The kiddos had fun this evening. It feels like spring is officially here! Our neighbors have these beautiful daffodils lining their driveway, so I thought it'd be a fun photo opp.

Funny story about daffodils...

Growing up, I knew what daffodils were. And I had heard of jonquils. But I really had no idea what a jonquil was. I just assumed it was a flower that didn't grow in South Dakota (not unheard of).

Just last week, I discovered that they're the same thing. Apparently jonquil is the southern term for daffodils! Who'da thunk it?

Learn something new every day....

I'm absolutely kicking myself for allowing the dilemma I'm currently in to come to pass. Two years ago when my passport came and looked odd to me, I should have contacted the State Dept right away. The fact that I travelled to and from Canada made me believe that my passport was correct. It didn't even dawn on me that it could have been due to the fact that the passport rules were not yet in full effect.

So... my day today...

7:30am...
On the phone (in queue) with State Department. Queue time 15 minutes. Conversation time about 15 minutes. Explained the situation -- all appeared fine on their end. She did tell me that I can't fly into Mexico w/ just a drivers license and birth certificate. If I were driving, that would work, but flying requires a passport. She gave me a number to call to get further advisement. She led me to believe that I'd be OK with my current (expired) passport.

10:00am...
Trip to the local Post Office. This freaked me out a bit. The woman there unfortunately couldn't help me (which didn't surprise me, but I wanted to see a live person rather than talk to a voice through a phone). She did say that my passport is in fact the old one, and is technically a "tampered with" document, therefore not legal. She also said that since I never received my new passport, it's technically lost or stolen, and must therefore be reported as such.

PANIC! Yes, this is when I really started to panic. I knew I didn't have time to do the report, get a new one, etc -- all before my flight on Friday morning. Especially since our intentions were to drive Wednesday afternoon to drop off the kids. Oy. Stress, stress, stress.

10:15am...
Phone to State Department... again. Over and over and over. They're experiencing a higher than normal call volume and can't take my call right now. What's up with that -- it's an emergency! And the number given to me earlier this morning won't allow me to talk with a live person. Not helpful! Voice prompts and automated info will not get me my answers, or my correct passport.

11:15am...
Finally get through to the State Department again. New lady. This one said that it appears my new passport was never mailed. WHAT!?! She went on to correct herself and give me a Fed Ex tracking number, but added that it doesn't show that it was received by me or returned to them. (Duh -- I knew I hadn't received it). She suggested that since it had been 2 years, it was unlikely to still be sitting in the "lost mail" section, so I should schedule an appointment at my nearest Passport Agency (i.e. one of the few regional offices), as that was the only way I could get my expedited passport. Nearest office: Houston. Yes, that's 9.5 hours away. Thankfully, it's only 2 hours out of the way from where we're going Wed/Thurs. Ugh.

11:30...
Call Fed Ex. Give them the tracking number. They don't have record of it. I asked if it's because it's too old. They said, "No, we'd still have record of it in billing. It's because the sheet was printed, but it was never handed over to a Fed Ex representative." They never mailed it!!!! ARGH!!!

12:00...
Call another State Dept person -- a direct line given to me by my wonderful brother who has a few inside connections. Unfortunately, this person only handles government workers, not citizens, so really couldn't help me. She did, however, press my breaking point button. She asked the simple question, "Can I ask why it took you 2 years to report that you hadn't received your new passport?" And I just broke down -- the stress, frustration, and stupidity of it all got to me. My answer: because I've never received a passport renewal, didn't know what it SHOULD look like, and assumed that what I received was correct! *sigh*

12:15...
On the phone again with the State Department to let them know that Fed Ex never received the package. This person also said, "It looks like it was never sent," but then went on to kind of cover for herself and checked the tracking number. She then was able to send an urgent request to the processing department (who of course have no direct lines to follow up). I told them the urgency is huge, because if I have to go to Houston, I have to also leave earlier than originally planned. So she basically needed to have them return the call today (they didn't). I also told her that I'd prefer NOT to pay again, since it wasn't my fault that I didn't have the documents. I asked for a copy of all the stuff we'd talked about for my meeting in Houston.... but she refused, saying that they'd be able to see it all when I get there. Yes... but *I* would like to have a copy of all the mistakes that were made!

