Today is National Strawberry Day. One of my favorite Christmas gifts this year was THIS CALENDAR. I love it. It's old fashioned in that it hangs on my wall and I can easily look at it and see the coming days and note which fun and silly holidays are approaching. Had I not known that it was National Strawberry Day then I may not have purchased strawberries at Costco when I was there and I would have missed out on a FUN after school moment with Addie Lu. We had dumped the strawberries into my big orange colander and rinsed them off. I was going to pull out the stems and cut them up for dinner, but then Addie started eating them and we started talking and giggling and I realized that to truly celebrate the strawberry—it all it's heart-shaped glory, with that perfect little stem handle—we would all need to eat them whole. Addie helped me put them in a big bowl. We sprinkled a little sugar on top and then shared them with Dad and the boys when they got home. 

Just for FUN, here's a short video overview of the Valentine mini-book that I created for a class at Big Picture Classes last February. I just pulled it out with a few items of decor yesterday and it makes me super HAPPY. 

Several years ago at a family reunion, my brother, Cougar gave us a new way to think about our extended family (which now consists of more than 35 people, spread across five states) so that we could more readily call upon the love and concern that we have for one another. He asked us if we remembered the Verizon Wireless commercials, where the Verizon Guy, in his signature gray jacket, stood holding his flip phone. He was always surrounded by dozens of people, which visually represented the wireless network, or the support that you would have and feel if you were a Verizon customer. The question, posed by the test guy in most of these commercials, which became the subject of countless jokes, was, “Can you hear me now?” which of course is always a resounding YES, IF you’re lucky enough to own a Verizon phone plan.

About a year ago, I was preparing to write a book. In fact, I was DONE writing the book and was working on photography and final details, when I found out the entire project had been canceled. Details are here. Life moves on and for most of last year I simply forgot about all that work I had done, but now as I am preparing again to teach at RootsTech, I'm remembering and thinking and deciding what I want to do, and I've decided that I simply want to share what I wrote—here on my blog! I mean, duh. Why not? In fact, even though I am NOT a graphic designer, I might even figure out how to flow all this content with images so that the individual chapters/projects/essays would be easy to print for anyone who wants a hard copy—if this is you, leave me a comment!

So, without further delay, Here is the introduction to my (almost) book, with no title ...

If you've been reading for a bit you may remember that I have a renewed goal to make pancakes on Saturday mornings. Because gluten and I are no longer friends, I'm always on the look out for GF recipes that are easy and delicious. This is one such recipe ...

I've been making this one on and off for three or four years, but I usually make it for just Addie and me on Late Start mornings (Thursday) and the boys never get any! For the first two years I had to look it up the recipe on Pinterest, EACH time I wanted to make them. I finally wised up and typed up my own copy for my recipe binder. Note: I'm kinda still old fashioned in that I like printed recipes, most of the time! This recipe is from Mountain Mama Cooks. As stated above, it's easy and delicious and the only thing I've tweaked is that I leave out the honey, because I serve these with real maple syrup and they don't need any extra sweetness. The ripe banana does the trick. 

I hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

Kobi Yamada is one of my heros and mentors. He is the president and creative powerhouse behind Compendium, Inc. and he is the author of the book pictured above. This is a book that speaks to my heart. I LOVE it so much that I'm going to read it to you ...

I really liked the message from Dieter F. Uchtdorf in the January issue of the Ensign.

Elder Uchtdorf writes, "Recently, I watched a group of people practicing the art of archery. Just by watching, it became clear to me that if you really want to master the bow and arrow, it takes time and practice.

I don’t think you can develop a reputation for being an accomplished archer by shooting at an empty wall and then drawing targets around the arrows. You have to learn the art of finding the target and hitting the bull’s-eye. Shooting first and drawing the target afterward may seem a little absurd, but sometimes we ourselves mirror that very behavior in other circumstances of life ..."

After reading his message, I feel like it relates to what I often observe in life and especially online—it's easy to become hyper-focused on one aspect of life—parenting, diet, exercise, travel, career or education, OR ... I see how we can get super involved with one program or cause to the exclusion of others. We essentially find and create our own target and then we even go so far as to judge or ridicule those who are obviously NOT aiming in the direction we are. Make sense? 

Walk into any antique store or vintage market and you'll find gorgeous, one-of-kind, interesting photos that clearly have a story to tell. There are cute toddlers sitting atop tricycles, important looking men shaking hands, and large groups of what appears to us as over-dressed people enjoying some kind of outdoor adventure. I am filled with a deep, sadness and curiosity when I browse photos like these. They have essentially been buried in the equivalent of an unmarked grave. 

One reason I scrapbook is to rescue some of my photos from this inevitable end. Will I ever finish my children's School of Life albums? Maybe not, but I will remember that I have exactly enough time (and energy and creativity) to scrapbook my most important memories. I will pair a few of my photos with the stories that will give them lasting value. 

Today, we attended our stake conference, which is a meeting of all the LDS wards/congregations within a designated geographical area. The theme for this conference was Strengthening Our Families. Two weeks ago, we were given several resources to read or watch so that we would come prepared to listen to and act on the messages presented. I am SO GRATEFUL for the time and thoughtful preparation of the speakers, because I was absolutely fed in a profound spiritual way. I am excited to do (try) the following three things in our family ...