This Blessed Life

Meeting Other Bloggers IRL–Have You Done It?

2013-05-09T13:26:00.001-07:00

{Thank you to all those who were a part of praying for my daughter’s heart surgery! She is alive and thriving right now – I’m not ready to process it all on the blog, especially since I’ve been documenting it all on her Facebook page, but maybe I will someday soon. So for today, just a fun post.}

Meeting other bloggers in real life is something I’d probably never tell my mom I’ve done, because I’m pretty sure she’d be a nervous wreck, bless her heart! haha! I have to admit, it DOES sound pretty shady to meet people you’ve only ever chatted with on the internet, but two of my “blogging friends” have turned into actual, real-life friends that I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know their kids and homes.

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The first was Abby, back in 2011. Abby and her husband used to be a military family and they ended up getting stationed only about an hour from my house. I can’t remember how I found Abby’s blog, but I think it was through a project linky. We had used the same wall color on our living rooms, I think, and then of course I totally ~~acted like a stalker~~ read through like every one of her past posts and decided that she was someone whose blog I wanted to follow. {Tell me you do a little screening process like that too?! I take my blog reading very seriously! haha}

{Hanging out one last time, a few weeks before she moved back to Oklahoma. I look like I haven’t slept in 37 days but at least you can see a picture of us. ha!}

When I first met Abby in person, my first thought was, “she looks so cute!” I have a freaky almost-photographic memory for certain things, so I can still remember what she was wearing! (So that I can creep out the whole internet, it was a cute denim chambray-style shirt and riding boots. Abby you still want to be friends?! lol) She was SO soft-spoken, which made me nervous at first because I am pretty much the definition of an extrovert and when I meet quiet people I start to launch into verbal-diarrhea mode. Quiet people scare me. There, I said it. lol

But she is a total sweetheart AND she is Southern (didn’t realize until I met her that Oklahoma is a Southern state?). She says y’all and if you’ve been reading here at all you know that I’m a little obsessed with the South and if they ever figure out how I can simultaneously live in Georgia and New England, I’m all over that.

She has two super cute little boys and we share a mutual love of thrift-store and yard-sale shopping. She and her family recently decided that they are going to adopt a little GIRL from Ethiopia! It has been so, so fun to follow their journey to bring home their precious girl. I try not to be jealous that she gets to adopt before me. ;)

Abby blogs over at Eat, Run, Teach if you want to read all about her life like I do! :)

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The second blog friend I’ve met is Sarah. Kelly from Kelly’s Korner once did a moms link-up of some kind and she had you list where you were from. I participated, and so did Sarah, and we found out that I was living right near her hometown! (This was in PA). She ended up moving back to PA from Indianapolis only a few months after I moved from PA back to my home state of CT. I will forever be sad that we never got a chance to live in the same state at the same time!

{First time to meet – Fall 2012}

I got to meet Sarah this past fall on one of my trips back home to visit Chris’s family. My first thought when I met her was, “Oh my gosh, she is so tiny!” (I mean, I was also pregnant at the time, so that didn’t help! lol). To meet Sarah you would never ever know that she has had two kiddos! She is in great shape and super petite to boot. She also has an adorable sense of style. She knows how to put clothes together really well. I joke that if I didn’t like Sarah so much, I’d have to hate her – she’s seriously a little Martha Stewart! She is good at EVERYTHING. She runs her own baking/catering company called Pink Balloon, she has a super cute house, she knows how to sew and applique and sent me THE CUTEST gifts for Olivia when she was born, she is an awesome photographer…the list goes on.

Sarah is someone I can talk to for hours upon hours. Actually, the first time we met, we met at a frozen yogurt shop. We still had so much to talk about after the first two hours or so that we moved on to Starbucks to continue talking. After another hour or two at Starbucks, our husbands – we had both informed them where we were, obviously – called within a few minutes of each other to make sure we were okay and not like, in the back of a van on the way to Mexico or something. haha! It was really cute. Time just got away from us!

{Livi and Sarah’s daughter Lucy – soon enough they’ll be playing dolls together!}

Our boys have some similar eating issues so it’s been so nice to have someone who can commiserate with that since it’s not too common. (And, ironically, we both are passionate about healthy eating – Sarah actually has a degree in nutrition!) And it’s fun that she has a boy and girl just like me. I LOVE spending time with this girl and I’m thankful that at least I might get to see her once or twice a year on trips back to PA!

Sarah blogs over at Growing on Gettysburg, if you want to ~~hate her for being so talented and sweet~~ check her out! ;)

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What about you? Have you ever gotten a chance to meet a blogging friend in real life? It’s definitely scary to bridge that gap between the internet world and reality, but I’m so glad I did it in both cases! I treasure Abby and Sarah and I’m thankful for their friendships!

Or if you haven’t met anyone from the blogging world yet, who would you like to meet? I have a lot of favorite blogs, but I have to admit that some of my favorite blogs aren’t necessarily people I’d most want to meet! lol (I feel rude to say that, but mostly it’s because I follow a lot of home design blogs for house inspiration.)

Of the “famous” bloggers, here are some I would LOVE to meet:

Kelly from Kelly’s Korner (I literally think I would faint if I met her – plus she’s Southern)
Sandy from Reluctant Entertainer
The Nester from Nesting Place (Southern)
Edie from Life in Grace (Southern)
Melissa from 320 Sycamore
Sarah from Clover Lane
Shannon from Bless Our Nest (Southern)

And some“regular” - but still fantastic!! - mom bloggers like me:

Clarita from Skies of Parchment (just found her blog and I LOVE it!)
Amy from The Blessed Mom (New England girl transplanted to Texas)
Lauren from Only from Scratch (Southern)
Kelly from Joyful Adorations (Southern)
Sarah from Through the Picture Window (New England mommy)

And that’s just a few of my favorites off the top of my head (please don’t be offended if I didn’t include you – I have total mom brain right now!!)

P.S. - Notice a trend in my favorite blogs?? lol

Prayers for My Daughter

2013-04-30T05:37:00.001-07:00

In just about 24 hours from right now, my precious daughter Olivia will be heading into the OR for her open-heart surgery. It’s hard to put into words what this feels like – but “swirling” is a pretty close description. I simultaneously want it to be over immediately and never ever begin.

If all goes well, she will be through with her surgery early tomorrow afternoon (it’s about 5 hours in the OR) and then we should be in the hospital til about Monday. She is being operated on at Yale-New Haven Hospital here in CT.

I’m a busy little bee today trying to pack up all four of our lives for the scattered places we will all end up over the course of this week. But I wanted to mention that I have started a Facebook page for Olivia, called “Olivia’s Page,” and you can follow the link here:

https://www.facebook.com/oliviasheartpage

I’ve been putting specific daily prayer requests on the site over the past week, and I’ll be updating it all day tomorrow as I know news from the nurses and doctors and then once we are (God willing) in post-op. I’ve already seen some sweet blog friends' names on there and that blesses my heart so much.

My husband and I and our families appreciate your prayers more than you will ever know! And I just want to publically declare that no matter what God’s outcome for my daughter tomorrow:

He is good.

He is faithful.

He loves Olivia more than we do.

He is trustworthy.

And if He calls Olivia home, I know that she will never again experience pain or fear or suffering. My mommy heart takes immense peace in that.

Yard Sale Jackpots

2013-04-21T12:59:00.001-07:00

Over the last two weekends, I have hit up some awesome sales! Two were at a church and one was in a big high school auditorium to support Child and Family Services in our area. So much fun, and so many bargains! And half the fun of grabbing great deals is sharing what you found at such great prices…so here you go. ;)

Last weekend I went to a church yard sale with Lindsay. I was SO excited, because I haven’t been to this particular church sale in years – since we lived in PA – because our trips out there have never aligned with this sale. This time it did, and you better believe the angels were singing! It’s everything you can shove in a brown paper grocery bag, for a DOLLAR. That’s right, you heard me! :)

I snagged a milk-glass vase, a mason jar (actually technically this was given away for free at another yard sale we went to later), a cute little mug, and a pink bowl I’m using on my dryer to store my dryer balls in. I also got a bunch of comfy clothes to wear to bed – Old Navy shirts, Target pink sweatpants, a J. Crew shirt, a local college long-sleeve tee (super comfy!) and some slippers.

I also Gap jammie pants and a beach hat for Miss Liv, as well as a crib fish tank and a Cadoo game with all of the pieces. I originally thought the white lace was a crib skirt and I was freaking out – come to find out it’s a bassinet skirt, but I’m still going to try to make it work somehow in her room. It’s so lacey and sweet and girly and I love it.

I also snagged this gorgeous floor-length dress and adorable pink coat for her, both from OshGosh! They’re both 18 months but totally worth hanging on to!

So I seriously got everything here (PLUS two hardcover books, not shown), for a dollar! Insane, right?!

Moving on to this past Friday – my mom and I went a local church sale. This church has great prices and there is always a huge line outside waiting for them to open! This week was no exception. My dad was off work so he watched Luke but I brought Olivia in a sling. I had at least 5 people ask me if I had a real baby in there. (?!) People are strange. lol

At this sale I found a lot of great kitchen items. I’d been looking for a biscuit cutter for a while so I was happy to find one for 50 cents! My favorite find here was a complete set of 6 Pampered Chef 1-cup bowls, with lids, for $4!! They retail for $21.50 on the site! No kidding, these have been on my Pampered Chef “wishlist.” Score! :)

Basket, bird feeder, and can opener (ohhh I needed a new one badly!) were $1, and the cutter and grater were 50 cents.

I also picked up two magnet boards with the cutest little birdie magnets for $2 each! I’m going to mod-podge over the current design with some cute scrapbook paper. I thought they were too cute to pass up. :)

Lastly was the Child and Family Services sale. Mom and I went to this one yesterday, on half-price day. We weren’t sure if we’d find anything good, since the sale had been going on since Thursday night, but boy were we wrong! So much fun! I got everything in the picture below for $2.12! (AND a little potted tree which didn’t make it into the picture.)Insane! :)

Seriously, the prices were unbelievable! 5 cents for the mini Anthro-knock-off latte bowl, a quarter for the little pink candle holder, 15 cents for the cute little lantern (which ironically looks like the one I picked up at this sale last year)…

The chopper is brand-new and ended up being 50 cents! The frame ended up being 2 cents (yes, seriously) after the sale (it doesn’t have glass but I don’t care! Oh and I’m totally going to pop out those beads and hot glue them again evenly spaced around the frame. It’s stressing me out a little. haha!)

This apron was one of my faves – it’s no secret that I love the fall and for $1 I seriously couldn’t pass it up! It’s so cute. And the basket was only 10 cents! I have an obsession with baskets. Seriously. The chalkboard was a quarter after the discount. A quarter, people! I already re-painted it with chalkboard paint yesterday and it looks great.

When I realized my tally was so low, I went ahead and bought this Aero shirt for Chris for $2. It is so soft and it still had the tags on it! It fits him great and he really likes it. They also had puzzles in another room so after I cashed out from the first room I snagged these three for Luke for only 25 cents each! And the truck one is Melissa and Doug! He has already played with them all for hours. My boy LOVES puzzles!

So all told, everything on this blog post totaled $17.87. Not bad, right?! :)

This mama is sooooooo happy that yard sale season is back!

Spring Decor & Our Easter 2013 {and a link to Olivia’s Page}

2013-04-05T06:40:00.001-07:00

My heart was so blessed by the e-mails and Facebook messages and comments I received after my last post about my struggles with Olivia’s heart condition. Thank you all so very much for being such wonderful readers and friends. We found out at the doctor on Wednesday that she WILL be having surgery this month! She gained just the right amount of weight to clear her for operating. I started a Facebook page for her on Wednesday night so that all of her updates will now be in one place, and so that we have a place where people I’m not personally friends with can have access to her information. I would be honored and humbled if you would “Like” her page and support our family with your thoughts and prayers during this time! I don’t have that many Facebook friends (on purpose; I am very uptight about my family’s privacy), but my goal for this page is 1,000 “Likes” before her surgery. In about 36 hours we are at 270 – I know we can reach our goal! To find her page, search for “Olivia’s Page” on Facebook or use this direct link:

http://www.facebook.com/oliviasheartpage.

