Feelin' blue!

Is anyone else totally hooked on the "Sinful Collection" nail polish at Walmart?  I lost count of how many different colors I've bought so far..but they are excellent!!  Here is what I'm sporting this week....

And for St. Paddy's Day..I had to go all out green!!

Did you notice my rings?  Those were my Valentine's Day present!!  I bought them on etsy and had Makayla's name on one and her birthdate on the other (it was a set of 2)..I LOVE them!  If you want to know more about them..just let me know and I'll get you in touch with the lady that sells them!

Since I'm talking jewelry..I just had to share this with y'all too!  I had been looking for a hand stamped necklace..something where I could have Makayla's first AND middle names put on.  Since the rings I got couldn't hold that many letters..I started searching necklaces.  Groopdealz on facebook (if your not familiar with them) has WONDERFUL deals on a variety of things such as clothing, shoes, home decor, jewelry, and everything in between.  In limited qualities and a limited time frame too I might add.  When they posted this necklace..I jumped on it..FAST!  I'm totally in love with it too!!  And I must say..paying less than $20 for it was totally worth it since most necklaces I had been looking at beforehand were running $40 or more!  The picture is a little fuzzy..but the necklace is very plain when you see it in person.

Have you found any good deals/great new nail polishes lately?







What I'd been up to...

Since I'm back from my little break I took for a couple of weeks..I figured you guys might want to know what all I'd been up to.

Honestly..not a whole lot.

It was more about just taking a breather from blogging for a bit.  Sure..I checked in with everyone's posts on an almost daily basis..but there is just something refreshing about stepping back from posting several times a week that gives your mind time to...breathe? 

Well..I don't know that our minds can actually breathe..but you get the idea!

I had been doing a few things though honestly.  I got a start on my laundry room. The cabinets are all painted a nice shade of gray now.  New hardware bought for them (getting put on probably as you read this).  The walls HAVE to be done this week.  Thats something I must get done.  I got a semi-start on them while on break..just to see how the color will look.  A little skeptical..but we shall see.  Hey..its just paint..if I don't like it..I can always change it!  But I'm totally lovin' the cabinets.  TOTALLY. 

Don't worry..I'll do a whole post on it when its finished...pictures and all.

I made a big oversized pillow for our living room.  Not a big project..but a project nonetheless.  I'm in love with it too.  I made it originally because when I'm in the floor playing with Makayla..I needed to use something to lay on other than her princess pull out couch..it just wasn't cutting the cake so to speak.  We have hardwood floors, by the way.  I saw some cute pillows on pinterest and got the idea there to make one.  Now I want another!!  And maybe curtains to match?

 Thank you Hobby Lobby for making such awesome fabric!

I had to take a silly picture!

Of course we had a day or two of nice weather as well..and Makayla and I enjoyed it while we could!  This girl loves playing outdoors!!

And I finished my first ever homemade maxi skirt too!!  I found this great coral stretchy material at Walmart for $1 a yard (hint..Walmart has a clearance section of fabrics..most are $1 a yard or a little more..great finds!!)..I bought what was left on the bolt..which was 1 1/4 yards..so this skirt cost me a whopping $1.25 to make! Can't beat that!  And a side note..I totally need to buy a full length mirror..I know you can't see the whole skirt from the pictures I took!

But anyways..thats a little taste of what I've been up to for the past couple of weeks in a nutshell!! 





22 Months (and 2 Months till 2 Years)!

(I'm baaaaack!)

My little girl becomes more grown up every time I look at her lately it seems!  I guess the countdown is 'un'officially on..she'll be 2 years old before I know it!!!  Minnie mouse party here we come!





There isn't really a whole lot to report..change wise.  We're still 'trying' to go potty..though here lately it seems we've taken a backset on that.  I don't know why really..I guess we've both gotten kinda lazy with it.  Bad excuse, I know, but its the truth!  She never was one to 'tell' me she needed to go before..the last couple days when I knew she was pooping..I'd look at her and say, "MAKAYLA..do you need to go potty!!??" knowing full well we'd done missed the opportunity.  She'd look at me with big eyes like...'yup mom..bout 2 minutes ago but no biggie!'!  Its a process..ya just gotta go with it!

Taken while talking to the fish!

