 +0000

Thanksgiving is 2 days away and I'm finally sharing the cover of my gratitude journal! It's full of words right now. I may or may not go back and add a few photos, but this project was really all about the written word.

Speaking of the written word. I know journaling is an intimidating process to a lot of people. It can be for me, as well, but not because of the process of choosing my words. Mine comes from making permanent, on a beloved project, handwriting that slopes upward on the page and my inability to remember to use all of the letters in a word when my hand is trying to keep up with my brain. While some people have a talent for making those mistakes look fantastically artistic, my mistakes just look like I'm trying to cover up the fact that I can't spell.

A couple of months ago, I found these Frixion pens. I found them in Margie Pearl's, our local fabric store. They are made by Pilot and they are erasable! If the 80s are not just retro to you and you helped to actually create the original, you're probably remembering PaperMate erasable pens and thinking, "No thanks." These Frixion pens are the real deal. The ink is not gooey, does not smear when the knuckle of your pinky finger drags over your handwriting, and, the best part, the ink really does erase. If you are a handwritten journaler, add them to your next shopping list!

Photos of the inside of my gratitude journal, as well as a list of Fiskars tools and how I used them on the project, can be found on the Fiskars website.

I want to close today by saying it's such a cool thing to be able to tell Fiskars I want to make something like this, something that's all raggedy with mismatched fabrics, and then for them to say yes and display it on their crisp, clean, modern website. And then they pay me for it. I'm grateful for the trust in the working relationship I have with them.

Gratitude Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 15:07:00 +0000

If you're still checking in here, hi!!! And thank you for still being here even though I rarely am anymore. I'll spare you the I've-been-too-busy-to-blog post. I'm here posting today because last year I followed the blogs (and a few Facebook accounts) of people who were doing a daily gratitude post and I decided I wanted to do this myself this year. I'm doing mine in a journal format rather than just online and the journal I made, I made for Fiskars. Since they post new projects on Mondays and the first Monday of November isn't until the 5th, my journal isn't live on the website yet. So I can't share the cover yet. But I can share my journaling as I add it.

This is my opening page.

And this is my day 1 entry.

The journaling for it reads:

I made this gratitude journal to write in very day for the month of November & I was so focused this morning on someone in my life who is acting foolish, making assumptions that are wrong and causing a lot of dissension in our family that I forgot to start my journal. After I remembered, I was frustrated that I was trying to focus on writing in it & all I could think of is the conversation I'll have with this person next time I see them, struggling with knowing it would only make things worse & I didn't care that it was wrong. I've prayed through it this morning and ended with this, that I'm grateful God created forgiveness & reconciliation & that He showed us what that looks like. I know this relationship will be restored & my focus has changed to that instead of my anger.

I have to be honest and admit I'm not walking around with complete joy in my heart. I'm human and I'm still really bothered by what has happened. But because I'm able to remember that this will eventually be resolved, that misunderstandings and arguments are part of life, I've also been able to pull back and recreate that conversation in my head to be as free of confrontation on my part as possible. I've lived long enough to know that conflicts don't get resolved when insults and sarcasm are interjected. Not only do they not help, they are forever the part of the conversation that is burned into the mind of the person they are directed at. And those are not the kinds of things I want to be defined by when people reflect on their relationship with me.

I'll also be including a quote each day. It may be one that just supports what I already know I'm going to write or it may be something to help direct my thoughts on days when I need some inspiration. The quote for day 1 was, If the only prayer you ever said in your whole life was "thank you," that would suffice. -Meister Eckhart

If you're doing a daily gratitude for November and sharing it online, I'd love to see it! I may not be able to post every day, but please share a link to yours on the days I do post.

I'm Still The Boss. Until She Says Otherwise.

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 14:03:00 +0000

I'm not sure how we got here. This will sound terrible coming from the wife of a vet but I'm one who has long said I believe cats belong in barns or feed stores. This is not because I don't like cats. I do. It's simply because they spend 23 of every 24 hours on something other than the floor. So dirty kitty litter paws are walking on the things we touch and the surfaces we eat from. And then there's all that hair. She only got into our house because I killed Will's Beta fish and the brevity between my admission and the words, "Then can I have a cat?" tumbling from behind his quivering lower lip as he stood holding his handmade "funerol" programs left me both fascinated and, most unfortunately, cornered by his shrewdness. I said, "We'll see." To which he replied, "That means no." I think we both knew it really meant yes.

A few days later, Shawn called from work and said a lady had brought in a litter of kittens she was trying to give away. I caved. Will could have his kitten he'd been begging for for years, but there were rules.

1. It was only allowed upstairs during the day when it was being supervised. Otherwise, behind the closed door of the lower level of the house was to be its domain.
2. It was not allowed on any furniture while upstairs and absolutely, positively was it ever to be allowed on the kitchen counters or the table.
3. It was to catch every mouse that came into our house. We live on a farm surrounded by pasture. Mice are inevitable. And the cat had to earn its keep.
4. I would not clean up not one single puked up fur ball.

Four simple rules.

A year-and-a-half later,
1. About living downstairs, Harper is only allowed to go to the lower level of the house to eat. Otherwise, her people miss her cuteness, her purrs, her playfulness, her sweetness. If the door to the lower level is closed, we make sure she is on the same side of it as we are. She sleeps in the mail basket. Even after we missed paying our electric bill last month because it got shuffled to the bottom of the basket after one of her deep-sleep tumbles from the window sill that take the whole basket with her.
2. About being on the furniture, she has ruined my leather couch. The cushions are covered with scratches. Her favorite sunbeam spots are the chair or desktop in Caelan's room or the corner of Will's bed. At night she sleeps on Will's bed until 5 a.m. when she decides Shawn and I have had a full night's sleep (regardless of what time we went to bed). She is still not allowed on the kitchen counters or table, although during meals she does sit on the empty chair next to Shawn with her front paws on the edge of the table.
3. About her pest control responsibilities, she's pals with the mice. Caelan went downstairs one day and she was playing with one. I had witnessed her doing this myself more than once. This time he watched as she let the mouse go, it ran 1/2 way up the wall (wood car siding with lots of grooves for little claws to dig into) and then ran back down and right back to Harper. Shawn says the mouse must have been stunned and backtracking was completely unintintional. I like the cartoon feel to the scene and it makes for a better story to say the mouse was playing with Harper. Fortunately for me, but unfortunately for the mouse, Caelan had a broom in his hand.
4. About puked up hairballs, I have yet to see one. To my knowledge, there hasn't been one. I'm barely hanging on here to my status as the rule maker. I wonder if she's torturing me by making me wonder when she'll take complete control or if she's a cat full of grace, allowing me to retain a little bit of dignity. As I look next to me right now and see her sleeping in her mail basket, where she stays while I'm on the computer occasionally stretching her paw out toward me and mewing, I like to believe it's the latter.

