Queen Bee

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

2011-03-08T10:32:00.000-08:00

Okay, there are many of these. I do love the changing of seasons. It is always very refreshing and energizing to me. I love Spring, with the exception of the pollen and my allergies.

I am loving this Spring especially since it is Sawyer's 1st Spring. I can't decide whether or not to take him to Ash Wednesday services tomorrow. I can only go over my lunch break and kind of hate to disrupt his day.

I have been thinking a LOT about this summer. We are so excited to take Sawyer to the local pool. He has a couple of little swim shorts all ready to go. Who is not ready? Me. Uggh. I grew up close to the beach and no matter what size I was, I have never been thrilled with how I look in a swimsuit. Looking back I do regret not being happy with myself. I am trying to get over this and just say that it is what it is. I know I need to lose the baby weight and honestly haven't done too much about it. I want to lose it so I can be healthier and to fit in all of my old clothes. I am going to go on an Adkins - esque plan that I have used before with great results. It is just really hard to give up my favs -Coke, sweet tea, potatoes (all kinds), oh AND desserts (all kinds).

I was a bit down a couple of years ago - not being able to get pregnant, our house renovation nightmare, work, and I had packed on the lbs. I went on this plan and lost 17lbs in less than 3 months. I did it once, I have to be able to do it again, right? It is getting started. Can you say procrastinator?

Anyway, Happy Fat Tuesday and Ash Wednesday!

Christmas Card Time

2010-11-28T17:59:00.000-08:00

I am really excited about our Christmas card this year. Since I hate all photos of myself and didn't have any children, my fuzzy children were always the subject of my cards. My girls like being the center of attention so it worked out well. (Well when I didn't make the dress as elves...)

A friend of mine who is a really good photographer will take our family holiday picture. Yeah! I am very excited about sending out our card this Christmas and heard about the giveaway Shutterfly is having - if you blog about it, you get 50 free cards! You can go to their site for more information - http://blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form/

They have some really pretty cards. It will be hard to decide!

We are taking SO many photos of Sawyer that we actually bought an external hard drive this weekend. I am sure we will be using Shutterfly photo cards a lot! I am also looking at the calendars http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars and the canvas wall art http://www.shutterfly.com/home-decor/canvas-wall-art for Christmas gifts.

I would love this on my desk at work and love how it has multiple photos on a single month.

This would look great in Sawyer's nursery.

I have lots of friends that use Shutterfly and now I know why! They have so many cute things. And of course, I love that Sawyer can be the star of all of them!

How Time Flies

2010-11-16T12:34:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that my sweet Sawyer is 2 months old already. It was just January and I was praying that the baby I was carrying would be born healthy.

We go for Sawyer's 2 month doctor's appointment tomorrow. I am excited to see how much he weighs. He is an eater and is growing fast!

Here is a recap in photos of the past 2 months:

Surprise!

2010-09-21T14:24:00.000-07:00

Sawyer's here!

Sawyer made his debut a little early. Wednesday evening around 8:30pm I was laying on the bed talking to Dan about his day while he was changing from work. I was confessing how scared I was getting about Friday mornings scheduled c-section when I heard a pop and then felt a huge gush of water. I jumped up and and said that I think my water just broke. I took off for the bathroom in shock about what was happening. TMI, but the amount of water was just crazy!!!

Tuesday, not very flattering - I am huge!

I had my phone with me, I had been carrying it around with me for weeks - just in case... Called the doctor's office and spoke to the midwife on call. I love her! She is very no-nonsense, which helped a great deal. I was on the verge of freaking out. She just confirmed what we had already discussed-water breaks = head to hospital.

Dan was great. He took care of our dogs and got the car seat in the car. He asked about our bags. Well mine wasn't packed and "I won't need it because I am having a c-section and won't need it until the next day."

We made our way to the hospital and to the check-in desk. We were sent to the c-section area, because Sawyer was transverse. Once i got changed and settled, the midwife did an ultrasound and Sawyer was head down. WHAT??? Even the midwife was shocked. So, now we move to the L&D rooms. After that it was a bit of a blur. I remember around 2am waking up and timing my contractions. 10 minutes, then 7. It seemed to be coming quicker and stronger, so I asked for medicine. I think the nurse forgot and I had to ask again. Around 6am (I think...) I was in a LOT of pain. I needed to go to the bathroom. Not sure if I needed to go, wanted a shower or what, but Dan helped me and was very sweet but concerned. I was starting to lose it a little.

I am pretty sure I got and epidural or some kind of medicine shortly after this because most everything else is a blur.

The next time I remember is the afternoon on Thursday. We tried pushing. Weird - of course I couldn't feel anything, but didn't really feel like I was doing anything when pushing. After a couple of pushes I start to feel sick to my stomach. Pushing didn't work out very well, Sawyer's heart rate kept dropping. My doctor, who wasn't on call, came in (YEAH!) and said okay, let's do the c-section.

I don't remember much about this part either. I remember Dan putting on his "space suit" and moving from my bed to the operating table. I know I was asked some questions about what I could feel. I just kept saying I was fine except for the nausea. Thank goodness for my husband, I ask him again and again to tell me what happened.

The recovery room was interesting. I remember the shaking and the nurses handing me my baby. The first time I get to hold him and I am shaking all over. Sawyer loved it! HA! I was really glad to get to my room and feel a little more settled. The nurses were all fantastic! They were so good.

