The Blessing Tree - A Unique Bridal or Baby Shower Idea

Tis the season for showers.  We recently hosted an afternoon tea bridal shower.  It was lovely.   I really enjoy hosting bridal and baby showers.  There are so many amazing ideas and themes to choose from.  

Here is a fun idea from a baby shower that we hosted:

THE BLESSING TREE

Step 1:  Go to your local plant nursery and purchase a small tree.  The ficus tree is a great choice. 

 Step 2:  Place the tree in a basket or pretty pot.

Step 3:  Decorate the tree with little baubles and trinkets.  With an ocean themed baby shower, I used little silver starfish and tiny capris shell rings to adorn the tree.  Clear fishing line worked well when securing the decorations to the branches.

 Step 4:  And now for the fun part.  Provide guests with small hanging note cards that they can write on.  Sentiments could include pieces of advice, quotes, verses, or special memories.   I used round, metal-lined labels tied with thin blue ribbons.  Make sure to provide a high quality fine felt tipped pen for guests to write with.

Step 5:  Secure sentiments to the tree.  The tree will be a work in progress throughout the party.

Now the mother-to-be (or even the bride-to-be) has a very special keepsake to remind her how much she is loved.

Hugs,

Melissa

Birthday Boy in the House!!!

Hello there friends!  I hope that your week is going very well.  Today is a special day here at the Lehman Hacienda!  Our middle monkey boy is turning 14!


Sniff, sniff, dabbing eyes...could this be bittersweet tears or is this an allergic reaction from the copious amount of Axe Body Spray that our boy has just sprayed on?

It seems like just yesterday that this little guy was toddling around here

getting boo-boos on his face and eating pizza.

And now?  Well, I guess some things have not changed.

He's still getting boo-boos on his face...

and he still likes pizza.

Photo credit

One thing that has changed though is our love for this boy.  It grows stronger and stronger with each passing moment.  And I might add that he gets more handsome and more amazing each day. 

Happy Birthday, sweet boy!  We love you so!

Hugs, 

From all of us

P.S.  Oh, and those tears, they are definitely not from the Axe Body Spray.

Under My Umbrella..Ella..Ella

Grab you paddles everyone, because I am pretty sure that if it doesn't stop raining soon here in Central Florida we are going have to start row, row, rowing our boats.

Every day when it rains my younger monkeys sing, "Rain, rain go away! Don't come back another day!"

The other day, I was singing some other "rainy day" songs with our little monkey.  Song like "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider"  So cute!  And, "It's Raining, It's Pouring!"  Um, not so cute! 

Just look at these lyrics:

It's raining, it's pouring

The old man is snoring

He went to bed and bumped his head

And he didn't get up in the morning.

And why didn't the old man get up?  I'll tell you why.  Because he died!  It just makes my mind race with questions. What happened to that poor old man?  Was it foul play?  Did the bump kill him or was it old age?  Wait, maybe his wife had heard one snore too many and...oh, dear did she just snap and clock him a good one on the noggin?  

You try singing that song to a little kid and not scarring them for life!  

There is one silver lining in the dark clouds above us.  Rain means you have to use umbrellas, and we have some umbrella loving monkeys around here.  Like this one:

If umbrella dancing was an Olympic sport, she would be the gold medal winner:

Hugs, 

Melissa

The Three Hermanos - How My Brothers Changed My Life

Blake, Dennis Michael, and Marc Paul

I am the oldest of six children.  I have two amazing sisters and three awesome brothers.  As you can imagine we had a full house while I was growing up.  Full of people, yes, but also full of many other blessings and lessons.  One of the most beautiful lessons that I learned was that there is always room in the heart of a family for more love.  

My sisters and I witnessed this first hand when our parents decided to become foster parents.  I was in high school when they opened up their hearts and home to children who needed to be nurtured.  

Shortly after they became foster parents, my parents decided that they would like to adopt.  My sisters and I were over the moon, because we wanted a brother. Within a few months, my parents were informed that there was a seven year old little boy who needed a forever family.  The moment that we met Dennis Micheal, that spunky guy with the raspy voice, my sisters and I were smitten.  We promptly claimed him as "our little brother"  and the rest is history.  

Two years later, my mom and dad amazed us again when they asked us how we would feel about welcoming another addition to our family.  All of us knew what a gift Dennis Michael was, and we could not imagine life without him.  We all agreed that another brother or sister would be wonderful.  

Our brother, Blake, was born that later that year.  I went to the hospital with my mom to bring him home.  I was filled with awe and wonder as I witnessed my mom holding her new baby for the first time.  Right then and there, I realized that some mothers carry their children in their womb, but all mothers carry their children in their hearts.  Even if a mom does not experience physical labor they still "give life" to their children through the labor of love.  There are no words to describe the feeling that I had as I watched my mom gently buckle, that tiny infant into his carseat before we left the hospital.  Knowing that he was coming home with us, that he was our new little brother...I still get overwhelmed with emotion remembering that moment.  