Our Future

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:07:00 +0000

Since I haven't been blogging much, and since I've only shared on Facebook photos of the process of a major part of what has been keeping me too busy to blog, I suppose it's time to share it here. I posted this blog entry about being sifted almost a year and a half ago. If you've been around a while, you know Shawn joined the masses of unemployed in May 2011. It has been a long, challenging road of not only figuring out how to pay the bills but also trying to figure out what God has planned for our future. All the circumstances that worked together to lead us to where we are now leave me no doubt what He has planned. It may continue to be a challenging road from here and that's OK. But I go into it with peace that we've made a decision that aligns with His will for us.

In April, this building in our town went up for auction. It was right in the area Shawn had been looking to buy since we moved to Bolivar because he felt it was the perfect location for a veterinary hospital. He had made offers on land near this building when it went up for sale. He had made offers on land that hadn't gone up for sale! He had even talked to the owner of this very building, a friend of mine, about what she would sell it for when she closed her business, which happened to be a scrapbook store where I had spent a lot of time. Everyone was either unwilling to sell or wanted a premium price for what they knew was a premium location for a business targeting people with young families. Shawn wanted a price that allowed him to keep his prices reasonable for his clients. Now that the perfect location was finally available, we were almost a year into unemployment and barely scraping by.

We almost didn't even go to the auction because Shawn didn't think the building would sell for a price that would allow us to build a practice that would mesh with his philosophy of keeping prices affordable for average families. And we didn't have financing in place should we win the auction. The day of the auction, we had plans to go to KC to start the process that looked to be the only option we had . It made no sense to us because we felt like 10 years earlier we had prayed faithfully about where God wanted us and it was Bolivar. Bolivar for a long time. So while what we were about to do made no sense, we packed our bags for a trip to KC. Once Shawn found a job there, he would have to live there while the boys and I remained in Bolivar. He would leave behind major responsibilities that were part what we had so faithfully prayed about 10 years earlier and we had no idea how it was ever going to work that he could fulfill the things he felt God had entrusted him to complete. But we followed where we were feeling led. With a heavy hearts we got in the car to leave that day and decided it wouldn't hurt to stop in at the auction. The boys and I waited in the car while Shawn went to bid. Twenty minutes later I got a text from him with a dollar figure in it. We were the owners of the building for an unbelievable price and Shawn was going to own his own veterinary practice again.

We've been haggling with bankers and building walls and painting and lifting and bargain shopping and interviewing and not getting enough sleep the past few months. We have targeted September 24 as the day we open our doors to the public. We're still nervous about the future and we're humbled by the road ahead of building a practice from scratch. But I no longer feel like we're being sifted. My favorite verse in the bible has gotten me through the past 18 months and I've been reminded once again that God is faithful even when it feels like you're all alone.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6

Why I'm Still Blogging

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 19:02:00 +0000

A little peek at a project for Fiskars that I finished last night. When I finished, the little pieces of paper the quote is printed on looked dull and unfinished to me. When I'm at the end of a project, I'm tired of sifting through my supplies looking for "the" thing I need when I don't know what that thing is so I start looking at my immediate surroundings for "the" thing. Yesterday, the final touch to something I'd invested a whole lot of time in planning, executing, photographing, and writing up instructions for was found sitting next to me on the kitchen table. I grabbed it, cut little pieces from it, and glued them to the paper strips. It was something that annoys us all, a plastic grocery sack from my trip to the store earlier in the day. There is beauty everywhere.

Shawn came here last night and laughed. He said, "You haven't updated your blog in 2 months? Where are you putting everything?" "The Baby" (my camera) certainly hasn't been absent from our lives the past 2 months so he knew I was sharing our lives somewhere. I could have been defensive and replied, "You haven't checked my blog in 2 months?" He wisely taught me long ago to focus on the issue at hand because going off on tangents only leads to more tangents and fights that never end so I decided to just answer his question. "Facebook." I admit with shame that Facebook has replaced my blogging. I've watched many of my friends' blogs close down over the years and eventually have seen them proclaim on Facebook that Facebook was the reason. Facebook is fast and it's easy. Everyone expects short and sweet so there is no need to justify taking the easy route. I used to look at those Facebook posts and shake my head. I was never going to do that. I enjoy far too much things like:

sharing my thoughts on life.

trying to motivate people to always try to find the good in life.

sharing details of Shawn's embarrassing moments,

making fun of myself (which Shawn says I never do but I say that photo of me should be all I ever need to share to refute that argument).

playing terrible, awful, mean tricks on our children.

sharing the ridiculously cute things our kids do.

bragging on my husband's skillz with crooked, overprocessed photos of our house.

making fun of the dog at completely inappropriate times.

And I can't let you forget my favorite one:

sharing the details of Shawn's embarrassing moments.

So while the hits to my blog may have dropped off dramatically over the years with advent of an abundance of blogs that are better designed and with more organized content, the introduction of Facebook, and my lack of consistency in posting, I think I'll stick around a little longer. There is a lot of history recorded here and it's fun to go back and remember. If nothing else, occasionally I share accidental discoveries that might be of value to the world, important things such as ways to keep the lowly, annoying plastic grocery sack out of landfills. Or from sticking to your windshield as you drive down the highway.

Home Of the Wanna-Be Brave

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 16:46:00 +0000

This is what I'm working with today. I'm working on a wall hanging for Fiskars that will be used as an in-store educational flyer for Hancock Fabrics. You know those little flyers you can pick up with a photo of a project and instructions on how to make it? I have something funky and fun for fall in my mind and can't wait to get started on it.

This was last night at 1 a.m. We watched Toy Story 2 and this is the scene where the toys are crossing the street while under the construction cones. Will and I took a quick trip to KC yesteday and got home at 11 p.m. I was exhausted. I'd gotten about 5 hours of broken sleep the night before. After unpacking and showers, he was still wound up and asked if we could watch a movie. We had just had some 2.5 hours of the most awesome conversation on the drive home from KC and I didn't want our time together with a connection like that to be over so of course I said yes.

I had a great day of thrifting yesterday! Lots of great summer tops and some new (seriously, new as in looks like they were never worn) jeans. And I got a new 3 x 5 foot American flag. There was a pile of them that were brand new and they were only $4 each. When I pulled it out of the bag, Will got really excited and said, "Did you buy me some pants?!" I told him I had bought him a flag. He said, "Oh. It's not pants. I really wanted pants. Can you make me some pants out of it?" to which, for a variety of reasons that immediatly came to mind, I promptly replied, "No." I could just see him in his flag pants, his beloved Chucks, and his favorite orange M&M t-shirt. That image did make it tempting to whip out a pair of pants for him. But I thought of him in the future reflecting on his childhood. I weighed the image of me laughing at him being angry with me for lacking good judgement on his behalf against the image of him thanking me and hugging me for good judgement on his behalf. I'm patiently waiting on the day of that thank you and hug to arrive.

