The Branches

Gettin Crafty Wit It

2012-02-01T10:39:00.001-06:00

I'm not the craftiest person on the planet. We saw these car prints at Pottery Barn Kids for a bazillion dollars and I was like "I could make that!" Proceeded by that is "CRAZY" to pay that much for those!!!

I mean it's just cars cut out of construction paper right?

So last night Connor and I got our crafty noodle on. I cut and he played with his crayons.

He then moved to the tile floor when I left the room....naughty naughty!

Here is my creation:

I wanted to do a set of airplane prints for Connor's room and frame them.....

NOT SO SURE ABOUT THIS????

I'm doing an "Outfit of the day post"

I'm certainly not a fashionista. I love tunics right now. Mostly because they hide my rolls and muffin top. I particularly love this one because it's my favorite color green :-)

You have to be careful with tunics though because they can give you that "tent" effect. Ha ha!

My new shoes from Zulily. It's not just for children's stuff ya'll!

I swear I paid like $12 bucks for these shoes and I LOVE THEM!

It's that time of the week............

Want to win a $10 Starbucks card???

Leave me a comment:

WHAT IS YOUR FAVE DRINK AT STARBUCKS?

Valentine Mini Photo Shoot

2012-01-31T12:07:00.001-06:00

If you live in the DFW area and would like to have a Valentine day photo shoot Email me at beckylbranch@gmail.com Don't you love the Valentine pj's ??? They are from Carters store, they have cute V-day stuff at great prices right now!

I wonder what Connor thinks of LOVE???

(That's right...you can't date until you're 30 son!)

Pics from the weekend :

I look like poo (sorry)
We Celebrated my nephew Jacob's first birthday!
Went to Dallas to return something to Restoration Hardware, which by the way VERY GOOD customer service!!!!
Connor and I have both come down with the crud again...is it ever going to END???
We played with lots of cars. Somebody is a bit obsessed right now!

I saw this phone contraption somewhere....isn't it nifty?

I forgot where I saw this, but I can picture myself laying on my bed like I did when I was 16 talking to all my friends! I remember it was such a big deal to have your own phone line in your bedroom growing up....now it's all about cellphones! Can you imagine! Oh how times have changed.

Win $50 from Head & Shoulders!

2012-01-30T10:45:00.003-06:00

We are in the midst of January here in Texas, but the weather has been up…and down…then back up again! It was 77 degrees today can you believe that?

The changes in temperature do a number on my hair and skin. As a result, I get chapped lips, dry skin, and a dry scalp. If that doesn’t sound attractive I don’t know what does?

MY HAIR

One of my favorite colors of clothing to wear is black. However, black is not a great color to wear if you are flaky, and it's 77 degrees outside. Everyone else knows that’s not snow on your shoulders!
I recently had an opportunity to try Head and Shoulders Apple Hair Care. I’ve been using it daily for the last few weeks. It smells like delicious green apples, it leaves my hair feeling clean, fresh, and, best of all, flake-free.

YUMMY

I found Head and Shoulders Apple Hair Care to be a refreshing & invigorating way to wake up and face the day. Head and Shoulders Apple Hair Care not only works great, but it leaves my hair looking great.

It’s also super affordable, and it truly WORKS! It’s definitely not your average dandruff shampoo/conditioner, and it works on all types of hair.

Head and Shoulders advanced formula relieves scalp itch, dryness, irritation and helps prevent flakes while improving hair and scalp health. Healthy Hair Starts from a Healthy Scalp™, so why not treat your scalp with the respect it deserves? Your hair will thank you!

The Head & Shoulders collection of soothing products promises to help with dandruff problems: dryness, itchiness, and sensitivity. I’ve been using Head and Shoulders Apple Hair Care shampoo and conditioner the last few weeks now. It has completely eliminated any dandruff I had. I have absolutely no flaking or itchiness whatsoever. I feel comfortable wearing my black sweaters knowing all you’ll see is black.

I hear a cold front is coming next week, but my scalp will be ready! Why not treat yourself and your scalp & try Head and Shoulders Apple Hair Care, it will sooth your hair and your senses!
A great scent can lift my mood, like fruity scents in springtime.

Tell me what scents help you feel beautiful and fresh to be entered for a chance to win a $50 Visa gift card.

Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.

Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 1/30 - 2/28.

Be sure to visit the Promotions & Prizes page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win! And visit the Life Well Lived section on BlogHer.com for more great tips on looking your best.

23 Month Picture Board

2012-01-29T20:11:00.000-06:00

I found this idea on Pinterest awhile back and loved it......

We'll see how well I keep up with doing this every month because I would like to!

Here is our Jan-Feb addition (Don't you love the Valentine PJ's?)

Saturday Morning Scene

2012-01-28T09:49:00.002-06:00

Trying to fill Daddy's shoes are we?

Notice the newly cut hair....

It was getting very hard to manage so we had it trimmed a bit. I'm glad the curlies are still there :-) Thank goodness for blue suckers! Ha ha!

Ya'll have a good weekend!

Starbucks Winners!

2012-01-27T13:36:00.001-06:00

The winners of the Starbucks cards are......

BETH

JESSICA

Congrats gals!

Tune in next week and you can try and win again :-)

Favorite Products

2012-01-26T15:36:00.000-06:00

I'm joining up with Aly + Tiffanie for the Product of the week linkup.

If you want to join in hit the button above!

1. Polka Dot Dish Towels from Zulily for $9.99

2. Mango Body Butter from The Body Shop

3. Dill Popcorn (See yesterdays post!)

4. Valentine Day frames from Target

5. Getting FREE Godiva in the mail for tweeting!
6. The beautiful peacock dress I saw in a shop window this morning
7. Fine point Sharpies
8. Starbucks hot cocoa

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE PRODUCTS???

GO LINK UP HERE!

This & That

2012-01-25T15:22:00.000-06:00

It's raining cats and dogs today. We need it like Whoa.

I'm not complaining!

I'm not the best person.

I'm not the best wife.

I'm not the best mom.

I'm not the best Christian.

I'm not the best daughter.

I'm not the best sister.

I'm not the best friend.

I'm not the best cook.

I'm not the best blogger.

I'm not the best at a lot of things...

But I sure try the best I can.

I'm probably one of the most random people you'll ever meet. I'm a bit OCD and slightly obsessed with coffee. (Which probably doesn't help the OCD?) I mean if Connor drops a crumb on the ground I'm leaping across the kitchen for a paper towel and cleaner. What's wrong with this picture?

I need to slow down and let the cookie crumble. Literally.

On my floor into a million pieces.

Now for the RANDOM :

Loving all the chevron at Target....

They must have caught on after that Missoni craziness this past summer???

Last night Connor and I went shopping at Super Target. I got him a car to play with and opened a bag of cookies while shopping....because I couldn't handle him whining anymore. I need to just learn to deal.

As Connor is getting older he's more fun. His communication skills are growing and it's so fun to watch him try to say something. He tries to talk in complete sentences and it's the cutest thing ever. He loves his "Mater" car right now....and just to hear him say "Mater" is precious. I tried to count the amount of times he says the word "CARS" a day....I'm sure it's over 100. Positive. Obsessed child.

Moretti's Gourmet Popcorn = HEAVEN

I'm not normally a popcorn fan at all, but there is something about their dill pickle popcorn that just trips my trigger and I can't get enough of it. It's SO good!

So how's your week going???

Valentines Day Cards

2012-01-24T20:46:00.001-06:00

It's almost Valentine's day.

Time to show those you love just how special you think they are!

I remember growing up and making Valentines day card holders out of shoe boxes to take to school. Back then most of my cards were hand written or colored with crayons. My Mom saved some of them and they are so funny to look at now and read.

Valentine cards sure have come a long way....I was browsing the other day and saw these adorable cards from Tiny Prints. They have so many cards to choose from. One of my favorites are the classroom cards. These are such a great price and they have so many different layouts and sayings.

Classroom cards

We love to send Valentines Day Greeting Cards to our Grandparents and friends.

I love this one

FIND TINY PRINTS ON:

TWITTER

FACEBOOK

PINTEREST

Green with Envy

2012-01-24T11:15:00.001-06:00

You are aren't ya???

