Fun Finds Friday

So I picked up the 'Style Watch' edition of People magazine on my way out of Target last night and I've found several fun, pretty inexpensive finds that I've earmarked.

For my home office this would be perfect. Fashionation - Alarm clock/radio/iPod dock

I've sent them an email as I don't see how/where I can purchase it on their website but People magazine says it's $39.99.

If someone else is brighter then me (good chance of that) and sees where on the site you can actually buy it I'd love to hear from you smarty pants!

An inexpensive white 'go with anything' bag from Shop Suey Boutique. It's a great white bag to carry through summer but at only $32 it's inexpensive enough that if it starts to look dinghy you won't be heartbroken. The magazine features a few colors that are not on the website. I liked the yellow one until I saw the shade it was online, a bit to bright a yellow.

Oh, and if I could I would.....this sassy number can be found here at JCrew for $50. I like this one or even the black one but at the moment this would not be so cute on my post pregnancy bod. Maybe, just maybe, if I pray really, really hard I can sport this by the end of summer. :)

OK, so I didn't find this little guy in between the pages of People magazine but I did find it at Target recently and it's been put to good use. The Boon Frog Pod ($24.99) is a drainable bath scoop and toy/organizer and attach's to your shower. It currently resides in Big Brother's bathroom and is loaded with bath toys.

Speaking of fun summer finds, do any of you out there have a fun summer find or summer 'must have' item? I'd love to hear what it is!

I downloaded a bunch of new songs onto my iPod late into the evening the other night. I'm telling you, it's like reading a good book before bed. Once I start I can't stop! I just keep finding songs that I had forgotten about that I have to add. Anyway, have you heard Amy Winehouse's 'Rehab'? OMG, I cannot get that song out of my head! No matter how many other songs I listen too I always find myself singing it over and over again. Somebody help me! :)

We don't have any big plans this weekend which is kind of nice. Handsome Hubs does plan to work on the hardwood floor in our dining room tomorrow morning so I think the kids and I will head across the cul-de-sac to Savvy Momma's house to hang out for a bit. (I don't feel like being quarantined to our master bedroom again.) :)

Still no word from Canon on my camera....Grrrr.....

Have a great weekend all!

Yet another reason to lose it.

Hello all! Hope everyone enjoyed the Memorial Day weekend. Some of my family came down to visit for the weekend. We had a nice time and it was so fun to see how much Big Brother enjoyed their visit too. It was also wonderful to have them meet Baby Sissy for the first time.

At the moment the kids and I have been quarantined to my master bedroom. Handsome Hubby is downstairs working a bit on the hardwood floor project. He pulled out the carpet that was originally in the dining room and is in the beginning stages of laying down hardwood flooring. When we had the house built we had all of the downstairs except the living and dining room laid with hardwood. I love the hardwood and hated having it in the dining room however it was going to be A LOT more to have it done at the time it was built so we just decided to wait. I simply cannot wait to get my camera back to start taking and posting pictures!

No word yet on the camera but it should have arrived at Canon's repair center sometime today. Hopefully I'll hear from them soon and hopefully it won't cost as much as I fear it will. Fingers crossed!

I went for another walk today with my friend Savvy Momma. I think we both would like to start going for our walks more regularly it's just been a challenge coordinating the kids' schedule to do so. I always feel so much better after I get out and get the fresh air.

I've got my eye on some adorable belts from the uber cool Preppy Potato which has inspired me to continue to try and eat less and walk more. :) Check them out!

Fleur de lis Collection - Presleigh Buckle w/ light green Fleur de lis icon

Bar Harbor Collection - Sarah Buckle w/ light green lobster icon w/green suede

Plain Jane Collection - Hampton Buckle w/ pink suede

On tonight's agenda; clean off office desk, charge ipod and download new songs, cuddle time with the kids. Ok, so the last one really isn't on my 'to do' list, it's an automatic! :)

Tomorrow's agenda; take Baby Sissy to get newborn screen, continue home office organizing, get hair highlighted. The stylist is coming to my house and Savvy Momma and I are going to both get our hair done. I'll have to give you the scoop on how I came about this little arrangement later. I've not had her do my hair before so I'm crossing my fingers on this too!

Talk to you soon!

Where to begin

Do you know the feeling? The feeling when so much is going on, so much has happened that you don't even know where to begin? That's how I'm feeling right now. Since bringing Delaney home we have been busy, busy, busy. No surprise to anyone of course but it seems that time is moving at a different pace right now. Honestly, I've wanted to post for a couple of days now but have been overwhelmed with where to even start.

My darn digital camera.

