Our Saturday

 Yesterday was a SUPER fun day! Oh my goodness gracious! I was going to take really nice pictures with my canon, but...it was too much of a hassle in the moment. So, the faithful iPhone worked just great. I ended up going on a spontaneous trip to the heaven of antique junk yards called, "Clines." There are no words. You guys have no idea. It was AMAZING! I met two of my pretty lady friends up there, Tiffany, Rita and Rita's little boy, Justice. We explored the barns and fields of doors, windows and other old delights. After we got our fill of that wonderfulness, we went to lunch. (Rita is one of my heros in the music/worship area.  My heart was overwhelmed with smiles to get to meet and hang out with her and Tiffy!)

When that adventure came to an end, I went to baby Sparrow's 1st Birthday Party and spent the rest of the wonderful evening hanging out with all of our friends, eating ice cream and celebrating her little life! Enjoy some smiles.  

We had some great Saturday morning snuggles with our Forest boy. 

Driving down to Clines...so excited. 

Angels were singing. An outdoor antique junk yard of glory. 

One of these beauties will be my new headboard. EEEEE! 

Some finds of the day. Grand total of $15

I carried Káel in the ergo on my back while I sorted through and discovered treasures. The whole time I kept feeding him veggie chips to keep him occupied and happy. He was SO hot and worn out by the time we were done. He passed out instantly in the car on the way to lunch. 

Tiffy love.

Rita love. 

 I got lost on my way back home, which meant he got a good nap in while I had an extra 45 mins. in the car to my thoughts. 

Party time!

Birthday girl goodness!

 My fabulous friend, Jessie M. momma of the birthday girl.

When I got home, Sam had just settled in from his trip to the mountains, where he was doing a video shoot. I spent about an hour working on the pirate eye patches for Káel's birthday party, for next week. My folks are getting in on Thursday, the party will be on Sunday and my Gran arrives in at the air port a few hours before the festivities begin. Then, lots of our friends will join us to party with our little Forest boy! 

Sneak Peek Sewing Project

 

vintage trims from samuel's grandma

Here is a  little sneak peek from a sewing project that I've been working on the last couple of days...I'm SUPER excited about this! I'll show you what I made on Monday. (I don't want to spoil the surprise for the birthday girl!)  There are lots of tiny birthdays for some very special littles coming up and most of them are little girls! This means the "ribbons and bows" side of myself is going CRAZY! I haven't made time for a sewing project since the week I went into labor. It's been that long. That's kind of sad seeing that I used to burn the midnight oil, creating things on my faithful Kenmore all the time. My heart was singing like a little bird while I was cutting, pinning and stitching this project!

One thing that I have found myself running into over and over again is having SO many amazing ideas for projects and desires, to the point where creativity is oozing out of me but, it just stays stagnant. More often than not, it doesn't go anywhere. Somewhere in the slowly evolving routine known as motherhood, daily stresses, family drama, dinner, moving or a million and one other things that pop up week to week,  all those ideas, those "could have been" creations, get all dusty and become yet another pinboard of "one days" on pintrest that I browse through longingly.

 It baffles me when I'm in the middle of a belated project, why I don't make time to explore and dance with my artsy side more often? I'm at one of my happiest times and most stress free when I do, so why don't I make more time for it? I'd like to blame everything on everything but, that's just going to keep me sitting here on my couch, staring at my computer screen instead of on my deck painting, writing a song on my guitar, singing with a friend, sewing a surprise on my sewing machine or re-finishing the table that has been sitting there for months. Go buy the dang spray paint. Plug in the sewing machine. Go ahead and make steps toward checking those fabulous things off from your list, Jess. You really can. Even if you have to start small, make a hair bow or up-cycle a t-shirt, just DO something!  I have found that once I do one creative thing, it's easier for me to do another.  And soon I find myself looking at the girl I used to hang out with all the time. Sure there is extra mommy grace for myself.  It IS more challenging to find time now that I'm a mom, but it's not impossible.

The points I'm trying to make to myself are these:

• Creating things makes me happy, it's like therapy for my soul...make more time for it.
• I'm going to keep my sewing machine at a reachable distance.
• I'm not going to let my day or the stresses that might come with it, tell me what to do or dictate to me the realities of my heart or creative side.
• Just stop, and do it Jess, you can...really. 