While we were in KC, we saw Brave with my mom, and my little sister and her Mr. Wonderful. It was a cute movie and opened the door to a lot of the conversation Will and I had on our drive home. His questions and insights left a lot of opportunity to talk about pride, how destructive it can be, and the many ways it manifests in our lives. So just for that alone, I'm glad we went to see it. And, I left tempted to have my hair layered when I go in for my hair appointment next week. Yes, I know it's probably not wise to ask to have your hair cut like an animated character. Unlike Merida, I probably won't be brave enough to go through with it. First, being a brunette, this hairstyle won't have nearly the impact on me as it does on her. Second, you never see a curly-haired girl in real life with hair this long and this full. Third, you rarely see someone with curly hair this long wearing it down. Hair accessories are our best friends. So I'll probably keep my safe all-one-length hair style I've worn for the past 20 years. There is a lot to be said for consistency and dependability, too. That's my cover for my lack of bravery! I'll just stick with funky with my wall quilt. Which brings to mind the day I was shopping for the fabric for the quilt. Another customer in the store saw my arms full of the bolts of fabric and stopped me to ask what I was making. I told her it was for a quilt. She said the colors were different so she just had to ask. So maybe I do have a little bravery in me. The colors are the same as the Brave movie poster!

The Fiskars Fuse

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 20:06:00 +0000

For the past few months, those of us who create projects for Fiskars to use as promotional content have had to be tight lipped about something really cool. I couldn't even share it with my real-life friends. When they came over to my house, I had to hide this new tool Fiskars sent me. The actual hiding part wasn't difficult. I just had to stick it in my craft room and tip a few piles of materials from other projects I hadn't put away yet over on top of it. The not telling part was the difficult part! If you haven't seen it yet, it has been revealed so I can finally share some of the things I have been working on. First, here is a short video that shows the Fiskars Fuse and how to use it.

I have never owned a diecutting machine before and I had it out of the box and using it in literally 10 minutes. I went through a brief step-by-step how-to-use-it/how-easy-was-it-to-use survey that they sent me using a variety of materials from regular cardstock to heavy chipboard.

The next time I got the Fuse out, I made this. A tutorial for making this thank-you card can be found on the Fiskars website.

A view of the dimension of some of the pieces on the front of the card.

I also made this birthday banner by combining the letterpressing/diecutting with some fabric.

And I used the Fuse to "letterpress" (it really just stamped) and diecut some fabric to make a scrapbook layout embellishment .

I'll share more of the things I've created using the Fuse here in the future. If you'd like to see more now, Fiskars has a gallery on their website of some of the projects we've made. You can see it by clicking here.

Life Mini Album Kit Now Available

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 23:01:00 +0000

The kit to make a mini album like this one is now available for purchase on the Frost It Pink website.

You start with this and add layers of paint burlap more paint, more burlap, papers, muslin, and a hand cut title. Your book doesn't have to be about life. Since the title is handcut (I just used a small pair of scissors), you can customize the title to be whatever you want.

The kit comes with a cute chevron paper bag. I used mine to create a cover for a little book for my introduction journaling. You also get a sheet of rust-red colored Prima alphabets. I painted mine.

This is some of the journaling inside my chevron book cover. You get old book pages to do things like paint over the text so you can use them for journaling and embellishing the edges of your pages.

And a sample of what each of the sections in my book looks like. All of the pages of my book include layers of papers, Accent Cuts (I used these to make a lot of little journaling books like the one on this page), fabric and photos like this. You also get step-by-step instructions, including photos, for making the cover.

Included in the kit are:
1 Prima Mistables Wood Mini Album; 6 sheets of patterned cardstock from My Mind's Eye, Crate Paper, and Bella Blvd; five 6 x 12 pieces of Core-Dinations Embossed Cardstock from their Cosmo Cricket line; an 8 x 10 sheet of Prima Almanac Alphas; 1 sheet of Crate Paper Accent Cuts (cut-apart journailng/embellishing cards); 1 package of 10 Crate Paper Fabric/Epoxy brads; 1 yard vintage dyed crinkle seam binding; 12 x 10 inch piece of burlap; muslin for photo mats or layering; old book pages; 1 small punched butterfly.

This kit can be purchased here on the Frost It Pink website.

I'm happy to answer any questions you have. You can leave in in the comments or email me at kendramccracken dot yahoo dot com.

A Little Saturday Shopping on a Friday

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Sat, 16 Jun 2012 03:17:00 +0000

It's Saturday! Not really. It's actually Friday. But it's my Saturday. I got out for a morning of shopping all by myself. And I did it without a headful of worries about people being irritated with me for deadlines I'm late on. I over-committed on projects with due dates for the last month and as a result I've been grumpy. That old adage If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all, it's kept me from posting too much on Facebook and from blogging. I got to spend time in the garden yesterday and it's amazing what that does for your attitude. The boys and my mother-in-law completely weeded it while I was working so I got to do the relaxing stuff like water and just admire. And I get to harvest a cabbage today.

I had a few goals during my shopping trip today. I'm not fun to shop with and I was all alone so I wanted to make sure and get a few things I've been needing. I'm a picky shopper so it takes me forever to make decisions. The first problem is I always naturally gravitate toward the most expensive choice. Then I sit and stare for a long time lamenting my frugal gene that never allows me to purchase what I naturally gravitate towards. I think that is the root of my love of thrifting. Good quality stuff for the cheapskate. Quality is not the only thing I'm picky about. Shirts never look right. The busy pattern clashes with my curly hair, they're too short or they're too tight and touch my armpits. I always wonder if I'm the only person in the world that is bothered by that because everyone laughs at me when I share that! Jeans never fit right. The waist is cut too low or too high. They have rhinestones or those "distressed" creases behind the knees that really just make them look like they've never been washed. Shoes have to feel like slippers on my feet or I won't purchase them. And I don't like cheap shoes. Natural materials like canvas are OK and flip flops are fine. But fake leather, I don't like the feel of it. So I rarely own cute shoes, which is pretty stupid, really, because I have a choice between always owning cute shoes that are fake leather or owning leather ones that look like I've worn them for 10 years . . . because I have. And I choose the latter. Well, a new pair of tennis shoes was on my list of goals today. Which brings me to another picky area. All these bright colored tennis shoes, they look like all the companies were planning on competing at a clown convention. So I set out to find non-clown tennis shoes that felt like slippers on my feet. I looked around until I found white leather tennis shoes. Then I realized I was in the walking-shoe section, which is coincidentally where I bought my last pair of tennis shoes and told myself it was just a fluke. If you don't know why that concerned me, it means I was in the shoe section where my Granny would find shoes she likes. Don't judge me for stereotyping. Grasshopper brand was in there. Tell me you did not think of a little grey-haired lady when you read Grasshopper. I realize my son and his friends think I am old. When I was their age, 41 was old. But now that I'm 41, I realize how wrong I was and how wrong they are. I come by this reasoning honestly. Both of my grandmothers are in their 80s and they both, when asked about living in retirement communities say, "I don't belong there with all those old ladies!" I know there are younger people who walk and probably purchase white leather walking shoes, but I would bet a large sum of money that the majority of walking shoes are purchased by older people. So there I was today in the shoe store staring at the white leather Keds that were right next to the Grasshoppers. The same Grasshoppers that 2 grey-haired women came to check out as I looked at the Keds.

