in my own little corner....

In the Rodgers & Hammerstein Broadway production of Cinderella there is a song that I love called "In my own little corner."  I'm not sure what I watched as a child since I never saw the Broadway show but it was something on TV or VHS that had Cinderella as happy as could be spinning, dancing & singing around a chair in her own little corner which was separated from her "real life." The phrase "in my own little corner in my own little chair I can be whatever I want to be" has always stuck with me & last summer after receiving some birthday money I decided to make my own little corner....with my own little chair.

A friend of mine called one morning & said she was driving down the street in her neighborhood on bulk trash day (as she often does) looking for "treasures." Her first find was an old ugly chair which she grabbed in case I wanted it. Shen knew we needed a couple more for our dining table since we never have enough for guests when we host dinner.  I was excited & shared that I really wanted one to have "my own little chair" for my "own little corner." Within the next two weeks she called to say she came across another beat down treasure, a desk that could use some TLC. She offered home delivery & even hauled it into my house since I was with child.

Both pieces sat around for a month or so until my in-laws kidnapped the Fab Four. I dragged the chair & desk to the entry way, threw down some tarps & got to work.

I wish I had a "before" picture of the chair....it was ugly but had great potential. When I flipped it over to unscrew the seat cushion I saw that it was made by Ethan Allen. Pretty good for a side of the road pick up!

List of repairs/upgrades:

• chalk paint- Robin's egg blue on the desk & a creamy white on the chair-it was my first go round & I was surprised with it's simplicity
• new fabric to cover ugly seat cushion
• the side of the desk had a lightweight board that was falling off so I ripped it all the way off to find an oval shaped hole that was about 4 inches in height. I was not in the mood to wait until Robby was home to figure out the proper repair. I ended up using duct tape on the inside to attach the oval piece that fell out. Good thing I didn't really care too much about "looks" ; )
• new drawer pulls
• slight sanding on some uneven surfaces prior to painting

Other additions to complete the corner:

• I used the blue & white to paint eight frames my mom bought at an estate sale while we still lived in Orlando. I wasn't sure why I never painted the wretched gold frames until the idea for my corner came about. They were perfect.
• some chalkboard paint
• a cork board covered in same fabric as the seat cushion with a clip attached
• a cute birdie with a hook
• all the meaningful designs & photos within the frames

I couldn't be happier with the final product & the thoughts it has brought about in my mind...looong post in which the title & thoughts are all tied together in the end. For now, here's the completed corner-

"Rooted & Established in Love" Humble, Texas + Dearborn, Michigan. I do love how identifiable the state shapes are. I know there is more to Michigan but I decided to stick with the "mitten" as the girls call it.

Since I love all things nest related, there are two birdies on the desk one of which is not in view in the photo below but was given to me by my mom. It could not coordinate more perfectly with our bedroom. The bird below is Polish in descent & arrived via package straight from Poznan, Poland from my Jenny girl. I LOVE it for it's beauty but more so for the reminder of a dear family far away participating in something eternally beautiful.  The brown vase was a gift from my brother Scott & did not have a "home" until my corner received it's finishing touches. Along with a couple pictures I really like is a frame with chalkboard paint & "teach my song to rise to you" lovingly cut out by my cousin Kelly with her Silhouette Cameo.

These lyrics come from a Matt Maher song called "Lord, I need you." There are so many great truths in this song that are centered around our great need for God & how Jesus is our righteousness.  My favorite part says

Teach my song to rise to you

when temptation comes my way

and when I cannot stand I'll fall on you

Jesus, you're my hope and stay

I SO desire my song; my call for help to rise to the Lord when I am tempted to be selfish with my time, respond in frustration to the needs of my children or become completely overwhelmed with my responsibilities.

Anson frequently yells "Mommy I need you!" with the most adorable inflections. Robby smiles & sings to me " I need you oh I need you, every hour I need you!" What a tangible example of what our simple & immediate call to God should be like. I'm thankful for sweet Anson's reminder in my life right now even though I have to take a deep breath before walking to his room ; )

A favorite print  that says "dwell" with a birdie (surprise, surprise) was given to me by my sweet friend Amanda before we moved back to Texas.  It's within my favorite of the frames.

