sleep in heavenly peace

Christmas was:
boonie hat from the Gap for BooBoo
cinnamon rolls
Dumbo stuffed animal
10 baby books
pearl pendant necklace
headphones
toolbox
turkey with all the extras
Starbucks gold card
champagne with cranberry juice
driving around the neighborhood looking at all the lights
hot cocoa

but this picture was my favorite part

ta da!

Here is my Christmas masterpiece!
Baby Brock's very own felt stocking.
Hand stitched with love from his mum.
I sent it to my parents in Oregon to be opened on Christmas Eve and added to the stocking collection but alas they are snowed in there and UPS refuses to deliver it until better weather conditions.
Bah humbug!
But it is to special to wait until after the holidays to share......
Every member of our family has their own handmade stocking. A tradition born before I was born! My grandfather, an art teacher, would cut out felt images and my grandmother, Mimi, would hand sew them together. Several years ago I took over the proud position of Stocking Seamstress!
Here is baby's featuring a football field, Wolverine and Dutch and the state of Texas.
Mine is 34 years old (but looks 26) and of course Joe has his own as well.
How many more will there be........?
A magical question indeed!

o' tannenbaum: a retrospective

Today I am paying respects to my dear tree. It is 25 degrees out with icy streets and all surrounding schools closed for the day! It's even too cold to retrieve a Starbucks beverage!
But here is our lovely.
She is perfectly tall with a nice full shape and branches sturdy enough for the heaviest of ornaments.
Does a tree convey the personality of those who dress her?
Our tree is smothered with clear lights, handmade purple ornaments and sprinkled with superheroes and coffee mugs-8 to be exact!
There are the beloved ornaments-the Washington Husky bear, crocheted Michigan hat, and the glittery kissy-faced seahorses I just had to buy on Hawthorne Street in Portland.
I love unwrapping the tree goodies because it is always a surprise what is hiding under the tissue paper and it always brings back a flood of memories.
There is a silver heart, Winnie the Pooh and Rudolph!
Darth Vader, Dorothy, and Big Bird!

This year came the most glorious of ornaments.
A rare and wondrous find!
The blue carousel unicorn declaring "Baby's First Christmas".

early christmas present

I saw this splendid leopard print purse and thought it would be the perfect Christmas present.
But today while sitting on the floor with Boo he said "mama". He may have been rambling and making words up but my husband and I both heard it and looked at each other in delightful surprise!
The best gift ever!
Merry Christmas to us!

post thanksgiving

this pic pretty much sums up how we all feel after thanksgiving dinner-
what a glorious holiday it was!

happy thanksgiving

Thanksgiving should always have a purple twist!
and turkey
and cherry pie
and stuffing
and a cute baby........

this picture is from euroantiquemarket blog

interior design

Before I became a mum I was and still am a massage therapist.
But sometimes I like to pretend that I am an interior designer (not really pretend) and I collect pictures of rooms that inspire me and help me think more creatively.
I don't just want to live in a blank empty boring house.
I want it to be filled with warm colors, meaningful pictures, unique antiques and above all be filled with the sound of children's laughter.
Here are some pics I have found recently on the blog
desire to inspire.

belize, please

The week has just started and there is already magic in the air.
Much different than last week which was too darn silly and made me grumpy!

Last week I had bought chicken only to come home from Tom Thumb (not the Tom Thumb my folks like which has a cozy fireplace and leather chairs yes I know it is a grocery store but it is quite inviting.....) the other Tom Thumb that I go to one town over and I discovered that the chicken had not been put in my grocery bags but was paid for anyway.
Than I found one of my good friends was having emergency surgery and luckily she is doing better but unicorns don't like emergency surgery! Plus this caused a delay in our routine Starbucks visits.
Than I found a darn tick on Wolverine! and I had to dispose of it myself-YUCK not fun.....

So last Friday I put on my favorite lipstick Belize by Prestige Cosmetics and I suddenly felt a whole lot better.
And then I snapped this picture because ....well... I love clouds.

The End.

pictures of the day

Today was a sweet day and should be celebrated with pretty pictures. 

courtesy of cherry blossom girl blog.

a happy place

I am proud to be an American. I have always been proud and I always will.

This is because I choose to appreciate what I have and I will continue to work hard to achieve it.

I don't need a certain candidate, campaign, or eloquently written speech to feel good about something.

Words are nice but actions speak louder. I hate to say it but most of the reason this country may feel divided is because certain groups of people like to whine and complain and then attack peoples' character. That is negative energy and serves no purpose.

I would implore all people, all Americans, to feel good about themselves thru their own attributes and not get caught up being associated with a slogan. The only person we can control is ourselves. We alone have the ability to think for ourselves, define what we believe in, and then execute our desired actions.

And speaking of actions a sweet baby I know ate an entire jar of Beech Nut Good Morning Peaches, Oatmeal and Bananas in 2 sittings today! That is what is truly important to me right now. Everything else pales in comparison.

This is undoubtedly the most happy I have ever been in my life.

I am a lucky blessed girl!

I love you Joe and BrockieBooBoo!

God bless us and our lovely country!

god bless america

Today is election day and I won't comment politically but I did vote early so I hade time to do a multitude of exciting activities.

Here is a sampling:

I went for a walk with bebe and saw a heron by the pond.

I drank Cherry Coke Zero-yum!

I fed bebe carrots (the food not the neighborhood bunny I nicknamed "Carrots")

I picked up my professional family portraits and yes one of them made me cry

I talked to my mum on the phone

I kissed my husband

I hugged bebe

I stepped on Wolverine's paw-ouch sorry

I picked out my Christmas cards

i love america

image from flickr

happy halloween!

Here's to Brock's first Halloween!

