12 Days of Kiss-Much, down day and snowflakes

Yesterday I didn't do anything for our 12 days of Kiss-Much. I was tired. We've been feeling a bit under the weather. So, mostly we wrapped presents. It was a lovely, romantic, day in it's own ordinary way, what a joy!

Today, it snowed, and we've been watching Christmas movies with our four year old. I've been on the computer getting some work done and in the background I hear Will Ferrell acting like an Elf. Josh cleaned the kitchen and has kept Scotty busy, playing with him all afternoon. That is romantic too. Life is good.

I hope you're finding as I am that daily romance is so much more about your state of mind, and less about stressing over the little things. Remember, if it isn't fun, if it doesn't make you smile, if it isn't feeding your soul but rather creating stress, it is not romantic.

Ideas for tomorrow's 12 days of Kiss Much

-Hang Snowflakes above our bed, attach notes of gratitude to strings
-Read Dickens
-Give Josh a special ornament

12 Days of Kiss-Much, last three days update...

Whew, we have been so busy lately, let me see if I can catch my breath. 12 day of Kiss-Much has been happening, sometimes in unexpected not exactly as planned ways....but the spirit of romance has definitely been here, which is the whole point anyway :)

Day Three: I baked Josh's favorite cookies with our four year old!

Day Four: Josh absolutely indulged ME this time, and we had a two hour couples photo shoot at St. Martins college, in the freezing cold, and down pouring rain...I wore a pink vintage dress and a cardigan, we took shelter under an umbrella. It was crazy, cold, and SOOOOO much fun! A great big THANK YOU to the most amazing photographer in the world (Liz Cloudman) for putting up with that weather! I can't wait to see the pictures!!!

Day Five: I scrubbed our bathroom clean! Added a few new wall sconce candle holders, washed the towels and tonight we are taking a bubble bath. Nothing like sharing an apartment size bathtub to make one feel close to their love!

I made this collage depicting my epic love for bubble baths when  I was in 6th grade.  My obsession with all things romantic strongly rooted itself within my soul at a very young age.

Tomorrow's plan? I'm thinking after the kiddo is in bed....there will be dancing to Christmas music! I plan to hang snowflakes from the ceiling. If I have time, my super awesome ambitious plan is to make actual invitations, I'm going to have a hay day coming up with the dress code!

More ideas for 12 days of Kiss-Much

-Drive around and look at Christmas lights
-Go see a play or musical performance (There is a lot going on at the moment, I want to go see The Nutcracker for part of our 12 days)
-Decorate sugar cookies together
-Have a hot chocolate tasting, try different flavors and recipes!

12 Days of "Kiss-Much" Wreath and Rose Petals

As I walked into Michael's craft store I saw the most magnificent wreath hanging in the entrance. My eyes glazed over...."ooooh how muuuuuuuuch....?

$80.00

No.
Maybe?
No.
Please?
No.
Sigh.

I walked away.
I walked back.
I walked away.
I walked back.

I noticed something, a big sign I'd somehow missed before "All wreaths 60% off".

Yes!

I took it to the checkout counter. "It's military Wednesday, if you are military you can have an additional 10% off your purchase, including sale items!" The clerk says to me.

YES! I proudly procure my military ID.

"Hmmmm, this wreath is not ringing up at the right price...Just wait a minute I'll try this again." He apologizes.

I stand there blissfully day dreaming of hanging the wreath on our bedroom door. How beautiful it will look, how romantic. I'll hang notes from it. I'll tuck love birds into the branches. He'll slowly open the door and peek past the greenery, and golden ribbon, and see....

Our beautifully made bed!
With rose petals...
OH, YES! ROSE PETALS!
Glorious, heavenly, rose petals.
Oh my goodness, how perfect.
Sheer perfection!
Tra, la-la, la-la! My heart is singing!

Hmm? What's that?

"You have been so patient with our delay in getting this wreath wrung up,
you can have an additional 10% off!" The clerk smiles.

That eighty dollar wreath, is now 80% off!

Merry Kiss-Much to me!

-Domestic Diva

More romantic ideas:

-Cover his dashboard with compliments written on sticky notes
-Decorate the mantel and light a fire, sip your favorite drink in your best glasses
-Drink hot chocolate by candle-light
-Bubble baths....

12 Days of "Kiss-Much"

Today as I was vacuuming in occurred to me that today is 12-12-12, what a once in a lifetime date! I thought it would be really fun if I came up with something clever to commemorate this date when an idea popped into my head..."What if I do something clever and romantic for Mr. Nickerson for the next 12 days! Leading up right up to the night before Christmas Eve! The Twelve Days of 'Kiss-Much!'"