I bought them. I've wearing them around the house but I'm not sure I'm going to keep them because they press on my bunion. I'm an exceptionally young bunion sufferer!

Another goal was to find new sunglasses. I don't like rhinestones. I don't like flourishes stamped on the earpieces. Jackie O.-big does not look glamorous on my face. Right there, 75% of my options were eliminated. I have crooked ears which makes sunglasses sit obviously crooked on my nose and I have a high arch to my eyebrows so the lenses have to be big enough to cover my eyebrows. Otherwise, the gap under the arches is different. My eyelashes are so long that I can't wear wraparounds because my eyelashes rub on them. I looked through 7 different display racks and when I got to the last one, I found these.

Thank you, Daisy Fuentes. These are the first sunglasses I've owned in about 3 years. I'm your biggest fan. The fan who missed cloning out the Oreo cookie crumb from her lip in Photoshop.

When I got home, Will wanted to see what I bought. I showed him my new shoes first. He said, "Those are the most awesome shoes! Are they Chucks?!!"

I took that response as the highest compliment from someone who begged for these shoes the last time I took him to buy shoes.

A Book On Life

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Another peek at my book and the theme I chose to use. If you're a Switchfoot fan, you recognize the title. Since the kit will include all the materials to make the book yourself, starting with an unfinished wood base, you can choose any title you want to fit your theme. About once a year I stop and break down all the pieces of my life and evaluate them. I'm there right now. I journal a lot about life anyway. Since I always try to focus on the positive things in life, I can get either too complacent or, if I'm going through a rough time, too discouraged. I have to stop once in awhile and really examine each area of life individually. I dig deep, thinking about where I've come from, where I am, where I think I'm supposed to go. It's really uncomfortable because I never come away feeling like "Yeah, I have this all figured out." I always have a list of things that make me feel inadequate. But it also makes me focus and leaves me feeling ambitious, more aware that there's more to life than just existing through our routine day to day. I break it all down and then it's more clear how it all works together. And I always come away more appreciative of the life I have. So that's how I used this book. Cheap therapy both through the journaling and the process of making the book. Painting and gluing and chipping away at the paint, the destruction of an old thrift store book, the handwritten journaling and the mixing of textures and patterns. The kit for it should be available for purchase through Frost It Pink by the end of next week. I'll put a link to it in my sidebar when it's available!

Just a Peek for Now

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Wed, 30 May 2012 11:53:00 +0000

Here's a peek at what I've been working on the past couple of weeks in my spare time. I can't wait to show you the whole thing. One of my favorite minis I've ever made. Switchfoot lyrics for the theme, burlap, an old book, crackle paint, a lot of soul searching, and a LOT of journaling. A kit will soon be available to make your own!

Cocoa Daisy

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 29 May 2012 12:55:00 +0000

A while back I received an email offering me the awesome opportunity to be the guest designer for June for Cocoa Daisy. Lots of new scrapbook supplies and the opportunity to use my Fiskars tools, of course I said yes! There was some confusion about the deadline so when I received an email on Friday (the real due date) asking how I was doing, I panicked because I hadn't even started. If you've ever seen me scrapbook (Kristi, Sheri, anyone who ever saw me at a crop), you know what this means. I was going to have to bail on them, right? Well, if you've ever seen me scrapbook and think I had to bail, you'd have been proud of me. I did 4 layouts in one day! Here's what I came up with.

Ah, Fonzie. Love this little guy even though he's so much work. He's like a newborn baby. Unfortunately, it isn't a temporary phase. He'll always be like a newborn baby. It's a good thing for him he's such a sweet dog.

Here is a closeup of the use of my Fiskars punches.

Next, I did this one.

And if you've ever seen me scrapbook, you know I'm never happy when I'm finished. So I changed it to this! You'll see the other version on the Cocoa Daisy site.

A close up. There are some fun wooden pennants in the kit.

Then I did this one.

Which I've already changed to this! The journaling area looked off balance and it was bugging me. Also, there is no kraft cardstock in the kit. I used the paper back the kit contents come in and adhered it to a sheet of carstock for stability.

A close up. Loved this red trim! I had this one little piece left over when I finished all the layouts so I yanked it all apart and stuck it on this layout with a Fiskars punched star.

And a close up of the journaling. I forgot to put an apostrophe in Boone's. There weren't enough apostrophes in the alpha set to put one in the title. I just plain wrote it wrong in the journaling.

I save the best for last! This was actually the first layout I did but I'm not completely happy with it. I'm going to add journaling. This one is about my friend Jen who hugs EVERYONE. Even the people who don't like to be hugged. And I've heard comments from those people who don't like to be hugged about how much they love Jen's hugs. Even the 10 year old boys love Jen's hugs! I'm so lucky that I see her a lot so I get a lot of her hugs.

If you're interested in purchasing a Cocoa Daisy kit for the month of June, go here. If you're interested in the Fiskars paper trimmer and the punches I used, go here. If you're interested in one of Jen's hugs, you'll have to come to Bolivar. You can't but those online!

Conquering Life (and Very Large Fritters) Together

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Sun, 20 May 2012 02:25:00 +0000

I had a morning of garage saling planned with my friend Jen but a lack of affordable (mine) and/or reliable (hers) transportation to Springfield kept us in Bolivar. Did the word saling bother you? It bothers me! I've discussed this word with several friends and we've come to the unanimous decision that it is indeed a word. I think it just looks incorrect because it looks like sailing misspelled. This is the point where I should write but I digress. Except I think that phrase is so overused and I never liked it to begin with. It reminds me of digest. Speaking of digest.

After I picked Jen up, we went for breakfast at Sunrise Sugar Shack. We had Will with us because he adores Jen so much that he was willing to get up at 6:30 on a Saturday morning to go shopping with us. Will and I negotiated the number of donuts he could get. We argued over 3 versus 2 and moved on to 2 big versus 2 small. Jen settled it by suggesting we all share an apple fritter. Will's rebuttal was he should be able to get a donut, too, since I'd agreed to let him get 2 donuts. So he got the chocolate glazed. I also got the pig-in-a-blanket, which actually has a fancier name on the menu board. Sausage something. With the toxic level of carbs in the fritter, I knew my body would be begging for some protein so I got the fancy pig-in-a-blanket. Turns out, it also serves as a visual reference to show you just how big the fritter was. The sausage is the size of a "good" hotdog. We ate the whole fritter! I have to mention I was very proud of Jen because when we got back in my truck, she asked if I had hand sanitizer. The first time we went garage saling together, I stood with a look of horror on my face (I know because she looked at me with wide eyes and asked what was wrong) when she reached down and lifted the seat of a camping toilet someone had at their sale. We've had many discussions about germs since that day! We trade important life lessons. She's teaching me how to hug better (no back patting or long-armed hugs).