I wanted to include a "V" & found a burlap one that I covered with stick on pearls & attached to a piece of fabric I bought when I was pregnant with Charlotte. The small oval was in need of some chalkboard paint & a number "7" to represent our growing family.

Below is one of my favorite pictures of all time that was taken when the twins came home from the NICU & is next to a Willow Tree mama holding a baby. It was a gift from a special friend, it reminds me of the fullness of a mama's arms with one baby & brings about laughter when I picture what it would look like if those arms were full of five "babies."

The last frame is filled with something very dear. On April 13, 2003 I opened this piece of paper with the lyrics of a David Gray song. I answered "yes" which was my first stepping stone to becoming a Valentine...

While it has been fun to have my pretty little corner in our bedroom, I seem to not be able to spend much time in my own little chair or any time really as of lately.  I see it when I wake up in the morning, when I come to relocate Bella so she doesn't bark during nap time or from the chair I nurse Arlo in which is across the room. When I am in that spot I can hardly see it over the mound of unfolded wrinkled laundry that often finds it's home there until I move it onto the chair I nursed the baby in so I can go to sleep. It's a bad habit. That was not my plan for this lovely corner but I am realizing even more that it's really not about my plan anyway.

I picked up a new book called Teaching from Rest- a Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace by Sarah Mackenzie. It has been extremely encouraging, convicting & has provoked much thought about how to move forward resting in the Lord while teaching these little ones.

She quotes Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis...

"The great thing, if one can, is to stop regarding all the unpleasant things as interruptions of one's "own" or "real" life. The truth is of course that what one calls the interruptions are precisely one's real life - the life that God is sending one day by day; what one calls one's "real life" is a phantom of one's own imagination."

Reading that stopped me in my tracks. How often do I feel that my plan is interrupted & that my day is derailed by handling 1,000 other minor crises. It IS my "real life" which in the context of "unpleasant things" is full of opportunity to embrace what God has given me whether it be children, a husband or my responsibilities in our little Nest.

It seems that the quote disproves my initial thought about the line  "I can be whatever I want to be." ....while I sit in my pretty little corner in front of the desk I have forbidden anyone to lay a hand on.  Regarding the phrase "being whatever I want to be" or using the label "my real life" I must acknowledge that where I am in life is exactly where I have always wanted to be. I could not WAIT to be a mother & though I had an extremely small understanding of the challenges I would face, I love it.  

Through the "real life" days filled with much neediness, He is sufficient to provide more abundantly than I can imagine. He is making me into HE wants me to be & my hope is that my desire each & every day would be aligned with his. So, rather than the day dreaming about the "what if I.." that could accompany me staring at my own little corner from my own little chair, I should place these five in front of my corner & celebrate what God is doing in my heart through them....

Opportunities to love & serve unselfishly abound...

Arlo at 4 & 5 months

Well, since the littlest buckaroo is just a couple weeks away from turning 6 months old, it's about time to recount his 4th & 5th month. First of all, my best buddies from childhood had little self control while shopping for a fall & winter wardrobe. He has won the award for best dressed at the Nest nearly every day & this vest is our favorite....

He is busting out of his jeans at 16 pounds this week. At his 4 month visit he weighed 14 & a half pounds which was near the 25th percentile & I'm not sure how many inches long & but near the 70th percentile. Arlo offers many a joyful moment in our home with smiles, "talking" & attempts at rolling over. Eloise & Charlotte are completely convinced he says all kinds of words & I would agree that he often makes sounds that mimic what they are saying.  

As far as the 16 pound distribution over his little body, there happens to be a perfectly kissable double chin...