So we've now booked a hotel for Houston on Wednesday night. I have an appointment on Thursday morning at 8am at the Passport Agency. I can only pray that they can turn it around immediately (I was told they should be able to). Should is NOT a good word today. Then we head on to Jon's brother's house, because they're watching the kids for us. And then we fly out on Friday.

Please, oh please, oh please let us fly out on Friday.

Besides being ugly, what else do you see that's wrong with this picture?




















I got my first passport in college in 1996. I was 20. In 2004, I updated it with my married name. I had gotten married much earlier, but had no need to travel abroad until 2004. The back page of my passport says that on May 14, 2004, my name had been updated.

All that's cool and good.

In 2007, I needed to travel to Canada. It was about the time when they were going to require that US citizens also needed a passport. I thought mine was still valid, but then checked and realized it had expired a year prior! Oops! So I filled out the appropriate paperwork, took the photo, went to the Passport Agency at the local Post Office, and expedited my passport to the US State Dept to get it renewed.

The above photo is what they sent back. My OLD passport with my NEW photo simply stapled to it. There is no addendum in the back.

Today I went to register our upcoming trip with the US Embassy online. It asked for my expiration date on my passport. So I dug it out. There IS NO EXPIRATION DATE!!! What!?! The only expiration date listed is April 2006! Now I know that I sent it in and updated it in 2006 -- but why would there be no updated expiration date, no addendum on the back page, and why would they staple my photo. *I* could have stapled my photo.

Since it's a Sunday afternoon, I can't really do anything about it but flip out! So tomorrow I've got to call the US Passport people and run to the Post Office and pray that my trip will still be a green light!

Uggabugga.

I'm a little (ok a lot) late in posting these. It took me a full week to get the photos taken! :) But here are the completed projects.

The first is the picture of Dominic's name painting. It's 16x20 and really will work well in his room. The side is a little darker than the photo appears -- the flash over-exposed it slightly. He thinks it's pretty cool, and now Amara's all over me to get hers finished! It's going to have to wait til after vacation though.




























On the other hand, I did make her a project this weekend. I found some of the cute pre-smocked, pre-hemmed fabric at WM a few weeks ago. I added grosgrain ribbon in 3 colors in the bottom, and a ribbon tie around the neck, and it makes a super cute little dress! Oops, no pictures. That will have to come later!

The next pictures are of the nap mats I made the kids. They loved them, which makes me happy! :) The first photo is unrolled with their respective pillows. The second photo is all rolled up. Check out the different ribbons for Dominic's.

One week. Not even.

Right now NEXT week we'll be enroute to San Antonio. Actually, last night NEXT week we'll be enroute to San Antonio with a pitstop in Dallas for some outlet shopping.

I'm SO excited!

I'm oddly nervous about leaving the kids for a week, too. But I'll get over it! They're in good hands, and they'll have a blast with their cousins. It's just that it's the longest I've left them alone before. And I'll miss them. But again... I'll get over it!

Once we drop the kids off, we're boarding a plane for Mexico! The beauty of this trip... well... there's lots of beautiful things about this trip...
1) We're going with our old neighbors from Baltimore, who we miss like crazy! There will be 8 adults heading south for some much-needed warming up and relaxation time.
2) Three of the other adults on the trip are "planners" -- which means they love all the details and finding all the fun excursions and mapping things out for us to do each day. Jon and I don't like the details, but we love to take part in them. So we're not having to get bogged down with the things we hate -- but will still get to do the things we love!
3) It's warm in Mexico!

The bad thing right now is I've got perpetual lists going through my head. Lists of what I need to pack. Lists of things I need to do before we leave (like pay the bills!). Lists of emergency info for the kids should something happen. Lists of what the kids need to have packed. I really need to just pack, so I can turn off the lists! They're literally keeping me up at night.

The funny thing: our "planner" neighbors have already given us a very thorough packing list. So I'm not sure why I'm still generating them in my head!?

Excitement, I guess.

Oh... and the last beautiful thing...

This is the FIRST true vacation Jon and I have ever taken together! We've gone lots of places, but usually it was hooked to a business trip, a family reunion, a holiday, etc. This trip is just for us. Yippee!

After a week like I had last week (i.e. stressful), a crafty weekend seemed in order to decompress and destress. I won't add that the house REALLY needed cleaning and laundry REALLY needed washing -- because that didn't get done at all! But I had a blast creating things and felt SO much better on Sunday night.

