Just thought I'd stop in and say, "HAPPY EASTEERRR!" We had snow last night, so I'm going to keep this quick and go work my mama magic to make this day special for Dyl. Here's some jokes to get you in the spirit!
Happy Easter everyone! Hope you have a fabulous day!! See you back here tomorrow!
I've been missing and I blame Sara Gruen for it all, and my husband. Sara Gruen: because she wrote "Water for Elephants" and I read it straight through yesterday. The story is ah-MAZE-balls!!! I actually wanted to go camp out at the movie theater (probably really unnecessary, but the only rational thought in my head), just to be one of the firsts to watch the movie.
LOVE!
And I blame my husband: His iPod crashed and he thought his life was over until the problem was resolved. Basically, he commandeered the computer, kicking me off, and working away at technical issues. Sigh.
But, I'm back today, with a long post to catch up.
My mom and step-dad's backyard is pretty awesome. The kiddos probably think it's a jungle. There's flowers and bunnies all over the place. Dyl and his cousin K had a blast climbing through the "tunnel" to their play area.
While the kids played, the grown-ups (do you ever have to stop yourself and think, "Hey, I'm supposed to be an adult.... weird!?") had their own fun. We're a "tutti-fruity" family... pretty colorful... entertain ourselves... odd sense of humor. Our bond has always held strong with picking on each other. As long as the majority of us are laughing, it's allllll good. For example:
{Brother Andrew and sis-in-law Jessica. Love them.}
Andrew has/had an upper lung infection, so he automatically became "Weezy". lol. And as the day progressed and the beverages got us rowdy (for lack of better terms), the heckling began.
Random neighbor down the alley yells at ?? and it has nothing to do with us.
Andrew: (loudly) "Hey, what did you say?! Huh!? You talking to us!?"
Everyone laughs.
Me: (acting as Andrew) "I may be fat and weezy, but I'll still get ya!"
More laughing.
It carried ON and ON and OOOOONNNN. Love my crazy family. I don't think I could actually share much else of our conversations. You may not want to know. ha!
{Side note: I do not think my brother is fat.}
The parents' dog, Roxy.. she smiles. I tried all day to get her to do it so I could take a picture. Didn't get it on film, but it kind of looks like this:
Too much.
We also celebrated Aussie's birthday.
Such a good uncle for letting the kiddies help blow out his candles.
We all had a blast together. Gotta love my tutti fruity family!!
Everyone have a safe and happy Easter weekend! See you Monday!!
Over the weekend, we went to Kansas to hang out with my family. While the husband was deployed, I was used to going about once a month for a whole week. I hadn't been back since Christmas, so I wasn't going to complain about having only a few days. It was a blast. I loved seeing everyone and being able to relax and laugh with everyone. I needed that break. I'll have to share more later. I have lots of pictures to share!!
And even though I love my family, it's so nice to be home. I love home. It's always an adventure unloading the car, unpacking, and all that jazz. When we got back home, Dylan yelled out "Hey the trees are fluffy!! Come loook!!"
Sure enough! It seems, out of nowhere, our trees had blossomed. The smell is fabulous!! I just wished my grass was green.
But, instead, it's covered in powered mini vehicles and toys. Sigh. Oh well!! Spring is here!!!!
I'm happy to be home. Can't wait to catch up in the blog world. I feel like I've been so disconnected to my web friends. Hiiiii everyone!!! I'm baaack!! :)
That looks great. My favourite sign of spring is the snow melting and the sun coming up earlier and earlier.
April 13, 2011 8:39 AM
Congratulations Kim!! Please e-mail me {ashleycrenshaw(dot)blog(at)gmail(dot)com} your information, and I will get Mr. Owl bundled up and shipped off to you!!
Thank you so much to everyone who has supported Launch Day 2011! I will be back tomorrow with more fun!
I love Spring, and I love cleaning (scary, huh?), but I'm not sure how I feel about combining those two together. My house is usually pretty clean, but having a house of boys, you know there are boogers under the couch, stickiness everywhere, and randomness stuffed into corners. Sigh. I will just let you know, I have anxiety issues, and not having everything "just so" fuels the fire. Anyone with me? No?
Well, I thought, "Hey, I'll see how Martha thinks I should spring clean."
DOH! Of course, there's a checklist. Go here to check it out.
Did you look at the list? I'm pretty sure I will only do about 5 of those things on the list.
But, I happened across some lovely EcoFriendly House Cleaning products from Mrs. Jones's Soapbox.
I really want to try them out. All the chemicals really get to me, and I HATE the smell. It's kinda like, "Hey kiddies!! Who wants to live in a gas chamber!?" Yeah, not me. So, here's to Spring Cleaning this weekend... blah. Who's coming over later for drinks?