He's my sweet loveable little monster and today he is a peapod!

grandparents

A relationship between a grandparent and a 

grandchild is a sweet one.

It is pure and unconditional love. 

Grandparents love their grandchildren long before they are born. 

It all starts with hugging and kissing the babies, and doting over all the chubby fingers and toes.

They watch them grow, and keep track off all the numerous milestones they pass.

As they grow up they teach them numerous skills such as sandwich making, how to feed ducks, and talk to them about politics between holiday gatherings.....

Geography is of no concern to grandparents. They love whom they love and miles separating them makes no difference. Spending lots of time with the grand kids is preferred but it makes it all the sweeter when the time is shared.

And the love goes both ways.

In the end it is the quality of the relationship not the presents, the homemade cookies, or the amount of time at soccer games and band concerts.

It's about the pure and unconditional love.

image from cherry blossom girl blog

all dressed up for starbucks!

I saw this dress and thought it would be the perfect outfit for a stay at home mom to where on a date out with her hubby. 

Of course any memorable date begins or ends with Starbucks.

My first date with the "handsome one" was to a restaurant called 

Pasta Veloce conveniently located next to a Starbucks and to this day I still remember what we both were wearing.

I was a in a leopard print skirt and black velvet blazer-and he was in a black v sweater with khaki pants and shoes with tassels. I thought "how classy". Especially the shoes.....

We dined (I didn't eat much fettuccine I was too nervous) and talked about football and our childhood pets.

After dinner we had a coffee but alas they closed at 9 so our date was cut short.

But it will be 7 years together this April!

And now when we have a date we have the cutest sweetest little boy who tags along with us.

That sure beats a gorgeous satin ballgown any day.

 

image from this is glamorous

i love autumn

My favorite season is Fall.

It always conjures up images of football, carved pumpkins and falling leaves, snuggling in an over sized cardigan sweater, ghoulish Halloween vignettes, and pumpkin spice lattes Yum!

In Texas it is not so autumn-ish as I would prefer but I will take what I can get.

This photo says it all and it is in Paris!

Bonjour Fall!

This image is from cherry blossom girl

playing make believe

Sometimes I wonder what types of books and games and activities will my son Brock enjoy?

BooBoo will have a distinct and unique personality and can't wait to see it develop over time.

I have so many wonderful childhood memories of playing with my brother with our Star Wars figures, playing baseball in the backyard, collecting stuffed animal unicorns and sports trading cards.

What will Brock and his siblings do? I imagine many of the same timeless games and other whimsical things we will create together.

Here is a creative approach to an old favorite make believe kitchen thanks to this blog and Ikea.

I love this innovative and thrifty approach to play!

yummy

I love to be inspired my other blogs and the lovely photographs they share on their space.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from here

texas sized picnic

Brock's first picnic at Eisenhower State Park.

good food: homemade sandwiches with chips and apples, 

great company: my 2 favorite guys 

and fantastic sunny weather.

the perfect picnic!

if pixie dust was purple it would look like this......

The baby and I are suffering thru the first colds of the season so I needed some "purple" to cheer me up. These images are from a blog called this is glamorous found here .

Ikea is for Princesses

Here are my Ikea goodies. My sweet husband politely obliged my humble request for a quick shopping trip to Ikea so I could purchase this book I had spotted all over the blogs. While we were there we grabbed this fantastic hamper for the baby's room for 4 dollars!

The book is delish and I can't wait to share it with my friend Traci.

I met Traci about four years ago and she has become one of my best Texas friends.

She is beautiful, sweet, artsy, inspiring, and recently became a real life Pink Princess when she married her prince Eric last year. And she is embraces and supports my love for all things unicorn! We love to meet at Starbucks and share our design eye candy inspirations when we get a new book or magazine. As she shares with me her vacation pictures of Jamaica I will trade her this book to gaze upon-that is if she hasn't already gotten herself a copy. You see she loves Ikea too and as we all know it is a store definitely fit for a princess!

The Right Shoes

Cinderella once said

"The right pair of shoes can change your life".

I would have to agree.
These beauties were 6 dollars and they make me happy every time I look at them.

I love how the smallest thing can make the biggest affect on a person's mood.

Of course if we always had an overall positive outlook and a Mary Poppins attitude maybe we wouldn't need shoes to change our lives but where is the fun in that?

I adore the shirt too it is from Charlotte Russe as well.

Take a Hike Ike

We are praying for the people on the Texas coast and surrounding areas-that everyone has evacuated and is safe and dry-and we hope the same for their pets.

Go away IKE!

this pic is from Fox news

Pray for Nie Nie

This blog and story has changed my life and inspired me.
Go Nie Nie Go!

Mums, Mothers, Motherhood

What do I love about being a mum to Baby Brock?

Carrying him around in the snugli

Eskimo kisses

Singing a song about a peanut on a railroad track.....

Watching him grow

Seeing his dazzling smile

Taking him with me to Starbucks

Getting excited to see him when I am away from him for 4 hours when I work on Saturdays

Holding him when he cries and he stops because he knows he is safe with me

Coordinating my outfit to the color of his bib

The future with him and his daddy

I love you fabulous darling BooBoo!

daydreaming

What will I daydream of today?.......

Lullabies and baby kisses

Fairy dust on pink cupcakes

Ponies named Truffles

the Bebe sleeping thru the night

How about I enjoy today with the soft rain, a carmel mocha, and a quick glance at a favorite glossy magazine.....

believe in your dreams

More London Interiors

I have loved London every since I saw Mary Poppins and had my first spot of Earl Grey tea! Here is Chic Shack that features yummy interiors albeit they are more neutral than I usually like but they are sumptuous and very feminine.....and who doesn't love a chandelier in the bedroom?

Check out the website here http://chicshack.net/