Strive

Quiet Wednesday Mornings + The Love List

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 31 Mar 2016 14:02:00 +0000

Plan Toys Rainmaker // Saranoni Blanket // Plan Toy Activity Blocks

Quiet Wednesday mornings are at the top of my love list. It's just Emery, Kate and myself and we have the morning and mid afternoon all to ourselves to get some work done and play a bit before school pickup, ballet carpool and dinnertime. The girls usually quietly read together and play as I work. The two youngest play so well together - I love that they have this special time to bond and be together until Emery goes to Kinder next year.

Mary Meyer Stuffed Animals // Lucy Darling Primer Books // Plan Toys Activity Blocks

Transitioning from being a freelance graphic designer to working full time in marketing has been truly one of the best decisions and transitions for our family. Working at The Baby Cubby has been an incredible blessing and opportunity, one that I enjoy each and every day! I get to draw from my greatest passions of being a mother, empowering other parents, and contributing my knowledge and talents to help educate and inform parents about products that can make parenthood easier. These products are thoughtfully curated by the Owners, Cameron and Jacque Muir and a talented team of "Cubby Moms", who spend hours researching hundreds of the most current and leading products in the baby industry just so that you don't have to! I'm in awe by their dedication to their education and their commitment to provide only the products they truly believe would make those first few years of parenthood better for your family. The Baby Cubby is a truly unique shopping experience, started by a young family with the dream of making the shopping experience one-of-a-kind, personal. I love that I get to be a small part in their journey.

Adorable Lucy Darling Primer Books

Some of our favorite products and the ones that have made our "Love List" are ones that we have purchased from The Baby Cubby. These are the products that are regularly played with on quiet Wednesday mornings just like these.

Those of you who have known me well over the past ten years know that I have a great affinity for bags! I love a good bag and finding a great bag that passes the pretty + functional test since entering motherhood can be a challenge at times. I love that The Baby Cubby has picked up the beautiful new line MZ Wallace. This particular bag, the Jane, is the perfect diaper bag, equipped with pockets and a large compartment for everything that we may need.

MZ Wallace Jane Diaper Bag // Mixie Bottles // Calmie Teether

Another item that makes our "Love List" would definitely include Rags to Raches rompers, which are also found at The Baby Cubby. The rompers are the perfect duo of comfort and fashion - which Kate and I always look for in her clothes--the girl has such a heightened awareness of zippers, buttons, and anything that may be itchy, scratchy or the least bit uncomfortable.

As most of you know, Emery spends most of her time twirling and cartwheeling as of late. I wrote a bit about her journey on the Cubby Community blog just last week to catch you up to speed. Because Emery spends 6-7 hours at gymnastics per week, we love that we have found the perfect leo for her that she can wear at class, around the house, and out as we run errands. The Alice and Ames leo makes the "Love List" because it passes with flying colors on the cuteness and comfort scale! The leo comes in three different colors and I'm thinking all the girls may need to add it to the wardrobe, stat!

To follow along with more of my daily babbling, follow along on Instagram and Facebook. You'll also find me posting over at The Baby Cubby's Instagram so make sure to follow along there for more darling on irresistible products! xx

SPOOK BOOK

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Mon, 26 Oct 2015 07:04:00 +0000

I'm so excited to be sharing with you my latest editorial project in collaboration with Crane & Co Photography, Spook Book. This project was one of the most magical--creating eleven easy and original DIY looks for your littles for Halloween.

Happiest Haunting, all!

ALT Summit Picnic Party: Cascading Florals

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 01 Jul 2015 09:02:00 +0000

I am so excited to be blogging today about my experience overseeing and decorating a portion of the closing picnic party at ALT Summit held last month in Salt Lake City, UT, at the beautiful Grand America Hotel. This was a life-changing experience and I'm so grateful to have been able to join forces with such a fun and talented team of creatives to plan and execute such a fab outdoor party.

My group was given the task of creating a station that encompassed both giant bubble and balloon elements. This was no small feat and I seriously could not have gotten the job done without my uber awesome and hustling team: Natashia of Canary Jane and Michelle from The Mumsy Blog. To say that this project was one of the funnest things I've ever had the privilege of doing in my career is a huge understatement. ALT was absolutely amazing!

I'll be giving you a run-down in this post on how I built and waterproofed the troughs that held the solution for the life-size bubbles, as well as a tutorial on how I put together the beautiful cascading floral arrangements that I hung from the sides.

To get the scoop on how we made the bubble solution and wands visit Natashia's blog here, as well as the stunning balloon displays found on Michelle's blog here.

- - - - - - - -

For starters, I knew that we needed to find a suitable container for the bubble solution that would be both large enough to fill the massive lawn space and aesthetically pleasing. I immediately was drawn to the idea of using a planter to hold the solution so I set out to find the perfect planter from our sponsor, Hayneedle. I was so impressed by the selection of planters and ultimately selected this planter for the set up.

In order to make the planter water tight, I purchased simple transparent plastic shower curtains to line the planters. We secured the shower curtain to the wooden sides by using a hand held staple gun and stapling the curtains around all four edges of the planter (each staple about an inch apart) and trimmed the excess plastic curtain before securing the top pieces. The curtains held up extremely well throughout the duration of the party despite the heaviness of the bubble solution. We were very happy about that one.

As mentioned above, I knew that I wanted to add a little something special to the planters to give it a little somethin-somethin--that final, high-end finishing touch. Large, cascading flower arrangements draping from each side seemed like the perfect solution to compliment the flower elements in the balloon display. These turned out beautifully and, bonus, were quite simple to assemble.

