i'm just me

another new year

i've really been feeling it lately - time just flying by.  i am happy with a lot of where i have ended up, but of course, there are things i'd like to change.  i would like to be more organized.  i tell myself that it must be the creative side of me that allows for the disorganization, because honestly it is the creative stuff that is the most disorganized.  i've been working on cleaning my office area for over a month now and although there has been progress, it still is such a mess.  it's a long process - i suppose that's the reason i'd been putting it off.  i have made some progress decorating the guest room - another creative process for me.  i am not the type to just go out an buy everything and be done with it.  i have to 'feel' that each item belongs in the room.  and of course i like to make stuff.  so far things are looking good in there, but i have a feeling it will still be awhile before it is done.  i have been cutting all the 12x12 scrapbook paper i have down to 81/2 x 11.  that size is just better for the albums i want to do and it is also much easier to store.  i got some nice storage boxes at office max that are working well.  i am excited to get my desk clean - it has been a mess for years.

christmas was nice.  abby had so many presents, she took the whole long weekend to open them.  she loves the maisy fold out paper house i got her - funny that it was the last thing she opened.  she loves it so much, i have been thinking of finding a way to paint her a chipboard or wood one that will withstand the use.  it's very cute and it's fun to watch her play.  overall seeing her play is so fun to experience.  she will pull out all of the play food from its container and lay each item in a specific spot on the floor.  then she will put it all back, piece by piece.  she also kisses anything that has a mouth or hint of a mouth.  her grandma will tell her that something isn't so cute to kiss, and abby goes ahead and kisses it anyway.  i love that about her - she has such a sweetness about her.  so far she seems to be a good mix of being independent and being cuddly with us.  she is doing well in her little school and tomorrow we will start leaving her there until 1pm on the 2 days she goes.  i have recently spoken to bryan about my desire to eliminate his mom from watching abby regularly.  he has mixed feelings - he doesn't want to hurt his mom, but after almost 2 years of having her in our lives and in our home so much, i am ready to get the separation back.  she just involves herself too much for me - i need more privacy.  of course we will visit them more often, she just won't be over here so much.

i have got to find a way to get healthier.  i feel like such garbage most of the time.  bryan is such a bad influence.  what he most likes to do is eat and watch tv.  i wish he were the athletic type as that would inspire me to be since i am kind of a follower that way.  i want to be healthier and be around for many years for abby, so i need to make some big changes somehow.

i have some great friends in my life now that i am so grateful for.  it is amazing that i met them at work, and that technically they all work for me.  i hope these relationships just keep getting better and better.

here is some fun from december and christmas:

donna & crystal at our co. party

...happy new year to you

an update & some pics

ahh, finally an update.  i have to stop getting on facebook so much - it consumes most of my free time and it is really pointless.  i haven't done anything crafty in a long time and that makes me sad.  i have a friend's birthday coming up and i really wanted to be able to send her something special.  i have scrapbook pages i need to do for abby's baby album, and here she is a year old already.  well, here are some photos from last december:

baths are in the big tub now:

 

uncle ron came to visit

  

busted - getting into the presents we were sending to uncle kevin and zach

 

enjoying some mandarin oranges

 

abby's first movie - the princess & the frog - we went with the maya girls

 

playing under the desk

 

 2009 christmas cards, not my best by far, but did include a cute photo montage

 

climbing the stairs on the first try

 

opening presents at grandpa's house on christmas eve

 

christmas morning

 

christmas at grandma's house

 

playing with cousin zach who came to visit

 

the three of us

hello? h-e-l-l-o?

i'm not soaking in rays on some tropical shore, i've not been kidnapped, i'm not even all that busy really.  just a bit lazy i suppose.  it really all started when my laptop went kaput and i lost my HP photo editing software.  i don't know where i got it from - surely came with some equipment i'd purchased at some point, but nonetheless, we could not find it anywhere for purchase.  i also had PS Elements, so i figured i'd be forced to learn to use it.  yeah, right.  anyway, it now takes me longer than i'd like to edit photos which causes me to post less - because i'm lazy.  i have pictures from thanksgiving, christmas, abby's first zoo visit and a bunch of other cute stuff.  i suppose i'll get around to going through them at some point and post them.  does anyone have a pill i can take that'll get me off my ass?

in the meantime...  abby is growing right before our eyes.  next month she turns one.  she has all four front teeth and seems to be working on  more.  she crawls like it's nobody's business, even scurrying up the stairs if she gets the chance.  she can stand without holding onto anything.  she is starting to have an opinion about food, but is almost completely off baby food.  she seems to like flavorful foods (i even give her salsa) and loves bananas.  she sleeps all night - sometimes up to 12 hours.  she sleeps on her belly and still tucks her little feet up which pushes her bum in the air - of course i think it's the cutest thing.  she is happy, rarely fussy.  we can take her with us everywhere.  she sometimes kisses us by licking.  and yes, she kisses the dog the same way - that's where she learned it after all.  she still loves her little chicken and will squeal in delight when she sees it laying somewhere.  bath time is fun time.  she is in the big tub now and has so much fun.  our sweetie is also good at playing by herself.  she'll entertain herself with toys and books for long periods of time.  she is also a big snuggler.  she loves to be with us and to be held.  we have snuggle time every night and it is my favorite time of day.  i cannot imagine life without her - she makes me complete.

photos will come soon, i promise.

the best pictures

sometimes the best pictures aren't the ones of the greatest professional quality.  the rays of sunshine floating in through the glass doors give a feeling of warmth and reality to me.

and this blurry smile makes me happy inside.

