WW: They Always Look Cutest...

When they know they are being bad!!

Jack get off the stairs!!

 

Your going to fall - stop playing on the stairs!!

 

 JACK!!! Do you want to go in time out!!!

 

THAT'S IT!!!  One more picture and you are in trouble!!

hmmm....maybe it would be more effective if I wasn't giggling and taking pictures while I was disciplining...what do you think?!

The Christmas Post

Yup creative title...I know...

We had a wonderful Christmas - it was an entire weekend of fun and festivities and we loved {almost} every moment of it.

The boys had a wonderful time, and got loads of great gifts (more than we have room for actually!!).


Really I couldn't have asked for more!!

There's no such thing as too much dessert on Christmas Eve!!

Giving Great-Grandma some love

This is how we open the really big gifts!!

Tommy's new bike!!

The Night After Christmas

I wrote this last year, thought it would be fun to repost.  Hope you all had a wonderful day today!!

Twas the night after Christmas

And all through the house

Not a creature was stirring

Except for Mom's Mouse

The stockings were flung

On the floor without care

As the kids and St Nick

Had already been there.

The boys were all snuggled

Upstairs in their beds

New toys and new stuffies

Lay all 'round their heads

Dad on his laptop

Me on my blog

Had just fed the wood stove

another fat log.

.

When out on the carpet

Arose such a chatter

I hopped up from my laptop

To see what's the matter.

Away to the living room

I ran with a start

To see what had startled

The beat of my heart.

.

On the floor I had spied

Something small red and furry

A Tickle Me Elmo

Had awoke with a fury.

I shut the toy off

and picked the thing up

Then back to my chair

to my warm coffee cup

Long days filled with family, love

And joy we've been blessed

And now in good need

Of a long winter's rest.

We turned off the tv

Laptop and the lights

Merry Christmas to all

And to all a good night!!!

WW: My Snow Angel

Another fun with photoshop post...its been a while - and I am really like the results of this one!!

Here is the original - this is from our day out in the snow on Sunday

I loved it as soon as I took it, but when I got opened it in Photoshop I realized that is was good...but could be better.

First things first - a digital nose wiping was required (used the healing brush tool and paintbrush tool - @80% opacity and 75% Flow)

Then a Pioneer Woman Boost, and some work on his eyes (adjusted for color and sharpened)

Finally some creative cropping and a little more random touch ups

I am so incredibly happy with the way this came out.  Now if I could only get a matching pic of Tommy I could finally get my Christmas Cards done!!  (maybe get them out by New Years!!)

The ER, The Snow, and The Big Bang!!!

{well maybe not in that order!}

It has been a very very long/busy couple of days here.

Poor baby boy is sick again - well not sick...has a cold...but apparently for this little guy that's all it takes.

He had been fine since the last episode.
 
Friday - we get a call - he has a low fever (99) and seems off at Daycare (now mind you he has hardly had any symptoms of anything up to this point other than not sleeping very well).  DH picks him up, he is retracting, having a hard time catching his breath, having to work too hard to breath - off to the ER they go.  A total repeat of the last visit - fever reached as high as 104 this time - in comes ibuprofen and tons of breathing treatments.  Finally, everything under control, little man is sent home - lots of new meds - and a warning that this could happen again {oh and the test from the last time confirmed it was NOT the flu - just a cold virus....just a simple cold virus.}

But we are home, and grateful.  We are lucky - things could have been worse, and we are blessed to have the boys at a home daycare with a caring and loving provider who is so aware of my boys and can tell almost as quickly as we can when they are starting to really feel ill - even before the fever hits hard!!

Now we know the signs to look for and know exactly what we need to do to keep him well at home, and exactly when its beyond us and he needs to go in.  I just wish we knew why this keeps happening to him and what makes him react so badly to a simple cold.  {we have some theories, working on getting the Drs to hear us out...Mama Bear needs to come out soon I think!!}

************

On to happier things....

The craft show on Saturday was fantastic!!!  {Baby boy was doing great and MIL came over to help DH with the boys, so yes I still went}

BANG! was fantastic!!  My only complaint was that the building was at one point used for Dog grooming and training - and there were still many remnants of that former use (i.e. dog hair and smell - the smell was faint, but still kind of there...ugh...)

The morning started slow - but by the end I did really well, met some great people, and got some great ideas for how to set up and some new items to make.

It was a great day, my mom hung out with me all day, and we managed to make it home before the snow!!

And now, to further my addiction to craft shows {I think I have a problem here} my partner-in-craft and I will be applying to another Boston show.  This is another one that holds great promise and we both really want to get in - wish us luck!!