Firstly, I purchased cup hooks that I then screwed into the top of the two sides of the planter to hang the arrangement from. The arrangement ended up being quite heavy so make sure that you purchase hooks that will withstand the weight of the bouquet.

I have provided a list of flowers that I used to create these arrangements. I purchased these flowers from a local wholesale floral shop. I only purchased one bunch of each flower variety except for the peonies and white spray roses. These required several bunches.

This list, of course, can be added to and altered depending on what your preferences and needs are.

Flower List:

Green Roses

White Peonies

White spray roses

Ruscus

Draping Greens

Pink Dahlias

Yellow Buttons

Pink Aster

Skirt and top by: Pleated Empire

To start, I began with the cascading greens on the bottom. Using green floral tape similar to this, I began securing each new stem to the next by pulling and wrapping the tape around the top of each stem extending down about three inches. I continue until I have a thick base of greens and then begin adding in the white peonies, green roses and dahlias. When I have a good mix of the larger flowers and there seems to be no large holes, I can start adding and taping in the smaller flowers to give it a polished and finished look.

When the bouquets were ready to be secured to the planter, I simply wrapped wire around the arrangements and created a loop that I could then hang from the cup hook. Once hung, we tied and draped several ribbons from the hooks in differing shades and textures of green and pink provided by Harmony in Provo, UT. If you are local, their store is such a treasure and treat to visit!

Just to recap, the supplies that you will need for the flower bouquets are:

Variety of flowers and greens (preferably greens that cascade well)

Floral Tape

Wire

Wire Cutters

Scissors to trim excess stems

Dresses: Shabby Apple

Shoes and Jewelry: Joyfolie

Assorted Solid Colored Balloons: Zurchers Party Store

Marbleized Pink/White Balloons: Knot and Bow

Assorted Crepe Paper Flowers: The Lovely Ave

Gorgeous photography by: Katie Dudley Photography

To continue in the fun, we're so excited to announce that we've teamed up with Shabby Apply to give away three (yes, you read that right) Shabby Apple dresses! So head on over to my instagram @jacquelinnealtom to find the details on how you can enter now through Friday for a chance to be one lucky winner.

Hope you have a great day, lovelies!

xx, Jacquelinne

strive holiday gift guide

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Sat, 06 Dec 2014 07:51:00 +0000

Alyssa Vincent Photo and I are so honored to announce the launch of this beautiful gift guide filled with over 40 pages of beautiful gifts, clothing and accessories for your littles.

The guide is comprised of product from over 30 handmade vendors from around the world in addition to the amazing Gap Clothing who all came together with the team at STRIVE to make this beautiful piece a reality. What an amazing collaboration--it truly was a once in a lifetime experience.

Please do enjoy. We hope you feel the warmth and magic of the season as you look from page to page.

Warmest wishes this holiday!

xx,

Jacquelinne

Olivia's Fairy Fest Birthday Party

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Mon, 17 Nov 2014 14:00:00 +0000

Several months ago I asked my Olivia what she wanted the theme for her fifth birthday party to be. She immediately responded by telling me that she wanted a fairy princess party--so we set out to create an event that would be extra magical and, as Liv and I sat around the kitchen table giggling and dreaming up ideas that afternoon, Olivia's Fairy Fest party began.

Flower crown by Think Pink Bows and Dresses from My Princess Penelope

My first thought was that Olivia would need a pretty crown with large flowers. I knew that Think Pink Bows could make us something truly special and turned to Emily to collaborate on the project. Her team was able to come up with the most stunning headbands for each of our guests in addition to the flower crown. Olivia, Emery and I were speechless when we met at her studio for fittings and saw the finished product. The workmanship, quality and attention to detail is the best of the best.

I wanted to design an invitation that was very simple, adorned with several sprigs of fresh greens and wildflowers fastened by jute. The girls and I had so much fun running through the garden, cutting and gathering the greens and flowers. Olivia lined up all of the flowers neatly in piles and beamed with joy when she saw how lovely they looked all marching in a row.

Harmony of Provo generously hosted the party for us at their character-filled fine fabrics and knitting boutique. The home, known as the Hannah Maria Libby Smith House, dates back from 1878. The space is quaint, charming and was perfect for the occasion. If you are local here in Utah this is a shop that you mustn't miss.

The gorgeous naked cake provided by Dippidee

The table spread was of utmost importance for this enchanted party. I wanted the feeling to be mystical and as if you had stepped right into an enchanted forest with flowers, lots of fresh fruit, fairies and butterflies. I created the flower arrangements using wildflowers from the garden, fresh mums, roses and oranges from the grocer and butterfly picks that I picked up at Michaels. The incredible natural wooden cake stands were provided by Postscripts.

The delectable macaroons were made by Sprinkle & Dash, lovely rose frosted sugar cookies were provided by Shirley's Bakery and decadent cupcakes were provided by Cocoa Bean Cupcake Cafe. These sweet treats were not only gorgeous but were scrumptious and enjoyed by all in attendance.

One of Olivia's requests was that we have waffles for the celebration. I knew that I wanted them to be equal parts pretty and delicious. The waffles provided by Waffle Love were light, buttery and flaky--almost like a pastry--and, in short, divine!

The party favors were the most fun part to coordinate. Olivia wanted every girl to go home from her party equipped "With everything that they needed to be a fairy." This included fairy wings that I hand stitched and can be purchased in our shop here, beautiful custom headbands and Olivia's flower crown provided by Think Pink Bows, darling felt Strawberries created by Marmies Market, and the sweetest cupcakes made by Burnt Gingerbread Creations.

Some of the gifts that we gave Olivia included the most perfect handmade bunny and riding hood dollies. She adores her new snuggly friends.

