What are talents anyway?

I have to admit that I have a little of a jealous streak going on right now. There are so many creative things to do these days and I just want to try them all and be really good at all of them. I have some great friends that are just so talented that it makes me sick. Some are awesome singers, seamstresses, cooks, photographers, readers, writers, decorators, gardeners, mothers, some spend all their time serving others and I spend my time wishing I was just like them.

After "complaining" to my sweet hubby the other day, he pointed out that I do several of these things and I spread myself way too thin. He told me I should concentrate on just one or two things and just practice, practice, practice. He patiently explained to me that I am very good at lots of things. He stated matter of factly that there is nothing that I suck at.... well, there might have been, but I only tried it once and gave up. He is so blunt and sweet. Here are a few things that I have tried my hand at as of lately:

This was my massage room in Park City. I cannot take credit for the paint job, but the idea was all mine. The wooden gate is actually a door that was painted to look like a garden gate.

One of my new year's resolutions was to send out home made cards this year. Here are a few of my inventions. If you look closely, you just might get one of these!

I love to cook.... well, I enjoy making the food look good. Thank Heaven for Pampered Chef!! I really wish that there were more hours in the day to make these awesome creations. I am so jealous of you wonderful cooks and your shared recipes on your blog. You know who you are!

This is my latest "talent" I guess some might say. I call it a hobby that has potential. I absolutely LOVE taking pictures of people. And I have discovered it is just as fun making cards or announcements with my own photography. I just wish I had more models!!

Last year for Halloween, Adam and I were both involved with the youth in our ward putting on a Halloween party for our neighborhood so we took it on as our responsibility to out dress everyone there. Yes, I am trying to mimmick Captain Jack Sparrow. It could have been better, but the cool thing is that I sewed the entire costume BY MYSELF! It only took me about two weeks, but I was pretty impressed with myself when I was done. The pants are even the ones with the button flap like they had in the old days.

Buying our house has been one of the most rewarding things we have done, but it has also been the biggest challenge too. Here is a before and after picture for you to see how far we have come. I finally planted flowers this spring, twice. (It froze the night I planted the first set.) It definitely won't win "best looking yard in the neighborhood", but we call it "home" and we love it.

One of the most important talents that I am discovering is that of being a mother. I waited a very long time to be able to say that. Words cannot express how grateful I feel to be able to share this talent. I love my son with all my heart, he is my everything. And right now, he is taking up most of my time and it is so rewarding. Thanks to my hubby for helping me see the whole picture.

So there are just a few of the talents I am trying to conquer. I guess the whole point is that I keep trying. I write this blog in hopes that it gives just as much encouragement to you as it did to me. We have been told that we have been given talents before we came to earth and it is our responsibility to discover those talents and grow them so that we can be of service to others.