First things first. It's with impeccable timing that my beloved little Canon PowerShot has decided to break down. I went to take a picture the other day and when I turned the camera on the LCD screen was white. I then noticed that there appears to be a crack down the middle, inside the screen. Now I must say, 1 1/2 yrs ago when I was researching this camera I read several reviews complaining about broken LCD screens. Did I heed these warnings? Oh no, I chose to ignore those comments and focused on all the other positive reviews I read.
I went to Canon's website and received an estimate online as to what it will cost to repair. They estimate it will be approximately $107 to repair. As much I as don't want to have to drop $107 into camera repairs right now it is still much less then buying a new one AND I can't not have my digital camera. Soooo, I guess I'll be getting it together to send to them sometime today. Boo hiss! This means I can't share any pictures with you all until it's fixed. Darn Canon.

My darling Delaney

Delaney is doing wonderfully. It's amazing to me but Handsome Hubby and I already can tell that there is a difference in her demeanor when compared to my son at her age. Her cries are more feminine and she seems more delicate. Handsome Hubby says he feels like he is already treating her more gingerly. She's a sweetheart and does fairly well through the night. She is waking about every 3 hrs to eat which hasn't honestly been that bad. I was sleeping so miserably the last couple months of pregnancy that this doesn't feel out of the 'norm'. I can't wait to be able to post some more pictures of her.

Never ending Projects

This past week in between Delaney's naps I have been working on several projects.

1. Pint-Sized Adirondack chairs & side table - Remember the kid sized Adirondack chairs I purchased at Michael's last month? Well, I finally finished painting them yesterday. Scheww! That ended up being a pain in the rear. I should have spray painted them rather then hand painting. Very time consuming. Anyway, I ended up painting them white but now of course am wishing I would have gone with the fun red I had originally considered. I think I will add a fun red flower pot to the table and that will be the punch of color it needs.

2. Home Office Projects - If you recall from one of my much earlier posts I included instructions on how to customize a bulletin board and I included a picture of one I made? Well, I found some super fun apple green white outdoor fabric at Walmart of all places and I decided that was more the look I was after for my office. So, I repainted the frame of the bulletin board black, then added my new fabric. I just bought some ribbon to trim it out but it's almost done and it looks great! I cannot wait to show you pictures.
I also spray painted black a light fixture that we had replaced from another room to now use in my office. I think it will look nice and using it makes me feel awfully resourceful! :) Now I just need to get Handsome Hubby to hang it for me. During my black spray painting frenzy yesterday I also painted a floor lamp and iron wall plaque. I plan to use both in my office. Again, can't wait to be able to take pictures to show everyone.

I have a long, long list of other projects I've got in the pipeline but I'll have to save those for another day!

Sorry no pictures on this post! I know I personally enjoy posts with pictures most so I hope to have some soon!

***Update - I posted this and left it for awhile then came back and re-read and it was just WAY too long. So, I trimmed down my project list for the sake of everyone's time today and will post more later!**** :)

And now we're complete.

Hello All! Hope everyone is doing well and is getting ready to have a great weekend!

First to the most exciting news for us! Delaney Elizabeth arrived on Monday, May 14th at 3:02pm, weighing in at a whooping 9lbs, 9oz, 20 inches long. As they suspected she is a big girl and as we suspected she is just as cute as they come.

We arrived home from the hospital on Wednesday and time has been a bit of a blur ever since. Big Brother seems to be adjusting well for the most part. He has wanted to be held when he sees one of us holding her and he doesn't quite get the concept that we've got to be more careful around her but that will come with time, I hope! We think Baby Sissy looks a lot like he did when he was born except for the fact that she has blond hair and he had lots of darker hair. It will be very interesting to see how her look evolves as she gets older.


Although Baby Sissy was bigger then our first for whatever reason I feel like I'm recovering faster. I'm still sore and such but overall I feel like I'm able to get around better this time around and I'm not feeling as overwhelmed. I imagine this may change but for the moment I'm not feeling terribly overwhelmed or stressed. I'm trying to take it easy but that's a hard thing for me to do. The weather has been beautiful since we arrived back home and it just inspires me to be active. My body still is limiting me while I heal but I cannot believe how much better I feel overall then when I compare I miserable I was less then a week ago. I asked my husband if he realizes now (her big size) just how miserable I really was and that my near non-stop complaining at the end was justified. He assures me he does. :)


I must say there are signs that I have indeed lost my mind as I managed in my first trip out of the house by myself today to stop by Weight Watchers to pick up an information packet. I'm quite certain the WW reception thought I had lost my mind once she found out I had a baby Monday. Hey, I just wanted to find info on it and I happened to be driving by and decided to stop. Cut me some slack! :) I also managed a quick trip to Hobby Lobby to purchase some supplies for my office redo project and I finished out my 2 hr getaway with a couple of quick stops at some garage sales in my subdivisions annual community garage sale.