As Olivia snuggled into bed the night of her party she set her head onto my shoulder and whispered, "Thanks for always making me feel so special." We are so grateful for wonderful friends and all of the amazing vendors and individuals who contributed their talents to make this day so special for our Livie girl. xoxo

Photography by the lovely and talented Alyssa Vincent Photo.

Weekend Thoughts! Hello November!

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Mon, 03 Nov 2014 07:38:00 +0000

Recap of October in Pictures:

Emery in awe of the size of this zucchini

The girls loved to pick tomatoes out of the community garden.

Kate Jennie is pure sunshine. She finally broke four teeth this past month.

Olivia twirling at the pumpkin patch in Santaquin - a much needed fun family day

she found the perfect one!

Katie girl in her clown costume

Emery and Olivia in their clown costumes

Hello November! Oh, how the time is flying. It's been far too long since I posted on this small corner of mine on the internet. I forget how good it feels to express my feelings in my writings.

This weekend was very humbling for me. My heart has been changed and I hope I find myself rehearsing these feelings and commitments in my mind to be better over and over again.

Craig has been gone all weekend at a conference and I have been alone, feeling a bit overwhelmed with the massive amount of responsibility that seems to be weighing on my shoulders. I'm feeling a lot of pressure to be so many things right now. And, admittedly, being the best mother possible hasn't been at the forefront of my priorities until yesterday afternoon.

Emery had brought a cookie into the front room and smeared it all over the chair while I was nursing the baby. When I came into the room, I was immediately greeted by what seemed to be an utterly massive chocolate stain glaring me right in the face. I got upset and then Emery, consequently, got upset. I picked her up and not being able to control her flailing body, lost grip of her and she dropped down onto the chair.

Tears are swelling in my eyes as I write this because I keep seeing my beautiful baby girl in my mind with a big black, swollen eye. And it breaks my heart all over again.

Today, I sat back and watched the girls interact with one another and go about their day with a different set of eyes. I chose to see them for the beautiful individuals they are, not for who I want them to be. I was amazed at how confident, kind, helpful, smart and loving they are. And the most amazing thing--Emery kept glancing over at me throughout the day with such sincerity. The expression and look in her eyes telling me over and over again that she loves me and forgives me. And this is the greatest thing she could ever, ever teach me: to love unconditionally and be quick to forgive others and in this case, especially, myself.

I'm grateful to be a mother to children who love me, who have so much patience and faith in me and who are teaching me incredible things everyday. I've needed that reminder. What a joy they are in my life and I am blessed beyond measure to be theirs.

Sunshine and Dandelions

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Tue, 10 Jun 2014 18:05:00 +0000

Olivia teaching Kate about sunshine and dandelions the other day.

Today I found myself getting lost in the beautiful words written by a mother that recently lost her 3 1/2 year old son.

I am grateful for her strength and bravery in sharing her story--It's one of great faith and a testament that God is ever present in our lives and through Him we can find peace, strength and the perseverance to overcome our greatest trials and the darkest hours of our lives.

I have never felt closer to my Heavenly Father and Savior at any other time in my life. I'm grateful for a life that has lead me down a path that has brought me to places I never thought I would go and provided me with experiences I never could have imagined I would experience. I haven't been alone. He has given me the strength I needed.

It's a constant battle to continue taking with me everyday the lessons I've learned and remain in a humble, peaceful place, though. Life and stress has a way of creeping in and tormenting me to a point that I feel so overwhelmed, exhausted and alone.

And then amidst days full of frustration, never ending tantrums and my four year old reminding me to "Breathe and not be mad" something beautiful happens. My Olivia sits with her baby sister and teaches her about dandelions and sunshine. And Kate smiles.

It is in these quiet moments that sunshine and peace enter my soul, reminding me that my Savior is still with me. He is there if I just let him in.

Wishing you a week full of quiet moments, sunshine and dandelions, dear friends!

xo, Jacquelinne

Moments of Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 22 May 2014 04:02:00 +0000

a few favorite pictures from the past few weeks. oh, how I love these girls!

It's a peaceful night and all of the girls are sleeping soundly. Craig is at a church meeting and I find myself laying on the couch alone; window cracked, feeling a soft, late spring breeze creeping through the curtains from time to time.

So much has happened in our lives the past few months. What a blessing it is to be able to reflect in peace tonight. I don't think I have truly had a moment to be able to wrap my brain around how blessed I am to be where I am.

I held my baby girl tight tonight as I watched her drift to sleep, kissing her plump cheeks right before laying her down on a bed of blankets. I thanked The Lord, again, for the heartbreak, peace, hope and affirmation of testimony I felt those first few weeks of her life after learning of her potential diagnosis.

We have since received the results of her genetic testing and are overjoyed and very humbled that our sweet girl is a carrier of the mutated gene--meaning she will not display any symptoms of her disorder through her life.

Kate is an incredibly special soul. I remember gazing into her eyes just after birth and feeling such peace and joy radiate from her. She brought me health, peace and comfort through my sickness and being with her during my recovery from surgery in the hospital gave me strength, hope, and perspective. There were times that I didn't want to walk, eat and progress but her presence and spirit kept me going--I wanted more than anything to regain my health so that I could return home a stronger wife, mother and woman.

I have been immeasurably blessed with trials that allowed me to come to know Christ. I have learned that through Him we can overcome our biggest fears and find strength, hope, peace and comfort in difficult times. I have a better understanding and increased faith that there is a plan for each of us.

Faith has given me the ability to not have fear in what the future holds for my beautiful family and me. I know that the Lord's hands will continue to bless us with trials and triumphs that will build our character, increase our testimony of his Gospel, and mold us into the people we will become. I am so grateful for this knowledge and know it to be true.