You can still enter the giveaway for Mr. Owl here. Just leave a comment telling me your favorite sign of Spring. You must be a follower to enter. The contest winner will be drawn on Monday!! So excited about everyone who has been stopping by lately! Thank you so much!
Even though Indie Biz 3.0 is over, I have found another course to keep me excited!! Elsie and Emma have created Dream Job, a new creative business e-course! I always love to such in all the knowledge I possibly can, especially when it comes from the respected folks of this community. Love it. You know I'm signing up. Are you interested, too? Go to A Beautiful Mess for more information.
I really don't know which I like better. Long hair has so many options. I love the ease of pulling it up out of the way. But short hair, it feels fresh. Hmm.. Good thing it always grows, so I can keep changing my mind.
Also, you can still enter the giveaway for Launch Day! Hello to everyone who's new!! I've noticed lots of friendly new faces stop by. Love it!! Hope you all have a fabulous rest of the day!!
Indie 3.0 has come to a close (sad). Let's just say, I woke up this morning and didn't know how to start my day. Luckily, today is Launch Day (happy!). Many Indie 3.0 alumni are launching their stores, blogs, or new products. So, let's start the fun!!
The fabulous Louana, of 11th Monkey, has listed everyone who is participating. Head over to Louana's blog to get clickin'! You won't be disappointed!
And for me, I'm lauching a product. Well, sort of. I had an amazing vision of a notebook design. Yesterday, I was putting it all together and ran in to a few snafus. I will persist to get it all right. (fingers crossed!) So, instead, I will be giving away one of my super awesome vintage re-dos.
Mr. Owl used to be pretty creepy.
Yeah... creepy. So, Mr. Owl went into the shop to get a paint job and lacquer. I think he's so handsome now. Mr. Owl would love to come home with you! If you would like him to come live with you, leave me a comment telling me your favorite sign of spring. You must be a follower of i like your {{moxie}} kid to enter the contest. The contest will be open for one week. The winner will be drawn using random.org, and announced on Monday!
Check everyone out, show your love for Indie businesses!!
Because it's the end of the week, I wanted to share a hilarious video for Friday fun. Don't judge me. And now, I'm pretty sure you are just because I said don't. But really, you'll be laughing too. :p
I was going through a bunch of pictures on old discs and came across this video of Dylan. OOOOH where has my baby gone!? This video still cracks me up everytime I watch it. I thought I would share. Enjoy!!
Yesterday was so fabulous. Dyl and I found a shop with 10,000 (!!!) square feet of vintage goodness. You know this will be on my radar for like ever! The 12-year-old girl in my came out just now saying that. But, it was exactly how I felt! ;)
Here's just ONE bookshelf/corner. Let's just say the rest of the store was totally packed, as well. {The lighting is the store was terrible for pictures, but so perfect for hunting. Sorry about the in-store photo quality.}
My little treasure hunter. He had a blast looking at all the cool stuff. He's my son, for sure!
Now for the good stuff. Check out the goodies I found. I can't tell you how well they fit in for the Camp Moxie vibe!!
There were also these sweet mini plaques. I immediately thought of Spring. Awesome.
Vintage license plates are so cool. I want to collect one from every place I've lived.. OK, so one from everywhere would make an awesome wall art display. Decision made: I'm collecting license plates.
Sticking with the car theme, I found this sweet Ford hubcap. I'm not a car aficionado, so I won't try to say the year. I had the husband in mind when I picked it up, but he told me he doesn't like other people's junk. My feelings were hurt, so I'm adding it to my personal stash. hmm.. win-win still!
And the best find of the day!! {I almost fell over when I found this.} It may be mangled and need lots of TLC, but this mama was head-over-heels in love.
Just a canvas bag, you say? NOOOOO... look closer.
It's a Boy Scouts of America rucksack!!!! EEEEE!! The bindings are coming apart and the leather straps are dried out and flaking, BUT, I will save this beauty. It found the right home.
I woke up this morning, and all I wanted to do was go back. Who wants to come with me!?
I am so ready to find an awesome adventure. Honestly, I'm a hermit and would love to stay at home, or just hang out in my neighborhood. I don't venture out into the unknown. I don't tend to "explore". So, that's what I want to do today. I'm kicking myself out of the house and going to find excitement.
So, Thursday, I put it out there that I wished my child was a snowman (read about it here). Well, low and behold, during the baby shower on Saturday, he did his business. Yay!! I am the ecstatic mother that took a picture of the potty and then sent it to his father. lol. Seems a little odd, but it was a BIG triumph for our family.
We had bribed our son to do his business in the potty. That didn't work. Then, we took away all his privileges (ie: No Spongebob, no Angry Birds, nothing fun), so that he would focus on the task at hand. Finally, persistence did pay off.
Dyl knew that he got a big prize when he finally got used to the idea of going in the potty. We've only been talking about this for a year... sigh. Dyl said he wanted fishies. That just doesn't work for me. The last time the husband and I had fish, the husband's fish developed a weird fungus and died. Then, my fish decided to be weird and hide all the time, so the husband flushed it. No fish for us.
