Priorities

I have dishes and laundry to do...
groceries to buy...
floors to vacuum, sweep, & mop...

but those things will always be there I've decided.

So, I think I'll turn up Pandora and sew instead.
Because that's how I roll.

Insta Monday

Thanksgiving set me back a couple days in Blogland, but
I'm back in the game!

And I have a lot to share!
Such a full week.

With the cooler weather over the last week, my fave yellow coat made its first debut this season.
That fabulous green scarf is hiding the fact that I cannot currently button my fave yellow coat. Damn junk food.
At least the yellow/green combo is cute.

Girlfriend rockin' a style all her own.
Rainbows
Monkeys
Tutus
Rain boots
I love that chick.

Some people get upset if their children play with their food.
Other people teach their children how to play with their food.
Guess which one I would be?

Kraft mac n' cheese...ha!
Andy laughs in your face...

and makes $36 mac n' cheese.
The couponer in me cringed in pain and tried to repress that total.

Princess dress done!
I am in love. For a couple seconds I thought maybe I could make her a princess dress every year.
Next time I start talking like that, just slap me. I'm not kidding. Slap the crap out of me.

Skinny jeans oh how I love you...
and have looked at you in envy for so long...wondering can I rock that?
Thanks to my BFF and a little bit of hemming, I attempted to be cool this week.
Anything that you can wear that says skinny in the name has to make ya feel good about yourself...right?!
Make It and Love It helped me out with a great keeping the original hem tutorial. Check it out. If you are short like me, it will change your life.

Best part of the week was that my fave sistah, Jess, came to visit.
And I'm not gonna lie, there are parts of my house that it takes company coming to get my butt in gear and clean up. Such as my sewing room. I love that room, but somehow it becomes the catch all room of the house...always hidden under mountains of clutter...victim to the remains of random crafting projects...toys...coupons...junk mail...etc...etc.

I fit a couple banners in this week.
I'm never going to sell these things...I keep giving them away.

We went to Andy's aunt and uncle's beautiful home for Thanksgiving...
I love holiday food.

We...as in Andy...pulled out all the Christmas boxes.
I need change this year.
If you want a rustic, country themed tree...email me...the ornaments are all yours.
First come, first serve.

I'm going with a red and white tree this year:

Jess and I went shopping while she was here...
can't wait to share my new hallway...after it's all put together.

I moustache you a question, but I'm shaving it for later.
HA! I love stache humor!

The kiddos put up their trees over the weekend...
and they both slept in their own rooms all night!
The magic of the Christmas tree night light.
We may have to leave them up all year long.

My house recovered nicely from hurricane AJ and tornado Abby over the weekend...
but look fast...it doesn't last long.

Girlfriend took a header...literally...on the patio over the weekend...
landing us in the Trauma department of Urgent Care.
I can now update the
Things We Find Ourselves Doing With Abby That We Never Had To Do With AJ list:

Get her forehead glued back together.
Seriously child, you give your mother high blood pressure.

And we are EXHAUSTED!

But ready for another fun filled week.

Gratitude

I am truly blessed...rather spoiled really.
I have so much to be thankful for.

And I'm not a crazy religious person, but how profound is it to think about..

What if what you are thankful for simply disappeared when you didn't show your gratitude?

There are too many good people and things in my life for me not to express my love, appreciation, and gratitude.

I am thankful for...

1. My wonderful family...dad, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins...
2. My amazing husband. I love laughing and sharing my life with you.
3. My beautiful children. Miracles. Crazy, loud, little miracles.
4. My health.
5. My husband's health.
6. My children's health.
7. My fabulous friends. I am blessed with the most splendid people in my life.
8. That Andy has a great job that allows me to stay home with the kids. This is my dream job.
9. My children's teachers. Such gifts in Abby and AJ's lives.
10. My in-laws. Such loving support.
11. A nice, dependable car. With automatic doors...& a cooler...& a backup camera...
seriously you haven't lived till you drive a mini-van.
12. Marvelous neighbors.
13. Brody's gas drops and acid reflux meds...let's just say modern medicine in general.
14. My computer...my iphone...blogs...pretty much technology.
15. My sewing machine and fun fabric.
16. Dr. Pepper. Some people drink or do drugs...I just consume a lot of the pepper juice.
17. Soy Formula. I am a liberated woman!
18. My weekly Kate Dates. They truly keep me balanced.
19. Music. Pandora you. are. rad.
20. Pictures. I could look at pictures all day...and night.
21. Books. Especially of the haut paranormal romance variety.
22. Our house...if only it came with a house keeper.
23. Chocolate. Good food. I love good food
24. Good health insurance.
25. Craigslist. You rock. Abby's Christmas dress for $15. Are you kidding me?!
26. Pinterest. You keep me inspired.
27. Starbucks. My sanity some days.
28. Good movies. Love a good movie. If you haven't see Bridesmaids yet...go now...stream it...rent it...just get it and laugh your bum off. A fight club shower. Ha! Funny stuff.
29. Swaddlers, binkies, & baby swings.
30. Coupons. I know. Make fun of me. But they save you so much money that you can spend on romance novels...Dr. Pepper...fabric...
31. I know there are not 31 days in November. But my dry cleaning man is a miracle worker. I am thankful for him. He can get anything out. I could just hug him.