THANK YOU for your support and love!

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Our Easter was very, very low key. But it was nice. We had big plans to have a nice dinner with my parents and an Easter egg hunt for Luke and Easter baskets and all that. But then my mom called to say that they’d been around people whose kids had been puking in public and they’d taken them out anyway (!!!) and long story short my parents had exposed themselves accidentally to the stomach bug.

Well, unfortunately for us, Olivia’s doctors have stressed over and over that she CANNOT get dehydrated (whether through vomiting or diarrhea). It is super dangerous for a baby with a heart condition and she would need to be brought back to the NICU immediately. So we had to scrap all of our plans for the holiday to keep her safe. (And thankfully my parents didn’t end up getting sick, but at least we did what we could.)

I’m not going to lie – I cried. Holidays are a huge deal to me and the memories and the photos and especially with this being Livi’s first Easter and in the back of my mind I just kept thinking, “What if this is the only one she ever gets?” But there was really nothing I could do, so I just accepted it. We decided to have Luke’s Easter egg hunt next Sunday instead (thankfully we hadn’t told him about it yet).

We did get dressed and went to church. I told Chris that having a girl is so fun for me – it’s like having a little dolly to play with and dress up! I LOVE putting her in little outfits and big bows (although 9 times out of 10 she’s spit-up all over the outfit 10 seconds after it’s on her!).

We came home and relaxed and then my parents did a “Meals on Wheels” thing and brought us Easter dinner all wrapped up! My poor mom had already made all the food on Saturday night and she said she didn’t want to waste it. Plus she had gotten Luke a helium balloon that wouldn’t last. So they ate their Easter dinner, then drove over and delivered a hot meal to us, along with Luke’s basket (Livi got a first Easter bib from my mom) and his balloon.

{best I could get with Luke – ohhhh the difference in my children right now! lol}

But to keep us from getting sick, they stayed on the front step while Luke opened his presents inside the front door. OHHHH I wish I would have taken a picture! haha I’m sure our neighbors were thinking, “Wow, tight family bond, huh guys?” LOL

So next week we will do “part 2” of our Easter and go have a little Easter egg hunt for Luke at my parents’ house. I’m going to dress up Livi in her Easter outfit again since my parents didn’t get to see her in it. Her beautiful dress was made by a wonderful etsy seller named Shelby whose shop is called Plain Jane & Co.

There’s a very special story behind that dress, but I will save it for its own post.

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Here are a few shots of my “Springtime” decorating.

I love documenting my house decor on the blog because each time the season changes, I can check the link on my blog to see how I decorated for it the year before! :)

I am very much looking forward to fresh flowers in mason jars and bringing in big long branches of forsythia for the kitchen island. Spring really doesn’t come to Connecticut until May (or end of April if we’re really lucky!)

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter and a lovely weekend coming up!

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P.S. It’s 7:50 am and I wrote this WHOLE post this morning while my kids were both sleeping! And they’re STILL sleeping! It’s a Christmas miracle! I love cloudy mornings!! Quiet house and coffee?! BLISSFUL. :)

P.P.S. I had to google how to spell “diarrhea.” What a weird, weird, word.

P.P.S. This post is actually getting finished and published at 9:37. It was fun while it lasted. ;)

When Your Baby is Born a Little Broken

2013-04-02T06:21:00.001-07:00

It’s 10:40 pm and everyone’s asleep and I should be too. But I need to get this post out. I have no idea if it will make sense but I need to write out the thoughts that have been swirling in my head for the past 10 weeks.

My daughter Olivia, as you know, has a congenital heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot. Think for a minute about all the times in your life when you’ve talked to a pregnant woman and you’ve asked her what she’s having and she’s answered you with the phrase, “I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl – as long as it’s healthy.”

Because nobody actually expects their baby to be unhealthy. No one wishes for this. No one. It is devastating. It rocks your world. I think I’ve cried more in the last 10 weeks than I have in the previous 28 years of my life combined. Becoming a parent means it’s possible for the pain your child experiences to be more painful than something that actually happens to you.

In the hospital, when we first found our about her condition and nobody was exactly sure yet how serious it was, I remember telling Chris that if God was going to take her, I wanted Him to take her now. I didn’t want to fall in love with my daughter and then have her taken from me. I wanted her to go before I’d made a bond, before I’d taken her home and showed her all her pretty clothes and her new room and made memories with her.

Of course I don’t think that now. I am forever grateful that I’ve been able to experience life as her mom. She is the most smiley, happy baby right now. She coos and is starting to “laugh” at us now and she squeals and kicks her legs when we make her happy - and it just makes our day! I love dressing her in little outfits and bows and smelling her and kissing her sweet head. Come what may, I’ve gotten to be her mommy and these memories are priceless to me and I am so grateful I’ve gotten to know her.

Honestly? It’s hard for me to hear about people having healthy babies now. I am jealous of them and their blissful birth stories. I am jealous of people who get to simply enjoy their sweet, cuddly, snuggly babies without a pit in their stomach and the knowledge in the back of their minds at all times that a big, huge, scary surgery is looming. Please don’t misunderstand me – I would NEVER EVER wish this on anyone else. And I feel like a terrible, horrible person for even admitting this publically. But that doesn’t mean it’s not hard to feel envious.

I already have a friend in mind who I will call to pick out a funeral dress for me. I mean of course this friend doesn’t know this – “Hi, you have great taste in black!” – but I know her style is similar to mine and she would pick me out something classy. It feels so morbid to think about this but I remember reading a blog where the mom regretted wearing pants to her 9-month-old daughter’s funeral and it triggered something in me. I want to look nice should that day come.

I can equally picture her living and not living through the surgery. Like my brain plays alternate scenarios all the time. I imagine the surgeons coming out to say that it was a flying success and everything went perfectly and I also imagine them coming out to say that there was an accident and she’s not with us anymore. Both of them seem plausible to me. Is that weird to say out loud?

When I think about her not making it (I really do try not to think about that a lot) it feels like I am suffocating. I have no earthly clue how I would survive without my daughter. I think Luke and Chris needing me would be the only things keeping me here after that.

I honestly try to cherish every minute with her – but sometimes that feels so overwhelming to me! She has been a very fussy baby until very recently and I finally had to admit that it was okay if I didn’t enjoy every.single.moment. That I was only human and you can love someone with every fiber of your being and still feel like going crazy when they’ve been crying for 45 minutes with no signs of stopping. I felt such a peace when I was able to let that go. But mostly I do make a conscious awareness to enjoy her. I do something that I call “mental snapshots” where I force myself to pause from the craziness and noise and just consciously take in the moment and be fully present in it so I can remember it later. I also make sure to journal about her when I can.

Sometimes when I am dressing her I can’t help but cry thinking about how very soon her chest will never look the same. She will have open-heart surgery and they will crack open her sternum and she will have a big long scar on her chest. Forever. I know that it will fade over time but it just makes me sad that it will probably show a little even under the most modest of shirts and it makes me sad to think about her wanting to be pretty and having to deal with that. And hoping that she won’t be sad when she wants to wear prom dresses or her wedding dress and has a big scar. Of course I’m hoping that she’ll be so proud of her scar and the fact that it tells a story in her life and not be sad about it at all! But it is hard to look at her and know that her beautiful perfect skin will forever be marked.

Sometimes I think about this big worry I carry around with me and I think, “Am I crazy? Am I overreacting?” Because the rational parts of me do realize that her surgery should go well and everything should be fine. The odds are definitely in her favor as far as medical advances, the overall “mildness” of her version of her defect, and the fact that she is being operated on at Yale. I mean Chris asked her doctor point blank what her odds were of survival were, and he told us there would have to be an accident on one of the machines in the operating room for her not to make it. But naturally all I can think about is one of the machines dying. Or for whatever reason, her heart not beginning to pump blood again once the surgery is over. Beyond that, he said that sometimes the electrical circuit of the heart is damaged during surgery and children have to have permanent pacemakers. But I would blissfully take that if it meant she stayed with us.

I’ve done some crazy bargaining with God – even trying to convince him that since we call her “Liv” a lot, He had to let her live since it was already in her name. I am losing it! haha

And I will forever and ever be grateful that she is not in pain. She is happy and relatively healthy and totally unaware that anything is wrong with her. I don’t know how I would deal with it if I knew she was hurting every day – it would break my heart. So I constantly give thanks for that.

So now it is April 1st – we’ve been told since January that this would most likely be her surgery month, as long as she gained 13 pounds (their criteria for operating on babies). Unfortunately, since Livi’s had really bad acid reflux the past 6 weeks or so (she’s even on a prescription for it), she hasn’t gained weight as fast as they wanted. On April 3rd we go to see her cardiologist again and discuss surgery. I have a feeling it will be next month instead. Of course I want her to be as strong and healthy as possible for the surgery, but part of me – okay all of me – just wants this part of our lives to be over. I hate waking up every morning and remembering that it’s coming. In the beginning I kept having nightmares about her being sick and I would wake up only to realize that it wasn’t a nightmare – this was my real life. So we wait to see what happens.

But the thought popped into my head a few days ago that God already knows her surgery date. I can’t tell you how much comfort that brought me. He’s already aware of it and He will share it with me soon.

One huge thing I’ve taken away from all of this is that when something bad happens to someone now, I don’t pretend that it didn’t happen to avoid hurting their feelings or making them sad. It was so bizarre to me in the beginning when people would have entire conversations with me and never bring it up once. Not sure if they were afraid I didn’t want to talk about it, or if I would start crying or something, but a lot of people didn’t bring it up. Hear me: when someone is going through something awful, acknowledge their pain. Don’t pretend it’s not there. Give them the option of talking about it, even if it makes you uncomfortable or if you’re not sure how they’ll handle it. They can always choose to say no, that they don’t want to talk about it, but then at least you’ve given them the option. I’ve totally been there before, not wanting to offend someone, but I’ve changed now. Being able to listen to someone in pain is a great gift to give them.

Life is hard, you guys. I’ve had a pretty blissful life, all things considered, so far. I went through a period of being pretty angry with God over all of this, but it has morphed into just being sad (which I think God is definitely okay with). Life brings suffering and there’s no way around it. But the way I see it, there are really only two options set before me: get angry with God and become a bitter person, or trust God and see the beauty of life and stay bonded with Him through this trial. I don’t want to be a bitter, angry person. That’s no way to live. So I choose to trust God and rest in Him and find peace in the words of the Bible and the truth that I know.

I’m going to be starting a Facebook page for her very soon so that people we aren’t personally friends with can have access to her information and surgery details for prayer. I have had person after person tell me that their whole church or small group is praying for Olivia. People I barely know have stopped me at the store because they’re a friend of a friend and want to know how she is doing and that they’ve been praying for her faithfully. I am constantly humbled and honored by this, and so, so grateful! So I will let you all know when that is up and running.

It feels good to finally have gotten the honest truth out there. I’m so thankful to have this blog as an outlet, and I know there are many of you out there reading who have been praying for Olivia, too. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!!

My Night Out ALONE {and Goodwill Finds}

2013-03-19T07:41:00.001-07:00

Last Thursday night I had a complete mental breakdown when Chris came home. I mean, the ugly cry and everything. I was stressed out from potty training, from the demands of a newborn, from a house that never seems to get clean anymore and from the feeling that my days are so unproductive lately. And then I started crying because I had been crying every night when he came home and who wants to come home to that?! Lovely. haha!

He calmly talked me down off the ledge and reminded me of my word for the year (“Survive” – practical and all, but how boring is that, seriously?!) and gave me an awesome, encouraging pep talk that seriously swung me in the other direction. And then he told me to go out.

But by this time it was 5:50 and I don’t think I’d showered that day and there was no way I was using up my free night out card when it was going to be at least 6:30 by the time I left the house. lol So I went out on Friday. And boy was I ready by the time he came home! I was outta there. ;)

First I went to Panera and got a Greek salad (one of my faves!). I’m pretty sure as soon as I sat down, my blood pressure dropped about 20 points. lol This was my status update when I got there:

“Currently at Panera - BY MYSELF!!!! Because my husband rocks. And also because after 3 weeks of potty training and getting up at night with a newborn, it was either this or Mommy was taking a nice long trip to Mexico. Til Christmas.” LOL

I sat and ate my salad and checked my favorite blogs on the tablet and just took as long as I wanted! It was fabulous. Our local Panera is in a shopping mall with the grocery store and when I finished I contemplated going and getting groceries since we really needed some and I should be responsible…but then I decided to truly relax and take a night out for real and do just fun things. So it was awesome. I walked around Kohl’s because I still had a birthday gift card from my MIL, and then I headed down to Goodwill. I had some really fun finds that night!