My sweet friend Michelle sent me the most amazing scarf! It's the perfect shade of Starbucks green and it means so much she thought enough to make it for me. She's a special gal yes she is! If you want her to knit you a pretty scarf you can contact her through her blog HERE

I realize I look like a total doof in these pics...but I was having fun with my scarf yo!

Terence was telling me to work it....mmmhhmmmmmm.....

We gave Connor a Girl Scout cookie last night....

Do you think he enjoyed it??? I have major rug burn on my knees today from chasing this dude around on the floor in the living room. We were crawling around the ottoman....my knees are to old for that! LOL! But we had a blast!

Weekend Randoms

2012-01-23T11:27:00.000-06:00

We had a great weekend. It was unseasonably warm with a high of 75 yesterday! I like cold weather...where is my winter mother nature??? Please come back to us soon!

Terence and I worked the Fort Worth stock show for a bit on Saturday with our buddies.

I did NOT get a red velvet funnel cake this time....my butt thanks me very much.

In other weekend randoms.....

I found these airplane goodies for Connor's room at Hobby Lobby. It has been forever since I visited the HobLob. They have the greatest stuff in there. I could spend hours if I had the time.

The picture frame was 50% off for $12.50, but I didn't get that.

The "FLY" letters were also 50% off and I got them for around $9 = SCORE!

I printed this Valentines Day subway art off of Pinterest. I particularly like the shiny paper...extra sparkle!

Cute huh?

We went hiking yesterday after church. I had a chance to try out my new hiking poles....they made all the difference...I HIGHLY recommend them :-)

My lil sugar boog

Love the way my Erin Condren labels look with this wrapping paper.....

Juicing Juicing Juicing!!!!

We also had Mr. Kylon's birthday party!

It was at the cutest place called the tree house. It was in a church. The tree had slides and all sorts of things coming out of it. Happy birthday Kylon!!!!!

Happy Monday Ya'll!

Have a cup o coffee for me would ya???

Valentines Day Shirt Winner!

2012-01-21T09:26:00.000-06:00

The winner of the Valentines Day shirt giveaway is...........

Aishlea !!!!!

Yay!

Email me at beckylbranch@gmail.com with what size you need :-)

Starbucks for Toddlers

2012-01-20T17:40:00.003-06:00

No not really...

But we are throwing a little mini barista party for Connor :-)

Today the stickers came in for the cups I ordered and I think they turned out fab!

Connor loves coffee.

I only let him have a few sips. I promise I'm not a crazy Momma!

I wouldn't want him to be over stimulated or anything???

I asked him who was on the cup and he proudly said : " It's CONNOR!"

I ordered the plain white coffee cups from EBay (including lids)

This actual Starbucks logo with Connor in it I made it myself in Photoshop.

I then ordered round glossy stickers from Sticker You and they turned out GREAT!

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Naaa-sty! NOT. Juicing Advice

2012-01-19T16:13:00.000-06:00

So as I mentioned in previous posts we've started juicing.

We've gotten most of our recipes from HERE

We chose the Omega juicer for various reasons. I'm SO happy we chose this juicer. It works wonderfully and we've been nothing but amazed at how great it works. The pulp is almost completely dry, which means our fruits and veggies have been squeezed to the max! If you are looking to start juicing I would highly recommend it :-)

My lil guy before our hike last night

Ignore all the food on his shirt

Okay here I'm trying the green juice: kale, apples, pineapple, carrots

It was actually pretty good! I don't like a lot of pulp, and this drink was really smooth.

You can see how much fruit and veggies are extracted on the left hand side of the juicer....crazy huh?

And we had this BEET-u-TIFUL drink last night

Red drink: spinach, carrots, pear, apples, & beets

(This one had a little more pulp because of the spinach)

I'm glad we started this. At least I know I am getting the most from my fruits and veggies and it's probably the healthiest thing I put in my body all day. The juice is not NEAR as bad as I expected and trust me....I have a high gag reflex. It in fact is not NASTY at all!!!

Do any of you juice???