On The Mend

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 13 Mar 2014 06:16:00 +0000

Enjoying much needed snuggle time and giggles this morning with my munchkins. I love them so.

Hello, there! Anyone still out there?!

This past week has been quite a blur. For those of you who may not know, I had an appendectomy and part of my colon and small bowel removed, as well as a large mass from the lining of my appendix last Wednesday morning.

This wasn't one of those, "Oh, wow, that came out of no where" type things. It was a problem that had been ailing me the past 12 weeks.

Rewind back to 32 weeks into my pregnancy. I went into the hospital because I was having horrible back and stomach pain and thought I might be in labor. They did a series of tests and an ultrasound and ruled out the possibility that I would go into labor within the next five weeks or so. The ultrasound and lab work looked fine and they sent me on my way.

The remaining weeks of my pregnancy were some of the hardest of any of my pregnancies. I had horrible back pain and a jarring pain that never seemed to go away in my stomach. I couldn't wait for that baby to come out so that my back and stomach could feel normal again.

A week after Kate was born and I went off the high dosage of Motrin, that exact jarring pain came back in my stomach. The kind of pain that keeps you up at night, curled up in the fetal position, or makes you want to take a warm bath every night because that's the only form of relief you can get from the pain.

The next five weeks would be spent in and out of the hospital, obgyn and doctors' office - being put on what felt like every medication under the sun. And then finally I had an appointment to have a uterine ultrasound last Tuesday.

The ultrasound was scheduled for nine o'clock. After having the ultrasound, I went and picked up Liv from preschool, dropped her off at home, ate a little snack, and then went back to the doctor for a follow up appointment to discuss the results of the ultrasound.

I was so relieved to find out that my uterus and ovaries looked perfect. And they were even more surprised to find that my uterus had actually completely shrunken. This meant that the pain site was higher than what they originally thought was my uterus. My OB immediately ordered a CT scan and recommended that I stay in the hospital to have that completed.

So Kate and I sat in the hospital for the next two and a half hours together as I drank six cups of the nastiest dye for the scan, fed the baby, and rocked the baby.

On our way home from the hospital I stopped and got some groceries and, by the time I had even gotten home, I had several missed calls and voicemails from my doctor. I called him back and was absolutely shocked when he told me that at some point in the last twelve weeks my appendix had ruptured and that I needed to go to the ER right away.

I think I awkwardly stayed on the phone asking dumb questions for several minutes because I was so dumbfounded by the news. I think I was somewhat avoiding the inevitable task of getting my girls and myself packed up and making all of the arrangements for us to be able to admit me to the ER. This situation seems all to familiar these days - we have had way too many doctor, hospital and ER visits/stays in the past 90 days. There's nothing worse than having to shuffle two young girls around so much. It gives me a lump in my throat.

When I walked into the ER I was greeted by a team of five nurses that had been waiting for me with a wheel chair. Once they confirmed that I was their "Appy" patient, they immediately walked me back to a room where I was told to undress and put on a gown. After I put on the gown, I sat in a small room alone waiting for Craig and Kate to meet back up with me after dropping the girls off with my mom (bless her heart). The room was quiet and still. I could literally hear my heart beating out of my chest. My head was spinning.

The surgeon came in shortly after Craig and Kate arrived. He explained that the CT scan indicated that there was a rupture in the appendix and that I most likely had been dealing with chronic appendicitis over the past 12 weeks. Because the appendix had been enflamed and ruptured over such a prolonged period of time, the surgery would most likely be more complicated than a regular appendectomy, which is an outpatient procedure. He scheduled the surgery for the following morning and we were wheeled up to our tiny room on the 6th floor.

Now there are no words that can quite describe what it was like to leave Craig and Kate behind and be wheeled into surgery. It's like feeling a rush of all the love you possess for everyone in your life and desperately never wanting to let go of that love. And before I knew it, I was waking up from surgery.

In that instant I blinked and then thanked the Lord for letting me be okay. Was I okay? I was in a large, brightly lit room. A woman asked me a question and when I answered I felt like I was choking up the words. All I wanted to ask was "How did the surgery go?" And "Where is Craig?" I wanted him really badly in that moment. He has been my rock through all of this.

I was finally wheeled back up to my room where Craig and Kate were waiting for me. I was so relieved to be back with them. I was beginning to become a little more coherent and could soon talk a bit.

That afternoon my dad came to visit and gave me the most beautiful father's blessing. I am so grateful for my dad and that tender moment I was able to spend with him. I am feeling more blessed than I have ever felt in my life. These experiences are drawing me nearer to my savior and family and are helping me realize what matters most in this life.

The next few days were spent in much pain in the hospital. Recovery seemed to be such a slow and hard process but I was pretty determined (most of the time) to progress and heal. But it was ~~probably~~ definitely one of the hardest weeks I've ever gone through.

I was discharged from the hospital on Sunday and spent Sunday, Monday and Tuesday morning at home recovering with Craig and Kate. It was such a sweet reunion with the older girls on Tuesday. Emery kept yelling as she was running toward me, "Miss you, mom. Miss you, mom." Holy cow, the tears are flowing as I write this. I love my girls with all of me. What an amazing gift it is to be their mother. I have felt so humbled and grateful through all of this to have the knowledge I have about eternal families. I want to live my life worthily to have those promises fulfilled. I want that more than anything.

We received confirmation yesterday from my surgeon that the mass they removed was not cancerous so they are very hopeful that this is the end of what has been a very long road. We will have a consultation with him sometime next week and will most likely be given more answers and information that will help us better understand what exactly happened. In the meantime, I'm feeling well today and taking it one stride at a time--and feeling very grateful and blessed for all of the love, prayers, and support that we have felt over this past week. We have been immeasurably blessed by the faith and love of both of our families and friends. Thank you so much, loves!

