inspiration

someone recently asked me via email what inspires me. i thought i'd post a bit of my answer...just because i feel like it. :D

where do i find inspiration?
everywhere.

in the eyes of my baby boy.
in my husbands kisses and the way he still hold my hand when we walk together.
in the sunsets...even though it's the smog that makes them pretty.
in beautiful scrapbooking paper. not just beautiful patterns and colors but texture too.
in my classmates photographs.
in random blogs i read and enjoy.
in hearing my mother's voice everyday.
in music and its endless variations.
in snow capped mountains and crisp mountain air. (what i wouldn't do for some of that right now!)
in my sister-in-law, erin, and her endless creative soul.
in the blank pages of my journal.
in the esquisite poetry of the psalms.

however there are some things that do not inspire me...such as:

90 degree temps. ugh.
final projects. gag.
an unorganized scrap desk. i can't find anything!
dinner that doesn't cook itself. wouldn't that be simply blissful?

and most of all...babies that wake up from their naps before they're supposed to...*sigh* (ha!)

ms walk

last saturday, the 21st, i participated in a great event here in modesto. it was the ms walk, supporting the search for a cure. i was part of a team called STOMP; it stood for Scottie's Time to Obtain the Master's Plan. scottie's in the picture below...

it was great to walk...not only for scottie but also for my uncle joel who died of ms a few years ago, for my aunt amy who still suffers from it, for my mom's friend marie who struggles with the disease as well. so many suffer...but it was wonderful to see how many turned out for the walk...what a blessing! just some more pictures from the day...now that my interent is working again.

some of the members of STOMP walking...

the whole group...

the littlest member...noah! isn't he a cutie?

my brown eyed boy

two big, brown eyes blink back at me
pools of pure chocolate perfection
seeing the world for the very first time
wide-eyed wonder

i wonder
what will those eyes see?
i wonder
where will life take my little boy?
i wonder
i worry
i whisper fervent prayers
for safekeeping
for delight in life
for beauty
for love

i want to hold him close
in my arms
forever
keep him safe
from the world
and its sorrows
he's so vulnerable
and so very little
but already...
he squirms away from my embrace
and i watch
with whispered prayers
with worry
with wide-eyed wonder

as only a mother can.

picture taken 4 march 2007

the verdict.

it's official. elijah likes sweet potatoes.

a lot.

the first fruits.

*a note to my faithful readers: my apologies for the lack of blogs in the past few days. i've been having MAJOR interent issues that slowly seem to be getting resolved. hopefully everything will be up and running smoothly soon.*

elijah had his four month check up on monday, the 23rd. poor baby had to get four shots! so not fun for him or for mama. but not only did he get shots, he also got the ok to start eating solids (and drinking water)! woohoo! right after the doctor's appointment, we went to babies r us and picked up some baby spoons and a sippy cup. we still need to get elijah a high chair but we'll be doing that in the next couple days. we started him off with applesauce...and he wasn't quite sure what to do with it. do i swallow? do i spit it out? he did a little of both. :D he also made some really hilarious faces which, due to my stupid internet issues, i'm still not able to upload. grr. but here are a couple that did make it through...enjoy!

in other big boy news, elijah slept in his crib, in his room for the entire night for the first time last night. i seriously wanted to cry. he seems like such a big boy sleeping all the way down the hall, so far away from mama and daddy. seriously, tears threatened to spill. i just wish he could stay little forever...

sweet sunday

my boy is getting so big! can't believe he's four months old already. another set of shots coming up tomorrow. i am so not looking forward to that... :(

john has elijah this afternoon...i get the afternoon off! (except for feeding him of course) so i'm taking advantage of that so i'm scrapping away...and doing laundry. multi-taking will be the death of me...

happy earth day!

fifty degree days are fine.

things i'm excited about...right now.

1. elijah is napping. and not only is he napping but he's STILL napping despite the fact that he fell asleep in the car and i had to move the sleeping him from his carseat to his crib. go me! sleeping baby is divine.
2. costco has my absolute favorite scrapbooking paper! my mind's eye "wild asparagus" and "magnolia" lines in stack form. 360 pages in each incredible bundle. i had to get two. i mean, they're only $14 and when those papers usually sell for $.80 a sheet? yes. i had to get two. fabulous. of course...the packets at costco are just regular paper...not their typical double sided cardstock...but still...fabulous.
3. dreyer's slow churned hollywood cheesecake ice cream. yum.
4. school has officially entered the final stretch. although...that does bring up a not so exciting point and that is: finals and final projects. gag.
5. i've finished another scrap page. feels so good to finish. john says it's too girly to be a boy's page...but i say that it's not really a boy's page so much as a "remember" page. besides...it's not for elijah's album anyways.
6. the best candy known to man. especially if you like sour gummy things. and i do. so glad my mom found them for me! (if you'd like to try them yourself (and i highly recommend doing so), they can be found at cost plus: world market or on various sites online. just type in "katjes". you'll find 'em.
7. something not so exciting: it's six o'clock and i haven't started dinner yet. *sigh*

here's to having dinner on time...

pictures galore.

at the request of my mother...here's the latest pictures of little elijah and life at the anaya household. enjoy!

funny face...while we were hanging out in the tent that john set up in the front yard a few weekend's ago...we were pretending we were camping...ha! and got some strange looks from passers-by...

the boys. apparently lying like that is hard on the stomach muscles...according to john.

yeah! check me out in my new jumperoo! good times...

my new favorite toy...no...not the wormie...my toes!

momma and baby hanging out on the floor. (yes, i know it's totally blurry. somehow my camera got set to manual focus...but that's ok...it's still cute and it totally looks like elijah's waving!)

hanging out with auntie on easter

this is how califorians do cold. seriously, momma just wasn't prepared for the chilliness on this walk, so we improvized.