Some things Arlo is up to:

• loves laying on his belly & stretching his head up like a little periscope leaning so far to the side he rolls over (occasionally). The rest of the time people roll him over so there is really no need to do it on his own. I am guessing it might be similar when it's time to crawl & walk since he has four transporters. He can spin himself around in a circle by pulling with his arms.
• works hard to sit up & can stay steady for about 30 seconds when straight up & down but much longer when hunched over propping himself up with his hands.
• bouncing so crazily in his exersaucer Robby jokes that we will have to replace the shocks. He also jumps & wiggles around so much in the one that hangs from over the door that he crashes into the door frame. This contraption is only aloud when the big brothers are asleep....for obvious reasons.
• can grab his toys, our forks, cups & hair so quickly & with much coordination. He is also moving his mouth toward anything anyone is eating.
• snuggles in laps of the Valentine ladies to be read to whenever someone offers.
• pushing himself so far up in the bouncer sending him over the top & grazing the tile floor with his head.....had to retire that one.
• LOVES baths when he gets to have them. He has some eczema & dry scalp going on & the doctor asked how often we bathe him since frequent bathing can make it worse. I said not too often. On the way home I started counting how long it had been & it was NINE days! You know how people have 2 & a half bath homes? We say Arlo has had 2 & a half baths meaning 2 full & one lower half after a blow out. Baths are kind of like triage around here...the dirtiest take priority.
• after his infrequent baths we notice he has some fuzzy blond hair...that's new for our crew!
• smiles non stop when sung to & his favorite tunes are- Twinkle Twinkle & our own version of "Oh my darlin' Clementine" in which we make up verses but always end with "Oh my Arlo Valentine"
• his tongue is often poking out of his mouth. My dad asked him if he thought that when he grew some teeth they would keep his tongue in. Ha! It didn't work for Eloise!

Eating & sleeping have continued to be pretty consistent day to day minus the fact that it took a couple weeks to recover from more frequent nursing in the nighttime hours when we spent a week in the Liveable Forest. We were roomies & it was like he could smell a midnight snack. At the current time he is usually waking around 7:30 to nurse, makes it till around 8:45 or 9 before snoozing again. I have been feeding him if he's up longer & that helps him stretch his nap a little longer. He wakes up again around 10:45, awake till 1 & back to bed when Owen & Anson take there nap. The next two hours are sooooo quiet with just me & the girls. We get most of our school work done during this block of time. He is up again around 3:30 & stays awake till bedtime which falls somewhere near 6:45.

He is capable of sleeping 12 hours but lately has been sleeping 10, nursing at 5ish then back to bed. When we have had a long night of our newly potty trained boys needing a trip to bathroom or are incapable of keeping their covers on, I feed Arlo in bed & we fall asleep together till morning. I love those mornings.

He is most often a happy boy but he does have a serious side & a has a nose that looks JUST like Eloise.

He notices many sounds & can't take his eyes off things like cars passing in the street or siblings running.  At this moment he was watching cars. If he was looking the other way he would have seen Owen & Anson peeping out of & banging on their window while they were supposed to be taking a nap.


a little recap of the past six weeks via Instagram including all the help any baby could ever want from four loving siblings, his first trip to the Dallas Zoo, an afternoon of reading a book that has lots of little holes to touch, his blonde hair & first bath sitting up.....

I had strep throat last week. The rest of the bunch spent time at Grammy's house while Arlo & I snuggled. I will forever treasure the feeling of his hand in mine.

We love life with sweet Arlo & although we are sad to see babyhood pass by so quickly but look forward to all that six months & more will bring.

Owen & Anson turn three! -part 2

On March 7th, we sat down to eat dinner together & told the kids the story of March 7th & 8th, 3 years ago. We went to bed that night in 2013 with a little lady named Eloise snuggled between my massive belly & Rob while my mom kept Charlotte in quarantine after getting sick. We headed to the hospital early the next morning & at 8:04 am we heard the most beautiful cry from Owen followed by Anson one minute later. It was certainly one of the most joy filled moments ever!

Back to present day, I spent time leading up to their birthday extremely tearful considering the three years that have seemingly passed in the blink of an eye. I say "blink of an eye" although many days felt painfully long ; )  After putting the kids to bed the night before the big day, I started crying in the kitchen but this time it was for a different reason. I forgot to get ANYTHING to decorate, not even a balloon! What kind of mother am I? Robby encouraged me to hop in the car & head to the store. I did just that & arrived at Party City which had closed about 3 minutes before...grrrr...didn't they know how forgetful I am? I looked across the street & saw a Dollar General.

