Wordless Wednesday : Eskimo Kisses

My Hiatus

Hey there!  Remember me?  I'm the girl that used to write blogs but seems to have disappeared.  Sorry 'bout that.  Rest assured, I'm alive and well!  After the cruise (which went mostly well, aside from my husband being seasick almost the entire trip), I was swimming in housework and trying to get caught up with everything.  I'm still working hard to keep up with things as well as support my husband who has been working ridiculous hours, but I wanted to drop ya'll a line and let you know I haven't forgotten about you!  With my head being flooded with deadlines for christian retreats, craft fairs, and fun things I want to do with the family... I can say that my blogs may be a little more sporadic in the coming months.  Please bear with me!

Lots of love from Yours Truly :)

Wordless Wednesday : Color Me Happy

Sincerely Sunday : Fall Is In The Air

Wow, it has been a long time since I've done a Sincerely Sunday post!  Here we go...


Things I am thankful for:
1. The relationships that I am building with the other young moms at our new church home.  It's refreshing to meet other women that are in the same place in life that I am in.
2. The unique opportunities that my son will get to experience in his lifetime.  I've been realizing lately that between Cliff's family and my own, Eli has so much at his fingertips.  My dad has a lot to teach him about gardening (and Eli LOVES watering the plants with his Papa!) and is a bee keeper.  My parents also have a good, healthy appreciation for football.  Cliff's parents always have odd animals for Eli to play with.  Right now, they have a young deer that hangs around and will come right up to you looking for food and licking you like crazy.  It's so much fun to watch my son interact with him!  My husband's family would be happy to live on the boat, fishing full time and are eager to teach Elijah everything there is to know about the sea (and from what I can tell, the ocean already holds a very special interest with my little man).  His uncle Matt can't wait to get him on a surf board.  Then there's my husband with years of experience as an artist and musician.  I cannot wait to see what Eli's interests will be!
3. Our new air conditioner (which should be saving us about $100 a month on our electric bill!) and the way God provided for it :)
4. Pumpkin spice lattes
5. Quiet evenings at home


Things I am looking forward to:
1. I previously purchased a season pass to our local zoo.  This month it is also good for the Florida Aquarium.  Tomorrow, Eli and I will be going to see the fishies with my long-time friend Amanda and her daughter.
2. Thursday night we'll be joining the family at Cliff's aunt's house to celebrate the birthdays of Cliff's father and great aunt.  I am so blessed to have married into such an amazing family and I cherish time spent with them.
3. Saturday morning, Cliff and I are heading out for our first cruise!!!  We'll be spending 5 days at sea, visiting Grand Cayman and Cozumel.  Part of me is nervous... Eli will be staying with his grandparents while we're gone.  Not that I worry about him being with them at all... I've just never been away from my baby that long and I know that I'll be missing him.  But I am definitely looking forward to having some time away with just me and my wonderful husband!  Woo hoo!!!!


Things that made me smile this week:
1. When I was a little girl, I loved spending time coloring with my mommy.  This week we introduced Eli to crayons.  I've been spending a lot of time coloring with him and it makes my heart smile every time :)
2. For some reason, I woke up feeling very motivated on Wednesday.  Coincidentally, my mom watches Elijah for a few hours on Wednesday mornings.  This combination allowed me to get a ton of cleaning done around the house!
3. The fall-ish weather that we've had the joy of experiencing this week.

Favorite quote:

"Resentment is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die." -My sister

Current like:
The beginning of fall and the anticipation of the upcoming holidays!


Current dislike:
The stress I have in knowing that the holidays are right around the corner! lol.  I have so much to do in the next couple of months!


Favorite blog post I came across:
Roots & Wings shared her delicious-looking Pumpkin Pie Spiced Pumpkins recipe.  I cannot wait to try it myself!


Scripture verse:
"If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." -2 Chronicles 7:14

Loofah! Loofah!

This morning Eli and I were blessed with a tasty breakfast and some quality time with my wonderful parents.  Sadly, I only had my camera phone but it's better than no camera at all, right?  Right.

After breakfast, we headed back to my parents' house.  It's nice to do things outside of your own home, ya know?  Papa and Eli had lots of fun playing with trucks and trains...

Later, we went out to my dad's garden to see what was new.  As I've mentioned in previous posts, my dad has quite the green thumb (something I do not posess).

Have you ever seen where loofahs come from?  I hadn't either.  Maybe it's just the nerd in me, but I found it very interesting!  They grow on vines and start out looking something like this...

You know they're ready to be picked from the vine when they're all brown...

First, you break off one of the ends and shake all the seeds out...

They have a lot of seeds.  Next, you start peeling off the outer shell...

Until you're left with this...

Cool, huh?  For some reason, I never thought of loofahs as growing on vines.  I want to live on a loofah farm.  It's just a fun word to say... looofaaaahhhh.  Moving on, lol.