I was a mess, a HOT mess. My hair was up in a ponytail and it was now knotted up in a rats nest. I was SO happy to have a shower and brush my teeth. SO much better.

Sawyer spent the next day being monitored for breathing issues. Dan and I tried really hard not to freak out. Everything was fine - thank God! The next day he had to go under the lights for jaundice. He did really well, he was so sweet. Sunday we finally got to spend the day together and then got to go home early evening. I was relieved to go home, but didn't realize what it would be like. Next time, when offered, I will accept the extra night!

So, that is the short version! I am so thankful for my sweet, sweet boy and my wonderful husband and making it through my pregnancy and delivery. I prayed every day for this!

Belly Pics

2010-09-15T15:00:00.000-07:00

First let me say that I HATE having my picture taken. Something bizarre happens when I know someone is taking my photo. My eyes get very squinty and my smile gets all lopsided.

There are very few photos I like of myself. This sounds horrible, but seriously, my husband even agrees I am a terrible subject. I wish I could find this picture of my husband and me at his sister's wedding. I show all, I mean all, of my teeth in this photo! Weird, but I kind of like the photo. (That is how bad the rest are...)

So, I got a little panicky about not documenting this pregnancy and running out of time to do so. I don't have photos of the belly pregression, just starting at the 8th month. I really wasn't this big the whole time. The last month has really been a growth spurt.

Here are a few photos we had taken after my shower in August~

I hope to post some pics of the nursery. It is such a pretty green color and I love our crib and glider. We are still waiting for the changing table to come in and we don't have anything on the walls. Chances are we won't have anything else in place before the baby comes, which is Friday!!

10 Days!

2010-09-07T15:23:00.000-07:00

10 days. I can't believe my little one will be here in 10 days.

I have been such a worrier the last 8+ months that it is amazing it has gone by so fast. It took years for us to get pregnant. When I found out I was pregnant I believed it, I was just afraid that something would happen. I just couldn't deal with such a loss on the heels of years of disappointment. I have had big issues about a sense of personal failure every time I took a pregnancy test and it came back negative. (That is a whole other post - guilt, internalizing, etc.)

I have had a good pregnancy overall. Light morning sickness, and really tired in the beginning. Good test results all the way through. I am huge now at the end. Dizziness, easily fatigued and slow, but still okay. I feel that every part of me has just blown up, but friends have said that I am all baby. (Thanks friends!) To the lady at BRU on Sunday that felt that she needed to let me know that I am huge, then asked her teen daughter if she thought she would get this big. That was not very nice. I was shocked but shook it off. All I care about is bringing a healthy baby into this world.

I am still trying to get things organized at home. We are washing baby clothes and linens, etc. Once we found out we were having a boy, we started buying clothes. It was the only thing we could buy - all other things were beyond us (mentally). We were able to find a ton of great buys, so we have a lot of clothes! This boy will have more clothes than me and my husband!

I am waiting on the dresser/changing table to come in. I researched and shopped around for our crib and changed my mind 3 times before we decided on one. We went with a modern one in an espresso color. My parents were sweet enough to get us the crib and the bedding. I found the matching dresser for $150.00 less at Walmart than what babies r us had it for. I opted for the site to store free shipping - free shipping = great, shipping time=slow. The expected delivery date to the store is the 10th to the 17th. I know it will be the 17th. Ha!

I am really happy with how the nursery is shaping up. It has taken forever, but it is getting there! I will post pics soon.

I am thankful everyday for this child and can't wait to meet him!

Laying Low

2010-08-26T18:17:00.000-07:00

I have been laying low since January. Not that I have been missed, or did it to be missed. Just needed to concentrate on what was going on in-house. I still have been following all of your blogs, just not posting here.
I didn't blog for so long it took me forever to figure out how to change my background. I was beginning to feel like my parents must have when they couldn't figure out for to make the VCR stop flashing 12:00.
I am happy enough with the new look and more happy I finally figured it out!
I am hoping to post again (maybe tomorrow-you never know!) to show you some pictures of what has been going on the last 8 months.

Spring Fever ~ Shoes

2010-01-21T10:25:00.000-08:00

I have spring fever for SO many reasons. I had a touch of it before Christmas day.

I bought a super cute pair of red, open toe shoes after Christmas. I don't normally buy heels or red shoes for that matter.

(Confession- I own a total of 3 pairs of red shoes. One is a strappy summer sandal and then these flats - $6.00 at Walmart in the fall)

Anyway - I saw them at the store (Ross) one day and then thought about them all week. I went back for one more look and had to get them. When I was trying them on a lady complimented me on them and said how she wished they had them in her size.

A sign right?

So, I got the shoes and I keep thinking about when I can wear them and what I can wear them with.

I am getting a bit ancy. I don't think I can wait till it gets warm...

Can you wear open toe shoes with tights??????????

Well, I found a helpful article on Blogher and the short answer is YES!

Here is what she says-

Pair peep toes with tights, NOT panty hose. Sheer stockings are perfect with closed-toe shoes, but with an open toe, you need something with more substance. This is a look that HAS to be intentional, not accidental; pairing stockings with open toed shoes will look like you just made a mistake. But go with tights -- opaque tights, with a minimal toe seam -- for a thoughtful look.