Sometimes I feel like I am really getting away with something here...

Two Months!

How is this possible?!

(click on pics to make larger)

I love this boy so much I think my heart could explode some days!

When he crinkles up that little nose and smiles at me with all his might
and his little arms and legs just go flying around...
I just can't hardly handle it.

Just have to scoop him up in a big 'ol snuggle hug.

Man, this one is a charmer.

Insta Insta Friday!

I can't believe it's Friday already.
Where did this week go?!

Get in on this Insta action by clicking this cute button below
and posting your own snap shots.

You know you want to...
everybody's doing it.
(I'm giving myself flashbacks to my D.A.R.E. handbook in fifth grade.)

I have been working feverishly on Girlfriend's princess dress this week.
And let me say...
She better love it...
wear it everyday...
pass it down to her children.
You get the idea.
$15 for a princess dress at Target is a good deal.

I finally sewed the patches on AJ's flight jacket this week.
Let's not talk about how I tried to iron the first one on and had to
sew the American flag on off centered to cover the hole.
You live and learn folks. You live and learn.

I went to a fall crafting party with fabulous, crafty people I adore.
I learned how to make the cutest felt flowers ever.
They are SO easy! I am so smitten.
I will post a tutorial soon. I promise because I love you.

Girlfriend decided to catch herself a sinus infection this week...
landing me in the pharmacy with three children for 35 long, painstaking minutes.
No toys, no books, no diaper bag.
Just me to entertain them and keep them quiet in a room full of sick people.
It was the longest 35 minutes of my life.

Abby is so good at sharing with her baby brother.

My niece is one of the kindest, most splendid, beautiful people I know.
And she had a 9 lb. 12 oz. baby girl yesterday.
9 lb 12 oz!
Wow! Just wow!
She deserves a medal or a trophy or a badge to sew on a sash
or a baby quilt made out of this lovely fabric!

French toast with caramelized bananas!
I love my husband!
I love that my husband understands the greatness of greeting me with
a delicious breakfast every weekend!

She was suppose to be taking a nap...
I caught her climbing up the shelves in her room to get her train conductor hat...

But she did go to sleep...
eventually...

Adorable, screaming, colic stricken baby with acid reflux...
requires that I hold him and read my book
a lot...
oh darn.

These kids can bake a mean pumpkin snickerdoodle.

When he is not crying from his reflux,
he is truly my little Prince Charming.

Man, I love that boy!

And there you have it.
A glimpse into my crazy little world.
Always something exciting going on around here.
Always.

Turkey Treats

Yesterday we spent the afternoon crafting with friends.

The kids made rice krispy turkeys...
that look kinda like the picture...
in a slightly abstract kinda way.

They had fun...

and ate a lot of candy corn.

Us mommas laughed...
a lot.

It was a win-win all the way around.

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
recipe from Baked Perfection

makes approximately 4 dozen

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 3/4 cups sugar, divided
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the egg and beat at medium speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Add the pumpkin puree and beat at medium speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed.

Place the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon for rolling in a shallow bowl. Roll a heaping tablespoon of dough into a 1½-inch ball, roll the ball in the sugar mixture, and place it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, spacing the balls about 2 inches apart

Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, until the edges are set and just beginning to brown but the centers are still soft and puffy, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets about 5 minutes; using a wide metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool to room temperature.

Make Your Own Photo Canvas!

I love photo canvases, but they are just so darn expensive.

I was super excited, yet a bit skeptical when I saw a tutorial on making your own...

But I am here to tell ya
it works!

You just need an 8 x 10 canvas (2 for $6.00 at Michael's...I got mine for $3 with a coupon)...
a foam brush (20 for $1.00 at Michael's last week)...
regular, white tissue paper (20 sheets for $2)
Mod Podge (small bottle $3.50)

Jump on over to Little Bit Funky by clicking on the red link for directions.

I learned a few things after biffing one canvas...

1. You can recover your biffed canvas with warm water and patient, soft wiping with a tea towel. So don't throw your canvas away if you mess up or it is not perfect the first time.

2. Print your photo on the non-glossy, matte side of the tissue paper.

3. Don't put Mod Podge all over the canvas before you set your tissue paper photo on your canvas. Just do a strip down the middle, place your photo down, lightly press the wrinkles out, fold your photo over, paint another strip of Mod Podge, and continue repeating until you are to the edge.

4. Because your tissue paper photo is the size of a standard sheet of paper in order to go into your printer, it will not wrap around the entire side of the canvas. I just glued a ribbon around the edges to give it a finished look.

5. Due to pits in the tissue paper, you will have small spots where the ink does not print. I think it just makes it look more vintage and gives it personality.

AND now you have a photo canvas for less than $10...way less if you consider how many pics you can print on all that tissue paper and how many canvases you can make with that handy bottle of Mod Podge!

Whoop! Whoop!

This is one of my favorite DIY projects yet!