We drove around to the few sales we found. We ended up at the Farmer's Market.

And we garage saled some more. I'm taking a lot of liberty with the word sale today! Will got upset because I sent him to the truck to get my change purse and in the process, he managed to drop the tiny key to his new tiny lock in the housing of the steering wheel. So he sulked the rest of the morning instead of hanging out with us.

After that we went to the BAMA thrift store where Jen faltered. She was looking at a swimsuit when it happened. I have found the purchase of used swimwear is a highly debatable subject. I say absolutely not because it's like buying used underwear. I have good friends who say since you wash them and they are usually in chlorine, it's OK. I still love them even if they are wrong. So while Jen was looking at the swimsuit, she accidentally touched the crotch and immediately looked at me with wide eyes. Progress! She realized all on her own and it was a proud moment. It was followed up with a good dose of hand sanitizer as soon as she got back in the truck.

We laughed a lot. We talked a lot. I mentioned at one point that I would really like to see Mumford and Sons in concert but that wouldn't be happening since it would require overseas travel.

I found this video of Roll Away your Stone yesterday. I love how passionately they all play and the foot stomping hooked me. So it goes on the bucket list. A Mumford and Sons concert. But, like I said, it would require overseas travel and I don't even own a suitcase. True story. To which Jen replied, "I have that covered!"

Her first purchase of the day! We discussed the fact that it was used and some stranger's dirty underwear had been in it but the lady who was selling it said it had only been used once so Jen bought it. For a Mumford and Sons concert, I think I could dig deep and find the courage to share Jen's contaminated suitcase.

I think we make a pretty intimidating alliance against the evil forces of life.

Jam Session

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Thu, 17 May 2012 23:34:00 +0000

This is how I spent yesterday afternoon. . .

and the fruits of my labor. I know. That was a groaner.

I'm working on an article for Fiskars so if you've ever thought you might like to make your own strawberry jam, stay tuned.

I listened to the new John Mayer album while I made it. You can listen to it for free on iTunes until it releases next week, I believe. It wasn't really jam-making music. At least it's not making-jam-when-you're-home-alone music. I felt all mellow and lonely when I was finished. I should have listened to this instead.

I know. Stop already with the corny jokes. But if I hadn't made it, you probably wouldn't have watched the video and would have missed out on a smile. Because you can't watch this and not smile at the end of it.

This afternoon was spent in the garden mulching the tomato plants and planting seed. (I'm ridiculously behind this year.) Then it was off to do some proud-mom raucous clapping. At least that's what I was doing in my head because my hands were busy trying to take photos. The achievement was so good it merited frozen custard afterwards. I'll share that story next time.

Burlap, Books, and Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 15 May 2012 21:21:00 +0000

Today I'm working on minibook. I've finished the messy part. Wood and burlap and Mod Podge and crackle paint. Getting ready to work on the insides. Chevron and vintage floral prints and damask. A kit with instructions for making the minibook will be available for purchase soon at Frost It Pink.

Then I have to decide which of these I'm going to read next. I looked through the bottom one when I was at Mardels on Saturday. It's about being a follower of Christ, not just a fan and I wasn't making an emotional connection with what I read as I flipped through it. It felt more practical. As I sit here I'm looking at the cover and there's an endorsement from Max Lucado that has the word practical in it! I bought it thinking maybe practical is what I need right now, that maybe I'll make an emotional connection with it as I go through and answer all the questions in it that force you to examine yourself. I see a lot of question marks!

The top one is the book the bible study/book club I've been in for 2 or 3 years is reading right now. Now that I'm working a split shift I can't go anymore. Kind of fortuitous that the month I have to quit, the book is about not letting work take priority over home. And also because last night we were reading Will's devotion book before bed and it was about finding your value in Christ and what you can do for others, not how much attention others choose to give you. Before getting to that lesson, the question after the story asked (paraphrased), "Do you ever feel ignored at home?" Will's response was, "You're always working." I think there was a lesson in there for both of us. So this is probably my first read!

Finally, did you know today is National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day? Any excuse to make these works for me! About 15 years ago I found a recipe in the newspaper and the name of it was Absolutely, Positively the Best Chocolate Cookie Recipe Ever. I don't know how you can read that and not be compelled to try it! It turned out to be the truth and it's the only recipe I've used since. They are firmer than most chocolate chip cookies. If you're like me and you don't like cookies that are gooey (meaning tastes like they are only 1/2 baked), this is the recipe for you. I usually bake 1/2 the dough and put the rest in the fridge to use throughout the week so "the kids" don't eat all the cookies in 2 days. The only problem with doing this is I have to wait until later in the week for my special cookie. I have this weird thing where I make sure all the chocolate chips get used before the batter is gone so there is enough left over to make just one cookie with no chips in it. The cookie also has to be completely cool before I eat it and everyone knows not to even think about touching my cookie when it's on the cooling rack.

If you want to make Absolutely, positively the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever, you can find the recipe here. This recipe has you take extra steps that I think are unnecessary so if you want the faster, lazy person's version that turns out tasting just as good, here is what I do. Please, please use butter instead of margarine. Otherwise you'll probably end up with Absolutely, Positively the Most Mediocre Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever.

Absolutely, Positively the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Ever

2 sticks of butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/4 cups flour
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups chopped nuts

Cream the butter, salt, and sugars with a mixer until the mixture is fluffy, around 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs and continue beating another 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and baking soda mix until incorporated. Add 1/2 the flour and slowly mix just until incorporated. Add the rest of the flour mixing just until incorporated. Mix in the chocolate chips and nuts. Chill the dough for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Drop 1/2 rounded tablespoonfuls of chilled dough onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes. They are finished when they are lightly browned. After removing the cookies from the oven, transfer them to cooling racks.

If you make these, I'd love to know whether or not you agree that they are the best chocolate chip cookies you've ever made!

Mother's Day and Wise Words From Daniel Boone

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Mon, 14 May 2012 19:17:00 +0000

Yesterday was Mother's Day. I had to work from 6-10 in the morning and was completely unmotivated. After that, Caelan and I went to church. We got to sing some David Crowder. The sermon was on my idol, the Proverbs 31 woman. I heard a fantastic, fresh perspective on the whole passage. And now I want even more to be like her because it seems more attainable. More attainable without even compromising the integrity of her character. It was a pretty fantastic morning because it helped me sort out the struggle I've been having with how to transition from trying to be a Proverbs 31 woman who doesn't work full time to trying to be one who does.

We came home for a little bit and then headed next door to my in-laws' for dinner. People always get a frightened look on their face when I say that my in-laws live next door. Next door is 1/2 mile away. We followed Daniel Boone's advice on living near your in-laws/parents when we built our house. If you can see the smoke from your in-laws' chimney, you live too close. Maybe that's not exactly what he said. But it's close enough.

