Mother I Love You | less cake {more frosting}

Happy Mothering Day-2012

Authored By: ellie g Author/Writer
May 13, 2012 --3:34 PM

Many of you know I am spending this Mother’s Day preparing for surgery.
And yep.
Technically, it’s pretty much a result of being a “mother”.

Only PLEASE don’t talk about that around my 9 year old son, who has finally figured that out, and thinks ALL of this is his fault. Nearly broke my ACTUAL heart.

This year I was feeling pressure to get up a big Mother’s Day post and new printable…..and my husband finally put his foot down. As a stress I did not need. And know what? He’s right. (boo! I hate it when that happens)

Last year I POURED out my heart and soul into this Mothering Day Post about my proposal to change the name of the holiday. And I still stand by every single word. Along with the fact that the printable I made for that post remains among my VERY favorites I’ve ever made.

So maybe head over there, if you didn’t read that last year.

This year, I’m just showing you where I learned to be a mother:

From my AMAZING Mother. Who raised 4 children as a single Mom. And still rocks as the best Grandma of all times. And taught me:

“Life isn’t always equal. But it’s always fair.”

And that quote has taken my whole life to even begin to grasp. But from a woman who was widowed at age 32….it’s freakin’ profound.

Then there’s my ROCK STAR 94 year old Grandma. Who feels that I need a new and “freshly-pressed” house-coat to wear to the hospital. Because I wouldn’t “want the Doctors to see me in something old or unkept.” (gasp!) Not only did she raise my own freakin’ amazing Mom…..but 7 other kids.

My favorite quote from her has always been:

“Remember Lara, no superiors and damn few equals.”

It’s a family quote, passed down from generation to generation.
And I get super irritated with the people who quote it without the “damn”. Because this comes from a woman who only swears to quote this line.
For reals.
So it’s imperative that it stay that way.

So there you have it. Wisdom from 2 of the absolute best mothers I know.

Happy Mothering Day 2012 to all of you

who ARE Mothers
who WANT to be Mothers
who HAVE an amazing Mother
who USED to be a Mother
who have the QUALITIES of a Mother

All of you with the goodness to nurture other human-beings. Happy Mothering Day.

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Creating Me…A Mothering Day Post

Authored By: ellie g Author/Writer
May 6, 2011 --4:40 PM

I’m sure we’re all aware that Mother’s Day is on Sunday.
(were you NOT aware? OH NO! You’re in trouble!)

I want to start by stating that I was born to the world’s most FANTASTIC woman. Hands down.
(I’m sorry if you had been under the impression that YOU had the world’s most fantastic mother. I hate to burst your bubble.)

No matter what trials I’ve had to go through in this life. They pale in comparison to the blessing it has been to be her daughter. She is an example of strength, loyalty, nurturing, endurance, and positive attitude. And plus, she’s super cute to boot! (right?)

This is one of my favorite pictures of me with the “girls” in my family. My Mom, my sister, and my sister-in-laws. That’s my super cute Mom. Right there in the middle. Hard to pick her out, right? She’s just one of the girls.

I adore BEING a mother. And I enjoy HAVING a Mother.

However, what I DON’T enjoy is that not everyone loves this holiday. Nor does it seem like a celebration for some amazing women.

Some of my dear friends have lost their Mothers (some very prematurely) and Mother’s Day is a sad reminder that they don’t have that person here with them on this earth.
Some of my other friends do not have children of their own. While some people choose not to become Mother’s, these sweet women YEARN to have children. Every second. Of every day. And this holiday seems like it’s mocking them.
Some others have sent their children back to heaven. And this day makes them aware that their arms are a little bit empty.

Certainly Mothers Day is a wonderful day, and worthy of a HUGE CELEBRATION. In fact, we should probably celebrate Mothers more that just 24 hours each year.
(someone tell that to my kids. I need more than just a 24 hour break. Geez. Who’s in charge of benefits at this job? H. R.? Anyone?)

But I want to change it to “Mothering Day”.

Mothering, the act of caring for another.
Now THAT is a universal trait given to women. All women.

A celebration of the things that make women unique. That make them inherently giving, and nurturing, and soft. Those are still the things I love in my mother. But they are also things I adore in my son’s school teacher. Or in my Aunts. Or in women that I admire.

And they are traits that I hope to work on in myself. And perfect.

If you are running short on time for a Mother’s Day present….(and PS….you TOTALLY are!)

I have this little printable quote available for you. I printed it out this morning and put it in a FAN-TAS-TIC bright colored frame. I love it! It would make a really thoughtful gift. And not just for your “Mom”. But for a woman who has taught you about “mothering”. By taking care of you, or nurturing you. Or someone you admire.

Because I am CONFIDENT that most women cannot be over-appreciated.
No one can. Really.
“You’re amazing” is never a bad sentiment.

“life isn’t about finding yourself
life is about creating yourself”
George Bernard Shaw

I have pondered this quote for DAYS now. Days and days. And the more I think about it the more I ADORE it.

It’s about wanting to be the woman you admire. And discovering what you expect from yourself.
And rather than comparing yourself to women you aspire to be like….and feeling defeated…..
it’s about MAKING yourself into the person you want to be.

Man. That couldn’t possibly be more empowering!

GIRL POWER!

This printable is sized at 5×7. It won’t look optimal if printed at a larger size.  To use, click on image, enlarge to full size, right click & save to your desktop, and print as you’d like!  Super simple!