Here is the link for the full article-

http://www.blogher.com/wear-your-peep-toe-shoes-tights-shocking-i-know

There is a picture of a very similar pair of shoes from Kate Spade in the article. I really like mine more and not just because they were only $19.99 and the Kate Spade are $295.00.

And, not that these are Spring shoes, but I got these in the mail last weekend and luv them. I have worn them twice now and they are SO comfortable.

I had been wanting a pair of cowboy boots for about a year and did a lot of research on them. What I found is that they can be really expensive. I am not a big ebay shopper, but found these and got them for a sweet price - $26.00 (+$10.50 shipping). REALLY!

Do you have Spring fever yet? Any new spring shoes in your thoughts or shopping bag??

Soups On!

2009-12-20T08:36:00.000-08:00

I love soup in general, but really crave it this time of year.

French onion, Pho (Thai noodle soup), Vegetable Beef, Chicken, I could go on and on...

Friday nights I fix some sort of Mexican food - tacos, nachos, enchiladas, fajitas. I added tortilla soup this past Friday night and LUV this recipe!

I just googled tortilla soup recipes and found this one on the Food Network.

I left out the black beans (didn't have them) and cooked the chicken in a skillet separately and used chicken strips instead of breasts. I also used Wholly Guacamole instead of avocado.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 small onion, diced
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 jalapenos, finely diced
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 (14.5-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
3 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
2 limes, juiced, plus wedges for garnish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 (8-inch) flour tortilla, grilled, cut into thin strips
1 avocado, pitted, sliced
1 cup shredded Monterrey cheese

Directions
In a large saucepan heat the vegetable oil. Add the onions and cook for 2 minutes. Once the onions have softened add the garlic and jalapenos and cook for another minute. Pour the chicken broth, tomatoes and beans into the pot and bring to a boil. Once at a boil lower heat to simmer and add your chicken breasts. Cook the chicken for 20 to 25 minutes. Once chicken is cooked remove from pot. When cool enough to handle shred it and set it aside. Add lime juice and fresh cilantro to the pot. In a serving bowl add a mound of shredded chicken. Ladle soup over chicken and top with a lime wedge, grilled tortilla strips, avocado slices and cheese.

I will be having some leftover tortilla soup for lunch today!

Enjoy!

In the Pink

2009-12-13T16:11:00.000-08:00

I have not had much time for blogging lately, but I did manage to change the background on my page. Luv it. Check out the link at the top - they have really cute blog designs.
Have a good week!

Feelin Crafty

2009-11-22T11:27:00.000-08:00

I have been in a crafty state of mind lately. I don't really sell my crafts, but decided to do an artists market that is close to work. There weren't a ton of people, but it went well. I sold a good number of things and had some great comments on them. YEAH ME! I am my worst critic...

This is one of my favorite coaster sets. I like the font and the numbers. I did the same kind of thing on my front door for the house numbers.

These are my girly ones.

Christmas coasters!

I also made a basball one - very cute!

Here are the glass tile pendants that I have been making for a while now-

FUN! I am drooling over the Infinity Scarf and can't decide whether to make it or buy it...

Okay, have a good evening. I am off to laundry and get ready for the week!

Catch Up

2009-11-09T15:25:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that I haven't posted in over a month. Things have been busy. Work, home - just not enough hours in the day! The time change hit me hard and I have been pooped. I am getting up earlier, which is a good thing, but dragging by early evening.

Here is my catch up post-

1st off-many thanks to Anna at Pinkadots. She gave me my first blog award!

And now my apologies to Anna for just now getting around to it!

Halloween - luv Halloween!

See my sweet Daisy peeking around the pumpkin? Cutie pie.

I was a little nervous we wouldn't have any trick or treaters. We had zero last year. I was thrilled that we had about 20 and it was raining. It was enough to leave me too many fun sized treats to eat.

I am really looking forward to Thanksgiving. (I am looking forward to the moment the food is on the table and we are ready to sit and eat!)

I know this was probably the most boring post ever! I am working my way out of my funk and am getting my bloggy butt back in gear. I have been working on some neat projects and hope to show them to you soon!

I WANT MY TAP SHOES!

2009-10-03T17:22:00.000-07:00

On the way home Friday evening I went to my bargain stores. I was on a mission to find Halloween decorations. I went to the thrift store first. I was so excited to see right when I walk in 5 large plastic plug-in Halloween decorations. They are on top of a large stand - I was on tip-toe trying to read the price. I was about to start jumping up in the air to see the price when I see NFS. SAD - not for sale...

Okay, this place is into Halloween - they must have decorations for sale - right? I found 1 thing, 1 thing. It was not bad for its purpose and the price couldn't be any better.

Bless that little child's heart for scribbling on this pumpkin. (I am sure his mom didn't say that). 69Cents. Deal of the day.

I am going to paint it white and either put text or polka dots on it, not sure yet. I am not sure how the dots or wording will turn out, so I am happy I have invested a whopping 69cents for this project.

Went a few doors down to an antique store. I found this cool iron pumpkin. The candle would have cost more than I paid for both. I next found this large paperclip. I am pretty sure that it was from Pottery Barn and the$4.00 they were asking was not. I couldn't carry anything else, so I went to the front and dropped off my finds. I began again and found a pair of black tap shoes in my size. $9.00. Okay, I don't know how to tap dance and had never thought too much about it.