At the garage sales I picked up a little stool that I will be painting and placing next to Baby Sissy's crib and fun apple green handmade afghan for $2. I did see a little wooden dollhouse that was cute and could be fixed up to be really adorable. Apparently someone had come by earlier and bought all the little pieces for inside the house. The house itself was marked at $15.00 and the more I think about it the more I might have to swing back by tomorrow to see if it is still there. Hmmmmm.....

I want to thank everyone who left such kind comments on my 'Heading to the Hospital' post. It really means a lot to know that I've been fortunate enough to 'meet' such wonderful people through blogging. I can't wait to get caught up reading your posts on how things are going in your world!

Heading to the Hospital

Tonight. Yes, we found out at my final drs appt on Thursday that I'm only at a 2 (sorry, perhaps TMI) so we've been advised to check in to the hospital tonight, Sunday night, at 8pm. They will then give me Cervidil to get the whole thing going. I'm getting nervous even as I type this. It was weird to wake up this morning knowing that tonight was the night.

My Mother arrived last night. She will be staying with Big Brother while we're in the hospital. Today will be a low key day. Here is what's left on my 'to-do' for today.

- Set up Big Brother's car seat in Grammy's car so that she can get around with him in a car she's familiar with.
- Show Grammy the easiest route to the hospital and to Big Brother's daycare.
- Set up infant car seat bases so that we'll all prepared to bring Baby Sissy home.
- Stop by drugstore to pick up variety of magazines for the hospital.
- finish outlining on paper Big Brother's 'typical' schedule for Grammy.
- finish packing my hospital bag


At my drs appt on Thursday they said I'm measuring at 41 weeks. They are concerned that she's going to be too big for me to deliver vaginally (sorry, I was trying to think of another way to say it w/out using the 'v' word). I'm just afraid that they may end up having to do an emergency cesarean and at what point would they decide that? I don't know. I just pray that she's not as large as they think she could be. When my Mother saw me last night she couldn't believe the size of my belly. She like a lot of kind people said that I'm mostly all belly. I guess that's a compliment. Honestly I'll take what I can get at this point. :) But hearing this kind of comment really only continues to feed my fear that this baby will be gigantic.

Please pray for a speedy and easy delivery and that Baby Sissy arrives a healthy and happy baby! I look forward to posting later this week with all the details. (OK, maybe I'll spare you ALL the details.) :) And I look forward to catching up on all your posts.

Ballard Designs Fun Finds

5 days and counting down....I cannot believe how fast this week is going. My last week as the mother of 1. My last week of sanity. :) Monday seems to be just around the corner and if I find out tomorrow at my final drs appt that she is not showing signs of being on her way then I'll be going to the hospital on Sunday night instead of Monday morning. Ahh!

Super fun blogger Christy over at BonBon Boutique just posted about some neat totes available at Ballard Designs. Ballard Designs! How could I have forgotten about you?! Seeing one tote in particular that caught my eye, I, like any obsessive shopper scurried over to Ballard Designs to check out it out. I love Ballard Designs but had nearly forgotten about them as of late. Thanks for the reminder Christy! Of course, while scouting out the cute tote I managed to find several other neat items which has further renewed my love for them.

Sash Tote - Here's the tote Christy posted about that I think is really fun AND great priced. It's only $25 and you can have it monogrammed at no extra cost!! Hot dog! You can bet some of my friends with upcoming birthday's will be receiving one of these little numbers.

Cane & Damask Clipboards - Now if you've read one of my recent posts you'll see that I made my own clipboard similar in concept to this, however, if you aren't feeling particularly crafty buying one of these on sale for 19.99 certainly isn't a bad deal!

Hanging Label Holders - In the spirit of my latest project, my home office reorg, how about these fun and functional label holders. Set of 12 for 15.00, not too shabby if I do say so myself.

Cane Personalized Paperweight - What office would be complete without a punchy monogrammed paperweight? For 35.00 this would make a great gift for someone and the best part it comes in pink and green too!

Hope everyone is having a good week!

lulu belle custom handbags

Congratulations Heather!

One of my favorite bloggers, Life with Lulu, is celebrating the third anniversary of her custom handbag business, lulu belle custom handbags! If you've not had the opportunity to read her blog or visit her handbag website you simply must! She has some of the most adorable handbags and GREAT fabric options to choose from. Heather is a stay at home mom that started this business on her own and it has grown through word of mouth. What an inspiration!

