Rewind:::::Mother's Day

Life at our house has been crazy::::wedding planning is in full effect (((only 61 days to go:))), getting ready for our first family trip next week to Nebraska, and some other 'stuff' that hopefully we will share with everybody soon!! But, let's rewind a bit since I never got the opportunity to share my 1st Mother's Day........

Celebrating Mother's Day as a Mommy this year was such a blessing!!! It was this time last year that Joseph and I found out we were going to be parents:))) Joseph's Mom was in town this weekend too, so we got to spend time with her as well too. With the help of some family members, Joseph got me a gist that I will treasure for the rest of my life!!! He purchased a leather bond journal filled with blank pages. He wrote me a sweet introduction letter inside, explaining what this journal would hold::::

"It contains the thoughts and thanks

 from her children.

Each page represents a stage

 in her life. Filled with all

the wonderful things she

means to her children. This

book will forever remain 

a testimony of their love!

Enjoy......"

On the first page, Joseph pretended that G could actually creAte a card and scribbled "Happy Mother's Day" for her, but had her stamp her hand:)))) I immediately was in love, with the idea, the book itself, the memory and excited for its future entires!!!!

I spent the rest of the day with my little, amazing family that I am so grateful for. I am also grateful for my Mom, who as been such an inspiration!!! I was super bummed I did not get to spend the day with her, but my Dad, Sister and Brother treated her well!!! XOXO

DIY Art Bag

One of my biggest fears as a new parent (((it's probably more of a personal anxiety))) is having way too  many toys around the house. I'm sure my parents and the in-laws will gift G the most colorful and obnoxious toys that make the loudest noises:))) I'm not saying that G won't have enough toys to play with, but I'm going to 'attempt' to own a toy store in the house. Throughout my college years I did not just nanny a couple families, but gained extended families as well. I was the person who usually gave them an educational toy and a book, sometime the expressions were not as estatic as opening up a dump truck or Barbie doll, but they always enjoyed the gifts with me over and over again when we were together. 

Yesterday Joseph, G and I went to a friend's 4th birthday party yesterday and I was determined to make something that the child would love and use over and over again. After hearing she loved to draw and color I knew what I was going to make. I was originally thinking about making one of those crayon rolls, but how would she hold paper or a coloring book?!?!?! So an Art Bag is was!!! I embroidered her name to make it personal and filled it with colorful markers and Dora (her party theme) coloring books. 

Yay, for me for accomplishing another project!!!

My little Taste Tester

For the past few weeks G stares down and wants to attack any food in site (((she also wants anything that Mommy & Daddy have in their hands; cell phone, remote, camera, basically anything you have...)))) I was trying to hold off to give her food, but all signs were pointing to::::"Feed this Child!!!" She has tried a few bits of banana and liked it and I gave her some avocado on Mother's Day and she couldn't get enough. This food testing brought me back to when I was a nanny in college for twin girls and they were at the beginning stages of eating food,,,it was such a funny experience to watch them experiment!

Today was the rice cereal test. First bite, success!!! Then the screaming, crying and whining ensued because I was not delivering the next bite fast enough:))) She literally inhaled the entire bowl and then some!! I gave her a spoon to hold on her own and she acted like such a big girl-trying to eat off an empty spoon. I guess I just prepared myself to expect the unexpected and be patient if it took her a bit to get use to, but on the contrary, this girl was lllllooooovvviiiinnnggg eating rice cereal like a big girl in her high chair.

G is just growing up so fast...people aren't kidding when they tell you, "Enjoy them because it goes by fast...." G will be 5 months next week and is growing leaps and bounds every day. She is such a joy to watch, laugh with, smile with, play dress up (thats more for my benefit:)) and just love on everyday!!! Being a Mommy is everything I imagined and more (((side note::::I'll go back in time and share Mother's Day with you tomorrow:))))). I just can't get enough of her!!!

