Choose

Dear Emily,
   You know what is going on in my life right now.  Our family is about to be involuntarily separated for a good chunk of time. Julie and I will be on our own.  This weekend I had a huge meltdown. I am sure that it was inevitable, but I really let myself get carried away. Do you ever let your imagination run to dark places and camp out? Don't do this! I am reminded often about another blogger who chooses one word to be hers for a year. Last year it was "choose." She talked a lot about how we have the power to choose how we are going to react, to choose how we are going to handle situations. It really makes things more intentional.  I have been thinking on this. I have basked in the last month that we have spent together as a family, really investing in each other, breathing life... tickling, playing, dating as a family and as a couple. It has been so life giving to us. It has been a hard year thus far, with long work hours and now this deployment... but in between there have been moments of such beauty. I think that without this deployment, I might have missed some of these. I am taking every day, drinking it in, memorizing his skin, his touch, his smile, the way he holds our baby girl and the way she grins at him with pure joy when she sees him. I will remember these things when times get tough this year.

Things I am thinking on... planning a trip to Big Sur and the Redwoods for his homecoming leave; planning a trip to Europe for the future; thinking about the smell of Fall -- planning on apple picking in Michigan, baking, filling the home with the smell of cinnamon, lighting candles; finishing up this Summer with lots of pool time for my little love; and your trip to see me.  Good things are coming. I must choose to see them.
Love, Jennifer

Lately

Dear Emily,
   I have about a gazillion things to do and about a gazillion things on my mind.  Today, we had a great morning. We went over to a sweet friend's house for coffee and delicious scones with lemon curd. Have you had lemon curd? It's delicious... just one more thing that Trader Joe does right.  Julie played with Gunnar and  he was nice enough to share his birthday toys with her.

It is becoming apparent to me that she is growing up. She is not putting everything in her mouth anymore, thank goodness! She is sticking closer to me, which is nice. She can play with a toy for longer than 30 seconds. Her favorite right now is a maraca that a friend gifted us on a recent visit to Texas.  We picked up a few books yesterday from Marshalls, Goodnight Moon and Guess How Much I Love You... both of which she had, but needed in board book form so she could abuse them. Today, I stumbled across the library's used book sale and scored another sweet book for her.  She carries them around. She can finally pay attention to a whole book (sometimes) which is nice. We are adding an afternoon snack into her schedule. I think she needs it... she always seems starving. I am planning on dropping that nursing session. I am looking forward to weaning soon.  It's time.

Only about two more weeks till Travis comes home. I absolutely can not wait. I think I have handled it very well, but I do miss him something fierce. I can't wait to be held again... I miss it so much. Things that I am thinking about for future discussion... the idea of home, all of the projects I have in my head to do, and meal planning for just a mama and baby (the thing that oddly keeps me stressed out.) Well, I am off to forage through the huge stack of Ready Made magazines that I scored at the book sale for under $2... and ignore the dishes and laundry that need to be done. Talk soon.
Love Jen

Dear Jen, Dandelions and Dirt

Dear Jen,

Today, I'm ready for lunch at 9:45 in the morning. It's the kind of day that starts at 6, there has been breakfast, front porch play, back porch play, snack and nap by 9:30.

I had supermom plans to make the healthiest popsicles known to baby...and I think I certainly accomplished it. Beets, kale, apples, banana, strawberry. I took a quick taste, they taste like you'd probably expect: dirt and dandelions. They are horrible. Since Clara can regularly be found with dirt in her mouth, I might have a shot at these being received as a tasty snack.

Yesterday I caught Clara trying to eat a muddy rock. After we discarded it, Bella actually DID eat it. What? Who are these little ones of mine? How am I responsible for this? I do not model this behavior. But they provide a regular laugh. And as you are well aware, who knows what is to become of Bella's poor insides. She is most certainly still digesting as of late: one rock, one corn cobb, and one watermelon rind. Wish us luck with that.

Last night Clara cried for 10 minutes because I took her sandals off. It was a sign to her that the day was done, and outside play was over. Lately when I put her down at night and naps, she has the last word of negotiation, "wake up, go outside". It's not a question, it's a fact. Thank goodness for the cooperative weather, growing seeds, and ice cream dates. Summer has been a long time coming, and we are making use of every sunny minute of it.