Here’s what I got:

I couldn’t pass up these girly little lamp bases for Livi’s room. They need bulbs and shades but for $3.98 for the pair they had to come home with me!

Her room is gray and white with pops of light pink and navy. This is the third plate in this color I’ve found at this Goodwill! So random – there’s no markings on the back of any of them. I’m going to do a plate wall with them. I don’t know what I’m going to do with the cup yet in her room, but I’ll think of something! They were 99 cents each.

My best friend, Lindsay, totally got me started a year or two ago looking for vintage Pyrex. It is SO fun to hunt for them. It’s like a bizarre magnetic pull or something – if they’re in good shape and reasonably priced, I just have to snatch them up because finding them is so rare! lol The juice pitcher was $2.99 and the little teacup was 99 cents.

A little close-up on the vintage teacup pattern:

These two beauties were 99 cents each and they came home with me because their smooth, flat surface is perfect for doing-over with chalkboard paint! They have hooks on the back for hanging and I’m totally going to make them beautiful again. ;)

And lastly, these were just for fun. Chris and I love the “Awkward Family Photos” website and oh my gosh, this book will make you laugh til you cry! The magnets were only 99 cents and we’ve already had a lot of fun making crazy, ridiculous sentences on our fridge using cooking words. haha

It was a wonderful night out and I came home feeling so relaxed and refreshed. It was seriously just what I needed! I think it’s a necessity when you’re a mom, don’t you agree?!

Anyone been thrifting lately and found something they love? Anyone else collect vintage Pyrex?

Thinking About Blog Re-Design: Please Share!

2013-03-16T04:30:00.001-07:00

Blogging is a funny thing, isn’t it? I mean, it’s real, and it isn’t “real” all at the same time – you know what I mean? I mean seriously – try telling an older person about your blog and how you write about your life on the internet and then how complete strangers comment on it except some of them aren’t complete strangers anymore because you’ve actually developed a friendship with some of them and may have even met some of them in person. Awwwwwwkward! I’ve definitely gotten a few glazed-over looks. haha!

But blogging IS a real part of life now and there are real people making livings off their blogs and getting book deals and it provides a real source of friendship, encouragement, and inspiration for those who do it (at least it does for me, anyway!).

So since I do spend a lot of my time in this invisible-but-very-real world, something I’ve been wanting to do for months now (okay actually years) is get a new design for my blog. Sometime back in 2010 I paid to have a designer revamp my site and give it an updated look from the standard Blogger template.

Well, unfortunately it was a total disaster. This girl took MONTHS to do my design, didn’t listen to what I asked for, and was overall horrible to work with. In the end she actually apologized to me and offered me some work for free in the future (nooooo thank you!), so I’ll give her some credit for at least admitting she didn’t do a good job. I mean, at least by the end we were in agreement together that she pooped out on me! haha

{Thankfully I just checked out her personal blog and it looks like she doesn’t do design work anymore – so there’s no need for me to warn anyone else about her – whew!}

Anyway, I’m itching for a fresh new look! I’d love something crisp and clean and white and a place where I feel like I can breathe, not feel claustrophobic. God has been very gracious and I’ve been steadily earning a little bit of money each month through my Google ads on the sidebar, so I’d like to put a little of that money back into my blog design now. We’ve been putting my ad money aside toward our “new car” fund (aka “used car” fund, lol) since both of our cars could die at any second, but I talked it over with Chris and he is ok with me rolling a little of my blog money back into the blog. Yay!

My blog is getting a makeover! SHUT UP. {A little Stacy London for ya ;) }

So my question is: have any of you had good success with a blog designer? I’m just looking for someone reasonably priced and ethical – that’s not too much to ask, is it?! lol I have about 10 websites saved on my Pinterest board so I have a pretty clear vision of what I’d like. Anyway please share if you have someone you know! Thanks guys!

And happy Saturday!

A Day in My New Life {Picture Post}

2013-03-05T18:43:00.001-08:00

Oh. my. gosh you guys. I’m just going to cut right to the chase here: two kids is HARD! (Moms of more than 2, I know you’re laughing at me right now, and that’s okay…I’m laughing at all the moms of 1 who think – like I used to – that their life is hard! lol}

I mean seriously. One blog post in February? Because all I do all day is take care of the kids (aka make sure they both survive), then Chris comes home, we eat, I do housework like a crazy woman while he spends time with them, we put Luke to bed, we both do a little housework together while one of us tries to hold Olivia and then we basically crash…before getting up to feed her in the middle of the night, of course.

Did I mention that Luke decided he wanted to wear big boy underwear last Saturday? When Livi was 4 weeks old? So that means I’ve been potty training for the past 11 days with a newborn? And that my baby girl happens to have pretty bad acid reflux and is on a prescription and needs to eat more often than she had been (but a little less at each feeding so her stomach can handle it better) and needs to be held upright for at LEAST a solid hour after she eats or else she will projectile vomit and/or scream bloody murder but that sometimes she does those things regardless? Did I mention any of that?! lol

Anyway, I end most days feeling like I got absolutely nothing accomplished except that nobody ended up in the ER and Mommy didn’t and up as the crazy lady on the 6:00 news. (haha) So I randomly woke up this morning and decided this morning to record my day – boring as it might be - in photos. Because somehow I already have a 6- week-old so even though the days draaaaaag on and on the weeks really are flying by.

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So for better or for worse, here’s a visual diary of my day today:

Basically, most of my days now consist of watching Luke play and verbally interacting with him (rather than getting on the ground as much)while I hold Olivia upright so she’ll ~~stop screaming bloody murder~~ be comfortable and happy. ;)

Morning activity that lasted about 10 minutes: letting Luke use one of my canvases to make “art” with the blue dot marker. It actually turned out really neat – I think I’m going to hang it in the playroom when we re-do it this summer.

Bought a bag of Easter M&Ms for Luke’s potty rewards; gave him 3 and he gagged on them and spit them out. I think he was afraid of the pastel colors since they’re different than the regulars? (Seriously, people don’t always take me seriously when I tell them my kiddo has serious food issues – but that’s whole other post for a different day!) Since it’s basically a sin in my world to throw out perfectly good chocolate, they now sit on my counter and I spent my day today trying NOT to eat this entire jar.

Good news: I didn’t! But I wanted to.

I remember at 10:00 that I haven’t given Livi her morning dose of medicine yet. I cringe when I have to administer it because she hates it and usually cries. (Ummmm, because bless her heart, it smells like Listerine strips!) But I do love seeing my girl’s name in print, regardless of the reason! It just makes me so excited that she's a real person and she’s really here with us. I am a total dork, I know. (I kept this photo blurry on purpose.)

I bought a great old cast-iron skillet for $3 back in November at the Salvation Army. It’s been under my dresser for the past three months (story of my life, people!) and today I decided it was getting ridiculous and it was high time to clean it. After a good scouring and rubbing with oil and baking at 500 degrees (my house smelled horrible like smoke afterwards, even with the windows open), it came out looking tons better but it still needed to go back in for round 2 of seasoning.

Quick standing-up lunch/snack: amazing restaurant salsa leftover from girls’ night out with friends on Saturday night. I have eaten entirely way too many carbs since having Olivia…but what can I say? I eat standing up these days and they are fast and easy.

This picture was technically taken the other day, but it pretty much represents how I spent most of today, and the day before that, and the day before that…and you get the picture: hanging out with Luke by the potty, with Olivia hanging out in the sling.

Back to today: the time stamp on this photo is 1:44. Because someone in my home is apparently always having a crisis, I don’t get to drink many hot sips of coffee in a row. Hence the “reheating rings” – I count 5 and it’s not even 2:00 yet! I specifically picked my “Today” show mug this morning because it reminded me of a happy day in my life (visiting the “Today” show live with Lindsay). The memory of that makes me smile and also simultaneously miss my best friend all day long.

(Somewhere about this time two friends dropped by separately for a short time each – praise the Lord for adult conversation!)

Little Miss Thing spits up a ton, bless her heart, and we go through a lot of clothes here (she’s had two more outfits on today - for a total of 6! - since this photo was taken). Clorox stain remover is my new best friend!

Time for an afternoon sensory activity! We traced letters in kosher salt on the tray and then buried objects under it. (And no I didn’t do that to his hair {it’s seriously been standing up like that for days} but I am loving his little faux-hawk!)

Miss Liv took a nap on me while Luke and I played with the salt:

P.S. Salt activity came to an abrupt halt when Luke decided to repeatedly dump it all over his head. After being told not to. Like 3 times. But…YAY for my kiddo being totally cool with touching salt! I mean, still a win, right?! haha

Right about this point in the day I am super thankful I actually had 10 free minutes this morning to pop a chicken in the crockpot for dinner! It’s starting to smell really good!

I somehow manage to grab another 10 peaceful minutes (I heard the angels singing when it happened) and throw together these no-bake energy bars that my sister recommended. Verdict: I love the clean ingredients but they don’t come together all that well. Next time I will add more peanut butter {I ran out after I made the recipe}. I think I still prefer my morning cookie. :)

{Loving my “new” aka vintage Pyrex bowl that I got recently for $2.50! Perfect for mixing!}

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Not long after this Chris came home (Haaaaallelujuah, thank you Jesus), so the pictures stopped. But just think more potty breaks (including where Luke accidentally peed on his face – yup, think that one through with me! haha), bath time, playtime, clean-up time, bedtime routine, dishes, 2 loads of laundry, and me and Chris talking about our days and singing out loud to Bruno Mars’ “Marry Me” on Pandora (best part of my day!).

It’s 9:32 and I’m about to help Chris give Livi a bath and then head to bed!

I’m not going to lie to you – these are some of the most emotionally draining days of my life. The days are long and hard and demanding. (There are no pictures of me today because there was no shower for me today! I chose sleep instead this morning, which I don’t regret one bit!)

Between having shingles in December and being stuck at home for two weeks, then staying home a lot in January to avoid getting the flu while pregnant, then having a newborn and being at home to keep her healthy and learn her routine, then having a little boy potty training who has max 5 seconds to make it to the toilet right now (so going out with him is not really an option for a while), and I don’t get out a lot. I love my home and my kids but it’s hard for me mentally to be stuck at home and feel like I don’t have my freedom.

But then I think about all the people who would just love to be able to have babies and be home with them…and I try to change my bummed-out attitude and cherish the good parts of my day: the baby smell and snuggles, kisses from Luke, tickling him, sharing his joy when we make it a day without accidents.

Let’s just say I live for 5:00 when my relief pitcher walks through that door.

Oh and weekends…when I can take a nap! Don’t even get me started. ;)

Goodnight all! This mama is POOPED OUT – LITERALLY! haha

Introducing: My Beautiful Daughter and Her Very Special Heart

2013-02-18T05:33:00.001-08:00

I’ve thought about sitting down to write this post about a million times, but I just couldn’t stop crying long enough to actually do it. I’m crying right now just thinking about it, but I’m plowing ahead. Here is her story:

On Monday, January 21, 2013, at 11:26 am, my beautiful daughter, Olivia Noelle, was born. It was single-handedly one of the most spectacular moments of my existence.

When Luke was born, I was bone-tired from being in labor all day and scared TO DEATH about having an emergency c-section. He didn’t cry right away and they took care of him in a part of the OR that I couldn’t see and then after letting me give him a quick kiss, they whisked him away to the nursery and I didn’t see him for hours. (Luke if you’re reading this sometime later in life, you know I love you like crazy, buddy – I’m just saying that your delivery was different, that’s all.)

But with her? Ohhhhh, it was miraculous. Thanks to a different hospital and different philosophy of birth experience, I was able to watch everything about her first moments – I watched Chris cut the cord, I watched them clean her off, I even got to hold her on my chest in the OR with the help of the nurses (because I was shaking so badly).