Are there any creative mommies out there that want to give me an amen? ;)

Bungalow Dreams

I love our new little house so much, I can't even tell you! There are several things I really want to do to it to make more homey, tweaks, touch-ups and re-dos... I'm trying to organize my creativity and plan for one project at a time. But, sometimes my brain runs crazy and before you know it, I've knocked down a wall and added a second story in my head. hehe. I can't help it. Here are a few of the realistic desires of my heart for our bungalow home. You can find a ton of my ideas on my Pintrest boards HERE if you want to explore my brain a little more and find the sources to these amazing images. :) 

I'm up to my eyeballs in lists (yes, plural) today. First, I'm going to try and knock out the little Forest's bedroom today. Next, I need to do some party shopping. Once I get that done, I have many more things that are promising to be time consuming. Despite the craziness of this past month, I have to say I have had more fun than ever with my little boy. He is my happy treasure that makes me smile and laugh countless times a day. I can't imagine my life without him and the sweetness he brings to my heart. 

Have a glorious day! Oh, I wanted to share one more thing that blessed my heart SO much this morning. My friend Mandy wrote an AMAZING blog post last night on being real, and the expectations we put on ourselves as women, moms and wives. It struck such a true cord in my own heart and I wanted to share it. Click HERE to read her post on her blog She Breathes Deeply. 

The walls of our little 50's house were originally a color similar to this, thinking about taking it back instead of the now scruffed up white.  Or, perhaps I'll pick a weathered musty color instead, we'll see. 

Future project. 

I really want to find a ladder for my living room to place beside our piano. 

I'm going to make a door headboard for our bed! Who wants to go to the antique junk yard with me!? 

Probable future color of our kitchen plus I want to paint the cabinets an eggshell white color.

I found these on etsy one day and haven't been able to stop wanting them. I really would love these.

I want to do this in my back yard/deck. EEEeeeee! Mums, one of my favorite things about the up and coming fall season. 

Finally a Fit!

I did a little victory dance the other night, as I was unpacking boxes of my clothes. I found my knicker over-alls from California at the bottom of a pile.  I almost stuck them in the "later" section of the "don't fits" pile.  But, I thought to myself for a moment, why not try them on for kicks?  So, I did.  They were LOOSE! I haven't been able to wear these since right before I found out that I was pregnant! It was like Christmas for me! Just in the last 3 weeks, I've lost about an inch through my hips! Good Lordy, I can't believe it.


I've had several girls ask me what my secret is and I think, "secret?" It's been a year since I had Káel and it has taken that long for all that extra inches to slowly go away. Everyone's body is different so, what might work for some, might not work for others. I'm working on a post this week of the things that have worked for me and I'm looking forward to sharing it. With fitness and weight loss, I'm of the mindset of what works longterm. Sure, I can do a 3 week, kick butt work out program or diet and it might tone my booty down. But, all that toning and work can be undone over another few months, if you're not consistent. The reality for me is this, will I spend an hour a day sweating like a guy and doing squats until my muscles are on fire? Probably not, even though I might want too. (I actually have a slight obsession with working out when I get in the groove of it.)  I'll be honest, especially with all the transition going on in our lives these past few months, I won't do it. Having realistic goals that won't make you feel depressed, if you don't meet your quota of miles, is how I try to make my goal sticker chart. That way I won't just give up and end up on the couch with a quart of Ben and Jerry's, which I've been known to do. ;)

Anyways, I look forward to showing you my list that has evolved this past year. Maybe it will inspire you, or maybe it will make you laugh. Probably both.

Have a great day! 

Sheila and Josh: Part 2

Here are some more pics from the mini photo session we had with Josh and Sheila, but in black and white. :) 

Today I am going to try and knock out half of the boxes we have left so I can focus on planning for little mister's birthday bash. So, I better get scooting. Have the loveliest of 'em today! 

 

She is so beautiful.

Thanks SO much you loves for voting for us! :)

Sheila and Josh

Yesterday evening, Sam and I met our friends, Josh and Sheila at a nearby park to take some pictures of them together. Even though the sun had pretty much gone down, it was still 91 degrees outside, making it pretty yucky to be outside. We had fun just the same. Sheila told me that she realized out of all the maternity pics she had, Josh had always been out of town so he wasn't in any of them. So, before their little girl, Elloise arrives, they wanted to make sure they had a least a few shots together. When she asked if we could, I was like "heck yes!" Here are some of my favorites. They are SUCH an incredibly beautiful couple and Sheila has one of the prettiest, piercing serious smiles I've ever seen. We are so excited to meet their little princess!  Sheila has a blog if you'd like to check it out and get to know her a little better. Click HERE. 

