Wordless Wednesday-First Thanksgiving

Easter, etc.

I hope that you all had a very blessed Easter. And for my followers that are Christian, I hope that you felt the impact of his gift to all of us. I did!

Due to some personal situations, I haven't been to church in over a month. I felt that absence and was really excited to be able to partake of everything. I was able to fellowship and eat with my friends and family. I was able to remember His sacrifice to us. I was able to enjoy the prayer and testimony of people he has touched. In all, a very blessed Easter!

I was out of town for awhile so, it's been really nice to be in my own home again. My husband and I painted our daughters room and updated it with some pictures and decorations on the wall. That was nice to get done in an afternoon. She loves the color and having her room all set up now. The home updates have taken some time for us and I was growing impatient!

Our kitchen is mostly painted, we ran out of paint though so we will need to pick up another gallon. Next up, the living/family room. We bought an accent wall paint and a neutral and I can't wait to see the impact of that. It should be really interesting and with a red, pretty bold. I love color! In Arizona, a lot of the houses are painted white or very neutral colors. Being in apartments for so long made me HATE white walls ha ha. I'm trying to paint colors without it being completely obnoxious. Right now though, our kitchen and our living room which are rooms right next to each other are going to be very different. We will see how that works.

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

A Family Loss Due To Fire

As originally posted on Kristie's Notes...


At 12:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning, an old friend of mine lost her home, her belongings, her husband, her 4 year old son and her 8 month old daughter to a fire. She was saved by a neighbor who put a ladder up to her bedroom window. Her 12 year old step daughter also made it out on her own. The neighbors tried to put a ladder up to the children's window, where their father was trying to save them, but were unable to due to the smoke and flames. The fire department was able to remove her husband and children from the home within 10 minutes of arriving, but as I already mentioned, it was too late.

I've been having a hard time keeping my eyes dry for the last couple days. I know her story and this isn't the first time I've cried for her. When we were in high school, I remember going to the funeral home for visitation for her mother who passed away. I cried again for her at her wedding where they had a rose and picture of her mother set up front with the thought that her mother was smiling down on her wedding from heaven. At those times I couldn't imagine going through life and getting married without my mom by my side. Now I couldn't imagine the rest of my life without my husband by my side and watching my children grow.

This friend, Amanda, is only 27 and has suffered unimaginable loss. She could use a lot of prayers right now and, because she has lost everything, she is in great need of financial support as well. I don't have a very large reach on my little blog, so I was hoping that some of you could help me spread the word by blogging about this as well.

Her work place has set up the 'Buckland Family Trust Fund' at the Eastern Michigan Bank, but they are also accepting donations, for those who cannot make it to the bank, at the following address:

Ullenbruch's Flower Shop
C/O Amanda Buckland
1839 Lapeer Ave
Port Huron, MI 48060


***Update: There is now a Paypal account set up to accept donations. You can reach the donation page by clicking on the button below. If this donation button doesn't work, please use the one at the top of my sidebar (upper left-hand corner of my blog).

Again, I know this time of year is super busy and times are tight, but if you can please help spread the word and/or send a donation-no matter how small, every little bit helps. Of course, if you don't have the means to help in either of those ways right now, prayers are greatly appreciated! :-)

Thank you to everyone who has expressed their condolences already and to those of you who have been praying for Amanda and her daughter. I will be sure to pass on your thoughts and prayers to Amanda when I see her at her family's funeral tomorrow. (Typing 'family funeral' is not easy! Phew!)

*I also want to send out a safety reminder to anyone who reads this. Make sure you have smoke detectors installed in your house and that you change the batteries twice a year. (The recommended times to change them is when you change yours clocks for daylight savings time.)

**If you would like to read more about this horrible tragedy, you can do so here.

Wordless Wednesday-Cousins

I'm having trouble with my computer today so I pulled a pic where I could access. This is Kaia with her cousin Alexis last Thanksgiving. Kaia is still trying to hold her cousins which are nearly the same size as her now ha ha.

It's November!

Just a little entry today. I'm excited that it's November and yet, always this time of year has me amazed. I'm excited that Thanksgiving is around the corner, my wedding anniversary, and our annual church reunion is coming around. I love Thanksgiving, it's really my favorite holiday. I'm not totally sure why. I think the food is fantastic, I love family and friends, and you don't have to worry about gift giving. It's a time to truly be thankful for what you have.

This year has no doubt been a hard one. One of the worst in awhile but, I am thankful everyday for what I do have. I have a lot more than some. I have been blessed with many people in my life and that makes it even more rich.

I am also one of those moms that gets anxiety each year that goes by. Seeing just how fleeting time can be. When it's measured next to your child, it's even more poignant. You see the years by their growth instead of by seasons. My daughter is almost three years old. It's awe inspiring that she will be three. I know that sounds dramatic. She is almost three though. I have been with her the whole time being a stay at home mom, and yet it's going so fast.