Love,
Emily

Sustenance

Dear Emily,
  The baby is sleeping... I always wish I knew ahead of time how long she was going to sleep, so that I could use the time a little more efficiently, but oh well...
I have a lot on my mind today. A old friend of mine lost a baby this week due to a heart defect. It has been incredibly painful to watch them walk through this, even though I barely know the family. It has broken my heart. Things like this affect me more than they used to. I think when you have babies your heart automatically becomes more sensitive to things. I feel deep pain now. I feel like God is revealing to me the hurt of this world lately. There is so much pain, so much unfairness. I don't get it and it grieves me and it leave me just wanting to run to Him, but not exactly sure how to deal with it all. I'm sure some of it is the impending deployment, the fear, the uncertainty of the times I am living in. Sometimes I wish that I could go back to being a young college student, back when my only concern was my school work. I lived in a little bubble, unaware of things around me, unaware of the pain that people were living in, so many hurting people.  Where do I go from here? What do I do with this tension that plagues me? Find the joy... find the joy in the little moments, in my little darling's face. Seek the joy of the Lord. He will sustain me.
                                             Love, Jen

Dear Jen, Away

Dear Jen,

Work. Clara. Life. I don't think I need to say much more about why I am not writing. Besides, you know already. We are not strangers.

So picture me now sitting on a balcony looking at the Atlantic ocean. It's 85 and partly sunny. I have spent the last 2 hrs trying to get Clara to take a nap. And I've given up, gave her toys in a hotel crib and am taking my minute to write you now. I wish it were on pen and paper rather than this iPhone screen. But it will have to do. I have needed this so much. This family time. Which we are, in all truth, much blessed with. We are a tight little family. Dan gets home early a lot of days. We sleep in somedays. We eat out together on a weekday. But all that time can still be consumed with phones and voicemails and that running to the next thing.

So we are just giving ourselves a break from the buzz in our minds. There is something so sweet when you are allowed to sit in chair and only think good and interesting and inspiring thoughts. I call that luxury thinking. When the contracts and dirty floors, they are no more and you can make plans for what to do with that unfinished painting.

There is so much sweetness in motherhood, wrapped in with all the chaos. They are intimately interwoven. I just forcefully buried my head in the bed from frustration, and moments later, she wrapped her arm around my neck and tells me, I love you, mommy with a sigh at the end.; as if she gets I'm at the end of all patience.

What a blessing to hear from a friend this week, that it yet again gets better. I thank God for that happy and encouraging mother's voice. This type of maternal voice is rare!! Don't stop talking about your babies like this. I'm saying this to myself too. Because I know some probably think I'm overly positive about parenting; I am not. I know the hard parts, the confusing parts, the I have no more words or patience parts. I see more of that to come. I hope I weather them well. I hope I'm calm and understanding of her little understanding. But I am still in awe everyday of nearly everything she does and says. I wish you could see her now, talking like a little lady.

This morning when she woke up in bed with us after 5 hrs of kicking me in the ribs. She said, " were'd paci go?" rolled on top of and over me, sighed deeply and said," oh mommy, i love you mommy, so pretty mommy (runs fingers through my hair ), sighs, I love you mommy, sighs". I'm like, I don't deserve this. I am not good enough for you, dear baby girl. But I am going to try to be.

Love Emily

Lately

Dear Emily,
   I just thought I would send you a little note and update you on life around here. It's good... It's real good.  Julie is getting to be so much fun, definitely a work out throughout the day, but fun. I love watching her grow and change every day. She just becomes more of a little kid every moment.  She is waving and showing us that she loves us. She is reaching for us when she wants to switch to someone else's arms and she chatters all day long. I wish I knew what she had to say. I am sure she has a great outlook on the world!
   We are going on our first family vacation this weekend. I am thrilled. We are taking our 4 day weekend and making the most of it. We are headed up to Big Sur to check out a few waterfalls, taking hwy 1 up to Monterey for the day, then on to San Francisco for a brief tour of the city. I am so excited about the drive up the coastline. I hope Julie is amiable.
   Spring is definitely here and I am loving the warmer temperatures. We are filling our days with swinging and trying out some new recipes. I love baking, but baking doesn't love our waistlines. So far, I have baked a cookie that is comprised of 2 bananas, a cup of oats, and a few chocolate chips. I ate the entire batch by myself, so I guess they're good. I tried a Paleo Sweet Potato Chai muffin today that left much to be desired. Ugh... Terrible texture. I am assuming there will be a lot of hit and misses in my desire to find some more healthy alternatives to our beloved brownies, cookies, and ice cream.
   I just finished a long, long book, but while I was trying to finish it, I got Dinner: A Love Story in the mail. I have only flipped through it so far, but I am so excited to sit down and read it all. Never have I found a cookbook that I wanted to read cover to cover.  We have started reading at night before we turn out the light and I am loving it. I really enjoy the time to calm down from a crazy baby day or reconnect after being away from my husband for way too long.
    I have been trying to turn some of my worry over to God these past few weeks, trying to spend more time with the Lord, and give him control of my life... my baby, my marriage, my husband, my internal dialogues with myself.  I am happy with where this is leading me and excited to go deeper.
    I am slowly whittling away at my to-do list. I may only get one thing done a week, but that's one down.. Right now, I have a lot of plants that need some care. I think I'll dedicate nap time to that today.  Gardening is good for the soul.
   I hope you are having a good week and don't mind this long rambling letter. Miss you girl!
Love Jen