She's been cutting teeth.  STILL!  I think its those darn 2 year molars.  They sure do take their time!  Fingers are in her mouth all..the...time!  Tylenol has been our friend to say the least!

Oh and she has totally picked up on her morning eating schedule I'm happy to report!  Just in the last week she has done a 360 when it comes to breakfast.  I don't know if I just happened to discover the right combination of foods..but she's diggin' Frosted Flakes, peaches, and some turkey sausage!!  Yay!!  I'll take it!

This girl is still all about her pinto beans and salami.  Can't get enough.  We ate at our favorite pizza place on saturday and I always order all of us their chef salad to share (its huuuuge!) and they pile the sliced salami and pepperoni on top.  She goes NUTS!  I wish I had a picture to prove so!  But here is one with her 'bean face'....

That sign language dvd is still the bomb.  She continues to pick up on signs all the time.  A couple weeks ago we were in Sam's and I was looking at some socks.  I look down at her sitting in the shopping cart and she is doing the sign for 'socks'!  And when we visit my mom..she has this book that has a certain purple flower in it..she tries to say 'flower' and does the sign for it as well!  Best $1 I ever spent at a yard sale! 

She's just a happy girl..she's hardly ever not smiling.  Loves to play, read books, watch cartoons, take her naps, bathtime, going out.  She's just a happy little camper.  I love her!!!!!!  I honestly don't know what we did for fun before she came along..she's completed our little family in so many ways and brought us so much joy!! 

I love you 'Chuuug'!



Bloglovin!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Since I've been on a blogging break..news broke about Google ending its Google Reader (which I was a part of but never used..it just seemed too confusing!). Everyone has always raved about Bloglovin' so I just joined up!  Follow me!!  I'm hoping (with fingers and toes crossed) that Google doesn't end GFC!

Anyways..just wanted to make mention I'm over on bloglovin' in case anyone wants to follow me!  Please do..I don't want to lose any of my readers!!

And ps..I'm still on a break..might be another week before I fully return!  I have a laundry room that needs painting!!  :-)

Break-time

Damon's work schedule was changed again this week.  He's working evening shift once again.  Which means a lot of other things around here have changed.

• I get to calm my uncontrollable-crying-her-eyes-out-daughter for a good 5 minutes after he leaves for work each day because "Da" has to go to work and she is to little to understand why he's leaving her.  Probably the worst thing about evening shift, in my opinion!

• I know have more time on my hands to get things done (or not..ha!)..which is a good thing.

• I no longer have to cook dinner during my 'me' time like I did when he worked days.  Now when Makayla takes a nap..I got a good solid block of time to accomplish things.

Which leads me to the whole break-time thing.  I was going to take a little break from blogging back when I hosted that Firmoo giveaway.  No joke, the people from Firmoo contacted me at the very same time, so I was obligated to do a detailed post and host a giveaway.  No problem..I enjoyed it..but it delayed my blogging break I had planned. 

I must say though its come at a much more convenient time this go around.  With him switching shifts, daylight savings time upon us, and a host of things I need to get done (hello spring cleaning and paint projects!)..I'm welcoming this break with open arms!

Not sure how long I'll be gone..maybe a week..maybe two.  But with comments down really low here lately (I've noticed it on others blogs as well)..I'm guessing I won't be missed quite as much!

Y'all will miss me a little..won't ya?!

At any rate..here is a little something to remember me by while I'm scubbing walls, painting stuff, cleaning house, tending to an ever active toddler, and of course, sewing more projects!

I FINALLY got a good picture of her!!!!!



Shoppping and 'yummy-ness'

So I'm addicted to a couple things.

Online shopping and Pioneer Womans recipes (the latter I'm sure you've figured out by now).

I discovered this site called "Groopdealz" on my facebook account a while back.  I can't even remember how I stumbled across it (probably because another friend 'liked' it and it popped up on my page), but its pretty awesome!  They have some amazing deals on things you'd pay a fortune (sometimes) for anywhere else.

Case in point, I had been wanting something with Makayla's first AND middle names on it.  When I ordered my rings off of etsy a while back, I could only have one name (her first, obviously) engraved on them.  So I started looking at hand stamped necklaces.  I saw one for around $40 on another etsy shop, but was still secretly hoping I'd find something a little cheaper.  And then I ran across this on groopdealz...



