Crafts

Valentine's Day entryway

Just a few things I made in February (late entry!)

The plaque: I bought a piece of wood, pained it red, used my new Silhouette and printed out the word love with a heart out of vinyl, top coated it with a shine spray! Perfect little love treat for the entry way!

The frame:   was purchased from Ben Franklin. It was a cardboard frame, blank with no details. I picked out paper, painted half of it and modge podged it. Then I printed out the words in vinyl and applied it, lastly I touched it up with ribbon and a little heart trinket! The frame is resting atop my late Grandmother's crocheted doily.  So beautiful!

So easy and done in less than an hour! I loved the entry way for Feb. Now I need to think Spring and get some Easter colors going!
Happy Crafting!

The airport view

Isn't it crazy how there are so many people in this world with so many stories? We all have our own paths that we have created.

As I sit here in the San Francisco airport while I'm waiting for my delayed flight I've pondered many things.
Each person that walks past me (about 20-30 right now) has their own story. We are like little turtles just flowing through the airport. They may have a family that they are flying home to, or not. They may be single or married, or having an affair. Each person, so different and no one person is the same. Our skin, our hair, our religion, it's all so remarkably different.  Even if two identical twins walked by me (haven't seen that yet) they would each have their own story. I wish I could just sit in a booth and listen to their stories of travel, life, adventure, sorry, triumph, and love. I think we can all learn so much from one another.

When I was picking up my bag at the airport upon arrival there was a woman. She was quietly walking down the path pulling her bag. She had short blonde hair with glasses. She was wearing jeans and a sweater with a purse on her shoulder.  Her face was subdued. I didn't think much of the situation, or her for that matter. Then it happened. Two kids came running around the corner yelling "MOMMY MOMMY!" They were running so fast that their blond hair was flowing in the back. The dad (or so I assume) trailed behind with a smile on his face. Next thing, the mom wrapped the kids up in her arms and hugged them. Oh... I bet those hugs felt so good. So reassuring, so comforting, and just like love in a squeeze. In my head, that was the perfect end to her day.
I can't wait to come home and get my love in a squeeze! Yay! I even let a few tears slide down my face when I witnessed this public display of homecoming.

I think it's great to meet new people, hear their stories, and learn from them. That's part of the reason I type on this silly little blog of mine. I always hope that people can learn from my mistakes/triumphs/journeys. Or just enjoy a little bit of my life. It's such a big world out there!

I hope my flight isn't too delayed because I'm really having withdrawals from my family.

What I'm looking forward to?

• Jason and his kindness and everlasting support.
• Lyla's bouncing curls, kisses and hugs.
• Rosies purring.
• My big white comfy bed.
• Wine at night with my hubby before bed.
• My routine.
• My job! I love it!
• Exercising, and especially my Jillian Michael's videos.
• Trying to exercise more and get fit for Hawaii.
• Studying for my boards, finishing them, and PASSING them!
• My life that I have created. It's great.

Five days

Wow. I actually made it five days without my little sweet babe and hubby. I had to fly to Cali for a board review course. I have been dreading it since the day I put my credit card number on the registration form.

I even thought about skipping it and staying home to study. In the days and weeks prior I didn't even talk about it. I didn't want it crossing my brain that I was going to be gone. So what's the best method? Ignoring the gnawing bitter truth that I was leaving my little girl for the first time. This method seemed to work well this time.

I am right now sitting next to a rock fountain with gigantic fish swimming around at the Embassy Suites hotel in San Francisco. To most people, this would sound ideal, to me it's not. I'm just glad I made it through the grueling week of 7am to 6pm classes (lectures) with half hour lunch breaks and to top it off two hour take home tests. This sounds insane, and it is. I even elected to take this. You may ask why? Well, the 97% pass rate was the deciding factor. For someone that has only been working in Dermatology, I had to brush up on my adult medicine skills. (I won't delve deep into the boring details but I am certified in Adult Medicine and I work in Dermatology, which means I don't even know where my stethoscope is!). Long story short, the fish swimming around me remind me of how much Lyla likes Nemo. (MO MO is what she would say. The absence of someone tugging my arm and saying "hand" makes me sad. I've learned to love the commotion in my life.