 

***********

Holy Freakin' Snow!!!

We got dumped on last night - and it is lovely!!!

It snowed all night and into the morning.  Tommy was so excited to go outside and help Daddy shovel {and I was excited to let him go out and exhaust himself :)}

We got at least 18" of light fluffy powdery wintery goodness!!  I heard we may get more this week - may even have a white Christmas (fingers crossed!!)

I could go on and on, trying to think of more creative ways to tell you how much I love the snow {when I have a warm house and warm fire to sit in of course!!} but instead I will just share some pics and call it a night!!

We did let the little man out too - he has been doing much better since Friday and was in tears when he saw Tommy go out without him.

Because Cleaning's More Fun

When you're wearing an apron...

I got my craft on last night and made this super cute apron for ME!!  (really - how many aprons have I made,this is the first one for me!!)

It has a few minor issues (that hopefully you can't see...and if you can don't tell), but its a prototype, and now that I have the kinks figured out I am ready to start making loads of these!!  (they are actually pretty fun to make!!)

(oh and it really really needs pockets)

(question:  do your husbands have as hard a time taking pictures as mine does?!  Although I have to say I do love him for stopping and taking so many for me - he was trying to get ready for hockey)

I am so happy the way the neck strap came out with the D-rings - I really wanted to try something other than a tie on, but I still wanted it to be adjustable.

And the gathers on the bib portion look funny lying flat, but I love the shape it gives when I'm wearing it.

Now maybe I'll be motivated to clean more....maybe...

Wait....what?

No it can't already be Tuesday....oh...no it's not Tuesday....2:00 am...that means it's Wednesday...

The days are flying by and melding into one lately...I do not like the speed at which I am moving these days..

• I am out of the house 7am - 6pm most weekdays.  Work is starting to suck the life right out of me...but I won't bore you with those details...

• At home we cram in as much quality time as we can in the 2 1/2 hours before bedtime....then Mommy goes back to work sewing....I've slowly been seeing some success on my Etsy shop (yay) and I have a big show coming up on Saturday in Boston...so I have felt a bit slammed but I finally feel like I am getting somewhere with it (however slowly I may be going)
  

• Saturday we met up with a lovely bloggy buddy and her family (they were up visiting in RI and made a point to meet us for coffee and donuts!!)  
  

• Tommy and I headed to a local fire station to check out their new truck and see Santa - you want to see a happy 3 year old boy - tell him he can climb all over the big ladder truck and see Santa!!!
  

 

• I did learn the trick this weekend to getting Tommy to nap.  I put on a movie - laid down on the couch and had him lay with me.  We both managed to sneak in a 2 1/2 hour nap!!  I call that a win-win.

• We partied like rock stars Saturday night.  The boys came with us and were AMAZING!!  Jack fell asleep in our arms and slept on the couch all night - and Tommy hung out with everyone until midnight!!  He was so well behaved and was having so much fun - I did feel a little guilty letting him stay up so late, but that's the fun of the holidays right?!  I did have them dressed in their cute little white button ups, I was hoping for a Christmas Card worthy shot...I'm starting to think that just isn't going to happen!!

 

• Sunday was a day to clean and relax, and for Daddy and Tommy to go ice skating, and for dinner at BoBo's...and some other stuff that I am sure I have forgotten.

I think this is all I have for now.  I am hoping that after this weekend I will calm down a little - no more shows until the spring (I think I've said that before...this time I mean it!!)

Maybe I'll even make some of the fun things I've been planning to make but just haven't had the time (like that diaper bag I promised that friend who already had her baby....whoops), and maybe some gifts for the boys.

Good night all!!  I promise some day I  will be back a'visitin' and a'commentin'

Free Blog Design

So....I miss doing blog design.  Things are a little hectic right now, but I was thinking that after Christmas I might start doing design for others again.  I have learned a lot of new tricks and techniques and would really like to try them out.  I am planning a redesign here as soon as I can find some pictures that I like, and as soon as I can figure out what I want.

But...if you know what you'd like - or even have a rough idea.  And are willing to let me take a stab at it, I would love to do it for you!!  (the only thing you would have to purchase would be the digital scrapbook kit that you would like to use, these range in price)

I am not sure how many I can do - or how long it would take me yet.  It will really depend on what exactly you are looking for.  Leave me a comment if you are interested (and be sure that either your email is set in your profile so that I can respond to your comment or leave your email here).  And I will get in touch with you.

Like I said I really miss doing blog design - and I would love to get back into it if anyone is interested.

(right now the only example I have is my blog)

Happy Sunday All!!