The Big White Farmhouse | intentional living, little by little

July 13, 2015

{link list} Best of the Web Vol.02

Truth from Jim Gaffigan: “Big families are like waterbed stores; they used to be everywhere, and now they’re just weird.”

240 mornings: “On average there are 260 weekdays a year, counting holidays and vacations. If you take away those, you’re left with 240 mornings to get things done. 240 mornings to do your most important tasks. That is only 20 large, creative tasks a month.”

Forever Notes Highlight Journal: “The Forever Notes Journal is a family journal designed for the modern mother, the mother that wants to capture memories and keepsake children’s artwork, but doesn’t have the time to manage multiple journals, baby books, and art boxes.”
6 Things the Happiest Families All Have in Common: “Research shows whether a kid knows their family history was the number one predictor of a child’s emotional well-being.”
The 7 Rules of Compliment Club: “First rule of Compliment Club (yes… we can talk about Compliment Club): Look for the positive in other people. This is imperative. You can’t offer a sincere compliment if you aren’t looking for the beauty in the people around you.”

July 10, 2015

{around here} Week 27/52: Week of 7.6.15

A collection of our ordinary days, recorded every week. At the end of the year, I’ll publish them into a keepsake to treasure.

Around here, I have been:

feeling out of sorts this week. I’ve been over-tired, over-stimulated, lacking patience…not all weeks are good ones and this one was mediocre at best. TJ is teething again and I know the lack of sleep combined with a baby constantly on my person hasn’t helped things either. We also had another costly home repair which always hurts. I’ve been trying to combat all the negative feelings with gratitude…it worked a little. At the end of the day, I always remember what Alexander said: some days/weeks/months are like that.
praying a novena to Louis and Zelie Martin for the continued strengthening of my marriage and for direction as we dream big dreams.

reading the last big section of Make it Happen for the Inspired Readers Book Club and getting motivated. The two chapters we are working through this week are about self-reflection (what’s working and what’s not) and sorting through the unneeded “stuff” (in our connectivity, our comparison, and our clutter). Thought provoking.

working on reducing the clutter in my life (see above). Visual clutter is a big trigger for me when it comes to feeling overwhelmed, so I tried to be proactive this week and do something about it. A few of the areas I worked on: I spent 10 minutes unsubscribing from as many email lists as I could, keeping only my absolute favorite stores and websites. I filtered through and organized my favorite blogs in Bloglovin, opted out of receiving credit card offers in the mail and also started going through the kids’ clothes again. My donation pile is growing and it feels good.

listening to the sweetest conversation between D and Sophie: “You look pretty, Sophie.” “Ten chu, D. You look handsome.”

researching marketing ideas for Big White Farmhouse. I won’t have a steady customer base until they know our name, so I’m hunting down cheap ways to spread the word. Marketing is not my strength and it’s pushing me out of my comfort zone. Other shop news: we added geometric ceramic cereal bowls in three summer colors…the robin’s egg blue is my favorite.

crossing off a big one on my goal list for July: I wrote the first nine weeks of lesson plans! It may have literally taken me hours to complete (so many little people needing my attention!), but I’m happy to see it done. Right now, I’m planning to officially start the school year mid-August.

reading stories to the kids from We Give Books. I’m also loving these lists from All About Learning Press and am already making a library list, starting with “Fairy Tales with a Twist”.

discovering that our tomato plant is suffering from blossom end rot due to a calcium deficiency. No wonder our ripe tomatoes were all rotten on the bottom! I did some research and will be trying a “lime slurry” this weekend.

laughing at Sophie’s latest: “hey doc!” (what’s up doc?). Other favorites are “clop clops” (flip flops), “gun-gun-gola” (yogurt and granola) and she also calls my Fitbit a “shitbit”, which cracks me up too.

July 8, 2015

{100 beautiful things} No.005-007: Superhero Cross-Stitch Pillows

This is a bit of a catch-up post since I forgot to write about the boys’ pillows back in the spring!

These pillows were a long time coming. I started cross-stitching the first superhero pattern in 2013 (!!), shortly after moving to this house. I was able to finish the stitching part quickly…but then they just sat in my closet, untouched and collecting dust. Thank goodness for my boys! Their frequent reminders (“When are we going to make our pillows, mama?” “Could we make our superhero pillows soon, mama?”) got my bum in gear and this project checked off the list.

Each pillow uniquely fits the owner. From choosing the pattern to picking the fabrics, each boy had a hand in every step and they are so proud of the results! I am too.