The more I thought about it, the giddier I got, indicating that this is a winning idea! As fate would have it, last night around midnight I felt inspired to write Josh a love note and leave it by his car keys to find this morning on his way out the door to work. So day one was covered, before even getting the idea! Yet another indication that this is a truly inspired idea! 

So, day one of my "Merry Kiss-Much" was a love letter.

If you'd like to join me in my 12 days of Kiss Much with your sweetie, please join in the fun and let me know in the comments what romantic idea you came up with for your Love! I need all the ideas I can get, I'm sort of singing this one by ear, which actually makes it pretty fun!

Ideas for day two:

Hang a wreath on our bedroom door

Make Josh white chocolate chip macadamia nut cookies (The ones that one his heart back in highschool)

Dance to Christmas music

Make a paper stocking with a love coupon inside

-The Domestic Diva

Racer

I think it's really cute how on the package of all the Halloween costumes at Toys R' Us, there is a picture of a totally subdued, smiling kid standing perfectly still. HA! Put this racer outfit on any four year old and he'll take off faster then you can say "Smile"! I was laughing as my son ran circles around me while I tried to catch a picture of his new costume! 

What was your favorite costume as a kid?

-DD

Little White Coat

By Heidi Nickerson

August 14, 2012

For another lost little one.

So soft and white

Lined with satin bows

A little hood with bear ears

Hanging sweetly in the boutique.

I touch the velvety fluff

Pull it off the shelf,

And into my eager arms.

As I clutch it to my chest

The world around me fades,

I no longer stand in the little shop,

I am outside.

And I can see her

A perfect little girl

Sunlight dancing off her golden curls

Toddling toward me in fall leaves

Now she’s

Tripping over her first snow

The wind kissing her cheeks,

Turning them bright pink.

And oh!

The giggles!

 As she

Splashes

Through showers of spring

Tears.

Tears?

A downpour of tears!

I can’t see her anymore!

I can only clutch this coat

And wish…

Wish with all my heart

That this is just a nightmare.

I’m still pregnant

I’m still dreaming

Smiling

Counting the days

The weeks

The months.

Two more days till I can hear the heartbeat.

Three more weeks and I’ll feel the baby kick.

Seven more months and she’ll be here!

I'm busy filling my nest

With baby things

Like this beautiful coat!

A coat she’ll never wear.

She has no need for coats in heaven.

But here on earth, we need coats.

Coats to keep us warm 

When our hearts are bitten with cold.

Coats to keep us dry 

When we are drowning in a fallen ocean of tears.

Coats to hang in the closet for another season

With  pockets to hide a hope in

That we reach into later,

And find a long forgotten smile there.

So soft and white

Her angel wings must be…

So soft and white,

Like this little coat.

Five Minute Romance

Today, as I was making my bed, on a whim I decided to spritz a bit of my favorite perfume between the sheets. I smiled as the lovely scent wafted through the air as I billowed the top sheet up and down getting it perfectly straight. After the bed was made, I opened the window and the sun poured in, the soft scent of my perfume still lingered, and I knew that tonight when I crawled into bed, I would be ensconced once more in the lovely scent, it's feminine softness permeating my night gown. The perfect touch of romance, to woo my soul, for a wife desperately missing her deployed husband.

The thought then occurred to me, I wish there was a book or a blog, with dozens of little ideas like this for me to apply on a daily basis. Just fast, inexpensive ways to romance the soul, woo the day, and fill my heart with that deeply satisfying feeling of the romantic. A book I could just flip open and find an idea that I could implement immediately, with little or no cost, but fills my heart with the richness of romancing the day.

Then I smiled, well, I could write something like that! I have a blog, and I'm pretty much in love with love itself...I've been spritzing perfume between my sheets since I was twelve years old. I have hundreds of ideas pass through my mind on a daily basis about how to make the day more beautiful, enhance the serenity around me, more fully live in the moment, and isn't that romance too? Absolutely. Romance can happen anywhere, at any moment, if you are present, and aware of it's influence.

So, for the next few entries, and here and there, I will be adding to my "Five Minute Romance" collection on this blog! So all you lovely readers out there can enjoy the little things that bring incredible richness and romance into the everyday.

