{new shoes and brownies}

Today was a nice day...beautiful weather, lunch with Dan at our favorite local pizza place, and a homemade dinner of tilapia, rice and veggies. I also got my first goodies from Jenny Bowlin today and I'm so in love. I got some paper, stickers and journaling tags...can't wait to use them!

I decided to finally make the box of brownies that Dan has been talking about for at least a week. The domestic cooking thing doesn't hit me on a daily basis, and I don't enjoy spending much time in our kitchen so that is a huge factor. Once we get it remodeled this summer it will probably be my favorite room. Anyway...here are the brownie *before* pics...don't you just love to lick the batter off of the spoon?! That's the BEST part!

Oh, and here are pics of my new shoes from Payless. The flats are super cute and fairly comfortable. I think I just need to wear them a few times to stretch them out. The flips flops remind me of scrapbook paper, so of course I had to buy them...plus it was BOGO so I had to get a 2nd item! LOL :)

Right now I'm watching John and Kate Plus 8 on TLC...I'm amazed at how that family handles 8 children and has so much fun in the process.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday evening! xoxo

{before and after}

I've been a bit over zealous with my blogging these past few days, but I think everyone goes through spurts, right?! Anyway, I had to share the before and after pics of our house. We have done quite a bit to the front of the house and the yard since we moved in 3 years ago. We still have to put a final coat of paint on the railing, and plan on painting the door a shade of sagey green.

Before...



And after!

{tagged}

I've seen this challenge all over blog-dom and I was finally tagged by Jen...so here goes--->

7 random things about me:

1. I hate touching dirt, or anything dirty. I wash dishes with a handled sponge, pull weeds with gloves, basically use whatever I have to so that I don't have to touch anything dirty. I hardly ever walk around barefoot and when I was a child I would scream if there was a speck of anything in my bath water {sorry Mom}.

2. We will have a Starbucks in our town in a few months and I will not be a customer. We have a locally owned coffee shop that is soooo much better and I would much rather support a local shop than a huge corporation.

3. I love the smell of my cats' fur behind their ears...not sure why or how to describe it but I love it. :)

4. I obsess over the weight around my stomach. If my pants feel too tight one day it bugs the crap out of me and I feel bad if I eat anything unhealthy.

5. I can't have caffeine...*GASP* I'm sure the thought of a caffeine-free life scares many of you, but after a month-long fight with a bacterial infection, I'm willing to give up anything to not have acid reflux and/or a stomach ache. I also haven't had soda since December for the same reasons.

6. I have a big band-aid shaped brown birthmark on my left foot. I refused to wear sandals until late in high school because I was embarrased by it.

7. I'm very cynical when it comes to friendships...I find it very hard to trust people and tend to shelter myself from the possibility of being hurt by not getting close to people. I think that gives a lot of people I meet the impression that I'm snobby or stuck-up, which is so far from the truth.

OK...7 very random things about me. :)

So who should I tag now???? Let's see.....

Jenessa
Tracy
Delaney
Melissa
Nikki
Valerie
and...
Jenn

Happy Sunday Everyone!! xoxo

{heading out the door}

for a fun day of shopping in Indianapolis! Dan's birthday *big 27* is on Wednesday, so we are celebrating early. The highlights of the day will be dinner at On the Border and a trip to Archiver's *this one is my highlight obviously*.

I added some more fun brooches to my Etsy shop today and am wearing one of my faves today. I made it for the shop but loved it too much so I'll have to make another one to sell. :)

I also got some cute new summer shoes at Payless yesterday--->

These photos are from their website, obviously. I'll have to post some better pics of them on my feet. :)

Well, DH is getting restless so I think that means its time to head out...hope everyone is having a wonderful Saturday!

xoxo

[somebody's got a case of the Mondays}

Today reminds me of that quote from Office Space...I definitely have a strong case of the Mondays today. Not feeling so hot...stomach ache, tired, headache. Maybe it is because I did so much yesterday. I got one of those rushes of energy and felt like cleaning and organizing. I cleaned up our bedroom and found places for all the junk that was in random places, cleaned up the kitchen, put together stuff for Goodwill, finished painting the repaired plaster in the living room, boxed up my swap goodies for my Cottage Living pal (including some handmade cards that I put together), made some new "art" for the living room from some pretty scrapbook papers and a vintage hankerchief....I *think* that's it....phew!

