Halloween

Cade wanted to be a blue crayon so I made his costume from felt. I think it turned out pretty good and he loved it!





He wanted his sister to be a princess so I had someone form Etsy make a tutu for her. She looked adorable, of course! As happy and smiley as this baby is, I cannot get her to smile for the camera. Rotten girl!

Thoughts on Whole Living

I used to subscribe to body + soul magazine. My favorite part was the "ten thoughts on whole living" page at the very end. I've actually torn them out and kept them to refer back to. Here are a few of my favorites...

Sometimes picking your battles means letting go of a need to engage in them. (I'm embarrassed to say I've battled with loved ones over things that are just plain stupid. Why do I feel the need to argue about silly, trivial things?)

Walk a little, every day. (There have been days that I don't walk much...I spend a lot of time on the computer. On those days, my body seems to get stiff and achey. Movement, activity and exercise are *necessary*.)



A healthy life stems from better choices. (It's all about choices...and perspective...and attitude!)

Try not to let the lure of electronics strip away your ability to be here now. (I have a love/hate relationship with my computer and cell phone. You know how it is.)


Worth doesn't begin and end with a bank account. Appreciate you true abundance. ("A worthy woman who can find? For her price is far above rubies." Proverbs 31:10 ASV)

Here's What I'm Working on...

This is the small bookshelf we're working on. I forgot what kind of wood it's made of but it's good quality and very sturdy. The trim has been cut and just needs to be glued/nailed on. Then I have to paint it. There are two other bookshelves that need to be painted, as well. They're much larger, though. 6 ft by 4 ft. Huge! Those 2 will go in the living room, on on either side of the tv. This smaller one is going in the office and will be our "homeschool" bookshelf. It's really deep so it'll hold quite a bit.

See all the frames on the cardboard in front of the bookshelf? I bought them at Goodwill. They were all a cheap, tacky gold. I spray painted them and now they all hold Veggietales pictures that Cade drew! I matted his drawings on cardstock and framed them. I'm so proud of how talented he is and he's so proud to see his pictures framed around the house!

Here's the other thing I've been working on:


She's so stinkin' cute! Seriously, she's such a happy baby. She makes me want more babies. Except for when she's up til midnight. Then I don't want more!

That was a Long Break

Whoa. It's been over 4 months since I last posted. We've had lots going on...new house, new baby, yadda yadda yadda! I'll try to keep up better but who knows how well I'll do. I'm always struggling to find balance. Why is that so darn hard? There's just so much to do. Cook, clean, do laundry, homeschool, take care of the baby, play with my son, take care of myself, help my husband, dole out supplements, give baths, etc. In my free time I usually read blofgs rather than post to my own. I'm going to work on that, though.

Anyway, my princess baby was born on July 21 weighing 9 pounds and 10 ounces. She was born a mini linebacker! lol I had a successful VBAC even though she was bigger than her brother. Unfortunately, I had a few complications and was in and out of the hospital for that first week. Praise God all is well now. So baby girl is now 2 1/2 months old and just so stinkin' precious! She's rolling from tummy to back already (too early!) and is always smiling. She's a good baby...never cries unless she's ready to go to bed. She sleeps okay. Better than her brother did but still not great. Cade absolutely adores her. He just loves her to pieces and is so protective of her.

I have yet to catch her smiling with my camera. Stinker!

My Funny Kid

*click on the picture to make it larger and read the journaling*

Seriously Impressed

Back when I lived in Phoenix, my girlfriends and I used to hit up all the local Goodwills and thrift stores. We were always looking for cheap pieces to alter (and Pyrex, we loved collecting Pyrex!). It's so much fun to take something old or ugly and make it new and gorgeous! I haven't done that in such a long time. Today I came across a blog called Thrifty Decor Chick and I have been seriously inspired. This girl is FAB at restoring old pieces! Seriously, you have to check her blog out! I really want to start altering again. I think I need to find some new Goodwills and stock up on spray paint

It's raining and thundering outside (and I'm loving the smell of the rain--I had to stand out back for a few minutes and just inhale deeply--very calming *and* refreshing) so that means swim lessons will be cancelled today. Cade is happy! He didn't sleep so well lst night and is cozied up on the couch watching Noggin. I'm kind of happy, too...I'm in the mood to create! I think I'll scrap again. I'm trying to get through some older pictures and stories so I can move on to newer things when the baby is born. (Ummm...which will be in about 6 weeks!!! EEK!) Here's a page I just finished up and also the card that I ended up making for my friend.

C is for Camden

I altered a foam letter for miss Camden. I plan on doing one for Cade, too. I think it's so much easier to make things look girly, though.

Today I'm working on a card and gift bag for a friend of mine who's going through chemo. She's 32 and has stage 2 Hodgekin's Lymphoma. We're all very optimistic that she'll be just fine. I'm no longer a Mary Kay consultant and I have lots of leftover products so I thought I'd make her a goodie bag with pampering stuff. So far it's going to have Lotus and Bamboo loofah body cleanser and nourishing body lotion and a Satin Lips set (mask and balm). I'm not sure what else I'll throw in there.

My husband is a lucky man. Seriously. He's out of town on business and stopped into a casino last night. I agreed to him spending $20. (I'm not a gambler--at all--and think it's just ridiculous to lose money.) Anyway, he was there for about 5 hours (on $20!!!) and walked away with $600!!!!!!! Last time he went to a casino he went in with $40 and came out with over $2000. Shoot, maybe I shouldn't have such a problem with him gambling! lol Anyway, he plans on buying a GPS for traveling (I'm wondering if that would be reimbursed under business expenses?) and I plan on going to the scrapbook store! :)

Have a good weekend!