It was perfect.  Not only could I have mine and Damons names inscribed, but also Makayla's full name!  And the best part was it cost LESS THAN $20!  

I've also bought a couple other things off of the same site.  One was a cross necklace and the other, a personalized easter basket for Makayla...

So cute and it can be used for a lot of other things, not just Easter. Which I liked a lot.  I'll probably add a little 'something' around the rim and handles for Easter, to dress it up a bit. 

Oh and you know how I gave away a pair of free glasses from Firmoo?  Well that got me wondering if there were any other great deals to be had out there for glasses on other sites.  So I ran across coastal.com and saw they had a first time customer freebie program.  I jumped right on and ordered me a pair of everyday glasses.  Love em'!  I only paid shipping, so they were only around $14!

And as for my other obsession, I just had to try Pioneer Woman's orange sweet rolls after seeing her make them on her show a little while back.  They did not disappoint.  My only beef with them is they are not nearly as good the day after (a bit soggy on the bottom).  I'm not sure if removing them from the pan and putting them in something else would prevent this problem or not.  If anyone has happened to of made these before, let me know!!  But man..they were like heaven on a plate the night I made them.





If 'yummyness' isn't a word, it needs to be.

Messy

I am not a messy person.  But I live with a messy person.

Nope..not Damon.  Well..most of the time anyways he's not.

Makayla.  Oh yeah..you know how messy toddlers can be!  I don't mind it though..its to be expected.  Toddlers live to create messes.  And in a very short time span (matter of seconds) they can make a mess bigger than Texas.  But she's learning to pick up her messes.  Sure, I have to say, "ok..lets clean this up so we can "fill in the blank""..and she loves to help pick up things and put them back.  Some things I still do (like some of her books because they go in her bookshelf), but some things I expect her to help with.  Its a learning process.  But I hope (in time, of course) that she'll want to keep things 'tidy'.

So how do you handle the messes your toddler/child makes?  

A Weekend

We had a great weekend here in our neck of the woods!!  Damon had a rare saturday off so we headed out as a family of 3 (which has been few and far between since he's gone back to work!  not complaining..just sayin'!) for some browsing and light shopping!!  Oh it was fun and much needed..and Makayla was so happy to have "Da!" with us for a change!  As soon as we all got in the car and was about to back out of the driveway..she exclaimed, "DA!!!!" from the backseat..as if she was like, "Da is coming with us!!!"..bless her heart!

We hit up O'Charley's for dinner and Maggie Moo's for dessert.  Yum!  Target, Home Depot, Michael's, Walmart, and Petsmart were all visited before we returned home. And I bought Breaking Dawn part 2.  Damon and I watched it that night after baby girl was asleep.  Wow..it was worth the wait!!!!  And it was great snuggling with 'my love' while watching a movie we both could enjoy!!



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Sunday was a pretty laid back and fun day as well.  We went to church that morning.  Damon had put some pork ribs on the night before in the slow cooker, so we doused them w/some bbq sauce and had fried potatoes and roasted broccoli to go with it..yum!  A couple of Damon's old work buddies stopped by for a visit just after we finished up eating and stayed to chat for about an hour.  After they were gone, Makayla went down for a nap and I took one myself.

Much needed, I must say.

I've been having a really hard battle with sleep lately.  Pray for me, if you will?  If its not me coughing my head off in the middle of the night, its Damon snoring, or him hogging the bed.  You get the picture..always something.  Most times than not, I end up on the couch.  Which is another problem.  Our couch is needing replaced.  Badly.  I also visited a furniture store on Saturday, looking for a newer, bigger, very much more comfortable couch.  I found one I love.  I'm not in love with the price however, but if price is what you have to pay for quality, I'll fork it over glady if I've gotta spend 75% of my time sleeping there.



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Sunday was also my dad's birthday, so after everyone was up from their respectable naps, we headed to my parent's house for cake, chips, and ice cream.  We had a nice time and Makayla loved helping my dad open his cards and gifts!

We came home and enjoyed some Hee Haw (yes..we watch that show!!) and then baths and bedtime.  And that, my friends, was our weekend!!d

Big smiles all around!!  :-)