Movie Day

Well on Tuesday Carolyn went to see her first movie...Barnyard. I of course had to snap lots of pics of her for her scrapbook. She did pretty well but it was a little long for her. She said Hi to just about everyone in the theater. It was adorable.

Untitled

Hey there webworld. Just thought that I'd post something since it has been awhile. Life in the Zelkovich home is good. We've been in prayer about a few things and when God gives us a clear direction we'll share but until then. Oh the pic is of me and my twin at the Soul 2 Soul concert in St. Louis on the 14th of July.

The kiddos

Well after about 10 days of family, Carolyn and I just got back from the airport dropping off our last visitor (at least until Friday). Evan's family was in for a surprise birthday party for Grandma Zelkovich who turned 80 on Thursday. We had such a wonderful time visiting and Carolyn cheeseballing for everyone. But now the attentioned spoiled child will have a dose of reality until Friday when her grandpa Filippi comes up for a visitor. Well here's a pic of my two favorite nephews Caleb (the eldest) and Joshua. Of course Carolyn is featured too. I love these kids and my family. Enjoy!

Just for laughs

Okay...just wanted to put make you all smile....So cute. It's funny, this was the first time she has ever had pigtails and she spent so much time in the mirror flicking them and laughing. Enjoy!

Quiet

Well the house is quiet and everyone is sleeping, well my twin and the kids at least. Evan's out golfing with my brother-in-law...something I wish he did more often. Recently Evan posed a good question to me that was brought up in his discussion group with some men. Do the wolves in sheep clothing talked about in the Bible, know that they are in fact wolves? Interesting. I think that the answer can go either way depending on the situation. I sometimes feel like I am in disguise in this world only because hardly anyone really knows the inside of me. I open up to people with time much like my husband but it takes situations like a game of golf to get Evan to open up and sometimes share his goofy side (which that man can be crazy in the right crowd) and for me, I don't know. Right now I'm spending the weekend in St. Louis and for the first time YEARS my sister and I will be having a girls night out which I am very much looking forward too. While we talk, it will be nice to get to know her better and likewise it will be nice sharing new things about me with her. But right now with the peace and quiet surrounding me...I'll ponder...I am ever a wolf that scares off people or just another scared sheep trying to blend in. I know a bit off from the Bibical message but the characters are still the same. Lol.
I'm out. Jess

kitchen help

My world can sometimes be chaotic between cakes for people, teaching classes and raising a daughter all the while maintaining a happy home. With 6 teeth coming in, shots last Friday and a new found sense of self, my little angel baby is a challenge but yet there are (and I'm sure always will be) shining moments in each day. Whether she's helping in the kitchen or we're playing a game of hide and seek, she always wants to be like mommy. Sort of odd for me because I've never had someone trying to be like me before but it's cute in that, you're my little girl way. She's getting good at hide and seek though. She knows where I hide most of the time and it's so cute to peek out and see her trying to pick up the covers off our bed thinking I'm sure that I'm under the covers yet again or checking the kitchen because well mommy's always in the kitchen. But she knows and she remembers where to find me. I could jump to a transition here about something more personal but I'm stopping because I don't want to say something I'll regret. Opening up on a blog about the stuff inside me doesn't really interest me. I'm more of a face-to-face communicator. So this site will be about the cuteness of my girl and cakes whether I start adding some how to pictures or what...I don't know. Guess I'll have to keep the evolution of this blog free to become whatever it is born to do.

SURPRISE!!

Happy birthday Abby and Amy. I know this should have been posted yesterday but I've been busy. Apparently it was Denny Oakes birthday recently so shout out to him too. Heard you liked the cake...I thought it was cute although I have to admit it wasn't my idea completely...I stole it from a magazine. :( Still 2 CUTE though huh. Happy Birthday all you peps...Happy Birthday!!

Happy 4th of July

Happy 4th of July. What a great day in our history. I know that my mother-in-law is at home in Houston pouting because today is the day she remembers the USA beating her beloved England but regardless it's a great day here. I am very patriotic. In rememberance of today...I made a cookie bouquet that I thought I'd share. Happy 4th of July America!

My feet hurt but my heart feels GREAT!

Wow Marty and Andy are slave drivers in disquise as kind, loving people who just want to help cook at a small Christian camp...Beware!! For the last two weeks, Carolyn and I helped out in the kitchen. During the teen camp this final week, we got the brillant idea to actually do a camp cake for the final dessert. Gee that was a lot more work than I thought but it turned out really cute and some of the girls came over and helped out too. It was nice that some had some pastry bag experience but others didn't and it was fun to show them how to do stuff and do a cake that they were all very proud of. One gal said this experience makes her want to be a cake decorator. Awww...how sweet. Well the cake turned out to be super moist and it looked fun with lots of edible items and the girls even wanted to do shark fins...those poor rabbits, teddy grahams and red hot lady bugs!! The cake took about three hours outside of baking so it wasn't too bad. Overall, I had a great time serving and feeling useful with Carolyn nearby but boy did my feet hurt this morning when I woke up. LOL.