Take the time to know your children as individuals, to teach them, to nurture their creativity. We all get busy. Just take time out weekly for them. In an instant they are grown.

Longing For Autumn Days

If you live in the desert, or somewhere where the seasons don't really change, then you may know my sadness. I grew up in a place where the seasons changed. You got to see trees in their cycles. The fires of the leaves, then the shedding. The growth of buds, then flowers, and ultimately the lush green that becomes the tree.

It's always bittersweet to me this time of year. It's my time of year, if I can call it mine. I loved feeling the air turn cooler and smelling the difference in it. For some reason, I'm on this nostalgic kick every year. I know when winter comes, that feeling is gone and the dark, long days ahead aren't very fun. Where I grew up, it was rainy, not really snowy. Sometimes it would though and I would sit in the window many times a day and just look at the glistening white. That's another post though.

The Fall reminds me of Summer days ending, school beginning, holidays beginning, warm clothes wearing, and fire starting. I remember chilly, rainy Halloweens, and pumpkins rotting on front porches. It reminds me of my life in Oregon, with my Mom. With my family. I have a new one now and more often than not, I don't think about those days. They were difficult, beautiful, hopeful, and heartbreaking.

I mourn my Mother, and my childhood today. Promises I made to myself and some that I've broken. When we grieve, it's so very different from person to person. I often wondered what I would do when my parent's died, especially mom. I wondered if I would be in shock or would I just weep uncontrollably for awhile, and then watch it fade?

This has been a process and it's only been a few months. I'm finding myself doing the normal things, then gripped with tears. Now that it's my favorite time of year, I'm thinking about her and all the things that made her special. I can see, it's going to be a long road for me. A process. I can't expect anything of myself. There will be days of tears and mourning, days of prayer, days of joy, and days of anger. There is no right or wrong when it comes to mourning, there is just you and your thoughts.

Freaky Friday-Life Gem

My sister-in-law posted this recently on her blog and I totally stole it! I think I may have seen this at one time and blocked it out. ha ha. There is a company called Life Gem that creates lab created diamonds in a variety of colors out of your loved ones ashes.

My dad passed away in 2005 very suddenly and my Mom just passed away this year, almost two months ago. I'm already in the shoes of someone that has lost someone very close to them. I tried to see myself wearing a gem created from the carbon of my loved ones. I couldn't. Perhaps it's my belief system. That we are created from dust and return to dust. That our souls are gone once our body dies. Perhaps it's a morbid thought to me?

When my Mom was handed to me in a red velveteen box, my heart sunk as if there were two tons on my chest. When we said goodbye to her at the coast, in no way did I want to deal with the ashes, the whole box had to go into the water. So, I guess my thought process is the same.
Besides the very steep price, I guess the idea doesn't appeal to me.

I can see people wanting this as an option and that it could be a very wonderful experience for some. I've seen some people grieve so deeply their losses, that something from their deceased loved one is always around them for comfort.

If you are this type of person, they may be the right service for you.

**these are my opinions solely and do not reflect any real life contact, or bad service received from the Life Gem company. I was not paid for this opinion**

Wordless Wednesday-Memorial Trip

My mom passed away July 19th. In order for us all to get there, my brother drove with his wife, their children, my nephew, and my daughter. Thankfully, the kids were way better than can be expected. My daughter had never even had a night away from me, and spent five days with her aunty and uncle on the road without me. She was blessed with a good attitude and was comforted by aunty and uncle while away from my husband and I. I was thankful that it went well, and I'm sure they were too!

This pic is courtesy of my sister in law, Holly.

Wordless Wednesday-Sedona 11/07

Kaia was almost a year old. We took the day and had a great time drinking hot cider and playing in the red dirt. Time flies too quickly!

Wordless Wednesday-Last Family Portrait

Our last family portrait was done when I had a little less than two months left on my due date with Kaia. I was swollen and hot all the time. This is Phoenix at Papago Park in early November. We need to do one with Kaia now that she's two ha ha.

Fun Family Weekend!

Saturday we got out of the house and went up past Payson to Tonto Natural Bridge. We went one other time but, it was just my husband and I. We had Cameron this weekend and I thought it would be fun to go do something nature oriented. These city kids need to get out every once in awhile ha ha.

From where we live, it's a little over an hour away. As we were driving up the clouds were getting darker and more "ominous" as Brandon said. I thought we may not be able to do much. The closer we got to the park, the darker the clouds. When we got there it was starting to rain lightly. It was warm outside still so I was alright with walking around with the kids. We went down a very short path to start out and found a dead end, bummer. As we walked back up, we were greeted by hail. Very strange! The hail only lasted a few minutes and melted almost immediately. The weather remained warm, so we continued to hike down. We took a couple of trails. The one without trail got too difficult with the two year old after awhile so we turned back. We had a great time hiking and looking at all the beauty.