Have a romantic day!
-The Domestic Diva

XYZ is for Examine Your Zipper

"XYZ, Heidi! XYZ!!!!" The round faced girl pointed and looked at me smugly.  I stared back, in complete and utter confusion. "What on earth was she talking about?" I could feel my face burn into a blush and my mind raced through the ignorance of this situation. I turned around and stared into my locker, my mind still trying to figure out this secret code. How I managed to get from elementary school to middle school without obtaining the translation to this popular teeny bopper lingo, I don't know. It would be like not knowing what "LOL" means in todays vernacular. But alas, I stood there, dumbfounded. Until the voice of an angel whispered discreetly, from the next locker over "Your zipper, Heidi, it means "examine your zipper".

The lightbulb turned on. And my zipper went up. To this day, I periodically check, just to make sure I'm never caught in that awkward situation again.

But it makes me think this morning, about life, and what periodically needs to be examined. Because my husband and I are saving for our first home, finance comes to mind. We were blessed early in our marriage with a small fortune. From various sources for various reasons, we were sitting on a nest of golden eggs. But we didn't own a goose. And after that "honeymoon" year as we call it, my brilliant husband with an honors math major, did a little counting and said to me, "Sweetie, either we need to figure out a better way to handle our money, or we're going to have to open up some credit card accounts. Yes, in just one year we blissfully blew through thousands and thousands of dollars. Our budget sheet was nothing more than a track record of what we'd spent that month. Sometimes that number was astounding. We laugh now as we look back on that record and read things like "Whole Foods, 1,000 dollars, groceries." Or "Target, 3,000 dollars, stuff". Or "March, forgot to budget".

We did not open a credit card, instead, we figured out how to budget, and got pretty darn good at it. We quickly realized that the situation needed some serious examining, or we'd be caught with more than our zipper down, and not in a good way.

And just as I learned my lesson in the 7th grade, to always check your zipper, my husband and I learned to always check our finances, goals, and progress. It was a lesson we'll never forget and one that set us on a path of success for the future.

What are some of your life's XYZ moments, what lessons have you learned by taking the time to look at and examine a situation that needed altering?

-The Domestic Diva

W is for WOOOO HOOOO!

Blogger has corrected whatever little glitch was barring me from returning comments on my posts, so today I will be spending a great deal of time replying to all of the fantastic comments I've received from my readers!

Thank you readers! I'll see you tomorrow with the letter X. Huh. What words start with X? I may also be spending some time with a dictionary looking up some literary inspiration for tomorrow's post!

-DD

V is for very very extra-ordinary

When I was young, I lived to sing. I began voice lessons at age 12 and chased after the dream of stardom into college. I imagined an extraordinary life for myself, filled with standing ovations grand performance gowns and full orchestras, my voice reaching the ears of millions and a name in lights.

But life is filled with ordinary choices that lead us to today. And my choices landed me into a very ordinary life, a far cry from the glamorous song I once imagined I'd sing.

Or did it?

Last night, as I gave a private concert to my four year old son and his one year old cousin while they were taking their before bedtime bath, I found myself gleefully performing to these two bright eyed boys, both of them totally in rapture over the sound of my voice.  Covering their ears as my notes soared into the epic stratosphere of the coloratura, and then jumping up into a standing ovation and calling for "More singing, more singing, again, again!" After every performance I bowed in rapid succession blowing kisses and telling my audience how much I loved them, as they laughed and clapped and blew kisses back to me. No  other audience could have loved me more. Puccini, echoed off the tiled floor, followed by Laurie Berkner's "We are the dinosaurs". (With a slight adaption to include notes Laurie could only dream of singing into my "roar").

As I stood there, singing my heart out, hair frazzled from an evening of cleaning the house in between playing, feeding and entertaining two little boys, my yoga pants splattered with bath water, watching those little hands clapping and calling for more, I realized something incredible, my life is extraordinary. And if all those years of practicing scales and pouring my heart into music was all to lead me to this moment, so that when I sang to my son and my nephew they could truly hear the voice of passion, and artistry, then it was worth it. I lived for the right reason, because it led me here.

There is nothing ordinary about your life if you live it with passion. Whether I am singing for two little boys or a booked opera house, I sing with passion. I think that sometimes we long for the extraordinary because we believe that it will wake us up to the passion and the life we have always dreamed of, it will show the world who we really are! But you are already that person, you have nothing to prove to anyone, but yourself, right now. You are living it already, we simply have our eyes and hearts closed to the extraordinary in this moment.

What is your passion? What turns your life into the extraordinary?