This girl made my heart want to burst. I loved Luke from the beginning but I didn’t feel bonded to him right away (I think due to the stress of the situation – again, sweetheart, you know I love you!). But with Olivia I felt this overwhelming love and gratitude and just all-encompassing peace that our long-awaited-for baby was finally here.

It was amazing.

The nurses described her as “perfect” – her 2 Apgars were 9 and 9, she had a beautiful rosy glow, and no apparent physical disabilities whatsoever. She checked out fine every time they looked her over. So for one blissful period of 24 hours, that’s what we believed. That we had been miraculously given a perfectly healthy daughter, after the scare of an ectopic pregnancy at 6 weeks, being told she might have Down Syndrome at 13 weeks, and me getting shingles at 35 weeks pregnant.

We were both totally mesmerized by her. I think I told Chris at least 5 times over that first 24-hour period that “I never want anything bad to happen to her, ever.” From 11:26 am on Monday to about 1:00 pm on Tuesday, we were pretty much blissed out. We felt so blessed and lucky.

Then at about 1:00 one of the pediatricians from our local practice came in to do a routine check on Livi. He finished and I very happily and confidently asked, “So everything’s fine, right?” (Remember, she’d been checked by nurses every few hours of her life so far and had repeatedly been described as “perfect.”) I was totally floored when the Dr. said, “Actually, I hear something.” He told us he heard a heart murmur, but not to worry because lots of kids have them and they often close up naturally. He ordered some ultrasounds and Chris went with the nurse down to the ultrasound room for about an hour. (My nurse told me to stay in the room and just take it easy and rest.)

I cried but Chris reassured me not to worry and told me about someone we both knew who had a heart murmur and is basically healthy as horse now. I thought of that friend and felt calm and told myself it would be fine. When they finished the tests, they let us know they were sending the results to Yale-New Haven hospital for review and we’d probably know in the morning.

Chris went home at about 4:00 to spend the night with Luke since kids weren’t allowed in the hospital due to flu season. We had agreed beforehand he would do that, both for Luke’s sake and because Chris had had a bad cold and we wanted him better as soon as possible for Livi’s sake - so we knew a good night’s sleep was necessary for him.

My parents, my aunt, and my grandmother all came that early evening. We talked and laughed and I really enjoyed having them. We talked about Liv’s heart murmur but we all agreed it would be fine and honestly I wasn’t thinking about it much. My aunt took my grandmother home, and then my mom had to leave for a hair appointment, so my dad stayed with me for a little while longer, just to keep me company.

And then abut 6:00 pm, everything went downhill fast. Three nurses came into the room at the same time, and one of them touched my arm. A nurse I didn’t recognize said, “Jessica, we got the results back from Yale, and I need you to know it’s a lot worse than we thought. You need to be prepared that your daughter might have to be transferred by ambulance to Yale tonight.”

And my world stopped and simultaneously started spinning all at the same time.

They told me they were taking her down to the NICU and the Dr. there would talk to me and I could come down in 15 minutes once they’d hooked her up.

And then they left with her and left me with information that my brain wasn’t really processing. My daughter was going to the NICU. She might have to leave me tonight. By ambulance. She had big problems with her heart. The heart is a vital, huge, crucial, major organ. This was bad. This was horrible. This was horrifying. I will forever, ever, ever be grateful that my dad decided to stay with me that night. I can’t possibly fathom going through all of that devastating news alone. I remember crying my eyes out on his shoulder, and then we got on the phone because we knew we needed people on our side. I called Chris immediately and my dad called the prayer chain for his church. Chris called his parents soon after hanging up with me and got the prayer chain started at his parents’ church. He also called our small group, who happened to be meeting that night. Immediately we had dozens of people praying for our situation.

We walked down to the NICU – and let me just say that nothing prepares you for seeing your child hooked up to machines and monitors. It is not a part of the hospital I ever wanted to be in – ever.

The NICU Dr. came to talk to us and let us know that Olivia had been diagnosed with “Tetralogy of Fallot” – a congenital heart defect that involves 4 problems in the heart. One of those problems is a hole in the heart, which the pediatrician had correctly heard – except Olivia’s can only close with surgery. The other problems involve her aorta being in the wrong direction, her pulmonary valve being too small, and one of her ventricular walls being much thicker than the other one.

The whole time, my head was totally still spinning and I couldn’t stop crying. Here was my perfect, rosy, beautiful daughter and I was being told that she had all of these very serious problems. It was incomprehensible to me – not to mention she’d been diagnosed with something I’d never heard of and for pete’s sake couldn’t even remember how to pronounce.

We waited and waited – all the while expecting her to be transferred to Yale. And here I was only about 32 hours out from having had a c-section…I could barely walk, much less be discharged to go be with my daughter. So if she went I wasn’t going to be able to travel with her. I just begged God over and over to keep her at our hospital so I didn’t have to leave her.

After about 2 hours, the Dr. said that based on her stats and how amazing she was doing (her oxygen saturation levels in her blood remained at 100%), she was going to be allowed to stay here for the night…but that a team would probably come get her in the morning to bring her down to Yale. I thanked God for that and called Chris immediately. My dad left and I stayed with Olivia a little while longer before heading back to my room for the night so I could try to sleep since we had no idea what tomorrow would bring.

And so I went back to my hospital room, completely alone, with my baby down in the NICU and my husband at home. It was basically the worst night of my entire life. I have never felt more overwhelmed with sadness or more utterly alone. (I wanted Chris more than anything in the world at that point, but by this time it was about 10 or 10:30 at night and I knew he was fast asleep at home. I definitely could have called him, but I decided that the best thing for our family would be to let him sleep since we needed him to get better quickly now more than ever.)

So I called my good friend whose children have had 2 heart surgeries, because I needed to talk to someone who knew what I was feeling. Then I called Lindsay and talked to her for a while. And then I was just alone in the dark, crying out to God. I posted on Facebook our urgent request and the e-mails and comments and messages started flooding in. That helped SO much – to know that people were praying. I can truly say that sustained me through the night. That and the song “Not For a Moment” by Meredith Andrews…I played it over and over and over again.

I tried to sleep, for Olivia’s sake. I really did. Every time I woke up, I would check the tablet to see who had commented to let me know they were praying. At 5:30 (Wednesday morning now) I couldn’t take it anymore and asked to be wheeled down to see my girl again. I stayed with her until Chris came at about 7:30 after dropping of Luke at my parents’. I can’t even describe to you how awful I looked that morning. No kidding, it looked like I’d been stung by hornets repeatedly around my eyeballs. They were SO swollen and puffy from no sleep and from crying all night long. And Chris didn’t look much better.

{Thursday afternoon in the NICU – after a shower and the puffy eyes had *almost* gone away}

And now I’ll try to make this faster! The Dr. told us she was doing so well she wouldn’t have to be transferred and could stay at our hospital’s NICU (double praise, thank you JESUS!). We would both be discharged in the morning (Thursday) and travel down to Yale in our own car (no ambulance, hooray!) to meet with a pediatric cardiologist there. We stayed with her all day and held her non-stop, thanks to the extra-long cords that were monitoring her. {Although let me just say that one time I moved her and the NICU machine started alarming and I saw something flat-line on the screen. I thought for sure she was having a heart attack and I had caused it – the nurse came running over to turn the beeping off and just told me I’d bumped the monitor and it happened all the time. Scariest moment ever! It happened a ton more times after that but that first time was horrifying.}

{So happy here because we’re about to be discharged!
And the nurses wrapped her in that girly quilt
and tied a little bow in her hair – I about died from the cuteness!}

The next day {Thursday} we were both discharged together and traveled to Yale. She had an EKG done and then we met with her fabulous doctor, Dr. Fahey. He listened to her heart and looked at all the results and confirmed that she did have Tetralogy of Fallot. He explained it more in detail to us and let us know that we were definitely facing surgery, most likely at 3 months old. Because her condition was one of the milder forms of ToF (again, thank you Lord!), she would “only” need one surgery at 3 months (some children need upwards of 8!) and then possibly another one between 8-12 years old if her pulmonary valve was too small to grow with her (and that can only be determined during the first surgery).

{Chris holding Livi while we waited to see Dr. Fahey at Yale}

He assured us that her condition was totally common and very treatable. He told us that they do several ToF surgeries every month and that these surgeries are “bread and butter” to them. We learned that she might start to decline a little (as in, her blood might not oxygenate as well over a period of time), but it certainly wasn’t that she was going to turn blue in the middle of the night on us. She would be monitored repeatedly and her heart would gradually show signs of distress. In the meantime, though, we don’t have to treat her any differently than any other baby. He told us repeatedly that once her surgery takes place, she will live a healthy, active, normal life. I think his exact words were “she can play high school field hockey if she wants.”

So we got in the car feeling oddly encouraged. Here we had just learned she would need surgery before the summer came but we had learned that it wasn’t fatal and wouldn’t impact her future quality of life. We went to pick up Luke from my parents’ house and went home to try to start our lives as a family of four.

Definitely not how I imagined it, you know? But God knew this would be our story.

So here we are. My daughter has seen her pediatrician 3 times and Dr. Fahey 2 times, all before 3 weeks old. We’ve gotten a crash course on the heart and say things we never have before, like “pulse ox” and “ventricular septal defect.” Each day we live with knowing that her surgery is coming and we will have to walk through that. (She needs to be approximately 13 pounds, so they predict around 3 months old, which puts us at the end of April.) We’ve prayed harder than we ever have before and have learned just how many people are supporting us and continually covering us with prayer. We’ve had friends tell us their entire churches are praying for us (still). We had multiple friends post on their FB walls about Olivia and had dozens of people we never met write that they were praying for us.

We’ve learned that we are the lucky ones. Some babies don’t survive ToF – their blood never gets enough oxygen. Some babies, as I said earlier, need multiple surgeries to repair their hearts. Our girl just needs one.

It’s horrifying and absolutely nerve-wracking for me to think about my precious little girl getting opened up in the OR and having her heart cut open. I let myself think about it for a little while and then I stop – there’s only so much my own heart can handle. We pray earnestly for a miracle but as my father-in-law put it, “Sometimes God heals completely by using doctors.” I was really encouraged by that thought. God is NOT forsaking us by letting us go through this trial or by choosing to not heal her miraculously.

Mostly I just pray that she survives the surgery. I trust the doctors – I mean, it’s Yale! – but they have to bring her back to life, essentially, when they’re done. I fear that they’ll try to bring her back and she won’t come back to us. I think about it all the time and it’s this big giant black pit in my stomach. I am not promised an easy life, and I am not promised a life without sadness, either. I have no idea what God will do with Olivia’s life. I do beg Him all the time to let us have a full life with her. I beg Him to let me be her mommy and to let me raise her. I beg Him to be merciful and let our girl stay here on earth with us.

But usually I force myself to be optimistic. I remind myself of what Dr. Fahey said – that there would have to be an accident (like one of the machines would have to break in the OR) for her to die in surgery. That this surgery has been happening since the ‘50s and they do it all the time. That hers is mild. That my daughter gets to be treated at a prestigious hospital that has a whole team of pediatric cardiologists! And I remember that my girls’ name is literally being lifted up to God all around the country, continually.

Mostly we just try to enjoy her and let ourselves be in awe of how beautiful and adorable she is. :) She is *such* a gift to us and we just treasure her and her precious little life – made even more precious to us now.

So today she turns four weeks old, and that’s where we are right now. I simultaneously dread the end of April and also want it over with immediately. I am ready, as Dr. Fahey said, “for this all to be just a bad memory.”

I think it did my own heart good to get this out in a post – my underlying prayer, through all of this {besides that Livi stays alive, obviously}, is that God would use me through all of this to be a great testimony for Him. I want to be a shining light and let others know that God is GOOD and LOVING and MERCIFUL even when life seems to go horribly wrong.

I know the Lord has a wonderful and perfect plan for my girl’s life!

Moms of 2 or More: How Do You Do It?!

2013-01-18T11:35:00.001-08:00

{Ironically, I’ve had this post in my head for weeks and finally sat down to type it last night. Then this morning I found out that due to steadily increasing high blood pressure for the last 3 straight weeks, my c-section has been bumped up to this Monday morning…as in, less than 72 hours from now! So I’d definitely appreciate any input as I enter these final days as a mom of one!}

Confession: I truly can’t wrap my head around having two kids.

