A Strong Will

Want to hear about a recent crazy NYC adventure? I posted a story over at Segullah. It's funny and thought-provoking too. Don't get scared away because it's kind of longer than your run-of-the mill blog post. I just couldn't leave out any of the juicy details.

A small side note involves how stinking exhausting it can be to try and get your kids to eat. You know, eat good food. Well here's a picture for you to enjoy and a shout out to Tim. He kept Cole and Stella while Matt and I sang at our stake Christmas concert the other night and he got Cole to eat an entire plate of rice and beans. "A triumph of the night," he said. "It took everything that I had." He took a picture to prove it. So glad he did.

We do Run, Run, Run

Okay, so we've been horrible bloggers. I don't know if I'll do better or not. But if you want to read a bit about my most recent marathon in Chicago, head on over to Segullah.

The Hard is What Makes it Great!

For more pictures you can visit my facebook page!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Or cinnamon rolls? What would you like to bake this weekend?

I made these cookies for Father's Day. A little smaller than the recipe calls for and then sandwiched Stew Leonard's homemade vanilla ice cream in between them, while warm.

Delicious!

Head over to Segullah for a few thoughts on Finding Courage.

Sage of the Subway

Read about my encounter with a wise old man from _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _, yah, I still don't know where.

Over at Segullah.

UPDATED WITH LINKS! Only Heaven Knows

Watch it here!

So, Matt's cabaret totally rocked! Can't wait for take 2 tonight.

We'll try to get some clips up here or on youtube or something so everyone can share the love.

If you want to read a little bit about my side of our love story (he shared his last night), head on over to Segullah.

Happy Mother's Day!

Dear Mom Corrigan, Mom Herrick, and Grandma Lorna:

This is for you.

We love you! Thanks for all you do! Your fabulous examples, unconditional love and never-ending support mean the world to us.

We're excited to see you soon!

Scripture Power

The fam on Easter morning. Stella left the bow in for the picture only.

Easter was awesome. We did a week of devotionals leading up to the holiday. It was an idea sent to me by my sister-in-law Tina. You start on Palm Sunday and then each night open an egg that has a scripture prophecy and reference about that week of Christ's life (along with a corresponding treat). We learned so much. It was wonderful!

Stella really liked finding food in the eggs. Luckily it was mostly goldfish crackers and cheerios.

It would lead to great discussions each night. I'd ask them questions and try to have them apply what they were reading, learning. I should have written it down that week, because I don't remember the details now :-(, but there were beautiful insights the kids made, right on their level of understanding that amazed me.

Kids with their Easter loot at cousin Colleen's

I want to hear about your successes and inspirational stories with reading and studying the scriptures.Come join in at Segullah.

Enjoying the backyard sunshine in New Jersey!

No Way Jose!

Join in the latest discussion at Segullah

Featuring a story from the insightful and delightful Margaret Gayle!

Photo circa 2007 (when this story came to pass)

How To Be Happy

For reals! There's research and everything.

Read all about it at Segullah.

My family being happy at the ward Valentine's Dance!

Cole Quotes

A few months ago I started writing down funny things Cole said. Because he's funny and sometimes I can't remember why at the end of the day. My brain's not what it used to be . . .short-term memory loss and such.

Anyhoo here are a few favorites:

• At Christmas when people would ask him what he wanted, "I want a car that has a remote control that when you push the button it drives by itself." (make no mistakes, not just a remote control car . . .)
• He was asking me if we could go to a friend's apartment with the whole family. I said I wasn't sure if we were all invited or if he was just going to have a playdate. He made some sense of that, "That's because we have a bunch of peoples in our family. There's Stella and Margaret. There's me and you and Dad. That's a bunch."
  
• "I just love hugging and kissing Stella more than anything in the whole world."
  

Who wouldn't? I mean look at that face!

• This was before we had even visited Santa, before Christmas had come but the holiday season was in full swing. Out of the blue one night during scripture reading Cole said, "Santa Claus is my favorite person in the whole world." Margaret, older and wiser and feeling spiritual because of the scriptures I guess, asked, "Even more than Heavenly Father and Jesus?" With no hesitation Cole said, "Yep. in the whole world."
• Singing to the little drummer boy, "Rumble bum, rumble bum, rumble bum."
  
• For one last funny, and hey, it's even Santa related (I see a pattern emerging) visit Blog Segullah.
  

Sort and Purge

Some before shots:

Entry Way

Table

Top of entertainment center

One corner of living room

Check back in a couple days for the after shots. (We're not quite there yet.)

While you're waiting read about cleaning the kids' room and . . .
some stuff I learned while being silent for a week
at Segullah.