Bugawumps Newest Arrivals

Matt and his boys.

On Sunday, April 15th at 9:18a our son Matt and his wife Abra were surprised with the early arrival of their twin boys, Ryan Emerson (on the left) and Colin Patrick (on the right).

What a wonderful blessing(s)!  Both boys are a bit small but a good weight for twins and Mom is doing well considering she is sleep deprived as I write this. Dad is holding his own with a big smile and a good sense of humor!

Grandma Laura, the head Bugawump, is happy it happened before she heads out for the Akron Convention the last weekend in April so she can rest easy and give all you wonderful ladies her complete attention.

This is a huge week for the new mom and dad and their boys.  They are slowly trying to get on a schedule as they get to know one another and figure out how to be the parents they want to be.  They are all "new bees"!

The learning curve is a "happening", just like when you and I started stamping and creating works of art.  Remember the struggles?  Which ink to use? (Which diaper brand?) What do I do next? (What do I do when they cry?)  Should I use Copics, markers, pencils...? (Should I breast feed, formula, schedule feedings or on demand?)

You found your way through the maze of stamping options until you found "your" style.  They will find their groove as well as the four of them become a strong family unit.

I love this time - the new "bees" - the struggles make it "the best of times and the worst of times".  The human spirit is amazing as it works it way through the problems and finds its way to a solution.  Creativity and parenting go hand in hand.  

Color it magenta, aqua, or neon green.  Make it bright and happy and fun.  Stay away from the dark side and know that by the end of the hour, the day, month or year, you will have grown as an artist, a parent, or a grandparent! The struggle makes the goodness all the more worthwhile.

I love my grandboys, I love my children and their spouses, I love my stamps and I love my ability to see all the options. Open your eyes. Open your heart. Keep it light.  Keep it bright. Make it happy. It is yours to make whatever you wish!

  

May today be as bright as your favorite ink box and tomorrow even brighter.

Bugs and Kisses!

Laura Anne and Bella Boo

Words to Live By...

"Be Yourself...after all, everyone else is taken."

Have you ever wondered who you would be if you were born under a different star?  I used to wonder that all the time.  

What if...what if...what if...

I think that I wasted a lot of time wondering about all the "what ifs" and not accepting who I was as that given moment.  I realized as I got older that life is truly a journey and that sometimes I carried more baggage with me than I needed and at other times I didn't carry enough.

As we await the precious little ones and watch their parents struggle with the questions faced by all new parents I hope that I have been a good example of parenting and that it will come easy for them.  I hope they will be themselves as they are incredible adults just as they are and not get lost in the competition of parenting that may have them questioning who they are.


I used to try to be like all the ladies in the neighborhood - it is a fancy neighborhood and if anything, I am not a fancy lady.  I am just a lady that likes to make fancy things.  With that being said, my hands are always playing in the garden dirt planting flowers, digging up grass for a new garden, painting walls, painting windows, painting cards, painting my soul with colors that are bight and happy and shiny.  It is who I am.


I am rarely bored but find these fancy ladies and their painted finger nails and immaculate houses boring.  I would rather be on my bike with the wind in my hair than playing a game of bridge.  I have a clean house, but don't obsess over what the cleaning lady cleans with as I am my own cleaning lady...after all, who knows my house and my likes and dislikes better than myself.  Besides I am cheap and very capable of doing it myself!


So as I watch my children build their homes, have their babies, and build their lives, I hope they never spend as much time as I did wondering "what if..." but instead say "Thank heavens my parents were who they were so I could be what I am today....strong, capable, funny, creative, smart, athletic, or whatever they want to be that will make their lives as wonderful as I realize mine is and has been.

I hope that you have found a place inside yourself today that makes you feel good about all your accomplishments; that you can enjoy who you are, your likes, dislikes, and make friends with those who appreciate you just the way you are.

You are perfect just the way you are so get out there and be different!  Make the change in the world that you live in just by being yourself...that is more than enough!


Happy bugday!


Laura Anne and Bella Boo