And this is my favorite photo of the day.

How to Have A Good Time Before and After a Switchfoot Concert

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Mon, 14 May 2012 01:30:00 +0000

Last Friday, we had the best mother/son night. Caelan and I and 2 of his friends and their moms left Bolivar for Sprinfield, MO right after school let out. We were headed out to grab an early take-out dinner and then to the Gillioz Theater to see Switchfoot in concert.

My sister and I started going to concerts regularly when I was about 14. She had magic dialing fingers and could win any radio call-in contest. It didn't matter if you had to be caller #1 or #100, she won. Van Halen, Billy Idol, Heart, Bon Jovi. I think my age is coming through by sharing this list! About the time she moved to Oregon, I met Shawn and my concert days carried on. He and I used to go to concerts all the time when we were younger. Our first date (that wasn't a date) was REO Speedwagon. I've been to everything from Garth Brooks to Pink Floyd to Gordon Lightfoot. We saw The Eagles when I was huge and miserable 3 days before Caelan was born. We've seen some amazing concerts! Shawn eventually decided that because it was becoming apparent to him that he was a magnet for rainy weather (most of the concerts we went to were at outdoor venues) and because of the ridiculous price of good tickets, his concert days were over. I followed his lead.

It had been at least 10 years since I'd been to a concert when found a youth conference in Branson last December. Caelan's to the age where he wants to start going to concerts so I got tickets to the conference because David Crowder would be playing there. We went very excited to see him. And I came away a Switchfoot fan. They also played and it was hands down one of the best concerts I've ever seen. Incredible interaction with the crowd. Energetic. And the lyrics. . . I don't know if it's because I'm older with more life experience so I just see so much value in them but the lyrics are phenomenal. They aren't just about getting through that one break up or plotting revenge for someone who hurt you or embarrassed you. And my Red Solo Cup days are long gone so I want something deeper. Switchfoot songs are about examining what's inside you and growing and surviving in spite of your circumstances. So one song can be good for a break up or being hurt or embarrassed or realizing you need to move past your Red Solo Cup days. And their songs are good for things that are much bigger, including the things we do to ourselves. Instead of superficial pacifiers, you get encouragement to get back up and keep going. That's why I agree with the description of their songs being for thinking people. Quite simply, they leave you thinking! Good stuff.

So last Friday night, this was our destination.

Here's an artsy-fartsy version for fun. I've always wanted to use the Totally Rad pool party action but it doesn't lend itself well to photos of cows and chickens and my boys playing baseball.

Our night was a celebration of Caelan's and Ryan's birthdays so we let them choose where we got dinner. Ryan picked Buffalo Wild Wings.

Caelan's creepy cool-guy gesture.

Bryce loves Buffalo Wild Wings so much he couldn't wait until we got to The Gillioz and had to sneak one.

This was probably some sort of sacrilege but I was wearing an off-white shirt and I envisioned walking around all night with hot sauce stains on it so I got a cheeseburger.

I think I went on an off night for the cook. It was a huge burger but I should have been reckless and bold and gone for the wings.

The concert was general admission so we got to the theater around 5 to wait for the doors to open at 7. This was the line in front of us. It turned out that we didn't need to get there so early. When the doors opened, everyone calmly walked in. Lots of people chose to sit farther back in the center section since Jon Foreman is know for going out into the middle of the crowd and walking on the seats while performing. Even though we got there earlier than necessary, we had a lot of fun sitting there for 2 hours with our boys waiting so I'm still glad we went early.

We ate.

The boys walked to a convenience store and bought Red Bull and then harassed me for thinking Red Bull is highly overrated. Mmmmm. Fruit flavoring derived from chemicals.

Caelan, continuing his cool-guy persona, decided it would be funny to "smash a can on his head." The actual event may or may not have been completely fabricated.

There was a lot of texting.

Caelan, pretending to be too lazy to get up off the ground took this when I asked him to take a photo of the 3 moms. The colors are a little ghastly and oversharpened here but enlarged, I ended up with a fun new Facebook cover photo. I love how little Jen is peeking up over the bottom of the photo.

The boys took the obligatory photos with Mom. Sweet photo of Teresa and Ryan.

I got my best photo ever of Caelan and me. Love every minute I spend with this boy. I still scratch my head wondering how I ended up with such a good kid.

Right after this we got let through the front doors and were met with a very apologetic, "I'm sorry. You can't take professional cameras in." I had my
camera slung over my shoulder and my little 50 mm lens on it. I laughed and said, "This is not a professional camera." More apologies, explanations that no big cameras were allowed, and in the end, Teresa headed back to her car with both of our cameras. I went in with Jen and the boys to get seats. I did my best to find a way to get my camera in. I asked Caelan to go tell the people at the door that it was his birthday and all he wanted was Switchfoot photos. He said, "Uh, no." I tried to get Ryan to lie and say it was his birthday and all HE wanted for his birthday was Switchfoot photos. He said, "We are at a Christian concert and you are asking me to go lie???" I think since we were celebrating his birthday (it was a week earlier) it wasn't a really a lie. OK, so maybe it was. My 17-year-old friend put me in my place and I stopped the pressuring tactics!

When Teresa came back in, she looked very nervous and worried and we knew she wasn't going to enjoy herself as long as her brand new camera was in the car all night. We went back to see if the nice ticket/door people would let us bring our cameras in if we left the batteries with them so we couldn't use the cameras. They politely said no again. They did offer to keep our cameras in their office for us during the concert but Teresa decided to call her mom and have her come pick them up.

We had so much fun, both moms and teenage boys. The concert was every bit as awesome as I expected it to be. This time I knew every song, all the words. Again, one of the best I've been to. When it was over, we waited around to see if there would be an aftershow. There was. And I didn't have my camera! I hadn't even thought about needing it for this when I sent my camera with Teresa's mom. It was across town and there was no way we could get it and get back in time for the aftershow. So we waited around while the band came out and signed autographs and took photos with everyone who asked.

If you're a creative person who's a fan of Elsie Larson, you'll want to see this. Her husband Jeremy played with Jon at the aftershow! Even my unexcitable teenage son thought that was cool. I heard him telling his friends and their moms one by one, "I know his wife! She's a friend of my mom's!" They played 4 songs together and you can see videos of 3 of them on this YouTube account. Seeing Jeremy up there playing and knowing how exciting that must have been was such a awesome ending to an already great night. And we did manage to get a few photos even though I didn't have my camera. Ryan and Teresa took a few with their iPhones.

Even without a "professional camera," I think we still got the best photo of the night when Ryan took this one of Bryce with Drew Shirley. Above and beyond the call of duty to make your fans have a good time and smile.

