Life Lessons Courtesy of Go Deigo Go

The day has finally arrived - my sweet, beautiful, little blue-eyed Charlotte has learned a bad word. Thankfully it was not a word that sometimes slips from her Mommy's lips that is "oh so bad," but it is the word "stupid."

I remember the first time I heard it out of her mouth. She was just saying different words, holding her doll. When it came out of her mouth it sounded like "Sooba." I immediately asked Charlotte what she said and she quickly repeated it. I was thinking, did she just say "stupid?" So... I asked her. She nodded her head yes. From that day forward, we have begun disciplining her for saying this word.

The other night as we were watching "Go Deigo, Go!" they began to sing a song. I wasn't paying much attention, but Charlotte immediately turned around, wide-eyed and said "Mommy!" pointing to the television. In the song they sang a word over and over again - a Spanish word meaning up and it sounded like... you guessed it "sooba." All this time I thought she was saying "stupid" and she was only saying "go up" in Spanish. I felt horrible. Now I am the one who taught her to say "stupid" all because I didn't know that she was actually speaking Spanish.

While this is very funny to me (and Doug and I, as well as my mother, have gotten a good chuckle out of it) my training has come back to haunt me. Two nights ago while bathing both of the kids in the tub I slipped up. The kids were splashing and being a little too silly and without even thinking about it I said, "Charlotte, that is just stupid." Well, immediately I was corrected. Charlotte said very emphatically with a finger pointing up at me "Mommy, you not say that." I heard Doug chuckling in the next room and I started scrambling trying to figure out how to correct the situation. I promised Charlotte I would go to time out and I thought to myself... at least my hard work is paying off. :) Thanks Deigo for teaching this family a little life lesson and a new word in Spanish. :)

Stickers and Such

New Valentine Gift Sticker - set of 24


New Valentine Gift Sticker and Card Set


The card and sticker set with the giraffe - my personal favorite!

I have not done a good job of sharing these great stickers that I offer in my shop. Frankly, I had forgotten that I don't even have a decent photo until I had customer ask if I offered them. I guess I can't remember everything. :) So... I am working hard to add my round labels to the family of goods over at The English Pea. These have been added to the 2010 Be Mine Collection. I hope to have photos of the everyday address labels and party favor stickers soon. The awesome thing is, I offer two sizes. Yeah! :) Check them out at www.theenglishpea.com.

Pretty Pictures

Many of you saw our Christmas picture and I have been wanting to blog about the wonderful photographer who snapped that photo. The photographs you see above are also her handywork and I couldn't be anything more than pleased.

I found out about Laura through a friend of mine, Joy Blevins Derrer. Joy and I go way back and she lives in Marietta with her two precious children. Laura had taken her little Thomas' picture after his birth and when I took her a meal last Spring after the baby was born, she showed me the pictures Laura had taken. Her style was exactly what I was looking for.

One thing I LOVE about what Laura does is she not only captures color, but for our family, she captured personality. This is not easy to do. I felt many of the photos captured who we are as a family and the bonds that we have with one another. The little looks, the movements in still frame, the joy we feel together. So... if you are looking for a good photographer check her out at www.lauraalvisphotography.com. You won't be disappointed.

We Don't Get to Choose!

Sorry for another blog post without pictures, but I wanted to jot down these thoughts and share them with you. I do have a funny post coming soon as well as some exciting news to share - no I am not pregnant, but that will have to wait until another day.

I have been struck by this thought lately and today, at church, the sermon only reiterated it. Our church is doing such an amazing series and today they spoke on loving completely - but in the way the Lord loves us. This concept is not a new one to me. Doug even said when the sermon started that he had heard this message a million times, but I reminded him that God can always use a similiar message to get a different point across. I believe He did that for me today.

You see, the thought that has been on my mind lately is that there are many things about me, Alison Moore English, that I didn't get to choose. I didn't get to choose my race, I didn't get to choose my family, I didn't get to choose where I was born or where I would live as a child, I didn't get to choose how many siblings I would have, I didn't get to choose my talents, and so goes the list. All these things were chosen for me.

Now in my case this pretty well overwhelms me because I didn't get to choose the wonderful life, family, and talents that I have been given. It humbles me that I have done nothing to deserve what God has blessed me with. Others, maybe even you reading, may not feel this way. Your circumstances weren't or are not so great. You wonder if you got the raw end of the deal. This in itself makes me realize that I need to be thankful. Regardless of your feelings about the choices that were made for you by our Heavenly Father, there is one thing you do get to choose - HIM!