Tomorrow, I'll post more with some black and white shots from our little photo sesh. Have a pretty day!

Thanks for voting for our blog and keeping us on the front page of Top Baby Blogs. :) 

 

5 Minute Makeover

Side note: This gray (non-materntiy) top was also my favorite top to wear during my last 2 trimesters or pregnancy. 

 Top: American Apparel
 Skirt: Urban Outfitters
 Sandals: a shop in Jerusalem
 Head wrap: a random jersey knit scarf
 Stone locket: Little bedouin shop in Israel

Lately with packing, the move and then the unpacking, my wardrobe of choice has been limited to a pair of board shorts, my favorite green tank top and flip flops. I'm not gonna lie. My hair is usually twisted up with my hair wrap in a messy bun and I'm lucky if I stop to put on lip gloss. Soon, my cute outfits will all be unpacked and I can get back to styling myself once again. But in the meantime, I have a few pieces of simple threads that I can quickly mix and match for a 5 minute makeover, when I need to go somewhere in a hurry. 

Last week was one of those days. I was a semi-sweaty mess and I had a chance to go hang with some girls and do some crafty knitting. I waited until the last minute (of course) to decide if I could make the time to go. That meant, either going in my grungies (aka, the moving uniform of attire, previously stated above...the shorts I'd worn for 4 days in a row, etc.) OR I could try and throw myself together in 5 minutes. I thought you might enjoy seeing that rushed, thrown together me. These pictures are the result of my comfiest items that pass as cute, a scarf to hide my dirty hair, a couple of accessories, and a touch of mascara. Who says you need hours to get ready? Bam! 5 minutes later and a good dose of deodorant, emerged  a simple, understated bit of  boho-casual goodness. 

I found this metal and stone locket in a bedouin market in Jerusalem...I like to put little leaves or other treasures I might find in there while I'm out on walks and such. 

I wear these sandals  more than any other shoe that I own. Next time I'm in Israel, I'm buying 5 pairs. 

I did a simple, half-turban wrap with my scarf and found some feathers for my ears.

10 Months (Late)

My beautiful boho boy has been changing and growing so fast these past couple of months that I can't keep up. Here are some pictures I took of him when he was 10 months old, before we moved.  Last month is when he became obsessed with standing all the time and walking with just holding on to one of our fingers. Oh Lord, here it comes. It's going to be non-stop from here. I can feel it. His smile started looking more "big boy" as 2 new teeth poked through, one on the bottom and one on the top. Each month he proves more and more that he is a total ham, and full of personality. The fact that he has increasingly become more snuggly the past couple of months instead of less, makes me feel like the most blessed momma on the planet. Yes, I'll take some Forest boy cuddles please. ;) Seriously, I can't stop giving him kisses. One of my favorite things he started doing at 9-10 months is pretending like he's feeding me or sharing his food when I give him his meals. It's so dang cute!

Oh Káel, you are my little dream catcher. You are opening my heart more and more every day. Being your momma is the most magical, unexplainable experience. I never thought I could feel this kind of love. You just amaze me everyday with your smiles that are meant just for me, the way you giggle when your daddy kisses you and your expression when you are trying to figure a new something out. You are the sweetest, most glorious dream, my little love. You make life more incredible than I or your daddy can describe. Everyone who knows and loves you has an extra smile on their face because of who you are. Happy adventuring my small sir. I love you. -Momma

This head wrap was sent to me by one of my amazing readers, Kevan Christine. You can check out more of her goodies here or her blog here.

He tries to copy his daddy and push the foot pedals while he plays the piano.

He started crawling down stairs at 10 months...only supervised. ;)

We tie-dyed these cotton pants at his baby shower and they have been the best knee saver, when he crawls on concrete. 

I prayed that he would have his daddy's eyebrows and eyelashes.... my wish was granted. ;) Eeeeee! I can't get enough of his little face!

Favorite Moment

I took this picture at Becca's baby shower and I am in love with this moment. They have an old piano in a back room that the kids discovered pretty quick. I ran and grabbed my camera before they realized they were being adored. ;)

This morning I'm thinking of taking my little boy on a nice long walk at the park and then diving into some more settling and nesting in my little home. I hope you guys have an inspiring day!