One of the Few Joys of Disorganization

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:39:00 +0000

I'm working on a project for Fiskars today and going through old photos looking for one in particular. Unfortunately, I took it when I still filed my photos in folders labled by date. And fortunately, I took it when I still filed my photos in folders labled by date. It's a slow process going through the folders looking for the photos I need but it's always so cool to go back through old photos.

I found these a bit ago and they are a couple of my favorites I've ever taken of Will. So many memories right here. They are from my film days. I'm not sure if it was when I swore I was never going to use digital or if it was when I was submitting layouts to any magazine that paid money trying to save up enough to buy the digital camera I once scoffed at. Memory #1. My camera history.

I'm also taken back to the summer Will would not wear anything but these snow boots. I took these on an uncharacteristically warm winter day. But when August rolled around, you could still find him running around outside in these boots and those shorts. He liked them because we walked down to the river a lot that summer and his little feet didn't get hurt on the rocks when he was wading. They smelled atrocious from the combination of sweaty feet and being full of river water all the time and it nearly drove Shawn out of his mind that Will wore them when it was 100 degrees outside. I didn't mind because it meant I had to spend less time nagging about watching for snakes. If you've followed my blog for a while, you may remember my history with snakes around here and how I feel about them. Memory #2. The summer of the snow boots.

I'm sure you've noticed by now Will's shorts are on backwards. That was a big point of contention between Shawn and me at this age. Will put his pants on backwards every single day. I thought it was funny and never made him turn them around unless we were going out in public. Shawn thought we should turn them around the right way. The little irritations and battles can be fun because they are safe. Marriages don't end, or even have to be miserable, because of little things like backwards short. Your kids get to see marriage isn't about always agreeing. Or always winning your battles. Memory #2. The year of backwards clothing.

And then there is this one. Be. Still. My. Heart. That hair. I still beg and plead with him to wear his hair like this. I think he should wear it like this forever and ever. Right now he prefers a mohawk. Hmph. Memory #3. My child with the perfect shaggy blonde hair.

The memories tied to these photos go beyond just that day I took them. They also remind me of the days when I was in love with scrapbooking and I used them to make this layout for one of Elsie'sbooks. It reminds me of the hours I spent sitting in her apartment watching her work her magic with paints and pens and photos, of the time we spent organizing layouts and writing copy and helping Candice Stringham with the photo shoot. Elsie did so much to build my confidence. Her encouragement and confidence in me to contribute to her books is why today I get paid every month to do something I love. I would sew and make books and take photos and garden and write and encourage others to be creative anyway. That someone pays me to do it is crazy and awesome and humbling. Memory #4. My gratitude to Elsie.

The icons on the buttons of my camera are almost worn off. There's a chunk missing from the rubber eyepiece. The texture on the grips is nearly worn smooth. Every crevice is dusty. The sensor has spots on it. The ISO on it is terrible. I talk incessantly about "someday" getting to replace it with something newer and better but it's faithfully worked the 56,708 times I've pressed the shutter relase button. It's frozen thousands of moments in time for me to go back through and relive some day, just like I have today.

P.S. If you're curious to know how many photos you've taken with your camera, go to MyShutterCount.com.

Photography Lesson

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Sat, 05 May 2012 13:36:00 +0000

It's almost 2 a.m. Caelan and I just got home from the Switchfoot concert in Springfield, MO and I know sleep isn't coming soon. We had a phenomenal night so I'm not sure if it's just the euphoria or if it has something to do with the Mocha Frappe I drank at 12:30 a.m. as we drove home. Whatever it is, when I saw this photo on Facebook, it gave me what I needed to finish this blog entry I've had sitting here for over a week.

Until recently, I would never have shared this photo. I won't even begin to dissect it and point out all the things that make me want to promise Caelan's friend Ryan that I'll keep him stocked with 7-Layer Taco Dip through college if he'll untag me, delete it, and promise me that I won't get periodic hush money requests.

But, I made a decision a few weeks ago. I was sitting in the memorial service for one of the kids in this photo. It was the third memorial I've been to for four of the teenagers our community has lost this year. Only three services for four teenagers because 2 of them were sisters. There were some common threads through these services. They were all painful. The crowds of people at each were beautiful evidence of incredible love and support of the people I share life with, both those I know and those I don't. There were a lot of tears shed. There was a slideshow of photos shared at each. And there was laughter during every one of the slideshows.

As the photos scrolled past, I did what I always do. I subconsciously scanned them and things stood out to me. Scattered clothes, books, flash reflections, the composition, or rather the lack of composition, all the things I've been trained to be conscious of. But I realized that what I always ended my focus with was the smiles; the unique personalities traits of each kid; the personal interactions with their siblings, friends, family. All of these technically imperfect photos are now priceless treasures that provide a permanent record of the things that truly matter. It struck me that I would have hit the trashcan button on a lot of them if they had been on my own camera or I would have used my famous flash-snob line, "The light isn't good," and I never would have taken them in the first place. I've read so many books and articles and blogs and Facebook comments about what a "good" photo should look like that I've lost perspective of what personal photography should be. I've chosen pride over memories. The most ridiculous part of this is I decided nearly 2 years ago that I no longer have the desire to one day be a professional photographer. So why am I still placing the value of opinions of my skill over the value of memories?

I don't normally take group photos. Too many things and personalities to try and coax into cooperating. Truth be known, I probably only took this photo of the kids because my friend Jen was there and told me to. This photo has bugged me since I downloaded it to my computer. I couldn't avoid the table and chairs and score keeping machine in the foreground at the bowling alley. The background had bad shadows and the two boys on the far right should be moved to the left, as should the lovable goofball in the center front, all things I could have avoided. I spent an hour cloning the background, which is still inconsistent in color. And then when I picked up the prints that I'd ordered for a grieving classmate of Caelan's I pointed out that they were too dark. He said, "Mom, she'll never notice that. Even if she did, she'll be glad to have something that reminds her of when things were good and normal. That's what she'll care about."

So when I have the time, I'll still strive to take photos like this (and then pick them apart for ways to improve) because this is what I love to do. But even if I thought it was perfect, this photo will never be meaningful or valuable to anyone.

When I don't have the time or the skill or the equipment or the right background, I'll take photos like this. Instead of neglecting to take a quick photo with my 2 little sisters because the littlest one has to get her brand new Dodge Challenger home before the hailstorm hits, I'll accept my grandma's 1980s Christmas colored couch and 1960s dark paneling behind us. And, because it is the first photo of us all together in probably 20 years, I'll love it because it is meaningful and valuable simply because it exists.

I'll also keep this one because it reminds me of a night of a phenomenal Switchfoot concert and how, afterwards, the band members came outside to sign autographs, take photos, and play more music. I'll remember that Chad Butler, never rushing, looked you in the eye, shook your hand, and asked your name. Then he signed an autograph and thanked you for coming. This photo is meaningful and valuable because I saw humility and appreciation and then got to talk a lot about the impact of those virtues on the way home with my kid because he also noticed them.