It’s not one of those situations that you hear a lot like, “I just can’t imagine how I’m going to love another child when I already love my first child so much” or something like that. On the contrary – we are soooo in love with this little girl already! She was such an unexpected gift to us and we already feel so blessed by her presence. We wanted another child for years and just never expected she would come to us this way. It also might help that she is a different gender – it’s been SO fun to prepare for a little girl coming and Chris keeps walking around saying, “I just can’t wait to hold my little girl.” ;)

Nope, my issue is more that I seriously can’t picture my everyday life with two kids! (I mean, I can in the future, but not with a newborn, if that makes sense.) I mean, it’s been a looooong time – 3 1/2 years – of just me and Luke. We have a routine and a system. We want to go somewhere, we go. He fits easily into a cart at the store and I only have to worry about one set of snacks, one drink, and one bedtime schedule to adhere to.

He doesn’t take naps anymore (it’s okay – he sleeps great at night), but if I’m tired during the day (aka like now near the end of pregnancy) I lay on the couch next to him while he plays or watches a movie. He consumes all my time and attention – and it works just fine. He’s my life during the day!

So I just can’t fathom how this is actually going to work! I can’t wrap my head around giving two kids my time and attention. I anticipate feeling like a rubber band, constantly being pulled in opposite directions. How will I balance it all? How will I ever go ANYWHERE?! Will I ever have FIVE minutes to myself again?

I’m looking for advice here – or words of wisdom, or really anything. What has worked for you, personally? Strict schedules? Just going with the flow? Everyone has told me that going from 1 to 2 kids is the hardest transition there is, and I believe it. It’s funny now to look back at having Luke and thinking how hard that was in the beginning…and now realizing what a piece of cake it actually was in retrospect. I could take a nap or do whatever I wanted when he slept! Now, on the other hand, if I’m exhausted from being up all night with Livi, I still have to be on my A-game because my preschooler will be wide awake and wanting to play even when she’s napping during the day.

I’m prepared to hear “It’s really horrible during the transition time.” Honestly. (And on the flip side, if it wasn’t a big deal for you, feel free to let me know! ha!) I just want to know what it’s like from moms (and any dads!) who have been there.

How do you do it?! Seriously?! lol

Valentine’s Decor Around My House {2013}

2013-01-16T10:29:00.001-08:00

Before I start, let me just say that if good quality photos are important to you, you’re gonna want to skip right over this post from me. It has been cloudy here for 3 straight days, and since “She was patient” will never be inscribed on my gravestone, I decided to just wing it.

So cloudy days combined with my cheapo camera combined with my ~~stellar~~ horrible photography skills…well just don’t say I didn’t warn you! :)

I am totally one of those people who’s like, “Oh, I’m having a baby soon?! Clearly I must do something non-important and totally non-essential to prepare myself well for this life-changing event.” haha! I can’t explain why it was so important for me to decorate for Valentine’s Day, but having the house dressed up for the pink holiday somehow makes me able to complete on other, more crucial tasks…you know, like getting a hospital bag ready or putting baby sheets on the crib. It’s like cleaning the cobwebs from my brain. So weird but that’s how I’ve always been.

So here we go! Everything is super simple, probably thrifted, and mostly pink. Red looks great in other people’s houses but it is not my color at all so you won’t see it here!

Here’s my “mantel” for Valentine’s:

My mom was getting rid of the old milk-glass vases and I thought they would look cute here. I made the easy rosette out of felt for a pop of pink.

The “XOXO” is one of my fave TJ Maxx finds ever from years ago and I made the typewriter prints two years ago. You can’t tell from the picture but they are actually covered with pink translucent paper. If you are a Moulin Rouge fan you will notice that they are both quotes from songs they sing in the movie – and the typewriter font is a nod to Ewan MacGregror’s character. “Come What May” was sung at our wedding so I love seeing some of those words printed out!

The little birdie is from Target last year and the pink plate was thrifted.

Luke painted this little heart last year and I plan on pulling it out every year until he hates me for it. haha!

Over the computer I made a simple little heart banner using a punch and that adorable wrapping paper from the Dollar Spot at Target this year. It’s just taped to pink embroidery thread.

I did the same garland for the kitchen chalkboard and added one of our favorite verses to it.

The words above the kitchen sink were inspired by a print I saw from Jones Design Company. Polka dots are so cheerful, aren’t they?! :)

In the dining room I added this adorable felted-heart ribbon that’s also from the Target Dollar Spot. They had such cute stuff this year!

I finally got to use my pink tablecloth that I found at a church sale last spring! It might be a little tacky but we do SO much at our kitchen table that having vinyl with a 3-year-old is really a lifesaver. Oh and I totally know you’re jealous of the Cat in the Hat puzzle. I contemplated taking it apart but realized it realllllly wasn’t worth it to me. haha!

In our bathroom I just have this little free printable (which I LOVE) and a simple cylinder wrapped in pink tulle and secured with a bobby pin. And sorry if you’re cringing over the flash – but our bathroom has no windows since it’s in the middle of our house. Flash was the only way to show you the true colors!

Lastly (okay really firstly) is our front door. I wanted SUPER simple so I just fashioned some simple pink and white felt rosettes and then hot-glued them right to the wreath form. It’s so simple and I love it. It got all whited out but you can see the detail in the second picture.

And that’s pretty much it! I’m happy to have a little bit of pink around the house to enjoy for a while! And to welcome my baby girl home to in EIGHT DAYS! Whooo!!

Linking up with:

DIY: Accomplished @ Homemaker’s Challenge

A Piece of My Past & Giveaway WINNER!

2013-01-11T06:48:00.001-08:00

{Scroll down to see giveaway winner and details below. Yes, I’m mean. haha}

Since I’m a SAHM with ~~no money~~ more time than money, sometimes friends and family will let me peek though their junk piles headed to Goodwill to see if I can find anything to sell on our local Facebook resale sites for a little extra cash (I explained more about those here). I am SO grateful when people do this – I have made a decent amount of money this way and it seems to be a win-win for everyone!

Yesterday my mom watched Luke while I was at an OB appointment (TWO! WEEKS! UNTIL! DELIVERY!) and told me she had a bunch of stuff that was headed for Goodwill unless I wanted to look through them. Ummmm yes please!

Some of it was junk but I did find quite a few things I’m going to try to sell before the baby comes. But I almost stopped breathing when I saw this little number among some kitchen odds and ends:

That’s right, people, this hideously avocado green Tupperware has been a part of my childhood memories as long as I can remember. I’m pretty sure my mom got it as a shower gift way back in 1983…and it held more tuna salad throughout the 80s and 90s than I can ever recount – somehow that became its life purpose in our family?! haha

The thought of shipping it off to Goodwill?! CRAZY. It will stay a part of my life and my children WILL have memories of it in our fridge and around our house, I’m determined. This puppy and me are bonded for life.

Tell them to pot it with flowers at my wake. ;)

Anyone else have something from childhood that brings back memories for you like this?!

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Drumroll please! The winner {picked by Rafflecopter} of a FREE print from my sister’s business, Creative Type Designs, is #2 – Kate M! Woot!

Congratulations, Kate! And a huge thank you to all who entered!

PLEASE remember that Jill is offering a 25% coupon code good through this weekend on ANY of the prints in her shop! And because the prints come directly to you via high-resolution pdf, you can buy it this morning and have it printed and framed in your house TODAY! Talk about instant gratification! ;)

One final plug for my sister – she is the real deal, you guys…a real graphic designer with a degree! She does wedding invitations, save the dates, you name it. If you’re going to need some professional “paper help” in the near future, definitely consider her! She’s extremely accommodating and very affordable!

Have a fabulous weekend, everyone! I’ll be back next week with my VALENTINE’S decor! :)

Creative Type Designs :: A Giveaway for You!

2013-01-08T05:15:00.001-08:00

Today I have a very special giveaway for you – a free print designed by my super talented little sister! Jill is one of many college graduates I know who through no fault of their own who simply haven’t been able to find work in her field {she has a B.A. in Graphic Design}. So she took the bull by the horns and decided to open her own Etsy shop featuring her designs! I am SO proud of her! I think she is amazingly talented and I hope to convince you of how awesome she is, too. ;)

Her shop is called Creative Type Designs and she has pre-made items for you to shop from or she is happy to do custom designs for you if you have something special in mind. Her personal design aesthetic leans more toward the modern but she is more than willing to work with you on fonts and styles of your choice!

She is super professional and seriously really, really talented. I think that with the advent of blogs and Pinterest a lot of people have taken on the task of making prints for themselves or others – and while that’s fine if it’s a fun hobby for you, by all means – there is a level of excellence to my sister’s work that I think you’ll notice right away! {Check out her feedback page to see how happy others have been with her work!}

For our giveaway today, my sister is offering one of her $14 and under prints to you for FREE! YAY! :) The print is sent to you via high-resolution PDF and you can print it at your local Staples, Office Max, etc. (Which means NO shipping and NO waiting for it to come in the mail and NO risk of it getting bent by the postman when he tries to shove a 8x10 print that you’ve been patiently waiting for in your mailbox! I mean…not that that ever happened to me or anything…lol)

In addition, ALL of the prints in her shop are 25% off this week (through 5 PM Eastern Time Sunday) using the coupon code “25OFF” if you wanted something custom for your home or if you don’t win. ;) {To apply the coupon code, simply click the print you’d like to buy, then click “Add to Cart,” then on the right-hand side click “Apply Shop Coupon Code” underneath where it says “Paypal.”}

Good luck! The giveaway ends Friday morning at 12 AM Eastern Time. Please remember that you MUST use the Rafflecopter form below to enter – otherwise your entries won’t count. I know this is new for some of you so if you have any questions about how it works, please feel free to leave me a separate comment – I’ll check the comments on and off throughout the day and do my best to help! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Getting Shingles…And My Mottos for 2013

2013-01-03T13:43:00.001-08:00

Oh.my.gosh. what a crazy week and a half this has been for me! On Christmas Eve (Monday) at 2 in the afternoon, I got a bizarre pain right underneath my eyeball. I assumed it was a weird headache and took some Tylenol; it did nothing but we were going out to our family’s annual party so I just sucked it up and figured a good night’s sleep would get rid of it.

Well…the headache continued straight through Christmas Day and night and then on into the afternoon on Wednesday. I tried everything – ice, as much Tylenol as I could take being pregnant, having my husband massage it, you name it. I thought I was getting a weird pregnancy migraine. Lights hurt my eye and it was so painful. The pain also traveled – it would be by my temple, then around my eye socket, then by the bridge of nose, then by my forehead. It was so weird.

On Wednesday morning I also woke up with a weird rash on my forehead. It would have looked like dry scaly red skin but I really never get dry skin on my face so I knew that wasn’t it. I figured I’d either iced too much or had my husband rub it too hard and had given myself a “burn.”

I finally got in to the OB and they were going to write me a prescription for migraines – but my OB was concerned about the rash. They hooked me up to a NST and Livi was moving just fine and her heartbeat was perfectly healthy. He sent me straight to the ER and told me to prepare for an MRI. At this point I’d had pain for about 50 hours and it was only increasing. I had to wear glasses because I seriously couldn’t handle having to squint at the lights. I was just praying it was a weird migraine that somehow came up to my skin’s surface and there wasn’t something wrong with my brain. I get really claustrophobic so I was really worried about the MRI and that my doctor was concerned.

Once there we waited about an hour and a half in the ER waiting room. I kept telling Chris I didn’t know how I was going to make it because the pain was just escalating. It was brutal. Finally they took my back with a wonderful nurse and they put my in my own little room where they could close the door and turn the lights off! I immediately was started on an IV drip of Benadryl for the rash, Reglan for the headaches, and for some reason oxygen in my nose (still not sure why that was? Pregnancy precaution?). I started to get reallllly sleepy from the meds and then the doctor came in.

This was, bar none, the BEST doctor I have ever had IN MY LIFE. He was phenomenal. I later learned from the nurse that he is the Medical Director of the ER and everyone loves him because he is so good at teaching and very gentle and calm. He ROCKED. He took one look at my forehead and immediately put two and two together for the shingles diagnosis. I gotta tell you, I did NOT see that coming! I had mostly heard of elderly people getting it and it was not on my radar at all.