-The Domestic Diva

U is for Uncle

My Uncle Doug is amazing. I can not remember a time he came to visit that he didn't make me feel like he flew across the country just to see me. Uncle Doug is the kind of person who makes me feel like I am the only person in the room, even if there are fifty other people there. And when he is talking to me, everyone else disappears and I feel, that despite any distraction, the only thing he cares about is hearing me. He holds me in his gaze and listens. He asks questions, he smiles,he nods, but most of all, he hears me. Uncle Doug is the definition of a good man, he is understanding and kind. He is a dedicated husband and father. And trusted by those who know and work with him. I adore my Uncle Doug.

When I was young, maybe fifteen or so, my Uncle Doug came to visit our family for the week. I was learning to sing, and he asked me to sing for him. I turned on my practice tape and he sat in a big comfy chair and just listened as I ran through warm ups, scales, and a few songs I was working on. Sometimes, he would close his eyes and just seemed to be floating on my little sea of song. When my mini concert ended, he thanked me for singing to him, and he told me my voice was so beautiful that all I needed to do to win any man's heart, was to look right at him, and sing. He told me that if I did that, that man  could not help but love me forever.

I held on to that, and I never sang to any man, until my wedding day. On that day, from across a room filled with people, I locked eyes with my beloved groom, and sang. I never looked away. Every note was for him, every word an expression of my love, and I knew from the gaze he returned that he would, indeed, love me forever.

Out of all the memories I carry, these two are among the most dear to my heart.

A diva never forgets, when someone really hears her voice.

Uncle Doug, has always heard mine.

-The Domestic Diva

T is for Truth

Looking into my son's eyes for the first time.

I am a woman of conviction. I am a woman of truth. And if there is one truth I have discovered, and strive to live by every day it is that everyone is worthy of love.

I had an experience that taught me this in a way so profound I know it will never leave me, and I know I have changed forever because of it. I was attending Land mark, a wonderful course designed to help people become the best version of themselves. In a particular exercise we were asked to do, we were given the instructions to look into a person's eyes for a certain amount of time. It began from a distance, first we stood in front of the group of 100 people or so, and had to find someone in the audience to lock our gaze with. This seems easy, but trust me, it takes a tremendous amount of faith. We all stand there, wondering, hoping, praying that someone will catch us as we throw our trust out into a sea of strangers. When that gaze is caught, you feel such a tremendous relief. I will never forget the man who "caught" me. He was an Indian man, and he never looked away. His eyes were so golden brown. He had a beautiful soul. When that exercise was over, he came up to me and said "Thank you for your eyes." I will never forget that.

After this exercise we were then lined up, face to face, just inches away from another person, a complete stranger and asked to look into their eyes. It's one thing to do this from 15 feet away, its another to look into a person's eyes for five minutes when they are no more than three inches from your face. It is terrifying. And I'll tell you why, because when we are asked to expose our soul like this, and that is truly what happens, we are scared to death that the person we are looking at will not see something worth looking back at, worth loving.
I was assigned to look into the eyes of an older woman, she was shorter than I am. She had blue grey eyes.

At first your mind races. "Do I have a zit?" 'What does she think of me?" You laugh and giggle a little to cover up the awkwardness. A minute passes which feels like a year. And then another minute. And another. Soon, your mind quiets and you start to look back. You look at the eyes, and stop thinking about yourself and how you are perceived by those other eyes.  Once that gate is down, something magical happens. You forget all the stories you had about how you should look to others, and how they should look to you. You forget about race, age, color, gender, religion, lifestyle, wealth, poverty, education, and all the other little boxes you categorize people into and you see only eyes.

And your own eyes fill with tears, you can not explain. And your heart wakes up, when you didn't even realize it was asleep. You feel compelled to love. It is no longer a choice it is simply the way you live. It is like breathing, you simply love that person because you are alive and they are alive and there is nothing standing before you NOT to love.

We come into this world and the first thing we do is look for eyes. The eyes of a mother. Why? Because when we are seen, we feel loved. Children are not afraid to look into your eyes. They are not afraid to love you and they are not afraid to be loved. They know no other way yet. That is innocence. As we grow up, we are told not to look, we are trained into blindness. The truth of the soul, the truth of seeing, is forgotten.

But it is easy to remember once you look. Really, look. Every person you have ever hated, was once held in the arms of a mother who looked down into their newborn eyes and met them with absolute love and acceptance. I believe this is how God looks upon us, waiting for us to return His gaze. Imagine, looking into the eyes of God. He created your eyes, your eyes are His work, as are the eyes of all the people around you. Look into the eyes of another, and you will start to see God's eyes. And love will no longer be a struggle, it will simply be the way you exist.