Seeking Beauty in Tragedy

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 23:19:00 +0000

Thinking a lot about this one today. He's so close to setting out on his own and yet still so much a kid. Age 17 is the bridge of a dichotomy, the bridge between being a child and being an adult. He's just a few weeks from officially stepping onto that bridge but this past year, he's seen far beyond the other side of it and approaches with a wisdom that is both comforting and appalling.

I remember ages 16 and 17 so well. It was the most confusing, tormenting time of my life. I experienced far more true problems both before and certainly after age 17, but without the guidance of those more wise than myself, the trials were much more dramatic! At 16 and 17, my guidance and wisdom came from inside and from those who agreed with the wisdom inside me! So confusion and torement ruled. But looking back, some of my best memories are from that time. Some of the strongest bonds I'll ever have in my life were forged. Even those relationships that have become memories themselves are the easiest to fall back into when I make a reconnection. After all, these people were with me when I made what were probably the most embarrassing or unintelligent "informed" decisions of my life and if they weren't my counterpart, they were living in tandem with me with their own embarrassing, unintelligent "informed" decisions. We survived 16 and 17 and we did it together. And that's what makes it such a formidable part of life. The together part. The power of the relationships.

While I would prefer that he be a little (a lot) smarter than I was about where he seeks wisdom at this stage of life, I still want Caelan to experience the together part of it. The power of the relationships. The kids in our community have dealt with far too much of the sudden, senseless end to these relationships. They've been thrust into tragedy so much between the loss of friends (some of them losing brothers and sisters) to cancer, alcohol, and automobile accidents. Saturday night, a horrible car accident added another tally to the column. I believe it's number 9 in the past 18 months. It was number 6 during just this school year. These tragedies have left us in deep, raw, tearful conversations about love and kindness and forgiveness and faith. He's seen far enough beyond the other side of the bridge that he has a wisdom and understanding of these things far beyond his years. There is great comfort in knowing he has a relationship with God and an understanding that life is about others, not yourself, something that I didn't bend to until I was 24 and staring down at him in an incubator in NICU. But the appalling part of seeing so far beyond the other side also has to do with wisdom and understanding. Sunday he said to me, "It's happened so many times that it isn't even a shock now. It's sad and tragic and all. But it doesn't shock us anymore. And it makes me realize I could be next." My heart sank when he said that. I've always had the knowledge that life is precious and tomorrow is no guarantee. But there is a huge difference between knowledge and understanding. I didn't truly feel the reality of it until I turned 40. He has it at 17. The heaviness that comes with understanding mortality is something that the parent in me wishes he could be protected from just a little bit longer. But as I've watched these kids, once again, work through their grief by sharing scripture on Facebook, and I think about how they still filed into the front rows of our church and stood shoulder to shoulder, singing, some of them with their arms held high like they do every other week when life isn't tragic, I know they're going to be OK. They are doing together. They have very powerful relationships. Caelan will still be able to look back in 20 years and say, "Remember the night we threw a chicken on Michael's face while he was sleeping?" (That really happened in our basement!) But he'll also be able to say that before he ever reached the bridge to cross over into adulthood, he had already begun to understand how to be more accepting and giving and forgiving and, most importantly, to look up instead of inside as he navigates through life. That's the stuff that the best, strongest relationships are made of. I know they aren't perfect and they are going to make mistakes. But together they are experiencing the stuff that most of us do over the span of many years, the stuff that bit-by-bit humbles you and turns your focus outward. They're doing it in months, not years, as kids, not adults. Through the experience of all the tragedy, there is so much potential for God to use these kids to do big things, to lead lives that make a difference. And I hope to be able to see what these relationships look like 20 years down the road.

How To Make a Chevron Pillow

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:02:00 +0000

20 minutes until I have to start work and I haven't made my kids their breakfast yet. And I still need to throw in a load of laundry. And here I sit, blogging. That's the beauty of working from home. It's a procrastinator's dream. You never leave home too late to get to work on time.

I noticed a few days ago that the "Pin It" button for pinning things from my blog to Pinterest wasn't allowing people to pin my photos. I've had a problem with my photos looking terrible in the default photo they show on Flickr. It's my own fault because of the amount of sharpening I use on my photos. I haven't figured out yet how you work around that in the default photo, or if you can, so I had all my photos set to private. That's been changed. They just look terrible on Flickr but since people rarely look at my photos there, I supposed it doesn't really matter anyway!

I just wanted to share a new project I have up on the Fiskars website. I'm so fascinated with all the variations of a pattern that is as simple as chevron is. I found several quilts on Pinterst and thougth I'd try the idea out on a pillow. This is so simple to piece.

You start with this (I ended up eliminating some of the colors when I started piecing it). . .

And you end up with this.

A tutorial for making a chevron pillow like this one can be found on the Fiskars website.

And now I'm off to get ready for work!

Old Pair of Jeans + Fabric = Cute Little Garden Apron

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 19:52:00 +0000

I have a new article up on the Fiskars website today. When I finished it, I had one of those moments you get every once in awhile where your finished product is better than it was in the picture in your mind before you started. Isn't that the best feeling? Then I had that moment that we always have where the finished product never looks as good in the photos you take as it does in real life! So even if you're looking at this and thinking, " . . . OK," maybe you'll agree that the idea (which is not my original idea) is about as cute and simple as they get. An old pair of jeans, some fabric, very little sewing, and you have a cute little garden apron. My article is about Mother's Day, but this would be a great beginner's project for someone just learning how to sew or something fun and easy to make for yourself.

Instructions for making a garden apron out of an old pair of jeans can be found on the Fiskars website.

When you're finished with your apron and wondering what you're going to do with the leftovers, my article explains how to make a garden tool caddy from the legs of the jeans.

Pizza Gardening

noreply@blogger.com (Kendra) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 19:20:00 +0000

I have a new article up on the Fiskars website. It's about growing a pizza garden, AKA encouraging your kids to focus on the positives about gardening instead of the negatives. The negatives can all be encompassed with one word. Work. One word for the positives? Pizza! You can read about growing a pizza garden as an encouragement for your kids on the Fiskars website.

The format somehow got a little jumbled up somewhere along the way between my computer and Fiskars so I'm sorry if that gives you the urge to pull out your red pen!

And on a totally unrelated note, this is what's I'm listening to on Pandora as I finish up. Always by Switcfoot. I'll be singing it the rest of the day. ♪♫ Hallelujah! I'm caving in. Hallelujah! I'm in love again. Hallelujah! I'm a wretched man.♪♫ And then my favorite line, ♪♫Hallelujah! every breath is a second chance.♫♪ As much as I love their music, the hook for me as a fan is that Jon Foreman's interviews and writings are pure gold. Always so complex in the words he chooses yet simple and humbling at their core. For me, this gives their music far more meaning when I'm listening to them. I found his explanation (scroll to the bottom)about where this song came from on their fan website, Land of Broken Hearts.