He told me that unfortunately chickenpox (which I had as a 9 year old) lies dormant in people’s bodies and can reemerge as shingles during times of extreme stress or reduced immunity (aka pregnancy). I started to cry because I started to panic thinking about Livi coming and Luke at home getting chickenpox from me and what was going to happen to us and on and on and on. He was so calming and reassured me that it was GOOD to know what I had – it wasn’t some bizarre brain problem. It wasn’t fun, but it was a solvable problem and had specific medicines to help it, all of which, praise God, were okay for me to take at 35 weeks pregnant. He actually told me it was the “best time” to get shingles – in 1st trimester the medicines could possibly cause birth defects, and you don’t want to be on the meds when you’re trying to deliver. He really helped me feel a lot better about the whole thing. Plus Luke and Chris were most likely totally safe since Luke has had his first dose of the chickenpox vaccine and Chris had it as a little boy.

He came back about 20 minutes later with a special UV test for my eye to make sure the shingles hadn’t gotten into my cornea – which, thank God, it hadn’t. I have a serious eye phobia and that possibly may have put me over the edge. They started me on the 3 medications in the ER and then I was discharged.

So that was Wednesday night, and here we are Thursday a week later. Friday and Saturday were probably my worst days. On Friday the rash had spread (which is normal) and it actually swelled my right eye almost completely shut due to the shingles on my eyelid. It hurt to move my eye socket AT ALL – yawning, eating, talking, you name it. That was a REALLY bad day. As each day has gone on, I’ve made progress little by little. I ran out of pain meds but thankfully I haven’t had to even supplement with Tylenol – it’s been very tolerable the last few days.

The pain of shingles is so weird – it literally travels along one nerve path so it’s isolated in one spot of the body, and mine just happened to travel down my scalp and forehead to my eyelid. It has felt like anything from a throbbing pain to a dull ache to tingling to literally feeling like raindrops are falling on my skin. Now that I am in the healing phase, it is itching like crazy as the sores start to crust (sorry, gross, I know – thank God they never oozed, though!).

Having it around my eye has definitely been a mixed blessing. On the one hand, I never had to worry about clothing covering it on my worst and most painful days – couldn’t have imagined that at all. On the other hand, not being able to use my eye for a number of days was really hard. I also can’t “mask” my shingles – it’s hard to wash my hair since they’re on my scalp line, and putting on makeup is definitely out of the question so I’ve been staying home due to that and the fact that the medicines have made me super tired and out of it.

I took my last dose of the anti-viral this morning and tomorrow I take my last steroid pill (to help with the swelling around my eye). I feel so much better today – I am getting a little anxious to get my life back and look like myself again, though! I’m also looking forward to getting better sleep as the meds mess with your sleep and give you super bizarre dreams, plus I had to wake up at 2:45 every morning to take them (add to that that I’m now 36 weeks pregnant and already have crazy hormone dreams plus I have to get up two times a night to go to the bathroom – yeah, I’ve been beyond exhausted!).

Chris has been amazing through all of this, as he always is in times of crisis. Up until yesterday I cried one time each day just to let out all the stress (although crying was really hard for a while so that sometimes hurt more!). I was really looking forward to the holiday week to get a bunch of stuff checked off our list before Livi came and that just didn’t happen. I had no choice but to just roll with it. And now I have the fear that I’ll still look like a freak of nature when I have my baby girl, but we have 3 weeks before she comes so I’m hoping the scars heal quickly! I am so thankful for him though and the calming influence he always is on me and how he always reminds me to focus on God and take it one hour at a time if necessary. I love him!

I am looking forward to driving again (hopefully tomorrow!) and being able to hug and kiss Luke and Chris normally again (once the sores are completely scabbed over – I’m almost there!). I know it sounds silly but I just want to do my hair and put makeup on again and feel like a girl and not a hot mess! I’m really excited about it.

This forced slow-down for 11 days (and counting!) has made me think a lot about my goals for 2013. I do a lot better with one-or-two word phrases than I do with actual resolutions, so I came up with two phrases for 2013:

Survive and thrive

Embrace the unexpected

The first one is because I’ll have a newborn in just three short weeks and it’s my first time being a mom to 2 kids! I have no idea what to expect but for the first several months I’m just giving myself grace to just get through the days. Come springtime, I’ll hopefully have a good schedule in place and I can start working on more detailed family goals and schedules – but for the first few months I just need to make it through the days – and that’s okay! :) There is time for everything to fall into place and that doesn’t need to be 2 weeks after delivery.

The 2nd motto goes along with the first – a reminder to me to just roll with the punches. There will be a lot of things that will probably be crazy about my new life as mom of two and I want to let peace guide my life – not stress or worry.

I saw a great quote the other day on a blog that said “Just do today” and I LOVED it. What a great mantra for moms, right? Except I know that I’m nothing without God’s help so I wrote “Just do today with Jesus” on my kitchen chalkboard. It’s like a breath of fresh air for me to see that phrase since the kitchen’s in the middle of our house and I’m in here all the time (even our computer’s in the kitchen so I’m literally here right now.) lol

I know this was super long and more power to you if you stayed with it! I wrote about it in my pregnancy journal but I also wanted to write my memories in one spot, too.

Hopefully you’ve all had MUCH better weeks than I have! ;)

Christmas Tour of Homes {2012}

2012-12-20T09:28:00.001-08:00

{Before I start, let me just say that there is no easy or classy way to transition from the horrific events of last week to a “normal” blog posting routine again. My mommy and teacher heart is still grieving for those families and the intense suffering they are going through. I posted on Facebook last week that even though there is unspeakable evil in the world, I believe that the light of God shines brightest in the darkness. Over the past week, I have seen SO many amazing stories and videos and pictures of people doing wonderful things and coming together in the face of this horror. Prayers are still with all of those still in mourning.}

And because there is really no good way to do it…I’m just going to dive right into this post.

I’m a day late and a dollar short to these Christmas parties, but oh well! This is what happens when you’re 8 months pregnant at Christmas – some things just don’t get done quickly. Okay make that nothing gets done quickly. haha!

This year I left more than half of my decorations in the boxes. My mind just craved uncluttered and simple. Plus my smart husband reminded me that whatever I took out of the box would need to be put back into the box even closer to my delivery date. Smart, smart man! ;)

Some of these pictures you already saw in my “mantel” post, but I figured I’ll show them again here so they’re in once concise spot. Oh and if you’re new here, nearly everything in my house is from the thrift store! It’s ~~the only way I can afford anything~~ my favorite way to shop.

Come on in! :)

Here is our “hutch” {aka dresser} in our “entryway” {aka living room} – I love to make things sound fancier than they are, apparently! ;)

Another shot you saw previously…this is on top of the mini bookcase in the living room.

If you’d like to see more details on my “mantels,” including links to the burlap trees and the ornament garlands I made, you can hop on over here.

The little tree in front of the window is actually from JoAnn’s this year. Those brassy deer were a yard sale find years ago and I still love them.

I took some embroidery thread and hung some gold snowflakes along the front window to add a little sparkle.

One of my favorite finds: my $5 Pottery Barn mercury-glass tree. I filled the old canning jar with 2 packs of jingle bells from the Dollar Tree.

Still love my little Goodwill pillow from a few years ago! So cute. :)

Our tree has NO topper this year because of my two choices of bows from years past, neither one appealed to me. Weird, I know..but that’s how it is for 2012. We got a Fraser fir (I think that’s what it’s called?) for the first time and we love the way it smells AND the fact that its soft needles aren’t scary for our son to touch (he has sensory issues and this tree has been awesome for him this year!). Oh and if it looks like it’s balding and lopsided, you’re totally right – he keeps jacking the ornaments left and right! haha

I am loving my sweet little boy’s school ornaments this year! I am totally a sentimental mom and I will be displaying these every year until they fall apart on me!

We made salt dough ornaments together, too. He had so much fun helping me cut them out and then paint them. I love that he calls them “bunamints.”

His little corner. :) I know the frames might seem a little tacky but I think they’re cute! A little red tree holds the coasters.

A little chalkboard sign I made above our kitchen sink – yup, the words are starting to run and I haven’t fixed it yet! :)

On the kitchen island…aren’t those vintage ornaments super cute? Church sale find! :) Oh and those candle holders are EMPTY because I never got around to finding candles to fit them. Are you starting to feel better about yourself yet?! haha

This year I decided to hang our cards over my chalkboard. It’s a little cluttered looking, but I really like it. The twine was 30 cents from Target clearance this fall and the clothespins you’ve seen before on here - Michaels! The ornament garland I made last year.

Moving on to the bathroom…this chalkboard print was a free printable! I liked keeping this display pretty neutral.

My little vintage enamelware bowl filled with more of the vintage ornaments and pinecones.

Keeping it real: I took down the fall leaves from my homemade wreath and put nothing back in their place. So now I have a brown wreath hanging from a brown burlap strip on a brown front door. If that doesn’t scream happy holidays, I just don’t know what does, people! lol!

And last but not least, our Christmas card this year!

Merry Christmas to all of you – and thanks for visiting this pregnant girl’s house! :)

My Favorite Things {2012 Edition}

2012-12-13T17:25:00.001-08:00

Hey everybody! Melissa at 320 Sycamore is hosting her annual Favorite Things party, and I'm back for the fourth year in a row to join in on the fun! {ETA: I’m joining The Nester’s $15 and under party, too, since the majority of these items fit that category. So fun!} I love browsing other people's favorite lists and getting neat gift ideas - so if you're participating, too, definitely leave your link in a comment so I can come visit you!

It's funny - as I was thinking of this year's list I decided to look back at my previous posts from years past. I have to say that everything I've liked before I still really like and/or use. At least I'm consistent - and honest! haha :)

So without further ado, here's what I'm loving in 2012:

{1} Leopard Flats from Target

I blogged about these flats before, but I really am obsessed with them! Such a fun and inexpensive way {$15!} to add a little something extra to an outfit. I'm a traditional-style dresser all the way, so I love when I can find a pattern that also acts as a neutral.

{2} "Lovely" by Sarah Jessica Parker

This made the list in 2010, but I'm bringing it back because thanks to an amazing Living Social deal I have a big bottle of it again! I have absolutely NO idea how to describe a perfume scent to you {?} but it really is lovely. Promise. ;)

{3} It's a 10 Miracle Leave-In Product, Mane and Tail Shampoo and Conditioner, and John Frieda Frizz Ease Secret Weapon

I’ve had very fine, damaged hair since I had Luke in 2009. These products, plus a round brush and my hair dryer, are my trifecta of hair products. Believe me, I’m not gonna win any hair awards in Texas, but my hair is a LOT fuller looking than it was 3 years ago (aka no more drowned rat look for Mommy!).

{4} Old Navy Maternity Jersey-Stretch Tanks

I can’t tell you how much I have been loving these tanks for this pregnancy. I have 4 different colors, and I appreciate them for the fact that they actually COVER my belly all the way and allow me to wear all my non-maternity cardis over them. They’ve really helped stretched my maternity wardrobe this time around (no pun intended! ha.ha.)

{5} Indigo Blue Straight-Cut jeans from Motherhood

One more maternity item: I love these jeans (I got them for only $29.99 so maybe wait for a sale?). I am really short and I love that the panel on these comes all the way over my belly and very comfortably. I’m usually not a fan of Motherhood’s products – to be blunt, I think they’re cheaply made and ridiculously overpriced – but these pants actually fit my body type and don’t fall down my hips and butt. WIN-WIN FOR ALL, my friends.

{6} Downton Abbey

I feel like I was the last girl on planet earth to get into this show, but I’m soooo glad I did. OBSESSED. I love that it’s so interesting and sucks you right in but – hey novel idea here! – there’s no raunch factor. They don’t have to keep upping the ante each time to bring you back – it’s good enough on its own. LOVE. {Also I know that Season 3 isn’t coming out until January on PBS but I may or may not have watched it already online which according to friends may or may not be legal?! lol But I mean you can order all 3 seasons on DVD if you want…I’m just saying…}

{7} Salted Caramel Chocolate Pretzel Bark

{via The Legume Loyalist – recipe here}

People, according to my BFF (and she’s right!) this should be re-named Christmas Crack. It’s killer. And so easy!