She's not mine.

Dear Emily,
  You might recall this week when I called you all flustered after my baby swallowed the lion's tail off of her Noah's Ark quilt. Did I tell you I called 911? Turns out that they don't give you medical advice over the phone... and in my better judgement, I decided against letting them send the paramedic out. It would have made for an even better story if I had... After all, it was just a piece of string.

Last night, Julie woke me up with her coughing... coughing hard. I went in and bundled her up and rocked her back to sleep. It was one of those moments where you feel like you should stay there all night holding them upright, rocking them...
This morning she started coughing again to the point where I thought she couldn't breathe.
I tried to get a hold of the pediatrician with little success and was told that I could have an appointment tomorrow. Not good enough! So I walked in to the clinic. Hello, Crazy lady with a happy, active baby here with no sign of sickness.  I love that the nurse humored me and checked her out and listened to her chest.

Over reaction at its finest... but where do you draw the line. As a mom my job in life is to protect her and make sure that she is always safe and secure.

This is not the first time, nor will it be the last, that I am reminded that she does not belong to me. Every time that I think I will home school her, lock her in a closet, board it up, never let her out of the house... God says no. He only gave her to me to borrow for a little while. So I am giving her to God every day.  He has way more power to love, protect, and heal her little body than I ever could.

Love, Jen

Dear Jen, Thank you

Dear Jen,

In 10 days I turn 29. You sent me a package in the mail to remind me of, or rather, to celebrate my last year of youth.

 Did you know, I never planned on aging? I thought I would look young forever. I looked 18 for a long time. And then, I didn't anymore.

Time. It's a sneaky thing.

But I feel better than I did at 18. In body and mind. Thank God for that.

Someone told me that 29 is supposed to be the best year of your life. I think it's because you are so desperate to get things done before 30. Since my calendar is filling up with travel and work, my notebook is full of ideas, and my lap is filled with my blue eyed girl; I think 29 will be the best of years.

I'm going make sure of it.

Love,
Emily

Memorizing her

Dear Emily,

  I get it... I do! It seems like living and enjoying the moments and drinking it all in has become more important than everything else. Documenting life falls by the wayside... I have been memorizing the moments in my mind instead. I stop and smell and listen and really enjoy.

The crackling candle, the smell of my baby's head... the way that she wraps her arms around my neck and ruffles her fingers through my hair. The way her crying has turned to babbling complaining... I even love that. I feel like she is really trying to tell me something. 

The holidays came and went so fast. It was such a blessing to have Travis home for five days in a row. I wish he could retire now and stay home with us forever.

I am treasuring the mornings right now. I go get the baby at her first morning cry, bring her to bed with me, nurse her, we fall back into a drowsy morning nap together. I love the way her eyes flutter open when she is waking, rubbing them not so gently, then realizing that I am there and she grins at me. I love that moment. Jackson at the foot of the bed. We lay here touching hands, playing for awhile, not wanting to leave the moment. 

We get up and I fix us both our breakfast and we sit down at the table with my cup of tea and we eat together.... someone to share breakfast with every morning... what I have been longing for. After that it seems like the morning always speeds up, but those first 2 hours are so good and I refuse to let them go. 

Such beauty and heartache in this New Year. Please be patient with me this year. I'll need you more than ever. 