I decided that $9.00 is a deal and these shoes may just change my life. Way too long to explain and I can't remember my whole convoluted internal conversation, but the shoes were coming home with me.

I had almost reached the back of the store and was heading to the register and to pick up my oh-so life changing tap shoes. I passed two young girls (20's?) as I rounded the corner, next I see the shelf where my shoes were and it is now empty. EMPTY. How, how can this be??????

WHY, why did I not pick them up? I know the rule - if you want it, pick it up immediately and guard it with your life. Come on!

The nice lady at the register asked if I need anything - YES, make those girls give me back my $9.00 tap shoes!!!

Okay, I did not say this. I really, really wanted to. I did tell her of my intent of buying the shoes and how I foolishly did not pick them up. She was very nice about it and took my number in case they changed their mind.

No call.

I know that I did not need these shoes. But when I tried them on and they fit and made such a neat little tapping sound, I really wanted them.

My consolation prize came courtesy of Big Lots. I got these two signs and this cool metal skeleton.

These are cute and I LUV Halloween and were all together only a tiny bit more than the shoes. I am still nursing my bruised super shopper, deal finding, no tap shoe wearing, ego.

1 Year Anniversary!

2009-09-30T09:38:00.000-07:00

This was my very first blog on September 25, 2008.
Boy does time fly!
I really enjoy reading and learning from all of your blogs! Thanks for the support and inspiration!

Greetings,

This is my first blog! Not really sure about this, but what I do know is that there are some really creative people out there. I want to share my creative projects and hear about yours. When I see a new thing - craft, recipe, whatever, I have to figure out how to reproduce it. If it something that I like, I become obsessed with trying to recreate it and make it mine. I haven't really found out what to do with all of these projects after I have mastered them, but I love a challenge.

My latest recreation was cupcake pops from Bakerella. I made them for a baby shower at work and everyone really liked them.

Update - the babies were born early and have turned 1!

Baking has never been my thing. Even in culinary school I was more of a cook than a baker. So to hear rave reviews and having them pass my way too critical self analysis, I was thrilled. You have to check out Bakerella, she is my baking hero! http://bakerella.blogspot.com/

Until next time~

Yippee! The rain is gone!

2009-09-23T13:58:00.000-07:00

Yeah! The rain has ended. I haven't checked the forecast - I am afraid to hear if there is more to come.

This is the sun shining through the trees in my backyard.

Luckily we didn't have any damage to our area and the roads were pretty clear. We did discover that one of our fireplaces needs some attention.

I heard that yesterday was the first day of Fall. Really? Double yipee! I was afraid I was bringing out my fall decorations too soon. I was slowly sneaking them out...

What's your favorite thing about Fall? The cooler weather? Football? Pumpkins? Sweatshirts and jeans? Maybe all of the above??

Rain, Rain Go Away or not...

2009-09-19T10:29:00.001-07:00

It is raining again! Most of the time we have rain showers and they are over within an hour. Not this week! It is the most rain we have had in a LONG time.
The rain doesn't bother me that much. I am not that much of a girly girl - I don't care if I get a bit wet.

I did realize that I left my rain boots under my desk at work. Hmmmm...

Plan B - always have to have a plan B.

I found these rain boots online at Target-

(The argyle on up top is from Target too - I love argyle!)

Cute red bird on a gray rainy day-

Love blue and green -

This Fleur De leis boot is cool -

Mine (from Target - of course), sitting at work, are black with white polka dots.

Do you have fun or go-to rainy day gear?

Nothing on tv

2009-09-17T18:58:00.000-07:00

Really - there is nothing on tv.
I watched Vampire Diaries tonight, not super but is was okay. It seems that all of my shows have ended their seasons.
Can't wait until I the new shows are on.
What shows are you looking forward to?
What shows do you miss?

Sunday

2009-09-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

No snazzy post title today.

First off, I have been deliberating about posting on this or not. Well, I have to get it out and get on with it.

Infertility sucks!

Most of the time I deal pretty well with this, but this month (this weekend) has been pretty rough. The tough week at work and my sleep schedule being off probably didn't help. I hate crying and I am the biggest cry baby - commercials, sad stories, it doesn't take much. I cried at work. I. HATE. CRYING.

I am much better this morning. I think the overdose of Midol and the brownies before breakfast helped.

Funny what a brownie (or several can do). I feel a bit better.

Enjoy your Sunday! Trueblood tonight!!

Quickest Project Ever

2009-08-17T12:05:00.000-07:00

I am full of good intentions. My simple projects take 10 times longer than they should. Maybe I am just easily distracted or have too much going on.

Here is the quickest project ever. I had some frames leftover from another project and two postcards I bought at a bookstore. I had no idea what I was going to do with the postcards, but they were cute and inexpensive. The postcards had been hanging about on my dresser for way too long. I knew it was time to do something with them or they would end up lost or beat up.

I dug through my frames and the fit was pretty close. I trimmed off a little on the sides and they fit fine.

I had them framed and hung in about 15 minutes. New world record!

Vacay Recap

2009-08-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

I am back from vacation. I was in the Pacific Northwest for 9 days!