What's in Your Bag Link Up

2012-01-17T23:00:00.000-06:00

I was inspired by Aly the other day when she dumped her purse out and showed us the goodies inside. I'm always curious what women think they need to carry with them at all times! There is also a feature in one of my favorite magazines that showcases celebrity purses and what they keep inside :

So this is my bag

It's my favorite color GREEN

1. Hobo Lauren wallet

2. Cuticle trimmer

3. Lens wipes and Tide to Go (Lens wipes are great for cleaning your phone)

4. My new Google Galaxy phone

5. Tum Tum Tum Tum Tuuuuums!

6. Concealer

7. Tweezers

8. Alieve meds

9. Mirror

10. A ton of ponytail holders

11. Lip gloss

12. My Starbucks gold card

13. Lipstick

14. Minted cards

15. Sunglasses case

16. Tide to go (I spill a lot!)

17. Nail files

18. My pill keeper

19. Spank Stick (For Connor)

20. Chapstick

21. Cinnamon gum

22. Clippies

23. My massive keys with 1,000 discount shopper cards :-)

So tell me.....

"What's in your bag???"

Link up and share below....

What did you do?

2012-01-17T11:23:00.001-06:00

This weekend.....

Love three day weekends!

How was yours???

Also-

I have blogged several times about Birchbox. Apparently they have a waiting list now.

There are a couple other companies similar to Birchbox if you were wanting to check them out.

(This is not a referral link, just wanted ya'll to know!)

MY GLAM BAG - $10 monthly subscription fee and you get FULL size samples!

GO GO GIRLFRIEND - They have a couple different subscriptions you can choose from.

If You Give a Kid a Cookie...

2012-01-14T23:40:00.002-06:00

Then they will always come to expect one. And when they don't get a cookie a nuclear melt down occurs...

Yes-I've bribed on occasion. But seriously this kid gets whooped & doesn't care anymore!

It's a tough life. I get it.

Hopefully he'll still come feed me when I'm at the old folks home.

I don't know if he will once he sees these pictures! Ha ha!

This is such a fun age :-)

Starbucks Love Giveaway!

2012-01-13T14:58:00.001-06:00

If you love Starbucks as much as I do then more power to ya!

It's time to share the love again and provide

some crack to all you lovelies....

I'm giving away (2) $10 Starbucks cards :-)

TO ENTER

1. FOLLOW MY LIL OLE BLOG

2. TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY

(Please leave a seperate comment for each entry!)

Contest Ends: Friday Jan 27th

xoxo<3xoxo

Have a great weekend!!!

A Mindless Mind Dump

2012-01-12T15:50:00.002-06:00

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....

What to blog about???

I have about a bazillion things on my mind, and about 25% of it I retain and remember to blog or talk about with others. The other 75% is are just fleeting thoughts. Is this a a problem?

Each week goes by faster and faster & my mind gets older. Sigh.

I'm looking forward to our trip to Europe next month. Counting down the days actually. I am kind of scared to be on an airplane for 8 hours. That freaks me out. I'm going to miss my baby boo SOOOOO much, but I can't imagine taking him on a flight that long. I also can't imagine seeing all the things we want to see while there with our toddler in tow. I think it will be a good trip for T and I and a much needed just vacay for just the two of us.

So here are some of the fleeting thoughts and photos I've had lately ;)

A little sneaky peeky of Connor's 2nd birthday....which I must say is going to be ORIGINAL.

It's going to be down right pimpin & fun will be had by all!

I ordered these stickers and plain white coffee cups with lids for the party.

Don't worry I'm not feeding the kiddos espresso...I was thinking a "pretend coffee" with a hot chocolate bar?

Source: blogs.babble.com via Becky on Pinterest

We ordered a juicer and are excited to get juicing baby! Woohoo!

I went to Central Market today to pick up some kale, carrots, apples, and things to juice.

I got a little distracted by the Valentines day isle.

I love Central Market!!!!

I have a new favorite pen ya'll.

It's the Ink Joy pen.

These pens write super smooth and I love all the colors!

They are on sale right now for around $3.50 for this package at Target

I won this cardigan from Lands End Canvas over Christmas just for tweeting! I also won a couple other tops from there and a shirt for Terence. Not to mention I won a Marley Lilly scarf! And lots of toys and outfits for Connor. I have won a LOT of stuff just for tweeting! It's awesome ya'll!

Me before work and coffee....frazzled much???

The other day I walked into the kitchen and Connor had my hiking boots on :-)

Silly boy!

