flickr favorites

this could turn into a seriously addicting habit!!

1. happiness is..., 2. Color Me Pretty, 3. sunshine on a dark day, 4. The Tempest, 5. FAUX voir, 6. the peasant dress paintings, part IV, 7. Remember Me {National Photo Awards-Eighth Place and Award of Excellence Winner}, 8. Pink Roses in Vintage Urn, 9. RETRO lollipop, 10. B O U G A I N V I L L E A, 11. Pink Peony, 12. A Pint of Roses, 13. Kitchen Chandelier, 14. A tulle heart wreath I made, 15. Sky Fighter, 16. Ribbon Candy, 17. Cupcakes!, 18. Hand Embroidery, 19. Vintage Shell Wreath, 20. Spring is bursting out all over !, 21. Untitled, 22. Chartreuse, 23. H O N E Y C H I L D, 24. rose cupcakes, 25. handmade vintage crepe paper & millinery pretties from fleamarket studio!

making me happy

(1) In my never-ending quest to organize my craft supplies, I came across this little "She Writes" phrase card and did a little happy dance.......I mean really, how perfect is that!! My one little word for the year is "Write," and this is an absolute perfect little reminder of that commitment. (It now happily resides in the kitchen among my collection of brown and white transferware).

(2) This little nook in our home just makes me happy every time I walk by, and lately, I have actually been picking up a piece of fruit here and there and eating it rather than simply admiring how pretty it looks :)

(3) The bulletin board in our kitchen is about to get a much-needed Spring makeover, but I thought I would snap a quick photo of it before the papers, cards and projects come down and are filed away.

Other things that are making me happy these days:

***this upcoming class all about blogging

***telling all my friends about "Winter Garden".....I just finished reading it and it is excellent

***waiting on 2 happy packages to arrive: a box full of fun hair stuff for Sienna from etsy and 2 more books from Amazon

***getting caught up on our Project Life book.....I am really enjoying the process of filling each slot with photos, journaling and random bits of our everyday life

save-the-date

A few weeks ago, our good friend and favorite babysitter asked me to take photos for her Save-the-Date cards. I happily agreed, and we were able to venture out last weekend and get some really great shots. These are not the ones she chose for her cards (I will let her reveal those), but I thought I would share a few of my personal favorites from the day.

I had so much fun at this shoot....it reminded me how much easier it is to take pictures when the subjects are not toddlers :)

so I will remember

I say this almost every single month, but I really can't believe that February is almost over!! This has been a crazy month filled with snow days, a mommy-daddy get-away, Valentine parties, dinner with friends......all of this on top of our usual hustle and bustle.

Last week, Sienna finally got to celebrate Valentine's Day with her friends at school. The kids had a great time making Valentines for their parents, decorating bags for their own Valentines, and (the hands-down favorite activity)......decorating sugar cookies with loads of icing and sprinkles in every color of the rainbow.

Our morning got off to a little bit of a rough start, so the little princess was not thrilled about me taking pictures of our hand-made Valentines right before she went into class (note the pouty expression).

But her spirits sure lifted when sugar was involved!! Check out her masterpiece....this girl has never met a sprinkle she didn't like :)

And this is the gift we made for Sienna's amazingly wonderful teacher....we are so blessed to have her this year. So simple: a glass jar, filled with Valentine chocolate, tied with pink tulle and pink crystal dangles, and topped off with a vintage rose.

On Saturday, we took the kiddos to the park to play. We met up with their cousin Ned, ate lunch together, and topped off the day at Sprinkles cupcakes.....what could be better??

I think this was when Grant finally got the ball away from his sister.....he doesn't quite grasp the whole kicking concept just yet.......he simply grabs the ball and runs like crazy!!

on the lookout

I mentioned before that I am in serious "Spring-inspired" decorating mode. So far that means I have spent way too many hours scouring home decor blogs looking for inspiration, I have made trips to Target, Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel looking for a 90 inch round white table cloth, and I have arranged and re-arranged our living room about 20 times :)

I came across this beautiful library themed occasional table on Heather's blog, and I have attempted to re-create my version in our living room (photos to come). Love it, love it, love it!!

I love everything about her kitchen......total eye candy! This photo is definitely going in my home inspiration folder for future reference.

And I saw these great lamp shades at Pottery Barn this weekend. They were a bit pricey for my taste, so now I am on the lookout for something similar that also fits my budget.