Yes, the last five days flew by.
I was so BUSY with studying and tests that I truly didn't have time to grieve.
I didn't have sadness because I didn't have time (thank goodness).
Now I'm going to fly back home and squeeze my little Lyla and kiss her so much she won't know what happened.

I learned that I am happy I'm a working mom.
I'm lucky I have such a wonderful job.
I love working 30 hours a week and spending the rest of the time with Lyla.
I am lucky, and hard working.

I'm a happy mom and can't wait to go home and be one!
Wish me luck on my boards, the dreaded day is March 28th.
But hey.... 97% pass rate, I can't dare be one of those 3%, right????

Happy Day!
Ang

Perspectives

Adults and children obviously see things from different perspectives.

I drive to work, get out of my car, walk into the building and start my day with pretty much the same routine on my work-days. It's second nature to me, I don't take much time to stop and smell the roses.

If I were Lyla it would proceed a little differently.
On the drive to work, she would notice each bird flying by and shout with glee.
She would use her pointer finger to point out each bird and smile.
She would dance in the car to the music, move her head side to side and laugh.
She would shake with happiness when the car would stop and be exctied for the next journey ahead.
Once out of the car she would proceed to look at the ground for treasures, such as rocks or pieces of bark, or merely a pice of trash.
Once found, she would grip the treasure with delight and her upper arms would shake as she smiled from ear to ear.
She would then look at me for my expression of approval and move forward.
Each step would be a new experience to her.
I would still be one of her main focuses as she looks at me with udder adoration, love and trust.

Hopefully I can try to see the world through Lyla's eyes. It seems so much brighter that way!
Spend some time with Lyla, you'll be amazed.

The perfect balance

Do you ever feel like you are walking on a tightrope and you're about to fall over the edge?
Sometimes life is like that.
You have to find the right balance and harmony to make all things centered and glorious.

It's okay if you wobble from side to side.
It's okay if your babe doesn't nap one day or she only wants to hold your hand.
Those are all miniscule things.
In the long run a little wobbliness is what makes life FUN!

Just living life to have fun and love one another is what it's all about!
Lyla and I spent two hours at the park yesterday. It was invigorating.
She lights up my life. Just pushing her on the swing for an hour non-stop while she signed "more" "more" and screamed "WEEEEEEEE" made me smile so big that my mouth hurt when we left.
We took a break for a snack of oranges and banannas and then we were back ast it. We ran around the park like no one was there. I didn't leave her side, we enjoyed one anothers presence to the fullest.
We can only live each day once.

We've been mastering balance in the Fulton household and part of that is giving up the worries about the small stuff. There's some dust on my shelves, my carpet has stains from Lyla's sippy cups and some of my walls are beat up from crashes with her toys... but hey, we're having a BLAST!
I left all that worry behind at home and just ran like I was 19 months old with my 19 month old daughter!
She's AMAZING... truly.

Find your wobbly balance and be happy  about it!
It's okay to fall off once in a while, just jump back up.


Updates on Lyla

NEW WORDS
Fish: ISH
Hannah: HHHHAANA (Friday night babysitter)
Raf:  RAT or RAD
Doug: DUH
Honey: ONEY
EGG: A
Fresh: ESH
Magnet: Megnet

NEW SIGNS
Play
White
Black
Fish
Help
The letter D, C and O

NEW ACTIONS
Picking her nose
Blowing her nose
Kissing things when she thinks they are hurt
Holding my hand
Watching a movie with me and resting her head on me
Playing on her own for a little bit
Eating more and more
Climed up the slide at gymnastics for the first time!

Likes: Eggs, avacado, tomato based dishes, pasta, anything I cook for her. Being next to mom or dad. Grandparents. Playmobil toys. Sunglasses. Hats. Running. Looking at digital pictures of herself. Smiling in the mirror. Baths. Wearing my necklases and bracelets. Pretending to get deoderant and perfume. Lipgloss. Brushing her teeth and hair. Singing, dancing and swaying back and forth.

Dislikes: Lettuce, carotts, zucchini, cow's milk, angry faces, mama leaving the house, sitting in her stroller for too long, not having attention on her, Rosie hissing, napping in her crib and boogers.