I've been wearing my glasses to work a lot more lately. The computer screen is KILLING my eyeballs! Anyone else have this problem? Besides the fact that I look uber smart I still feel like a vampire because I want to sit in the dark. No amount of eye drops helps this problemo and honestly I feel like it's becoming an issue :/

Guess what?

TOMORROW IS FRIDAY!!!!!!

I'm excited about The Firm (New TV show alert!)

I really like it so far!

Vroom Vroom!

2012-01-11T21:50:00.002-06:00

I found Connor this adorable road play mat today. It was the only one the store had and it was on the sales floor so I negotiated over 50% off! Score! HE LOVES IT! And now he has a place to play with all his beloved cares :-)

I'm pretty proud of my good deal today!

Looking forward to the Fort Worth Stock Show this weekend!

Who's coming???

Lovey Dovey Hearts

2012-01-10T21:52:00.004-06:00

Download HERE

After each long day I get to come home to this....

So blessed.

(Ya'll don't forget to enter the contests on the right hand side bar!)

xoxo

Chunk

2012-01-09T10:32:00.000-06:00

For some reason this picture of Connor reminded me of someone.....

And I finally figured it out! Chunk from The Goonies!!!

This is probably all kinds of wrong, but seriously?

He gets the same reaction when you talk about cars :-)

Friends, Fun, & Sweet Ideas

2012-01-08T15:29:00.000-06:00

On Saturday my friend Niki, who I met through blogging, came to town for the Cotton Bowl. She is from Little Rock. It was so good to see her and meet her hubby! They are the sweetest couple and I hope they come back to see us soon! Niki and I share a love for paper stores, cupcakes, and fun crafting :-)

Yummy cupcakes at The Cupcakery

I wanted to take Niki to one of my favorite stores called The Brownstone. I always say it reminds me of an Etsy on land instead of online. This place is full of little booths and shops with some of the cutest ideas.

I got this glittery LOVE sign....and guess what I love??? Ha ha!

I know I am CRAZY.

Adore these metal yard stakes

I want one of these big metal candles to put in the yard for birthdays. How cute!

Connor found some mini school buses and he's been OBSESSED with them. I think it's because the bus fits perfectly in his little hand. He won't sleep without this thing!\

A cute little shop called Vella Nest

Not your average noodles

I wish I knew how to make this paper heart shadow box, but I have no idea how they made this?

Pretty cross candles

He didn't stay in the stroller for very long....

And these were probably one of our favorite things. It's paper lanterns with cellophane around them and they look like candy! Love this idea!!!

Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Xoxo

Becky

Valentines Day Shirt Contest!

2012-01-05T22:08:00.005-06:00

Want to win your LOVE BUG a shirt???

One of my BFF's since the 6th grade has started up her own business. She's making the cutest personalized children's clothing! She's already made Connor several things. We are so lucky to have such a talented friend :-)

This is Kristin between me and Bon:

Kristin is a mom to three kids and she really enjoys doing this in her free time! I'm so excited for her!

Here are some of the goodies she's made Connor :

Enter to win your kiddo a customized Valentines Day shirt!

(Don't worry she has girls designs too!)

TO ENTER:

1. Be a follower of my blog & please tell me so!

2. "Like" Kristin's Facebook page Sugar & Spice Kids Boutique and tell me so!

3. Tweet about this giveaway!!!!

Contest Ends: Friday, Jan. 20th

Finishing Touches

2012-01-04T21:45:00.003-06:00

We are still working on Connor's big boy room. Slowly transitioning everything. We also decided to take his twin bet out of the room for right now so he'd have more room to play with his cars.

One recent change we made was replacing his bookshelf for a bigger one. The black one is in his closet now for extra storage :

- Lamp is a cheapo lamp from Super Target and it works great!

- The toy planes are a cute touch (thank you cousin Lesley)

But usually they end up here.....

I also picked up this cute airplane book end from TJ Maxx. It has a small nick on the corner so I got 10% off! Always ask for a discount even if it's only a minor defect.

Dillards had a huge sale this past weekend. I got this map pillow that sort of goes with the theme. It was only $9. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it in there or not yet???

I love my sweet boy!

He really is the most loving soul.

I can't believe in less than 2 months he will be TWO YEARS OLD!

Where has time gone....more on that subject tomorrow ;)