book review... again

i feel the need to say it again... if you have girls, you need to read this book. after you are done reading it, give it to your spouse!!! i am amazed at how complex and delicate the little (and big) girls are in our lives. they are truly like a most sacred piece of china to be cherished, polished, and handled ever so carefully. 
i tend to read this book while in bed, while my husband is sleeping beside me. i find myself constantly wanting to wake him up and say... "read this...no way... you have got to hear this...".

i want to share with you some things that spoke to me as i read the chapter entitled fathers to daughters". this was a chapter on advice for fathers, which dobson borrowed from a book entitled "Father to Daughter: Life Lessons on Raising a Girl".

* Relish the moments when she toddles up and for no reason at all throws her arms around your neck. Resist the urge to buy her the world.
* Give her a picture of you to put in her first purse. If you're lucky, she'll always carry a photo of you.
*Ask her about her day, every day. Share her wonder.
*Never laugh at her dreams.
* Read to her often. Very soon, she'll be reading to you.
* Accept the fact that the loving, tender angel you've spent the last decade with may disappear sometimes. She will return.
*Remind her that the most sacred thing between a father and daughter is trust.
*Remember- many girls look back on middle school as the worst time in their lives. Stay tuned; stay involved.
*Forgive her when she seeks forgiveness. This is the best way for her to learn to forgive others.
*Teach her how to look a boy in the eye and say "No".
* Make it very clear that you expect her to wear a seat belt. Even over her prom dress.
* If a boy pulls up and honks for her, go out and have words with him. Explain that your daughter answers to a doorbell.
****Wait up for her. Knowing dad will be greeting her at the door has a very positive effect on her decision-making process. (I love that one!!)
*Prepare for the day when you're not the most important man in her life.
*Remember, she will break your heart when she leaves for college. But you will survive.
*Tell her she is the daughter you always dreamed about.
* In the end, let her go. 
Harry H. Harrison, Father to Daughter: Life Lessons on Raising a Girl (New York: Workman Publishing Co., 2003).


needless to say i was wiping my eyes by the time i finished this chapter, thinking about how quickly the time has already gone--- and the future that is to come. there are many, many more pieces of wisdom from this book... which, by the way, would make a delightful father's day gift. i realize that one of the most important things i can do, as a mother, is encourage my husband as a father and pray that he is the kind of daddy that camille needs.
until next time...

enjoy the view

this seems to be about the time of year when everyone starts sharing pictures of their vacations. most people are doing the beach, islands, or the cruise thing, and the pictures are amazing! whether it be the crystal waters, sandy beaches, or beautiful palm trees, everything about the picture makes you wish you were there. it seems that the most common picture is a picture of "the view".... you know the one?! it is the picture that they take out the window of where they are staying... as if to say 'look at me, look what i get to wake up to every day!' 

i was thinking today about what i get to wake up to every morning. i thought about my view- the one i see when i look out my window. it's not the beach, the water, or the sand, but i wouldn't trade it for the world.

little suzy homemaker

i was feeling rather thrifty today and decided to make homemade oatmeal raisin cookies. they say that food is the way to a man's heart, and that is certainly true with my hubby. not only were these cookies some of the yummiest ever, but they are practically healthy for us, right?! i mean, c'mon, a cookie made with oatmeal (low in cholesterol and high in fiber) and raisins (fruit) as the main ingredients...okay, perhaps not. nonetheless, i wanted to share this recipe with my blogger friends so you can enjoy them as much as my family did, if you feel so inclined!

SPICY OATMEAL RAISIN COOKIES
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. butter flavored shortening
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon**
1/2 tsp. ground cloves**
1/2 tsp. salt
3 c. rolled oats
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter, shortening, sugars, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt; add to sugar mixture. Stir in oats and raisins. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 10-12 minutes**. Enjoy!