 

halloween & thanksgiving

ok, so i wasn't going to dress abby for halloween since she is too little to trick or treat and we didn't have plans to go anywhere.  at the last moment, i decided to throw something together and take her to visit grandma and great grandma, and then her aunt.  my little princess is so sweet:

and here she is in her cute halloween pjs:

thanksgiving this year was at b's parents house.  it was nice to not do the cooking this year - and to only be the 5 of us and abby.  abby tried a few bites of mashed potatoes, yams, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie.  she is doing pretty good with trying the foods we eat.

a bookcase & a rug

i finally found a bookcase for abby's room and a pink rug too.  and how about these curtains i got - i love the ruffles.  they have others that have many rows of ruffles that i would have liked better but they didn't come in white.  i should get all of these things this next week and i am excited that i'll have more done on her room.  it will almost be complete - yay!  she seems to be loving her room already.  b takes her up there to play and she loves to look at everything.  when i get her up in the morning she does the same thing - like she is taking it all in.  there are real cute glittery butterflies that i think she likes a lot.  i can't wait until it is done and i can post pics.

b likes to play

see what happens when b is left to play with abby's toys.  and yes, abby is into playing with cups - you know how every day objects are more fun than the expensive store bought toys...

 

i am actually getting a bit of a head start on christmas this year.  i already have quite a few gifts bought and i plan to wrap them soon so that part is done as well.  i want to do some holiday crafts this year, so i want to leave time for that.  and of course, i have to make cookies.  b's grandma is going to share her cut-outs recipe with me, i can't wait!  i make a pretty darn good soft sugar cookie, but hers are wonderful and old fashioned and yummy!  and it's a family recipe that i can hand down to abby as well :)))

we were at babies-r-us the other night and abby was so happy that i had to take a couple of photos - she lights up my heart every day:

maddi's card, etc

my good friend alysia's youngest daughter, maddi, turned 3 in sept.  i always try to make her and her sister kayley special cards.  here is the one i made maddi:

abby and i have also started meeting alysia and maddi at the park on fridays:

 

doesn't maddi have the cutest hair?  she is such a sweetie pie.  i've always thought she has an angel's face.

and dinger loves abby:

 

abby loves dinger too and wants to pet her so bad:

 

and abby started crawling last week, she is all over the place now, but this is from when she was just learning - so cute:

feeling it

been feeling crafty lately.  my space is an absolute mess though which is off putting to my creativity.  maybe this weekend the time to clean it up.  whenever i try, i get sidetracked.  have got to get focused.  the holidays are around the corner and i have a few projects to do - it would be nice to have the space to do them in.

i love hobby lobby.  besides the fact that it is mormon owned and thus not open on sundays - it is a great place to shop if you plan to go during the week or on saturday.  they have so much stuff - i love to just walk around - and of course i love to buy stuff too!  there is another reason now - a guy in the framing department was so nice to me recently.  i wanted to get 2 more frames like one i already purchased a couple months back.  they only had one, but i thought i'd get it anyway and figure out something different for the 3rd one.  they are the type of frames without glass, so i asked this guy who was working in the isles how much glass would be.  he let me know that the frames went on sale for 50% off on monday and that he could hold the one frame for me until then and i could also place a special order for the 3rd frame at the special price.  he said they would also put glass in the frames as well as my prints if i just brought them in when i place the order.  so, basically, they will do it all for me and i didn't even have to ask.  how sweet is that?  if everything works out - i will probably go out of my way to send a note to store management letting them know what a great employee they have.  many people are not so willingly helpful these days.  in the same store - i have purchased spray paint, which is kept locked up.  often, the person i've tracked down to open the case has not been the most pleasant.  then i feel guilty for bugging them.  customer service is so important and it is nice when people are good at it.  

i wasn't going to dress abby up for halloween since we had no plans and she is too young to take trick or treating.  however, after seeing pictures of a few other babies i know all dressed up, i decided to give it a go.  however, there is no finding a costume actually on halloween day.  so, lucky for me i have some cute stuff for abby that made her into a perfect little princess.  i bought the tutu before she was even born - it was just too cute to pass on.  and the socks are from a client of bryan.  not too bad for a last minute idea.  we took her to visit her grandma, great grandma and then to aunt lynn's.  of course, they all were pleasantly surprised to see her and thought she was just the cutest.

room update & a purple baby

working on some stuff for abby's room, but no photos just yet.

need some silver wood frames for 3 prints i got at ikea.  hobby lobby has good frames, but they are closed on sunday so i couldn't get it done today - bummer since i was in a crafty mood.

i need to find some cute curtains for an idea i have to frame her open closet from the inside.  it looks good in my head, so we'll see how it turns out!  i'll need to look online since i haven't been able to find the kind i want at stores.

i also need to find a wide and low bookcase for the inset area in her room.  have not had good luck with this.  the space is 50" wide and i want the bookcase to pretty much fill it up.  i was hoping to not have to have one made special - but we'll see.

i am anxious to get these things done soon so her room will be more complete.  and i hope to get some photos of wider room shots, but without a wide angle lens we'll have to see.

with the weather finally cooling down, we've been going to the goodyear park most evenings.  abby loves to be outside.  here are some photos from tonight's trip: