sugar sweet & bitter treats

It's the eve of Halloween and I have already been on a binge with the candy around here. We've got stacks of treats both sweet and sour. However, my favorite are those addictive Junior Mints and the Almond Joy fun size bars...WOW! I think I should have put them under lock and key to keep myself out of them (throwing away the key, of course).

I hope that all of you get to enjoy having a little candy and fun time with the kids this weekend. Be safe and I'll see ya back here on Monday. New stuff to come!

Green thumb?

...let's hope so!

easy enough

There are two things that make me smile...you're lookin' at 'em! My girls always bring a smile to my face. So, here's to you...sending some smiles your way! Happy Wednesday :)

the not so ugly duckling

Today has been full of fun and it's only 10:30 am. I joined Bryar (the duck) at her school this morning for her fall festival. We played lots of games and collected a mountain of candy as a reward. I always enjoy getting to spend a little one on one time with each of my girls. Wednesday will be Roxy's fall festival, so she and I will get a chance to have some fun together as well.


Bryar received many compliments are her cute little duck costume. It suits her well as she is still somewhat of a waddler! There's just something about seeing a kids sweet round face peeking through a hole in a costume...adorable!

stick around

HERE is a little something that you can put together this weekend with the kids....FUN!!!!

(thanks Mom!)

pumpkin bound

Time is flying by and we still have not found the perfect pumpkin for carving. Friday is going to be another rainy day in Georgia so it looks like wet fields again in the pumpkin patch for Saturday. Wish us luck as we endeavour to pick a pumpkin with the kids. Yes, I know pumpkins are available at local retailers but I just love the warm and fuzzy feeling of picking one straight from the patch!

sweet dreams

Bryar has taken well to her new bed. I was nervous that she would have a hard time transitioning from her crib into her new full size bed. From the minute we told her about her new bed and new room, her eyes sparkled with delight. She fell in love with her new bed and has not been in her crib since. She has amazed me with "big girl" courage. She's such a sweetie!

Good enough to eat!

One of my all time favorite treats are caramel apples...Yumm-O! I started a tradition in our home that every year around Halloween, we make a batch of caramel apples. When I saw this listing on Etsy, I was all over it! This looks good enough to eat. However, I would suggest holding back the urge because it's soap. Yep, yummy looking soap. You can find it HERE!

a kids world

A couple of weeks ago Roxanne and I headed outside for some fun, but messy craft time. We pulled out our crafting supplies along with a fabulous kid friendly paint & more kit (thanks KK). Roxanne had a blast making cute stamp art and doing a little free hand work of her own. I must say, she's quite the expressive one when it comes to art.

My question to you...Do you know of any kid friendly art books, tools? I am looking to purchase Roxanne items for an art studio. I want to encourage her creativity and show her simple techniques that will make her art come alive. I also need some ideas on kid friendly paint, not just Crayola's finger paint & washable stuff, but something that will last so that her art work will not fade. However, it still needs to clean up easily...acrylics???

Help me out on this one ladies. I am sure you super crafty moms out there will have just the right answer. I'm counting on you! :)

happy thoughts

Pets are just the best dog-on thing. They make you laugh, love you unconditionally and stick by your side through it all. I love to wake up in the morning to Sam's cold nose nudging my arm, as she waits patiently, sitting in her proper pose on the floor begging for me to get up. Quinky is my happy cat. He flips and flops like a fish out of water wanting to be loved as soon as I step outside. I hope you have a wonderful weekend and be sure to show your pet(s) some love :)

I can't see it from here

Remember when you were young and people seemed so tall? It was hard to see through the crowd. I would say, "pick me up, I can't see. "My Dad would always put me up on his shoulders for a better view. My husband seems to do this with my girls. It's just something that I have taken note to. Is it just me or was that like the best feeling ever when you were a kid? To be bigger than everyone for once, to see over the crowd, to not have to look up but to be able to see things looking down, a clear view. I sometimes forget what it's like to be little in such a big world. Just a reminder that everyone can use a little pick me up!

nursery decor for sale

It is with many mixed emotions that I write this post. My little Bryar is now fast asleep, for the very first night in her new "big girl" bed. After only two episodes of getting up out of her bed and making a running dash down the hall, she finally settled in and drifted to sleep.


I now have an empty nursery (sniff,sniff). I am proud to watch my baby grow into a fun and loving toddler. However, it is quite difficult to see her baby decor become something of the past. It is time for someone else to enjoy this beautiful and elegant nursery bedding along with all of it's adorable accessories. If you or anyone you know is in the market for decorating a nursery for the arrival of a baby girl. Please feel free to pass on this information.


You can take a closer look at the items that I have for sale HERE at Wendy Bellissimo's website. The nursery decor line is the Vintage Teaberry. The items I have available are as follows


bed sheet, bed bumper, bed skirt, mobile (with music), 3 peg shelf, the lamp, moses basket w/blanket, baby love wall hanging/picture, rabbit wall hanging/picture, bed pillow/throw pillow,
velvet baby blanket, 3 window valances, 2 window panels, lined basket



I will also be selling her crib. The picture below shows the detail of the crib. All of these items are in excellent condition. Please email me if you need further information!

pieces of fun

I have always liked the look of a charm bracelets. Each one is always so unique and the variety of themes are endless. Charm bracelets just catch my eye as if each one of them tells their own story. With Halloween just around the corner I had to show off this sweet surprise that I found while browsing Etsy. It's spook-tacular!

looking up

Oh, how I would love for the sun to be shinning here today. It's a rainy day in Georgia, as the saying goes. However, I am scrambling around while the girls are at school tiding up the house from the weekend. Rainy days somehow give me a touch of the cleaning bug. The new room arrangements are coming together quite nice. Things are looking up. My house is getting put back together piece by piece and I have a huge stack of yard sale items stowed away in the garage.

I hope that all of you had a great weekend. We started ours off with a bang. Friday I tagged along with Roxanne's class for a field trip to Southern Belle Farm. I enjoyed every minute with her. It's not often that I get one on one time to enjoy her company. We spotted lots of pumpkins that we liked and she was able to pick her own from the miniature pumpkin patch.


She had a blast on the cow train, enjoyed racing the ducks with an old water pump system and the pig race had us rolling (and snorting) like pigs. She learned all about cows and how they are milked. The animals held her attention as she studied each one. I think she would have loved to take a few home. LOL






Enjoy your Monday!

witchcraft

I am totally loving this color combo in this whimsical witch crafted costume. I think it's just the cutest. Click HERE to check it out!

fx3

There have been times in life that I have felt as if I have let myself down along with others around me. There are times that I have said, "If I could do it all over again". There have been times that I have thought about choices and decisions that I have made and how they would effect others around me for the rest of my life along with theirs. All of us have had "a bad day". All of us have situations and circumstances that may make us at times seem different or out of the ordinary in our character or demeanor.

There is one word that has been poured into my life stronger than ever over the last several months, it's love. The way we love each other, the way we talk to one another, the way we hold onto every minute that we walk upon the face of the earth. Our hearts should ring with the sound of love, enough love to

forgive, forget and focus.

The nights that I go to bed thinking, did I love enough, was I too hard on this child(ren) or did I neglect to "play" to little today. The moments when I would rather be among friends or at least co workers to get outside of the kids zone, where I have cleaned up more than my share of messes for the day. Or, those days when the love of my life comes home and he fades into the craziness of household duties and there's not a moment given to him to say, "So, how was your day". It's only after these things happen that I think about what I should have been done/said...etc.

All of you are probably saying, "been there, done that". As moms I think we all feel inadequate in what we do. We would like to do more for our kids, more for our family, more, more, more. But we all know there are just so many hours in a day and we were only given two hands. As a stay at home mom, there is never that award of "employee of the month" or any certificate handed out for being on top of the game. However, when your home is a haven of love and a place where you see little smiles coming your way, it's a reward that no certificate can hold a candle to.

I want to share a story with you of a tremendous young woman. I have never met her, I have only followed her blog. For over a year I have watched how life and a near tragic accident has changed her life in a huge, huge way. This is a story of a mother who's soul purpose for living is her family. Her life story is a true example of forgive, forget and focus.

I may not know what life will bring, but I do know who holds my hand. Ladies, I introduce to you Stephanie Nielson and her amazing struggle to overcome life's hard times and to see joy in all the things around her. She is an image of strength and a mother to be admired. Click HERE to see her recent interview with an everyday stay at home mom. Oprah aired her interview yesterday (Wed. Oct.7th). It was an amazing segment.

pretty pages

Every now and then I find myself lost in the isles at Michael's craft store, wondering through all of the paper projects and ideas that surround the vast and ever popular world of scrapbooking. My spare time seems to be so limited that most of the wonderful ideas that I get after browsing the craft store seem to go by the wayside with little to no time to complete the project. However, a few months back while shopping for party ideas for Bryar's birthday, I saw this wonderful DIY scrapbooking kit. The kit came complete with pre-cut paper, chipboards and tons of cute stickers and embellishments. The best part, it was on sale for a splendid $2.90....Cha-ching! I was able to capture fun memories of her birthday in a totally cute scrapbook album that she can keep for years, love IT!

Running with paint

These little foot prints are the outcome of a fun craft that the kids helped me with. We are stocking our supply of holiday gift wrap. Roxanne and Bryar made some adorable gift wrap using their feet. Bryar's tiny foot prints till has that cute chubby baby look to it while Roxy's is looking very long and slender. I think it's the perfect way to wrap up a gift and share a little unique "time stamp" of these sweet toddler years!

Popping with ideas

For the last several months we have been putting some serious thought into doing a bit of rearranging. The playroom has been in need of a redo for quite sometime. It's busting at the seems with toys and other kids stuff, blocks, puzzles...etc. My craft space is in desperate need of it's own room (or two - LOL). Bryar is also quickly outgrowing her crib (sniff, tear), so it's just been one thing after the other on making plans for our growing family (growing up, not in number).

This past Thursday Tommy and I decided that it was the day for change. I pulled out my pile of inspiration ideas and we ran with it. The girls will be sharing a room. Their room will be what use to be the playroom. Roxy's room will become the new playroom and Bryar's room will become mommy's new studio. Ahhhhh, we are all excited about our new places!

I posted a couple of pages for my inspiration for the girls new room. I want it girly but not to grown up. I like bright colors with a fun feel. I am drawn to unique design and a whimsical child friendly atmosphere. Tell me what you think of my idea pages. I'd love to hear your comments and ideas!

Laughter

There is only one thing that will instantly make your day a little brighter....laughter! I hope this weekend (and always) you will find a few ways to try out this philosophy. Enjoy!