I went for a conference in Portland Mon.-Thurs. and then vacay the rest of the time. Conference was great, learned a lot, and made a new friend.

I am not a great flyer. I was flying since the womb, but as I got older I developed this non-love for flying. My dad is a pilot and my family has flown in everything and in all kinds of weather.

Anyway, I take my seat - always an aisle and near the wing section. Two seats over from me was a really nice lady. We chatted for a few minutes before the center seat occupant arrived. It was the pilot flying the return flight. (A HA! He would be the first to react to anything off.)

We all arrived at our destination safely. That afternoon I went to the Portland zoo for the opening reception for the conference. It was so hot all of the animals had been put away. I don't know where they went, they just weren't any around.

Next morning, conference begins. I get my coffee and breakfast and pick a random table. I exchange a few words with the other people at the table. The lady sitting across from me and I start chatting. Five seconds later I realize it is the lady from the plane! Too funny and small world. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Karen and spending time with her.

Skip to vacay. My husband flew out on Thursday afternoon when the conference ended. Yipee, vacation time! He had never been to Portland before and I knew he would love it as much as I do. (And he did!)

We spent the evening in Portland and then on Friday headed up to Port Angeles, WA. Not a ton to do here, so we took the ferry across to Victoria, BC. Beautiful! Spent two nights there. Great weather, sight-seeing and meals.

On Sunday we got on the 6am ferry, came back to P.A. and then headed to Forks, WA. It is the next town on the map and yes, it is the home of Twilight.

We reached Forks around 9amish and went to the coffee shop for breakfast. We had the best breakfast - yum. I did visit the Twilight gift store to see what they had. I did not go on the Twilight tour though. Actually, my husband offered, but I declined.

Next stop the beaches - we went to LaPush which is also a Twilight location. It is home to the wolf pack in the book. I am from FL. It was not like any beach I had ever been to. I did like it though, it was different and had its own beauty about it.

Next beach was Astoria. Interesting small town, cold, gray and good brew pubs! At one point in the early evening, I had a shirt, sweat jacket and a hoodie sweat-shirt on.

Next up - Gearhart. We ate lunch at the McMenimen brewpub/restaurant at the golf club. It was really windy and really disappointing. I have been to two other of their locations and this sucked. The other locations are hip, revitalized old buildings, lots of character, etc. The one in Gearhart had no life to it. Sad.

After Gearhart, we headed back into Portland. The super high temps had died down and it was great. Had drinks at this restaurant, The Original. They had a hamburger (the Voodoo Doughnut Burger- natural beef patty, cheddar, glazed doughnut) that had glazed doughnuts for the bun. OMG! I did not have one, but the thought of it still haunts me in a greedy way. Dinner was at Mama Mia's Tratorria and then breakfast the next morning was at Mothers's Bistro & Bar. These locations are not to be missed!

We are thankful to have had a safe and relaxing vacation (been too many years) and to have made it home safely.

Stay tuned for more projects and my hotel reviews!

Have a good weekend!

Vera

2009-07-17T11:23:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday!

I am posting today about my new love. I got a postcard catalog in the mail this week from Vera Bradley. I have only once purcahsed a Vera product and it was from the clearance. (Yes, I am a cheap-butt) I do have a few other items that were gifts - thanks Cheryl!

Anyway, I have fallen in love with this new bag-

And I love the name - the bag is called So Over It. Hah! That is me on many days...

Do love Vera? What is your favorite bag (doesn't have to be a VB)?

Friday's Fabulous Finds

2009-07-12T10:40:00.000-07:00

I was on a mission Friday; fabulous finds. I was inspired by Kristina @ The Purple Pea, she had a great find of a sweet tea pot that cost more in elbow grease than money!

I started at Target, only because I had a gift card from Christmas to use. I found three small pillows for $3.74 each. I love the white one with the green embroidery and green satin ribbon. The other two are fine and will help on the daybed.

Next I found this monkey night light. He was $3 and change, so in the basket he went. He is a rechargeable night light. They also had a blue bird, but it was still regular price at $12 something. (When we have a child, and if it is a boy, then I have a whole animal theme planned. No decor planned if it is a girl, yet. See the fertility doc on Tuesday - fingers crossed for good test results.)

Next I found this necklace. It was marked down from $9.99 to $6.98. I was still on an acquisition buzz when I took this picture, so I didn't try real hard for a good shot.

After work I went to my favorite home consignment shop. I had been on the hunt for a dresser for the blue room. I didn't find a dresser, but did find these two pictures for the house.

A great thing about this shop is that you get 10% off the price every 30 days and I have a shopper card, so I get an additional 5% off. YIPPEEE!

The first picture is pretty big. I had only seen it in smaller sizes and really like it on a larger scale. The second picture is in tribute to my girls - Daisy, Zoe and Guinness. I collect bulldog statues and pictures. (I hate the word figurines, not sure if statue is the right word...)
Anyway, the frame on this is worth WAY more than I paid for the whole picture.

I was still on a find "high" on Saturday, so we went to the once a month antique show. It was fine, not many bargains. I did buy these two prints from an old book. I think they will look nice once they are matted and framed. (Another one of my things - Bees!)

I am off now to figure out where to hang my finds and clean the house. Have a great day!

Project Status Report

2009-07-08T12:40:00.000-07:00

I hope you had a great 4th of July!