So what did I make? Nap Mats and Name Paintings (or at least I started).

I got a lot of inspiration from Endless Possibilities on the Name Paintings. She does such a fabulous job! I wanted to make them for Amara and Dominic's room, and potentially start making them as gifts for friends and family if I like how they turn out. I didn't get very far yet -- I've got the base and sides of Dominic's painted -- now just to add his name, and potentially some stitching. Amara's is going to be a bit more detailed. I'm matching both of their beddings, and Dominic's is just a more simple, blocky, straight forward design. Amara's is going to be stripes and dots. It's a work in process, and I'm remembering just how much I love painting -- even if my talent doesn't quite match my love! I'll get some photos taken of the progress so that I can share it here.

The nap mats, on the other hand, are complete. I'm so excited by how they turned out. The kids were ecstatic to take them to school and had to show their teachers before hanging them on their hooks. I had one mom ask me to teach her how to make them (she doesn't know how to sew, so I'm not sure how well I'd be able to teach), and Amara's teacher said someone asked if I was going to sell them. Um... nope. If I wasn't working, maybe. But for me personally, crafty things are more fun to make and give away than they are to sell. Typically people can't/won't afford to spend the amount it would take to make it worth my time (4+ hours) plus supplies (approx $20). But I'd be happy to teach them how to do it!

So for the nap mats, and again I'll need to take photos to share them. Amara's is flowers/butterfly themed, and Dominic's is sports themed (surprise surprise).

Amara's bottom (the side touching the ground and visible when rolled up) is patchwork navy denim and hot pink floral calico. The part she lays on is white flannel with pink, yellow, turquoise, purple (probably more colors too) polka dots. Then the pillow and attached blanket are hot pink fleece with butterflies and flowers in multiple colors. It's bound together with hot pink grosgrain ribbon.

Dominic's bottom is patchwork navy denim and khaki. The part he lays on is sports themed flannel that's predominantly khaki. The pillow and attached blanket are sports ball fleece that's predominantly royal blue with larger balls than that on the flannel. It's bound together with 3 separate grosgrain ribbons -- one with footballs, one with basketballs, and one with soccer balls. He actually cried last night when he realized his nap mat is at school and he can't sleep on it at night. Does a Momma's heart good when her kids love what she's made for them! :)

I'll need to print these up and maybe take pictures of each step, but I'd like to share the instructions with anyone who cares to make the mats. They're really quite easy if you've got a sewing machine and can sew/cut a straight line! :)

MATERIALS:
- (SURFACE) 1 yard flannel fabric (to lay on)
- (BLANKET) 1 yard fleece fabric (can get up to 1.5 yards if you want the blanket to cover more of the mat)
- (BASE 1) 1 yard "stronger" fabric (as base) - calico is OK, but denim type may be more durable
- (BASE 2) 1 yard contrasting "stronger" fabric (as base)
- (INSIDE) 1 bag Queen Size Quilt Batting
- 1 Spool / Bobbin of Coordinating Thread
- Approximately 3-4 yards of Grosgrain Ribbon (usage and desired length may vary -- I just bought a spool)