That is the truth I strive to live by. The truth I see, is that we are all God's children, and we are all worthy of love.

-The Domestic Diva

Family Photos

Soooo, My mom went to Utah to visit family, and forgot to bring pictures, and can't remember her facebook password, (My mom is never online)  and all of our family is asking to see photos, so I told her I'd post a few on my blog which she can get to easily. So, here are some of our latest and greatest family photos! Hugs to all my Utah Family! I love you!

S is for Serenity

In a world of fast food, instant messaging, credit cards, online networking, and phones that travel everywhere with us, I am a huge advocate of serenity. 

Serenity to me, is getting in touch with what is real. Not a picture, not a face on the computer screen. As much as I love social networking online, I take it with a grain of salt. It isn't completely real. You never see, or feel the whole picture. This blog is created of highlights of my very best, even when I write up my little reality checks, or personal experiences that may move you, it's still only the side of me I'm willing and able to share with a person I am not actually seeing face to face. And so, the impression of me you get online, is jaded, not by intent, but by the nature of the medium. There are some experiences that can not be simulated, company and conversation is one of them.  Serenity is standing in the presence of another and feeling their spirit interact with yours. Serenity is personal.

Serenity is the deepness and richness of experience, the taste of real food in your mouth which can be imitated by nothing. No grape flavoring will ever come close to the magnificent burst of flavor a little muscat grape holds within it's beautiful sheer orb of perfection. 

Serenity is that feeling of accomplishment you achieve when you've saved your money to buy something you have wanted for months and months, and you can hand over hard earned cash in place of instant gratification and that gut wrenching prod that urges you to be stronger than your momentary desires.

Serenity is stillness, it is turning off the phone long enough to hear silence. And in the silence, other voices can finally be heard, the song of a bird, the whisper of a new bud growing for you to admire, your heartbeat, your thoughts, your truest appetites and needs emerge when you are still enough to ask your body what it needs from you. 

Serenity opens your heart and allows you to feel the beauty of the world around you, because you are no longer distracted from it. We are all connected, always, we do not need the internet to imitate that for us. I, like you, appreciate it as the tool that it is, but never let it distract us from our serenity.

-DD

R is for Romantic

SEPTIMIUS AND ACME

Translation by John Anthony Bernard Harrisson (1909-1983)

Written by Roman Poet Catullus (83 BCE-54 BCE)
Painting, inspired by this poem, by Fredrick Leighton

He held her close against his breast and whispered soft and low

"Heart of my heart, my little one, I love you, love you so!

For ever and forever, dear, no matter where I stand;

In darkest Africa maybe, or India's coral strand,

Or even should I chance to meet, while wandering out there,

A green-eyed lion, I'd think of you, and thus confound his stare"!

And as he spoke these words, Love smiled; the god was very pleased,

And from the left toward the right in approbation sneezed.

Then Acme, tilting back her head to kiss his tender eyes

With lips like parted rose-buds which the golden sunlight dyes,

Said, "Constant slaves of sovran Love we'll be, for in me glows

A greater and a fiercer fire than e'er Vesuvius knows.

Your love for me is very great I know, but it is true

That yours is no whit greater than the love I bear for you"!

And as she spoke these words, Love smiled, and delicately sneezed

From left to right to indicate that he was very pleased!

Now started on their favoured way they render love for love;

Septimius prefers his bride to all your stars above.

Your Britains and your Syrias, your rich and fertile fields,

And to Septimius alone his loyal Acme yields

Herself in love, for love's delights and passion's pleasures rare

Afford a never-ceasing joy to this delightful pair:

None ever saw two people happier than these two are,

For love could not have flowered 'neath a better omened star!

My favorite poem.

-DD

Q is for Q.

I love Star Trek, and yes, my husband and I frequently discuss which alien species we would be if we lived in the Star Trek universe. For me it's always a toss up between Beta Zoid and Q.

Q always wins. 

How could it not? I mean, they are practically Gods, their only obstacle is BOREDOM!  Boredom, riiiiiiiight, you give me all power and an eternal existence and I would NOT get bored.  I mean, come on, some things just don't get old, EVER. Like kissing. Kissing is awesome, and can lead to a lot of other spectacular things. That alone would keep me a pretty happy Q as I cruise through my eternal existence. I know, I know, all you trekies out there are like-"What, they just touch fingers-REMEMBER?" I know, I'd be a rebel Q and do things the primitive, FUN way. I mean, THAT is why they were bored. Seriously. 