** i added a little more cinnamon and cloves just to add a little extra spice. i also put the cookies in for 9 minutes and watched to make sure they were "just cooked" because we like our cookies softer in our house.

until next time.

adventures

this weekend was filled with so many small adventures. keep in mind that with two children under the age of three, the term "adventure" is used rather loosely.
i am a little embarrassed to admit that one of the highlights of my weekend was quite possibly when i found a baby bunnies nest. i had some weeds in a flower garden that were almost as tall as my dear daughter, prompting me to wage war with them on saturday. as i began to work, i found what i realized to be a bunny's nest. i wasn't sure what to do so i began an intense search on the innernet to find out everything i could about a bunny's nesting habits. i found out that mommy bunnies make their nest about 1-2 days before they will have their baby bunnies. once they have their babies, they only come back to the nest a few times a day- mostly during dusk or dawn- as to decrease the chances of prey following them to their nest and protect their babies.
i was so enamored by this nest that i would check on it every few hours, but never saw the bunny return. but alas, this evening around eight o'clock, the bunny appeared in the yard. it moved ever so slowly and carefully across the front yard-- each move it made was so deliberate. in fact, it took mommy bunny close to forty five minutes of zig zagging across the yard to finally make it to the nest.
it is so amazing to watch nature at its finest in my own front yard.
until next time.

now that's motivation

i was telling my husband tonight about how excited i was to be starting this blog, and he had the audacity to chuckle...actually, it was more like laughing out loud. i am fairly certain that his humor comes from my inability to follow through on many of the grand plans that i have! i always get these really great ideas that never come to fruition, but not this one, i say! this one is going to last- how could it not? i have already spent more than a few hours learning how to set this up, find "cute, shabby, buttons" to place on my blog that will quite certainly help me blog better, not to mention, having a very adventurous life that i'm sure people all over the world want to read about, right? perhaps not, but all i needed was his snicker from the corner of the room to give me motivation to keep at this blog thing... besides, i kind of like it.
by the way, i think he was poking fun when he said to me..."oh honey, you're my little blogger".
until next time.

Bringing up Girls

my children, with the help of my husband, got me the most precious gifts for mother's day this year. i love reading, and my current passion is any book related to being a better parent. since i am a big fan of anything james dobson, i received Bringing up Girls and Bringing up Boys! my daughter is older, so i decided to start with the Bringing up Girls book- as usual, dr.dobson does not dissapoint!
the chapter i read last evening was pertaining to the complexity of girls-- the delicate, sensitive, passionate, beautiful spirit that differentiates females from males. dr.dobson best describes this in his message to parents of girls "...i urge all parents, but especially fathers, to work at building your daughter's self concept throughout her childhood. Tell her she is pretty every chance you get. Hug her. Compliment her admirable traits. Build her confidence by giving her your time and attention. Defend her when she is struggling. And let her know that she has a place in your heart that is reserved only for her. She will never forget it..." Dr. James Dobson in Bringing Up Girls
some days it is difficult for me to see my daughter as having a gentle, impressionable, innocent spirit... the strong-willed child that she is-but oh, how beautiful, that spirit can be if shaped into a passion for loving others. so that is my prayer for today- that i would be a mother that encourages my daughter's character as a little girl, so she will grow up to be a "strong-willed" woman of God, with a genuine love for others, as Christ loves us.
until next time.

girls night out

i cannot even begin to describe what a blessing good girlfriends are! i have some very dear friends that are so uplifting and fun- true "God-sends" in my life. we girls try to make a habit of getting out to Starbucks at least once a week. we will typically make it after the kids are in bed, so we aren't interrupted by frantic phone calls from 'the dads' about where the diapers are, do the kids need a bath tonight, where are the clean pajamas... you get the idea. anyways- these evenings out give us an opportunity to sit, relax, and enjoy an iced chai or peppermint mocha or plain 'ol coffee and talk about the kids, husbands, careers, future plans, money-saving ideas, struggles or whatever. if you do not have any girlfriends like this, you should--- and if you are currently looking for some great girlfriends, you can borrow mine- they are the best!!