This is my girl, Guinness. She was feeling in the spirit all of 5 seconds.

Didn't do much at all here. I did think about my projects, but that was about it.

Most of my projects are for my guest room - the Blue Room. This is going to be our nursery - one day, hopefully soon! The room is turning out pretty girly. I tried for a neutral palate, but couldn't find a look without having to repaint the room.
I am torn about what to do with my frame. Here is its latest look:

Okay, not loving it yet. I am thinking about trying it with out the white paper. I would like to have the blue wall show through around the R. Not sure if the frame will hold the single pane of glass or not. More trial and error to come.

The chair is done. I found a cushion at Pier1 that I like and that goes with the room. I sprayed that chair with white gloss spray paint and it looks good to go. I like the flowers with the stripes on the cushion.

I wanted a chandelier for the new light. I wish I had a picure of the old light. YUCK. It was the square glass, boring as ever. The chandelier was out, our ceilings aren't terribly high and my husband was installing it, so he had his say on it.

Here is the new light. I like it and it is SO much better that the old one. It will be as girly-fancy with crystals as I will get, so it stays.

(Overlook the textured ceiling!)

I found this metal shell picture at one of my favorite shops and added it to my beach decor.

Thanks for stopping by and Stay tuned!

All feedback/suggestions welcome people!

Hump Day Slump

2009-06-24T16:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday in my staff retreat at work we had a guest that talked about our Birkman results. (If you don't know about Birkman, here is the short version - personality assessment that facilitates team building, executive coaching, leadership development, career management and interpersonal conflict resolution) One thing that rang SO true was when we don't have or make use of a creative outlet we can suffer in our personal and professional life. AMEN!

I can feel this, for lack of a better word, grouchiness come over me and I start looking around for a project. I have several projects started, but none really completed yet.

Here are some projects that I am working on:

This is for my guest room or better known as the blue room. Stay tuned!

I found this old fan at one of my favorite haunts. There is no off/on switch, you just plug it in. The first time I plugged it in I was so happy that it worked and then I got really excited because it was oscillating. My husband corrected me, it was just vibrating so much that it was moving around on the table. Oh well. Where to put it?

I don't know if I will make it to the beach this summer, so I brought the beach to us!

More to come!

Happy Saturday!

2009-06-13T11:44:00.001-07:00

I hope you are having a happy Saturday!
I am so glad it is summertime. It is still busy at work, I will complain all summer about the heat, I will hate mowing the lawn and may never get my garden under control - but I am enjoying the summer!

Things I love about summer- LL Bean flip-flops (hated them growing up), pedicures (current color is chocolate brown), popsicles (sugar-free orange current fav), fruity adult beverages (this summers is lemonade, gin, strawberries and basil), planting a garden, the hammock, cooking on the grill, eating outside, evening walks with my husband, vacation ( or dreaming about one), summer Friday's at work, yard sales/antique markets, all those projects I have been putting off.

I am sure I could go on~!

Counting the days till March 21st

2009-03-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

Can't wait till Saturday! Not only is it the first day of Spring, but the Twilight DVD comes out. I am having a bloody Mary brunch on Sunday to view the DVD with my OCD (Obsessive Cullen Disorder) friends. I haven't had this many folks over since before we did our renovations ( or survived our renovation nightmare!). I think I decided to host the brunch in January, so the DVD not coming out till 3/21 has given me time to think about those lingering projects. I was surprised how many there are - some newer than others. I have two old mirrors that I have had sitting in my bedroom closet for almost a year now. One I got a antique store and the other was a salvage piece from a funky interior designer cast off store that is only open a couple of times a year. The smaller, antique mirror got hung last weekend. That was the easier of the two projects. The larger one involves hanging picture molding in the bedroom, so not sure when that will happen. Plus, I am a little nervous that the mirror is going above the head of our bed and it is a substantial mirror. Possible head injury vs aesthetics?

Here is a picture of the finished antique mirror-

Back to Twilight -

I can't tell you how much this book has done for me and my OCD work friends. It has been a great source for a light hearted, informal book club at lunch and in the hall. Silly reminiscing about first loves, lost loves, why men aren't (and can't really be) like Edward Cullen.

The beautiful lullaby in the movie that Edward "wrote" for Bella is based on a piece by Yiruma. Finding Yiruma's "A River Flows in You" inspired me to start playing the piano again. (A doctor in my piano class says that this kind of activity helps with brain function and flexibility - I wonder if I can list this as my exercise when I go for my physical?)

And most of all, I am reading again! Yippee! I go through periods where I just don't read. I was barely reading magazine articles. Since I started reading the Twilight books, around 12/28, I have probably read 13 books. Granted, these are not major works, but I am reading and enjoying it. I just finished the Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris. The HBO series, True Blood, is based on her books. They are great, fun and easy reads. (Secret confession - I may - may love these books more than Twilight - shhh.) (I Vampire Eric!)

The next one in the series won't come out till May, so I am going to read some of my old favorites - Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and Rebecca byDaphne du Maurier.

Lullaby and cute boys

2009-02-11T08:16:00.001-08:00

Yes, this is Twilight related. I am over the every day obsessiveness about it, but it has definitely touched my life. There is a pretty lullaby in the movie - Edward wrote it for Bella, so sweet. The lullaby is based on a piece of music by Yiruma called A River Runs in You. It is truly beautiful. Iwas so moved by this piece that I decided to take piano lessons.