INSTRUCTIONS:
1) Cut (BASE 1) and (BASE 2) fabrics into 9" wide strips
2) Sew the (BASE 1) and (BASE 2) fabrics together into panels 3 strips wide. You should end up with about 4 panels. 2 panels will be patterned 1:2:1, and 2 panels will be patterened 2:1:2.
3) Cut each of the panels into 9" wide strips.
4) Lay your cut strips out onto a table alternating between the 1:2:1 and 2:1:2 strips creating a checkerboard pattern.
5) Sew each of the cut strips together, right sides together so that the seam stays to the back -- I make my mats 7 layers long: 1:2:1 / 2:1:2 / 1:2:1 / 2:1:2 / 1:2:1 / 2:1:2 / 1:2:1
6) Lay the flannel (SURFACE) face up on the table. Lay the 7 layer long (BASE) on top of it. Trim the flannel to be the same size as the (BASE).
7*) Your flannel MAY NOT BE LONG ENOUGH to span the entire length of the base. This was the case in 2 of the 3 mats I made. I trimmed the side off and sewed it to the top, making it long enough, and making that space look like a "pillow" area. I covered the seam created with grosgrain ribbon so that it looked intentional, rather than patched.
8) Make sure your (BLANKET) has right angle edges -- this may or may not require trimming, depending upon how well it was cut at the store.
9) Pin grosgrain ribbon (3 streamers per side) to the (FACE) side of the (BASE) so that you can sew it into the base seam -- they should go on the foot side and I positioned them to the outer edge of the middle block.
10) Layer your materials in the order and direction listed:
(a) SURFACE - FACE UP
(b) BLANKET - FACE UP (I aligned the blanket about 1 foot from the top and about 6-9 inches from the bottom) -- make sure that the blanket comes OFF one side, but is folded smoothly into the middle so that you don't sew the other side. Only ONE side of the blanket will be attached to the nap mat
(c) BASE - FACE DOWN -- Ribbons should be between the layers and not visible
(d) INSIDE - I folded the queen size quilt batting so that it was 3 layers thick. It will be too long -- cut off that excess and save it to make a pillow.
10) Pin all 4 layers together along the edges
11) Trim the batting and any "mismatched" edges using your (BASE) as a cutting guide
12) Sew around 3 sides of the 4 layer group, batting side up -- long edge, foot, long edge. I set the machine to the "left", giving it about a 3/4" seam allowance
13) Flip the nap mat inside out (after removing all pins!)
14) Hand sew the top part of the nap mat to close it off.
15) Trim off excess fabric from (BLANKET) -- I cut the blanket about 9-12 inches past the edge of the mat so it will adequately cover my child.
16) Cut fringe into the (BLANKET) if desired. Because it's fleece, it won't ravel, but the fringe makes it look a little bit more finished.
17) Roll it up and add snaps (or buttons / velcro -- I like snaps because velcro snags, and kids often can't do buttons) to the ribbon ties so that you can secure the mat shut. The middle ribbon in each grouping of 3 becomes the shoulder strap -- add snaps to that, too.

PILLOW INSTRUCTIONS:
1) Fold leftover fleece in half with front side UP.
2) Cut in half at the fold.
3) Maintaining the layers, cut fringe along all 4 sides (the corners will have squares cut out)
4) Tie square knots in the fringe along 3 of the 4 sides
5) Using the remaining quilt batting, stuff the pillow
6) Tie square knots in the final edge of the pillow

Finito!

You know... there are just some periods in life when things are at such a frantic pace that you feel you've been left in the dust and are spinning on your tail.

Don't get me wrong, things are fine. But wow -- this past couple weeks held a pace that I'd like NOT to keep up moving forward. I think that tends to be the nature of life in my new position. And I'm grateful for the position and the opportunities it's providing. But I'm pretty sure I've aged 10 years in the last year.

I have to share my weekend. I was sent away for work to set up a conference. I travelled with 3 colleagues. Only I didn't exactly travel WITH them. Being the stubborn person that I am, I chose to fly out at 5:50pm AFTER our basketball game. They flew out at around noon, with the ETA of about 5:00pm. My first flight was delayed 45 minutes -- which annoyed me until I arrived at my final destination on time. Then I learned that my colleagues had only arrived 2 hours before me -- instead of the 7 hours they were SUPPOSED to have arrived before me. They had a nightmare day of delayed flights, missed flights, etc. I only had the inconvenice (and my seat mate the misfortune) of not having time to shower after my basketball game. HA HA! I'm still laughing at that! :) As Jon would say, "I smell like roses."

THEN.... on the return flight on Sunday....
We arrived at the show Sunday morning to continue our set up. They got a phone call from the airline saying BOTH their flights were cancelled, and they were rebooked on the 6:30PM flight on Monday. Yes -- over 24 hours later. My flights... all on time. I had chosen to fly through Dallas, while their flights took them through Atlanta. In short, their flights took them straight through all the crazy thunderstorms, tornadoes, and other weather that hit the southeast last weekend. My route took me south of it all. Even when my last flight was delayed an hour, my new perspective allowed me to not get annoyed, and instead just be thankful that I could still kiss my kids when I got home that night. Yes, it was midnight. But I was home.

Sometimes it's nice to get a different perspective. I think it's important to hold that perspective and keep a positive outlook. It's very easy for me to get drug down by the chaos and frantic pace. When I allow myself to do that, I get a singular focus on "just getting through" and my perspective on the rest of life is completely lost. Another way of putting it: I look OUT, but forget to look UP.

Because at the end of the day, the right perspective is going to come from UP.

"If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:1-3