Also on my "lookout" list:

1. Grey and white spray paint

2. White ruffled pillows

3. Wire baskets

4. Mason jars

5. Fluffy, white towels

6. White picture frames

7. Mercury glass

8. Moss

mothering

At night, when my eyes begin to get heavy, and the words are beginning to blur in the book I'm reading, I usually set the book on the nightstand, turn off the lamp, and do a mental re-cap of that day's events. This usually turns into a nightly prayer.......thanking God for all the blessings in my life and asking Him for strength in the areas in which I am weak. I try hard to not let it turn into an opportunity for "mommy-guilt." I try hard to remind myself that while there were plenty of moments that didn't go as I had hoped, I can always start fresh in the morning.

Here are a few things I have been thinking about lately just before I slip into dreamland:

(1) I must be better prepared next year for wintery weather: if it weren't for the photos, I doubt Grant would even remember that his mother made him wear his sister's pink rain boots and purple mittens because she didn't have the appropriate clothing for him

(2) I read this somewhere in blogland recently, and it has stuck with me: "I treat my children the way I expect them to treat each other, if I yell and scream at them, I can see that reflected in how they behave with one another.".........I SO believe this! Now, must put it into practice!!

(3) My new goal, is to have a more fun, upbeat attitude during dinner. Dinnertime is not my finest hour......I am usually struggling to figure out what to make for dinner, the kids are running around like crazy people, I keep waiting for the back door to open and for my husband to walk through the door, etc..... By the time we all sit down to eat, I am generally frustrated and just ready for everyone to finish so I can clean up and start bath time. This is not OK!! I want my children to have fond memories of dinner time as a family. I want to create an atmosphere that is comfortable and fun and free of stress.........and the only way I can achieve that goal is to model that behavior for my children.

(4) I read an article today over at The Mother Huddle that pretty much sums it all up

Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry- go-round

Or listened to the rain lapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight

Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

Do you run through each day on the fly?

When you ask “How are you?” Do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed

With the next hundred chores running through your head?

Ever told your child, “We’ll do it tomorrow.” and in your haste, not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Made a phone call, just call to say Hi?

When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift….

Thrown away.

Life is not a race. Take it slower.

Hear the music before the song is over.

bits of this and that

I thought the snow we had last week was amazing.....totally grateful for the time spent with the little ones outside playing or inside cozied up by the fire. That being said, I AM READY FOR SPRING!! I still haven't taken the Valentine decor down just yet (my daughter's Valentine party at school was postponed until this Friday, and so she has informed me that Valentine's Day is NOT OVER YET!!), but I am so ready to bust out the bird nest decor, to put away the cozy blankets draped across every surface in our home, to let the light in!! I was crusin' the web this morning, and here are a few things that caught my eye in anticipation of the warmer weather.....thought you would enjoy too!

I own 2 prints by this wonderfully talented photographer and I am dying to get my hands on a few more......there is something so mystical and beautiful about her work.

Let me just say that I am obsessed with everything Katie Runnels does! I came across some of her yarn-wrapped wreaths at Christmastime, and I made a few of my own to give as gifts. Now, I am totally ready to make a few Spring-inspired ones!

This blog is new to me, but I spent a little time browsing through some of her past posts, and I am hooked.....she is witty, she is stylish and I want to move into her sunroom (pictured above) RIGHT NOW!! Why is it that I am totally drawn to the clean, fresh, white, bright, farmhouse style, yet everything in my house feels so dark???

And I am definitely going to dig through the old photos boxes today and pull out every Polaroid I can find......I love this idea and I love the thought of using some of those old photos that have been sitting in boxes for years. What wall to use....hmmmm??

photo shoot round 1

So I mentioned before, that I am taking an online photography class. It is actually an advanced course, and I am quickly realizing that I am WAY out of my league!!! However, I have decided not to let myself get intimidated or overwhelmed, and instead just try to really learn from the instructor and from the other amazingly talented women in the class.