But there's more! You could run around the universe making people smile. I mean, you don't even have to do earth shattering, life altering acts of goodness to make people smile. You could just walk around wishing people a good day, smile at them, make a game about how many smiles you can collect over the course of, oh say, 100 years. Or you could do something stellar like clean up an oil spill, or feed starving children, or rescue abused animals, or sing to babies in orphanages. Boredom, pfft.  Not likely. 

So, that is why I'd be Q. 

Also, every single episode they show up in, is inevitably awesome. 

Thank you Gene Roddenberry, for creating that perfect conversation topic, after we've already discussed which wizarding house we'd be sorted into.

-Domestic Diva

(I'd be in Hufflepuff, by the way, what about you?)

P is for Pickle

Ever since I was a little girl our family has held the Christmas tradition of the "Pickle present". We have a special pickle ornament that mom hides on the tree, and whoever finds it gets to open the "Pickle Present". Usually, the kind of gift everyone would enjoy like a new game or movie. We LOVED this tradition, and it was quiet a race to see who found the pickle. We always opened the pickle present first so this marked the anticipation of present opening time. No pickle, no presents. You better find that pickle!

As the years passed, the pickle found it's way off the tree, to make the game more challenging and anywhere in the house became fair game. One year, we couldn't find the pickle ornament in all our Christmas decorations. Of course, we were crushed. But mom, being the resourceful, clever mom she is,  just smiled and told us there would just have to be a new pickle this year, and we'd know it when we found it....

GAME ON!

That year, my husband found the pickle. A banana, labeled "pickle" we all got a good laugh over that one. My husband ALWAYS finds the pickle. I think he likes opening the first present. We brought home a giant chess set that year, thanks to that little pickle banana!

Oh, and yeah, my mom is AWESOME!

What are your favorite holiday traditions?
-Domestic Diva

NO.

I'm a bit behind on this challenge, thanks so much to Jarm Del Boccio for encouraging me not to give up!

To catch up, I'm going to combine Monday and Tuesday N and O into my topic, No.

No is such a powerful word. I have a four year old son, and anyone who has had any contact with a preschooler, understands the power a kid discovers with the word NO! Just the other day as I was returning something to a store my son saw a play table that caught his fancy. As I said "No" to the play table, we were already standing in line, he screamed "No" to cooperate and stand, be quiet, or stay in one place. As a parent, this is a critical moment, to stand strong or just give the kid ten minutes at the play table. Then the word takes on a whole new dynamic in my mind.

"Noooo, stand strong, you'll train him to behave like this if you give in, it will be a living nightmare you've read it in ALL your parenting books!"

"Noooo, give the kid a break, let him have ten minutes, you have ten minutes....

I vacillate for a little while trying not to guess what the other people around me are deducing from my parenting methods. In the end, the "no" to stand my ground wins, I am after all 25 years older than this kid for a good reason. And once we are out to the car and Scotty realizes the battle is lost he gets distracted by the little car he left laying on the seat.

And then, once it's quiet again I find myself contemplating the situation. So, I ask myself,  "Am I so different from this little kid screaming "Nooooo, I want the toys, let's play with the toys" as we're standing in line at the store?"

How many times have I fudged on the family savings plan just a little because, Noooooo, I'm tired of saving, and I really NEED (want) that new shirt?

How many times have I committed to a healthier lifestyle and yet scream "Nooo, I want that piece of cheesecake, NOW" when I'm out to dinner with my husband?

"Nooooo, I don't want to finish this blog challenge I am SO busy (even though I committed to do this)"

"Noooo, I don't want to clean the bathrooms." They are disgusting by the way, I'm still fighting over that one.

Who is in charge? Me, or that inner child who wants or doesn't want everything now, the queen of no, the master of justification? How is she being parented? What am I training HER to act like?

Just a thought.
-Domestic Diva

M is for Monkey

See this and more of my work at my etsy shop here!

The Monkey 

By Shel Silverstein

1 little monkey
Was goin’ 2 the store
When he saw a banana 3
He’d never climbed be4.
By 5 o’clock that evenin’
He was 6 with a stomach ache
‘Cause 7 green bananas
Was what that monkey 8.

By 9 o’clock that evenin’
That monkey was quite ill,
So 10 we called the doctor
Who was 11 on the hill.
The doctor said, “You’re almost dead.
Don’t eat green bananas no more.”
The sick little monkey groaned and said,
“But that’s what I 1-2 the 3-4.”

Who didn't read Shel Silverstein as a kid? What a poet! To this day I'm put in my place when I remember "Prayer of the selfish child". There isn't even a reprimand in that poem, but STILL teaches a kid a lesson. At least this kid!


-The Domestic Diva

L is for Love Letter

I know, that just about everyone participating in this ABC blogfest probably thought "Love is the last thing I'd choose as my topic for L, SO cliche" so I'm banking on that, and choosing love for L. Not just love, love letter. And again, you'll have to bear with me as I gush about my husband, because he is deployed right now, and he's on my mind pretty much every second. Especially today, as I rushed our son into the ER and could have really used some help with a four year old who has a severe phobia of doctors and emergency rooms in general. I blame the stitches he had to get two months ago...or perhaps his latest round of shots. At any rate, there's no letting a guy off work to help out his wife and sick kid when you're on a submarine. So, I figure, in exchange for my husband being off too sea, defending our freedom and all, while I'm at home pining and taking care of a really sick kid all by myself....you can read one of the most beautiful things he ever wrote to me, and we can all gush over how romantic he is, deal?

July 28, 2004 (Amazingly, he proposed to me two years later, to this day)

"Thousands of times the wind and sunlight whispered your name to me, and the stars spelled it out, a chorus of birdsong at dawn, and all they can sing about is you. How amazing that you could see yourself with me forever, forever is such a long time. With you at my side there is no place I'd rather be. Let the gates of eternity open, let the centuries pass like seconds, let the sun grow cold and the universe expand and contract in a cosmic heartbeat, my love for you will outlast them all."

-Josh Nickerson

How on earth, could I ever say "no" to a man who writes like that? Ah. I swoon. That is a real love letter.

The Domestic Diva

PS-The kiddo is fine, He's just had a BAD cough and fever for the last week and the hospital was concerned about dehydration and the possibility of pneumonia, but they sent him home since his lungs look fine, and he's been authorized to eat as many popsicles as his little heart desires :)

K is for Kookamaniafroofroohubalazoo!

I never swear.

So I thought I'd make up a word to express my extreme frustration with blogger right now. I am having SO much fun with this ABC blogfest, and I'm getting more comments on my little thoughts than ever before in all my blogging life, of three years. I'm a very social, friendly, happy person, and I would LOVE to reply to all the awesome comments I'm getting, but I CAN'T! I don't know what blogger is doing, but it won't let me post any replies, as soon as I type something, click "preview" or "post", in whatever order I try, it ERASES my comments! GRRRR!

So, that is why I'm not responding to all these amazing comments, I promise, I am not anti-social. I'm probably the least anti-social person out there. I suppose, the best I can do until I figure this out is send out a big old blanket THANK YOU!!!!!! To everyone stopping by, visiting, leaving me a note, and even following me, you guys are truly making my day!

Blogger is not.

Although, it did inspire me with the word "Kookamaniafroofroohubalazoo" and I'm actually kind of proud of that. Will use it next time my four year old paints the carpet with my acrylics.

Until tomorrow...
The Domestic Diva

J is for Joshua

See this and more of my work at my etsy shop, here!

There was a guy I called "Prince Charming" when I was a little girl.  I thought of him as I skipped around the house singing "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream". I wrote letters to him "to open when I'm married!" I was waiting for him when I envisioned myself in white. 

And I dreamed of tuxedos and kisses, not steel toed boots and deployments. I dreamed of date night at the movies and sweet nothings whispered in my ear, not courting over the span of 3,000 miles and hours lingering on a telephone.

But, I never imagined the intense joy of a homecoming, that first kiss after so many thousands missed, I couldn't read the hundreds of letters that would fly back and forth across the country as two people fell in love through their written word. The thrill of being escorted across the red carpeted bridge spanning the water and leading us to the Ring Dance. 

That look in his eyes as I sang to him on our wedding day, the room filled with people, but the only person I could see was him. The reverent awe surrounding us as we gazed upon our newborn son for the first time. The tears that wouldn't stop as I lost myself in his embrace, for at last he was home, after being gone for so long. 

Nothing is as I imagined. But as I look back, 

I see that for all I imagined, it was nothing.

Not even a shadow of the greatness, of this day.

No, he is not prince charming. He is Josh. And he is the one I love, today, and forever.

-The Domestic Diva

I is for Imagination

See this and many more of my paintings at my etsy shop here!

"Imagination is more important that knowledge" -Albert Einstein.

Smart guy.

DD

H is for Happiness

See this and many more of my paintings at my etsy shop here!

Happiness is acceptance.

Let go of what should be

love what is.

Happiness is truth.

Open your eyes

allow what you see,

to simply be.