Weekend Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Sun, 23 Feb 2014 20:23:00 +0000

I saw a quote yesterday while perusing Pinterest that really resonated with me. The quote was:

"Do small things with great love."

One of my biggest faults is that I try to do too much. I have a tendency of thinking, doing, living BIG. The mere thought of living "Small with great love" lifts the heaviest weight off my shoulders and I am freed. And I haven't been able to shake this from my mind. I know my heart yearns for change.

I have always encouraged a "Less is more" approach with my design clients. Who would have thought that this concept would be the very thing I needed to apply in the way I live my life?

I am resolving to do less with greater purpose, intent and love. I am excited to be able to focus more on the things that are the most important and omit the rest.

So here's to a great change, friends!

Fun Facts About Our Girls

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 19 Feb 2014 07:12:00 +0000

There are a few things about the girls that I have told myself over the years that I need to document for fear that I would forget. These are just a few things I always want to remember.

A Lesson of Love

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Tue, 18 Feb 2014 02:23:00 +0000

A sneak peek into our Valentine's Day

Is it bad to admit that I am grateful for the trials and hardships I have gone through in my life? That often times while even in the midst of whatever it is I am going through, I can already see, feel and recognize how I needed that experience. These are the experiences that have taught me strength, endurance, hope, faith, and, ultimately, molded me into the person I am and want to be.

My recovery after giving birth to Kate four weeks ago has been a rocky road. Finding out that our week old baby may have a genetic disorder and then suffering for three weeks with an infection that caused excruciating pain in my stomach was extremely difficult.

While these experiences made me feel pain, fatigue and grief like I had never felt before, there are no words that can describe how much I have grown and been touched while overcoming the hardship of being so sick and coping with the unexpected.

My heart was opened and I am able to let in more love than I ever imagined possible.

The first few days after the devastating call from Primary Children's Hospital, I had the hardest time sleeping at night while the baby slept. The only thing that brought me enough comfort to be able to fall asleep was Craig's arm tightly holding me.

I have never felt so much love from Craig and I have never loved Craig more than I have since Kate's birth. His support and selflessness has carried me and given me a greater appreciation and understanding of how blessed I am to be able to raise a family and go through this life and through the eternities with such an amazing man.

It's hard to explain the depth of gratitude I feel for the outpouring of love my family and I have received over the past few weeks. This was so heavy on my mind on Valentine's Day.

I realize now that I never understood how powerful a force for good love can be. That love can literally lift a burden, heal your heart, strengthen your faith, and deepen your relationships. How beautiful it is to see love work in your life.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank all of those who have shown their love. Your examples have taught me so much. And I have resolved to myself that, no matter what season of life I am in, I'm choosing to love. And choosing to not only love others but to open my heart to be loved.

Kate's Birth and First Few Weeks

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Sat, 15 Feb 2014 19:08:00 +0000

It was only several weeks into my pregnancy with Kate that I knew she was special. That there would be something different about her. Every prenatal appointment showed that our little girl was healthy and growing and we took so much comfort in knowing that she was healthy. At 34 weeks, we had a 3D ultrasound and I got to see her beautiful face. That face was so sweet and perfect and forever engraved in my mind. I found myself sneaking into the kitchen again and again within the next few weeks to see that picture hung on the refrigerator door--her face brought me so much joy.

At 37.5 weeks, after a long weekend of going into the hospital for false labor contractions and being sent home multiple times, I sat in my bed at 1:30am. In SO much pain. I was told not to come back in until my water had broken or I could no longer walk. I waited. And minutes turned into hours, decades and centuries. And each contraction got harder and harder to deal with. Finally, I woke up Craig at 3:30 and told him I was in so much pain and that we needed to go to the hospital. These contractions made it so that I couldn't walk, lay down, sit or even think.

On the way to the hospital my sweet Emery quietly hushed me as I tossed and turned. She kept whispering, "Be better, Mom." I hobbled through the doors with Craig and the girls and we were placed in a room. Several minutes later we found out that we would be able to stay. We called my mom around 4:30am and told her it was 'go time.' Amidst all of the chaos, I felt so much relief that soon I could breathe after getting an epidural.

We waited for some time and then I was wheeled across the hospital to my room. That was a very uncomfortable and long ride. After finally getting my IV put in and receiving the epidural, I was dilated to an eight and things were progressing very fast. My mom arrived with my little brother Jon and they took the girls back to our house around 6:30 to get more sleep and to wait to hear from us. By the time I was dilated to a ten just after 7:00, only half of my body was numb. They gave me a high dosage of epidural and within about ten minutes I felt relief. She was born just minutes after at 7:26. The most perfect, tiny little redhead.

I can still remember that feeling so fresh in my mind of holding her for the first time. My 5lb. 3 oz. little angel. My world was forever changed by this little girl coming into our world that beautiful Tuesday morning.

The next day and a half went really smoothly in the hospital. Her glucose levels were on the rise and we were so proud of the progress our Kate was making. Her temperament was peaceful and when she cried, she was easily consoled if Craig or I held her. We both felt right away the deepest and most amazing connection with our sweet little girl. We love her more than words can even convey.

The first few days at home went really well. We progressively got better at the nightly routine and felt grateful when we were finally able to get her to sleep in her crib and then turn off the light so that we could sleep. Thank heaven for small victories!