And so, our family grew in many ways during my high school years.  Our hearts were forever changed by the love of two tiny boys.  None of us could imagine what life would be like without Dennis Michael and Blake.  We were meant to be together. 

My parents continued to open their hearts and home to foster children for many more years.  In 1997, to our surprise and delight, they decided to adopt our sweet brother Marc Paul.  That boy has a heart the size of Texas.  He is a lover indeed, and the coolest kid on the block! 

My parents taught me a very profound lesson about love.  My brothers changed my life.

Hugs, 

Melissa

Cutie Cabana

The following "song" must be sung in your best Barry Manilow voice:

At the Cutie, Cutie Cabana

The funniest spot South of Atlanta

At the Cute, Cutie Cabana

Pancakes and bacon got the party shaking

At the Cutie...

They ate their grub...

They ate their grub....

Cutie Cabana

Cutie Cabana

Hugs, 

Melissa

If You Take a Toddler to a Ballet...

He will ask you for your I-Phone...

Which will remind him that he needs to play his favorite "Talking Tom Cat" game...

And it will be entirely too loud and inappropriate for the theater...

So you will turn it down...

And he will turn it up...

Which will prompt you to quickly distract him and hide said I-Phone...

Hiding the I-Phone will give him another idea...

And he will ask you to find him as he plays a rowdy game of hide-and-seek under the chair in front of you...

Which will make you want to crawl under your chair and hide as you apologize profusely to the sweet woman in that chair in front of you that he just accidentally kicked...

And he will realize that you are talking to the nice lady in front of you...

Which will remind him of the "Talking Tom Cat" game...

So he will ask you for your I-Phone again.

3 year old + 3 hour dance recital = 3 Ibuprofen for each parent (and the sweet lady in front of me)

Hugs,

Melissa

So...How Did It Go?

Wowsers!  Thank you everyone for all of the prayers, well wishes and encouragement!  The audition went really well. I want to share what happened with you, but first, I have to show you the cutest "audition" ever.  This is our youngest monkey singing "Fly Me to the Moon" and reciting some of the roller coaster monologue that he has memorized:

The audition was at 9:05 PM at the Black Box Theatre at Loch Haven Park.  It was nice to have it later in the evening because we were able to get the monkeys fed and settled in for the night before walking out the door.  Pete came with me, which was such a relief.  He let me practice ad nauseam on the way to the theatre.  We arrived early, so we took a walk around Loch Haven Park.  It is a beautiful open grassy area,  full of fun childhood memories for me.  After some more practice and prayer, it was time to check in for the audition.

At the check in desk, I turned in my headshot with my resume neatly attached. There was an information form that I had to fill out.  I had to list all of my contact information, stats (that includes weight (fun!), height, eye and hair color, and age range), vocal range, dance experience (does Zumba count? :-) ), and occupation.  I thought about that occupation question for a moment or two.  Would Domestic Engineer be a good answer?  Or maybe, Child Development Specialist or Director of Education?  Expert Diaper Changer? Chief Nose Wiper?  Professional Boo Boo Kisser? I opted for Homemaker since that pretty much sums it up. 

There were a couple of younger gals ahead of me and because we were sitting right outside the theatre doors, I was able to hear their monologues and songs.  They both did great! It warmed my heart to see or actually hear such ambition and giftedness at such a young age.

When it was my turn to audition, I was greeted by a very amiable team of people, which included an accompanist, a director and a technical assistant.  The theatre was small and intimate.  The tech did a short sound check, the director asked me what I wanted to do first (I choose the monologue) and then it was time to begin.  Thankfully, my friend, Jen, had told me ahead of time that you are video taped during the audition or I would have been very surprised.

As I started the monologue, I felt a big internal pang of panic.  My mind sort of felt numb and for a split second I was positive that I was going to forget everything that I rehearsed.  I felt slightly awkward and very scared.  Then I realized that my "real" reaction was perfect because after all I was portraying a very nervous lady faced with the awkward situation of breaking up with her boyfriend on a roller coaster.  As I moved through the monologue, I was thrilled to hear some laughter from the director.  It made me feel great to know that I was making someone laugh.  I love that aspect of acting!  The monologue came to an end and I went immediately into the song.  The room had a lot of reverb which was nice (kind of like singing in the shower).  Then it was all over. A monologue, a song, three minutes and done!

While I was auditioning, Pete was pacing the hall right outside the theatre doors.  He said that he could hear me the whole time and he was really excited.  He said that monologue was really funny and that I nailed the song.  What a guy!

Without a doubt, this has been an amazing adventure!  We have had a lot of fun as a family, preparing for this audition.  It has been so cool to bounce ideas off the kids and to get their creative input.  Pete has been the best vocal and acting coach anyone could ask for.  He even created an accompaniment track for me. It has been a joy to share this journey with my family and friends.  We will see what happens next, but really, I already feel like I have been cast in the best roles of all.  I am a very blessed wife, mom, sister, daughter, niece, friend and child of God.

Hugs,

Melissa