Love, Jen

Dear Jen, Deep of Winter

Dear Jen,

Though my heart and mind have been full of thoughts and letters for you, they take form in typo filled texts and loves of your Instagram feed. Is it presumptuous of me to assume you understand? Oh I think you do.

This season has been a whirly wind of baby, work, and responsibility. Without sounding too rainbows and roses, it's been a blessing of a year. This year I have grown in new ways, have been filled with pride, humbled, and found new love around every turn.

I wish I had more inspirationally beautiful pictures of smiling blue-eyed babies, and candid shots of us playing as a family in the snow to share. But my husband prefers my face to a lens these days, and I'm learning to oblige him. Most of the pictures I attempt these days resemble my life, a blur of a running baby, with my messy house in focus. The internet does not want that. Let us maintain the illusion that I keep a perfect home (though if you read this letter, you probably know this truth already).

Seeing you in pictures and video is like seeing a mirror of me and my girl one year ago. There is certainly an ache in my heart when I think of her 6 month old circular head, and easy squatty self. It was all cheeks to kiss, and bellies to tickle. I hope you are doing plenty of both.

We are deep in winter now. I find myself getting tired at 8:00, since the sun has been gone for 4 hours by then, and it feels right to slip into pj's and watch something uninspiring. The only reason I'm writing now, after 9:00 at night is because Dan convinced me to have a cup of coffee with him, and now he sleeps soundly on the couch. But when January first comes around, we all get that feeling like NOW is the time to change our ways. I'm trying not to get too excited about resolutions. We have a good three months until anything gets done up here in the frigid North. But I did get roped into running a half marathon in the spring. I'm not sure how I allowed peer pressure to get me to this point, but it really is enjoyable to set and meet a goal every single week. It makes me feel strong. And that IS a good thing.

I've been drawing a little everyday. Working on a little project, and seeing where it goes. I'm making something that has value to me, and my family. It fulfills my soul to have a little creative time everyday.  It will be something more someday.

What about you, friend?

Love,
Emily

Thoughts

Dear Emily,
   So funny... Your last letter and my devotional were on the exact same topic.  You are so right... We are so blessed to stay at home with our young ones. Yeah, it can get challenging and lonely at times, but I could not imagine leaving her every day! We have such wonderful husbands, who put so much time in at work to give us the lives that we have. So blessed.
 
 I have a few things on my mind today.  Recently, you asked me if I liked living in San Diego.  I am pretty sure I responded by saying that I like it, but don't want to live here forever. That's still true, but it reminded me to take a second look at where God has placed us for this season.  We truly live in a beautiful, remarkable place with so much to do and experience. I tend to forget about it all when I coop myself up at home with Julie.  On Saturday, Jules and I joined a friend at the farmer's market in Little Italy and I am always amazed by that place.  It always makes me want to branch out and try new things, new vegetables, new ways to eat certain things.  And just last night Travis and I were reading reviews for a Himalayan restaurant in town. I want to try every ethnicity before we move! I am amazed by the city. Yesterday I was driving home from Target and had a beautiful view of the ocean.  Oh, the things I take for granted...
 
 I am also blessed by the church that we have here. It is pretty different from our previous couple of churches.  We love it and as we are getting to know people better, I am loving it even more. We just joined a new life group, one closer to our house, and the woman that leads it, with her husband, has asked to disciple me, so we are meeting every other week. I am excited about what the future of that relationship holds and thankful for an older woman to speak into my life.  It has been new relationships lately that have put me at peace with where God has placed us.

Have you ever been discipled by someone? What makes you grateful for the place you live? How do you keep yourself living in the present and fully experiencing life?

Love, Jennifer

Dear Jen, Work Week

Dear Jen,

I've been thinking lately about my job as a mother.

You probably hear from time to time that it's the 'hardest job in the world'. I disagree. Moms everywhere may kill me for saying so. It's likely because I have the best of all children in the world (and only one), but this job is seriously amazing. Though the beginning can be challenging on every level, it is still the very BEST I could ever hope for.

What do we asked from our careers? To be simulated, successful, fulfilled, rewarded.

Though I still have aspirations outside of motherhood, and I am blessed to work from home; right now, this mother gig is as so rewarding.

