Archive for February, 2011

Superbowl Sunday was another chance to hang out with friends…old and new. We loved watching the commercials as well as the crazy kiddo antics throughout. Full set of photos here.

And now it’s Monday…so I’ll throw a little inspiration your way!

I’m in LOVE with this itty bitty house! (thanks Elsie!)
This is the best healthy living book I’ve seen in a LONG time. *love*
These leather goodies are incredibly adorable.
HoopPath was amazing. My recaps are here.
This small space furniture is SO great. Who cares if it’s like a million dollars? Still fun to see.
Sneak a peek. I love rooftops.
This is so adorable and easy. I.must.make. (Does anyone know the original source?)
Bella is OBSESSED with all things Paris right now.
Have you checked out Tara’s new website yet?
I’ve been loving Instagram. My name is livelightly if you want to add me!

Today was a work day at our house. My consistently amazing and giving husband repurposed our old red front door into a custom built-in desk in our kitchen. I am beyond thrilled with the results and I’m so excited to have another workspace for computing, writing letters, sewing, and more! I will eventually post more photos when I have it all pretty

The girls loved helping Daddy with the project…their favorite days are when he is home all day!

He also crafted me this adorable laundry shelf out of the old torn down fencing in our back yard. *love*

We spent a lot of time talking with family via FaceTime…which is always fun. We feel like we are “right there” with them. All of my siblings have iPhones so we are able to keep in touch this way and it’s such a blessing.

My brother Scotty came over tonight for supper…which involved more FaceTime with our family in Minneapolis, who had also gathered for supper. It was like a big party! He ended up spending the night…so right now, he’s sleeping on the couch to my right…Bella is on the couch to my left…and all I hear is the sound of the heater fan. Blissful silence at the end of a busy day.

“What greater thing is there for human souls than to feel that they are joined for life…to be with each other in silent unspeakable memories.”  *George Eliot

Tonight we went out on the town with our dear friends Kris and Natalie and their kiddos…and we had such a fabulous time. We enjoyed celebrating the end of a long week and looking forward to the beginning of a productive and relaxing weekend…all the while basking in the beautiful familiarity that we share after 12 years of friendship.

Do you have an Etsy store?
Do you sell stuff online?
Do you want to draw more attention to your blog?

This month I am going to run a special on my sponsor spots, in an effort to spotlight those of you with amazing and beautiful goodies and of course to bring in a little extra money…moving is expensive!

The 120 x 120 ad you see to the right will be just $15 for the rest of February. If you are interested in drawing attention to your lovely little business and supporting our family in the process, you can email me at janssenfamily (at) gmail (dot) com and we will get you all set up.

Much love!

Today, for the first time in the month that we’ve been here, we got a “real” snowfall in Longmont. Enough to actually go out and play around in and shovel! After several days of being housebound, we were glad to frolic in the warmer temps. It’s always refreshing to get out there and breathe in the cold air.

I love the snow and all the fun activities that come with it…but don’t get me wrong, I am extremely EXCITED for the upcoming Colorado summer. We have the greatest little backyard and patio and I have big plans for it!

The first step is to create spaces for the girls that they enjoy being in. We found this adorable wooden playhouse on Craigslist last weekend and it was love at first site. The seller threw in a covered sandbox with the deal too. Weeeeee!

Can’t wait to put some sweet little flower pots out front In fact, they better watch out…I might try to move in!

And God did start it. It was nothing short of a miracle considering the last dead battery incident which involved a mind numbing non-stop car alarm extravaganza. I breathed a sigh of relief as that key turned over and the engine rumbled slowly to a start. We headed down the snowy street to the library to meet Natalie and the kids…offering up our deepest thanks to Jesus as we drove.

Natalie and I sat in two kiddie chairs and watched our littles play. We talked about homeschooling and upcoming birthdays and other mommy chitter chatter.

There were many times while living on the road that I LONGED for a best friend. I would see other mamas at the park with their girlfriends and a lump would form in my throat as I realized how long it had been since I had a girlfriend (in person) to confide in and laugh with until our sides hurt. I longed for that connection again. I longed to be able to answer “YES!” to a  library invitation on a snowy morning.

After the library, the girls and I went for our weekly “mommy date”. This week we enjoyed the lunch special at the Thai restaurant in town. Lucy watched the goldfish while Bella read local magazines. We shared the pad thai and red curry…and then bundled back up to go grocery shopping.

We enjoyed our time out “on the town”…but we were even happier to get home and get the house ready for Daddy’s arrival. After a dinner of homemade tortillas + tacos, we started up the fire and watched American Idol. We LOVE our quiet, magical evenings at home and the simple connection that comes from being with each other day in and day out.

What have you done this week to build “connection” in your family or friendships?

My two little bed-headed wonders this morning…we somehow slept until 10:00 a.m. What?!

…and because of the freezies outside, we stayed in and drank hot tea and pretended to be on American Idol.

And lest you think that my life is completely perfect and my house is never messy…think again.  I am thankful for an amazing husband who sweeps in at 6:00 p.m. and helps me clean when I’m at my wits end.

It’s been a LONG day, but tomorrow is a new day with new mercies. And a newly cleaned house. Oh what a difference it makes! Stay warm everyone!