And of course, a big thanks goes out to those hard-working girls that make all that gardening stuff possible...

:)

Now it's time to go cut up some freshly baked brownies and take them over to my former co-workers for a bit of afternoon cheer.  This life sure is a busy one, but I wouldn't trade a moment of it!

Wordless Wednesday : One Cool Dude

Wordless Wednesday : Afternoon Smiles

Labor Day Weekend

Well after a long, tiring day of laundry and trying to get things back in order, I am very ready for bed.  But first... a look into our long Labor Day weekend at Ft. Pierce...

We had such a great time!  I woke up every morning to watch the sunrise, got on a surf board for the first time (notice I said that I got on it... not stood on it, lol), spent some time fishing, soaked up the sunshine, and enjoyed spending three days with the people that I love the most (minus my parents who couldn't make it... Missed you guys!!!)


Oh how I wish we never had to leave...

All Things Craft Fair : Mark Your Calendars!

For those of you that live here in the Tampa Bay area, don't forget to mark your calendars!  Friday, November 19th from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., the incredibly talented Janine from Always Sunny On Reynolds Drive will be teaming up with me at Mease Countryside Hospital's annual craft fair to sell some of our fun home decor including my old wooden crates and her revamped plantation windows.  Leading up to that big day, you can follow our progress and preparation in our series of posts, All Things Craft Fair.

This afternoon I was able to get my hands on some gorgeous flannel and cannot wait to get it stitched together into a ragtime quilt for the fair.  I'll be sure to post photos when it's all finished!

Wordless Wednesday : Sweet Innocence

Days Like These

Elijah and I awoke this morning to dreary weather, which did not support our plans for play group at the pool.  So we started the morning with some of the little man's summery favorites.... fresh blueberries and waffles with blueberry syrup...

We quickly got dressed (and fixed our bed head) and met Grammie at the local gymnastics center's open gym.  Eli had a blast climbing and exploring...

We decided to continue keeping busy after gym was closed and headed to the mall where Eli played on the playground and experienced food court rides for the first time...

He loved playing in the cars!  Once finished there, I took my worn out little boy home for a nap.  Auntie Britt came over while Eli slept to give me a chance to cast my vote for the primary elections.  Eli was very happy to wake up to his wonderful Auntie.  They read books...

... and went for rides in Mommy's clothes hamper...

The evening brought a stroll through Petsmart (complete with Eli kisses for a sweet dalmatian puppy) and a free kids meal at Chick-Fil-A.  We were even blessed with a break from the rain that lasted just long enough for me to pull my smiley boy around the neighborhood in his little red wagon.  The cool breezes were so refreshing!  
Now the day is coming to a close and it's time to get my favorite little guy into the bathtub and bed before enjoying some much-needed quiet time.  I love that it's the days that start out seeming so uneventful that often end up being the best days.  I cherish days like these.  Days when I just can't get enough of my sweet son's smiles.  Days that I wish would never end.  Days that remind me just how amazing God truly is.

Putting Some Old Crates To Use

In case you're wondering, I thought I'd show you what I ended up doing with my crates...

One of them is holding some comfy throws at the end of my couch...

And the other has been mounted to the wall to be used as a shelf...

I love my cozy new additions!

Splashes and Smiles at Playgroup

This week, one of the mommies from our play group was kind enough to have us all over to her house for some fun in the sun (and thankfully, some shade too).  While the weather was very hot, our little ones didn't seem to mind.  They enjoyed splashing around in the cool water and making good use of all the backyard space as I snapped away behind the lens, trying to catch some of the sweet summer moments...

A Quick Fix

Last night, my husband was darling enough to take a car full of girls to what ended up being the most amazing concert I've had the joy of experiencing!  


My husband, sister, dear friend and I bought tickets to see Something Corporate... a band that won my heart over during my high school years and still has it's place on my list of favorites.  


While getting ready, I got to thinking.  I hate carrying around large purses at concerts, and my husband hates being responsible for carrying my phone in his pocket (especially since I'm usually asking him to take it out and put it back a million and one times).  


I had a purse stashed away that Cliff's sweet grandmother gave me one year for Christmas.  It's tiny... just the right size for the essentials... but it wasn't quite the look I was going for...

With a button, lighter, embroidery floss/thread, and some burlap (all items I had lying around) I gave the purse a quick fix...

... and it worked perfectly!

:)

Old Wooden Crates

In preparation for the upcoming craft fair, I spent yesterday doing a little experimenting...

I can't wait to see how the others come out.  I'll be sure to keep you posted! :)

Wordless Wednesday : Spray-On Smiles

Just In Case

My husband has been looking for the perfect case for his iPad.  He's found a few that he likes, but hasn't been able to convince himself to spend the money.  During his search, he came across these...

Still not the perfect case by his standards, but I had the supplies and the simple sleeve would keep his iPad safe from scratches until he gets the one he's really happy with.  So, per Cliff's request, here is my iPad case...

=)