I realize that Dan has the harder job. When I leave for my work days, I know how much it hurts to be away. He has to leave his little love every morning. He comes home hearing how she's asked for him all day. "Dada?...No....Dada?....Nope", she shakes her head disappointed. And now, when I ask her where he is, she replies in a quiet voice, "eerk".

I am so thankful for this work, in this time, and grateful for Dan and his daily sacrifice.

Hoping you are having a wonderful work week.

Love,

Emily

Transparency

Dear Emily,
  I recently watched a tv show; one that I hate to admit I watched, even a whole season of it, but in it there was a girl who came to know her real family after living with foster parents and being passed around all her life.  When she met her real family and made real friends, she hid her secrets from them because she was afraid they wouldn't love her if they knew the real her and everything she had been through.  In the end, when they did find out her secrets, they loved her more.

It is amazing what honesty does for relationships. It is amazing what being transparent with people does for friendships.  It is becoming apparent to me that people want the truth about us.  It makes us real, it bonds us. It lets us know that we are not the only ones that struggle with such and such. We fight the same battles... people, women, mothers.

The more I get to know you, the more I treasure your heart.
Thank you for the dear, sweet package and lovely letter.
Did you know how much I loved that hat when Clara wore it? I wanted it so badly for my future baby. I had forgotten about it until now. I love it so much. Thank you!!! I treasure it all.

Love, Jen

Dear Jen, Good Night Moon.

Pictures from July 2012

Dear Jen,

You asked about our bedtime routine. You told me what you remember of yours as a child, and what you hope it will be for you and Julie in the future.

As children we didn't have a set routine, no special song we sang or one book read every night. Or if we did, I don't remember it. My mom and dad, books read, prayers said, it was enough of a routine just have them there every night. I felt so safe as a child, bedtime was comfort and warmth and love to me. I don't remember fighting or struggling with the night. Though I had an active mind and often stayed awake for a long time thinking. When I was older they would play a cassette for me and I would lay in bed listening to the familiar little tale of a Scottish firefly and the scared little girl who needed to know God was watching over her. I would call to my parents through the thin walls of our old house, to flip the tape so I could listen to it again and again. They were so patient, and even they knew those songs by heart. We sing them to Clara today.

Clara has always been a great little sleeper. She is almost excited and anxious to get into her crib while we are working through her bedtime routine. She lays down flat in her crib arms to her side, and waits to be tucked in. I give her a kiss and tell her Jesus loves her, and walk away quickly. We've done this regularly for a while now. Though she spent different parts of her first year waking up in the night she was always easy to put down.

She is starting to have different ideas about bedtime now. She understands that story time, the milk, the pacifier and the gentle rocking are all leading to that time alone in bed. Though she's clearly tired, she's fighting a little harder these days. She's like a child now. She asks for book after book, now that one, and this one, and that one again. She says "moon, moon" over and over. Good Night Moon. My family did not grow up with this book. So it's a bit of an oddity to me. It's sweet, but it's not sentimental to me at all, and I struggle through it 10 times a day. I liked it at first, but for Pete's sake, mush, and brush go to bed already. Clearly she loves it. So I will read it 1000 times a day if it pleases her.

Last night she was extra tired due to the time change, and our 5 am wake up. I laid her in bed; she looked back at me perfectly still, wide and waiting to be tucked in. I gave her a baby doll; she tucked dolly under her arm. I laid a fluffy pillow next to her head, and covered her with her softest receiving blanket she's started to attach to. Then I tucked her in with your handmade quilt. She ran her fingers through her wispy blonde hair like she has done since she's had enough hair to comb. I kissed her forehead and she stayed still while I said a little prayer. Every night is this special. Every night my heart feels like it's going to burst out of my chest with love and awe that this baby girl could be mine. Thank you Jesus, for this gift of motherhood.

Love,

Emily

Dear Jen, Student of Life

Dear Jen,


Someone asked me today if you were the only one who writes on this blog. Do I ever write back?  But we promised ourselves we'd write when we were moved, when we had something to say. I suppose that's today.

I'm not going to count the days and unanswered letters in between. But your thoughts have been mine. Your thankfulness for new mornings, your love of and desire for sleep, your hopes of routine and tradition, I nod as I read. I fail everyday, and start a resolution every morning. I'm sinking into deep winter sleeps, losing productivity while gaining renewal. I'm reflecting on every moment I spend with Clara, and wondering how it will affect her in the future.

That's the one that is moving my heart most often.