As usual PLEASE follow the following rules for Less Cake {more frosting} printables:
LCMF prinatables are for PERSONAL USE only. You may not re-sell, re-distribute, or claim them as your own.
Please do not remove the watermark.
If posting on the internet, you MUST post a link back to this website.
Personalization, color changes, and other customizations are not available on freebie printables. They are offered “as-is”.
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*edit—(I also had a request to make this quote in Spanish.  And while I don’t normally alter printables by request, I thought this was a really great idea!  Plus she gave me the Spanish translation, which I wouldn’t know.    So for you, Olga…)
Have an amazingly, fantastic weekend.
Remember a woman who has inspired you.
Whether it be your ACTUAL Mother or not.
Remember your own worth as a woman.  Regardless of whether you have children in your care.
Remember the power you have to become all you want to be.
And create that within yourself.
Happy Mothering Day!
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Filed Under: Mother I Love You, NOT crafts, print it

Close Your Eyes Mom!!

Authored By: ellie g Author/Writer
May 8, 2010 --6:58 AM

So, I spent the last couple days working on about a ba-jillion little projects. I should just buy my Mom a gift card to Target. She’d love it. But somehow, more often than not, I think I ought to try out my craft ideas on her. Maybe it’s because I know when they head south….she’ll still pretend to like them!

It’s no different than my son and daughter bringing me their pictures and letters that they worked on this afternoon.
“Oh, sweetheart! That looks JUST like Mommy!”
It’s a God given “Mom ability” to love the things your children make. And even though I’m all grown up…I still want to make things for my Mommy. And she’s still required to pretend to like them.

Anyway….my Mom is out of town this weekend, so I’ll be giving her these next week. Mom, if you happen to be checking in…and you don’t wanna spoil it…this is your chance to go to the “People of Walmart” site, and otherwise entertain yourself.

I’ve seen little variations on this idea all over the blog-o-sphere. And I fell in love with the idea. I’m kind of the Queen of all things “to do lists.” And I’ve spent years trying to come up with pretty and practical ways to make them. (In fact I made a version of this for myself that I’ll be sharing next week)

I decided to do 2 for my Mom. One for a grocery list, and one for a “to do” type list.

I started out with just a plain ‘ol inexpensive frame from Ikea. (PS…Ikea…again….I heart you BIG TIME!)

I found some paper I really loved, and that would match her kitchen. **See the bottom of the post for brand info** Make sure that if you need to seam them that you make the patterns line up.
Here’s a tip: some of the “aged” papers don’t work as well because the aging doesn’t line up. The patterns might, but the aging makes it obvious where a seam is. Just consider that.
Also, am I just late to the party…or did you realize that painting tape comes in different stickinesses? Well, it does. And the “light” stick works great for holding things in place without ever ripping it.

The lazy lady’s way to cut frames out. Use the insert, and cut around it. Fast. Easy. No measuring. No mistakes. Brilliant!

After it’s the right size…get some double sided tacky tape. Keep your paint tape on the front, and fold one over the other. (so the bottom layer is exposed) Apply the tape as close to the edge as possible, and flip the top back over. This is the best hidden seam I could come up with.
Tip: Glue dots are too thick. The paper will gap. Learned the hard way. Just trust me.

Then it’s just add wording and wah-lah. Done. I used stickers. (and I’m fully aware that a dye cutting machine needs to join my family.) Just be advised that the spacing is crucial. And if the paper doesn’t have lines to follow…you might want to do a super light pencil line. I added a flower to this one just for sparkle. E6000 seemed to do the trick pretty well for an adhesive.

This one got some coupon clips at the bottom. WalMart has these great clips that have blank circles on them. I just cut out my paper and added it for the perfect match.

I also added the pens with a little sticky velcro.
Tip: I did the velcro on the lid so that if the pen dries out you can buy a new one, switch caps, and not need to get more velcro.
You might have already thought of that. But I thought it was a stroke of brilliance…and you can’t convince me otherwise!

I’m pretty pleased with the results. And it meets all my crafting requirements. Cheap, customized, cool, and fairly fast. It would have been faster, but I learned a few lessons the hard way. Hopefully my mistakes will help you avoid the same ones.

One final tip: The reason I have a grocery list posted out in the open is to make sure that I write down items as I think of them or immediately as I use them up. Mostly for things like “ketchup” or “baking soda” that I just assume I have. I hate going to make something and remembering that I ran out if it last time. DOH!!! This way, I avoid that frustration.

Happy Mothers Day. Happy pretending to like your gifts day. Happy list making. Happy non-crafting.

**Paper:
Basic Grey, Nook & Pantry, Fruit Salad
Sassafras, Monstrosity, Spot On

**Stickers:
American Crafts, Remarks, Roosevelt

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Filed Under: Mother I Love You, NOT crafts

Remember telling your 3rd grade friend.... "stop copying me?" I do. But that's not now. I put this information on my blog for you to copy away. Well, with a few rules about how to play fair. Feel free to use an image...as long as you link back to this blog. (I'd love for you to drop me a line...so I can see what you're doing with it) Feel free to use my ideas to make stuff for your home. But these ideas are for personal use only. They are NOT intended for resale or re-distribution. If you have any questions about whether you can "copy me"...feel free to E-MAIL me and ask!