{8} Pampered Chef Paring Knives

I haven’t always had the best luck with Pampered Chef products, but I got these paring knives (they come in a set of 3) from my sister-in-law last year and I still love them! I use them every day.

{9} Bloom {Kelle Hampton} & Heaven is Here {Stephanie Nielson}

This year two of my favorite bloggers came out with books, and they did not disappoint. Kelle writes at Enjoying the Small Things and Stephanie writes at NieNie Dialogues. Both fabulous books and I highly recommend! {My local library had both so check yours out, too!}

{10} Alexia Spicy Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries

One of the downfalls of eating a mostly unprocessed and whole foods diet is the lack of convenience foods – unless you want to pay an arm and a leg. These fries are some of our favorites – I like them dipped in organic ranch or organic ketchup (or…maybe sometimes both?! haha). You can find them at Target or most grocery stores. Yum-o.

{11} Anthropolgie’s Latte Bowls and Homegrown Initial Mug

I’ve joked before that Target is my happy place, but Anthro is like the store equivalent of my Christmas and my birthday rolled into one. While paying $238 for a sweater has never appealed to me, their kitchen section is super affordable and when you're in the kitchen as much as I am, having their products just makes everything so much happier. I have their latte bowls in mint {I think the color got discontinued?} and their “J” intial mug. Love!

{12} Thirty-One Utility Tote

I bought this Thirty-One Organizing Utility Tote last year at a friend’s home party (I have the brown dots pattern) and I LOVE it as a Mom. It’s big enough that I can put my entire purse and my 3 coupon booklets in there when I head to the grocery store, plus Luke’s cup and snack in the sides. It’s so practical and durable!

So there’s my 2012 list! Visit the parties to see what other people are loving this year!

{28 For My 28th}

2012-12-10T09:27:00.001-08:00

Friday was my 28th birthday! I can’t believe it – I still feel 21 in my head and have a feeling that might never change? haha Anyway, I’ve seen some bloggers do a list like this on their birthdays, and while I’ll be the first to admit that it can totally seem a little self-promoting, I’m doing it more to capture my state of mind at 28 years old. I’m hoping to read it in 10 years and laugh – or at least smile. :)

Mixed in are some shots from our recent family photo shoot! Our photographer was a family friend and I think she did a fantastic job. I chose a Christmas card with 4 photo spots, and even that was incredibly hard to narrow down…I had at least 50 favorites. :)

Without further ado, 28 random things about me!

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1. If I’m not consciously focused on walking up a set of stairs, I will trip {up}.

2. I prefer salty foods over sweets. Give me chips and dip or crunchy veggies or pepperoni and cheese over brownies and cookies any day.

3. I get really excited to brush my teeth. I love the feeling. I’m not irrational about it – I usually only brush 2 times a day - but I do love it.

4. If I’m eating ice cream at home, I always scoop some into my bowl and then put it in the microwave for 6 seconds. Ice cream tastes a thousand times better when it’s slightly melted! Try it. ;)

5. I could eat crushed ice all the live long day. I’m slightly addicted. I’ve asked Chris a million times if someday when we’re “rich” (our joke) if we can get a fridge that actually makes crushed ice. I will never leave the house! haha {Although I just learned it’s super bad for your teeth so I am trying to give up the habit! Saaaad day.}

6. When I spell words with an “i-e”, I still have to recite the “I before E except after C” thing. Every. single. time.

7. I also never spell vacuum right the first try. That one right there? Got red-underlined by spellcheck. My brain CANNOT remember!

8. I have an irrational fear that either a) my pants will get sucked into the teeth of an escalator or b) that I will miss the step and fall backwards when I get on. My heart literally starts to beat faster when I know I have to ride on one. It doesn’t help that growing up we had a family friend who worked on elevators and told us stories about people actually getting stuck. So maybe not totally irrational? lol

9. I can’t stand when people touch their belly buttons (even kids) or rub their eyes and it makes that goosh sound. I can’t believe I even just typed that out. Siccccccccccccccccck.

10. I don’t get stressed out by shopping for gifts during the month of December. I actually like it – the stores look pretty and the Christmas music is playing!

11. On that same note, I HATED having a December birthday as a kid. Getting all your presents for the YEAR in the same month is a serious bummer when you’re 7 years old. But now that I’m older, I don’t really mind. Everyone’s in a pretty good mood and happy. :)

12. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.

13. It’s basically sacrilegious to live in New England and say this, but I really don’t like Dunkin’ Donuts’ coffee. I’ve tried it a bunch of different ways and I’ve resigned myself to the fact that it’s okay to just not like it. I don’t mind their mochas, but other than that, give me Starbucks any day!

14. I’m obsessed with Chipotle. Good thing for my waistline that the nearest one is an hour away.

15. I have never, not once, successfully parallel parked if there is a car in front of and behind me (I can only do it if my car is the last or first in the line). I literally can’t do it. I specifically got my driver’s license at the one DMV in the area that didn’t require that as part of the license. I’ve never learned how. I will park far far away from the store or make someone else back the car out for me if I happen to be driving with someone in the car.

16. I’m currently loving the song “10,000 Reasons” by Mark Redmond. So good. :)

17. I love mailing out photo Christmas cards. It’s really not a practical or frugal thing to do, but I just love it. I mean, I love receiving them so I hope it’s the same on the other end. I’ve gone with Wal-Mart Photo for 4 years now (like the one time a year I go inside that store) and been super pleased every time.

18. Before I had Luke, I was scared TO DEATH of having a c-section. Now as I’m looking forward to my repeat one, regular delivery sounds much more terrifying! haha Fear of the unknown is not a joke. :)

19. Although I’ve been to 3 countries outside the U.S., I still have yet to cross the Mississippi. Still on the bucket list!

20. I know every state capital and can tell you where every state is on the map. I LOVE geography and have a decent handle on where most countries are around the world.

21. Because of that, I rarely get lost, and if I do, I don’t get nervous. There’s always a logical way to get to a road you DO know. :)

22. Oranges are my new pregnant craving. I bought a 4 or 5 pound bag less than a week ago and there’s only 2 left. LOL

23. I am so happy to be back in New England and never want to leave again – but I will admit I am totally in love with all things Southern. I love the big hair and accents and traditions and foods and hospitality.

24. My BFF got me started on vintage Pyrex – it’s my new fun find at yard sales. So far my collection is very small – a casserole dish and 5 mugs thanks to her, and a set of 3 colorful nesting bowls that I use all the time. The colors and patterns are so happy and fun!

25. I totally want to throw a big 10-year anniversary vow renewal party in a few years. Our wedding day was a blast and it went by SO quickly. I just keep telling Chris I want to do it all again! Same man, different date. lol

26. I will never understand people who say they love running. I think they are crazy. I can appreciate the “high” that exercising gives you, but I can get that from my elliptical, thank you very much. I’d rather shove bamboo shoots up my fingernails than go for a “fun run.” And don’t even get me started on women who say they felt the most beautiful when they were pregnant!

27. I think Alaska is stunningly beautiful, but I can’t imagine paying to go on vacation that far to somewhere COLD. Hawaii, on the other hand? Say the word. :)

28. I might be 28 (I still can’t believe that’s real), I am such a klutz still. I have just learned to laugh at myself and not take myself too seriously – life is a whole lot more fun that way!

Okay, that was actually a lot harder than I thought! lol Anyone out there share any of my same quirks? ;)

My Christmas Mantel(s) 2012

2012-12-03T18:37:00.001-08:00

Hey everybody! Between Thanksgiving and all of us having colds I haven’t blogged for a while – but you’ll be seeing me more regularly this month because there’s lots of fun parties to link up with over the next few weeks!

Today is all about mantels. I use the word mantel super loosely here because we don’t have a fireplace mantel or even an entertainment center to decorate. Annnnnd I wasn’t really sure what space in my house to call a “mantel” since there are two places I change up every season – so you’re getting both. Lucky, lucky you. :)

This year I have been craving neutral colors in my Christmas decorating. Reds and bright colors are not appealing to me right now – maybe because my pregnant brain is always on top speed so I need calm things to look at?! lol

In a few weeks the Nester will do her annual tour of homes and you’ll get to see the rest of the house, but for now, here’s two Christmas-y spots in our home:

The entryway hutch is the first piece of furniture to greet you when you come in the front door.

The “wreath” is really a garland I got recently at Hobby Lobby (p.s. we just got a Hobby Lobby an hour away! It was a happy, happy day – on par with birthdays and Christmas in my world.). It was 50% off the day I went and I just love it. I didn’t use wire or anything – I just twisted it and put some sheer gold ribbon around the top to attach it to the hutch. Seriously could not have been easier! I LOVE having the pop of green against the wood – I just might leave it up all year round!

On the bottom I have my favorite thrifted Goodwill lantern and my beloved $13 Willow Tree Set. I used scraps of burlap I had already and just wove them in and out of the figurines. It reminds me of big fettuccine noodles – did I mention I’m 7 months pregnant?! lol

The other spot I routinely change out for the seasons is on top of my husband’s grandmother’s antique bookcase (say that five times fast!).

I added the Dollar Tree ornament garland I made last year to the artwork to give it a little bling.

On one side I have two burlap trees I made years ago and a gold bottlebrush tree that’s only $5.99 this year at Target (love!). The combination of rustic and glitter makes me so happy (I am a total dork but that is completely true! haha)

On the other side I have my mini collection of bottlebrush trees (all but two – you’ll see those in a few weeks). I love how they’re slightly quirky – I’m always on the lookout for more!).

So there’s my two “mantels” for 2012. Thanks for peeking in! If you’d like to see more of our living room, just click here. :)

Linking up with The Lettered Cottage today!

What a Difference a Year Can Make…

2012-11-20T06:14:00.001-08:00

Last year at this time my life looked very different! Maybe not so much from the outside (we still live in the same house and it’s still the three of us), but inwardly so much has changed for our family.

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A year ago, we had begun the journey to adopt and had started meeting with our social worker. We knew it would be a long road and there were many nights I cried to Chris about how badly I wanted another child to love. He would gently ask me if I wanted to carry the baby or just love the baby and the answer was always just to love it. I really never thought I’d get pregnant again because we were so committed to and excited about adoption.

This year we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our little GIRL. Now I cry all the time out of happiness because I can’t believe how overwhelmingly blessed we are to be given a son and a daughter. None of the other couples we met in our adoption classes have been able to adopt yet…so most likely, we would still be waiting, too. God is so good.

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A year ago, we were just beginning to scratch the surface of Luke’s developmental delays. Everything was becoming more and more apparent and the pieces were fitting together like a big scary puzzle that I didn't want to see finished. Again, there were nights filled with crying and terrifying Google searches. I had SO much fear for his future and his brain progress and his speech and his eating habits. His future felt very dark and scary to me. I felt so overwhelmed.

In the last year, we’ve met with multiple doctors and specialists and Luke began Birth to Three in February. Now, a year later, he is enrolled in a fabulous preschool right down the street with two amazingly qualified teachers and sees an OT and a speech therapist at school as well. Every single person who knows Luke has commented on how much he is improving – I feel like my little boy is just blossoming before me in every way! He still struggles with eating but I just take my little victories as they come! Maybe someday I’ll do a more detailed post about his progress but for now I see his future as bright and happy. He may not ever be the smartest kid in his classes, but he is a joy to be around and that is more important to me! God is so good.

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Last year, my husband had a different position at the same company – but he didn’t really love it. He had an extremely difficult co-worker that he spent the majority of each day with, one-on-one. Without going into too much detail, this man shared many, many things about his personal life and habits that Chris would rather not have ever heard – not to mention all day, every day. Chris worked super hard and excelled at his job but wanted something more challenging for his brain, not to mention a different work environment.

A year later, he has been promoted (in July) to a position much more suited to his personality and talents. He has his own office, a wonderful new boss, and several people working under him. It’s a stressful job, many times, with longer hours, but he is so much happier. Plus we get to see him at work! We were never able to do that before! God is so good.

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The one constant throughout the past twelve months has been the precious love of my faithful Savior. I have ever so much to be thankful for!