After 2 years of piano lessons in elementary school and 6 years of band, I can't read a stitch of music. Wow, my brain is truly like a sieve...

I had my second piano lesson last night. I am getting there. The teacher is a little intense. Nice, but intense. I feel like a little kid - afraid I am going to get in trouble for not knowing the answer.

The whole experience has been full of guilt for me. I will feel guilty if I can't learn how to play - not well enough to get paid for it, but to be able to read music and play at a basic level. I would love to buy a piano - guilty if I can't play and spent the money on the piano. Guilty for even spending the money on such a non-necessity item.

I think the old saying - "jack of all trades, but master of none" applies to me. I don't want this to be one of those things. Again, I am not expecting to play at Carnegie Hall, but I don't want it to be one of those things I have left unfinished.

In other news, my favorite Saturday night TV show has wrapped for the season. I love Dr. Who. Who? The Dr. Who I knew about was from the 70's and was not cool. The BBC has revamped Dr. Who and it is great. They also have a spin-off called Torchwood - again, great. And cute boys! Jack from Torchwood is so cute and has a wicked sense of humor. Saturday night is really all about the BBC at my house. Well, that and a gourmet dinner (homemade of course) and a nice bottle of wine.

Sadly, the current Dr. Who is being replaced by a new who. The new who will be in next season, so only time will tell. (Okay, I just cracked myself up - Dr. Who is a time lord - Time - HA!) I know, but it has been a seriously long day!

The cute boys I promised:

The Doctor

Captain Jack from Torchwood

The Zone

2009-01-17T11:16:00.000-08:00

I have been a bad blogger and taken too much time off. Sure, there were the holidays, but this is ridiculous. I do have an excuse though. I can hear the tee hee hees and the groaning as I write this - I went to the Twilight zone. (Not Rod Serling - think Edward & Bella)

No, I still haven't come back yet. I was such a procrastinator about the books. I had not thought much about them and kind of dismissed them - which is really weird, because I have always loved vampires and love stories. So, I am now a huge Twilight fan and reveling in my obsession.

It has gotten more manageable. After I devoured all 4 books (in a matter of days) and saw the movie (twice within a week), I am able to conduct myself in a normal manner - actually hold conversations that don't involve Twilight (for the most part). I was thrilled when I went back to work on the 5th, that Twilight had struck most of my close friends at work. YIPEEE! It helps the "I am so obsessed and can't think about anything else" and "If I relate something regarding Twilight to a normal conversation, you won't look at me like I have two heads".

I got my husband to take me to the movie. This is huge people! We have been married almost 12 years and have never - I repeat NEVER seen a movie in the theatre together. I just asked, plain and simple. Didn't expect I would have to talk him into it, but I was totally prepared to if necessary! We just never went to the movies, just rented them and hung out at home. It was always easier and when he and I can cook like we do, what else do you need? (Well yes, Edward on the big screen is nice...) Loved the movie!

We went to a 9:45am showing on a Saturday. This meant that I would have to get up by 7:30am. On. A. Saturday. This is something that is almost impossible for me on a workday, let alone a Saturday. I was so giddy I couldn't sleep. I had just finished the first book and was waiting to start on the second.

We are finding our seats in the theatre and my husband whispers in my ear that he is the only man in the room. Ohh, this may not go so well... I kept looking over at him during the movie to see if he were asleep or counting ceiling tiles - nope, good to go. He liked it too!!! I went to see it with some friends from work a few days later and it was even better the second time around and after finishing all of the books.

It is totally a frivilous distraction - but a fun one!
Do you have the Twilight fever or what is your fun distraction?

Happy New Year

2009-01-13T14:57:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

My sweet, sweet Daisy

Tour of homes.

(Don't know where the home pics are, this is the court house...)

Yummys - rice krispy treats and gooey coconut bars (super yummy)

Prep for mini beef wellingtons

We had a buch of little things for our New Year's eve dinner

(Beef wellies, sushi, fried lobster tail, shrimp, etc.)

Sushi

(from Publix, but it is all in the presentation)

This was our Christmas dinner

Curious girls!

(They knew there was good food to be had)

I think eat and sleep pretty much sums it up!

Christmas Tour of Homes

2008-12-15T20:06:00.001-08:00

I didn't think I would make it! With the water heater situation and my always running behind, I somehow managed to pull it together and have more decorations up this year than ever!
(I did a separate post with a picture of my new water heater - it is dressed up for Christmas too!)

So, welcome and Merry Christmas-

We hardly ever use the front door. This is our side door and garage. I have always wanted to put lights up on the house at Christmas time. This is the first year and I only got the garage, but I am happy with it and baby steps are fine with me.

We put up our tree in our everything room (living room/family room/t.v. room/sunroom) this year. When we originally started construction on this room it was supposed to a small sunroom off of the master bedroom. I am glad it morphed into all of the above.

I used the ornaments that my gram had given me several years ago. I had never used them before, but love seeing them on my tree. It really has a special feel this year, maybe a very tiny bit retro. They are the big round ornaments in pink, orange, blue and a greenish blue.

I made a mad dash to Michael's this afternoon and found a few new things. This wreath was one of them and I love it on my old mirror.