baby sleeping so nicely while momma got her hair cut.

the dapper dudes. john's covering up the little argile sweater vest elijah's got on...super cute!

the happy family! note: this is a terrible picture of my hair! better ones to come soon.

dancing with daddy and grandpa at jackie's birthday party

jackie looking nervous, almost ready for her grand entrance

pictures with cousin! (and niece too i guess)

cutting the cake...yum! strawberry filling!

that's all for now...baby's sitting on my lap and is making typing extremely difficult. :D

you count far more than birds.

woke up yesterday morning to a little "tap tap, tap tap" on my arm. i opened one eye and there was elijah, gently patting my arm as if to say "momma, momma, wake up! it's morning!" so cute. (yes, he was in our bed...which doesn't happen very often but when he woke up for his 5am feeding, he was so cute and cuddly that i just had to snuggle with him. i figure he's only little once right? plus...he's not really big on cuddling so i'll take it when i can get it.)

just wanted to share this excerpt from my devotional. i really needed to hear it so i figured i wasn't the only one who could benefit from this wonderful reminder.

if you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. there is far more to your life than food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. and you count far more than birds.

has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? all this time and money wasted on fashion--do you think it makes that much difference? instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. they never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? the ten best dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.

if God gives such attention to the apperarance of wildflowers--most of which are never even seen--don't you think He'll attend to you, take pride in you, do His best for you?"
(matthew 6.25-30, the message)

i love the way the message puts it, especially the line: "careless in the care of God". not careless in the typical sense of the word...but with its literal meaning..."without care". man...i wish i was like that. "without a care in the world"...so trusting in God...never doubting that He will sustain me, "attend to me, take pride in me, do His BEST for me". God's best for me. why is that so hard to accept? to comprehend even?

You, O God, are an awesome and holy God who loves and continually blesses Your children. You are powerful and amazing. the artistry of Your creation stirs my heart, even though my small mind can't fathom the vast universe You spoke into existence. all of creation gives You praise and honor! day after day and night after night, Your glory and amazing love show through all that You have made.

i cannot hide from You, for You are everywhere and You show up in everything i do. o God, i long for You to be the focus of my life instead of my focus being the temporary objects i crave. fix my heart on You. open my eyes to see all You havve blessed me with. make me more grateful for the things i take for granted. Lord, please humble me. focus all my attention on You so i don't focus on myself. draw me away from meaningless earthly things and closer to Your side.

amen.

internet fun.

create your own m&m.
seriously.
do it.
it's fun.
become an m&m

no...i'm not bored.

i'm procrastinating! yessssssssssssssss. i love procrastination.

ok. not really.

but kinda.

great things going on right now. due to lack of nutritious ingredients with which to create a healthful meal, i am currently enjoying a beautifully huge bowl of popcorn and a not-so-beautifully-huge-but-still-substantial glass of wine. the perfect meal. despite what my husband says. :P i'm also reliving the awesome-ness of old-school michael w. smith. i mean really...the guy is killer...especially in the late eighties and early nineties. seriously. wicked cool. i'm totally skipping over his newer stuff and going straight to the hideously old stuff. "i to eye" anyone? doesn't get any better than that. exactly.

i'm also anxiously awaiting the arrival of my box of scrapbooking supplies from joann's. i got the confirmation email on monday saying it was on it's way and darn it! i thought it would be here by now! because seriously...i don't remember what i ordered (besides the cardstock) which is what makes it so fun. almost like christmas...you know? for a moment i was pretty disappointed since i thought it couldn't come being good friday and all but after i thought about it for a minute i realized that good friday probably isn't a government holiday. cuz if it was...the buddists would get their panties all tied in knots...and we'd have a national crisis on our hands. and buddists with knotted panties cannot be a pretty sight. exactly. so yeah...hopefully my box will come tomorrow and katie will have christmas in march. i mean april. is it april already? yikes. where have i been? "oh yeah...playing songs on my guitar" (only peter and luke would get that. sorry. unless you're a fantastic "that thing you do" fan too. and if you are...major props to you...cuz it's only one of the all-time greatest movies. ever. go tom hanks go.)

ok well. it seems i have run out of things to ramble on about. plus...i hear a little man crying for me. must run.

sweet baby sleep.

ahh. a moment to myself. blissful.

i should be working on school assignments but i just needed a baby-free minute...just to be me.

non-mommy me.

browsing the internet (which has finally decided to start working again. yay! it's about time...stupid cable company)...checking out scrappy-ness...reading blogs...getting inspired...you know...the usual. anything non-school related and i'm happy. :D

just did a design personality quiz...totally and completely right on. here's what it had to say about me:

Introspective

Sensitive

Reflective

You come to grips more frequently and thoroughly with yourself and your environment than do most people. You detest superficiality; you'd rather be alone than have to suffer through small talk. But your relationships with your friends are highly intensive, which gives you the inner tranquility and harmony that you need in order to feel good. However it is no problem for you to be alone for extended periods of time, without becoming bored.

umm...yes. hello! me in a nutshell. so crazy.

anyways. i promised pictures. here's a couple of my recent favorites.

seriously. my current favorite pic of the little dude. isn't he the cutest? loveLoveLOVE this photo.

i took this for a school assignment. didn't really work for the assignment. but i still like the photo. (excuse john's hairy beast of a chest. it looks more beastly than normal in this pic for some reason)

scrappy scrappy

k. i promised to show some of the layouts i've been working on. so here's two for your viewing pleasure. (currently, elijah is sitting on my lap, intently watching my fingers peck at the keyboard. he's so fascinated...it's hilarious!)

(excuse the bad stitching job i did putting the two halves of this page together)

my first wedding layout! only took me two years...sigh.

well. that's it for now. more later. i've got some new pics of the boy to post. yay!