Saturday, August 30, 2014

IT'S ALMOST THAT TIME

I'm so excited Septmeber is almost here and I can finally put out our fall decor, only a few more days! I've been working on a few new things for our home and Kensi for the upcoming months. Today I made a fall garland chain using orange grosgrain ribbon, cream twill ribbon and black and cream herringbone twill ribbon {all 1-1/2 inch wide}. I love how simple, modern and cozy it is! 




Kensi is learning how much we love fall and she's falling right into step. Together we'll go to Hobby Lobby and she ooo's and awes at the pumpkins and Christmas trees. We are already talking about the pumpkin patch and she just lights up! 
Kensi at the pumpkin patch and last year. 

I've started making up some small activities to keep her busy throughout the day and decided to make Kensi her very own pumpkin she could decorate for Halloween. I bought a medium faux pumpkin from Michaels {don't forget to use a coupon} and four pieces of orange felt, one black and one green. These cost around $0.25 per sheet. I cut the orange felt into long strips and hot glued them to the pumpkin top to bottom and layered it until it was completely covered. I left the stem exposed but covered it with a little green felt so she had something to hold on to and also added a small green leaf. 
Then, I used a stencil to cut out face pieces for a Jack-o-Latern on the black felt. Because felt sticks to itself, this makes for a fun activity of creating a Jack-o-Latern for toddlers. It's just as much fun for them and there's no mess for the parents. More pictures will come in October of this fun little pumpkin in action. 

My last project for this week was a faux deer head. You know what I'm talking about. You either love them or hate them. The Hubster thinks it's just flat out weird and that's okay. We can display it during fall and winter and then it can go in my office/sewing room the rest of the time. When I first started shopping for the faux deer I was shocked how expensive they were. Most start at $80 and go up from there, that's just crazy. 
Luckily, as Kensi and I were strolling through the aisles of Hobby Lobby they had one in gold for a mere $60 {you can also find it online and still use a coupon}. Apparently it's categorized under 'Christmas' and I stumbled onto a 40% off sale in store. I still used my 40% coupon and bought a can of white semi-gloss spray paint.  I covered the antlers with painters tape and sprayed the head white. However, some of the original gold pulled away when I removed the painters tape. Most of it was on the back so I didn't worry about it, but I would recommend covering the antlers with a plastic bag instead to avoid additional work. 
BOOM! Fun decor at half the price. Gotta love that. 

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

A HEALTHY CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFIN

I love me some goooooooood muffins. I can gobble down almost any type of muffin but my favorite is chocolate chip. The problem with chocolate chip is that they are rarely the healthy option; usually loaded with lots of sugar and you know...chocolate. Today I was just really craving a good muffin and I didn't really feel like driving to indulge in something completely made up of sugar and other not so great things. 
After browsing through umpteen recipes on Pinterest, which we all know can be hit or miss, I stumbled across a list of muffins made with flax seed. Buried in this muffin collaboration was a chocolate chip version and since I had all the ingredients on hand I decided to try it out. 
I'm warning you now that these muffins are hearty muffins, but they very good for a healthy chocolate chip version from Pastry Affair, made with whole wheat flour, flax seed and oatmeal. I also added a few tablespoons of wheat germ to my batch. 
Kensi and I each ate one for snack and she is the queen of snacking. She's constantly asking for more snack regardless of what she had just ate: banana, waffle, cherry tomatoes, cheese, etc. She didn't ask for a snack for three hours. To me that's success in itself. 

So have at it, they are filling and delicious! 

Monday, August 25, 2014

OUR WEEKEND IN PICTURES

It was definitely a beach weekend here. We had a very hot few days reaching into the low 100's, but that didn't seem to affect our fun sandy trip to the ocean. 
We've been reading the book Olivia a lot lately and Kensi has learned that we have to be careful when we go to the beach because of the dangers of the water and rough rip currents. Whenever we get to the page where Olivia goes to the beach on sunny days, Kensi now says in a chilling voice, "Oh! Dangerous." 
This was the first time she had a real interest in 'building' a sandcastle. More like Mama making a tower of sand and Kensi smooshing it. She thought it was the coolest thing. 
We spent the rest of the weekend making making final changes to our fireplace project we're starting next week. I'm so glad Mike enjoys calculating measurements and dimensions it just gives me a huge headache! 
Oh and this totally happened over the weekend....
Yep, our first PSL of the year. I'm not sure if it's 'officially out', but the barista totally made one for us. We know, it's early....and yes we are addicts. 

XOXO 

Saturday, August 23, 2014

25 WEEKS



How Far Along: 25 weeks
Weight Gained: 12 lbs 
Nausea: None 
How Am I Feeling: Tired and achy
Maternity Clothes: I’m wearing a mix of clothes; some maternity and some regular
Sleep: What’s sleep? This past week has not been good. I cannot get comfortable at night and I’m waking up with back aches. Walking was a huge help, but since it’s so hot and humid I don’t even want to be outside. I’m still doing yoga, but if I’m being honest....I really need to do more.
Cravings: Fruit, spicy foods, fruit, spicy foods....more fruit.
Food Adversions: Pork
Movement: Yes! I've been feeling more and more movements throughout the day.
Belly Button In or Out: Out! It popped immediately around 8 weeks. 
Gender: Unknown. 
Names: We’ve started to narrow it down to some names. A few have really stuck out to us, but we’re still not sharing!
What I'm Looking Forward To: This next weekend Mike’s parents are visiting and we’re starting our faux fireplace...YAY! Oh and of course the Pumpkin Spice Latte....it’s a HUGE must for Labor Day.
What's Different With This Pregnancy: This baby is not as much as a stretcher as Kensi was, this baby loves to curl into a little ball and just snuggle.
What I'm Missing: Still missing deli meat, caffeinated coffee & wine.
How Are We Preparing: After Mike’s parents visit we’ll dive into working on things for the new babe.

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

TALK ABOUT M.I.A

Posts have become few and far between lately mostly because of just being busy and working on different projects. We're currently planning out demensions for a faux fireplace. I'm already stressing out about this project because it's a big one and I desperately want it done for all the fall and winter holidays, but I'm so nervous to do this! So far we have everything taped out on the wall and now need to purchase our materials. I don't like posting projects mid-way because sometimes it takes quite a bit of time to get the entire thing done, but I am hoping and praying {hard} this will be quick and painless! 
Of course a mess always comes with a project and that's the part I HATE the most. Kensi doesn't seem to mind though, she just adds to it. If I had shifted the camera to the right of my feet you would see a glorious amount of crayons and stickers on the couch and floor. Somehow I believe she thinks she's 'helping' even when she's not measuring the wall. 

In the last couple weeks we also had a neighbor come over and split our one flush mount light in our now dining room into two large pendants. It has made a huge difference! Just ignore our lovely mess of a corner on that book shelf :)
So that's what's been going on at our house, messes and projects. The end products will be worth it, at least I hope! 

Monday, August 4, 2014

22 WEEKS


How Far Along: 22 weeks
Weight Gained: 9 lbs 
Nausea: None 
How Am I Feeling: Good
Maternity Clothes: I’m wearing a mix of clothes; some maternity and some regular
Sleep: Yes I'm sleeping much better!
Cravings: Anything spicy, followed by fruit. One of my favorite things to drink right now is Starbucks Shaken Peach Tea Lemonade, oh my heavens!
Food Adversions: I still can't listen to the word pork, but other than that I've been pretty good. Although certain smells can really get me like jerk seasoning, Ewww!
Movement: Yes! I've been feeling more and more movements throughout the day.
Belly Button In or Out: Out! It popped immediately around 8 weeks. 
Gender: Unknown. 
Names: Lately, they've been changing, so nothing is concrete at this point.  
What I'm Looking Forward To: We finally will have some visitors coming in the next month! 
What's Different With This Pregnancy: This baby is not as much as a stretcher as Kensi was, this baby loves to curl into a little ball and just snuggle.
What I'm Missing: Still missing deli meat
How Are We Preparing: We're still working on nursery ideas and will begin working on the baby's furniture soon. 
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