Happiness is peace.

Resistance accomplishes nothing more

than a fight.

Happiness is now.

Your joy lives right here

you can't find it tomorrow, 

you didn't leave it behind yesterday.

There is happiness in the very air you breathe.

Please, 

stop holding your breath.

-Heidi Nickerson

G is for Gone.

See this and many more of my paintings at my etsy shop here!

Kids say the funniest things when they are trying to figure something out. My son, who turned four this week, is currently trying to process where daddy has disappeared off to for the last few months....

"Daddy's on a sub-ma-mine."

"Are there sharks?"

"Can we go get him?"

"He's in the ocean?"

"Daddy has the i-pod? On the sub-ma-mine, in the ocean?"

"Are there monsters on the sub-ma-mine?"

"Are there monsters in the ocean?"

"Is he lost?"

"Can I swim over there and give him a hug?"

Mommy: "So, sonny, what is daddy's job on the submarine, what do you think he's doing?"

Scotty: "He's jumping on a trampoline!"

Mommy: "Daddy is jumping on a trampoline, on a submarine?"

Scotty: "Yes, in the ocean."

Mommy: "Do you miss your daddy?"

Scotty: "Yeah, he's on a sub-ma-mine"

Mommy: "Do you want to play with daddy?"

Scotty: "Yeah, but he's on a sub-ma-mine."

Mommy: "Do you think daddy gets to play on the submarine?"

Scotty: "Yeah. He plays with Lightening McQueen."

Mommy: "Scotty, do you wish you were on the submarine with daddy?"

Scotty: "No, Scotty has to go to gymnasitcs."

We love you daddy! 

We miss you! 

Come home soon!

-DD

F is For Fashion

See this and many more of my paintings at my etsy shop, here!

1997 Journal Entry:

"When I'm married, I will never wear the same dress twice. I will probably have the biggest wardrobe in the world. I will spend millions of dollars on JUST clothes." -Heidi Kohler age 13

Today's theme is fashion. Something, I have always loved. And while I do not spend millions of dollars on clothes, and certainly do not have the biggest wardrobe in the world, I do have a great fashion tip for your wardrobe today. I call it the rule of three, and it works like this.

If I have one pair of pants, I will only keep it in my closet if it coordinates with at least three shirts.

For instance:

 One pair of adorable cut offs in salmon pink, definitely a keeper in my closet because it pairs up with 3 or more shirts. 

In fact, these pants are not only adorable with three of my shirts, but six so they really pull their weight. The rule of three is fun, because it only allows colors and styles you really love to remain in your closet. I apply this rule to all of my tops, bottoms AND accessories.  You never have to wonder what to do with that impulse buy that doesn't go with ANYTHING else you own. The magic in this rule is that pretty soon, your wardrobe is focused in such a way that you only need two or three pairs of shoes because they are so versatile, without spending all your money on 50 pairs of shoes to go with a kaleidoscopic of color in your closet, you can splurge on a nice purse instead, because one color goes with the majority of your ensembles.

 Another delightful result of this practice is that your closet is not over crowded. This is especially important to me as I do NOT have room for a huge wardrobe. However, everything in my closet is something I LOVE to wear. I periodically try on all of my outfits and move along anything I feel no longer tickles me pink. (Which, as you can tell, happens to be one of my favorite colors to wear!) You will also find when you shop that you exercise a lot more judgment in deciding if something should come home with you. Your wardrobe will express a very clear style, and it will be obvious when something belongs there or not, regardless of the current fad.

So, as you jump into your spring cleaning, try applying this rule of three and see the wonderful results you get!

What is your favorite color to wear?

What are your best secrets for keeping your

 wardrobe under control and filled only with things you LOVE to wear?

-Domestic Diva

E is for elephant

See this and many more of my paintings at my etsy shop, here!

My Elephant is Missing

I cannot find my elephant. He must have run away. He isn't on the sofa where he promised he would stay. I've looked around the living room, the kitchen and the hall. My elephant is missing and I'm not sure who to call. I'll need to get a bloodhound who can track him by his scent, or hire a house detective to discover where he went. He isn't in the basement or the attic or the yard. You'd think, to find an elephant would not be quite so hard. Perhaps I'll make some posters, and I'll offer a reward. I'd make it more, but fifty cents is all I can afford. If you should see my elephant, he answers to "Jerome." Please tell him that I miss him and I wish he'd come back home. He knows the way. It's up the street and down our garden path. And next time I won't warn him when it's time to take his bath. --Kenn Nesbitt