A bit about the book…
We first were introduced to the characters of Jane and the Dragon during the tv show of the same name in the qubo block on NBC Saturday mornings.  Kate instantly fell in love with Jane, and the CGI by Weta workshops (think Lord of the Rings trilogy) was pretty cool, too.  We’ve since found the books and have enjoyed them even more.

What we loved…
Martin Baynton has found a fresh way to address character issues through this series.  In this book, the moral of the story is to follow your heart and do something unexpected.  By the end of the book, I was in tears as Jane, who was supposed to grow up to be a lady-in-waiting is able to finally become what she really wants to be - a knight.

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I know you’ve all been there. You just sat down to finally eat YOUR pancakes after standing at the stove cooking them all day and all the kids can say is, “Mommy, can you cut my pancakes?” Five minutes later your own pancakes are cold (GROSS!) and the kid who you first cut up pancakes for is now done and ready for the next one. So, here’s the scoop on how to make things a little easier on ya:

Waffles:
My husband just discovered this method and I tried it this morning and FELL. IN. LOVE.

Use a pizza wheel. I still like to follow the straight lines of the waffle pattern. Shawn likes to cut waffles up like a pie. Follow your heart on that, but definitely pick up the pizza cutter to do it!
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If you didn’t get a chance to read the previous post below about this project, you might take a moment now to skim it, as it is the reason for the below letter. Enjoy!

 
Dear Mother,

I know that you will be reading this at Christmas time, but as I am sitting here writing, we are celebrating the Thanksgiving Holidays.  So, if you’ll forgive the obvious tribute to this season, I thought I’d take this opportunity to share the things for which I’m most grateful as a mother.

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Shawn and I were honored by Culture Shapers, the art contest that we helped start and have worked for over the past 10 years, at the Awards Ceremony earlier this week. Shawn wrote up a great post about it for his company’s site, since he’s provided all the graphics for it since it’s inception. Here’s a small portion of what he wrote:

Shawn & Kay Hesketh were honored for a decade of service to the high school art community of Houston during the 9th Annual Culture Shapers Visual Arts Awards Ceremony on Thursday, November 20th, 2008.

Ernie Fitzpatrick, co-founder of the art contest, along with his wife, Lyn, presented the award to the Heskeths in front of a live audience, as he credited Shawn with the original idea for the Culture Shapers art contest as the result of a series of brainstorming meetings in 1999.

Click here to read the rest of the article…

The Mother Letter Project is one of the most thoughtful things I’ve heard of in a while and I just had to share.

Instead of spending lots of money on each other for Christmas, a husband and wife have decided to make gifts for each other and donate the money they would have spent to a village in Africa they visited this summer. The husband decided it would be cool to do something to encourage his wife with a collection of letters from other mothers. So, he’s opened it up to the internet and asked mothers everywhere to send him letters of encouragement, tips, wisdom, etc that he can compile into a book to present to her for Christmas. Here’s a portion of what he’s said:

As you may already know, I am creating Christmas for my wife this year and this is the site devoted to her present. Simply stated, I am collecting a series of “open letters” from mothers, to mothers. I am asking you to share your stories — no matter how raw or difficult. Share you concerns or worries — no matter how foolish they may seem. Share your wisdom — no matter how you came by it. Share your mother story. The only request? Start the letter “Dear Mother” and sign it. I will compile all of the letters in a Christmas book for both my wife AND YOU. If you share a letter before Christmas you will receive a copy of the Mother Letters.

I know that I’ll be writing a letter soon (as soon as the kiddos go down for bedtime and I can think clearly again) because a mother of any level of experience has something valid, beautiful, and encouraging to say about motherhood. And consider this my challenge to you to do the same… In fact, I’ll write another post when I’ve finished my letter just to let you know I’ve done it and now it’s your turn.

So, are you on?? Leave me a comment and let me know if you’re up for it, too!