It wasn't until Saturday afternoon that we were first made aware that something was abnormal. We received a phone call from an on-call pediatrician telling us that we needed to go to the hospital to get some lab work done. The doctor was very vague about what the testing was for but we headed to the hospital right away. Later that evening, I noticed that she was beginning to become very lethargic and was responding very differently than she was the past few days after feedings. Normally she was very alert after feeding and burping her but her arms, legs and neck were very limp and she was very sleepy. Concerned that her glucose levels were really low, we went into the emergency room after speaking with an on-call nurse at 11:30 pm.

We spent the entire night in the ER running a handful of tests. Craig stood with his arm around me as we watched, overwhelmed, as our little girl had to have an IV put in her tiny arm and be poked in her feet several times. All tests came back normal except one that they weren't able to complete and we were able to go home after our nine hour stay in the ER.

Monday was a relatively quiet day and she seemed to be on the mend. It wasn't until Tuesday when I began receiving phone calls from Primary Children's hospital, the pediatrician and the ER that I learned of the severity of the abnormal test that had come back. The doctor at Primary Children's hospital explained to me that her lab test indicated that she may have a very rare genetic disorder called VLCADD. This disorder prevents the body from converting certain fats into energy, especially between eating periods (fasting). She then explained that the symptoms of infants with VLCADD can be lethargy and muscle weakness and if untreated, can lead to seizures, severe liver damage or she could go into a coma. I was devastated.

Wednesday we spent a good part of our day at the lab completing the last of the lab work requested. It was a long and exhausting day for me and that evening after the girls were in bed and Craig sat in the front room with Kate snuggled in his arms, I went back to the room and it finally all hit me. And I sobbed.

As I sat in the dark room feeling very alone, a very distinct impression came over me that I had a decision to make. I could let fear and doubt overwhelm and paralyze me, or I could move forward in faith, knowing that our Heavenly Father has a perfect plan for our daughter and he would provide a way for us to be able to raise her and tend to her needs. I'll never forget how black and white those two options felt, and the overwhelming amount of peace that proceeded was so comforting. Like the biggest, warmest blanket completely encircling me. I have so much faith and peace in what is to come.

Thursday morning after Olivia had left for preschool, I sat with Kate in my arms and Emery snuggled into me and I was moved by so many emotions. I had so much hope for our future with our girls and I was overcome with the deepest desire to be a better mother. I knew that I needed to rise above any trials or hardships, fear and doubt and be strong for my family. I knew in that moment that my older girls and, especially Kate, would need to draw from my strength throughout their life and this was a pivotal moment for me.

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It has now been almost three weeks since finding out Kate's potential diagnosis. Her diagnosis is still not certain until we have genetic testing done but we are treating her at the present as if she has the deficiency. We will hopefully be able to have the testing done very soon and it will take about a month for us to get the results back.

Kate has been doing really well. She is growing well and continues to amaze us with her strength and sweetness. Based on her great progress the past few weeks (she had gained a pound at our two week checkup at the doctor), the doctors have so much hope for a bright future for her.

Watching Craig and the girls look into her beautiful deep blue eyes with so much love and adoration has brought me so much joy over the past four weeks. We feel immeasurably blessed to have her in our lives. She has taught us more about love, compassion and having faith in our Savior than we could have ever imagined. And we are so grateful for these first experiences that we'll never forget with her--she has truly bettered and continues to better our lives each day.

Olivia's First Dance Recital

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 00:11:00 +0000

If you are in need of something to make you snort-laugh today please indulge yourself in watching these little gems from Olivia's first dance recital.

Now I have to explain something before you watch the first video. In rehearsal, the dancers were given very stern, specific instruction that they had to stay on their assigned "X." Olivia takes this very much to heart and you'll notice that she's quite thrown off by the fact that someone takes her "X" part-way through the dance. Olivia proceeds to stare the girl down and practically shoot her with mind bullets for the remainder of the dance. I guess Olivia figured that her 30 second vocal solo of "Jingle Bells" before the music started and her twirl and jump at the very end were more than enough.

I really was beaming with joy at how well she did, though. I seriously get a lump in my throat thinking about her face when she ran off the stage and into my arms.

Pancakes and Pajamas Party

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Fri, 03 Jan 2014 00:25:00 +0000

One of Olivia's favorite foods are pancakes so we decided to throw her a Pancakes and Pajamas party for her fourth birthday.

For the first time, ever, I decided to scale back and throw a small party for Livie Girl's birthday. We invited three of her closest friends and enjoyed a really simple, fun breakfast filled with sprinkles, bows, and lots of giggles. Honestly, I consider this party to be one of the most successful that I have ever thrown. Small and simple was so much more manageable and every attendee had so much fun!

Four big ones for our beautiful birthday girl!

The Invitations (1) were fashioned to look like sleep masks. I designed the double sided invitation, had them printed at a local print shop, then attached the ribbon with brads and tied a simple bow in the front for the finishing touch.

The Tableware (2) was purchased at our local Honk's One Dollar. I bought plain pink, green and purple plates, napkins, utensils and cups to add variety and tie in the colors from the bow garland. The little party noise makers were also purchased at Honk's in a pack that included polka dots, stars and other darling patterns. I used my go-to white serving dishes for the food display.

The Pajama Bottoms (3) were made out of fabric from Home Fabrics from the $1 fabric section. It took only a yard of fabric for each pair of pajamas so they were such an inexpensive, darling favor that each girl got to take home with them. I purchased the pattern and elastic from Walmart for around $5 bringing my total for favors at around $10. Not bad! *My only recommendation is to not start the sewing the night before!

The Bow Garland was made out of leftover fabric from the pajama bottoms. It took probably about 1/4 yard of each of the fabrics and it was something that I whipped up pretty quickly (in comparison to the pajama bottoms) with my trusty glue gun!