The road which these stores are along would not be my prime choice for wandering around at night but I had to have balloons even if it meant risking my life. I walked in, made eye contact with the guy at the checkout then headed to where I could see balloons. I cannot even express how eerily quiet it was in that store with just the two of us & the hum of the air conditioner. I quickly selected two balloons, some party hats & a table cloth then looked around for some other things. I ended up making some laps around the store still feeling a bit nervous. I looked up & realized my balloons were floating just over the height of the shelves meaning that guy could see exactly where I was at all times. At that point I was completely creeped out & my imagination carried me into thinking about what I would do in a crisis situation. So I decided to get to the checkout ASAP & was surprisingly greeted by the nicest man who wished me well as I headed out the door. Imagine that.....not everyone is out to get me ; )

Once I got home I put a bunch of picture of the boys in frames behind the table while crying. I put the décor out, snuck in to give one final kiss on the heads of our two year old boys then went to sleep.

We started the day bright & early with these two who were actually a bit grumpy until they saw the table. We were glad that lightened the mood. They requested breakfast tacos which in their language is "breakfast ca-cose" & I was happy to make them since they are my favorite breakfast too.

They were excited to use the blowers or whatever they are called. Some broke within about 30 seconds...that's what we get for shopping there, Ha! Nonetheless, they were enjoyed for a moment.

I was really looking forward to a fun day at home with the kids knowing it would be rainy & we would likely be inside. You would think that you might exhibit the best behavior on your birthday or at least not be a grump right? After breakfast Robby left for work, the skies opened up & the downpour began. We heard the loudest lightning crack I think I have ever heard in my life. The kids reminded me of the Von Trapp children running to my room caught off guard by the loud sound. I was trying to be spontaneously fun & told everyone to grab pillows & blankets so we could snuggle up, watch the storm & sing "Raindrops on Roses.". It was really sweet & fun until we hit the five minute mark in which a big fight ensued. It ended with me telling everyone to pack up & move out. I might have said "why can't we ever do anything fun?" Not the first time I have thought that ; ) While things were calm....

We continued on with our regular school day & other daily tasks while focusing on some extra snuggles & reading with the birthday boys. They took a good nap & when they woke the sun had made it's grand appearance. This was the signal to don rain boots & up the morale!  The boys got new dinosaur rain boots from their Gigi & they sure did come in handy.

Bella came out to explore the larger of the two puddles...

It didn't take long for the splashing to begin!

Eloise was the craziest & dirtiest by far. Plus, she was adorable in her camo hat! Bella had to be captured at this point after nipping at Elo's legs to catch the splashes of water.

More than a few pictures of my favorite 3 year olds...

They got their fair share of unwelcome splashes from each other...

Then they had a good brotherly chat...

& decided to show off their "I am three" fingers...

The mud bath was a blast until it was time to come inside. Long story short. I stripped down each mud covered kiddo minus Char, wrapped them in a towel & carried them down the hall to my shower. I hosed them off as they all were screaming in silliness. I ended up with mud all over me & a near crash on the slippery tile. Of course Arlo woke up as soon as I carried the last kid to the shower & was forced to scream his head off while I went to work with the detachable shower head. You know what? He survived! As crazy as it was, they were all clean & in jammies by 4:30. It was worth it! I was sooooo tired at that point & called Robby. We decided to surprise the kids with pizza from our favorite place around the corner. They were jumping up & down when they realized what Robby was carrying when he got out of his truck. It was certainly more exciting than a work bag!

Those four can do some damage on a pizza or two. We have to cut them off so we can still eat. I can only imagine the amount of pizzas we will need when we have five teenagers in the house!

After our dinner we fulfilled all the birthday dreams of these two. Since Valentine's Day when Robby so lovingly made chocolate covered strawberries & marshmallows the boys talked relentlessly about how they wanted to put fire on a chocolate marshmallow....sounds safe right? They are super adorable when they say "marsh-moh-low" similarly to how they say "poh-low" for pillow.

I was in charge of the strawberry & marsh-moh-low covering & forgot to put wax paper underneath what was dipped in chocolate. Big thumbs up for me! Rob got to scrape all the sweet treats off the plate leaving chunks of hardened chocolate everywhere. Lolo (of course) was found trying to lick every morsel off.