On our way back, we grabbed some dinner in Payson and as a spur of the moment thing, my husband stopped in Fountain Hills so the kids could see the huge fountain. Funny thing was as soon as we pulled in to the park where the fountain is, the fountain turned off. ha ha. Oh well, another time. The kids got out and stretched and played at the park for awhile there and then we grabbed some Gelato. YUM! We sat outside, ate a cold, creamy, treat and then listened to some live music that was being played outside on the sidewalk.

It was definitely a memorable family day and we had a great time enjoying each other's company.

A Cute, Quick Post

I've been saying prayers over Kaia's bedtime and mealtime for quite awhile now. She is very sweet and likes to hold hands over dinner and up until probably last week, I had been holding her and pacing the floor while saying her prayers at night time. Now we get on our knees even though she is still in her crib and say prayers together holding hands.

Since her vocabulary is getting better, I have decided she should help me with prayer time. She is so precious, it touches my heart to hear her little voice.


Me-Dear God

Kai-God

Me-Thank you for this day

Kai-thank u day

Me-Thank you for our blessings

Kai-Thank you blessings

Me-Thank you for mommy,daddy, Cam and Kaia

Kai-Thank you daddy,mama,Tam and Daia

Me-Thank you for family and friends

Kai-Thank you frinds,familee

Me-Keep us safe

Kai-safe

Me-In Jesus name

Kai-muffled(S's are hard mama) name AMEN!

Me-Amen!

Coconut Groove CD-Review AND Giveaway*CLOSED*

When I first heard about the Coconut Groove CD, I had not heard of Nicholas Deysher or his other previous CD's before. I was excited to learn more though because I love music and my daughter loves music. I try to find interesting, exciting music for her to enjoy while being kid appropriate. I also don't want to listen to something that's going to grate on my last nerve while she's enjoying it either. ha ha.

I got the CD and since I was home I popped it in right away. The Hello song came on and both my daughter and I started moving. It's a really catchy, fast paced song that makes you wanna dance and laugh. I listened intently to the rest of the CD and was pleasantly surprised at the variety of music, the education within the songs, and the sound. It truly does have an island "feel" to it.

Nick Deysher has been making music for most of his life, and has attained a Master’s Degree in studio music production and film scoring. He was a preschool teacher for awhile and began educating through music. He was such a hit, the parent's and children wanted his music on CD. He released his first album, One Man Band in 2001 and followed that up with In The Nick Of Time in 2003. In 2005 Nick moved from Boston to Coconut Grove, FL and created his company In The Nick Of Time Music.

I have also enjoyed looking through Nick's blog http://bathtubsinging.blogspot.com/ and seeing his views on music, education and things that make him laugh.

Buy It

Buy a Cd or download MP3 from here http://cdbaby.com/cd/innickoftime

Win It

Nick is being generous and offering one of his CD's to a lucky winner! Even better, he said he would autograph it! How exciting.

Rules
You must go to In The Nick Of Time website and tell me a favorite song, or fact listed on the site. Not something I've listed here please!
If you don't follow the rules, your entry will not be considered. Please leave your email address so you can be contacted if you win. You don't have to have a blog to enter.

U.S Entries only please

Giveaway ends April 6, 2009 11:59PM Arizona time

Welcome Ultimate Blog Party People!

Hello everyone, I'm Melanie and welcome to my blog! I started this blog to keep my online friends up to date with the happenings of my life and family, and later to update my family out of town.


In the last couple of months, I have eased into the review/giveaway arena because it looked like tons of fun! It HAS been lots of fun, and I'm enjoying networking with so many wonderful businesses and people.

If you look to the right of my blog, you will see windows for both my Etsy and Art Fire shops, KaiLei Designs. I am currently making home decor frames from recycled and unfinished frame bases and decorating and/or painting them. Please check it out when you have the chance.


I am married, just over three years now and I have one daughter and a step-son. They make life fun and interesting. I am currently a stay at home mommy, and I love it. Such a blessing especially in these times, to be able to do. Blogging helps me stay in touch with adults while taking care of a toddler during the day. I even get to talk to my friends that are just a few miles away :)

I have the most awesome friends and church community. They're the reason I stay here in the desert. After living here 13 years, I could say the only place I'd dislike more is one that snows as much as we have heat! I am where I want to be so I can't complain...too much ;)

Here are some pics of myself and my family-

My husband and I

My daughter and step-son

Thanks for coming by. It will be so nice to meet as many of you as I can!

My top 5 prize wish list-

1. USC35-hotslings sling and nursing cover
2. 89-gc to Homegoods

3. 58-Kitchen aid artisan mixer from moms who think

4. 56-Surprise art supplies-kv creative designs

5. 19,21, 0r 22-$50 Target gift card from shoot-me-now Agoosa or Beginner baby blog