The Menu consisted of lots of little mini pancakes with sprinkles mixed in the batter, apples, bananas and milk/juice. It was SO simple and I couldn't believe how huge of a hit it was with all of the girls. I think each girl consumed at least four pancakes each.

Emery + Olivia | party favors | eating breakfast with friends

Having so much fun with the noise makers!

Olivia's birthday guests and opening gifts

I had so much fun planning and throwing this party and we pulled it all off well under $50. The girls had so much fun enjoying one another's company-- this is a party we'll always remember. So glad that we could celebrate four amazing years with this special girl!

Christmas Morning

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Tue, 31 Dec 2013 00:10:00 +0000

The two things that the girls asked for this year from Santa were (Olivia) a "Christmas Dog" and (Emery) a "Blue Baby Doll." Their faces lit up with excitement as they realized that Santa had brought them each the one gift they had asked for among many other fun gifts. Emery was especially excited to see that Santa had found her favorite puppy dog, Sophie, that she had lost earlier in the summer.

Both girls got lap desks and an assortment of items to stay busy coloring and drawing. Mom is hopeful that the desks along with the new baby dolls, basinets and other fun baby accessories keep them busy when we welcome our new baby sister in a few short weeks.

Liv immediately sat down to color and forgot about all of her other presents.

Emery couldn't be more excited to be reunited with her Sophie Dog. Best Christmas ever!

One of mom's big projects this year was making quiet books for the girls for Christmas. Each book is hand sewn and includes cupcakes, cake, banana splits, and popsicles for the girls to decorate. The girls were overwhelmed with gratitude and appreciation for the countless hours spent cutting and sewing the books. Emery made sure to show this by immediately tearing apart one of the cherries.

They loved opening all of the presents that had clothes in them. After two or three, Emery started handing them to me to open.

Both Grandparents spoiled them with LOTS of cute new play kitchenware. Olivia got a mixer and a cake stand with a darling chocolate cake that she can decorate and Emery got a cash register and enough pots and pans and cookware to cook up a dinner for 30 people. Mom looks forward to not having to cook for the next 365 days.

We are so grateful for this Holiday season and the chance we have had to make so many beautiful memories with our little family. A few highlights were Olivia's nightly prayers the last few weeks thanking Heavenly Father that we can celebrate Jesus' birth during Christmas, riding the train up to see Christmas lights at Temple Square, seeing "Christmas Ponies" (aka reindeer) while driving around Christmas Eve looking at lights, watching the Nativity together before bed Christmas Eve, and spending time with extended family over the weekend. It has truly been a great way to bring 2013 to a close.

Three Going on Sixteen

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 18 Sep 2013 03:17:00 +0000

Dear Livie Girl:

You are the funniest, smartest, spunkiest girl I have ever met. You astound me everyday that you can be so many amazing things at just the age of three.

You just started preschool a few weeks ago and you keep Emery and me laughing and smiling at your stories the whole way home from school every Tuesday and Thursday. You are so bright and eager, and definitely ready as ever to dive into the social scene. Just today you brought a flower in your shirt pocket to give to a friend. You told dad that you gave it to your teacher but later told me that you gave it to a cute boy. I'm glad that we have the kind of relationship that you can tell me anything.

I still smile when I think about a few weeks ago when we helped aunt Amanda move into her Freshman apartment at BYU. You and Nanna are best pals--nothing makes you happier than hanging out in Nanna's room laughing and having girl talk.

You were so excited to learn about what college is all about from Amanda and even tried to claim the bed beside her as your own. But the one thing I never want to forget was when a group of boys walked past and you declared, "I think they might be confused that I live here." What disappointment those boys must have had when they found out that the cute little blonde with big green eyes didn't actually live in that apartment. You are my three year old going on sixteen. And this makes me laugh and cringe all at the same time.

But the greatest thing I want you to know from me is that I love you for who you are. You are beautiful inside and out because you are my "Olivia Grace Girl" as you always say.

Love you so much!

xoxo,

Mom

3 Tips for Photographing Children

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 11 Sep 2013 02:31:00 +0000

Back in May I got some pictures done of Olivia and Emery. I wanted to do something a bit different for this shoot. I wanted the pictures to capture their fun, contagious personalities at this age--I wanted the pictures to represent how they are in real life.

After such a successful shoot, I wanted to share some of my learnings from this no-tears session!

Pictures taken by the fabulous Callie Hobbs of Callie Hobbs Photography. If you're in Northern Utah, be sure to give her a holler!

Best of luck and happy picture taking, friends!

xo,
Jacquelinne

Tea Party with the Girls

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 30 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Olivia and Emery attended a tea party a few weeks ago at their friend Lulu's house. The party was so simple and lovely. The decorations and treats were so sweet. These girls had so much fun!

Menu:

Juice (in place of tea)
Strawberry Shortcake
Pastries

Games & Supplies:

Bubble Wands

Decorations:

Tea Cups & Saucers
Floral Tablecloth
Decorative Trays
White Serving Dishes/Cake Stands
White Pitcher
Simple Fresh Flowers

Tip:

Collecting white dishes is a great idea because white is sure to make any table spread look beautiful because of the simplicity and uniformity. White goes with everything and will suit almost every occasion, too!

Memorial Day Weekend Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 29 May 2013 16:48:00 +0000

We started off our Memorial Day Weekend by hitting it up at the splash pad. The girls had so much fun dancing, splashing and running through the water with their friends. And screaming. Lots of screaming. Afterward we went to a hole-in-the-wall sandwich shop and ate til I could barely move. Every holiday weekend needs at least one of those meals, right?

The girls were sick through the rest of the weekend so we laid low at the house and spent quality time together as a family. It was much needed. Lots of cuddles, giggles and relaxing.