How am I shaping who she will become?

That's where so much of this self reflection stems from.

I have this little person, this student of life; my Clara.
She is watching me everyday. She is learning how to live life.

Will I be the person I want her to be?
Will I show her how to love and have patience and generosity?

Will I display a strong, confident and beautiful woman?
Am I the best example of a role model for my most precious gift?

These questions weigh heavy on my mind. They push me everyday to look inside my heart, to find what is not healthy, what is not beautiful, and to work it out of my life.

Do you find yourself working through anything like this?





Love,
Emily

Heart things.

Dear Emily,

I was flipping through Instagram today and came across a post in which the woman mentioned losing a baby. I don't know specifics, but it got me to thinking about what moves our heart. The thought of miscarrying or losing a child brings chills to my spine... but what else moves us?

I am kind of experimenting with some sleep training... just trying to get Julie to nap in her crib and sometimes to go down without the long bouts of bouncing and patting. I let her cry herself to sleep this morning and it only took 15 minutes. Not bad... but then I tried it again for her second nap and I gave in at 20. It was too heartbreaking. Her sad wails moved my heart, deep down. At that point, I needed her to know I was there and I rushed in picked her up and snuggled her so tight. I wouldn't let her go. She eventually fell asleep after some peaceful swaying. It was a sweet moment and I loved that I could make the decision when enough was enough.  Holding our babies moves our heart.

My husband was gone for 4 days this week at a conference and even though I talked to him every day and even Skyped once, when we came home and hugged me so tight that it lifted me off the floor, it moved my heart.

Three separate friends this week moved my heart, one brought me muffins, one brought me dinner, and one brought me coconut and pumpkin teas.  Obviously, the key to my heart is food... haha, but the blessing was so good.

Dear friends sharing the news of a third baby on the way moves my heart... bringing new chubby thighs into this world. The world needs more of that kind of joy.  What has moved your heart this week?

I hope you have a lovely weekend. A friend has made us plan a date for Saturday, so she is keeping Julie and I am taking Travis out for a birthday brunch at a fancy restaurant on the beach. I am so excited!  Hooray for dates!

Love, Jen

New Morning

Dear Emily,
  Do you ever have days where you feel like you failed?  You skipped housework, your baby never napped, everyone is grumpy, and you watched way too many episodes of some tv show on Netflix that isn't even good and certainly should not have had that much time dedicated to it, but you just needed to make it to bedtime.  Don't you hate it when you count down the hours until the little goes to sleep.  What a terrible thing! But sometimes, I guess that's how it is. I am so thankful that every day is a new day, every morning is new and my baby almost always wakes up with a smile on her face. Here's to starting each morning afresh.
Love, Jen

PS. I am dying to have coffee and biscotti with you. February is too far away.

Sleep

Dear Emily,
   I am convinced that God provides us with sleep in much the same way that he provides us with food.  Can it be that sleep is like manna and he gives us how much we need to make it through the day?  Maybe this is only true for mothers.  He helps us manage and sustains us.  Last night, after several nights of Julie waking up 3 and 4 times to nurse unnecessarily, she managed to sleep for over 12 hours with only 2 wakings. It was a glorious night and a lovely morning in which I was able to regain my sanity.
And it is a good thing, because she has fought sleep like none other today.  It's been a rough day, but I am so thankful that I was well rested for it!
Thank you Lord for your sleep that sustains and refreshes... and thank you for sleeping babies.
How are you sleeping these days?  Sleep seems to be at the fore front of all my conversations.
Love, Jen

Picnic

Dear Emily,
    Although Fall looks a little different here, we had an amazingly beautiful, ideal San Diego day.  We picnicked with a dear friend at Kate Sessions Park. The afternoon made me so thankful for dear friends... people that we can tell anything to, people who love our children, people that pray for us and affirm us. Thank heavens for these people coming to the rescue when you truly need it.

It's going to be a beautiful weekend. We are going to spend some much needed time with dad and hopefully get outside some more!  I hope your weekend is lovely!

Love, Jen

Snail Mail

Dear Emily,
   Because sometimes there is nothing like real snail mail to warm your heart... On it's way to you.
My sister in law gave me the most beautiful set of labels and stickers from Rifle Paper Company and I am elated to use them. I flip through them just about every night.  I am so smitten with them... Can you believe me? All over stickers....
     Love, Jen