Well here is Carolyn...helping...she just got to play with people and this last week Mr. Marty and her bonded)

old pics

Okay so I was clicking through some old photos to get printed and I happened across these beauties of my darling little girl. She's been such a fun kid to have around...we really got blessed. The first ones are of Carolyn eating smoke after helping daddy build a fire while we were on vacation in amish country Berlin, Ohio over Memorial day weekend. Then she got the joy of playing in the rain, then there is daddy and his swim baby. Well that's all for today. Enjoy!

Graduations

Well tis the season for graduations. Let's see at church there have been about a gizillion and a half from both high school and college and in Moms club there have been quite a few too. Crazy Crazy! Well speaking of crazy, on my friends threw a huge party today for her baby girl's graduation from high school and she wanted something as equally as special to commemorate it. So I created this topsy turvey cake with all her favorite colors and even little chocolate monkeys to make her smile. There were also some truffles but no pics of them because it's only chocolate with the school colors drizzled over top. No great big feat there. Well thought I'd share this crazy cake with you. Enjoy and Congrats to all the grads.

Here's what the family said about the cake via email...
HATS OFF TO JESSICA My daughters graduation cake was AMAZING!!!

If you get a chance ask Jessica to see a picture it was sooooo COOL...
It tasted great and everyone who came just loved it...
I highly recommend her to all.....I am so AWED at the talent I wish I had just a smidge of it...Jessica your great thanks for a great cake!!
Kimberly and Family

It does exist!

So on our adventure to Ohio a few weekends past we discovered some place that was only eluded to in my childhood. How many of you out there in Internet land ever been told you needed to attend Charm School. Perhaps you tripped or didn't use your silverware correctly or even belched at the table but a parent said you needed to attend Charm School. Little did you know the place actually existed. Grant this Charm school is geared toward the elementary students there to learn math and spelling and such but it exist. Makes you wonder, do any of those students belch at their cafeteria tables and if so where do the teacher want to send them...humm... something to think about. I'm out.

Independence

We're both getting a lesson in independence this week. Evan's in Japan and soon after he left I had three flat tires within 24 hours. I wasn't stressing after the third one because it just became funny. Oh well all better now. I haven't been sleeping good because I miss my man in the house and Carolyn's the same way. She has had some really funny moments without daddy though. She does "talk" to him on the phone which he loves but while we spend time just she and I, I daily see her independence growing. The other day she pulled her clothes out of her closet for the next stage of her life (24 month clothing) and cleared out her dresser and put those in them. Too funny. Then she took my t-shirts out of my drawers and put them in the laundry basket and heaven forbid the basket is close to the washer because she'll transfer those to the washer too. LOL. Too funny. Well thought I would share. A few more days to go without Evan but us womenfolk are making it and finding our own independence in the process.

A hard lesson for Carolyn...I mean me!

God teaches in mysterious ways! I spent a good 15 minutes today trying to teach my daughter that when she wants to unload her drawer of diapers onto the floor for her own amusement that she needs to also return them to the drawer when she's done scattering them about. Same lesson with toys but we haven't conquered that one either. Anyway, she did for the most part throw diapers back in the drawer while I sat there pointing to yet another one that needs to be picked up. She of course is crying and for all I know trying to explain her actions in only a language she can truly understand. About 20 diapers into the project it dawns on me that I'm learning patience here because for me I could easily just pick them all up and put them back into piles (another thing she still has yet to learn) but instead I watch my daughter cry and walk about her room picking up every other diaper and putting them away. Now that's a hard thing to do. I hate seeing her tears but I know the lesson is good for her. God's lessons can sometimes be a lot the same way for us adults. We might try to explain to Him why we decided to act on something but not want to deal with the consequences of it. We might cry at Him for not understanding but we like toddlers sometimes need to just do what He wants us to knowing full well He's going to keep pointing out all the "diapers" in our lives that need to be put away before we can move on to our next task. A hard lesson to learn no matter how old you are but I'd imagine God too hates to us cry but knows sometimes it is for the best.

Sudoku addict

I'm a addict. Isn't that the first step to climb. Check, done with that. What's the next step and where do they take me?? Hummm. Anyway, my friend Julie got me hooked and if you haven't heard of it yet...now's your chance. Instead of crossword puzzles to pass the time try Sudoku. It's a Japanese puzzle game and the rules are simple. It's a 9 by 9 grid and in each square you need to get the number 1 through 9 and the same for each row and column. NO adding them together...just making sure that each number of 1 through 9 is there with no duplicates. Easy ones will give you some numbers to start with and you can build from there. It's worth taking a look at if you like a little challenge and have time to kill here and there. Like I said though, I'm an addict and for a $1 at your local discount store...you can get a cheap thrill too. But I'm already on the first step to recovery; just don't know where these steps are taking me.

