I am not a blogger. And now that that's off my chest...

Sometimes I read things I wrote years ago and wonder what I was eating at the time. Skills and knowledge really does disappear when you don't use it. Unless you are very lucky and blessed with an amazing memory. Or never have a child. Or you're just gifted with that skill.

I don't know where I was going with that. Nowhere, I think. So now that that's off my chest...

Sometimes I don't know what to write. And so I don't. For a long time. Oh, you noticed? When I read other blogs, there are tutorials or what they think about a topic. There is deep insight. There is intellect. Then I come back to mine and I draw a blank. How can I do that? Everything I do takes a long time. I don't think about topics. I like to remain non-controversial. I don't sound smart.

An exercise I have been trying elsewhere is showing me that it doesn't matter. Nothing has to be big. If I want to write something, then I should just write something. I shouldn't think about what other people do because this isn't their blog. I don't have to sound like I know something. All I need to do is share the world through my eyes.

What makes me happy and brings joy to my life.

What fills my heart and soul.

The surprises of homeownership.

Fun colors and crafts.

The food I make.

And just life in general.

I'm not fancy in any way. I have goals and dreams. I have a life. I have accomplishments and I have struggles. This is a place to share that with those who stop in from time to time.

Just wanted to write.

Today has been an odd day simply because it's Sunday but not a normal Sunday. Our church building decided to have electrical problems and so everything was canceled today (that's 4 wards that didn't meet today). I didn't even get dressed today. Yup. That's how lazy I was today.

You see, it started off with taking CounterAct Night (Melaleuca's nighttime cold medicine) last night. I'm not a hater, but every time I go to my grandmother's house, I come back and get stuffed up at night. I wasn't even there that long this time! No matter. So I took stuff so I could get sleep. The downside is that Kaelyn nurses throughout the night. So I still have to open my eyes so I don't run into walls or drop Kaelyn. I woke up in the morning begging Jared to take Kaelyn. Yay, he did. Two hours of additional sleep almost put me to rights.

So then I get up. And. I dunno. I just didn't really want to do anything. I mean. It's still Sunday so I didn't want to do projects and I don't typically clean or do laundry either. And I can't read scriptures all day.

Kaelyn solved most of my problem by not taking naps when she should and being tired, crabby, and needy. And cute. (She will be 7 months tomorrow.)

The other thing I did (besides stay in my pjs which now I will change out of into clean pjs for tonight) was create my meal plan for the week. Yummers. I'm excited. This week I have one of my favorite dishes from growing up, some Alton Brown recipes, and a slow cooker.

Then my sister shows up tonight. With three bags of zucchini, yellow squash, and cucumbers. Ginormous zucchini. Bloated cucumbers. The yellow squash actually looked normal sized. Now I have added lots of zucchini sides to my meal plan for the week! And probably some zucchini bread. Valerie says they will have more so if I find more yummy-sounding recipes, I can have more! Yum to fresh homegrown veggies.

Which reminds me that I need to help out in my mom's garden. When the weather isn't 90 or raining when I'm in that direction.

I really don't have anything important to say. I just felt like writing something.

Kaelyn's Bedroom

I thought I'd take some time to show you a little bit more of my house. There is not a single room that is finished (although my kitchen is the closest) and Kaelyn's room is no exception.

Prior to Kaelyn's birth, my plan was safari. It was gender neutral although I don't know why I cared about that for nursery decor. After putting up wall paper border in our apartment and then turning around and taking it down so we could move, my desire to do safari again was lacking. I decided on butterflies. I wanted an inspiration and was looking at pictures and fabric but couldn't find anything quite right. That's because the perfect  piece was already in my possession.

I worked with the base color already in the room (yellow) and just added to it.

I had a lot of fun picking out the colors. I used Behr's Premium with the primer mixed in. Some people don't like it, but it has worked well for us. I also really like my canvas drop cloth. It is much nicer than using plastic.

I began by measuring and taping and measuring and taping and measuring and moving tape and.... you get the idea.

Then paint. Kimmi assisted with the body and wings of the butterflies.

The antennas and fly dashes were done with a much smaller paint brush.

Part of the changing station. I used removable adhesive hook things from 3M.

Kaelyn's diaper stash. I keep her wipes in the white thing on the wall. I need to find a new place for her baby legs and socks (that she doesn't wear) because I need that last basket for my diaper fluff.

Over the closet doors. Yes, there is an odd flower up there. I still haven't fixed it. I thought I'd like it, but in reality, I didn't. Funny enough, Jared liked it.

Last but not least, my favorite chair in the house, the blanket the doesn't die, and a big flower. This is currently my favorite spot in the house.

The view from the door because it makes me smile.

I need a rug for under the chair and ottoman. Any suggestions? I also still need to put Kaelyn's name up over the crib and also get curtains put up.

Cooking: Strawberry Syrup and Crepes

I love breakfast. As in the food that one typically eats at such a meal. Pancakes: check. French toast: check. Waffles: check. Did I mention I love carbs, too? If breakfast and carbs are one and the same, then I am totally there.

We start with some good yummy strawberries. I took the recipe from here. They have such lovely food photos that makes EVERYTHING look good. There are also a lot of helpful hints to help you make really good food.

After a short while cooking on the stove top and then a whirl in a blender (or food processor), we have...

....strawberry sauce that looks a lot better in person. Promise. (Look! My ramekins I got on clearance at JoAnns!!)

Then we take some more strawberries.

And make some of these yummy tasties from here. Trust me. Using butter every single time is the best way to make crepes. I forgot the butter one time tested it today. Although that could just be the recipe and my pan and my stove. Making crepes their way was a lot shorter than whatever I was doing before.

Jared thought the syrup tasted "just like it looks". A fruit roll up. Not certain if that's good or not.

A picturescape of my life

I promise you I've been doing things. Let me introduce you to my house.

This was when the snow was pretty mild back in December. By the time I saw it, there was more snow. By the time we were doing inspections (one of them anyway), the snow was more than halfway to our knees.

Jared's first official act as home owner.

Our first meal in our home (less than an hour after signing).

Our living space for 2 or 3 or however many weeks it was before the moving company got all our stuff here.

Master closets sans doors. Hers and His. The green is pretty, don't get me wrong. But not for my bedroom.

There was no closet shelving anywhere. This was the first time I've used a power drill in my adult life. I did it all myself!

The prep for Kaelyn's room.

Pretty, pretty colors.

I can't wait to use these colors again.

A crappy dresser that we were given when we were married. I'm still working on it, but I promise you it looks better than this.

The fabric I got for Kaelyn's cloth wipes (which I LOVE to all you mothers with babes in dipes out there).

A sign I got and made better for Jared's anniversary present.

And of course, my baby at six months. She is full of smiles and love for everyone.

I promise more posts in the future. Promise.