One little bright spot in my day...I received this tea cup pincushion from Etsy in the mail-->


It is part of my mother-in-law's Mother's Day gift along with this pretty sachet (also from Etsy)

I just love that site...I can search through it daily and always find something new to put on my favorites list. There is just something so great about being able to buy a unique item that was made with someone's two hands in their craft room. :)

Hope everyone else isn't having a bad case of the Mondays!

xoxo

{lots of fun stuff}

I've had a busy past few days. Been spending a lot of time being creative. I made some felt and button brooches for my Etsy store and I really hope someone decides they just can't live without them. :) They are really fun to make and I have a few more in the works.

I also made a really fun invitation for a Mother's Day tea that I'm having for my Mom and my Mother-in-Law this year. I used clip art for the tea cup and adhered the paper to chipboard to make it more substantial. The lace inside the cup is from a doily I cut up (also used on the brooch above.) I printed the inside using a free font I found online.

I've been Etsy crazy lately...finding all sorts of treasures to make my own. This is one of my favorite purchases...it is made from vintage hankerchiefs and can be used as a sachet or to store a variety of small items. I'm still trying to find the perfect spot for it in the house.

Not sure what tomorrow holds for us, but we have a ton of things to do around the house...painting, cleaning, yard work. Hopefully the weather will be as beautiful as it was today!

xoxo

{random update}

Here's a new layout and some random pics from the past week. I participated in a swap on the Cottage Living Community message board and got some wonderful goodies from my partner. She really spoiled me! Here's a scrapbook page I did a few weeks ago...I haven't been in much of a scrapping mood lately but I love how this one turned out.

Yesterday was a really fun day. I had lunch with Liz and Jamie...Liz coooked a yummy lunch for us and we played a fun game - Imagine If - I'm going to have to buy this one! Faith's baby shower was yesterday evening and it was so much fun seeing all of the cute baby stuff she received. She is due in a few weeks and I can't wait to meet little Gavin Skyler. If my baby fever wasn't already in high gear, being around all that baby talk didn't help! Dan was teasing me about it all night. :)

Not much going on today. I need to do some cleaning and painting...hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday!

xoxo

{blah}

Well, its Monday morning and I definitely have a huge case of the "blah's". Yesterday was Easter, and while I enjoyed a wonderful meal with my family, it was a rough day for me. I went to visit my Grandma for the first time in her new place. My parents moved her to a nursing home down the street from them so they could take better care of her. My Grandma has always been a difficult person to deal with, and in a lot of ways has never been a fully developed adult emotionally. But, from my point of view, she is my Grandma that always has a big hug and a kiss for me, and loves to get presents and pictures from me. Seeing her in there, so unhappy and lonely, was tough for me. My poor Dad is doing the best he can do take care of her, but nothing is good enough for her. She has been very mean to him and my Mom over the past week, and I can't imagine how hard that is to deal with. However unrealistic it is, I want to keep my pristine image of her in my head, of the Grandma that always had my favorite cereal and juice for breakfast, who put out our pastel striped towels in the bathroom when we visited, and who always smelled like hand cream. She was never and will never be the Grandma that I can have a heart to heart talk with or count on for great advice, but I love her all the same. I hope that in the next few weeks, she will settle in, make some friends, and adjust to her new home.

{moving day!!}

I'm so excited...my Grandma is moving closer to us today!!! She is going to be in a nursing home/assisted living facility in the same town as my parents, about 30 minutes from Dan and I. My grandparents lived 5 hours away from us my entire life, so this is so exciting for me. My Grandpa passed away in the fall of 2005 and it has been tough on my parents to take care of her from a distance. She's 93 but still doing well for her age. I can't wait to see her and give her a big hug!! :) (this photo is from May of 2005 - miss you Grandpa!!)