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A Mom's Year

Creating a comfortable life one moment at a time

February 13, 2012

Caped Cute-saders Valentines

Lily and I finished making her valentines today. She picked these Caped Cute-saders out of Family Fun magazine. They are cute, but they’re also really time-consuming. So this is not a project to try to pull off at the absolute last minute. But if you like the idea, file it away and you’ll be ahead of the game next year!

My patient saint of a mother is the one who sat and cut all those capes and masks out with Lily. I just had to help with the labeling and final assembly. Which still took quite a lot of time, but it was fun to do with Lily because she’s so cheerful about pretty much any kind of work.

I had planned to make Design Mom’s Mad Libs valentines with Will, but when I realized he had no interest in getting his crafting on, I just had him pick out some valentines at Target. The ones he chose are from Animal Planet and they’re very cute. And with the time we saved, I was able to finish reading The Hunger Games. (More on that later, but for now can I just say I get now what everyone means when they say the story is horrible but compelling.)

So. The only thing left to do is to hang the hearts-on-a-string from the kids’ doorways tomorrow night while they’re sleeping and attempt these heart-shaped biscuits and this pink milk Tuesday morning. And do something special for my sweetheart.

Did you take on any special valentine projects this year like homemade valentines or some fun decorations? Are you planning to make any special foods on Valentine’s Day?

Filed Under: Cooking, Decorating, Holidays, Kid Activities Shannon 3 Comments

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Comments

  1. Steph says

    February 13, 2012 at 9:59 am

    Have a lovely Valentine’s Day! It must be a lot of fun at your house.

    Reply
  2. Diane says

    February 13, 2012 at 1:12 pm

    Happy Valentine’s Day and Lily great job on your writing!

    Reply
  3. Shannon says

    February 14, 2012 at 11:36 pm

    Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you, too!

    Reply

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Welcome

Hello! My name is Shannon Taylor and I’m a mom of four, originally from Minnesota and now living in Maryland. I "published" my first newsletter when I was nine, and since then, I’ve written and edited for magazines, websites, and textbooks. I started this blog when my kids were small to reflect on life, share ideas, and preserve memories. Now that my children are grown, I continue to use this space to document meaningful moments and practical ideas.

If you're in the mood for a bit of Christmas cheer, you might enjoy THE ADVENT BOX, available wherever books are sold. You can click on the cover below to learn more.

Instagram

Dear America...

5 1
Open post by shannontaylorwrites with ID 18084812023930902
Dear America...

I grew up in Minnesota. My mom was the Social Justice Chair at our Lutheran church, so it was normal to see her rush out at all hours to deliver food, diapers, and other aid to people in need. When St. Paul began welcoming Hmong refugees, my parents were among the first to help. For my Vietnam-vet dad, I`ve always believed it was an opportunity to atone for the sins our country committed in Vietnam. I remember two families in particular because they made wonderful food as a gift for my graduation party. Another time, a Somali woman and her daughter showed up at our church looking for community. So my mom invited them to Thanksgiving dinner.

That was the world I lived in and why adopting a child seemed like a natural extension of motherhood for me. I had faith that my child would be safe in my community. And my country.

Which brings me to the reason I`m writing this post. There are a lot of conversations right now about speaking up. I`m not sure anyone "owes" my family an explanation of their political beliefs. But we sure trust and appreciate those who speak out against a government that profiles people of color. And who are equally alarmed and ashamed that Mr. Thao, a U.S. citizen like my daughter, was pulled out of his shower after ICE agents broke his door down.

It’s painful to know that the neighbor who gave our daughter a delightful picture book when we brought her home is supporting a party that is encouraging its agents to ask, “Where do the Asians live?” It`s painful to be a guest in the home of someone who assumes my family is as white as hers and confidently tells me how glad she is that God is working through Trump to "clean up" our country and get rid of all these "dangerous criminals.”

I have so much admiration for people who speak up when they don`t have to. I mean, I`m on board this ship whether I like it or not because we`re an Asian-American family. To all of you out there fighting the good fight: I see you and I thank you.

To that end, I`m going to put resources I trust in the comments. Please share yours, too. Or DM me if you prefer.

17 13
Open post by shannontaylorwrites with ID 18179362702374619
I grew up in Minnesota. My mom was the Social Justice Chair at our Lutheran church, so it was normal to see her rush out at all hours to deliver food, diapers, and other aid to people in need. When St. Paul began welcoming Hmong refugees, my parents were among the first to help. For my Vietnam-vet dad, I've always believed it was an opportunity to atone for the sins our country committed in Vietnam. I remember two families in particular because they made wonderful food as a gift for my graduation party. Another time, a Somali woman and her daughter showed up at our church looking for community. So my mom invited them to Thanksgiving dinner.

That was the world I lived in and why adopting a child seemed like a natural extension of motherhood for me. I had faith that my child would be safe in my community. And my country.

Which brings me to the reason I'm writing this post. There are a lot of conversations right now about speaking up. I'm not sure anyone "owes" my family an explanation of their political beliefs. But we sure trust and appreciate those who speak out against a government that profiles people of color. And who are equally alarmed and ashamed that Mr. Thao, a U.S. citizen like my daughter, was pulled out of his shower after ICE agents broke his door down.