Here is the rest of my everything room~

We have had the large reindeer for many years and they are one of favorite decorations. Their antlers hold candles, but we haven't found those just yet...

My hubby loves nutcrackers and we try to get a new one each year.

This is my glass and silver table. I keep the large glass jars here year round and try to change them with the season. Across the front of the table are our silver bells. We were given our first one in 1997, the year we were married. We have gotten one each year since, it has become a tradition. We haven't made our pilgrimage to Macy's for our 2008 bell, but hopefully this week.

This is an iron hand made plant stand that we found at one of local antique stores. It has been empty for about a month and looks much more festive with something in it.

This is my Daisy. She is not thrilled that I woke her up with the flash. She was a super sweet girl today when I took out the new ornaments, she wanted to look at each one before I put it on the tree.

This is the sideboard in my dining room. We have three different nativity scenes displayed here.

Thanks for taking a look. Please post a comment to let me know you stopped by.

Merry Christmas!

Hot Hot Hot

2008-12-15T20:03:00.000-08:00

Bless my plumbers heart. He said he would come back on Sunday and install the waterheater and he did! YEAH!!!

Merry Christmas to me!

Bah Humbug

2008-12-12T11:32:00.000-08:00

This has not been my week! I have been pretty down all week. Just when I convinced myself that everything is okay, my water heater died. Oh, but not only died, it went down like the titanic. Water everywhere! It was old as time - it had been in our house for quite a while before we bought it and we have been here for 10 years.

Well, I am the kind of girl that has to have a nice hot shower to get my day going. I can live one day without it, Sure it will be fine - I told myself these things thinking that it would only be one day. It took at least 20 minutes for me to brush my teeth and wash my face today. I grew up in Florida! I don't even like my drinking water cold!

Plumber says - The floor and floor joist have to be replaced before the new heater can be put in. Today is Friday - Friday! The floor is currently being ripped up - 2:37pm on Friday. Okay, this means that the water heater won't be installed until Sunday at the earliest. Breathe...

Grumble, Grumble, Grumble....

Breathe...

Okay, up side is that someone was able to come out today and replace the floor.

Did I point out the gas line enough to them??

Should I get the emergency number for the gas company just in case??

Please don't let them screw it up.

I know, be grateful and don't let your overactive imagination get the best of you.

Hate house issues. Hate making these grown-up decisions. Grumble, grumble.

If everything goes well you can see a post of me with my Christmas present, I mean new water heater.

Holiday Stress

2008-12-09T15:08:00.000-08:00

This afternoon I was totally stressed out! I don't have any decorations on my tree, my shopping isn't done, I need to do a million things and nothing was getting done. I called my hubby and he helped (a lot, as always) and then I found this video on a new blog. You have to take a look at it. It really helped put things in perspective.
Peace and love-

Many Thanks

2008-12-04T18:08:00.000-08:00

We spent a quiet Thanksgiving with our friends at their cabin. This has become a much welcome and anticipated event. This year we took our sweet Daisy with us. She had the best time ever. She was not thrilled when it was time to go home. The dinner was a huge success - a perfectly fried turkey and dinner on the table before 7:00pm. A new record! Cheryl and I rocked this year. Of course the food coma set in and that was all she wrote.

We made our pilgrimage off the mountain and into town on Friday. Love the town and the stores, just wish the stores weren't so narrow. Way too many people! I can shop with the best of them, but after a handful of stores packed with people - it was time to go. Of course, Thanksgiving wouldn't be so thankful if we didn't visit Merciers. Merciers is an apple store - but store is so inadequate. They have fresh apple cider, the best potato salad in their deli, big beautiful bags of all kinds of apples, and the pies - the fried pies! Cherry, apple, peach, blueberry - oh the pies.

Hope your Thanksgiving was full of pies too!

Fall Ya'll

2008-12-04T17:59:00.000-08:00

I tried Bakerella's cupcake pops for Halloween. Not the best thing to do when you are tired! To make myself feel better about how they were turning out, I cheated and made chocolate covered pretzels with a Halloween mold. Using the mold was a first for me. This prompted me to visit Cake Art and look at their molds. I found a bulldog mold!!! I know they are not very spooky, but I had to have it. All the UGA grads at worked appreciated the white chocolate bulldog pops I made...

No trick or treaters at home this year. Sad all that candy had to go to waste...

First time blogger, long time crafter

2008-09-25T15:46:00.000-07:00

This was my very first blog on September 25, 2008.
Boy does time fly!

Greetings,

This is my first blog! Not really sure about this, but what I do know is that there are some really creative people out there. I want to share my creative projects and hear about yours. When I see a new thing - craft, recipe, whatever, I have to figure out how to reproduce it. If it something that I like, I become obsessed with trying to recreate it and make it mine. I haven't really found out what to do with all of these projects after I have mastered them, but I love a challenge.

My latest recreation was cupcake pops from Bakerella. I made them for a baby shower at work and everyone really liked them.

Update - the babies were born early and have turned 1!

Baking has never been my thing. Even in culinary school I was more of a cook than a baker. So to hear rave reviews and having them pass my way too critical self analysis, I was thrilled. You have to check out Bakerella, she is my baking hero! http://bakerella.blogspot.com/

Until next time~