Hope you all had a fun, safe Memorial Day weekend, as well!

Tips for Planning the Perfect Birthday Party

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Sun, 19 May 2013 22:49:00 +0000

Our little Emery is two years old! This girl keeps us smiling, running nonstop and very busy with her adventurous, curious, and spunky personality. I can't imagine life without this little stinker!

We just finished up a whirlwind birthday weekend full of nonstop partying and I wanted to share with you Emery's friend party!

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We had so much fun planning and putting on this party for our darling Emery. She has loved animals for a long time and I knew the theme "Party Animals" would be perfect. These kids were a riot and we had so much fun watching them run around in their animal masks, play with balloons, stomp on bugs--and nothing was cuter than watching them sit on the front porch feeling like a million bucks in these hilarious sunnies!

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I have had a flood of people ask me about my birthday parties and I wanted to share with you some tips on throwing a fantastic toddler birthday party!

My Top Tips on Planning the Perfect Toddler Party

Theme. Picking a theme can be very fun, but keeping it simple and not going overboard with the theme is key. The rule of three can be a good rule of thumb. For instance, at Emery's Party Animals party, I mixed in a few animal print balloons with an array of other bright colored balloons, the animal masks dressed up the kraft paper lunch boxes, and the party favors were the animal glasses. These three items were the perfect amount of "animal" without it being too much.

Decorations. Decorations are my favorite part but, again, keeping it simple is always a good idea. Think less is more. I always try to have one or two statement displays at my birthday parties. For example, this can be a backdrop with streamers, garlands, and the food spread. Don't go crazy with the decor and stress yourself out, mamma! Been there. Done that!

Simple Menu. Those of us with toddlers know that they don't eat a lot. And having too many options and too much food is most likely going to go to waste. Even though a great variety can be very cute, keeping things simple and practical with toddlers is usually best. Think outside the box and try something different. Emery's doughnuts were a hit and easy to clean up because they were a finger food!

Keep Activities Short and Simple. It can be very hard to get kids to cooperate, especially if you have a large group. Most birthdays that I plan I try to incorporate favors for the kids that they can play with and enjoy during the party (ie: bubbles, hula hoops, jump ropes, etc.). Make sure that the activities are age appropriate and be flexible if the kids decide they don't want to participate. That happens a good majority of the time at my house.

Chicken & Spinach Pasta in a Cream Cheese Red Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 05:48:00 +0000

You asked for it, so here it is! This recipe is so easy and, even though it has cream cheese in it, in my book this recipe is healthy (it has spinach in it, right!?). Also, disclaimer, if the cooking directions seem funky, it's because I made up the recipe. I'm not a pro at writing recipes, k? Here it goes..

Chicken and Spinach Pasta

*Serves 4

Ingredients:

3/4 Box Rigatoni Pasta

4 oz. Cream Cheese

1 can Diced Tomatoes

1/2 Bag Frozen Spinach

1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning (or more to taste)

1 Tbsp Dried Basil (I use the Lighthouse brand)

1 Large White Onion

4-6 Chicken Tenders

Fresh Parmesan

Salt and Pepper to Taste

Directions:

Dice onion and sauté in olive oil until clear. Add can of diced tomatoes, italian seasoning, basil and let simmer on medium heat for at least 15 minutes. Begin boiling and preparing the pasta and cooking chicken tenders in a separate skillet with olive oil. Lightly season chicken with italian seasoning. When the chicken is cooked, dice and set aside to be added later in the sauce. Once your tomato and onion has cooked for the 15 minutes add frozen spinach and cook until the spinach is no longer frozen. Add cream cheese and stir in sauce until the cream cheese is fully melted. Add diced chicken and salt and pepper to taste. Mix the sauce in with your rigatoni and garnish with fresh parmesan.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did at our house!

Happy Earth Day

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 07:52:00 +0000

Olivia and Emery playing in their new flower crowns mom made over the weekend.

Among many things, God is a brilliant designer. The greatest of all, in fact.

This happens to be one of the most impactful lessons that I learned while attending design school. This fact was stated by one of my favorite teachers in a Color Theory class.

It never ceases to amaze me how God brilliantly paired contrasting colors in nature: sand and ocean; vibrant flowers to green stems and the list goes on and on. Every detail so thoughtful to maximize its beauty.

We are so blessed to be surrounded by so much beauty in our world. Happy Earth Day!

Jar of Kindness

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:14:00 +0000

Today we made jars of kindness at Joy School. Each child was given a jar to decorate with glittery stickers that they could then take home and put one ball inside for every act of kindness shown. For every unkind act, one ball would then be taken out.

When the entire jar is filled, I told the girls that they could go pick out an outfit. They were so jazzed about the project and have already gone out of their way to help out more and be kinder to one another. Yay!

SUPPLIES:

glass jars // glitter stickers // pompoms in assorted colors

*All items purchased at Family Dollar. Awesome, right?!

**********

On a personal note, I had a dear friend from high school message me on Facebook today. It was such a simple note but it meant the world to me that she took a few moments of her day to think about me and drop me a hello. I sure needed that tonight. It's been a long day and night. I'm working hard and trying to get caught up on many big projects. Hopefully Saturday can be a relaxing day..maybe I could sleep in? Almost there.

Honoring Those Lost in Boston

noreply@blogger.com (Jacquelinne) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 04:57:00 +0000

In memory of those who were lost in yesterday's horrific events, I have committed in the next 26 days to run 1 mile per day and find at least one good thing I see or do that makes the world a better place.

My heart goes out to all who were impacted in the bombing. Sending my prayers to Boston.

I am updating my progress each day on Instagram. Please feel free to join or follow my thoughts and progress.