I was really struck by this today. I have been a Christian for twenty-five years and became commited in my faith at twelve. I realized today that there are many times that I do not choose my God. I do not choose His ways, to love others, to forgive, to move on. I still choose myself. This too is humbling. I have been so blessed with things that were given and I still choose myself.

Obviously this got me thinking of how God wants me to love and choose to do for others. That is also a choice I get to make - and maybe seek to give to those who were given circumstances, lives, parents, siblings that have not been as much of a blessing in their lives. I pray I seek to choose to love those who God places in my way and I choose to seek what He has for me!

The Schedule

Let me preface this post by stating that what I am about to say is basically for chronicling life as I know it and for mommies out there that are wondering what would be good for their families. What I do with my children and my family is not for everyone, but this has been so beneficial for me I wanted to share it.

All my loyal followers either have recently met me or have known me for quite some time. All of you know that I have two little ones under two. Most of you know that I work 10 hours a week for Chick-fil-A (six of those at home) and probably spend anywhere from 15 to 30 hours a week on my stationery line. Not to mention the household that has to be run. I am like most of you - very busy.

We all have our ways of dealing with things, making our lives run smoothly. We have our rules - the things are children will do and not do, we have the things we wish we didn't allow them to do and the things we are proud of. We all have our own way of doing things and there is no right or wrong way of being a good mother (except for the list that we all know qualifies you for child services).

One thing that we do in our house - and have done from the beginning - is a schedule. Honestly, this has been our saving grace. Yes, there are pros and cons to this kind of structure and depending on your stage in life with your brood, scheduling effectively is not always possible.

Some of you did not choose this avenue for your family or children and I do not condemn you. So... please do not feel that this post is judging you. This just really works for us.

In order to have my day run, to get all the "work from home" tasks done, to have time to rest, for me to be patient, loving, and emotionally available for my children, I need a schedule. I am a task oriented, structured type of person and having established times for things helps the English house run smoothly. We deviate from "the schedule" but most days we do the same things.

For those interested here are the things that I love about it.
1. I know most of the time why my children are fussy depending on what time of day it is - if it is nap time, they are sleepy; if it is around 11:30/12:00 they are hungry. There are times I don't get it right, but even with a little bitty one, I usually have an idea.
2. My kids sleep in their own beds. If you like yours sleeping with you more power to you. I am not knocking you, but I don't like sleeping with my kids. I don't sleep well when they are with me and when I don't get enough rest I am not at my best as their mommy.
3. They normally go down for naps/bedtimes without a fuss.
4. Both kids pretty much slept through the night by 3 months (we still have nights where this is not the case, but the schedule helped establish night sleeping patterns).
5. I feel discipline has been easier because of the boundaries a schedule sets.
6. I get time in the afternoon to myself and at least two hours in the evening to spend time working on projects, relaxing, or spending time with my wonderful hubby.
I honestly could list more but I won't bore you. With a set of Irish twins and all the "extra" work I have to accomplish, our gracious Father and the English Family Schedule have been my saving grace - not to mention a husband who goes out of his way to be a HUGE help. :)

So, again, no judgement if this isn't the thing for your family. Just know that if you have knocked it in the past, it is working for at least this family. :)

Standing Tall

I believe I also named a post this when Charlotte began pulling up on things. I really should go back and look to see how old she was. Our little guy turns 11 months next week and he has been doing this for several weeks now. He truly thinks he is big stuff - the picture of he and his sister "helping" with the laundry is evidence. It is hard to believe he will start walking soon. Not sure I am ready for this, but there isn't a lot I can do about it, can I? I am ready for them to be able to run around a play together. They already have such fun. I imagine Douglass Charles' walking will just make their time more enjoyable.

Today I actually got asked if they were twins. He was sitting and Charlotte was standing, but I must confess I wondered when this would begin happening. Many of Irish Twins say that right around 2/3 is when the questions start coming. With Douglass Charles being younger I guess it could really begin sooner. Such fun! Still don't think I would want twins, but this is the closest thing to it and it is fun!

"Be Mine" Winner...

On my last post I had hoped to get more comments, but that is okay. Because my two commentors were the bravest of souls - to say what they liked or what they would do with my little valentine cards - I am going to award them both with a set of six from the 2010 Be Mine Collection. I mean, how can I choose between two? So... Kelly and Dana, I will be contacting you by email to find out which cards you would like for your six pack. Thanks for commenting!