The void in my heart

The Void I didn’t know I had
Well a few weekends ago we went up to Pennsylvania and I had a realization up there. I had a void in my life that I was trying to ignore. My void…my friend Julie. Sure she’s the mom of one of my Butler beauties but she’s also one of my closest friends. We had our struggles with trying to have a friendship while I maintained a friendship with her daughter…little awkward but I wasn’t willing to give either of them up so they had to deal with it too…love you too Rachel! So anyway, when I went back...Julie and I hugged. We haven’t spoken in like to quote the Sandlot…”FOOOOREEEEEVVVERRRR”. But it was like we hadn’t missed a beat. Have you ever had that with a friend you haven’t seen in awhile? So well we caught on things a little but now we have some more memories to catch up on and I have a void no more. It’s so cool how the heart works…just when you think that life is full or you have all the relationships you can keep up on (I don’t like to do anything halfway) God makes room for one more and your heart grows just a little more. I want a huge heart!!! A Connection with another human being is enriching and beautiful! That’s all for now.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there. I decided late last week to try to be crafty (the art's and crafty one not sly crafty) anyway, this year for the special women in my life. So I made them a small scrapbook of Carolyn's first year since all of them don't live anywhere near us. I included her first picture to her first birthday and listed her milestones like walking, crawling, talking, etc. Of course they loved it and since they are far away it will be like a little brag book for them. But regardless I know it's hard to be away from family so this hopefully will help. I got the perfect gift today...a drawing from my daughter. I LOVE IT!!! It's on the frig of course. So much has changed in my life over the last year and it makes it even harder now to be far from family. Sometimes like Pastor mentioned this morning I'd love to be adopted up here to feel like family was a bit closer but then I'm a little old for this I think. There are also other moms in the church that I wish I was closer too but I feel like I'm starting to get closer to some....still there are those tough nuts to crack as I call some people who are more shy about opening up. I love people though that's why I got into journalism. I love to hear about other people's life stories and learn from them. I feel more enriched by hearing such stories. Like this morning's about Joni and Jonathan. I look at those two as tough nuts (and maybe that's being too bold to say on a blog but I'm posting this regardless) but nevertheless I still think about those two and do care for them. From what I heard this morning, their story seems more similar to Evan and I than I imagined. As a mother I wonder who God has already chosen for my baby girl. Will she enter his life during rough times and help or will he be her safety net? She's so outgoing like her mom (well like I feel I use to be at least) that she'll probably attract someone like her daddy who is more quiet and withdrawn but is intense and loyal once you peel those onion layers off like donkey said about Shrek. LOL. I see my fellow congregation members nearly every week and they are my family up here and while I say hello I don't know what goes on from Sunday to Sunday. NOt to say that I need to know about everyone's life sometimes I can hardly keep up with my own. But I hope that these individuals those named and unnamed know that Evan and I are here for them. We don't open up much to people, I mean really open up not just state facts like I'm doing this or that. I haven't opened up emotionally to other people in a long time but sometimes I wonder if it's time. I'm just not the type of woman who likes the phone, I like face to face interaction so opening up to family via the phone is still hard to do. I protect myself by telling a few details to people and it gets things off my chest but no one really knows it all but Evan. Safe huh. Well anyway, I try each day to be a good mom to the baby that God entrusted me with and while I hope to enrich her life she already has enriched my life journey and that makes living all the more enjoyable! Thanks my beautiful baby girl...your mama loves you fiercely!

My first wedding cake

Well congratulations Pam and Gene! You probably don't know them but they are getting married today and they trusted me enough to make their wedding cake. Pretty amazing since I never met either one of them before the opportunity presented itself. Regardless talk about wanting to throw up on the drive to the reception hall...I seriously bit off 2 nails and wanted to pull over to hurl. Nice imagery huh!?! Nevertheless, set up went without a hitch and those who were there early said it looked amazing. I was pleased with it and thought I would share some pictures. There are over 1,000 hand crafted flowers on the cake. Talk about time. Enjoy!

Daddy's little helper

Ahh the weekend at the Zelkovich home. While Evan did not get a son for his first born he did get a little girl that is eager to help out at his side whenever she can. This weekend, the opportunity arose to help daddy fix the window in his car by replacing some motor thing that makes it goes up and down. He gave her a Stanley screwdriver to help twist and turn every loose screw so the window was perfect once again. At he stuck that screwdrive in just about any opening she could find and clanked it around till her heart was content (which just so happened to be when daddy needed to put the door cover back on.) But I thought these pictures were too cute not to share.

Just another Thursday

Just like any other Thursday, the day began with running out to church to clean. Normally Carolyn gets to hang out with Beth and the two of them go adventuring through church together as Beth takes care of her duties while I handle cleaning products. Well today the phone rang and Beth, being the dutiful church secretary that she is, answered it. A few moments later I heard the sound of glass breaking and went running. Carolyn had decided to try to pick up the money jar from the church's cafe and there was green glass from behind the cafe counter, to the bookshelves and even all the way to Beth's desk. I don't know how it got that far but it did. Of course, Carolyn knew that she made a mistake so she tried to pick the jar back up and thankfully she didn't get cut. What a morning! The rest of today was not nearly as interesting and I'm okay with that!!!