It’s painful to know that the neighbor who gave our daughter a delightful picture book when we brought her home is supporting a party that is encouraging its agents to ask, “Where do the Asians live?” It's painful to be a guest in the home of someone who assumes my family is as white as hers and confidently tells me how glad she is that God is working through Trump to "clean up" our country and get rid of all these "dangerous criminals.”

I have so much admiration for people who speak up when they don't have to. I mean, I'm on board this ship whether I like it or not because we're an Asian-American family. To all of you out there fighting the good fight: I see you and I thank you. 

To that end, I'm going to put resources I trust in the comments. Please share yours, too. Or DM me if you prefer.

Had a great time at my first student band showcase! Thank you to Stages Music Arts; Brett, our awesome instructor; and my band mates for making it such a fun night.

I was so surprised and thrilled to look out in the audience and see two of my wonderful friends from our Special Olympics International days (back in the `90s!). And thank you to Tim and our girls for being there and being such a great audience. Will had class, but I hear there`s another showcase in April. Rock on! ❤️😂

29 14
Open post by shannontaylorwrites with ID 18079265525197806
Had a great time at my first student band showcase! Thank you to Stages Music Arts; Brett, our awesome instructor; and my band mates for making it such a fun night. 

I was so surprised and thrilled to look out in the audience and see two of my wonderful friends from our Special Olympics International days (back in the '90s!). And thank you to Tim and our girls for being there and being such a great audience. Will had class, but I hear there's another showcase in April. Rock on! ❤️😂

Who wants to talk books?! These are the books I received this Christmas:

1: FRANNY AND ZOOEY by J. D. Salinger. I love Holden Caulfield in THE CATCHER IN THE RYE, so I don`t know how I’ve managed to go this long without reading this book!
2: MERRY by Susan Breen. From the cover copy: "Fans of family stories, classic literature, Christmas novels, and holiday season magic will adore MERRY." Also, it`s set in London and features a copy of A CHRISTMAS CAROL signed by Dickens. (We have a copy of A CHRISTMAS CAROL signed by Dickens`s great-great grandson, Gerald Dickens, from the one-man show he performed at the Saint Paul Hotel years ago. ❤️)
3: THE ONLY ONE LEFT by Riley Sager. "Deliciously Gothic" and "jaw-dropping twists" sounds good to me.
4. 6:40 TO MONTREAL by Eva Jurczyk. This has an Agatha Christie vibe: locked-room, which is always fun, and the protagonist is a writer named Agatha who`s on her way to a writing retreat on a train with beautiful views when disaster strikes.
5. THE SNOW LIES DEEP by Paula Munier. Dogs, snow, and mystery is right up my alley.
6. STORY by Robert McKee from Andrew. I love the study of writing (English lit textbook editor and all), so I`m excited about diving into the definitive book on screenplays. Andrew and I have started a wonderful collaboration on our writing projects, so I hope this will help me understand the nuances of screenwriting—and maybe help me write my own for THE ADVENT BOX!

How about you? Did you get any books for Christmas? Please share!

P.S. My aunt Joan made these beautiful bookmarks for everyone. They arrived with a huge bag of homemade caramels. It doesn`t get any better than that! ❤️

10 4
Open post by shannontaylorwrites with ID 18054157025347750
Who wants to talk books?! These are the books I received this Christmas:

1: FRANNY AND ZOOEY by J. D. Salinger. I love Holden Caulfield in THE CATCHER IN THE RYE, so I don't know how I’ve managed to go this long without reading this  book! 
2: MERRY by Susan Breen. From the cover copy: "Fans of family stories, classic literature, Christmas novels, and holiday season magic will adore MERRY." Also, it's set in London and features a copy of A CHRISTMAS CAROL signed by Dickens. (We have a copy of A CHRISTMAS CAROL signed by Dickens's great-great grandson, Gerald Dickens, from the one-man show he performed at the Saint Paul Hotel years ago. ❤️)
3: THE ONLY ONE LEFT by Riley Sager. "Deliciously Gothic" and "jaw-dropping twists" sounds good to me. 
4. 6:40 TO MONTREAL by Eva Jurczyk. This has an Agatha Christie vibe: locked-room, which is always fun, and the protagonist is a writer named Agatha who's on her way to a writing retreat on a train with beautiful views when disaster strikes.
5. THE SNOW LIES DEEP by Paula Munier. Dogs, snow, and mystery is right up my alley.
6. STORY by Robert McKee from Andrew. I love the study of writing (English lit textbook editor and all), so I'm excited about diving into the definitive book on screenplays. Andrew and I have started a wonderful collaboration on our writing projects, so I hope this will help me understand the nuances of screenwriting—and maybe help me write my own for THE ADVENT BOX!

How about you? Did you get any books for Christmas? Please share!

P.S. My aunt Joan made these beautiful bookmarks for everyone. They arrived with a huge bag of homemade caramels. It doesn't get any better than that! ❤️
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