Here's an example of one of her handbags!

She also does belts! How fun!

Let the countdown begin. Oh, and bring on the hair bows!

Well, it's official. At my appointment last week they confirmed I'll be induced on Monday, May 14th if Delaney doesn't make an appearance sooner. This is great news but I will be surprised if I actually make it through this week! Being a huge list maker I can tell you that I already have about 5 lists in the works. One list for all the work items I need to wrap up, another for personal 'to-do' items, a list of items to pack for the hospital, the 'people to call' list, etc, etc....

This past weekend Handsome Hubby left to go camping with a group of buddies. They went about 3 hrs south of here for their little trip and let me just tell you, I was nervous. I was nervous because 1. I think I could have this baby any day, 2. He was 3 hrs away and 3. I have barely enough energy these days to go up the stairs let alone chase my 2 1/2 yr old all weekend. However in the end all went well. The camping trip went great and Handsome Hubby had a good time. Big Brother and I spent the weekend together bonding and it turned out to really be a little blessing because I don't know much one on one time we'll have again together once the Baby Sissy arrives.

I'm not sure if it's the fact that I'm pregnant or what but my thoughts are so scattered these days. Here's another list. This one is of some of the random thoughts concerning me at the moment.

1. Will I actually make it through this week without the sudden and very much expected appearance of stretch marks on my belly?

2. How is it even possible that I don't have any stretch marks on this ever growing massive belly?

3. Is it normal to be obsessed with hair bows already? I mean, I've not even had my baby girl

yet however I have a LONG list on my Etsy favorites of bows that I'm adoring. Who knows, she might not even have hair but by golly will she have bows!

4. How I cannot wait to change out my profile picture on my blog. I took the picture about 2 months ago myself, holding the camera with one hand away from my face. It's not a flattering picture and the more I see it the more I dislike it. But, I do not want to take a picture at 9 months pregnant so I must wait.

5. What am I forgetting to do? I know there's something missing from my various 'to do' lists and I will probably agonize over it until I have no choice but to accept that whatever it is will have to somehow work itself out, whether or not I remember it.

6. Why am I so concerned about getting my home office in order right now. Right now of all times, just a week before I'm to have a baby? Is it really the nesting instinct I've heard people mention or am I just crazy?

7. I think I am just crazy.

OK, since I don't think I can bear to publish a post without some type of picture involved here are a few adorable hair bows I'm loving. If any of you have some great sites or places that you know of that sell 'must have' hair bows I'd love to hear from you!

Some that I already love.

DaintyDivasBoutique - is this not just the cutest thing ever?! This is a great seller on Etsy and I'm submitting an order today. I just have to.

Gracefuldesigns - perfect for my preppy little pink and green girl.

LittleMissPrissandCo - super fun little hot pink bow

Happy Monday!

Let the Mother's Day gift ideas begin!

While perusing through my favorite daily blog reads today I came across this necklace that I just adore and had to share it with you all. This is a strong hint, hint to Handsome Hubby or any other beloved family member of mine that may be looking for a 'new mom' gift idea. ;) This necklace was featured on a great blog site, Cool Mom Picks and I just have to have it! Check out the little crown charm . So cute! Click here to reach the Give Simple website to check it out for yourself.
Use code COOLMOM (all caps) for 10% off your total order at Give Simple through June 1!

For those of you that aren't familiar with the blog Cool Mom Picks you really need to check it out. I've found so many great items on this blog!


Separately, I'm super excited for the arrival of a book I just ordered off of Amazon. I learned about this book awhile back on one of the many blogs I read. I'm so sorry I can't recall which one it was otherwise I'd give you a big shout out fellow blogger!

Anyway, this book is supposed to be so inspiring, and well, if you know me, I LOVE to be inspired. Just tracked the package and it has already arrived in the KC metro which means I'll for sure have it by the weekend. Woo hoo! Can't wait to open it up and start dreaming!

As you all know I've been slowly working on my home office. Since I work full time from my home office as a Project Manager I've decided that it truly is important that the space is one that inspires me and that I enjoy going to. For goodness sakes I have to spend 8 hrs a day in here, I'd better enjoy it right?! :)
Anyway, in the midst of everything else going on in my life right now I'm hoping that I'll get to slowly work on making it a space to love while I'm out on maternity leave. That way when I return from leave it'll maybe not be so difficult.

I ordered a few other things off of Amazon that I'll have to post about once I receive them.

Oh how I look forward to your visits little FedEx man.....