Growing up, I remember our school librarian having an ENORMOUS tank full of hermit crabs. Low maintenance, no noise, easier fungus control. Bingo! I have found our next pet.
We are soooo getting Hermit Crabs. I'm excited to go searching for the supplies and tank decorating. Hmm... I wonder what theme I should go with??? I'm 100% sure that I'm more excited than the child. {I'm a geek.} Wait... maybe I should talk to the husband about this.... I said maybe! ;)
This card from Old Tom Foolery says it all. Every time I visit their shop, I get a good laugh, and totally relate to about 75% of the cards. You should check them out! haha
BUT, I have to go through my 7 confessions. Just so you know what page I'm on.
1.) I wish my child was a snowman, so he would just poop marshmallows. Potty training for no. 2 is THE.WORST!
2.) Our family has something planned for EVERY weekend in April. Two baby showers, Easter, a possible Deftones concert, one birthday, and one trip to see my family. All the things listed above are super awesome-ly exciting, but I can feel my body wanting to give out already. Sigh.
3.) This weekend, the baby shower I'm planning (with some awesome help!!) will be happening at my house. I've thrown some pretty legen-wait for it-DARY parties in my life, so this one must rock. Under pressure!
4.) I have been battling a sinus infection. There's nothing that brings Sexy Back more than mucous and runny noses. I feel HOT! ;)
5.) Through my Indie course, I have been in correspondence with a TON of awesome people. I want to be able to give each person the attention I feel necessary to nurture our friendships. I have failed. But, be patient with me my Indie folks!! I've got my fingers on ya and will totally be knockin' on your virtual door to chat it up! Hint: If you wanna get in touch with me.. e-mail me. I'm so far behind with our Lounge chats. ♥ you all!
6.) I would be happy drinking Diet Vanilla Cokes and eating Cheetos all day.
7.) I think I've rambled on too much and lost you at confession no. 2. Ha!
This week, I featured part 01 of the Camp Moxie story. (There will be lots more in the Camp Moxie story, so stay tuned!) I wanted to take everyone on a journey into my shop, how it came about, and what Camp Moxie will be about. I love feeling connected to what I see. I'm a very visual person, which probably has to do with my creative side. But, the part I didn't mention earlier is that the items in the pictures I took will be part of the inventory of my shop (eee!!!).
In case you didn't get a close-up, here's additional shots.
Fun fun!!
I have always loved decorating, and have always loved vintage items. So, part of my shop will be fabulous vintage finds, that I've brought back to life. Just items to make your everyday life a little retreat - hence, Camp Moxie. = 0 )
I've pretty much decided, that as I feature products on my blog, I will give my readers the option to buy the items, rather than wait until my shop opens. That is, if something strikes your fancy. We'll say that's my little treat to you all! My readers are fabulous!!
And, this is not the only items I have. Oh, let me tell you... The husband almost keeled over when he saw the TWO storage boxes packed with other goodies. Ha! Did I mention, I love treasure hunting?
Hope you all have a terrific "hump day"!! Friday is right around the bend!!
Did yesterday's breakfast look appealing? Look at it again! haha
I happened to find the recipe for Chai Butter in the February/March 2011 issue of ReadyMade magazine. Love this!!
Here's the recipe:
Chai Butter
1/2 c butter (1 stick) at room temp
2 T honey
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t ground cardamom
1/4 t ground cloves
1/4 t nutmeg
1/4 t allspice
Mix all ingredients together and enjoy!! I love to toast up my bagels and then warm the chai butter in the microwave. I liberally brush on this buttery goodness and enjoy. Actually, it would probably be good on anything. I'm not gonna lie. Hope you try it!!
This story begins with a woman. A woman, which by typical standards, was in her prime at age twenty-five. The woman was blessed with an amazing husband and wonderful child. They filled her life with joy. She was in great health and spirits. She had a positive outlook on life. The woman appeared to have the world at her feet, but in fact, something was missing.
The woman knew in her heart, her soul, and her being, there was a page to her story that needed to be written. She was missing a spark, some spunk, perhaps. The first words to start the next chapter in her book of life was exactly what she needed. She dove into books, magazines, and journals searching for the right words. The woman needed to find her path.
Life continued on as she searched and dreamed. Dishes needed to be washed. Trash needed to be taken to the curb. The day-to-day monotonies clouded over her visions. The woman felt desperate to break free and find her happy place.
The thought came to her one morning as she was eating her breakfast. "Create the world that you love, so you may share it with others. You can share your passion and joy. You can create a retreat for women to find their pieces of the puzzle. You can inspire them to find their joy and spirit. There must be more like me."
She sat with this thought for a moment and knew this is what she must do. This became her mission. A mission for herself, and for other women.