DIY Headband Holder

Since the day I found out we were having a girl I dreamed of headbands and told myself that everyday that little girl would wear one:))) If I found that  G did not have a headband to match an outfit, I was scrabbling through my craft room during nap time to creAte one! Before she was born I had made her a monogrammed bow holder, but that did not take care of the {my} hand band obsession. They basically have been in a traveling pile around her room waiting to find a home of their own. Luckily, her Auntie was looking out for her and found me a great and soooo easy tutorial from this website. All you need is {1} paper towel roll, piece of lovely fabric, glue gun, scissors, and a ruler or something for stabilization. The directions are pretty straight forward:::the only thing I changed was instead of spray painting the ruler so it 'matched' the fabric, I just glued it under the fabric...and it worked perfectly. (((the only downside is not all of her headbands fit, but I think thats a personal problem:))) Here is the finished product......

I love the weekends with my new little family. It's always full of adventures, family outings and relaxation. Our Pleasant Hill Farmer's market started this weekend, so it was sooo nice to be able to walk from our house and get some fresh goodies. It was a hot one this weekend, so we got out the pool for G ( & Daddy) to splash around in. As you can see, she loves the pool especially if you hold her just right so she can float::::such a princess:) And of course its Laker playoff time and Daddy and G had to 'suit-up' for the game and cheer the Lakeshow on!!! 

It was also National Scrapbook weekend:::I actually did not get a chance to scrapbook anything, (((I was busy embroidering some awesome gifts for our upcoming wedding that will share soon:))) but I did buy a couple new favorite products that I can't wait to try out. They are from Studio Calico. They are their new "Huey's Masks." I got the 'bubbles mask' which I have no idea why they called it that when it's obviously a chevron design, but oh well:))) I also got 'pennant banner stencil,' I was even more happy when I opened up the package and it contained the design shown below and the inverse design too!! These are such fun products to incorporate into any craft; cards or scrapbook pages, or even canvas projects. You can use chalk, paint, but I typically go for glimmer mists of any color!!! 

Bye for now, so I can play with these new masks!!!

:::Inspiration Pinterest

     I, like countless others, have fallen in love with Pinterest. I heart Pinterest. It's been a kick start to so many inspiring ideas. If you glance over my boards at Pinterest I have a plethora of "I'll to this someday." Well, to my surprise I finally completed Pinterest Inspired project !!!!
     My sewing and serger thread have been taking over my craft room. I bought a storage box for my thread, but it wasn't working for me. I saw the thread holders at the craft stores, but they didn't seem 'me.' So to Pinterest I went, scouring through boards and I found one that I loved. It was first posted on Craptastic, but featured on Ucreate. My love for the oh-so-trendy Chevron design was a must-do!!!

I love the end result::::and it fits perfectly in my craft room!!! Now I have my thread at my finger tips which makes me want to sew:)))

For the Love of Sassafras::::: & my Reading Buddy:))

When I received Goodnight Moon and a variety of other books at my baby shower I dreamed of the moment when G and I could share that moment together of a story. I started reading to her really early on- basically instead of singing because that would probably have been traumatic:) It was soothing to her. Now, she is enthralled. Each and every night after her bath (((which she loves too))) we sit, rock and read as she cuddles and stares intently. Its "our" routine and I know when she is bigger this with bring her just as much joy just as it does me.

>>>>Now, "for the Love of Sassafras"....It has always been one of my all-time favorite scrapbook companies. Unfortunately, last year they announced that they would no longer be designing their paper and embellishments. I freaked! I bought everything I could. I could be deemed a Sassafras hoarder:)) I've had a problem using the product in fear if it being gone forever-this doesn't make me seem like I have a problem does it!?!?!? But now with G, I have gotten over this absurd fear and have been using it constantly and I have loved every page I have creAted!!! 

Getting Back in the Blogging Game::::::

    I'm back.....I've challenged myself to dedicate more time to this little blog of mine and I couldn't be more excited!!!! My little girl has changed my world and has been my source of inspiration for a multitude of crafts and scrapbooking layouts that I can not wait to share with all of you! Although I spend most of the minutes of my day with my love bug:::::I try to make some time for me, whether it be watching reality TV (I can't get enough of Bethanny, Giuliana & Bill and those crazy Housewives:), making bows for Gianna or documenting our new family life. Today during G's lovely afternoon nap I was able to knock out this layout! My sister and I set the scenery for G's first photo shoot so we could capture some pics for G's birth announcement. I'm loving the integration of 'banner' accents in my layouts and of course some twine!!! Enjoy, I'll be back tomorrow with some more goodness:)))

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