What I have realized over the past couple years is that photography is hard....like really hard!! I have studied and read and taken courses and practiced and practiced, and still I feel like I just can't quite get the hang of it. It has actually been a great life lesson for me, to keep plugging away, to try not to get discouraged, to keep learning, to enjoy the process even when I feel like throwing my camera across the room :)

Our first assignment in the class, was to push ourselves to find interesting locations or to use fun, new props....to get out of our comfort zone and to try some new things. So yesterday, I staged a little photo shoot with Sienna, and let's just say things didn't go exactly as planned :) I haven't posted my photos for Assignment 1 yet, because I am hoping to try again this afternoon, but thought I would post a few of my favs from yesterday's shoot here on the old blog. (In case you were wondering, the "fabulous location" is just outside our front door and the props are the lollipop, blue bench and colorful play suitcases)

I couldn't resist posting that last one.......that was how about 99% of them turned out :)

austin in photos

around here

around here: we are re-living moments spent playing in the snow.....snowball fights, snow angels, snowflakes on eyelashes, fuzzy hats and wide-eyed excitement.

around here: we are relishing these memories knowing that snowfall like this is not likely to come around again anytime soon

around here: we are feeling relaxed and rested after a mommy-daddy get-away to Austin.....cupcakes from an airstream, cozy hotel bedding, spring-like temperatures, coffee and tea at Jo's, window shopping, 2 trips to Whole Foods, bookstore browsing, naps and wonderful peace and quiet.

around here: we are talking a lot about "home"...what it means to us as a family, where we want to put roots down in the future, what makes us happy...big decisions & heavy conversations.

around here: we have been crafting up a storm.......making Valentine goodies to hang on the mantel

and headbands for the little princess.

around here: we are daring to dream big dreams, trying to find humor in the face of the terrible 2's, reading great books, looking forward to park-appropriate temperatures, watching the Bachelor and American Idol, giving thanks for great neighbors and friends, finding inspiration at every turn and turning to God in prayer.

thank you Ali for the around here inspiration

real live snow!!

We live in Texas, so it goes without saying that we don't see this very often! Sienna woke up bright and early, and ran into our room to wake us up and let us know about the magic outside the windows. Grant had never seen snow like this before, and he wasn't quite sure what to think.....but after watching his sister have a rip roarin' time, he joined right in!

The snow is still going strong here in our neck of the woods.....looks like there will be more snowball fights in our future!! We have to enjoy it while we can :)

the boy likes choc-o-lut

This is why I am so very glad that I love photography and scrapbooking.....becausse it turns what could have been an overly-dramatic-mommy-moment into a perfect memory documenting experience (the chocolate handprints all over the couch are an entirely different story)!!

my version

Yesterday afternoon, the kids and I pulled out all of the Valentine goodies we could find in the house. We went through my craft stash and grabbed pink and red paper, heart doilies, red candles, my trusty heart punches, fabric, tulle.....and then we proceeded to make a giant Valentine mess!!

The end result may not be magazine worthy, but during all of our craftiness, I felt such gratitude for this time in our lives. Even though there are moments (many moments) when I feel like I might not be able to take all the dirty diapers, the tantrums, the sibling rivalry, etc...for one more minute (second!!), I am still so very grateful that we are blessed to be able to spend special moments together with paper and glue, making lasting memories.

Here's a shot of our mantle when we finished. Sienna and Grant colored the punched out hearts, and I strung them on pink tulle to make a little garland. Then we filled little votives with sugar and stuck some of my vintage Valentines in them. Finally, we made a large paper lolly (on the far right) and glued on some heart doilies. We had a blast!

A close-up of my mercury glass candle holders and my Teresa McFayden bird.

And then I got out the fabric glue and Amy Butler fabric and went to town making this lovely little flower clip.....I am addicted!! So excited to finally have a use for all that costume jewelry my Mom has collected over the years!

loving.....

So many things to be inspired by this week!!

1. I love everything she does, but how cute is this little Valentine set-up in her living room!! I am making a trip to Costo today, and I will definitely be putting coffee filters in my buggy....those garlands are so cute and so easy = the perfect project!

2. I am definitely going to try and make some of these fabric flowers like the girls over at House of 3. I think I even have everything on hand, so no need to make a trip to Michael's or Hobby Lobby :)

Last week, I made a couple headbands for Sienna, and I am thinking these little rolled fabric flowers would be really cute as a clip or on top of a headband.....loving the feathers!!

3. I am also loving Ali's heart-punch collage!! Sienna and I made one like this a year or so ago using the Martha Stewart butterfly punch.......guess it's time to add to our collection!!

4. So excited about my photography class that starts today! If I can learn to take pictures that are even half as wonderful as hers, I will be in heaven!!