This verse was printed on our wedding programs but it’s just as meaningful to me today as it was over six year ago:

“Now to Him Who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” {Ephesians 3:20-21}

Have a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving, friends!

Thrifty Finds–October and November

2012-11-14T10:02:00.001-08:00

I haven’t posted much of my thrifting finds lately, because most of it has been Christmas presents for other people that read this blog! :) Chris and I decided that with Olivia coming right after the holidays, we were cutting back on Christmas this year. We’ve opted out of some gift exchanges and for others we are openly doing thrift-store finds or homemade gifts. It’s actually been a lot of fun – I like having an excuse to go thrifting! lol

Anyway, here are some of the things I’ve been picking up lately for myself:

Assorted frames {$4.50 for all 4} for Livi’s nursery – her room is going to be neutral-girly…

My friend Sara found the flower one for me (clearly the print will be going) but honestly I’m not sure if I want to save it for Livi’s room or keep it for myself and make into a memo board for the kitchen! lol I’ll have to see… ;)

Here’s the pretty girly detail on the two left frames:

I popped into T.J. Maxx a month or two ago and found this little “O” {$.79} and pretty thank-you notes for after she is born {$2.50} in the clearance aisle.

Oh how I love those red stickers! The more the better! Does anyone else peel to the bottom to see how much they saved off the original price? Or is that just me? lol

Found these today at the Salvation Army 1/2 price sale {along with the big white frame above}. Old-school Tupperware cups were 29 cents each, the mini whisk was 25 cents, and the vintage orange cup was a quarter, too. We had those Tupperware cups for years when I was a kid – anyone else? They’ve seen better days but if they don’t clean up well I’ll just give them to Luke for his bath. lol

Last night I went to Goodwill and was SOOOO excited to find this old-school Coca-Cola basket! It’s not wood (that would be amazing) – it’s the thick plastic kind that would have held cups to go through a big dishwasher in a restaurant. Maybe this one’s former life was at a hotdog stand? It has about a million layers of dirt on it but that’s nothing a good scrub can’t fix. It was only $1.99 and I’m so excited to put it in Luke’s room!

Nothing too exciting, but Luke will be thrilled with these – 99 cents for all three sheets.

Last but not least, we had a family photo shoot for Christmas cards on Sunday and I used these items as props – the tree was $7 and change on sale at JoAnn’s and the “Merry” cutout is currently $1.50 at Michaels. Cute, right?! Excited to use these this year in the house.

If only I could get paid to shop at thrift stores and bargain hunt! A girl can dream! :)

Giveaway Winner!

2012-11-13T10:36:00.001-08:00

I am happy to announce that the winner of the Operation Christmas Child Giveaway is #1 - Kathy! In all the giveaways I've done, I can't say that number 1 has ever won - the random generator doesn't usually seem to like it! LOL So congratulations Kathy! :) I was so happy to see the comments of those of you packing Christmas boxes - children are blessed by your generosity!

Operation Christmas Child GIVEAWAY!

2012-11-09T11:34:00.001-08:00

I have to admit, you guys – I’m a little jealous I can’t enter to win this! lol But it is an honor to help spread the word about this amazing organization, and I’m happy that one of you will get a fun package in the mail!

We’ll get to the giveaway in just a minute, but first, a little about Operation Christmas Child. This is a project near and dear to my heart! It is an outreach of Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian relief and development program run by Franklin Graham, son of the one and only Billy Graham. The mission of OCC is “to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way to needy children around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.”

In a nutshell, every November people around the world pack a shoebox with toys, treats, and educational supplies for children in developing countries around the world. They are distributed to the children by Christmas, and for many children this is the only gift they receive for the holiday.

You can choose the gender and age range of the child you’d like to buy for. Chris and I typically choose 10-14 year old boy, just because we figure it’s probably the least shopped-for category. We usually make it a date night – we’ll shop for the gifts, then go to Starbucks afterward!

Here’s an example of what’s going in one of our boxes this year:

Mini soccer ball {with an air pump}
Practice kicker for soccer ball {can you tell my husband was a soccer player?!}
Sketchpad with colored pencils, regular pencils, and a sharpener
Silly string
Washcloth, and bar of soap {not pictured}

There’s a whole list of packing ideas (and what’s not allowed to be packed) on the OCC website.

Our church is accepting the boxes this Sunday morning, but you can use this finder on their website to find a packing location near you! If you have additional questions about how to pack a shoebox, check out their FAQ page (please feel free to ask me a question in the comments or via e-mail, as well!).

It is SUCH an amazing idea and I literally can’t sit through one of their videos in church without bawling my eyes out. The kids get SO excited to see their gifts! It is so, so precious.

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To help spread the word about OCC, they sent me a giveaway package to send on to one of you! Here’s what one lucky person will be getting in the mail:

- An OCC t-shirt {second picture shows the back}. This is a thin gray material with pretty scroll designs on it (definitely for a woman, sorry guys!). Size L but I’m really short and it wasn’t that big on me!

- A SIGNED, Limited Deluxe Edition “Christmas with Scotty McCreery” magazine, PLUS his new Christmas CD AND a 2013 Scotty calendar {hellooooo any American Idol fans out there?!!}**

- Two OCC ornaments for your tree this year {one for you and one for a friend; pics below show front and back}

So fun, right?!

All you have to do to enter this giveaway is leave a comment on this post discussing anything you want about OCC. Your comment can be anything from “I’ve never heard of this org before but it sounds awesome!” to “We do this every year and we always put ____ in our boxes.”

Seriously, as long as your comment has something to do with OCC, you will be entered to win! The giveaway closes on Monday night.

In the meantime, it’s not too late to fill a shoebox and get it out! A child will be so blessed by your generosity! :)

**The Scotty magazine came to me a little scratched in the box but the CD looks to be just fine. I was tempted to play it and test it out but I refrained. lol. Just wanted to give full disclosure!**

What I’m Loving Wednesday

2012-11-07T12:09:00.001-08:00

{1} Electricity!

In my last post, I mentioned that we were in the midst of Hurricane Sandy here in CT. Well, about 2 hours after typing that, we did lose power - from Monday to Friday. The first few days weren’t so horrible, but then the temperatures dropped and I started to get really scared. We were helped by so many generous friends with generators and made it through the dark week! As I type this post, “Storm Athena” is swirling around outside but I’m not as scared of it {although honestly I still think we’ll lose power again}. Currently, though, my house is warm and cozy and lit and I am SO thankful for it while it lasts!

So today I’m baking and making sure all our laundry is caught up. Last year my mom traded me this bread machine for a big basket I was selling at my yard sale. This thing is literally about 20 years old {we used it when I was a kid} but it still works great! Today I’m trying a new recipe – Cinnamon Raisin Bread – and I can’t wait to eat it! Hoping I have power tomorrow so I can have cinnamon raisin toast for breakfast! Yum.

{2} Deals and Steals

Does anyone else get super excited about Target holiday clearances? I LOVE them. Stuff gets to 90% off just because it was branded for the holiday and you can get great deals on stuff if you look beyond the packaging! I’ve been shopping these sales for years and don’t plan on stopping soon. ;)

For instance, these Butterfinger pumpkins {one of Chris’s faves} were only 10 cents a package, as were the M&M packs – which will be perfect for making pretzel kisses over the holidays.

I also found these items at a different Target for 30 cents each – cute little brown bags, adorable baker’s twine {for holiday wrapping!} and cute apple tissue paper to use for Luke’s teacher gifts. Love!

{3} Apples

I normally like eating apples, but this pregnancy I just can’t get enough of them! We have a local orchard about 10 minutes from the house and today I stopped into their store to pick up some so we’d have fruit to eat during the storm. These were some of the last of the Macs they had for the season {my faves!}. I love them plain or dipped in a little natural peanut butter. Delish. There is SUCH a difference in local, fresh fruit as compared to fruit from the supermarket!

{4} Paint decision- done!

I finally decided on a paint color for Livi’s room! The color is called “London Fog” by Benjamin Moore. It’s the one on the left in that super creepy photo below. lol It’s hard to describe – it’s a little beige, a little gray, with almost a faint hint of sparkle and purple mixed in (I sound crazy, I know).

I was inspired to use it after seeing it used on the blog Dear Lillie. I think it will be perfect for my girl’s neutral room – Chris is going to paint the weekend before Thanksgiving and I can’t wait to get in there and get decorating!! :)

There’s my scatterbrained list for this week! Even though I’m not loving what happened last night – I really believed that Governor Romney would have been the perfect person to turn our country around fiscally – I’m loving that I serve a great God who is above all!

Have a wonderful rest of your week, everyone!

Linking up with Jamie today!

My Favorite Vegan Snack & Giveaway Winner Announced!

2012-10-29T09:45:00.001-07:00

I’m sitting here at my computer typing as fast as my fingers will let me – hoping I can get this post finished before we lose power! You maaaay have heard of a little storm named Hurricane Sandy. Yup, we’re living it right now! Connecticut is currently getting tons of wind and rain. Two of my good friends have already been without power for several hours. Last year with Hurricane Irene, we lost power for 5 days. It was no picnic, let me tell you. I’m praying that God keeps it on for us this time!

Anyway, I’ve been meaning to show you this snack for months – but I keep forgetting to take a picture for you! It’s the easiest snack ever, and it’s clean, and it’s vegan. YAY!!! :) The main ingredient is chickpeas - you might have a mental image of chickpeas in your head from salad bars at restaurants…chalky and icky. These are nothing like what you’re used to, I promise!

Seriously, I almost considered calling these “crackpeas” as a joke because they are just that addicting. Once you start, you can’t stop. {Although take it from me – you’re gonna want to pace yourself with these puppies. I mean, they’re beans. Think that one through with me, people. lol}

Roasted Chickpeas

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Open one can of chickpeas, rinse, and pat dry. (This really helps them not to smoke in the oven.) Dump onto a cookie sheet and douse with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Flip around with a spatula (pancake flipper) to incorporate. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown (they’ll crack open a little bit, and that’s normal). Allow to cool slightly and add more salt and pepper if desired.

These come out with such a meaty, savory taste. They make such a yummy topping for salads or can be eaten ~~by the handful~~ plain, as well.

Seriously, don’t knock them ‘til you try them! And try not to eat the whole pan. I dare you. ;)

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The winner of the Mimi and Chip giveaway, chosen by Rafflecopter, was Amy of The Blessed Mom! Congratulations, Amy!!!!! Send me your mailing info to blessedlifeblog{at}gmail{dot}com and I’ll pass it on to Megan! :)

Mimi & Chip Giveaway!

2012-10-22T17:16:00.001-07:00

I am just SO excited about tonight’s giveaway! :)

Megan Zellner is a former family and consumer science teacher who started her at-home business, Mimi & Chip, after deciding to stay home with her two kids (I love that – maybe because it’s like me? lol). She offers THE MOST ADORABLE products via her Facebook store…have a look at some of my favorites:

Adorable bags (I want one in every color!)…

Ridiculously cute shirts…

Sweet little aprons (for big and little cooks!)

Super cute makeup bags…

And SO much more!

Megan sent me THE most adorable onesie for little Miss Olivia! She let me pick out the fabric and the style and it’s my girl’s first personalized piece of clothing! I am more than a little bit in love with it. :)

(My camera is terrible but it’s actually a soft baby pink. Love!)

I can attest that the quality is outstanding and Megan was a pleasure to work with. She was super friendly and accommodating and my shirt shipped in no time!

Lucky for you all, she’s giving away an initial shirt to one of YOU! :)

There’s three ways to enter – the first is mandatory and the other two are extra entries. Since Megan’s Facebook page is how she operates her business, you just need to hop on over and “Like” her page to enter the giveaway! Extra bonus points for followers of my blog and for anyone who wants to leave a comment telling Megan their favorite product.

What a GREAT Christmas gift for a kiddo of your own or for a little one you need to get a gift for! Maybe you can find a little something for yourself while you’re over there! :)

Good luck!

***Important: you must use the white box below to complete your three entries or your entries will NOT count! Once you have “Liked” Megan’s page and clicked “Do It” (by the checkmark), then the other entries will unlock for you.***

a Rafflecopter giveaway