The boys were delighted to have their chocolate covered marsh-moh-low with fire on it....

Owen blew his candles out while Anson spent his time trying to tell Rob that he wanted a chocolate covered strawberry too. He talked for so long we had to sing Happy Birthday again & then the next five minutes were filled with the singing of "Sto lat" which is a Polish tune sung at occasions such as a birthday in this case. Our precious niece Karis sung it for us via video & the kids learned the Polish words to the best of their ability. They sing it ALL the time. It was fitting though for a birthday...we will give them that. It is not fitting while driving in the car or taking a bath etc.

One last picture to prove Arlo was there....

It was a simple birthday filled with five dollars worth of decorations, a rainstorm, puddle stomping, pizza & a flaming marsh-moh-low & now they are THREE!

Owen & Anson turn three! - Part 1

Owen & Anson are officially three as of March 8th! We started the celebration about a week & a half before with a birthday bash at a nearby park. After last years cancelled party x2 due to the stomach virus, we went low key & invited grandparents plus G.Gran. It was so relaxing! The night before the party I was saying how thankful I was that we have remained relatively well throughout the cold season. The next morning we sat down for breakfast. Owen took a bite of his oatmeal followed by a gulp of orange juice then threw up all over the table!! I could hardly believe it as I helped clean him up. Rob & I looked at each other like "of course someone is throwing up today!" Charlotte immediately had the most horrified look on her face & said loudly "can we still have the birthday party?" Haha! We chalked it up to Owen being our child with the most sensitive gag reflex. We kept a close eye on him over the following two hours then considered him well.

We met up at the park, set up camp at a table & got down to business opening gifts. The girls & I went to Target the night before for wrapping paper & a couple other birthday items & couldn't believe how much a roll of paper cost. Maybe I'm cheap but we decided on brown paper packages to be tied up with string hoping all would say it's a favorite thing ; ) It actually turned out way better than expected when the girls pulled the markers out & did some decorating for their favorite twin brothers.

They chose ostriches for Anson since that is his favorite animal....we are not sure how he settled on that one, ha!

There were some very feminine drawings on the rest of Owen's box but my favorite part is the "really really really love you" from Charlotte. Melts my heart.

Robby & I bought scooters for the girls when they turned three or a little before. They are still in fabulous shape & are ridden all the time. We decided that the boys would be happy to have their own & that the girls would feel the same so they don't have to share anymore. It makes us laugh that the boys still don't connect the dots & realize that the photo on the outside of the box usually reveals what the present is.

The onlookers were excited to watch the boys open some other fun gifts like a mini rolling suitcase, rain boots & a few summer wardrobe items. They also received some Tonka trucks that make a lot of noise. The boys brought a couple in the car the following day when we drove to Kingwood with my parents one of which had a siren that made me think we were getting pulled over EVERY time is went off! I almost had a heart attack.... & I wasn't even the driver.

Owen was happy to give his a try while we had to force Anson to even put his helmet on! Little stinker....doesn't he know how much we spent?? ; ) I guess he's not actually riding it in the picture below. Both feet are off while Grammy pushes him along.  Papa walked along with Owen for a good distance as he got the hang of it.

Now we have our own little scooter gang to rule the park...

Poor Arlo did not receive any attention as usual...

Once we did a little riding it was time for cupcakes.  That's my favorite part! They were sad that Daddy couldn't "put fire on it" since it was extremely windy but once they realized how yummy the chocolate icing was, they didn't care anymore.

Those cupcakes were gone quickly & all were off to the playground. It's so nice to have more than two adults to eyeball all the kids on a busy play structure or be the pusher of a swing. Arlo took a snoozy in G.Grans arms which I know she liked very much.

We know our kids are all still "babies" but my goodness, we can't believe how big they are & how much has happened in the last six years!

Here's the Valentine family of seven....

One three year old was a challenge...two...I feel tired ; ) We sure do love those big three year olds & are thankful to be their mama & daddy. They've come a long way from just under four pounds & six pounds! Sweet babies to rambunctious toddlers!